skeletoncity: (HERMIT)
Gratia ([personal profile] skeletoncity) wrote in [community profile] psychoshenanigans2017-03-17 10:30 pm
Entry tags:

GRATIA // PSL



The first thing he feels is the cold.

It permeates everything down here on the lower levels. What little warmth humans have made for themselves is greedily gobbled up by the stone walls that surround them on all sides. Despite the stirring of people in the streets, in their homes, and around corners, this place feels like a grave. A similar sense seems to loom over the heads of most who make their way through this deep, dark part of the world, hovering around them like a cloud of inevitability. No one has been outright sentenced to death, but they may as well be.

Upon waking, Tek will have found himself in a dark, wet alleyway. Attempts to orient himself reveal that he has been brought, somehow, to an impressively large network of tunnels that all lead, more or less, to three or four larger chambers. There is far more vibrant life above him somewhere, far, far above the layer of caves he's in now, and there is also a very deep, sluggish form of life somewhere far below his feet.

No one is coming to get him. No one follows him in his immediate vicinity--the few stragglers hanging around doorsteps and windows don't give him a second glance, or even a first one. The place is crowded, but not busy. Everyone keeps their heads down. The people are all dressed poorly, in rags and robes and bundles that suggest a certain level of consistent poverty all throughout the level. The buildings in these tunnels look man-made, either built from scrap or carved straight out of the rock of the cave, but the majority of the actual roads and cave walls seem to have been formed with very little help from human hands.

The place is lit with lanterns and dirty-looking florescents suspended high above in the cave ceiling. The air is thick and stuffy, the smell of mold and mud prevalent over even the smell of human stagnation. It would not be hard to drag someone off, and he gets the immediate feeling that if he did, it's unlikely that anyone would come looking for them.

What does he do?
heresyandlace: (smile like a snake)

[personal profile] heresyandlace 2018-12-27 05:40 am (UTC)(link)
[it is a shame that Tonic is taking the high road (so far) on this, as there's very little to discourage Tek from continuing to enjoy this moment to the fullest.]

Yes. It is. I bet you were adorable.

[and then, before either of them can dwell on just how cute he imagines a young Tonic to be, Tek gasps as another thought occurs to him.]

Oh, gods... flying would absolutely kill you, I think.
heresyandlace: (trash from the beginning)

[personal profile] heresyandlace 2018-12-27 06:46 am (UTC)(link)
[that vehemence, combined with that face, gets a good-natured chuckle out of him. how could he not continue the subject, with reactions like that to enjoy?]

I love flying. Especially on a good clear day, when you can really see everything--horizon to horizon.

[it really is a miracle that he hasn't been jabbed with pins yet.]
heresyandlace: (trust me)

[personal profile] heresyandlace 2018-12-27 07:31 am (UTC)(link)
[Tek is perfectly satisfied with the interaction--even treated to a tangible flutter of horror there at the end--so he lets Tonic out of his imaginary sky-prison in peace. he's not feeling that cruel.

he'll let his friend carry the conversation in a presumably more comfortable direction.]


Oh, no? Not even with an escort?
heresyandlace: (above you)

[personal profile] heresyandlace 2018-12-27 06:09 pm (UTC)(link)
Am I that bad? It sounded like it might be fun.

[which are two separate thoughts of his, though he puts them together as if they're related.

he doesn't entirely understand what all is up there, but it's something more than Down Here over and over again--and if there are social feathers to ruffle in the process, that only makes it more appealing. he thinks the idea makes sense, at any rate, if Tonic doesn't have other problems with it.]
heresyandlace: (trust me)

[personal profile] heresyandlace 2018-12-27 06:45 pm (UTC)(link)
Well, that's part of it, obviously. But there are other things to do up there, right? And on the way up?

[he doesn't know if it counts as a "better" offer, because the suffering is still included, but they could at least do whatever they wanted with the rest of their time. what he gathers from Robin's descriptions makes the idea sound appealing, at least.]
heresyandlace: (trash from the beginning)

[personal profile] heresyandlace 2018-12-27 08:04 pm (UTC)(link)
[ah, he has missed people who take time to think before they speak. he actually enjoys the moment of silence, sensing the gears working away in the other man's head.

and even if Tonic doesn't glance up once he finally responds, the smile is there for him in Tek's voice.]


Sounds like good material for a trade, to me.

[they can even treat it like a business transaction. it'll be fun!]
heresyandlace: (above you)

[personal profile] heresyandlace 2018-12-27 08:53 pm (UTC)(link)
[no objections at all--Tek helps up him up and then allows himself to be disassembled as smoothly as possible. he's quite pleased with everything around him, at the moment. the promise of future interactions and trades, custom clothing, the prospect of teasing Robin with his antics. it's all wonderful.

in his contentment, he takes another minute to marvel at the coat that has been built around him.]


...Do you always work this fast, or only when pieces of dead men are involved?
heresyandlace: (sits like a whore)

[personal profile] heresyandlace 2018-12-27 09:43 pm (UTC)(link)
[while Tonic cleans up, Tek leans back against the nearest stable surface and debates whether to go put his shirt back on yet or not.]

It's impressive to watch, in any case. I can only imagine what you would be capable of with more.

[--more time, more resources. he really does find it a shame that such a gem is shut up down in these tunnels. it picks at his meddling instincts. maybe, the next time he's bored, he'll play with figuring out which strings he can start pulling at around here. just for fun.]
heresyandlace: (above you)

[personal profile] heresyandlace 2018-12-27 10:24 pm (UTC)(link)
[he feigns a scoff, looking affronted at the demand.] Surely you're not that short on mannequins here.

[and of course he reaches out for the bundle anyway. though, he will at least inspect the first one before obediently putting it on, just to make sure it isn't too ridiculous.]
heresyandlace: (sits like a whore)

[personal profile] heresyandlace 2018-12-27 10:43 pm (UTC)(link)
[Tek just... closes his eyes. but it is clearly in an effort not to laugh himself. he's going to lose the battle once Tonic is on the way to the back room, because the mental image is too much to take with a straight face, but he vows not to crack before that point.

how stupid.

he's wearing something beautiful and black, admiring himself in the nearest mirror, whenever Tonic finally pulls himself together and returns.]
heresyandlace: (above you)

[personal profile] heresyandlace 2018-12-27 11:33 pm (UTC)(link)
[and now it's Tek's turn to laugh at his own private joke. he halfheartedly fights a smirk at himself in the mirror while he debates what the best answer in this case should be. he would love to tell the truth, but he can only imagine the meltdown that would cause.]

...Yes and no.
heresyandlace: (sits like a whore)

[personal profile] heresyandlace 2018-12-27 11:58 pm (UTC)(link)
[Tek's smirk grows, but it's very fitting for his answer, which is absolutely honest.]

I'll put it this way. I think they would look much better on you than they would on me.

[in his current incarnation, at least. ]
heresyandlace: (sits like a whore)

[personal profile] heresyandlace 2018-12-28 02:57 am (UTC)(link)
[Tek was looking at the shirt and its generous neckline with a good amount of skepticism, until the prospect of a necklace is introduced. that last touch is apparently what was needed for the image to come together in his head, and he obligingly begins to change for his host.

though, with the fact that he's putting on a shirt that is specifically meant to show off a necklace, and it having been stated that one is about to head his way, one might expect that he would take off the one he's currently wearing. but, he doesn't.

once changed, he aligns the neckline attractively along his collarbones, leaves his necklace right where it is as if he forgets it's even there, and looks over to see what sorts of jewelry Tonic will be bringing him.]

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