Forums » Fantasy Roleplay » The Calling of the Stars

“No problem! And yup! I did, didn’t I?” Jupiter snickered, thinking back to what she had said moments before. Then, she gasped. “What? Everyone skips! Well, maybe not everyone. Alright, so maybe it’s a more of a common habit of mine, but hey! I don’t usually come down here that often, and I find it amazing how many different ways you can just walk!”

Instead of taking the hint from the harsh stare and change of tone, the Astraea closed her eyes and pushed the topic just a little further. “But why go through with murdering at all? Then it would be you who people would want to put in the jail cells. It doesn’t make sense to me at all.”

She simply shrugged. “I’m not sure, but I don’t think it ever will. I was just mocking the whole ‘it might frighten onlookers’ statement. I mean, what would you do if they just got to close?” She sighed before putting on a smile, nudging him with her arm. “Lighten up a little! I wasn’t being literal about anything!”

" Ugh." Oliver groaned as he placed his thumb and forefinger on his brow, as if thinking. He held his head in his hands this way for several moments, trying to get over her overwhelming emotions. When he finally did he simply shook his head." Somehow I'm having trouble finding the awe in the ways one can walk. You move your legs. Wow!" He waved his hands, jazz hand style, as he spoke sarcastically to the Astraea. He regretted this course of action only moments later, he had just sworn to not be negative after all.

" Well, if I don't do it, then who will? I mean seriously, if I am not the one that kills him, then it will be someone else. And, I am not going to let someone else take the fall for me." He lied, he really didn't care if someone else ended up dealing with his guilt, he just didn't want someone else to steal his kill, his glory. And, he was hoping that this answer would finally shut her up on the topic.

Oliver raised a sarcastic eyebrow," You really think I haven't dealt with that before?" He asked, before twisting his hand in a circle and summoning a strange purple circle, filled with glyphs. He pushed his hand out, sending a minor wave of force. Only just enough to cause someone to stumble backwards a step. The effort seemed to drain him as the color left his cheeks. He grinned at himself, proud of his accomplishment and turned back to her," Or I could be mundane and just push them, but where's the fun in 'at?"

“Well, it’s not just- I didn’t mean-” Jupiter let go of a timorous bark of laughter as she sent a glare his way. “I was just thinking.. I know, I know! Sorry, it sounds childish to get over something as ‘exciting’ as that, doesn’t it? I mean, I- Where I come from, gravity isn’t such a.. It’s not really a thing, I suppose.” She felt as if she had been knocked down, but, in order to keep moving metaphorically forward, she would have to just ( excitedly ) walk it off. “And please! That isn’t the only stupid thing I can get thrilled over. Ho, ho! You haven’t known me long enough!”

“No!” Jupiter took a deep breath, running a hand through her tousled hair. “No. That’s not how it should work. You should just let nature or history or- or whatever you believe in- take care of it. You shouldn’t have to carry that burden. I-I mean, who knows? They might have a ‘second conscience’ of their own.”

Jupiter took a haste sidestep, watching the peculiar force swoosh through the air. She found it odd, yet amusing, to see someone create such a thing. “There’s.. no fun in it. Why would you want to physically push someone? It doesn’t make sense to me,” She shook her head, but a smile creased her lips once again and she laughed. “But, on the other hand, a lot of things don’t make sense to me, so this probably is just something else I can add to that list.”

" Erm... What's gravity?" Oliver asked slowly, unsure of what the woman meant. " Is it some kind o' magic? Or is it somethin' else? Anyway, what other things do you find so... fascinating? I mean, really, what other mundane things are so great? Maybe..." He nodded," Sewing, I bet you find sewing to be the most interesting thing in the world, don't you?" He asked, only slightly sarcastic as he was afraid that she might affirm his question

" I don't believe in anything but my own ability to survive." Oliver huffed as he crossed his arms and glared at his shoes," A second second conscience? There's more of you?" He asked incredulously, obviously balking at the idea of more of her,"Here? There's more of you people... like... here!?"

" Not generally, unless of course you've got other spells running." He ran a hand through his mottled green and black hair," I'm not really all that great at that one. Anyway, so what else is on that list of yours? Anything... especially interesting that I could bring up later on?"

