[nervous laughter. listen, he's a little rich boy, he only knows how to talk to people who live in places like this on their level, which he currently is not.]
Um, I'm very sorry that we don't have your tea... but i-is there anything we can do for you, since we're here...?
[what he Can do is be cute. in the way that mostly tends to work because he doesn't actually smile cutely on purpose.]
[ she fixes lavi with a very long look. terrifyingly long. he will start to feel as if his skin is lifting from the muscle and sinew like paper curling in a fire, though visibly nothing is happening. ]
Mortal forms are rather paltry … you can barely stand up to a few hours of peeling.
[ but she instantly brightens again when mathis talks. the peeling feeling stops abruptly. ]
except oh god he didn't like that at all, actually -- the sweat builds and builds at his temples, until the sensation stops, and Lavi gasps, staggering forward with maybe more dramatic emphasis than necessary -- and aims his elbow at a stack of parchment paper, intending on sweeping a bunch to the floor in a very paltry and clumsy way]
[LAVI? unfortunately mathis is genuinely worried for a second, until he realizes he was aiming for the papers... at least maybe that makes lavi's attempt more convincing?? hopefully??
if lavi succeeds in knocking some off the desk, then mathis will scramble to start picking them up and try to sneak a peek at them while he does. just a full on immediate drop to the floor on his knees to grab 'em.]
Sorry, I'm sorry, let me... let me get those for you, madame...
well he can take a stack of papers to the floor, as well as a nameplate (KA-REN THE PEELER Humanoid Resources - Avernus Office) and a coffee mug that says “Don’t Talk To Me Until I’ve Had My Morning Peel!”
the papers are all old, powerful seeming parchment and seem to be contracts, signed with names at the bottom. There is a lot of very small detailed writing and clauses and subclauses. Subclaus 6.4-D The undersigned Mortal cedes all right to … ]
Ah! What a mess! I wasn’t finished with those— put them back EXACTLY how you found them!
[MORE APOLOGIES as Lavi also scrambles to help Mathis "collect" these papers and read them, as if trying to do his best to put them in their original order....
also what's this nameplate made out of.... has it got a Heft to it,]
[ sure! I'd say the nameplate is one of those REALLY nice ones, it's made out of brimstone and is really nicely engraved with a metal plate and everything. Ka-Ren has 250 years at the company and is beloved by all at Zarial's palace. She would like her papers placed back on the desk by the photo of her and her 12 Warlocks. The youngest is graduating high school soon! Two of them are Lemures.
Many aren't names Mathis will recognize - in fact, many of them are in languages he probably simply doesn't read. This likely does make it nearly impossible to sort these properly, if you can't read the alphabet, but it's fine. As he looks through, however, he will see one name that's familiar.
Transfer of Soul: The Soul Owner hereby transfers ownership of their immortal soul to the Beneficiary.
Consideration: In consideration of the transfer of the immortal soul, the Beneficiary agrees to ensure and guarantee peace and happiness to the Soul Owner for the duration of their natural life.
Terms of Peace and Happiness: The Beneficiary shall endeavor to provide peace of mind, emotional well-being, and moments of happiness to the Soul Owner, in accordance with their understanding of these terms.
Duration: This Contract shall remain in effect until the natural death of the Soul Owner.
Revocation: The Soul Owner acknowledges that once this Contract is signed, the transfer of the soul is irrevocable and cannot be undone.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have executed this Contract as of the date first above written.
she- didn't really do that, right? would she have? he can't be positive that she didn't, or wouldn't, especially if they're here...
he has no confidence in his ability to disappear this contract before she processes it. if he tore it she'd hear, and if he tried to pocket it he doesn't. have pockets. what if she notices one is MISSING.
but there was that note, and he contemplates a moment, rifling through real quick to see if he can find his name, or lavi's, or rondo's, before he stands with the papers and peers down at them curiously.]
I-if I may, Madame, I think there's been some sort of mistake with these... um, we're familiar with each other, and this was signed as 'Ashlyn'? But... her name is Ashley...
[ducking his head:]
Please f-forgive me for saying so, but I... thought that you may want to know.
[you know! for your processing! paperwork errors! aaaare you gonna need to get that one signed again ma'am please say yes]
[ ka-ren is looking more and more in a peelin mode by the second the more lenny touches her desk … the debtor just kind looks sad. probably because their whole front has been peeled and its pretty uncomfortable.
as mathis holds the contract … these things are VERY magical. he will understand pretty clearly that while often twisted and of course, ultimately damning, the contract is truthful in the sense it will honor the agreement. a vision of ashlyn, happy, safe, and home. there is no game for her fate, no cult holding her hostage, no blood that has to be spilled.
you’re really going to take that away from her? a chance? ]
What did you say, dear? Speak up! You’re just like my youngest, always mumbling her spells …
[ Mathis please roll! if lavi wants to give additional help lying, you can both roll at advantage. ]
It doesn't take long for Lavi to catch on to what Mathis is trying to do, what he must have found in all these papers -- he peeks over Mathis's shoulder to look at the document he's holding, and nods.]
