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Post by lilywilde on Sept 27, 2016 10:29:45 GMT -6
Lily would have had to be blind to fail to notice the shift in mood as she returned. She was visibly abashed. Her ears flattened against her head in shame as Sol's aura flared up in anger. She could feel the pain and rage radiating off of the conflicted boy.
She stood there, uncertain of many things. She didn't see at first that it was her use of her semblance that'd set him off like this, though after a moment of pondering she did puzzle it out. She wasn't sure whether or not the boy would lash out at her, nor did she know if she should flee at that moment. She remained, frozen, some small part of her mind telling her that if she fled now she would never be on good terms with this boy again. So even as every fiber of her being screamed for her to run, she stayed. She had denied her urge to flee many times since arriving this thought passed through her mind as she noticed the explosive reaction between Sol's aura and the dust that had been kicked up by the maelstrom of power that was his aura. She feared that if she allowed herself to suppress that urge too many times, that she would be unable to react to it quickly enough in a fight one day, and that all would be lost. Hell, there was a chance in her mind that Sol would be the architect of her demise here and now.
Still, it was hard for her to explain the reasons she'd stayed. Part of it was that she certainly wanted to make amends and rectify the mistake she'd just unknowingly made. Another part was the urge that was driving her to reach out and put her hand upon his shoulder, comforting him and letting him know that no harm was meant. That was an urge that was wisely suppressed. Her eyes met his, briefly, before looking away again. In that moment she felt the weight of his fury bearing down upon her, and couldn't help but feel as if her shame were not nearly deep enough to accommodate it properly.
As he gathered up his things, and began to move towards the warehouse doors, she almost fell to her knees out of a combined mixture of relief and sorrow. Relief that she would not have to endure the boy's harsh gaze any longer, and sorrow for having pushed him away.
She took, perhaps incorrectly, his anger filled question of necessity to mean that she wasn't being dismissed, not just yet, and gingerly followed him as if the ground were made of eggshells that guarded the trigger mechanism of an enormous and attractive bomb that was ready to blow.
"I... I'm sorry, I didn't want to make you wait." Her voice came out as a high strung squeak, tense and wavering. What was she still doing here? She had to ask herself. "I won't do it again... I.. I didn't think.." She stopped herself before she started rambling. She wanted to tell him that she never dreamed just displaying her semblance like that in front of somebody could be so upsetting, but she couldn't take back what she'd done, nor could she rectify this problem with words. She didn't know what he would want as compensation, but until she figured it out, she didn't want to leave and potentially cut her ties with him completely.
She hoped that the obviousness of her shame, coupled with the apology might ease things slightly, but she doubted they would fix things entirely. She felt like crying, but there was no way that she would let herself, not right now. The single solitary tear that did start to form was quickly and discretely wiped away. This emotional response was not something she'd expected, but the sense that she'd screwed up royally was something that was difficult for her to deal with. She wasn't used to influenced by the will of others. She had lived her life for a long time now trusting in her own judgement alone. There had been no need to worry about the thoughts and feelings of the people around her because there simply weren't any people around her. She still had a lot of adjusting to do, and even more growing to do if she wanted to really understand how to live here at the school. It didn't matter how much extra time she could squeeze out her days through her semblance. She could never use it to properly understand the people around her. That was something that the immature and inconsiderate faunus would have to experience. Each misstep would have to be a learning experience. She just felt terrible for the people she'd hurt until she understood fully.
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Post by Solomon Moon on Sept 27, 2016 18:53:53 GMT -6
By the time Sol reached the shop, Corporal Kelly was already at the sliding warehouse door with a pulse-rifle clutched in his hands. The mercenary had served with the young lord for long enough to recognize the unmistakable miasma of dread that surrounded Sol's aura when it was active, and had come running with the expectation that there was fight currently, or soon to be, going on. He noted the look on the young man's glowering face and made certain to hold his weapon in the least threatening manner while still keeping it at the ready. Kelly, like all the men of the Moon Forces that had joined Sol at Vytal, as "retainers", knew when to keep his distance from the young warrior, and whenever Sol wore an expression that could curdle milk in a neighboring county certainly qualified.
Sol on the other hand was concentrating the entire force of his will, (well not the "entire force of his will", because that would have rendered the object of his attention from existence), on the simple act of putting one foot ahead of the next and avoiding any thoughts that might be volatile. That last part bordered on impossible given his current reserves of self control finally having reached a deficit, but Sol spared no effort, especially when the alternative was an episode of psychotic rage.
"I... I'm sorry, I didn't want to make you wait. I won't do it again... I.. I didn't think.."
