GM: "You can come back and I'll show you a few myself when we get the chance. That trick with sticking your hand in the table for instance."
GM: "For now, let's see if we can't get you up to speed - "

What follows then is a free-ranging discussion. It bounces topics with the flow of the conversation - from the history of the Forgemasters to the Free Council to vampires and mages and more.
GM: Ala is almost as eager to share what she knows, which is extensive.
Valerie: Val is plenty interested in what she has to say. After all, she lives around this stuff daily, so she'd pick up some stuff with a different outlook on it.
GM: The next couple days are packed with moments like these. The training amps up from there - now that Ikenga's tested her possibilities, she's willing to start pushing her magical abilities, occasionally lending her mana to practice Matter with.

Whenever she comes back to her sister, Arielle looks like she's been beat to hell, but it doesn't bother her. In fact, she seems to heal like nobody's business, with bruises sealing up within minutes or hours at most, no matter how intense.
Valerie: Life is certainly something else. She shares notes and learning experiences with her whenever they get together - worth keeping tabs of how they're both doing, and learn from it!
GM: Even with only a couple days, too, some changes start to happen. Come Saturday morning, the day they need to start making it rain, she finds that she can feel a faint tingle along her lower body - and a bit more feeling in her hips and nethers as she wakes up.

No sign of Lethe, sadly - she hasn't given up, clearly. She's only heard the barest things about the Astral Plane so far, but it's clear she's busy.
Valerie: Hopefully, she finds his dream when he's back and can get him somewhere safe for Val to find him bodily. Then she can hug him and bring him to Lakshmi and show him this wonderful new world so he can recover from Arcadia's grip.

Things are so rote for her - out of bed, out of pajamas, get in clothes... It's, strangely, her panties riding up because she's been using a size too small for so long that she notices. The next little while is spent poking at herself in various places before texting her sister 'I have a butt!' excitedly.
GM: {Oh my god a butt.}
GM: {My innocence is ruined.}
GM: She's back home - alone, for the first time in a while.
Valerie: She texts a picture of her poking her hip. {I was sure it was just an illusion all these years cause it had no sensation.}
Valerie: {Also I need new panties!}
GM: {That explains why your butt was always red.}
Valerie: {The waistbands were fine, didn't think the crotch was too small, can't be blamed.} She goes to the kitchen to get her toasts going.
GM: {I'm glad for you really~ :D}
She sends a picture of a belly dancer's rear end.
GM: {Soon you'll be doing this.}
Valerie: {If I learn to pole dance, I'm dragging you with me! >=( }
GM: {Oh my god I'd be so hot. I'm sure you'd be cute too}
Valerie: Well, that backfired. She giggles. {Probably. When are we getting together for the storm?}
GM: There's a strong temptation to toast her bread with her mind. Could she do that without incinerating them? Maybe best to let Mr. Toaster handle it.

{I was about to ask you that. Sistermind. Maybe it's like, one of those things where we decide to do it and hey that was the proper time to do it.}
Valerie: Until she makes one with perfect coils. Cut the time in half or something. {Well, let's say Fate wants us to do it at 11 so we can watch the rain over lunch.}
GM: {Awesome.}
GM: {This is going to be so cool.}
Valerie: {Two of us in unison? Hell yeah.}
GM: {We should ramp it up slowly so people have a time to move out of danger zones. You know, just to be responsible.}
Valerie: {Yeah. Iki's rote had some shorthand ideas for that. I mean, if it was already drizzling or something I wouldn't say no to something faster.}
GM: {Weather check suggests minor sprinkles.}
Valerie: {Eeeh, better stay safe anyway.}
GM: {And hey, after, we can drop by home. I'd like you to be there when I heal dad.}
Valerie: {Oh, yes! I want to see that. Won't he notice, though?}
GM: {I dunno if he's a Sleeper or not. The thought that he might be is a little depressing... I can check beforehand. I checked my girlfriend, no dice.}
Valerie: {The odds are in that favour just by sheer probability =( .}
GM: {Yeah... Maybe if I become a Disciple of Prime I'll be able to give her some divine fire. I understand that people who have a little natural magic are also Sleepwalkers, too.}
GM: {Maybe I can find some and introduce her to it, too.}
GM: They're talking about magic like it's just old hat now, that's so cute
GM: Her toast pops out, hot and ready
Valerie: {Worth doing it, but carefully. Paradoxes are no joke.} She rubs at her shoulder, still a bit sore. A lesson gone awry there. She gathers her toast and goes with butter and slices of banana. Om.
GM: Even magic won't save her from that.
Valerie: She figured swallowing it felt better than doing something weird to Ikenga's sweet home.
GM: {I'll come by to pick you up in a lil. Getting my morning yogurt on.}
Valerie: {Okay. Then later I get to meet your belle?}
GM: {Yeah, deal~}
GM: {Catch ya later =)}
Valerie: {See you soon!}
Valerie: Val chugs down a chunk of juice, then goes to her computer to work on her latest video. An update to her tutorial on soldering, since she hasn't had time to really dig deep into a new project yet.
GM: {Idea. Also I'm texting on the road but it's cool because I'm direct-interfacing with my mind.}
Valerie: {Idea?} She considers her computer, then lays a hand on it to start manipulating it - make it far easier to edit video.
GM: {Maybe when we do videos, we could slip little hints in? Things that might lead viewers to Awaken, or at least question reality. Only flaw - might attract the wrong kind of attention.}
Valerie: {That last bit is the dangerous bit, yeah. But it's not a terrible idea. There might be sleepwalkers who see weird things but don't know who to turn to.}
GM: {Mm - nothing that can't be passed off as a camera trick, then, or video editing.}
Valerie: {Throw in some oblique commentary and I think we'll be safe.}
GM: {Doing our part~}
GM: She can hear her SUV slide up front.
GM: There's little subtle things like that
GM: like she's a bit more intune with the universe even without using magic
Valerie: It's pretty cool, like everything is sharpening up little by little. Val rolls on off to go join her, locking up her door behind her before going out to join her sister's truck.
GM: With most of her video done, it's really a matter of editing now. She can get to that later. She rolls out into a nice grey day, where her sister is waiting to pick her up.
Valerie: "Hiya," she chirps at her before rolling on over to the rear doors. Soon she'll be able to climb into the front seat.
GM: "Hey~"
GM: She helps her in. "Woof."
GM: "I know I'm getting worked when lifting you feels difficult."
GM: "My sifu's been straight kicking my ass."
Valerie: She grins at her. "Aww, maybe a massage thing is in order. But you're probably picking things up pretty fierce."
GM: "The real trick is not being able to hold onto more spell than once, so far."
GM: "If i could I'd have Body Control on like, erryday."
GM: She tightens her in, grinning
Valerie: Val buckles herself in once secured. "Yeah, maintenance is a bitch."
GM: She rests her head on the wheelchair's arm, looking up at her
GM: "When did our lives become a movie?"
Valerie: "It's hard to pin down." She puts an arm around her sister's shoulders, brushing her fingers through her hair. "The movie's genre's changes, too."
GM: She leans in, long strands flowing through her fingers.
"I guess we were always a little unusual. That's part of the Lie, isn't it? Everyone's a part of something that we don't think of as 'natural.'"
GM: "But really we're all just blind to what's right in front of our faces."
Valerie: "More often than not, that's how lies work. It covers the obvious, and we choose to believe it because the alternative would hurt more."
GM: "It did hurt, a lot, but - you can't give up on the truth once you get it." She smiles.
GM: She squeezes her, humming in High Speech. "Love you, mirror~"
She hops over to the driver's seat, climbing in.
Valerie: "And now that we know, we just have to build on it." She smiles at her. "Love you too, my soul."
GM: Hey decided that a high place would be best, and so they head for one of the town's larger hills.

"So do we wanna try for a ritual together? We'll have to find some privacy if so."
Valerie: "I think it'll be good practice, and be a lot more fun. Maybe we can go for a rooftop?"
GM: "I think we can manage that. We're pretty unparralleled at uninvited entry nowadays. What's for lunch?"
Valerie: She mulls over that. "I'd go for a chicken salad. If I'm going to be walking again, I might try and burn a bit of this flab off."
GM: That takes them up towards Nob Hill, not far from the Consilium and the Assembly. It puts them north of the Bay Bridge, a mile from the murder-locus that set them on this mystical journey.

"I'll put you through your courses, but chicken salad it is."
GM: "I'll run in and grab it, then we can find a nice, secluded rooftop. It's the middle of the day, not likely to be any vampires jumping up there right?"
Valerie: "Doubt we'll run into any at 11 in the morning, no. Sunlight is sunlight, even through cloud cover."
Valerie: She stretches her arms over her head and looks outside, scanning the rooftops for a nice contender. One that'd be above the others and out of sight of any neighbouring windows, likely. Limit the possible accidental exposure to any sleeper.
GM: They're close to the top now, and that means finding a tallish building to avoid sight. There's a hotel right next to the greek place where her sister stops for the salad for her and a gyro for herself.
Valerie: Looks like a pretty good spot, that one. Can just tell the elevator to go to the rooftop with a poke of Force without needing the service key.
GM: Together, the two of them head into the hotel. Her sister wraps invisibility about the meal, making her hand look oddly heavy as they enter. The Raddison employees don't mind them, so long as they look like they belong.
Valerie: There's something oddly thrilling to just... cheat like that. The world really opened like a clam presenting a bright pearl. She presses the call elevator button, sharing a grin with her sister.
GM: Identical smiles, sharing their love of magic.
GM: "Straight up to the top, mirror."
Valerie: "Yes'm." Once it arrives, she heads inside and presses the close doors button. Then she puts her hand on the control board and lets the simple interface go through the internal computer. Head on right up to service roof, ignore stops until then.
GM: Gently compelling the electronics, she hops onto the computer and it dings in a satisfying way. Authorized user what what.

She could bypass any mundane password with that spell.
Valerie: She lets out a whistle and patpats the control panel. Good boy. "Ashlyn's obviously a great hacker, but I feel we have her beat." She snickers.
GM: "We're wonderful cheaters."

There's a spirit it to. She doesn't know how to speak to them, sadly.
GM: The doors open to a dark service room at the top. Her sister goes to the door and unlocks it, stepping out.
Valerie: She rolls on out after her, being careful of any bumps in the doorway or step she should back-wheel down.
GM: There's a light drizzle, and she lifts her face to the rain.
GM: There's not much up here - a cell phone repeater, a few satellites. Her sister checks for cameras before anything else.
GM: "Think we're clear."
GM: Cameras are easy when one can see electricity
Valerie: "Sweet. Let's make magic happen."
GM: She closes the door and goes to kneel across from her - smartly putting down a towel first.
"So let's see - you lead, with your lightning staff. High speech will round us out. We should probably aim to make it gradual."
GM: "We can probably manage a few hours of good powerful rain like this."
Valerie: Val nods her head. "No doubt." She sets her rod up on her shoulder. "Follow my lead." She winks at her, then looks on up at the clouds to begin the steady work of getting the weather turning to their favour.
GM: Three hours of steady chanting can seem to fly by when you're with your soul, chanting magic. It's got its own currents and flows - and being connected to the Aether is wonderful
GM: Even addicting.
GM: She can feel it - every molecule of the air
GM: The heat in them
GM: Building it up, slowly, in the far distance
GM: When they synchronize, she and her sister speak in one voice
GM: They don't even need to practice
GM: Harmony, like a song, like the ineffable music of the spheres.
Valerie: Truly connected, stronger together than apart, as they call out the clouds to grow wet and heavy and begin the steady approach. Anyone looking might wonder if it's rehearsed.
GM: As they set it into motion, their will bringing the fire of heaven to the skies through the ancient knowledge of the Forge Masters, they reach the end of their ritual just short of 2am. Her sister leans forward and squeezes her, and they begin to glow once more.
GM: She reaches her hand out and their lunches float over. She settles them on her sister's little tray and heats them gently through with another thread of Forces
Valerie: She leans her head back into her sister as she gets to work bringing their food over, while Val quietly exults in the work they put together. "Thanks, heart," she coos up at her.
GM: "Welcome~"
She raises her hand, and a shell protects them and the food as they eat. Her sister's wet hair hangs down her back like a shiny curtain as they watch the black clouds rolling in slowly off the Pacific
GM: "Some meteorologist is freaking out right now.'
GM: It's a hot wave of air, picking up more and more moisture from the ocean
Valerie: She forks at her food, breaking into a giggle. "Yeah. 'We'll see light showers intermittently throughout the day. Whoooops.'"
GM: She giggles musically. "Oh gosh those poor error bars."

Out near Alcatraz, the rain becomes so heavy that it mists up the entire island. Visibility is dropping rapidly off the coast. She can see boats pulling in - the gradual warning keeping them from being surprised by the sudden turn.
Valerie: If it was a place with no rain, she'd feel a bit worried about unleashing it on the city... but given there's been one a week so far - in part because of her and Ari, without knowing it - everyone is pretty used to it.
GM: If she Unveils her vision the right way, she can even see the people on them clearly. Telescopic vision ho.

Their phone buzz, and her sister checks the storm warning.

"I worry a little someone might get hurt in this, but this is San Fran - we're used to tons of rain."
GM: Sistermind
GM: "...hell we had a storm like this at the beginning of summer."
Valerie: "So long as people stay off the sidewalk." She sips her water. "Plus the bay's there to drain the excess."
Valerie: "So we can just enjoy this ominous wall of clouds."
GM: Opening mage sight makes it even more wonderful, a glorious song.

And just in time to catch a ripple of power as another mage slams into the roof like fucking Superman.
Valerie: She's so absorbed in the sight that when they meteor in and practically crater the roof, Val squeaks and spills her water to the ground, turning over at them.
GM: She has to give Arielle credit, she springs forward with very little hesitation, leaping in front of her sister and preparing to counterspell - not that there's a lot here to do depending on the relative strength level.
GM: The man rises to his feet, holding a shining dagger in one hand, a heavy duster hanging off his shoulders. He's a bit older, with some grey hairs, and a lined face.
Valerie: Val turns her chair towards him, frowning. "What's the big idea?"
GM: "This storm yours?"
Valerie: "Yes, it is."
GM: "Who are you with?"
Valerie: "Can I know who is asking?"
GM: "Hmph." He smiles slighly. "Don't scare easy. Nodens, Adamantine Arrow."
Valerie: "If you'd intended to make a mess, you could have done it on landing, so..." She shrugs. "Wire Nest, Free Council."
GM: Arielle makes a sign with her hand, relieved.
"Talon Firebird."
GM: The first part sounding like a title
Valerie: Interesting... She'll need to inform herself on how they operate.
GM: "I'll settle for asking what this is for then. For a minute, I thought this was a Throne deal."
GM: "And you leapt right into it?" Arielle asks.
GM: He points a finger at her, smiling a bit more.
"You don't stand on authority!"
GM: "Careful with that."
GM: "I'll do my best." She smiles tightly.
Valerie: She rolls forwards. "Hey now, no sparring while wheelchair girl is here."
Valerie: "The storm was commissioned in exchange for service rendered."
GM: "It's a nice storm."
Valerie: "It was a worthwhile service."
GM: Arielle downgrades her tension. Somehow, she didn't lose hold of her gyro - amazing reflexes - and finishes it.

"Slight apology, then. I get a little jumpy when I see large spells."
GM: The rain is truly pouring buckets now, they can't see very far beyond the roof without the aid of magic.
Valerie: "It's understandable. It's good to see you take your job seriously, for sure."
Valerie: Dean ought to be pleased!
GM: "Better you arriving than a Seer, I admit."
GM: Arielle says
GM: "Mm." He looks back at them.
GM: "...what the hell is that?" he asks, looking past them
Valerie: Val glances back through mage sight.
GM: As if a flying mage wasn't enough, now they see something else.

It's hard to see at first, a dark blur, but as she focuses, she sees shapes descending from the clouds. They ride black winged horses, gliding down towards the city. A large ship glides by, with several square sails and a crew of beings that look straight out of Chinese myth.
Valerie: "That's, uh... a... an Asian airship..?" She blinks, glancing at her sister.
GM: Her sister stares back, baffled.
GM: "Well. This is going to be a hard one to explain," Nodens observes dryly as another ship flies by.
GM: -------------------------------------
GM: Fires now dance along the streets of the city, eerie ghostlights.

"What just happened?" Arielle asks, baffled as she watches the ships fly by.
Valerie: Valerie rolls on over to the edge of the roof, leaning forwards to peer down. "I have no idea... Fucking, living terracotta soldiers just came down on pegasi and traditional dynasty ships."
GM: "And you say you did this for a commission?" Nodens asks
Valerie: "It was a trade with a summoned Fae."
GM: "Well that explains a lot. These can't possibly be the fae of Supernal Arcadia, though."
Valerie: "Dean the fae said it was to get a friend of his out of a sticky situation he was going to get into. ...you think those guys are the sticky situation?"
GM: "Depends if what we did was coincidence or actually invited them in," Arielle says.

"Research these things before you go into them," Nodens says. "Though to be fair, I haven't heard of anything like this."

"Can people even see them?" Arielle asks pointedly.
GM: "I'm having trouble telling."
Valerie: Val sees about focusing her mage sight through the rain, particularly at anyone in the windows across from them. Hard to imagine people not just looking outside at floating ships and winged horses.
GM: It's hard to say, but there's certainly no city-wide panic that she can see.

As she watches, she sees flares of Forces magic down in the city.
Valerie: "Not really seeing any evidence that they are seei--" She cuts off, her head turning towards it. "Magic's being cast."
GM: "It's not supernal," Arielle murmurs unnecessarily.
GM: "They're fighting with another group," Nodens says authoritatively.
GM: He glances at them.
GM: "Hold on."
GM: She sees the spell launch towards the two of them - a complex forces effect that feels familiar, considering it's the one he flies with and that she herself flew with in the Aether.
GM: "Hold on - gah!" Arielle yelps as she's yanked up with him - and Valerie in her chair
GM: Sent flying into the air
Valerie: "Whee..!" She grabs the handles of her chair. She's gonna have to figure out this spell herself one of those days. Legs or no legs, flying would just be baller.
GM: It's pretty awesome even on this Fallen World as they launch into the sky, flying off towards the scene.

Closer in, they see what he means - there's strange hazy spirits that look almost like living paintings, their wings igniting as they fly at the soldiers.
Valerie: "I swear I saw an anime like this once," she has to comment. Witches in the ailleys.
GM: And, almost as if it were foreordained, they arrive in time to see someone sneaking out of the hold of one of the ships, looking lost and frightened as he hides from the fighting demons.

She'd know him from any distance - you never forget your first kiss.
Valerie: "..that's Ethan!" she gasps out. "The rightmost ship there!"
GM: "What?" Arielle asks, turning her head. "Holy shit it is."

"...friend of yours?"

"Yes, we need to retrieve him!"
GM: Even as she says that, one of the ships explodes in flight
Valerie: "He's the reason we made this storm to beg-- Augh!"
GM: It falls towards the earth, and that proves very real. Where the pieces land, fires are set - but the heavy rain is putting them out almost as fast as they start.
Valerie: She stares down at the carnage. What's going to be excuse for that?? More to the point, those ships are exploding. "We gotta hurry..!!"
GM: "I got him," he mutters, concentrating, and Ethan yelps as he's yanked up into the air, out of reach of a huge demon swinging a massive iron club.
GM: He flails through the air, and, quickly, they dart away
GM: Heading back to Nob Hill
Valerie: This message has been removed.
Valerie: "Ethan, it's us! We gotcha!" she calls out at him. "Hang on."
GM: He stares at her, holding his hand out. They cycle around one another in the heavy winds before he catches her hand.
Valerie: Val grabs his hand with one, then two hands, pulling him in close to the relative safety of her chair. "Got you..!" Then she grabs hold tight and refuses to let go.
GM: They hold one another tightly, and, for a moment, there's no one else in the world

Then, gently, they're laid down just outside the back door of the Consilium in its now-drenched garden, and she's able to get a look at him.

He's - no longer twisted, or at least it seems so to her eyes. He's shaking. But his eyes - it may have been the worst experience of his life, but it's clear it was also the most enlightening. He looks at her with new meaning, and his heart goes out to her, squeezing her tightly.

In the shadow of her vision, she sees it - a tail flicking just beyond sight.
GM: Right now he's beyond words, too overwhelmed to speak, but he's here and he's real.
Valerie: She holds him tight, her eyes flicking to the side for a moment to the tail. He managed to shed most of it, it seems, but some wounds linger... She draws back enough to look up at him, putting a hand to his cheek. But he made it back to her. "I knew you'd make it! Come on, let's get you inside." She wants to focus only on him, but there's still all-out war going on. "We should probably fill Lakshmi in, too," she says to Nodens and Arielle.
GM: It isn't there when she looks again. That's - concerning?
Valerie: "..uhh."
GM: "Yeah. Hopefully she's on top of it."
Nodens steps over, another mage unlocking the door for them.
GM: "I'm so glad to be back," he murmurs.
GM: Arielle takes the wheelchair, easily manuveuring them inside.
Valerie: Valerie keeps a hand on his back as though helping support him. "I'm so glad you are back!" Is he the friend Dean implied..? What did he get out of the deal, if he was just helping Val? He couldn't possibly have done it entirely for the kiss. ....right?
GM: There's more to the story here, that's for sure.

