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Apr 5, 2016 : Star to Varyx
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  1. #1
    Star's Avatar
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    The Mirage: Star appears translucent with overlapping and slightly offset images of himself in different identities/disguises.
    Supernal

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    PRE

    One of the best things about Four Walls was the space.

    Large, large rooms unfettered by the sectioning of typical living spaces and whims of architects. Aside from the seating that could be removed with a bit of work, the theaters were each blank canvasses upon which the Veiled Threats could paint with purpose and imagination.

    And maybe sometimes those weren't obvious.

    One corner of the living room created a semi-circle of full body mirrors. Raised on a platform like a tailor's fitting area, the reflective sheets created a space that was more than a simple box, including smaller mirrors and the tops an bottom that angled inward.

    Cardistry. That's an actual word, yo. And it takes hours of practice. Hours.

    The Angel had set up the area to watch tv and be part of 'the family' while still being able to practice. To see the flourishes from every angle; what was revealed, and where. And how to hide the reveals.

    Spin, spin sugar.

    Nimbus in MiniSheet 2. Cloaked spells, no overt magical res. Scrut for deets.
    '...Watch With Glittering Eyes...'
    - Roald Dahl

  2. #2
    Varyx's Avatar

    Varyx
    aka Vanessa Thomas

    Tempting (Pres 4)
    Sultry (SL 4)
    Varyx, Apostate Mastigos

    Nimbus

    Varyx's nimbus is subtle - she still looks more or less like herself, but there's something about her, something difficult to put your finger on... She's always been beautiful, but it's magnified and somehow terrible. Something so lovely can't be human, and it gives the people around her the impression that maybe she doesn't have any humanity, either.

    +2
    SL
    4
    PRE

    It was very easy to get distracted by the motions of his hands.

    The door was slightly ajar when she approached, and when she knocked, it swung open slightly. Had he been standing anywhere else, doing anything else, she might have asked what was up with the mirrors. It was an odd thing to have set up, and not something your average person would understand, until it was seen in use. But seeing him standing there, the cards flying, his gaze darting about as if trying to watch himself from every angle at the same time, it was obvious enough. And slightly mesmerizing.

    Varyx leaned against the door-frame, crossing her arms and watching him practice. "If you're busy, I can come back another time," she began. There was a pause while she waited to make sure he wasn't going to tell her to leave him to practice. "I just wanted to thank you for turning me on to Firefly and Serenity. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the movie. And I'm working my way through the first season of the show, too."

    Another pause. She should wait until he invited her in. Or, if he ignored her, she should leave. It would be the polite thing to do. But she couldn't quite bring herself to do it. Because there was a question burning in her mind, and it had been there since their original text exchange to begin with. "It's not everyone who would willingly identify with the villain," she observed. Her gaze was still following the cards in his hands. "Why?"

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  4. #3
    Star's Avatar
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    The Mirage: Star appears translucent with overlapping and slightly offset images of himself in different identities/disguises.
    Supernal

    1
    OCC
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    PRE

    "Wha--"

    Brows knit below the mop. Just a moment of confusion, those first few days (okay maybe weeks) of someone new moving in. Of seeing someone unexpected, or where they're not expected. The cards slowed, one spinning lazily on a long finger before slowing to a stop and jumping with a twist and flip back into the deck.

    "Oh. Hey. No, it's, uh. It's okay."
    An infinite number of greenish-blue eyes flickered to Varyx in the mirrors. "Cool. Ummm. Glad you liked them."

    He turned and sat on the platform he'd been standing on.

    "Did you know, like, some people say the Star Wars trilogy," that's right, trilogy, "Isn't about Luke? Or Leia, or the Force? That it's about the redemption of Anakin Skywalker. So, like, let's say, just for fun, let's look at Serenity? What's Serenity about? Or who? Who's it begin and end with? Aside from the final we-might-make-another-movie closing? Because, maybe, it's about The Agent. He's the focus. It's about someone with faith and resolve, who learns the Truth. Who can handle it, accept it, and begin to atone. Maybe the movie isn't even titled after the ship."

    Long fingers cascaded outward, indicating she could sit.

    "So, your answer. Maybe I identified with the, uh, the character, with faith, resolve, and the wisdom to open their eyes to Truth. I don't think that's 'a villain'."

    "Who did you identify with?"
    Nimbus in MiniSheet 2. Cloaked spells, no overt magical res. Scrut for deets.
    '...Watch With Glittering Eyes...'
    - Roald Dahl

  5. #4
    Varyx's Avatar

    Varyx
    aka Vanessa Thomas

    Tempting (Pres 4)
    Sultry (SL 4)
    Varyx, Apostate Mastigos

    Nimbus

    Varyx's nimbus is subtle - she still looks more or less like herself, but there's something about her, something difficult to put your finger on... She's always been beautiful, but it's magnified and somehow terrible. Something so lovely can't be human, and it gives the people around her the impression that maybe she doesn't have any humanity, either.

    +2
    SL
    4
    PRE

    Oh. Oh.

