High Above [Jackal]

[Vriska]

Shayu was amazing. Wonderful. Beautiful. Warm. And if not for the whole dragon thing Vriska would have torn her clothes off and thrown her to the ground right there. And then she purred and Vriska almost did it anyway.

Jackal thought she smelled good. It was the first time in a very long time anyone had sincerely complimented her and it slipped into her blood and flowed into her heart and stayed there as Vriska reciprocated Shayu's motion just to feel her hair against her face as she reached up and rubbed one of Jackal's ears with one hand just to see if she would make another one of those sounds she loved.

[Jackal]

x x

Kyoku de Ajia

Jackal smiled, rubbing her head against Vriska's, digging her head in with more force than was really necessary. She hoped Vriska realized what it meant, because to Jackal it felt as natural as kissing, maybe even more. She felt suddenly comfortable and content, her head dug into Vriska's hair, sniffing at her skin. Then Vriska rubbed her ear and Jackal's body sort of went slack, all of her weight falling on Vriska as a noise of pure feline content came out of somewhere deep in her throat, a sort of prolonged, warm, "Mrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr."

After a while she realized she had all but fallen onto Vriska, their bodies not so much against each other as being smashed together. She found the strength in her legs and lifted her chin up a bit, nuzzling back into Vriska's neck.

"Don't do that while I'm standing," Jackal muttered, her voice sounding half-amused, half-annoyed, and entirely adorable. "And for the love of God not while anyone's watching." She lifted up the flower behind Vriska's back, looking at it over Vriska's shoulder.

Then the flower melted. Jackal blinked and backed away quickly, watching her hand with a sort of horror. Whatever it was, it felt wonderfully cool and friendly, but it was still unsettling to watch liquid metal pool on her hand. It started to expand, moving along her arm, up her shoulder, and spreading across the rest of her body. She felt like she should've been more panicked, but something about the metal was just ... comforting, and kind, like an old friend. It even knew better than to slip too far into the gaps in her scales. Soon, she was completely covered in the liquid metal substance, and was standing absolutely still, arms held out, breathing heavily, and staring down at herself. The metal fluctuated with her skin, moving in and out when she breathed. It had stopped at her throat, thankfully.

"Okay what is going on."

[Vriska]

There was something special about this moment. Vriska couldn't quite put her finger on it, but she could have stayed like this forever, or at least until her legs gave out from under her from supporting Jackal's weight. Which was a good, long while. She loved the sound Jackal made, and the fact that she had made those sounds happen made her love them even more.

She just gave a vague noise of assent at Jackal's words and smiled. It was just for her.

And then Jackal pulled away what where are you going I was happy please don't leave me but she had a good reason because she was being eaten by a flower.

What.

Vriska moved closer and put her left hand on Jackal's stomach, seeing how the metal would react. "What."

[Jackal]

x x

Kyoku de Ajia

So, that had taken a turn for the weird.

As much as she tried to think oh crap there's a metal flower hugging my everything she couldn't help but remember how much she'd enjoyed being so close to Vriska, how safe she had felt. It was like the thing was urging her to go back to her, to find that happiness again ... which would've been a really great thought if Jackal didn't have the vague suspicion that a piece of liquid metal that had decided to give her some shiny pants was giving it to her. She flinched when Vriska touched it, terrified that something bad was going to happen; but strangely, she found it hard to stay terrified. At first, when Vriska touched it, nothing happened, the material still clinging with alarming readiness to Jackal's skin, fluctuating and warping as she drew breath. Jackal realized after a while that she felt a sort of mental prodding. Not so much a fully formed thought as a sensation, that there was a decision to be made.

She blinked, and found herself thinking yes. Suddenly, the coating receded, and Vriska's hand was touching Jackal's bare flesh. Suddenly, a wave of information assaulted her brain, and Jackal fell to her knees, clutching her head, not so much in pain as surprise. Her eyes suddenly glowed silver rather than their usual red, and she looked up at Vriska, half in panic, half in inexplicable joy. She instantaneously knew where the shard had come from, what it was, and the knowledge was overwhelming. She took a deep breath and got to her knees. She stumbled towards Vriska, her legs not really working right, resisting the pull of the metal wrapping around them. She urged the nascent intellect in the metal skin and told it, gently, to recede. And, in an instant, the metal began to slide along her body, until it pooled in a small, barely noticeable patch at the small of her back, hidden by her hair.

"Help me," Jackal muttered, though she didn't sound in pain so much as she did exhausted. She collapsed onto Vriska, the strength evaporating from her limbs. "I need to tell you something. But not here. Not where anyone can hear us."

