Closed A Tale of Two Nuits [Iggy]

[Tsaba]

33rd Summer, 513 Tsaba took her time packing up her instruments after class. She was debating whether she should approach the other Nuit in the room. On the one hand, he was probably busy, and her people weren't exactly known for their sociability. On the other, he would have knowledge, valuable knowledge; knowledge on how to preserve her body in the moist Zeltivan climate, on how to navigate the complex social environment of Zeltiva where people apparently cared about more than simply whether you could do your work on time. The practice glyphs were rolled up with her notes and carefully stashed in her scrollcase. If she was going to do something, it would need to be quick, before she lost track of him. Before she could change her mind, she stood and spun to face the other Nuit. Her gaze took in his general demeanor (not hostile; his actual appearance was unimportant), and glanced at the focus rune on his quill. "Hello," she said without any sort of preamble. "I'm called Tsaba. Would you like to study together?"

[Ignotus Everto]

It was a rather gaudy Nuit at that. Ignotus was one of those curious specimins who had to work for his wealth, and was a bit of a show-off as a consequence. His unnatural thinness was hidden mostly by a fine black shirt and silken white gloves. The wizard was putting his supplies away at the conclusion of a- while not weak- unfortunately underwhelming Glyphing lesson, when that other Nuit decided to approach him. She wanted them to study together! The idea was... Not terrible.


Ignotus was beginning to brush against another limit of his hypnotic power- a little more refinement, a new perspective, a new set of aspects to stretch, and yet another power could be his... He just needed a willing subject. Animals were only good for so much. But his kind were often so treacherous- how could he ensure his secret stayed safe? Quite easily, really... If his efforts were rewarded, it would be by telling her to.

As the wizard's quill vanished into his bag, he flashed Tsaba a prizewinning smile and replied, "Ignotus. Such a delight to meet another Nuit! And as a matter of fact, I would! I'm working on an examination of the effects of Djed manipulation on emotion, and I have been dying to find someone with some sense." A slight twinkle appeared in Ignotus' eye at the rather embarrassing pun. The Hypnotist took one of Tsaba's hands in his own as he rose- towered over her. "Others simply don't get it as well as we do- you understand, surely." A small tickle of pride emanated from him. Just enough to get her feeling good about herself. Flattered, even. "It'll be a wonderful learning experience for the both of us!"

[Tsaba]

Tsaba understood exactly what he meant. She was somewhat relieved that her proposal was so well recieved, and even more relieved that he appeared to have a genuine love of knowledge and desire for discovery, fueled by emotion; trying to couch everything in terms demonstrating their practical advantage, while being something that she was practiced at after dealing with older, jaded Nuits on Sahova, could become exhausting. But he was clearly a person with an appreciation for the physical, or at least an appreciation for the effect that a good profile could have on humans. She herself wore common, basic clothing, dismissing it as an unimportant if necessary concern, while he had clearly dressed with great care. It suggested that material goods meant something to him which, from her perspective, was a good thing. She had had enough of Nuits with bleak views and singular interests. That was why she had left. Tsaba's own interest sharpened at Ignotus' suggestion of an area of study. She had to admit, it sounded fascinating. She'd heard of djed being used to manipulate emotion, of course, but only in vague comments; she'd heard of djed being able to do all sorts of things. Not for the first time, she wished that she'd paid more attention to things on Sahova. "If djed can be used that way, that would be something I'd be very interested in investigating. I'm an Aurist, myself, and I've actually been trying to put together some experiments to help expand the art..." not that she'd made much headway with Castor, who seemed to want to stop every time they hit something remotely dangerous... "and I think we could get some great experimental synergy by workig towards both goals. Auristics can be used to examine changes, and although it may take practice to use the art in such a way reliably, it could be used to keep track or emotional and physiological changes in a subject. Conversely, if emotions can be artificially regulated or stimulated via the use of djed, it could provide excellent standards for invstigating how emotion influences auras." It was somewhat a relief to find somebody on the same page as her, so to speak. Castor was a good research partner, for a Pulser, but Ignotus was right -- he couldn't really get it. Not like they could. Not really his fault, of course, but there was no reason to tie herself to one research project, not when she had the potential to do more. "Perhaps we should discuss this further," she said, glancing around the quickly emptying room. "In the library?"

