elnysa | Video | UN: MrFancyHat

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Video | UN: MrFancyHat

[The video opens with a very flushed Chuuya, and the source of that rosy color on his cheeks is soon readily apparent. In his hand is a glass of red wine that’s barely half-full, and it’s obvious that he’s been hitting the bottle hard. Behind him is the backdrop of a lavish, cozy bedroom, and a small bird can be seen flitting to and fro.]

This is the first time I’ve posted a video on here. Seems easy enough. Anyway, while we all wait for news of whatever the hell is going on with the bigger picture right now, why not have some fun?

[Chuuya takes a sip of his wine.]

So I’m gonna ask a few questions. First off, what’s your drink of choice? I’m taking suggestions on different cocktails to mix up since I’ve got an entire bar to work with now. Hell, if it’s good enough, I might just name it after you.

[And he downs the rest of the wine. So classy.]

Second question; besides the people, what do you miss most about home? Or maybe tell me about something you’ve gotten back that you were missing when you first woke up. Or even weirdass gifts you never asked for that just randomly appeared.

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[Mephisto is actually two steps away from just admitting that he's worried, maybe throwing in a joke about how he's always there to listen to Chuuya's troubles--]

[But then he says that. And with an odd sense of urgency, Mephisto steps forward and takes Chuuya's face into his hands. There's a strange look on his face -- a seriousness that could almost be mistaken for fear.]

Don't speak so lightly of things you don't understand. Permanent or not-- death is not something I want for you to experience in this world.

[He’s half-expecting for Mephisto to call him out on being a dumbass right now, because he would be entirely justified in doing so, but the reaction he gets instead leaves him reeling.]

What...?

[His voice is very small and quiet right now, eyes wide in shock. He’s never seen Mephisto look at him, or anyone, like this before, and it’s downright unsettling.

Unsettling, but also touching in ways Chuuya can’t quite place.]

Are you saying you care about me?

[He doesn’t mean romance; he knows that’s not what this is, but is it too much to hope that Mephisto cares for him as more than just a familiar?]

...in this instance, I am only speaking from personal experience.

[IT'S NOT A NO??]

[But in this world was an important addendum to his previous statement -- did Chuuya ever realize what happened to him when he was kidnapped? He only ever alluded to it, but unless Chuuya knew of others who died, chances are he would have never assumed the same happened to Mephisto.]

[As he gets a grip on himself, his expression slides back into something more neutral -- implying that he hadn't meant to show a face like that to Chuuya. Which he might be a little embarrassed about, sliding his hands off of Chuuya's face and trying to play it off as nothing.]

But we have no guarantee that the Natha will bring us back every time. And even if they do, the time needed to recover in stasis may take even longer -- perhaps even years.

So don't go spouting such nonsense in front of me again.

Personal experience?

[Putting aside the fact that Mephisto didn’t actually come right out and say that he cares about him (for now, he might huff about it later), Chuuya latches onto those words and tries to make sense of them. Of course his drunken brain is a bit slower on the uptake, but soon the implications become clear as day.]

...you died. During the kidnappings. That’s why you’re saying all this, right?

[Suddenly Reign’s grief makes sense, and Mephisto’s anger at the kidnappers makes even more sense. Not only had they hurt someone he cared about, they took his life.

Chuuya’s expression softens then, and he glances away, suddenly filled with guilt and shame at treating death so frivolously.]

...I’m sorry.

You didn't know.

[It's not a question. But it's something that needs to be said, because surely there are kinder ways Mephisto could have gone about telling Chuuya about this. It causes a rather rare look of shock on Mephisto's face as well, pausing for a moment or two before once more taking on a more neutral look.]

...in any case, my point still stands. You shouldn't desire to throw your life away at all, be it for one cause or another.

I certainly wouldn't ask it of you.

I’d heard of it. My housemate Dylas died and came back. So did several people I’ve talked to. But they were pretty much human with no powers. I guess I didn’t consider the fact that even demons can die.

[After what Mephisto had told him concerning the ways to kill a demon, Chuuya had figured he would’ve just been severely injured by the kidnappers, not killed...

But he’s also weaker than he used to be, by his own admission, and that could’ve been more than enough to do him in.]

I’ll do what I can to stay alive while still protecting what matters.

[A huff.]

Besides, we’re obligated to look out for each other, right? So it’s not like I’d be fighting alone.

[THANKS HE NEEDED THE REMINDER.]

No. And not even just myself-- I'm hardly your own ally in this world. Or have you been so distracted by your insecurities over your own shortcomings that you've failed to notice the people who flock around you?

[Atsushi, the crypires, Diva, and everyone else he saw at that little birthday party of his... he did say Chuuya was allowed to sulk, but that doesn't mean he won't call him out for it.]

For that matter-- you're not even my only familiar. Though the ones you've met so far aren't exactly combat capable, they can be helpful in a pinch... and the one you haven't met is one of my most formidable, perhaps aside from yourself.

