ataraxionlogs | with a thousand lies

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with a thousand lies

CHARACTERS: Severus Snape & open.
LOCATION: various places around the ship.
WARNINGS: tba.
SUMMARY: open log!
NOTES: been super out of it this month :| would you like a jerkface wizard in your rp life? look no further!!

Professor Snape is well aware he hasn't been living up to even his standards of paltry socializing for the past many weeks, but without the forced routine of classrooms full of insufferable students or the looming threat of death-by-Dark-Lord, he finds it all too easy to blend with the scenery. He does his work and hands results off to Charles, or looks at things he's asked to, but otherwise shuns interaction. Maybe he's still subconsciously pissed off at William, or depressed Sirius hasn't yet tripped and fallen onto an exploding shadow monster, or something, who knows.

This place is giving him a headache, constantly-- but he can still be found fleeting in common areas of the labs, when he's not working on his own projects, or skirting the gardens, or cooking absently on level 010.

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Lily has been planning to relocate up a few floors for a while, now. It isn't that she wants to be alone utterly or that she doesn't want to spend time with anyone she's been living around, it's... overwhelming. Everyone all at once, in such close proximity, reminds her of Hogwarts dormitories in an emotionally draining way; sometimes she just needs quiet.

It isn't like moving her things is too difficult to do on her own: she doesn't actually have much accumulated despite being on the Tranquility for several months. It's just nice to have the help.

Help comes in the form of the last person anybody wants to see on level 005 - though the feeling is at least mutual. Severus is skeptical of his presence being a good idea, as he imagines that if anybody sees him helping Lily move, it'll cause a significantly worse reaction than just Lily moving, but... oh well. Maybe a significantly worse reaction would be entertaining. (#slytherin)

"Anything else that might dissolve trying to Apparate through an evil space ship?" A dry inquiry, as Severus sticks small things into a box - a box! - like they're bloody muggles, or something, who can't charm everything into one suitcase and be done with it.

Lily doesn't care. Truly, honestly, doesn't care. At least as far as for anyone caring that Severus is the one helping her move: he's already helped her on board with plenty of things, and why not this? She's Team Fight Me About It by now, and most people that know the both of them (from home) will know better than to try her lately, anyway.

She gives Severus a Look for his comment, though she does smile a little. "Mostly the cat," pleasantly, though she leans over to look into the box Severus has going. There's another box already packed, sitting on the bed, that she'd had ready before Severus arrived. It has her clothes, with a pile of Harry's baby toys and her dead husband's broken spectacles shoved haphazardly beneath them.

Said cat is mostly lurking, looking like she doesn't trust either of them at the moment.

"Don't look at me like that, Elladora," he says to the cat, unimpressed. "You're on your own."

Severus is not picking your cat up, Lily, he doesn't want to get mauled. He probably still smells like exuberant Labrador mixes. He sticks the last whatevever-it-is nearby in and picks the box up. "Just turn her into a handbag," --is not the way to make friends with peoples familiars, Severus.

Elladora is Not Impressed.

"Severus," Lily says, automatically, with a not-quite laugh. "She's had plenty of being transfigured for a while, I'd think." When things got Bad That Time, Elladora spent some time as a decorative pillow. It was better than being sick.

"I can take care of her," she crouches a little as she says this, peering at Elladora's just out of reach sitting spot. "Come on, then, I'm not leaving you here by yourself, you brat. I'll listen to his suggestion if you don't." It's fond, and Elladora, instead of climbing into her arms like a dog probably would, stares for a long moment, before finally taking a running leap onto Lily's shoulder to spare herself the indignity of being cradled ... or turned into a handbag.

"Oof." Whatever, it's fine.

Severus just raises his eyebrows at her like what? because oh my wizard god, him not liking cute cuddly animals is not news. As a rule he's not very fond of familiars - bringing any into his classroom is as good as volunteering them as test subjects, which everyone is well aware of. (Probably he should not mention this to Lily.)

"Right." Other box is stacked up, and okok let's go. He figures she can do a last check on her own, being a fully functional adult and all. Is he here for moral support? ... He's just here for boxes. "Still don't want to bugger off down to 001 near medical?"

It is definitely not news, but she's still allowed to be idly exasperated at the suggestion, just like it's not news to him that she wouldn't actually turn her cat into a handbag. (Also no do not mention that part to Lily.)

Lily straightens slowly so the damn cat doesn't dig her claws in any more than she already has, and then she's ready. She'll do her check later, for now it's best to just get sorted.

"No," she says, decisively, "it'll be best out on 010. I'll appreciate the quiet." Then it's off to the elevators! Like Muggles, with their boxes.

Alright. Cool. They're just going to be immediate neighbors (again) in a dorm-like environment (again) on the same floor (a new development). Nothing weird here, totally fine. ... Yeah, Severus isn't sure if he feel victorious or silent panic. Only time will tell.

"I don't think I've ever actually moved house," he observes as they near the lifts. "The only things I ever saved were for potionwork. Even here, I left everything on level twenty-eight when security relocated everyone."

It will be fine. It will ... probably be fine. Lily's almost always in Medical anymore anyway when she isn't sleeping, so it probably would have been better to follow his suggestion but she's just... being stubborn about it, probably.

"I just shoved everything in one box last time and carted it down," Lily admits, stepping into the lift when it's ready and carefully setting them on course to the right level. Elladora is fine with this movement pattern, apparently. "It wasn't a lot, but I'm too sentimental."

(It's still not a lot.)

