open to anyone & everyone all at once: bone readings for any interested chars! feel free to take advantage for double magicka claims during this event!
It was that time of year again.
Well-... It felt like it, anyway. A little cooler, with those chilly breezes sweeping through and that strange electric feeling in the air. It wasn't like the caves had proper seasons, but sometimes they certainly mimicked them, and this one was Giggle's favorite. Something about it made her really enjoy lounging around the bones, watching her crow-like familiar (with her one red eye) circling overhead, and all that sort of spooky stuff.
The new body paint, featuring a skull among other things, along with her new baubled necklace and other cool accessories definitely left her feeling pretty badass. Or at least spooky.
That was it, wasn't it? -It was spooky season. The time when bones tended to just pick up and walk around, and shit like that; the perfect time to be decked out in said bones, or to have a spooky crow familiar. Maybe it'd be a good time for others to come and have their fortunes told, if they fell into the same sort of enjoyment of the season that Giggle did.
She mentally shrugged, and settled in next to the pit. Think anyone will come, if I call out? she asked Omen, idly, along the link. The bird, who often sent back meaning and intent and feeling, couldn't actually understand words, and so what she sent back was a loud caw.
Giggle shrugged, visibly this time, amused; she looked out over Canis, and hoped that someone might come to visit anyway. She opened her jaws, tilted back her head, and let out a magic-infused cackle: super spooky, super echoing, rippling across Canis.
"COME ONE, COME ALL, AND HAVE YOUR FUTURE PICKED FROM CANIS'S BONES!" she cried.
Bebby didn't have much reason to be in canis, as it was very far away from where she usually got her food, and the stuff there wasn't very good, and the walk here was already taking its toll on her, her fur a depressing deeper blue rather than its usual baby pink, her bangs a depressing black, which in all honesty was convenient for the spooky vibe, not convenient because it meant she was crashing and she was very tired. she sadly munched on some rock candy, stomach gurgling, but perking up when the heard the call of a witch!!
a witch??? no, no, just giggle. would bebby even know what a witch is? what a giggle is? would it matter? either way, she heard it, and she got super excited. finally, something exciting!
she bounded over, wings flittering to keep her jumps long and make her stupid huge paws move just a little faster, practically faceplanting when she landed on the ground near giggle and her bones.
"me me me me me!!!" she said, jumping right back up. "i wanna have the bones tell my future!!! that sounds so awesome and cool!!!! do you need payment? do you like candy?" she asked, million miles a minute. "you look so awesome!!!"
in true bebby fashion, she was alot. and that's valid.
Let it be said that Giggle had had plenty of unusual visitors before--from things that glowed to things that were giant to things that flat-out had three heads. And she'd sort of adopted that one and she loved him, so she definitely wasn't against strangeness.
But when the multicolored fairy-cat came bounding out of the shadows (with LONG bounds, too, like half-flying bounds) cheerfully calling out to her, she was a little... well, she blanked. And given all she'd seen, it wasn't that it was the weirdness of it all. It was more that... it was so... colorful, and cute, and enthusiastic, and--well, yeah, weird; and here she'd been in Spooky Witch Mode.
It was like a ballerina had suddenly charged into a goth party, black bangs aside.
But she did her best to gather herself--not least of all because she was staring, and that was rude. Overhead, Omen gave a haunting cry, and that helped her sort of get back into that spooky witch mode once again. She managed to avoid starting with an awkward "ahem." "The bones need no payment; I am their conduit, and it is my duty to pass on their knowledge!" She phrased it as stiffly as she could, with a quavering and deep-voiced undertone, to sound very professional and eerily full of wisdom and all that; but really she was still goggling at the candy stripes. Which brought her next question to bear: "-Also, what is candy?" A pause, and she added (in the same stiffly noble tone), "The bones have not heard of candy."
Which was a lie, really. She didn't know shit about what the bones did or didn't know about candy. Hell, she could ask them, even. But-...
"I will ask the bones of your future, then-... Do you have a specific question, or shall I see your future as a whole?" She drew upright, proud of her use of "shall." It sounded very important and wise, at least to her. She sent out a brief spate of black mushrooms, a little creepy carpet to pave her way--or well, around her way, because she didn't step on the poor things.