"No.. I am certain you did not think anything at all..." He growled under his breath at a volume just beneath the audible range of humans, but well within that of faunus, before allowing his words to pick up strength and give his voice the power of a solid bludgeoning, "Just be quiet... No more loud noises... No more sudden movements... Just be quiet."
The last bit had a pleading quality hidden somewhere beneath the wrath, as if he could not bare anything else that would disturb his already worn nerves. He glared back at the girl as she sheepishly fell into line behind him. His golden eye was so charged with aggravation that it achieved a quite convincing imitation of a blazing forge, and it had not lost that piercing gleam that had penetrated the veil of his aura with absolute ease. However, beneath all that, for anyone who was unlikely enough to hold it's gaze, there was the last glimmers of fear as it was slowly burned away in the fires of wrath and humiliation.
Lily had not simply annoyed Sol. She had frightened him, as only one might frighten one who had a multitude of skeletons in his closet and every expectation that sooner or later one might begin knocking. Vytal was no longer a safe place for Sol, as his eye had been opened to the intrigues that were the cogs and gears of the politics that lurked behind the machinations of the world's powers. And what's worse, her speed was such that Sol knew in his bones that if the girl had actually meant him harm, there would have been absolutely no opportunity to mount any defense other than the lashing light-show of his own aura. Simply put, he did not feel safe, and would not for a long while, no matter how clearly benign Lily's intentions turned out to be.
"Master Moon..." Kelly said unsteadily, as he proffered a very precise salute, and allowed a plaintive tone to enter his usually jovial voice, "Is everything alright?"
"Going outside to work was a mistake I fear..." Sol replied, with several, barbs directed back at the ears of the girl on his heels, "We will be sheltering in here for a while."
"We?" Kelly began, before spotting Lily bringing up the rear behind the young lord. Sol might not have noticed the teary eyed sobriety of her expression, but Kelly was sensitive to these things, and his impulses to ask what was wrong, and instinct for self preservation, clashed inside his head.
There was a crash and clatter as Sol laid his bike upon a stack of materials nearby, with a lot more force than was necessary, followed by sharp rattling "slam" as he hefted the crankshaft in his other hand and threw it into the corner as if it were no heavier than a shovel. Kelly flowed in-between his lord and the new arrival, wincing as more loud noises signaled the frustrated cyclops beginning to root through the lab's stockpile like it owed him a substantial sum of money. He just hoped that Sol didn't break anything in his temper, because that would only make things worse for everyone involved. Remorse and rage were two volatile elements that mixed very poorly.
"Hullo there," He said to Lily, forcing himself to adopt his friendlies tone, one that he reserved for addressing local populations when his platoon campaigned through their community. The manner of his speech was strained by being forced to adopt a significant volume to be heard over the dissonant clatter of Sol searching very enthusiastically for something, and using it as an excuse to throw things around.
Kelly had a pleasant voice, a scruffy red beard that grew in short patches on his cheeks and chin, and the accents of a man who had been born far from Vytal, and even from Sol's home of Legion. He wore a well pressed uniform, though it was slightly creased from sitting in a chair for much of the day. Upon his crown he wore a lop-sided beret, that featured a button that glistened round and silver in the mid morning sunlight. The button was the same insignia that punctuated Sol's belt buckle and greaves, and it was clear that they were affiliated in some way.
"Corporal Kelly McCain, at your service... Miss...?" He continued, trying to lighten the mood by sheer force of will, as he gave the girl a quick scan with powder blue eyes, and cocked a brow incredulously at her bare feet and tattered attire.
A sudden crash from behind made the man wince so hard that he shut one eye, but his smile did not falter.
"Please excuse my lord. He is a very "passionate" individual. I'm sure he'll be quite amiable once he has whatever it is out of his system."
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Post by lilywilde on Sept 27, 2016 19:44:38 GMT -6
Lily followed Sol with her shoulders slouched, and her posture indicating that if she could become invisible, that she would be doing exactly that in that very moment. Her body language screamed guilt and sorrow. When she had said under his breath that line about her not having though, she visibly flinched. Still, she managed to keep her composure. Which meant that she wasn't fleeing at full speed, nor was she crying. She had come a long way since becoming a student here.
When he claimed that going outside had been a mistake, she knew that he was talking about her presence, and wanted to leave then and there, but she had come this far, and would ride it out to the very end. She viewed Sol's awful mood, not incorrectly, as her fault, and wanted to stay until she could do something, anything, to improve it.
She did exactly what he said, remaining utterly silent, moving only when absolutely needed. Even when Corporal Kelly began talking to her, she stayed completely statuesque. She would have refrained from talking to the friendly man all together, but felt too bad and didn't want to give off the impression that she was ignoring him. Even so, during the conversation her eyes remained glued to Sol. Each loud noise sent daggers into her ear. She flinched each and every time he'd throw something in his search.
