nerdeology | IC Communication

Mikleo?

Am I doing this right? Maybe I have to push something on the side...

[ Elize is going video this time, even though she usually dislikes showing herself on screen. It's embarrassing. Kind of checking to see if she'll be able to see him this time or just hear a voice... though, that's not really the reason she's messaging him in the first place. ]

...Hello, Mikleo?

Mikleeeoooo.

Hey, Mikleo. This isn't urgent, but whenever you've got a moment... I'm struggling with this "apple gel" you gave me.

I've been working on it for weeks, but it, uh, doesn't taste right.

Mikleo? It's Nightingale. I have a couple questions about your magic, if you don't mind.

Hey, Mikleo. Sorry I fell asleep on you. [a small, annoyed sigh] Kinda wish Atroma would've given me advance notice.

But anyway, you were right about the pectin. I've got apple gels here, and they look and taste like they're supposed to, so... if you wanna make them, I think this recipe's the winner.

[It's definitely late at night. Even so, Allen sounds thrilled. Honestly, he sounds happier than Mikleo has probably ever heard him sound. Like the sort of happiness Lailah would have if she found the perfect curler level of happiness]

Hey Mikleo! Mikleo are you there? I have gr-

[-WAITASEC HE'S NEVER TOLD MIKLEO ABOUT THE FOURTEENTH. CRAP. UH-]

Uh-!

I finally finished the apple gels! They're all ready for you!

[He's just...really happy about that????]

MIKLEO!

Michael o

Hey Mikleo.

I just got word that someone on the Caprine got a dragon egg from that giving tree. It's...hopefully harmless. [Hopefully] But I thought I should let Sorey and you know so you weren't caught unaware.

[In other words, you probably shouldn't kill someone's pet dragon. Talk about being a buzzkill Allen Walker.]

Mikleo, could you see if you can find Zaveid and check on him for me?

[in what is possibly the most exasperated tone Stefan's managed:] Hey, just a heads-up that one of my crewmates might ask you about apple gels later.

He got pretty judgmental about the fact that I "didn't study them," so I'm gonna guess that he wants to play 20 Questions.

[There is a blue and gold box addressed to Mikleo, complete with a cute little white ribbon.

It contains a dozen teal macarons brushed with edible gold glitter, as well as a treatise on water magic he smuggled out of a Spirit-faction library.

There is also a neatly-folded note.]

Mikleo,

I hope this package finds you well. The macarons are a special recipe taught to me by my father, and the book is something I found while running errands. I do hope you enjoy them.

I wanted to apologize for seeming particularly brusque or ungrateful the other day. Your concern is appreciated. If I am being honest, I am still not altogether used to others offering to help me, even though it has been some years since I left my home the first time. What you saw was unfortunate; I usually take care of myself before it becomes that bad, but I neglected to do so this time.

I am feeling much better now. If you would like to try anything written in that book, my schedule is very much open.

Belthazar Spellscry

[There's no preamble or buildup when Nightingale calls. She sounds tense and serious, and her voice is sharper than a knife.]

You need to find Sorey. Now.

It's still working.

...I-

Do you remember that one book Gramps brought us that we loved? Not the sigil one, but the academic text with the Asgardian poetry and the breakdown and analysis of its religious significance. I remember, your favorite part was the analysis and my favorite part was the poetry.

And- hah, it was perfect, the poems were on the right page and the analysis was on the left. So we'd lay down together on the floor, me on the right, you on the left, and we'd talk about it. Well, argue. You always thought the romantic ones were allusions to political strife, or whatever. I did so much cross-referencing trying to prove you wrong, but when you were right that one time? Man, I got so mad. I didn't speak to you until the next morning.

Don't laugh, it was a long time for me! Not talking to you for a whole day!

...it was so long.

Edited 2016-09-14 15:50 (UTC)

[Her voice sounds quiet, so as not to disturb the other patients in the clinic, but also, she just sounds tired.]

