lost media

[xsureshxsoundsx]

Closed starter for @kenxmatsui Location: Holiday Market

Suresh hated this time of year. People tended to smile too much when there was nothing about which to smile, and too frequently, one was expected to purchase gifts for others rather than for oneself. And beyond even all those pointed shortcomings, the threat of snow was ever-present. Rain, at least, washed away when it was finished, he decided, but snow meant weeks and weeks of water just sitting about out in the open. He had half a mind to conjure up a tornado and just blow the entire town to smithereens and spare them all the trouble.

For now, however, the siren was perusing the various holiday wares with a decidedly sour expression etched across his face. He supposed he had no real plans beyond that ghastly White Elephant party, and maybe he could find something suitably horrible for all his neighbors to wrestle over. Spotting a familiar form, though, he smirked, picking up an Elf on the Shelf from a table. "Look, mate. He stole your clothes."

[danielrileys]

Daniel knew he probably looked pathetic most nights he went out. He was often alone. There were attempts at socialization but they were far and few. He felt as though he should be better at talking to people but a stint in the woods had left his social skills to be stunted. Still, he was doing his best to put himself out there.

He realized he must have taken on a staring problem when the person he had gazed at a little too long decided to address him. Well, that was one way to start a conversation. "Oh, uh, nothing! Nothing. I wasn't looking at ... anything." Daniel attempted. He held his hands up in defense to show he meant no harm. "I think more people should drink beer through straws. It seems more ... fun that way. Straws can make drinks very fun .. if you let them. And more convenient to drink."

[xsureshxsoundsx]

"Oi! So I'm nothing, then, am I. mate?" Suresh, true to form, latched onto the sole word that would allow him to make himself the martyr. But as was also usual, he was so often more bark than genuine bite. Sinking backward, then, the siren continued to sip at his drink, but more sourly. He sniffed, nostrils flaring.

"Fun? Fun? You think it's fun to turn into a bloody seabass every time it's a little misty outside? I hate it. Can't stand it, bruv," he grumbled. "Let me tell you something. You remember a few years ago when those...biodegradable paper straws were all the rage? Hellish. Hellish! People also assume I give a single shite about the pollutions in the ocean. Do I? No. I don't live in it. And what do I care about penguins? Do you care about penguins?" Perhaps he was starting to feel the beer, given how quickly he was drinking it.

[xsureshxsoundsx]

Closed starter for @danielrileys Location: Confessions

In truth, Suresh was not actually a fan of this venue; there were far too many lonesome, wide-eyed sorts wandering about like sad, depressing puppies. But he did not feel like drinking alone in his suite tonight, and out of all the locales in Lunar Cove, he imagined this place was the one at which he was least likely to run into someone he didn't want to see.

"Oi! What are you lookin' at, bruv? Yeah, I drink beer through a straw. What of it? I drink everything through a straw. I grow fucking gills if I get wet," he huffed, evidently looking to argue with someone, emboldened by bitterness and booze.

[cantfightmoonlight]

"Okay, but you still have to live there? Unless you're planning on moving any time soon," She pointed out. "Wouldn't you rather trash the place on your way out and not when you have to live in it? Also, what would fake coasters do for you in that case? Show whoever you bring over that you're cheap? Okay, but that," She motioned to the knock-off coasters that were meant to be smashed. "Isn't a luxury item. It's a knock off and if you smash it, no one is going to wind up with it anyhow? A boon? Are you a pirate? Wait- your hotel room isn't just like heaps of shit you've thrifted in it lying around? Are you a hoarder, by any chance? Because I think the town might have a hotline that could help with that," She reasoned, before she scrunched her brows again when he said he hated it there. "Why? They cycle out their designer goods every week. I mean I get its not the same as picking up a new Chanel in Paris, but you can always have stuff flown in or shipped. I mean at this rate there are very few things you can't order off the internet to come to you. Yeah, I mean we're hanging out right now, so I figured that was a given? But, uh... okay. That's a little odd, but sure, we can get him the coasters! Um more like private parties back at some a-lister's apartment and, before you act like you're above it all, are you honestly going to stand there and tell me you don't like a good charcuterie board? Or are you just one of those hipsters who hates everything because you think its cool to be a Debbie Downer? Wait! Are you secretly emo? Because if so, I have a great eyeliner I could recommend you."