“Oh, right,” Jupiter tapped her chin, staring directly at the ground. “I forgot.. How do I put this? It’s a force that keeps you from floating off the ground and just.. up, I guess. But—please—don’t spread the news about that. I don’t think I was supposed to say anything that would be considered out of the ordinary.” She rubbed the back of her neck in an anxious manner, exhaling. Though, it wasn’t long before her eyes lit up. “Well, sewing is amazing! But I have too much energy to actually attempt sitting down for that long. Oh! Those things!” She knew this was a generic word, so she tried to elaborate by trying to draw specific shapes in the air with her hands. “The ones that people can use to create— What’s it called? It starts with an ‘M’, but I don’t remember..”

“More of you? If you’re asking if there are more Astraea, then yes, there are. You didn’t think I was running around by myself, did you?” Jupiter chuckled at the thought. “Maybe the conditions of everything would be different if it were just myself. Something as little as people being to see me, I mean. But who could know? Anyways, it’s not like you could see any other Astraea, if we did run into another one. I could, but you.. couldn’t, I don’t think. Pfft! Can you imagine that? That would look.. sorta strange, wouldn’t it?”

She raised a brow. “No spells running? I can only do so much, I think. And—hey!—I’m sure it just takes a little time and practice! No worries, right?” Jupiter flashed a quick, lighthearted smile. “Well, uhm.. Mirrors. Don’t laugh, don’t laugh! I know it sounds stupid, but.. they’re baffing. How can someone create a glass that isn’t transparent, and it literally mimics your every move?”

" Ooookaaaay..." Oliver answered slowly, unsure as to where she might have learned such a thing, and why it was at all useful." So... what do you do with that kind o' knowledge? Is it important to someone? What's it do? Who made gravity? Does someone control it? Why don't they turn it off? Can they turn it off? How do they control it? Can they control it? What do they do with it?" He asked rapid fire, not giving her a chance to answer before he asked another answer." And, I'm afraid I don't know what you mean..."


" So... how many of you are there? And... so you'd just be like... talkin' to the other invisible person and I wouldn't see them. I mean,that's kind o' what invisible means but..." His sentence trailed off," Anyway, I feel like that would creep me out."

" A little time and practice? Try... oh I don't know...a couple o' years. I've only ever been able to excel at Abjuration magic:wards and shields. This is a bit of a strange mixture of abjuration and transmutation magic. Transmutation is used to change one things to another, changing the pressure of the air. Abjuration is used to protect, I'm protecting myself by pushing them away. Anyway, so I can sort of do it, but the transmutation bit is extra hard." He stopped for a moment before laughing" I suppose they are kind o' strange."

Jupiter felt herself stiffen. The questions washed past her like a giant wave, each hitting her at once. Despite the fact she was nothing close to a genius, the information she had given might’ve been something she wasn’t supposed to say. “Well, uhm..” She looked around, as if the answers were just wandering around. A nervous smile spread across her expression. “I-It’s just useful in some cases. And no one made it. It’s just.. always been here, I guess. No one controls it, so they can’t turn it off. Ah, what was the fancy-shmancy version of it..? Oh!” She clapped her hands together. “It's a force that attracts a body toward the center of the Erth—ack, I’m sorry!—Earth, or toward any other physical body having mass. Well, it just.. attracts anything, really.” Shaking her head, she shrugged. “I-I don’t know. That still doesn’t make any sense, does it? My apologies..! I don’t really think I was supposed to say anything further. So—uhm—no.. more questions..? That sounded rude—I’m sorry. Oh, shoot! I’m apologizing too much, aren’t I?” She held a hand over her mouth. Sighing, Jupiter began to speak again, though her voice was muffled. “I’ll just have to stop talking for a moment, huh?”

“A lot. I cannot stress you to that enough, Oliver. There are a lot of us,” The Astraea herself shuddered, lowering her hands and refolding her arms over her chest. “And, no, we wouldn’t be.. talking, per se. It’s some form of telepathy, I think it would be called. But it’s not so bad. I’m not a fan of speaking to others anyways, so I doubt I would attempt to if I could.” Then she looked up to him. “Don’t get me wrong; I would be pleased to see them, really. I just don’t think I would want to.. talk with them, if that makes sense.”

