[open] these hands of mine were clumsy, not clever

[unwings]

WHO: Castiel and others
WHAT: catch-all, OPEN and CLOSED threads below
WHERE: Horizon, Free Cities
WHEN: May
WARNINGS: Will add as needed, noted in comment headers
OTHER: Will match brackets or prose.

It's a secret I keep tucked inside my chest
With this heart of mine that's guilty, not remorseful
There is love that doesn't have a place to rest
But it would have buried you if it had settled on your shoulders

Comments

CLOSED; Wanda and the nerd club interview

[unwings]

Hello... Wanda, is it?

[ Istredd's library is abuzz with Summoned come to record their memories of the pit, add books from their faction, check books from others, and aid in the research effort of it all. Castiel's completed his own cataloguing of events, and moved on to gathering what notes they can take from others. Someone directed him towards this woman from Solvunn, and he approaches her in one of the various reading nooks, an empty journal in hand. ]

I'm Castiel.

[ a polite smile, perhaps lacking more of the gentle warmth offered openly before the pit (it's been a rough time for us all), but friendly all the same. In the Horizon, Cas is back in his token trench coat, suit and tie, with sensible shoes, looking more accountant than angel. It's a comforting return to the familiar for him, after all the events of the pit (and directly after) have shaken him. As is digging into research - nothing more normal than working a case. ]

Would it be alright if I ask you some question about your time in Solvunn? Particularly concerning lore and the old gods.

[carmesi]

[had wanda realized that her accepting his invitation to sit and talk privately for a moment would feel like an interview, perhaps wanda would have tried to seem a little more presentable for the occasion. the horizon is a place of comfort, constantly finding that sweaters and jeans anticipate any possible visit.

but castiel (she remembers him, from before—but he does not remember her) is dressed in a trench coat, suit and tie, looking not quite like an accountant in her eyes so much as a detective in one of many tv shows she would watch before. especially with the journal he carries.]

Yeah, sure.

[she's been sitting in the reading space istredd had created for her many moons ago, shoulder pressed to one of the arches, legs crossed under herself, a book open on her lap. wanda closes the book, a thumb holding the page she had left off at.

wanda straightens her back, adjusts her position.]

I wouldn't say I'm an expert, but I can try and answer whatever questions you have.

[unwings]

[ the alcove is a peaceful nook with sunshine beaming over velvet cushions. istredd's done well in making his tower a comfortable, homey place to lose yourself in a records or stories. which serves the purpose of an interview just as well. ]

Thank you, Wanda. Any information is helps us.

[ cas settles on one of the velvet seats across from her, cracking open the journal and tugs a pen out from somewhere in his coat, after shuffling through a variety of knickknacks he's picked up here and there - a shiny rock, a cassette tape, ah, there it is, the pen.

right. questions. ]

Have you had any interactions with the Old Gods here? Visions, conversations, anything like that?

[carmesi]

[wanda creates a bookmark to replace her thumb holding the book's page, and lets the book rest on the seat beside her as castiel works around to finding his pen. crossing her legs, hands at her lap one atop the other, she is ready for his questions.]

Are you asking everyone the same questions?

[—it's out of curiosity, for if he is, she'd like to know their answers, too.

she is quick to amend and nod, though, finding the room to intertwine her fingers together.]

In Solvunn, to give an offering to a shrine is to communicate with an Old God. Not directly, but... [it's just a feeling, according to the natives. wanda scrunches her nose; suppose it isn't really a secret.] I have come to make a pact with an Old God, yes.

[unwings]

Yes. We'll be keeping record of them, so the questions don't need repeating in the future.

[ The plan is to start with others that may have experienced similar visions - he'd heard the same ones appeared some months before he returned to Abraxas during another chaotic event.

His interest is piqued at the mention of a pact, eyes snapped up from his notes and abandoning his scribbles to tilt his head curiously. ]

A pact? Which God and for what, if it's alright to ask?

[carmesi]

[there is a bit of an inner struggle here. for the most part, wanda is aware that several people know of her endeavors with soris immaneus and the pact that she's created with the goddess.

she is, understandably, hesitant, tugging at the sleeves of her shirt over the knuckles of her hands.]

...knowing the name of any of the gods can be a very powerful weapon, especially when casting a spell to counter any of their magic. I don't know to what extent it would affect me should many others know of this pact.

[stephen's warnings ring in her ears, and she hates to think that he might be right (to an extent). she hopes castiel understands her wish for discretion here.]

She is the patron for dark blessings. An Old God that is called upon during difficult times for her protection from even darker troubles. [she flattens her hands atop her knee.] Soris Immaneus. I wanted to use her magic to help us find — well, you and the others who were in the pit.

[wanda shakes her head a bit, as if anticipating reprimand.]

I wasn't going to leave the retrieval to fate and a wish.

[unwings]

[ Cas notices how the topic brings some discomfort to her, and he quietly closes the journal, refraining from recording this portion. it's simply a conversation. ]

Of course. I'm familiar with how powerful a name can be. We don't wish to put you in any kind of danger.

[ magic and supernatural beings back home can be the same. it's a valid concern, and cas will be careful with how he might share this information with istredd later. if it's possible to keep the god's name out of the public record, that might be best. ]

Did you get an impression that this deity had any special regard for the Summoned? The cultists in the pit were convinced we harbor a special connection to the divine. [ judging by how well the summoned handled the ritual, and the visions they experienced after, it doesn't seem entirely unfounded, but that doesn't explain why. ] Could you tell from your dealings if there's any truth in that?

[carmesi]

[wanda is appreciative of his understanding of her situation, and then shakes her head at his question.]

Not particularly. It's a deity that has always existed in Abraxas even before we all arrived. [thus, an old god.] I think if anyone would have gone to her for help, with the right offering— they'd be where I am. Summoned or otherwise.

[and so, perhaps...]

Maybe the difference lies in that I'm not busy cowering in fear and awe to deny forming a pact, unlike the Solvunn natives. We do have our connection to the Singularity. [and, as it were,] Those in Solvunn have always treated us like we were in one way or another chosen by the gods to be summoned.

[still, it's vague, wanda knows as much.]

Perhaps this is one of the questions I could ask the elders.