Verse 4: Leaving St. Mary's with the Reids (Lilly and Marduk)

[Tay-Dor]

[Marduk]

"Yes, you did it right. Well done." Replies Marduk. "Now go wash up before Lilly starts eating the table."

[archolewa]

{Lilly}

Lilly guffaws, and leans down mouth open like she's going to take a bite out of the edge of the table.

[Charybdis Richelle]

{GM}

“Yes, sir,” Galgaliel says and heads to the sink to wash his hand. He giggles at Lilly’s antics.

Jezreel frowns at the blatant lie.

Before the young Seraph can protest, Willow says, “That’s just a figure of speech, Jezreel… It’s hyperbole… exaggeration… So, chill out.”

Jezreel sighs. “Which is also a figure of speech… I just wish people would say what they mean.”

Galgaliel finishes washing up and takes an empty seat at the table. “Thank you for inviting me to lunch, Ms. Reid,” he says politely.

“You’re welcome,” Moonstone answers. Then she turns to Lilly. “Go ahead, dear. Dig in.”

[archolewa]

{Lilly}

"Sorry about that Jezreel. Got a little caught up in the silliness," says Lilly as she very calmly and politely takes a sandwich, some mango and some chips. She picks up the sandwich, gnaws on her lower lip a moment, and then takes a big bite. She sighs, and starts to purr as she chews.

She swallows that first delightful bite. "This is paradise right here. Not that stodgy place full of grumpy--oh, that reminds me. Hey, Johnson. You've been doing this for a while. You ever heard of an Angel manifesting somewhere other than next to her Heart when she Ascends to Heaven?"

[Tay-Dor]

{GM}

Jezreel sighs. “Which is also a figure of speech… I just wish people would say what they mean.”

[Marduk]

"We did say what we meant. Anyone not a Seraph understood what we meant." Marduk explains. "Hyperbole is not a lie."

[Charybdis Richelle]

{GM}

Jezreel sighs. “Which is also a figure of speech… I just wish people would say what they mean.”

{Lilly}

"Sorry about that Jezreel. Got a little caught up in the silliness," says Lilly as she very calmly and politely takes a sandwich, some mango and some chips. She picks up the sandwich, gnaws on her lower lip a moment, and then takes a big bite. She sighs, and starts to purr as she chews.

{GM}

“Apology accepted,” Jezreel says with a gentle smile.

[Marduk]

"We did say what we meant. Anyone not a Seraph understood what we meant." Marduk explains. "Hyperbole is not a lie."

{GM}

“Lilly had no intention of eating that table,” Jezreel says without spelling out that makes it a lie. “The fact that humans say things they don’t mean and other humans understand what the speaker means does not make them grate any less against the Symphony or my nerves. Apparently after several millennia of being a Malakim you’ve forgotten that.” She shakes her head. “I didn’t say anything about it until Willow pointed the figurative language out to me. And I didn’t get angry about it, but it still makes me uncomfortable. I did my best to control my reaction to it, but I cannot control the way it sets my teeth on edge.”

Shaking her head a second time, Jezreel says, “Lilly apologized. I accepted that apology. Can we please just drop it and enjoy lunch?”

Willow reaches over and pats Jezreel’s arm.

{Lilly}

She swallows that first delightful bite. "This is paradise right here. Not that stodgy place full of grumpy--oh, that reminds me. Hey, Johnson. You've been doing this for a while. You ever heard of an Angel manifesting somewhere other than next to her Heart when she Ascends to Heaven?"

{GM}

Since the question is directed at Marduk, Jezreel takes advantage of the time to take a sandwich, some chips, and a large heap of mangoes... and a few deep breaths to calm her nerves.

[archolewa]

Since the question is directed at Marduk, Jezreel takes advantage of the time to take a sandwich, some chips, and a large heap of mangoes... and a few deep breaths to calm her nerves.

Lilly can't quite keep herself from giving Jezreel an embarrassed, regretful look when the girl takes her deep breaths. Lilly hadn't quite appreciated the raw discomfort she caused Jezreel until the young Seraph spelled it out. Apology accepted or not, it filled her with hot shame. She takes another bite of her sandwich, trying to distract herself with pure yumminess.

[Tay-Dor]

[Marduk]

"The sky is green." Marduk says softly, ignoring the phantom screech of the Symphony,the faded estige of his time as a Seraph. Much like a human who has lost a limb can feel phantom pain in the lost limb.

He then turns to answer Lilly. "Only if you are following a nearby Angel or Demon who is ascending. In that case you would appear next to them."

[Charybdis Richelle]

{GM}

Jezreel glares daggers at Marduk, looking down her nose at the ancient Malakim, an expression many a Seraph have mastered for dealing with less-than-truthful angels who know better. Marduk has to admit, she does it pretty well for an angel so young.

Out of sorts from the shrill screeching of the Symphony over Marduk’s blatant lie, Jezreel misses whatever subtleties that it might have whispered to her on the subject of Ascending to Heaven. Rather than commenting on either the subject or Marduk’s egregious behavior, Jezreel starts in on her sandwich with the complete intensity any growing teen can muster for food.