Hey. It's Nightingale. I understand if you don't want to hear me of all people right now- I wouldn't in your position- but you and Sorey have always seemed like the ridiculously forgiving types.

I heard about what happened on the planet. What happened to you. I already know death never sticks in these places, but... It doesn't make it easier. It sucks, it's scary. Lailah requested I didn't tell Sorey, in case it just got his hopes up for nothing, so you at least have that dramatic reunuion waiting for you. Oh, and Lailah's here now too, apparently.

... I'm getting sidetracked. I wanted to apologize. I acted like I knew everything, but I didn't really understand what malevolence is, and how it can affect you. How it affects you both. I should have been more understanding, I... I shouldn't have just told you to go without a plan. I'm sorry.

Everyone misses you, so... Come back soon, okay? Please.

[It’s taken Lailah some time before she decides to leave Mikleo a message. After all, there’s a chance that he’ll come back...albeit a small one. She wants to hope the water seraph will come back alive, and prays that it’s not as a dragon. She doesn’t think Sorey can handle that again. He may well completely break in that scenario.

The fire seraph turns her thoughts from that as she sends a message to him. Getting his voicemail isn’t a surprise, though a part of her hoped….]

Hello, Mikleo. I know you probably won’t get this for some time—[If ever. No, she has to stay positive.]—but I thought it’d be a good idea to let you know that I’m here when you get back. Currently, I’ve been assigned to the Pathstone as a pilot, but I’ve put in a request to switch to the Huntress as soon as there’s availability.

[Lailah pauses and, for a split second, her face falls into terrible grief and guilt. It’s been so hard keeping herself together. It’s only been a little over a week since Rose’s funeral, and now...she has to deal with Mikleo’s death. She hasn’t been really letting herself grieve other than in the privacy of her own room on the Pathstone. Sorey and the others have needed her to be strong throughout all of this.

The Lady of the Lake takes a deep breath as she schools her expression once more.]

I’m...so, so sorry, Mikleo. My flames of purification hadn’t been enough to save you, and...I wish there was an oath I could take to make my purification strong enough to save a dragon. But...[She chokes up.] But there’s not, and we have to deal with the aftermath.

[Lailah takes a moment to just...breathe and get herself recomposed.]

Sorey’s been taking it very hard, and I’m sure that comes as no surprise to you. After all, he’d been a bit of a mess after your argument in the aqueduct. [The fire seraph looks sadly fond.] I’ve been making sure he eats and has some water. Whether he sleeps...well...even I have my limits.

[She shakes her head.]

Zaveid and Dezel are doing fine, too. They miss you, even if they won’t admit it aloud, and they’ve been doing their best to help Sorey through this. So are the other friends you and he have made here. We...we all miss you terribly.

[She looks down at her lap. There has to be more that she can say. ...Ah.]

I’ve offered Sorey the choice to reinstate our pact, but I told him that he can’t give me his answer right away. I told him that he needs to really think about it before coming to me with it. Right now...right now, things are too raw and painful for him. But, no matter what he chooses, he’ll still have me as a friend. So will you, Mikleo. After all...we’re more than just Prime Lord and Shepherd or Prime Lord and Sub Lord, right?

[Lailah tries for a gentle smile. She’s doing her best to keep everyone from falling apart, but...it’s hard.]

Anyway...this message has likely gone on long enough. We miss you, and I...I hope you come back soon.

[The Lady of the Lake wipes away a stray tear as she ends the message. All she can do is pray that Mikleo will come back. For once, she hopes that death is impermanent. It’s better than seeing Sorey grieve so terribly.]

[Dezel isn't leaving this message because he has a bunch of personal stuff he needs to get out. He isn't doing it to make himself feel better. He's doing this purely because there's a good chance Mikleo will come back-- Dezel himself is proof of that-- and he doesn't want his water seraph friend to feel completely, unutterably alone.]

... Hey.

