[attr=class,whocan]Klavdiya sniffed her uniform again. The rosemary scent was uncanny in its ability to be so potent, all over the outfit. They'd said it was to dissuade the less-disciplined vampires from harassing Council employees. She chuckled to herself as she pushed the cleaning cart, thinking of how lucky she was that they'd decided on rosemary instead of garlic. The wheels on the cart squeaked as they traveled down the hall. Tonight's assignment was the Vampire Wing, hence the special blue uniform instead of the standard black one. Orientation had occurred a few days ago, her first day, er, night rather, had been yesterday cleaning the Angel Wing offices, just the ones opened for cleaning, to be specific. Lucky for her state of mind, Klavdiya had not run into anyone she recognised, or vice versa. There had been the worry in the back of her mind that maybe she'd run into Hanyang, the angel who had headed up the soup kitchen. Nagiko had said she was actually in charge of some kind of secret police, and that the interest in soup was coincidental. In truth, Klavdiya had not paid much attention to her elf friend's suspicions. The faerie was just happy to be able to keep busy again, and be paid for it. Despite her protests, she had been scheduled to clean the Demon Wing offices the following night but, for now, Klavdiya focused on the task at hand, which helped her not think about the coming shift.
First on her left was the Advisor's Office. She'd not heard much other than that there was a new Advisor but, Klavdiya being a faerie and all, she'd be lying if she said she cared much. Klavdiya pushed the cart past the opened door and--
Opened door!? "Uhhh..." Klavdiya looked around, perhaps the Advisor had just stepped out for a second? She'd been told that the upper staff tended to schedule cleanings as opposed to leave their offices open nightly so seeing an Advisor's office door open like this was not a part of the assumed routine. Mulling over whether or not to enter, Klavdiya looked around once more. The last thing she'd want to convey was any kind of indolence on the job. A look further down the Vampire Wing hall showed a lot of closed doors. Reporting back by saying she didn't clean the only open door on the wing would reflect quite poorly, she surmised. Klavdiya gulped and meekly pushed the cleaning cart inside the office, herself floating over the threshold. It was... a rather pretty office. The faerie found herself quite taken with some of the decorative decisions.
A lovely armoire stood in the corner of the office. Klavdiya took a second to imagine the lovely kinds of dresses suited for all kinds of balls and formal occasions that resided in an Advisor's office wardrobe. Some art on the walls depicted swirling abstract dance motions, most at least a little beyond the faerie's comprehension. The paint colours were awfully pretty, though.
She looked over her shoulder one more time before tipping the cleaning cart over a tad to let some water and soap spill together, mixing atop the tile floor. Satisfied no one was near enough to see her, Klavdiya whipped up a bit of air magick, huffing and puffing to evenly spread the suds around the tile. It'd be much easier to mop all that up than it would be to rinse the mop in soap and water each time for every new spot she moved to.
There was something, just a little something, hypnotic about swirling the mop about the ornate tile floors of these Council offices. Klavdiya enjoyed it greatly. Nagiko had referred to it once as a weak spiritual cage but again, Klavdiya hadn't paid very close attention. It was just very easy for her to get sucked into cleaning and not pay attention to outside sounds or visuals. That couldn't be a crime, surely?
One. Two. Three. And Again! One. Two. Three. Her feet moved in time with the gentle rhythm of the violin. Atlas, her personal accompaniment for the evening pulled the bow across the strings of his violin with a delicate hand. The arches of her feet ached and the toes of her shoes were digging into her delicate and perhaps mildly bruised flesh. Yet, her expression showed no signs of pain or suffering as she leaped into the air and spread her legs wide…just to come back down from the heavens with a tiny thud. Dance was all about control of movement, grace, and expression. She was using her body to tell the story of the music. Moving with the music and her satin slippers gliding over the tiles…all of it was in pursuit of perfection until the song swiftly came to a close.
Aria fell into a soft curtsey before letting herself slide to her knees like a broken doll. Practicing in the night was proving to push her more than she anticipated before taking on the Adviser role. She was currently still working to understand how to manage her work and passions, yet failing miserably. ”You are dismissed for the rest of the night Atlas. Go home to rest.” She smiled at the small fairy before wiping the sweat from her brow. He nodded before tucking away his instrument and flying off through the open window.
Her intentions were not to spend two hours dancing, but based on the height of the moon in the window of the meeting space…well things were not that simple. Aria pulled herself to her feet. Her dancing shoes and the delicate white ballerina ensemble she wore would have to do for the rest of the night. She didn’t have the energy to change right now. There was however still work to finish and thus she made her way back to the office. Her air though sticky with sweat was holding nicely in the soft bun at the crown of her head and decorated with white lilies for a change of pace from her favored tiara accessory.
She noticed instantly that the door to her private space was ajar. She could’ve sworn that the location was locked. There was very important documentation on her desk that no one needed to see aside from Ookami. Though as she entered the area that was intended to be her private sanctuary…she saw a blonde fairy with a cart. ”What business do you have here?” The vampire was straight to the point as she stepped further into the space with a hand on her hip. ”These offices are off limits unless upkeep is requested.”
