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Aconite

"We can't be everywhere at once. Why shouldn't humans learn how to protect themselves?"

0 · 399 views · located in Earth

a character in “S.C.I.O.N”, originally authored by FaddedFox, as played by RolePlayGateway

So begins...

Aconite's Story

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Kora Norrevinter Character Portrait: Aconite Character Portrait: Madison Lovette
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Aconite... felt like a doll. No he wasn't in his dryad form but that didn't seem to matter. Here he was, sitting on Maddie's chair all primp and proper while the vampire fussed over him. He hadn't had this much attention on him in ages. It was overwhelming as much as it was nice. He generally didn't like a whole lot of attention on him but since it brought out a certain fear and shyness in the dryad. However, he liked Maddie. Maddie sometimes reminded him of Elliot and he did so miss his old friend. Thought Elliot never did try and dress Aconite up in frilly dresses or anything. Elliot was more about getting some clothes on him so he didn't run around naked as was his true want. That would only bring more unwanted attention to him after all. He remember Elliot constantly commenting that he should join a nudist colony or something. Aconite smiled at the thought and Maddie suddenly paused in applying the lipstick to his mouth, lifting the balm away with a curious expression.

Aconite blushed light and brought his lips back to the position Maddie had asked for. "Sorry," he said softly." The vampire gave an encouraging smile at that, and, murmuring for the other to relax, continued with his work.

Aconite brought is oceanic eyes down as he tried to look down at himself. He felt very odd but it wasn't too bad. As a dryad his clothes were often flowy and silky so the material wasn't a huge change though he did admit he had never worn a dress before. IT felt odd not wearing pants. Then again, it was kind of like he was 'nude' since he didn't feel the fabric.

The young dryad tugged at the end of his dress then. It was a pretty little summer dress. Thin straps rested on his slender shoulders and it was a soft green to match his hair. The print itself was mostly plain but there were a couple of flowers on the bottom of the dress fashioned like daisies. A white belt rested around his waist to give him a more hourglass shape. The vampire had yet to accessories him but that would happen after the make up was complete apparently. Madison had already done his hair up in a mess bun since Aconite's hair refused to be contained wholeheartedly and Aconite nearly bit Madison's hand off when he tried to use hair spray. That was one thing he would not budge on. At least the long strands that curled around his face softened the sharpness in his face and gave him a more feminine look along with whatever else the vampire was doing to his face.

Aconite fidgeted a bit more. He had been sitting still for so long! He wanted to move! He didn't like sitting still and he was getting rather impatient. "Are we done yet?" he whined. Then he heard the screams. He gasped and jumped in his seat causing Maddie to leave a black streak on his cheek. Ooops. He couldn't help it! He looked up at his friend through his long lashes in a puppy dog 'love me, I am sorry' face complete with a pout. He hadn't meant to mess up Maddie's work.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Roderic Alder Mayburry Montana Character Portrait: Aconite Character Portrait: Madison Lovette
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Damien Moore was wearing the opposite of professional attire as he walked through SCION’s halls. He’d recently returned from a mission, and everyone who knew what he did could tell. Exhibit one: The clothes. Too short, too tight, too ruffled for someone who had woken up and headed to the office after a full night’s sleep. Exhibit two: the attitude. Dami glowed with confidence, meaning someone has given him an ego boost. And not only that, there was exhibit three: the allure. Currently, Dami breathed his power out on every exhale, and it hung around him in a cloud of distraction, drawing second and third looks from everyone he passed.

A young vampire tripped over his feet trying to get the blond’s attention, causing Dami to smirk and blow him a kiss before slipping into Madison’s room. He was utterly unruffled by the Kora chaos going on outside - at this level of power, he could have several of the male werewolves throwing themselves to his defense, so he was safe. No need to worry. “Hello Aconite~ Hi Madison~” he purred, then brought a hand up to his mouth delicately.

“Sorry~” he continued, now having dropped the bedroom voice - something that for him took more effort than using it. “Just got back. Came here first. Remember that skirt I ruined?” he addressed the vampire, mostly ignoring the dryad for now. “I can replace it, if you give me the brand and line. Except quickly, I need to go tell my team leader I’m back and what I learned. Which is everything, as usual” he grinned again, and then flopped on the bed. “Why’re you here?” he asked Aconite, then busied himself fiddling with his bag.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Kora Norrevinter Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Aconite Character Portrait: Madison Lovette
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This had been a (well, previously, at least) slow day for Madison, or so the vampire had noticed.

Much of the paperwork that had been assigned to him as of late had been completed, and what hadn’t was just about finished up anyway. From what paperwork and reports he had received from his subordinates had said, things were going smoothly in Blue Moon overall, and, really, it seemed as if they were doing splendidly in regards to getting things out on time. Very satisfying, and something which had sparked no small amount of pride within his breast.

However, such a slow day allowed for much more free time than was necessary, and Madison had found himself sitting at his desk for quite some time with little else to do. He had been considering going out to buy some groceries or the like, but his fridge had already been stockpiled with basic snack food (among the...necessity of someone of his kind), and there wasn’t any particular outfit that he had had his eye on lately. So, as things stood, it had been a rather pleasant surprise when Aconite had dropped by to visit. It had been made even more pleasant when the other had decided to try Madison’s style of fashion for once.

And this was how Madison had found himself using one of the nicer eyeliners on his- male- coworker, lips pursed as he brought the point to Aconite’s eyelid. Circling the gap, carefully, carefully…

At the sound of screaming throughout the building, however, his volunteer had suddenly started in his seat, obviously taken off guard by the event. It was a combination of reflex and his own experience that Madison had kept the point from entering the other’s eye, instead allowing it to slide harmlessly against the man’s cheek. Giving a faint frown at the mark, the researcher quickly shrugged the event off, and, taking out a small towelette, wiped away the imperfection.