Ah -- yeah. The spelling's wrong here. L-E-Y, not L-Y-N. Common mistake -- and you've got hundreds to sort through too! No wonder you need tea.
Y-yes-- um, if you'll allow it, then... we can remove this for you, and go fetch your tea...? I think that there was a group of newer ones hers should have been with, th-they may also have been done incorrectly...
[oooh my god does he try,
with advantage he got a 20 so! yes, he will in fact try to take that away from her. we're in hell. if she wants to sell her soul that badly after all, they can sort out this paperwork thing later, it's not necessarily Done With if they obtain the contract.]
[ hmmmmmmm well a 20 it may be and she does seem quite convinced a huge idiot like raphael would make a fucking spelling mistake on a souls name … she’s not going to hand it over to these chucklefucks. snatching it back, squinting at it and then starting to … erase the name.
you do get the distinct sense that there is a future closing off here, as the name fades. there is a hope, somewhere, fading with it. some path is forevermore out of reach, and it is you who has made the decision for her.
[that’s not a great feeling! Lavi grits his teeth a little against it, and continues]
There’s a Ron that someone turned into Rondo instead, and a Lavi that should be Lenny. Which is even worse because what kind of names are Rondo and Lavi?
it couldn't be the right thing, to let her be damned, right? even if she'd be happy in the meantime? this is... what lucas would do. lucas would say that was a bad thing to allow. he can trust lucas's judgment, probably, if not entirely his own.]
Um, and... there's likely one that should have been Matthew...?
[ Ka-ren flips through pages and hums to herself, pushing up her glasses. she could really use some tea she is so tired today. well for Ron. ]
Rondo Ravus? Alliteratives. Nonsense. One soul for all of Orsterra? That is quite the trade he's worked out here. It's not often you can get big swings like this.
[ as she changes the name to Ron, you sense a shift in something in the air. Like pieces on a lanceboard beginning to be moved, to be shuffled. War is on the breeze. ]
Lavi ... Lavi ... I don't see a Lavi?
[ she'll flip through again, and again. this actually takes quite some time. but as she's flipping, Lavi, you might spot one adorned with a familiar signature. Your own. Bookman Jr. ]
And-- Matthew ... Ah, you mean Mathis! Yes, I actually do remember this one.
[ She goes to another pile, and pulls over a contract. You can read in plain writing Mathis on it, but ... the signature is unfilled. And there's a sticky note on it. `FALSE DOCUMENTATION.`]
Quite a mess. Tut tut tut. It will be a good deal of trouble when it's found out someone tried to trade something they didn't have. Interest will be paid.
[okay well listen all of these feelings are bad but Lavi wants to kick himself the moment he spots the name 'bookman junior'. it's unsettling to see it inscribed on the document, as if he really was the person who put it there. but that doesn't make sense because of course he didn't, the same with the rest of them -- no one made any kind of deals. that they remember.]
Sorry -- it was something stupider, actually -- Bookman Junior? That shouldn't even be a name.
Bookman Jr. ... you simply cannot make up your mind.
[ but, pulling out Bookman Jr., running her eyes over the contract. One soul, for survival. ]
Isn't that sweet? A Junior for a Senior. It's enough to make one's teeth rot out of their skull. Well-- [ she pulls out another. this time for simply: Bookman. ] Good thing we have the match as well!
[ isn't that funny, mathis. suddenly you feel so ... empty. a hollow vessel. the feeling that if your layers were peeled back, you would simply cease to exist - nothing on the inside. nothing of worth, at least, to a Devil. To make memories, wasn't it? The dream? To live?
Creatures without a soul are less than nothing. Here in the Hells, they are not even currency to trade. The devil running her claws along the paperwork looks up at him, the blank black eyes searching him. ]
It shouldn't be a surprise (but it is), he and Rondo thought they saw something -- someones in the library, and Kanda and the others are all apparently walking around having lost something of their own -- and if Lavi's memories can be dug deep enough that they know his name, then obviously they know everything else about him --
the way Ka-ren looks at Mathis only confirms that, because Mathis --
Lavi immediately shifts so that he's in front of him, posture tense, nameplate gripped in his hand.]
We helped you. If there's nothing else you need, then we'll get outta your hair.
