Celeste's little Depository of Literature and Media

[Celestial Lullaby]

Another piece from the scrapbook, this one about food, and Brian.
Now in Peru.

Quote:

I swallowed delicately, trying to wet my dry throat. My sisters had forced me to come with them to try a Peruvian dish. Since they knew less than nothing about ethnic food, the waiter had managed to con them into buying three plates of ceviche. It was decently priced, but the claim that it was the national dish and guaranteed to be delicious had me on edge.

The waiter came to our table silently, three large plates balanced expertly on his muscled arms. I managed to suppress a smile at my youngest sister's appreciative glance. My meal set in front of me, inducing a rush of saliva right to my mouth. My hand twitched in reflex to the barely barricaded drool, wanting to brush the non-existed liquid from my lips.

My sisters dug in without hesitation, but the metal strip in my hand only managed to prod at the sizzling, bubbling mass on my clean platter. Another swallow persuaded saliva to retreat enough for my mouth to open and not risk spilling liquid on the table. Using my knife, I sliced through the small chunk of white fish, sawing clumsily through the food. I supposed that since this country did border on the ocean that there would be some seafood, but it was not one of my favorites. Luckily Sandra had managed not to order squid for once.

Closing my eyes, I brought a forkful of fish to my mouth, surprised at the tang of lemon that drifted up to my nose. The lump slipped between my hesitant lips, fell off the metal utensil onto my tongue. My eyebrows shot up. The normally bland-tasting white fish was laden with other flavors. Swirling the morsel around my mouth, I discovered a couple spices, though others were left unknown. Besides lemon, there was coriander and definite garlic. Another flavor teased my tongue for awhile before enlightenment struck. Aji! The last spice was aji. Satisfied now, I inhaled greatly of the wonderful aromas rising from my dish and dug is, barely a match for my sister's unmannered eating skills.

 

[Celestial Lullaby]

Star Test (Ria thing..) that I did...

Quote:

My test:

The music was gone! The birds singing! The monkeys howling, all gone. Celestial frowned, she had been in the jungle a minute ago with her hair all around her to protect her from the sun. Slowly Celeste reached forward and parted the black wall of hair that had covered her vision. A million pictures of her face peeking between two glossy black curtains greeted her. Yelping Celestial jumped to her feet with two unsheathed and very sharp daggers in her hand, one pointed forward and one back like an expert. Moving her head in sharp jerky movement she saw that she was trapped inside a dome which had mirrors as walls and ceilings.

Calming herself down Celestial re-sheathed her daggers into their wrist compartments and inspected her whereabouts. The floor was simply smooth black stone, probably obsidian. Celestial ventured towards the wall and gently put her fingers on the wall to have them duplicated in the reflection. Walking slowly around the room she searched for any breaks that would mark a door or when she knocked a hollow sound to mark a weak spot. Everywhere she went she found out this room would be practically impossible to escape.

Seeing a mark on one mirror Celeste leaned closed and picked at it with her finger. The substance broke and fell off a little at a time. Licking her finger she rubbed it over one spot then brought it back to her mouth. Immediately she spat on the ground and had her legs braced in a wide stance. What Celestial had tasted was old blood, it meant something weird was going to happen.

A flash of green came from the other side of the room. Turning quickly on the balls of her feet Celestial squinted the immediately relaxed. It was only Joy. Smiling Celestial raised her toned arm and moved it from side to side, smiling at the effect it had on the mirrors. Joy only stood there, still far away from Celeste. Sighing Celestial walked over to joy, stopping a few meters away from the neko.

Joys hair had lost its glossiness and its healthiness, it was now a dry dark green, looking like old grass. Joy herself was standing slumped over her tanned shoulders drooped, even her tail lay on the floor, the jingles old and rusted. Celeste looked at Joys once luminous eyes and shrank from them, they were empty, hollow. Suddenly Celestial felt cold, she rushed to Joy's side and hugged her fiercely, afraid that if she let go Joy would die. Joy couldn't die.

Even as Celestial hugged Joys seemingly old and frail body, Joy raised a hand, a dagger clasped in her fingers. Smiling, lips pulling tightly against bloodstained fangs, Joy reversed it so it pointed at Celestial's back. Life flowed through her once more and Joy stood up straight, her neon green hair whipping about her an Celeste, catching onto Celestials neck and tearing at its skin. Hugging Celestial tightly with her one small tanned arm Joy began to plunge the dagger towards Celestial's heart.