[Vriska]

Okay, so whatever flower power was in that new suit was apparently not going to kill them both and, to Vriska's relief, she could still touch her. So liquid metal flower armor thing was mostly harmless. Then Jackal doubled over. "Shayu!"

Not harmless! Not harmless! But her eyes are so beautiful...

Shayu got to her feet and Vriska was instantly by her side, which was convenient because she collapsed straight afterwards. "Woah there. I've got you, I've got you. Come on." Supporting Jackal, Vriska went back the way they came until they found a guard, who Vriska ordered to move both of them to her quarters. Seconds later, the guard was dismissed and Vriska was putting Jackal into her bed. In many ways it resembled a giant nest filled with blankets and pillows and to something in Vriska's brain it just screamed 'SLEEP IN ME.'

And of course Vriska climbed into it right next to Jackal and started playing with her hair. "We're private here. No sound can leave these walls. What happened?"

[Jackal]

x x

Kyoku de Ajia

In spite of herself, Jackal smiled when Vriska said her name. The silver in her eyes faded to the normal red, then vanished altogether, and her head stopped feeling like four or five people were trying to fit in there at once. Just the usual three. It was extremely strange for her to feel someone else carrying her along, and Jackal was desperately cautious about all the deadly points on her body, so much so that she didn't realize until too late that Vriska was trying to get her into her bed.

Ha, she thought wryly, but once she was on the bed, she calmly, carefully, and very, very slowly, got off of the bed. She looked back. There were at least a half dozen tears in the fabric. It was sad to see, but she shoved the thought aside. Vriska could at least afford new blankets, now, though she probably wouldn't be able to afford the questions about the Minish freak she had quite literally taken to bed.

"Sorry," Jackal said apologetically, gesturing to the bed, "I should've mentioned, I can't really ... do beds. At least not at any better than a rate of one per minute," she added, lamely attempting to inject some humour. She looked around and realized all the chairs in the room were softly cushioned, or made of a very expensive wood. Jackal's body would ruin them. Luckily, the floor was stone, so she sat down there without another word, looking up at Vriska on her bed.

"It's a shard of the Master Sword. Something broke it, and ... when it landed in your garden, it just started latching onto things. Now it's latched on to me," she said simply, still feeling oddly in awe of the bit of metal that had pooled around her back. With a thought, it slid from her back, along her arm, and into her hand, assuming the shape of a flower once more. She smiled. "You really sure you just want to give this to me? It's incredibly valuable. It might go a long way in cementing your position as the Oocca Lord. They might listen to someone who's found a shard of the sword."

[Vriska]

Disappointingly, Shayu got out of the bed almost as quickly as Vriska had gotten in. Picking idly at the tears she had left behind, Vriska just smiled as she stretched out like a kitten and then lay down on her back, head hanging off the edge of the bed facing Jackal. "That's alright. We'll figure something out."

Jackal's words were, to get the unavoidable pun out of the way, shattering. A contemplative look settled on Vriska as she took this in, drumming her fingers on her stomach and thinking. The Master Sword was broken and its shards were raining down all over the world. Mysterious figures were rampaging across Hyrule, threats so old they were almost new. "This can't be good."

She barely even needed to think before shaking her head at Jackal's offer. "I told you, it's a gift. Besides, I could just knight you and it'd have the same effect."

There was the barest hint of a suggestion in Vriska's voice.

[Jackal]

x x

Kyoku de Ajia

Jackal laughed, and said jokingly,

"Maybe I should curl up at the foot of your bed and snarl at anyone who tries to come in the room?" It could've been bitter, but instead she said it with humour, a strange smile on her face, one not marked by her mouth so much as the happy turn of her eyes. They looked less animal-like than ever, and it was clear to see that somewhere in there there was a perfectly normal, happy woman, who just maybe looked like she kind of wanted to prey upon some wild deer. Jackal shrugged when Vriska mentioned her fears, and said,

"One of the monstrosities wasn't that hard to kill. All it took was a little application of brute force. The nonchalant way which she described a scenario where she'd suffered some pretty horrible wounds was typical of her. Pain was just an obstacle to be overcome, and certainly wasn't uncommon. When she heard that Vriska wanted her to keep the flower, Jackal was unreasonably happy. She approached Vriska on all fours, while the flower melted and bonded to her wrist, forming a sort of bracelet. She kissed Vriska slowly, smiling, before she said,

"Me, a knight?" She laughed. "A nice thought. But I don't know if I'd fit in. Maybe I'm much happier just being your dragon."

---

for the record, to anyone reading this, the master sword shard thing will make sense VERY shortly. Jackal's not getting anything for free. this is just for RP purposes right now.