She blinked upon taking in this information. She hadn’t known this beforehand, but, luckily, she was willing to attempt to take it all in. “I mean, sure, it might take a little longer than the other spells you know, but all of the practice and such seem worth it to me,” Jupiter lifted and dropped her shoulders rather quickly, feeling as if that wasn’t enough to say. But, at the moment she couldn’t think of anything better, so she simply went along with it.

Oliver listend as she spoke, at first his eyes glazed over, obviously not understanding anything she was saying, but as she continued his eyes cleared up and he stared at her hungrily, as if searching for as much knowledge as he could get. Oliver didn't believe the statement that some said about how knowledge was power, but he did believe that if you sold it to the right person, it could make a man quite rich. And, among other things, Oliver wanted to be rich.

" Telepathy eh? Interesting. So, why don't you want to speak with them if you enjoy their company? That sound rather... contradictory doesn't it?" Oliver asked, extremely confused at this concept. Although he had never spent much time visiting with anyone, nor did he enjoy many people's conpany, he did watch others who spoke at great lengths to their friends.

Oliver laughed, the joy only barely meeting his eyes, but meet them it did," A little more time and practice, well aren't you a little optimistic?" He joked," I spent several months learning 'at one, nevermind all the countless books I read on Transmutation." He shrugged, " But I'm sure that with,oh I don't know, 3 more years I could master it. Oh, and a library full of books on the topic." Oliver's merth slowly diminished as he spoke, leaving him feeling diminished and sarcastic. Then, to raise his spirits Oliver asked," So, what kind of skills does an Astraea need to know? Or learn?"

(( sorry! got busy!))

“It’s.. rather difficult to explain, I think,” Jupiter rubbed the back of her neck, staring at the ground as she took a moment to inhale. “I would love to know how they’re doing so far on their Mission, but, other than that, I don’t believe I would want to speak with them any longer. It is contradicting, isn’t it?” She laughed at herself. Oh, how foolish did her words sound at this point? “Ah, so, you see, I’m not what everyone would call an ‘expert’-” She did air quotations. “-and I’m often corrected for the little things. Being too energetic, pushy, impatient- Things like that, y’know? They make it sound so.. Simple, though. Just follow the Rules and stay in line. That’s all you have to do, Jupiter.” Anxiously, the Astraea raised her stare and chuckled, as if she had been caught off guard. She quickly put on her childlike smile once again just for reassurance that it was, in fact, alright. “Anyways, it’s just a feature that is particularly noticeable, and I get all panicked when I’m around others. Others of my kind, of course. People down here are so easy to hang around! Like, you can just.. be yourself and that’s it!”

Was that something worth thinking about? The slight glint in the Target’s eyes? Jupiter held her breath, nodded to confirm her thoughts, and grinned broadly. Progress. It’s progress. “Pfft! Always! Why wouldn’t I be? Sometimes, you just have to train your mind to see the good in everything, y’know?” The female held her hands behind her back once more, just to resist the urge to skip. “It’s amazing that you can even do that in the first place! And three years isn’t too long. Or, at least, I don’t think it is. Who knows?” She shrugged. Then, her nose scrunched in a sour manner, and she looked towards Oliver. “Books? Books.” It wasn’t as if she had a dislike for books, of course. It was just the fact she couldn’t handle the needs when it came to reading ( for example, being still ).

“Hm.. That’s a good question,” Jupiter squinted at nothing in particular as she thought for a handle of seconds. “Well, being able to handle stress is a good skill to have. Optimism, too! There are some negative ones out there though. But, looking back on what we were just talking about, I’m guessing you meant skills as in spells..?” She raised a brow. “I mean, I suppose we have three main things. Well, two, if the first one is just- Y’know what? Nevermind that thought.” Jupiter bit her lip before lighting up, gasping as she recalled how to possibly explain it. “Oh! Alright. Main three assets; Righting Wrongs, Golden Sight, and Changing Formation.