Celestial became aware of joy's life rushing through her just as she did not recognize the dagger Joy held in her hand. Trying to twist out of the hug so she could get a good look at the renewed Joy Celeste frowned. Joy was holding her, but only with one hand. Turning to find the other one she saw a flash and a sudden sharp pain in her arm. Panting she looked in the many mirrors to find Joy's hand clutching a dagger which was buried in Celeste's arm.

Her mouth open in shock Celestial pulled away and clenched her teeth. Pulling the dagger out of her arm she looked at Joy, horrified. Glancing at the dagger she saw blood, blood! Swallowing, her mouth paper dry Celeste wiped a hand over her forehead trying to clear the sweat. Blinking Celestial turning to Joy, who was now licking her claws where there was blood.

"Joy! What's wrong with you? Why did you do that?"

Throwing the dagger aside, wincing slightly when she heard metal on metal and the splat of blood on the mirrors Celeste checked her arm. Luckily Joy had missed arteries but that didn't mean it wasn't bleeding. Tearing a strip of her black pants off she made a crude bandages then returned her eyes to the sickening sight of Joy smiling evilly, her still hollow eyes multiplied in every mirror in the dome.

Celestial was now scared, Joy wasn't normal, she would never try to kill Celeste... right?

"Joy, please stop this, I'll forgive you, please, I can't fight you back, you know that. Please."

All of her feelings and conscious thought went into that one word, If Joy attacked Celestial could only defend, never hurt Joy, never. Joy took one step... two and then she was in the air, a blood craving frenzy in all her actions. A shiver ran down Celestial's spine as she felt a cold hand on her neck, that scared her more than anything.

Bracing herself and spreading her legs wide Celestial put her arms out just in time. Grabbing Joy's wrists as they both toppled to the floor Celestial's head hit the concrete of the ground, black flared in her conscious. Holding her breath she tried to keep her grip on Joy's wrists firm.

"Joy stop it. STOP!"

As her vision came back Celestial saw Joys teeth bared and close to her neck. In a moment of panic Celestial kicked her foot up, hitting Joy's bare stomach and sending her into a mirror. The mirror shattered and more blood fell as Joy hit the ground with a thump.

"JOY!! oh no what have I done??"

Celestial started shaking, she couldn't have killed Joy! Glancing at Joy, shrinking from the girls neon green hair soaked in blood. Getting on her hands and knees Celestial began to crawl to Joy when she saw movement. Joy's eyelashes fluttered as her eyes opened, revealing empty golden orbs. Shuddering Celestial saw joy starting to come after her, building speed. Panting Celestial quickly drew her short sword, sticking it straight out in front of herself.

“Joy... don't make me do this... please stop... I don't want to hurt you!”

Joy just came closer, not even flinching. Celestial began to shiver more, tears now flowing freely down her cheeks, sparkling in all the mirrors. Her sword somehow stayed still, pointing directly at the advancing Joy. Closing her eyes, wishing she could plug her ears Celeste was forced to listen to the sound of Skin being broken and metal sliding along bone.

Opening her eyes to a sight so gruesome Celestial began to feel sick. Joy's hair stuck to her lifeless body, Celestials sword embedded between her ribs, straight into her heart. With effort Celestial threw her sword, and Joys body, away from her as she crawled a short way to vomit.

After finishing Celestial got up, a little weary from the loss of blood, and walked to the far side of the dome. Collapsing Celestial held her head in her arms and cried. Peeking out from the blanket of black hair Celestial saw herself in all the mirrors, a mess covered with blood and tears, the killer of Joy.

Fury entered her veins and spurred her on. Celestial got up and began dealing punches and kicks and head bashes, anything to break all the mirrors, ignoring the cuts and glass in her hands. Finally arriving at Joy's body Celestial but her shoe against Joy's arm and pulled out her sword, beginning to viciously beat every mirror, until the only hint of them was the glass on the floor.

Panting Celestial glanced at Joy's body again, noticing red rising from it until it left the image of some other girl, with the same yellow empty eyes. Celeste collapsed to the ground. She hadn't killed Joy!! ...But she had killed some other girl. Was this some sort of Joke? And what was this place?

Disheartened from killing someone who had once been Joy, and remembering the guilt, pain and hurt, Celestial slid down the way, leaning her head against it gently, so as not to hurt the rapidly growing bump. Where was she?