    So it turned out she'd been thinking about it all wrong this whole time. Suddenly his identification with the character made so much more sense. Maybe it came of the fact that he had sent that picture before she'd watched the movie, so she'd spent the movie trying to fit the Orders into their respective characters. And while watching the film, she'd seen the Agent as a man blinded by his faith in a broken system. But she'd been looking at it backwards - the ending, when the Agent found out what it was he'd been fighting for was a lie, that hadn't been the moment that he stopped being a Guardian. That had been the moment he'd Awakened and become one in the first place.

    Varyx stepped into his space, and took the indicated seat, her eyes making a slow, calculated sweep of the room. Someone's room could say a lot about a person, after all. "When you put it than way, I don't see him quite so much as a villain either." Legs crossed, sitting comfortably, she met his gaze, finally, amusement passing over her features. "Me? I identify with Inara."

    No, not like that.

    Well. Maybe a little bit like that.

    "She's looking for something. She says she wanted to see the universe but that's a practiced line that says precisely nothing about why she actually left her home and joined the Serenity. " A shrug and a smile. "Unhelpfully, she's not one of the characters you assigned to an Order. So what about the others? I mean, Jayne as Mysterium seems like a, um, surprise, to say the least."

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  7. #5
    Star's Avatar
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    (Jack Hoyle)
    Nimbus

    The Mirage: Star appears translucent with overlapping and slightly offset images of himself in different identities/disguises.
    Supernal

    1
    OCC
    2
    PRE

    Note


    "Inara?"


    Side note? Inara was awesome in Deadpool.

    "That's kind of interesting. How you see her?"
    Hands splayed in a defensive gesture. "Which I'm not, like, disagreeing with. I just always thought, hmmm. Not that she was running? Because I think she found what she was looking for. But maybe she was, I dunno. Punishing herself. By not embracing it. So, okay. Maybe you're right. Maybe she's looking for, like, permission. From herself? Who knows? To, uh, grasp the ring. To be happy."

    Or maybe she understood that Malcolm Reynolds could never be happy by being happy. True story. Like Jack Sheppard from Lost.

    "Jayne's totally Mysterium. Maybe Simon is a better fit, but sometimes...,"
    a hand spiraled out between them, "Picking the obvious choice, hmmmm, doesn't make you See. Because it's easy, or just on the surface. So, you tell me what you See."

    She'd lived with cookie-cutter Books, right? Here's an idea. Every single idea, limit, heuristic? Closes your eyes just a little.

    "Why is Jayne Mysterium?"
    Nimbus in MiniSheet 2. Cloaked spells, no overt magical res. Scrut for deets.
    '...Watch With Glittering Eyes...'
    - Roald Dahl

  8. #6
    Varyx's Avatar

    Varyx
    aka Vanessa Thomas

    Tempting (Pres 4)
    Sultry (SL 4)
    Varyx, Apostate Mastigos

    Nimbus

    Varyx's nimbus is subtle - she still looks more or less like herself, but there's something about her, something difficult to put your finger on... She's always been beautiful, but it's magnified and somehow terrible. Something so lovely can't be human, and it gives the people around her the impression that maybe she doesn't have any humanity, either.

    +2
    SL
    4
    PRE

    OOC


    Yeah. Thinking back on Serenity now, she could maybe see why Star's impression of Inara differed a little from hers. She thought Inara was looking for something, but he said she'd found what she was looking for, but refused to take it. And maybe that was true. She grinned. "No, I get it. Maybe it's just because I watched the movie first, without the show setting the back story up. And I'm not finished the show yet, either. Could just be that I'm just lacking context you have." Because she hadn't seen Heart of Gold yet, and that mattered.

    It was funny, because when he asked her about Jayne, he hadn't actually told her to close her eyes, but it was the natural thing to do anyway. So she did, leaning back in the chair, and pursed her lips, thinking. Then, a slight inhale and her lips turned up at the corners when she caught an idea. "Jayne is Mysterium because Jayne likes stuff." Her eyes slipped open again and her brow furrowed slightly. "Jayne is Simon's shadow. Simon is what the Mysterium think they are, or want to be, more or less. He uses knowledge for the good of his people. He keeps secrets because he thinks doing so will protect the rest of the crew. He's the ideal. Jayne is the opposite. Jayne is what happens when a mystagogue forgets that it's not supposed to be about hoarding power."

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  10. #7
    Star's Avatar
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    (Entertainment)
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    (Jack Hoyle)
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    The Mirage: Star appears translucent with overlapping and slightly offset images of himself in different identities/disguises.
    Supernal

    1
    OCC
    2
    PRE

    "I'm glad you asked about Alae Draconis."

    Cards fanned out in each hand like the proverbial Wings.

    "You know, with Orders, sometimes I think people... that part of them is about fighting or disagreeing with the other parts. And it's not. I just, like, wanted to say that to, ummmm, emphasize the next bit. You're right about Jayne, I like that you got that. But Jayne also is, like, the poster child for another belief of the Mysterium. And that's that everything must be earned. Jayne has to get paid for his work. Jayne only takes orders from the people who have earned his respect. So, sure. Sometimes we'll butt heads with them? But they're also, like, the shepherds of Pentacle knowledge. Just like you know Jayne isn't going to hand anyone a gun."