They enter the library, and the rest of the place is under what appears to be high security. The normally unobtrusive Sleepwalkers who manage the place are armed, and when they're led into a sort of conference room, they find the elder mages, including of course Lakshmi, gathered around a table talking.
Valerie: "Pardon the intrusion," she announces.
GM: They turn, and Lakshmi smiles slightly
GM: "Speak of the devil and she shall appear."
GM: Her eyes turn slightly to Ethan.
GM: "Welcome back, young man."
GM: He looks shy and overwhelmed, dirty and scratched up, though he holds her hand resolutely.
Valerie: "This is Lakshmi. She's the hierarch of the consilium in San Fran," she explains.
GM: "The mages?" he asks quietly, and Arielle nods
GM: "How... how long was I gone?"
Valerie: "Yeah... The consilium is like the gathering point for the groups of the mage orders."

She squeezes his hand. "It's been just under a week. When I called you, it was the day after your disappearance."
GM: "A week?" he asks with a little squeak
GM: "...that's... that's not so bad."
Valerie: "It felt like forever.. I can't imagine what you went through." She lays her head on his side.
GM: "A long time," he murmurs, tucked up against her. Long enough that his hair has grown an inch or so
GM: Lakshmi steps over, letting Xihe take her place
GM: "There's some sort of faerie battle that's taking place. So far, it seems like any damage to the population has been contained by your storm."
GM: "Cronos told me about your deal with the Anachronism."
Valerie: "Yeah..." She brushes a hand in her hair. "Seems he saw it coming. ..sorry for not mentioning it earlier, though."
GM: "Be fair - I don't expect you to report everything."
GM: "Though in this specific case it might have helped."
Valerie: "Had I known what would come through the clouds I'd have piped up."
GM: "The Guardians might have some questions, but all things considered this isn't bad."
She considers Ethan.
GM: "I think you should have some time with your friend."
GM: "We can talk after."
Valerie: She nods. "Thank you" She smiles at her, then tugs at Ethan's hand. "This way." She leads him away towards the foyer's seating areas.
GM: He's shaking and wet when he takes him over to the couch.
Valerie: Val then holds her hand out in the air to grab hold of the heat of a radiator and start winding it about her boyfriend.
GM: He jumps slightly, but laughs and leans into it.
GM: "Thanks."
GM: "I'm glad you're able to laugh," Arielle says
GM: Standing nearby
Valerie: "Me too." She sets her hands on the table, leaning in to smile up at him. "Gosh, I was worried sick."
GM: "...I'm a little jumpy still," he admits, and reaches down to grab something that they can't see. It's a bizarre thing to watch.

It's like he's under some sort of illusion, only there's no feel of magic about it
GM: He pulls her into another embrace, seeming to like just being close to her
GM: How long was he without human contact? A month, two?
Valerie: "It's understandable. You're safe now, though." She leans into him, closing her eyes. Given his hair growth, a month or two seems likely... "What happened in there..?"
GM: He murmurs against her.

"I started towards the tower, like you said."
GM: "There was... a lot of shit. I got a ride at one point from a guy with a motorcycle, and there was this futuristic city, and I... I kind of had to learn to do magic there, you know?"
GM: "I think you do."
Valerie: "Motorcycle guy sounds like the one who let me talk to you." Good guy James Dean. "And yeah, I had to just to survive."
GM: In another circumstance, this holding would have gone on too long, but she can feel the fear and tension in his limbs.

"I don't look too horrifying, do I?" he asks quietly.
Valerie: She blinks up at him. "Pardon?"
GM: "I mean... with the... the ears and the tail and... god I don't know what else."
Valerie: She tilts her head. "I.. swear I saw your tail earlier, but I can't see it now. Or anything different about your ears."
GM: Arielle waves her hand, making a mirror appear in the air.
GM: Well, a shimmering mirage
GM: that reflects light
GM: but close enough
Valerie: Val turns him towards it.
GM: He looks into it, touching his face.
GM: "...it's not as bad as I feared. Heh."
GM: Xihe clears her throat, hands crossed in front of her.
"Could I cut in?"
Valerie: "Oh, Xihe. Hello."
GM: Arielle dismisses the image, looking up to her.

"You Awakened to what we call the realm of Arcadia," she says.
Valerie: "A mage we call an Acanthus, specialists of fate and time."
GM: He nods slightly, following.
GM: "There's another Arcadia that we believe is the Fallen version of it - though we cannot rule it out that it is in fact one and the same."
GM: "Humans who go there and are there for long enough change in accordance with what it takes to survive."
GM: "I've never heard of anyone being stuck in an Awakening as long as you - certainly not and coming back."
GM: "It may be that you are like them, and there is a glamour shielding you from sight."
Valerie: "..whoa. But I felt like I saw it briefly earlier."
GM: "We're mages, sometimes we see things others don't, whether through mage sight or - " she glances outside. "Otherwise.'
GM: "I wonder if I could, then..."
GM: With a rush, she feels it
GM: And sees
Valerie: Val turns to him, a bit surprised at the sensation that comes with it. She expected a fading away or something.
GM: Ears, tail, eyes, those are all familiar from the last time she saw him. He's changed a bit more since then - his face taking on a felid cast, a fine layer of fur covering his body, thincker down the exposed parts of his thighs and arms and back.
GM: He's a black panther, with faint spots, and padded feet with little claws just visible under the fur
Valerie: Her brows go up and she reaches up, running fingers through a bit of fur. "...that looks sweet!" she blurts out.
GM: He blinks, then smiles tremulously and leans into her touch
GM: "You... like it?"
GM: "...it does feel nice, I haven't had a bath in forever."

"Rain's cut the smell at least," Arielle grins.
Valerie: "You look fuzzy and warm and cuddlable, and I can still recognize you just fine under there. It's like a ..kitten version of yourself." Her head tilts one way, then the other. "You'd straight up fit in with the Forgotten cast."
GM: "Oh my god. You're right!"
GM: Arielle laughs, covering her face.
GM: Ethan pulls her into his lap and rubs his cheek against her.
Valerie: "Speaking of, Lethe will probably find you before I can talk to her, but she'll want to know you-Eek!" She giggles and leans into him, drawing her arms around his neck. ..then she cups his head and pulls him in to kiss him.
GM: She can feel him blush, and then respond, pressing into her, his fur warm and his tongue rough.
GM: After a moment, he begins to purr deep on his chest, a pleasant rumbling against her
Valerie: They only had the one short kiss the day he disappeared. She could have lost him forever. Then there's a muffled giggle at the purring and she eases back to listen at his chest. "Now that's adorable."
GM: "Now you have a catboy boyfriend," Arielle says.
GM: "You're going to be insufferable."
Valerie: "I want to brush his fur."
Valerie: She grins at her sister.
GM: "Well, I do need a shower."
Valerie: "There's facilities here we can get you to."
GM: "Help yourselves," Xihe says.
GM: "I'll get you a change. That stuff looks - destroyed," Arielle adds
Valerie: She nods to Xihe. "Thank you." Val slips back to her wheelchair. "Looks kind of bass in that post-battle way, but yeah, not all that practical. Come on, they're this way." She beams at him.
GM: "If he ever forms a rock band he's set then."
GM: Ethan follows after her, taking the elevator up and then to the renovated bathroom.

He hesitates at the door.
"...okay, I'm going to go in on my own again. Is it okay if I leave the door open a little?"

That's - that's traumatic.
Valerie: She gives her sister a bit of sad look. That's painful to hear. Val takes his hand and gives it a squeeze. "I'll be right out here. And sure."
GM: Arielle glances back, smiling sadly.
"Pass me your clothes, I'll get something your size," she promises.
Valerie: "Then we can fill you in on the gist of things."
GM: He turns the knobs inside, water gushing in. A sleepwalker comes by, carrying towels, and offers them to her to hold onto.

"Have my parents asked about me?"
Valerie: "Thank you," she nods and sets them on her lap. "They haven't, no. I have to imagine they figure school wrapped you up."
GM: "That's good, I guess. I'm... really glad it's not even been a week yet."
GM: "What about you and Arielle? Or Ashlyn?"
Valerie: "Ashlyn is back in Dublin. The Guardians of the Veil - the guys who keep things secret - there will give her a cover story. She might be back, though, to study magic through us, and to study at the San Fran academy. The server that spawned those things was apparently supposed to be shut down years ago, so we'll be digging into that in the near future.

"Ari is with the Adamantine Arrows, they're like the enforcers and warriors. She's been training a lot. I'm with the Free Council, apprenticing under a skilled crafter."
GM: "That sounds completely awesome - oooaggh.."
GM: "This so beats freezing rivers."
Valerie: She grins. "We won't run out of tech out here, promise." After a bit, she leans a little bit to peek through the ajar door. Just a peep, right? "We're both Obrimos. Our thing is Forces - like, lightning and heat and energy - and Prime, which is like, the stuff that governs how magic moves around."
GM: He was kind of skinnny before, but a couple months of hard living and running have hardened his body. Fur lies slick over dark skin, showing off his new physique, a tail flicking back and forth.

"And I do - fate and time? And - I dunno how to describe it, like, distance I guess, or something."
Valerie: "Fate and time, yeah. The five paths each have two ruling arcana, which crosses over your home realm. Doesn't mean we can't learn the others, and we usually start with some. I have Matter, and Ari has Life. Distance is a purview of Space, sounds like."

She nibbles at her lower lip, letting her eyes flick up and down a few times.
GM: He turns a little, scrubbing his back, and she catches a glimpse of a black, dangling bit up front.
Valerie: Whoa... even that got its share of fuzz... It seems fitting there, though she has to wonder how it works. ..not that she's all that well versed with the regular one. She draws her head back, glancing around to make sure her sister isn't walking back to catch her peeping.
Valerie: ..hopefully she'll stop blushing by the time she's back.
GM: Her sister is fast, but she has to run all the way to a clothing place that she can actually afford - like the salvation army
Valerie: She rubs at her face with a content sigh. This week's been surreal enough. Ethan's got some damage on him, but... with time and closeness he'll get better.
GM: He spends a fair amount of time in there, but that's expected. A long shower heals wounds.

Arielle comes back, hair puffy from being dried rapidly.
GM: "How's kitty doing?"
GM: "I can hear you! I have excellent ears!"
Valerie: "Pretty good, s'far as I can tell." And cute. Teehee. "Was filling him in on a few things about magic."
GM: That's a scene she'll have for a while~
Valerie: It's a fine scene, too. Fur goes well on him.
GM: She hears the water shut off
Valerie: She holds out the towels through the ajar door.
GM: She feels a hand brush hers, then the towels come away.
"I'm feeling a lot better, thank you. I owe you - I mean, arguably, you got me into it, but that wasn't really your fault. You got me out of it."
GM: "I might have become one of them forever."
GM: Then they might be summoning him with the aid of another Acanthus
Valerie: "I am sorry you got roped up into it, at least in the way you did. By far, someone suffering wasn't what I wanted. ...but I'm glad I got to help you through it too." She shivers slightly at the idea of having to bring him in for temporary moments like that. That'd rend her heart.
GM: He holds his hand out for the clothes and Arielle slips them over. She glances at her sister, and chirps at her.
GM: "You weren't peeking, were you?"
Valerie: "...just a bit." she chirps back, flushing a bit.
GM: "Hah~ I know you too well."

He slides open the door. Somehow, Arielle found a new Forgotten T-Shirt - this one of Tear, grinning huge and toothy with her sword and wings and demon horns - and some tight jeans like he always wears.
Valerie: "How's that feel?" She turns to him with a smile.
GM: "Amazing." He gives her another peck, looking around.

"Do they need us, or can we go? It'd be nice to see something familiar again."
Valerie: "Lakshmi says the guardians of the veil might have questions for us. We can go check if they do."
GM: He nods slightly, and together they head back down.

Sure enough, there's a stern, quiet woman waiting for them with Lakshmi in her office.
Valerie: She inclines her head in greeting as she wheels on inside. "Hello."
GM: She has heavy eye shadow and sleek black hair, currently in a business-like bun. She includes her head back.

"Greetings. My congratulations on your friend returning."
Valerie: "Thank you, miss. It's a great relief."
GM: "I've spoken to Lakshmi about your report. The main thing I would like to ask - "
She feels a tingle of Prime magic. Probably assessing her truthfulness
GM: "Did you have any other motivations?"
Valerie: Val can't blame her - doing her job, after all. She has nothing to hide when she says "My purpose was to fulfill the contract I signed. I enjoyed doing it, if you count that as a second motivation, but no, I didn't have ulterior motives."
GM: "Very well. Strictly speaking, you never did anything against our laws - there's no prohibition against changing the weather in a natural-seeming way. So far as we can tell, there's no reason you could have expected it either. If we find anything in our archives, we will keep you informed."
Valerie: She inclines her head. "Alright. I have my cellphone if needed."
Valerie: "..or, well, magic."
GM: "That wasn't so bad," Arielle says
GM: "We aren't villains," the woman scoffs.
Valerie: "No offense meant, we only had rumors to expect something with." She smiles at her.
GM: "I should say, that my colleagues will be paying greater attention."
GM: "There's a few who feel like you shouldn't have done what you did regardless of the law."
Valerie: "I'll try not to antagonize them further."
GM: She nods.
"No further questions. I feel your motives were pure - and intent matters. Reckless magic is worse than malicious, sometimes."
Valerie: "Have a good day." She nods, then turns her wheelchair around to roll on back out. "One week in and we're a hit with the cops."
GM: "I fought the law!" Arielle declares, pumping a fist as they go
Valerie: She snickers. "A bit of a bad reputation is worth what we got in return, anyway."
GM: Ethan brushes her side gratefully
GM: Arielle got a sticker for her car, letting them park in a garage nearby. The rain has slackened off, and emergency services are out and about, but the city is already returning to normalcy
Valerie: "Where would you like to catch up with?" she glances up at Ethan.
GM: "I'm debating getting pizza or going to my parents' place or both. Or even your place."
GM: "I had some good times there.'
Valerie: "I'd say your parents are worth seeing. It's been longer for you. Though, careful with what you reveal to them. There's more to it, but magic's a secret for a reason."
Valerie: "We can grab some pizza on the way there, though. My treat."
GM: "Thanks," he beams.
GM: "You're beautiful, you know that?"
Valerie: She flushes but grins at him. "Thanks."
GM: There's a joke made about how he's always liked anchovies on his pizza, and they all have a laugh about that. With two hot boxes in the passenger seat (kept warm with Arielle's magic), they make their way south, towards Mountain View in Silicon Valley, holding hands.

"...I'm realizing right now that I'm asking you to come meet my folks by accident. You don't have to - that's, uhm, you know. If you feel nervous about that."
Valerie: "Ooh, no. I didn't fly through the Aether to help you through Arcadia so that you can back out of it." She grins up at him.
GM: He blinks and laughs, grinning
GM: Squeezing her hand.

No one else has noticed his cat-nature. That seems to be something he can control - fate magic proably
Valerie: It's certainly pretty cool to see someone doing their first bit of magic from outside.
GM: "I thought about you a lot. Sometimes, I could almost feel you, with that - distance magic I guess."
GM: "For a moment, you were actually on the same plane as I was."
GM: "I just didn't know how to reach you."
GM: "And then you were - away again, back here I guess."
Valerie: "We both went to our corners of the supernal. Had I known you had gone too, I would have waited a little longer while up there."
GM: "It worked out."
GM: He squeezes her hand.
Valerie: She gives his a squeeze in turn. "Got rough, but it did."
GM: They turn off at his directions. Mountain View is a nice little town, a bit more spread out than San Francisco, and his parents prove to have an actual house of decent size.
GM: He must be living in student housing
Valerie: She couldn't imagine him taking his scooter to school from all the way here, that's for sure.
GM: There is one interesting bit - no shoes or sandals
GM: He might have to start going for sandals only, the way his feet are actually shaped now
GM: The sun has burned through the clouds by now, and it's a warm, cloudy day, the sun shining on their well-manicured lawn and garden.
GM: He steps out, taking deep breaths, and stretches his kitty toes in the grass
Valerie: That or some other custom sorts of foot covering. Maybe she can make him a pair. At the very least so he can avoid the no-shoes no service clause some stores have.
GM: That'd be a wonderful thing she can actually do with her magic.
GM: Arielle comes to help her out and she lets her roll up to the door with him as he trots up.
GM: He fumbles at his side
"Oh, right - I traded my keys for food once."
GM: "...hope that doesn't come back to bite me."
Valerie: She smiles at her, then rolls on over. "Ouch. Well, I can always unlock it. It's just a dead bolt." She reaches up to touch the lock, turning her hand as if she had inserted a key.
GM: It clicks wonderfully.
"...that's awesome."
Valerie: "Matter, baby." She opens the door and lets him go in.
GM: Sucks up Mana but that's okay, it's cool.

"Mom? Dad? It's saturday, so they should - oh."
GM: "Hey honey," an oddly familiar voice calls.
GM: and Dr. Srinivasi appears, her hair pulled back into a braid, wearing day clothes
GM: "You've been out of touch for - oof!"
He almost tackles her, hugging her tightly
Valerie: Her brows come up at the sight of her doctor popping up. Well, that, sure, is not who she expected Ethan's mother to be. Though the sight of them is certainly heart warming. The amount of times he must have thought he'd never see her again after all.
GM: It's a little reminder that Fate is a real arcana that has real power.
GM: "...honey, are you okay? You're a little scratched up.."
"I..."
GM: She looks past him and blinks
Valerie: She carefully navigates the doorway's bump. "Hello, Dr. Srinivasi."
GM: "...oh, Ms. Beaudry. And identical twin."
Valerie: She wriggles fingers. "Arielle, my sister."
GM: "You know each other?"
"She's a patient."
"Oh. Uhm. Mom?" He slips from her, going to take her hand.
GM: "We're dating.
GM: "We, uh, we've done videos together for a while and stuff."
GM: She covers her mouth, laughing and smiling.
Valerie: "The internet sort of noticed before we did." She pinkens a bit but squeezes his hand.
GM: "Small world! How did you get hurt, though?"

"We took him to the beach, he got kinda swept up. He's fine, though, I pulled him out," Arielle says, sweeping back her hair.
Valerie: "Looked worse than it was, thankfully."
GM: "You could have called me! Well, i'm glad you're all right anyway. And I'm glad to see you seeing people! You're incredibly cute. Do you - oh you brought lunch."
Valerie: "We have plenty!"
Valerie: "And brought enough for everyone."
GM: So much for not coming to her doctor appointments to hide her spontaneous healing. This is going to be complicated.
Valerie: She supposes she could always just ... let it happen and be noticed as this weird remission. Or she could draw attention to it while they're here? 'I've been feeling more than usual.' Or.. something.
GM: "Bring it in, I'll fetch my husband."
GM: She steps off, and he smiles down at her, some of the fear and pain leaving his eyes already
GM: He hid it well for her
GM: And now some of the tension is gone too
Valerie: Val grins up at him. It warms her heart to see him feeling better. "Wish you'd connected the dots when I described my new doc to you." She heads in with him to deposit the pizzas on a countertop.
GM: ~~~~~
GM: "There's a lot of Indian doctors in this area!" he protests with a little laugh. His tail flicks at her face.

Their house is nice, as it should be - the level of income you need to have a house here is outrageous (assuming you didn't just inherit it like her father did.) There's a display cabinet of goddess statues from India, and pictures from jaunts out to national parks and the homeland. Looking out the bay window, she can see his father, a tanned white man with glasses, pulling up weeds in the backyard when his wife comes to speak to him.
Valerie: "This place is really swish, Ethan," she has to comment after batting a stray tail from tickling her nose. She sets the pizzas on the countertop and peeks out the window. They even have significant amount of space in that backyard, wow.
GM: "Yeah, our dad's place is packed in between two other houses," Arielle says, locating the plates and setting them.

"It's nice," Ethan agrees. "My folks wanted a place for me and my siblings."
Valerie: "How many of those you got?" Given the size of the place, seems there's space to spare.
GM: "Three. I think they'd be home now." He looks up towards the stairs.

"Wow. Busy parents."
Valerie: "Well hey, if you love having 'em.."
GM: There's such a sense of pensiveness as he goes to the stairwell, looking up, with his ears half-laid back.

"Go on," Arielle encourages. "We'll be fine down here."
Valerie: "And we'll be right here," she adds as an append.
GM: To think, another time, she might have come over to do a collab video here. He'd probably have had to carry her up to his room. Offering a slight smile to the two of them, Ethan darts upstairs.

"So. This is going to be entertaining."
GM: Arielle slides into a seat nearby.
GM: "Ethan's a secret cat boy, you're slowly regenerating your spine."
Valerie: "Mh..." She taps her lower lip. "That first one we can let slide. They don't need to know. The other... I guess I can take her aside a bit later and mention how I'm able to feel my buttocks and act surprise when we get test results."
GM: "Yeah, let it be a medical 'miracle' right? And I feel sorry for him - he's going to need to hide how he looks from them."
GM: "And that's going to put stress on him."
Valerie: "I think experiencing and learning magic might alleviate it a little. Allow him to understand what he's become. ...At least I hope so."
GM: Her twin takes her hand. "You'll be there for him. Don't worry."

Dr. Srinivasi returns to the house with her husband in tow, the man coming over to shake their hands. He has a weathered look about him.

"This is my husband, Jack. He's an archaeologist," she introduces him.

"Ethan's talked quite a lot about you," he says. "Parvati, hon, why don't we get the cider out? I have the strangest feeling that we need to celebrate."
Valerie: "Nice to meet you." she smiles up at him, taking his hand. Then her head tilts slightly at the last comment. ...they do in a manner of speaking, given their son was missing and all, but she has to wonder what brought him to that conclusion. "Pardon?"
GM: Parvati laughs, going over to the fridge and taking out two bottles - one of nonalcohlic and the other of hard cider. "Yes, dear, that does sound like an odd request."

"I almost feel like he's come home from a long journey."

"We literally saw him last Saturday."

