#goodmeeting

[empyreau]

Continued from here @goodmeeting ❝ What's the matter? ❞ she asks. Staring, she quirks her brow. ❝ Cat got your tongue? ❞ Isn't that what they say? Nina frowns, collecting her hands over her belly, threading her fingers together with idle precision. ❝ If you want to say something to me, you can. You should. ❞ A beat. ❝ When you talk, I listen. You should speak more. I'll listen more. If you do, that is. ❞

"It is a very persistent cat." He kept his gaze cast down to the side, thumb rubbing a small circle against the smooth silver handle of his cane. A new gift, as was the outfit he was also wearing. Neater than anything he'd ever owned before the figure he cut was clean-lined and sharp. A figure that no longer belonged in the spot which he stood.

You will relinquish everything from your previous life. The words of his new employer still stung in his head.

A quick glance upward as she continued to speak and he thought about not saying anything else, of only putting her voice to memory. They couldn't take that from him, could they?

He wouldn't let them.

"I came to say"—a brief pause and this time he met her eyes—"there will be less opportunity for me to speak more. Far less, in fact."

[illholy]

Nina stares. Judith stares. They spend odd hours staring at each other. Just girl things.

█ 𝒖𝒏𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒅, ╰› @goodmeeting.

Judith breaks the silence ( trust that she will always ! ) ⸻ ❛❛ You're too pretty to be real. ❜❜ come again? ❛❛ May I touch you ? ❜❜

[yuhyeol]

❛  can  you  help  me ?  ❜ ( to singed! )

𝑸𝑼𝑬𝑺𝑻𝑰𝑶𝑵𝑰𝑵𝑮 𝑴𝑰𝑵𝑫𝑺 .  feat. @goodmeeting ⟶ accepting!

     He knows something is amiss when Rio does not rush to greet him at the door as she normally does, and this is confirmed when he sees the creature huddled by the water next to a body. She perks her head up at his approach, and belts out an urgent gurgle as she darts up and around him, then back to the body.

     He places a reassuring hand atop her broad head, keeping the waverider still so he can examine the site of the leg he'd amputated yesterday. He's pleased to find a proto-limb has already emerged from the wound, and judging by the rate of growth it will be identical to Rio's three other legs by the end of the day. It's just as he thought:

She's perfect.

     A ragged, wheeze-like sound suddenly escapes the body, startling the creature into hiding behind a large rock formation. With his primary curiosity now satiated, he turns his attention to this new one; he kneels down and rolls the body over onto its back, provoking a feeble cough as water rushes out of its mouth.

     Undeterred, he takes hold of its face and carefully tilts its head back to get a better look at the eye. Given the sheer level of pollution in Zaun's waterways, one would expect an eye so severely damaged and exposed to the city's harsh elements would have at least experienced some minor corrosion, yet it seems to have remained intact; he's never seen anything quite like it before.

Fascinating.

     He feels a clammy hand on his arm, fingers trying and failing to gain purchase. It works its mouth, like a fish gasping for air, and he leans closer to hear it speak:

❛  can  you  help  me ?  ❜

     He lifts his head and glances over at Rio, who's been watching them from the safety of her rock. Looking back down at the eye, he simply replies:

"I believe I can."

     So begins the next phase of his experiment.

[empyreau]

@goodmeeting | For Nina

You have a message waiting for you.

It was a phrase that he'd never had directed at him before. Standing in the doorway of his lab Viktor stared at the blank face of the person before him, not quite out of the small state of shock.

Did you hear me, Viktor? There's a message waiting for you in Comms.

He watched the person—a secretary perhaps?—turn and walk away. The automatic door began to beep as he continued to stand in the way of its track. Taking a step forward he heard it close behind him, that satisfying sound of heavy locks clicking into place.

It was strict policy that any ties to one's previous life would be severed once one stepped into the Monolith and Viktor had been especially thorough in his severing. At least from what he remembered and he hadn't had many connections to begin with. The perks of always having been an outsider.

He didn't glance at anyone as he walked, his gait determined and weighted with anticipation. The door to the communications room opened silently and he sat himself down at the terminal closest to it. After inputting his passcode he tapped on the notification and a once familiar voice filled the otherwise empty room.

Viktor couldn't help but grin and rubbed his face with the palms of his hands. Leave it to her to search him out, to reconstruct what he had purposefully broken to find him. He tapped the message to type his reply, not willing to risk being overheard.

I would be more than happy to assist you, Nina. You know where to find me now.

-

The floor the Director's office occupied was old-fashioned in terms of decoration; dark wood paneling, ornate chandeliers hanging from the high ceiling, and a thick carpet gave off a feeling of unease more so than minimalist and sterile atmosphere of the rest of the building. Viktor could feel the sweat bead upon the back of his neck as he stood before large double doors. He would not be let inside but still his finger tapped the intercom button.