Belatedly, it registered that this thing might, in fact (despite the horns and wings) be a cat; she stifled her distaste, but felt a sinking in her stomach. Cats... never ended well.
it doesn't matter how successful giggles attempt at being spooky was, because bebby seemed starstruck anyway. she let out a very impressed "oooh!!!!! spooky!" under her breath at the funky shrooms and how cool this hyena was.
she smiled. "yes yes! i wanna know my future! all of it!! i didn't know bones could do that, that;s super cool... when i have bones do you want them???? you seem to like them. oh oh! yeah! candy is super sweet sugary stuff, its really tasty, i have some growing on my back! its delicious! right- bones! bones. bones are cool! future time?" she rambled. dear fucking god her voice was so loud and shrieky. by the end of it she took a big gasp of air and sat back down patiently, smiling with a wide toothy grin.
she was being very polite and sitting very nicely.
It was getting difficult to keep the whole "eerie soothsayer" act on--not that all of it was an act, of course, but forgive the old hyena for dramatizing. It was just hard facing such enthusiastic... brightness.
She stared for a beat, nonplussed, and then put the spooky tone back on. "WELL, then let us see your future!" The information about candy, however, she just sort of tucked away. She hoped it didn't come across rude, but she honestly was still trying to figure out how to respond to that. The cat wanted to feed her stuff that was growing on it..? Well, that alone wasn't that odd (Giggle could grow mushrooms that were edible, herself) but the enthusiastic description of them as sweet threw her off. She didn't really know much about sugar or sweetness; meat and marrow were her usual fare. So she left that topic alone, for now.
The loud shrill nature of Bebby's voice didn't help her focus, either, and she put on her most dramatic showman's voice as she commanded: "To commune with the bones, I will need total silence..." A look she hoped was mysterious was fired Bebby's way, because really she didn't know how much her ears could take. But the cat thing seemed friendly enough, and Giggle didn't dislike her. It was just-... She was very, very different than what the matriarch was used to.
She padded past the carpet of little black fruiting fungus to her bone pit, and stepped in up to her wrists; there she prodded her snout through the bones and searched for one to use in her reading. "The bones would always appreciate more company... the dead guide us," she said, as she searched, in answer to Bebby's other offer. "But payment isn't needed for your reading." She plucked out a small, rather fancy-looking bone--one bleached white by age and light. It stood out a bit against the worn and yellowed bones, and the ones stained by blood or charred by flame, and Giggle was delicate with her jaws as she carried it up to the ledge at a trot.
She paused at the top, turning to face Bebby (and giving her another long, dramatic stare) and then the pit. Show me, bones, she requested, what lies in this one's future. Omen circled ominously overhead, trying to be helpful for the mood, letting out another haunting call as Giggle released the bone to clatter down into the pit.
Giggle watched it fall, taking note of the way it scattered other bones without breaking despite its smaller size; she watched, too, as it bounced in one direction, only to be covered by other tumbling bones--vanishing at last from sight. Interesting. A glance at Bebby, then; if the bones were right (and they always were) this candy-striped kitten was much different than she seemed.
"I see something... strange," she began, putting on once more that theatrical voice. Then she paused, considering how best to word it to sound very sophisticated. "That which you use to defend yourself... will harm others. I see violence without thought; harm, without logic behind it... perhaps anger lashing out, or maybe a defense accidentally harming someone. But I see strength in you, too, a warrior's strength to meet your troubles head-on, with courage. A WARNING!" she went on, her voice suddenly loud; one paw smacked against the stone for emphasis--too hard. Ouch, Giggle thought. It took her a beat to remember what she was saying, but since she was staring at Bebby, she hoped it'd just come across as a very dramatic pause.
"I see a risk in your future. One that promises to reveal a secret, a mystery; but it bodes ill! Do not take that risk, when it comes..." Giggle trailed off. She'd been about to address the cat, but realized abruptly that she hadn't (had she?) gotten her name. If she had, she'd missed it; either way the bizarre demeanor and appearance had completely distracted her from her usual "introductions first, reading second" approach. Shit.
"I am Giggle, the Bone-Reader," she said, with a tone of deep importance, trying not to feel too foolish; "-and who are you..."More dramatic, Giggs-"...who Chance has cursed?"