"All the same."
Valerie: She glances at him, seeing about drawing a bit of prime across her eyes. Empathy? Prophetic dreams, maybe? She can't chalk that up to a lucky guess. "I won't say no to a bit of sweet alcohol if you offer it."
GM: (Roll 'em~)
Valerie: (2 succ)
GM: Opening her third eye and peeling away the lies of the world, she sees a faint aura about him that pulses with a purposeful sort of force. He's not a Mage, but there's something more about him - at the very least a Sleepwalker.
Valerie: She watches for a few moments before allowing it to fade away before the strain gets to her eyes. She glances sidelong to her sister with a raised brow.
GM: Arielle shrugs, making a "we'll figure it out" sign with her hand.

There's a thunder on the steps and a little girl with a long black braid enters the kitchen. Her eyes light up, much as did her mentor's child Ala.
GM: "Oh my god!"
GM: "You're really here."
Valerie: The girl glances back at her, turning her wheelchair towards her. "Well hello there."
GM: "I'm a huge fan! I like your videos way better than my lame brother's."
Valerie: She laughs. "Hey, they're not that bad." She grins. "But thanks for the views. I really appreciate them."
GM: "Chanda, don't be mean to your brother," Parvati chides, amused as she pours out the cider.
GM: Two brothers follow down a bit later, both younger than Ethan. One quite young, he has a 3DS that he keeps as he goes over to get into his seat, the other just a couple years younger - still in high school, with a set of headphones.
GM: "Aww - I love my big brother! I just think he's kind of, you know - silly."
GM: She goes over and gives him a tight hug.
"...you feel kinda fuzzy."
Valerie: ...seems Ethan's family has all sorts of interesting extra senses. "He can be pretty silly, but that's why he has a large percentage of his fans." She rolls to the table to join them. She opts not to comment on fuzziness.
GM: Ethan blushes, giving her a nervous hug. "I haven't shaved in a bit."

Oh man, shaving. That's going to be hilarious.

"So do you go to school, too?" his father asks.
Valerie: "Not anymore. I graduated with a diploma in mechanical systems engineering a couple of years ago. I did consider a masters or something, but... didn't come up with enough reasons to take the extra schooling and student loans." Also she was in something of a 'what's the point' mindset at the time.
Valerie: "And since making videos and projects for it is way more fun and pays the bills and rent, it was an easy choice."
GM: "You must be making pretty good money to pay rent. Ethan at least gets the student housing prices, outrageous as those can be."
Valerie: "I've been lucky. I opened my crowdfunding campaigns at the right time. I still have to take and hunt down sponsorships to round out the corners sometimes, though."
GM: "It's a bit of a struggle sometimes, just paying for things on my own," Ethan agrees.

"I'm glad you have something you can enjoy," Parvati says. "What about you, Arielle?"

"Oh me? Still at school, though I'm thinking of quitting this semester - I just got a big job opportunity."
Valerie: "School's just there to get you ready for opportunities, after all. If the opportunity comes anyway.."
GM: "That's exciting! What sort of opportunity?"

"Private security contractor. It's one of those fancy, upscale ones - and pays quite well."
GM: Arielle grins with her own private joke
Valerie: Hard to think of anything fancier than magic.
GM: "That sounds pretty dangerous," she says.

"I'm kind of a thrillseeker anyway." She glances at her sister, a cloud passing over her vision.
Valerie: "There's risk, but I trust her judgement and ability." She smiles at her.
GM: The small-talk like that continues for the afternoon. Ethan hardly says anything, apparently glad to just be around his family again.

Eventually, Arielle makes noises about leaving, and he looks conflicted. He gets her aside at one point.
"I kind of want to stay here... but I want to learn about magic, too. I know you and Arielle have a thing to do with your father, too, so I don't want to hold you back."
Valerie: Valerie reaches up to cup the back of his head and draw him down for a short kiss. "Stay with your family, you need the familiar. There will be opportunities to learn. I'll introduce you more formally to the Consilium so you can get your own orientation going."
GM: He blushes, and slides down to kiss her again, his lips warm against hers.
Valerie: There's a pleased coo and she strokes through his hair. She could get used to this. After a little while, she lays her forehead to his. "But you're right, I should go tend to my dad's illness. I have my phone if you need anything or have a pressing question, so don't hesitate."
GM: "Okay. Good luck." He offers her a smile, tail standing out stiffly. "We'll meet up soon. Maybe I'll get to take you on a real date like I promised."
Valerie: "Holding you to it!" She grins. "And in a little while, we might even walk there," she adds in a more hushed tone. Afterwards, she rolls out to rejoin her sister.
GM: "I can't wait to see that," he agrees.

Arielle pops her joints, helping her up with a grin into the side seat.
"You're so unbearably sweet together."
Valerie: She settles herself in and buckles in once her secured. "Hee, I never dated before. I guess it's just kind of addicting."
GM: "That little fluttery feeling about your stomach is wonderful."

She climbs over, going to the driver's seat. Her phone she plugs in and then starts to access with her mind, tuning into it with a little tingle on her skin.

Their drive back to San Francisco is nice. Afternoon fog is rolling down off the hills of the national park between Silicon Valley and the city, and the sky is wonderfully clouded. She can make it rain any time she likes.

Their father's house is one of those places on the side of a hill. There's this thing in San Francisco where buildings next to each other are painted in a succession of colors, and theirs is a warm brown, sandwiched between a sky blue and a dark yellow.
Valerie: Valerie goes through her own - just with her thumb - to catch up on emails and messages while they drive, between looks outside at the humidity they've wrought and left behind from this morning. It's massively satisfying.

The house colors make for pretty interesting pictures, but looking outside was always kind of strange.
GM: Thanks to the canting of the hill there's a tiny garage under one side, but that's for their dad's car - not that he can really drive lately.

There was always an aspect of sadness entering her family house after her mother died. When Arielle carries her into the living room, she can remember her mother sitting there on the window seat, trying to read with her hands shaking from rapid onset degenerative disorder.
Valerie: It's still sad. She'd like to see her again... And poor Arielle. To think that someone tried to destroy their family through her, proxying through a little girl by twisting a simple wish for uniqueness... There's some real monstrous sorts out there.
GM: When she was little, Valerie would entertain notions that someone had done this to them, that the series of tragic accidents in her life had a purpose.

As it turns out, they do.
GM: Maybe that's the case for a lot of people.
GM: "Dad?" Arielle calls
Valerie: They'll need to find a way to break that curse... She'll need to learn more, likely, to start, but it's high on the list. "It's us," she calls out as well. "Is he asleep?"
GM: "I dunno. I'll check."

She takes the stairs up, the white-painted bannister creaking under her touch. Rolling through, Valerie smells something burning. Peeking into the kitchen, she finds the stove on, burning a pan, and her father's feet sprawled behind the kitchen island.
Valerie: Her eyes widen. "Ari!!!" She rolls out to the kitchen, hurrying past the stove and island to check on his form. "Dad!"
GM: For a moment, she's afraid that they're too late, that they spent too long at Ethan's and she's about to find a corpse. Reaching down, she finds he's still warm, and, while she doesn't have the magical knowhow to check if he's dead or not, she knows a bit of medicine from her own workups and checks his pulse. There's a heartbeat there - faint, but present.

Arielle moves like a bolt of lightning, accelerated by her magic.
GM: She drops to her knees by him, hands on his back.

"Fuck," she whispers tensely.
Valerie: Both a great sense of dread and a great relief washes over her when she feels his blood pulse through his veins. She sets his hand back down carefully, looking up as Arielle comes in. Through a choked throat, she speaks. "He.. he still has a pulse, he's alive, but, it's weak..."
GM: "Yeah," she murmurs, running her hands along his back.

"He had a seizure," she says. "That explains why there's just salt and oil in the pan all right... damn it.."
GM: "I don't know what I can do about this, but I'll try."
Valerie: "Try. I'll call the ambulance."
GM: She nods and closes her eyes, starting to chant in high speech. A glow visible to her peripheral sight starts about her hands as she commands his nerves to heal, for the plaque to break up.
Valerie: Val grabs her phone and rolls a bit away to make space. As she dials in 911, she reaches up to shut the stove off and push the pan off of the heat.
GM: "911, what is your emergency?" the cool male voice on the other end asks. The pot is badly burned. Oh well - they were old. Her eye is drawn to a photograph of the family together before the accident, with two precisely identical girls sitting on their mother and father's laps. She can't even remember which is which.
Valerie: Some water comes to her eyes, but she bites down on her lip. Control. Get help here first, break down after. Control... "..My father, he's, he's collapsed. He's ill, and we think it was a seizure. We need an ambulance sent. The address is..."
GM: "Fuck!" Arielle swears. "Sorry."
"We might need someone with a better grasp of Life," she manages after a moment, chirping at her. "But definitely the hospital for now. He needs fluids, and my magic isn't... taking for some reason."
Valerie: Is her curse limiting her life magic? Could that be a thing? "Text Lakshmi. See if she can make it to the hospital." she asides, putting her phone down long enough to, then putting the operator back on.
GM: "We'll send an ambulance right away," she promises.

"I'm texting the motherfucking Hierarch - well, her secretary. Everyone else is going to think we're such snobs," she mutters, mostly out of anger over her father's situation, getting her phone and looking up Xian's number.
Valerie: "It's the brown house, between the yellow and blue one," She says, unnecessarily. "There's a SUV parked in front." She rolls out to open the front door, like she's expecting the ambulance to eject paramedics and the door will slow them down significantly.
GM: One day, maybe.

She can hear Arielle's swearing while she waits. The sound of distant sirens sharpens before an ambulance pulls up. They can't park on the curb with all the cars, so they idle in the street while a trio of paramedics rush up, carrying a stretcher.
Valerie: She rolls back to let them through. "The kitchen, behind the island," she explains.
GM: There's a gasping sound - it seems Arielle got him breathing a bit more deeply at least.
GM: The three men come in, going to the kitchen and checking him over.

"Sir?" one of them asks, as Arielle is shooed away. Their father... he's shaking like she did.
GM: His eyes onfocused, unaware
GM: "He's unresponsive," one of them says, shining a light in his eyes.
Valerie: Val wrings her hands together, practically trembling herself. No, no, no...
GM: Bitter tears fill Arielle's eyes.

"We'll catch up," she tells them when one of them asks if she's going to join them in the ambulance. "I have to get my sister there, too."
Valerie: She nods at them. "We'll be behind you."
GM: They shift him onto the stretcher, then two of them carry him out while the third asks a series of medical questions of Arielle. She gives him the number of their dad's doctor, then, as they go, heads to her sister. She hugs her tightly.
"I can't... I just..."
GM: "If he dies I'll never forgive myself."
Valerie: Val hugs her tightly. "No, he'll make it, we'll just..." She takes a deep breath, then lets it out shakily. "...we gotta focus on what we can do right now." She runs her fingers through her long hair, then draws back to look her in the eye. "The worse hasn't happened yet, y'hear? Let's .. Let's go to the hospital. We'll hear it from them, we'll be there for him."
GM: She calms against her, sighing and nodding. "I love you, Sis. We'll get through it."
With that, she picks her wheelchair up bodily. There's a sinister edge to that strength, as if her own weakness were bottled up in it, one that clearly torments Arielle
Valerie: She knows of one dream hopper who'll pay for this, whoever or whatever they are...
GM: The hospital is clean and modern. It could have come out of any procedural like ER or Scrubs. It's comforting, in a way, even if she knows now that there's a better path.
GM: Theirs is the same insurance, too, so she's plenty familiar with this hospital
GM: She gets a really good look at her father for the first time in a couple weeks as they enter, and it's not a good sight.
GM: His skin is sallow, dark circles rim his eyes.
GM: He's still fighting, though, as his cough indicates at their entrance. "Are those my angels?"
Valerie: Val puts her hands to her mouth at the sight of him and holds her breath for a moment. "Yeah, it's us." She rolls after him.
GM: How right he is.
Arielle comes to his other side, taking his hand there. "We're right here, Daddy."

He nods, exhaling. "I hear you have a boyfriend now, Valerie."
Valerie: "Yeah.. Ethan, the gameplay video guy. He's nice, you'll like him." She takes his other hand.
GM: "I remember him. He's the pretty one." He chuckles, squeezing her hand. His grip is weak, shaking.
GM: Arielle's phone buzzes and she lifts it.
"Lakshmi not in town. Will ask around."
Valerie: Her own arcana aren't useful here... All this power and being unable to act on it is ..extremely frustrating. "Heh, yeah. He let his hair grow out a bit more recently. It's pretty fetching."
GM: He opens his eyes, looking at the two of them as they hover as well as they can.
"You two - seem different. Stronger, like your mother."
Valerie: "Well, when it's time to step up, we step up, right?" She smiles at him, leaning down to lay her cheek to his hand.
GM: "That has a depressing ring of 'the king is dead, long live the queen,'" he laughs, scritching her hair.

"We've been through some things lately," Arielle murmurs. ""Maybe we can tell you all about it when you're better."
Valerie: "Yeah, things got a bit weird," she says while looking up at him. "But good. So make sure you get back on your feet soon as you can."
GM: "Weird? Heh. I remember - Cecilia would get like that sometimes. Always had something she didn't want to say..."
He starts to drift off, though the heartrate remains steady.
Valerie: She raises up a bit at that. "Rest now, we'll be with you." She pats his hand, then glances over at Arielle questioningly. That's more parallels to their mother than she anticipated.
GM: Arielle frowns pretty intensely, and checks her phone.

"Okay, we have someone coming," she says at last, relieved.
GM: "We're probably going to owe another favor, but it's worth it."
GM: At this point, Lakshmi could ask just about anything of them
Valerie: "If there's something I can do for them, after everything they've done for us, it still won't feel like enough." She looks up at Arielle. "We gotta learn more... We're still newbies, and that's a problem."
GM: Her sister nods and chews on her hand. While they discuss options quietly, a doctor makes his way in, a handsome fellow with a series of earholes in one ear. Unlike the last doctor, he closes the door behind him.

"Wire Nest and Fire Bird, is it?"
Valerie: She turns her chair to turn towards him. "Yes, that's right. You're Xihi's referral?"
GM: "Athanor at your service."
Valerie: "Thank you for coming, Athanor." She inclines her head.
GM: The man steps up, looking down at him, with the subtle tingle of Knowing magic.

"So you've already tried to heal his disease? I understand you're a Life apprentice," he asks Arielle, who nods.

"Yeah - it wasn't like trying to heal my sister's back, either. It was a bit more like - "
GM: She frowns. "I don't know, like it was fighting me."
GM: "Have either of you checked for magic?"
Valerie: She shakes her head. "We.. it was only last week we came into this world. And with the excitement..." She considers her father, then sees about bringing down a supernal vision from Prime upon him, uttering a few words in high tongue to help her along. (+1 reach for looking for things besides the supernal.)
GM: (Roll away)
GM: (That should be well within your grasp)
Valerie: (2 succ~)
GM: There's no aura about him, not like Ethan's father. Instead, what she sees is something else - a sort of darkness lurking about his body, shadowing it from the Light.
Arielle looks back at her, worried, then over at the new mage.
Valerie: "..what is this..?"
GM: "It's like something's hiding him from the Supernal."
GM: "That sounds like the Abyss," Athanor says
Valerie: She looks up at him, brows coming up. "Something from the Abyss is keeping him from being affected by us?"
GM: "I'm not skilled at Prime, but I had a suspicion when you said your magic wasn't helping that much. I'll work my own powers anyway, see where it gets us, but I think you two need to have a long talk with Lakshmi when she's back."
Valerie: She leans back into her chair. Their mother was hiding something and they're seeming more like her after their awakening... their strange birth and twinship... and now this effect attacking their father and preventing him from being healed.

"Yeah...okay.."
GM: He goes over to her side since it's less crowded and lays his hands on their father's brow and upper arm.

"One last request - could you lay As Above, So Below on my doctor's jacket? I'm going to use it as a yantra."
GM: "If you're not familiar, it attunes it more firmly to the Supernal."
GM: "Sort of a sanctification."
Valerie: "Oh, oh, yes, Ikenga mentioned." She turns to the man and reaches out to lay a hand on his jacket. With the other hand, she brings her rod out and points it at the jacket while uttering a few words in high tongue to conjure out the path tool's power. (with one extra reach above her free one, the paradox offset by her rod.)
GM: (That turns it into a chance die, very unlikely to be triggered!)
GM: (And you're clear0
Valerie: (For 3 successes.)
Valerie: Once she's let her magic loose, she draws back, but continues watching over it in concentration and help it maintain cohesion.
GM: She can feel it when he draws on the yantras here - the very environment of "hospital" lends itself to greater efficacy. He rounds it off by chanting, his words not dissimilar to Arielle's, but evoking more complex ideas.
Valerie: It's worth keeping an eye on. She could learn from this for later.
GM: His nimbus is a rush of heat and pressure, and their father's skin turns warm in their touch as he works.
GM: When it clears, he's breathing more easily, and his eyes flutter up. Color has returned to his skin, and he's no longer shaking
GM: "...that was a good rest. How long have I been out?"

"A while, sir. You should go back to sleep."
Athanor lays a hand against his forehead and gently eases their father down again.
"I'll leave him to you," he asides.
GM: "I could feel that darkness struggling to eat up my spell."
GM: "He might regress."
Valerie: She nods quietly, then looks up at him. "We'll.." she looks down at their father. "..we'll look into this more deeply. Thank you for this." She smiles up at him. "If you ever need an obrimos' touch, don't hesitate."
GM: "I'll remember that," he returns it, shaking her hand. "You two've had a busy week, I've heard. Try and find time for your own stuff soon, yeah?"
Valerie: "..heh, yeah. I suppose. We'll try." She shakes his hand.
GM: Arielle snorts. "Thanks."

Athanor steps off, then, as quickly as he came. There's a (very surprised) doctor a bit after that, who reluctantly agrees to release him, and he leaves while the nurses do the paperwork, leaving the girls on their own.
GM: "...so."
GM: "What do you think all of that was about Mother?"
Valerie: "..I don't know for sure. Could she have been a Mage? Or some equivalent?" she reasons. "We're special, we're more twin than twins ought to be. That says magic seems to have been involved."
GM: "Maybe she is. When we get back, we should scan the house."
Valerie: "Yeah, that's a good idea. ..though it raises the question that if she were, why she didn't do anything about her growing condition."
GM: "I don't get it either. She'd have had friends like we have friends - hell, if she were a mage, they'd know her at the Consilium, and Lakshmi would hae been bound to recognize us, right?"
Valerie: She frowns. "Could have been a lone wolf?"
Valerie: "Hard to imagine they'd never have found out about her, though."
GM: "...I don't think she was a Seer, at least."
GM: "We don't know enough about them, but everything my teachers taught me suggests they're - not stable."
Valerie: "Same with what little I've heard about the left-handed. I never remember a moment where she wasn't lucid except at the very end."
Valerie: "...could be she just... was something else we don't know about yet, too."
Valerie: "Like a mage-equivalent, just... another kind."
GM: "I'm starting to think we lived on a very thin skein of normalcy, mirror."
Valerie: "And here we were, exulting in what we can do already. We need to become less than small fries, heart. Lots to learn still."
GM: "Mmph," their father stirs. "I hear you girls chirping like a pair of birds over there."
Valerie: "Heh, sorry about that. Just chatting."
GM: "I'm surprised you two still do that. When you were toddlers, you never did anything but."
He stretches, with a satisfying click of his joints. He looks surprised at the sound, and sits up again
GM: "I feel like a million bucks. What did they give me?"
Valerie: "And I remember us trying to teach you and us getting super frustrated cause you never 'got it.'" She smiles at the sight of him looking like that. That's already so much better. They'll need to break whatever pall is on him sooner than later, though, so it sticks.

"Can't help you there. The name he gave it sounded like an ancient language to me."
GM: Arielle giggles, and peers at him closely while he slides over to the side of the bed.
She shares a look with her sister and shakes her head - the shadow must be on him still.
Valerie: So he'll get worse, bit by bit. ...but the more time they buy, the more they can learn about it till they can dispel it entirely. It's a good chance. "You definitely look better."
GM: "I feel great. I suppose it's just a lapse, though."
GM: "It might come back," Arielle agrees sadly
Valerie: "Just means it buys time to find something more permanent."
GM: "I can only assume it was our boundless love for you, Pop.'
GM: Their father, when he stands, reminds her of Arielle with his vitality. He's got broad shoulders and only a few greys in his temples, giving him a distinguished look. A tattoo on his side is one of the few reminders of his military service in Iraq.
Valerie: Watching such a strong example of a man fall apart was particularly painful.
GM: "So what have you two been up to in my absence?"
Valerie: "Some extracurricular. After I started dating Ethan, I figure I'd try to be less closed up in my apartment."
GM: "Dating, getting out of your apartment? I'm proud of you, V."
Valerie: "Thanks, dad." She leys her head on his arm.
GM: He tucks her in against him. A nurse comes in.
"Oh! Wow - you're standing." She covers her heart with a hand. "I'm sorry, we don't often see that. Let me get that line out of your arm, and then you can go. We've got your papers right here."
Valerie: "He's tougher than he looked coming in." She smiles at that. Magic really is wondrous when applied right.
GM: "I'm hale as a horse," he agrees. "Mind stepping outside while I get dressed, girls?"
Valerie: "Yeah, okay." She nods and rolls on out the door to wait out in the hall.
GM: After a minute, he returns in a button-down shirt and slacks. He's still too thin for her liking, but maybe if they can keep him chugging with magic, that can change.

