[ OPEN/CATCH-ALL ] the moon looks upon many night flowers.

[regrede]

WHO: sierra and you!
WHERE: the town, primarily the forest and the onsen.
WHEN: february!
WHAT: some open prompts, and closed starters below.
WARNINGS: general warning for vampirism/blood-sucking! i’ll update if needed.



i. blue moon rune (potentially, quest 47)

[ the trees are getting a little too close for her liking.

there’s only one solution for it, of course—push them back, just as the quest says. with the way that this town works, it seems reasonable enough that just pushing might work, as in actually shoving the trees, but sierra doesn’t really want to put herself through that in case it makes her look stupid. cutting them down also seems like a possibility, and an easy one at that, but that doesn’t seem altogether quite right either.

there are two ways to find sierra, at the edge of the forest. ]

a. in the daytime, just waiting for people to come by who look like they can take it, at which point she turns to ask a dire request.

I can destroy these… the only fee I ask is a small donation of blood.

b. under the light of the waxing moon, where she looks much more serious than her usual condescending, teasing expression. she’s staring at her own hand, where a lunar crescent mark glows softly. every now and then, she holds it up, as if checking it against the actual moon above.

Now… what shall we do…?

ii. toasty!

[ on a much lighter note, sierra fussed so much about having the baths put in, but guess who is a vampire and more or less incapable of appropriate body temperature regulation? it’s sierra. there are, again, a few ways to find her here—

a. actually within the baths, where she appears to have… passed out? someone should probably help her before she drowns.
b. …still within the baths, but now she’s in her bat form, just kind of… floating. she might be dead.
c. she’s free! sierra is outside the onsen now, with her clothes on, but her face is completely flushed and she looks thoroughly unsteady.

no matter what, she’s sort of having a bad time. ]




( as a note for the first prompt, even though it’s one reward per character, i’m totally willing to do whatever with however many people! sierra is destructive. as ever, PM me here or hit me up at pavaal for plotting! )

Comments

i-b!

[noholdsbard]

[ Must the oppressive atmosphere from last month persist? It feels as though this entire world is closing in on them, and he’s not sure what to make of that.

…Or of her funny mark on her hand, actually. He can’t help but recall that offhand comment of hers about the moon some months back.

He comes to a decision. ]

Conserve your energies, my lady. I should be able to push them back on my own—at least for a time.

[ He pulls out his harp then, knowing how patently absurd it must be for him to even wield that thing against the encroaching wood. Thorny vines are one thing, but actual trees? ]

[regrede]

[ sierra lowers her hand once she notices tristan’s approach, and if he’s paying attention, he may notice that the uneven fall of her cape seems specifically tailored to cover that hand when she isn’t otherwise gesturing. ]

I mean no harm in saying this, my Archer, but your music seems a boon rather than a bane. Aren’t you worried about calling the trees closer?

[ it is partially a joke, but the moon has her feeling somber. it isn’t quite as sharp, not quite as playful, as her tone with him usually takes. ]

[noholdsbard]

[ He doesn’t fail to notice the odd shape of her cape, his gaze still fixed on that if not at her mark. There’s something in the back of his mind about the moon and vampires…some very, very old stories…

But then she interrupts his thoughts, causing him to lift his gaze up at her with a little smile. ]

It may be well worth the risk, my lady. [ Gazing up at the moon, he wonders just what about it has her so…sad. ]

It seems a night for song, does it not?

[regrede]

Aha. That sounds like the excuse of a man who wants to play.

[ but it’s not as if she’s complaining. having heard his music once before, she knows his skill, and she thinks she would have a hard time finding anyone more suited to her tastes in this town. music is an indulgence she’d nearly forgotten, but that doesn’t mean she can’t have standards. ]

So tell me, what sort of song is in your heart tonight?

[noholdsbard]

[ No point in denying it, anyway. ]

What else, my lady, but the one I find bubbling from within me at the sight of your radiance? [ He plucks a string on his harp, and if there’s the sound of a branch snapping somewhere within the woods, it’s probably nothing to worry about. ]

Even the moon itself must feel unworthy, to gaze upon you so.

[regrede]

[ sierra’s senses are quite attuned to the things around her, with her batty hearing, so she does notice that branch from the woods… but really, there are always eerie things and eerier sounds coming from within, so it’s nothing to give her pause. ]

I think the moon may complain of you putting words in her mouth, but you will find no protest from me.

[ she turns her face upward, and the cool evening breeze catches a stray lock of hair. ]

Then… as you will.

[noholdsbard]

[ He gives her a little smile at that, almost like they’re sharing something conspiratorial. ]

Yes…goddesses must have their vanity. They have that right. [ He means a certain moon goddess from his world, but she is not here right now, alas.

