| Joining | |
| Summary: | What goes on in a Vollistan Joining ceremony, anyways? A group of people find out, when they're invited to Voliast and Volouscheur's Joining... |
| Cast: | Voliast, Volouscheur, Ruin, Swiftfoot, Lucius, Aisrya, McDowell, Swiftclaw, Freyssinet, Ace, Jantine, Kastaprulyi |
| Air Date: | 2006.08.30 |
New Luna Landing Pad <Deepcrest Island, New Luna>
- This wide, bleached white concrete expanse travels parallel to the shoreline of the planet's only ocean. Some very old black scorch marks mar the edges, and a raised concrete shuttle pad seems to have been built to the side of the expanse furthest from the beach. A beautiful golden beach runs to the southeast side while the rest is dense tropical forest, comprised mostly of beach grass, strange broad-leafed bushes, and a tightly-packed variation of a combination palm tree and birch. A well-worn path leads northeast into the dense foliage, and a clean, freshly-cleared path leads to the west.
Swiftclaw flicks an ear toward Brandon and Aisrya as they chat near the hanger, having picked up the word "shot" and unable to surpress her curiousity. Besides the movement of her ear she twitches nary a muscle, sitting on the tarmac a short way off and facing the water in a rather contemplative pose.
"Certainly was Weapons control," Brandon replies to Rya, before motioning towards the Haste. "You want me to bring her in or you want to have a look at her out here? Excuse the mess in the cockpit... Been doing paper work during my so called downtime." He continues chatting, unaware that a certain Demarian might be eavesdropping.
"Bring her in," the Timonae says, taking a moment to straighten out her dress. "Also have some paperwork for you."
Volouscheur walks up from the docks, aura glowing green-gold, with streamers of pink winding around her as she heads in the direction of the hangar.
This could almost be an OATO meeting, with a Vollistan, a Demarian, a Timonae and a human present. Well, 'Scheurs wandering in from the path that leads from the harbour. Swiftyclaw is chilling around the Athena. And Rya and McDowell are chatting outside of the hanger.
Swiftclaw's ear once again snaps forward, her curiousity apparently appeased for the moment....or at the very least, accepting that she is unlikely to learn more about this shooting Brandon and Aisrya were talking about. Sitting a little straighter she continues casting for scents on the wind, upper lip wrinkled and her mouth open just a touch, revealing ivory-white fangs.
And to add to the group - reading "human" as in martian, comes Frey out of the Wolfsbane. She takes in the sight, and listens to the conversations before joining.
"Thanks," Brandon says, as the mention of paperwork comes up. He turns on a heel and starts to make his way towards the Haste once more. "Give me a minute or so to get things up and I'll bring her." The glowie and the fuzzy one don't attract his interest as he heads towards the Haste. "Doctor Freyssinet... need to have a chat with you shortly, if you've got the time."
Aisrya nods to Brandon and watches him walk off until she spots Scheur. She smiles a little and waves to the woman.
Freyssinet nods to Brandon, "Sure... About the message?"
Volouscheur waves back to Rya, offering a feeling of greeting. ~Volir's light, Rya. How are you?~
"Was about the message," Brandon calls back to Frey, as his feet hit the boarding ramp of the Haste. "if you want to join me in the office while I take her in, we'll discuss it a bit further indepth." He presses in the code, and then enters.
Freyssinet nods to McDowel, and prepares to follow him.
Aisrya shrugs a little and smiles to Scheur. "How about you?"
Volouscheur smiles back, ~I'm alright. A bit nervous...but I'm told that's normal.~ She shrugs quietly, absently tugging at her braid.
The Taxi lights on the hull of the Haste flicker into life, followed by the sound of the engines spinning off. The ship slowly taxies towards the hanger.
Aisrya gives the Vollistan a quick hug before striking a pose. "How you like?"
Kastaprulyi floats at about twenty feet high as it drifts down the path from the harbor. The young Centauran drops to a total height of about five feet as it comes out of the forest, leaving a purple and blue shadow on the pavement beneath in the midday sunlight.
Ruin comes down the path from Freedom City in time to see the Haste in motion. He stands, hands in pockets, watching it go.
Aisrya
This tall and slender Timonae female is a handful of centimeters short of two meters tall, about average for her kind. Her olive skin is framed by straight, silver hair that reaches just down to her shoulders that hangs freely without restraint, and her bangs have a tendency -- perhaps styled, perhaps not -- to fall down the left side of her face, partially covering that eye. Her gently sloping face is topped by a pair of violet eyes, and ends near a pair of glossy red lips. She seems to be wearing a bit of makeup to touch up her already stunning features.
The woman is wearing a provocative black gown. The halter corset top is made entirely of lace, which is backed by opaque fabric only over her bust, giving view to a lot of belly skin. It also wraps low behind her back, only reaching to the top of the small of her back. The hem of the skirt is asymmetrical -- starting at the knee on her left lef and going down to below the ankle of her right leg -- and is embellished by a lace pattern that mirrors the corset. On her feet are a minimalist pair of black heels that stretch her height past half-way from six feet to seven. The only visible jewelery is a small, barely noticeable silver necklace with a small pendant that's sitting at the top of her cleavage.
Volouscheur looks at Rya and smiles, ~It's beautiful, Rya.~ She adds, teasing, ~I might wonder if Iast will remember which one uf us he's supposed to Join with.~
Aisrya giggles a little bit before leaning in to give Scheur a quick peck on the lips. "I need to do some work real quick," she says, "I'll try to be quick."
The Haste doesn't take off, but she just slides inside of the hanger.
Volouscheur kisses Rya in return, lightly. ~Well, I'm not sure Iast will notice if we're late.~
"Don't come if you don't need to, "Rya says with a smile before slipping in.
Kastaprulyi wanders off across the landing pad in the general direction of the Athena. It shifts direction as it notices Volouscheur and sends her a feeling of greeting.
Ruin watches the Haste thoughtfully, but in the process spots Volouscheur. He heads over with a little wave. "I got your invitation," he offers by way of greeting. "I haven't missed it, have I?"
Volouscheur waves back to Ruin, returning Kas's feeling of greeting. ~No,~ the Vollistan says to Ruin, ~You haven't missed it.~
"Hello," Kas adds in childlike synthesized voice, sliding to a stop at Volouscheur. "Did you invite Captain Ranix?"
