so good night unto you all - LIBRARY RETURN

[libraryassistants]

Who: The Editors, one and all
What: The fight is over, the pieces remain... and the Editors head back 'home'
When: Dawn of the Final Day Sunrise after the attack
Where: Leaving Montica, back to the Library
Content warnings: Please make sure to put CW in headers!

By the time morning comes around again, the fires are beginning to die down, thanks to the many efforts of the citizenry to keep them under control. The rebel vampires too have been largely dealt with. These two seemingly insurmountable obstacles were only possible thanks to a combination of factors: the Umbra not being as blind to their human servants as their opposition would have thought, defectors from the Orlocks who were able to counter-act some of their magic, the following Amalia gathered and deployed from Laurelthirst, some suspicious (though welcome) help from suspiciously new arrivals, and of course, House Guildulf throwing their own into the fray to ally with the vampires for this confrontation.

A unity the likes of which Montica has never truly seen.

As the sun rises, there are few left who are able to fight at all; the rebels are beaten, and even the forces built up by both the vampires and werewolves are exhausted or diminished, leaving no one able to take advantage. Citizens of both sides flee indoors, and the remaining rebels are forced to vanish into the woods once more, weakened and unable to strike again any time soon. But there are still repairs to be done, physically and otherwise. Will this unity last beyond tonight? Will young love and youthful hope prevail? Those are the questions that settle over a weary Montica, as light pours into the city once more.

And then, the world begins to fade, static taking over the senses, as the Editors return to the Library.

Welcome back, Editors

It looks much the same as they left it, though the makings of a masquerade are no longer arranged as finely, a few scorch marks here and there, and for some reason there’s some amazing optical illusions on the floor panelling that makes them look like actual manhole covers. Alas, no sewers lay beneath. It may still take Actors a bit of time to shake off the old-new memories, and for some reason the fluorescent lighting seems harsher on the skin than it has any right too. Good thing that the stacks cast long shadows.

The customary tea cart is set up in the Lobby again, and it seems some improvements have been made. The coffee still isn’t strong, but’s far more drinkable than it has been, and there’s an added decaf option now! The tea has still been overstepped, and the stale cookies have been replaced by scones that are hard as rocks, but clearly someone’s getting the message that there are improvements needed. Clearly the tea cart was the place to start.

If someone for some reason doesn’t want stale scones, there’s also a child sized food truck in the lobby, with a sign out front boasting a variety of tamales, including: black beans and cheese, birria, chicken, fire scorpion, man suffering to death via battle wound, and beef. Upon approach, what look like fuzzy puppets pop up to… take your order? They don’t say much, or rather, they make a single noise over and over that seems to be them communicating, but the tamales are good. Just… don’t try to look in the truck. They’ll screech, vanish, and then no tamales for you.

Meanwhile, the bulletin board has a cheerful sign decorated with colorful blocks, declaring: “Join us in the Children’s Area for Lego Club!” Upon locating the room in question, Editors will discover boxes among boxes of legos of various shapes and sizes. There are some ‘how to’ guides for various builds (including a ‘research space ship’ and a ‘vampire’s castle’), but also plenty of encouragement for people to make their own creations! Unlike normal creations, these will actually stick around for a while after they’re finished, and there’s a nice little table where people can display and share what they’ve made.

The Assistants, it seems, are nowhere to be seen: the ‘back in 5’ sign is still in place at the help desk. Still, even without their ‘helpful’ guidance, some facets of the Library may come more easily to some in the aftermath of Montica’s troubles.

[Due to the resolution of the Story, any skills tagged Archivist in the skill tree cost one less skill point (minimum of 1) until the next Story. This can stack with a normal Archivist bonus!]

Comments

[aetherweaver]

He moves to sit next to his friend and continues to be silent - until his friend speaks. "... No." He could lie, of course. His instinct is to lie, but he has a feeling Kai will know that he's lying anyway.

"What about you?"

[bashasasdemon]

Kai snorts; there's not any real humor it is, more an instinctual reaction. "No," he says quietly after a moment. It's pretty clear that he considered lying too. But... no. They've clearly moved past that, somehow.

[aetherweaver]

Carefully, he puts an arm around the other's shoulders. "... I don't know how many of us will be, after that."

He swallows hard, letting out a long breath. "... I feel kind of awful."

[bashasasdemon]

Kai tips his head back, trying to look at him even with the positioning making that a bit difficult. "Why?" he asks, puzzled. As far as he can tell, Nero did all that he could-- all that Nara'a would have tried himself to do. Unfortunately, he is also missing some... crucial information.

