synflux | ( open ) foolishly laying our hearts on the table, stumblin' in

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( open ) foolishly laying our hearts on the table, stumblin' in

WHO: Elysium, Wriothesley, and YOU!
WHAT: BACHELOR PARTY
WHERE: Various locations in Las Vegas
WHEN: May 15th-16th
WARNINGS: Copious consumption of alcohol, unsafe and insane behaviour probably (it's a night out in Las Vegas, standard warnings apply), I'll add more as they come up

[ On the evening of May 15th, all characters will be receiving the following text. Unless you're you know who, who it's been purposefully filtered away from. ]

🎉 You're Invited to Wriothesley's Bombastic Bachelor's Bash!!! 🎉

Date: May 16th
Time: 11AM — ???
Locations:
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Dress Code: Casual, swimwear

Join us for a day of exciting adventures as we celebrate Wriothesley's last hurrah as a single man, jam packed with activities to make it a time to remember! From aerial rides to skydiving, to a poolside lunch and bar-hopping with party games, it's our time to let LOOSE!

Bar and general venue expenses will be covered by yours truly, but for everything else please plan your budget accordingly. For any questions, contact me here @ hottie.

Whether you know the man or not, the more the merrier! He'll be happy to have you.

Can't wait to see you there!

Your new or old best bud,
Elysium

( OOC: This is an open log, so feel free to thread jack and top level to your heart's content! Characters may join for every prompt or the select few they'd be interested in, assume the locations field contains a detailed timeline of where the crew will be and when. For the bar and clubbing prompt, characters ages 21+ only, please!

No one's actually getting married btw (probably), Elysium just wants an excuse to party. )

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I consider that to be exceedingly gentle. [ A scoff. ] Don't be dramatic.

[ Meanwhile, he's still just sitting and regulating his breathing, focusing on the steady beat of music in their backdrop. If nothing else, it merits a cheekier grin even if his eyes remain closed. ]

Now, what do you have in mind when you say "better"? Wasn't this exercise rather exciting as it was?

[ Who's the coward… him or Sampo… the risk of discoverability makes all the difference in snapping someone back to reality, but at the same time? Hm. That doesn't sound right, either? ]

Says the guy who got us into a whole little script, there.

[Et tu, fellow actor?]

[He also settles back into the seat, gazing over at the man. He's keen enough to notice the deep breaths the other is taking - to calm down? To stabilize himself?]

[How very interesting. He smiles lightly, reaching up a hand to brush his own bangs back thoughtfully.]

...Haha, maybe something with a little more leg space? These knees aren't all they're cracked up to be, anymore.

[Old man that he is, and all.]

But...if I have to be honest. [And he's still keeping that stare, as if daring for him to open his eyes and see his own happy face.] I'll make an exception for anywhere if you happen to be there. I mean it.

You joined in on it, so that point's made moot.

[ That's how it works. Obviously. He exhales a sigh, as if what he'd heard was ridiculous. Another thing to note—a sort of defiance that arises in response to Elysium's pent-up energy. ]

… You say that a lot. [ He has to be honest, Sampo says, and alright, fine. Elysium will take him up on his words and reopen his eyes, gaze boring right into Sampo's own. ] Do you realise? That you "mean" something. A little too used to being protested, aren't you?

[ Maybe as a quiet, little voice in the back of his head, he still wants to contort the smile on Sampo's face. If the body is often said to be the most honest part of one's self, what did it say about Sampo, being able to reign himself in so cleanly? Curious. ]

Well....you have a point....

[Guess he's not winning that argument.]

[The observation makes him blink - ah, he doesn't think he noticed it himself. How astute Mister Elysium is. Sampo brings his hands together, eyes sparkling.]

I say what I mean, and I mean what I say! [And then he's settling back down from that proclamation, though the little smile is nowhere close to leaving.] But well...in this line of work...not many people like a salesman. So I have to work extra hard to show people I'm not here to fleece them, ehe.

Yeah? And it works like a magic charm that makes people believe you?