“Right Wrongs is more of a skill that everyone has,” The female held up her index finger, as if to count off the list and inform him. “It’s like an Astraea’s morality, only we don’t have a choice of good or bad. It’s just good. So, knowing this, we travel alongside someone on Earth and help them back onto their feet. Also known as ‘the Target’.” She made a small gesture to Oliver, smiling before she lifted a second finger. “Golden Sight. It’s a cheesy name if you ask me, but who am I to judge? Basically, it helps locate said Target if we happened to lose them in a crowd or something like that. It also helps with seeing other Astraea and speaking with them, which would explain the ‘telepathy’ from earlier.” Jupiter took another short breath, steadying out her quick and jumbled words as she held up a third finger. “And last but not least, there’s Changing Formation. It’s sort of simple, really. I mean, not ‘simple-simple’, but simple. It’s just changing your appearance when in public or-” She paused. “Rewind. I might’ve forgotten to mention I can make myself visible to other people so it doesn’t make it seem like you’re insane and talking to yourself. So.. that’s what I mean by ‘in public’. Haha..!” Her voice cracked as she nervously snickered, and she dared to take a step back. She had been disciplined for her forgetfulness before, so it was simply an instant to take cautious procedures.

(( No worries! :p ))

" Down here? So, where do your people hail from? And what're these rules? Do I have to follow them? Are they written, or are they more... inferred?And, the only person you've " been yourself" around would be me, and I'm not sure that entirely counts, after all, who am I to judge? I regularly speak with a flying, invisible girl... Er... woman?" Oliver asked, not entirely certain he wanted to offend this person, it might prove fatal later on. Might.

" Well, because they say that seeing the world through a lense too bright can keep you from seeing it's real colors." Oliver stopped for a moment, trying to remember where he'd heard that. A faint smile spread across his lips as he remembered the books he had read. It had been an old one, the leather cover nearly torn off, the letters faded, and the pages yellowed, but it was still rather fun to read. Then again Oliver always liked to read more fictional and fun books," In everything? But, what about things like murder, torture, mud,darkness? Where's the good in those?" The luckling snorted in laughter," Yes, books!" He exclaimed.

" Well, not necessarily, I meant just skills. Like my swordsmanship, or my good looks." Oliver grinned, knowing that the second wasn't a skill, nor was it all that useful." But, sure we can talk about those." The luckling shrugged.

" So, you can't tell a white lie or bribe someone? Doesn't that get a little boring? And, I'm sure it would be rather disadvantageous at times. So, I'm your Target, correct? What does that mean, and why me?" Oliver asked slowly,"Okay, so I can't give you the slip and walk off, that's good to know. So, if you wanted you could look like me. That's cool!" He exclaimed, his youth showing in his word choice and sudden enjoyment at the idea of a duplicate of himself.

“Oh! I forgot to explain that too, huh?” Jupiter scrunched her expression in slight disappointment with herself. “Anyways, we live among.. I don’t want to say ‘Stars’, because that’s us. But it just.. Seems like the right term? I think it would be easier if I said it that way; So- yes. We live among the Stars.” She nodded efficiently. “And, no, you don’t have to follow the Rules. It’s just the basics, anyways. Things like ‘don’t be a bad example!’ and ‘try to be perfect!’ and ‘take your time!’. Of course, those aren’t literally the Rules. But, yes, some of them are written out, and some are just known amongst others. They’re all chaotic anyways.” To cover up her slight sarcasm, Jupiter laughed and looked up. “No, no. Your terms are.. right. I think. I don’t really.. have an age? So either will work, really. Anywho, it’s great! No judgement, no standards- I love it here!”

The Astraea blinked. “I.. know what I’m doing,” She muttered with a nearly nonexistent grin. “The optimism is just there to help block out the unnecessary negativity. Like it or not, I have to know what real colors the world has.” Snapping out of her daze, Jupiter smiled and twirled, just to get her energy on the rise once again. “Well, mud, for one, helps the environment. Darkness in general helps the nocturnal creatures survive. But when it comes to harming someone, there’s nothing good about it, as you just admitted.” She snickered upon realizing this. “Do you enjoy reading or something like that?”

“Oh, I see,” Jupiter ducked her head into a quick and simple nod. Then, she laughed. “Wait. Good looks count as a skill? I must’ve not known that before.”