[xsureshxsoundsx]

"No, I don't. I could move to the ocean tomorrow if I really wanted to. Or I could just complain to the front desk, and they'd probably bring me a new coffee table from the coffee table cupboard. In fact, I'm sure of it. Do you know Chester? Works the phone? Chester probably loves me. He bought me flowers once." Suresh rolled his eyes. "No one would know they were bloody fake. You overestimate the discerning eye of the average Lunar Cove townie. You've seen the powdered wig parade, yeah? What are we around here? Pinnacles of taste?" He grunted.

"Fine. It's dead!" He tossed the coaster to the ground, where it cracked down the middle. Suresh crossed his arms. "There. But that's...pirates don't have boons. They have bounties. I think you're confused. And it's not a room. It's a suite. And I don't thrift. Didn't our therapist get run out of here because everyone was so bloody troubled? Remember the camp games? I'm not calling a phone line that probably goes to some scary basement. Do you do that? Call suspicious numbers?"

He turned up his nose. "Ugh, I would never go to Paris. I just think it's so...on the nose. It insists on itself. Besides, Kaye is a custom couturier. They would potentially make me something entirely unique if I asked." Probably not, but he was trying to lie by going around the truth rather than stating it outright. "I think he'd be upset about the coasters actually. He seems to have a distaste for things that might end up polluting our waterways. Do you know any biodegradable designers?" Suresh shrugged his shoulders. "A-listers. Please. I work in the movies. I'm not certain I've had a good charcuterie board in Lunar Cove actually. I don't think we get to look down on hipsters when we're in a rage room, though, love. We may as well get bloody froyo after this. Besides, I look hot in eyeliner."

[cantfightmoonlight]

"For yourself? Why the fuck would you need knock-off coasters and not real ones? Just use them for the same reason you were going to use the knock-offs," She reasoned. "That is, unless you want to be basic and cheap in the privacy of your own home." A mindset that she didn't understand personally, given that if she didn't have money to buy the real thing, she'd simply buy something unique elsewhere rather than being some fashion wannabe. But to each their own. The Cathedral carries designer pieces and they have a catalogue you can order from if they don't carry it in store. Now, are you going to keep on insisting on why you must be some friendless loser or are we going to have some fun? Also, there are plenty of good hangouts and parties that involve coasters," She grumbled under her breath mildly offended as to why not wanting to ruin your table deemed you uncool.

[xsureshxsoundsx]

"I don't care if the coffee table gets water stains. It's not really my coffee table. It's standard issue," he replied drolly, as if this were obvious. "I wanted them so someone else couldn't have them. That's all. It's not the same. You find a luxury item in the wild, then it's a boon. Why should someone else get a boon and I don't?" He turned up his nose. "I know what the Cathedral has. I hate it there. Incidentally, I do have friends, thank you. One of whom is your charming cousin, for whom I purchased several designer items at the Cathedral. He never wears them. Maybe we should buy him the coasters." He wrinkled his nose. "Oh really? What kinds? Funerals?"

[gazingatmestarry-eyed]

"What?! No! I'm a dentist. I help people." Confusion and surprise in every syllable. "Who told you I inflict pain!? Probably someone who doesn't floss.." Devrim grumbled. "Well she's my kid, but I didn't know she existed until about a year ago. Her mother and I.." He waved his hand, as he racked his own mind for an explanation. "..weren't in communication." That was the truth, he thought, but didn't place the place wholly on either of them. "Love things and get even? What do you mean?"

[xsureshxsoundsx]

Suresh rolled his eyes. "Right. So do allergists, firemen, and burlesque performers. You chose a singular profession with a drill, mate. But what? Were you just...wild for teeth as a lad then? I cannot imagine most people who strive for helpfulness end up in your vocation. So if it's not the torture, then what?" He largely seemed to enjoy getting some kind of rise out of Dev. "Ah. Listen, bruv, it sounds to me like maybe someone wasn't in communication with you. How would you know to ask about what you don't even know? Unless you were in hiding. Were you in hiding?" He raised a brow. "I mean, when your heart gets broken, you take revenge. Does it break your heart you missed out on your daughter's formative years?"

