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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 6:01:35 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 6:01:35 GMT -6
“Would you like to join me?” they asked. They weren’t sure how she would respond, but they made the offer anyway. She was more than welcome to tag along if she wanted to. It was always nice to have some company, and they really wanted to get to know her better. On her terms, which could be a bit... fleeting.
“It’s unusual for you to be awake so early,” Silver said as Lumie materialized in front of them. She tilted her head to indicate that she was listening but otherwise made no sound. Just like someone else they both knew.
“Well, alright then,” Silver said, “but we should hurry, don’t want to be late!” They smirked at their own joke under the scarf. Being late seemed like such a ridiculous concern that they couldn’t help but to find it amusing. How could they possibly be late for wandering around aimlessly?
2 [136.85, 1.4] - 2
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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 6:01:58 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 6:01:58 GMT -6
They did have a plan, of course. Sort of. The falling snow reminded them of the Broken Time. Surely the mansion and its magic had caught up to the weather outside? The grounds did not always have the same weather as the outside world, but they did know that the snowy time correlated with winter, so they were going to give it a shot.
Clearly, Lumie was enjoying the weather, which could be expected. She did very well in the cold, and in fact was able to summon more with her magic. That explained why she was awake during the day - she probably wanted to see the falling snow for herself. Whatever the reason, she seemed happy to follow Silver around for a bit, and they liked the company.
The two of them headed down to the mansion grounds. There weren’t many people around the city, which was good for Lumie. She was quite shy and would prefer to disappear rather than risk getting seen by others. She paused outside of the gate that led to the mansion grounds.
3 [136.9, 1.6] - 3
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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 6:03:53 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 6:03:53 GMT -6
“A very strange place indeed,” Silver said. Lumie was a sensitive, intelligent creature, so they knew that she could probably feel the wave of magic that accompanied the unusual lands as well.
“It’s alright,” they said softly. They reached their hand out to rest it on her head as they would do with any other creature, even though they couldn’t really touch her. “I won’t let anything hurt you, I promise.”
They were unsure about many things, but that was not one of them. They had their doubts about the unusual magic energy, but they had never failed to keep their companions safe while traveling there. As tricky as the mansion could be, it did not seem to be outright malicious or dangerous. Or were they lucky? The less they dwelled on it the better, so they nonchalantly pushed the gate open and headed inside. If they kept moving, they'd have less time to think.
4 [136.95, 1.8] - 4
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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 6:05:11 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 6:05:11 GMT -6
Lumie was hesitant. She spent a moment observing the large iron gate that led to the mansion grounds. It was almost as if she was trying to determine the role the gate itself played in all of this. The way Silver paused indicated that the threshold was important to them, but she didn’t really understand. Her world was one without such barriers.
Not only did Lumie not really need doors and gates in her day to day life, but she also didn’t heed them. As a creature who could bounce right through solid objects, she had trouble understanding fences and the like. People seemed to treat barriers like walls, fences, and doors as if they were sacred. In fact, even if the door was open or the fence was too short to stop someone from stepping over it, people still regarded them as clear and understood boundaries. There was clearly more going on that she didn't really know about.
5 [137, 2] - 5
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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 6:05:36 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 6:05:36 GMT -6
Lumie thought people were strange, of course, but she couldn’t help but to wonder about the nature of this gate regardless. Like all gates, it made people stop and wait before stepping inside. Were they invited? Nobody else was around. Well, nobody that was visible anyway. There was always that tickle of magic that had been dancing around since they arrived.
Did people usually feel this way when they approached fences? That certainly would explain a lot, but she didn’t think it was true. Ultimately, she trusted Silver, so she floated past the gate and waited to see what they would decide to do next.
Quin was very excited about getting to explore. He flapped his wings a few times and climbed up from their shoulder to the top of their head. He liked it here. The weird magic, the unique creatures running about, always things to chase after and play with. It was a very good place, and he couldn’t wait to share his excitement with his friend Lumie.
