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WHO: Lux Crownguard, and you!
WHEN: 9/1 - 9/15
WHERE: Caissa, Gammon
WHAT: Letter writing parties, part-time jobs, terrorizing the kitchen for the sake of self-study and channeling her inner cat. If you want a personal prompt, please message me at

pearlescent and we'll work something out!
WARNINGS: Lux cooking. No other warnings needed.

♕ o1. FIVE MORE MINUTES.

[ Between Shiki's dog carrier and Teddy's... "thoughtful" gift, K203 was a bit loud. Naturally something of a light sleeper, this means that Lux hasn't actually been sleeping much at night. Or during the day. Or really at all.

So, the blond has taken to (accidentally) falling asleep in some strange places. In the middle of eating lunch, in the middle of studying, sometimes even in the middle of walking (watch out!). She'll mumble an apology if she runs into someone, but for the most part, she looks and sounds more zombie than woman. Will she be all right? ]

♕ o2. HELL'S KITCHEN PART 2.

[ Who let her back in the kitchen?

It's time for everyone's least favorite cooking show, with your star, the clumsy chef Lux Crownguard. On today's menu? Looks like pasta, something that she had been practicing along with the poor soul who had taken it upon himself to teach her how to cook. On the plus side, it looks like she's improved from the last time, so the kitchen probably won't burn down!

But... ]

sort of

[ There's also that.

All right, so what did Subaki say? Cut everything in perfectly measured pieces? Oh, but Sion said that that wasn't as important, that she should worry about presentation later. Was it important to make sure it looked good as well as tasted good? She wasn't sure...

Watching over the pot like her very life depending on it, staring the thing down with a deep-creased frown, she checked her pocket watch religiously. She would get this right.

Just a little taste to see and— ]

[ Augh, that wasn't like an onion at all! It's probably not a good sign when someone starts sputtering and coughing after trying their own food, is it? ]

♕ o3. THE LIGHT MAGE IS A PART-TIMER.

[ Are you out running errands? Having a day on the town? Wasting time and/or money? Hey, doesn't that cashier look familiar? Or that person washing dishes (lord knows that's the only way anyone will let her get close to the kitchen)? She keeps popping up in strange places, always cheery and ready to smile when she's on the clock.

But off? She can be found either sitting outside of said shop or restaurant (see: probably sleeping), inquiring about part-time work or jobs, or shuttling between places. She looks a bit ragged, but somehow... still seemingly accomplished.

If approached between work (even if it's by someone she knows), she'll give a winced smile, waving her hands lightly. ]

♕ o4. PEN PALS.

[ All around the Hall of Glory, posters have been placed. Somewhat simple in design, they show a picture of what looks to be a hero sitting at a table, writing something. They actually don't look half bad, like the person who drafted the fliers might actually have a bit of an artistic knack.

The message is simple:

LETTER WRITING PARTY
THIS EVENING AT 5PM IN THE COMMONS AREA

SNACKS, DRINKS AND STATIONARY ITEMS AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST
LET'S SPREAD A BIT OF HOPE TO THE PEOPLE OF GAMMON!

And sitting waiting is a young blond woman. True to her word, there are snacks, simple things she likely picked up from a store somewhere, cups for drinks, and a nice pile of cards, paper and envelopes. Seeing someone approach, her expression brightens, and she gives a small wave. ]

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I think... [ Raising their hands a little he gets a... somewhat hard to read sort of expression. A gentle smile, a heavy sort of one, but not for sorrow but more from an immense sort of fondness. And will let his fingers fan across before falling against and interlacing with hers in a quiet sort of thoughtful repose as his gaze has dropped somewhere between.

Idle thoughts. ]

...that's something I very much believe in as well.

Even if that's not an answer I know yet either. [ Because wars between humans—

...they're not something he was meant to fight in. But he'll just have to figure it out.