[aetherweaver]

"Because I was having... relations... with someone who is the partner of someone I care about?" He rubs at his face. "I don't - it feels... wrong. I'm no stranger to doing... those kinds of activities, but not with someone that my friend is seeing.

[bashasasdemon]

Yup, that would be the crucial information he was missing. Also, he's noting the 'relations' thing and is definitely not having any feelings about that.

He winces. "I don't think I've ever spoken to her," he admits, "I didn't realize that. I'm sorry. It's not your fault, you didn't choose that, but I can see why you'd feel that way.

[aetherweaver]

“She’s a friend of Hikaru’s, if you know him.” He lets out a breath. “I know. Nero was older than me but… he acted like he was younger than me.” Less practiced in the real world outside of his family and politics. “You… you were kind to me. Him. Or the you that was there.”

Quietly, he closes his eyes and presses his head against the other’s. “He cared about you very much.”

[bashasasdemon]

"I do." So a check in on Hikaru is probably needed at some point. ...He should probably check in on whoever Kiran was, if he can find them. Sometimes that seems more difficult than others. "I think that might be... a difference in how aging works. He might have been older in years, but younger in terms of what a vampire would have considered their lives to span." Which is definitely not a thing that applies to demons, he's not just an especially cranky young adult, don't think about it.

He's quiet at first, but he tips his head against Nara'a's too. "He cared about you too."

[aetherweaver]

“Yes… you’re not wrong.” He smiles slightly. “… I remember being that young in spirit. Not that I’m an old man now, but it’s different.”

He sighs and pats the other’s leg gently. “… You know I care about you, right?”

[bashasasdemon]

That gets Kai to give out a little laugh, at least. "It is different," he agrees. He remembers that spirit, too. He's not sure if he misses it or not.

He looks at the hand, and then up at Nara'a, a little confused. "Of course I know." So much so that he doesn't ask the question back. It's obvious, right?

[aetherweaver]

He hesitates. Maybe it’s leftover from Nero. Maybe it’s something else. And yet -

“… Can I kiss you?” He just… needs contact. Gentle contact, someone to hold him and care about him. Someone who knows him as Nara’a, not as the Warrior of Light.

[bashasasdemon]

Kai does not know how to respond to that. Which is extremely obvious in the next few moments.

"Uh." It's not unhappy, just. Confused. Deeply, thoroughly confused. He did not manage to equate the previous conversation to this at all, and, well. There are complicating factors up in this. Nara'a doesn't know what demons can do. Would he still want to be near him, much less touch him, if he did?

It's probably not very reassuring for Nara'a to just be stared at for a moment as Kai's brain blue screens and restarts, trying once or twice to say literally anything but finding his voice has escaped him, wetting his lips as if that will help.

"Ok," he says lamely when he finally makes his voice work, busy trying to rationalize why in the world Nara'a would want to.

[aetherweaver]

He’s quiet, patient. He doesn’t want to do anything that Kai isn’t comfortable with. But when he says ‘ok’, Nara’a leans in, pressing a gentle kiss against the other’s lips. His arms wrap around him and he nuzzles into the other’s side.

“I… just want you to be able to be happy. Or if not happy, at least okay.” His voice is a little scratchy, and he clears his throat. It doesn’t help much. “I’m just… I just need someone to…”

To what? To hold him? To do more with him? He’s not sure. He’s emotionally compromised, he knows he shouldn’t be making any decisions in this sort of situation, but he takes a deep breath and holds the other tightly. “I’m sorry. I’m not making much sense.”

[bashasasdemon]

Kai is still cautious and unsure and not remotely understand why or how this is happening, but he's rationalizing. Nara'a's in a bad way; he clearly needs some comfort now. He can do that. And whenever he manages to recover from it, well... they'll deal with that. It will be fine. He'll be fine.

He wraps his arms around Nara'a too, a comforting sort of embrace. "It's ok," he says quietly, "It's been a lot. You don't need to." He needs something from someone, and Kai is here, and he wants Nara'a to be happy to. So... he'll do what he can, to make that happen.

[aetherweaver]

“I know. I just don’t want to push you.” His voice is a little muffled as he presses his face into the other’s shoulder. “I’m not okay. And it’s not fair for me to push you when I’m not being logical.”

And yet he squeezes the other tightly, breath coming shakily. He’s trying to calm himself, but… he feels unmoored, as if he’s on a ship rocking on the ocean.

[bashasasdemon]

It's probably pretty clear that Kai isn't quite sure what to do with his hands; eventually, he rests one on the back of Nara'a's head, not quite petting but just... holding him.

"It's ok," he says softly, not really addressing the rest of it because... he doesn't know how. He's sure Nara'a just needs someone. He's not self-conscious, exactly; he knows people can like him, do like him. But this doesn't feel real somehow. He's not even sure he could explain why.