If she were asked in that moment to describe Kelly, she would have been wholly unable to do so. She was too focused on Sol's expression of, what she perceived to be pain, to really pay the man the attention he deserved. She covered her mouth briefly when Sol wasn't looking, trying to compose herself before finally turning to Kelly. She had a pleading look in her eyes as she digested what he'd been saying. She chose to ignore most of his questions, focusing on the last few things he'd said. "I'm Lily," she said in a very shaky voice, before adding "I.. No, it's my fault he's like this. He was peaceful before I showed up... I just... Isn't there anything I can do to help him? He looks so.. sad."
It was a strange thing, to describe his anger as sadness. Surely it was clear that he was frustrated, angry, annoyed, and who knows what else. To Lily though, they were very much the same thing. She didn't know the boy. She had no clue what he'd been through, only that it must have been painful. He sported more than enough scars to show it. To Lily, anger was a secondary emotion. One that had to stem from somewhere. If this had stemmed from fear, then it would have ended as soon as it became clear that Sol was in no danger. If this had stemmed from some prejudice, it would have been apparent from the start. Perhaps she assigned sadness to this outburst because she herself was so prone to the emotion, but it is what she saw in the brief glimpses of pain she'd gleaned from his eye thus far.
She stared at the corporal, eyes begging him for an answer that he couldn't possibly give. She didn't just want to cause him less pain, she wanted to ease the suffering that she thought he must be enduring.
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Post by Solomon Moon on Sept 27, 2016 20:45:23 GMT -6
Kelly offered the girl the same kind of sympathetic grin of a long suffering mentor talking about a troubled student. He tried actively to seem comforting, but the effort was undone entirely by the assault rifle that he was cradling against his chest. The pleading look in her winter grey eyes actually made him wince harder than any of the loudest slams that were coming from within the shop. It became apparent that Kelly was not merely being friendly, he was also delaying Lily at the entrance for her own protection, and likely also assessing her motives.
He had already concluded that she was harmless by the time she replied, based entirely upon a lack of weapons and the haunted downward cast of her manner. He freed one hand as she asked what she might do to help, and he patted her shoulder gently. He was genuinely touched, and more than surprised by the sincerity of her wishes. Kelly, despite being as loyal as a hound to Sol, still believed in his own mind that Sol was a lost cause. Kelly had been there in the Durin Swamps, when the young man, driven mad by grief, had used his force of living men as a bludgeon to exact vengeance, and like man of those under Sol's command, he would never fully trust the boy's leadership ever again. There was a somberness to his voice as he responded.
"Miss Lily... you didn't do this to him. Things that no young man should see or do did this to him, and if it hadn't been you that set him off, it'd have been a bird, or a misfiring cylinder, or just about anything. You couldn't have known." Kelly explained, his brow turned up with something resembling pity, but who for remained a mystery, "You know, sometimes when people spend a long time feeling a certain way, it gets hard inside them like a layer of bedrock. Other things just cover it up, but it never goes away, and more of the same just adds to it. That stuff is like granite, it's tough to get through, and it takes a long time with a pick-axe and a lot of effort. You could use dynamite and force it open sure, but then you just have a big gaping hole, and nothing to hold it up."
He licked his lips, clearly having let his analogy run away with him, and possibly anticipating another loud bang of delicate components being thrown against the walls.
"What I mean is... If you wanna help. It won't be easy, and it won't happen right away. It will take days or months of effort to make a difference, and a whole lot of patience, and after all that you might still find you've only just scratched the surface. But he doesn't have many friends that don't live off the wages he pays, and a few more couldn't hurt." He concluded, with a weak grin that was clearly just meant to cover up some ill defined regret, "And don't accuse him of being sad where he can hear you. My lord is a proud man, and won't take kindly to anyone calling him weak."
By the time Kelly had meandered to a satisfactory point, the noises had mostly died away, and the soldier grinned wearily as he nodded towards the interior of the shop. He seemed to think it would be safe for the pair of them to continue any further discussion inside.
Kelly passed beside racks of weapons in varying states of completeness, ranging from rifles to longswords, to polearms, and cannons. Closer to the center of the massive auto-lab was a half dismantled vertical take off and landing craft, or a VTOL. Tools of all shapes, sizes and application were scattered about like debris from a well meaning bomb, as were various unidentifiable components. Eventually they neared a large stack of crates that had been torn open and thrown aside like discard toys, despite the fact that they must weigh as much as four hundred pounds a piece, and right at the back was Sol, with what appeared to be a sheet of corrugated blue fabric draped across his forearms as he held it up to the light.