[Ignotus Everto]

An Aurist?
"The solstice has come early..."
He would have to remember to wheedle a little bit of knowledge out of her when he got the chance- Auristics had always been one of those disciplines he could really benefit from learning. For now though, he'd much rather get to work. And that meant somewhere more private.

"The library's too open." Ignotus remarked. "We'd start to get stares. Besides, all my notes are in my dorm." With that, the wizard languidly beckoned her follow, and set off to his abode. Witnesses would be rather unpleasant- especially smart ones.

[Tsaba]

Tsaba merely shrugged and followed. The location didn't bother her overmuch, so long as Ignotus had space to work, although she would've preferred ready access to books. She reflected briefly on the fact that somehow she'd come to Zeltiva only to end up doing research with a Nuit again. It seemed to be a constant of her life. Get adopted by a Nuit and work with him. Work with Nuits on Sahova. Leave Sahova, immediately run into a Nuit, and... work with him. Some kind of strange will of fate, it seemed. At least working in Ignotus' dorm meant being in close proximity to her own, which would be good if she needed to go get something. All her Auristics notes were in her dorm. Not to mention, she was sort of curious as to how he'd modified his. Tsaba had removed her mattress and blankets so as not to damage them, but left the wooden bed in place. It was mostly buried by books and notes, but she could've saved space by removing it entirely. She realised that she was grasping at some pretty ridiculous things in her relief to have found somebody like her. Living with humans was hard. But Tsaba knew how to behave appropriately among Nuits, and she kept her expression withdrawn and herself silent as she followed Ignotus down the hall.

[Ignotus Everto]

Ignotus' quarters were quite similar to any other student's- though the kitchen had been re-purposed to hold books, and the bed was treated more as a sofa. Everything was stacked, organized, and tucked away quite neatly, with the exception of the desk, where a mess of papers were sprawled between carefully sorted books and quills.

"Welcome to my humble little dwelling." Ignotus said silkily, motioning for her to enter before him.
"Have a seat anywhere," he added as he shut the door. The Nuit decided against locking it. He'd rather she felt secure. Besides, he wasn't often interrupted. "It'll help if you're comfortable."
Once Tsaba had chosen somewhere to plonk herself down, Ignotus sat either next to or behind her, depending on which was more convenient for him. He wasn't going to bend over her all day, after all. "Now, this may feel a little strange..." the Hypnotist said as he touched his fingers to Tsaba's temples. "Heh. At last, someone who isn't burning hot." Ignotus thought, before instructing Tsaba to tell him how she was feeling and turning his thoughts inward.

Now, what to do... Something simple would be best. Simple, beneficial, and above all positive. Something with a very pleasant failure. In ticks, the wizard had a goal for himself. The question now was how to achieve it. His index and middle fingers shifted slightly against Tsaba's skin. Djed sparked from one body to another. "Perhaps if I stretched this aspect..."

She felt euphoria. Sudden, unbidden, blindingly powerful euphoria. Waves of it raced from the points of contact between them, electrified her every nerve and suffused her every feature. Nestled faded in the surge of emotion was a faint longing of some sort, but it was vague and unspecified and easily- no, eagerly lost in the flood of bliss. It was soaring, resplendent joy. It was pure, undiluted rapture. It was all-consuming ecstasy. It was the most wonderful feeling in the world.

And then, a tick later, it was gone. Tsaba could perhaps hold on to that particular emotion for a few moments longer, but with the magic lifted, her mood would soon set back into its natural state- though its natural state could have changed radically from before.

