that's the thing about magic

[demonic-affairs.livejournal.com]

Who: James, anyone in Twilight Town
What: he's sort of not dead :\
Where: Twilight Town
When: twilight :|

There was something to be said about eternal twilight.

Not that he personally cared for it.

Comments

again; as if I could possibly resist

[songbird9.livejournal.com]

Taking a nap hadn't worked to clear her head as well as Song might have hoped. She resorted to a walk instead. Just so long as she didn't collapse from dizziness, it seemed like a good plan...

And then there was the incubus.

"Oh, Fate's just laughing at me now, isn't it?"

[demonic-affairs.livejournal.com]

"She's a fickle mistress," came the laconic reply. He didn't seem as cheery as he usually was - in fact, he almost seemed a bit distracted. He didn't turn to flash Song a smile or remove his sunglasses. Instead, he continued gazing out into the eternal twilight.

[songbird9.livejournal.com]

Well, company was company, even if said company hadn't proved quite so desirable last time.
She stepped up beside him and followed his gaze, blinking. Even the twilit sky glowed a bit too brightly for her at the moment.

"...Munny for your thoughts?"

[demonic-affairs.livejournal.com]

He was silent for a few seconds, as if he wasn't going to reply. But then in a movement that was both elegant and lazy, he reached up and slipped his glasses off. His indifferent look melted into a more familiar smirk, and he winked at Song.

"Now why would you care about the thoughts of a demon? I'll tell you one thing - they're usually everything except pure."

[songbird9.livejournal.com]

That made her grin slightly, despite the annoyance of her not-quite-headache. She was entirely aware that her previous dislike towards him had been somewhat unjust. He was only acting in his nature. If anyone should understand that, it was Song.

"I'm used to impure thoughts. It's part of being insatiably curious."

[demonic-affairs.livejournal.com]

"I'll keep that in mind one night," he drawled, not bothering to hide any innuendo as he leaned back against the wall.

He fell silent again before remarking, "Spectacular way that world went out, don't you think?"

[songbird9.livejournal.com]

The innuendo was entirely expected. She'd actually had something else in mind to say, but it would have made such jokes too easy for James. Something along the lines of 'I'm very hard to shock, but you're welcome to try'.

However, his comment about Radiant Garden wiped all mirth from her face.

"I tried to stop it."

[demonic-affairs.livejournal.com]

"It really was a good show," he mused, no resignation on his face at all as he spoke those words. "A little bit sloppy in the overall delivery and timing, but good nonetheless."

[songbird9.livejournal.com]

She sent him a brief glare, but there wasn't much conviction behind it. It just wasn't worth getting angry today.

Still, her voice was quiet and cold. "Radiant Garden's never fallen before. Even when Xehanort unleashed all Darkness over it, the world didn't die... So why this time?"

[demonic-affairs.livejournal.com]

"Well, I don't pretend to know all of the grand and mysterious secrets of the worlds, but I expect that nothing is completely invulnerable." He stuffed his hands in his pockets and leaned forward to give her a sly grin. "All worlds come to an end eventually - some just need an extra push."

[songbird9.livejournal.com]

This time she refused to look at him. Any more of this and she might lash out despite herself. The failure at Radiant Garden hurt.

"Can we talk about something else?"

[demonic-affairs.livejournal.com]

He held up his hands in mock surrender. "Whatever the lady requests. Would you like to talk about this exceedingly boring weather we've been having instead?"

[songbird9.livejournal.com]

She rolled her eyes, but then paused to consider a topic.

"...Tell me about your demonic abilities, specifically dream-related. I think I need to work on improving my Dream spell soon. I asked Lilith when I was just starting, but I'd like to hear what you have to say, about technique and such."