"I'm ready."
Valerie: She nods at him. "Cool. Ari parked out front." She begins on down towards the doors.
GM: By the time they roll on out, it's already early evening, with the sun little more than a red stain on the horizon
GM: Together, they return to the house, there to have a late dinner. Dad and Arielle cook, putting together some chili since that's an easy thing with the ground beef already out.
GM: Their house is a small thing, but it's already starting to feel a bit more like home
GM: Even with the nightmares clinging to its corners
Valerie: While the two cook, she starts to wander around to see if a preliminary look through her immediately accessible mage sight might reveal anything noteworthy. At least, for the downstairs.
GM: It's actually a bit of a surprise when she sees it, because she looked past it twice and didn't, but when she looks into the pantry while her sister is getting a can of tomato sauce, she sees a glittering panel.
GM: It's been shrouded with a Prime Veil.
Valerie: Her eyes widen a bit and she rolls over to it once her sister's cleared the way. She reaches out to touch it and see if she can budge it. So she could have well been a mage after all.
GM: (Have you read the section on Scrutiny? :D)
Valerie: (Yeah. Certain level of opacities, which you reduce through successful scrutiny.)
GM: (Right)
GM: When she focuses her vision, she sees its Mandala, a nested series of symbols representative of the Truth of it.
GM: Unfortunately, they're a bit obscure
GM: This'll take a bit of effort to unravel.
GM: (Opacity 3)
Valerie: She lets her mage sight take over, letting the rest of the world darken and close in on her. She leans forwards to watch it closely. It's well hidden, and strange... (WP spent for scrutiny.)
GM: (You may attempt Revelation or Scutiny, as you desire)
Valerie: Scrutiny!
Valerie: (..ew, no succ)
GM: She stretches her mind and... well, it's magic, she knows that much. She's never done this before, so it's a bit clumsy. It's like working with a scanning electron microscope - she's bombarding the spell with her thought to try and reveal its contours.
GM: She's only dimly aware of the fact that it's clearly Supernal in nature.
Valerie: She bites her lower lip. Just what is this thing... It's not magic she knows about yet. (Turn 2, still 0. D= ) Turn three, she lets a couple wisps of mana flutter out and strike its edges to outline it better. (turn 3, 6 successes with the mana. Much better.)
Valerie: (oh wait, 1 mana limit. 5 successes then)
GM: (Exceptional success means it applies to two levels, then :D)

Now that made it jump out with startling clarity. She's starting to see it - there's a spell of concealment all right, an improvised Supernal Veil - and beneath that, she can just see the hints of something more intense.

She's dangerously close to straining this one, but she's also so close to getting it
Valerie: She takes a deep breath, wiping at her brow. It feels a little dangerous to, but... she keeps going. The mana worked well last time... (turn 4: 2 more successes with the mana.)
Valerie: (turn 5, 0. Uh oh)
GM: (You only needed that last one :D)
Valerie: (oh, oops)
GM: (exceptional success applies extra successes to te next level of Opacity)
Valerie: (ahh)
GM: You may roll Revelation now
Valerie: (One succ on revelation!)
GM: Beyond the Supernal Veil, she discovers a second spell, an Invisibility spell - which she has now just seen through, allowing her to see a little latch. The space is perhaps two feet tall and a foot wide, a hidden locker built into the wall.
GM: "Angel? Think you could grab the garlic salt?" her dad calls
Valerie: "Uh? Oh! Right, gimme a sec to find it." She reaches out to flip the small latch and open the panel.
GM: There, hidden in her mother's pantry, is a leather bound book and something that explodes in her Mage sight - a beautiful orichalcum astrolabe.
Valerie: Whooaa... She wants to grab them right away, but rolling out with an astrolabe on her lap would probably draw attention, so for the moment she grabs the journal but leaves the astronomical tool there. She'll be back in a sec. She then finds the garlic salt and rolls out to the kitchen. "Found something big." she chirps to her sister as she sets the spice bottle on the counter.
GM: "Oh yeah?" she asks, grabbing it and shaking it over the chili. The sizzling takes on a new character and flavor.
Valerie: "A secret locker in the pantry. It was hidden behind prime magic... A journal and an orchichalcum astronomy tool. I'll stuff them in my bag."

"Smells good," she chimes before rolling back to go hide her loot and close the panel.
GM: "Well that's one theory confirmed. Jesus fucking christ."
GM: "You two and your secret language."
Valerie: "Heh, just talking about secret twins stuff, no boys allowed." She heads back to the pantry and puts the orichalcum tool and journal safely put away into her chair's saddlebag, and puts the latch back into place.
GM: She hasn't directly interfered with the invisibility spell, either. It's not like she dispelled it

The signature nimbus, too...
GM: It was like a ray of red/gold sunshine, like liquid orichalcum
GM: It reminded her of the scent of her mother's hair
GM: Her whispered words in French-accented English
Valerie: Val rolls out over to the picture of them, to get a good look at her again. Did she use magic on them to make them the twins they are now? What will the journal reveal..?
GM: Their mother had long, dark hair that Arielle clearly envied, since she copied her mother's length. They get the lighter tones from their father's brownish-blond.

Her smile is so mysterious and so warm.
Valerie: Like orichalcum. Solid fire...
GM: Even if it weren't clear from the evidence, she can feel that her mother is an Obrimos.
GM: Just like her daughters
Valerie: Why'd you let yourself die as you did...? she murmurs. Did the abyss do it? She rolls back into the kitchen, thoughtful.
GM: Steaming heaps of chili have been plated, and her sister is grating cheddar over hers
GM: Their father sits at his side, hands held in prayer.
Valerie: Hard to think of God as being a thing when the gods of Atlantis are the ones screwing over what could be such a wonderful world. Still, she does give him a moment of silence, out of respect for him at least.
GM: Once he's done, the three of them dig in. The light over the table lends it an island-in-the-dark feel that's very cozy.

"So tell me about Ethan."
Valerie: "He's handsome. Olive skinned, shorter than I am when I'm standing.. Kind of on the lithe side, but he's got a bit of a workout going. He's bulked a bit." She attacks her own meal, with some cheese added, with a bit of bread dipping. Delicious.

"We're about of-a-head when it comes to our channels, so it was nice to grow our brand together. We met at a gaming con where I was cosplaying, and have kept in touch since. It was one of those... everyone-saw-it-but-we-didn't kinds of thing."
GM: Arielle laughs. "You're not kidding. Whenever they were on screen together people were like 'Are they dating?' 'Kiss already!'"
Valerie: Val blushes. "It got to the point where we both clearly wanted it and knew it, but we thought the other might not have so we didn't say anything. ...but he broke through first and now we're there for one another. ...It's nice." She smiles, leaning back.

He's gone through a lot without being broken or giving up, besides damage... just so he could come back to his life, and to her. She wishes she could say that part, but she settles for "He's got a lot of integrity and character."
GM: "I like that in a person," says the ex-army ranger. "Thinking of bringing him around?"
Valerie: "He's a student, in housing, though he's got a place not far from San Fran." She smiles at him. "Was a bit of a weird week for him," she says. "But once things settle back down, I'd love for you to meet him."
GM: "His parents are both doctors, too. Well, one's a doctor of archaeology," Arielle says
GM: "The other is, in fact, Val's doctor!"
Valerie: "Yeah, that was a bit of a surprise. When we came into his house, she greeted us. She's my doc as of two weeks ago!"
GM: "Speaking of, how did your appointment go? I didn't hear from you about it."
Valerie: "Oh, right." ...what does she say then? "Well, she had some rather bad news. Degenerative spinal disease, but it got caught early. There's injections and medicine to try and kick it in the teeth before I feel it. Given I haven't felt any problems at all since, well, I'm optimistic."

Well, since Lakshmi, in any case.

"Though the weird thing is, instead of feeling worse, I think I've felt... better?" she edges. "Like, I feel more of my buttocks than I used to."
GM: "It seems we're all getting hit with that."
He takes Arielle's hand. "I'm just glad one of us is as healthy as can be."
GM: Arielle glances away.
GM: "Angel... I know about survivor's guilt," he says more gently
GM: Arielle nods slightly, the cloud heavy about her vision again, her guilt raw
Valerie: It's more than that, but... "You had no way of knowing, or preventing it. But now? Now we can fix it, maybe even get back at her. So look at him and smile." she chirps at her. "We'll fix everything."
GM: She sighs and smiles for her father, however wanly
GM: "I love you, Pop."
GM: "I love you, too, angel." He pulls her in
GM: Funny, he has a way of saying "angel" that is slightly distinct for each of them
Valerie: Coping mechanism from them pranking him with their swapping disguises or appearing identical on purpose. Which one would respond to which 'angel' call, likely. She smiles at the thought.
GM: He's a clever man! He should be.

"You were always the soldier, you know that?" he adds. "You never faltered."
GM: "I won't falter, Dad. Conflict is divine."
GM: He laughs
GM: "My avenging angel and my tutelary angel."
Valerie: "We went our separate paths, but we both found something good in ours. All we can hope for!"
GM: "Why don't we curl up with a movie, then? You two can birdtalk at each other while I enjoy the actual movie, no doubt."
Valerie: "Sure!"
"I can look over the journal behind another book during it, maybe."
GM: "Yeah. You know, Mom was totally into stars and stuff. Didn't she work with a famous astronomer in her college days?"
Valerie: "Would explain the astrolabe."
GM: "Any requests for a movie, angels?" their father asks as he gets the plates to clean.
Valerie: "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" she suggests.
GM: "A classic."
GM: "Go put it on, Arielle and I will get the dishes
Valerie: "Precisely!"
Valerie: "And okay." She rolls on out to the living room to go do just that.
GM: They've always had that couch. Sometimes, she asks one or the other to lift her onto it so she can have a nicer seat, get out of her chair, but tonight she needs her own - and a book from the shelves to conceal her mother's journal in
Valerie: The movie set up, she goes to pick up something nostalgic. Not too thick, but big enough... Ohh, her Intermediate Circuits book ought to do the trick. She scribbled all over it to take notes and write ideas.
GM: Her own little proto-grimoire
GM: Arielle comes to sit in her customary spot on the left couch, carrying glasses of tangerine juice for the two of them, while their dad takes the right side, carrying popcorn
Valerie: She settles herself back in her chair and hits 'play' on the remote to let Baby Herman and Roger take the scene.
GM: The opening is okay, but once they really kick in, their dad cracks up. He always had a ready sense of humor - his squadmates apparently felt like he was the heart of the team
Valerie: She smiles his way, but then starts tuning things out to get the journal opened at the beginning, tucked up behind her book.
GM: For a moment, she's a bit worried
GM: The first page is printed in her mother's native French
GM: Her hand is very fine, cursive.
Valerie: ..uh hoh. She never kept up with the language.
GM: Flipping a couple pages, she finds some relief
GM: Because after Octobre, 5 1987 she begins to write in a version of High Speech
GM: It's accented, like her English. That's cute.
GM: Her mentor certainly thinks her High Speech has a funny accent
GM: Despite the fact that French is involved, High Speech is a language of pure meaning, and so she's able to read it
Valerie: It's a big relief. Hopefully what is said here will summarize the pages she missed, until she can run them through google translate for a quick and dirty.
GM: Octobre 6, 1987
I've changed.
Once I was blind, and now I can see.
GM: The scales have been lifted from my eyes, as they say, and in divine revelation I have heard angels sing and received the Word of God - and She spoke in My voice.
GM: Now I speak that voice.
GM: I saw them in the spheres. It was everything I could have dreamed - I was among the stars and the tower stretched from the blue dot of earth to the furthest reaches of the universe.
GM: Now... now I am back in Hell.
GM: And I know not what to do.
GM: "Eddie, puh-puh-puh-leeeeaase?"
Valerie: Her eyes flick up to the movie for a moment, a smile quirking. She turns back to the journal after the distraction, though. Hell, huh... What sort of life was she living until her Awakening? It sounds like it was hard... But she can empathize with being unable to go back to the supernal.
GM: Octobre 9, 1987
Professor Sagan saw, and understood. He knows more of what I am than I had realized. He invited me to speak with him more regularly, to learn what he knew, to teach the deepest secrets. I knew him for a great man, but not, apparently, how great.
GM: I feared I might be the only one, that the blindness I saw around me was endemic, total.
GM: There is an American film, They Live, which depicts this willful ignorance.
Valerie: She saw that one. ...oddly appropriate.
GM: It seems to stop there, then picks up on the next line:
I can never go home.
Valerie: She leans back a bit at that. Home? She blinks and digs a bit deeper.
GM: Frustratingly, her mother moves off that topic. Indeed, she doesn't comment again for several weeks, except to make notes about her training.

She records a Rote. It's a Mind rote, so not one she's able to easily decipher
Valerie: She'll need to remember its location when she and Ari do start learning some of the other arcana.
Valerie: Some of their mother's legacy.
GM: She does eventually get back to the topic of 'Home' after a few of these. It's dense reading at times, especially because she uses the journal to keep her notes on magic, the 13 practices, and, in particular, her discussion of astral space.
GM: Which is where she again finds it discussed.
GM: A journey into the astral plane, barring special circumstances, always begins in the Oneiros.
GM: Your own soul - your soul's mind, I guess you'd say.
Valerie: That one is new. Ikenga hasn't covered that bit of travel just yet, though there's already so much, after all. This will be useful learning..
GM: It's worth a stay. You can learn much about yourself.
GM: I met my Daimon. She looks a great deal like me but for the wings.
GM: The Daimon is you, your higher self, the part of you that second guesses your actions and reminds you to think.
GM: Killing her is possible, but would leave you bereft until healed, a true sociopath with no regard for your actions. It is a humbling experience, even for a miracle worker.
Valerie: ...that must be the sort of experience that makes left handed mages.
GM: I won't speak of what we discussed. It's too - personal even for here.
GM: After that comes the Temenos.
GM: From the Oneiros, you imagine a path out of your soul and into what I would describe as mankind's soul.
GM: The Temenos is a marvelous place - filled with gods and spirits and even characters from fiction.
GM: I found Falcor and we flew from place to place.
Valerie: She smiles at that idea. That must have been so cool! ..Also where Lethe and her friends come from.
GM: I didn't stay long this time. I had a goal in mind.
GM: From there, I went from humanity's dreams to the Omphalos stone. This, I am told, is the representation of High Speech.
GM: The winds blow forever here, and I construct an aura of protection to shield myself from it.
GM: The winds here can strip your identity from you, changing you even in the flesh.
GM: The stone is like - a cap, or a plug, or maybe just an axis.
GM: It holds back what we can master from that which we cannot - or maybe it is the representation of what we can master.
GM: I sang to the stone in High Speech and entered.
GM: From here the path split - in one direction lay a swath of stinking, polluted pits.
GM: In the other, a tower of clouds.
GM: I was in the Anima Mundi, now - the world's soul, the soul of spirits. The paths up were humanity's actions, both representative of the damage they've caused, one in the befouling of the world, the other a broken shell of the Tower of Babel, the Celestial Ladder the Exarchs used to pierce the heavens.
Valerie: "The things I'll get to teach you," she chirps quietly as she digs through the text, riveted.
GM: Arielle throws popcorn at her, grinning.
GM: I chose the Tower. Of course I would - I understand the desire behind it.
GM: Scaling it is a challenge. Monsters abound. I found an alien creature, a chimera of a thousand faces, eating at one of the tower's supports, and I chained it in bands of silver and gold so that I could ride it to the top. I understand that there are mages trapped here, that some mages, rather than simply die, burrow into its surface like ticks.
GM: I did not meet any - at least, not that time.
Valerie: Whoa... That sounds movie like. Mom was a badass.
GM: Their mother was apparently a hell of an adventurer for a mage.

The way she talks about these things... she sounds almost - resigned? No, that's not quite it - it's clear that she loves what she does, but there's a definite air of sadness about her.
Valerie: Like she's bringing little bits of 'home' in each grandiose action, maybe, despite being unable to go there...
GM: My teacher has a saying that comes up in his television show - we stand on the shores of a cosmic ocean.
Valerie: ...Her teacher had a TV show? That's interesting. She might try to look it up... might be some truths to study in there.
GM: I found the shore. I understand what he meant now.
GM: From the Tower, one passes to the Dreaming Earth. This is where one finds the dreams of rocks and trees, of rivers and oceans. From there, you have to go up. To the dreams of planets and stars.
GM: And then you have to go beyond even that.
GM: There is the edge of the universe. There is no real life here. No real color. It's like shapes only exist as a suggestion.
GM: All of reality ends at the ocean, an ocean blacker than black, the nothing-blood of the dragon-serpent that encircled the world - the Ocean Ouroboros.
Valerie: She has to take a pause from reading that, leaning back. Whoa... how.. far did mom possibly travel? She couldn't have been a mage so long. She's amazing... She takes a moment to digest by watching the movie, but then turns back to the words.
GM: When we Awaken, we pass this ocean, this Abyss that separates us from the divine. There are five palaces here - one for each realm. Plus the Old Man and his shack, but I will explain that in a moment.
Valerie: ...areh?
GM: Each palace is the abode of two Aeons. An Aeon is the - dream of an Arcana, I suppose? Perhaps they are representatives from the Supernal sent here, or maybe they're the concretization of our understanding of each Arcana.
GM: I met Lilith, the commonly accepted Aeon of Prime. She had little time for me, a Disciple, but I managed to find her anyway. She was the most beautiful creature I'd ever seen - even counting the angels I've met.
GM: Crowned in thorns that hold a subtle light, her touch... it was like a second Awakening for me.
GM: I thought I might die beneath her, twisting against her, as she twined about me serpentine, sensual.
GM: "You okay, Mirror? You're looking a little red."
Valerie: "...." Her mouth drops opens slightly. Wat. "...she had sex with Prime itself..."
GM: She stares at her, baffled.
Valerie: "In the deep, deep dreams of the world, is the representatives of the arcana live. And Prime's is the beautifulest woman to ever woman, and uh... yeah."
Valerie: "...high tongue really makes things steamy."
GM: When it was over, I was charged with her radiance. Each of the Aeons can bestow this Gift, this superlative understanding, and I treasured it. I didn't want to let it go.
I became an Adept right then.
GM: "Wow okay. Mom, jeeze."
Valerie: She takes a sip of water to cool herself off. She didn't exactly expect to read something like that.
GM: After that, I went to the sea.
GM: Oh... gods, stars, how can I even talk about it?
GM: Do you, whoever is reading this, know what it's like to know that the place you belong in your heart is on the other side of eternity?
GM: What if to get home, you had to swim into a sea of unreality that eats away at your body, your mind, and your soul, until there's nothing left?
Valerie: Val frowns. She empathizes more than she might know, having been there herself. ...but admitedly, not to know that it was so close, yet so far, like you could look out over the horizon and see it.
GM: I met the Old Man, then. He's the last of them - the Eleventh Aeon. The Abyss.
GM: His place is a house built on stilts, across a rickety bridge.
GM: He tends a fire on the beach, a wizened figure of no determinate race or age or even gender.
GM: With his staff across his legs he invites you to speak for a while. Humble, self-effacing. He asks if you want to stay in his house for a time. I did not accept.
GM: All I wanted was a glimpse of the Tower.
GM: I thought I could see its light, just before I left. I think I lied to myself then.
GM: I don't know. I think it was madness, waiting there, watching.
GM: Waking up was the hardest thing I ever did.
GM: Tears stain the page.
Valerie: She runs a finger over them. Were that she could hug her then... Poor mom.
GM: She records a few more rotes after that. Prime mostly. Her knowledge in it greatly outstrips her own as an Adept - did she ever make Master?
Valerie: She was really impressive. She checks the dates, to see how much time has passed since her awakening back in '87.
GM: Two years before the next 'personal' entry.
GM: Dear Diary,
I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm actually using you for my original purpose again.
GM: Because I've met someone, and he made me smile, something that I feel I haven't done in a long time.
Valerie: Ooh..? A starstruck meeting?
GM: He's American. Buff. My type as far as men go, and with Dominique and I on a downward arc, it could not be more fortuitous.
Valerie: ...Dominique? She has to flip back a few pages to see if there's any mention. That must have been prior to using the journal as a diary.
GM: Her mother had a lesbian relationship in the 80s. That must have been intense.
Valerie: In France, no less. She hears the women from back then were wild.
Valerie: She goes back to the entry about dad. Big buff American hero dad.
GM: He came to Cornell on a military scholarship, apparently, but he's not one of those brainless marines. I love his simple faith - so many Americans make a show of it, but for him he worships God with his hands.
GM: He sets himself to a project and makes the best of it, and I feel I can almost see an angel about him.
Valerie: "D'Aww... She met dad."
GM: "Oooh that sounds cute."

She talks about how they met at a funeral for another student who committed suicide, a not-uncommon occurance at that school
GM: She tells her professor-mentor about him and they meet and hit it off.

