002 - The Stargazing Meme

[aflockofmemegulls]

the stargazing meme

oo1. comment with your characters
make sure to put names, series, & preferences somewhere!
you can use < ! > sans the spaces to make the comment "blank"
oo2. reply to others in character
oo3. use the rng and enter 1-10
oo4. play out what happens—anything goes!
oo5. profit? oh yeah!

prompts

one → meteor shower you just saw a falling star! and another! make a wish!
two → aliens what was that? was that really? omg no way a ufo!
three → lunar eclipse you've been sitting out for hours, waiting for this. it's so cool!
four → comet does it move fast or slow? either way, it's amazing.
five → full moon the moon is so huge! just don't look too long, it's really bright too.
six → star dust anything can happen in space. make up your own plot!
seven → solar eclipse this might be happening in the middle of the day!
eight → planet sighting is that a new star? nope, just a neighbor in the solar system!
nine → constellations do you know the stories behind these odd patterns?
ten → deep space normal stargazing isn't that much fun. you got a telescope!

Comments

pre-grace, 6

[nowonder]

[It's been a few weeks since he saw her last. He's had trouble not thinking about Alice, because she was intriguing, and because she had light fingers, and because - he doesn't know. Something about her. He wants to see her again. He wants to see her again.]

[He's surprised when he sees her here, in the Enchanted Forest, but pleased, as well - some kind of electric thrill chases his surprise up his spine and lands at the smirk on his lips, settles in. He walks up behind her, standing on a grassy knoll and looking up at the moon, and leans forward slightly.]

Fancy meeting you here.

[decepting]

(Keep moving. That was how she survived. One job after another, collect the reward and then move on. Slowing down was dangerous, and stopping entirely got you killed. Except she couldn't seem to force herself to move just yet.

The prize had been handed off and, with her pockets satisfyingly heavy, her mind had begun to wander (a dangerous thing for anybody, and moreso for people like them) to the man with that wicked smile and a skill that rivaled his ego.

When she had stopped moving she couldn't quite say, but eventually her gaze had wandered up to the sky. The moon shone brilliantly, illuminating the forest and laying bare the way the corners of her lips twitched up at the sound of his voice)

A lucky coincidence. (For you)

[nowonder]

For me.

[He had no intention of echoing her thoughts, but he was an honest man. Let no one ever say he was - more than once.]

[Trouble was, as he stepped to her side and cast his eyes at her, he saw that the moon caught her hair just so first and that she looked decidedly pleased with herself second. Getting his priorities all mixed up. Didn't know what to do with himself.]

[Well, that was sort of a lie. He did know.]

I would ask if you've been keeping busy, but I can tell by the look on your face that you have. Ransacked something lovely, I hope.

[decepting]

I'd even go so far as to call it breathtaking.

(Doubtless it was, though it was the payday that had been truly awe inspiring. Allowing herself a quick glance up at him, there was no outward reaction. Her smirk remained fixed firmly in place.

It was a simple mistake. Tiny, and barely noticeable. Her gaze lingered too long.

He was supposed to be nothing more than an inconvenience, she ought to have brushed him away the way she would a fly instead of carrying on a conversation)

I'm sure you've found plenty to keep you occupied as well. You don't strike me as the type who enjoys being idle.

[nowonder]

If that's the kind of vocabulary you like to use.

[Oh. He caught that gaze, held it, fairly dared her to look away. His eyes danced with mirth and malice and so much interest, lips quirked wickedly. She was lovely. He could say that to himself without giving too much away.]

[Just better not to look at her mouth.]

I'm never idle, Alice. Hands always busy, one way or another. At this moment my pockets are empty, but you should have seen me an hour ago.

[It was a careless boast, something to occupy his mouth while he watched her. Didn't matter how she took it, didn't really matter what either of them said. He was just happy she was looking at him.]

[decepting]

Well we can't all be so limited.

(Petulant and childish, the sort of thing thrown around on the playground, like pulling somebody's hair to show that you liked them. There was a wholly new kind of danger in his eyes, a challenge, and when had she ever turned down one of those? Don't break, Alice. Not yet.

Except she did. Turning skyward once more as a laugh, high and girlish and altogether unlike her, tumbled from her lips)

It must have been an especially previous little trinket to have made you so proud.

sure did just notice i typed 6 instead of 7 in the first comment l o l

[nowonder]

I bow to your superior diction.

[And he does bow, ironically of course and far too deep, keeping his eyes on her as he doffs his hat. While he's down, she laughs, and he does too, deep in his throat and dangerous. Then he straightens and is suddenly, inexplicably closer.]

It was. Sad I had to get rid of it, but at least I've found something more interesting.

pffffttt I was just rolling with it XD

[decepting]

(the closeness doesn't throw her. for a woman used to dealing in the absurd, this whole exchange was simply par for the course. it's the way he's watching her that unsettles her, just slightly. ordinarily it isn't difficult for her to figure out a given person is thinking, but he's still a bit of a mystery. it's unnerving)

Is this the part where you compliment me, then?

(it's nothing new certainly, the things people will say to get what they want)

Tell me my eyes rival the most precious gems as I swoon into your arms?

(she's teasing, but only slightly. it's almost a dare. like she's waiting for him to give her an excuse to disappear here and now. a kind of privilege considering her limited patience and how very few people could have gotten her to stick around this long)

[nowonder]

Is this the part where I do what you expect me to, you mean?

[He laughs again, dark and deep, and leans in to speak in her ear.]

I never do the expected. Lesson one.

[And he pauses a moment, drinking her in, the smell and texture of her, before backing up, letting his fingers trail along the bark of a tree.]

Maybe you should compliment me. Shake it up.