—they'll figure it out, perhaps. Though he'd never expect her to follow the same kind of path of "both" he does. Just because he would never expect anyone to. But the thought that someone might..

It's almost a little too much to bear. And his hand stills for a moment. ]

But if it's one we can both find... I think I'd also like that very much.

[ Thank you. ]

[ Both sides.

It wasn't necessarily the question of how to undo that dialogue of hatred, although that felt like a missing piece to this puzzle, but that. In times of war, wouldn't looking at this this way be thought of as treasonous? Wanting to see the humanity in everyone, even when they were at their worst, and, rather than punishing them for showing such weakness, refusing to further spread those seeds of misery and hatred?

To want to protect both sides, and see that no one has to suffer the anger and grief of loss. And to prevent anyone else from being taught to hate someone they've never met so vehemently as she had been taught. When she asked him not to think any less of her, it wasn't as much about questioning that idea of wanting to protect something that she had been told to hate.

It was this. What she would do with that puzzle piece, once she was able to find it.

She wasn't sure if he would understand, if he would accept it. Allen Walker, the man whose very soul seemed to radiate strength and love... surely there was a limit, right?

And yes, she spoke to Ed, but not quite like this. Not telling him the full extent of what she hoped to do. But professing something like this, trusting someone so much to know that, even if he might not understand, he would still accept her for who she was, who she wanted to be... It didn't make it any less terrifying.

"I think..."

Looking up as he finally broke what felt like a long silence, she searched his eyes, his face, for something to discern. ...Another smile? Not one she had seen before and, as he fanned his fingers between hers, she followed his gaze downward.

That was it, then. He would— ]

...

[ Her heart caught in her throat, and Lux looked up suddenly in surprised awe.

He... He felt the same way.

When she first came to this conclusion, this realization, she had assumed that she would be alone. That her fellow heroes (for lack of a better term) would look down upon her, or worse. And she would understand, welcome it even. For, as she realized that this was the path she wanted to take, she assumed she would need to walk it alone. Keep it to herself, save for a very special few, who, while they might not understand, would not endanger her position.

But listening to his words, it was her turn to hold her breath, looking at him with such surprised awe. Something they could both find...

Finally willing herself to breathe, she smiled at him, an infinitely warm, fond, thankful sort of thing that said so very much. She was never good at conveying her own emotions into words, but actions she could manage. Because thanking him for something like this, for something that he felt as well, would be ridiculous. She squeezed his hand tightly, before releasing her grip. ]

Not if. Never if. We'll find it, I'm sure of it.

[ Because if he couldn't be certain about this, wasn't sure if they could find the answer (or if one did exist), then she would be confident for the both of them. Lux may not be sure where to start, but knowing that she didn't have to walk this path alone...

They would find it. Together. ]

Although, I will admit...

[ Her smile turning surprisingly sheepish, she tilted her head to one side. ]

I'm not quite sure where to begin looking. Something like this is a bit new to me. I've always been able to lead by example, or take cues from someone before me.

Edited (combining this into one and rewording it better now that it's not 5am) 2016-09-11 18:14 (UTC)

[ Please it's not like he knows either. In fact he's fully aware of how nearly impossible it is to fight like that, especially in a war between humans. He just believes in something so strongly that he keeps whacking away at life similar to making a square peg fit in a round hole until somehow it does.

Although as to questioning how well that works or not... ]

Isn't it just about following what you believe in?

[ It's stated as if it really is just that simple. ]

Moment to moment—you can never know what's going to come next. You can never prepare for that sort of thing. But if you know what you believe in, then how you fight, where you'll end up in a war—it's fine as long as you stay true to yourself. Believing in a thing like that means knowing what you have to do in almost any circumstance then.

Or at least what you can't abide by.

After all, even if you don't know where the path you're on will end up, if you keep going forward with what you believe in mind then it's still a journey of your own choosing.