 

[Celestial Lullaby]

A roleplay I was in for a shocking four days. These are all of the posts I made. All of them. Every last one. I do like the character though.. may use her for something else. xD

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Celestial Lullaby
The name I was given is Cynthia Janelle Roberts, but everyone calls me Cynthia.
I'm 17 years old.
People say I'm innocent, optimistic, naive and childish.
When I close my eyes, I see expansive fields of long green grass, accented by a rich blue sky and mountains colored purple lying just out of reach; birds of every origin flying overhead and nestling in huge oak trees that pepper the meadow..
I absolutely detest hatred, prejudice and acts of evil, but kindness, generosity and compassion make me happy.
I'm female, and heterosexual.
Growing up was a rather simple process for me. My family is of the middle class, so we were careful with our money, but could afford vacations and treats every now and then. I live with a family of four, having an older brother who is in college. We get along as well as any family. I know my parents will support me in anything I choose, and it reassures me greatly. My brother is easily dependable and I go to him for a lot of advice and help in my school work. I attend high school and am in my senior year. I dated a boy named Aidan for the duration of high school, but we recently broke up. I'm not sure why. My best friend is named Casey, she's really outgoing, well spoken and cheerful. I have a lot of respect for her. Nothing really eventful has ever happened to me. Like I said, growing up was a rather simple process for me. I spend most of my time in the library, reading on the porch. If I'm not there I can be found cheering Casey on at one of her sporting events or sitting in our backyard playing with the cats.

Quote:

Cynthia Janelle Roberts was standing in front of the overly-intricate doors to the town library holding a small note in her hands. It had the place and the time; she was twenty minutes early. Cynthia fidgeted nervously. She had found the note in her locker right after school, identifying the handwriting immediately as her ex-boyfriend of two and a half years, Aidan. He had broken up with her a week ago without a reason. At least not a reason Cynthia was aware of. She was hoping he would tell her the reason and then with a suitable explanation, they could still be friends. No, Cynthia thought, what I'm really hoping for is that he wants me back...

With a hefty sigh, Cynthia glanced about her surroundings. She was standing in front of an antique building, built in the '20s probably. The library was huge, and was partially transformed into a museum. It was still a busy place, even with the advancement of technology. Cynthia was glad. She loved this place. It was like her second home, she had come here every day after school since her first day of junior high. Sometimes she would study, other times she would simply read.

The area in front of the grandiose library was like any other bustling street. Everyone had a place to go. A hot dog stand trailed scent into the air: cooked meat, toasted buns and the curious tang of mustard. People thrusted money at the owner and received their food in return, exchanging 'thank yous'. A couple smoking against the coffee shop next door also contributed to the odd bouquet of the street, their scratchy voices making small talk. A group of young teenagers lounged across the street, practicing skateboarding tricks on the curb, laughing at each other's failures and applauding the successes loudly. Every once in a while a car would drive by on the semi-busy road, trailing a roaring and the intense smell of gasoline. The bubbling noise from the crowd rose to her ears, like a rather loud lullaby. The noises, smells and sights all blended together in a perfect tableau of city life.

As she was admiring the view, Cynthia noticed the unmistakable bright orange hair bobbing towards her. Unable to suppress the huge grin that spread across her face, Cynthia stuffed the note in her pocket and lunged towards her ex-boyfriend. She managed to catch herself, right in time to see him leading Casey by the hand. Confused, the girl's face clouded over as she was trying to comprehend the situation. "Wh-what are you doing here Casey?"

Her golden-haired friend had the sense to look a little guilty. Her athletic figure was glad in yoga pants and a loose basketball jersey-- Aidan's basketball jersey. Even without seeing his last name imprinted on the back, Cynthia knew his number by heart. 27. Her eyes started to glass over. Both Aidan and Casey stepped forward in an effort to explain, turned to each other, and chuckled. It was the kind of laugh that said clearly 'we're trying to make this a little less gloomy, a little more positive, even if we're crushing the spirit of our best friend, hey! At least there were laughs!'