“I.. I can lie,” Jupiter’s voice cracked as she fiddled with the laces of her dress, particularly where the fabric had been torn. “I just prefer not to. I-I mean, I’m not supposed to, anyways. Sometimes, you just have to do what’s needed in order to move forward. It gets boring every now and again, but it’s better than being eaten alive by the guilt.” This moment, for example. She flailed a hand at the thought. “Mhm. You’re the Target, at the moment. Some people have come before you, and I’m sure there’s more who will come after you. And it’s not as if we chose you specifically, but we did. An action must’ve set off a warning or made you stick out in a crowd. I would tell you if I knew, really.” The Astraea inhaled, understanding if she had to explain further into that statement. Though, a smile did crease her lips at his sudden excitement. “I mean, if I really tried to take on your appearance, I could. I don’t think I’ve gotten the hang of that. Yet! I’m still working on it!”

" So, are you stars or do you live among stars?" Oliver asked, rather slowly as he tried to work it out for himself to no avail." Okay... so, how do you learn how to deal with a Target? Like with the line-y thing earlier, where'd you learn 'at? And," The luckling stopped as he thought over his next words, trying to make sure they wouldn't sound too stupid, or redundant, or, well any other negative adjectives,"why do you say they're chaotic? Do they ,like, contradict each other?" He asked, trying to use his new favorite word as often as possible," or do they not make sense?" The male asked slowly. Then he laughed, only slightly forcedly,"Okay, thanks!" He thanked her for telling him he was correct before he frowned," You... don't have an age?" He asked.

" Okay, so you want to hide from it?" Oliver asked, understanding the temptation to hide from the darkness, but knowing that this wasn't exactly the answer, not that he had found the answer yet. He also wasn't sure if he had accidently struck a nerve, although he didn't know much about speaking to people he did know that some topics were better handled with care. He breathed in once as if collecting his thoughts from the air around him before speaking," I mean... erm... What are you hiding from?" He asked, possibly wrong in his assumptions, but he had a gut feeling that she was hiding from something specific, and he generally trusted his gut feelings." Well, yes... I did." Oliver said, not sure how he felt on the topic. It helped him move the topic away from her past, but now it was on his and he wasn't so sure he liked that." I used to, before life got real." The young man finally said.

Oliver laughed good-naturedly, heartier than he had in a while,"No, I don't think it does, but I'm going to count it anyway just because I can." He shrugged," I mean, why not count it?"

Oliver bit his lip,"Real lady's man huh? You've upset her twice already, that's got to be a new record!" He thought to himself as his lips thinned in anxiety,"Okay." That's all he said for a long while, okay, one simple word, but it was the only word he knew wouldn't cause further problems.He sighed," Well, I suppose if guilt was something you dealt... er...deal with then I suppose being bored would be better than feeling guilty." He gave a second sigh, this one he held out for more time, making it seem long-suffering. He thought for several moments on her next comment before speaking again. He nearly laughed as he realized that the Astraea might be doing him some good, even without meaning to. She was making him think before he spoke now, which he had to admit was not one of his strong suits,"Did it have to be an action that sent you here?" Oliver asked. He blushed shame-facedly at his earlier excitement," Yeah, real dark and brooding aura goin' on huh?" He thought to himself sarcastically," Well," He rub ed the back of his neck," That's cool! I mean, how hard is it?" He asked, trying to cover up for himself.


(( Sorry about the last post, I just read over it and realized how much fun auto correct had! I'll fix that right away!))

“Well— Both..? I mean, we are Stars. Technically. I guess we just live where they are,” Jupiter furrowed her brows, beginning to confuse herself. “Practice, I suppose. The line? I’ll be honest with you, Oliver, that was an in-the-spur-of-the-moment sort of thing. But it was clever, right?” She flashed a smile towards him. “Little techniques like that are usually thought of in the moment, though. I mean, there are a handful of methods that we are told to use if we ever need them, but, other than that, we’re kind of expected to know how to handle these sorts of things.” She placed her fist onto the palm of her hand as she finished her statement as if to show the determination. Then, she glanced at him. “Well, the expectations cause chaos, sometimes. But I’m probably just being.. dramatic. I’m sure if you were to ask anyone else, they would be fine with it.” In response to his next question, she nodded. “Correct. No age. I know, I know; it’s strange, but I haven’t tried to keep track of it.”