Wait. Cornell, Sagan...
Valerie: Tick, tock, tick, tock.... "Carl Sagan was a mage??"
GM: "Haha what?"
GM: She looks over to their Cosmos VHS set.
GM: Next to the Neil de Grasse Tyson update. Both of which are signed, now that she thinks about it
Valerie: "Cornell uni, Professor Sagan, is her mentor. And she mentioned he had a TV show, the ... the edge of the sea of the cosmos is in there."
GM: "That's fucking awesome."
Valerie: "This is surreal, even for magic. That's where dad met him, seems, through her."
GM: "I can see it, actually. The awe he had for the universe is very like what we felt. Bet he was Forces primary."
Valerie: "Probably!" With that little revelation, she proceeds, though pays more attention to the mentor figure.
GM: It's a lot of talking about her dad now, which is terribly sweet. She gets through that as the movie winds down to credits.
Valerie: "Still weird to see Donald and Daffy in the same scene even to this day." She closes the journal and puts it away, saving the page for later.
GM: "And it never happened again."
Valerie: "Too bad. Would have made a good spinoff of collaboration."
GM: It's good to see their father up and about, stretching again as he goes to collect the DVD
GM: "You girls staying here for tonight? It's pretty late."
Valerie: "Yeah, I think that'd be a good idea. Can take the guest room." She glances over at her sister. "Got a thing tomorrow morning, too. Right?"
GM: "That's right."
"Guest room - we used to call that your room, after you two split up."
Valerie: "Sleeping in the same room was always a blast, but we started taking up more room and looking into different hobbies. Had to happen eventually! Girls grow big."
GM: "Neither of you grew all that big~"
GM: Arielle snorts, hands on her hips.
GM: "I may not be tall but I can run you into the ground~"
Valerie: Valerie giggles. "Careful. He was still an armyman."
GM: She grins back at her. "We'll get him back in shape, won't we, sis? We're not letting you slink off to die in a foxhole, Daddy."
Valerie: "Yeup. We'll keep those lungs pumping air the old fashioned way."
GM: -----------------
GM: After Valerie's accident, they installed an elevator in the stairs, though frankly Arielle would normally just carry her up and down. The dumb elevator takes way too long, and her sister seems to feel it's part of her penance.

Together, they go to Arielle's room, which was once their room combined. After they were little, they converted a guest room downstairs into hers, and then converted it back again after she moved out.

Arielle's tastes are similar to hers in a lot of ways, but her taste in music is almost entirely alien. Lots of nightcore stuff, with heavy vocals and cellos.

After getting her shower, she flops onto the bed in her nightgown, her long hair cascading around her - today isn't Hair Washing Day, or she would have been in there for like two hours
GM: "So... show me this journal of Mom's?"
Valerie: To think she'll be able to ascend stairs on her own in the near future. They can probably sell off the elevator equipment or something... As she enters into the dark spooky music room, as she likes to call it, she sprawls out and crosses her arms behind her head while digesting what she's read thus far. The astral, huh... She'll have to pry Ikenga on the matter.

As her sister joins her and her un-manageable amount of hair, she rolls over to grab the journal out of her chair's bag and present it. "The bookmark's where I stopped reading. Haven't gotten to our births yet, and mom hasn't married dad yet. That probably comes after."
GM: "I'll catch up, then we can read together."
She takes it, thumbing through the pages. Her face starts to noticeably redden.
GM: "...oh wow. You can really hear the, uhm, sex in her voice, too."
Valerie: "The beauty of high tongue. Great for sex novels, not so much plot twists." She giggles, blushing a little more at remembering it.
GM: "It certainly paints a picture when it comes to the Temenos and Anima Mundi," she says, working through it. "And... god. Mom, why are you hurting so much?"
Valerie: "I don't know... She doesn't go into detail about her life before her Awakening. It must have been, like she put it... Hell."
Valerie: "Actually, can you show me the first page?" She yanks her laptop out of her chair bag. "I'll translate that first page quick and dirty like."
GM: "She seems totally miserable whenever she reflects on it. No wonder she never talked about her family - yeah? Sure."
She flips back to the beginning, offering it to her
Valerie: She pops up google translate - both the worst and yet the best that free, fast translations can offer - and transcribes it in.
GM: It's not the greatest, but she can get the gist at least.

It talks about her childhood in Montreal. Without High Speech it's hard to get real meaning and purpose out of it, but some comments stand out.

How she's glad to be at Cornell, how she's glad to start with Professor Sagan - and how glad she is that someone, who she won't name, will never touch her again.
Valerie: "I.. She got ..abused, it seems. Doesn't say by who, though."
GM: Arielle looks disgusted, pulling her pillow in tighter.

"Read the rest of it to me?" she asks. "I want to hear how her life got better. I want to know how we came about."
Valerie: "Yeah, that sounds good." She flips back to the last page she was at, taking a moment to read the first line before letting the time-before-time language's writing flow out of her voice.
GM: Coming from her like that, it's almost as good as hearing it in the original context as Valerie faithfully conveys her mother's feelings and intent.

Dates with their father-to-be are interspersed with her conflict with the werewolves of the area. She appears to have something of a passionate hatred for them, and describes how she put one of them down when he came for her Cabal with a powerful stroke of lightning. Disaster is only averted when the spirit putting them at odds is uncovered and they work together to defeat it - though life in Cornell soon becomes intensely difficult.

The werewolves never forgave her for killing one of their own, and she reluctantly left the Consilium there by getting her now-steady marine boyfriend a job out west. The one he still maintains now, in fact, even if he's on a leave of absence for his health.
Valerie: Werewolves... She didn't even think of them being a thing until mentioned now. "They're more than just cursed people who turn into wolves at the full moon, it seems to imply," she comments inbetween.
GM: "I've heard them mentioned. Don't know much about them right now."
GM: "You don't think they're related, do you?"
GM: "The man who hurt her and the werewolves."
GM: "Otherwise she seemed to hate them for kinda no reason at all."
Valerie: Valerie frowns slightly. "It's ..possible. Maybe someone from her past became one, or yeah, was one."
GM: After a couple lines about San Francisco, it opens on a new day with a frustrated pen - a little more than a year before they were born. She dug deep into the paper, almost piercing it.
GM: Their mother had so many passions that she never showed them.

February 21, 1990
I've found out why Hank and I haven't been able to conceive.
Valerie: She pauses almost immediately after the words leave her mouth, blinking at the page.
Valerie: After a bit to digest and add fire to the 'what are we' un-asked question, she resumes reading.
GM: Lakshmi told me herself. I'm a man.
Okay, no, it's more than that. I have complete androgen insensitivity syndrome. Born with a Y chromosome, I presented as fully female because my body never responded to the androgens the internal testes in my hips were putting out.

I never knew.

God damn it.
Valerie: She sets the journal down on her lap and looks over at her sister, brows up. That's... the bombs keep coming. Besides that Lakshmi is involved and didn't tell them, their mother had a chromosomal issue and might not have been their birth mother? At least... certainly not in the traditional way if so..
GM: Her sister works her jaw.
"...do you think Lakshmi just didn't recognize us?"
GM: "Or is she hiding something?"
Valerie: She drums her fingers on the page for a moment. "Might be... she wanted us to find out for ourselves."
GM: "No one at the Consilium has gone 'Hey! You look like my dead friend!'"
GM: She runs fingers through her hair, frowning.
GM: "How much do we look like Mom?"
Valerie: The laptop's screen comes up and she starts scrolling through their family pictures with the computer between them.
GM: Arielle didn't quite copy her hairstyle - hers is more modern, and dyed beside - though she did steal her length. It's far darker, like a raven's wing.

Her face - it's a studied beauty, with a warm smile and dark eyes that never seem to age.

"She's a bit paler than we are. Finer bone structure. There's definitely a resemblance, though."
GM: Outside, rain patters against the roof as the weather starts to follow her pensive mood
Valerie: "Yeah..." She leans her head back thoughtfully. "I want to say that she either doesn't know or doesn't know for sure or knows and is either under oath, or is letting us find out for ourselves."

After a bit she brings the journal back up, and resumes digging into it. If there's an answer there besides Lakshmi herself, it'll be from here.
GM: "Maybe it'd be rude."

Lakshmi offered her help. There was any number of things she could do if we wanted a child. A Master of Life can breach many barriers.
I told her no, and thanked her. She's already done so much for me, but more importantly...

I want to do this by myself.

I just don't know how yet. I could learn Life, yes, but...
GM: I need to meditate on this.
Valerie: "She was proud, if anything."
GM: "Yeah, that was not like, a casual statement."
Valerie: "Especially with Lakshmi ready to help her." She flips along.
GM: She rolls over on her back, frowning. Her hair dangles past the bed, just touching the floor.

It's a few days later, February 24.

Dear Diary,
I've found a solution that I think is amenable to me. I don't dare commit it to paper. Mostly, I just want to say this...
Whoever you are who finds this, know that I wove a spell in Fate for you to find this journal eventually, when you were ready.
Understand that, even though your mother was never a happy person, that even though your mother may have done some things she was never proud of, she will love you with all her heart. This Fallen World may empty my heart, but you will be as a star plucked from the sky, and I shall forever cherish you as a spot of perfection and light in its darkness.
Good luck. I hope we'll see one another again, and I love you.
GM: And that's all she ever wrote.
Valerie: She sets the journal down, tears running down her cheeks. "That's the lot..."
GM: "...oh god," she murmurs, hugging the pillow tightly
GM: "What does she mean? That just.. it raises more questions than it answered!"
Valerie: "Could it be..." She hesitates, her head tilting while re-reading the passage. "...more literal than even high tongue can allude to? Could we be supernal?"
GM: She lifts her head
GM: "What do you mean?"
Valerie: "I mean... She viewed the supernal realm as her home. But the fallen world hurt her, outside of us, dad, Mr. Sagan and magic. If we're a point of perfection in the fallen world, and she viewed the supernal as the perfect alternative..."
GM: The words pop out at her again. A star plucked from the sky

High speech isn't good at metaphor.
GM: She means that in something close to literal.
Valerie: "It has to be close to that. That we're.." She motions. "Somehow, starchildren."
GM: "So after trying a few times, she got the offer from Lakshmi... and at that point decided - no, it's not okay for me to have a child of this world?"
Valerie: "Worldly children would mean worldly troubles."
GM: Valerie's arm and back pucker as if with goosebumps.
GM: Arielle rubs her scar, the beautiful tracery of it almost seeming to describe words in High Speech.
Valerie: She rubs a hand over her arm absent mindedly. "..it doesn't answer what we are persay, but... It's a direction to look at," she murmurs.
GM: "I guess our next stop is Lakshmi, then."
Valerie: "There's a lot to talk about there, it seems."
GM: "I wish she had an instant messenger, but we'd probably irritate her fast with everything we want to say."
GM: She gets a brush and rolls her sister closer to the bed, pulling it through her shorter hair.
Valerie: Her eyes shut and she leans back into her sister. The two toned hair she has doesn't have a lot of space to entangle, but it's still pleasant. "This isn't really something we can talk about at length through IM anyway."
GM: "Yup."
She finishes and wraps her arms about her from behind, sighing against her. With a flick of her finger, she turns the lights in the room off, and as their eyes adjust they find themselves enveloped in golden light again
GM: "I don't feel pure."
GM: "Even if... shit like this always happens to us."
Valerie: "We're missing critical pieces of the puzzle." She wraps her arms around her. "Once we have them, we can put it together and figure out what we are, what we can be, and strive for it."
GM: She tightens her grip and nods against her.
"My name is on a tower and it's not going away...."
Valerie: "Precisely. We gouged it in deep. We're part of this and we'll split this mystery wide open."
GM: She nods again.
"You're right, mirror. You were always the one confident one, you know? I've said before how jealous I am of that."
GM: Gently, she sets her arms below her and pulls her up from her wheelchair and into bed.
Valerie: "You've mentioned. I'm sorry I was kind of overbearing like that."
GM: They're still glowing with their pure light as they nestle together. It feels peaceful, like something beautiful - something they can accomplish together
Valerie: She lays down with her and watches the gentle photons of light escape from within for a while, until it starts lulling her.
GM: There's so much potential in them - and the sky is the limit.

They're from the sky, after all. That seems like a nice basis.
GM: -----
(Annnd break for now, gonna eat and hang with Jax for a bit, then be back)
Valerie: Akay
GM: -----------------
Haunting dreams. A beautiful city, a spire of gold. Electricity flowing through the air, tingling across her skin. A sense of power, of current and force, of knowledge.

Without quite knowing how she knows, Arielle knows that she and her sister have grown, discovering her mother's journal. They shine just a little bit brighter, and feel a little bit different as they get up to get ready for the day.

They understand more, about themselves and the world around them.
Valerie: For once in her life, Val feels almost like a morning person as she faces down the mirror to get ready.

Almost. She still needs to get an injection of breakfast and juice before she actually wakes up to appreciate the feel of everything being a bit more... colorful, so to speak.
GM: Her legs tingle with promise as she gets up
GM: She swears she can just about wriggle her little toes
Valerie: She spends a few minutes in the washroom trying. The signals are almost there. Just a little longer...! Under her own power, without a temporary spell. How delicious it will be. She'll face any amount of physical therapy to get them back into shape.
GM: "Doing all right in there?" her sister chirps through the door
Valerie: "I think I'm starting to develop stubby little thighs." She turns to the door to roll on out of the washroom.
GM: "Stubby little thighs?" she asks, still brushing her mane out.
Valerie: "Like, tingles, all the way down to the top of my thighs." She pokes herself half an inch below her crotch line, testingly.
GM: It does in fact. It's like it's asleep, sometimes, which she just knows is going to be agony.
Valerie: Valerie is all too willing to bite down into a belt for as long as it takes once she takes the full brunt of signal rehabilitation.
GM: That's what identical twins with Life magic are for.

Ethan sent her a {good night!} and a {good morning!} message while she was out
Valerie: {Good morning, kitten.}
GM: {Mew. How're you doing, beautiful?}
Valerie: {Yesterday and this morning is being a series of mixed bags. Dad had a seizure and had to be rushed to the hospital, but someone from the consi helped out and I've never seen him better in years. So we'll be looking for ways to make it stick.
I found my mother's hidden journal. She was a mage! Her story was kind of sad, though, and it just raised more questions than answers.
And this morning, I'm starting to feel my thighs, little by little! Just waiting for the other shoe to drop or whatever and keep the balance of good and bad news even.}
GM: {*hugs* I'm glad. I'm feeling a lot better today, too.}

Arielle looks over her mother's astrolabe as Valerie gets herself ready to go. She knows her sister doesn't want help getting dressed after all.

{My little sister was looking at me all funny after you guys left. Then, this morning? I sniffed her coming into my room.}
Valerie: {I think she and your dad may be sleepwalkers. Or at least have gifted supernal senses.}
GM: {I'm kinda getting the feeling, yeah. What about my mom?}

Ashlyn shot her an email letting her know she'll be coming back in a couple weeks.
Valerie: She sets the phone down while she gets herself dressed in her change of clothing. {I didn't pick anything up from her, but I didn't study her all that deeply either. ...when my next tests show up and show I'm undergoing a medical miracle, I'll keep an eye on how she takes it and let you know.}

"Ashlyn's coming back in a coupla weeks. That was faster than I thought!"
GM: "That's very fast. Do you think there was a problem at home?"

{Thanks, that means a lot to me. We going to meet up for the Consilium today?}
Valerie: "It's possible. I'll let her fill us in once she's back."

{Yeah, I'll give you the tour this afternoon. Val is taking me to meet her Douce Moitiée this morning.}
GM: {Hold on while I google that - hah, that's cute.}
Valerie: {Sweetheart! Mwuah ♥}
GM: {Aww~ You're my Douce Moitiée. I wouldn't let anyone else pet me like you.}
Valerie: The mental image from her peeking in the shower pops into her head unbidden and she turns her chair away from her sister so she won't see the pink of her cheeks. {Looking forwards to that.}
GM: Arielle blithely puts the astrolabe back into her sister's bag and gets to her feet, stretching with a series of pops.
GM: "Let's get some breakfast!"
Valerie: "Sounds good." Valerie rolls after Arielle.
GM: Their dad is waiting for them. There's an odd piece of jewelry on the table when she rolls up - a golden ankh.
GM: Pancakes sizzle in the pan, and he cracks eggs into a second one with bacon.
Valerie: "Mmh... that's a good smell. What's this?" she wonders as she heads up to the table.
GM: "It's one of your mother's pieces. It was the weirdest thing - I was getting ready to bed and I remember she made me promise to give that to Arielle. I feel like an idiot, forgetting it all this time."
GM: Arielle glances at Valerie, eyebrows slightly raised.
Valerie: "Almost like it was fate, huh?" She gives the thing a quick once over. Orichalcum, has to be.
GM: Definitely reddish gold.
GM: "She wore that ever since I first met her."
GM: "I can't remember if she had anything for you, specifically," he adds, apologetically
Valerie: Valerie turns the thing a couple times over, then hands it to her sister. "Sounds like her legacy to you."
GM: Arielle accepts it, looking at once touched and sad
GM: She slides it up around her neck, pulling her hair back to let it settle there.
Valerie: Val smiles at her. "Make good use of it. It'll honor her."
GM: "I will," she murmurs, sliding her hand around it and looking lost for a moment.
Valerie: It looks good, too.
GM: Settles nicely considering the shirts her sister tends to wear, that exposes a fair chunk of skin to display her essentially perfect musculature.
GM: "So what're you two up to today?" he asks, sliding breakfast onto a plate for her
Valerie: Given she's not sure if Arielle's said anything to dad yet - it's not hers to judge her - she chooses to keep things vague. "Heading out with Val for a drop in, and meeting up with Ethan this afternoon."

She then attacks her plate. Om nom, dad's cooking.
GM: He was in the army. More grease and salt!

"Ah yes, the cute one."

"Dad, you said that yesterday~"

"And I'm not wrong! Whend o I get to meet him?"

"When Val feels like it, duh!"
Valerie: "I'll keep the opportunity open, don't you worry." She smiles up at him. "When things have, y'know, settled down a bit, business and schooling wise sort of deal."
GM: "Walking," Arielle chirps.

"Fine, fine. You two codetalkers keep your secrets~. I'm used to it." He grins. "Your mother and her secret clubs and all."
Valerie: "Girls do girl things. We don't butt in and ask you what bawdy emails your army buddies send you!"
GM: He laughs.
"Yeah that's true. Though I don't know, I chanced on Arielle's porn one time."
"DAD."
Valerie: "Areh? You watch porn?"
GM: Arielle turns a bright red, hands folded on her lap.
"Not often."
Valerie: Valerie grins and waggles a fork at her. "I'm not shaming you on it, I think it's great. Valves need to be opened lest the pipes burst." She turns back to her dad. "So what kind is it?"
Valerie: Val never developed much of a libido, between depression and not feeling anything besides the very top, so porn didn't do much and she never got into it. Though that's been changing a bit lately...
GM: Now? Now the world might be opening to her.

"You monster!"

"Girl-next-door. Not joking."
Valerie: "Ooh, the classics."
GM: "Ugh," she lowers her face into her hands.

"Not that I took too deep a look, but there was some real classy stuff in there, too."

"Daaad I'm going to kill you."
GM: "I can actually pick you up and throw you."
GM: He laughs, hands up.
Valerie: Valerie giggles and leans back. "It's fun ribbing. But okay, we'll drop it."
GM: "It's hysterical," her father agrees. Arielle grumbles, but she can see a smile. She reaches up to stroke her new necklace quietly as she finishes eating.
GM: "I think now that I can walk again I'm going to head down to the waterfront," he says.

"You be careful, okay?" Arielle puts a hand on him, and she can feel the tingle of her magic
GM: "You're doing a lot better, but you could relapse."
Valerie: "Keep your phone on you and make sure there's people around. Sorry if it seems we're babying, but, do it for us."
GM: "Yes, sir~"
GM: He ruffles her hair
Valerie: "Thanks." She smiles up at him.
GM: He gives her a squeeze
GM: "You're my angels, you know that? I'd be dead without you two."
Valerie: She leans up to hug him. "Yeah, well... Live. That's also an order."
GM: "I'm not going to that big forward operating base in the sky just yet."
GM: "Good," Arielle says. Unlike their father, they know what heaven looks like - and that souls like his don't reach it after they're dead anymore.
Valerie: Might be something they can do for him after he does pass, to make sure he gets the best, protected rest he deserves...
GM: An email from Ikenga pops up - a reminder to study the Forgemaster works on metallurgy she sent her.
GM: Also, her fan mail folder is overflowing again
Valerie: ...grim, but inevitable. She scrolls through the email and her brows come up. Ooh, study material. ...and reading material to go over later. She loves her fan, but boy. She has no idea how the five million sub let's players manage it.
Valerie: She can't even keep up with a hundred K.
GM: Likely they don't!

"Okay. See ya, Dad!"
Arielle rolls her sister out of there.
"I might have to start getting up super early for kung fu training," she asides to her sister as she lifts her into the van.
Valerie: Once settled in, she fastens her chair in and buckles in. "That's okay. Ikenga is probably gonna ride my ass on this forging stuff, so we'll be even at the end of the day!"
GM: The two of them take off. Ethan promises to meet them with his scooter, and she spends traffic reading up, playing with her little toes in their socks.

At Ala's insistence, Ikenga snaps a few photos of her daughters' electronics projects. Her custom cases are beautiful - where the hell did she find someone to do authentic Arabic calligraphy, or did she just print-spray those out?
GM: There's a radio and a MP3 player and a little motorized vehicle..
Valerie: {Ooh... That's stunning work. Very nice!} She might have to feature those in the next video. A fan submission segment of cool project, perhaps?
GM: They're certainly worthy of attention.
{Ala also wants to get you to listen to some of her music projects, but I leave that to your discretion. It's cute seeing her this enthusiastic - normally she just spends all day in her room.}
Valerie: {Sure. Send me the link and I'll put some on when I get the chance.}
Valerie: {And it's nice to see someone so active!}
GM: A ping comes from a new IM moments later, linking her to a soundcloud account.

{I normally don't see mages reaching out to the public like that. I suppose you got your public face already, but it's Magical to see it in action.}

Under normal circumstances, a Free Counciler like herself wouldn't make herself known at the Consilium so often, but Lakshmi changes the rules with her very presence. Ethan is looking entirely human when she sees him again - he must have been maintaining a spell for their benefit. He hangs out in front of the gate after they've gone and parked in the garage nearby.

