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[thearchitect] image/text

[ The photograph attached to the post depicts the front of a small shop called Polydegmon's Lapidary and Brew. It's got that 'new store' look, where everything looks pristine and nothing has been touched by grime or dust settling in the corners yet. It's not the most terribly modern-looking place (look, the rent was cheap).

He wouldn't even be advertising it here if a certain someone didn't bug him to. Honestly, he could do without the publicity... ]

I am now accepting commissions as a goldsmith and alchemist. My hours are from midday to six, weekdays only. Or whatever it is you call them. No, my prices are not negotiable.

[ Attached beneath the above terse remark is the address to the store. ]

Additionally, I will NOT accept requests for items to use in warfare of any sort. At all. If I find that you have done so then I will make sure you regret it for the remainder of your days.

(ooc: Please respect that a character will suffer some kind of IC consequence if they try and use his products as IC war propaganda or in serious IC war efforts. Doubly so if they deceive him for it.

[CW: Discussions of warfare in certain threads. Please use discretion when reading.]

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When I used to feel weary and worn from my duties,
My fathers and brothers would all gather together.
Sometimes we would all dance together, to hasten the blossoming of the flowers around us.
( That is one of our skills ).
And to rejoice in knowing we have each other.

But dancing usually helps me re-align my thoughts.
Perhaps, you could find some joy in it too, with someone you cherish.
And a good melody to go with it.

Maybe one day I may trouble you to show me the waltz you know.
A friend I made here and I tried to dance it, but it was quite funny when we tried.
If that would please you?

[ Just thinking about how his friend would react if he asked them for a dance makes him grimace. Hythlodaeus would get that gleam in his eye and that little smile like he wanted to laugh but wouldn't. And then he would laugh when Emet gave him a Look. ]

I will keep your suggestion in mind. I would not mind showing you how to waltz. You and your friend both.

And if you do not mind... I would like to see your own dance. Do you channel power through the steps and movement?

She is more of a fighter, but that is all the more reason to learn something like a dance, I feel!

!!
I would love to perform a dance for you!
My skill to rejuvenate and summon the regrowth of the land does not exist here, but
I can perform what I do to invigorate it.

I do indeed channel it through each step,
though it is only the Oracle who can do more with it as I do.
Such as rejuvenate a dying land,
Or summoning visions through them.

Which is my role, of course.

I even performed here for a Master Ren Jinguji's talent showcase,
Some months ago.

But I'm more excited to learn a dance from you, Master Emet-Selch!
I will be very grateful for the opportunity to show you my own in return.

When can we meet?

[ It's saying the magic words with her- she loves dancing, so much. It's why she was ready to leave her duties so fast when she had the opportunity to travel. ]

Well, I do have to address the issue of your jewellery first. Shall we say tomorrow?

[ Gives him time to mentally prepare for this enthusiastic woman. He's not a natural people person. ]

Tomorrow, around midday, then.
I look forward to seeing you, Master Emet-Selch.
I am truly grateful for your assistance.
Until then.

[ She's actually very reserved in person, but texting is a wonderful way of expressing oneself, she's found! She's also delighted that she's likely not the only other immortal here, and that's a nice feeling... ]

[ When she visits, she will see the shop is rather quiet. A high-end jewellery store (as he has billed it) by its nature does not attract a crowd of clientele. Which is absolutely deliberate of course.

That said, there is young boy inside enquiring about one of his (ugh) prank potions when she enters. ]

Yes, they won't be able to stop skipping for the full five minutes. How much? Hmm...

[ He lets them have it for a small discount and sends them on their way before looking to Kitsuno. ]

How may I help you?

[ It's very much a place that reminds her of the quiet little shops the spiritkind hold in the mortal realms. She herself, looks very unassuming- having donned an outfit that looks quite modern compared to what she'd usually wear. She was able to earn a bit at the floral decoration store she's taken work at, and the outfits help conceal her limiters better.

The first thing she notices though, is that the man before her is tall. She's a short one, barely five feet herself, and she waits patiently as he's done with the other young customer, before giving him a polite bow, bending at the upper body- a very eastern bow, if one were familiar with it, but she straightens. ]

I'm here to meet Master Emet-Selch... I hope I am not imposing. We were to meet today for a matter of my jewelry.

[ She smiles up at him, polite, speaking with a soft tone of voice and despite her reserved demeanor, she speaks with a quiet confidence. ]

I am Kitsuno, Princess of Sawa... forgive me for not introducing myself sooner.

Ahh, so you're the princess. Come. I have a private workspace in the back.

[ In any other context that would sound a lot like a proposition. But the thought doesn't cross Emet-Selch's mind once as he shows her to the back room, which has another small counter and walls lined with shelves holding neat rows of boxes containing various ingredients labelled according to his own system. ]

'Emet-Selch' alone will suffice. No need for the appellation. Now - may I see the jewellery?

[ She doesn't take it as such- but she's also not familiar with how mortals would make such propositions. Most spiritkind are just straightforward about it, even when they're being subtle.

All the same, she takes a look around herself once she does enter the back room, and at his request, she pauses, and nods. With a whispered apology, she undoes the ties around her sleeves, to reveal gold bracelets that look very much like what someone would wear to accessorize, delicate and pressed against the skin. They're cuff-like in essence, but there seems to be no way to unlatch or undo them- and she lifts her wrists to show him. ]

There are more... around my ankles, and my arms. They don't get in the way, but... I just wished to find a way to remove them. Back in my homeland, they have been sealed with a special key to ensure they cannot be removed at any time. But I have not the key here.