[cantfightmoonlight]

"Those are fake and very clearly made of plexiglass. You can do better. I'll tell you what? You smash those and then we can go shopping and get you some real LV coasters, how's that?" She offered up, wiggling her eyebrows temptingly over at him.

[xsureshxsoundsx]

"Ugh, when would I even use them? I've decided I don't want anyone in my bloody suite touching everything. Coasters are for parties, and if you're at a party where you're expected to lounge about using coasters, you've already failed, I suppose." He grumbled, but he made no effort to actually replace the pilfered items. Suresh, as usual, seemed to relish in having things simply so others could not. "Where would we even go? There's hunters lurking, and I've decided I'm a Balenciaga bloke."

[gazingatmestarry-eyed]

For a moment Devrim was silent. His gaze back as unflinching as the sirens before he finally said, "That's fucked up." The questions continued and he went silent again. After the barn incident with Will and Savannah, Devrim was more cautious with what he shared. "I.." He sighed. "It's... complicated. It's not all my story to tell. A hater? No, No. I don't hate her. I love her, actually. It's just.. complicated."

[xsureshxsoundsx]

"Don't you inflict pain on others for a living, mate?" Suresh did not break eye contact; his voice came dully and dry, wholly unimpressed and nonplussed. "Well, surely some part of it is yours, bruv. Takes two to tango and...other things. So I hear tell. Are you one of those self-sacrificing sorts? You love things and let them go? I don't. I love things and get even. Perhaps you'd enjoy it."

[gazingatmestarry-eyed]

After a few, slow blinks Devrim responded. "Well, Sauron. If you really, really don't care.. why are you asking?" He snickered like he thought he was funny before continuing on in a more serious tone. "I didn't know her for the first fourteen years of her life." His explanation stopped short of divulging all the details, as he recalled Savannah's reaction the last time he'd talked about their past.

[xsureshxsoundsx]

Suresh did not break his gaze. "I meant 'care' in the positive, sentimental sense. I'm intrigued in a manner more akin to schadenfreude. That's not quite caring." Eyes darted up and down. "That wasn't quite the probing response I was hoping for, mate. But surely...she didn't just materialize. Were you kept from her? Was she kidnapped? You don't have to tell me. I have the feeling you don't want to. But I love villains and scapegoats. People find me a helpful mutual hater."

[gildedgossamer]

Reese rolled her eyes, as though she wasn't like, the life of every Lunar Cove party. "Duh, but we make those," she said, pointing to herself. "I know every witch in town who's capable of making a potion and well— parties are different," she shrugged. Also she was probably drunk so potion safety wasn't on her mind then. "Uh no there's no witch school, but like, you gotta learn how to make them somehow, you know? That's kinda what the Coven is for, teaching you witch things." She wiggled her fingers at him, in a magicky way.

"Uh I don't think it would turn on us, because it's still Poppy. But is it still a person? Like does it count as unethical if it just goes back into Poppy?" Sometime she did forget that Poppy wasn't just her best friend, but also The Supreme, leader of witches, and kind of A Big Deal. "I mean, if we ask and she says yes, it would be fine, right?" Her eyes flicked back to the mystery concoction. "Well if you don't want to use the clone, then I guess you gotta use it yourself. I'll watch though, call 911 or whatever if you keel over."

[xsureshxsoundsx]

"And do you trust every witch in town? What if one were trying to thin the herd to up their odds at the next...grand Supreme selection or what have you?" Suresh did not actually have a strong sense of witch customs, but he did hear his fair share of whining and whispering about town about one thing or another. He gave her a look up and down, his eyes darting from her face to her toes and back again. "And how does that work out, hm?" With the amount of little fires started every damn place, he sensed it was not well. Suresh wiggled his fingers back. "I can control the weather innately. I didn't have to study it."

He gave a dismissive shrug of his shoulders. "Why are you bloody asking me, love? This is why I asked you. The coven seems to be doing poorly about answering your questions on this particular topic." The siren clicked his tongue. "I don't believe the Supreme would agree to have sinister experiments performed on her, no. But what do I know? I don't care what happens to the clone, though. Truly. Cannot physically lie. The clone could explode. I just don't want an incident. I don't want a meeting. And I don't want paperwork."