“Don’t worry, Aconite,” he smiled, catching sight of the guilty expression on the driad. “Mistakes happen.” Briefly, Madison’s gaze flicked over to the doorway, lingering there for a few moments before returning. “It seems that Oren’s doing her study of werewolves again. They really should put better soundproofing in the rest of the building- some of the newcomers might end up terrified one of these days.”

Suddenly, a loud crashing had drowned out most background noise, followed by the scuttle of an escaped wolf flying down the hall.

“And perhaps better re-enforcements in the lab, as well,” Madison commented, voice cheerful as he brushed a bit of debris out of his room. The vampire was hardly bothered by his fellow’s actions- after all, when one worked at SCION for as long as he, one tended to get used to such things after some time.

Before he could ask Aconite if he wished to continue with the little session of theirs, another unexpected guest (if one could even count Kora’s sudden blast-by as a “visit”) had arrived; this one acting in a much more sultry fashion. Upon turning to see who it was, Madison brightened, rotating further to better face the incubus. “Dami!” He chirped. “Good to see you again; wonderful that the mission went well.” The remark on the skirt, however, earned a soft sigh, as well as the slight downward quirk of a lip.

“I told you that you didn’t need to worry about that old thing. I was going to toss it out eventually, anyway; no harm done.” He had kicked himself upon hearing that Dami had discovered the real price of the thing- especially since it had been his...work which had brought Madison to throw it away in the first place. After all, it had been his fault in lending such a pricy thing to his friend in spite of knowing what Dami did for a living, but it really had been no skin off Madison’s back, as far as he was concerned.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Kora Norrevinter Character Portrait: Phoebe Stride Character Portrait: Kreios Androcoles Character Portrait: Isaac Schofield Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Dr. Oren D. Kovalenko
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Aconite

Aconite smiled at Madison and would have wagged his tail if he had one. He was so patient with him when few others were. He knew he was hyper than most but he couldn't help it. Madison was like a brother to him and he hoped he never made Madison angry or made him hate him or anything. He had never seen Madison angry and it was hard to imagine him angry but you never know. He was sure the vampire was fierce when he wanted to be. He was glad he got the gentle side though. He closed his eyes again and tried to drown out the sounds from the hallway. He should really be used to Kora's antics by now but loud sounds still upset Aconite. They needed to reinforce the walls or something so Kora and the other werewolves wouldn't get out so easily. Or break things so easily for that matter. They wasted so much money on fixing things that should never have been weak in the first place.

Then Damien entered the room and Aconite straightened himself. Damien always made him uneasy in his skin. The incubus had always acted nice and polite around him but there was something beneath it all that unnerved him. Was it his sensual allure that put him so off balance? It had to be. The man was exuding it now and it did drag Aconite's gaze over to him. Especially when he flopped down on the bed. The purring lilt of his words were enticing. He cleared his throat and brought his gaze back to Madison. It was obvious that Damien was more interested in talking to Madison anyway. When the incubus did direct his attention on him however, he tensed.

"Why am I here?" He thought it was a bit obvious at the moment. "I decided to try out the cross-dressing thing that Madison always advocates. I want to see what he is talking about." He was a curious thing by nature after all. He wanted to experience everything and Madison commented once that he thought Aconite would look good in a dress. Why not give it a go?

Then Madison pulled away and made a comment that he was done. New excitement filled the dryad as he jumped up from his seat. Sitting that way for hours had been agonizing! He stretched a moment before he rushed towards the mirror and nearly tripped on himself. He was not used to heels. He gripped the vanity when he finally reached it and stared at himself. His eyes widened as he took in his features. He looked very different. Madison had been right; he looked very much like a girl, especially with Madison's expert administration of make up, hair, and accessories. He looked like an entirely different person now. He tried to twirl and watch how the dress moved but did trip this time and stumbled. He needed to get used to heels. They were so heavy! For him anyway. He turned to Madison and gave a smile as his hair fell forward.

"Thanks, Madi. It looks really good," he complimented and looked at himself again. "Maybe not the heels though. They are wonky," he chuckled. "And what do you think, Damien?" he asked as he turned towards the incubus.


Image

Satoru was up long before many of the members of this rag-tag group of defenders and that suited him just fine. He knew there were a couple that rose early as well to train and prepare for the day but it was mostly quiet. It was the best time of day since there was so little in the way of distractions and noise. He could calmly do what he needed to do. Besides, waking up on his alarm was better than being forced away by disruptions that occurred. Their group was lively if anything. Satoru utilized the gym they had at the headquarters to keep himself in shape and his mind sharp. It wouldn't do if he let himself get fat and lazy like a house cat. You never knew when your strength was required or you'd be sent out in the field.

With his morning ritual complete, the werecat headed towards the kitchen. And just in time to. He heard the tell-tale signs of a certain werewolf breaking through the testing room again. He rolled his eyes at Kora's uncontrollable antics. How many things has she broken already? Wouldn't she ever learn? And this was exhibit A of why he had to wake up earlier than most people. Kora. Among other people. She was a good field agent but she had absolutely no control over herself which made her a loose cannon. He was glad she wasn't on his team. He was sure the two of them would never get along if they had to go out together on a mission. He winced when he heard her barrel through the hallway. She was such a distraction. He could already tell a few people were in the hallway dealing with her mess.

