February Catch-all

[whowillmourn]

who: Mayerling, Murderbot, Pyrrha/Duty & others
what: Various February happenings
when: All month
where: Around Trench

content warnings: see individual starters

Comments

Honest builds Intimacy (Open) [Speed Dating]

[whowillmourn]

For his part, Mayerling has never, not once, in his many long years of life attended a speed dating event. Even the term 'date' doesn't accurately represent his romantic life. Courting is more like it, and as a vampire quickly smitten with his romantic interests, the courting stage has never lasted all that long. He approaches this event with hopeful awe—not with the aim of finding a romantic partner, as someone still in mourning, but for the chance to meet so many people.

Five minutes is nothing in the grand scheme of things. Rest assured, from the grumpiest dhampir to the most social butterfly, Mayerling wants to talk with you.

UN: transientguest Dramatic theater kid with a sun allergy.

( Johan Mayerling | ~6000 | male | bisexual )

[entreats]

Ange is absolutely not happy with any of this. If there's anything this girl dreads, it's meeting new people. Shudder. She'd rather fight a monster or something.

On the other hand, the girl also realises she's very much stuck with this. So by the time she appears there on the couch opposite Mayerling, she's pretty good at just pulling a pokerface about it. Even as their profiles are being exchanged, she manages to look at his profile on her own Omni with a pretty neutral expression.

"They couldn't even get your exact age, huh."

Even her remark is just her usual level of deadpan. Yes, clearly this is the most important thing to comment on here.

[whowillmourn]

Mayerling enjoys meeting people, and spending time with friends is even better. Whether Ange would use that term or not, Mayerling would. His smile's genuine at the sight of her, though his expression grows more pensive as he reads her profile.

"At some point, you stop tracking your exact age," Mayerling says, "If I wished to, I could do the math. It tracks across multiple calendar systems, however, so that would be an undertaking. I have never bothered since coming to Trench, so I suppose there is no precise number available for them to pull out of my head."

He glances at his omni again, concerned.

"What does your profile mean, discussing slitting someone's throat and making sacrifices to 'the dark overlord'?" Mayerling asks. He well understands Ange did not write the profile herself, but as removed from context as it is, his profile isn't a lie. There's no inherent judgment for slitting someone's throat. He's done it more times than he's bothered to count over the years he hasn't bothered to count. However, it's put together in a rather disconcerting series of imagery.

[ekkoeffect]

Ekko remembers him even before he's all but pushed into the seat across from him. It had been a while since the dream where they met, but Ekko remembered it clearly. Dreams and reality were becoming all too real to each other, but this time he can sit and shrug his shoulders.

"So we're gonna keep meeting like this," he says.

Can't just meet on a street and say hi, nope.

[whowillmourn]

Mayerling recognizes the dream walker in return. Though he still smells human, this is reality, not a nightmare. In reality, Mayerling has a far firmer grasp of himself. That lets him relax and focus on other matters, something he's grateful for.

"At least we are awake this time," Mayerling notes.

He glances down at the sheet of paper with questions and reads the next one. "What's the first thing you think of when you wake up, Ekko?"

[knows]

When Trevor sits down, he makes no move to check the other's profile. His own however is available for perusal.

"So who are you?"

Yes, they're both wearing name tags, but literacy isn't his strong suit. The other man does look odd, but everyone here did too.

[whowillmourn]

Trevor Belmont, per the omni profile, may have a problem with alcoholism, but that's hardly unique on the Frontier. Instead, Mayerling feels on alert. He recognizes the man from the network—a post about an internal toilet was it?

"I'm Mayerling," he introduces himself, no first name (it's been millennia since he used it) and no title (it's been millennia since it's meant anything). "I am an arcane scholar here, though I only arrived a few months ago. There's a lot to learn."

He pauses, but his clothes have never been much secret and his profile hints at it, even if his companion doesn't read it. "I am also a vampire."

Mayerling offers no further statement with that because he'd rather see the man's reaction.