He had his back to the pair, as Kelly approached, and was standing facing a large rack of chains and hooks that had recently been covered with a tarp judging by how it was the only thing in the immediate area without a thick layer of soot on it. Kelly cleared his throat experimentally, and Sol snapped around to glare at the soldier with enough speed to make a driveshaft jealous. Curiously, the fabric in his arms did not swirl or drift with the motion, and stayed as stiff in his arms as solid stone, despite the fact that it clearly had evidence of having been folded easily in the recent past, likely when SOl had picked it up, judging by how it was half wrapped around his arms.
Sol realized this, and as if responding to his thoughts, the fabric suddenly went slack again, and adjusted to the inertia in a way one might expect of heavy flax or wool. He beckoned Lily to approach with a jerk of his head, and his face had an unfamiliar glow about it. Pride was an quality that suited his bold features, and it was clear that the fabric was what he was proud of.
Holding the corner of the sheet in his right hand, the glove standing out black against the material's blue, Sol snapped it like a whip until it was fully extended towards the girl, and at the peak of the stroke, the fabric went stiff as a board and stuck out straight from the young lord's hand. He grunted, and like normal material, the sheet was fabric once more and drooped flacidly down from his extended fist.
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Post by lilywilde on Sept 28, 2016 18:11:53 GMT -6
Lily listened intently as the man described Sol's troubles in masonic term. Through his whole monologue, she desperately searched for anything that might give her the impossible answers she sought. A small kernel finally came at the end of his speech. She nodded, resolute, at the warning to not call him sad in front of him. He was proud, he didn't do well with weakness or anything that might suggest weakness. Not having too many friends was something she could certainly relate to. If he had to pay people for them to be his friends, as she interpreted Kelly's comment to mean, then she would gladly do her best to do it for free.
She couldn't consider the man a friend though, not quite yet. She wanted to, but she didn't know him at all. She may have felt a sense of kindred pain with him, but that connection was vague and unexplored. She wanted to explore it, but until he calmed down, she doubted anything would get through to him. That's why the surge of relief that spread through her when she did finally hear the din of his tantrum begin to fade.
Never had Lily felt more out of her element than when Kelly guided her through the labyrinth of technology and machinery that was this warehouse. Each and every square foot of this place housed at least something she didn't know about. Some piece of technology that she had no way to fathom it's use or purpose. She would be hard pressed to find an environment further away from the jungles and caves she had called home for so long. This alone was enough to make her uncomfortable, but the thought of seeing Sol again already made her even more so. A fear that was quickly abated when she saw the look on Sol's face. He didn't have the same anger, and seemed to be pleased with himself.
She approached carefully all the same. She crept forward like a cat with an overly developed sense of danger, ready to jump at the first sudden move to extricate herself from harm's way.
She flinched visibly as he snapped the fabric at her. She didn't expect Sol to hurt her at this point, not when he was wearing a look like that, but even so the sudden movement was sufficient to spook her. It was all she could do to suppress the instinct to dash away in a flash of light. A week ago, she would have done exactly that.
Once she recovered from her flinch, she gingerly reached out and touched the fabric. It was heavy, but not so much so that it'd effect her in battle too much. It might slower her down slightly, but even if it did her speed advantage would never truly be in danger.
She recalled Sol's demand not to speak earlier, and wondered if that were still in effect. She seemed to struggle with herself for a few moments, before shyly, with an apologetic look to her as she met Sol's gaze, her ears drooping and her eyes looking slightly strained as she held the taller boy's gaze.
"How... does it work?" She asked, her voice quiet, almost submissive in it's tone. She was still beating herself up for upsetting Sol earlier, even if Kelly assure her it was not her fault in the slightest. She was not the kind of person to forgive herself so easily. In fact, she had not forgiven herself for any transgression that she perceived herself to have made in the past three years. Each time she screwed up with someone, she shouldered the weight of that screw up completely. Carrying it with her wherever she went, being haunted by the ghosts of her past even as she resolved to do better in the future. She might be crushed by the pressure of the mistakes she'd made one day, or she might be forged into a diamond under them. If there were anyone who'd known the girl very well at all, they would probably assume that it would be the former over the latter. Her guilt complex was anything but healthy. Even if it did lead to drastic improvements at times.
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Post by Solomon Moon on Sept 28, 2016 20:59:22 GMT -6
Lily's question caught Sol off guard. Truly, he was concentrating too hard on the sheet of myomer fabric at the time. It was not a matter of insolence or having forgotten the girl was there, as much as it was that the material in question demanded a great deal of control from the young man. For reasons that would remain known to only Sol for the meantime, the material required careful handling and was actually functioning as an extension of his right hand. When Lily touched the material, Sol felt her fingers as if they were melting into his hand, or at least as if they were melting into a previously undiscovered appendage that was connected to his right hand.