Ruin looks relieved. "I was kind of a long way away when I got it," he says quietly, with a little smile. "And - we haven't spoken since I was let out, so it was a bit of a surprise. I couldn't RSVP because I honestly didn't know if we'd be on New Luna today at all." He looks down at his clothes. "Um. This isn't inappropriate, is it?"
Ruin
Ruin is a youngish Lunite in his mid to late twenties. About six feet tall, his slender build and pale skin strongly indicate a man who really doesn't get out all that much. His hair is jet-black, shoulder-length and has a natural wave to it; it's worn wrapped in a cord of beads down his back, with a few loose almost-ringlets near his face, but most of the hair that's free of the wrap is threaded through beads of various metals to weight it down. He sports a neatly trimmed black moustache and beard in Machiavellian style. His eyes are a dark, dark brown, almost black, in a face with strong Slavic overtones. His hands are spidery and often in restless motion.
He's wearing plain, nondescript clothing that easily qualifies as business casual; a light blue, short-sleeved collared shirt - the top button undone - is tucked into plain dark blue slacks that are held in place with a black belt. His shoes are the only discrepancy in the business casual look; battered sneakers that have clearly been thoroughly broken in.
Volouscheur shakes her head at Kas, ~No, I didn't. Captain Ranix and I haven't met - and I don't really know her well enough to invite her to my Joining.~ Ruin's clothing is studied and Scheur nods, smiling to him, ~No, that's fine.~
Kastaprulyi suggests acknowledgement. "I hope you'll meet sometime soon," Kas comments, then adds curiously. "Are we celebrating in Greenville? And what're you feeling like?"
Freyssinet listens to the conversations. "celebration? That is always good!"
Ruin looks over to Freyssinet and smiles a bit. "Scheur's getting - Joined, I think the word was." He looks at her. "Is that like a marriage, or something else?"
~It's like a marriage,~ Scheur replies. She shrugs to Kas, ~I feel a little nervous. But mostly, I feel happy, excited.~ She stands by the hangar, talking to Ruin, Kas, and Frey.
Freyssinet grins to Scheur, "Congratulations! Who is the happy chosen?"
Kastaprulyi, for the moment, simply 'listens' with interest.
Voliast arrives, quietly treading onto the landing pad. His doctor's bag is, as always, in one hand, a simple cryo-case in the other. He has been known to frequently carry flower strains he's bred himself in these. Nonetheless, even tonight, he's his usual calm, cool, collected self. Okay, he's sweating. His aura is carefully supressed, so he does not even glow a neutral green. He knows that betraying his nervousness to Scheur will make her more nervous, anyway. But he's sure. ~If I've ever been sure about anything, I'm sure about Scheur..." His slow pace brings him closer to the Vollistan female, smiling all the way.
Aisrya walks out of the hangar and heads for Scheur.
Volouscheur offers a feeling of greeting to Iast, grinning at Ruin, ~And the...what's the word? The groom's here, too, so we can't /possibly/ be late getting there.~ Scheur wears a green overrobe, Joining apparel underneath.
Voliast steps over to Scheur, wrapping an arm loosely across her shoulders. He intones quietly, sounding strained: "You wanted to do all of this on such short notice... I could only make bare preparations, and I don't know how the ceremony's supposed to go..." Grinning at all assembled, he holds up the cryo case, and, looking at his robes, says: "Err... I didn't even have time to get my ceremonial robes on, think of it, I'm still in my day things..."
Kastaprulyi offers Aisrya a feeling of greeting and Voliast an unobtrusive one as well. The young Centauran circles around for a better view of both the couple's faces.
Freyssinet grins as the groom arrives "Good luck to you two."
Ruin bites his lip on a smile. "If you need a hand, I seem to be free for the evening." He looks over at Aisrya. "Unless I'm needed at the Haste?" Aisrya slides up behind the Vollistans and strikes a pose. "Let's get the party started!"
** Scheur offers a feeling of comfort, sharing her own feelings of excitement and joy - there's nervousness there, true, but it's mostly overwhelmed by the joy she feels. In the background, she whispers, "This is real...it's really real..."
Volouscheur kisses Iast's lips, wrapping an arm around his waist loosely, ~I made some preperations of my own, Love - and, well, the priest and I can prompt you if we need to. There should be a bit of time to change into your robes, too, once we get there.~
**~Why are you so surprised? It is I who receives the prize here, not you.~ His own apprehension is there, tinged with extreme joy.**
"Priest?" Voliast inquisits, running one hand loosely over Scheur's back and closing his eyes. His Aura flickers back into existence in a blast of riotous color, indigo fighting gold fighting red, fighting rose. All of it is trying to gain dominance, and there's even skin-tingling ultraviolet and other hues emanating strongly, including a bit of infrared heat. "Well, alright... I've seen angry Zangali women through difficult births... I can handle this..." He doesn't sound sure.
Kastaprulyi,gathered with the group near the hangar, slips around in front of the couple though keeping a bit of distance from the emotion.
Freyssinet chuckles at Voliast's comparison, and looks in awe at his aura. She steps back to Kasta, "Is his aura perturbing you?"
Ruin shakes his head, a somewhat wry and rueful look on his face. "If you can broadcast your emotions in your aura, a public declaration in words shouldn't be too difficult," he notes. He purses his lips. "Unless of course you're doing a lot more than words?"
** A soft, happy laugh from Scheur, "We're both recieving a prize today, Love; what else could being Joined to you be?" She continues to offer comfort.**
The Doctor had forgotten that his aura was being so strongly reined in. "Err, sorry..." Focusing more, he locks it down and causes the glow to suppress. "Ruin, monogamy is a bigger step for our species than yours. Additionally, there ARE implications to becoming used to just one person... but this is Scheur's thing. My cave did not practice said Joining."
Aisrya grins at Ruin. "I'm taking bets on the chances of him psionically fingering her for the whole ceremony," she says with a grin and a wink.
A hiss and a clunk precedes the opening of the Faux's hatch and the arrival of her kapitan. Ace pauses at the top of the ramp and descends down to the plascrete, giving a nod to those gathered in a knot, "Any particular reason you do not just get married here?" she asks with a smile.