He glanced up when he heard a new noise in the kitchen and saw his team leader grab some cold soup and offer Kora a disapproving glare. He looked tired. He couldn't blame him. Being team leader probably made for a lot of sleepless nights. Him eating could soup however, was not acceptable. Not when he had a team member ready to prepare hot meals. "Issac," he greeted with a nod. "Put that soup away. I am going to make breakfast. Omelets are on the menu," he answered. He hurried to the kitchen, completely ignoring the Kora intervention happening in the hallway. He grabbed the bacon, the onions, mushrooms, the bell peppers, milk and eggs. He set everything up for himself and started to sautée his ingredients. Perhaps the smell of food being cooked would get Kora to act like a reasonable adult again.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Roderic Alder Mayburry Montana Character Portrait: Aconite Character Portrait: Madison Lovette
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"Of course it went well!" Dami pushed his hair behind his ears, and then promptly shook his head to make it fall in front once more. "It was a one person mission, but Montana wanted us all to go out for some reason. So we had more than enough skill to do this." the pride in his voice was evident. He frowned int he next minute though, put off by Madison trying to brush off the cost of the skirt; an ongoing argument between the two since the incident itself. "And I told you I would be getting you a new one because I looked it up and it wasn't cheap! It's not like it's going to set me back, and you can think of it as me being Robin Hood, in a way." the incubus paused. "Actually, there's a thought. Robin Hood for the next costume party. I could pull off a tunic and tights, don't you think?" His eyes scanned the area lazily while he fell back against the soft covers.

The baby blues - temporary, from the last target- settled on Aconite, who was watching him with the look of someone ensnared by his unconscious allure. Dami turned his head into his arm, baring his neck in the process, and smirked against the skin. He played with the idea of toying with the dryad a bit, but dismissed it, as Madison was in the room. By then, he'd been answered, and lazily, he turned his head to watch the green haired male stumble around in heels.

"It's hard, isn't it?" he commented, smiling just a bit. "Never got the hang of it myself. And you look just fine~" the purr was back as his eyes raked over the trim figure. "I know quite a few who'd love to snatch you up, dressed like that." Of course, finding them again would be a bit of a challenge, but he was sure he'd manage. And that was assuming Aconite gave consent, which Dami doubted he would...

Closing his eyes, Dami rolled onto his side. "You have such a nice bed, Madison~" he sighed. "I wish you'd let me share it." he teased, once again picking up that specific never ending quest.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Aconite Character Portrait: Madison Lovette
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It was through impulse that Madison had suddenly leapt forward upon seeing Aconite stumble, hands extended so as to catch the dryad if he fell, although he soon released the position when it became apparent that Aconite didn’t need the help. He smiled, and, after taking a few steps back, began to circle the other with a more appraising eye.

“Perhaps I should have put you in flats,” he mused. “It’s a summer dress, after all, so I think sandals would have worked just as well- if not better- than heels…” He pondered on this for a few moments, eyeing Aconite’s current footwear for a few moments, before beaming once again and extending a hand. “Would you like any help getting to a chair again? It’d hardly do anyone any good if you ended up getting hurt.”

At Dami’s remark on his leader’s planning, Madison gave a light laugh, moving into a position to better face both of his company at once. “That sounds like something Montana would do. Always trying to stay prepared, isn’t he?” Of course, the vampire hardly took fault in that logic; in such a dangerous occupation, one had to stay on their toes in case the worst happened. Luckily, there was a very slight chance of things going wrong- the Hunter’s Moon, for all that could be said about them, were professionals in what they did.

The insistence of the skirt topic brought a light sigh from Madison, and, idly, he brushed out his current garb as he spoke. “You really shouldn’t have worried about it,” he chided, but seemed to relent at least somewhat with the next comment. “Are you sure that there isn’t anything else that you would like to spend the money on?”

Evidently, the researcher didn’t seem to have much problem with taking the money directly from a target’s savings account.

With the incubus’ following remark, the smile was brought back on Madison’s lips. “I think so. If you want, I could lend you a pair of tights for the ensemble; I should have a few pairs in my closet I bought some time ago.” For all that had happened to his skirt, he wasn’t all that wary about letting the other continue to borrow his clothes- after all, so long as he watched what he gave at times, there wasn’t much of an issue. Dami’s next words towards Aconite brought a further quirk of the lip, as well as a bit of a light in his gaze.

“While I don’t have any problem with what Aconite does in his spare time, I’m afraid that I’d rather him be wearing something else in the meantime; that dress is one of my favorites, after all.” After letting the words linger for a moment, Madison beamed, then moved to give his bed-frame a light pat. “If you ever wanted to stay over, I’d be more than happy to let you sleep in my bed if you’d like. The sofa is actually quite comfortable, after all.”

As typical of him, the vampire was hardly ruffled by Dami’s little come-ons; instead continuing to keep on an innocent look through his grin.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Aconite Character Portrait: Madison Lovette
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Aconite


Aconite flushed again and raised his hands to try and cover his reddening cheeks. He hated it when Dami was fresh back from a mission. The incubus was a walking turn-on after all. Even without his power wafting off of him like the hottest new cologne Dami could turn heads. It was just his nature and Aconite always felt flustered. He knew that his reactions to him him only made it worse since then he was sure that Damien was focusing on it and trying to tease him and get a bigger rise out of him. Figuratively and literally. The dryad realized that covering his face wouldn't do him any good but he found he didn't know what else to do with his hands in that moment. And as if that wasn't bad enough, Damien had to go on about knowing people who would love to take him to bed in this dress. "Thanks... but I think I am fine for now." He had to focus on something else! At least there was someone else in the room to.

The little fairy turned to Madison and gave a nod about the heels. "Yeah.. I think heels would have to be another time. I think today is a barefoot kind of day," he chuckled. He quickly took the heels off to stand on the ground and smiled. Better. He didn't much care for the heels. He loved the dress though. He turned back to look at himself the mirror. He looked so different. Madison was truly a genius when it came to these sort of things. At the mention that the dress he was wearing was Madison's favorite, his eyes widened in surprise. Why did Madison give him his favorite dress? He had simply wanted to try on a simple little thing to see if this was something he'd want to do. He didn't want to rip the dress. He was a dryad of nature after all! He loved going outside and getting into the dirt. He'd ruin it!