"Sir, I wanted to let you know that I will be having a visitor arriving. I have already put through for the proper clearances but I thought I would tell you personally."

The voice that replied was calm and clear and wrapped with an authority that was indisputable. "I am aware of that, Viktor. You know what is required of you. I trust you will let her know the same."

[seepingwithoil]

‘ i was here. i exist. i’m alive, because i bleed. ’ ( from silco! )

@goodmeeting ‘THE RAVEN CYCLE’ STARTERS

"A double edged sword. Lose too much because of a stupid choice or a stray bullet and the life essence we all wander about with is soaking into the ground. Bleeding is human, mortal. Easily taken away. Hopes and Ambitions gone just like that. A life's purpose snuffed out. Bleeding is both a reminder of life and the fragility of it all."

[seepingwithoil]

‘ i’m perfectly aware that it’s possible to have a friendship that isn’t all-encompassing, that isn’t blinding, deafening, maddening, quickening. it’s just that now that i’ve had this kind, i don’t want the other. ’ ( from clagg! )

@goodmeeting ‘THE RAVEN CYCLE’ STARTERS

The laugh that escaped her was unexpected and slightly wheezy, a small grin on her face. Well if that wasn't a big ol' surprise

"All-encompassing" Oil repeated, shaking her head fondly "Those friendships tend to be trouble following Clags, are we sure your up for that kind of beat for beat relationship such as it is? I have no doubts about it but do you? The other tends to be safer."

[omniterror]

🚢 Mary and Nina 🙏

*  ―  𝑺𝑯𝑰𝑷𝑷𝑰𝑵𝑮 𝑺𝑯𝑬𝑬𝑻.

send 🚢 or ( 'SHIP' ) if you ever considered shipping our characters romantically and want me to fill out the following form for our muses. bold all that definitely applies, italicize what could potentially apply. feel free to add more if you think certain options are missing or you just want to add more. / @goodmeeting

do  i  ship  our  characters  together?:  yes  |  no  |  not  yet  but  maybe  soon

would  i  like  to  ship  with  you?:  yes  |  maybe,  i'm  willing  to  try  |  no

type  of  relationship  i  could  see:  childhood  or  high  school  sweethearts  |  exes  |  engaged  |  married  |  long-term  relationship  |  crushes  |  unrequited  love  |  fling  |  long  distance  |  online  relationship  |  just  dating  |  new  relationship  |  toxic  lovers  |  friends  with  benefits

tropes  i'd  enjoy  writing  for  them:  friends  to  lovers  |  enemies  to  lovers  |  exes  to  lovers  |  fake  relationship  /  dating  |  forbidden  love  |  grumpy  and  sunshine  |  star-crossed  lovers  |  surprise  pregnancy  |  second  chance  |  soulmates  |  amnesia  /  mistaken  identity  |  forced  proximity  |  secret  relationship  |  slow  burn  relationship

would  i  rather  plot  first  or  jump  right  in  and  see  where  it  goes?:  develop  their  relationship  first  |  jump  right  in  |  something  in  between  (  we  should  chat  more  about  this!  )

what  now?:  let's  plot  something  |  send  me  shippy  memes  |  i'll  send  you  shippy  memes  |  write  me  a  random  starter  |  i'll  write  you  a  random  starter

anything  else  i  want  you  to  know  about  me  /  my  character  /  my  shipping  habits: i  already  see  mary  and  nina  becoming fast  friends  first before dating and something serious eventually. mary  is  intrigued  by  her  and  of  course  thinks  she's  gorgeous.  they  both  seem  to  have  some  degree  of  similar  interests, too  so  that's great! :)  

[empyreau]

[ TOGETHER ] : in a gesture intended to prove to the receiver that they're no longer alone, sender takes their hand and holds it firmly. ( from Nina to Viktor! )

The rain pelted the glass of the large, seamless window. Looking out upon nothing but dense forest Viktor's study was in every way different from his lab; there were no screens and books that were now decades out of print were stacked in each corner, the lighting was warm, and that sterile touch was nowhere to be found. It was a sanctuary of sorts and for at least some stolen time out of the day it felt like he was in an actual home in the middle of nowhere than a high-security facility. It was enough, at least, to keep him from absolutely losing himself.

Steps were heard on the rare wooden floor and he exhaled a soft sigh, Nina's reflection in the window becoming clearer. He felt her take his hand and for a brief but noticeable moment he did not hold hers back. "You should not overstay your welcome here. The last thing I need is for you to get in trouble."

Viktor turned his head to look at her, eyes simultaneously tired and alive. He couldn't quite decipher her expression but gripped her hand back, a little pleading, a little warning. "Or worse, to have this place take an interest in you."