Slow me down

[quintessent]

Who: Allura (quintessent) & Various
What: Nov/Dec Catchall + Quests!
When: November/December. After Dranbu
Where: Various
Warning(s): N/A



Starters to come in comments!

Comments

Diva! As sol as you can get with a space princess and a vampire.

[quintessent]

[A girls night.

That’s what Lance had called it. When he suggested that Allura and Diva should spend more time together, get to become friends. Diva needed more of those and, honestly, so did Allura. Part of her suspected that Lance was still being cautious to leave Allura unchaperoned, until they could make sure she wouldn’t have any more lapses in memory and disappear back into Josa forest. Which is fair, Allura’s not sure that she wants to be left alone right now anyway.]

Would you care for any hor d'oeuvres…?

[Allura stands awkwardly in the threshold between the living room and the kitchen. She has entertained for leaders from all across the galaxy, and yet, dressed simply in her night gown, with her single guest sitting in a nest of blankets and pillows on the couch, she couldn’t help but feel out of her element. Quickly, she glanced at the folded piece of paper that Lance had left behind for her— a list of common activities for sleepovers, in case Allura needed help.]

it's a royal occasion

[colorature]

Oh, yes please.

<sub>[It's definitely not an invite Diva had been expecting to receive, but that didn't mean she wasn't going to accept it. If anything, she felt compelled to have company more than ever, since Saya had decided to fall asleep again. Takasugi had been right, that she ought to just steel her heart and learn not to care...but it's hard. Out of everyone in her life it's her twin that she cares the most about, after all.

Diva herself is dressed in a simple, but soft linen nightgown that hangs just above her knees, the edges ruffled and the front sporting a blue ribbon tied into a bow. Thankfully it's breezy enough and the fabric breathable. Wyver is humid, after all.

Although she's polite with her words she doesn't waste any time plucking a few chicken nuggets off one of the plates that's been set out, popping them past he lips one by one. She seems a bit less...wired than normal, but that's to be expected. She's not exactly the happiest as of late, with everyone she knows leaving her to take a long nap.]</sub>

[quintessent]

[Diva's definitely acting like a shadow of the person she met on the network or in the corn maze. It should be a relief, as she can be a little too much for Allura at times, but it's incredibly obvious that moods are dampened. Things are hard enough without loved ones spontaneously disappearing, and she sympathizes with the girl. Allura takes a moment to collect herself in the kitchen, glancing at Lance's note once more. She'll have to try extra hard to be a good hostess here.

A few ticks later, Allura is sweeping back out into the living room, a plate of cookies in hand, which she sets down on the coffee table in front of Diva. She offers Diva a smile,]

Is everything fine? Do you need more blankets? Or perhaps another pillow...?

[colorature]

_{[There's a small head shake at the question - she's pretty well stocked in both departments, having more or less created herself a nest out of the blankets and pillows Allura had provided to her in the first place. There's no hesitation as she reaches for a cookie, taking a bite, crumbs sticking to the corner of her lips. She seems to brighten slightly at the taste. It's good.]}

I'm sad because my sweet darling sister went back to sleep.

[quintessent]

[Allura's smile softens sympathetically, and she watches Diva for a moment before she moves to sit down, situating herself on a cushion on the floor next to the table.]

I'm sorry.

[Lance had mentioned that Diva was dismayed because so many people she knew were going back into stasis, and Allura reflects on what Diva's mood was like the last time a friend left her — all stomping feet and throwing temper tantrums — a far cry from the quiet girl sitting near her now.

She opens her mouth to comment further on it and stops herself, reconsidering her approach,]

Do you wish to talk about it?

[colorature]

_{[She's on her second cookie now, moving to reach for a third. It's not often she's offered an ear, for someone to actually willingly listen to her without her demanding it. Thoughtfully she chews what's left of her first cookie and swallows it before speaking again.]}

If it won't bore you I do.

[quintessent]

[Allura watches without comment or complaint as Diva helps herself to the cookies, and eventually snags one for herself. Taking a delicate bite on one of the corners—]

I am used to politics, I think it would be very difficult to bore me by now.

[There's a lilting tone to her voice, but she's not trying to make light of the situation, and gives a small nod,]

Please, I want to listen.