[ Perhaps, with their magics being sealed, he could do something? ]

[ Gently taking her wrist, he looks over the jewellery with an appraising eye. Indeed, there's no way to remove them as they fit snugly to her body. Short of mutilating herself, they will not be coming off. ]

If they were enchanted to stay on your person, I may not be able to remove them. But I could see about rearranging the pieces so they are more comfortable, if that is your wish.

[ Her expression falters a bit- though she figured it wouldn't be so easy. She just feels a bit bad that she troubled him for this.

After some thought, she gives him a nod. ]

Mm, that might work. If they're loosened enough, at least... because the way they are now, I worry about my skin beneath it.

[ With the magic, it wouldn't have caused problems, but as they are now, she's more likely to get burns from the metal. ]

I apologize if I'll have to be a bit indecent... they were very thorough with these limiters when they were placed on me.

Would you mind showing me the exact placement of all of these rings? The more precise my visual image is, the less chance of mishap there will be.

[ He reaches for a notebook on his bench and starts taking notes on all that she has said thus far. After some scribbling, he sets it aside and begins drafting some alchemical circles. ]

...Ah, you need not worry about indecency with me. 'Tis not the first time I have had to observe a woman.

Of course...

[ She wore something easy enough to maintain some of her decency in while also being able to show him what needed to be seen for that reason. A few buttons undone from her top, and she's able to ease off the straps to reveal delicate rings over her upper arms, just below her shoulders, that match the ones on her wrists. Her dress remains in place otherwise, and she shows him the ones that resemble anklets, but firmly attached like cuffs to her body. Anyone looking at them would just think them accessories, they hardly stand out. ]

There was one around my neck at first, but after it made me ill to wear it, it was removed. These were deemed enough to contain my curse.

[ She mentions that last bit with a hint of embarrassment, though. ]

I could barely feel them back in my world, but here, they're very noticeable to me. My skin feels raw around them now.

Hmm. These are all the rings on you?

[ He keeps a polite distance between them as he circles her, making note of the placement of all the 'limiters', as she calls them. If, like him, she has had her powers taken away, it would stand to reason that these bangles are little more than jewellery here. No wonder they chafe. ]

You would simply like them a little larger, yes? If you wish for their design to change as well then now is the time to make that known.

Mm. They are all.

[ She reaffirms quietly, feeling only a touch self-conscious, but also knowing this is a transaction or examination no more than she would show a healer- it doesn't feel intimidating or threatening to her as the Hebionna had.

At his question, she nods, glancing over her shoulder. ]

A little larger. I don't mind their image staying as it is. They're not uncomfortable otherwise, and I can decorate them if I ever need to.

[ Though, she can't help but add with a smile. ]

Or perhaps, I could ask you to if ever the need arises?

[ In total, there are six limiters on her— four on her arms and wrists and two around her ankles. ]

But I would like to be sure they don't hurt when I move... it doesn't look as nice when I dance when it stings to gesture.

[ Which has been a growing problem of late. ]

I really do appreciate you doing this, Master Emet-Selch. And- I also apologize for Lord Nobunaga... he may have been very aggressive with you and oughtn't have.

Larger, then.

[ Turning away, he plucks a fresh sheet of paper from the pile on his bench and begins to carefully draw a circle. His brow is furrowed in concentration as he adds esoteric details to it for the effect he wants. ]

Lord...who? [ he asks absently. He isn't aware that one of the men he'd been arguing with earlier on the network had been them. ]

[ She blinks as she looks up at him, wondering if the loud, very boisterous man talking to him about war failed to make an impression on him at all... well, in all fairness, she wouldn't have thought much of it either.

Mortals were usually more invested in things that shouldn't really be troubled with, after all.

She's silent for a bit, before shaking her head. ]

He's someone I've met here... the man speaking to you of war. A strange mortal warlord... though he shares a name with a Demon Lord I am acquainted with in my own realm.

[ She looks up at him, curiously. ]

... have you ever experienced such a thing, Master Emet-Selch? Knowing someone you already do, but as a different existence entirely?

Ah. That one...

[ He mutters and shakes his head, scrapping the page and marking up a new sheet. ]

Yes, I have. I have met three who all lay claim to the same identity. 'Twas baffling at first but I decided to simply accept it.

Three...

[ She repeats in surprise, watching him. ]

I thought one was surprising enough, but three of the same? I suppose it isn't impossible with so many worlds, but...

[ She looks at him with a tilt of her head. ]

He also told me that his lover was named the same as myself, but that we were nothing alike. Yet, the coincidence of myself knowing a man with his name, and him knowing of a person with my name...

[ She sighs. ]

Forgive me... perhaps it means nothing in the end. Do you get along with them?

...Not at first. But I suppose we do now.

[ He's unsure whether one could call it 'getting along' or 'being resigned to one another's presence'. Felih, at least, seems to love him whole-heartedly. Irhya, he is less sure of.

He tries not to think about Jophrey. The man is no longer with them after all. ]

There are only two left. I wonder when they, too, will leave me behind...

[ Finally satisfied with the circle he's drawn, he gestures for her to lift her arms slightly away from her body and hold still. ]

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[thearchitect] image/text

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[action]

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I'm so sorry for the wait

me too I'm sorry ;_; I was unwell and tired for a while.

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this got lost to the abyss... control thine darkness, emmy.

never

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