"We stopped at a space station, once," he says as the lift doors close, in the same conversational tone as if part of him isn't snapping Fuck off, Marauders in the most self-satisfied mental tone in existence. Lily Evans is leaving you and your insufferable, juvenile bullshit. Hah.

"Most shopping I've ever done in my bloody life."

Lily lofts an eyebrow, a little. She's settled easily now as they wait for the lift to take them five whole levels, though she still looks kind of ridiculous with a cat sitting on her. Whatever.

"Understandable, really, given conditions." There are so many things she didn't even realize were things she would miss; having general needs taken care of is fine but missing creature comforts is a pain.

She's sure horrible things probably happened on the space station, because nothing Good ever just happens.

They've all seen weirder from cats-- given the transfiguration mistress, and all.

"Some people tried to stay, get out, but. Unsurprisingly everything went terribly." Severus shrugs. It was kind of an ordeal, but everything here is. The setting remains the noteworthy facet of the experience, versus the disaster that ended it. "It was beautiful, though. Looking out, ignoring the rest of it."

Fair.

Lily nods, quiet a moment. "Not surprising, no." Being able to get off of the ship for any amount of time sounds tempting, even if it does (did) have awful complications. "A short reprieve sounds better than none." Conversationally, because she's not actively complaining or inviting anything horrible to happen to any space stations.

"Mm." Passive agreement - people did die, but it was a dark lord's doing, versus the ship's. For once. Severus almost wants to ask her if she'd want to stay, should they ever stop somewhere again. But the question doesn't come; he can't make himself.

Lift doors open upon their arrival to level 010, and Severus heads down the hall. "So what's the lucky number?" ...levity just sounds wrong coming from him, unavoidably veering sarcastic.

She wouldn't have known how to answer, anyway. In reality the ship would never let anyone stay, but she'd want to if she could convince the people she cares about to try with her. Most things are dependent on that, with her. #ugh.

"075 feels lucky," Lily comments in return, lightly, as they trek down the hall. It's a near enough number to be close without being too close, and this is probably something that she thought about very hard: despite wanting space to be quiet and alone she doesn't feel comfortable being alone, utterly. Emergencies, or something.

It's an hour that feels late, when Charles enters Severus' office. He brings with him tea, a small pot and two cups hooked by a finger at the handles, and these he sets down. One does not simply all the time ask Professor Snape if he would like company, company just kind of happens, especially when Severus is being even more elusive than he is usually.

Which is fine. Some cycles are just like that, god only knows.

"I'm asking a witch out for dinner," he says, as he pours the aromatic, herbal tea of Severus' own stock. He's dressed down from work, lab coat abandoned elsewhere, the sleeves rolled on his shirt. A fairly recent shave and a haircut make for only a mildly scruffier, silverier version than the Xavier that helped establish this department so many months ago. "You might be familiar, it's the one that looks like Dr Knutson."

Well, this looks like a bribe. Which is interesting, seeing as the divorce papers were torn up so what do you need a bribe for, Professor X.

"I've seen her around," Severus says, giving Charles a slightly wary look. "Why are you asking a witch out for dinner?" That sounds like a terrible idea, have you been paying attention about witches his tone seems to say.

Upon tasting said tea, perhaps Severus can be assured that a) it's tea of his own stores and thus b) Charles could do better about bribery if that were his intent. Is that better or worse than a genuine social call?

"She's very attractive?" is offered, speculatively, but not dwelled on by the time he sits and hefts his own tea, nestled between his palms. "And she inquired a short while ago, in professional capacity, about the strange, aggressive-- let's say, personality her magic has taken on since arriving here, so we're to meet and discuss it. I thought I might ask you what begs asking her."

So maybe a little bit bribery.

His face goes a little funny at 'attractive', because this is also in context of 'she looks like Odessa'-- and okay, yes, Odessa (and by extension, Fortescue) is technically very beautiful, but he now permanently associates that face with being a crazy person. Strips a bit of the charm off.

(Or so he tells himself.)

"Sounds like her magic is controlling her and not the other way around, if it's got a personality that isn't hers." Severus sips his tea. Little bit bribery; it's not like there's better tea on board. "Corvo had a similar problem and I had to keep him in confinement for over a month to prevent him from murdering everyone on board, if you remember."

"I won't open with that, I think."

The comment is frivolous, but light on the surface; his tone shifts to thoughtful. "She said that where she comes from, she has access to other dimensions, and one of them from which magic comes from, the Shadow, is accessible to her here. But she said it's not as 'friendly'. Hostile, in fact, and that maybe Shadow means something different.

"Which I think is true, and begs the question, does it pose to her a personal threat, and." Charles tips his head over his pause. "Can it be put to any use."

"'Other dimensions'," he echoes, with the air of someone who thinks science is the sort of fairytale that scientists think magic is. (Helpful.) "Before anything else I think you'd need to nail down what that means, precisely and exactly, the mechanics and the origin. What was she accessing at home? Is she accessing the same thing here or is it something entirely different that's just masquerading as the familiar?"

"Therein lies the main mystery," says Charles, having not blinked at echoing. It wasn't, after all, his own terminology -- and classes it just as magical as Severus might view it scientific. He kicks back a little with his tea, settled. "I'm hoping that a series of thoughtful, helpful questions, like you say, will help her narrow it down for herself."

He sips his tea. "I didn't get into it the meat of it yet, network being what it is. She agreed to meet in person."

Edited 2015-03-14 11:41 (UTC)

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with a thousand lies

wHERE DID THIS MONTH GO: BACKDATED VER

to hell. it went to hell.

yeah that's a fair assessment.

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