[gazingatmestarry-eyed]

open || @lunarcovestarters

A.) REN

The goats Ren's parents kept on their farm out in Shadow Lake escaped in the night, and he'd been tasked since the day's first light to catch them. "Gerald! Waylon! Tina!" His voice boomed their names across empty fields and down alleyways for hours before finally spotting one. "Waylon!" Ren shouted before thinking he could outsmart the goat with teleportation, yet when he appeared where Waylon had been the goat was suddenly gone. "Bastard!"

B.) GIA

The influx of cold weather sent people scrambling in for something warm to drink. She'd noticed the crypt grow crowded from her corner where she'd spent the morning beneath the pages of a book. Only when her cup ran dry did she get up and go to the counter. Not to help but to make herself a drink. Heavy O negative, a shot of espresso, and sugar. "You should try it." She suggested to someone in line, waiting. "It's my favorite." Truthfully, the entire menu was to her taste.

C.) DEV

"It's not what it looks like." Devrim swore as he closed the book in his hands. The title of his reading choice clear across the cover. What to expect when you're expecting. "I'm not pregnant." A joke it was obvious he thought was funny. "I just thought with the whole parenting thing I should start with the basics, even if she is fourteen."

D.) SUN-HEE

Sun-Hee didn't know who had orchestrated a town wide game of hid-n-seek, just that she was determined to win. "Go away!" The witch whisper yelled. "This is my hiding spot!"

[xsureshxsoundsx]

Suresh regarded Devrim with an exasperated furrow of his brow, his lip furling upward a bit for a beat. He spoke up after a few seconds of silence. "I need you to know that I really, really don't care, mate. But I'm going to ask despite myself. Call it morbid curiosity. Have you really not paid any attention to your child for fourteen years? Did you go to work once and never come back or...?"

[cantfightmoonlight]

@lunarcovestarters

Option A

"Here, try this," Seo-Joon slid the bowl with the radish kimchi he had finished preparing across the bar top, before he ducked into the back kitchen to grab the bibimbap he had just made too. Given that he had no want to spend the holidays with the whole Song family, he figured he might as well keep the bar open for any Lunar Covian who was avoiding their family, like him, or simply had no place to go.

Option B

"Eep! Isn't this fun?" Bri beamed. She was practically glowing from ear to ear as she smashed a lamp over, full enjoying their time slot at the Rage Room. "You know, I didn't get at first, but who knew smashing stuff could be so weirdly relaxing?"

Option C

"Okay," Jas slumped into the seat at the bar. "With the holidays coming up, I'm gonna need a lot more wine. In fact, just keep it coming, kay?" She flashed them a tight smile before she acknowledged the person sitting beside her with a tilt of her head. "Hey."

Option D

"Ah, shit," Sav cursed out as she tried to dust off the flour she had just spilled all over herself. "I'm gonna get to ya, I promise," She called out from over the counter from where the baker was continuing to dust herself off. "We're just a bit backed up right about now between Thanksgiving and all those pie orders comin' up and weddin', but," She blew a few strands of blonde hair out of her face as she smiled over toward the person next in line, trying her best to drown out all of the other commotion with the hoard of customers Doce had all here to put in their holiday orders. "Welcome to Doce, how can I help ya?"

[xsureshxsoundsx]

Option B

"Do you think these are real? I can't tell with the utterly ghastly lighting in here." Suresh regarded his own reflection in one of the breakable mirrors before turning up his nose in distaste. Turning to Bri, he held up two plexiglass coasters evidently meant to be smashed. They had the Louis Vuitton emblem on them. "I'm taking them home with me. These are $1,000 apiece. Not that I even blink at that." He stuck them in his pocket.

[jonahxrivas]

"Yeah, fine. Alright. We can keep hiding," Jonah said in a slight huff. But accepting Suresh's position a beat later, he was unwilling to press if the man preferred to remain. His tone softened just a touch, exasperation leaving with a quiet sigh as he continued, "You don't have to see him if you don't want to." There was a truth in weaponry though, hunters did seem to prefer crossbows. "Are they really lugging around harpoons too? Because I'm imagining the whaling ones..." His brow furrowed a little, feeling like he really needed to look into this more. "Don't worry, if they come for you," he added, waving the makeshit bat in the air with a grin, "I'll hit them over the head." The childish gesture of a tongue being stuck out was dismissed easily as Jonah shot him a look, "I know there are ghosts around, I can see them today. But could I have seen them a few hours ago? No. Anyway, that's beside the point. He's real. Not a ghost. That's it."