Of course, he knew that the cloth was no more a part of him than the hand was, and that the sensation was just a sly illusion to simulate the function of firing nerves, but all the same, being touched by the girl, even through the medium of military grade polymer, was surprising, and not entirely unpleasant.
The limp cloth seemed to flex in her grasp, pulsating rhythmically like a heartbeat as it bulged through the gaps in her fingers and then fully encircled her hand with threads like silken steel. Sol stepped forward, slowly giving more slack to the fabric, and allowing it to crawl slowly up and around her arm like a very strangely proportioned snake. He was only able to achieve this level of direction through a combination of being well practiced in the use of myomer, and having a unique connection to the material. It allowed him to control the fabric nearly instinctively, but at the same time the price of that skill was so high that Sol would have given it up in a heartbeat to have back what he paid to learn it.
He could "feel" the fabric as it coiled around her limbs, and then arched up and laid over her shoulder and against the side of her throat. It was clear by this point that he was showing off.
As the corner of the folded and coiled length began lapping at her cheek like soft feathery tongues, Sol finally decided to answer her question.
"You really don't have any idea?" His voice was cool and calm, like an avalanche on a clear day, and when he spoke with not more than a foot or so between them, it was possible to make out the texture of his vocals down to the individual scars in his throat that blended they shape to his words, "You've never wondered why some hunters don't seem to need buttons or triggers on their weapons to make them work? Why don't you take a closer look?"
At that, the fluttering tails of the sheet rose up in front of her face, the woven fibers shimmering like miniature stranded braided cables or reptile scales in the dull light. If Lily looked closer at the nearly invisible gaps between the threads, she would see a familiar dancing field of red and blue, as it pulsed through the fabric with suggestions of both flowing blood, and arching electricity.
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Post by lilywilde on Sept 29, 2016 17:05:14 GMT -6
To say Lily was alarmed when the fabric began gripping her was an understatement to be sure. However, her original purpose here had been all but forgotten. She was invested in this now, in a way that she hadn't expected herself to become. She didn't have many friends, the ones she did possess were very dear to her. She sensed in this boy something familiar. It was entirely possible that she were projecting herself onto him, but recalling how terrible her life had been before she came to Vytal, the decade of hell she spent in the wilderness without the protection of a tribe. The three years within that decade without anyone at all... She could have easily seen herself becoming as volatile as Sol was if not for the fact that it would have been nearly suicidal to do so.
In truth, she wasn't too far off at some points. Her own claws had been her weapon of choice, and when she was confident that it was within her capabilities to kill a Grimm or two, she would eviscerate them with sadistic tendencies at times. She would sacrifice those poor grimm on the altar of her grief, hoping that the ghosts of her parents might be appeased and leave her alone for some time.
It never really worked, at best it helped her feel at ease for a day or two. In the long run, it was a terrible habit that only served to keep her dwelling on the horrid past. It kept her grudge against the Grimm alive, and her own personal guilt for causing the incident in the first place never had a chance to heal. Even to this very day, the wounds were tender, guarded, and only ever licked briefly in private. She had come close to telling her friend Aegle about it, but hadn't managed to when the time came. She didn't know if she'd ever truly be able to talk openly about it, unless it came up and she was asked directly. It was just not the sort of information she was comfortable volunteering about herself. If she had though, it might have made the way her face contorted in fear a bit more sensible.
No sudden moves.
She had promised herself that she would do as little to agitate Sol going forward as she could.
The material moving up her arm had set her on edge. Her eyes snapped shut, as she reviewed the principals of peace her father had laid out for achieving a proper meditative state. She didn't really have to be in a pose to achieve that state at this point, she'd been practicing for so long the state was second nature no matter how she angled herself.
She gave off a faint glow of white, her aura flowing to the surface to shroud her in it's warmth. It radiated peace, and filled those who bathed in it's light with a sense that everything would work out for the best. After just a moment of that, even as the cloth licked at her cheek, she managed to calm herself down enough to continue without it.
Once she did, she finally noticed how close Sol had gotten to her. The way in which the fabric wrapped around her took on a new light then. She realized that he might be a bit put off by her display of Aura, and quickly apologized.
"I'm sorry, I am not used to being touched, the... uhh.. the fabric made me nervous. I swear I didn't mean to let my aura flare." She managed to keep her voice even, almost formal, despite the flustered chaos that was beginning to creep in.
She wondered if it's calming effect would override Sol's tendency towards outbursts, she really hoped that it would. Some part of her enjoyed his closeness like this.
