o1 ⚔ i got no secrets i got no friends

[bangitybang]

Characters: Janus Lefevre & you
Summary: Closed and open threads for Janus, which I'm starting now ALTHOUGH I PRObably can't tag back til next week. An erstwhile murderer goes about their business in a post-apocalyptic world, such as picking people up at the bar and eating cookies. It's fine.
Date(s): August & September 2017
Warnings/Notes: Possibly some sexual stuff, non-graphic references to violence



open { bar;

[in the past few years, janus has learned a thing or two about being a person, doing regular person things, like for example the time-honored tradition of kind of sort of maybe picking someone up at a bar. making friends. contributing through some mystical means to the defense of a refugee city outflung in the reaches beyond the multiversal apocalypse. you know, the usual.

janus is at the citadel tonight. though defense systems and mysterious laboratories may take up much of the building, the lounge still has its cheesy music and dance floor and opulent indoor forest. it's a little weird, but then again, so is janus— a shadw under 6', muscular, dressed all in black, without enough facial expressions, quiet as a shadow until they abruptly appear at one's elbow.]

Allow me to buy you a drink. [a beat. they remember that things in xistentia are in general free-- the booze at this bar, especially.] Or make you one. I'm very exact with measurements. Goldilocks' ideal partner, once she's legal.

[look. a few years ago, they were a lot less smooth than this.]

open { misc! weird stalking;

[it's not that janus is following anyone specifically, they just have a habit of watching people wherever they're at. it's surveillance. it's tactical.

so maybe that ends up being you, going for a cup of coffee in the morning or helping to move produce to a grocery store one afternoon, building a shed for the new crop or teaching or preparing defenses. whatever you're doing, it's the weight of an indiscreet stare that pulls your attention. the young man looks both a million miles away and weirdly intense, like a hawk focusing a teeny tiny field mouse from a mile away.

but if you but look at them, janus stiffens and then looks apologetic, looking away and then back again, unsure if the formality of an apology would make the offense worse or better. murder is a lot easier than this, u no u no]

closed to team oreo (rafa, arthur, era) { teeeeam oreoooo;

Hello, this is Janus

[you remember. the stilted young man from the internet, who boasted a truly incredible ability.]

I have come into possession of Oreo cookies or a reasonable facsimile thereof
Please let me know when you are available and where to meet you, as I would like to share this bounty
:D

[:D]

Comments

[astralera]

[ Era catches it easily, reflexes well honed after years of constant fighting. It's still a considerably strange tool - far different from the quills and ink wells she uses. She gives the suggestion some thought, but eventually shakes her head with a bemused smile. Instead, Era wanders over to the tree the bed rests under and begins writing her Chocobo's name P E K I very slowly and carefully (to make sure her handwriting is neat despite the foreign tool) in her native alphabet across the trunk of it. ]

[bangitybang]

[the shake of her head makes janus smile a little. they have no clear idea why she's as avoidant as she is, and they know that it's not their business unless she wishes to share. instead, they watch with interest as she presses the liquid chalk to the dark bark of the tree, and watches the bright letterforms flow over the surface. the alphabet is unfamiliar, but pretty to look at.]

Are you considered to have pretty handwriting? [they ask, rustling through the oreo bag now.] Writing well is a point of pride for some people in my world, even though technology has supplanted the need somewhat.

[astralera]

[ She hadn't exactly been sure the pen would work on tree bark, so when Peki's name flows out easily above his nest she can't help the grin that pulls at her lips. With that success under her belt, Era moves back to where Janus sits so that she can write 'EMMY' on her daemon's preferred place to curl up. ]

Most of Eorzea is illiterate.

[bangitybang]

[janus watches as the little woman walks about, penning all over the place with her liquid chalk. it puts a smile on their face. they like the idea of being outside, but they also like that she could make that space hers, in a safe way, temporary. nothing that the forest can't reclaim, if it wants to.

in the meantime, they're prying open an oreo. it's not actually that complicated-- they'd cheated a bit, putting them in the refrigerator before coming out here. fingernails and a deft touch, is all it takes. the chocolate halves come apart easily, and then the layer of white icing between.]

Smart and handsome, [they say.] Is that how it is?

[astralera]

[ for lack of anything better to do, Era has begun colouring in the scales on the back of her hand. one in particular is rather itchy; a sign that it will fall out soon enough to be replaced. it is one downside to all the training she does - if a scale is damaged it will inevitably fall out to be replaced by a stronger one, but with the punishment her hands take (especially when she is using her skills in melee combat) it happens far more frequently than it would otherwise.

she is momentarily distracted by watching Janus rip apart one of the strange cookies. then again when he asks his rather confusing question. ]

I... have never been described as being handsome?