[aetherweaver]

He tries to breathe. "It was a lot. I... maybe I'll get used to it as I keep going. I should be used to killing people, but it just seemed... endless."

How many times had he cut down wave after wave of enemies? Too many times to count. And yet... Nero had not wanted to bloody his hands in the same way that Nara'a was now used to. Was he ever once that reluctant? ... Probably. But that was many years ago.

"... This might be a stupid question, or an invasive one. But... do you see a future for yourself? Outside of this place, I mean."

[bashasasdemon]

Killing people should probably never be easy, but Kai couldn't really say anything about that himself. He was a killer too, after all. He didn't take pleasure from it, but he also just... didn't have it in him to feel bad about killing people who otherwise were going to try and kill literally everyone else. So he chooses a different tactic. "It wasn't really you, though. Nero wasn't used to that. It seems those kind of emotions... linger." They certainly did after he was an alien therapist, and they are doing so some here.

Kai looks down at him, not sure he understands the question. "I guess so," he says after a moment, "I still have things to do. My family is still there." His mortal (or, semi-mortal) family, he means.

[aetherweaver]

"I suppose." He huffs and pulls his head back a little bit, watching Kai. "... I'm a butcher to some people and I know it. Nero... he wasn't used to that kind of title yet." And even he's not all that comfortable with it. He did it in defense of his people, and yet...

Hm. His family. "... I don't know what my future is. I keep having to save people, so I keep going because I don't want to let them down. I can't walk away from it, either. I still have things to do, too. ... I think I always will." He wants to protect his family, true - but he has other people to protect now as well. Found family, in a way.

[bashasasdemon]

He's watched by, the black veil not bothered with him- so it's the pitch black of the demon's eyes looking back. "It's not an easy title to get used to," he says wryly, sounding very much like he knows from experience. He made himself get used to the idea, quickly; it was a war, and his ability to kill and not be killed was his greatest asset. Likely the main reason many of the Arike leaders let him stay around, even with Bashasa's trust of him.

Kai's family is entirely found, even if he doesn't really know that phrase. He knows what an odd little family they make- two Witches, a small child, two Immortal Blessed, and a demon. And that's not counting the other Witches in Avagantrum, Ziede and Tahren's children. His demon family is still alive, but other than his Grandmother... well. His mortal family needs his attention more. And wants it more. "Even so, you still need to learn to take a damn break," Kai mutters, giving him a hard poke. He can tell a bit, what Nara'a's thinking of there. Of the exhaustion they've talked about before. He's... not particularly eager to let the man walk back into that without help.

Endwalker Spoilers

[aetherweaver]

"I was supposed to have a break, but every time it turns into saving the world." That previous answer is still noted, but for now he just huffs in (mostly) feigned annoyance. "I'd like some things to not be a crisis."

The poke earns him a low growl, and Nara'a moves to grab the other's hand and kiss the knuckles. "Sometimes I just want things to be fun. And also to be me, rather than The Hero." For a moment, his mind flashes back to somewhere on the edge of the universe, with blades flashing and his life on the line - but no one else's.

Re: Endwalker Spoilers

[bashasasdemon]

Kai was about to respond, but then Nara'a growls and kisses his knuckles and his breath hitches a little. Ignore that. His brain didn't briefly short circuit or anything, it's fine. He definitely remembers how to handle small bits of affection. ...Even if this is going to force him to reevaluate his rationalizing if it keeps up.

"I understand that," he says quietly. He'd like to not be the demon, or the Witch King, or whatever else he's call sometimes. He'd like to have not gotten thrown into a major Rising World Scandal and had his last body killed. Unfortunately, he doesn't have much of a better answer for Nara'a. "Is there no where you can be that?"

[aetherweaver]

"... Sometimes I go off into the wilderness and mine and gather plants, but aside from that..." He nuzzles the other's hand, ears flicking a little bit. "Occasionally I'll go to taverns. ... It's not as if most places have much in the way of appearance-recording technology, so most people don't know what I look like. ... Some people expect me to be taller."

[bashasasdemon]

Oh no. Nara'a stop that. He's trying to pretend you aren't just running over his brain here and that's hard when you keep making it not work right. ...If his hand is near an ear, he might wind up gently rubbing it with his thumb.

"I can see why that's not enough," he says after a moment, "Your friends can't help?"

[aetherweaver]

"I mean..." He shrugs a little bit. "They have their own things to deal with. We don't tend to do much together in terms of... entertainment."

Even the fighting tournament he thought was going to be fun... it's now a race against the clock.