( open )

[prayerwheel]

Who: Azura + you
When: late Noveuer
Where: the Outer City, the river, & around
What: questing and some magic practice
Warnings: possibly some discussion of nsfw things but nothing explicit


a
[ So...this is one of the few times Azura's actually ventured out into the Wilde. Not unwillingly, she just usually stays content taking work in the Inner City, doing shopkeeping work and testing items. But she's doing something a little more dangerous this month, as dangerous as going to the Outer City might be. For the first time in a while, she pulls her lance out of its spot by her bed and takes it with her.

You can catch her as she's departing, lance in hand, out in the Outer City on the medical team, sorting out medicine. ]

b
[ Or maybe you're not venturing out there. Azura can be found practicing her magic by the river. Specifically, she's trying out her barriers and ice magic. ]

Pardon. If you have a free moment, would you mind tossing those at me? I'm trying to test the strength of the barriers I can make.

[ She gestures to a little bucket full of tennis balls. THROW THEM AT HER LET'S DO THIS.

The ice magic is a little. Uh. Well, she's using it on the bottom of her feet, and then running across the river. It works, because ice forms on the surface of the river and supports her, preventing her from crashing into the wintery water. She looks pretty tired after that, though. She's probably gonna have to work on this one, more. ]

wildcard
(( hit me with anything! ))

Comments

[metalcrusher]

[Mettaton's glowing screen goes red as he raises a finger in objection once more.]

AU CONTRAIRE! IF MACHINERY IS YOUR ONLY LIMITATION, THEN I'M PLEASE TO INFORM YOU THAT YOU NEED ABSOLUTELY ZERO KNOWLEDGE OF IT!

[At that, he gives her a pixelated heart on his screen.]

IN FACT, IF YOU'RE ABLE TO ASSIST ONLY WITH ORGANIC MATTERS... YOUR AREA OF EXPERTISE FAR EXCEEDS MY OWN! I UNDERSTAND THINGS LIKE BLOOD AND AILMENT ONLY IN THEORY. [He waves a hand.] TRUST ME. YOU'LL DO JUST FINE, DARLING. DON'T DOUBT YOURSELF!

[prayerwheel]

Then what do you need help with?

[ OH MY GOD GET ON WITH IT

the sooner these shenanigans can end and she can go back to her work the better ]

[metalcrusher]

I KNEW YOU WOULD COME AROUND!

[He has to be as DRAMATIC about it as possible, to build the TENSION

Speaking of dramatics, Mettaton's screen dims completely as he weaves his fingers together soberly. After a scan of the area with a pronounced rotation of his body, he wheels closer yet to Azura, perhaps with uncomfortable proximity. He fidgets with the hood of his cloak.]

WELL. THEN. THE TROUBLE IS THAT I AM A MONSTER. AS A MONSTER, I HAVE BEEN UNDERGOING CHANGES... THOUGH THEY'VE AFFECTED ONLY MY OTHER, MORE COMPLEX BODY UP UNTIL NOW. IT APPEARS I CAN'T ESCAPE THESE ANATOMICAL DEVELOPMENTS AFTER ALL. UNDER THIS HOOD OF MINE ARE EARS, THOUGH THEY ARE IN A CONDITION I CAN ONLY DESCRIBE AS... "HIDEOUS."

[prayerwheel]

[ ..................................... ]

And what do you want me to do about it? I doubt I can make your ears vanish, or make them look less "hideous." Monster transformations can't truly be reversed.

[metalcrusher]

HAHA! VANISH? IF I WERE LOOKING FOR A MIRACLE, I WOULDN'T BE LOOKING FOR IT IN YOUR MEDICINE, DARLING.

[which is entirely to say that he's vain enough to have looked into undoing the transformation already......

In one quick motion, Mettaton pushes back the hood, his screen an angry red. His puca ears flop over lifelessly, evidently unable to stand upright the way they should. Scabbing and blisters blend in with the dark fur where puca ears meet silvery metal, and Mettaton jabs a finger toward it exaggeratedly.]

IT WOULD BE INSULT TO DESCRIBE RABBIT EARS AS "HIDEOUS" WHEN I HAVE THESE, WOULDN'T YOU SAY? AND, AS I'VE COME TO UNDERSTAND, IT'S QUITE PAINFUL!

1/2

[prayerwheel]

[ That is so gross.

Her blank, exasperated expression slides off her face into something that's a mixture of concern and nausea.

She's used to bloody wounds and cuts and all manner of battlefield gore, but oh no. This is new. How are flesh and blood ears sprouting out of metal? And why are they scabby? And blistering? ]

2/2

[prayerwheel]

[ and then she takes a deep breath, and closes her eyes. ]

Please, please, please tell me you haven't been picking at them, and that's why they look like that.

[ because if she has to give a talking box the spiel about Not Touching Your Wounds she may pass him along to someone else with more patience

(joke's on her, she's the only one in the immediate vicinity right now) ]

[metalcrusher]

[Mettaton has decided to make this entirely Azura's problem, precisely because nobody else is here for her to foist the burden upon. He crosses his arms at her reaction.]

SUCH ACCUSATIONS! AND MAKE MYSELF LOOK THIS WAY, DELIBERATELY?? I HAVE AN IMPECCABLE IMAGE TO MAINTAIN, AS A BELOVED IDOL. ... OKAY. I HAVE, A LITTLE. I ADMIT. BUT! NOT BEFORE THEY WERE ALREADY IN HORRID CONDITION. YOU WOULD DO THE SAME IF YOU SPROUTED EARS, SENSATION, AND PAIN IN ONE LOCALIZED AREA OF YOUR BODY, WOULDN'T YOU??