[He pauses again. The static of silence is punctuated occasionally by nature noises. He still has that damn box Sorey got him months and months ago.]

If you can hear this, you're alive.

If you're anything like me, you'll be confused, out of it, probably irritated. Everyone's going to dogpile you when they find out. You'll hate it. You'll probably say some stuff you'll regret later. Just give yourself some time before you talk to them, and take it one day at a time.

It's going to suck at first. It'll still suck sometimes. That's just how it is when you're dead and then you're alive.

And if you don't come back--

[He makes a 'tch' noise, as if the idea itself is impossible to comprehend.]

Well, I'll see you later, won't I?

[That's where he ends the message.]

Edited 2016-09-19 01:37 (UTC)

So, uh...

[He didn't know Mikleo super well, but after the dust's starting to settle, after seeing the way Sorey talks, after... well, everything, he can't help wanting to leave a message.]

When I first became a vampire, I woke up about seven hours later in the middle of the road. Didn't know what had happened, didn't know why my heart was racing so fast, didn't know anything. All I knew were this heightened emotions that I couldn't control - love, anger, joy, all of that was above and beyond what I'd ever felt.

But because I wasn't the only one? Because I had friends who pulled me back from the brink when I was about to do stupid things? I made it out, and I...

[He pauses,] If you're hearing this, then I know you've come back, and there might be some odd bumps in the road. I don't know how Atroma's thing works, and you're sure no vampire.

But Mikleo, you're not alone. I'm sorry that I wasn't there sooner. I'm sorry that I wasn't listening to you when I should've, and I'm especially sorry that I'm choosing to leave a message now instead of talking to you weeks and weeks ago.

[There's a long moment of silence, and he almost laughs at himself and his terrible, terrible lack of foresight. Good grief, Salvatore, get it together - ]

I hope I'll see you again soon. And hopefully this time around? Maybe I can be more honest with you too.

Mikleo, I'm going to swing by the Iskaulit. Want me to check out the library for anything new?

[Belthazar's been a little out of the loop lately, so he's not even sure if Mikleo came back-- but he's hoping that he did.]

Hi, Mikleo. I'm... not sure if you're here, but your name is still in the registry, so I...

[This is going swell already.]

I hope you're doing well. I'm-- I'm thinking of holding a potluck. It was Sorey's idea, a couple weeks ago. I invited him to make something with me to... distract him. In the end he made me feel better, but I guess he's just that kind of person.

A-anyway, I'd really like it if you came. If you can't, that's fine, too. I can bring you leftovers or whatever you'd like. I don't mind.

[He isn't sure what else to say. They weren't especially close, but Belth likes him, and he's absolute rubbish at showing it. So the message ends there.]

[Mikleo will find a package waiting for him! It's wrapped in the usual tradition with blue and gold foil. The box contains assorted cookies, both mundane (sparkly blue and gold macarons) and magical (they change from vanilla to chocolate again as they are being eaten).

Contained is a book of fairy tales from some planet they haven't visited, wrapped in this ocean-themed cloth book cover, which is carefully stitched by hand. There is also a palm-sized seashell that has been enchanted to cast wave-like light against the ceiling and walls.

And a letter:]

Mikleo,

On Azeroth we celebrate something called the Feast of Winter Veil, which welcomes Greatfather Winter as he prepares the earth for the new season. In ancient times it was essentially a holiday worshiping a water elemental. I thought you would find that amusing. It seemed right to give you something, seeing as you are the resident water elemental-- and also, my friend.

Feel free to give the food to Sorey if you'd like. The book is something I found a few systems back and lost at the bottom of my collection; I thought you might like it. The shell is enchanted to throw light, and you can control this either with a soft touch or by saying the word 'luminis'.

You are invited to the feast tonight on the Bishop, and of course you may bring Sorey.

Warm wishes,
Belthazar

Edited 2016-12-25 21:13 (UTC)

Hey Mikleo, so are we dating?

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