[ aite sir. To Elysium's credit(?) it's not so much an accusation as it is friendly ribbing. ]

There's nothing I trust more than my own judgement. So, you don't have to try that around me.

[ To take a page out of Sampo's playbook: ]

I'll believe what I choose, and choose what I believe. [ He throws in one of the laughs Sampo's apparently so fond of for emphasis. ] But I'll take your word for it this time, I suppose. It was [ … ] fun, taking the stage with you. I'd hope you don't plan to be just anyone else's co-lead now!

Of course! I mean, look at me. [He winks. Obnoxiously.] Would you doubt a handsome face like this?

[But how interesting. He doesn't have to try, does he? But he tries with everyone. Only another fool would let down their guard. The turn of phrase makes him close his eyes, pleased and fox-like.]

I hope you're not just saying that it was fun for my sake. If you did have fun, then good.

[Now he's leaning back over again to puncture that personal bubble, hand patting the man lightly by the arm.]

Oh? But there's a lot of talented actors out there! Would you be.... [He gasps, dramatically.] Jealous?

[ So Elysium says, but he doesn't expect anything to change if at all. Everything he's called to attention—their game, their stakes, and Sampo's supposed "truths"—have all been ways to better bury them beneath the ground.

Certain things were easier to ignore when they weren't drawn to attention to your attention, is all. There's the ceiling, and then there's the ground. To be crushed, or to be swallowed whole by something unseen? Elysium's own eyes shine. ]

An old-timer's responsibility is to nurture the talents of a fledgling like me, isn't it? [ Sampo's hand is on his arm, and yet, he keeps them crossed. Nor does his gaze stray, like a bird of prey trained on its mark. ] Is it wrong to feel this way for the person who's introduced me to this world?

A fledgling? I wouldn't assume so. You're on my level, here. We're seeing eye to eye.

[Elysium isn't some naive young man who is unaware of anything that is happening. He's shrewd, and sharp, and its why Sampo circles around him in the first place with his metaphorical coils. If he knew nothing, then he simply wouldn't be interesting enough to hold his attention.]

[It's as simple as that.]

Hehe. [And he's almost sheepish, tilting his head. His hand hasn't left.] I dunno about wrong, but...heh. It's a bit flattering, perhaps. You really want to make my ego balloon up like that? I might fly away~

[ As always, Sampo leverages what's convenient to him. Now, they're level. Back at the bar, he'd claimed to be worldlier. They might only be at two encounters, but there's a reoccurring trend here that Elysium refuses to rise up to and acknowledge.

Instead, he cuts through to the crux of the matter—they're throwing aside feigned naivety. ]

Why don't you, then? [ There's a loftier air about him, mouth curving almost dangerously in constast to Sampo's own. ] So many actors out there… but none of them are me.

[ Neither will they be Sampo, but he hadn't been the one to hold on. It's incredible, really, the amount of confidence he's able to exude through his demeanour alone. ]

Has anyone else managed to starstruck you as I have?

[ A rhetoric question. Their dizzyingly fast progression wouldn't have been possible otherwise. ]

[Starstruck sure is a word.]

[He knows its a rhetorical question. But he's never been one to follow things as they should be. Buck trends, spit in the face of rules, dance around order and skirt laws. But even so, such a question bears a thought or two to attach to it. Another thought skates in - he has the brief urge to pull up a finger, trace over the man's lips, that wonderful, tantalizing curve.]

[But he doesn't. Instead, he makes a little finger eight with his index finger over the man's arm, a little thoughtful.]

There's a lotta people I have yet to meet. So maybe I have yet to meet another like that. But...you?

[A little poke, in the middle of where that eight was.]

You're the type who wants to blind me where I stand with what you got. Kinda feels like it. Like looking at the sun.

[ Like the sun, he says.

Isn't that a compliment?