“Hiding?” Jupiter blinked as she raised a brow. “I’m not sure what you mean. Why would I want to ‘hide’ from anything?” I’ve said too much. Snap, Jupiter! Just.. change the topic. She snickered in attempt to cover up playing dumb. Though, her expression changed upon hearing his last statement. “Oh, I see.. Well, life’s always going to be real or touch or.. I can’t think of any more adjectives, but you shouldn’t stop doing something you enjoy because of it, y’know?”

The Astraea grinned at him. “Charisma, huh? Seems like something that could affect most things, right? I think it’s a good skill. I mean—dang!—imagine how useful that would be!” Jupiter laughed at the thought.

The eerie silence between the two gave Jupiter a few moments to think and grasp onto the last few moments. She shouldn’t act negative. She shouldn’t be negative. It would ruin her mindset, let alone her course of actions and emotions. So, simply, she glared at the ground and focused on letting go of any more attitude of any kind. But her thought process was distracted by the sound of a voice. Jupiter looked towards Oliver once again, nodding in agreement. “Well, perhaps not an action, but a feeling or something along those lines. Again, I’m not usually told what set off a notice unless it’s something.. big or plan-changing, I guess. I’ve never been handed one of those situations, but once, and, even then, it wasn’t just an action that made them perceptible. Did.. that make any sense..?” She raised a brow before swaying her hand, deciding to skip to the next question. “Difficult, I suppose. But- but!” She lifted her chin with a broad grin. “I have officially mastered changing the color of my hair!” It wasn’t a lot compared to the full ability, but it was enough to make Jupiter seem highly proud of herself.

(( Lol! No worries! ))

" Ya know what? I don't need to know." Oliver decided as he held out his hands in front of him and waved them, as if the movement would keep her from confusing him further."Sure, whatever you say Jupiter, we'll say it was clever if you want us to." He frowned," Er... I... No. us both you and me. But..." The warrior stopped, rubbing his temple with his index and middle finger, trying to make it easier for him to think." Well, I guess I don't know if it's us or me." He finally said with a light shrug.," So, why don't the people that send you on missions, whoever they are, give you , like, a big list of things you can do or say? Like," If the Target says this, you say that and they'll totally do whatever that was."?" Oliver asked, although he was sure that Jupiter had probably asked herself that before.He snorted," You? Dramatic? When?" The youth asked sarcastically." Um... but they're invisible. How would I ask anyone else?" Oliver asked slowly." Oookaaaay..."

"Well, would look what ya done now!" Oliver criticized himself."Now she's lyin' to ya, and won't talk 'bout herself. " He balled his fists, frustrated at his own lack of ability to converse with others." Okay, you're not hiding from nothin'." He agreed, for no other reason then this was the first time he'd been able to talk with someone about something besides his parents and he didn't want to screw it all up because he didn't know when to shut his trap." Well, that'd be true if I earned enough to be comfortable, at the moment I'm homeless and can barely afford coin enough to tip the people that I have ta speak with. Not that I would want a home," The luckling conceded," I rather enjoy this nomadic life, it's the type of freedom few ever possess."

" Doesn't charisma have to do with speaking, and being able to convince people o' stuff? 'Cause I don't care hos handsome you are, if you can't talk to save your hide your probably not all that charismatic. Unless charismatic means handsome... But I'm pretty sure it doesn't."

Oliver nodded as the Astraea spoke,"Well,"He tipped his head as if acknowledging his own thoughts," Then I think I know why your here. I recently made a deal, I would kill a man for this person," He looked at Jupiter, warning her that he had more to say before continuing," if he would tell me who to talk to in order to find who killed my parents. After we shook he told me he didn't know anyone. I thought about killing him instead, but instead I just hit him in the head hard enough to knock some teeth loose, and him unconscious. But then for the rest of the day I thought about killing him." The boy stopped for a moment before chuckling," That's neat. Erm... good job? I think... yeah. Good job!" He said, trying to sound enthusiastic for her.

