─── ❝ 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒔

[lokison]

xxxxxx( ❤ ) ──── Ｂａｓｔ Ｈｏｌｌｉｄａｙ
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
xxxx❝ us cast gotta stick together; we can go anywhere & do anything ❞
[ host to anubis ] ❤ [ kitty/kit-kat/bee ] ❤ [ 25 ] ❤ [ female ] ❤ [ tags: Bastian, Delphine, Space, Celeste ]

The slender brunette had been pacing round the room for a while muttering to what seemed like herself. Heck, she even argued with herself and all because she was trying to figure out what had happened and why she felt like she was constantly being watched. Stop pacing mortal, you are making me dizzy. Growled a gravelled voice and what felt like twitching of perked up ears. Bast raised a hand and shook her head, pinching the bridge her her nose. "How can I remain calm? None of this makes any sense." The girl said with a frustrated sigh before lifting her head and looking at the wall in front of her. "And can you not do that? It feels... weird." She added with a wave her her lifted hand. An amused laugh echoed in her ears and once more the sensation of twitching ears fell over her. I can no longer stop what is natural to me as you can stop breathing, mortal. It remarked, the amusement obvious. She took in a deep breath and exhaled before shrugging, giving in to a battle that she clearly can't win. "Fine but at least stop calling me mortal I have a name just like I'm sure you do. So use it." Bast would accept that she was hearong and feeling things but she be damned if she was going to be belittled like this by some voice in her head.

After hearing real live voices from the other room, the girl walked out to see four familiar faces." You guys okay?" She asked them while walking towards the quartet. It was Bastian, Celeste, Delphine and Space. As she drew nearer, she noticed that the lad named Bastian was holding a book with a strange illustration. She felt a strange attraction to the illustration on the page.

[poppyxoxo]

| 25 | female | she/her | Kagutsuchi | location: guest cabin | mentions: x | tags: Enya, Naomi |

Upon hearing Naomi speaking, Delphine turned to her with a sheepish look painted across her features. "Unfortunately, I can't help you with the context part but-" she paused while digging around in her pocket to pull out a sheet of painkillers "-always carry some of these with me" she finished the sentence, offering over the only ones that she had left. Delphine figured that she hopefully wouldn't be needing them because right now she wasn't exactly in pain, just really groggy. "I feel a bit red, now that I think about it." The redheaded woman was growing uncomfortable with the thought of not knowing whatever situation they were in so that she could at least help but even if she did, she almost didn't have the energy. Her head was beginning to pound like it normally had when she had overheated as a child but oddly without the feeling of actually feeling the heat which she was both glad for and really confused about.

"Yeah, c-could you maybe get me some water please? Or an ice bath?" she asked in a weak attempt to make a joke. "I'm glad to hear that you're doing ok, or at least functioning how you should be for the time being" she concluded, not wanting to hug her friend in case her own heated skin was slick with sweat. "En, if you need some of the painkillers I gave some to Naomi but hopefully there should be enough for you as well. I won't need some anyways because I don't think it can actually fix how warm you say I feel to the touch. Maybe once we have all been given a while to recover, we could branch outside and see what is there to offer?"

[No one]

Space Jones/People may call him Ace/Male/22 years old/Tags: Celeste, Bastian/Apollo/Heterosexual/No known romantic relationship status/Ability: Diseased Arrows
Space had been with the other people for quite some time and he was getting used to them, well some of them. He was still very confused as to why he was here and what was going on and he had sweat beads on his face. When he first got here his stomach ached and he had a major headache that both left him feeling really weak. Luckily the stomach ache was gone and the headache was still felt it was pounding on his forehead like a hammer, but it was at least manageable now. He felt himself regain his strength a little bit as he sat up. Immediately his headache pounded more and small black dots were in his field of vision. He closed his eyes for a few seconds and took a deep breath. As he opened his eyes, the black dots began to disappear from his vision. He looked around to see some people mingling and others by themselves. There was a very small group gathered next to Bastian. He liked Bastian a lot. He was a really cool man and despite Bastian’s age difference from him, Space felt like he was talking to someone his age. His energy was really refreshing for Space.

As he walked over as quickly as his weakened legs could get him to the group huddled by the book, when he got there, he examined the page he had open something in his mind was tugging him to that page. Like an attraction to the illustrations on the page. Why would he be attracted to a book and an illustration on a page. He looked over to Bastian as he talked to him and said, “Yes I guess I am with you.” He looked around to see a female along with himself and Bastian examining the book. He heard footsteps approaching as he turned to see another female walk up. It was Bast walking up to the three staring at the book and the other female was named Celeste. He tilted his head slightly and murmured, ”Where did you find this Bastian?”