[it hurts, feeling that empty. like everything he's tried to do to make himself more substantial has done nothing, like he's so close to not existing at all--
maybe that's true. he's a fake human, after all. 'my cute, foolish little failure of a-'
mathis backs away, behind lavi, his steps a little shaky.]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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Lavi remains in good cheer(?) and approaches the debtor-desk like this is a normal thing to make a desk out of,]
I think we'd get a lot of peels. [(slapsknee.gif)] And I like wearing my skin on the outside. It's pretty.
[he winks at her............ with his one eye, but it's okay because he tried to exaggerate the motion, y'know?]
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[nervous laughter. listen, he's a little rich boy, he only knows how to talk to people who live in places like this on their level, which he currently is not.]
Um, I'm very sorry that we don't have your tea... but i-is there anything we can do for you, since we're here...?
[what he Can do is be cute. in the way that mostly tends to work because he doesn't actually smile cutely on purpose.]
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Mortal forms are rather paltry … you can barely stand up to a few hours of peeling.
[ but she instantly brightens again when mathis talks. the peeling feeling stops abruptly. ]
How polite. I could use a footstool …
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except oh god he didn't like that at all, actually -- the sweat builds and builds at his temples, until the sensation stops, and Lavi gasps, staggering forward with maybe more dramatic emphasis than necessary -- and aims his elbow at a stack of parchment paper, intending on sweeping a bunch to the floor in a very paltry and clumsy way]
Oh -- shit, sorry...!
[ALSO DON'T USE MATHIS AS A FOOTSTOOL]
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[LAVI? unfortunately mathis is genuinely worried for a second, until he realizes he was aiming for the papers... at least maybe that makes lavi's attempt more convincing?? hopefully??
if lavi succeeds in knocking some off the desk, then mathis will scramble to start picking them up and try to sneak a peek at them while he does. just a full on immediate drop to the floor on his knees to grab 'em.]
Sorry, I'm sorry, let me... let me get those for you, madame...
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well he can take a stack of papers to the floor, as well as a nameplate (KA-REN THE PEELER Humanoid Resources - Avernus Office) and a coffee mug that says “Don’t Talk To Me Until I’ve Had My Morning Peel!”
the papers are all old, powerful seeming parchment and seem to be contracts, signed with names at the bottom. There is a lot of very small detailed writing and clauses and subclauses. Subclaus 6.4-D The undersigned Mortal cedes all right to … ]
Ah! What a mess! I wasn’t finished with those— put them back EXACTLY how you found them!
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[MORE APOLOGIES as Lavi also scrambles to help Mathis "collect" these papers and read them, as if trying to do his best to put them in their original order....
also what's this nameplate made out of.... has it got a Heft to it,]
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i hate to tell you but he is actually trying to put them in the right order he doesn't want to be fucking peeled]
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Many aren't names Mathis will recognize - in fact, many of them are in languages he probably simply doesn't read. This likely does make it nearly impossible to sort these properly, if you can't read the alphabet, but it's fine. As he looks through, however, he will see one name that's familiar.
Transfer of Soul:
The Soul Owner hereby transfers ownership of their immortal soul to the Beneficiary.
Consideration:
In consideration of the transfer of the immortal soul, the Beneficiary agrees to ensure and guarantee peace and happiness to the Soul Owner for the duration of their natural life.
Terms of Peace and Happiness:
The Beneficiary shall endeavor to provide peace of mind, emotional well-being, and moments of happiness to the Soul Owner, in accordance with their understanding of these terms.
Duration:
This Contract shall remain in effect until the natural death of the Soul Owner.
Revocation:
The Soul Owner acknowledges that once this Contract is signed, the transfer of the soul is irrevocable and cannot be undone.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have executed this Contract as of the date first above written.
Soul Owner Signature: ASHLYN BANNER
Beneficiary: RAPHAEL
.
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Lavi will straighten up, still on his knees, and place her coffee cup on the table(?)]
Lemme get that for you first. [he is still holding the name plate. also
since he's on the floor. he will look. at the debtor who is presumably holding everything up with the power of their back. how are they doing.]
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she- didn't really do that, right? would she have? he can't be positive that she didn't, or wouldn't, especially if they're here...
he has no confidence in his ability to disappear this contract before she processes it. if he tore it she'd hear, and if he tried to pocket it he doesn't. have pockets. what if she notices one is MISSING.
but there was that note, and he contemplates a moment, rifling through real quick to see if he can find his name, or lavi's, or rondo's, before he stands with the papers and peers down at them curiously.]
I-if I may, Madame, I think there's been some sort of mistake with these... um, we're familiar with each other, and this was signed as 'Ashlyn'? But... her name is Ashley...
[ducking his head:]
Please f-forgive me for saying so, but I... thought that you may want to know.