[ That bit of reassurance was as much for him as it was for her. Because, while thinking this way might be as natural as breathing to him, for Lux, this idea was still new. So while Allen may be well-grounded in his convictions (or at least comes off as such), hers were still new and budding. Not wanting to see anyone suffer, regardless of what side they find themselves on, to protect them to the best of her ability...

Because seeing the way that the people in this world smiled, so bright and easy, it was the only logical choice.

He made it sound so easy that Lux couldn't help but hold back a bit of a laugh. You really were the most noble one of all of them, weren't you Allen Walker? ]

For someone who plans her days down to the minute, that sounds terrifying.

[ A comment meant to be more of a joke, not to clear the air, but a simple jab at herself.

Knowing what she believed in, and staying true to herself, that would give her clarity, give her a path to take. He spoke as if it was so natural, something that just anyone could do, and in a way, she wanted to believe it.

And so, offering up a smile, tentative and small, she looked down at their hands again, as if that would help her find the right words. ]

You make it sound so easy, Allen. Being able to walk your own path without hesitation, regardless of what might come your way.

[ It was true strength of conviction, something that she thought she knew, and yet, in that instant realized that she was so very, very wrong. But she wanted to know, what it took to keep striving toward that, to keep moving forward, regardless of the obstacles or consequences. And, more, how she could find that path herself.

Raising her gaze upward, her smile was candid, somewhat unsure but still genuine, still bright. ]

Can I walk that path with you, even if for a little while?

[ Until she found her own path. And even after. ]

[ "Even if for a little while..."

"...can I walk that path with you?"

It's such a simple statement, the sentiment of being alongside others for the same purpose a long familiar one, the closeness of camaraderie, and yet... phrasing it that way—

For a single very clear moment he could not look more startled. A breath quickly and quietly held, eyes flicking across her face as if trying to map it and piece that together to make it make sense. Somewhere between so very instantly guarded and entirely unguarded. Because right there, the sort of decision that puts on him...

...it highlights the sheer difference of the two worlds he belongs so very, very apparently. Because that statement, that sentiment... to say to want to be together as forces joined together in a cause is one thing, but to ask to be together to purely be beside someone for the sake of being beside them...

It's a very minor difference, but a very important one.

And one he does know and understand, actually.

And in Allen's world, where he was when before he found himself in Enprise, in Blanc, here and something he has been so very good at putting aside and not dwelling on... in that moment, he's reminded so very starkly how he could not allow her to ask something like that. Would bolt and run, to be perfectly honest. Like he already had.

And that hurts. A lot. But here... ]

Lux—

Edited 2016-09-13 06:07 (UTC)

...

[ Would it be alright if he just picks her hand up?

To clasp with both of his in a sort of gentle but threadbare certainty so it's not so apparent how his hands want to shake. Seeming so very much more composed than he feels as he brings both their hands up between them; almost like hands joined in prayer together as he bows his head a little. Lips just almost brushing her knuckles in solemn importance. Because this is actually a little terrifying somehow and the urge to just bolt isn't entirely gone. Realizing 'aa, this is bad...'

'...I really do love you.'

But after everything that's happened, everything this world is, everything that Allen isn't anymore and is more himself than he was for a long time, all the reasons that would be something he would have an instant and heartbreaking sort of answer for before, something to sidestep and brush aside even if he knows that would leave her shattered...

...it's a little shaky, but he lets his breath go and it's like such a very great deal of weight comes off him for such a small thing. ]

Aren't you already? [ To be beside one another with—here, in this world—the same ideals. As friends, as comrades. As someone important he couldn't imagine doing it without now.

Because really, the moment he stopped to think about it, what other possible answer could he even give?

That's the scary part. ]

Edited 2016-09-13 06:49 (UTC)

[ It was a thought she seemed to have more often lately, on a few different levels. Following that noble path he walked, attracted to and by that light of love that was very much a part of him. A light that she so desperately wanted herself, to possess something like it, strong yet gentle, and all-encompassing. To be able to fight alongside that light, the person who burned so fiercely, so brightly that she couldn't look away.