Bastian was a young man who had chocolate brown eyes and dark brown hair that was naturally curly. Space could catch a faint scent of smoky leather from him. Bastian was someone that liked being around people. In the short time they had both been together, Space had seen some of Bastian’s personality come out. He was sweet-natured and gentle and it seemed when Space examined him talking to others in Space’s mind, he was already a very likable person. Bastian was someone that Space felt that he could really get along with because of how similar they were and in general Space really felt that he could connect to him.

Celeste was a young woman who he didn’t have really interaction with at all so he wasn’t sure what she was like in a conversation and he really hadn’t examined her from a distance to get a feel for her personality. Was it wrong of Space to examine from a distance people’s personality just so he could stay away from the people he doesn’t think he would get along with and stay with the people that were his cup of tea. She had wavy shoulder-length black hair that Space noticed was usually kept down and she had dark brown eyes. It seemed a lot of people he examined eye color wise had brown eyes. He himself was a hazel and maybe just maybe he would have liked to have different colored eyes like maybe one brown and one blue. Ya now that would make him unique and stand out from the rest.

Bast was a young woman who smelled of old books and petrichor. The old books smell brought back memories of the times his mother went up to the small family library that smelled like old books and read him stories before bed when he was really little. Space did fall asleep of course. It was a classic thing for any small child to do during a story. He remembered his mother telling him that she would carry him into bed and give him a kiss on the forehead before exiting the room. He loved when he was little and had story time with his mother. It was thing he looked forward to every day when he was little. Bast had brown hair as well as brown eyes. Man everyone he had described seemed to have brown eyes.

He turned his attention back to the book he was very much interested in. He was still attracted to the illustration on the page and he couldn’t figure out why he was. Was it something to do with where they were because if it was he didn’t know how to help the people here with him. He was still very confused, but hey look on the bright side Space, he told himself, your feeling better and we can figure out what is going on later when your less confused. He said to the three others looking at the book, “Does anyone else feel oddly attracted to this illustration on this page and the book itself.” He replied to Bastian about his comment that “There’s gotta be some value to this thing.” by saying, “I think there has to be some value to this book, but I don’t know how it could be valuable. The thing is and I’ll speak for myself that I am very confused as to where we are and why I feel attracted to this book.” Shaking his head he said looking to each of the people gathered there for a few second before returning his gaze to the book, “Anyone got any ideas as to what this book means and why I feel so attracted to it?”

Everyone he had seem had felt pretty bad three hours ago. Not to say that he was feeling a hundred percent, no where close to feeling that way, but he was at least feeling a little bit better. He wondered what the people looking at the book had felt three hours ago. He had a stomach ache that was gone and a headache that was unbearable. His headache was still around pounding at his forehead, but the headache was at least bearable for now. The sweating he had three hours ago was here to stay he felt and he wasn’t sure why he felt this way. He was just confused in general and if he thought more about this now he felt he would just get even more confused than he already was. He said, “So how is everyone feeling so far?”

[No one]

Edalyn O’Connell/People may call her Eda/Female/24 years old/Tags: Open/Artemis/Bisexual/No known romantic relationship status/Ability: Communicating with Animals
Edalyn felt the pounding of her heart as she came out of being unconscious. She felt dizzy as she got up and sat from her laying position on the cabin floor. Immediately she felt back to the ground to lay down from her sitting position. She felt dizzy and she HATED feeling weak. She was supposed to be the strong one. She was supposed to be the fiery and strong woman she was, but something wasn’t right. Something was definitely not right with her right now. Maybe it was the heat because it was really hot out right now wherever they were. Wait! Where were they! She was so confused on everything right now. She didn’t know where she was, she was weak, and she was not feeling 100%. A rush of adrenaline coursed through her veins and she stood up quickly legs shaking and managed to hoarsely say, “Where in the world are we? Why do I feel so bad right now?”. Dizziness hit her like a wave in the ocean and she fell back to the ground. Maybe she should just lie there for a moment.