6 [137.05, 2.2] - 6
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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 6:06:45 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 6:06:45 GMT -6
“What do you think?” Silver asked, tilting their head back a bit as if that would allow them to see Quin better. He scrambled to stay ‘upright’ even though it didn’t really matter. He chirped playfully as an answer to the question, and Silver nodded.
“You’re right, it is cold out here. Let’s go inside and see if they have some warmth to offer us.”
Quin, and especially Lumie, were probably not bothered by the cold, but they still thought that exploring inside for a bit would be a nice change of pace from the frigid walk over there. Not that it was guaranteed to be warmer inside, of course. They would not be surprised at all if it was also snowing inside. That’s just the kind of thing that happened in the mansion. If they didn't like it, they could always come back outside again. No big deal.
7 [137.1, 2.4] - 7
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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 6:07:07 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 6:07:07 GMT -6
Another barrier. The front door. It changed shape and form as the magic constantly twisted it, but for now it was just a typical doorway. Nothing special. Silver was glad for their warm glover as they grabbed the metal handle and pushed the door open. Their skin would have been burned by the cold metal if they didn’t have anything to protect their hands.
“Quickly now, come inside,” Silver said. They made a gesture with their arm to indicate that Lumie should come inside, in case she didn’t understand what they were saying. She bounced over to them and paused to look up at the doorway for just a moment before hopping inside.
“Good, good,” they said. It was an instinct to verbally affirm when a creature did as they asked, even if they weren’t actively teaching anything. They spent so much time praising creatures that it came as second nature to them.
8 [137.15, 2.6] - 8
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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 6:07:35 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 6:07:35 GMT -6
“I know you’d rather be out there,” they said, looking back at the door. “Why don’t I make it up to you by letting you choose which way we go?”
The foyer had two exits that they could see. Well, three including the door they just came in through. The other two were a closed door to their right and a stairway heading up to their left. It didn’t matter to them which way they went, and they would just make an arbitrary choice anyway. Might as well let Lumie choose, if she wanted to.
Did she understand the task that was entrusted to her? Silver knew Lumie to be an exceptionally intelligent creature in her own way, but they weren’t so sure that she understood common yet, either. As a mostly silent creature, did she even understand people’s need for language? Well, they would figure it out if they spent more time with her, which was exactly what they were planning on doing.
9 [137.2, 2.8] - 9
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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 6:08:50 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 6:08:50 GMT -6
Silver had made most of the decisions up until this point, so Lumie was expecting them to continue to guide the way. When they paused and asked her a question, she didn’t really understand, but she started to take the hint after a moment of silence. Even if she wasn’t deciding because they asked her to, she felt weird sitting still for so long, and would go out and explore… whether or not Silver followed her.
This would be a trip involving many doors. It would take some time for Lumie, a creature who lived entirely outside and ignored fences and barriers completely, to get used to the idea. Each door in the mansion led to something new, sometimes something completely different than before but sometimes not. It was a lot to take in, even for a person who already had a great grasp on the idea of separating rooms by their function.
10 [137.25, 3] - 10
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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 6:11:30 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 6:11:30 GMT -6
Lumie, of course, chose the stairs. She hopped up slowly at first, testing the first stair with her paw, then she leaped all the way to the top in a single bound. “Ah, wait!” Silver called out. They couldn’t jump an entire staircase by themselves, so they quickly ran after her, nearly sending Quin tumbling back down as well. He managed to steady himself, but just barely.
To get a better view of the room, Lumie hopped up on the banister for the stairs and looked around. A creature her size wouldn’t fit up on the railing like that if it were solid, but she had no troubles balancing. She was light as air, after all. Apparently, she saw something that interested her, because she popped back onto the ground and bounded down the hallway.
“Well this is exciting, isn’t it?” Silver asked Quin, partly just to check that he was still alright. It was nice to see Lumie taking an interest in exploring. It made them feel better about dragging her along on their impromptu adventure.