Beaming, he heads over to her and wraps his arms about her. With a little tingle, she feels his magic settle in as his fur spreads out, a tail flicking behind him.
Valerie: It's interesting to see the transformation in action. She has to wonder if there's something on her end she can do to make it easier on him... Something that doesn't require a spell or something. Would help to know what it is he's even doing with that, though. "Hey, you." She reaches up to hug him. "You look pretty refreshed."
GM: "Had a good long bath."
"I didn't think cats liked water," Arielle grins.
"Not true of all cats!"
GM: He sure liked that shower
Valerie: She starts to roll on past the gates to hide the tinge of pink on her cheeks. Jeez, your vagina develops sensations and it starts to lord it over you.
GM: "Ah, but did you shake yourself dry?" she asks, following on in.

Funny, before she liked romance just because she liked being romantic.
GM: He snorts and swats her, joining them inside
GM: A young Sleepwalker has taken a turn as secretary, and she offers a smile as they enter. The cafe nearby is packed - weekends must get busy here.
Valerie: "Hello. Showing the newest around, if that's okay." she greets with a slight wave of her hand.
GM: She looks up at Ethan. A pause, and then a dawning of recognition.
"Oh! You're NowayHome!" she exclaims. She already knew about Wire Nest of course.

He winces. "I never realized it, but that name was disturbingly prophetic."
Valerie: "Mage of Fate." She smiles at him.
GM: "Welcome to the Consilium! Firebird called ahead about Lakshmi, I know, and she'll see you just as soon as you're in."
Valerie: "Sounds good. We'll show him around and wrap the tour up with seeing her, then."
Valerie: Val turns herself about to start following Xihe's example. She did a great job, after all, and it was laid out all well and nice to explain the Consilium and the five paths!
GM: Ethan is nothing if not attentive, and he listens to her with one ear cocked while they make their way around. He has a lot of questions, and she answers to the best of her ability, with Arielle backing her up. Her master would be proud!

They finish up by Lakshmi's office, and Xihe admits them in.

The lady herself is hovering a couple feet off the floor, legs crossed. Incense burns in a corner, and soft music plays from no where at all.
Valerie: Val has to watch with raised brow. ...she sure knows how to make an appearance for the newcomer.
GM: Ethan knows the drill about gurus, being of Indian descent, and he slides to a cross-legged seat on the offered pillows.

"Welcome," Lakshmi greets, descending to hover an inch off the floor. It looks surprisingly comfy.

"And especially to you, young man. I know your trials were difficult, and I shall not ask you to speak of them. If you wish to, however, you have a free ear with me - and with your friends, of course."
GM: He nods with a slight smile, flicking his tail back and forth. "I well might take you up on that, thank you. I still need to give Wire a full accounting."
Valerie: Valerie sets the brakes on her chair, then actually pushes herself out of the seat to slide down to the floor and join them. She has to manually position her legs with her arms into being cross-legged... but that they actually hold her up without her faceplanting makes her beam at Lakshmi.
Valerie: "There's plenty of time ahead, of course. As you feel ready."
GM: Her smile warms at the sight.
"I can feel my spell in you doing its work, Wire Nest. You're feeling healthier already."
Valerie: "Thank you. I can even wiggle my right pinky toe."
GM: "Well done! I sense that you and your sister have something that's on your minds, though. I have a feeling I might know what it is."
Valerie: "...yeah, actually." She sets her hands on her lap, mulling over it. "...we found our mother's journal."
GM: "So you knew, then?" Arielle asks.

"I suspected," Lakshmi demurs.
Valerie: "But you weren't sure, so you opted not to say anything lest it was someone else we just happened to resemble."
Valerie: "Then it'd just be awkward."
GM: "Sariel was intensely private. I did not know she had any children."
GM: "So yes, I decided to avoid the question."
GM: "I apologize if that offended either of you."
Valerie: "..honestly no. You don't strike us as the type to be malicious."
Valerie: "So there had to be a reason, intentional or no."
GM: "I might have liked to know, even if it was rude," Arielle says, "but I understand why you didn't, yeah."
GM: "I confess that I had no idea as to her fate, either," Lakshmi says. "Again, her privacy was intense. She came to me with a request not long before she disappeared from our Consilium."
Valerie: "A request? I know you offered to help her to bear child, but we didn't see anything mentioned after that outside of her message to us."
GM: "To be more specific, she asked if I could help her discern why she had been unable to naturally conceive. She trusted me in preference to other members of our Order - why, I cannot say for certain."

She glances at Ethan and seems to decide that they aren't kicking him out, so clearly they don't mind him hearing this.

"After I discerned that she had androgen insensitivity, she grew despondent."
Valerie: "Yeah... that's what we came upon."
GM: "I'd never met an Obrimos with such dark moods as she before," she adds. "She could be given to such intense bouts of depression that her superiors occasionally came to me in concern."
GM: "The Fallen World ate at her in a way that it rarely does the rest of us. And when I told her the news... forgive me, but this is in her words, and I think you two are more than old enough to know... 'I'm just a mistake. This whole damned place is a mistake.'"
GM: Arielle's hands tighten on her shirt and she has to contain herself.
Valerie: Val frowns, looking down. That she could hug her now, tell her she's not a mistake, that her two daughters are obrimos and planning such wonderful lives...
GM: "Naturally, after a mage says something like that and fails to appear at meetings for a week or so, I make inquiries. I found her alive, but she made it clear that she had no interest in returning and was working on a personal project of great importance."
Valerie: "Us."
GM: "I stopped keeping tabs on her some time later - and, at this point, I feel that is likely, yes."
GM: Ethan takes her left hand, holding it
Valerie: She glances at Arielle. "How much can we say..? I trust her."
GM: Lakshmi coughs politely
"I should warn you that I can understand you perfectly well," she offers delicately
Valerie: "Oh..."
Valerie: She blushes.
GM: "Me too," Ethan indicates.
GM: "..." Arielle frowns.
GM: "Lakshmi, what are the chances of two infants being able to converse in High Speech long before they're Awakened?"
Valerie: ...that does sting a bit. All those years of figuring out nuances and verbs so no one else could understand down the drain. ...though she looks up at Arielle at that. ...if that's the case, it would lead .. credence to the out of this world origin.
Valerie: She looks up at Lakshmi to see her opinion of it.
GM: Of course they could just make a new language without high speech but -

Lakshmi frowns slightly.
"As I understand it - entirely impossible. High Speech is the language of the Awakened."

"But it's also the language of the Supernal as well, right?"
GM: "By definition, yes."
Valerie: "...There's an increasingly good chance we're not from this world. Not wholly, at least."
GM: It's Lakshmi's turn to look surprised, and she can't imagine that happens often.
Valerie: "In the words of our mother, We are... A star plucked from the sky, and I shall forever cherish you as a spot of perfection and light in its darkness."
Valerie: "She did not elaborate on the how however."
GM: The feeling of Lakshmi's full attention settling across her is almost alarming. It's a bit like she'd imagine a submarine feels like under intense sonar scanning.
Valerie: She bites her lip, but bears with it.
GM: "Supernal beings cannot endure on this earth... normally."
GM: "I have heard of odd exceptions and ways to escape being torn asunder by the Lie."
GM: "There is nothing about you that I immediately sense as out-of-the-ordinary - but neither does that mean there is nothing."
GM: "I think you two have just found a very powerful Mystery, and a very intimate one."
Valerie: "Mh." She nods her head.
Valerie: "It's one we'll have to dig into."
GM: "I suggest starting with her cabalmates, though that may prove difficult. The only surviving member is in the Los Angeles Consilium now."
Valerie: "We'll see what we can do."
GM: "As a warning, don't go to the Assembly of Los Angeles - there's a caucus of Free Councilers among the Consilium."
GM: "I've heard some troubling things about the Assembly of Los Angeles in recent years."
Valerie: "...that sounds ominous."
GM: "It has to do with their relations with the Goetia." She pauses, and addresses Ethan. "Goetia are our term for the self-willed constructs of thought that exist in the Astral Realm. They take the form of characters from popular imagination and stories, as well as syncretizations of emotions and needs."
GM: "Oh - we know one, actually," he says
GM: "She mentioned something about a friend of hers being trapped in a bad contract in LA."
Valerie: "Yeah, she told me as much too." She frowns. "So it's not a good relation is the gist of it."
GM: "That is essentially what I hear out of the Assembly. Both the Assembly and the Consilium take contracts with Goetia in an attempt to influence opinion, but there's been talk in some Silver Ladder channels about the Assembly's more coercive practices."
GM: "Unfortunately, the Assembly itself has a Silver Ladder caucus, and they claim the reports are lies spread by the Consilium"
GM: "Politics are a dreary distraction from our true purpose, but all too common I fear."
Valerie: "Tsh... That's dirty. We've gone through, first hand, what massive amounts of good a mutual relation can achieve."
GM: "I suspect your friend means that someone at least is abusing their trust, yes," Lakshmi nods.
GM: "I wish you luck. I am sorry that I was not able to help your mother - sometimes, my hands'-off approach has the unfortunate consequence of failing to catch such matters. She made it clear she didn't want help, though, and there was only so much I could do."
Valerie: "Mh... Though there is one more mystery I'd like to bring to the fore. I'm... not sure if it's related, or a byproduct of her project, or some other accident."
GM: "If you do find anything, do keep me apprised? I would much like to understand this mystery with you - yes?"
Valerie: "There is a..." She frowns, and switches to High speech to get it across more easily. "A pall of abyss surrounds our father and risks reverting the healing the representative Xihe sent gave him."
GM: It also makes it come across way more ominously.
GM: Merely mentioning the Abyss in High Speech courts a word of negation.
Valerie: ...her mood might have slipped through her words. She clears her throat. "..sorry, that.. sounded worse than I intended it to."
GM: "It was about as bad as it should be," Arielle says.
Valerie: "..I suppose.."
GM: She takes her sister's other hand
Valerie: She squeezes the two hands she's holding.
GM: "I know you must be weary of my sticking my nose into your business, girls, but perhaps I could come see your father at some point."
Valerie: "We wouldn't be mentioning so much to you if we didn't value your opinion and help. I know you say it's for free, but if you ever do need an Obrimos or two's touch..."
GM: "I will keep you in mind," she promises. "Especially if it's to change the weather!"
Valerie: That makes her smile. "I'll try not to summon further ancient Chinese fae."
GM: Ethan laughs, rubbing a thumb against the back of her palm.

"Do you feel this is an emergency?"

"It's sat for a long time already," Arielle admits. "And when I checked him this morning he was okay. I think we're good, if you're busy."
Valerie: "His fall in health was slow and steady over years, but I don't know just how much of a ... a 'reset' it's undergone through magic."
GM: "I am a bit," she admits. "That's the one flaw with being generous with my time."
Valerie: "We'll keep an eye on him and let you know if things become dire, but for now I think we can take our time."
GM: "If it becomes an emergency, I suggest asking your Master first. She'll likely be able to respond more quickly if I'm entangled. If I'm available, I'll come. Otherwise, expect me for dinner in a bit - I'll call ahead."
Valerie: She smiles and nods. "..er, what's gonna be the cover story here, then?" She looks at Arielle.
GM: "Uh - friend. Don't look at me I'm terrible at this!"

Lakshmi laughs. "I'll come up with something."
Valerie: There's a snicker. "If you're single and looking..."
GM: "Is your father handsome and kind?"
Valerie: "Yes and yes. You knew our mother, and he was making her happy."
GM: "I haven't dallied in a while. Maybe I'll see if he's interested."
GM: Arielle coughs, blushing
Valerie: Valerie giggles. "It's been years!"
GM: "Going to bump into him at the supermarket?" Ethan jokes. "Online date?"

"Now that's an idea. Things are so different in this century."
Valerie: "Or we can be the conniving daughters."
Valerie: "We're good at that."
GM: "I can well imagine you are. Speaking of you, quiet young man..." she directs at Ethan, of course. Be a bit weird otherwise. "Have you thought of a shadow name yet?"
GM: "Uh - is Bagheera taken?" he asks. "I was always pretty fond of him."
Valerie: "Heehee." She brushes a finger over a bit of black arm fur. "Appropriate."
GM: "If someone complains you two can sort that out between yourselves. Welcome to the Consilium once again, Bagheera~"

She regards him thoughtfully. "It's rare that I get to recommend this, but you may wish to seek out Changelings. I've never even heard of a mage with a Mien before."
GM: "And I suspect you can see through theirs as easily as they can see through yours."
Valerie: "Changelings?"
GM: "A long story - the escaped men and women of Arcadia. Fallen Arcadia - or so we hope."
GM: "The alternative is too terrifying to contemplate."
GM: "Fae kidnap them and change them, as Bagheera has been changed."
Valerie: "...that's.. terrible."
GM: "I saw a lot of strange things in my time there," Ethan says sadly.
Valerie: "If they're like you, it might be worth a shot." She squeezes his hand.
GM: Lakshmi nods. "In any event, they may help you to understand it a bit better."

He nods and squeezes it back.
Valerie: "I'll help how I can, if there's something I can do."
GM: "You're already doing a lot," he smiles at her.

"If there's nothing else, I'll let you three go. I'm glad to see such comraderie."
Valerie: "Until later, then." She smiles at her, then begins the... far less easy work of dragging herself back into her chair.
GM: Despite the urge to help, they let her do it, letting her strengthen those muscles bit by bit under the aid of Lakshmi's spell, and then letting her wheel back out into the hallway
GM: She can remember how weird it was to be "taller" with her legs functioning and everything.
Valerie: She's grateful for the lack of interference. She'll take the help up stairs, but she can manage going from the floor to her chair! Especially since she can start counting the number of days before she has to stop doing it.
GM: "I'm feeling kind of mentally exhausted," Ethan confesses as they step out. "That was a lot to take in."
Valerie: "I can empathize. Learning about this stuff gave me some whiplash too."
GM: "Why don't you two go chill out at your place for a bit? The girlfriend won't be free until the afternoon anyway."
Valerie: "Kaaay." She stretches her arms above her head. "Give me a ring when we'll be good to go."
GM: "Also, you two haven't been alone since he got back."

"...I can understand you you know."

Her grin says that she knows very well.
Valerie: She flushes. "I deserved that because of this morning."
GM: "Exactly~"
GM: "It's just like a half hour walk to your place, right? I'll push," Ethan offers, smiling slightly.
Valerie: "Sure. And yeah, that's about right."
Valerie: "Can stop for some cherries at the corner store. I'll make us milkshakes."
GM: "Catch you kids later!" Arielle trots off, with a little magical tingle as she accelerates to a blur.

"That sounds like a great idea! I haven't had milkshakes in forever," he says as he starts off. That's a nice sound - his enthusiasm.

Together, the two of them head back to the street, with him pushing her up the hills and her rolling along the way. They can feel like any of the other couples that stroll this area - not one of the nastier parts of town. Sometimes, her neighborhood meets that definition, but she didn't have a lot of choice on her budget.
GM: "It's nice being able to walk down a street again."
Valerie: Once she can walk again and her PT is over with, she'll probably have to move... Not unless she can secure a bigger source of income, since the government will withdraw disabled support and she won't be able to meet with rent increases. ...ah well, she'll figure it out. She always has dad's place to fall back on.

"Isn't it?" She glances back at him with a smile, then her eyes trail down his legs to his feet. ...paws. Hm...
GM: Oh right need to make him shoes at some point.

He pauses as they enter the corner market.
"...that guy shopping for beers is an ogre," he says quietly. "Stony skin, one eye."
Valerie: She looks over at him, allowing some Prime mage sight to go over her eyes. She might not be able to see that seeming thing, but maybe she can make out an aura.
GM: The man in question is a heavy-set fellow with a couple craggy scars and a large coat. Mm, nothing shows up in Prime mage sight - a Knowing spell might be interesting.
Valerie: She goes ahead and concentrates before allowing her third eye to open so she can regard him more properly. Not too deeply - but she is curious enough to see what floats to her eyes.
GM: Visions come to her, even if they're somewhat confusing. She sees a stony mountain cliff, shot through with crags. As far as she can tell, the curious shell that protects him from view is no different than Ethan's, shimmering with the same curious blend of camouflage and world-adjustment. He has a good deal of weight to him, but not significantly so.
Valerie: "It's definitely the same thing that covers your form," she explains.
GM: The man glances up at Ethan, who looks away. It's clear that Lakshmi was right about the Changelings being able to look right back at them.
Valerie: She has to wonder if he can see Ethan's magey aura, or if it changes his seeming any. Interesting..
GM: He gets up, grabbing a six-pack of Coors, and heads to the counter. He pauses by them near the door.

"Watch what you're staring at. Some people don't like to be looked at."
Valerie: "..sorry."
GM: When someone talks to you like that, there's always a weighing of whether or not it's wise to actually respond. Valerie tries the former.

The man grunts and continues on, paying for his beers. On the way back, he rumbles, "There's people like you down in the Castro. Might want to get your fairy ass over there."

Somehow, she doesn't think he's actually referring to gay people. It's a gruff way to lend someone information - also, score for apologizing.
GM: Also, also - there's changelings hanging out in the Castro? Talk about stereotypical.
Valerie: She looks back at him leaving, then looks up at Ethan. "He was kind of nice, if gruff. Well, LGBT central is one for the to do list, yeah?"
GM: Ethan gives her shoulder a squeeze and nods.

"Yeah - later though. Maybe not even soon later."
GM: "Maybe once you're walking."
GM: He flashes a smile
Valerie: "When you're ready. They won't evaporate overnight." She smiles at him. "And deal. I'll walk you there myself." For now, she hauls her wheels to resupply her garnishes and milk.
GM: The cherries are looking good today, too! Must be all that rain she sent into the valleys.
GM: Locally grown.
Valerie: Score! Plump and red. With gear with a bag on her lap, she resumes the trek on home with her boyfriend.
GM: With wonderful little clouds scudding across the noonday sky, they make their way back to her apartment. With him, she's even able to go straight up the hill, and he isn't even panting as he does, either.

He stretches out his digitigrade feet after flopping into Arielle's chair, sighing in relief.
GM: "I always thought back on this place in relief."
GM: "It's so cozy."
Valerie: Val gives his feet another look over. She can get a general size out of him, and 3D print a mold for a rubber sole. Some leather for the inches up his extended toes... Then some classy garnish. It'll look great. She'll look over Ikenga's manual, too. Maybe it'll have some ideas for her.

"We had some nice moments here, even if things got weird." She rolls out to the kitchen to put her supplies away and start working out some nice frothy milky treats.
GM: Despite the focus on durable metals, there's stuff on leathers, too, along with gems and embellishments.
Valerie: It'll be the best damn pair of shoes he's ever worn, even while he had people feet!
GM: "What's on that devious little mind of yours?" he asks, poking his head over the top of the chair, ears alert.
Valerie: "Oh, nothing muuuuch." She says before she gets the blender going.
GM: She finds him lounging at an odd angle when she gets back, with one leg over a side, one leg up on the back, and sprawled partly over the ottoman. Cat spines
GM: He rotates to sit upright, making her back ache at the contortion
Valerie: "Doesn't that, uh... hurt?" She sets his cup down on the coffee table on a coaster while keeping hers on her lap to sip at. Cherry on top!
GM: "Nope! Actually it's surprisingly comfortable - I can feel my spine decompressing."
GM: He takes it, slurping a bit - then, with milkshake on his lips, he grins and leans in to kiss her face.
Valerie: She shudders her shoulders. "Ugh. Believe me, I know a lot about spinal cords, and your seeming is saving you a load of tr--mph." She giggles muffedly and shares the bit of flavour with him. "You're gonna make a mess," she blames afterwards, swatting his shoulder.
GM: "It's really nice that you like it, you know?" he then leans in to lick it off with his rough tongue, finishing by kissing her nose
GM: "It'd be hard if I felt like I had to lie about what I'd become."
Valerie: "I won't lie, if it was significantly more cat-like I might not have been into it. But you have this aesthetic, and your fur is short so you're sleek and I can make out your form so it's like a dark skin, and you have enough regular skin showing... Well, all in all, I think it's handsome and fetching." She blushes behind her milkshake.
GM: "Also you're really nice. And pretty. Beautiful even."
GM: "Just thinking about you over the long nights - nights that sometimes lasted days, mind - helped get me through them."
Valerie: "That is both so very sad, and so flattering." She brings her chair in closer to where he's sitting. "I wish I could have helped sooner."
GM: "You helped. That's what matters."
GM: He slurps a bit more, nestling as close as he can by sitting up on the chair rest, his free hand in hers.
Valerie: The time difference the night and the day she took might have made a large difference... Though, she didn't know about the mages, summoning, or anything of the sort yet. Not till Lethe filled her in... Ah well. He's here now.

"I have a confession to make." She giggles.
GM: "Oh yeah~?"
Valerie: "I peeked while you were showering."
GM: "...oh did you?" A grin plays about his lips.
GM: "Did you like what you saw?"
Valerie: "You have a toned butt, and your tail worked well." She flushes. "Your junk is a bit more animal than I anticipated, but it fits well with what's around it that I couldn't complain. ..then I stopped looking cause I was sure Ari was going to catch me."
GM: His smile widens, eyes playful.