Volouscheur and Iast are the center of focus over by the hangars. Scheur wears a green overrobe, aura shifting from green-gold accented by pink to gold and rose, accented by scarlet. Scheur seems excited, but nearly serene, while Iast seems very nervous. The female Vollistan nuzzles Iast's neck, replying to Ace, ~Because the food and drinks - and the priest - are all supposed to be over at the hospital.~ She nips at Iast's earlobe, a ripple of tangerine adding itself to the mix of colours swirling around her.
Voliast just smiles knowingly at Rya. "Come now... you underestimate what I'll be doing." Pulling Scheur closer, he looks at the hatch of the Faux, quirking a brow at Ace. "I'd assume... the absence of whatever Priest Scheur has mentioned, would be the only reason. I've cleared out the lower floor of Winston, myself. We don't have many patients, and that hospital owes me a good deal. He kisses his "bride to be", aura now returning, starkly green due to his focus. "We could all just dash over there now, and get started... I've been led to believe it'll be more like a party than a human "wedding"..."
Freyssinet waves to Ace, "Hey, you of the party?"
"I'm well," Kas replies, still seeming to look on attentively. The young Centauran floats above the landing pad and its cool-colored shadow so as to be about five feet tall. Kas sends Ace a feeling of greeting, managing to keep quiet for now.
Ruin looks a bit surprised. "So it *does* entail monogamy," he echoes. Smiling a bit wryly, he adds, "Voliast, I wouldn't dream of making assumptions about what a Vollistan marriage looks like or means. I've really only met you and Scheur of your entire race - how would I know?"
Aisrya waves to Ace and strikes another pose.
"Privet, Frey," Ace replies, "And if you mean am I going to the Joining, then the answer, it would be da." She looks back to the happy couple, "Did not realize there was priest necessarily involved in Vollistan ceremonies, so da...can see where something is missing."
Volouscheur winks at Ruin, ~Only because it's just the two of us in this Joining, Ruin.~ She kisses Iast back, nodding at his suggestion, ~Heading over there now seems like the best idea; the priest's probably waiting for us there.~
Freyssinet grins to Ace, "Always in for the fun stuff, hey?"
The party makes its' way down to the hospital...
Winston Memorial Hospital - New Luna - ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
- This long and skinny three story building is known as Winston Memorial to most, after the Luna president that commissioned the mission to New Luna. The main floor consists of a waiting room, a handful of non-emergency checkup rooms, and the emergency ward in the back. The second floor houses surgery and the specialized medicine wards, and the third floor consists entirely of recovery beds. A new-looking steel lift connects the three. While most of the supplies in the hospital are new, there don't tend to be many state-of-the-art machines or high-quality facilities.
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
It's an interesting sight that greets the group entering the hospital tonight. The waiting room has been cleared out, to make room for two tables of food and drink. There are pitchers of juice and plates of finger-food, as well as more filling things, and stronger drinks than fruit juice.
At the back of the room waits a Vollistan who looks to be at least as old as Voliast, wearing gold and green robes with insignia marking him as a priest of Volir. Scheur leads the group into the waiting room, waving to the priest.
Freyssinet follows the group in, trying to keep level with Ruin, to whom she whispers something.
Kastaprulyi slips into the hospital, bringing an aura of curiosity and floating about five feet tall. The young Centauran shifts over for a clear view of the back.
Ruin smiles - somewhere between happy and rueful - and nods, before turning somewhat puzzled attention to the food - or, more accurately, the seating.
Ace follows behind, hands in the pockets of her longcoat as she peers around the re-decorated waiting room. She takes up a position off to the side where she can watch in respectful silence.
Voliast waves to the Priest likewise, remaining very close to Scheur and taking any opportunity granted to kiss her. The hospital's been cleared out in accordance with his wishes, they do owe him some favors. The doctor doesn't seem inclined to eat, and Scheur would already be aware he hadn't slept the last three days or so. He is smiling nonetheless, aura still subdued to completely neutral green by shear mental force. He announces, to the air in general: "I want to thank you all for coming." He leans in to stage-whisper to Scheur: "I have a little gift in a few minutes, before we start... but first, I'll get changed in a bit, for now, I suppose we just mingle?"
Aisrya slides up next to Ace and smiles at her. She strikes a discreet pose.
There is, indeed, seating; not all the chairs have been taken out. There are enough seats for a dozen people, although they're the same vaguely uncomfortable chairs one would expect to find in a waiting room. Scheur kisses Iast in return, nodding to Iast. ~I'd like to add my thanks to Iast's; I'm glad you're all here, to share this day with us.~
Freyssinet grins to ruin, and goes back to Ace. "Doing a bit better?"
"Should sit, da?" Ace says softly to Rya, moving to sit herself. She looks over at Frey as she speaks, "Nyet," she replies with a slight shake of her head, "But is not important now...is a Joining, da?" she smiles, weary but heartfelt, and turns her attention towards the ceremony.
Ruin remains silent, running long fingers across the backs of the chairs until he finds one that seems suitably out-of-the-way enough to be manageable to his limited social skills. He takes a quiet seat, and from there watches everyone else.
Voliast disengages from Scheur with a long kiss, moving slowly toward his office after breaking it. He clicks the door open, not having left it locked today. Stepping inside, he calls out: "I'll just be a few minutes. Have to change..." And clicks it shut behind him. Much rustling would be heard from within.
Kastaprulyi wanders over toward Ruin as Voliast goes to change and offers the former a feeling of greeting.
Aisrya smirks at Ace and sits down next to her, the Timonae's dress swishing along the way.
The priest nods to Voliast, "Take your time, my son - a day like this, there's no need to rush, hmm?" He glows a pale green, looking serene. Scheur nods at the priest's words, unfastening her outer robe to reveal the dress underneath it. She folds her robe, moving to set it on one of the empty chairs.
Ruin blinks up at the Centauran, uncertain. "Um. Hello?" he ventures.
Freyssinet grins to Ace. "What about our favorite Castori? Did my wedding
Kastaprulyi adds a "Hello" spoken in childlike sythesized voice for Ruin, who is seated out of the way in one of the remaining waiting-room chairs. "You can call me Kas," the young Centauran mentions. "Where'd you get to know Scheur?"
Ruin shakes his head. "Didn't, really," he says. "But we met while I was with the militia, and we worked together now and again." He settles into his chair, at least insofar as one *can* settle into a waiting room chair, and makes a little face. "I'd have to say we're still working on the getting-to-know part. Yourself?"
Jantine walks into the waiting room, somewhat slowly as he spies the small crowd forming, he stays near the doorway as he scans around for those he knows.
