thestormishere | ☈ strike #18 (video/...action?)

☈ strike #18 (video/...action?)

ARIES
- You'll get 'The Devil Went Down to Georgia' stuck in your head for the next week.
- You will find a turtle in your laundry.
- Just go sleep on the couch tonight. You don't want to know why.
- Hide it, no one saw!

[ Like everyone else, Lightning wasn't really sure what to think about the odd message that showed up at the front of her journal recently, but it's fairly late in the evening before she makes an appearance on there too-- publicly, without even any filters in place to exclude certain people! An unusual decision perhaps, but... here she is anyway, looking as mildly annoyed as ever as she brushes hair from her face and frowns deeply. Her words are clipped and serious. ]

A few things.

Anyone care to explain the reasoning - if any - of this experiment? [ A beat. ] Actually, I'd just like to know if there's a pattern between the words listed at the top and the sort of guidelines everyone's getting beneath them. Is there anyone looking into this?

[ No, she doesn't understand the concept of a zodiac or the point of astrological horoscopes, shut up. Something like that is a little difficult when nobody else from your world has seen stars or even the real sun in five centuries, you know!

But in any case. ]

Second, does anyone have information on something that's called... [ Another slight pause, this one perhaps a bit embarrassed? Naaaah. ] 'The Devil Went Down to Georgia'?

... Third, this creature...

[ And here is where she leans aside slightly, rustling in what's apparently an 'off-screen' cardboard box a moment before she lifts this handsome beastie up- just long enough for the journal to capture the slow, cautious paddle of its legs in the air, as well as the pink-haired woman's dubious expression as she stares at it.

Then-- nothing, save for a soft sigh. Even though something's obviously eating at her about this, apparently that's all she can think of to say on the matter before giving up and just setting her journal aside to wait for any responses.

Also, to continue moping on the couch, with roughly half a dozen blankets around her. ]

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...Uh, okay. Is there supposed to be a difference? [Because it sure looks like a turtle to him.]

[His increased confidence means that Robert isn't entirely shut down by the prospect of dealing with Lightning's silence. In fact, he's bold enough to venture...]

... As for... o-one of your other questions... I have been trying to discern a pattern, when I have not been... o-otherwise preoccupied. But... so far, I cannot see any obvious ones...

[~~Probably because the generator uses the same things for every category.~~]

Turtles live in water, but tortoises live on land.

[ C'mon man, this ain't hard to understan-- oh fhudsfg, THIS IS STUPID.

She looks away, with a look on her face highly suggestive of tasting something very strongly bitter. One of her hands goes up to pinch the bridge of her nose in annoyance. Song-loop in her head isn't helping, either. ]

I found it. In my laundry.

[O... okay, if it's that important to you, it's a tortoise. Not like he really cares. He crouches down beside the box, wiggling his finger in front of the tur- tortoise. Don't bite, you shell creature.]

What the heck was it doing there?

[Nods sagely.]

Ain't the most popular tune outside of certain regions of the world, I suppose.

More's the pity.

[Pops gum in his mouth, which adds to several pieces already there and makes a slight noise as he chews now.]

Well. I'd be willing to take it off your hands. Imposition though it may be on my part, and all.

[ And here's Hubert in all too casual clothes, including a short-sleeved shirt as he considers her first question. There's only so much he can offer when he's incapable of reading anything. ]

The guidelines may have something to do with astrological horoscopes. However, I have no way of confirming this without cross references.

[ She watches silently, kind of expecting it to try and bite him. Doesn't seem like something that is going to happen, however, so she sighs as she shifts in her blankets and sets an elbow on the armrest. ]

Beats me. But...

[ ... Hnn she doesn't really want to do this, but it's easier to show him than try to explain. Frowning, she opens her journal with her free hand to the page with the horoscopes and holds it out to him. ]

[ She doesn't know Hubert well enough to know if that's 'normal' or not, though she is not quuiite as stand-offish as she's been before towards him. Problem is... conversation's once more about something she doesn't know anything about- ]

'Astrological horoscopes?'

[ A-wha-wha-what, now? It's a wonder she's able to parrot that back without trouble, really. ]

[ How to put this . . . He decides that it's more important to point out the loose connection than to sweat the details too much just this once. ]

Signs based on interpretations of the relationship between astrological phenomena and the human world. They're believed to be major determinants of specific personality traits. There are twelve signs: Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces.

I'm not from 'Earth,' if that's what you're meaning by 'world.'

[ Yeah, she's found that those who are tend to also be the ones who do what he just did- who not only don't think about specifying their own world versus this one or others, but just assume everyone must be the same as them. Probably because there's so many of them or something?

As for the offer to take her new slow-plodding friend... she considers a moment, tensely. If it's not obvious yet that this is a woman who lives mired in suspicion-- honestly, it should be. ]

Why?

Well, given that's the world the song you're asking about came from, I didn't feel it necessary to elaborate.

[Honestly, he's been here a week or a little longer, so multiple worlds is still just new to him. Not that he'd admit it.]

Got one myself. Thought he needed a friend.

[Totally thinking of making turtle soup. Yeah.]

[Zack takes the journal, peering at the horoscopes for a moment before offering it back.]

Huh. I found those in my journal too, but I didn't think much of it. But you're on the couch, and you found-

[....]

...Your journal says it's a turtle.

Easy enough to write them for you.