As she laid there she thought about her family. Oh how she missed her family. As much as she butted heads with her twin sister, Lily, and disliked her younger brother, Otix annoying traits to him, she loved them both so much. It hurt to not see them and considering she didn’t know where she was and what this place was, she might never see them again. Edalyn sighed and turned her head to look around. All she could see was the walls of the cabin she was in. Great. She heard other voices, but wondered where they came from. She had to find out where those voices were coming from and where the other people she was were.

As she gritted her teeth against the dizziness that attacked her, she sat up and thought to herself with a confident tone, see your still strong in your weakest moments. Look at this I’m sitting up and the dizziness isn’t so bad. Your doing it Edalyn, your really doing it. As she slowly stood up, she resisted the urge to stand up really fast and now resisting the urge to sit back down on the floor as the dizziness came again. Her head pounded from a headache and sweat was on her face. As she stood up, her legs wobbled and she fell to her knees. Her brown hair in a tight ponytail flopped against her wet face sticking to her cheeks and side of her face. As she brushed her ponytail hair back with her hands that were sticking to her face back she tried again.

This time her efforts were a success. She could stand without anyone helping her or needing to sit down again. She walked a few wobbly steps and she looked down at her hands. She gasped as she saw her skin, she was as pale as a ghost it seemed. What happened to her? She really wanted to know everything that had happened. The dizziness had subsided, but her headache was hurting real bad now. She wobbled her way out of the cabin she was in and stared out. There was a small group gathered around a curly brown haired man and she couldn’t tell who he was. A name flashed across her head, Bastian, but she couldn’t think straight from her headache and so she dismissed it. The second male had brown hair as well, just not curly. Then she saw two females with them. One had brown hair and the other had black hair. A lot of people had brown hair that she observed so far.

Edalyn wasn’t about to show her weakness to a group of people. They might take her as a weakling and that is something that Edalyn didn’t want people to think of her as. She was a fiery person who was blunt and to the point about everything she says. She knows she doesn’t sugar coat anything and Edalyn didn’t care if it hurt someone’s feelings. She wants people to understand what they are and not capable of for example and she is very defensive. Edalyn smiled and said to herself, “If anyone comes to tell me if I need help, I’ll defend myself and say back off I don’t need anyone’s help.” Satisfied with her answer, she pulled herself to stand taller and more with authority even though her legs were shaking and she still felt weak.

Edalyn looked around. People seemed to either be on groups or scattered about. She could see three woman together talking and she could see four people over by the curly haired man and she narrowed her eyes slightly. What could that curly haired man possibly have or need that three people are over there. She had to admit her curiosity was telling her to go over there. She couldn’t see from where she was now, but maybe if she got closer…. NO! She screamed in her mind. You have to stand tall and resist the temptation to go over there. It’s obvious he is doing it for attention. She wondered if there was any animals around that she tend to or maybe go on a hunt. She loved the nighttime as well, it was her favorite time so she definitely is a night owl that’s for sure. All these things led her to come back to one name, Artemis.

Artemis was a Greek god and never a day in her life had Edalyn been remotely interested in learning about the gods. That was a whole bunch of foolishness in her mind. She shrugged it off telling herself, it was probably something nerdy Otix told you. Now if you want to talk about someone being into this Greek gods or gods in general kind of stuff, her younger brother was definitely into this stuff. It was just something you thought about to remember him by, nothing out of the ordinary. She didn’t want to believe she was actually getting into the Greek gods stuff. That stuff was dumb in her opinion and that was for weirdos like her brother. She sighed and shook her head. Maybe that curly haired man will clue us in on what is going on over there at some point. Hang back Edalyn, you don’t need to be involved in whatever is going on over there.

[heeseungie]

█ ⎯⎯ GENEVIVE FLETCHER ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯
█ ⎯ ♕ amaterasu ⎯ location; spare cabin ⎯ mentions; name ⎯ tags; kali ⎯

The dream that Genevive just woke up from was just insane. Within this dream, she was learning to control and create things, being taught by a young woman who was just pleasant to be around. She spoke wisely and with care, treating everything as if it was delicate and should never be harmed. It was inspiring, for one, because Genevive never really saw the importance of treating even the smallest ants with care, but had she created one with this goddess, she'd begun to care for every little thing. After abruptly being woken up by a loud thud from another room, Genevive realized her hands burned. They burned with the vengeance of hot lava, glowing softly in the sunlight. Genevive raised her hands mindlessly to her face before blaming the light (that had now gone away) on being bleary eyed.