And as she realized that, her cheeks flushed a soft pink. She distracted herself by looking at the cloth in more detail. Within it's material, she could see the traces of Sol's aura permeating the material, and the way it had traveled up her arm took on a new meaning. The corner which was lapping at her cheek now almost felt like a gentle caress. She didn't even consider the fact that this material could squeeze the air from her lungs if that was Sol's intent here. An uncharacteristic thing for Lily, but then, she was acting less and less like herself the longer she stayed at Vytal.
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Post by Solomon Moon on Oct 1, 2016 5:00:20 GMT -6
It occurred to Sol that Lily had very soft skin. This thought was absurd, and alarming in equal measure. It was absurd, because of all the things that should occupy his mind at that instant, the tensile strength of the girl's flesh should not even have been on the list. It was alarming, because as a rule, Sol considered any thought that he would not comfortably utter aloud to be of an alarming nature. It was never the less true, however, and for not the first time, Sol regretted that a capacity to feel warmth as well as tactile sensation was a feature that could be convey by the unique medium.
The illusory awareness of the fabric stopped well short of the multitude of details that would usually inform one of physical sensations, as it lacked the ability to convey temperature or damage. The reason for the latter should have been self evident, as mechanisms of such a nature would not behoove their operators had they the ability to convey pain, and as for the former, it was a feature Sol had deliberately ignored for this particular piece. This was not in the least bit because, being that the material was infused with blue dust, the sheet maintained a constant and frigid condition that had more in common with unfeeling metal than it's organic persuasion might have suggested.
Sol allowed the material to closely snug itself to Lily's flesh, conforming itself to the individual slops and curves of her slender musculature, and guiltily he thought to himself that it might be an indecent thing to do, but at the same time, he remembered how much she had disturbed him, and decided that what the girl did not know could not possibly hurt her. He decided via this brief and limited exploration that Lily was more athletic in a lither way than the majority of the soft sided students who frequented Vytal from prosperous towns, (the kind that had never dug a latrine, or dragged ammunition cases a quarter mile through mud), and that he approved. She was fit, if not exactly strong, and to Sol that was an objectively positive quality.
Part of him wondered how far she would tolerate the intrusion of the slithering sheet of artificial muscle fibers, and toyed with the idea of having it encircle her bust next. He wouldn't do it of course, almost certainly that would be too far, and surely it would dishonor them both to behave so improperly. Even if Lily did not suspect that he could "feel" what the fabric felt, he would know what he was doing, and that would be just as bad.
That line of consideration terminated, luckily as his face was just short of cracking a lewd sneer. Unluckily what terminated that thought was the expression of Lily's aura as it lit up around her like a fog of luminescence steam.
Sol squinted somewhat, and shied back, raising his other hand to shield his eye. It was not the suddenness of the light, nor its brightness, as it was really quite gentle, that caused Sol concern enough to back away, nor was it that the aura was particularly menacing. Quite the opposite actually. It was exactly the fact that the glow was so calm and gentle, and had not come on suddenly, but had merely flowed into the air, that made Sol distrust it. The sensation of security, of hope, and serenity were likewise all so alien to him, that they stung his spirit as bright light would sting the eye of a man who had spent years in a tomb. It triggered a dissonance within him that was entirely unpleasant, as the factions of his own brooding violent internal sentiments waged battle with an intruding force of unwelcome peacefulness. As one might expect of such a battle, it was short, bloody, and brutal, and in the end the victors were that of wrath and ire, for they were the strongest and hardest of Sol's attitudes.
Sol was just beginning to worry that the aura was a response to the indecent musings that he had been half considering in the lowest part of his brain. He worried, illogically, that Lily had somehow sensed his thoughts and was shoring up defenses to protect herself, but by the time this thought concluded, the glow had vanished and the feline was mid way through providing an apology.
"I'm sorry, I am not used to being touched, the... uhh.. the fabric made me nervous. I swear I didn't mean to let my aura flare."
Flare? Sol thought. Is that what that was? To Sol, flares were a much more exciting display, with all sudden burst and loud noises, and he felt that the only similarities that such things shared with Lily's aura was that both seemed to linger longer than they should and had a gentle glow if you didn't look directly at the source. A less severe word would have suited it better, something more pleasant. Flutter, gleam or glitter, all seemed like superior choices. Again, Sol concluded an entire thought before wondering where it had come from, and why he was concerning himself with the correct description of Lily's aura.
"I think blossom, would be a better word for it," He said in a voice like chipped granite, eye growing wide at the insipid words that hijacked his tongue and feeling immediately foolish and foppish for it.