As they began to explain themselves, Cynthia felt her heart sink to her stomach, pause, then fall further. She felt so empty. The two people she trusted the most, and they betrayed her. The girl tried to be understanding, tried to think that it wasn't their fault they fell in love, but even her bottomless compassion had it's end. Cynthia mad an effort to listen, focusing on words like 'we're sorry', 'it was hard on us', 'we love each other', 'still be friends?' Her tears welled over as she looked at them in shocked betrayal. She had been led on for a week! They could have told her right away! Aidan had mentioned something about giving her time to adjust to the separation, but Cynthia didn't care anymore. With Casey of all women!

The girl started to tremble under the guilty looks of her friends. Her tears dotted her face and fell occasionally from her chin. When she couldn't stand her friend's half-assed explanations anymore, she turned and ran into the first open path in the crowd of people. All she could think about was getting away, away from all the hurt and betrayal. All the horrible feelings she felt inside, the emptiness. When her vision became a little less blurred, her ears a tad bit unclogged, she looked forward to unexpected disaster.

Her eyes focused on the skaters in front of her, their eyes were wide, mouth hanging open. Everyone of them was frozen in shock. What's wrong with them? Then her ears started working again. Cynthia heard an undeniable screech coming from beside her. It was a horn. A car horn. There were shouts coming from all directions, just as her nose smelled burning rubber and gasoline, just as she turned to look at the horrified faces of Casey and Aiden. All of this happened in a split second. Just as Cynthia realized where she was, and what was happening. Then, she went flying. Air rushed by her, blowing her hair around her faces, pressing on a curious pain in her upper legs. And then her head met asphalt, and everything went black.



* * * * * * * * * *



She couldn't move. And she couldn't open her eyes. All Cynthia could do was listen to the sounds being made in the room that stunk of medicine, sterilizer and dying flowers.

"Oh honey, what will we do? She won't wake up! It's been four days!"
"The Doctor said to give it another month, comas are a tricky business. She hit her head pretty hard, sweetheart, even if she does wake up, she may not be the same."
"My darling Cynthia! Dear, what can we do?!"

Mom, Dad! Coma? No! I'm awake! I just can't open my eyes! It's fine! My head doesn't hurt anymore, I feel fine! Where am I! Shuffling sounds and a closing door marked their departure, the scent of floral perfume left the room, along with her Dad's old cologne. No! Don't leave me alone! I'm okay! Don't leave! Mom? DAD?! The sweet blackness came again, encompassing her in a dark embrace. Ferrying her off to a land without dreams.



"I feel so guilty Aidan.."
"It's not our fault Casey."
"But we could have gone inside the library! Where she wouldn't run!"
"We couldn't have prevented what happened, it was an accident."
"B-but"
"Sweetie, it's alright. Cynthia will wake up. She'll be fine. She's always fine."
"Aidan.."

The room lapsed into silence, punctuated by the occasional sound of suction. No! Aidan don't call Casey sweetie! That's what you always call me! Remember? How can you kiss her at a time like this? I'm lying here! I can't move! It's so dark Aidan, it's so dark! I'm scared..



A hand felt for hers, then enveloped it in warm, loving care. Her brother. She would know him anywhere. He didn't talk, not being much of one for words. Extremely comforted, Cynthia tried to squeeze it, but her hand wouldn't respond. Is this what a coma feels like? Relaxing, using her brother's hand as an anchor, Cynthia began to cry. She cried for Aidan, for Casey, for the ruined relationship. And then she forgave them. She would never be able to be friends with them again, each time she saw their faces it would be another grain of salt in her wound, but she no longer blamed them. Then she cried for her parents, who were so worried for her. Finally, she cried for herself. She couldn't move, or talk. Couldn't tell them that she was fine. Cynthia didn't need to cry for her brother. He understood. He always understood. Finally when all her sadness had gone, the girl lapsed into a quiet restful sleep... and began to dream.



* * * * * * * * * *



Cynthia knew she was dreaming. She had visited this landscape before. It was absolutely breathtaking. Endless expanses of long, untamed green grass were painted, surrounding by purple mountains far off in the distance. For all purposes, unreachable. The various wild flowers that were scattered amongst the greenery let go of a deliciously sweet scent that coated her nostrils in a very favorable way. Thank you Brother, for letting me dream. A smile broke the sad look on her face. She loved this place. As she skipped daintily over to the great master oak tree on her left, Cynthia even managed to hum a silly little tune. Her spirits were greatly improving.

As soon as she reached the hulking monster of a tree, the girl set flesh against wood and felt the rough texture of bark on her skin. Some sap had stuck to one of her fingers. Cynthia brought it to her straight nose to inhale the woodland odor, then wiped it gracefully against a leaf. If only she had a book..