Rising off the bed and onto her feet, Genevive realized that she'd been hit with a massive headache, almost rendering her bed-ridden as she stood a bit unsteady on her feet. A little tumble wouldn't hurt, unless it was into the corner of a coffee table or a ceiling fan, but for a woman her size, she could catch herself with ease. Walking left her woozy, but she still exited into the main room. There were multiple conversations going on in the cabin, and it had begun to get loud, which only caused her brain to start bouncing around her skull in distaste. Walking slowly out into said room, Genevive shuffled towards a familiar shadow that seemed to be all on her own.

Kali was pale and she looked like she was burning up, but if you asked Genevive, she'd still say she looked perfect. Sliding easily into the space beside the other woman and slinging an arm around her shoulder, Genevive pressed a bit of her weight into Kali. "I'm not sure what happened, but I think we all caught the combination of some sort of illness," she wagered, turning her face to look at Kali, who seemed perplexed by the outside and another conversation going on. Genevive kept her ears pricked for any important discoveries, but Kali was quite possibly the only thing on her mind. For one, she looked upset, like being inside was keeping her from being herself, but at the look at the piercing drops of water that settled into footsteps another one of their people had left, it was no drizzle. "I just had the weirdest dream that I could create things," Genevive added, perking up a bit with a chuckle before moving her left arm around Kali's front, half-hugging her and half-leaning on her. The two were close, to say the least. They'd gotten along just well in Portugal before Genevive realized what this was: attraction. Her slight fear of being rejected melted away when it came to Kali, however, because a good friend of Genevive's (not to name anybody) had told her about the admiration that was present when Kali looked at Genevive or vice versa. There was no label to be found, but her affection almost crossed the line to being in love every day.

"I don't mind the rain if you wanna head outside?" Genevive suggested, resting her head on her own arm as it rested against Kali's shoulder, eyes scanning the trees and weeds and mud that awaited outside. Shoes could be washed, hair could be cleaned. It's not like anything bad could happen, right?

[heeseungie]

█ ⎯⎯ CHARLIE MOON ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯
█ ⎯ ♕ neptune ⎯ location; spare cabin ⎯ mentions; name ⎯ tags; bastian, celeste, bast, space ⎯

Charlie couldn't help overhearing the conversation about this gem, and this secret book, and all the commotion and interest in said book. Cordially, Charlie waved to Bash when waved too, but stood to his feet. He felt more grounded now, all the side effects he was experiencing somewhat disappearing. He felt a rush better, but a wave of frustration washed over him as he walked with purpose over to the crowd of people, standing beside Space, who was sometimes unnaturally optimistic, and opening up his hand to be slid the book over, muttering a rough thank you and leaning back against a bookshelf to examine the page.

The gem that was pictured on the page was opulent, almost demanding all the attention it was getting from the way it was sitting alone. There was no more information on the page rather than the gem and it's intended use. A feeling bubbled up inside of him, feeling like the experience you'd get from drinking a glass of boiling hot water. Charlie narrowed his eyes, brushing his fingertips over the image before closing the book, holding it with his middle finger being used as a bookmark in case anyone else wanted their own personal glance at it. The thoughts of finding this gem and holding it in his hands was enticing to him, but the idea of how much money this gem would be worth on a black market or something of the sort enticed him even more. He could sell it to the highest bidder and live a comfortable life for this thing, even if it was being kept in some sort of museum. The image popped up fresh in his mind again before he muttered, "We should find it and steal it," almost instinctively. After this was said, the boiling within him stopped. It was silent in his body, and the air for a minute as he let his words settle into their minds.

[heeseungie]

█ ⎯⎯ NAOMI ROMAN ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯
█ ⎯ ♕ freyja ⎯ location; spare cabin ⎯ mentions; name ⎯ tags; enya, delphine ⎯

The moment Enya had touched her, Naomi had begun to feel better, whether that was because of Enya as a person so important to her, or if it was her cold hands that helped. Unconsciously, Naomi leaned in to her hands, allowing to cold to even her cheeks out as her headache and bleariness drifted away, not to mention the painkillers that Delphine had offered her. "A water would help. Thank you Enya, and you too Delphine," the woman commented, leaning back to free Enya's hands so she could find more bottles of water. Her eyes found Delphine, and she raised the hand with the pills she'd just handed her as a sort of courtesy. "Is everyone completely out of it today? Is anyone working right now or are we all here?" Naomi asked aloud, talking to her two friends in front of her before another voice rang in. You will make it through, child. Find and take what is rightfully ours.