Jupiter laughed anxiously, obviously knowing she hadn’t explained that very well. Though, she did try to avoid thinking about the small defeat and plainly move onto the next topic. “Well, what do you take us for? Mindreaders?” Jupiter joked, snickering. “Each person can be triggered by something, and, unfortunately, we don’t know how to push those buttons. It’s not like we would want to provoke them, of course. We just want to help them by making them.. realize a few things, I suppose.” Then, Jupiter gasped. “Well, excuse you! I am never dramatic!” Swaying a hand at him, she scoffed, smiled, and continued. “I mean.. Let’s say I disappear after completing what I was sent here to do, then you mess up a little time after that. Someone else could possibly come and take my place.”

The Astraea nodded vigorously in response to his agreement, but she didn’t think her words had convinced him the way she thought they would. After a few moments of silently disappointing herself, Jupiter perked up and spoke. “Oh? I guess the freedom would be.. delightful, huh?” She grinned. “You could always make your own! Or.. something like that! Maybe you wouldn’t have to write it down or anything, but it would still be fun!”

“Well, I was thinking more of the overall charm, but yeah, I guess it does, huh?” She thought for a moment, tapping her chin. “Well, maybe it’s just either or, depending on the context..?”

Her eyes widened and narrowed somewhat as she attempted not to show her concern. “Oh. Oh. Well..” Jupiter took a deep breath, letting a nervous bark of laughter slip. She clasped her hands together. “Alright. That.. sounds like a good enough reason to be sent down, right..? Right. Jupiter, what the heck? Of course it’s a ‘good enough’ reason, or else you wouldn’t be here. Sheesh, sometimes I can’t stand you.” The fact that she was talking to herself more than likely made this a confusing situation, not to mention awkward. After all, who admitted—out loud—that they didn’t tolerate themselves? The Astraea drew in a slow, steady breath and nodded, turning to Oliver to address she was no longer lecturing herself. “So, why didn’t you just get the information he had before making this deal?” She huffed. “And thank you!” Jupiter smiled broadly in response to the hesitant congrats.

"Well, I guess not necessarily mind readers, but maybe able to know the most likely outcome of your speaching. Hm... I guess that makes sense. I can't blame you there, I don't know how to talk to anyone.Except those I've known for ever. Anyway, can't you study how people normally react to things, or what kind o' of things they are most likely to react to." Oliver grinned,"Never? Somehow I don't believe that." He disagreed."Ah, that makes sense."

"Yeah," Oliver laughed," It is nice sometimes.You know how some people will go for a vacation and say somethin' like,' Oh that's such a pretty view!', well I get to see any view I want. I guess I could, but I'm not sure I'm all that creative." The young man said, making up the best excuse he knew.

" Yeah, okay." Oliver laughed in agreement," I guess it could mean either or, whichever you want. Or think... or... you know." Oliver said.

Oliver grinned, he spoke to himself often and understood that sometimes it was best to debate with yourself in order to get to the most logical conclusion."Well, I couldn't ask for his end of the deal without him knowing that I would also give him my end of the deal."

(( sorry, been busy and wroter' s block hit hard))

“I suppose it just depends on the person, really. Who knows? I’m not good at talking either,” Jupiter quipped with a broad grin, shrugging as she did so. “Anywho, I do study a person’s usual habits, such as how they respond to my emotions or how they walk or how they are around other people-” She took in a breath. “Mhm.. I think you get the point. And, no! I’m never dramatic. Not that much, anyways. Always just the right amount of dramatic pazzaz!” She put a little liveliness into her stride while performing jazz hands.

She gasped. “Oh my gosh! You have such a good point!” Then, with a sheepish grin, the Astraea lifted both of her hands on top of her head before realizing her hair was like a sheep’s fleece, so she simply returned them by her side. “I think.. Well, you don’t have to be creative. Just.. imagine a little scene, and treasure it! Just a little sumthin-sumthin to make you smile, y’know?”

Jupiter opened her mouth, now coming to a full understanding, “Oh! I get that. Wow. That was awfully rude of him, wasn’t it?You didn’t do your part, or did you? He obviously..” She tried thinking of the word before it finally clicked. “..scammed you, right? So why go through with another burden to carry?”

(( Pfft- No worries 'bout that! Writer's block is just.. evil! *Shudder* ))

" Okay, so what kind o' things do I do?" Oliver asked, genuinely curious as he usually didn't spend enough time to study his own actions or words. He did however, know that if you knew how someone acted, or spoke, or how you spoke and acted, you could become quite a silvertongue, or so he heard."Somehow I'm still having trouble believing that you have just the right amount of pazzaz. I find you a bit... energetic."

