communion | stargazer-focused but ota

[semicharmed]

[ The psychic presence is tactile, first. Like a hand fumbling in the dark, knowing his fingers could brush up against someone at any moment and trying to avoid unwelcome contact.

Then: ]

Oh.

[ Or whatever passes for oh in Matt's mind. In this case, it's something like if a stray puff of air managed to light a candle, rather than extinguish it. The eureka moment is followed by a laugh, soda-fizz of endorphins that rises and feathers away. ]

Holy shit, you're right there, aren't you?

I mean--I think I can hear you.

Hello?

[ ooc: As noted here, Matt is reset! So if you knew him in AT, you are more than welcome to recognize him; he just won't remember you. PM or hit up artistformerlyknownas to ask questions or throw ideas around. :3 :3 :3 ]

Comments

🫴 have my other stargazer

[muchalucha]

[ Right away, the mind that he connects to is one that’s just vast. It’s a large presence, larger than life, even, but it’s also incredibly warm. It’s a perfect summer’s day, a comforting hug, sunshine on bare skin, and bright. Somewhat overwhelmingly so, at least for some people! But that’s exactly what you’d expect from a god of light and life.

What might be a little more surprising is the immediate joy that comes with it too. There’s a little surprise from the fumbling aspect, sure, but Quetzalcoatl is always happy to talk to people! It’s as simple as that! ]

Oh, ¡hola!

[ She also likes to pepper in Spanish, so. Just roll over those words if you need a translation! ]

I’m kind of right here, yes! Well, I’m having lunch in Springstar, but that doesn’t mean we can’t talk! Communion is easy once you get used to it!

[ She's assuming he's new to it, at least! But she'd just bowl right through being wrong, honestly... She's simple... ]

[semicharmed]

[ Dato interesante: yo hablo español (más o menos), pero Matt solo habla idiomas muertos. Sin embargo, él sabe "hola." Although honestly, the mystery of what translates and what doesn't pales compared to this sense of endless warmth. Like an ocean made of golden light, boundless and buoying. ]

I'm sorry--I didn't mean to interrupt your lunch. [ Despite his apology, his mental voice carries a hint of amusement, delighted by the mix of mundane and preternatural. ] I'm not used to ... back home they would've called it telepathy. Mind to mind communication.

[muchalucha]

Oh, no pasa nada. I eat a really big lunch, so it takes a while!

[ She laughs lightly, but she is... not joking... Quetzalcoatl basically eats as much as she can every day, since she has to get the magical energy from somewhere. Food and sleep are the easiest! And there's the secret third option, but that one takes longer, so... Big meals it is. ]

But it's pretty new, right? Especially... Mm, you're a Stargazer, right? That means we're extra connected! So, that's a little weird to get used to for a lot of people, I think. I think it's nice!

barges in with a harbinger out of nowhere

[sterngaze]

[The presence isn’t that familiar, really. It’s more like a half-remembered dream, plucking some thought at the back of his mind, making the suggestion of itself known but refusing to come out into the light. Liem chases after it, bothered by something he can’t quite place, a sensation he doesn’t recognize, a sound he can’t quite hear.

He comes from the quiet dark like a fluttering moth, following that sound-that-isn’t-sound to alight with soft wings on that outstretched hand.

As it turns out, the source is familiar after all.]

. . . Matt?

harb! harb! harb!

[semicharmed]

[ After Matt throws out his psychic salutation, he waits. And listens. As he sits very still, letting his eyes close and his shoulders slump, trying to follow the directive to let them in, let them in ... he senses something. Light and soft as velvety wings.

It almost reminds him of his first kiss. Maybe because he can't remember what learning to talk felt like. It's familiar, unfamiliar, axis-tilting. Oh. That's what this is. ]

Hi.

[ The mental voice is a little sheepish. ]

I guess you know me too, huh?

[sterngaze]

[For those not connected to him by aspect, communing with Liem is always like this; soft and quiet, a whisper against your ear, a shadow behind a curtain. It feels austere, empty of clutter, of anything other than his quiet presence and his mellow voice.

If he is disappointed by Matt’s response, if he feels rebuffed by the lack of recognition, the frown of it doesn’t pass through the connection.

Only… he’s not sure how to respond in this situation. He hadn’t planned further than this when he’d reached out and touched a mind that felt familiar. Finally, he asks,] Do you not remember?