Naomi jumped so hard she basically flew out of her seat, glancing around rapidly like she was looking for the recipient of said voice. It was elegant and royal and much older than anyone here could be. "Did you say something?" Naomi asked Delphine first, eyebrows knitting together in confusion as her once pained expression became one of confusion. "Did- Did you guys hear that voice too? It sound- sounded odd and was loud." Naomi forced herself to her feet, almost digging apart the loveseat for a hidden speaker to find who was playing some sort of sick joke, glancing over the back and beneath the arms.

Worry naught, child. You cannot deny me. Naomi looked crazed, digging in the cushions before giving in. "Who is speaking for the gods' sake??" Clearly alarmed, Naomi took a once over again before falling into her loveseat. "If you can hear me, talk again?" There was no response, dead end, and now Naomi was out of breath, worried, and looking crazed with an unseen madness.

[whispersome]

☾ ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ 𝐂𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐄 𝐘𝐔
LOCATION. Guest cabin TAGGED. Bastian, Space, Bast, Charlie

‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ Shaken back to awareness by Bastian’s voice, Celeste straightened and slackened her fingers, simply sagging back rather than relying on them for support—if she fell unconscious again, this time beyond her will, it seemed there were enough strapping young people around to lend her a hand. For now, she wasn’t in need of that, though, so she clicked her tongue. “Fine,” she said, smile broadening back out. “Just waiting out the rest of this bout of heatstroke, I guess.”

‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ Reaching into her pocket, she swapped her mirror for a folding hand fan, flipping it open in a quick motion and idly fanning her face. It was a shame the one she had with ostrich feathers in lieu of the cheap—by her standards, anyway—silk this one bore wasn’t as portable, fluffy and clunky as it was, because it had a certain extra flourish to it that this design just lacked. Appearance was perhaps not the primary function of the object, but what kind of person would Celeste be if she forwent it entirely? Not the one she had painstakingly carved herself into, that was certain, so the lace-edged patterns of butterflies and flowers would need to suffice for now.

‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ Two other figures joined them in quick succession, and Celeste dug briefly in the back of her mind for their names, neither having caught her interest enough for them to come to her immediately. Bast, perhaps, and… Space? Celeste rolled her eyes a bit at herself for forgetting that one. She lowered her fan but kept up the bored flicks of her wrist, blowing air toward herself.

‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ While she wouldn’t normally be opposed to such company, gregarious ways allowing her to flourish best amid a crowd, a pulse of pain against Celeste’s skull made her less prepared than usual to respond to Space’s ponderings. “Maybe you’re still woozy from earlier, no?” was her suggestion, accompanied with a tap of her fan against her chin. As soon as any attention could settle on her, though, she shrugged. “I don’t know. All these, eh—” she frowned as though trying to remember the word “—philosophical questions are making my headache even worse.”

‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ She rubbed at her temple with two spare fingers, hammering in the wince. It wasn’t a lie, either—the deeper she was forced to think, the stronger the pain grew, waxing and waning. That answered Space’s question of how she—and the others, she guessed—were feeling, at least, though she pressed her lips together rather than spill just what a chord his prior words had struck in her. Delirium from the heatstroke, she told herself again, and nothing more. The figures from her parents’ stories—Chang’e and her sacrifice or sabotage, depending on the source; Pangu and his creation of the world; the fenghuang and its colorful feathers; countless other deities and creatures—were just that: Figures from stories.

‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ Her mind prickled at the thought, but before Celeste could dwell on it yet another joined the four of them, scanning over the book just like everyone else. Charlie’s idea, voiced apropos of more or less nothing, drew a startled puff of laughter from her. She’d been unimpressed with what of his antics she’d observed from a safe distance thus far, but perhaps there were some valuable—or at least entertaining—thoughts in him after all. “That’s certainly one suggestion. As for whether it is a good one…” She trailed pointedly off with another shrug.

[No one]

Augustus Axford/Nicknames are August, Auggie, or Gus/Male/20 years old/Tags: Open/Hephaestus/Pansexual/No known romantic relationship status/Ability: Crafting weapons from thin air (I guess you call it that)
Augustus only a few short hours ago had landed in an unfamiliar place, confused, sick and no one to rescue them. He sat upright from where he lied on the ground of a home?? He looked around. The cabin was dilapidated in it’s looks and it looked very depressed. It was dim with not as much light seeping through as August thought. He yawned and stretched hearing his back crack. He sighed and almost immediately his head pounded and he yelled out in pain. The pain, it was unbearable, like something was pounding trying to escape. He remembered having this along with dizziness and chills when they first were in this unfamiliar place. He grabbed his head in two his two hands. He curled his hands into a fist and rocked ever so gently on the ground of the cabin with the fists on his head. He groaned as another wave of pain came. As the pain subsided, he looked up and now the headache was a dull ache. He was weak and he was confused which were not good in a time like this. At least he wasn’t the only one feeling weak and sick. At least the dizziness went away, but the chills he had were still present.’

