IRC bonus scenes

[Anastasia]

These scenes are canon, but are purely fluff that serves a particular purpose. Namely, the point is to get into the head of the characters and simply let them flow. It's practice and clarification, a little time given to them to let their personalities stretch out.

[Anastasia]

> Amid it all, Alicia rests a moment. She rests back in her room, eyes closed as she loses herself amid it all. A moment of respite in her life from her responsibilities and duties, a moment to herself. When you open your eyes, Syala is there. She smiles and has a hand on her hip, "Sometimes it strikes me how similar you two can be."
<Alicia> There's no real respite, she's always listening to a prayer here, monitoring a location there, and even if one body seems to be resting, you can be certain her avatar is busily exerting itself somewhere else. "Who am I similar to now?" she asks, opening her eyes and giving a fraction of the totality that makes up her attention to Syala.
> "Antenora. Now more than ever, now that she's beginning her own faith," Syala comes on over to your side, "She models herself after you, and that's not going to stop now. Not what I'm here for, though."
<Alicia> "I think I've done well enough to justify a little imitation," she smiles, putting her hands on the armrests of her chair and rising to her feet. "So what's on your mind, then?"
> "You." Offering her hand to you, "When's the last time we've had some good, old fashioned, violent fun?"
<Alicia> "Well that didn't involve people we had to actually kill... it's been a little while," she puts her bare hand into Syala's, giving it a squeeze. "Did you make up a dungeon, or want to have a fight?"
> "I had a dungeon made up, but I thought we'd have more fun, just the two of us," Syala admits, "Remember how we first met?"
<Alicia> "You made for a very cute little fox," Alicia smiles, remembering it. "Thankfully not as smelly as a real one either."
> "Or remember when we went on that vacation and become lovers for the first time? Remember how we found reasons to stay in our inn room in those first passionate adventures?" Syala remarks, "I feel like we could lose those feelings, Alicia. So much piled on us and we're so comfortable with each other."
<Alicia> "Is that why you were talking about including others?" Alicia asks, thinking back to another recent conversation they've had. "Hoping the freshness will bring back that spark of experimenting and getting to know each other?"
> "Not really," Syala says, shaking her head with a fond smile at you, "Well a little bit, but I was a Sharessian for a long time. That's one reason to do it. Something new can make everything new, like a shot of energy. Longer term it's a trick of course, just a way to bring out what's there but sleeping or forgotten. The main reason is because you do have eyes to how gorgeous everyone here is, don't you?"
<Alicia> "Yes, divinity and proxy-hood does agree with people - speaking of are you ever going to assign any proxies?" she asks. "You should think about that after our passionate adventure."
> A nod, simple agreement. "Plus," Going on from that, "Love. Sometimes love shows like that." A brief pause, "Remember when everyone thought you and Antenora were lovers or were going to become lovers?"
<Alicia> "It wasn't everyone," she huffs. "It was just an occasional misunderstanding."
> That gets a big smile from Syala, "Dear, you've seen how sometimes Antenora looks at you, adoring." waving a hand, "Or how close you are. If it wasn't you, you'd think the same thing."
<Alicia> "Yes, yes, it's a very strong bond," Alicia looks a bit embarrassed. "We've been through a lot together... comfortable or not, that history means something."
> Syala smiles as she comes over to you, "It's nothing to be embarrassed about. You two mean a lot to each other. Neither of you would be anywhere close to where we are now without the other." Deepening her voice just a little bit, "Alicia," she says, a near perfect imitation of Antenora, "I'll protect you. Alicia, I won't allow them to lay a hand on you. Alicia, I'll heal you." A breath, "It means a lot."
<Alicia> She blinks and looks dead on at Syala. "You have an uncanny talent for mimicry. She usually spaces those earnest declarations out a bit more, though."
> Meeting that look with her own, "Divine magic is a wonderful thing for party tricks." A dry comment right back, "She just so earnest with you. Marie too, but even then not as much. But...we end up talking about something besides ourselves again." 
<Alicia> "Antenora might be embarrassed but Marie would be thrilled to know we spend all our time talking about her when she's not here," Alicia says. "So perhaps we can table the discussion in favour of some passionate violence and see where that leaves us?"
> "I agree," Syala says, "But imagine one thing. Ahem. Oh, ALICIA!" It's Antenora's voice again, sounding rather...oh my. As that hits you, you get hit again - Syala slams into you like an arrow, shoulder first, tackling you down to the ground, grinning all the while.
<Alicia> That was a nice chair too, but now it's kindling under Alicia's back. Grabbing Syala's shoulders she rolls back further and brings her knee up before kicking to launch the white-haired goddess into the wall. "I've gotten worse from the familiar bond with Marie," she says as she springs to her feet. "But lets take this elsewhere, I like this room."
> Syala slams into the wall, the room repairing itself instantly by divine will. Dusting herself off, "Come on. We're not old spinsters yet."
<Alicia> "Fine, whoever loses can fix the room," Alicia goes with it, nothing here beyond their means to repair or replace after all. With that she picks up the couch and swings it overhead to flatten Syala onto the floor!
> The blow knocks Syala to the floor, leaving her there a moment. She just lies there, smiling, "...and there it is. It's good to know I married a violent maniac." Syala opines, before WHAM! A kick right int he gut, flying up back down to do just that. She flips upright, tackling you again after that, "But," she says face to face with you, "The fun part is the wrestling."
<Alicia> And there goes the couch, knocked from her hands and cracked down the middle before she's tackled and pinned. "Need to soften you up first!" she retorts, squirming around to get some leverage and turn the tables.
> Syala moves with you, but you're faster this time, even as you get a faceful of wing. As the couch cracks and rattles, also knocking over a bit of pottery to shatter on the ground, "Oh yeah?" she says, an elbow rearing up, cracking you on the chin even as you're atop her back now.
<Alicia> There are times she misses having wings like when Syala proves the benefit of having an additional pair of limbs to hit people with. On balance things like easily fitting clothes, not knocking things over when she turns around, and not wrenching her back when she rolls over in bed make the decision to get rid of her wings one she doesn't regret. Rocking back from that elbow she shifts around to
<Alicia> try and pin wings and arms under her knees so she can grab a leg and wrench it back!
> And like this, soon enough the room is wrecked.The two of you lie amid it, resting after. "...Alicia?"
<Alicia> ... she won, right? "Yes Syala?" she asks, picking pieces of shattered pottery out of her hair. That vase was a gift from Empress Sulia! Well a make whole and it'll be good as new...
> Syala wills wood splinters out of her before going on. "Sometimes I worry that we'll end up too absorbed in everything, and our relationship is just another bit of decoration in Sylica."
<Alicia> "It's hard," she admits. "There's so much going on, demanding of our time... I hope when we have more avatars around it'll be easier to make time for ourselves."
> "There will always be more," Syala sits up now, lights off as she shakes her hair clean of dust and debris. "Part of it's that I want our love life to be spectacular and interesting, help us stay in touch with your passion.  As I said, Sharessians use that sometimes to help revitalize what's already there."
<Alicia> "I haven't gotten bored yet," she reassures, reaching over and resting her hand on Syala's thigh.
> A hand over yours, "
> A hand over yours, "Good. I don't need to break out the whips then." With a soft laugh after, "Then let's keep going, dear. Together."