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[There's a thing about cats that most cat owners know - the same with children or ferrets or any small, sneaky thing, but mostly cats: When there's noise, there's no need to worry. When it's quiet, that's when something is going wrong.]
[Qilby hasn't heard or sensed Valerius in a few hours, and given his proclivity for either disappearing or crawling up Qilby's side constantly, a bad feeling is rising in his gut. He makes sure the Zinit is on its pre-charted course to its next planet, first - can never be too sure! - then sets out through the halls as quietly as he can manage. (Maybe if he's quiet enough, he can spook Valerius a bit, whatever he's doing! As if.)]
[The door to the Herbarium is as open as it ever was, though Qilby doesn't go in there much - maybe part of that is that it was never his space. (Not that it's ever stopped him when he really wants something, but when one can portal into any space at will, it's only social norms dictating that one doesn't. Eliatropes impressed those social norms on each other quite well as a result.) Without Chibi's actual, physical being in that awful rocking chair at the top of the stairs - he recalls with great humor a time a squirrel scampered behind Chibi too loudly and he went falling down all those steps - it's merely a husk of stone and stasis.]
[Oh, also the fake skeleton. Qilby maintains that he is the only one to understand Chibi, but only half of that is the relationship they shared; the other half is that Chibi does bizarre shit Like That seemingly out of nowhere, and thus is impossible for anyone to understand.]
[Well. Val's there, with the stasis and the skeleton (which has fallen on its face; a fitting end) and the looseleaf sheets of poetry. He's probably getting a kick out of whatever memories of sin are lingering in the cracks of this old hovel. Qilby stands in the door and watches carefully, but doesn't say a word to break the still air.]
[Qilby hasn't heard or sensed Valerius in a few hours, and given his proclivity for either disappearing or crawling up Qilby's side constantly, a bad feeling is rising in his gut. He makes sure the Zinit is on its pre-charted course to its next planet, first - can never be too sure! - then sets out through the halls as quietly as he can manage. (Maybe if he's quiet enough, he can spook Valerius a bit, whatever he's doing! As if.)]
[The door to the Herbarium is as open as it ever was, though Qilby doesn't go in there much - maybe part of that is that it was never his space. (Not that it's ever stopped him when he really wants something, but when one can portal into any space at will, it's only social norms dictating that one doesn't. Eliatropes impressed those social norms on each other quite well as a result.) Without Chibi's actual, physical being in that awful rocking chair at the top of the stairs - he recalls with great humor a time a squirrel scampered behind Chibi too loudly and he went falling down all those steps - it's merely a husk of stone and stasis.]
[Oh, also the fake skeleton. Qilby maintains that he is the only one to understand Chibi, but only half of that is the relationship they shared; the other half is that Chibi does bizarre shit Like That seemingly out of nowhere, and thus is impossible for anyone to understand.]
[Well. Val's there, with the stasis and the skeleton (which has fallen on its face; a fitting end) and the looseleaf sheets of poetry. He's probably getting a kick out of whatever memories of sin are lingering in the cracks of this old hovel. Qilby stands in the door and watches carefully, but doesn't say a word to break the still air.]
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[With as much time as Valerius had with the writings in the room, combined with the willingness of Qilby to let him pick his brain for sin, the beast-god was almost fluent in Draconic now. So, good luck with the stealth insults, as Val will just respond in earnest and possibly with lewd undertones. That should make things “Fun”]
[Given that he and the Eliatrope were the only living organisms on the ship that Valerius could bother to remember, surprising him wasn’t too likely...still, he looks up with wide gold eyes when he catches that familiar presence, then smiles welcomingly]
I expected you here sooner, but perhaps you had more pressing matters to tend to...Tell me, was the “angsty teen stage” common among your people or just you?
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[It takes a moment for Qilby to figure out what Val's talking about with the "angsty teen phase." Is it the stasis? The sin crystals-- no, those are new, Valerius put those there. (Just moving right on in, aren't we??) It's probably... Ah.] Oh, the poetry-- Ha, I'm flattered, really, but those aren't mine. Those are Ch-- The former king, my brother's.
[His voice and demeanor aren't firm-set with anger the way they are when he talks about Yugo, though; there's a softness to his voice, betraying something he doesn't mean to. He tried for years upon years, as they grew apart, to push those "feelings" to the periphery of his consciousness. If he could have rid himself of that softness entirely, he would have, but it still manages to shine through.]
[Like that ridiculous skeleton that's been sitting there for however many years now, Chibi still finds ways to haunt him.]
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Darling, I hardly need privacy for that...By all means, come join me.
[He waves a massive paw enticingly, then shrugs] Or don’t. I enjoy having you here regardless.
[He sighs wistfully and smooths another over one of the markings on the stone in front of him, where another crystal formation begins to grow, glowing with the possible sins of Chibi himself. (I can always slither under your sheets later while you sleep)
He nods at the answer]
One you hold little hatred for, it seems...perhaps...the opposite? [He closes his mouth with this smile, but there’s still a disgusting smugness about it] An attachment, maybe? Even from one so blank as yourself?
