soul_campaign | Fourth Brew | Video | June 4, just after midnight

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Fourth Brew | Video | June 4, just after midnight

[When the video starts, there’s only a view of the dimly lit Kishin Chamber’s ceiling and the sound of a Texas twang that’s rarely heard over the network. The voice is a bit distant, as if the speaker is talking to herself rather than the device, and colored by a level of level of exasperation usually reserved for a certain nerdy nuisance of a sorcerer.]

Jiminy Cricket! Not this place again! That cotton-pickin’ contraption always picks the worst times!

[ Really, couldn’t it just leave a witchy person to brew in peace, solve the occasional murder, and fix a supernatural problem once in a while? The voice trails off into a frustrated sigh and less intelligible mutterings. Something about a date? And a soul trapped in a mirror…]

[But the mumblings stop a few moments later when Lily notices the communicator lying on the floor. Dag nab it! Is that smartphone thing on, too? Is that what she dropped when she landed sprawled on the ground?]

[Finally, Lily’s face comes into view as she leans over the communicator, red lipstick slightly smudged and the curl coming out of her 1920s style Marcel waved hair as several brown locks escape from a chignon at the nape of her neck. There’s a bit of a bare shoulder visible for a second before she draws back and only her face can be seen again, expression uncertain as she addresses whoever might be listening. She doesn't like these gadgets but she needs help.]

Um, could someone tell me what day it is? [It had been weeks by her reckoning but she knows how BREW likes to muck with time.]

And I need help with a clothes problem. A woman would probably be better. I can’t go back to my apartment like this…

[Then, she recalls the last thing she remembers about this place being tossing her keys on the kitchen counter after getting back from grocery shopping.]

Dag nab it. I don’t think I have my keys either...

[is there some person in charge of the apartment buildings with spare keys who could let her in? Or does she need to call a locksmith after she gets out of this place?]

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[Lily just thinks it means he spends too much time with his nose in a book. Literally.]

If I wanted to do that, wouldn't it be simpler to drop one of those books that you're so fond of on your foot? [An encyclopedia, maybe...]

Perhaps it might. 'Tis counter-intuitive to let gravity get in the way of knowledge, however. But with no books within arm's reach, it's irrelevant.

Even a 'lost cause' can be taught. I've known dancing, piano, and many forms of formal entertainment for nearly two decades.

I doubt even an experienced instructor would help. Dancing seems to be one of those things a person has a talent for or doesn't. And I clearly don't.

[And she doesn't really see why he he suddenly wants to teach her.]

We'll simply have to see, Lily.

My door is unlocked; I shall fetch the keys from their safe-keeping.

[Okay, it's the utility drawer where he keeps the scissors and such, but sshh.]

[She just shakes her head and mutters at this notion of giving her dance lessons.]

I'll be there as soon as I can get back. [And she ends the call.]

[It's nearly 1AM when Lily finally steps out of the elevator on the ninth floor of Casualty Communal. After having walked back, she thanked Karina again and returned the flipflops, putting the heels back on for a few minutes until she could return to her apartment.]

[Wincing a little, she makes her way down the hall and knocks on the door of 9B. Even if he said the door was unlocked, she wonders if he's fallen asleep during the wait. Or he could be awake and in the middle of another explosive experiment, something she'd rather not suddenly walk in on!]

Lezard?

Very well. [The communicator was down with the end of the call, and he decided to catch up on his notes for the hour before he went to fetch those keys.]

[They jingled, almost booming in the otherwise silent apartment, and he twirled the ring around a finger. He wondered if he ought wait at her apartment, out in the hall, or here-- ah, she'd answered that for him.]

The locks are undone, Lily- you need not be shy~

[But he lifted his hand, stifling a small yawn and hoped it'd be over before she stepped inside. Perhaps his all-nighters were catching up to him.]

[He was going to make her come to him? She sighed and cautiously turned the knob, peeking around the door, slightly curious since she had never gotten a good look at his apartment before.]

Dag nab it, could I just have my keys?

[His apartment was... almost a study. It seemed he never wished to be outside of arm's reach of some pad of notes or a book of sorts, and so there were shelves and book-cases practically everywhere. Littering every which way were knick-knacks of no discernible value, but many of them modern- things that caught his interest and were put down for the time being. A coat rack nearby held his cloak and one of his jackets, neat and tidy, surprisingly enough.]

[He crossed into the room and adjusted the position of his glasses. The keys dangled from that finger.]

Of course. I had not expected the exact time frame of your arriv--

[The 'V' sound hung for a moment as he absently held out the keys. This was his first time seeing the dress and complete ensemble.]

...Hm.