The casual intimacy tickles at his arm. It's tempting to catch hold of that hand, again, to pull him flush and prevent him from looking away. The thoughts are shelved as he drags his leg up to rest his cheek on—since Sampo cares to liken him to the sun, then this sun will shine extra bright, just for him. Just this once. To play along with this one behind-the-scene act. ]

Allow me to pose another question to you. [ There's a beat, as Elysium distantly recalls how Sampo had played with his bangs moments ago. He reaches out to thread his hand in the same spot, fingers gently skimming over his forehead as he does. ] The sun, that you know will burn you if you fly too close… or the unfathomable sea, where you can't see what might be lurking beneath its surface?

[ Elysium knows a thing or two about the sea, unfortunately, and knows better to underestimate it even at its calmest. Like making a ripple, he tucks strands behind the other's ear. ]

There might only be one sun, at least in this galaxy—but even it isn't indomitable. Sure, it rises again, and again. But at the end of the day… it gets swallowed up, too. Should I be flattered?

[Should he be flattered?]

[He is momentarily distracted by the hand that brushes over his forehead, shifting over to slide hair behind his ear. What a gentle gesture. It burns as he remembers the man's teeth on his ear minutes before. What a contrast. Hot and cold.]

[Why, he doesn't even know what he likes better. Both are good in their own ways. He wonder what Elysium likes. The sun both warms and burns in tandem.]

[He brings up the sea, and Sampo shakes his head. The hand at the other's arm trails down to his elbow, cupping it. Look at how nice and gentle he is, too.]

I think you should. Does the sun being swallowed take away from its splendor? Nah. I think not. Just makes it more special when it comes back out of the sea's clutches. The sea can't do such a thing, y'know?

[He hums, eyelids lowering into a lazy look, though the turquoise of his irises always remains sharp.]

No, you're still a sun. Let me be the sea. I already have the blue hair for it. Already built in, wouldn't you say?

[In some other planet, "Koski" means rapids, whitewater. Maybe the water metaphor is more on point than even known.]

[ From the soft caress Elysium leaves along Sampo's ear down to his neck, his fingers will slowly wrap around the column of it, his thumb finding and resting on his heartbeat. His, or Sampo's. Which one is louder? With them beating so relentlessly against each other, it's hard to tell. ]

Coming from the man who'd said he might be ready to fly away? How ironic. [ He chuckles, the sound muffled by the way he's half-curled into his knee. ] They aren't light things to claim or to assign to people, you know. The world could end if the sea decided to abandon its post one day.

[ He pauses, and he'll return the same indolent look Sampo's come to wear. There's no sharpness to it, though. Just a curiosity as to how Sampo will dance his way this go around, as his hand drops to return to his knee. ]

We can be the sun and the sea——but we're people, first. Aren't we?

[ Then, a brilliant smile, reaching every far corner of his expression. It's much like charting foreign territory, this man. He wonders, if for the first time in his life, he'll be lost.

There's another metaphor to be made here, of waters wearing down even the toughest of rock. If the sun decided not to rise one day, could not rise one day, drowned by the abyss of the sea, what would that make of things, then? Its depths always had remained vastly unknown—for good reason. ]

[The fingers curl over his neck just so. Of course, his pulse would heighten at that. From the excitement, from the danger. All Elysium needs to do is just squeeze-]

[But he doesn't. He didn't expect him too, but its nice regardless. Is Elysium trying such things because of him? Toying the line? What else can he tug him into, what else can he make him consider, even if he doesn't act on it?]

[But we're people, first. Aren't we?]

Ha. See, even those metaphors are becoming a mess.

[An exhale, moving to rub a little from jawline to throat where those fingers were. A sea to drown the sun. A man to drown another man into himself, yet the man could burn him, tear his masks away, let his face be seen by the light. Dangerous. This may not be wandering into the territory of actual harm anymore, he thinks, but maybe this is worse.]

[His eyes flick back to Elysium's face.]

But regardless. People are kinda more dangerous as they are, though. A man can make you do things a sun or a sea can never do. Think about it.

Says the person who started them.