Blossom? If Sol overheard anyone else using that word in earnest, he would have deliberately called their sexual orientation into question, and not in a kind way either. The fact that the word had crossed the threshold of his own lips, unchallenged no less, embarrassed him beyond words. It didn't help that he could see Corporal Kelly watching them from his seat on one of the overturned crates. A knowing smile painted the corporal's nisse features, and Sol knew he would return to the barracks that night and find that "blossom" was the new word of the day among his troops. He released, the held corner of fabric and covered his mouth before more words could escape. His ears were beginning to burn. It was lucky that his face was already somewhat red from throwing around all the crates, and already very tanned from many days spent marching through the streets of sunny Rift. If not for those two factors, it would have been obvious that he was blushing.
He groped for anything he could add that might save face, but all he could manage was, "... You know? Like a flower... ".
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Post by lilywilde on Oct 1, 2016 23:58:10 GMT -6
As Sol moved away, Lily had mentally prepared herself for another outburst. Instead, Sol's demeanor remained almost... gentle.
As he suggested the alternate word for her aura's emergence, the light flush her face had exhibited had completely gone bright red. She made eye contact, holding it with a smile plastered across her face.
"I really like that," she said hugging herself, and the fabric that had coiled around her as the bashful emotions surged within her.
She was not used to this. Lily had been a solitary creature for her entire life. Even when it was just her and her parents, she'd been a serious young girl who only wanted to be taken seriously. The idea that someone could not only lower her guard to the point where she could smile so freely. In that moment she wasn't watching Sol suspiciously. She wasn't gauging the room for potential hazards and optimal escape rooms in the event of a sudden danger appearing. All of the background processes that her mind usually performed were silent, letting the blooming teenage affection rise to the surface undaunted.
When he continued, adding that she was flower like, one might have guessed that Lily's natural skin tone was red, and not the pale white that she usually sported. She even almost found herself upset a little bit that the sensation the fabric had given her, the sense of being held, caressed, had disappeared when Sol had let go of it.
"I... I actually like that a lot." She said, having not yet broken her eye contact with the boy who'd given her such a wonderfully thematic term for her Aura's emergence. "A blossoming Lily, has a nice ring to it does it not?" She asked finally closing her eyes as her smile grew wider. Her ears twitched excitedly.
She had totally forgotten about Kelly's presence in the back of the room. In that moment, all that was in her world was Sol. She was looking at the boy in a new light, for the second time that day. She appraised him with a new kind of nervousness, his well built physique and tall stature, compared to the short girl anyway made her squirm a little where she was standing. "Uhm... So.." She started, fumbling for something to say. She was suddenly feeling very self conscious. "Is there any chance you could show me how to use this?" She asked holding up her arm where the loose fabric dangled. "I-I mean, I know it has something to do with Aura, but nothing more than that."
She had been tempted to try herself, to control the fabric. However, she was far too concerned with accidentally making the fabric lash out at sol, or otherwise complicating things that she'd decided not to. She wasn't going to risk snapping Sol out of this state.
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Post by Solomon Moon on Oct 2, 2016 12:11:37 GMT -6
 ad Sol suspected the nature of the thoughts running through Lily's mind at that moment, it is very likely that he would have panicked in some way. This was not exactly because he apposed the idea of the girl developing some sort of attachment to him, though in itself that was a scary prospect, it had more to do with the fact that at no point had he deliberately done anything to purposefully foster a connection between them. This was a problem, because Sol was a creature of deliberate action, accustomed to accidental outcomes of his decisions being both bloody and destructive affairs. His response to learning that Lily was beginning to feel an attraction towards him, by nature of the fact that he'd not intended it, was something to be either rejected, or responded to with a controlled application of his charm to better guide it's affects. Needless to say, neither response would have been appropriate, and this was not even considering that Lily was her own individual and it was a thought of utmost arrogance to think that her sentiments could be fashioned by an outside source like Sol. Logically, he should have suspected something, if for no other reason than the girl was flushed bright red from the neck up, and below too, Sol would have expected. She was firmly held in his attention, so that fact was obvious, but until she spoke, Sol assumed it was a sympathetic blush of embarrassment for the absurd dribble that had plopped out of his treacherous mouth. It had not been an appropriate thing to say, at least not in his mind. It was too forward to compliment a woman like that, and worse yet, it was the kind of cheesy thing that awkward lovers said to each other in those insufferable romantic comedies that played at the cinema, despite the fact that Sol considered every single one to be awful, (despite never having seen one). When she spoke, and her words made clear that she'd taken it as compliment, and that was in