[Vriska]

Vriska giggled. Giggled. It was probably the girliest sound she'd made in years. It was amazing how with one breath Shayu could tell her the world was ending and with one kiss make it all go away.

The outfit Vriska was wearing looked like it had been dug out of some attic somewhere from two hundred years ago. A lacey, frumpy, frilly froofroo affair that took three people to put on on and tie together and just the pull of a ribbon to loosen it. Surreptitiously reaching down, Vriska pulled said ribbon clear from the outfit, which reacted by loosening considerably and it was clear that each individual piece could be removed without much effort at all, and tied it around Shayu's neck in a neat, long-tailed bow.

Vriska had just collared a dragon. That was one thing to cross off the bucket list, at least. The ribbon was slim and silk and vividly blue, the color of Vriska's blood. She rolled on to her stomach, accompanied by a further loosening of her outfit, and smiled. "You might be right. I never was a dog person." Using the bow-tails like a leash, Vriska pulled Shayu in for another kiss, pushing her tongue against her lips, begging for entry.

[Jackal]

x x

Kyoku de Ajia

Jackal was glad to see that Vriska wasn't worrying too much, and even gladder to see her taking off her clothes. She realized that she was all but staring Vriska down like sick prey, and so looked away for a moment to try and get everything in her head back in order. What happened while she was doing this involved something being fastened around her neck. Jackal's initial reaction was to snarl viciously, one arm swinging wildly and ripping a huge tear in Vriska's bed. Then she blushed a deep red and muttered an apology, hanging her head.

Then she realized there was still a ribbon tied around her neck. When Vriska pulled Jackal towards her, Jackal quickly got next to the edge of the bed, before suddenly grabbing the girl by her metal arm and pulling her towards her. Jackal smiled.

"There are certain dangers inherent in leashing dragons." With a quick snip of her fingers, the ribbon was cut to pieces, though some still dangled around her neck. Her grin turned suddenly predatory, a vaguely dark look in her eyes. She reminded herself not to lose control. Something about the presence of the metal around her wrist made it easier. She kissed Vriska with a sudden, savage passion, a wolflike snarl barking out from between her lips as she shoved her tongue through Vriska's razor-teeth, the savage strength in her arms all but yanking Vriska off the bed.

This time, though, she stayed in control. One hand was pressing in fiercely to Vriska's shoulder, but the claws were held back, and even though her mouth was all but rammed down Vriska's throat, she didn't let her teeth clack against Vriska's.

Dragons come in storms, Vriska.

[Vriska]

The damage to the bed didn't particularly bother Vriska, nor did Shayu's little slip. From what she knew, there were very few ways to tame a dragon, and none of them were safe. She wondered if Shayu could be persuaded to wear a ribbon everywhere. She liked the idea of having a dragon at her beck and call. That she would carry around her neck a constant reminder of her.

Shayu's ferocity stole Vriska's breath away and left her gasping for air in between the fluttering touches of their tongues. With her free hand Vriska pulled yet another ribbon free of her outfit and moved off the bed and into the kiss until Jackal was lying on the floor and Vriska was straddling her and somehow a second ribbon was collaring her dragon her dragon her dragon and she moved her left arm up to brush against Shayu's ears. With the other, Vriska pulled off her jacket, leaving her in a loose silk shirt as she regretted having put on pants that morning.

And then she briefly surfaced from the kiss panting for air and pressed herself closer to Shayu, burying her head next to hers like she'd done in the garden. And then she just moved against her, reveling in her touch and wishing she'd just rip her clothes to strips. She wanted more - needed more of her like she needed to eat or breathe. More than anything Vriska wanted to claim her. To make her hers. The name slipped out of her like a breath and danced in the air like a secret between two lovers because that was what it was. "Shayu"

[Jackal]

x x

Kyoku de Ajia

Jackal knew Vriska wanted more from her. And that was okay. Vriska was, after all, a grown woman, and more to the point, a grown, normal woman who hadn't spent most of her life living in the wild, completely separate from any other intelligent being. Jackal, however, was still struggling with being used to people, still struggling with rediscovering her own humanity. The truth was, for a long time, she hadn't needed it, and when push came to shove, she just naturally became the dragon again. She didn't want that to happen while Vriska was around, and it had already happened so many times. The thought of a collar had nearly made her slash Vriska's arms; she only realized what she was doing in the nick of time, moving her arm out of the way quickly. When Vriska had suddenly lunged at her, that savage half of her had nearly reacted, but she screamed at it NO and it quieted down. That part of her would never be tamed; not by Shayu, not by Vriska, either. Jackal survived. It was all she knew how to do.