Bebby nodded at giggle's words, opening her mouth to speak when she was finished a few times, but was shushed when silence was requested, she could be quiet!
she shimmied over, to watch hopefully, but her view wasn't very good. was it impolite to look? she would ask but she was told to be quiet.
she listened, and as giggle spoke, she seemed to... slow down. actually, she was almost deathly still after giggle finished talking, her face fallen into some sort of blank expression that almost looked thoughtful if not... mildly afraid?
she blinked, a few times.
could i hurt people? she asked herself.
no, no of course she couldn't. she'd never hurt anyone! what would she do that could hurt someone? why would she ever lash out? she didn't get angry! (yes you do!)
but thats what the bones said. and the bones are smart, right? this lady is smart, right? was it mean to call her a liar? would it be disrespectful to claim the bones had lied?
had they lied...?
her next words came out... shaky, almost, while still having that interesting cheery tone, which was creepy combined with that blank terrified stare. it was such a striking difference from her demeanor only seconds before and even if it looked like she was holding back actually crying pretty well, her eyes were wet.
"why am i so upset?" "thank you, miss. the bones are very kind for the warning."
she looked up, soul only shattering more at the interesting title she was given.
"I am Strawberry Extravaganza Glitterpaws, but you can call me Bebby. thank you, miss giggle." she said, forcing the slightest smile, trying to be polite.
before she did anything else, she seemed to back away and sit down for a little while, reaching behind her best she could to bite off a piece of candy from her back, and just... nurse it in the corner. she was processing.
really, any other gembound might not react the way she did. she was already not having a good day, her moods were always extreme and overwhelming on days where her sugar levels crashed to almost zero, but this was just upsetting, which might explain it, but even she didn't know why she had such an extreme reaction to words that in all reality didn't mean much if she didn't let them.
she made the internal decision to never hurt anybody. foolish, of course, as it'll happen eventually, but she was determined that whatever she'd do she'd just be happy, all the time, with no fail, and it was gonna be fine! she was gonna make friends and she was gonna be awesome.
her mood seemed to improve with that thought, fur slowly shifting back to pink as she enjoyed her sugary treat. everything would be fine, and nothing could change that!
all things aside, bebby looked kinda funny from an outside view, all sad in the corner and then all the sudden shes fine and playing in the dirt. what a time to be alive.
The 'thank you' earned a stern nod, and Giggle was about to speak--a simple 'you're welcome' and so on--when the strange candy-cat went on.
"I am Strawberry Extravaganza Glitterpaws, but you can call me Bebby."
Giggle's mouth closed again, and it was probably a good thing she was a mere hyena because any humanoid's face would have contorted in confusion. As it was her stare was blank, her dark eyes unblinking as she tried to process this--even as Bebby moved off into a corner to nurse her own candy and think over what she'd been told, Giggle stared off at nothing, and tried to do the same.
Strawberry Extravaganza Glitterpaws.
It's not like we can't name ourselves whatever we like, but I've never heard a name so, uhh... She lifted her head at last, ink-tipped muzzle pointed toward Bebby, and blinked as she finally realized the cat's apparent shift in body language. Did that upset her-? Or is she just thinking? she wondered. And then, too, Giggle realized something else: she was changing color. The shift from blue-ish to pink had her blinking, once again wondering just what Bebby was.
Maybe one of Nemean's kids..?
Giggle was torn between dropping character--that all-important grim-voiced showman--and offering concern. "The show must go on," and all that, but she didn't want to send anyone away genuinely upset, either. After a moment she settled for something in between, pacing a couple steps closer before (finally) replying. "You are always welcome to the wisdom of the bones; it is good to have visitors," but even she couldn't bring herself to say the full name. And anyway, the cat had said to call her Bebby. "...Bebby." The cat looked like she were playing, now, and Giggle was puzzled, but didn't mention it. "If you hold other questions... or concerns! I am here. And until someone else comes-" she shot a glance back to the bone pit, in case of other arrivals, then looked back to Bebby. "May I ask where you're from?"
It was friendly curiosity, but she also wanted to make sure the cat was all right before she just... left her there, or something.
