(mostly open) oh this love would kill me

[entreats]

Who: Ange, Ruby, and you!
What: Ruby and Ange's wedding, and all their CR is invited!
When: Late October
Where: The rebuilt Clockhouse

Content Warnings: Semi-irresponsible weapon usage.




Sometime around the beginning of October invitations would have started to be sent out to the various people in Trench Ange and Ruby know - announcing the two girls' wedding at the end of the month.

When the day itself comes, people will find the location - the newly rebuilt Clockhouse, which some of the invitees may have helped rebuild in the first place - tastefully decorated. Some of the house's stranger features have been covered up by decorations in red and gold, mostly taking on the shapes of roses and butterflies all over the place.

Comments

[entreats]

Oh, please.

[ Ange shifts a little so she's leaning a little bit closer into Anna's direction, considering the turn that this conversation is taking. It's something that's being talked about between just them, after all, no matter how many other people there are at this party. No one has to know about Anna's business unless she wants them to. ]

You know I don't mind talking about you. Not everything has to be about me today. I actually kind of prefer it that way. [ The less attention Ange gets, the better. Especially from big groups of people at once. It's the entire reason she was so antsy about this wedding ceremony thing!

So focusing on Anna instead for a moment? Totally fine with her. ]

Besides, all this stuff.. They're big decisions. It's not like you have to bond with her, you know? Especially if you don't feel comfortable with it. Everyone has different reasons for making these bonds. For me, even just aside from.. other angles..

[ Read: how much she loves Ruby, but even saying that at her wedding is still a touch embarrassing.

Just a touch. ]

.. I mostly just wanted to protect Ruby. Our bond helps to keep each other away from corruption, let alone turning into a beast. That's something I wanted to be able to do for her. [ Especially since Ruby is so--

Reckless isn't the right word, but she's always out there trying to protect everyone. Someone has to be there to protect Ruby too, Ange thinks. ]

You can have other reasons that are totally and completely your own to want to go for it or not go for it.

[entreats]

[ Ange's facial muscles don't seem to do even as much as twitch.

Though it's hard to tell how much of that is just a lack of surprise, and how much of it is.. well, just Ange's regular pokerface, and the wedding day is strengthening it, or something. It's impossible to tell which it is from the outside.

Instead the girl just calmly sips her tea before speaking again. ]

Ah, yeah. I read that fanfic already.

[ Statements that make zero sense out of context.

Well, at least it means she got one joke out of that entire ordeal. Thanks, Featherine. ]

[cuddlery]

A good old-fashioned hug! One of the pictures will probably catch them in the middle of said hug. Scorpia knows this place can make people do horrible things against their will, but she's still determined to fight against it however she can.

She chuckles. "I did! Guess I was feeling a little cheeky. You're just that adorable!"

Fortunately, Scorpia has had a lifetime of practice at controlling the force she puts into her claws. Otherwise she wouldn't be able to hold anyone's hand! Her pinch might just contain more pressure than human fingers would, hut ultimately not harmful.

"Oooh, I'm gonna have to up my cuteness game to catch up with yhe master!" She tilts her head and gives her most innocent smile.

[imaglyphwitch]

[Luz had always thought Ruby had this air of energy and eagerness about her. It looked like it was at its peak today, and for good reason!

Ange didn't have to say anything though- Luz knew that look on her face was akin to how she looked whenever Lexi was around].

Ripped? I hadn't even thought to use that word, but she IS that, isn't she?

[imaglyphwitch]

Luz knows this will probably result in a pic with Luz looking squished, and she didn't mind that! She could certainly think of worse pictures than being hugged by Scorpia!

She honestly hoped there wouldn't come a day she had to fight Scorpia though. She never would want to, and Scorpia was STRONG.

"Aw, thanks! You know, you're pretty hunky yourself!"

Cute expressions, sure, but "hunky" definitely fit Scorpia's appearance more.

This is true, and Luz feels very fortunate in that regard.

"Oh, please do!" Luz giggled at the smile, and this time went duck face.

You had to do duckface at least once.

[eudaimonikos]

Maybe try your whole arm. Just up, and then release when it's about eye level. That'll give it more force, too. You need that to really stick it in there.

[cuddlery]

"Thank you!" Scorpia responds with a grin, while flexing a bit!

"Ooh, I've been waiting to make a face like that!" With that, Scorpia leans down closer to Luz's level while unleashing her own duck-face.

[manyone]

[ Not the fuming or surprise that Beatrice was really hoping for and that's evident in the way a slight pout spreads across her face. The pout changes into something more akin to surprise at Ange's comment. ]

Eh? Fanfic?