[attr=class,whocan]If she didn't, she did. If she could have, she would have. Jumped out of her own skin, that is. The faerie quivered around to meet her eyes with those of whomever was at the door. She blinked. Whoever the lady was, she was certainly very pretty, even if she did seem somewhat exhausted. Actually, she... She looked like the people in the paintings. Uncanny, really. Klavdiya spent a moment thinking what it would be like, to look like a painting.
There were more pressing matters for her to tend to, however, and she opened her mouth to try and craft a satisfactory reply, "I'm so sorry, miss. I'm with the cleaning staff a- and the door was open which usually means, well, never mind me. But, um, I've barely started so I can go somewhere else now, it's not, it's not a problem!" Behind her back, she fidgeted with her fingers. And what of the sudsy water she'd gone and spilled about the floor? Well, it wasn't as though she'd spilled it, that really was how you were suppose to clean via cart but... Oh, no. This was the Vampire Wing, was this woman a Vampire? She had a very pretty face, though, so Klavdiya wouldn't feel oh so bad were it the last one she were to see. The faerie faintly recalled the orientation meeting mentioning that cleaning staff were generally well-protected, however. She gulped quietly.
"If I may, I can just wipe up the water I've already put out and then be on my way, miss." Klavdiya bowed repeatedly. If she could, she'd have hit the ground immediately to do the kind of super prostrate bow she'd seen here and there.
Yes, Klavdiya was deathly afraid of demons but, as Nagiko had once put it, at least demons don't bleed you intentionally. She shuddered at the thought. Avoiding eye contact, starting now, was the name of the game, thought Klavdiya.
She took a few moments to take in the setting. The state of her office was wet and soapy. Her door was open when it shouldn’t have been. A surge of panic gripped her chest as she stepped into the space. Aria was mindful of the wet surface, but the priority was her desk. She needed to make sure that none of the documentation was missing. Ookami would have her head if she messed up something so simple, but vital.
As she moved her feet sped up slightly. The slick surface of the tile didn’t mesh with her ballet slippers as she slid across the next few feet before crashing down onto her bottom and back. A groan left her lips as she stared up at the ceiling. This night was supposed to be peaceful. Now she was in a tizzy over work. She certainly hoped she could sleep in a bit tomorrow. She was seriously going to need it.
”You’ve not been granted permission to enter this space, but…you may continue the work you’ve started. I will let this go…this one time.” She wasn’t oblivious to the fear on the little fairy’s face, but she also couldn’t afford to tarnish her own reputation. Though she could offer her a bit of mercy. This situation was probably not her fault. The wetness on her bottom certainly wasn’t.
[attr=class,whocan]Klavdiya looked about herself, should she even approach? This would not have occurred if she hadn't put out soap and water in an office space she wasn't supposed to be in to begin with. She flitted over to the vampire and extend a trembling hand, dripping with fear.
"P- Please let me assist you. I should not have entered at all. I will finish post-haste and I can p- personally assure you nothing of this sort will ever happen again." The faerie was lucky, floating over the ground like this gave her a natural angle for her to look away from the vampire, thus hiding the tears that were welling up in her eyes. Her breath was hurried and nasal. Breaking down to cry was not conducive to staying employed, Klavdiya had learned, so she resisted the urge to do so.
As soon as she had helped up the vampire, provided she didn't die here, Klavdiya would clean up here, rush past the bound-to-be closed doors, and clock out. Then maybe she could eat something comforting, like brown sugar meatloaf. She'd need to pick up the meat but the other ingredients she already had, probably. Thinking about what to eat made the imminent fear sting a little less in her mind. She was sniffling, already.
Aria hesitated a moment. Her blue eyes sparkling with understanding as the fairy turned her gaze away. The wet sparkle in her eye could not be missed however. This fairy was scared and in distress over the situation. Was she being too harsh? Perhaps….she did not want to act in such a way towards an innocent girl like her though. She wasn’t the type to be cruel…not without good reason. She smiled softly and took the hand offered to her. Though made sure to shift the majority of her weight onto her own legs and feet as she stood back up. The last thing she wanted was to pull the smaller fairy down from her comfortable height.
”Please don’t cry. I promise that nothing will come of this incident beyond what has occurred between us.” It was a small matter. Though she still needed to check her desk. ”Continue your work…I assume you’re new in this area…much like me.” She smiled softly before subconsciously reaching out and patting the girl’s head. ”What is your name?” She released her hand quickly before walking over to her desk and shuffling around the papers. Everything was present, so next was to change her wet clothing. ”I’m Aria. The Adviser of the Vampire Council. I do hope you can forgive my rather blunt conduct…it seems I spend a bit too much time with my supervisor.”
[attr=class,whocan]After the vampire woman had stood back up, Klavdiya clutched the mop with both hands, holding it close. Her knuckles looked as if they'd been washed with a white pallor. She'd asked to please not cry. If Klavdiya wasn't dealing with more present emotions of a different variety, maybe the faerie could've laughed. "I'd not dream of doing something so, um, unbecoming on the job, miss. I'll continue as requested and finish promptl-!" The head pat had come as a surprise. Klavdiya expected to loose a reflexive shudder but somehow she remained still. Maybe whenever Klavdiya had visisted her, Arciea had calmed some kind of innate tension she had held? "Um, I'll finish promptly, miss." she said with a nod.