Suddenly, Voliast steps out of his office. He is dressed in fine crimson robes, which float eerily around his body. Moving toward Scheur, his aura flaring rose and red, he intones: "There, ready." He still has a cryo-case slung across his shoulder, and waves happily to the Priest. He seems more at ease, but not much.
Aisrya grins at Ace and leans in to give her a hug. "Poor Ace," she says.
Volouscheur
This woman is not Human; that much is apparent from even a brief glance. Humans don't get to be 7'6", nor are they so thin and stretched-out looking; as if someone took a normal-sized Human woman and stretched her like taffy. And Humans don't have the same skin-tone as a vampiric cave-fish; this woman is almost a snow-white, she's so pale. She has silver-grey eyes, her hair a shimmering platinum; there's streaks of silver in it, complementing her eyes. A green aura surrounds her for the length of one of her arms in all directions (asides from into the floor or the ground).
She wears a knee-length, flared cotton robe dyed rose with strands of gold and scarlet woven up and down it in the Volspak glyphs for 'love' and 'courtship'. The robe hugs her form, cupping DD breasts and showing off long, fish-belly white legs; it's held closed by pink pearls that serve as buttons. Her hair is braided carefully, with rose and gold ribbons worked into the braiding and tying off the braids. Her feet are clad in leather slippers that are similar to ballet slippers, and dyed gold with rose 'love' and 'courtship' glyphs inked all around the edges.
The waiting room has been cleared for the most part; there's a dozen chairs, upon which some people have sat down - Scheur's green robe rests on one, while Ruin sits on another that's some distance from the rest. To one side are two tables of food and drink; there's pitchers of juice and plates of finger food, as well as more substantial food and stronger drinks than fruit juice. At the back of the room stand Scheur and an older Vollistan male, both in colourful robes; the male Vollistan wears gold and green robes, with interesting insignia, and Scheur wears a rose robe that hugs her body. Both smile as Iast emerges from his office.
Freyssinet nods to Ace and Aisrya. "Gracie often asks about him." as the groom comes back, she smiles. "I think it's about to start!"
"I've only spent some time with Scheur in public places," Kas mentions. "That one was telling me about stuff like art, different cultures..." The young Centauran shifts over a nearby seat as Voliast comes back into view, dropping a bit lower while remaining high enough for pink eyes to peer over the back.
Ace sits quietly, watching the ceremony unfold.
With the Centauran hovering lower, Ruin's able to see Jantine as the room gets quieter. Rather than raise his voice, he raises his hand in an 'over here' gesture.
Jantine notices the wave, and begins to head over in Ruin's direction, sitting down near him when he reaches him, he nods silently with a bit of a smile before turning to the Vollistans.
Freyssinet's comm beeps, and Frey reads it. She sighs, "Gotta go... sorry." she waves encouragingly to the soon-couple, and smiles to Ace.
Aisrya settles in and watches quietly.
Voliast progresses toward Scheur, running one hand lightly through her hair as the other rests around her shoulders. Kissing her deeply, he inquires: "So, what will the ceremony entail?" He gropes her in considerably more lewd fashion, though careful to keep it out of sight of the Priest himself, and then quirks a brow. Meanwhile, he's fiddling with a lock on the cryo-case with one hand, not having opened it yet.
Ruin spares Jan a grin of gladtaseeya, and then settles down to pay attention to the wedding.
Kastaprulyi offers Jantine a silent greeting as she arrives. The young Centauran watches quietly for now, keeping purple-clothed arms on its own seat.
Once Jan is seated and Frey has made her way out, the priest clears his throat, seeming to ignore Iast's groping of Scheur - although there is a faint smile on his lips, "My children, we are here today to witness and celebrate the union of two of Volir's children; drawn together by their care for one another, they have decided to formalize their love for each other." He draws a length of raw-hide string from a pocket in his robe and turns to Scheur and Iast. "Do you, Volouscheur, willingly agree to be Bonded to this man; sharing bed with no other, save that you both agree, and remaining with him in both times of hardship and times of joy?"
There's silence from the female Vollistan for a moment. Then two. Then: ~Yes, I so agree.~ She glows gold and rose, and if there was any uncertainty in her before, it's gone now.
Voliast smirks, running his hands idly over Scheur's shoulders. He knew their race could go one way or the other, into overt formality, or into incredible simplicity of ceremony. This seemed the right type. He kisses her cheek, now clasping the female's hand and intoning mentally for her ears, chiefly: ~Love you, Mi amanchara. I am sure, also...~
There's more rose and indigo in his aura now, but he does seem sure, Cryo-case allowed to dangle at his side. The Doctor has never been TOO religious, at least on a Vollistan scale. He knew the stories, but he's rarely seen a ceremony like this before. He waits for the Priest to address him.
The priest nods and then looks to Iast, "And you, Voliast? Do you willingly agree to be Bonded to this woman; sharing bed with no other save that you both agree, and remaining with her in both times of hardship and times of joy?"
Scheur looks at Iast, waiting patiently for his reply.
Chuckling faintly, and murmuring something about "Drat these young ones and their infatuation with human culture", in a vague kind of way, he snaps back from some otherworldly place, and nods to the Priest, intoning aloud and telepathically: "Yes. I'm rarely truly sure, though I act it, but damn, yes..." At that, he flicks open his cryo-case, looks inside, closes it, and nods, waiting for the next part.
Volouscheur and Voliast are the center of attention, at the back of the waiting room. With them is a priest, who looks to be nearly as old as Iast; Iast is dressed in scarlet, while Scheur wears a rose robe, and the priest is dressed in gold and green.
The waiting room has been mostly cleared out, with a dozen chairs provided to those who have chosen to attend this Joining. Everyone is seated, with attention on the couple. Ignored are the two tables set to one side; pitchers of juice and plates of finger food rest on them, side-by-side with more filling food and much stronger drinks than fruit juice.
The priest nods at Iast's words, "Your arms then, my children, that I may bind you together in flesh, as you are Bound together in spirit." He holds out a length of raw-hide string, and Scheur holds the arm closest to Iast out.
Ace sits quietly in her seat beside Rya, watching the ceremony.
Kastaprulyi floats over an out-of-the way seat near Roon and Jantine, seeming to watch attentively the Vollistan couple and priest in the rear of the converted waiting room.