But he pulls out his harp nevertheless and begins plucking out a tune, the music somber as always, but growing in crescendo as he takes stock of their surroundings, at how the woods seem to strain toward them, as if to swallow them up.

It’s hard not to wonder if there is any truth to Sierra’s jesting earlier, come to think of it. ]

[regrede]

[ there are many things on her mind, as she looks above them. the strange quests, the chill in the air, the way people seem to be disappearing at a pace ever more rapid—but what can any of them do but fight against it? sierra has a brutality unbecoming of her lovely face at her fingertips, and little more. ]

…

[ his ominous playing hardly makes her feel better, beautiful as it is, and she furrows her brow at seemingly nothing. ]

[noholdsbard]

[ Yes, a brutality that he can’t soon forget, as the air trembles with the snapping of twigs and branches, seemingly in accord with his music, which grows just as rapid—almost manic—as if he might be fighting something back.

And then he stops, and the cacophony of the woods dies with it. He regards her for a moment, before remarking: ]

Something troubles you.

ii.a

[troubadamsel]

[It had taken some effort to finally get Mari in here, but hey, progress! But when she sees Sierra... snoozing...?]

Oh, dear.

[She scoots to the water, and leans down, nudging Sierra's shoulder.]

Sierra? Are you asleep?

[regrede]

…

[ beyond asleep, really. when maribelle nudges her shoulder, she just sinks lower into the water as if displaced by the tap.

her face is unnaturally flushed, and for a vampire that doesn’t sweat, she sure seems damp. ]

[troubadamsel]

Sierra!

[Goddammit, woman. She reaches into the water, hands under Sierra's armpits, and tries to drag her out.]

Please, please be all right...

[regrede]

[ well, at least sierra is light. it’s not that difficult to drag her out of the water even as dead weight, and once she’s sitting up on the edge of the bath and the cool february air can hit her a little more directly, she groans. ]

Nngh…?

[troubadamsel]

Sierra! Sierra, can you hear me?

[She begins lightly tapping her on the cheek.]

[regrede]

Ugh.

[ her brow furrows, and her consciousness slowly claws its way out of the black depths. she feels… dizzy? and exposed. ]

Who…?

[ she lifts her hand, batting away maribelle’s touch. ]

[troubadamsel]

[She pulls her hand away, but otherwise stays where she is.]

It's Maribelle! Are you hurt?

[regrede]

[ nooooooooooooo ]

…I’m fine.

[ she doesn’t want to open her eyes, because the minute she does, she’s going to have to take responsibility for this situation. ]

ia

[holycurse]

[The forest has been giving Xie Lian all sorts of uncomfortable feelings lately, as it encroaches on the town. It doesn't bother him much, of course - he's felt much worse than this - but that doesn't exactly change the fact that this is kind of a problem for the town. How much closer will the trees come? Is it something similar to those thorns from before?

He's actually come up with an axe today, when he hears that strange suggestion.]

May I ask what you plan to do with that blood, before I give it?

[And how does she plan to get rid of the trees, exactly?]

[regrede]

I plan to drink it.

[ it sounds reasonable enough to her. she’s been in this town long enough that she feels people should know who she is—nevermind that as recently as a week ago she was playing the perfect innocent on the forums—and being asked for blood is surely not the strangest thing that’s happened to any of them. ]

So?

[holycurse]

[Drink it...well that obviously means she's not human. Does she need the blood to work, or does she want it as payment? Either way, if she asked him for blood, doesn't that mean she could ask others too? Better for him to be the one to donate then, if anyone.]

Alright. Just a small donation, you said?

[He hefts his axe contemplatively as he smiles.]

[regrede]

I’ll take as much as you care to give me.

[ sierra returns that smile, but his axe gives her some pause. although she can’t read his mind nor his intention, what was clearly a tool for woodcutting could now be a simple bladed edge for him to utilize. ]

But there’s no need to harm yourself in the process. I do have teeth.

[holycurse]

[There's a pause at that. Would letting a woman bite him be against the rules? It's probably fine, right? Hm.

...He lowers the axe, at least, and holds out his other arm for her to, uh. Bite.]

You can take as much as you like, if it's for a good cause--though I hope there won't be any adverse effects from it.

[He's had previous bad experience with female creatures...]

[regrede]

No, there shouldn’t be. Are you the type to faint from blood loss?

[ sierra, that’s everyone. ]

[holycurse]

If I lose enough of it, I suppose--there's no need to worry about that, though, I'm quite resilient.

[Smiling! Despite the subject.]

[regrede]

Then I’ll take it.

[ he’s offering his arm, but she gently places her cool hand on that limb and pushes it away. ]

Your neck, if you will.