[demonic-affairs.livejournal.com]

He waved his hand, as if brushing away the question. "I'm sure whatever information who managed to wrangle out of my dear sister was the gist of it." He raised an eyebrow, giving her a come-hither look. "I can probably demonstrate better than I can tell."

behold the account laziness

[ryu-saria.livejournal.com]

She snorted. "That was a rather blunt way to avoid the question."
But she wasn't irritated. Her head was finally clearing and her energy returning. She could play his game...
"For your information, the right kind of talk can really turn me on." She sighed like a wistful maiden in a romance novel. "Xemnas had a gift... I would melt at his words." She raised her eyebrows right back at him. A challenge.

[demonic-affairs.livejournal.com]

"You certainly wouldn't be the first girl to say that." He shrugged, although that familiar energy that had been lying dormant since the beginning of their conversation suddenly began to makes its presence known. "I'm terribly clever at avoiding questions for long periods of time if the situation calls for it."

[songbird9.livejournal.com]

"So it would seem. Fortunately, I am very good at prying information out of people who had not planned to share. It takes a delicate touch... a subtle disarming. Catching the target off guard." She smiled. "Manipulation is a skill we share, I'd imagine."

[demonic-affairs.livejournal.com]

He placed his hand over his heart, feigning hurt. "Your words wound me. To think I would use such desperate measures to gain a lady's undying affection. I always believed I possessed enough charisma and witty good looks to do that for me."

He reached for her hand and then held it up to his lips to not quite kiss it, and then he winked at her. "There are other delicate touches that I'd like to see you perform, honestly."

[songbird9.livejournal.com]

She put up with his attentions gracefully, letting his aura soak in and fuel her own playfulness. It was better at least than feeling aggression towards him.

"I hate to disappoint you, James, but I'm a purest, in a sense. I must revere a man's mind and spirit before his body. You'll have to try harder if you want to impress me."

[demonic-affairs.livejournal.com]

He straightened up, still smiling. "You may not be so quick to say that if you only knew..."

[songbird9.livejournal.com]

Alright, so he did have a point. Telling an incubus to try harder probably hadn't been the most intelligent thing to come out of her mouth lately.

Well, she'd just have to keep her guard up. And her mind on someone else. She'd probably get much worse than being tied to a chair in the future if she got into trouble with an incubus now.

... but she couldn't resist the game.

"I'm putting my faith in the fact that your sister and her companion will be decidedly unhappy with you should any harm befall me." She fluttered her eyelashes at him and somehow managed to look innocent doing it.

[demonic-affairs.livejournal.com]

"Touché," he chuckled. "I'm not my sister's favorite person in the world, and I do want to try to remain in her good graces. Although I meant what I said - I doubt there's anything about me to revere other than obvious."

[songbird9.livejournal.com]

She tried to suppress a grin, mostly at her own automatic reaction to those last words.

"I've had a lot of luck finding the good in people who don't believe they have any. Be careful, or I might try it on you."

[demonic-affairs.livejournal.com]

"I guess if you've gotten through to my wonderfully thick-headed sister then perhaps I should let you try your wiles on me?" He shook his head, obviously amused. "You wanted my opinion on something, not my life story. What would you like to know - and be specific please. I have been known to go off on tangents."

[ryu-saria.livejournal.com]

"I've developed a spell to imitate the Element used by my Nobody - the control and sharing of dreams. The spell is a poor substitute. For instance, this morning I used it to project instructions into the mind of a Lesser Nobody. With the Element, it would have been as simple as that, but the spell is confined to sending my consciousness into another's mindscape, and seeing the inside of a Dusk's head had some uncomfortable side effects." She actually shivered, just slightly, at the recent memory so like the ones which had finally started to fade under the comforting veil of time.

"I also cannot touch as deeply as I once could. The Element allowed me to use the subconscious as a bridge into the heart and spirit. The spell doesn't. I can only reach what rises to the surface." She studied him through narrowed eyes. "Lilith told me that her abilities and mine were very different because we used them for different goals. It seems to me, though, that by her own words, the user of the ability is what changes it, while the core ability is nearly the same. So what I want is any thoughts or theories on dream magic, or techniques that I could adapt into my own spell-working."

Well, he'd asked for specifics.