Iast's arm comes forward, laid next to hers, even as he leans in to kiss 'Scheur. He gazes around at those assembled, and nods. Pondering for a moment, he reaches up, and removes something small and silver from a spot behind his ear, dropping it into a pocket. He whispers to Volouscheur and the Priest: "Might as well do the thing proper and untethered.", and awaits the process's continuance.
Voliast
A tall male Vollistan stands here, poised and glowing. His arms are long, fingers unnaturally precise and well-articulated. The face is lined, seemingly more with stress than with any indication of declining years. His eyes sit like two orbs of liquid mercury above a mouth etched with laugh-lines. Matte silver hair falls loosely to his shoulders, draping quite light in the air. His frame is finely muscled but pale, clearly no friend to the sun.
He wears an elaborate crimson robe. To those versed in Vollistan culture, it would be recognized as the ceremonial garb of an Intermezzo, one of the types of leaders who governed communities on the species' homeworld. It consists of varied colors, with gold and black sashes complementing the fine red hue. These buckle in complex fashion. Bangles and jungle vine hang from it, as do many black and red hued flowers of various sizes. He smells of sage, and disinfectant. One modification has been made to the robes from the usual. Blazoned across the back is a black caduceus. The twin snakes of Knowledge and Wisdom are laid out in fine golden thread to make stark and splendid contrast with the austere simplicity and functional elegance of the draping robe's buckles and sashes. he wears a simple gold medallion, which contains a phial holding a suspended droplet of blood.
The priest chuckles softly and Scheur grins. Winding the raw-hide around their arms carefully, he binds Scheur and Iast together tight enough that they can't pull free - but not so tight as to cause their arms to go numb from lack of circulation. He ties a knot at their wrists, announcing solemnly, "Should any object to this Bonding, let them speak now or let them hold their peace." And then, assuming there are no objections, he lifts Scheur and Iast's tied arms, "By the authority vested in me as a priest of Volir, I declare these two well and properly Bonded, with those gathered here as witnesses to this Joining!"
Swiftfoot slips in from outside as quietly as possible, her ears forward as she watches the end of the ceremony curiously. She tries valiantly to make herself unnoticeable, but really, let's be real, folks, a seven-foot feline is going to have an awful hard time going unnoticed. In any case, Swifty hunches down as much as possible, her steps soft despite her boots as she makes her way over to a seat in the very back.
Voliast shrugs, and moves his hand to visibly grasp the "bride" in an area just below the low back. He grins, and, in some cosmic paradox, this ceremony so commonly attributable and apparently similar to a human "wedding", ends. Just change kiss to grope, and we're good. He does kiss her, but lightly, on the neck, and with a slightly more lewd connotation than would usually happen in a church. His aura flashes red, then fades into calm green with a hint of gold, the Doctor apparently too engaged in kissing his newly Joined significant other to say much.
Ruin slants a look this way and that, looking to see if this is the end of the ceremony or just a different stage of it.
Jantine continues sitting where he is, although does seem to look around a bit, as if searching for whatever he thinks Ruin may be looking for.
Volouscheur kisses Iast, shivering a little and cheerfully groping him in return. Slowly pulling back from the kiss, she grins at those gathered here, ~I now declare the bar open! It's time to party!~
Swiftfoot blinks at the all-too-visible groping, then chuffs softly to herself, her whiskers bristling. After the ceremony's over, she gets up, slinking over towards Ace. "Evening, chief," she greets, glancing down at the Ungstiri. "I, uh... guess I was late. I hope I didn't make too much of a commotion."
Ace looks over at Swifty, "Think it is over, but...am not certain. Am half expecting them to consummate the Joining here and now." With her usual stone face not cracking, it's impossible to tell if Ace is being serious.
Kastaprulyi offers Swiftfoot an interested greeting as she enters. The young Centauran doesn't seem equipped to sample much of the offerings, but slips over in the direction of the refreshments anyway.
Ruin gets to his feet, stretching a bit. "I hope not," he says quietly. "I'm all for cultural education...but small doses, please." He turns. "Glad you made it, Jan. I wondered if you'd gotten an invite."
Voliast doesn't know quite what to do. Keeping very close to Scheur, he holds her near, and ponders. Disengaging, he says: "I'll be right back..." and dashes off. He has a distinct air of mischief, the new "groom" vanishing into the deeper corridors of the hospital. His footsteps can be heard going upstairs. He calls back "Scheur, make sure no one drinks -our- drinks until I come back! I don't wanna miss it!"
Late, as usual. But fashionably late, at least in his own mind, is Lucius Tullius Castus, sliding through the door with a pair of black sunglasses to complement his crisp suit. As he hands his invite to the doorman, the glasses are removed and tucked into a pocket and he glances about, trying to get his bearings to the party.
Jantine nods as he stands up "Yea, I did, just barely made it though, just got off duty, and I've got to head back in a bit" he says, looking at his watch.
Well, Scheur and Iast /were/ tied together, up until five seconds ago. Iast, however, has just taken off down into the depths of the hospital. Scheur now stands at the back of the waiting room with a priest.
The others are sitting in chairs, watching - asides from Swifty, who's just shown up and slunk in. To one side are two tables, laden with food and drink; pitchers of juice and plates of finger-food rub shoulders with more filling food and much stronger drinks than fruit juice.
Scheur waves to Swifty and Luc as they head in, calling back to Iast, ~/Our/ drinks have our names on them.~ Then she heads over to Swiftfoot, offering a feeling of greeting to the Demarian.
"Glad to know I'm not the only one," the Demarian replies to Ace, chuckling softly. "Ah well, I know how it is. Thinking you can neverr get enough of someone and all that." Swiftfoot gives a sheepish grin and shrugs. At the telepathic greeting from the Vollistan, she looks up, offering a nod and a flick of her tail. "Congrratulations. Sorry I was late. Business kept me, and rran a bit longerr than expected."
Suddenly, music begins coming over the intercom. It's the usual passive waiting room music, but it's actually a decent soundtrack. This is what Voliast's done, slamming the lock on the main office door and turning on the amplifiers, since no one on the night shift normally turned it on if daytime hours were over. Carole King's "Jazzman" opens, for no apparent reason other than being first on the rota of songs. The "groom" arrives back in the waiting room moments later, walking to Scheur and physically retying his arm to hers, grinning.