With a slow nod, Jonah acknowledged it, "I know, or well, had a vague idea on your age, and it's not like I'm worried about old age or anything, okay? I want to grow old. Looking forward to it actually, but I'm just saying…" Throwing up his hands defensively Jonah didn't protest further and just looked to Gregor's direction when Suresh did, but what he was going to say quickly switched at what was said. "Whoa, hey, you can't say not telling and not actually tell me who. How much worse exactly?" Jonah laughed a little, "I'm not taking it for granted, how often have you yelled at me for being dismissive about my looks? I'm not all that bothered."

The chatter slowed a bit, settling into a more subdued state as Jonah watched Suresh carefully, noting how something seemed to fall in his tone. "We can do whatever feels the best for you, I'm not gonna make you do anything you don't want to. I just figured since you talk about him you might want to talk with him since he's here and all." He didn't want to say people could change, because not all of them did, and it very well could be the case that Gregor might not be remorseful of what happened and want he did. It wasn't his choice to gamble on, he didn't want to put Suresh in a situation where he might be forced to face that. "If there is a doubt that he's still the same, then we can let him be, someone else will find him and send him back once this is all over."

[xsureshxsoundsx]

"Good. Thank you. I was bloody planning on it." Suresh grit his teeth, sinking more into himself, as if concerned Jonah might change his mind and try to tug him out into the open. He narrowed his eyes. "Maybe! Do I know? You're the one trying to save the ocean mammals, aren't you, bruv? Ever seen a hunter on one of those big scary polluter ships?" Suresh's expression fell a bit, and while, truly, he enjoyed seeing Jonah unlock his more threatening side, he did now quite know if it would work out in their mutual favor. "My hero," he said with a huff. "Why don't you, like...I don't know. Practice your swing a few times?" He waved a dismissive hand through the air. "Are ghosts not real? Aren't we all just ghosts with skeletons?" He seemed to want to be difficult for difficulty's sake.

"My age? My age? I'm a stallion in my bloody prime!" Suresh shot this back with utter exasperation, despite being the one to bring it up in the first place. "Why on earth are you looking forward to being old? Don't...don't...fritter away your youth." Closing his eyes, Suresh let out an irritated breath, his nostrils, or what resembled them in his current transformed state, flaring. "I can lie tonight. Too bad. You'll never know. Besides, I don't yell. I instruct."

Suresh shook his head back and forth. "What do I even say, Jonah? What do I even say? That I lived happily ever after without him? That I'm unbothered? We both know I'm not. And well, lucky me, I can lie about it, but I would have found a way to do that anyhow. Shite." He met the other's eye. "If he's not the same, that ship sailed when I...it was very fucking dramatic to toss myself over a cliff, wasn't it? Like...like...macabre. Gothic. Victorian. But you're married, aren't you, bruv? You love someone so much that you..." He swallowed. "What if that person used you?"

[aysun-demir]

"Well I happen to think being able to control a hurricane in any form is quite impressive so-" she mumbled, ducking her head, "though I suppose...logistically legs would be more...appealing." Blinking at him, taken aback by the question, it took Aysun a moment to answer. "Impure- I- I don't- I don't have impure thoughts, that's just- I don't," she stuttered out, cheeks aflush and wide eyes looking anywhere but at him. "B-Besides. I can only use the pack bond when I'm in this shifted form or my full shifted form, so, um, hardly a romantic set up..."

Blowing out a breath, Aysun fanned herself with a mitt-covered hand. Paw. Whatever. "Yes. Well...That hardly makes me a hero," she said, clearing her throat. "I- yes. Yes I, um, suppose it has...some bearing. You are very handsome. I am sure you hear it often," she explained in a hurry, "it's just- would it...change anything for you? If I wasn't, um, stunningly beautiful. Or whatever. I know you can lie now and all but...be honest."