[hauntedking]

...it takes some getting used to.

[ There's a laugh (or the sensation of it) and the warmth of sunshine, touched by the coolness of a mountain breeze. ]

Believe me, I found it quite disorienting.

[semicharmed]

[ It's so interesting. Matt's communed with spirits before, be they ghosts or entities who were never native to the physical plane, but it didn't feel like this. He can't qualify what "like this" even is, but maybe ... tangible?

His own brightness is all amber warmth. But Matt, always fascinated by contrast, appreciates the hint of something cooler. He inclines gently towards the presence. ]

People used to be able to do this, where I come from. But I wasn't one of them unless I cast a spell-- [ Oh, he didn't strictly mean to let that slip through. ] --and the person I tried it with didn't like it much.

[hauntedking]

I wasn't much good with magic at home; I never took the time to learn. I didn't have the time, honestly. And... I don't know if anything we had could connect minds like this.

[ There's a huff of amusement. ]

It's difficult to shut off here, at times.

takes matt to harby's (harbinger #2)

[wolfish]

[ There comes a fleeting hint of curiosity that gives way to the small, simple warmth of amusement. Though he'd heard that voice in-person, it's no less recognizable when it comes directly to his mind. ]

I'd wager you can hear me.

[ A mighty safe bet to make, at that. ]

So, how'd that recon go?

😀😀😀

[semicharmed]

Oh!

[ Yuri is officially the first person Matt's met outside of Communion and then recognized through Communion, which is fascinating! The moment of realization comes with a small spree of mental fireworks. ]

Yuri, hi! This is wild, I've never been able to communicate so seamlessly with people without, like, assistive technology of some kind. [ You mean a phone??? ] Umm, recon was. Enlightening. I think I might have some ideas I want to pursue.

😊‼️

[wolfish]

[ This is the first time Yuri has encountered someone finding Communion so novel. He couldn't say while others have or haven't, but Matt's lively reactions are new to him.

It's cute, but he'll keep the thought to himself for now. ]

Yeah? Where I come from it's letters carried by wyvern that travel fastest, so the immediacy of all this was very different.

[ Both convenient and jarring, from his perspective. ]

But it sounds like it was a productive venture. I'm pleased to hear it.

stargazer #2....... sorry matt

[appeale]

[ unlike Quetzalcoatl's sunny presence that warms his skin and suffuses their shared connection with light, this mind recoils from his searching touch – quietly, without rancour, wariness prickling down her spine. a startled prey animal. whether it's deliberate or not, she regards him as a threat. ]

Ah... Hello, signore.

[ her voice is soft, light. she seems to be doing her best to appear not only harmless, but—friendly? appealing? it might pass anyone else's scrutiny, but to a fellow Stargazer, it is play-acting, prey trying to appear as pet. ]

You're, um... very enthusiastic about Communion, for someone new. You don't find this strange?

omg yes

[semicharmed]

[ More times than he cares to count, Matt has had the experience in a social setting of knowing an interaction is going wrong, but being powerless to stop it. This feels similar. He can sense that pulling-back, the overcompensation in the face of danger, but he has no idea how to set her at ease. Nonononono, I'm just a nerd!

It tugs at his heart, transparently. When it comes to fight-flight-freeze, he's always been a fawner. ]

I'm sorry--I didn't mean to startle you. [ Matt makes an effort at receding, while not totally severing communication. It's a bit like trying to move a limb he didn't know he had. ] It's ... definitely new to me, in a lot of ways. But I've done a lot of this kind of communication in the past. Spirit to spirit.

[appeale]

[ at least he isn't deliberate in prying – isn't one of those well-meaning bastards who keep reaching, as if they can comfort her with stubbornness alone. because of that, she doesn't flee or bristle, though she stays curled up in her corner of Communion. it isn't targeted fear of him. but trust is the exception, not the rule.

as gratitude for his restraint, she puts on a brighter, more friendly character. ]

Spirits? Wow, that sounds so interesting! [ ignore that there isn't a speck of curiosity in her mind. ] Was it as close a connection as this is?