"I meant the vats of Stoneglow and such. You DID remember to mark which ones they are?" He kisses her neck while waiting for the reply.
"Congratulations to you both," Ace adds her own best wishes, pulling a small, neatly wrapped box from her pocket and offering it to Scheur. "May your Joining be a long and happy one."
Kastaprulyi silently greets Lucius while shifting closer to Scheur for a look at said drinks, among other things. Kas then pauses to watch the groom's return quietly.
Ruin shakes his head slowly, smiling a little as if at a pleasant joke. "Seems a shame to miss the party part of it," he says, "but I learned a long time ago that parties and I don't get along well." He heads for the door - not beelining or being hasty, but not being sidetracked. "Congratulations, both of you, and good luck." The last is said with an odd firmness and a curious wistfulness, as he makes his way out the door.
Lucius grins, offering a return wave to Scheur and moving to stand next to Swifty. "Ditto what she said, grats you two. Hope you liked the gift, if you've gotten to that yet. Looks like I arrived just in time for the fun part though, eh?" His eyes pass over the rope which ties the two Light Singers together. "... though maybe not all of it, hmm?" He remarks, amusedly. "Heya Swifty, Ace. Ready to celebrate?"
Volouscheur kisses Iast in return and smiles to Swiftfoot and Ace, ~Thank you, both. And it's alright, Swiftfoot; there's a pitcher of the blue stuff for you, by the way - I think it's called Eyeshine.~ She waves to Ruin and then accepts the box from Ace, squeezing Iast's hand gently, ~And yes, Iast, I remembered to mark which pitchers are which.~
Jantine nods and follows Ruin out the door with a "Yea, congratulations, sorry I have to go, but duty calls."
"...you know what it is?" the felinoid says, blinking in surprise at Scheur. "Well hell, now I don't have to worry about rrunning out. Learrn something new everry day." Swiftfoot chuckles then, and her expression takes on a rather sheepish cast. "I, uh... I didn't get a chance to finish yourr gift. Well, rratherr, it's finished, but it's taking forreverr to get it frramed." The Demarian rubs at the back of her head, her ears drooping slightly. "Guess it could be worrse, they coulda lost it orr something." She blinks at Lucius then, a grin finding its way across her muzzle. "Hey, chief, haven't seen you in awhile. You know me, always good to parrty. And I don't even have to fly tomorrow unless I want to."
Swiftfoot
Swiftfoot is a fairly typical Demarian in both appearance and stature. That is to say, she's a bipedal felinoid, closely resembling the common domestic cat, and is approximately seven feet in height. Her exact build is difficult to ascertain, as she's covered by about eight inches of fluffy cream and white fur. Her dark pink nose is framed on either side with long, white whiskers. Eyes as bright as molten gold are set admist a series of barely-visible pale orange stripes, laid out in a classic tabby pattern -- markings on the forehead, and at the outside corners of the eyes. The rest of the visible orange fur is similarly striped, with her paws, throat and chest being pure white. A thick ruff surrounds her head and shoulders, lending itself to her fluffy appearance. The very tip of her orange-striped tail is just as snow white as her paws and chest.
Tailored black pants with more than a few pockets in evidence cover Swiftfoot's legs to the ankle, where they are tucked into a pair of well-worn black boots. Only the collar of a matte black flak jacket is visible, the rest of it concealed under a long, charcoal colored coat. The coat is fitted through the torso, and flares out dramatically at the waist to create long, flowing folds of grey fabric that fall to just below her knees. The garment almost camouflages the bulk of the protective armor underneath. Almost. Around the big cat's waist is not one, but two plain black holsters, complete with Sivadian pistols, one riding easily on each side of her lean hips. The blocky form of a psiblocker sits just in front of the right holster. The only jewelry evident on the Demarian is a golden bracelet around her left wrist, and a pair of tiny golden earrings dangling from her pointed, feline ears.
Ace
Tall for an Ungstiri, an inch or two shy of six feet, but the way she carries herself gives the impression of even greater height. She is rather broad shouldered, and, though lean of build, very well muscled. She is dressed in clothes that look as if they've been cut to fit her, her white shirt blousy at the sleeves and open at the throat, revealing a heart shaped locket suspended on a chain of liquid silver. The shirt is neatly tucked into loose fitting pants of midnight black, an ebony belt bound through the loops with a simple silver buckle holding it closed. The pants, in turn, vanish into leather boots, dull black and soft, that reach two thirds of the way up her calf. Over it all she wears a grey longcoat made of a supple tanned hide that flows with every move, each step she takes a gentle swirl of mist and fog. The only splash of color comes from the small but elegant diamond and sapphire ring she wears on her left hand.
Close at hand she carries an energy pistol that is slung to hang about mid-way down her thigh, a narrow strap binding the bottom of the holster to her leg just above her knee. At her other hip, a nightstick hangs through a leather loop at her belt, her fingertips often brushing against it's grip. Her hair hangs straight down to the small of her back, a curtain of raven black tresses that softly shines in the ambient light. The jagged scar that once marred forehead and the burn scars down the side of her face and neck are now miraculously gone without a trace, leaving a rather beautiful, ebony-eyed woman in their wake.
Kastaprulyi The young Centauran's bell, a bit more than half the size of an adult's, is pale translucent blue glass infused with splotches of lavender around the crest. Surrounding the top of the trunk and sealed against the lung is a smooth ceramic toroid containing breather gear and vocalizer. (The youthful voice it synthesizes is that of a human girl and carries at least a trace of Terran Standard accent into other languages for which it might be used.)
A thick layer of rubbery transparent material, painted here and there with faintly luminescent frost-like patterns, clings to and protects the outside of the bell while allowing sunlight to shine through the glass and internal organs. This layer seems not to have prevented a now mostly healed stress fracture in the crystal. The gel covers a ring of glittering eyes and wraps around the lip of the bell to the inside, where it becomes thinner as it coats the translucent glossy skin of the bell's inner wall.
Between the inside of the bell and the trunk, the garment covers the breather with a ceramic ring that has an iridescent sheen to it. A number of loops and pockets made of soft violet fiberglass adorn the covering of the trunk. As the gel material continues down the trunk to the ends of eight drifting tentacles with crystalline skin, it shades into the deep indigo color of an AES uniform. The surface of the garment is broken by several sealed seams for entry and exit, as well as a seam surrounding the mouth and spinneret area.