Kirk! QUEST > Sunken Treasure

[quintessent]

[There's something about the inky darkness of Nadril's frozen-over lakes that reminds Allura of space. Not quite weightless, but no longer restricted to mostly horizontal movement, and surrounded by a darkness that felt even more absolute than anything she's known before. At least in space there were stars or spaceships. But here it felt almost claustrophobic.

Her breathing sounds loud in her helmet, and she swivels her head to look in the direction of her partner — tethered to her with a thin cable to make sure they wouldn't lose each other. They're working with extremely low light, to protect them from the creatures that they were told that swim below. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end as she wondered just how near the threats were. They should be on the other end of the lake, where another crew was set up with lighted lures they could drop intermittently, but with visibility being so low, they could be swimming right next to one.]

...Does your blaster work under water?

[It was half supposed to be a joke, but now she would rather like to know.]

i definitely wrote a tag for this and apparently closed the tab instead of posting it RIP ME

[1701]

Maybe, [ he says, the sound of his voice tinny even to his own ears, in these suits. Despite that, his tone is chipper. He's got his phaser on the outside of the dive suit, anyway, but he's hoping he doesn't have to use it. ] They're meant to work in water and in extreme temperatures, but every so often the chemical makeup of this environment or that will mess with them. This water could be made up of anything.

[ This is the answer I'm going with after consulting Memory Beta because while Prime timeline phasers probably wouldn't, Kelvin timeline tech is a little more advanced and ANYWAY

They're moving, making progress even if it's slow, and despite the dark, oppressive atmosphere, it's interesting. ]

It feels like what I imagine the earliest form of space walking would be.

rip... I've done that too many times.

[quintessent]

[It’s not the most promising answer, but hopefully they will be lucky enough that they don’t have to use any of their weapons. They already had their unfortunate run-in with weird eldritch monsters, after all.]

You think so?

[She gives a quiet hum, trying to imagine that instead of being surrounded by water, by the void of space.]

Space travel has been a part of Altean culture for so long it is hard for me to imagine a time before.

[ Like trying to imagine man’s first experience sailing on the sea, or being warmed by fire. But she imagines it must have been something like this, started out with a handful of brave adventurers just jumping into the unknown,]

…Do you think the first space explorers were worried about monsters?

[1701]

My home planet's had it in at least a primitive form for about three hundred years, [ he says, ] and warp drive for about two hundred. My contemporary time is already considered something of a Renaissance with it.

[ Speaking of first space explorers. Jim laughs quietly. ]

Who wouldn't be worried about monsters? No one wants to get eaten.

[ He's always more worried about Romulans or accidentally starting a war, in practice, but he's been surprised by aggressive beasts on unfamiliar planets more times than really bears thinking about. ]

I just typed a tag and accidentally hit "back" and lost it so this thread is cursed now.

[quintessent]

My castleship was made over ten-thousand years ago. Ten-thousand, six-hundred, if I'm being precise. It's a little old fashioned by now, but it still stands up against the worst of the Galra fleet in a fight.

[A beat.] Rather, it used to.

[Ah, but this isn't the time to be upset about ships that are no more. Her tone brightens,]

I forgot that you are from a timeline different from Lance and the others. And with faster-than-light travel! [She's really not trying to sound low key condescending, it's hard when you're part of the most Extra advanced alien species, but she also sounds quite excited about being able to talk about this with anyone, really. She's not a scientist, but people who understand space-travel on a cultural level are few and far between here,] And you were a Captain, correct?

oh god......

[1701]

[ Jim's become adept at dealing with Vulcans, the most stoic, condescending, long-lived jerkwads in the Alpha Quadrant, so a little elitism from an energetic (young?????) woman is no problem at all. He likes Allura. ]

Are your ships for large crews, or are they one-man operations?

[ Seems there's an even wider variety of tech out there than even living beings, sometimes. ]

Mm. I'd like to think I still am, seeing as my job was to explore the galaxy and make contact with new worlds. There are two other Starfleet officers here, and my entire crew in stasis, so I'm just ... on a weird, long away mission.