Astonishingly, as the girl circled the tree to try and find a nice crook in the roots to sit in, she tumbled across the hardcover she had being reading. After picking up her body that had sprawled across the grass, Cynthia identified the book, extremely happy to find it was the same version of the fairy tales she had been immersed in a while back in the library. How long have I been asleep. Mom said four days.. Banishing the sad thoughts from her mind, Cynthia wedged herself between two large roots, laid her back against a tree, and cracked her book open to page 213. Now.. where were we?

Quote:

"Cynthia. I am here to give you a choice." Cynthia looked up from her book, glanced around the sunny plains, shrugged and started reading again. "Cynthia! I am here to give you a choice!" Puzzled, the girl turned and looked at the tree. "Mr. Tree, is that you? Because I didn't really think trees talked, Oh! Not to offend you or anything, if you want to talk, you go right ahead and talk! Human rights! Oh wait.. you're a tree.. so I suppose it wouldn't be human rights.."

"Cynthia, I'm a disembodied voice. I don't come from the tree." A worried look came across the girl's face, she stood up, dropped her book and talked into the air. "Oh dear! Where did you lose your body? I can go look for it! I'll try to help re-embody yourself! I don't know what I'd do without a body.." The voice was exasperated. "I don't have a body, Cynthia. Now shut up and listen. I'm here to give you a key that will open doors. Also, you are to receive three powers. This is only if you accept your destiny to obliterate the nightmares in people's dreams. You will live in the dream world until the mission is completed. Your body will disappear from the real world until you come back. You will exist only in dreams. Do you accept your destiny? If you don't, you will never dream again, as you have rejected the potential the hold"

Cynthia pondered the preposition for a few minutes. "Well you see, Mr voice-man, I'm in a coma right now.. and it'd be really troublesome if my body disappeared.. but it'd be really boring just laying there not dreaming at all.. so how about I just lay there in my hospital bed while I roam around this dream world? It doesn't seem so bad." The voice responded in it's deeply resounding voice. "I can do that. Here is your key. You have three wishes, you will need them later. You must complete your dream before you may move on, and defeat any nightmares you have."

Figuring he was gone, Cynthia looked around. Complete her dream? She felt through the fabric of her hospital gown. A curious pocket had appeared, presenting her with a silver key, sculpted in an intricate three-circled pattern on the hilt and a weird many pronged key part. Shrugging, Cynthia tucked it in her pocket and tried to find any nightmares she had.. after exploring the area around the tree, poking through the branches and ruffling the many green oak leaves, Cynthia finally spotted sometime that could be a nightmare. It was a tiny, twisted and wilting flower, black as night with blood red thorns.

With a nod of her head, Cynthia dug through the dirt around the flower. After creating an acceptable dent in the long green grass, she placed her thumb and forefinger between two of the thorns and gave a wimpy yank. The flower felt into her hands, root and all. Tossing it on the ground, Cynthia grinned and dusted of her hands. "Well, that was easy. Now to complete my dream. Um.." She was unsure of what to do.. what was there to complete.. Oh! Her book! Well this would be fun! The girl settled back down into the crook of the tree, cracked open her book, and dove into the beautifully written fiction.

 

[Celestial Lullaby]

RP between me and Maggie, a couple of my posts..

Quote:

Joy, being the person she was, was a little ticked off. Normally people introduced themselves, or waited for the other party to do so. It was common sense. She turned to Soria and raised an eyebrow. Never one to hold under pressure, Soria ran up to the men and stood in front of them. And stood. She didn't know what to say.

Finally (after giggling a bit), Joy came to her rescue. She calmly strolled to where Soria stood, put an arm around the girl's shoulder and effectively used her as a leaning post, standing in a very nonchalant way. "What Soria was trying to do, before going all deer in the headlight, was invite you to dinner."

Before waiting for an answer, Joy walked to the table and plopped herself in the seat. She glanced at her mother who was smiling in approval. Soria, being alone again, was much more useless than normal. Celeste took her carefully by the hand and led her to a chair. When she realized that she had done it again, Soria blushed a deep scarlet.

Now, it was Celestial's turn. She brought herself up, back straight, shoulders back, before raising a hand. Raising the hand was quite pointless, but it gave her a point to fixate on. Slowly the table elongated and turned into a long dining table. Then, a light fabric grew from the wood, covering the tabletop in white lace. One by one, dishes popped from the air onto the table. Turkey, pie, dumplings, roast beef, fruit, you name it, and it was there.