And that was what she had in mind when she said those words. Unsure of how to protect so many in this unfamiliar and terrifying war that they had somehow found themselves in, she looked to him, for he seemed to know what to do.

To walk the same path, until she became strong enough...

And perhaps after.

And that was where that camaraderie, that kinship changed into something more, and while it was not her intent to let something like that in, somehow, the two were beginning to become one. To walk by his side, as a soldier bound by the same fate to fight... and as herself, a woman who felt at her happiest simply in his company.

And that thought made her hesitate, frightening her just a bit. It was always so natural, the two of them, even the way his hand felt holding hers, something that she would have shied away from normally. How she actually enjoyed them, the small exchanges, the way that she could be herself in those moments.

No act, no put-on smiles, no overly-cheery disposition.

And like the black and white that had begun to blur together when she first began to let her guard down, so too did these two distinct differences begin to blend together, muddy at the edges.

...Was it all right to let that happen? To want to walk beside him, as a comrade, and as a woman?

(Placing herself between him and the javelin, it was beginning to make much more sense why she acted without hesitation.)

Seeing the look of alarm as his eyes searched her face, however, Lux stopped, her posture suddenly becoming quite stiff. She couldn't read what was going on in his mind, but for that instant—one that felt so brief but so long—her stomach dropped.

Oh no. No, no, no, she said something wrong, assumed something, made a terrible misstep. A brief look of panic filtering into her own features and despite wanting to, she couldn't look away. She miscalculated, misread him somewhere. Letting the lines begin to blur like that when they had no right to...

(You stupid girl.)

Even before he said her name (don't say her name like that, please...), she forced herself to shrug it off, pull herself out of it. He would see through it, he always could, but she had to do something.

So she smiled. Painfully so. ]

I'm sorry, I don't know where that came from—

Edited 2016-09-13 08:08 (UTC)

[ She always had to feel everything so intensely, didn't she? It hadn't gotten her into trouble before, but now...

(You stupid girl.)

Closing her eyes with that smile—that thin, put-on smile—then opened as she felt his other hand slip over hers. The smile still there, but even thin than before, her eyes set wide and watching him, she seemed confused. And she was, very much so, as with most thing with him. What was he..?

And then it fell away, left only with a look of uncertainty and confusion as she held her breath, posture once again stiff and rigid. Such a sweet and tender sentiment (again, her hand so close to his lips..!), her brow furrowed deeply, a conflicted look up anticipation and fear painting her face.

(Don't let them blur, Lux. Don't...)

And where his hands refused to shake, hers did, her fingers twitching and flexing gently. Time seemed to stand still in that instant, moving so very slow.

(Don't. Don't let the lines blur...)

And as he exhaled, she did as well, uneven and unsteady, but quiet enough that he hopefully wouldn't hear.

"Aren't you already?" ]

...

[ Taking in a short, sharp breath, she bowed her head suddenly, strands of gold falling over her shoulders.

Don't say that to her. Not right now. Not like that. Not after looking at her like he did before, as if she had knocked the wind out of him. Why? Why would you say something like that, in such a sweet, heartbreaking sort of way that made her heart skip and sink? In the way that only he could?

She couldn't have it both ways. She couldn't let those lines blur. She couldn't.

(But then, it was probably too late to save herself, wasn't it?)

So instead, she would move her hand, not away, but up, not enough to hurt him, but startle at least, as if to say "you've said too much." But instead of tapping his nose with their hands, her knuckles brushed gently against his lips, lingering only as long as he let them.

Looking up again, a hopeless sort of smile on her face, she sighed, almost chidingly. You really were impossible, weren't you?

But then, so was she. ]

I suppose you're right.

[ You could do to be a bit less charming in your proclamations, Allen. It wasn't good for her heart. ]

Maybe I have been for a while now, and I haven't realized it.

