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Maurice was going to do this, but Maurice sucks so I sent him home before he could. Anyway, some of you may have noticed our new poll feature! We just don't have the time and resources to cater to all your "where is x item, what the fuck" complaints, so we had to streamline. The polls were the result of that! Coded them myself. I mean, Maurice did some of it, but I did most of it.

So basically we're democratically crowd-sourcing what we're going to bother to fix for you! You can send thank you notes to the building, HR doesn't mind. So far it seems like you all care about the color blue most, so we fixed it!

A little, anyway. I suggest a bracing walk through the woods if you particularly missed the color and don't feel like gazing deeply into a hobo's eyes.

You've all been reading up on QR codes, right? You might also want to learn to start a fire. Just a tip.

Jim Halloway
Research & Development
Retr

spec Incorporated

As per the World Regains tracker, fruits and flowers that were once blue are once again blue. This includes the echo flowers in the Recollé woods! NPCs seem to be incapable of seeing this color still, however, and will not note any differences. The color does not seem capable of being transferred to anything else, either, and any attempts to do so will simply fade the color of the thing you were trying to use to do that. Furthermore, one thread of at least 10 comments from you from this post may be supplied for one untriggered memory by linking the thread and in explanation putting "June Freebie". This may only be claimed through the rest of June, and may not be claimed after the month ends.

Please feel free to use this post as a network mingle. Every toplevel can be considered a new post, and threadjacking is permitted. No NPC response will be given. Usernames are the character's full real AU names, not aliases or chosen nicknames or usernames, and seemed to have filled themselves in; nothing characters do can change or obscure their names currently.

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There's something confusing in that last statement, so Togusa holds up a hand in a placating gesture. "Hold on. Let's back this up a step." He nods towards the chair to invite Ardyn to take a seat.

"You've gained the powers that you saw in your memories?" Obviously, but Togusa isn't going to start with any unspoken assumptions. "With- Souji," only the slightest hesitation before he brings up Ardyn's nephew, "I saw that it's possible now. Magic. There's zero reason it should work, but magic. It's here now." Forget explanations for a second, Togusa is still wrapping his head around the fact that this is what he is seeing.

And he looks at Ardyn cautiously. "And it's something for you, too?"

His smile goes faint and little lopsided, but Ardyn nods, moving closer to where Togusa is.

"Magic is quite a reality for me now," he explains. There's a moment of consideration that passes over his features before he speaks again.

"I can show you if you like. In a very limited capacity, as I promised to let you rest and heal in a more natural way. But you can see it as it's happening. A strange... glow around my fingertips."

An almost-shrug.

"May I sit?"

Togusa nods. "Sure, have a seat." As soon as he moves over, Daisuke follows the both of them right up onto the couch, hopping from the ground to the block, to the couch cushion. But he trots right over Togusa to stay close to Ardyn. "Oof," Togusa comments. "Oh, thanks, buddy."

This doesn't dispel the utter curiosity on Togusa's face. He wants to know, always seeks knowledge when it's presented, but he is still holding back a part of that drive. "I bet it takes a lot out of you," Togusa shakes his head. "Souji, he was absolutely exhausted from trying to practice."

"But why is it here at all?" Quieter, but his tone doesn't make it sound like he thinks this is a bad thing.

Ardyn sits, looking amused at Daisuke for a moment. "Souji... he still remains uncertain as to how much he can control his new power. I didn't realize, however, that you had been aware of his new abilities until recently."

A slight frown, born from worry for the sake of his nephew. "I wish I could offer more advice to him. To the both of them." Yes, Yu as well. "Unfortunately, his particular line of talents remain something I'm quite clueless about."

He exhales, but seems to straighten, not wanting to bring the mood down when unnecessary. Not wanting to display his own uncertainties and anxieties about this entire situation.

"Why, indeed. More of our past selves, attempting to integrate with how we are now." Ardyn extends his hand towards Togusa. "Give me your hand, and let me show you what I can do now."

There's a look of gentle realization on Togusa's face, but he stays silent, merely lets his brow furrow. Yu, as well. Do they have the same ability? Since they're twins, are they connected that way, too? It's not actually any of his business, but he makes a note to reach out to Yu, also. He isn't walking this alone. There is some questioning and worry, but all he says is, "I'm sorry."