Exhausted, but very temporarily, Celeste collapsed into an open chair, leaving two for the boys. Joy immediately started to praise her mom... in an odd way. "It's sooo unfair! You get an all purpose magic and I'm stuck with making people blow up. Do you know how gross that can get??" Celeste reached over and patted her daughter's head in a way that suggested elongated suffering of the same kind of thought.

As for Soria, she sat down, toyed with her beige plaid skirt and mumbled quietly. "At least you don't have vision problems.." Which sounded like the normal glasses thing, but was in fact, referring to Soria's power. She had visions, to put it simply. And for a woman who jumped at wind chimes, it was not very enjoyable.

Celeste laughed and leaned back in her chair, fully energized. "Well at least be happy you all inherited one trait. Shall we get dressed for dinner?" All three girls nodded. In their family (the side ruled by Celestial anyway) Eccentric fashion sense and change multiple times a day was normal. All three girls sparkled for a bit before the light faded and they were dressed differently.

Joy's hair was long and smooth, down to her waist, and only two braids marred the surface. The pulled hair back from either side of her face and brought them together at the back of her head. Her makeup was subtle, but still there. Hints of dark color over the eyes brought out their color, and a small amount of rich, dark red lipstick revealed the fullness of her lips. Her neckline was high, almost a turtleneck deal, but not quite. The dress was all black and had full, tight sleeves which left off in a poof that served to mask most of her hand, one clad in an archers glove. The skirt, though hidden by the table cloth, was made by many layers of dark, see-through black fabric put over one another to form an A-line skirt that went to the floor. The dress, though normally seen as a type to mask the figure, only served to accent Joy's slight figure. Under the skirt were black, strappy high heels. She looked like a dark yet beautiful woman.

Beside her was Soria, cute as ever. Her hair was bundled up into two pigtails. They were full and had some crimped parts in them. These framed her more angular face. Her dress was a light green color that lightened her eyes and made the shape of them seem that much wider. Her makeup was only a touch of brown on her lips and a bit of brown in the crease of her eyelids. Her dress had a wide, but not low, neckline that hinted at revealing her shoulders. It had a white inset in the middle where the green part came down in a point to continue the rounded neckline. The sleeve were that while fabric, and were poofy and elasticized to her upper arm. The actual dress started at an empire waistband. The solid green fabric had a light paisley pattern etched into it. It flowed all the way down to the ground and covered light green flats. This dress gave light to her childish figure. Her glasses were still round in nature, but they had become white wire, instead of black.

Celestial, now, stayed true to her form as a lullaby. The dress she wore was scarlet and burgundy. It was in greek form, yards and yards of fabric left to wrap around the figure and flow down. Showing her generous curves. The neckline was oval and low, showing some cleavage. There was a string going around her waist so that the fabric was pressed to her skin in little bunches before being left to flow freely again. The dress was sleeveless. Her hair black hair was curled tightly and was bundled atop her head and held their by silver circlets, one coming down over her forehead to dangle a red jewel, most likely a ruby. Her makeup was simple, like ther girls', but much more noticeable. Her purple eyes seemed to pop out, though they didn't clash with the red in the dress. Her eyes had only some powdered eyeliner in the outside corners. Her lips though, were painted full red, making their round and defined nature stand out. The pale of her skin was luminescent and beautiful. Some color stood out in her cheeks. She looked like a gentle mother, one still young with lots of life left in her. Confident and in control of herself. Mature and wonderful.

The three made a picture, sitting at the table, dressed up in different dresses from different countries and time periods. Somehow, they matched. Celestial turned to the boys and smiled softly. "We don't mind if you're not decked out in livery, it's simply a family thing. If their isn't anything you like on the table, I can make it for you. Now come, sit, and we can eat."

Joy looked at her mother at the end of the table. "Mom, you must be getting forgetful in your age, we still haven't introduced ourselves." After correcting Celestial, Joy proceeded to do it herself. At the table, she seemed more poised, talked more gracefully and was less rude. One had to wonder why. "I'm Joy, and disregard it's meaning completely. I was named after a friend of mom's who was completely opposite of me. The one you found cowering under the table was Soria, fitting, right? And finally, the woman at the end of the table who looks 23-ish is my mother. Her name is Celestial, but everyone calls her Celeste." The mother smiled at her daughter and younger cousin before returning to her concentrative state. Four sets of fancy dinner plates appeared in frront of everyone but Soria. She got plastic.