"My name is Joseon, well, that's my family name. I am new to the job but have been properly trained and oriented to the protocols of work here." Klavdiya gulped after finishing her sentence. She hadn't just gone and contradicted herself, had she? She really had gone through both training and orientation, even if her egregious presence in this office was incontrovertible evidence to the contrary. The faerie watched anxiously as the vampire made her way to the mahogany desk at the center of the room. Oh, her name was Aria, the Vampire Adviser, okay. Aria!? The Vampire Adviser!??
"M- Miss, please, there's nothing that I would need to forgive..! I must reiterate how sorry I am for, um, for entering your quarters without permission." The Advisers all seemed so scary. The blonde angel one had wondered if Klavdiya intended to run a hot spring facility out of her office, a dry joke pointed at how much water and steam was being used to clean the carpets in her quarters. "It is a pleasure to meet you, miss. Any feedback is helpful for us to perform our jobs to a higher, um, standard." Klavdiya managed a smile but the nervous eyes somewhat ruined the facial expression. Brown sugar meatloaf seemed both nearer and farther at the same time.
The fairy girl was clearly still nervous. Perhaps that was just her nature? Well whatever the case…she could overlook it for the time being. It was her first time meeting her and…well she was a vampire. Her fears were justified by the stereotyping of her own origins. Fairy blood was certainly a part of her diet….though she was not one to partake through conventional means. ”I have no plans to eat you. I do suggest you settle down a bit before you go making a bigger mess with that water.”
Aria stepped towards the wardrobe in the corner and pulled a garment from the collection. Nothing too ornate, just a black dress lined with delicate gemstones. Going home in a tutu did not sound very appealing to her right now…though she would be taking all of her clothing home…she was soaked. Stepping behind a red draped curtain she quickly changed her clothing and tucked her belonging into an available sack. When she emerged the dress hugged her closely and her hair was now falling down her back in loose wet waves.
”How long have you been in employment here, Joseon?” Using the girl’s given name seemed to be her preference…so she would indulge the unspoken request. ”As for feedback….I would certainly suggest starting in a smaller area of the space and spreading the water as you go. It saves on energy and supplies.” She sat down at her chair and brought her hands to rest on her desk. ”That and to check your cleaning schedule. I will arrange for the crew to have a constant list…rather than simply going through the ‘open door’ policy. Though you are already forgiven for the entrance, so please don’t stress.”
[attr=class,whocan]"Of course, miss. Very well." she bowed again. Klavdiya quietly snapped her fingers, exhaling, and started to evaporate some of the water that had spread out of the faerie's immediate vicinity. She kept her head towards the ground at all times, mopping vigorously but making sure not to cause any more noise than necessary. The slight mist that had formed close to the floor was quickly blown towards the water reservoir in the cart, where it promptly precipitated back in. Klavdiya had not even noticed that the vampire had changed clothes until she was spoken to again. A moment of doubt plagued her, whether or not turning away from the floor to face the Adviser was less or more respectful.
Klavdiya relented, looking at the vampire speaking to her out of habit. "Yes, I've been here for a week, two weeks, now. I was recommended to apply by, um," she blanked on the name entirely, "I was recommended to apply here, yes." There was a small comfort for the faerie in being referred to by 'Joseon'. These days, the name held no kind of connotation or history to it. What had been her family name had now become her way of being anonymous in the face of anyone. Klavdiya deposited the mop back into its holder and inspected the fruits of her labour. "Very good point, miss, thank you." she nodded with a smile at the suggestion the Adviser had given. In truth, Klavdiya's running method of cleaning was meant to maximise time spent as she enjoyed the process of cleaning but it failed to account for someone waiting for cleaning to finish so they could resume using their office. She'd scheduled for the night shift for a reason. The faerie wondered if the current cleaning policy would end up changing. She'd heard from a senior that the policy was put in place after an unfortunate run-in ages ago during a scheduled cleaning. Much like this perhaps, she wondered. "Thank you again, miss. I should be all done now and will be on my w- way unless there's something else ask of me. I mean, um, something else that you'd ask of me... Miss." Klavdiya cleared her throat and placed both hands on the cart.
Living in a dystopian society, seven mystic races are trapped due to their own selfishness. Tensions rise between the races and the different social classes, leading up to the constant struggle for power, with no end in sight.
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4/11 - With the Ghoul Purge complete, Pavane's fear shifts from the goddesses towards the Council. Check out the aftermath here to get an understanding of the current situation in the plot.
MYSTICAL SOULS belongs to YUMEKUI, DYLZOE AND LUNARIS. This is an original plot created by staff members.. The skin "Midnight Madness" was created by Dorothia. This includes Board Mod, Mini-Profile Mod and such. Thread list was made by Kagney. User Profile mod was made by Pharaoh Leap. Graphics belong to their rightful owner. Plagiarism is not appreciated and will not be tolerated.