fact the source of her self-consciousness, the first claws of alarm dug themselves into Sol's brain. " A blossoming Lily, has a nice ring to it does it not?" Lily said, as her grey eyes squeezed shut and she sprouted a grin that was so warm that even the chill of the woven carbon fiber in her arms did not seem to bother her. His golden eye wide and pleading, Sol shot a panicked glance past Lily's furiously twitching ears at the gleam of Kelly's Cheshire grin. The elder soldier simply rolled his head to the left and cocked an eyebrow. He wasn't going to help, at least not how Sol wanted him to. Besides, Kelly thought Sol was doing a fine job. The youth's golden gaze slid reluctantly back to Lily, avoiding the intensity of her grey eyed stare. He became very aware of the gentle slope of her neck, and how it met her jaw, and how he could see plenty of pink flesh around her collar, and her bare shoulders, all sporting a similar and vibrant hue. He swallowed, realizing stupidly that there was a beautiful young woman beneath those rags, and that woman in question was looking at him the same way that shy songbirds did when being courted by the tunes of an enthusiastic suitor. Sol's gaze wandered, and while his stony visage retained it's rigid suggestion, his eye was stark and bewildered. Kelly snorted in amusement and covered it up at the last moment by giving a cough. The well dressed cyclops realized that he was looking for an exit, and escape. Anxiety made his heart feel like it was pumping liquid helium, and his head felt light. He reached up with his right hand, and touched his eye-patch through the veil of dark hair that hung down in front of it, as if his head was going to float away if he did not secure it. With his other hand he returned the half burned down remains of his cigarette to his lip and let it dangle there for a moment. He swallowed, and then cleared his throat. He looked at Lily again, as the nicotine chased away the worst of his anxieties, and gave hm the much needed moment to collect his thoughts. There was a stability to his gaze, and something else. Pride, was not a strange quality for his eye to have, as Sol was proud to the point of arrogance, but seeing the way Lily hugged the sheet of myomer made his heart swell so hard that his chest threatened to ache. While he had not invented myomer, that discovery could be attributed to a scientist by the name of "Vitus" in Legion, Sol had personally mixed the carbon and ice dust, and had painstakingly written the printing sequence himself. He'd cultured the bacteria that generated the electroactive polymer that filled the material's woven network of carbon nano-tubes, and he had grown the entire piece from scratch. The idea that something he had made, that all that effort had made someone so happy, was utterly novel to him. Sol could not say that anything he'd ever done had seen such an objectively positive result, and it moved him. He felt no small measure of regret that he could no longer feel the fabric, and how the girl was squeezing it. In fact, he greatly envied that sheet of unfeeling polymer for how it was pressed so closely to the faunus' bust. His right hand fell stiffly from his missing eye, the limb seemed to move in a way that was subtly different than it's neighbor, as if it were not entirely conscious of it's surroundings. His gloved fingers tugged on the collar of his silken white shirt, as if it had suddenly grown too narrow for his neck. " It takes a lot of practice, to be able to make it do that." Sol explained, his voice remaining admirably level despite his roiling uncertainty about this entire endeavor, " I don't think you have the skill..." "What I think Master Solomon means is that you'll have to start with something more simple." Kelly's voice broke in with a sternness that announced a military history, and sounded entirely unlike the pleasant manner he'd addressed Lily with. The old leprechaun had seen the young fool blunder this far, and was not about to let him screw it up by being an arrogant ass. Sol understood the tone well enough to quickly change his own. "It takes a great deal of control to manipulate such a large section of myomer, and a lot of aura too." Sol said as he turned, dog-eared smoke hanging from the corner of his mouth as he rummaged through the workbench behind him, beneath a conspicuously placed tarp. He produced a smaller section of the artificial muscle, a scrap that had been left over from another project. It was about as large as a face-cloth, and slightly worn along one edge. He moved closer to Lily, and placed placed it deliberately in her hand. This required the use of both his own hands, to pry her fingers gently apart, before grasping her other hand and guiding it to hold the rag at opposite corners. Both his hands wore fine leather gloves, but touching them made plain that there was something strange going on beneath the tanned hide. Sol's right hand moved with unlikely and mechanical stiffness, and it's grasp, while gently, was perfectly unyielding, like a bear trap that might snap shut unexpectedly at any moment. " You clearly know how to use your aura. So just use it to bridge the gap between your fingers. The myomer will accept it. You have to try and think of it as an extension of your own body." He explained, as he looked intently at her hands. From this angle it was obvious that he was missing one of his eyes, and that fact seemed to actually increase the intensity of his gaze instead of diminishing it. He had an advantage when it came to manipulating polymers, being that he could hook the material directly up to his own nervous system, and this made picturing the material as a part of himself easier, though he would be the first to say that one never fully forgot that it was just an illusion. made by ira of stf and ww |
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