"Vriska, I ... thank you," Jackal said, and though she knew Vriska wanted more, Jackal just rested her head against the Oocca Lady's, and held her close. It was the closest most she'd ever been to anyone ... well, in nearly all her life. She pulled the part of the ribbon still around her neck loose, and let it fall. "Just be patient. There are no tame dragons," she said, sounding oddly sad about it. "And there's no one like me. Only me."

[Vriska]

When Shayu actually thanked her Vriska knew exactly where they were headed, and it sure as hell wasn't sexytown. Breathing a curse in Minish and trying not to look too disappointed, Vriska lifted herself up so her face was hovering above Shayu's. Her mane of black hair fell around them like a curtain. The rest of the world didn't exist. There was just them.

She didn't need to make herself smile. Shayu was something unique and wonderful and special and she was all hers. "It's alright," she said and kissed her again. "No pressure," she said, and kissed her one more time. Gods she missed having sex. But she wanted Shayu, and if that meant she had to wait then she would. After all, there was nobody else quite like her. Or even remotely like her. "If only there were two of you," she said, and then leaned back down and kissed her once again, deeply, pushing her tongue in between Shayu's lips because frankly she didn't feel like ever moving from where she was.

[Jackal]

x x

Kyoku de Ajia

Jackal smiled as Vriska tried to kiss her, and acquiesced. It didn't really come naturally to her, not the way it did to most people, but she was beginning to suspect it came extremely naturally to Vriska. She just wanted to be close to someone. Vriska in particular.

But she would never be able to escape the fact that she wasn't like a normal person. She couldn't just settle down and go to sleep for the night in a bed. She couldn't just live a simple life. Aside from the fact that she was about as harmless as a pile of walking razorblades, something in her just didn't like staying in one spot, not for too long. It was something she couldn't fight, not without feeling sick and depressed, and she didn't want to expose Vriska to that. She hugged Vriska close, then slowly got to her feet, being careful to untangle herself without cutting Vriska open.

"I have to go. Sorry," she said apologetically, touching Vriska's face, "But I need answers about this thing." She indicated the piece of liquid metal flowing along her left arm. "And I don't know where to begin looking. So I'm gonna look."

In a fluid motion, Jackal was perched on the window in Vriska's room. That was the nice thing about the City in the Sky; there were people-sized windows everywhere. She smiled at Vriska.

"I'll be back before you know it."

And then she jumped out of the window, spread her wings, and flew. Or, at least, fell with style.

[EXIT]

[Vriska]

Vriska tried not to show the dismay she felt as Shayu told her she wanted to leave. She was the only familiar face Vriska had seen in weeks. She brought her hands up around Shayu's as she touched her one last time. "It's alright," she said unconvincingly. "Let me know what you learn."

Stay. Please. Please stay.

She smiled back at her. Just looking at Shayu could make her smile. "Looking forward to it."

And then she was gone. Just like that. Vriska sat back and leaned against her bed. She was all alone, ruling an ungrateful people she had never truly been part of. Half of them hated her and the other half looked at her unbelieving and laughing on the inside. It was all a joke to them. Hundreds of people were dead and their lord was gone and they were treating it like a prank, as if they expected Ryst to jump out from behind the throne and reveal that all along she'd been a monkey dressed in fancy clothes.

There was a knock on the door and her steward entered without waiting for her permission. Ryst's other one had left the palace utterly distraught at his lord's departure. The day after, a man named Voss had volunteered for the job. Vriska liked Voss. He had a sense of humor drier than the Gerudo Desert and a near-psychic ability to know exactly what Vriska wanted almost before she wanted it. He looked around the room and took in Vriska's disheveled outfit. "I'll start turning away the suitors, then."

Vriska laughed. "Please don't tell me I have suitors"

"Well, not so much suitors as whores looking for," He frowned and somehow managed a perfect slum accent. "'Th' gurlie wot th' pimplord left behoind.'"

Vriska raised an eyebrow and wondered if Voss was a street kid. "And what if I'd wanted whores?"

"Then I'm certain someone would have tried to send you a concubine already. Today has only confirmed long-standing rumors of your, ah, tastes."

"Did I lead you astray of some point you were getting to?"

"I've taken the liberty of sacking the guardsmen that denied your paramour entry and replacing them with smarter ones. The scouts should be returning from the Sky Rim within the hour."

"Good dog, best steward."

"Do I get a treat?"

Vriska laughed again. It was good to know there was at least one Oocca who wasn't a complete pain. And then she went back to work. What else could she do?

[EXIT AND FIN]

[Rwaht]

Lock'd, move'd, finish reward given.