(accidental) video; un: man's greatest treasure

[reparo]

[ -- and the camera starts transmitting, as someone pulls away from being very near Hermione. The talisman does not pick up the features of that person, at first, but what it does pick up is Hermione's faintly dazed murmur or:]

A-are you truly a witch?

[There is a brief pause, from the person - woman, you can see it's a woman (Miang-Si, if you've already met her) - in front of Hermione, before she darts forward again, darkening the view completely.

Before the trasmission cuts, from bodies pressing together too tightly, there is one audible clue: the sound of lips meeting lips in a surprisingly thorough kiss.]

- L A T E R -

[OH LOOK AT THAT, IT'S HERMIONE'S FACE. She looks a little more dishevelled than usual, a bit surprised.]

Th - [Clears her throat.] Did this thing turn on? [The indignity. Her first kiss in as long as she's been here, witnessed by the whole network. (Her first kiss with a girl, too! A woman even.) Earth swallow her up.

No, this is fine. She's going to grit her teeth and smile tensely.]

Right, so - on the bright side, I don't think Quangze suspects that I am one of her accomplices? The rest of the inhabitants still think I'm a writer of books on manners - there's something to be written about shoving your tongue in someone's mouth uninvited - regardless. I'm not - I've never met her before just now.

So, in light of that... Please all do me the favour of not mentioning to anyone that I am a you-know-what.

[ooc: Please consider this backdated to Miang-Si's parade on the 25th.]

Comments

[reparo]

She didn't really speak much. [She's going to bury her face in her hands for a moment there.]

I tried, but maybe she didn't feel safe to answer? Or ...or something, I don't know.

[weifinder]

She could have simply found you more attractive than struggling through speaking?

( said with a smile, and an offer: )

She told me they don't move the dead.

[reparo]

[She lowers her hands from her face now, frowning - and then notices the mark on her hand.]

Oh! Oh!! Look! [Aims the camera at her hand, where the words have shown in ink.]

Is this a tide thing?

[weifinder]

( he blinks, looking at her hand: )

Read that to me, please? In case I'm not seeing it correctly.

[reparo]

Right, sorry - our hungry mood rises red.

[weifinder]

Tides are related to the moon, so it may be that — or the moon itself, or both, or something different. I'm inclined to believe with the moon closer to full each night, or one of them at the least, we're looking at some danger arriving with the full moon's rise.

[reparo]

Great. [Divination. Gotta love it.]

So I suppose we'll have to be prepared for something, not that we aren't.

[weifinder]

With our general troubles here, presume something involving the dead and attacking. I can provide talismans to assist in directing them away from houses, but I'm not sure exactly how these dead will manifest. We might learn more asking the people of the village, as long as they remember things like that happening at all.

[reparo]

Right, the memories - that certainly affected some of us too, correct? Something here tampers with memories, probably magic... And then there's where the beacon is...


[He has her gratitude for letting her steer the conversation to business as usual.]

[weifinder]

Yes, the willingness to forget a truth to be covered by a cohesive untruth.

[reparo]

I wasn't willing.

[weifinder]

The cursed precedes us. Someone was.

[reparo]

In my experience, Wei Wuxian, when someone erases someone else's memories, it is rarely with their agreement.

[weifinder]

I don't disagree, but I'm imagining that here, at least one person did, and I don't think it was one person alone. It's too comprehensive.

[reparo]

Right - of course. I forget too easily that you're much more knowledgeable than I in these matters.

[And also old.]

And I am in need of a distraction away from this house - so if you wanted to explore, Wei Wuxian... Count on me.

[weifinder]

Is that so?

( he claps his hands together. )

How are you with boats?

[reparo]

I don't get nauseous on them, but I'm probably not the best rowers either. What do you have in mind?

[weifinder]

Heading out towards the ladies instead of into the woods, though both are viable directions of danger. You're better than Sizhui with his lack of the stomach for boats, I see — Wen Qing might have a draught to help in his future — and I'll not sure we'll need more strength than I can provide, pending no dead waves!

[reparo]

Maybe it would be best to do it sooner rather than later, really. Before the red moon.

No need to bother Wen Qing. Unless you really just want me to row us there.

[weifinder]

Let us see! I might be able to borrow a halfway decent boat, but we should be prepared in case of sudden sinking. You swim well?

[reparo]

Yes, decently. [ She went diving in Elltheia and all.

Also, itching to do something. ]

Do you?

[weifinder]

( wasn't that also a terrible pace to swim, they're good at this )

Oh, everyone from Yunmeng does! Though not all of us strip robes first.

( sounding mildly amused. )

[reparo]

Very grateful to hear that.

[weifinder]

Are we? Maybe we are, I'm not as plush as some others of our traveling companions... but we did learn to swim thrown fully clothed into the waters, in current, and left to survive or not. Very effective learning method!

( notably, he did not visit this on any of his juniors. not in the same ways. )

[reparo]

Fear as a motivator to learn is the sign of a pretty inept teacher. [ Cough cough, here's looking at you, Snape. ]

Define plush?