[ A half dozen shimmery fish with neon eyes flit by, swirling near them then darting away. ]

[quintessent]

We have both. My castleship was built to house many people, much like Thesa. [But better.] Within, we had flight-decks with smaller shuttles, and of course the Lions- that is, the ships that the other paladins of Voltron and myself pilot, meant for combat.

[It's a clunky description, but she's learned that Voltron doesn't immediately mean anything to most people she's met here.

She watches the glint of the silvery fish as they filter around the two divers, their reflective scales shining teal in the dim light of Allura's armor. She holds a hand out to see if they will swim between her fingers, but the movement causes them to scatter into the murky depths around them. It seems like even the frozen waters of Nadril are full of life,

She chuckles,] I suppose that's true. As much as I am still a princess, even if I carry no sovereignty here.

December Carnival

[particlebarrier]

[Talk of the winter carnival has been impossible to avoid for the past couple of days. Lance is, of course, curious to check out the party, but honestly he hates going to these sorts of things alone which is why he asked Allura to accompany him. Though he knew which answer he'd prefer, he wasn't really sure that'd be the answer he'd get. Or maybe he's just learned to set his expectations low to avoid feeling disappointed when friends don't want to hang out.

Either way, all of that goes straight out the window when Allura agrees and despite knowing better about feeling this way, he's so giddy that there's a tiny smile on his lips the entire journey over from Wyver to the carnival site. Once they arrive, his eyes grow wide with surprise.]

Oh man, they really went for it! They even have a ferris wheel and everything! Haven't seen one of those in a while!

[He laughs, face bright as he turns to Allura.]

Ever been on one of those before?

[quintessent]

[Since she's arrived, there have been no shortage of celebrations throughout both Olympia and Wyver, and often plenty of ways to get into trouble at them. But when Lance brings up the winter festival, she readily agrees. Despite everything that's happened, she's still curious about the land that was now their home-away-from-home and eager to see what the festivities have to offer. And if it's with Lance, they can both watch out for each other, in case anything strange goes on.

So, dressed in a warm winter coat and leggings, her hair is left long, and the big curls bounce from side to side when she shakes her head at his question,]

I have not! [Canting her head to the side, she frowns up at the lit-up contraption.] It seems awfully slow to count as a ride...

[Heights aren't quite as thrilling when you're used to flying around in space lions.]

[particlebarrier]

Heh, well it's definitely not a rollercoaster or anything speedy. There are a lot of slower rides at amusement parks, too! Like carousels and some water rides. Ferris wheels are meant to be more relaxing so you can enjoy the view rather than being an adrenaline rush.

[He's nodding sagely at this, like he's an expert on this subject. He'll uh.. just leave out the whole romantic aspect of ferris wheels because that's not what's going on here. Even so, there's a bit of a sheepish smile as he continues.]

Do you ... uh... wanna try it together?

[quintessent]

[Being grounded for so long, she often missed the opportunities that flying the Blue Lion afforded her for casual sightseeing, so something like that appealed to her more than the more thrill-seeking rides. Her eyes light up,]

I have always wanted to see this area from a better vantage point.

[She catches Lance by the sleeve, tugging him in it's direction, but before they can make it to the end of the line, the siren song of a street-side vendor catches her attention.]

Step right up, step right up, pop a balloon and win a prize!

[Hanging on the sides are a number of colorful plush creatures, but Allura's eyes immediately hone in on the large, adorable blue cat hanging left of center.]

Lance...!

[particlebarrier]

[As she grabs his sleeve, the sheepish smile turns into a brighter one. She doesn't need to tell him twice to get moving. The carnival games catch his eye too, though he doesn't stop until Allura explicitly points one of the prizes out. He can't help but laugh a little when he sees the blue cat.

She's not asking him to, but....]

Already on it, Allura!

[It's a straightforward shooting game where you shoot down moving targets. Piece of cake for the resident sharpshooter and all. He approaches the stall with some swagger in his step. His confidece is so obvious that even the owner of the stall seems to find this vaguely amusing.]

Ah! Going to win a prize for your girlfriend, young man?

[Cue Lance almost tripping over his feet.]

She's not my -- [He looks over his shoulder to see whether or not she heard that. He's hoping not, but just in case, he drops his voice several decibels and sighs.] -- I just wanna play the game please.