[And with that, Derek changes to text]

The devil went down to Georgia, he was looking for a soul to steal.
He was in a bind 'cos he was way behind and he was willin' to make a deal.
When he came across this young man sawin' on a fiddle and playin' it hot.
And the devil jumped upon a hickory stump and said: "Boy let me tell you what:
"I guess you didn't know it, but I'm a fiddle player too.
"And if you'd care to take a dare, I'll make a bet with you.
"Now you play a pretty good fiddle, boy, but give the devil his due:
"I bet a fiddle of gold against your soul, 'cos I think I'm better than you."
The boy said: "My name's Johnny and it might be a sin,
"But I'll take your bet, your gonna regret, 'cos I'm the best that's ever been."

Johnny you rosin up your bow and play your fiddle hard.
'Cos hells broke loose in Georgia and the devil deals the cards.
And if you win you get this shiny fiddle made of gold.
But if you lose, the devil gets your soul.

The devil opened up his case and he said: "I'll start this show."
And fire flew from his fingertips as he rosined up his bow.
And he pulled the bow across his strings and it made an evil hiss.
Then a band of demons joined in and it sounded something like this.
When the devil finished, Johnny said: "Well you're pretty good ol' son.
"But sit down in that chair, right there, and let me show you how its done."

Fire on the mountain, run boys, run.
The devil's in the house of the risin' sun.
Chicken in the bread pan, pickin' out dough.
"Granny, does your dog bite?"
"No, child, no."

The devil bowed his head because he knew that he'd been beat.
He laid that golden fiddle on the ground at Johnny's feet.
Johnny said: "Devil just come on back if you ever want to try again.
"I done told you once, you son of a bitch, I'm the best that's ever been."

And he played fire on the mountain, run boys, run.
The devil's in the house of the risin' sun.
Chicken in the bread pan, now they're pickin' out dough.
"Granny, will your dog bite?"
"No, child, no."

[ No-- okay, maybe. At least she acts mostly human once you get to know her, though. ]

Thing at the front of my journal? Said I'd--

Find a turtle in my laundry.

[ Y E P. And that's where the tail end of her words muffles out a bit... probably because she's ducked her head in endless annoyance. ]

[ There's a bit of silence even after he's finished writing, while Lightning reads through the words once more in full. In her opinion? Utterly bizarre... although at least now she's got assistance in avoiding the repetition of the same damn brief line over and over and over-- the journal said it would be a week. It had better just be a week...! ]

Thanks... I think.

I see... [ A soft but obviously exasperated sigh. ] And chances are getting everyone to cough up enough information to pinpoint anything has to be next to impossible anyway.

[ Kinda bitter? Yep, though she doesn't have too much room to talk. It's remarkable she made this inquiry to the journals at large in the first place, given that natural reticence over exposing any weaknesses. ]

[ Sometime while Light is moping on the couch, Aerith is going to sit on part of it. She is also going to start distracting the tortoise with bits of lettuce, placing them out in a little trail to get it moving along the floor. It's cute to watch, okay. ]

[ She gives him a look. The darkest freakin' look-- and then abruptly snatches the journal from him and shoves it away somewhere into the couch. ]

I know. But I--

[ Well, and then... she's always been pretty good at the mixed expressions thing, and right now she's managing to look both exceptionally annoyed and-- pleading as she looks at him. SHE DOESN'T WANT TO BE LIKE THIS BB HONEST. ]

... This is really messing with me.

[ AND SHE IS GOING TO BREAK SOMEONE'S FACE IF IT DOESN'T STOP SOON?? DX ]

Stars?

[ While he's talking, now she remembers having heard that term before in part-- or so she thinks. Astrological is about the same thing as astronomy, right? ]

There actually any truth in that?

[ She sounds pretty dubious, but considering the sort of thing that runs as 'normal' from where she grew up...? ]

[Oooooh, burn; if looks could kill he would be one dead soon-to-be-dead fellow. He blinks, then smiles faintly and shrugs, sitting down on the couch beside her, shoulder to shoulder.]

It's making you do some weird stuff, right? But you know, you're still yourself. So you've got a turtle! ...Tortoise, whatever! And so you're on the couch instead of in bed! You could be cartwheeling around the house or something.

[ That's a good question. The thing about astrology is that it's much less . . . concrete than astronomy, to his knowledge, but he's no expert on the subject. ]

You could say that it's largely superstitious given its divinatory nature, though the seemingly strong correlation between the signs and their descriptions, among others, contributes to its popularity.

[ And Lightning just watches, after a minute or two pulling her knees up to her chest and folding arms up over and around them. Face remains as serious as ever, though. ]

... What are you trying to do?

[ Well okay, she can sort of tell already... but why? ]

[ A noticeable pause- it's not that she suspects the exact reasoning behind him asking for the tortoise or anything. Rather, she just doesn't trust him at all so far... ]

... I'll make sure to tell you if I can't figure out what to do with it.

[ 1: getting Light to stop moping so much. And hey, if she is paying more attention to Aerith and tortoise antics, it's at least a partial success?

2: ]

Training him for a race with a hare.

[ ... No that's not it, she's just messin' with Light. It's really that the guy needs to eat anyway and this is an entertaining way to do it ~~she would love those silly pointless youtube clips of pets~~. ]

[He's hurt. Or. You know. Amused. Something. Probably.]

Would be a kindness, Sugar.

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☈ strike #18 (video/...action?)

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