[auferstanden]

Sarah has in fact attended speed dating before, though it was under a very different kind of duress: social pressure yes, physical force not so much. Nonetheless she seems to be approaching the whole thing with a sort of amused equanimity. Her hair, face and hands are rather dirty, since she's been working on the farm and wasn't given the opportunity to clean up first.

Someone in mourning is easily recognizable to her unless Mayerling's mental shielding is as tight as Fort Knox. It's an emotion she spends a lot of time around, and one she's comfortable with. And it's been less than a year, from Sarah's perspective, since her great love died. She's not looking, either. But she's not exactly not looking—she's not closed off. And yet she has great doubts she's going to find anything resembling love at this kind of event.

One dirty hand reaches up and touches her own thick white streak (leaving a few traces of soil behind) of as she offers the man across from her a shy little smile. "I like your hairstyle. Apologies for my ... dirt."

[whowillmourn]

Though Mayerling keeps his thoughts and most immediate feelings shielded, his overall sense of grief is readily observed even by those without psychic abilities. With them, well, Mayerling puts on a good front because it serves no good most of the time for others to drown in it as well. Admittedly, he's doing his best not to drown in it. Charlotte wouldn't want him to, and Ange kicked him in the teeth so to speak last month about it.

"Thank you, it is traditional where I am from," Mayerling says, "No apologies needed for the dirt. It shows how you make your living. How you contribute to Trench as a community."

Nope Octopus (Open) [Speed Dating]

[offinventory]

Murderbot comes to with horror. To its relief, the name tag says Hello, my name is: Eden Rin. It could, as ever, be worse. This situation is still hellish—being set directly opposite each other makes it harder to avoid direct eye contact. It tries the nose, the ear, the forehead, anything to avoid looking someone straight in the face. Chase all you like, it says not today, patron.

It gets worse. One of the random questions cuts closer toward revealing it's a SecUnit, and no thank you, it doesn't want to give that away to a complete or complete + 5 minutes stranger. When it lies, it gets zapped. The electricity doesn't hurt compared to energy weapons, and those don't do damage quickly anyway. Physically, it's fine. Mentally, it panics. Murderbot searches for anything on the network to identify this chair and its electric systems. Nothing. it lies again, and the zap is stronger—still not more than an irritant but irritating as fuck.

"Could we just not?" it asks the person across from it and every one after that.

UN: rin Signature move: Netflix and chill. No metaphor.

( Eden Rin | 42 | female | aroace )

[faceblocks]

"Totally. Fuck the system." Vi says, as she takes a seat with relief.

She's found a list of questions, but she looks it over again before she stuffs it in her jacket pocket. "I didn't see anything that said I had to use that list. Did you get a list?"

Vi might be able to breeze through this most days, but this seems like a hell dimension for someone like Eden. She points to her own nametag and offers, "Some patron's a real comedian."

[offinventory]

Murderbot relaxes upon seeing Vi. It doesn't need five minutes to know how it feels about her. They're already crew, but Murderbot doesn't say that aloud in case that makes this thing separate them as a consequence. Look, they are paired randomly.

"I got a list. If you want to talk about a childhood memory you appreciate, you can, but I'm not going to ask you about it," Murderbot rewords the top question into a declarative sentence instead.

It makes a face at Vi but doesn't laugh. "I don't know my age, so I'm not sure if the one listed is true or a joke."

Oh no

[obeir]

K's profile is probably just a regurgitated version of his rather unfortunate profile from Deerington. Enjoy that trainwreck.

He's frowning as he looks over the list of provided questions. Childhood memories, favourite food, first thing one thinks of when they go to sleep, whether they want to have children...

"They're very... human-centric," he says wearily, not looking forward to receiving more shocks simply because so few of the questions can even apply to him. Figures. He should be used to this sort of thing by now. But then his expression brightens with a look of recognition once he realises just whom he's seated across from — Eden Rin, he notes from the tag name. The proprietor of the Entertainment Feed.

"It's you," he says with a note of pleased surprise. "We met when I was—" Unsure whether he'd really qualified as being a 'child' at the time, he tilts his head in a shrugging motion. "I'm K. Thank you for helping me, before."