"So... you know, before I left, I was pretty shy. Still am a bit shy, but I got used to certain things, and a certain - longing set in. What I'm saying is would you like to see me again?"
Valerie: She opens her mouth, then clamps it shut before biting back a shy giggle. "..I don't normally have a libido."
GM: He reaches up and slides his hoodie off, letting it fall beside the chair
Valerie: She puts her hands in her lap and watches. Golly..
GM: His shirt is taut against his chest. Burned off a lot of fat out there.
GM: It doesn't last long - he slides it off, too, letting his furred chest stand out.
Valerie: "You really bulked up," she says, for lack of anything intelligent to say.
GM: "I got these claws climbing trees."
GM: "Trees as big as cities."
GM: He flexes them along her skin, not breaking her flesh or even scratching her - just tantalizing it with sensation
Valerie: She squirms a little, and it's not unpleasant. "They're pretty intimidating." She nevertheless runs a finger along the top of one, fascinated. Arcadia must be quite a place.
GM: Forces is weak there, because narrative is the driving cause of all things, be it fire or storms.
GM: He takes her hand, setting it against his chest.
GM: Letting her feel his heart pumping
GM: Then he finishes off his milkshake and sets it aside.
Valerie: She curls her fingers through his fur, unable to erase the goofy, lip-bitten smile she's wearing. He doesn't seem so shy to her.
GM: She can just make out the little spots that are swallowed up by his melanism
GM: She can almost feel his eagerness. He's hesitant, certainly, but he's longed for human touch for a long time.
GM: Slowly, he unbuckles his pants, sliding them off with his underwear all at once
GM: Until a beautiful cat man is spread out before her. He doesn't push her - just lets her get used to the sight, even as he gets used to letting her see him
Valerie: Val draws in a breath when he bares himself before her. Would that she could circle him without this chair to dictate the pace she's able to go at. "You're beautiful," she blurts out quietly.
GM: His tail stiffens and he exhales heavily. She can't tell if he blushes under that fur, but his eyes certainly suggest it.
GM: "I've never - deliberately done this before, so bear with me."
Valerie: She giggles. "Can't say it's something I have a lot of experience with either, so, y'know."
GM: "That's okay, I'm an Acanthus. First times are apparently our specialty, as you informed me."
Valerie: "Well, speaking, of... Would, uhm..." She pokes her fingers together. ".. I mean, I feel like it's an elementary school thing to say, but, uh, you've shown me yours.."
GM: "Val? I'd love to."
Valerie: "It's not gonna be anywhere near as graceful as you... ...for now, in any case," she warns.
GM: He sits up, just sort of - hanging out there as he watches. "It's okay. No pressure. I'll even turn around if you'd like."
Valerie: "What? No, that's.. The whole point is to be seen." She pokes her tongue at him. "Besides... I'd like you to see me at my lower point, so you can compare with how I look at my best, however long down the line.."
GM: He reaches out and cups her cheek
GM: "Val? Beautiful? It's okay."
Valerie: She nods, then begins to take care of her own. She starts with the ease part... Easing her shirt up over her head and using a hand to fix her hair. Undoing a bra strap is significantly less strip-teasy, but, well, it's still the easy part. She's still a little on the softer side... that'll have to change if she's going to be walking around. She'll need Ari's help to kick her into shape.

The hard part is her lower body, mostly for the shame she has for it. ...but knowing that it'll be useful again soon? It's not as bad. She'd never have offered last month. So her jeans are undone and she props herself up on her elbows to start wriggling out of them and leans down to toss the garment aside. Then she repeats to deal with her underwear till she's joined her furry boyfriend with her significantly less furry state.
GM: For most of her life, her lower half has been a useless lump.
GM: Unable even to enjoy it
GM: He takes her in
Valerie: She doesn't look at him, flushing and looking askance. "How.. how is it?"
GM: Gently, he slides a finger across her shoulders, down her arm, tracing her scar.
GM: "You're pretty~"
GM: "Did you get this when you Awoke?"
Valerie: "The lightning bolt that hit us. The Awakening just made it perfect." She smiles and, feeling a little bolder, twists her waist to show off her back so he can see the rest of it.
GM: "I feel I can almost read it." he traces the wing on her back, and then she finds herself lifted up by his arms, pulled back into the chair with him.
Valerie: "Eek!" She quickly grabs around his shoulders by reflex, but then relaxes once they settle down. ...this feels nice, her skin on his fur.
GM: He sets his arms about her waist.
"I know you're nervous. We're both super nervous. I want to know if you can trust me."
Valerie: Val raises her head to look at him, searching his face. Then she smiles and nods. "Yeah. I do."
GM: She feels him hardening agianst her back, and his breath is a bit tighter. He licks her nose and grins, ears erect
GM: A hand comes up and gently squeezes one of her breasts
Valerie: She lets herself lean back into him and rolls her head back, arching what of her spine she can to his touch so she can let herself enjoy the moment. Let go of her usual worries for a time.
GM: "If we're moving a little fast, let me know. I know I'm eager, but I want you to be comfortable."
He rubs his rough fingertip in little circles on her nipple
Valerie: "Okay. For now, I'm still goo-ah!- ...still good." Her body reacts as can be expected from such treatment.
Valerie: Though they were stiff long before she took her shirt off.
GM: Two hands, now, massaging the tender flesh. He kisses her neck, his fangs just touching.
GM: "I'm totally cheating with fate magic right now."
GM: "I thought - I want her to have a really good experience but barely know what I'm doing. So I'm going to cheat."
Valerie: "..I think I'll allow that sort of cheat. But it just means... I can cheat right back." She lets a bit of Force magic go through her fingertips to run it across his arm, letting the heat from her body meet the heat from his into a radiating glow wherever she touches.
GM: "Oh~"
GM: "Hello."
Valerie: "Magic is fuuuuun."
GM: He hardens against her, and nips down on her ear.
GM: Slowly, he works down, rubbing a hand up her thigh.

"is this okay?"
Valerie: "..not quite there. Little bit higher is where I can feel it."
GM: He nods against her and, while massaging her breast with one hand, moves up a little higher, to her delicate inner thigh.

No one's ever touched her here, not even Arielle. She's barely touched it herself
Valerie: Her doctor's prodded around there in a clinical fashion, but this way? Hell no. She never felt the need or desire to besides just to see if 'it' works to only get discouraged when it didn't. Except it does now - or mostly does - thanks to Lakshmi.

And this new sensitivity is rather wonderfully useful right now. "That's nice," she coos.
GM: He squeezes her breast a little tighter, and licks behind her ear, and slips a rough finger in and - holy shit that's a good combination.
GM: It has her stretching out every little nerve
Valerie: "Oh!" She raises her head up in surprise, inhaling a sharp gasp. It never felt quite like this before.
Valerie: "That can't be.. all magic," she hisses through her teeth.
GM: "It's a little of everything." He hisses against her, a low, pleasant growl rippling through him against her
Valerie: "One second," she pauses him. She takes his hand from between her legs, then picks them up to turn herself around on his lap so she's seated sideways. Then she puts his hand back down and leans into him, one arm about his shoulders. The other getting to slide down his fur and explore his own. "Better. Poor thing was poking me in the back."
GM: His breath tightens, his low purr making his chest rumble as she explores his fur
GM: The muscles beneath it nice
GM: And below -
GM: he's almost painfully erect now
Valerie: She almost hesitates to touch it, so desperate does it look that she'd break it. But she starts to study and map out its shape first by the fingertip, then in an embrace of her hand, studying his own reactions to learn.
GM: They're bold, like teenagers alone together for the first time, hot and sweaty.

His kisses land on her neck and shoulders, his hands reach up to cup her back and her rear.

It's stiff all right, responding to her touch. It's slid out of its sheaf, and even that is strangely attractive on him.
GM: Whatever his fae nature, it's done him a lot of good
GM: He moans softly, and then growls louder. "That's amazing."
Valerie: Fortune favoured him in this case. And her, by proxy. "Can say that again," she breathes into his own neck. She feels like she's on fire and she's moving without thinking about it to meet touches or go for more.
GM: she feels his hands on her hips, his breath hot against hers
GM: "How do you feel?"
Valerie: "Boiling," she hisses softly. "Kind of desperately horny."
GM: "Gods, you too?"
GM: He hisses against her.
GM: "...you can say no, right now."
Valerie: "Do it," she says instead, laying her forehead on his.
GM: "Okay." he sucks in a deep breath. "Okay."
GM: It takes some maneuvering. He slides her down on the couch and ottoman, and straddles her. Gently, he touches himself to her nethers.

"Val? You're beautiful, and I love you."
Valerie: She brings one arm up about his shoulders, the other holding her unresponsive right leg aside to make space. "I feel beautiful... I love you too, Ethan." She smiles up at him, flushed all over.
GM: And then he's in, sliding into her.
"Oh, gods."
GM: And then another animal growl, more intense this time, as he slides all the way in.
Valerie: The sensation of being opened up is novel and delightful. There's a flash of pain that makes itself known, but it's like a few sharp pebbles in an otherwise perfect river. She squeaks, her breath taken away, and she grabs her arms around him tightly. A "oh fuck..!" escapes her, much as she was trying to keep this romantic and classy.
GM: That's the nature of sex, especially a first time
GM: He starts a rhythm against her, his growls a powerful accompaniment to each thrust. Their first time, each of them, but god if he isn't good. Acanthus cheat well.
GM: He seems to find every little sensitive spot, revealing contours of herself she never could have imagined before
Valerie: She can't possibly maintain her own cheats in this state, left to be jostled beneath. She's limited in how she can reciprocate, given her hips don't answer to her, so she makes up for it by kissing into his chest or shoulder with a soft symphony of encouraging noises he bumps out of her with each meeting of hips to hips.
GM: It'll just give her more reason to figure it out once she has her legs back.
GM: Lightning coursing through her nerves
Valerie: She can only cling and twitch against his form when her dam breaks, barely able to breath let alone say anything about it.
GM: "Oh, god, there you are," he hisses against her, kissing her
GM: And he growls one last time as he releases
GM: Panting as he softens
GM: "Oh fuck me..."
Valerie: She plops back down in the seat, panting like she ran a marathon unprepared. "Ho.. holy shit.. My vision's kind of unfocused.."
GM: He laughs, settling in beside her, panting.
"...that was... the best thing... it was worth coming home for."
GM: He licks at her ear
Valerie: "Mh.. good welcome home present.. then.." She giggles and turns into him. "..that was a few years of pent up just.. battered out. Plus magic, plus lover."
GM: "You're incredible."
Valerie: "You did most of the work, so let's call it a team effort."
GM: He laughs again, hugging her tight
GM: "We should catch a movie or something, even if it's just here."
Valerie: "Mh, yeah. Though think we should get cleaned up first."
GM: He stands up, a little shaky from their union. He picks her up, with a bit of effort, helping her back into the chair.
"You first~"
Valerie: "Kaay~." She rolls out to the washroom to run herself a bath. She feels like she's on cloud nine.
GM: Some people talk about seeing stars. Her? She can see heaven.
GM: -------------------------------------
GM: (pew)
Valerie: Rar
GM: ---------------------------
A few hours later, they're curled up together in the chair, her playing with his fur and he dozing contentedly while music plays in the background, half-asleep. His tail twitches now and then, and that's just a wonderful thing.

Her whole world has been upended, and every new vista is a new wonder, even with the horror.
Valerie: It's pretty crazy how a bit of spinal healing and enlightenment about manipulation of magic can afford much more control to a life that she had made monotonous by design to keep it from falling apart anymore than it had.
GM: Ethan stirs a little, stretching and coming up to nuzzle at her ear.
Valerie: "Eek.. whiskers!" She giggles and batbats at him.
GM: He grins.
GM: "You're beautiful."
Valerie: "You too." She lays her head on his chest. "Life got pretty wild, hasn't it?"
GM: "Tell me about it." He closes his eyes, taking a breath.

"If I didn't feel this power within me, this certainty, I might have feared this was just another lie to trick me. But I'm here, and I have you, and my family, and-"

Whatever romantic thing he was about to say is interrupted at Arielle's knock
Valerie: She's listening with a smile, though it drops slightly at the knock. ...oh shit, they're in the buff. She peels herself off of Ethan to start scrambling for some clothes where they dropped them on the floor. "One sec, I'm not in my chair," she calls out, hoping that'll buy her a bit of time.
GM: Ethan is like liquid, springing off the chair and bouncing off a wall agilely as he heads into the laundry room.
"Shit! We forgot to turn it over!"
GM: "Turn what over?" Arielle asks, pushing the door open and barging in. She stops, staring at her sister and Ethan, who's got a towel quickly wrapped about himself
GM: "Arielle, I need some more change for the-"
A cute young woman, with shoulder-length hair dyed electric blue, follows, pausing as she stares at the two of them.
Valerie: "............" Were that she had access to the Mind arcanum right around now, throw some faerie powder in their two faces and start the encounter over.

Val, bent over the easy chair fishing for clothes, slowly grabs her shirt and melts back to sit on the floor and hide behind it. "I'm going to die of shame now. Kthxbye."
GM: "...Hi," Ethan offers.

Arielle looks at her girlfriend, mortified, but rather than be offended she's covering her mouth and trying not to laugh.
"Come on, Ari," she says, taking her hand. "We'll be back in just a minute."
GM: Ethan breathes a sigh of relief when they step out, shutting the door, and laughs
GM: "Well we just flashed your sister and her girlfriend, but that's cool right?"
Valerie: She crawls over to her wheelchair and hops up into it. "Not the impression I was hoping to make." She smiles bashfully at him and, beet red, wheels out to her room to pick up a change of clothes. Thankfully, she bathed and he showered, so at least they weren't, like... sticky. Or whatever.
Valerie: "Are yours okay?" she asks, peeking out the door. "I have some spare sweatpants that might fit you."
GM: At least Arielle didn't barge in coitus
GM: "I think I'll take you up on that. I'm sure they'll look just as smashing on me."
Valerie: She'd probably have been tempted to conjure lightning down on herself at that. "Meh, they're not all that girly. Me and Ari aren't the epitome of it anyway." She tosses him an oversized shirt and a pair of sweatpants - those with the elastic waistline. "I'll pass on giving you panties, though."
GM: "I'll pass on that, too!"
He grabs them, heading into her bathroom to change.
Valerie: Once she's presentable, she wheels over to the door and pops it open, still wearing a bright blush but at least it's accompanied by clothing this time. "...hi."
GM: They're waiting outside, and turn to greet her. Arielle looks almost in disbelief, but her girlfriend is all smiles.

"Hello! You must be Val - I've heard a lot about you!"
Valerie: "Better things than what you witnessed, hopefully." She smiles bashfully at her before rolling back to let her in. "Can I bribe your memory with a milkshake or something?"
GM: "I think that can be arranged!"
She steps inside. Ari pauses in the entryway, looking down at her in shock.

"How was it?"
Valerie: "...wasn't quite the Aether, but it wasn't that far removed..." She smiles dopely, then wheels on in to the kitchen to get to work.
GM: "Wow. Supernal sex. I'm jealous. I've never actually - "
Valerie: She quirks a brow back at her sister. "With a body like that? Really?"
GM: Arielle crosses her arms over her chest self-consciously.
GM: "I get really nervous and awkward!"
GM: "And all of my boyfriends got sick... probably part of the curse."
Valerie: "Didn't start any less awkward, if it makes you feel better." Two scoops, whole milk, a dash of sugar, some vanilla. As she blends it up, she glances at the other young woman. She doesn't look sick, though it's not been very long, either. ...plus, Ari can Life her up, too, and probably has been.
GM: "I'm Rachelle, by the way. I don't know if Ari told you much about me yet. I know how shy she gets."
GM: Arielle blushes, going to sit by her girlfriend at the table and take her hand while each takes a milkshake
Valerie: "Nice to meetcha. And she hasn't told me a whole lot!" She wheels the pitcher over to pour it up for them. "Main got-aways I reached was that you're sporty like her, but girly-er than the two of us combined. A romantic, given a mountain weekend date, and you're good at making her wistful."
GM: "I am fairly girly! And you get wistful about me, really?" She grins at Ari, a bracelet flashing as she raises a hand to stroke her girlfriend's long hair.

"Babe, sometimes you're all I can think about." Arielle closes her eyes, leaning into the touch. She loves having her hair stroked, as Val well knows.

Ethan pops out. It's funny to think that all she sees is his old human body.
Valerie: She smiles at the sight. D'aww. It's so sweet to see. She missed seeing her sister have someone romantic with her, since her thing with Jack sort of fell apart. At the time she was doing the relationship thing vicariously...

"Speaking of adorable, the pretty boy you walked in on is Ethan. Ethan, Rachelle."
GM: "Hey. Hope I didn't bother you with that too much."

"I have brothers. I'm only really into girls, but you look very nice regardless, Ethan~"
Valerie: "Lucky I don't have to compete to keep him, then." She giggles.
GM: "Oh, honey, you're going to be beating others off with a stick."

"So I guess all the equipment works~?" Arielle chirps, grinning.
Valerie: "Hopefully not. Wouldn't want to injure them."

"There's still a deadzone a bit behind the front, but the rest works better than it ever has."
GM: She finishes her milkshake and goes to give her sister a hug.
GM: "I'm both really proud of you and really jealous."
GM: "Some part of me wants you all to myself."
Valerie: "You still have me, even with other people there." She leans up to hug her. "Always a team."
GM: "My mirror."
"Oof..." Rachelle rubs her head. "I swear for a moment I saw you two glowing. I think I might be getting another migraine."
GM: "If I'm seeing auras."
Valerie: She glances over at Rachelle, brows coming up.
GM: Arielle frowns, going to sit by her and lay her hand against her head. There's a little tingle of magic and Rachelle sighs in relief.

Ethan looks between them, surprised.
Valerie: Valerie, herself, draws prime across her gaze and opens her third eye, watching the interaction between them and watching Rachelle in particular.
GM: Darkness seems to have settled tiny little roots on her, but Arielle's magic peels them out, keeping it from "infecting" her. Arielle shares a glance, nodding knowingly.

It's interesting, actually - it's like her soul is struggling to wake up in response.
GM: Ethan looks between them, clearly confused.
Valerie: Valerie spends a few moments longer watching. This is the curse in action, after all... if she wants to learn how to unravel it for Ari, it's a good opportunity to observe it, at least until Arielle's done plucking it apart at the moment. Then she lets her gaze drop.
GM: "I'm sorry about that. I've always had them but they've been getting worse."
Valerie: "No need to apologize. I know all about medical issues."
GM: "I swear your sister has magic hands." She takes them and beams. "So! I was thinking about us all going down to Fisherman's Wharf and getting something to eat. I was worried for a moment I was going to get too sick, but hey."
Valerie: "Magic hands run in the family." She grins at Arielle. "Fisherman's wharf, huh? I could be down for that."
GM: "Sure," Ethan agrees.

"Great!" She finishes the rest of her milkshake. "I'm glad you're here. It makes it more of a couples' date, less awkward for Valerie."
GM: Ethan smiles. "Lemme get my clothes, the dryer should be done."
GM: "So Arielle, you can actually pick her up in that chair and everything?"
GM: "Babe? I could pick her, the chair, and you up."
GM: "And probably Ethan, too."
GM: Rachelle squeezes one of Arielle's unyielding muscles with a clearly appreciative look
Valerie: That brings a grin to Val's face. "And bench press all of us for at least one rep, at that. But yeah, sis is beastly. I kinda fell behind a while back, so I'm the plush one."
GM: Rachelle laughs. "I'll ride with you on the way down. I want to hear all about little Arielle."
GM: "Oh god," her sister covers her face.
Valerie: "I've got tales to tell there." She waggles a finger at her.
GM: Once Ethan's back, they head out to the van. Maybe Arielle will sell it once she gets her legs back.

Rachelle settles in across from her while Ethan settles into the front.
Valerie: She begins to regale Rachelle with tales of their childhood, when Val was the one out and about arranging things and Ari a bit more of a follower. Though she throws in a fair bit of when they worked beautifully as a team, going out of their way to confuse people, or freak them out when they don't know there's a twin there.

Like when they pranked their mall dentist. Ari went in for a first check up while Val guzzled down a small red slushie. Then Ari pretended she had to go pee and Val went back in in her stead.

That was a good day.
GM: Rachelle is kept laughing most of the way, loving every bit of it. She teases Ari with a little french, and that makes Val ache a little.

She remembers her mother doing that to her father, sometimes. She spoke it natively, he only a smidgen, but sometimes they'd do their romantic talk like that and it'd be so terribly sweet.
Valerie: Back when Val knew it a bit. Without mom around, neither of them really kept up with French. ...that was a missed opportunity. Maybe she should re-learn it. It's nice to see in action now, though.
GM: She can hear her mother's words in that accented High Speech, speaking to her children.
Valerie: It wasn't so much a tongue between her and Ari, but between her, Ari and their mom, now that she knows of the mechanics behind it...
GM: Arielle pulls into the parking structure across the street, and helps her sister out. She winces at the impact - there's definitely feeling in her legs now all right.
Valerie: "Oof.." She reaches down to stroke at her thighs. 'Wiggle your big toe, wiggle your big toe,' said Kiddo. Good signs, though the sensation is somewhat alien right now.
GM: Fisherman's Wharf is one of those pier tourist places, nice if you just want a little atmosphere like that - quaint buildings built up together in cute ways over boards.
GM: It wasn't all that far from here that she and her sister Awakened for the first time, on the other side of the Bay Bridge
Valerie: She wheels after the others, though glances back that way. She can practically picture the lightning bolt that struck their hands and gave them their wings. A lot changed that night, all leading up to that moment.
GM: Ethan walks alongside her, his tail flicking with a pleased langour. He looks good - he was lost that day, but now he is found.
Valerie: Changed and hurt, sure, but he's got his family and new friends. He'll be alright. He's looking great already, as case in point!
GM: "Wanna go try the ferris wheel out?" he asks when he notices her attention, grinning with his little fangs
Valerie: "Huh?" She blinks up at him. "Oh! ..sure! I could go with a turn on it."
GM: "Catch you guys for food in a bit," he calls, taking her chair and zipping ahead. The guy looks a little skeptical at first, but he lets Ethan pay for tickets and carry her in his arms, which he manages at least enough to get her into the bucket. He sits next to her, wrapping an arm about her side as they start to go up.
Valerie: Psht. Ablists are everywhere. She ignores him while Ethan gets her settled in, and once the wheel is going she leans into him to look out while they gain altitude.
GM: They don't get all that high, of course, relative to the town. San Francisco has a lot of hills, after all. They do, however, get high over the Wharf, and its lights illuminate them from below, while Alcatraz glows faintly in the distance through the mist.