"Madi! Why didn't you tell me that this was your favorite? I'll change right away! I don't want ruin it!" he said even as the vampire had continued on with the conversation. He reached for the zipper in the back and with a little maneuvering managed to slide it down. In his rush, he did eventually topple over himself before handing the dress back to his friend. "Here. Thank you for letting me try it on but I don't want to leave the room with it if it is your favorite. I'll just wear my clothes," he smiled.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Aconite Character Portrait: Madison Lovette
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Madison ignored Dami in favour of making sure Aconite didn’t smash his face against the floor (and the incubus approved. Honestly) before finally addressing the incubus again, complimenting his team leader. “I think there might have been a possibility of our timing coinciding with an event,” he mused, “but luckily, that wasn’t the case. So we did end up overstaffed.” He chuckled, and watched the dryad watch himself in the mirror.

“And I told you,” he continued, not taking his eyes off the green haired male, “that I wasn’t worried, I just felt bad. And no, there’s nothing I want at this moment. Really, Madison, you should know me better by now,” for all his posturing, Madison knowing his nature was probably why the vampire had asked, “I’m a selfish thing, if there was something I wanted, I’d have gotten it first. But no, considering our previous topic, I’ll just buy a pair next time I’m allowed out. They only need to last one night, and I can’t guarantee they’ll survive that.” His eyes sparkled, as if he were imagining the many interesting ways an incubus could accidentally cause a pair of tights to be destroyed.

The sparkle faded into a pout as Madison quite deliberately evaded Dami’s innuendo, leaving the incubus to either drop it or be blunt. And as this was a game to him, not an actual hunt, bluntness was out of the question, as he couldn’t do more than give the words a teasing tone. So he dropped it reluctantly, and said, “I don’t think that’s an actual worry. He’s too chaste.”

And then looked back at the dryad, who was currently stripping.
Well, that threw his comments into question quite effectively.

Still, his eyes roamed over the form as he pushed off from the bed, crossing the room in a few steps and placing his hands on Aconite’s upper arms. Now taller than the dryad by half a head, he leaned in, cooing his name. “Oh, Aconite~” he breathed. “I know how badly you want it, but Madison’s room isn’t the right place…” his hands slipped down the arms, then found a new hold on slim hips, “Nor is now a good time.” His head was angled so every word sent puffs of air against the other’s skin, and he stood close enough that his body heat had no trouble crossing the distance. “You know where my room is, if you want to visit tonight~” he finished, and his lips curved into a smirk as he waited for Aconite’s reaction.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Aconite Character Portrait: Madison Lovette
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“Well.” In a smooth motion, Madison had dropped himself into a nearby loveseat, one leg crossed over the other as he rested his hands neatly in his lap. “I’m glad that things went well, at any rate- better to be over prepared than not, after all!” There was no trace of anything in his voice besides sincerity as he spoke, eyes bright as he watched both of his company- although his gaze lingered on Aconite for a tad longer, ascertaining that the dryad wasn’t stumbling too badly. It moved on soon enough, however, as the other gave in, stepped out of his heels, and went to admire himself once again without the hinderance of trying to balance.

Dami’s persistence towards the skirt topic did not go unnoticed by the vampire, and it was with a soft laugh that Madison seemed to relent. “You really should give yourself more credit,” he remarked. “You’re trying to make it up to me, after all. More selfish people would just keep the money for themselves, and not tell a soul that they had it.”

Still, even with the researcher’s apparent acceptance of his friend’s offer, it was with no small amount of hesitance that the details of the skirt were fully voiced- as if speaking the words aloud would only serve to spark more concern regarding the damage dealt to it somehow. “Considering you knew how much it cost,” he began, toying with a button on his sleeve, “I have a feeling you looked up what brand it was beforehand, but…” Madison paused, and, lifting his fingers away from his wrist, rose from his chair and moved to get a notepad from his desk. With a few quick motions of pen against paper, the vampire returned to where he had previously been sitting, and passed the sheet onto Dami. In neat print, the paper stated the skirt’s status as a Burberry (a pleated, lace wrap-over mini, it mentioned), as well as a few other basic details regarding purchasing a fresh article.

“Don’t feel like you need to get it to me immediately, or anything like that.” Madison added. “It’s enough that you’re going to buy a new one for me, after all.” Even if it wasn’t with Dami’s own money, Madison felt, it was still the thought that counted.

Notably, the man still wasn’t at all bothered by the fact that his friend was committing a theft against someone involved in a mission, but the trouble that went into buying a fresh piece of clothing.

His mood seemed to brighten at Dami’s mention of simply going out to get himself a pair of tights, as the laugh that was brought by the statement was ever-so louder than before. “I suppose you’re right about wanting a pair exclusively for that,” he said. “If you’d like, I can go with you to pick one out- even if you plan on getting them ruined the first night you wear them, the material really makes a difference in the end.” Madison quite enjoyed going out shopping, after all- although with how chances stood, he would most likely leave a prospective session with far more than he had set out to find.

Dami’s next comment on his other company being “chaste” was swiftly disproven by Aconite stripping, although Madison appeared...quite unfazed through the event. It was with the same casualness that he had kept throughout the exchanges that he accepted his dress from the now-bared greenhead, folded the fabric, and neatly placed it on a seat until it could be properly stashed away. “I said one of my favorites,” Madison corrected gently. “I appreciate the thought, though; if you’d like, I could always get you something else to wear if you’re worried about damaging my outfits.” A compliment on how the gown had looked on the other had been hanging on the tip of his tongue when Dami had suddenly approached Aconite, purring sweet nothings and caressing the dryad in a way one might a lover.

Throughout it, Madison waited patiently some feet away, with the smile of one who had long grown used to such an occurrence. Once Dami had finished his cooing, the brunette took the moment to chime in, his own hands again left to rest at his sides.

“Well, thank you for being considerate, Dami.” And, yet again, there was no trace of sarcasm or the like within Madison’s voice- there was a steady cheerfulness, a steady light air that the researcher always seemed to maintain, but nothing else. Turning to better face Aconite, he waited a few moments for his guest to recover before speaking again. “Would you like for me to get your clothes for you? I wouldn’t want you to catch a cold or anything like that.”