Augustus stood up his legs wobbling a little bit. The young male ran a hand through his thick brown hair that seemed to be curly, but at the same time it wasn’t curly. It was semi-curly and it went down to the mid neck. It shone in the sunshine and it looked so luxurious, but even his luxurious hair wasn’t the statement on him. His eyes were the statement piece that made him stand out. He had heterochromia eyes meaning he had two different colored eyes. Augustus’ eyes were his statement piece. It was what made him special and unique from everyone else. His right eye was a deep blue color while his left eye was a soft leaf green color. It was something that he valued in him. This made him unique and definitely not someone who had boring brown or boring hazel eyes. Though, his eyes fit him perfectly for he didn’t like the thought of having boring eyes that were the same color. He was no boring person and these two different eye colors were funky and full of fun, something that Augustus was.

He took a few shaky steps holding himself by placing a hand on the wall of the cabin. When he took it off and walked his legs wobbled a bit more, but he could walk on his own, that was good. He walked out of the cabin talking slow steps. His brain told him to run for the fences, but clearly that was NOT a good idea. He scanned where the other people he saw previously were. Though he didn’t know most people’s name, he did know one name that struck out to him, Edalyn O’Connell. She had introduced herself back when they all first got here and before he had crawled into a spare cabin before passing out on the floor. He didn’t know where that woman was, but he didn’t want another run-in with that woman. She was fiery and from briefly meeting her she was gruff and BORING! Augustus could tell she was not going to be someone he would grow close with, but hey you never know.

Whatever he was feeling had to be a heat stroke. I mean it was so dang hot when he had woken up and that was the only logical answer. The cabin floor though did feel a bit cooler, refreshing him just slightly. He noticed a figure out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head which caused a stab of pain from his headache. He gritted his teeth resisting the urge to yell out in pain or grab his head in his hands. He saw it was…. Eda Lynn O’Connell! He recognized that ponytail hair anywhere. He had to admit, she was pretty, but her personality from what he gathered by there brief interaction, not so pretty. He liked to flirt with others casually meant to not be taken seriously unless he really liked you. But this was one person that he wouldn’t do with.

Her brown hair was sticking to her face and he tried his hardest not to burst out laughing. She looked like a mess, but he had nothing to say either. He himself was a mess as well. His hair probably looked like he had just rolled out of bed. She was as pale as a ghost and she definitely looked like she didn’t want to be bothered. I wasn’t going to bother her anyway he thought with a sniff. He noticed at her staring at something, it was a group of five huddled around something. Augustus was naturally curious. One of the figures snatched a book from someone’s had and his interest peaked. He was curious to know who found the book, where was the book, what was inside, what that person was doing snatching it. He growled as his headache increased in pain and the pounding he felt like could be heard. He grabbed his head and waited until the pain lessened.

When it did he returned his gaze over to the ground. Multiple people with brown hair he noticed and they all seemed to be interested in that one singular book. He himself couldn’t deny that he was interested in what was happening over there and he felt a slight tug on his mind like he was attracted to something just a little bit. He dismissed this thought and he said down and sighed. This place was foreign to him and he said with his slight British accent, “I wish I knew where I was mate.” As if he was talking to someone using the word mate. That was incorrect usage of the word, but he didn’t care one it, it’s not like people heard him speak. He sighed and rested his head on his knees. He wondered where the other people were. There was more people than Edalyn and the group of five, he was sure of it, but maybe he was just imagining them and the heatstroke really got to him.

Augustus wasn’t scared most of the time, but right now he sure was. I mean who wouldn’t be if they were lost and don’t know where they are, feeling unwell and confused about everything. He sighed and realized with a rapid fire thought, he was confused on everything. He was confused on why he was here, he was confused on who these people are (Besides Edalyn who only named herself), he was alone with none of his family around and he didn’t know how to find home again. He sighed and said putting his forehead on his hands which were on his knees and he said, “I just wish I was back home where I belong. That’s all I want now.” He lifted his head hoping it was a dream, but alas it wasn’t. He groaned and sighed. Wherever he was this was going to not be easy he felt in his gut.