The young Centuran often emanates a faint aura of emotion; its tentacles, though kept to itself, are rarely still entirely.A violet silk ribbon, embroidered in silver with with "Kastaprulyi" and "Athena Exploration Service," is wrapped around one arm.
Lucius
A good description of the man before you is wide; his broad shoulders and barrel chest certainly display themselves prominently. He stands about 6' tall, his body covered in large, compact muscle. He has a angular face, albeit with some slight roundness present at the cheeks. His cheekbones are prominently seen under his eyes, he has a large, straight nose except for an aquiline break at the top of it, and finally his chin is distinctly featured on his face, jutting outward a few inches. His hair is kept short, and is the colour of fertile earth; deep dark brown. His eyes are piercing, of ice blue, while his skin is of a uniform medium tan colour. He is cleanshaven, a light grey stubble resting on his face.
At the moment, he wears a plain white dress shirt, crimson red tie and a black suit jacket over. A slight bulge is featured under his clothes, although given the way he wears them it's not very notable. He has a pair of dark sunglasses over his eyes. On his legs are a pair of black slacks, to match the jacket. Finally, he wears a pair of shiny black leather loafers on his feet.
"Privet, Lucius," Ace greets the man with a friendly nod, "And will toast to the happy couple, da, but then I am sorry to say I must be going."
Smiling, Voliast gestures to a pair of chairs, and begins walking over, intending to sit down, and fully knowing that he's tied to her and thus she will follow. Dropping into one, the doctor says, yawning hugely: "Well, good... I'm really glad you were sure, 'Scheur..." He giggles inappropriately, and picks up a glass pitcher. Sniffing it to insure it is indeed water, he downs a glass, and returns it to the table.
Volouscheur kisses Iast and lets herself get pulled along to the chairs. She sits down, opening the box Ace gave her, glowing gold and rose, ~I'm glad I was sure, too, Iast.~
"Take 'er easy then, Ace." Lucius says with a second wave to the Ungstiri woman. He chuckles at Swifty, his own expression displaying the type of unrestrained mirth that is generally suitable for this kind of occasion. "I know.. been busy with the new job. Squad needed a babysitter and all, you know?" Grinning, he too moves to take a seat, but not before grabbing himself a drink of the decidedly alcoholic type. No reason to skimp.
Swiftfoot nods to Ace. "I need to talk to you sometime soon, meh? About the Jackal, I mean. Some other stuff too, actually." She follows Lucius' lead, obtaining a glass of the oft-touted 'blue stuff' that she's so fond of and settling in for a long drink of it. "Yep, that's it. I can't get enough of this stuff, I swearr."
Ace smiles, "Enjoy the night, then," she says to Swifty and Lucius, turning to lift a glass of juice towards Scheur and Voliast, "And you as well," she calls over, turning to head out. "You know where to find me, da?" she says to Swifty as she goes, "Will talk later." She seems a bit tired as she heads out into the night, turning her collar up and nudging her sunglasses further up her nose as she departs.
Suddenly, snoring would be heard all around the room. Voliast, it appears, has been getting too little sleep even for a Vollistan. He's slumped in the chair next to Scheur, fully unconscious. The snoring stops as he resettles himself, but it'll take quite a lot to wake this doctor...ironically, Scheur is tied to him.
Kastaprulyi wanders over to the couple and slides to a stop by them, 'listening' for a moment as if to determine how occupied they might be with conversaton or other things. The young Centauran suggests some puzzlement on noticing Voliast's condition.
Volouscheur kisses Iast and gently unties herself from him. Once that's done, the raw-hide rope is slipped into a pocket and she picks Iast up carefully. ~He didn't get any sleep last night. Or the two nights before that,~ Scheur explains to Kas. ~So I am going to go put him to bed now; I'll come back out to talk and celebrate with my friends after that's done.~ And then the 'bride' carries her 'groom' to his office, glowing gold and tangerine.
Lucius can't contain himself. By that, one would assume that his chugging of the drink he took but a moment before to be a move of impulse, rather than deep thought. Whatever the case may be, he goes to get himself a second one, acting like an alcohol starved college student on his first night out in two months. He wipes his mouth off classilly with the sleeve of his suit jacket and sits his ass back down. "Too bad. More liquor for us, eh?" Turning to the Demarian, Lucius asks, "So what've you guys been up to?"
"Nerrves," Swiftfoot comments absently, nodding at Scheur as she makes her way out. She blinks down at Lucius then, and gives a shrug. "This and that. About got myself killed on Tomin Korra. Still haven't caught up with that ship that was trrailing us, eitherr. Ummm... Lost some crrew, Torr's going back to Marrs, too. Leaves me on the ship by myself. That's parrt of what I gotta talk to Ace about." The Demarian grins at the Martian then, pausing to take another long pull on her glass. "Hearrd you joined the militia, too. I thought about it, but eh... I'm not the militarry type, meh?"
Kastaprulyi returns a slightly concerned feeling and then an acknowledgement to Volouscheur. Kas and inquisitive aura then wander over near Swiftfoot and Lucius, as if to listen in, though it doesn't interrupt.
Volouscheur returns soon enough from her self-imposed duty of putting Iast to bed. She gets herself a glass of Stonebright, settling down and nodding to the priest who's gotten himself a glass of fruit juice and a fish roll.
"Torr's going back to Mars? What the fuck is a guy like him going to do there?" Puzzles the present Martian, lifting a hand to rub his forehead. "The authorities are going to pick him up and he'll regret it. He ain't the type to keep a low profile, y'know?" A shrug. "Whatever. I heard about the crew loss. And crazy fucking McDowell without his memory. Although, you might consider the militia, Swifty, really.. we could really use experienced pilots and captains. You've got the leadership abilities, too. Pay's real good. Job's steady. New Luna's worth protecting I figure, eh?"
Swiftfoot shrugs vaguely. "Said he's got some stuff to take carre of, with some frriends orr some such. I don't ask too many questions, perrsonally. Told him if he needs me just to hollerr, though, and I'll come rrunnin. Well, flyin. Wouldn't get verry farr on foot." The Demarian chuckles, but the chuckle fades quickly, replaced by a furrowed brow as she finishes off the first glass of Eyeshine. "Yeah... McDowell. I still have to meet with him. He's convinced he doesn't know me at all." She shrugs vaguely then, a grin creeping across her features. "I expect I'd have to have compliance beat into me, cause I'm not so grreat with authorrity, trruth be told. I dunno, have to talk to Ace. Torr wanted me to drrydock Jackal and join the Faux crrew until we can get something else set up. Eitherr that orr hirre all new crrew, which doesn't thrrill me."