Courtesy was an essential part of being a good host, really.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Kora Norrevinter Character Portrait: Phoebe Stride Character Portrait: Kreios Androcoles Character Portrait: Isaac Schofield Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Dr. Oren D. Kovalenko
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Aconite


Aconite's thoughts had been purely innocent when he had been stripping. Honest! He had just wanted to return the dress to Madison and then put his own clothes back on, but his mind didn't stay innocent for very much longer. Damion prowled over to him and within moments, the incubus had his long and elegant fingers caressing his arms and resting on his hips. He could feel the man's body heat and the puffs of his breath against his neck. It all sent goosebumps cascading down his body and his eyes widened in surprise. There would be no hiding the blush on his pale skin. It was like a bright red flowering signaling a bee in the distance and his mind went blank for a moment.

Now, Aconite didn't love Damion. Not in a romantic way anyway. He didn't mind the man and he did want to be closer. He wasn't shy by any means. He knew that nature was nature and shouldn't be suppressed but he also wasn't a very intimate being. He had other things to worry about and no one had really ever made a pass at him. All of this was a bit flustering and he just wasn't sure how he wanted to react to the overload of information and...touch. Damion had certainly never been quite this forward with him either. He was usually forward with others like Madison. Maybe this was because of the dress.. or the stripping now that he thought about it. He should have known better though he couldn't say he didn't like the attention. He just couldn't imagine himself in that position. Maybe that was the most starting for Aconite. Maybe deep down he did want a little fun but he didn't want to recognize it.

"D-Dami!" he gasped exasperated and started waving his arms as he took a moment to express his flustered state before he quite literally went 'poof'. The dryad began to shrink until he was just a little bigger than Dami's hand. His wings fluttered behind him, doing their best to imitate a hummingbird. The dryad often reverted back to his more comfortable natural form when he was feeling out of place or overwhelmed. Aconite gave an exasperated sigh and slowed his wing beats as he tried to stabilize his own heart rate. Damion was probably just teasing him anyway. ""T-thanks for t-the offer. I think you'll have to.. to um... find... someone else though. I am not ready for something like that," he explained, hoping he wouldn't offend him for declining. He didn't think he would, but still. "M-maybe we should... go see what is going on in the hall. I think I heard Kora earlier. They might need some help," he suggested to get the topic off of nightly invitations.


Image


Satoru sighed at all the commotion and set down the eggs that he had been about to crack. It seemed that no one was really interested in breakfast this morning. His team leader was still eating that left over goop, Phoebe and Kora were fighting over a nasty hot pocket, Victor went to the fridge and no one else seemed to have heard him. He didn't really want to waste food if no one was going to actually eat it. He wasn't all that hungry now that he thought about it. Maybe he'd make something later when the issue with Kora in wolf form had been resolved. And of course the very 'nice' doctor had to go grumbling that none of them were doing their jobs since they were letting Kora run about. Honestly, this was her mess, not theirs. If she didn't have the sense to deal with Kora properly, she wouldn't smash through everything and cause a ruckus. No, instead, she had to go and blame them for not immediately stabilizing the werewolf.

The werecat put away all the food as Kora zoomed away towards something else. Satoru put everything else away and was actually going to walk away when he scented something in the air. He sniffed again and turned his head in the direction where Kora had raced off towards. He smelled blood and if he wasn't mistaken, that was deer blood. He followed behind Kreios. And there was their new member staring at the kill she had brought home only to have Kora rip into it. Now that was a pity. They could use deer meat to make some really good food like stew. He loved deer meat. Of course Kora had to be selfish and try and eat it all. At least Kreios seemed to be handling that situation pretty well. "Hey Dinah. Good catch you've got here," he complimented. [color=#80A50]"Need help bringing what's left cleaned out and prepared? Was there something particular you wanted to make out of this morsel?"[/color]

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Roderic Alder Mayburry Montana Character Portrait: Aconite Character Portrait: Madison Lovette
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"Maybe I've given up on charming you and now hope to buy your affections with favours like these~" Dami suggested, his eyes shimmering into a striking leafy green. From his position fondling Aconite, he could see Madison write out the details of skirt upside-down. It had been a very nice skirt, one that had suited the leggy redhead he'd played very well. It hadn't been so nice a skirt after things had escalated, not that he'd noticed until after he'd fed. "And your expertise would be well appreciated," he cooed. "We haven't gone out for quite some time, have we?" And Madison never minded if the incubus flounced off for a quick snack mid shopping spree, especially if his meal happened to end up more inclined to do him favours in the form of discounts after the fact.

Then, between his hands, Aconite vanished, fluttering about in his eight inch form. Dami eyed the tiny thing hungrily, licking his lips. Did the dryad not realize that he could now stimulate his entire body with one stroke of a finger? But he'd have to catch him first... He'd been about to try when his cellphone rang.

Mr Moore, I'll need you in for debriefing at your earliest convenience said his boss's voice, and Dami's lips quirked up. "Right away, sir~" he said smoothly, then dropped the call, turning to grab the paper with Madison's skirt order on it. "Have to go, Roderic is calling~" he explained. "See you later? And Aconite?" he stopped by the door, turning his head to glance back into the room. "The offer still stands, you know where my rooms are."

Finished with his teasing, he sashayed down the hall, drawing more admiring looks and unwilling stares. The base was already becoming familiar, and he was at Montana's door, slipping in and wandering over to press his body as close to his leader's as possible.

"I'll be glad to remove your briefs, sir~" he purred, sliding one hand into a back pocket, the other onto a hip to dip just into the hemline of neatly pressed suit pants.

Because really, that opening was too obvious, and Montana should have known not to make it so easy if he didn't want to hear it.