"There's magic going on there," he says, fingers intwined with hers, his cat's eyes drinking in the darkness.
Valerie: She looks out that way, letting her sight of prime go over her eyes for a quick look. "I'm not surprised. A far away island no one goes to except for very scheduled, easily predicted guided tours?"
Valerie: "About as good as it gets, short of going out of town to a cabin."
GM: It seems to shimmer with time magic in particular.
GM: No wonder he could see it
GM: "We should do that sometime, when your legs are better."
Valerie: "Fuck yeah we should."
Valerie: "I want to do all the things that legs let me do."
GM: The cab comes to a stop at the top
GM: And he grins
GM: "Oh look at that."
GM: "It's almost like I used fate magic to put us here."
Valerie: "Hmm?" She looks at him and quirks a brow. "Ethan Srinivasi, did you ensorcell the ferris wheel?" She giggles at him.
GM: "I absolutely did!" He gives her forehead a peck, and then leans down for a kiss
Valerie: "Cheater. That's okay, though." She grins, then holds onto him to kiss there at the top of this plateau of the city.
GM: Her stomach flutters, and she feels him respond against her. He sighs happily as they part, purring against her. It is a beautiful, perfect moment (1 point of mana)

Unfrotunately, good things don't get to last forever - though it isn't the turning of the wheel, that does it.

Magic tingles around them, and Ethan's ears go up.

"What was that?" he asks, peering around.
Valerie: Her breath hitches when he has to pull back from her. "I felt it too." She frowns, concentrates, and draws prime over her eyes to have a look around.
GM: Gazing through the Aether, she finds that a fog bank that has risen off the water is nothing natural. There's a curious tinge to it, almost purplish, a kind of magic she's never seen before.
Valerie: "That fog out there. It's not normal. ...and it's not magic from any of the arcana I learned, either."
GM: "I can't make it out, either."
He huffs a sigh, the wheel starting to rotate back down.
GM: "I guess we'd better investigate."
GM: He doesn't sound too miffed about that, but it's clear he wanted to spend the night after his first sexual experience iwt hher.
Valerie: She elbows his side. "We'll make out again later," she teases. "Plenty of time for it. But a mystery's a mystery."
GM: He squeezes her hand, grinning. "True, and I have you with me."
GM: It's a little reminder, too, that mysteries are nearly everywhere. The Fallen World hasn't fully forgotten where it came from.
Valerie: And it seems Atlantis has no qualms about showing the fallen world its hand. Maybe the two are trying to become one, but can't. Well, worth digging into later.

For now, a weird magic fog is in town.
GM: (brb while I start food! :D)
GM: ~
Arielle and Rachelle have gotten lobster rolls, and meet them at the bottom when they're out. Arielle shares her concerned look with her sister as she hands her roll over.

"It's freezing," Rachelle complains, pulling her little cloth jacket tighter and leaning against Arielle
Valerie: "Unidentified. It's not an Arcanum." She takes the roll gratefully and takes a quick munch. "Looks like a cold fog pulling in from the water," she says in agreement.
GM: "Definitely not awakened magic," she agrees. "I wish I knew which arcanum it was."

"You two are chirping like little birds again," she laughs.
Valerie: "You'll have to get used to that, I'm afraid." She smiles at her. "It's a bit of a tick we developed, secret language aside. A substitute to 'thinking to ourselves', I suppose."

"I can see its nature with a more powerful spell, but I don't have anything to refer it against."
GM: "Yeah," Ethan says. "Really at this point I just assume they're discussing what I look like naked."
He hasn't the skill to converse fully in High Speech yet, after all.
GM: Though he can understand it
GM: Funny how they were just born with it, apparently.
Valerie: Perk of being starchildren, apparently. Val rubs at her chin thoughtfully about how to proceed from there. She'd rather not drag Rachelle into this if something overt has to happen - dissonance isn't exactly gentle on a person, from what she understands.
GM: Rachelle is kind of the problem. Arielle can't well get rid of her without being rude.
Seeing this as well, she purses her lips.
"Why don't you two make an excuse to get some more private time? Hollar if you need me."
Valerie: "Alright." She considers for a moment, then looks up at Ethan. "Hey, Ethan. Think you can navigate the USS Pampanito with me in tow? I kinda want to see their old tech for ideas. Old sub electronics still used cathode tubes, they really did some pretty fancy stuff with the limitations."
GM: "Yeah no problem," he grins down at her. "I'm sure they'll let us."

"Have fun you two!" Rachelle calls. "I'll just have to make Arielle blush and squeal while you're gone."

Arielle squeaks, blushing brightly
Valerie: "That won't be hard." She grins at her before wheeling off with Ethan. She then turns for the waterfront, once they have the chance, to see what they can, well, see.
GM: Wandering through, she catches impressions of it. Using her Mage Sight again, she even tastes the air - it tastes salty
GM: In a way that isn't natural
GM: "Sometimes it's so thick I feel like I'm drowning," Ethan says, lashing his tail
Valerie: "This is strange." She makes a face, poking her tongue out. She pauses once they're inside to take another Supernal vision of the area, drawing her rod and allowing a smidgen of paradox to spend reach on gaining a more solid impression of the fog's nature.
GM: (Spell~?)
GM: (or effect0
Valerie: (Spell, yes.)
Valerie: (with 1 reach for speed and the +1 reach for any supernatural nature.)
GM: (Any questions you desire to ask? :D)
Valerie: 'Which supernal realm most closely aligns with this magic'
GM: (0 pox)
GM: ----------
(We'll continue this later, focusing my attention :D)
GM: (1 beat)
GM: ---------
GM: She gets a sense of the paradoxical claustrophobia and yet terrible vastness of Pandaemonium, and yet - it's not quite that? Perhaps some realm that modern Awakened don't even know how to describe, a nightmare of crushing water.
Valerie: Val flinches, turning her head aside. "Augh... I.. don't even know how to qualify this. It's like.. if 'Drowning' was an emotion you could feel."
GM: "That sounds pleasant."
He folds his arms, burning off a bit of mana as he extends his own sight into space, his awareness expanding
GM: "...there's a woman drowning in midair."

She grabs her wheelchair, racing off at full speed.
Valerie: "What..??" She grabs the armrests and looks up.
GM: They go around to one of the less-traveled parts, a back area where trash is collected in bins to be taken out to be dumped safely, and there they find a woman gasping as she gushes up water, struggling to find any air at all, while across from her a figure in a hoodie watches hungrily, hands in their pockets
Valerie: Her active sight of prime drops over her eyes for a quick scrutiny of the both of them. What is that person doing to her?? ..she keeps her rod close. She may need the thunder for this.
GM: It's magic of some sort, some nonAwakened thing that fills her lungs with water even here, ten yards above it.
GM: "Hey! Knock it off!"
GM: Ethan bares his fangs, not that they can see them, though they can certainly hear the hiss
Valerie: She quietly burns a mana, erecting prime about herself. "Let her go," she re-iterates.
GM: The person - a girl, maybe, long, salt-frizzed hair - looks up at them and says nothing, a hungry light in her eyes.
GM: The woman falls to her knees, face red
Valerie: Valerie's rod comes up and points at the victim - or more specifically, the water drowning her - and uses the other hand to make controlling gesture so as to use Shaping to pull it out of the girl's lungs and airways - and away from her entirely.
GM: With her power, she tears the water from the woman's nose and lungs, more and more, so much it hardly seems real, until a globe of seawater floats before her. Gasping for all, she falls over, and Ethan goes to drag her away.

"Hey!" The girl shouts, furious. She glares at her, her eyes momentarily flat and empty, like a serpent's. She considers them, and then vaults over the railing, leaping into the ocean below
Valerie: Valerie lets the water drop down, once the girl is clear, to splash on the floor. There's a moment of silence, then she looks at her boyfriend. "..what the fuck?"
GM: "...I don't know but we should probably get the fuck out of here before she comes back."
GM: He helps her up, walking her back to the public areas.
Valerie: She rolls alongside, glancing at the girl with some concern. Meanwhile, she pulls her phone out to give Xihe a warning about what just happened. 'Weird girl thing dragged a supernatural fog in. Attacked a sleeper by drowning her with magic I don't know about besides the magic feels like 'drowning.' She leapt into ocean when we saved the sleeper. Figured you'd know better how to look into this.'
GM: (1 gnostic beat also :D)

Xihe texts back {Are you okay, first?}
Valerie: {Yeah. She looked pissed, but she didn't engage. We're getting out of the fog, which is where she seems to be operating in.}
GM: {I'll see if anyone is nearby. You take care, and good work.}
Valerie: "Gave Xihe a heads-up about ocean-girl." she chirps at Ethan, even if he can't answer in high speech yet. She then looks to the girl. "Let's get her a seat, I have my lap blanket in my backpack."
GM: Shaking, she lets them guide her to a bench. He runs off to get help while Wire stays with him, her lap blanket draped about her to warm her up
GM: "Wh-what happened?" she asks. "This girl... she was... choking me.."
Valerie: "Yeah... a real psycho-case that was." Far more subtly, she guides what environing heat she can reach to wrap about the poor thing. Thankfully, heat isn't visible. "We saw something weird from afar and came to check it out... glad we did, too."
GM: It's a trivial use of magic, warming her through the blanket.

Her sister trots up, looking around with death in her eyes before taking her shoulder
GM: "Sorry I wasn't there."
Valerie: "We didn't expect to find someone attacking someone else, or we might have gotten you along after all." She gives her a smile. "But we spooked her off, so it worked out."
GM: She looks at the Sleeper woman, but knows she won't get anything out of her. The Quiescence works fast.

"I'm sorry about your date."
GM: She offers Val
Valerie: "Likewise with yours. ..the rest of the day was nice, though."
GM: "I bet it was." She grins.
She looks to the victim apologetically. "Ah, wow, that was insensitive."

She brushes her, a subtle thread of magic helping to heal the bruises in her throat, aiding her to breathe
GM: "I'm.. doing a lot better."

Ethan returns with a cop, who bends next to the girl
GM: Asking her questions.
Valerie: "I honestly have no idea what that was. It was weird magic, like it was made specifically for drowning, and the look on her face... She was relishing it." she quietly chirrups while the police handles the girl.
GM: "That's fucked up. Like some sort of emotional murder vampire."
GM: She glances around
GM: "There's probably actual vampires around here somewhere, too."
Valerie: "They opted not to get involved, if so, which is for the best. Don't want to deal with that, unless one shows up with a notebook I can bum off them."
GM: The police asks them some questions, too, not that they can say much - size and appearance of the attacker, lying about seeing her choking - and then they're let go. They return to find Rachelle sitting, worried with an ice cream cone
Valerie: "Hey... Sorry things got weird. Stopping an assault and battery wasn't part of the plan."
GM: "I'm just glad you're okay," Rachelle says, smiling at them, relieved.
Valerie: "We're good, honest." She shows a hand. "I might not be able to walk, but I can show some voice when I want to."
GM: Arielle kisses her cheek and settles in with her.

"Honestly, she ran away after Val screamed," Ethan agrees, helping to cover. Lying to a friend isn't fun, but they don't have a lot of choice in the matter.

"I'm still up for hanging out, but I'll understand if you're too freaked out," she says to Valerie.

Once upon a time? That might have shocked her to her core
GM: Yet, ever since touching the Aether, the level of things that can shake her has risen considerably
Valerie: "If I had been the one attacked, maybe I'd prefer a break. But I'm feeling pretty good about saving a life, so I'm good to hang out."
GM: ("I replaced my Integrity with Wisdom, it's cool.")
Valerie: (hehehe)
GM: She takes her hand with her free one and beams. "Okay. Why don't we get a movie? I hear Captain America: Civil War is pretty good."
GM: "And there's a showing up soon."
Valerie: "That sounds like a plan. I'm always up for some Robert Downey Jr!"
GM: "I know! Isn't he dreamy?"

"Heyyy, I thought you were all lesbian," Ari protests, poking her.

She giggles, swatting her back. "I'm sorry, but it's the truth!"
Valerie: "Robert Downey Jr. is as much a woman as he is a man, alongside Johnny Depp and Leo."
Valerie: "Sexuality is abstract before these deities."
GM: Rachelle laughs at that, and Arielle groans.
"You two really are distinct in a lot of ways," Rachelle says, stroking her long hair fondly
Valerie: "A coin has two faces, even if it's one coin." She grins at her sister.
GM: "It could be one of those trick coins with the same face," Ethan smirks.

"Yeah, but then each side would have its own little scars," Rachelle continues to stroke and Arielle makes a soft, contented sound, quite liking it.
GM: Like a purring cat
Valerie: Makes Val consider growing her own hair out again.

...but she likes the bleach and dark two toned, pixie effect too much to give it up.
GM: It's part of her brand at this point!
GM: Together, the four of them make their way half a block down to a one-room movie theater. They typically show vintage films, but have to put on a blockbuster now and again to keep the doors open. Ethan pulls her into his lap as they sit down, grinning.
GM: "Hey Wire~"
Valerie: She laughs and leans back into him. "Sup. Fancy meeting you here."
GM: "I know right? Who'd'athought."

His arms wrap around her, the fur soft and warm, his cheek fuzzy.
Valerie: It feels nice. To think the only reason they didn't start earlier was that she couldn't see past her own feelings' nose. Silly, just silly.

Plenty of time to catch up... decades more, if Lakshmi's age says anything.
GM: Little life magic goes a long way.
Valerie: She'll get to walk, too. She can't really get that out of scope in her mind. Everything's looking up, even if she does run into the odd... drowny sea-witch girls now and then.
GM: The movie passes by, and so does the evening. Ethan heads home, and she passes out in her own bed, mind swimming with possibilities.

(Any plans for the next couple days?)
Valerie: (She'll want to do some digging into the astral, follow mom's footsteps a bit, and will talk with Ikenga about shoe making.

Also it'll be high time for her to put up a new video and see about basking in the accolades.)
GM: (You can begin progress on the shoes! You can roll Int + Craft and supplement with Matter)
Valerie: (some Shaping Rote thrown in, and using up my Inspired condition.)
GM: (Roll away)
Valerie: (...welp. 1 success. that was underwhelming!)
GM: (ahahahahaa)
GM: Wire is just putting the finishing touches on her shoes when the doorbell rings. Ethan had promised to come over to help with her new video while she's still on the mend, and it seemed an ideal time to present him with her gift.

Speaking of, she can absolutely feel her legs now, and even wriggle her toes. She can't move the god-damned things yet, and sometimes they tingle so much she feels like she needs to screa, but she can practically feel it coming.
Valerie: She's taken to manually doing some physio-therapy of her own with them. Sit on the floor and pull one in close to her chest, then lay it down... Even if it's with her hands, at least it makes the muscles move which will, hopefully, reduce the painful tingles. Soon, though... oh so soon.

"One sec," she calls out at the door, tugging the last lace in place before putting them in the bottom drawer of her desk for later reveal. She can make him an even better pair later, when she's well on her way with forging... magic shoes. For now, comfort will do.

Finally ready, she hits the button on her door remote to let him in.
GM: He heads in, leaving his backpack on a chair before coming up to kiss her at once with a single-minded fervor
GM: "Mm."
GM: "Hey hon."
Valerie: She laughs, leaning up to smooch him back. "Hiya, babe. Aren't you frisky?"
GM: "I am a horrible tom cat after all."
GM: He squeezes a breast.
GM: Grinning
Valerie: She snickers and pokes his belly. "Well, keep it zipped up for now. Gotta work to be able to play. ...though first, I'mma need you to sit and wear this over your eyes." She presents him with a blindfold.
GM: Ethan blinks at it. "Well okay."
He takes it and wraps it around his eyes, double so he can't see through.
Valerie: She collects the footwear and wheels on over to him. "No peeking." She puts the brakes on her chair, then slides down to the floor next to his paws. Then she collects one foot and eases the lace-ups over it. They have a significant heel - albeit bulky rather than feminine - to support his digitigrade heel. The seat for his paws is slightly sunk in so it doesn't compress it. The two halves then come together in the middle and are laced up with rawhide.

The whole thing is in white leather - to offset his dark fur - with black trim and black laces. They go up the ankle slightly, and she had Ikenga pour her a boot-like rubber sole, for maximum protection and warmth.

She then does the other foot and laces it up. "Ooookay, now you can look."
GM: "That feels funny.."
He removes the blindfold, peeking down, and makes a pleasant noise
GM: "Oh my god, those are beautiful."
Valerie: She scoots back and tugs herself back into her chair, grinning. "Custom job for custom paws, since I figure you'd have a hard time finding something that worked. You'd have a lot of wasted space with regular sandals, and they don't do much against nails and gravel."
GM: "I've tried, it's been awful. My parents kept bugging me about going around barefoot!"
GM: He tries a few steps, getting used to it
GM: "I wonder what it looks like to regular people?"
Valerie: "You could drop your spell and I'll let you know."
Valerie: "Actually, don't have to."
Valerie: "My phone isn't magical." She draws it out and switches to the camera, to snap a couple shots. ...at least, she hopes the files won't be modified by magic.
GM: When she peeks at the pictures, she sees perfectly human feet in perfectly human sandals. It seems his glamour extends even to that.
GM: They're very nice sandals of course
Valerie: "Looks like high-sides rawhide-laced sandals to me. The heel is mysteriously gone... that glamour thing is pretty cool."
GM: "It manages to hide my tail hole."
GM: He turns to show it off - there's a subtle button there
GM: "Means I have to do my own laundry, but eh, my mom appreciates that."
Valerie: "Was about to ask if someone would notice it once they're off." She reaches up to bat at his tail.
GM: "Speaking of! You've got another appointment coming, don't you?"
GM: He grins, batting her face
Valerie: She takes a picture while she's got his taut butt there. "M'yep. I'm going to mention being able to feel tingles in my legs and I'll gauge how your mom reacts to the examination."
GM: "Hopefully she doesn't disrupt the spell, but I'm sure Lakshmi will put it on. The worst she can do is slow it down for a few hours."
GM: Man, her 'date' with her father is in a day or so, too
Valerie: "Doubt she'll be able to disrupt it or paradox it... it's fast, but about as fast as watching paint dry. Not fast enough to cause quiescence, anyway."

That'll be interesting too. Of course, Val rehearsed the whole thing... Dad knows it's 'someone from their social group,' that she helped Val and Ari with a couple things, and Val wants to treat her to dad-cooking.

Only thing is, she hasn't mentioned that she's super pretty and mysterious and everything and that Val has ulterior motive besides thanking her.
GM: It's like the Parent Trap. Kinda. Okay, in almost no way is this the Parent Trap except it's identical twin girls trying to get their dad laid.
Valerie: It's the Parent Trap if it was supernatural and way better.
GM: Ethan does a little dance in his shoes, grinning
GM: "Okay!"
GM: "So, what's the video on today?"
Valerie: "Gonna be making a Mk 2 for the Raspberry Pi handheld. The one I made last year was a bit bulky and had more pieces than it needed, so I'll be doing something a bit sleeker and neater." She wheels on over to her video making gear, starting to take it out and put it up. Not streaming the process of video making this time, so it's a bit less trouble.

"As a special feature, we'll have a segment where I teach you how to solder." She grins at him.
GM: "Aww! I learn something."
Valerie: "Preeecisely. We'll make a tinkerer out of you yet."
GM: "Any magic planned?"
Valerie: "I'm thinking of cheating at making my own PCB for the breakout boards with Shaping , under the guise of etching it. Less space, and slip in magic. Those who can't see magic won't tell the difference and will still learn how to make their own PCB at home. Those who can might be able to make out that the process is just an obfuscation."
GM: (Pew~)
Valerie: (Rar)
GM: "That sounds awesome," Ethan says, pulling his legs up and examining his shoes flexibly. He tries to avoid doing that normally, seeing as how she's still sensitive to it, but he just can't help it.

There's a real warmth between them now, something that was building before they both Awakened, but since then - and since they had sex right there on that chair - the room's been almost ripe with it.
GM: "I don't think I've ever worked that deeply with electronics in my life."
Valerie: "Since arcana entered my vision, I've found an even keener interest in them. I mean, beyond my already deep obsession with making stuff with them." She smiles over at him, then starts to roll around to get her recording set up going and what she'll need to make the episode.
GM: Her tingly legs can't twitch very well yet, but gods help her if the phantom sensations aren't intense.

"I should probably start making content again. I've been kind of reluctant, but I think the normalcy of it would help. You know - as much as being a professional YouTuber is normal."
Valerie: "I'd recommend it. Besides that routine is good, practice is important, and income is necessary, you have tons of fans who are piling up to support you through this. Even if they don't know they are."
GM: He looks up at her and smiles slightly, slit eyes dilated just so.

He comes over and kisses the crown of her head, then her neck, his rough tongue brushing her skin
Valerie: Valerie closes her eyes and tilts her head slightly, letting out a pleased coo. "We have to do some work first," she insists. Verbally, at least.
GM: "Mmhmm."
He nibbles on her ear. "Though, you know, if you're all hot and bothered during the video and only I can tell, that's kind of attractive~"
Valerie: "You shit." She swats his chest with a snicker. "I'll show you how professional I can be." She gives him a playful shove back to finish setting up.

Though she is kind of hot and bothered, she's pretty good at keeping her poker face on.