[ EHHHH? ]

[manyone]

[ Break is right about that, of course. It would be amusing to do that to him, though something does hold her back--mostly that she is trying her best not to upset Ange too much. She sighs. ]

Or a wonderful bit of magic that brings a smile to a child's face.

[ She says it softly and fondly. Perhaps remembering a certain young girl and the joy that magic manifested for her. ]

[manyone]

[ Anna's remark does bring forth a faint cackle--though it's cut off before it gets too far. Beatrice shakes her head. ]

I don't know that I would call it human nature. Just that humans are short-sighted and can be selfish--gold is one of those magical things that enchants them and blinds them to things like cooperation and family. I've seen it happen time and time again.

[imaglyphwitch]

Luz couldn't help but get into a fainting stance.

"So majestic!"

Luz nodded, and made sure there were two sets of pictures of them doing the infamous ducks face.

"Ok, ok. Now one where we're just smiling. A 'normal' one!"

Too bad I don't have a Luz throwing icon

[imaglyphwitch]

Ok. Whole arm. Got it.

[Luz squinted her eyes, reared back and let the axe fly. This time, she managed to get her target].

Whoa! I did it!

[imaglyphwitch]

"Wow!"

Luz had been here chatting it up with a few people, but once she finally got the chance to talk to Luna, she found herself slightly intimidated. Once Luz is at the dessert table, she finally has the chance to talk to her.

"Your dress is amazing! Did you do that part with all of the sparkles disappearing into the air?!"

[payingfordeliverance]

Just so. And, with such a heart behind it, does it really matter if that magic is "true" magic, or just a clever bit of sleight of hand?

[So saying, Break raises the hand unoccupied by a teacup and twists it in such a way that one of the brightly-wrapped candies he always has stashed in his sleeves appears between his fingers, manifested there as certainly as though he'd summoned it out of thin air. He doesn't really know much about Maria, or the philosophies she embodied. That's why he says this as though he thinks he's guiding Beatrice to something that might be new, rather than just reminding her of something long known to be true. He's just someone who has been using little tricks to delight and bamboozle for years and years, long before he had any notion of what a "darkblood" is, and someone who found his feet in this place by taking it upon himself to craft a safe place to come home to for the gaggle of kids attached to his coattails after it dawned on him that he was the only one of them who'd ever known a safe, loving home at all.

No wonder he's the person Ange chose to be at her side as she took her steps forward, today, into a love that is nothing less than a miracle.]

Even in a place as stupid as this one... [He flicks the candy across to her with expert aim. If she'd like to unwrap and eat it, she'll find it to be strawberries and cream, light and festive.] ...smiles like that can be accumulated one by one, and built up like bricks into a fortress against the nastiness. No matter how "magical" the method, I promise you it is possible.

[hauntedsavior]

[dammit. deflecting never works with ange ushiromiya-rose. she should know that by now.]

Yeah... yeah, I know. It just feels like bonds or marriage or whatever are always supposed to be the end goal of all these relationships, you know? Like... everyone's got all these rituals, and Doorway's here watching us all, and it's like. Nobody's saying out loud, but a lot of people—Trenchies, sorry, not you—are, like, making the silent suggestion that if you like it, you should put a handprint on it.

[she leans back in her chair and spreads her legs a little, unintentionally. it's a slump if it's anything.]

Commitment's a lot, you know? When I already worry about having to be a good girlfriend, then I think too hard about it and ratchet it up into being a good wife? Shit, dude. [though, now that she's thinking about it, she takes in the part about lessening corruption. it seems like a way to actually do something tangible with herself when faced with something she doesn't know how to solve. her slump doesn't last long; she sits back up, leans forward, puts her hands between her knees. and she looks at ange.]

Do you ever worry whether you're going to be a good wife?

[hauntedsavior]

Me too, dude, what's up. [she raises her glass in a mock toast, but doesn't drink from it.]

But there's some good things to gold, too, you know? I've seen Ange do some cool shit with golden butterflies. I assume it's related to you somehow, o Goldhexe. [maybe she's laying it on thick. but maybe she's right.] 'Cause everything else from Rokkenjima comes back to you.

[hauntedsavior]

I mean, I guess that's a normal thing to be worried about. I still don't think I would be running out there kickpunching my way through some beast fights no matter how many weapons I had.

[she shakes her head. some people are fucking wild, and this is coming from someone who is anna.]

What even happened when that guy pooped in the clock? I've heard about that twice now. Do they have, like, beef, or was it just a party that went super bad, or... actually, fuck, dude. Now that I think about it, who even is Ozpin to all you guys? All I really know is how he slots in with Oscar.

[payingfordeliverance]

[To be fair, Baltus is not even a proper dog omen. Technically, he is a grim. But that in itself is intrinsic to who he is -- above all else, Baltus is a guardian, and it pleases him to be seen as a dog if it puts others at ease. Shiro is right to find him a little weird.]