11 [137.3, 3.2] - 11
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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 6:12:36 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 6:12:36 GMT -6
Quin liked their new friend. She was made of air, just like him, and she was very fun to watch. She didn’t move like many other creatures he knew. It was more like she gracefully floated through the air, like a snowflake in the wind. The unpredictable and strange nature of it made Quin fascinated, and he would continue to watch her as she scampered around.
Another doorway. Lumie hopped through the open door without any pause for thought, and Silver was more concerned with keeping up with her than anything else. The door slammed shut behind them, causing all of the fur on their tail to stand up. Quin hissed loudly, and lashed his tail threateningly. Anything that threatened Silver was threatening him as well!
Lumie spun around on her front paws to face the door. She had not been expecting that. Her ears twisted around on an invisible breeze as she considered her options. Her friends, well, they were obviously afraid, but she was more curious than anything. She wanted to know why it happened, and the idea that it was a threat? Well, she wasn’t too worried. Not many things posed a real threat to a thing like her, anyway.
12 [137.35, 3.2] - 11
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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 6:13:09 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 6:13:09 GMT -6
The door was just the beginning. Just as Lumie turned around, and Silver scanned the room to find her, something else happened. A bright blue flame erupted in a traditional old fireplace across the room from them. The leaping blue flames made Lumie’s white body appear to glow in the way they suddenly became so much brighter behind her.
“Ah! Lumie, are you alright?” Silver ran over to her, fur still standing up and ears pinned down. They offered their hand out to her, even though she didn’t have any fur for them to stroke. She leaned into them as if she were resting her head against their palm. Why were they so worried? She could tell that they were upset, but again, she had trouble understanding their motivation. She tried to reassure them, the way she had seen Lei do, but she wasn’t sure she was doing a good job.
13 [137.4, 3.6] - 13
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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 6:14:12 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 6:14:12 GMT -6
“Good, good,” they said as they breathed out slowly. Nothing bad had happened, to her or to them. They could breathe again. Everything would be fine. Well. Except for the bright blue magical intruder, that is. Surely that couldn’t be a good thing? They were reluctant to even look at it.
Lumie wanted to help comfort Silver, but she also wanted to know what was going on with the fire over there. It was like it was calling to her, asking her to come closer. So she did. She slowly turned away, letting one of her long tail-like tendrils brush across Silver’s palm as she left. As if she was giving them one last thing to cling on to while she turned her crown toward the strange display of magic.
“Be… be careful,” Silver said softly. Lumie knew a lot more than she let on, so they were willing to trust her.
14 [137.45, 3.8] - 14
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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 6:15:02 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 6:15:02 GMT -6
If a puppy had run off toward the magical fire? Instant grab and a healthy step backwards. But Lumie wasn’t a puppy. They weren’t sure that she was even mortal. They kept a close eye on the scene, just in case the ol ‘grab and step backwards’ maneuver was necessary after all, but they gave her space to sate her curiosity. For now.
Lumie seemed to flicker in and out of reality with the light of the flame dancing around the room. It made her hard to see, as if she were just a ghost of herself. It wouldn’t be the first time she had been mistaken for a ghost, of course. What else were people meant to think when confronted with a cold, white, and translucent creature? She tried not to haunt people, though. Unless they really deserved it.
She took another step toward the flame. It called to her. The flashes of blue reflected off of her silvery crown.
15 [137.5, 4] - 15
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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 6:16:55 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 6:16:55 GMT -6
There was something familiar about it. Another step forward. Silver was starting to become suspicious. They moved in behind her so they could be close should anything happen. What would they even do? They didn’t have a plan, but they couldn’t do anything else, either. It’s not like they could physically pull her away, even if they wanted to. They would have to continue to trust her.
“It is beautiful,” they said softly. It wouldn’t be the first time they sat and watched a flame dance. There was something primal about fire. It was like staring into something else, staring beyond the world they lived in into something more. Fire was like nothing else in the universe. Not a solid, not a liquid, not a gas, and not magic. So unique, yet so mundane. Bright blue fires weren’t exactly a familiar sight, but they knew what it was like to be enchanted by the otherworldly beauty.
She jumped.
16 [137.55, 4.2] - 1
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