[Tsaba]

Tsaba sat neatly on the edge of Ignotus' bed at his invitation, memories pulling at her mind as she did so. It was strange what the mere act of doing something that one hadn't done in so long could bring back. She forced down thoughts of comforting patients and watching over her sister and instead concentrated on the task at hand. She was prepared to begin discussing experimental parameters, relevant magical limits and how to safely run trials, but the other Nuit's hands were already on her temples. She went to protest, but something rose inside her. Something wonderful. Joy washed through her, exploded in her mind, permeated her ichor. Joy without obvious cause or target. Then, moments later, it was gone. Tsaba might be a little more trusting than most people, but she wasn't stupid. She'd survived on Sahova for the better part of a century after all, and some of that with a pulse. She'd seem people cave to madness, watched subjects controlled by pleasure in the form of both actual accomplishments and being drugged. She'd grown up under a healer's roof. She knew better than to automatically equate good fellings with good circumstances. As soon as the intense feeling was gone, she was chanting under her breath, and pushing Ignotus away with a sudden thrust, throwing all her strength into the shove. She had no intention of hurting him, but she needed him to stop touching her. She finished her chant much quicker than normal and pulled djed into her sight. The room rocked enough to make her glad that she was sitting down, but she quickly focused, and Ignotus' aura sharpened in her vision. The rough casting didn't matter; she wasn't trying to do any sort of detailed Auristic diagnosis. She was only looking for one element. She wanted to know if, and when, he cast more magic. Tsaba jumped to her feet and placed herself rather closer to the door without turning her back on him. "Do not do that again," she said sharply. "If you attempt that again, I will be forced to defend myself." She frowned. "Although I am curious about what, exactly, you did."

[Ignotus Everto]

The chanting was not a good sign. Ignotus didn't like chanting. It usually meant something was about to burst into flame. The following shove simply confirmed the Nuit's fear of sudden death, and by the time Tsaba had reached the door, a thick ribbon of electric blue Res was hovering between his hands.

Ignotus' brow furrowed when the other undead spoke. Well, that wasn't very bright of me, was it?

"I do believe I owe you an explanation." Ignotus said as he stood and dusted himself off, Res floating down to sit in a pool at his feet. "When I said I was studying the effects of Djed on emotional states, I neglected to say I am capable of controlling them."
Perhaps the phrasing was a little sensational, but Hypnotists had to keep their reputation inflated somehow, no? "I intend to take this art further; yet I need someone intelligent and articulate to assist in this endeavor." he bowed his head in Tsaba's direction, "You are, of course, an obvious choice."

Of course he had to pick an Aurist- one of the few people he couldn't risk using Hypnotism on- at least not when she was alarmed like this. Besides, she was wired enough already. If he fumbled and was noticed, he doubted she would respond rationally. "I can only extend my deepest apologies for startling you- I should have been more considerate. But you understand. You're not like the rabble outside. And I assure you, there won't be any more unpleasant surprises."

Of course, if she decided to run, Ignotus had other plans. He couldn't let her simply escape, after all.

[Tsaba]

Tsaba barely spared a glance for the magic between Ignotus' hands; she'd seen Dr Marin manipulate res before and immediately dismissed it as unimportant. He could hurt her body with it, of course, but they both knew that she would be able to make a scene, so he wouldn't use it unless he had no choice. It was therefore harmless and irrelevant. She watched him drop it, presumably reaching the conclusion that it just made things more dangerous for both of them as she had, and felt for the doorhandle. She wasn't going to run from the pathetic upstart of a Nuit, but she was going to keep her options open. "I do not," she said acidly, "like people interfering with me without my permission. I do not like being treated like a laboratory subject. If I need to be on my guard against you poking at my emotions, this isn't going to work. Either we find actual test subjects and work on this, or I have no reason to interact with you further. You are lucky that this took place somewhere relatively safe and I didn't feel the need to use potentially lethal force. If this had happened outside the university, one of us could very well be dead; and I have no wish to start my tour of the mainland being wanted for murder, so it's best for the both of us if you never touch me with magic of any kind ever again. Is my meaning clear, or do I need to elaborate, since you obviously have trouble with communication?"