[archolewa]

[Marduk]

"The sky is green." Marduk says softly, ignoring the phantom screech of the Symphony,the faded estige of his time as a Seraph. Much like a human who has lost a limb can feel phantom pain in the lost limb.

He then turns to answer Lilly. "Only if you are following a nearby Angel or Demon who is ascending. In that case you would appear next to them."

Lilly gives Marduk a hot glare. Then, she grins. "Actually, sometimes the sky does turn green before severe weather, typically before a storm nasty enough to create a tornado. Now, it's not currently tornado season, but still. There's a non-zero chance that somewhere the sky is in fact green, and it's certainly green sometimes. Anyway are you sure you've never heard of any other time? Because this morning when I Ascended to tell Michael Eli was re-Assigning me, I ended up in the Hall of Creation, instead of next to my Heart in the Groves. I was using a rather young, unstable Tether if that matters. Though I would be kind of surprised if it did."

[Charybdis Richelle]

[Marduk]

"The sky is green." Marduk says softly, ignoring the phantom screech of the Symphony,the faded estige of his time as a Seraph. Much like a human who has lost a limb can feel phantom pain in the lost limb.

He then turns to answer Lilly. "Only if you are following a nearby Angel or Demon who is ascending. In that case you would appear next to them."

{Lilly}

Lilly gives Marduk a hot glare. Then, she grins. "Actually, sometimes the sky does turn green before severe weather, typically before a storm nasty enough to create a tornado. Now, it's not currently tornado season, but still. There's a non-zero chance that somewhere the sky is in fact green, and it's certainly green sometimes."

{GM}

Jezreel gives Lilly a weak attempt at a smile. She nods. “Thank you, Lilly. But primarily, it is the speaker’s intent that matters,” the young Seraph says. “And Marduk was definitely intending to make me feel uncomfortable.”

{Lilly}

"Anyway are you sure you've never heard of any other time? Because this morning when I Ascended to tell Michael Eli was re-Assigning me, I ended up in the Hall of Creation, instead of next to my Heart in the Groves. I was using a rather young, unstable Tether if that matters. Though I would be kind of surprised if it did."[/dialog]

{GM}

“But aren’t Tethers a special case?” Jezreel asks. The young Seraph's tone makes it clear this is a question rather than a statement of fact. “Isn’t the ending point of a Tether tied to the word of the Superior it Serves, or at least to the Word of the Tether?” She shrugs. “When I Ascended to talk to Lord Jean, I took the nearest Lightning Tether in Montreal because I wanted to arrive near the Halls of Progress. And that’s where I ended up, at the other end of the Lightning Tether.”

The two humans just state somewhat blankly and eat their lunch.

[archolewa]

{GM}

Jezreel gives Lilly a weak attempt at a smile. She nods. “Thank you, Lilly. But primarily, it is the speaker’s intent that matters,” the young Seraph says. “And Marduk was definitely intending to make me feel uncomfortable.”

For a moment, something Terrible dances in Lilly's eyes as Jezreel speaks, especially when they flick to Marduk. But as Jezreel continues on to Lilly's question about Ascending, Lilly takes a deep breath, shakes her head and it vanishes.

“But aren’t Tethers a special case?” Jezreel asks. The young Seraph's tone makes it clear this is a question rather than a statement of fact. “Isn’t the ending point of a Tether tied to the word of the Superior it Serves, or at least to the Word of the Tether?” She shrugs. “When I Ascended to talk to Lord Jean, I took the nearest Lightning Tether in Montreal because I wanted to arrive near the Halls of Progress. And that’s where I ended up, at the other end of the Lightning Tether.”

Lilly shrugs. "I dunno. Maybe? I've only Ascended three times in my life. Once, after my first Assignment. Once after my second. And this morning. I honestly don't remember where exactly I ended up after my first Ascension. That was over a hundred years ago, and it was in the Hall of Creation either way, since I'm pretty sure I took a Tether of Creation. My second, I didn't use a Tether. It was a small suburb of Minneapolis, and there wasn't one especially close I don't think. So I just Ascended and ended up next to my Heart, which was suddenly in the Grove instead of the Hall. That was disorienting."

[Tay-Dor]

[Marduk]

"If you use a tether to ascend, it takes you to the Superior's citadel that owns the tether." Marduk answers.

[Charybdis Richelle]

{Lilly}

Lilly shrugs. "I dunno. Maybe? I've only Ascended three times in my life. Once, after my first Assignment. Once after my second. And this morning. I honestly don't remember where exactly I ended up after my first Ascension. That was over a hundred years ago, and it was in the Hall of Creation either way, since I'm pretty sure I took a Tether of Creation. My second, I didn't use a Tether. It was a small suburb of Minneapolis, and there wasn't one especially close I don't think. So I just Ascended and ended up next to my Heart, which was suddenly in the Grove instead of the Hall. That was disorienting."