    He might drop it and shoot himself, though. Shhhh.

    Cards rotated and spun slowly, forming shapes and sliding over one another. Slowly, to build muscle memory and loosen the fingers.

    "So. You ready yet?"
    Nimbus in MiniSheet 2. Cloaked spells, no overt magical res. Scrut for deets.
    '...Watch With Glittering Eyes...'
    - Roald Dahl

  11. #8
    Varyx's Avatar

    Varyx
    aka Vanessa Thomas

    Tempting (Pres 4)
    Sultry (SL 4)
    Varyx, Apostate Mastigos

    Nimbus

    Varyx's nimbus is subtle - she still looks more or less like herself, but there's something about her, something difficult to put your finger on... She's always been beautiful, but it's magnified and somehow terrible. Something so lovely can't be human, and it gives the people around her the impression that maybe she doesn't have any humanity, either.

    +2
    SL
    4
    PRE

    It's funny how your impression of a person can shade the way you look at everything else. Because Varyx hadn't liked Jayne particularly much. He was a good character, sure, but he was crass and selfish and occasionally kind of dumb. But Star's point - about everything needing to be earned? That made sense. And she was pretty sure she hadn't seen it because of her own inclination to cast Jayne - and thus his reflection of the Mysterium - in a negative light. And she'd missed the whole truth of it as a result.

    Lessons within lessons. Probably ones Star wasn't even aware he was teaching.

    "What about the Free Council?" she asked suddenly, tilting her head. The Orders weren't about fighting. Except, maybe the Free Council was. To a point. "Or by Order did you just mean the Diamond?" Because that was possible too. "The Council exists, right now, to rebel. They're defined by rejection. Rejection of the Diamond and rejection of the Seers. They're the Rebels. Maybe the end goal isn't to fight, exactly, but fighting the Diamond is in the nature of what they do exist for. Their unifying philosophy is disagreement with the Diamond." And greater, violent disagreement with the Seers, but that was orthogonal to the point.

    A pause. His question hung in the air for a moment while Varyx turned it over in her head. Was he being vague on purpose? "Ready for what, exactly?"

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  13. #9
    Star's Avatar
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    (Entertainment)
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    New Identity
    (Jack Hoyle)
    Nimbus

    The Mirage: Star appears translucent with overlapping and slightly offset images of himself in different identities/disguises.
    Supernal

    1
    OCC
    2
    PRE

    "For what? To pitch me."

    Every great trick.

    "Remember? I told you that you'd have to. I was just asking, like, you know. If you were ready now-now and just maybe needed a little affirmation or, like, a segue, or if you were still getting it. Like, coming to grips with it."


    A card sailed through the air at Varyx.

    "That you're going to be a Guardian."


    A grin accompanied another spinning card through the air.

    "Unless, you know. You're not going to. Just to spite me. But I don't think that's Who You Are."
    Nimbus in MiniSheet 2. Cloaked spells, no overt magical res. Scrut for deets.
    '...Watch With Glittering Eyes...'
    - Roald Dahl

  14. #10
    Varyx's Avatar

    Varyx
    aka Vanessa Thomas

    Tempting (Pres 4)
    Sultry (SL 4)
    Varyx, Apostate Mastigos

    Nimbus

    Varyx's nimbus is subtle - she still looks more or less like herself, but there's something about her, something difficult to put your finger on... She's always been beautiful, but it's magnified and somehow terrible. Something so lovely can't be human, and it gives the people around her the impression that maybe she doesn't have any humanity, either.

    +2
    SL
    4
    PRE

    A hand came up to deflect the card. The corner of it bounced off her palm and sent it spinning to the floor. She spread her fingers, looking between them up at him from her seat, one eyebrow arched with amusement. The second card drew a laugh and she shook her head.

    "Spite you? No." The thought of it was almost amusing. Spite just seemed so useless, even when she disliked the person in question. To spite someone she didn't dislike seemed absurd.

    The hand came down from in front of her again, folding back into her lap. She opened her mouth to speak, but there was a pause when she realized something unexpected. The way Star had shifted her idea of the Agent had changed her concept of the Guardians as a whole. Doubt about blind faith in corrupt superiors had been gnawing at her, because the thought of using her own magic to support a cause she wasn't permitted to understand? She couldn't. She wouldn't have been able to. But that had come of the stereotypes of what the Guardians were, instead of the truth.

    She was who she was. Had her conception of what a Guardian was just shifted to fit that?

    "That you're going to be a Guardian." It was an interesting way to put it. No question of "want" or "try." She suspected that if she pointed it out, he was going to quote Yoda at her.

    "Still coming to grips," she answered, finally. "Because I think I've got half of it, but only half."

    "You said you were a Guardian because someone has to be. Someone who is capable of doing the things that must be done. And I am. But being capable of an action without a guiding ethos is just psychopathy. That's what I meant when I said I identify with Inara. Because either I'm still looking for the faith you have, or I've found it and I haven't quite wrapped my head around it yet. But either way, the result is the same. I'm not ready to make my choice. Yet."

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