Quote:

Celestial looked up at the man who showed up and motioned him to a seat that had appeared just as table bent and made room for a chair that rose from the ground. "Be my guest. If you have any requests, please ask." As they all sat down, the women bowed their heads and a grace was said. Soria began. "For the great mother, provider and keeper, we offer our love."

Next, Joy, eyes averted, hands folded delicately in her lap. "To Orion, protector and servant, we owe our health." Lastly, Celeste began to glow slightly and in a deep, womanly voice, bordering on the edge of being inhuman, said, "We appeal to our Gods, and we thank them, for what they have given, and taken away." All the women then seemed to break out of a trance and a flurry of activity ensued.

Soria dove for the fruit, unusually assertive, Joy went for the salad, and Celestial for the soups. After only a couple seconds, their places were set and they picked out their first set of cutlery. Celeste took a mouthful a soup before turning to the teacher across from her. "Pray, what do you teach?"

Joy, eating with such grace that belittled her earlier rudeness, injected herself into the conversation. "Mom is considering taking a position as a teacher too." This got Soria's attention. She nodded fiercely. Her mouth was packed with cantaloupe and she was trying to chew it. When she finally managed to get it down, face slightly flushed, she spoke in a very musical yet somehow hesitant voice that was quite pleasant.

"She really should. Celeste is such a great teacher!"
Joy then continued. "But what would she teach?"
"Surely a medical class!"
"What about the fighting arts?"
"Or music.."
"I'd be better suited for that."
"As if, you always destroy the music you write."
"But it sounds good."
"But you never let anyone hear!"
"Like you're any better! Your instrument is three times as big as you."
"At least I can play."
"Don't go there."
"Miss perfectionist."
"Four eyes."
"Dog."
"Hey!"

Celestial watched the argument, chewing thoughtfully on her food. Her eyes were dancing. She then leaned conspiratorially over to Kit and whispered. "At least Soria is talking, and Joy is being a kid." She didn't say that truthfully Joy was only maybe seven years old... in living years, in mind and body she was 17-19. It made Celeste happy to see her enjoying her childhood.

After the girls stopped bickering, it had stopped somewhere around whore after a furtive glance at the older woman, and had reduced into silence. Celeste grinned. "Name and number the wrist bones Soria."

The girl thought carefully. She chewed slowly and her eyes stared at the ceiling. "Eight in total. The Trapezium, Trapezoid, um.. Let's see... Scared Lovers Try Positions They Can't Handle... SLTPTCH.. S... Scaphoid, L...Lunate."

Joy added. "Trapezium, Trapezoid, Scaphoid, Lunate, Triquetrum, Pisiform, Hamate and Capitate."
Soria turned to Joy. "I didn't know she was giving you medical training..."
"She isn't, my magic lessons include anatomy, since that's where I use it. The wrist is apparently quite fun to blow up."
Joy was then shushed by her mother. "Table talk please," said Celeste.
Joy rolled her eyes. "It's only because we have company."
Soria grinned. "Remember that surgery?"
"Open from nose to navel?" Responded Joy.
"All the way down." Soria answered.

The two girls giggle and Celeste returned her attention to the man who had come in. "I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name. I'm Celestial, the boys are Kit and Kouta. Kouta has the white hair. I quite like it. Soria is the one with glasses and green eyes, Joy the one with blue."

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Celeste smiled graciously at Kit. "Well, it's mostly magic, but, well... it's complicated. The way you'd create food is you imagine the shape, the presentation. Then the way it cuts, the texture, then the way it tastes, the way you chew it. The smells. You combine that all into an image, then you make it reality. It takes some practice, but it saves you from burning anything. Unless you have a bad imagination or uncontrolled powers."

"Spells, huh. Perhaps we should exchange thoughts. I'm a rather proficient spellcaster myself." Joy rolled her eyes, continuing to much on her salad, she was on the french dressing and had at least seven bottles lined up, waiting to be used. Celeste continued, "I'm still deciding as to being a teacher or not. But I'm fairly convinced I'd like to take a position as a doctor, if nothing else."