Wearing it. However, whenever he does magical things, those are also purple. So, I think that he is purple, in the way that Ange is golden and Ruby is red.




[Xerxes Break is not a Galra, though, it's fine.]

[payingfordeliverance]

[That's something terribly sad, actually, the notion that Ange can't even trust that what's happening is real. And it's not something he can blame her for. In his old life, illusions and magical manipulations all tended to lead back to the Abyss sooner or later, and whether through the Hatter or the unknown power of his own eye Break could always see through them. Here, he's as much prey to such things as anyone else, and has fallen for it a time or three. It really does leave you feeling burned and betrayed, and no matter who you are, you can only take so much of that.]

You're right.

[However, when you get right down to it, the fact of the matter is that today turning out to be an illusion is far from the only way that Ange could end up losing what she has. You never know. Sometimes your family heads to a conference without you and never returns. Sometimes the woman you love wastes away in front of your eyes. That, Break thinks, is what really doesn't matter. When the threat is loss, no matter how that loss comes about, it will hurt.]

I promised I wouldn't get up in front of everyone and make an embarrassing speech today, so...I'll just be a sentimental old man at you here, where no one else can see. The important thing is -- we can't ever know what will happen. We all hope that these days of warmth and laughter will last forever. But if they don't, then...it's the memories of days like today, no matter what they really are, that will give you the light you need to make it through when the nights are long.

[He releases one of her hands so that he can tuck a stray bit of hair behind her ear.]

Don't be nervous, Miss Ange. When we get downstairs, just keep your eyes on Miss Ruby, and remember why it is you're walking to her. There is no power that could turn that into anything less than a "truth".

[This advice is going to be really funny later when they emerge and spot Ruby doing push-ups at the altar, and Ange gets to hear Break attempt to turn a laugh into a cough and mutter "Is she rea -- good grief."]

[eudaimonikos]

Wooo! There you go!

[entreats]

I can just..

[ Pause.

A pause that's definitely long enough to be noticable, and when she echoes the word back at him, it's with basically the same tone he was using. The hip grandpa tone. ]

"Dip."

[ Ange does know what it means, thankfully. ]

Wouldn't that be weird to do at my own wedding? I mean, people are here.. for me.

[ That small pause betrays the fact that she is remembering that fact as she's saying it, making her sound a little more tense by the time her statement lands at the 'me'. Oh god, so many people who are all going to pay attention to her. It's enough to make her never want to leave this room and go out there to actually get married. ]

[entreats]

[ It's kind of nice to see people in good spirits because of the wedding. Even though Ange was a little bit antsy about having to do so much socialisation - it's nice enough when she's around people she's comfortable with, and Sansa seems pretty easy to talk to.

If not just because she does not seem to be quite like some of Ange's more extreme extroverted friends.

It leaves her smiling when Sansa proclaims that last part, just glad to have given her a chance to see a different sort of wedding. Especially since-- ]

I get it. I think.

[ Even though they're most likely not from the same world. Most people in this place aren't. ]

You must have seen more arrnaged marriages, right? Where people mostly marry because it's convenient in some way, for the sake of money, or power, or diplomacy.. [ Ange has seen the like too, having been trapped in that world full of uncaring rich people for so long. ] Those are really a pain. It's enough to make someone forget romance exists altogether.

[entreats]

.. it's okay, onii-chan.

[ Her voice is so soft as she says it.

Because she can feel heavy with emotions too. And not just because he's so emotional. It's just.. Ange knows that she spent so much time wishing for the same thing. That Battler didn't have to miss all the rest. That if she couldn't get her entire family back from Rokkenjima, that he could at least have come back, that they could have stuck together to keep each other from being too hurt or lonely after losing so much.

.. and she also remembers being mad at him. Because when she read those games with Featherine, it seriously felt like he just abandoned her. Like he just ran off with that witch, forgetting all about her.

But right now, in this moment.. she can't bring herself to be mad over it anymore. That had just been the course of Battler's life.

And this is the course of her own.

So.. ]

You have nothing to apologize for. It's just.. how everything ended up. [ Regardless of what any of them might have wanted. ] If I had to go through all that painful stuff to end up here, then.. maybe it was worth it.

[ To be here, like this. On her wedding day, actually being able to hug her brother.

It feels like a dream. Just having a wedding by itself already would, but - having at least one member of her family present for it makes it feel even more dreamlike. ]

[imaglyphwitch]

And you said that you do this in, uh, the demon world?

[Or did he say hell? She didn't want to get that wrong. She was still trying to make sure she had everyone's story straight].

[eudaimonikos]

Uh.....well, not really anymore. But yes, back in the day.