[ invasive, she means. ]

i promised

[furibund]

[ The response that comes is reluctant and annoyed. It's the feeling of cool snow, more gentle than freezing, and a fire that burns and rages without melting it. For the moment, the fire is fiercer - sparks the annoyance of the being that answers. ]

[ To their credit they listen... And then the fire roars to life and they offer nothing but two sharp, husky words with more annoyance in them than venom:]

Shut up.

elmofire.gif - 1/2

[semicharmed]

[ The sensations are fascinating. Matt knows most people are contradictory on some level, himself certainly included, but it's another thing entirely to feel it almost physicalized. Chemical against the walls of his skull.

But of course, more importantly-- ]

Okay!

Sorry, sorry.

[ Click, as it were. ]

2/2

[semicharmed]

[ Okay! Let's try this again. Matt takes a deep breath, lets his mind clear, and ... ]

Hello?

[furibund]

[ Who wants to talk to her so much today??? Hello? Do they know who she is? No. She doesn't ignore it at least even if she lets out a frustrated growl that's more raw than not: ]

What the hell is wrong with you?

ok im giving you the nice one to start with

[twohand]

I can hear you. Easy now, don't rush it —

[ Maybe unlike some who receive such a sudden, "tactile" Communion, Drizzt's response is the weird one. Because the moment he feels the mental sensation of that hand fumbling in the dark, he reaches for those grasping fingers and catches them in between his own palms. The connection between the two of them is filled with the impression of a campfire, warm and roaring, and several seats surrounding it — each one of them warm to the touch, as if whomever had once been sitting there had only just risen. Had only just walked away, and left their memory to fade.

He tugs on Matt, as if to help steady him; the mental impression of him as honest and open as when meeting him in person: a dark-skinned elf, with lavender eyes and a gentle, but stern brow. Upon his forehead, a four-pointed star ( a Shard ) that illuminates his face like moonlight. ]

I'm here, yes. Our minds are connected, though our bodies are far apart. Isn't it fantastic?

omg so gentle so kindness

[semicharmed]

[ What's "weird," really? Is it feeling warmth, a tug, and then immediately following where it leads without reservation and no questions asked?

... Yes?

They can both be weird together, then. Matt could've stood to hear don't rush it regarding occult exploration at some point before now, honestly.

In his mind's eye, he takes in this new presence--a twilight-looking person, crowned with starlight--and offers his own in return. Matt's mental approximation of himself is more refined, now that he's spent a little time studying himself in the mirror: twiggy dude, messy brown hair, a lilting smile warming his face. ]

It is fantastic. Yeah.

A little more involved than the long-distance communication I'm used to, but that's not a bad thing. People have been really patient with me.

[ Matt a woman literally told you to shut up. ]

[twohand]

That's good, then.

[ Twiggy dude. Seems nice!

Drizzt isn't one to judge anyone by their appearance, considering the grief he's received over his own — without letting go, he sweeps his free hand behind him invitingly. Would Matt like to take one of the seats, and make himself comfortable in Communion? ]

Things are tense here, and likely only to worsen over time, but if we can all find it in ourselves to be patient to those who are new, I think we'll all benefit. Remembering who we were before, or wanting to become better... it starts with a bit of friendliness, no?

[ Oh! ]

Speaking of friendliness: my name is Drizzt Do'urden. Welcome to Kenos.

good thing matt is reset or he'd be very confused right now

[cyfaredd]

[ Opposing Aspects clash against each other in uncomfortable ways, although the incompatibility manifests in different ways, depending on the pairing. In the case of these two magicians, Matt's message hits Howl's mind with a rough, sandpapery quality to it, even with the message itself being so casual and unassuming.

Howl responds with a not-so-soft grinding of his own. ]

Yes, I am here. Something I can do for you?

[semicharmed]

[ That feels ... distinct. Like touching a shark's skin, and about as surprising as if he'd encountered said shark in a dark room. ]

I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bother you.

[ Not exactly bristling--more formal. Matt's mental landscape, only semiconsciously to him, starts to take on characteristics of his parents' front hall. Faux-marble floors and plastic on the furniture. ]

I'm just trying to figure out how this communication works. Along with ... about ten thousand other things, but one at a time.

[cyfaredd]

It's rather simple. [ Howl answers with the confidence of someone for whom Communion is not particularly new or unusual. ] You focus your thoughts on your Shard — that curious jewel that you've no doubt by now have noticed somewhere on your body — to form a mental bond with others. You have to be intention with whoever you're connecting to, or you'll run the risk of simply thinking aloud to everyone.