Setting

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Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Aconite Character Portrait: Madison Lovette
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“I wouldn’t recommend doing that.” By this point, Madison’s eyes had begun to sparkle with the same mirth one would see in a child’s- a trait that the vampire kept through seasons, wars, the sprawling hunger of time itself. “You know how my tastes are, after all. If you tried doing that, you’d probably sink all of your targets below the poverty line.” Almost as to emphasize his point, Madison fingers had begun to trace the imprints left on the paper, feeling them out and inadvertently smudging his fingers.

He had made himself by the time Dami had spoken again, and, at his friend’s words, Madison shrugged, then perked up further. “I suppose not. We’ll just have to change that when we can. I’ll go ahead and look into my schedule and see when my next days off are- we can set a date.” The fingers had lifted away from the page at this point, and were now fluttering in the air like pale moths.

However, before any real arrangements could be made, there was a sharp gasp from the other member of their company, and, shortly after, said company reappeared in a much smaller form. In his field of vision, Madison could also see that Dami wasn’t at all deterred by Aconite’s transformation- even appearing to be more spurred on than before. Deciding to extend sympathy to the pixie, Madison rose, and, gathering up Aconite’s outfit, went to place it neatly on the towel rack in his bathroom.

“I suppose you’re right,” he said upon returning. “The others can be quite rowdy after all.” “Rowdy” being the understatement of the year. “Seeing if they need any help would be a good idea.”

Madison gestured towards the open door of the restroom, smiling benignly. “If you’d like to get dressed before we head out, I left your clothes in there.” His focus did not linger for long enough to see if Aconite had taken the offer, instead switching back to a certain incubus still on his bed. “I’ll talk to you soon,” he confirmed cheerfully. "Tell Montana I said hello!"

He did look forward to going out with his friend again. For all of the breaks that Dami tended to take on their ventures, Madison truly enjoyed his company. Hands clasped, he turned back towards Aconite, waiting patiently for the dryad to compose himself after Dami's last pass at him.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Kora Norrevinter Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Aconite Character Portrait: Madison Lovette
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Aconite



Aconite was flushing. He was getting all flustered thanks to Damien. The man always got him so riled up! And he realized he had made quite a mistake when he had shifted into his true form. Here he was nude in front of a incubus. Nude. In front of an incubus. Brilliant. And he was tiny. He saw the man reaching up to grab him and he tried to fly just out of reach but then Damien stopped reaching from him. It looked like his boss was calling him for a briefing. He gave a sigh of relief when the man pulled away. He wasn't sure if he would have been able to withstand the incubus much longer if he had completed his action and grabbed him. And still he felt the glamor of the incubus pulling at him when Damien went to the door and waved good bye.

The Dryad swallowed hard and flew higher in the air and watched as Damien walked away. Then he turned his attention to Madison. Oh his clothes! "Thank you, Madison," he called. He cleared his throat and made his way through the air and entered the bathroom. He calmed himself down and let the change come over him again. He grew in size and his wings shrunk until they were gone from his back. That was the one thing he missed when he gained this form. He shook himself off and quickly pulled his clothes back on. Once he was dressed, he left the bathroom and leaned against the door frame and looked over at his friend.

"Okay, Madsion! I am ready to go," he smiled. "I haven't heard any loud noises in a while so either I have gone deaf, or Kora is under control again. The werewolves really are quite the lively bunch," he chuckled. "You have any idea where they are?" he asked as he walked out of the room.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Kora Norrevinter Character Portrait: Kreios Androcoles Character Portrait: Isaac Schofield Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Dr. Oren D. Kovalenko Character Portrait: Makorai Saika
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Kreios got up from the couch at the sound of the Intercom buzzing in.

"Good morning SCION. Would all field and research teams please report to Meeting Room B for a briefing in five minutes. Five minutes in Meeting Room B. Thank you!"

Well, it was something, at least. He hoped it would bring him out into the field again, he missed being able to let a little loose, really push his limits. He had been getting bored of the recent "Milk-runs" he'd been sent on. Combat was his specialty, and quite frankly, he held a lust for it. Some might have called it a bloodlust, but it wasn't the gore that drew Kreios in. It was, something far more primal.

As he approached the meeting room, he adjusted his shirt-sleeve, in a vein attempt to stretch it so it would comfortably hold his arm. He was beginning to find this a problem, and would need to have a meeting for a "New clothes" bonus. Not that it was news to the higher ups, they had this meeting once a year.

He walked in the room, sliding a few chairs over to avoid physical contact with his co-workers. Not that there aren't a few he wouldn't mind brushing up against, but this was a professional setting, no time for such thoughts. He sat down, and waited for his team-mates to arrive.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Phoebe Stride Character Portrait: Kreios Androcoles Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Dr. Oren D. Kovalenko Character Portrait: Makorai Saika Character Portrait: Silas Whitmore
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All things have cycles— The moon, civilizations, the growth and shedding of skin from a snake’s back. All things that go around will recur once more, and if they should not, it likely means that you have not waited long enough. The only question, really, is how or when the recurrence will come, and what prompting will occur to make it so.

Rebirth, as it were: A fascinating subject in the lives of men for millennia, for reasons both obvious and obscure. Phoenixes and reincarnation cycles feature regularly in Eastern historical records, and many creatures influencing the rebirth of seasons are revered as deities.

One of the most prominent symbols of rebirth across cultures, however, is the yew tree. Multiple cultures (see following doccumment for specifics regarding Greek vs Celt representation) have viewed this slow-growing tree with reverence, likely drawing the connection to rebirth from the tree's ability to spring new trunks from the original root bole. While it is possible to cut a yew down, failure to remove the full bole from the ground will only result in a later growth of the same tree.

Despite being an incredibly toxic —


The stream of written text was interrupted as by the sound of the intercom filling the library’s archival study sent a rather startled bearded dragon lizard dropping from the writer’s head and onto the page.