Glancing over her shoulder as if she was expecting the stranger in question to pop up, Aysun returned concerned eyes to Suresh. "Okay. Okay. He- he won't find you, I will make sure of it," she reassured, patting his arm with her mitt, "but if he is human...his memories will be erased as soon as he leaves town, right...? Are you...sure that you do not wish to use this as an opportunity for...closure? Once everything is over here, he will go away, and he will not remember any of it, which is a plus, is it not?"

[xsureshxsoundsx]

Suresh narrowed his eyes. "Controlling a hurricane is rather easy. I actually protect Lunar Cove from hurricanes all the time, love. Just...navigate them far away. I had to learn that on my own, of course. No one to teach me, and we don't have tropical storms in the UK." He was evidently lying and badly, but the new sensation was no less amusing. Pursing up his lips, Suresh turned up his nose. "I don't either, but if I did, I wouldn't want them being broadcast to all my mates. Don't you wish you could...I don't know, turn it off? I think witches make a charm for that." He gave an innocent flutter of his eyelashes

"It's either a hero or foolish, so pick one," he continued, looking back down to meet her gaze. He narrowed his eyes, largely trying to gauge how she would react. "Not as often as one would think, no. But thank you. That said...I don't bloody understand how my ancestors managed to draw so many sailors onto the rocks like this. I look like a bloody swordfish." Suresh let out a huff. "No. No. Don't tack on addendums. I'm handsome. You're beautiful. That's that. But really, love, you look...ridiculous too right now. Okay? Truly. You have mutton chops." Suresh sighed. "But I do care about you, John Lennon. And for some reason...you care about Moby Dick. So." He seemed to squirm a bit, uncomfortable as usual with sincere displays of sentiment.

He clenched his teeth. "I don't...I don't know. He didn't come in the typical way. What if he's not a human? What if he's a...ghoul? Or a fiend? Some undiscovered horrible thing." He shook his head. "Closure doesn't exist. And then what after...? I'll have nothing to feel bad about for the rest of my life. What would I even do, Aysun?"

[gildedgossamer]

Option A:

Reese pursed her lips at the mystery container, "The first thing they teach you in potions is to never take a potion you or a trusted person didn't make..." And sure this wasn't a potion, but she thought the same probably applied here. "Hmm... oh! Maybe we can get Poppy to make a duplicate and have the clone use it?" She raised her eyebrows, hoping it was a good solution. "Wait, is that like unethical or whatever? Clone testing? Like animal testing but worse?"

[xsureshxsoundsx]

Suresh narrowed his eyes and pursed up his lips in displeasure. "Don't go to many Lunar Cove shindigs, do you, love? There's bloody potions left, right, and center at every single one. People just toss them back like tequila. Baffling to me, mind you. But do they...do they make you take potion class in witch school? Wait. Wait. It's because I'm English, innit? You're making fun of me?" Scoffing, he turned up his nose. He hated that book series, and he would not entertain it. Still, this idea seemed to strike him. "Like...we make a clone to do nefarious experiments on? It's a little sci-fi horror, wouldn't you say? What if it turns on us?" He shook his head. "And doesn't she have to bloody reabsorb the clone or whatever...? Like a sponge. So is it ethical to test on the Supreme is the real question. And I'm not the one to answer because I don't think you'll like it."

[jonahxrivas]

Though Suresh's dour demeanour rarely fazed him, Jonah occasionally allowed the Siren space to say whatever he pleased and sometimes even engaging in back-and-forths, depending on the situation. But this time, Jonah wanted none of it. "Wonderful, I'm glad you’re thrilled. Now, stop hiding." There was a heavy sigh at what was said, Jonah looking to Suresh with a slight shake of his head, "You think a ghost would walk through a portal into another town? Not to mention the fact that, oh, I dunno, you can see him too! Come on!"

That was something that they both agreed on, he did resemble the shape of water, but of course, Jonah didn't admit that out loud. "I tried to. But they sorta just..." he gestured flames going up with his hands, "Reignited again. I couldn't quite figure out how to make it stop? I hope the firefighters found a solution." It was strange seeing the flames stubbornly burn even in a rainstorm of this magnitude. But if this was magically induced, or, well, a magical malfunction, Jonah figured human intervention had little chance of fixing it. "I just did. Look, it's less about 'suck it up' and more about trying not to panic too much? I know this is unexpected and honestly, kind of bizarre that he's even here, but you're better than him, you know that, right?" And this wasn't said to gas the Siren up, Jonah genuinely believed.