[quintessent]

[She did hear it, but when Lance looks back she's very carefully looking in a different direction, putting on like she's very interested in the lights on the Ferris Wheel, tugging on a strand of hair uncomfortably.

It's not until Lance is back bantering with the stall's proprietor that she turns around again, approaching Lance's side to watch him work. When she'd called his attention earlier, she didn't really intend on implying he do anything for her but

that cat is very cute.

The stall owner produces three darts, setting them on the table.]

Oh, those are much different from your bayard, Lance. Do you think you will be able to do it?

LANCE. AGAIN. Backdated to after the fight with Takasugi.

[quintessent]

[It’s been a long time since she’s been here. Yversai’s attack and everything else that happened, Allura’s not even sure if her old apartment would still be standing, but it’s in a moment of desperation that she finds herself back on the familiar doorstep. Bloodied and wounded in both spirit and body, it was the first place she could think of after her fight with Takasugi and her feet took her there almost numbly. She couldn’t return home, not like this, and very suddenly the dark streets felt dangerous in a way they never did before.

As she slumps onto the floor near the door, shaking hands reach for her phone, bloodied prints mar the screen as she presses her thumb into a familiar friendly face.]

Lance.

[Her voice immediately gives herself away, shaky and breathless and working to keep it together. She takes a trembling breath.]

Something happened. I am safe but I need- [Another steadying breath.] Can you come to Olympia?

[particlebarrier]

[His face brightens when he sees that it's Allura that's calling him. It'd be a slight exaggeration to call it a reflex, but it's not un-apt. Lance likes to think that Allura can call him for just about anything, but his mind is definitely leaning heavily on the "maybe she found something she's excited about and couldn't wait to tell me" side of things than anything else.

The sweet summer child is about to get quite the rude awakening and the playful hello~ handsomest paladin speaking dies on his tongue the second he hears her voice.]

Allura?

[He never imagined hearing her say his name could fill him with such dread, but he clutches the phone, the sound f his chair hitting the floor as he shoots up to his feet audible on her end.]

I'm coming. Right now. [And he's already yanked his door open, unthinking and mind racing with concern.] What happened? What do you need? Is anyone else with you?

[He should stop bombarding her with questions, slow it down. Take several deep breaths of his own.]

[quintessent]

[She feels bad about the worry that she can hear so plainly in his voice, but there’s also an incredible sense of relief when she hears his voice, knowing that he would be there as soon as possible. Because as strong and she considered herself, she really didn’t want to be alone right now.

There’s the sound of her taking a breath, trying to get her thoughts back on track. Maybe Lance thinks his questions are too much but it helps ground her to the moment. Simple answers for simple questions were easier than dealing with the emotional baggage of what just happened.]

I was wounded in a fight. They aren’t serious, but in need of first aid. I am by myself, and I do not believe I was followed.

[She gives him the directions to her old apartment in Olympia. All with a very carefully measured voice. Tense, but controlled, as if reading off a status report. Urgently,]

Please be careful. The man who I engaged with was posing as an Olympian soldier. To what end, I do not know, but he was willing to take a life.

[The last word is fragile around the edges and she closes her eyes against the vision of the young boy whose life was cut short.]

[particlebarrier]

[The measured tone is helpful in providing some degree of focus, but it's also the catalyst for further concern. There's a lot to take in and process here, and not all of it's making sense.[

Bring a first aid kit, got it. Uh... where'd we put it -- oh.

[There's a slight echo in the background as Lance rummages through their medical supplies in the bathroom.]

Wait. Someone dressed up as an Olympian soldier and just randomly attacked you??

[Maybe that's a question that can wait to be answered in person, but the thought that this might've been an attempt on Allura's life specifically isn't something he can just let sit without clarification either.]

[quintessent]

[Talking to Lance is helping. It always did. Helping ground her from getting too caught up in her own thoughts and memories. She listens to him rummage in the background, making a mental image of where he was in their house. Maybe she should have called him with the video — but there's a lot of blood on her end, and she doesn't want him to freak out.

She shakes her head, even if he can't see it,]

I wasn't a target. He... he attacked a civilian. [There's the sound of her working around her words,] I tried to stop him, but I couldn't-

[She swallows,]

He killed someone, Lance. And I couldn't do anything to stop it.