The creature scuttled onto its feet after a second or two of struggle, bit the pen previously inscribing the briefing text, and then crawled onto the hand holding it to nuzzle for warmth. She was promptly hissed away by a garden snake, however, who had been hiding up the writer’s coat sleeve. The hissing set a leopard gecko on the sleeve’s outer portion to jumping further up the arm, which displaced a formerly contented ball python who had been draped about the coat’s shoulder.

The python moved to coil around her perch’s neck, only to be intercepted by the hands of Doctor Silas Whitmore as he wound her coils away from his body. “None of that now, Harriet,” the historian chastised, letting her wrap herself around his other wrist, “You know that tickles.”

Harriet flicked her tongue out, but settled into her new place just as well. “Hopeless lot, all of you. Did you know?” Silas proceeded to say, adjusting a lizard clinging to the frame of his thick bottle-bottom glasses so that the animal's foot did not obstruct the view of his strigine blue eyes. He reached up and pressed down his unkempt mop of brown hair, more out of habit than hope that it would stay down, and seemed completely unfazed as yet another small reptile crawled from his sleeve and made itself a nest amongst the strands.

He then moved to lay three different bookmarks in his work, in case someone else should want to open the resources he had been prepared to cite in the briefing note, but fumbled as he stretched across the desk and knocked a globe off of its stand.

Though he did manage to catch it in a haphazard dive to the side.

Even though said dive may have cost him his balance.

Cue a crash onto the floor and a scuttling exodus of the creatures formerly existing on his person.

“Yes, yes— I know. I’m going to be late.” He pulled himself up and dusted himself off, relaxing the globe and grabbing a notepad and pen in the same motion. “If you’re so bothered by it, you ought to help” he quipped as he bounced toward the door— though the bounce was more an effort to recover from stumbling over a corner of the rug than any intentionally graceless motion.

As the Historical research head strode toward the hall (with no further mishaps, for the moment,) he pulled out his phone and shot a quick text message to another member of Harvest Moon, to be sure that Aconite was in attendance.

Conference room in five. Or five minutes ago. Not sure. -Dr. W

And then,

Also, please meet after. Need you to pull the tome on yew wood inscribing. -Dr. W

As he pushed through the door with his worn menagerie and took a seat in the back corner nearest the door (so that no late-coming reptiles would disturb anyone when they entered,) he shot out one more text message, stating,

Also, meet before meeting after. Thinking of ordering lunch. -Dr. W

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Phoebe Stride Character Portrait: Kreios Androcoles Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Dr. Oren D. Kovalenko Character Portrait: Silas Whitmore Character Portrait: Cyrus Fox
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Aconite’s thanks was dismissed with the wave of a hand, as if physically ushered away. “It’s the least I could do,” Madison chirped. “Besides, I pride myself on being a good host.” The vampire did not lie- he was a man that greatly enjoyed his company, and a man that greatly enjoyed conversation. Manners were as important to him as an instrument to a musician, and this was something he knew well enough.

It was only when he saw Aconite exit that Madison beamed brightly and turned to leave, heels clicking nicely against the tiled floor. “Well, considering that I haven’t heard much, either, I’m assuming that it’s the latter.” The bright, cheerful tone never faded as he strolled through the hall, following the various scratches and claw marks that had been left from Kora’s charge. “I do have to agree with you on them being a tad...rowdy at times.”

A true understatement of the year.

At Aconite’s question, the researcher gave a slight roll of the shoulders, then gestured at the markings scattered before them. “I’m not completely sure at the moment, but from the trail Ms. Norrevinter left for us, I’m assuming that she was heading towards the back.” Madison lapsed into silence, then, eyes back on the damage, although it was during this quiet that the announcement sounded out above them. Blinking in surprise, he glanced up at the speaker, glanced back to the hallway, then turned his focus back to Aconite with a slight laugh.

“Well, then.” Madison said, clasping his hands together. “It seems like we won’t have much time to go check up on the others, then.” He wasn’t particularly concerned by the sudden calm, at any rate- transformed cryptids running about was a common enough occurrence that it didn’t warrant too much alarm anymore. Turning on his heel, Madison made his way to the meeting room, purposefully walking in stride with his company.

Upon his arrival, he was quick to see several familiar faces among those who had already arrived. Giving a cheery wave towards his fellow researchers- and a few others- Madison made his way to a chair beside one Mr. Moore and settled himself down with a smile and a muted “hello”. Noting the current argument between Oren and one of the officers, Madison turned a curious look over to his tablemates- and finding with a certain amusement that he was not alone in the gesture.

He supposed he hadn’t missed much, then.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Kora Norrevinter Character Portrait: Phoebe Stride Character Portrait: Kreios Androcoles Character Portrait: Isaac Schofield Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Dr. Oren D. Kovalenko
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Aconite nodded to Madison as the two of them walked in the hallways. There robust werewolf certainly liked to mark things up. The dryad walked over to one of the walls and let his fingers trace the long gashes left there. The werewolves had such destructive raw power. These claws could practically rip up anything. It was why he had a huge amount of respect for the werewolves and had a healthy fear of them. He remembered all too well the pain that could come with one swipe. It was one of the reasons why he had decided to work for SCION. He wanted to protect Cryptids from other Cryptids and protect humans as well. They were fragile new spring blossoms compared to the power that Cryptids had. They had no real way of protecting themselves. It immediately pained Aconite. It certainly felt like he was one of the few that believed humans needed to know about what was going on. They had some humans here but it wasn't enough. SCION shouldn't hide this. It should... It should provide training and support for humans so they could learn how to better protect themselves from this world.

Aconite was pulled out of his revere when he heard the intercom. He lifted his head and blinked a moment. A meeting? They didn't often have large scale meetings like this. Had something happened? Did it have something to do with what happened to Kora this morning? He hoped that she and everyone else were okay. He would hate for someone to be very injured by something silly. He knew that a lot of the fights that the werewolf got herself into could have been easily avoided. Did it involve Stride and one of the vampires? She had noticed they didn't often mix very well. Aconite looked over at Madison and chuckled lightly. "Yeah. At least we will see everyone at the meeting.