[ Her tone is filled with an honest confusion she can't quite hide, and in an attempt to distract herself from it she turns half her attention to tugging out the particularly loose scale. ]

some timey wimey! lmk if this is ok

[bangitybang]

Perhaps you should have been, [janus says, automatically in that moment. they're a little loose with the gender-specific terminology sometimes, in part because they're non-binary themself.] But I was thinking more of your companion, the Ishgardian man from the video. Here, take this--

[that's one of the chocolate biscuit halves. and then they dig out the mugs and the milk, speedily splitting a helping of milk into each.]

Do you want to go with just hcocolate for now? Or do you want to try this too?

[the icing slice is sitting on the tip of their other forefinger like a very diminutive pizza pie ready for preparation.]

wow where did the first part of my comment go

[astralera]

Ah- Yes, Aymeric is both literate and handsome. They are hard facts to deny.

[ and oh- well, alright. now she has a hand filled with a scale and a biscuit. there are worse things in the world, so Era can deal. ]

Are they not meant to be eaten together?

[bangitybang]

With that section of your skin? [janus looks at the scale for a moment, and then they blink sharply, realizing what she's referring to.] Oh, you can, certainly. Eat it together.

[they select another oreo. whole, this time, both chocolate halves and then the white frosting in between. but they pause, before pressing more of it into her hands. she has a lot going on there already.] I could take that from you, [they say, peering at the scale. they pop the half-oreo and its frosting disc in their mouth to empty a hand, pocketing it in their cheek when they explain:] I was trying to show off. Separating an Oreo takes great skill.

[n_n;]

[astralera]

[ beverages may make her hesitate if she hasn't seen them be prepared, but food from strangers has never made her suspicious (even when it probably should). She blinks up at Janus, baffled. ]

You would like my scale?

[ If they would like it she can't find a reason to say no. It'd be weird, but she would just toss it away and it might get picked up regardless. ]

I'm certain those familiar with Oreos would be rightly impressed!

[bangitybang]

[janus would very much like the scale. now that they think of it, it's very interesting. they look at it in her hand for a moment, then smile lopsidedly.] Only if you don't mind, [they tell her. they're a little better about these kinds of things, these days. less with the stealing of other people's body parts, more with the asking and taking with permission.

they stuff a piece of chocolate in their mouth, then start to set up two cups of milk. it's tradition, as much as anything of being a hunter can be.]

If you gave it to me, I'd try to make a talisman out of it. To protect myself with armor like yours.

[astralera]

I'm not sure what protection it would offer but you're free to it.

[ They protect her from glancing blows for the most part, but really don't offer much in the way of protection from anything particularly dangerous. It's an added layer between a blade and her most vulnerable areas though, and given how often she's fighting for her life, well...

They're also very pretty (in her biased opinion) and she's quite proud of them when they aren't icky and ready to fall off.

Era watches Janus pour out the milk, skin tingling uncomfortably. They seem amiable enough and as though they might understand her request, and so Era sees no reason to remain silent on the matter - ]

...Might I ask that you drink from both cups first?

[bangitybang]

[janus pockets the scale, glad of it. the truth is, they find it rather pretty too, and rather like the idea of how they'll look with them, but they try not to be vain about their appearance lately— so they're focusing on the matter of self-protection. armor at their throat seems like a good idea. they understand paranoia very well. and hence, they actually understand her question too.

or at least, they think they do. it's what they would ask, if in such a mood. if they didn't have healing spells.] Certainly. [they stoop to drink some of the milk, carefully, from one cup and then the other.] It's a prudent concern. Poison? [they inquire, casually as if they were asking about the weather. they slide one of the cups over to her, then wipe their mouth with the back of one wrist.]

[astralera]

[ Era appreciates that they indulge her paranoia, even if it brings up questions that bring less than pleasant memories to mind. ] Yes.

[ she takes a sip of the milk to show both that she appreciates what they did, and that she trusts them to some degree. ]

Drugged beverages are a concern of mine.

[bangitybang]

[janus gives her another oreo for her troubles, smiling a little. they demonstrate by dunking their own cookie into the milk, taking a bite.]

It never hurts to be prudent. I admire that.

[astralera]

[ She won't say she learned such prudence long after she should have - after what happened with Nanamo she really should have paid more attention to beverages, but she never did.

Instead she'll mimic what her current companion is doing. It isn't unlike chocolate-chip cookies and milk, though when she takes the first bite she had to admit that it tastes quite different. It's a strange mix of crunchy and soft, with the icing melting on her tongue. ]

It's delicious, thank you. I believe Aymeric will enjoy these also.

[bangitybang]

[because janus is a huge nerd when it comes to physical fitness, they're only really planning on eating the one cookie. and they do so savoring it deliciously as a result. they're a ridiculous person. if one points this out, they're wont to get huffy about it too. but until then, they're just going to be taking

hilariously

small

bites from a single oreo.] I'm glad we could share a fraction of a meal and colored chalk in this trying time, [they say, grinning at her.]