[ With a bit of an amused smile. That's the trend, isn't it? Them making messes of everything. ]

I don't have to think about it to know it, Koski. How would you compare your world to this one? [ He hums, as if contemplating his own question. ] Mine could be better. Mine could also be worse. I've travelled every reach of it and have seen and heard all sorts of things, encountered and experienced every natural disaster you can think of. Floods, wildfires, earthquakes. Just to name a few. But what kind of events do you think left lands the most forlorn?

[ People were made to recover, to start anew. Setbacks were just that. The more insidious cases, where dangers and corruption were lurking beneath the surface from a sentient mind—those were the ones that left Elysium helpless. To their scale, a sun or sea couldn't get under your skin. They couldn't worm their ways into your heart unexpectedly, like a person could. Elysium's eyes curve with interest in answer to Sampo's gaze. In a respect, wasn't this why they were so willing to be open to one another? ]

Haha. You don't have to answer that. I was just going along with what you'd said. Besides. You'd get bored, wouldn't you? Being the sea for too long. I wouldn't do that to you.

[ Elysium wouldn't do that to himself, first of all, and trust his sun with Sampo's sea. More than any superficial wound, it would be worse. ]

And you're the one that followed suit! Its like, I sent you an invitation to the circus and you went out and came to it with a clown outfit on, hehe.

[Haha. Masked Fool inside joke. It's fine. He'll laugh at it on the inside.]

[What does make the lands more forlorn? He actually does have an answer to that. It's a little surprising to him, how eager he is to answer Elysium's questions, rhetorial or not. Not like he's aiming to be sincere - this is him they were talking about, and all - but he supposes he just wants to see how the other would react. What faces would he make? What would his brain piece together of this man who calls himself Sampo Koski?]

I do want to answer. Belobog....is a place of unbearable strife. Its a planet literally mostly covered by one giant raging snowstorm. If its not the cold that'll kill you, its the monsters, or the twisted corruption they brought with them. There's only one city left. The great bastion of humanity. And still...some days....I'd take on the snow rather than deal with some of the souls in that place for too long.

[Evil could always be found to take advantage of the weak. Its unfortunately a fact. He's seen it far too many times.]

[His hand moves to ruffle the man's hair, chuckling.]

But anyways, thanks for not making your dear pal into a sea. I already got a lot on my plate as a regular ol' guy, right, sunshine?

Why be in the audience when you could be a part of the show?

[ If he had to protest one thing, it would be the circus metaphor… go along with it he does, but there's no denying that it would go against his sense of aesthetics. Awful.

Anyway, given that they've both been surprisingly candid about aspects external to themselves, Sampo being transparent about his origins ^{(citation needed)} isn't a particular sticking point. One of these days, they might both come to realise that their disclosures might be exclusive to each other, albeit for different reasons; Sampo's in his curiosity to see if Elysium will come to know "Sampo Koski," and Elysium's in not wanting to burden others with knowledge. ]

… Hm. I can think of several places that are like that: blanketed by snow and storms more often than not. But a widespread phenomenon affecting an entire planet is unheard of. In those cases, you'd hope everyone would be able to unite for a better future, wouldn't you? Or at least come together in some regard.

[ Yet, things aren't that simple. It's natural and human nature to prioritise one's own self above all else. He'd once run away from witnessing such blatant corruption, but even now, acknowledging it, what could he really do?

His mouth flattens into a grim line. ]

But you and me both, brother. You and me both.

[ —So much for sunshine would be the thing to say here, if the hair ruffle didn't work to disperse any complicated feelings that'd arisen from their conversation topic. His mouth opens in protest and his hand will be halfway to batting it away, but it stops halfway to allow Sampo to continue to do as he wills, eliciting a softer laugh as he closes his eyes. ]

Yeah, yeah. Lots on your plate here of all places, huh. I suppose even without the sea, the sun will continue to shine.

[ The world could reach a heat death if the sun doesn't set, but whatever!! Right? At any rate, it's an end to how this conversation had begun: whether or not Sampo would remain with him on the metaphorical stage and for how long. ]

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( open ) foolishly laying our hearts on the table, stumblin' in

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