"May I ask after what spells you will teach? Battle or convenience magic? Or simply controlling and using your powers to their fullest potential... though that one takes a lot of one on one time and can be stressing. I was considering asking the school principal if I could be a specialized teacher and just take on maybe half a dozen students to work with. He's an old... friend... of mine, I'm sure he wouldn't mind terribly." Celeste didn't mention he had hated her for most of the time she had spent at Ria. But perhaps she could ask after Joy.. though that may open up some old wounds... Celeste, of course, completely disregarded flattery.

Joy noticed the look pass between the brothers. She knew they were talking in that special way. Celeste had told her about how it had happened like that with her twin... it left a scar, especially because that way the reason Shaiya died.

Soria raised her head and glanced at Kit. Her first reaction was to freeze, but because the topic of books came up... "Well.. I'm a little intimidated by him. I could never read one of his pieces, I have... problems with an.. overactive imagination. I prefer adventures and scandalous romances, the ones with a lot of political intrigue. There is less to scare you..."

Joy had heard the name of the author and had looked over at Soria. Her fork paused in midair and her lips twisted in a curious manner. Her eyes were filled with concern. She remembered that night, when Soria had run from her room, screaming in an inhuman scream. Luckily Joy didn't freak easily. She had spent the night holding her shaking cousin, being chilled by her absolute zero body temperature. It was the night she had picked one of his books off the shelf. Soria had had a vision.. and it had scarred her. Joy was surprised that she could talk about him now. Granted, she probably didn't remember. Celeste had said to lock them away until she was strong enough to deal with them.

After a few moments, Joy glanced around and made sure no one had seen her before returning to her salad, going to the next lump of salad with italian dressing.

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Celeste thanked Kit earnestly. "Well, I try to prepare meals as often as possible, but unfortunately, Joy has become a rather good cook." Celeste had decided to try and spend more time with her family, she was simply gone too often. She took another bite of her soup.

"Patience is key, especially as a teacher." Celeste said calmly. She realized he was analyzing her, but couldn't blame him. She had played that game, still did, but kept it to herself. Not that he wasn't subtle, she was just so attuned to people in general that she could recognize such things. She also thought he was much older than he seemed, he had the same kind of aura as her. He had been through sad and glad. The one thing Celeste wondered was how fast and intensely he had experienced these, and how long he had been around.

Refusing to go that track in her mind, she pulled her mind back to the conversation. "Well, the best way to teach is in small classes. The students learn better... Let's just cut to the chase, what do you want to know?" He had been trying to toy with her, and that was one thing Celestial didn't tolerate when she didn't have to. She was open about herself and her past, and it was the other person's fault if they were disturbed by what they asked to hear.

Soria nodded. "It's just a little bit too scary for me.." She smiled nervously. She could still remember that vision she had had from his book. Luckily, Joy had lived with her mother for a long time, and knew how to handle emotionally unstable people. Not to mention Celeste herself, who knew how it felt to go insane. Soria came back up from her thoughts to comment on his next sentence. "Writing? Interesting, I like writing poetry best, and I have a wonderful family to support me, so money isn't a problem. But just recently I was given permission to write a Biography of Celestial's life. It's quite an interesting story, but hard emotionally to handle writing it quickly."

Joy looked up in surprise after registering Kouta's voice. After hearing his question, he face closed off. It was no one's business. Soria was who she was, and was fine that way. Of course she was alright. There was nothing wrong. She glared at Kouta, eyes like steel, emitting a dangerous aura. Protecting was what she did, and having someone comment on that was unpleasant.

Celestial felt the danger emanate from her daughter. She sent a cool, caressing blanket of power to rest on Joy's shoulders. And then she spoke in her mind.

Joy, dear. You must remember, many people have not been through experiences like you and your cousin. They don't understand the pain of a life like ours, all they see are us together, happy. Because that is what we show them. Some people are given burdens so that others don't have to deal with them. Just because Kouta asked a question you would rather him not ask does not make him an enemy. They way you are, you are here to support and protect. Even if you wish you could take the bad tings and suffer through them yourself instead of forcing someone else to, you can't. All you can do is pick them up off the ground and carry them to where they need to be. Now, please try to be civil and make conversation.

Joy, properly chastised, let her anger float away and sunk into her mother's simulated touch before once more meeting Kouta's eyes, her blue ones much softer and accepting. She opened her mouth and asked the first thing that came to mind. "Do you.. like music?"