[CASUALLY PATS HIS EGO]

...yeah. You’re right.

[THIS FACE when he’s reminded of all the close bonds he’s formed since arriving here, as well as the ego stroke (why yes he is formidable, thank you for noticing). God. He really has been wallowing in self pity, hasn’t he? Time to pull himself up by the bootstraps and be the man everyone knows he can be.

As soon as he’s sober.]

I should try to get along with the others. The other familiars, I mean. The monkeys seemed friendly enough.

[Yeah, that's a better face!!]

[...also let's ignore the fact that Mephisto basically just came out here to cheer him up.]

The monkeys may be friendly, but unless you decide to turn over a new leaf and become a man who lives and breaths honesty and sincerity in every walk of life, they'll never ignore an opportunity to feed on you and force you to spill your secrets. They're rather greedy little demons, after all.

[They have no reason to go after someone's secrets if they don't keep any.]

But my komorigasa [Read: Bat-umbrella] is already a bit fond of you. You're both familiars who have similar powers to your master, after all.

[Daww how sweet.

Damn. The monkeys are cute, but Chuuya would rather not spill everything all the time to everyone...maybe just occasional visits...]

...yeah.

[Chuuya perks up a little at that.]

Is it?

[He remembers the bat getting really upset at him when he caused Mephisto to pass out by playing with his tail. But then it was only being protective...

Time to pet it next time it appears.]

Then the familiar you haven’t shown me yet is the only one I dunno much about.

Edited 2018-06-13 04:19 (UTC)

...would you like to meet it?

I wouldn't say it's the sort of demon anyone can truly "get along" with, but I do think it would be beneficial for you to know what it looks like.

[Since it's one of the ones he has tailing Atsushi to keep an eye on him-- but he'll keep that fact to himself unless directly asked.]

I mean, I’d rather know just because.

[Read: he’s curious.]

It can’t be that bad, right?

Well, I'll leave you to be the judge of that.

[And he clears his throat, waving his hand in a little star shape-- and counting down in German from five. This is actually the first time he's actually summoned this one down here on Nysa, so it takes just a bit of extra effort.]

[But as he counts, the room around them starts to change. The shadows on the walls twist and stretch before being drawn towards them -- causing the room itself to darken until not even the light from the window can reach them.]

[And from darkness that now surrounds the little bubble of light that contains them, an ethereal figure slowly moves into view from just behind Mephisto. There's no visible body beneath the thin shroud that makes up its form, which seems to become translucent down towards its "feet".]

[But Mephisto is casual as even, gesturing up at the strange creature behind him.]

I'd like you to meet my oldest familiar... Death.

[Chuuya watches with interest as Mephisto does his little summoning ritual, and while the other familiars were strange, none of them ever sent shivers up Chuuya’s spine before they even appeared. The darkness seems thick, alive almost, and then Chuuya finally gets to see the familiar he’s been wondering about.]

Holy shit...

[Death?? As in the grim reaper?? And Mephisto just has it on a leash?? What the fuck???

Much as Chuuya hates to show fear, even he finds his blood running cold as he stares the ghostly creature.]

Death? How do you control death? Doesn’t it kill people with a single touch or something?

[...strange. Usually Mephisto relishes the look of fear people get when they look upon just how horrifying his power can be. But right now, he finds that he doesn't really like seeing that look on Chuuya's face.]

Oh, don't be mistaken. Unlike we demon kings, who exist as the personification of our respective alignments, Death is not the personification of the concept of death-- that's simply its name. But it does live up to it, as its the only familiar I have capable of killing instantly.

[As he talks, from out of the veil, a single wrinkled and gnarled hand reaches out--]

[...and pats Mephisto on the head.]

But it's not so simple as a touch, no! It has the power to reduce and extend the lifespans of humans, and can tell exactly how long a human has to live simply by looking at them.

[Oh. Here comes another hand. It's rubbing Mephisto's shoulder now.]

Ah, but these numbers tend to shift endlessly, so the information is really rather useless outside of contracts...

[And now a third??? hand comes out to rub his other shoulder--]

--do you mind!? I'm having a conversation here!

[ALL HANDS ARE IMMEDIATELY RETRACTED]

[Can a veil look offended?? Because it's totally offended.]

[Fear isn’t something Chuuya could afford to show in his old life, nor did he often truly feel it with the power of Arahabaki at his disposal as well as a partner almost constantly by his side (right up until somebody ran off to be a goody goody, anyway). It’s an emotion he’s never been good at coping with, and so he pushes it down, his expression falling back into something more neutral from sheer force of will.

The hand that appears from beneath the shroud is unsettling, but Chuuya hardly has time to be surprised by it before it starts...patting Mephisto...]

...it’s definitely not what I expected.

