#divinejudge

[deusdraconis]

Theia, Bahamut and Alexander @divinejudge

[kihel-sorcas]

@divinejudge | X

Finally someone who didn't just walk past or just gave a shake of their head as answer. Kihel wasn't solely trying to make some coin, she really believed in her ointments, she knew they helped! And in times like these, people needed a lot of healing...

Looking up at the tall man, she smiled - her own much brighter than his careful one.

"Sleep... of course!", she was already opening her leather bag searching through it, making little flasks and bottles clack and clinker in there.

The second question was quite unimportant to her, and she was still busy searching for the correct medicine: "I am. I sell my own potions travelling through."

Finally finding what she had looked for, she proudly held up the small vial. It contained a fluid that looked like weaved from the moon with blue and violet swirling inside.

"A drop or two of this beneath your tongue before you lay down and you will fall asleep quickly and wake up refreshed the next morning. I promise!"

[stingslikeabee]

@divinejudge found the Siren

The first time Melissa heard of that ceremony was back at her job - it was not uncommon for the singer to be approached at the end of her shifts by an appreciative patron who wanted to convey a particular word of praise or gratitude for her talents, as ignored as they could be over the chatter of excited conversation and fine dining.

But that man had a peculiar expression on his face - as if he had been moved to tears or close to it by her singing alone. The same individual mentioned to Melissa that her voice had reminded him of something unique - a sense of belonging that he couldn't describe. The only other time he felt such a connection, he said, had been in Cosmo Canyon. Away from the city lights, the noise and pollution of the biggest towns like Midgar and with darkness breached by moonlight and starlight only.

Cosmo Canyon became some sort of objective for Melissa then. It was not as if she was missing something - in fact, being close to the sea and able to pay the bills with her performances during dinner time at the piano lounges had been more than a dream. As a slum girl like many others from the underplate of Midgar, the woman had been lucky to get out - and to afford a decent life, even if lacking in material comforts and the luxury one would otherwise expect when looking at her. But the songstress presented to the patrons was a persona - the dresses were loaned, the make-up belonged to the hotel and she had nothing of her own except a gifted mezzo-soprano range.

Little by little, the woman saved enough for a trip there - gil for air tickets, modest lodgings and food to visit that part of the planet that had such a different history. No mako reactors in sight, no corporation with their claws around - and it didn't take long for Melissa to realize that even if the ocean was very far away from her, it felt strangely welcoming to be surrounded by the local canyons and crisp air.

The woman did everything she could on that first day - attended a seminar or two, perused the wares of the local artisans and listened to their stories, had some native food and even a quick tour of the sights on a chocobo ride. All that was left on that day was to shower and prepare for the most well-known festival of the place: the Rivers of Light. Melissa had read enough about it and seen pictures of the moments where lanterns were released and something magical happened, but the songstress looked forward to watching it in person.

The brunette took the lift to the lower area with many other guests, then followed directions to get her own lantern prepared before heading towards the bonfire that was not yet fully lit. Local scholars and representatives held torches and a speech or two were expected, so Melissa quietly looked for a good spot to stand while waiting for everything to begin. Step by step, she was taken towards the opposite side where the lift had landed, giving her a perfect angle of the fire that would grow larger at the end of the ceremony...

...As well as of one of the tallest individuals in attendance. At first, the songstress thought it was his height that had drawn her eye given how uniquely he stood out, but after a while she was not so sure. Even discounting the man's size, there was something that kept Melissa's gaze firmly locked onto him, almost to the point of impolite curiosity. With the orange glow of the flickering flames casting his profile in an inviting warmth, the brunette found her breathing catching on the throat and the hands tightening their hold of the lantern just for a bit.

Looking at him - that man - felt strangely familiar. Almost like fate, and she had no idea why.

[deusdraconis]

Alexander for @divinejudge

[deusdraconis]

[prvtocol]

@divinejudge : ❛ If you’re doing it to help someone, doesn’t that make it okay? ❜ | &. 𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬. ᠂ ⚘ ˚

The director knows an attempt at emotional manipulation when she hears it, and coming from the mouth of SecOps personnel makes it even more insidious. For them she spares no sympathy, no quarter for mistakes made, no lines eased to be crossed because she knows well enough how it is the other way around. The RDA is segregated and classed, a social microcosm, and as one in corporate oversight, she maintains those lines. It is not the same for the people under her charge, the scientists who labor in shoddy modulars with minimal protection. For SciOps, she is more understanding. For SecOps, she doesn’t need to be.

     Chin lifts, her pin-straight posture heightening her shorter stature, her clear blue eyes hold their unaffected stare on the man whose status she doesn't care to recognize. “Spare your explanation for Ardmore, corporal.” There is a firmness to her voice, one honed from her position. A report will be sent. “Following protocol is what keeps us safe. Infractions will not be tolerated. We all had the same briefing day one.” 

[versus-written]

This one.

This one is on the list.

Very. Very. High up.

@divinejudge

[deusdraconis]

You're my husband, my friend, our leader But a little chink in your armor might be nice.

 Really?

 It might be nice.