Aconite started to walk with his friend when he felt his phone vibrating. It made him jump and he started to trail behind Madison. He could never get used to the blasted cell phones. By the time he managed to grab it, a couple of more messages made it through. They were all from Silas. An excited smile touched his lips then. He really liked Silas, his fellow researcher in Harvest Moon. The two of them often had rather excited conversations. Silas was also a prime examples as to why Aconite believed humans needed to be brought into SCION and learn about Cryptids. He was a brilliant man and he to had been hurt. People shouldn't have to be hurt and scared before they were brought here.

He quickly texted the man back "Okay! Sounds like a plan!" He looked up and realized that he was now alone in the hallway. "Meep!" he squeaked before he rushed into the meeting room and looked around the table. A lot of people were already seated. He wanted to sit beside Silas! He rushed over and plopped himself down in the seat left beside the man in question and waved at him. "Hi Silas!" he called. Then he leaned forward to wave at Christina as well. "Hi!" Aconite sat back in his seat then and glanced around everyone. So many people. He didn't see Kora though. He hoped she was okay. If everyone was here that meant that whatever this meeting was about was huge. He hoped something catastrophic hadn't happened. He turned his attention to the officers then.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Phoebe Stride Character Portrait: Isaac Schofield Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Dr. Oren D. Kovalenko Character Portrait: Makorai Saika Character Portrait: Silas Whitmore
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Issac walked along at his own pace and found his way to the office where everybody was waiting.

He felt eyes on him walking in, tho not just from being one of the last to enter the room. He scanned the room for a moment but didn't find who had been eyeing him. Issac moved to a wall a few paces off from Oren and Wyndham as to over hear their conversation. He wasn't attempting to be subtle at it, but figured it was rude to just join their circle of conversation. As his ears picked out bits of conversation his eyes watched the room, with a stony expression. He gave a nod of greeting to anyone who made eye contact with him, but otherwise stood there with his armed folded neatly across his chest. He was interested in seeing what this was all about as much as anyone.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Silas Whitmore Character Portrait: Christina Eberhart-Taroni Character Portrait: Aconite
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At the sound of a familiar voice, Silas turned to find the always-lovely (and more notably, criminally brilliant,) Miss Eberhart-Taroni taking the seat beside him. “Christina!” A wide smile spread across his face at her question, which he nodded in response to even as he shooed a gecko away from her shoes.

“Oh, yes, quite a few things, really,” he said, shoving his glasses back up the bridge of his nose with a finger, “Not that there are ever really any new things, what with it being history and whathaveyou, but I have come across some fairly new re-found tidbits—” He broke off to brush another critter from trying to crawl into her lap, before continuing in his chipper tone. “A bit like finding money in a pocket you forgot you had, really. No idea how it got there, but quite nice to see again. For starters, I’ve been doing some research into the historical symbolism of the ah—“

His phone buzzed against the desk, and he reached to tap the screen. “On the um… Pardon me, Christina. I’m expecting a reply from Acon—“

Before he could manage to finish swiping his passcode, the aforementioned research assistant was bounding into the room with his usual air of sprightliness. “Speak of the Devil,” said Silas, responding with a far more subdued but no less genuine wave of greeting.

The dryad may have been flighty, both literally and figuratively, and his frenetic energy was more than Silas typically cared for, but the Doctor had come to develop a fondness for Aconite nonetheless. The boy was a hard worker, and had both the patience and wit to follow Silas’s research instructions to a tee.

It was refreshing.

“Good to see you, Aconite! I was just telling Miss Christina here about the yew tree research we’ve been working on. It’s quite fascinating, isn’t it, Aconite?” He looked back to Chirstina just in time to catch a newt from making a leap for her shoulders.

He did not, however, pay any heed as a rather large monitor lizard (affectionately named Marie, for the time she liked to spend creeping around the labs,) sauntered through the door and settled itself under Aconite’s chair.

“But, yes. We’ve been making some intriguing connections between Gaelic and Greco-Roman mythos in regard to the tree. I could forward you the compiled papers, when we’re finished with them, if you like.”

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Phoebe Stride Character Portrait: Damien Moore Character Portrait: Dr. Oren D. Kovalenko Character Portrait: Makorai Saika Character Portrait: Silas Whitmore Character Portrait: Lulu Botrelle
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Christina nodded along with Silas’s words, occasionally opening her mouth as if to say something before closing it as he barrelled on talking. Eventually, the mage settled for nodding, listening with genuine interest to the reports. She waved back to Aconite when he appeared, and smiled knowingly as she made the connection between the dryad and the topic of yew trees. Aconite’s unique powers could come in handy with this thread of research.

“Could you?” she asked Silas when he made his offer. “I’ve been running low on new reading material lately and my own library order isn’t here yet. I know in sorcery, yew is used a lot in rituals for transformation. Especially on the tides of the seasons. And funeral rites as well.”

Nothing she said was anything new, likely Silas had found it all already in his own. But it would prompt the conversation along, which was the goal, in the end.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dami spared no time in snatching one of Madison’s hands into his own, playing with the fingers as he chirped a bright “Hello~” to the vampire as if they hadn’t just spoken not that long ago. His eyes becoming honey brown, Dami stared soulfully at his friend, then sent another cutting glance towards Oren arguing with their superior. The raised eyebrow conveyed his confusion rather clearly, since the incubus had no idea why that researcher would be mad about a paid vacation, of all things, and then shared another significant look with his teammates.

“Sooo, Madison~” he finally voiced, lowering his lashes until his eyes were half lidded, and peeping up through them in a fetching manner. “Did anything manage to change in the short time we suffered apart?”