Drifting back to the hostess, the young Centauran inquires thoughtfully, "How do you guess you'll be living differently now?"
Volouscheur sits down quietly, sipping at her drink. She nods at Lucius, ~The pay is quite good, even at my level. And...well, an experienced captain would rank much higher than someone new to flying would, surely.~ She looks at Kas, considering the question quietly, ~I'll be much closer to Iast.~
"Faux's a great crew." Admits Lucius, this time sipping his drink in a manner more befitting of an adult. "I considered joining them when I quit my job with the Warren. But yeah.. as Scheur said, you'd probably be put into a fairly senior position on a crew. Anyways, think about it. We certainly won't hold anything against you if you decide it's not for you, and I would also understand. Remember, I went through the same thing." He smiles toothily.
"Well, Faux and Jackal arre so close that it wouldn't rreally be changing crrews perr se... morre of a temporrarry trransferr. But I'll definitely think about the militia," the Demarian says, nodding. "I dunno, it'd be a big jump, frrom the Jackal to something... well, rregimented." She pauses for a moment, head tilted to the side. "Hell, maybe I could even do some flight instrruction if I go down that path, teach some of yourr kids the dirrty trricks that I've had to learrn the harrd way." Swiftfoot chuckles then, holding up a paw politely to excuse herself as she goes to obtain another glass of her chosen drink for the evening.
Kastaprulyi returns a feeling of acknowledgement to Volouscheur, then reluctantly starts to make for the exit. "Probably I should go study now," Kas explains.
Volouscheur waves to Kas as it leaves, ~I hope your studies go well, Kastaprulyi.~ She returns her attention to Lucius and Swifty, nodding to Swiftfoot, ~That'd probably be appreciated.~
"Take it easy, Kas. Send regards to the Captain for me, eh?" This last comment is said with the sort of a mocking sarcasticness that is characteristic of the Martian when he's irritated with something. "Definately. I've seen you in action, Swifty; nothing to be trifled with. I mean you've outrun and outmaneuvered tons of ships that should've had the bead on the Jackal, you know? It's not exactly the fastest ship out there."
"Night Kas," Swiftfoot says, waving a paw. She chuckles and nods at Lucius, then. "And slipped the Faux thrrough La Terre's defensive grrid, too." She offers a wink, then a grin. "Jackal's not the fastest, but she handles just fine, and she's got decent shields and arrmorr besides. She's all I've rreally flown forr a long time now." The Demarian's brow furrows slightly, and she takes a sip of her drink. "Flew a fighterr... oh, awhile back. Hell, I've flown carrgo shuttles, too. Someone was kind enough to teach me the basics afterr I left Demarria, and the rrest is historry, meh?"
Volouscheur sips quietly at her drink, listening quietly. The priest finishes his drink and, after a few quiet words with Scheur, makes his way out of the hospital.
"Well, I don't know if I'm supposed to tell ya but we just got a pair of new fighters. The things are absolute beasts, I saw them on their test flights.. shit, they could outfly Sivadian Spitfires. Could you imagine yourself as a flight leader?" Asks Lucius, quirking his head to the side.
"Quit tempting me, Lucius," the felinoid says, chuckling. "I bet if you had a uniforrm that'd fit me, you'd be shoving it into my paws alrready." Swiftfoot grins at this, and takes another sip of her drink. "Hell, I dunno, it'd be nice. I'm surre the pay's steadierr than what I'm doing now, in any case."
Volouscheur grins, aura rippling tangerine, ~Hey, they found a uniform to fit me, and one that fits Urf - not that he wears most of it, most times. Seven foot tall felinoid? No problem.~ She winks, settling back in her seat.
Lucius grins. "Made to order and all of that rah rah." He grins a bit, biting down on his lower lip. "Sorry, it's within my nature to tempt. I'm like the devil in that way."
Swiftfoot chuckles and shakes her head. "I should talk to Ace firrst. Especially since I've alrready had a glass and a half of this blue stuff... you said it was Eyeshine?" The Demarian tilts her head to the size quizzically. "It might be fun, though. A nice change, anyway. Me, going legit, how about that, hmm?"
Volouscheur nods to Swiftfoot, ~Eyeshine, yes.~ She sips at her drink quietly, looking over at Lucius and then at Swiftfoot, falling silent for now.
"Hey, I did it." Notes the Hesperian, still smirking. "Not that I was ever illicit.. even on TeeKay I was technically within the bounds of legality, since there's no law there. Well, besides the few times we had some fun stretching what some people call law. But no one found out." He winks.
Swiftfoot chuckles and eyes the half-glass of blue liquor, then tosses it back, setting the empty glass on a nearby counter. "Had a few of those myself," she agrees, nodding. "If nothing else, maybe I can offerr some flight instrruction on a contrract basis. All depends on wherre I decide to go, I suppose." She offers a nod and a flick of her ears. "I should get back to the ship though, and get some sleep. I'll have to drrydock herr on Ungstirr in the next few days, just forr safe keeping." The felinoid inclines her head to Volouscheur. "Congratulations to you two, and my gift should be forrthcoming soon. I'll have it deliverred as soon as the damn frraming shop's done with it. Lucius, I'll catch you laterr, chief. Was good to see you again." Her goodbyes delivered, the orange-furred Jackal starts for the exit, her tail flicking absently behind her.
Volouscheur waves to Swiftfoot, ~I look forward to seeing it, once it's finished. And I'll pass your congratulations on to Iast, when he wakes up.~ "Good to see you too, Swifty. I think I should do likewise." He rises up, leaning in to give his customary double cheeked kiss to Scheur. "Congratulations, and enjoy the gift and the plentiful liquor. I'll see you soon enough." With a wink, Lucius too is out.
As the last of the guests leave, Volouscheur sees to getting the drinks and food put away in Iast's office; they'll be redistributed among the caves tomorrow morning, sharing the bounty with those who couldn't attend the party.
And then, once the waiting room is back in order, Scheur joins Iast in the cot he sleeps in, in his office. And the two Vollistans sleep away the first night of their Joining, Scheur retying their arms together at some point.