[Chuuya doesn’t doubt for a second that it lives up to its name, but its hard not to laugh when all it seems to want to do right now is love it’s master. It’s almost cute, in a weird, macabre sort of way.]

Heh. It likes you.

[Okay but Chuuya isn’t volunteering to be touched by cold, corpse-like hands, either, so he’ll just keep his distance.]

It can tell all that? And report it to you?

[...Chuuya is a little curious what his numbers are, but maybe it’s better not to know.]

In as much as it can like anything. It's not the most talkative of demons.

[How would it even talk?? Not that Chuuya's able to hear any of Mephisto's familiar's voices. Perhaps someday he can find a workaround for that, but for now...]

But it can, yes. [He snaps his fingers-- and once more a hand reaches out from the veil. But this time, it's holding a curiously beautiful hourglass, with various little bulbs to catch the sand as it slowly falls.]

By projecting a human's life into one of its hourglasses, it can read exactly how much time a human has left from whatever point in time they ask. The amounts can then be altered-- allowing a human to sacrifice a given set of years in exchange for whatever they might ask of me.

But it's been a very long time since I've dealt in deals like that. They're no fun for me, after all.

Edited 2018-06-13 07:36 (UTC)

[Chuuya would probably flip his shit if he heard it talk, so that’s probably for the best.

The hourglass is unusual yet beautiful, and Chuuya almost wants to reach out and touch it. Almost.]

I’ve heard of that. Demons taking part of a human’s life and doing something for them in exchange.

[He’s glad that they’ve made more creative deals, tbh.]

I think I’d rather not know how long I’ve got left.

[No mortal should be burdened with that kind of heavy information.]

Thanks. For showing it to me, I mean.

[Yeah, no touching, unless he wants to get on Death's bad side. Which is probably not a good idea when dealing with, ya know, Death.]

Oh, I wouldn't have told you even if you asked. Very few mortals can handle knowing when their time might come, even when that time is in the distant future or exists only as a very small possibility.

[...]

[He's gonna have to work on cutting down this guy's drinking habits though, but that likewise goes unsaid.]

[But for now, Death retracts the hourglass before slowly backing away into the shadows once more-- at which point, the room again floods with light.]

But you know, it really is a shame I can't easily summon you to my side as easily as I can the others. I'm still working on a method to at least increase the communication capabilities between us-- but at the moment, I can still only get it to work one-way.

[Chuuya watches Death disappear into the shadows, thinking that holy shit, his life is truly wild these days. Not that he minds in the slightest; eternal boredom is a fate worse than death in Chuuya’s eyes, and things are certainly never boring with Mephisto around.

Which...he never thought he’d get used to, but now it just seems natural to spend time with ~~his Master~~ the guy.]

One-way? Are you talking about telepathy or something?

[The other part he’s a little bit grateful for; being summoned randomly while he’s in the middle of something would definitely be embarrassing...]

Edited 2018-06-14 18:41 (UTC)

Something like that. True telepathy would allow us to converse back and forth, even if only one of us possessed the skill.

[Which is what he's been working on, but it's surprisingly complex magic to learn.]

What I'm referring to is simply an inherent trait all demons possess. When one calls a demon's true name with all their heart, we're capable of hearing it. It's rather similar to the way a summoning chant calls our attention and brings us to the side of whoever has summoned us-- though most demons are far too proud to come when called through such simplistic means.

And what about you? Would you come if I called?

[It’s an honest question. Of course he’s expecting the answer to be yes, since he’s Mephisto’s familiar and all, but if there’s a different way to get in touch, then he might as well ask.

A CHEEKY GRIN.]

Or are you too proud?

Edited 2018-06-15 06:32 (UTC)

I would come if you called, because I would assume you were in danger.

If you were simply calling my true name to pester me, the strength behind your call would be too quiet. I am a rather powerful demon, after all. You have to put some feeling into it!

[Look at him suck the fun out of it with this srs answer.]

[But then, there's a reason for it. Of all the trauma he went through while kidnapped, arguably the worst of it was being forced to listen to Mipha pleading for him from somewhere he couldn't reach.]

[He'd be able to hear him calling, even if it was quiet. But he'd rather not deal with needless stress.]

So it’s like an emergency only line. Got it.

[As much fun as fucking with Mephisto would be, he does remember how badly he’d reacted to having his mind messed with before, and Chuuya isn’t enough of an asshole to exploit that. It wouldn’t be the same thing, of course, but still.]

Then if you can’t summon me I guess you’ll have to text or whatever if you need me.

[Is it pathetic how much Chuuya wants to be called on? After all, what’s the point of being a familiar if he’s never used for anything? He’ll just assume that he’ll be given some kind of task sooner or later. Until then...]

...I guess I could spend more time sober. Everyone seems to think I’m gonna drown myself in booze.

Edited 2018-06-15 06:55 (UTC)

Video | UN: MrFancyHat

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