"I dunno, better looking?" he answered with a shrug, "Maybe rocking a bit more of salt and pepper style," he added on running a hand through his current damp hair. "Yeah, Suresh, you look much better than him." Though his tone was flat, there was truth behind the words. But now came a roll of his eyes and a look of mild annoyance. "Gee, thanks for confirming you can lie with that. Almost wish I recorded that so I could take it out of context and tell everyone you think I'm well dressed." It was a rare moment of humour, because really, who'd believe a Fae could lie when it's been known they couldn't? Outside this current situation at least.

He hesitated before offering a suggestion. "We could try to cover your scales with something? Pretend you’re shielding from the rain?" He wasn’t sure how practical that was, but it was all he could come up with on the spot. And as Suresh talked, Jonah grew a little quiet, unsure if that fell as a truth or a lie, but he could guess from the way the other closed in on himself. "Not gonna answer it or test it," he confirmed, "But look, if you want to go talk with him, we can, or we can stay here. Your choice. I'm not gonna go anywhere, alright? I think you have the upper hand here."

[xsureshxsoundsx]

"I like bloody hiding. It's one of my favorite things to do. He ruined my entire life forever and ever, and I hate him, and I don't want to see his face." Suresh huffed, refusing to budge. "Besides, I'm the siren here. What if a hunter harpooned me and mounted me on a wall? Then you'd feel bad. Hunters love bloody 19th century weaponry, by the way. It's all harpoons and crossbows with them." Suresh stuck out his tongue. "Maybe! Am I ghost? Do I know their habits and strange proclivities? No! Besides, people see ghosts all the time, bruv. There are stories about them, aren't there? How did those come about if we couldn't ever see them, hm?"

Jonah's reply seemed to disarm him somewhat, however. He stared into his face, blinking a few times. "Sounds like you gave it the old college try, mate. Sometimes...and I'll deny this tomorrow, you and I are quite a bit alike. I don't know how I feel about it." In any case, he was rather tickled by Jonah sort of just deciding the fire was not his problem; Suresh would have done the same. Crossing his arms, though, he seemed to duck deeper into the shadows, as if willing them to swallow him up completely. "Of course I know that. I'm better than most people." This came weakly, and in truth, Suresh was grateful to be able to half-lie and say as much.

"Jonah...I was...I was born in the 1950s. You do know that, right? The man is almost seventy-years-old. He comes from a time before Botox injections. Back in the day, he was...He was everything." Sticking out his head, Suresh gave Gregor a pointed look up and down. "And believe me, I've done worse. I'm not telling you who." Suresh groaned. "Come off it, bruv! You're a good person. And smart! You don't need to rely on your looks, which you have, by the way. Don't take them for granted. In forty years, that's you out there. Take it all in!" He gestured in the direction of his evil not-ex.

Still, Suresh's eyes widened. "Oi! You want to make me a sheet ghost? Is that any better? What if I just run very fast in that direction, and we let whatever happens to him happen. Maybe one of the vampires will bloody eat him." In that moment, though, his voice faltered again. "I don't want to go talk to him. I don't...what if he's not sorry? Shite! What if he's...what if he's fine? What if that night that changed everything for me just...didn't. I couldn't bear it."

[akiss-from-a-rose]

Option A

"No." Aaliyah didn't even glance up from her phone. It was a simple, straightforward answer. No. Aaliyah considered herself to be adventurous. At her age, she'd tried a lot of things, people, places. "No to trying it. Yes to you would lead me wrong. You can't lie, but you're not answering a lot of questions. I've played this game before." And it could be fun. It was fun. But she knew when some sort of fae trickery was going on. She looked up. "If you tell me where you got it from, I'll consider it," she added.

[xsureshxsoundsx]

"Fine. Don't be glamorous and breathtaking. Your loss." Suresh huffed, pretending to examine the vial very closely. He brought it near to his face, squinting as if reading a label, although it did not actually seem to have one. "What game are you even talking about, love? Do I look sportsmanlike?" He clicked his tongue, giving a shake of his head back and forth. "I got it from someone who's an expert in these things. What do you think? I have some sort of secret supplier? I haven't left this town in about forty years. How would I have even bloody found them?"