[you know! for your processing! paperwork errors! aaaare you gonna need to get that one signed again ma'am please say yes]
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as mathis holds the contract … these things are VERY magical. he will understand pretty clearly that while often twisted and of course, ultimately damning, the contract is truthful in the sense it will honor the agreement. a vision of ashlyn, happy, safe, and home. there is no game for her fate, no cult holding her hostage, no blood that has to be spilled.
you’re really going to take that away from her? a chance? ]
What did you say, dear? Speak up! You’re just like my youngest, always mumbling her spells …
[ Mathis please roll! if lavi wants to give additional help lying, you can both roll at advantage. ]
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It doesn't take long for Lavi to catch on to what Mathis is trying to do, what he must have found in all these papers -- he peeks over Mathis's shoulder to look at the document he's holding, and nods.]
Ah -- yeah. The spelling's wrong here. L-E-Y, not L-Y-N. Common mistake -- and you've got hundreds to sort through too! No wonder you need tea.
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[oooh my god does he try,
with advantage he got a 20 so! yes, he will in fact try to take that away from her. we're in hell. if she wants to sell her soul that badly after all, they can sort out this paperwork thing later, it's not necessarily Done With if they obtain the contract.]
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you do get the distinct sense that there is a future closing off here, as the name fades. there is a hope, somewhere, fading with it. some path is forevermore out of reach, and it is you who has made the decision for her.
live with it.
ASHLYN is replaced with ]
You said Ashley? Quite the stupid name …
[ she looks through the pile? ]
Which ones?
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There’s a Ron that someone turned into Rondo instead, and a Lavi that should be Lenny. Which is even worse because what kind of names are Rondo and Lavi?
[sorry rondo…]
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it couldn't be the right thing, to let her be damned, right? even if she'd be happy in the meantime? this is... what lucas would do. lucas would say that was a bad thing to allow. he can trust lucas's judgment, probably, if not entirely his own.]
Um, and... there's likely one that should have been Matthew...?
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Rondo Ravus? Alliteratives. Nonsense. One soul for all of Orsterra? That is quite the trade he's worked out here. It's not often you can get big swings like this.
[ as she changes the name to Ron, you sense a shift in something in the air. Like pieces on a lanceboard beginning to be moved, to be shuffled. War is on the breeze. ]
Lavi ... Lavi ... I don't see a Lavi?
[ she'll flip through again, and again. this actually takes quite some time. but as she's flipping, Lavi, you might spot one adorned with a familiar signature. Your own. Bookman Jr. ]
And-- Matthew ... Ah, you mean Mathis! Yes, I actually do remember this one.
[ She goes to another pile, and pulls over a contract. You can read in plain writing Mathis on it, but ... the signature is unfilled. And there's a sticky note on it. `FALSE DOCUMENTATION.`]
Quite a mess. Tut tut tut. It will be a good deal of trouble when it's found out someone tried to trade something they didn't have. Interest will be paid.
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Sorry -- it was something stupider, actually -- Bookman Junior? That shouldn't even be a name.
[please work please work]
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[it-- it's for the best that his isn't signed, right...? but. what is he going to be in trouble for, what does she mean by interest--]
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[ but, pulling out Bookman Jr., running her eyes over the contract. One soul, for survival. ]
Isn't that sweet? A Junior for a Senior. It's enough to make one's teeth rot out of their skull. Well-- [ she pulls out another. this time for simply: Bookman. ] Good thing we have the match as well!
[ isn't that funny, mathis. suddenly you feel so ... empty. a hollow vessel. the feeling that if your layers were peeled back, you would simply cease to exist - nothing on the inside. nothing of worth, at least, to a Devil. To make memories, wasn't it? The dream? To live?
Creatures without a soul are less than nothing. Here in the Hells, they are not even currency to trade. The devil running her claws along the paperwork looks up at him, the blank black eyes searching him. ]
There's something strange about you.
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It shouldn't be a surprise (but it is), he and Rondo thought they saw something -- someones in the library, and Kanda and the others are all apparently walking around having lost something of their own -- and if Lavi's memories can be dug deep enough that they know his name, then obviously they know everything else about him --
the way Ka-ren looks at Mathis only confirms that, because Mathis --
Lavi immediately shifts so that he's in front of him, posture tense, nameplate gripped in his hand.]
We helped you. If there's nothing else you need, then we'll get outta your hair.
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maybe that's true. he's a fake human, after all. 'my cute, foolish little failure of a-'
mathis backs away, behind lavi, his steps a little shaky.]
Y... yes. We should...
[they should really be going now.]
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she starts to rise from her seat, eyes still on Mathis.
Both of you start to feel that sensation of skin, pulling away from the body, every nerve on fire as the sinews scream ]
Zariel might have interest in an empty vessel, waiting to be filled ...
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