[Well, if the school was ever missing a large portion of its library, Lily now knew where to look for it! She wasn't sure what to make of the modern knickknacks sprinkled in though.]

What? Aaah—!

[She approached to take the keys but a small stumble sent her off balance. Hands grabbed for his arms and her face ended up in the vicinity of his shoulder.

[Well, Lezard, you got your wish. Sort of... That shirt's going to need extra cleaning for the lipstick stains!]

[He did appreciate the attire, especially when they seemed to fit the individual dressed from head to toe in finery. Though nobility himself, he saw no need to attend such functions.]

Your ti--

[That line of thought scattered when she stumbled, and he unconsciously stepped forward and caught her. In the midst of hands at his sleeves and a face tucked at the crook of his neck he was still. The quip about it being a tad late for dance lessons was swallowed down. Not tonight, Lezard. His arms tightened briefly around her middle.]

...You were missed.

[He paused, realizing the lowered, quieted admission came from him. That didn't sound like a line about throwing away those ridiculous shoes, like he'd intended. Perhaps he was wearier than he'd thought.]

[As Lily leaned against him, trying to steady herself, she felt the arms go around her waist, the quick squeeze. ...A hug? For all of his flirtatious ways, Lezard had never struck her as the affectionate type.]

[And he missed her? She'd almost expected some smart-alecky remark that even if she missed him, she didn't have to throw herself at him.]

[Rather than brushing him off as she usually would, Lily lifted her face from his shoulder, peering up at him with a confused blink. Searched his eyes for any signs of jest, that his words weren't genuine.]

...Do you really mean it?

[Exactly. That would be the perfect reply, but that came out instead. There were days when he concerned himself. He supposed an early bedtime was in order, once he found the desire to... detach, from the witch.]

...I confess to a fit of restlessness when I learned BREW had dismissed you.

[It was strange to hear such an earnest admission from him. If she didn't know better, she might have wondered if Lezard had been replaced by some shapeshifter assuming his form.]

[Still, it was ...kind of nice that someone actually missed her. Less than a year ago, hardly anyone would have.]

Um, thanks, I guess. [Not really being a hugger herself, she settled for giving his arms a little squeeze.]

Have you been behaving while I was gone? [She hoped he hadn't gone over to the shop and given her employees a hard time!]

[A small chuckle. He'll accept that. His arms loosened; that was enough of this peculiar behavior before he's presumed to be a doppelganger.]

I may or may not have given your colleagues a bit of Hel. [The grin was small, but quick to form.]

Perhaps I kept them on their toes.

[And that drew a sigh from her.]

Please tell me you didn't do anything to pick a fight with my employees or make a scene in front of customers.

I've never been the type to be confrontational; that you know.

...And what fun would it be to create a scene if you weren't there to jam a finger into my chest with every syllable of your scolding?

[Well, so much for any thought that it wasn't really Lezard...]

You're incorrigible. How the heck did your mama ever put up with you? [She was still convinced he needed a babysitter rather than a partner!]

[He laughed.]

How, indeed... perhaps she will have answers for me in Asgard. But until then...

[So very cheeky, resting his forehead against hers. There was a small spark, a rather indirect point of resonance. They were still in a rather compromising position, weren't they...?]

Hahaha... 'tis always a pleasure speaking with you, Miss Ivory.

[Lily thought she felt a zing when he leaned his head against hers, like when Aidan touched her and their magics mingled. But surely she was imagining it. She let go of his arms and tried to pull away before he got any further ideas.]

Could I just have my keys back? I'd like to get back to my apartment, get rid of these heels and take off this makeup.

[It was a mild zing but a pleasant one, and Lezard was growing rather fond of this whole Soul Resonance thing. But she pulled away and it was like a snap of static, leaving him rubbing his forehead.]

...Very well.

[He presented the key set to her.]

Though I highly suggest removing those things now and taking the walk next door barefoot.

It's not that far. [Yep, someone is being stubborn again.]

[She took the keys and gingerly made her way to the door, managing not to stumble and stopping to glance back at him.]

And all my things better be in order as you claim.

...You have my word.

[Well, she'll see about that. The first thing she's going to do after she gets into her apartment and gets these cotton-pickin' shoes off is to check on her Book of Shadows.]

Good night then.

[And she stepped out into the hall, pulling the door closed behind her.]

[He tipped his head politely.]

Good night, Lily.

[Oh, to stop her and trace a thumb against her jawline, ask that she stay here tonight... perhaps that would work in a perfect world. But no, riling her up on her first night back was far more fun. There would yet be time for that.]

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Fourth Brew | Video | June 4, just after midnight

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