[cuddlery]

Along comes a scorpion woman, one who's trying to take this in stride. She tries to wave away her own profile sheepishly, and she has a name tag of her own identifying her as one Princess Scorpia. She just wants to ignore those things and focus on being her genuine self. Because if she just sees this as an event to make more friends, than this is one of the best things she can be kidnapped to.

"I hear your question, and I would like to raise you one of my own: Could we just do?" She blinks uncertainly. "Do this whole 'getting to know each other thing', that is. Just think of it as a new friendship meeting! Isn't that exciting?" She leans forward over the table to squint at the stranger's nametag. "...Eden?"

[tealeafs]

"Um, well.."

See, this is the upside of getting accidentally paired with Chizuru here. It's not like she's here for the speed dating either - please, she already has a girlfriend, even if it's technically meant to be trial dating for two months, but those months aren't over yet!! - and then there's the fact on top of it that Chizuru is a notorious people-pleaser.

Like right now. She glances around her right after the other says that, like she's already trying to look for another way out of this. If it doesn't want to do this, then Chizuru sure isn't going to be the one forcing it.

"I-If you think there's some way out of here, I don't mind.."

But it's kind of starting to feel like talking and sharing the questions may be the only way.

Or, you know, the other could always take a look at Chizuru's profile, especially since the Omni lets it know that said profile has been sent through automatically with a dinging noise..

Fancy Meeting You Here (Open) [Speed Dating]

[martyrofduty]

CW: references to captivity

The best news is that Pyrrha isn't tied down with a sharp implement ready to blow out her spinal column if she moves her head too quickly. Two seconds are all she needs to recognize the age old hack toward getting to know people—sex, romance, friendship, necro/cav partnership, whatever the stated goal relationship may be. The human race may die and get resurrected without memories of the time before, but they still invent this type of ritual. In Trench, Pyrrha puts her money on the Doorway, either directly or via disciples worshipping them.

She's relaxed in her chair, even once the aspect of mini bios revealed via one's omni comes out. It's not how she would describe herself, but she can live with:

Options You sit across the stone-cold fox of legend, the muscled scarred man Trench has known for months, or perhaps something a little bit squiddly.

UN: duty Word of god: stone-cold fox. She's just not that into you.

( Pyrrha Dve | ~10,000 | female | probably not you )

let's go with either of the non-squid appearances, you can choose! c:

[miyagimagic]

Pyrrha, you may have to be relaxed for both of them here.

Not that Daniel doesn't know this could be way worse - you know, if there was a monster or something else life-threatening involved - but he isn't exactly in the sort of position to be speed dating.

Even if he's, thankfully, sitting here with a friend. He could think of more awkward options.

Still, as the Omnis ding to show that profiles have been sent through, he still lets his face sink into his hands without even looking at Pyrrha's own.

No, instead he just says: "Please tell me mine doesn't say something ridiculous."

P-Please?

Squiddly?

[ezra_of_lothal]

Ezra blinks a couple of times, and raises his Omni, hoping maybe the profile that's comes with this song and dance will answer some of the questions bubbling up.

Nope, he just has more things he wants to ask now, really. His own profile may, from a certain point of view, be seen as straightforward by comparison.

"I..don't mean to be rude," he hazards, after a couple of seconds. "Just checking. Are you...ok?"

Squidness is concerning! How he could possibly help if the answer is negative, he's really not sure. But he can't just sit here and ignore it, if Pyrrha Dve might need help.

[survivalthroughhate]

Maul looked at the profile. Then back up. Then back down at the profile. Then back up. Finally he said something. "Hmmmm.....interesting."

His own was a thing of beauty and he'd laugh at it himself given how ridiculous it was.

Two Words (Open) [Speed Dating]

[martyrofduty]

While forcing people's hands is not his first choice method for building community, Duty won't squander the opportunity. He sits with good posture, the usual for him, and chats with everyone who sits across from him friend or foe. At least, he considers it chatting. As ever, words are sparse. While the Doorway enforces honesty, they aren't mandating a word count.