" Um...thank you?" Oliver said, hesitant to accept this high praise. He raised an eyebrow at her movements, she had more energy than she knew how to deal with in his opinion." Hm..." The boy smiled fondly as a memory flashed before his eyes. He nodded, almost imperceptibly,to himself before solidifying the image." I know how this sounds, but it would be my grandmother's basement. Now, perhaps it was just because of the contrast between the rest of her house and the basement, but I always liked the smell of the cold dust.Especially after smelling the dog-pee carpet of the rest of the house. And, that was where he had wood for the stove to heat the house in the winter. I loved winter, it would smell like wood, but also like fire, and like dust. " Oliver reminisced as his eyes took on a dreamy glaze.

" No, well, I did think about telling the man I was supposed to kill about the deal, but I was afraid he'd think I still wanted to kill him or something and come for me anyway. Yeaj, that's kind [' what I figured too, except I also didn't want the law on my tail because of a shabby deal." Oliver explained as efficiently as he knew how.

“Well.. For starters, your walk,” Jupiter straightened her posture but sluched her shoulders somewhat, curling her hands into fists. She sent a sideways glance at Oliver, “and you kinda..” She made a small gesture to the hands. “It’s just something I’ve noticed, of course. Oh! I have a small, itty-bitty theory. Now, don’t be afraid to tell me if this is wrong! But—uhm..” Slowly, she eased out of mimicking his walk, returning to the state of a lifted chin and broad shoulders, her fingers fiddling with the ends of her dress. Her stare shifted to the things around them. “I think I’ve.. startled you once or twice with all of the.. ‘right amount’ of energy? I’m not sure this is entirely the case, but I’m sure I’ve seen you wince a few times. Though, that could be a whole ‘nother—sorry!—other situation. Which you don’t have to share, if it is!”

“M-hm! No problem!” Jupiter hummed in return. She listened as he described the area, furrowing her brows as she attempted to imagine this place herself. It definitely wasn’t the strangest thing she’s heard, so that was a bit of a relief. “Awe! That’s sorta sweet, Oliver!” She chuckled. “Well, why don’t you just collect those thoughts together in one place, add a spice to it or whatever figure of speech describes that, and bam! Magical scene!”

“Wait. You mean, the law comes after you if you end someone’s life?” Jupiter rose a brow, despite understanding that’s how things work. Besides the point, she was also attempting to avoid saying the word ‘kill’ anymore than she had to. “If it gets you noticed by the law, then why go through all of the trouble in the first place? Oh- Hold on. Nevermind. We’ve been over this.” She facepalmed. Exhaling, she looked up once again. “So, why not just move forward with everything? Not to be rude or anything, but.. I don’t get it.”

Oliver chuckled merrily as he looked at Jupiter's impersonation. It defiantly was close, but somehow he enjoyed seeing someone else walking like him. He wasn't sure, but for some reason he didn't think she had it quite right, then again maybe he just didn't want to think he looked like that." I do... what?" He asked as he lifted his calloused hands to his face. " Okay, shoot." Oliver told her before inhaling to keep from gasping aloud. She noticed! Would it be rude for him to say yes? Would it be worse to lie? But, if he said atleast then he wouldn't have to explain. Then again she had said he didn't have to explain, but he still thought she would end up asking. Did he even know why he flinched when she was too energetic? He finally sighed in defeat," Yeah."

Oliver blushed," Yeah, well..." He tried to come up with an excuse, or atleast some way to explain why he was soft. He found himself wanting in explanations so he huffed in defeat and rubbed the pommel of his sword to calm himself, after all it wasn't like Jupiter was going to tell everyone he was soft."I guess I could do that. I don't know, I've never really thought about 'at."

" Yeah...Usually, I mean depending on who's killed, who killed them, and why. Well, because if I let go, then what have the last four years been for? If I let go, I have wasted years o' me life on 'is, for nothing, and I'm not going to be doin' 'at anytime soon if I have anythin' to say 'bout it." Oliver said, and as he became more and more worked up his grammar slackened and he began to drop letters.