[Mettaton uncrosses his arms and taps at the top of his body gingerly.]

AS I UNDERSTAND IT, THIS IS SOMEHOW NORMAL. FOR MONSTERS... OR PERHAPS JUST PUCA. HOWEVER. DON'T QUOTE ME ON THAT.

[prayerwheel]

[ A CONFESSION no, okay, at least he admits it. Azura fights hard not to roll her eyes because ye gods this is the most dramatic person(???) she's ever met, short of maybe Odin. ]

I did sprout puca ears last month, actually. During that horrid mist. And while I did touch them, it wasn't to the point of such glaring irritation. Hmm...

[ she takes a step forward and studies the ears. blisters, what could cause blisters...? some kind of allergic reaction? ]

It's normal for some of the mirrorbound to sprout ears, yes. But not like this.

[metalcrusher]

AH... SO IT'S NOT. [Mettaton tries touching his ear and finds himself recoiling with the contact. He daintily rubs his gloved hands together.] WELL, THAT DISQUALIFIES MY HYPOTHESIS. IT'S FORTUNATE THAT YOU WOULD HAVE SOME FIRST-HAND EXPERIENCE... AS THE VERY MONSTER I'M BECOMING, THEN.

[It concerns him that she didn't start blistering up like him: he'd thought that at least some Monsters would have this happen to them. His screen flickers an array of colors while he tries to come up with some reasonable cause for his condition, thinking back on the hushed whispers of passersby: all to the effect of being the odd metal Mirrorbound, sorry sight.

He resents the very thought. His display settles red.]

HOW WAS IT? BEING A PUCA. DID YOU TRANSFORM ALL OF THE WAY?

[prayerwheel]

It was...not at all what I expected.

[ that's all she's going to say about her experience, because uh, things got nsfw really quickly. not sharing with a stranger, thanks. ]

And no. Just ears and a tail. And some fur. My ears were quite sensitive, but not painful. [ studying the ears for a few moments longer ]

Do you mind if I take a closer look? I might be able to give you something for surface pain, but I'd like to make sure your wounds aren't from an open cut, or anything like that.

[metalcrusher]

[To accommodate her request, Mettaton's single wheel retracts into his body and he sets himself on the ground, shrugging grandly with his arms.]

BE MY GUEST! I'M ALMOST RELIEVED TO HAVE SOMEONE WANT TO LOOK CLOSER INSTEAD OF AVERT THEIR GAZES.

[He tries to imagine Azura with similar ears and fur, complete with the tail of what he assumes should look like a bunny's. Sans the blistering.]

IN CONTRAST TO MY STATE, THAT DOESN'T SOUND SO BAD. CUTE, IN FACT! IF YOU'RE NOT TOO UPSET ABOUT LOSING YOUR HUMAN FEATURES, THAT IS. [He would be. Is. A human must feel the same, he thinks.] YES. THOUGH I'M SURE YOU DISCOVERED IT WASN'T SO BAD AFTER ALL... TURNING INTO A MONSTER MUST HAVE BEEN DISTRESSING FOR A HUMAN LIKE YOURSELF. EVEN AS A MONSTER MYSELF, TURNING INTO A DIFFERENT MONSTER IS STILL AN ORDEAL.

[prayerwheel]

I'm quite content looking like a human, yes.

[ she puts on a pair of gloves and strides over. still talking....still talking...you know what, if he wants to talk and doesn't expect her to respond in as many words, that's fine. she'll just start examining the ears. ]

I'll be as delicate as I can, but this may sting a bit. Please bear with me.

[ Yeah, so, she's going to take a closer look. Give her the gross details, do it. ]

[metalcrusher]

AND I'LL BE AS TOLERANT AS I CAN, DARLING. I'M STILL NOT ACCUSTOMED TO SENSATION, MUCH LESS STINGING.

[The tips of his ears are furry and don't look so bad. It's as the tissue gets closer to his metal body that it starts to deteriorate, the fur patchier and patchier and the skin discolored, irritated, and blistering. There is no blood, but without a heart, how could there be? In its place is a film of some kind of clearish fluid slicking down the fur, especially near the sores. Parts of the tissue look chewed away, and the surrounding metal takes on a tinge of rust.]

[prayerwheel]

[ She is simultaneously grossed out and also very fascinated. Is this how Elise feels? Sakura she can see grinning and bearing it but Elise...no, she might be the type to go "oh gods, gross" and want to look at it more before healing it. ]

Not accustomed to it?

[ hmmmm. Azura picks up an ear and studies the blister. Regular irritation, or some kind of allergic reaction...? Maybe both. ]

[metalcrusher]

[His ears are floppy and pliable, as if he were becoming a lop of some kind. The cartilage is pathetically formed. At least Mettaton seems to feel this, for his screen blinks yellow and red at the contact.]

YES. I DON'T SUPPOSE YOU THINK I POSSESS THE ABILITY TO FEEL. IN THIS BODY, I CAN'T FEEL AT ALL. MY OTHER ONE... WELL, IT'S STILL NOTHING LIKE THIS.

[Considering it a bit of both would be accurate, considering the nature of his condition. His Monster features are in a constant state of being poisoned by his own body.]