Options You sit across the muscled scarred man Trench has known for months, the stone-cold fox of legend, or perhaps something a little bit squiddly.

UN: duty Man of mystery. Good luck getting > 10 words out of him at a time.

( Duty | ~10,000 | male | probably not you )

Speed (not) Dating

[in_loveless_memory]

[When Ritsuka appears and is forced into his chair across from Duty, he is, at least, momentarily struck by how handsome he is. He then blushes deeply and sighs as he hears the familiar "ping" at this point as his own profile shows up:

"Ritsuka Aoyagi / 12 / male / Gay and uninterested

- Yes, those cat ears and tail are really a part of his anatomy.
He's a secret softie who loves to cuddle once you get past his rough exterior."

He leans back and closes his eyes. Maybe if they say nothing to each other for the five minutes they can just run out the clock. Can't be shocked if you don't ask a question, right?

Ritsuka glances at Duty just once more and his ears press back, mentally ticking away at five minutes. His cat ear twitches.]

[fogsong]

"Gimme your hand," Sharon shyly commands the moment she plops down in the seat, reaching across the table. She's in the leathers she wears when she's at the Outpost, spattered in beast blood, smelling strongly of the woods and the cold, though her gloves have been peeled off and stuffed away somewhere. It's the blood effect this month driving her for physical contact and, really, she's seeking comfort in an uncomfortable situation.

Her omni gives a soft ping with his blurb and, with only a brief moment of hesitation, she pulls it out with her other hand. She smiles as she reads his little blurb and the grin remains as she looks up at him, "I must have good luck then. I think I've gotten a lot of words out of you."

Her own blurb is like a caution label and a dating profile had a baby. It's a little more revealing than she'd ever be comfortable with.

[xiaoxiuya]

It's not the first time Shen Yuan's seen Duty's other body; it's not even the second, third, or fifth. But something about running into him in this context, where they're being at least gently encouraged to consider everyone they meet as a potential partner, has Shen Yuan doing a double-take. And then staring for a long moment, visibly running down a mental check-list. It's obvious to even a casual observor that he's having a Moment. A Disaster Gay Moment(tm).

Eventually he shakes himself out of it with an embarrassed little laugh, covering his mouth as he says, "Sorry, sorry. I'm just...processing things." He laughs again, rubbing his face. "God, this is what you and Xiu Ya were laughing about that one time, isn't it. The whole 'attraction' thing. You had me already all figured out."

Quality Time [Closed to Daniel] [early February]

[martyrofduty]

CW: Altered behavior (blood effects)

Another month, another set of blood effects. There have been a lot of shoulder touches, handshakes, and even some fist bumps in Duty's time at work. That's a lot for him. There's talk of something more (coldblood cuddle pile, much like the naps), but that hasn't been set up yet. He's restrained himself enough that Pyrrha feels the build up grow and grow and grow. She knows a couple other coldbloods who could probably use to blow off a little metaphorical steam. Today is Daniel's lucky day.

With a box of warm scones under one arm, Pyrrha knocks at his door. She doesn't have to bring anything, but he'll offer tea. The scones are great for that.

[miyagimagic]

When Daniel hears a knock at the door, he figures that it's likely one of his students. Sure, some of them just take the side gate directly to the dojo at the back of the house, but it's often enough that some of the kids show up at his door - either to get to the dojo from there, or because they have a different question or favour to ask him, outside of the lessons.

Except it's definitely not a student Daniel finds at his door when he opens it. In fact, there's a rather surprising face there for another reason entirely. He's not quite used to seeing this face on Pyrrha, after all. It's most of the reason why, when Daniel opens the door, he actually stands there for a moment looking almost frozen, his mouth hanging open just a little bit.

Give his mind a moment to buffer. It's trying to catch up, trying to tell him what he is likely seeing here..

".. Pyrrha?"

Is he right.

Because it sure is going to be awkward if it isn't her.