Origin Cave was host to a surprising amount of big, purple monsters, and there was something you should come to know about said big, purple monsters: they were also big, purple gossips.
As such, Vargas had once told her about an all-seeing (hah!) bone witch (ha-hah!) with the ability to tell your fortune. He'd even had the gall to (maybe) feign disbelief when Vakornol barked a laugh into his face and shook her head. Why wouldn't she? A friendly date hunting meadow deer was the perfect place for such a joke. Perhaps the Master didn't put much stock into such fortunes and futures (or maybe he did, whatever), but he'd been serious enough.
So, it went onto her agenda to look for a so-called Bone Pit next time she happened through Canis.
And, would you look at that? A hole full of bones! What was that there around the edge? A multicolored puff and a terribly-disfigured "dog"? Must be visitors! Vakornol shrugged her shoulders, picking up the pace with relaxed, confident strides.
Chartreuse fixed right on Giggle, a curious tilt to her head. The hyena was asking the cat—Bebby, she'd overheard—about whence she came, which gave a perfect opportunity for Vakornol to give her a studious once-over. The valkhound vaguely recalled seeing her at that... one time Kalama tried to challenge a Bone King (or something) to honorable combat for his title. Though, her snout had been buried in a bag of popcorn, much to Algol's chagrin.
In either case, Vakornol stood a polite distance away before interjecting, "Nice new getup you've got there." She hummed with an upward tilt of her head. "Very esoteric-lookin'."
... she hoped she wasn't remembering the wrong person, actually.
He heard the call from the tunnels outside of Canis. He didn't much like wandering too deep into the room of bones, with the remains of so many generations of undead crunching beneath his feet. It was disturbing to think about, having such careless disrespect for the long dead to leave their remains just scattered across the floor, and so deeply sad that he struggled to even take a few steps in. Also it smelled.
But the call intrigued him. Reading the future? The bones could tell the future? He'd never known such a thing, personally, but perhaps there was some kind of magic or spell that let someone see through the bones. Even then, it was amazing they could tell the future! And now that he was thinking about it, he could have sworn hearing about a fortune teller living deep in Canis, that read the future from the bones with terrifying accuracy.
He gulped, standing at the edge of the bone field. He was just too curious to resist. With a deep breath he launched forward, immediately taking to the air, however low it was, soaring towards the source of the call.
He circled over them for a moment, ears erect and listening to their conversation (but not for too long - eavesdropping was rude, after all!) just in time to figure out which one was the supposed "bone reader". And also the cat's name (oh my she was so pretty and sparkly!).
Arc angled forward and landed a short distance away, one a bare rock without any bones, to allow them to finish up their conversations before he stepped in. "Hello!" he chirped politely from his perch. "Did you say pick the future from bones?"
Her attention was taken then by two new visitors: one she had seen before, in passing (and never truly spoken to) and another who was a total stranger to her. The first had been seen in... questionable company: Rezik and the Collector. And they reminded her, strongly, of Orthoclase-Alpha. "Esoteric," though? Giggle stopped herself from quizzically asking what the word meant (she had to at least pretend to be all-knowing) and noted that this one might be a few notches sharper than Alpha had been.
Less easy to fool. Not that she usually had to fool anyone; hopefully Vakornol wouldn't turn out to be as violent.
The second stranger gave her serious pause, and she had to blink a few times to understand what she was looking at. There were two impressions that struck her at once: one of celestial flame and light, the other of cat. Giggle blinked as these two disparate thoughts struggled for brief dominance in her brain, because starshot fire-beast was incredibly impressive but cat was a hateful concept to its core.
Eventually she decided it wasn't quite catlike enough to be worthy of real hate, and anyway she tried--she did try--not to judge even cats too harshly before getting to know them some. So she offered her visitors their greetings in turn.
"Hello! Hello, and welcome to the bones... Will you have your future read?" she asked both of them at once.
Giggle took a breath, called on her magic and tried for a spooky cackle for effect. The magic jolted her, so that she stumbled forward a step and let out first a squeak, and then a hacking cough. Ahhh shit! she thought, and quickly tried to cover for the abominable failure.
"AHEM! What would you ask of the bones? What would you see?" It was a simple enough question but an important one: did they have a specific question to ask, or did they each want just a reading of their futures?
