open ♔ august castle socialization

[wynn]

WHO || Everyone! [ota]
WHAT || Shenanigans.
WHERE || Anywhere in the castle, surrounding environs, London, etc!
WHEN || Any time during August [back and forward dated]
HOW || Actionspam

[ The castle can be a happening place, even on more mundane days. This log is for random interactions over the course of this month.  Because not everyone is into parties, ok.  

You are encouraged to start your own threads and tag around, and feel free to threadjack into any on-going threads that aren't specified as 'closed' in the subject lines since people can enter into rooms even in the middle of what's going on. You can also specify 'single thread', meaning you want only one response for all participants, rather than multi-thread, where a number of different scenes/threads can be done as replies to the top prompt. ]

Comments

[uncurse]

Are you good with these?

[ she makes a gesture back at her gun briefly, because SHE COULD ALWAYS HELP YOU LILA. LET HER BE SUPPORTIVE. ]

[bittersweeter]

I'm sure I could use some help. [She is a lying liar that lies. She is a really, really good shot. (Bluff 28.) But... she wants to let Emma be supportive.]

[uncurse]

[ yeah her sense motive of 12 is thoroughly convinced. thx gurl. ]

Good answer. [ because ~you can always learn more. ] Come on, maybe I can show you a thing or two. [ she steps back, holding out a hand to indicate for lila to pick up her gun. she then moves to pull off her earmuffs. ]

[bittersweeter]

Maybe. [She picks up the gun and it's only knowing exactly how to use it that allows her to fumble with it safely. So there is a cute show of Lila not knowing how to hold it properly until she apparently gets her bearings. Sorry, but this is the girl who convinced someone she's dating royalty. She does not half ass a lie.] Okay, friendly neighborhood elf taught me this much.

[uncurse]

[ emma looks wary for a moment at the fumbling, keeping an eye out for dangerous tilts, but it works out okay and by the end of it lila has the gun securely in her hand the way she's supposed to. she approaches her from behind, putting the earmuffs on the counter. ]

Keep your hands level with your shoulders, and spread your feet apart - about shoulder width.

[bittersweeter]

'kay. [She does that, rolling her shoulder to relax them so she isn't tensed up, and glancing down at her feet, shifting a little until she falls into the correct, and comfortable stance.] Now I shoot?

[uncurse]

Not yet. Keep your eyes on the target, and take a deep breath. Exhale before you pull the trigger, it'll steady your hands.

[bittersweeter]

[Eyes on the target. Deep breath. Exhale. Lila does all that, shifting just slightly so her weight is on one hip because it's more comfortable. Another deep breathe and she exhales as her finger moves against the trigger. (Attack 26.) She glances back at Emma.]

Beginner's luck?

[uncurse]

Could be. [ sense motive 22 SHE HAS SOME BASELESS DISCOMFORT WITH JUST ACCEPTING THAT. but she just nods back at the target. ] One more time. [ so she can get a look at your stance, gurl. ]

[bittersweeter]

[Same set up, she drops her hip right before like its habit and bang. (Attack 22.) Welp. She can't miss. She knows that she should, but she can't make herself miss. Pride, oops.]

My dad was a luck worker. Clearly it's rubbed off. [Haha no.]

[uncurse]

[ yea ok sure ... (sense motive 21). she shakes her head, but she does key into the fact that lila keeps dropping her same hip. ]

Loosen up a little in your elbows, if you lock them out too tight you'll hit the target, but the recoil will wear on your joints a lot worse.

[bittersweeter]

[This time Lila actively listens to Emma, loosening her arms and keeping her posture straight. And... she misses. Well she hits the target, but that isn't good enough for her. (Attack 9.) With a quick, frustrated streak of curses, she relaxed back into her normal stance and fires again. (Attack 20 total.) There's a reason it's habit.]

Okay, so I might actually know what I'm doing...

[uncurse]

"Might"? [ yep that's a little bit of a lecturey look. she leans against the dividing half-wall between lanes. ]

[bittersweeter]

Okay, so I might be a pro. I shoot people for money, god. [She says it with exasperation, but it's put upon and an act.]

[uncurse]

I assume that's the crime family job description and not a cynical take on the Knights. [ you're too young for that much cynicism. then again, you're a youngster brought up an assassin who ... definitely wasn't joking about that before. seeing her actually shoot is pretty solid confirmation on that one. there's a little sadness in the way emma looks at her, because she's good enough that it makes her realize lila's already missed out on her childhood just like emma had lost hers. well, not the exact same, but in principle. growing up too fast, seeing things kids shouldn't be confronted with, and coming out of it completely alone. of course she still wanted emma to show her. ]

[bittersweeter]

Maybe both. I did tell Thomas they were pretty much the same thing. [Of course she did it with flair and effort, but the same thing really.

She watches Emma's expression, lips pursing. (Sense motive 18.) She doesn't like pity. She barely tolerates sympathy.] Please don't get all poor Lila on me. [She flicks the safety and sets the gun down.]

[uncurse]

I'm not - [ emma gives a forced smile that admits she's been caught, and she holds up her hands. ] It wasn't all about you. [ it's because she relates to u gurl. juvenile offenders. ]

[bittersweeter]

I remember. [In detail, their first conversation that started with Holes and poison lipstick. It makes her uncomfortable, having similar backgrounds because Emma is seemingly well adjusted and Lila's knows she never will be because one way or another her power is going to drive her insane.]

[uncurse]

Do you like hot cocoa?

[bittersweeter]

[The subject change throws her for a second and she flounders a little, struggling to grasp it.] Uh, yeah, I guess...?

[uncurse]

Come on. [ she nods toward the door, then holds out her hand. ] And give me that thing. [ the gun. because she's approached this all wrong. ]

[bittersweeter]

[Her small hand twists to hold the barrel, before she hands it over.] Did you get any use out of it on your mission?

[uncurse]

No.

[ and as she takes the gun back, she doesn't sound remotely happy about that. she'd felt useless and unprepared on the mission, something she hadn't added onto her mission briefing to gold. in a world full of magic and facing a brainwashed army, there hadn't been anything she could do. ]

One of my teammates tried, and got all the bullets deflected back at her for her trouble.

[bittersweeter]

[For a split second concern races across her face and then it's back to her default apathetic expression.]

That sucks. [And with that utter lack of comforting platitudes -- Lila is always available for blunt honesty -- she nudges the subject along. Her own mission was so far lame and pretty boring aside from the bright spot of one clever investigator, but it was not worth the vomit inducing claustrophobia of the flight. Maybe she wants to live vicariously through Emma.] What was your mission?

[uncurse]

[ she begins to lead the way out of the firing range, taking a casual walk through the halls of the castle on a course set for the kitchen. ]

Some ally of the knights, Zatanna, she got a distress message via some kind of telepathy that her mother was in danger. Our job was to find her. Except when we did, it ... it wasn't just her, and the danger she was in was a lot more than we'd expected. We reunited them, but her mother was already dying.