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[He's never been in this chair before; it feels blasphemous, in a good way.]
[... And not a second later, Valerius calls him out blatantly on his "attachment." Qilby tries to keep his face straight, but a bit of saliva gets caught in his throat and makes a choking noise.]
Gh-- Perhaps I did have an attachment once. [There's a way Qilby breathes when he tells a half-truth: in through the nose, out through the mouth, almost meditative in a way it's difficult to physically observe. The brief knit of distress on Qilby's eyebrows is gone the very next second, replaced by a nostalgic smile.] His dragon brother was quite the overprotective kind, bit of a bastard... And Chibi's priorities were always terribly misplaced, but I wouldn't mind seeing him again.
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Inside the depths of these crystal growths play the sins and other minor trespasses of those who lingered here--and of course those of others in parts of the ship I've...explored. [He offers a slight through convincing apologetic look. One eye shut tight and his wide lips pulled downward in a pained grimace, still fearsomely showing off his serrated teeth]
They may not be the most pleasant of memories for you, but the sight of the sinners themselves should suffice...
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[But he'll take a look anyway, no matter how much he pretends not to be interested. As though wiping the dust from an old mirror, he runs his thumb over one of the crystals at the arm of the rocking chair. That's Mina in a compromising position. Next. Thankfully, the next is much more interesting.]
[Chibi is sitting at the Pow Wow, cross-legged in the middle of the clearing, shadowed by the stones at its center - grey, emotionless. There is a carved bone knife resting upon his left knee. With face dark, Chibi chants a prayer - not that Qilby can hear it; he's not sure whether the crystal even transmits sound, or whether he can't hear it from the blood rushing in his ears - and sinks the blade into his fifth intercostal space, threading the needle through his ribs like he's somehow practiced it before. Like he knows. Qilby watches as a manolia spirals from the wound, flowering a mottled red-blue over his bare chest, its roots surely winding about his intestines.]
[The crystal is the color of sloth.]
--Ah. Not the most pleasant, indeed. [Qilby's voice doesn't shake, but his jaw is set tight. Seeing Chibi in pain like that was never easy for him - and though Chibi's not showing it, Qilby sees his weary soul was aching - and he wants more than anything to give Chibi's head a shoulder to rest upon.]
[But as the years passed, what happens when you're the one causing all that pain? Perversely, he created the wounds he so desperately wanted to heal. Worth it, but painful.]
Did you find anything of particular interest in here?
Turning the Gay up to 11
That you and your family’s lives could restart at the end, and go on so easily, combined with so many conflicts...sometimes even repeating the same ones from incarnation to incarnation, in itself would seem like a sort of Hell to me; had I not been trying to understand the workings of other dimensions.
[The large, maned head rests and briefly nuzzles the old man’s leg as it gives a huge sigh, purple claws tapping against stone as he considers his next words. The sounds they make reverberate throughout the space as he looks to the other crystals.]
It all helped me understand your own sins and motivations, in the end. [The wicked scorpion tail coiled around Qilby’s other leg, before effortlessly moving away as the creature stood again. He began to pace around him as he spoke, until he finally leaned on one side of the chair and reformed to his preferred humanoid shape. Leaning over the Eliatrope for an embrace, he finally murmured after a kiss to his forehead]
Despite what my other half may think...I believe you were in the right to try and break that cycle, before it corroded you entirely.
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[The contact is far too short, all things considered - by the time Qilby has registered the manticore's mane against his knee, or the tail around his calf, it's gone. Valerius' footsteps feel so damnably loud in the hall, but his voice is enough to fill that empty space between them.]
[Qilby doesn't quite melt into the lips on his forehead, but he does look up and catch Val's jaw in his right hand, tilting him down for a gentle kiss on the lips. It's not long - he wants to keep talking, which is hard to do when one's mouth is occupied - but it's enough to make his feelings known.]
I was. I'm glad someone sees it. And when I find them again-- [when, not if!] --I'll gladly use your help in conveying that. [Those dragon arms certainly hadn't escaped his notice, even if they were only there for a moment. He could probably pass Valerius off as a dragon, couldn't he...]
[He could also just get rid of Yugo, which is what he was trying to do in the first place, but saying that would probably break the moment???.]
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[The scales on Valerius’ arms start to creep along the sides of his body, snow-white and opalescent--much like the color of the sloth crystals adorning the room. As if to confirm that yes, his “master” can very much pass him for a dragon. He even learned the language just in case he decided to camouflage closer~!]
I’ll do everything I can to assist, dearest. [He said with a sparkling, sharp-toothed grin. But then a thought occurs to him, and he looks pensive.] Although, perhaps not in here...I wouldn’t want to transform and destroy anything you’d rather leave intact.
[The most considerate sin-eating death god one could ask for.]