[senna_]

𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐀𝐍 𝐑𝐈𝐕𝐀𝐒
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↳ hermesxxxxxlocation; spare cabinxxxxxmentions; tagsxxxxxtags; celeste, space, charlie, bast

The group was bubbling up by the minute. If Bastian didn’t feel so thrown off by the picture of this gem, he may have almost laughed at the sight of all of them. Almost. It was a baffled group of half disturbed, half confused near-strangers. Bastian himself felt like he was sitting right on edge of both of that. His headache was beginning to brew like the storm outside their cabin yet again, and a twitch in his eye had commenced every time something was spoken too loudly. Ironically enough, though, his voice was the loud one, as he attempted to hear himself over the growing group of people. He couldn’t seem to take his mind off of the book, either, which was something beyond his understanding. Despite feeling genuine concern for Celeste, who looked so grey she could blend in with the rain clouds outside, he was undeniably distracted. It probably didn’t help that everyone seemed to be on the same page as he was; while the obvious concern should have been towards each other, all appeared to be more focused on the strange book he just so happened to find. And the worst part was, his mind didn’t seem to find anything wrong about that.

“Here.” Bastian reached behind him, grabbing hold of one of the untouched water bottles he had tracked down a few hours earlier. He set it on the table for Celeste, meeting her gaze momentarily. “You need to stay hydrated.” He stepped back as she whipped out a fan, as if suspecting he’d get wacked with it or something, eyeing it for a fleeting second before allowing his gaze to drift elsewhere, particularly due to the fact that a new feminine voice had joined in.

“We’re just, uh…” The sheepish look hadn’t been able to leave Bash’s face for more than a few minutes, and it had quickly found its way back onto his features as he glanced over at whom he believed was named Bast. Caramel brown hair, intelligent eyes… yes, that was definitely Bast. He remembered the name most because of its striking similarity to his own name, full and nickname included. “Admiring? This – ” he tapped at the laminated page so she could get an understanding of what it was he was referring to. He then stepped to the side, just enough for Bast to push by should she decide she wanted to gaze at the gem. Space had captured his attention by then, and Bastian turned his body to properly face his friend. “I dunno, just in that little book shelf over there,” he returned, raising a hand to point in the direction of the shelf he was talking about. It appeared to be lopsided from where he was standing now (or was his head tilted a bit too much?) and rather sad-looking; it only held about a dozen or so books, all coated with dust from who knew how many years ago. So why was it that he had naturally gravitated towards it? It was far from appealing when glancing at it from afar. Something within him seemed to twitch when Space mouthed the word ‘attraction,’ and several times, too. Attracted… yes, that seemed suiting, didn’t it? The way they had all drifted closer to the book the moment he pulled it out was enough to confirm that. “Maybe because it’s… pretty?” he attempted lamely to form an answer, giving Space a hopeless lopsided smile. He didn’t have an answer. It seemed nobody did, in all honesty. The only thing he knew was that if that many people found the same amount of interest in the same thing, it had to be worth something. Had anyone mentioned a gem during their orientation? He was at a loss with that; it was on the tip of his tongue, yet he just couldn’t grasp it.

He didn’t have an issue ridding the thought when Charlie spoke up, though. It was spoken casually, as if there was nothing wrong with the idea. Bash’s eyes grew as wide as moons, and he stared at the boy. “Steal it?” he sputtered. “We aren’t thieves!” At that moment, though, something instead him stirred. His stomach churned, and his back immediately straightened, as if a chill had just run down his entire body. Steal it, steal it! a voice from within him snickered mischievously. Bash jolted, nearly knocking over the water bottle he had previously set on the table for Celeste. Who said that? That came from his own inner voice, the familiar one. Pain shot to his right temple, and his hand reached for the side of the table, gripping it until his knuckle turned white. Steal. The. Gem. came the cackle again. I know where it is, it added, almost in temptation.

A blank look fell over Bastian’s face. “I think we should find it,” he said, almost robotically. He waited for shock to stir within him at his own suggestion, but nothing followed. “At least look for it. If all of us are so attracted to it, then it’s got to mean something… Any gemologists around here? Petrology, maybe? Geology…? Oh, forgot it. I'm with Charlie. M-maybe not steal, but I want to find it.”