[ No, she shook her head, her voice growing soft, and a bit more gentle, and her hand, if it was still at his lips, moving away slightly. Her smile shifted too, no longer so frayed, grew overwhelmingly fond. ]

You've always asked me if I still wished to fight by your side, and I suppose I haven't quite been listening. But something like this...

I didn't think anyone would understand, But I should have known—if anyone would, it would be someone like you.

[ A pause. ]

And I'm glad for that.

Edited (fussing with this because it's me, also apparently she wasn't done talking this girl) 2016-09-13 13:12 (UTC)

[ A noble path to follow...

It's maybe in part due to the fact he can't see it like that. No noble and lofty "way" of his—certainly nothing that. He'd fluster and tapdance away from any kind of admiration for it. Even if perhaps that is so terribly ironic given that the moment he would think he wouldn't survive his war and would disappear that that would be okay—if only his struggle, his path, could serve as an inspiration. But to be alive and face the inspired who want to walk the same...

(You don't know exactly what it is you're saying Lux, though perhaps if we just consider our roles here in Enprise... maybe so. But given how she's seen and understood his scars too and bears her own now—maybe... maybe she does.)

But it's because he sees that as as a personal thing and the choices he makes that drive that only because he considers himself helpless to do anything but be moved to help the people in front of him. It's not a noble or knightly thing to do because for him it's simply the human thing to do because he couldn't bear to see someone suffer. So why... Why when even his comrades wouldn't agree quite so strongly, though the situation is quite different here where there are no akuma which are much easier for humans without spiritual sight to hate.

Why that single, incredibly important paradigm shift.

It's lonely, that path. And that was something he was okay with and knew no matter how many people were dear to him would always be his and his alone. A lonely thing but not a sad thing. No one would ever ask to be a part of it, no matter how much they might care for him. They'd wish him to not be on it, even if that would never happen. And he wouldn't see it as a woman and a man. (oh my god—no) But as two people together...

( "You and I.." )

( "Just a lost child and a Pierrot..." )

( "...are one." )

( "A weapon to save the world." )

( a promise made out of love )

... it would be why it took his breath away.

But anyway—

Anyway, that causes him to pause and blink slightly. As she's lightly muzzled him a little with her knuckles pressed lightly to his lips. (And perhaps for the unspoken slight chide there is a small amount of color dusts high along his his cheeks. But just a very small amount. ~~What? What'd he do?~~)

Lux, that... ]

...

[ Heh.

He smiles lightly for that, almost shaking his head a little as she pulls back. Before just giving a small nod and a light, reflexive squeeze to her hands before letting go and letting his own drop. Smiling like there's such a quiet irony in that—and that it's the best sort of thing.

Glad. ]

Aa. [ It's ironic because when he said he'd like to fight by her side that night on the balcony he never thought it would quite be like this. That she would want to fight beside him as he fights.

(Really, that's why he was floored.)

Thank you, Lux. ]

Me too.

Edited 2016-09-13 20:30 (UTC)

[ What could she do at this point? With this situation that seemed to very quickly get away from her, and, by extension, with him? With what started as something innocent enough, suddenly she said something that she still thought she perhaps shouldn't have. Asking something that was in a way too much to ask, and yet having him assure her that that was how things already were...

Why did they keep having moments like this? He was going to be the death of her.

...No, we'll not go there.

~~What did you do, Allen? There was a list.~~

And so, determined to once again take control of this strange dance of theirs, she used that same hand to take a sip of her tea (ah, it's gotten a bit cold) before letting all that tension out in something of an over-exaggerated sigh.

Good tea. Yes. That was it. Surely.

And smiling over her teacup, held there more for her own security than to hide it, a bit of a smirk began to once again spread over her lips. Not nearly as vivacious as it had been before, but she was trying. ]

I imagine people will start trickling in soon— [ If anyone actually intended on coming. ] You still have time to escape, if you'd like.

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[1/2] I hate that I have no good icons for this...

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