auroraexpress | (no subject)

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(no subject)

Who: Everyone
When: Day 20, evening
Where: The train and surrounding terrain

[So after all the earlier excitement.... dramatic organ music starts to play through the cars. There's no obvious source. It's just... There? All around you for a while, before fading.

Of course before the music fades there's more things going on. A mist seeps up from the earth outside the train and within the train simply seems to form like it's produced by invisible fog machines. As the mist grows into a thick fog, you can hear eerie noises. Distant wolf howls, the screech of a fox that sounds like human screaming, owls hooting hauntingly, the leathery flap of bat wings, and other, less identifiable noises of the night, strange and otherworldly.

If you go out in it, breathe it in, the mist will chill you. Make you desire... Touch.

The need to hold another person is an almost growing compulsion, but it can be fought.

However things that are harder to avoid are the flowers, night blooming wisteria in white and purple seems to have grown from nowhere in the train cars, hanging down to brush the heads of passengers with sweet scented blossoms, and the floors of the train and ground around it have become endless beds of gently glowing moonflowers.

The only places the fog and flowers don't reach are team cabins.

Effects:

Mist:

Cold that cannot be dispelled without touch, a desire to touch others.

Wisteria:

Purple blossoms cause an empathetic bond with the next person you touch.

White blossoms cause arousal and a mild to powerful aphrodisiac effect.

Moonflowers:

Share memories or thoughts with the next person you touch.

By morning the mist and flowers will vanish.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Anything new is likely suspicious.

[So says Rufus, bundled up in his cozy Ginger uniform in the mist.]

Yeah, that's what I figured. I'm just wondering how suspicious it is.

[ Like, are we talking Going To Make Everyone Fight Horribly levels or just Benignly Annoying levels. ]

Touch one and find out, why don't you?

[ He slides a glances over in Rufus' direction. ]

Why don't you?

Oh, I couldn't. I'm not nearly as bold as you.

[ You mean you're a coward. He doesn't say that out loud, though-- he barely knows the guy and his impression was mostly positive. Better than the impression his bratty little brother had given, anyway. So he pulls up a flower.... and tosses it in Rufus' direction. ]

Think fast!

[!! He takes a very scary flower to the chest, and catches it.]

How rude.

Naaaah. If it was gonna kill anyone it would've gotten me first.

It's not only dying I'd rather avoid.

[He's reaching down to pluck a handful of flowers, then dropping them on Crow's head. Like the dignified noble he is.]

Presents just for me! Awww, you shouldn't have!

[ He grabs one of the flowers, standing up and, if he can get close enough, tucking it into Rufus' hair. ]

[tbh the flower suits him.

He'd still toss it aside, but Crow's fingers brush his ear in the process of putting it there and well.

Now Crow's experiencing a memory. Nothing terribly interesting at first -- Rufus is just drinking tea and looking over intelligence reports in a fancy office. The reports contain nothing that'd make sense to Crow right now, probably. It's mostly lists of armaments at certain imperial army locations.

But after a moment, there's a knock on the door. With Rufus' acknowledgement, in sweeps a very fancy redheaded man, trailed by... Crow. A younger Crow, maybe 18 years old and oddly reserved compared to how he is now.

The conversation is exceedingly tiring. Rufus receives "orders" on the Noble Alliance's next maneuvers, preparing for a war that should be "just around the corner". It's almost time to enter the final phase. In the spring, the Alliance will begin their true efforts, and surely they'll be in control within the year.

Rufus nods along, but even if Crow wasn't feeling his total lack of enthusiasm it'd be obvious he's not as much the subordinate that this man seems to think he is. He's carefully steering the conversation away from the redheads's own plans and into Rufus' instead, making it seem like it's all his "superior"'s idea. All the while he's smiling politely, but inside he's feeling nothing but loathing for the man in front of him. Eventually, the man seems satisfied and leaves, but before Crow can follow Rufus calls out to him.

"He's ever the difficult one, hm?"

"You mean he's a pain in the ass."

"Now, now. That's a terribly crude way to put it. Here. I want you to take a look at something."

That "something" is a list of schematics for personal airships, acquired from Reinford. Rufus hands it over, watching Crow's face with studious intent, taking in every reaction and every potential weakness.

"Study these, and then give me your impressions next time we meet. Your group could use one or two, yes?"

That done, he turns back to his work. As Crow heads for the door, though, Rufus offers a parting word.

"Have fun at school, Crow."

There's a layer of sarcasm in it, but in the memory Crow can feel a tint of concern that doesn't show on the surface. Rufus has mixed feelings, but he's not sure how to define them. The overarching one though, is simply: frustration.]

[ The flower really does suit him, but it's not even remotely a surprise to Crow. Rufus Albarea is a very pretty man. But then the memory hits him like an orbal truck and his hand hesitates for a moment rather than pulling away instantly. ]

...Huh.

[ It's all he has to say about it.

Rufus gets to experience a memory as well, but this one is decidedly less informative and more lewd.

Crow isn't really seeing anything but the stars floating in his vision, but he doesn't need to see to do what he's doing. His eyes are shut, but there's the impression of pressing into generous breasts, hands firmly clutching a firm ass, legs wrapped around his waist. Lips tangled sweetly in a hungry kiss, lewd and wanting.

He rubs his dick between his partner's legs ones, twice, thrice before he plunges inside of her with a husky groan. The feeling is hot and wet and amazing, but he stays still for a moment, his cock needful and throbbing as he makes out intently with his partner. And then he starts thrusting, hard and fast and hungry. It's electric, it's magic. It's breathtaking and the sounds of both of their moans mingle in chorus as he thrusts into her again. And again. And Again. He pulls away, his eyes still shut as he murmurs into her lips.

"F-fuck," and he says it as though it were an obscene prayer. "You feel--amazing---"

And he's so close, he's so close, just a little bit more and he's going to--- ]

[WHOAH That is a lot.

Rufus recoils from the touch, his face going cherry red.]

What in--

[Help he's a gay virgin and what is this.]

[ Crow is, when he chooses to be, a pretty intelligent guy. He can put pieces together fairly quickly, and there's more than enough of them to give him a decent picture. What he saw from Rufus was obviously a memory-- and they'd definitely worked together before. On... something. He'll pick that apart later.

It goes to follow that if he got one of Rufus' memories, then the reverse likely happened. Probably because of the flowers. And if he's that particularly fascinating shade of red, then that means-- ]

You got something lewd, huh?

[ He's trying not to be entertained. He's failing. ]

...Yes.

[He's incredibly flustered, adjusting his clothes and trying to think about something sobering and not. Y'know. Randy.]

What did you see?

[ He could lie, but there's genuinely no point to it right now... And he still hasn't forgotten how sharp Rufus was during their first meeting. ]

A meeting with you and some pain-in-the-ass of a Noble. And me.