{GM}

Jezreel grins and shrugs. “Then you are two up on me, Lilly,” she admits. “I’ve only Ascended once, on my one and only trip to Heaven.”

Willow's eyes widen, brimming with unanswered questions.

"I'll tell you tonight," Jezreel says, "When we head to your room for the night. It's a long story, and Lilly, M... Special Agents Johnson and Greer have already heard it today."

Willow nods.

[Marduk]

"If you use a tether to ascend, it takes you to the Superior's citadel that owns the tether." Marduk answers.

{GM}

Jezreel nods as Marduk confirms what she thought.

[archolewa]

[Marduk]

"If you use a tether to ascend, it takes you to the Superior's citadel that owns the tether." Marduk answers.

{Lilly}

"Oh. Ok. Well, that's good. I was worried something weird was going on." Lilly finishes off her sandwich and digs into the mangos. She grins at Jezreel between bites, her eyes sparkling. "Yves, apparently aware that an ignorant little Cherub was making things harder for herself, snagged an Ofanim of Revelation and sent him to guide me to the Grove while avoiding any of Dominic's people who may have been watching the Hall. He promised to take me dancing. Nobody dances like an Ofanim. Hmm, I can't--, well, I mean I'm excited."

Her grin falters. "Feel kind of guilty for wasting both of their time, when I could have just gone up the hard way and avoided the whole problem. Ah well. If Destiny thought I was worth his time, who am I to argue?"

She goes to grab another mango only to discover her plate is empty. She frowns sadly at it. "So, Johnson, erm how did Willow suggest I phrase this? Right. What exact next steps do you plan on taking to complete your Assignment, and what, if anything, would you like Jezreel or I to do?"

[Tay-Dor]

{Lilly}
She goes to grab another mango only to discover her plate is empty. She frowns sadly at it. "So, Johnson, erm how did Willow suggest I phrase this? Right. What exact next steps do you plan on taking to complete your Assignment, and what, if anything, would you like Jezreel or I to do?"

[Marduk]

"I don't want Jezreel to do anything other than what her Superior has instructed her to do. She's inexperienced in dealing with...well...anything." Marduk says dispassionately. "No slight on you, Most Holy, but you are more likely to get in the way than be helpful."

He looks back to Lilly. "What exactly were Michael's orders to you?"

[archolewa]

He looks back to Lilly. "What exactly were Michael's orders to you?"

"Michael didn't give me this Assignment. It comes from Eli. He wants me to learn what is going on down here and stop it if at all possible or at least report it and get help dealing with it," says Lilly. She glances at Willow. "All that said, the fact that the elf-like being, Sauron I guess, doesn't seem to be done with Willow makes me nervous. Since I'm not really setup for murder investigations, I was thinking that if you wanted to dig into the other murders, I could stay here and follow up with the Dreamers. Probably best if Jezreel and I talk to them anyway. Dreamers don't always like Warriors. I also have a few errands I'd like to run, if Willow would like a little bit of mundanity after all the supernatural craziness she's been subjected to."

Lilly is thoughtful for a moment. "Maybe over the next few nights I can try to figure out the makeup of the local bars. Which ones tend to be frequented by first responders for example. I could potentially try to get hired at one we might think is most useful and start seeing what folks are saying about all this. That's normally how I pin down rumors of Diabolical activity, but it will take a while to bear fruit."

[Tay-Dor]

Lilly is thoughtful for a moment. "Maybe over the next few nights I can try to figure out the makeup of the local bars. Which ones tend to be frequented by first responders for example. I could potentially try to get hired at one we might think is most useful and start seeing what folks are saying about all this. That's normally how I pin down rumors of Diabolical activity, but it will take a while to bear fruit."

[Marduk]

"That seems like an inefficient use of time." Marduk states plainly. "But it is early still and there's a chance if could bear fruit where other avenues fail." He looks out the window again. "I am not in charge of you or the other Angels investigating." He shakes his head, "I have never wanted to be in charge. I am happy to advise and collaborate on the investigation." He turns back and looks at Lilly, "So my opinions aside, do what you feel is right, what will best serve Eli. I will help you if you require it."

He then look at Jezreel, "As I said, you are young and inexperienced in matters of the War between Heaven and Hell. But you do have experience here on Earth, more than many Angels. You would best serve, in my opinion, by sticking close to Willow." He rubs a hand against his temple. "If something tries for Willow, you would be here to help Willow. At the very least, would be near Willow when Lilly comes charging in to save her ward."

Marduk thinks for a moment. "If you would like, Most Holy, I could spend some time teaching you the beginnings of self-defense." He looks at Willow and Moonstone, "The offer is open to both of you as well."

[archolewa]

{Lilly}

Lilly spreads her hands helplessly. "I am, unfortunately, most experienced with slow burn Assignments, things that will take years to resolve, not days or weeks. This is the first 'hot' Assignment, for lack of a better term, I've had and I'm not really sure how best to approach it. What do you plan on doing next?"

[Tay-Dor]

[Marduk]

"I think I will pay a visit to the local coroner's office." Marduk states.