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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[ 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. ]

[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.

[ 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 ]

[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.

[ She's as stiff as a board but doesn't object to him sitting down; in fact, she kind of purposefully attempts to distract herself by tugging at the blankets some until they loosen- yeah, she'll totally share maybe one or two of them if he behaves. See how unendingly generous she is? ]

I guess.

[ Not sounding too convinced, though. That mask thing, the fallout, and then being crushed to death by the moon kinda left a bitter taste in her mouth, even worse than it had been before in regards to the experiments here. ]

... You're not the one with a song you've never even heard before running in your head all day.

[Zack smirks, tugs out his own journal, and opens it up to show off his own horoscopes.]

It hasn't affected me yet, but if it does, I might have you beat.

[ Lightning frowns at him and then frowns at the journal as she pulls it away and lays it across her lap to take a look. ]

... This--

[ A moment later her hand smooths down the page and to the top of it, while the other braces against the spine.

Sooo... what happens if you rip the pages out? :|a ]

Hey, wait a- [...Oh, huh. He's never actually tried that... Zack halts himself before he can take the journal back, peering over at it. The ripped-out page seems to work, with the horoscopes remaining in place and the journal left unchanged otherwise. So... does that mean his aren't coming true?]

...There's no way it can be that easy.

Guess we'll see.

[ Soundin' pretty ominous there as she folds the sheet in fourths and then rips it in half. Chances are she's going to burn it too, first opportunity she gets. She really doesn't even want to think about what his might mean and how they'd manifest. ]

[Zack finally does take the journal, peering at the torn page for a moment before shutting it. And reopening it.

....

And then passing it back over to her. The page is right back where it was.]

I hate to be a downer on the idea, but...

[ ..... >:| "Hide it, no one saw!"

In an instant Zack's journal is gone, snatched up and shoved away who knows where into the couch and the nest of blankets ruling over it. IGNORE IT AND MAYBE IT'LL JUST GO AWAY? ]

Edited 2011-12-03 22:52 (UTC)

[....

Wait, what?

Didn't he have a journal just a second ago?]

Uh, Light? Why did you...?

[Is she being quirky or is that the experiment hard at work again? Damn, he hates when these things are going on, it's always hard to tell.]

What?

[ Her face = utterly devoid of any guilt over her sudden journal kidnapping. Why did she what, Zack? Wanna make something of it? ]

[....Uh...

...

O... kay? A bit of both, maybe.]

Can I have my journal back now?

... I haven't seen it.

[Wh-

-but-

-she just-

FWUH]

Pretty sure you have.

[ She turns her face to look straight at him, tilting her head with a frown. ]

Not today. [ YES SHE'S COMPLETELY SERIOUS. ] Wh-- do you think I took it?

[Oh god Lightning what did they do to your brain. He's quiet for a long moment, mulling this over for a while.

....

....

....

Yeah, screw it. It's time to play "Let's See What Happens When-". Today's episode: What happens when you try to grab your tough-as-nails girlfriend and lift her off the couch to see what's hiding under all of those blankets!]

[ Assuming he's able to get a hold of her- recall that to her it seems like he's throwing out a baseless accusation and that she has no clue at all why he's trying to suddenly grab her.

And also she's freaking crazy and worse than an angry cat if provoked. Good luck, sir. ]

Zack, wha--?! [ She'll try to shove him away first, but then next will come the fists if necessary. ] Cut it out!!

[...Okay this is like holding on to a bag of snakes while trying to ice a cake. He can't get his hand under the cushion or the blankets with her shoving him like that...]

I'm just checking! It could've fallen! Hold still already!

Stop it!! What is wrong with you?!

[ Okay, he is seriously freaking her out now. D: She bats his hands away as best she can, then plants both of hers on his shoulders and shoves as hard as she can from the current angle.

Except. Uh. L'Cie.

Long story short, hoooopefully the couch survives being toppled over backward with Lightning and possibly Zack along with it? ]

[kjsdhfkjhfkds DAMNED L'CIE

Then again he'd probably have done the same thing himself. He is indeed dragged along, landing against the back of the couch with a grunt and a heavy thump. And possibly with her sprawled on top of him. They are a mess of limbs!

There is one bonus to that little disaster- the couch falling back managed to knock aside a few of the blankets, and Zack glances over with a wince to see...]

...Oh, there it is.

[His missing journal has definitely seen better days after a messy drop like that, but...]

[ Lightning lets out a squawk of surprise as they go over, flailing, because while usually she's pretty good at maintaining her dignity when tipped or thrown or knocked down or whatever, it seems struggling with her boyfriend while half-tangled in blankets makes that a touch harder... and it's not even as fun as it sounds! Not cool.

She pushes herself up, gives him a weird look... and then cycles right back to furious. It takes her a moment or two to get any words out, even after she's opened her mouth to do so. ]

What the hell, Zack?

Hey, you're the one who wouldn't even help! I just wanted to find my journal, you could've moved.

[He just. Asked in his own special way...]

Sorry, though. Falling over wasn't really the plan.

Why didn't you just ask me to move, then?

[ Emphasizing words is still a thing, yes, because she certainly didn't get the memo here. She rolls into a crouch on the floor, fighting her way out of the blankets and away from Zack, and-- tugs down the bottom of her shirt over her tiny little girly boxers.

Uh, red in face = definitely all from anger! She turns to eye his journal with a dark frown. ]

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