Oh, but then Ardyn just tempts that drive for knowledge, and Togusa can't resist it. He wants to know, he wants to see, more importantly. "Trying to integrate," Togusa mutters. Maybe Ardyn has a better idea of what is happening to them. This could be a step towards Togusa accepting it more.

But he doesn't hesitate to place his hand in Ardyn's. The silent curiosity burns even brighter, as he watches their hands.

He shakes his head at the I'm sorry. It isn't dismissal, because while Ardyn is quietly appreciative, the worry for his own nephews isn't something he wishes to focus on at the moment. Again, his uncertainties are not so easily unfolded in front of others, as Ardyn prefers to keep them to himself so not to concern his friends.

And so, for now, he'll just concentrate. For half a second, nothing happens, until it does; a warm, gentle glow emanating from his fingertips. Magic starting to flow, like a warm wave reaching outwards. The sense of being healed, feeling better, a calming peacefulness-

Then he lets go. He had promised, after all, that he wouldn't use his abilities to his fullest, and so a brief example is all he can give. When his hand retracts, so does the magic dissipate, and the glow disappears, as if nothing had happened at all.

Ardyn merely waits for Togusa's reaction.

The effect starts slowly, and it takes an instant for Togusa to realize what he is looking at. The slow, warm glow builds, and Togusa can feel it. A slight easing of the pressure in his head, for a second his breath is clearer. And it's gentle, almost like falling into meditation.

And then it recedes. Togusa huffs a quick breath out, trying to regain his equilibrium. He stares at Ardyn in utter wonder. "Ardyn-" How do you even put words to this feeling? "That's a damn miracle." Quiet, but not afraid, there is reverence in his voice. "You. That is one hell of a gift."

Give Togusa a minute, because Ardyn is already someone that he respects nearly above all others, and now there is a completely new reason to respect him. He shakes his head lightly. "Incredible. But, like I said when you mentioned this the first time?" He smiles a little. "It kind of fits." Ardyn is still Ardyn, maybe even more so now that he has this ability.

No one has reacted with fear to him before, and while he didn't expect Togusa to, it's always a possibility. Ardyn feels a tinge of relief, though he's not sure what to do with that faint sound of reverence coming from the other.

"It's something, isn't it?" Something was certainly one way to describe it. "It..."

Ardyn pauses briefly with a faint grin, folding his hands into his lap.

"Well, I don't know how well it fits, other than I shouldn't be surpirsed to wield it now, given what I had seen in my memories. It makes it easier to help others, but there'a reason why I was asked not to heal you to completion today. I would've taken on your sickness."

Togusa's face instantly falls when Ardyn admits the drawback of his abilities. His brow furrows, and he thinks for a second, before letting out a long breath. "So that's why Prompto suddenly clammed up when I tried to ask him what he meant." He runs a hand over his face, trying to shake his disbelief.

"Of course it couldn't just be free, there has to be a catch. I appreciate you not trying, then-" Hey, wait a second. Togusa looks up again. "Wait, who asked you not to help? Now I have to know who thinks they can tell you what to do." Maybe he's trying to lighten the mood a little, but the question popped into his head, and he has to do something with it.

He'll get to the 'wait, how did you figure this out?' in a minute...

The mood being lifted appears to work, partly because Ardyn is not against the idea. A left eyebrow arches a little, and he's not against answering truthfully.

"Doctor Grell Sutcliffe. Have you met her?" he asks, rather casually. "While it's true that I'm the sort of man to make my own mistakes and deal with the consequences later, I'd hate to worry her any more than necessary -- especially since I already told her that I wouldn't."

(The implication being that Grell definitely has some positive influence over his actions, if she makes her opinions known to him. And if Ardyn himself is cognizant of this, he certainly doesn't look displeased.)

There is a very knowing 'ahh' and Togusa nods emphatically. "She's our- chief? Maybe not Chief Medical Examiner, but she sure seems to be the one I talk to the most. Scheduling, probably." Togusa shifts so he can lay back a little more on the couch, more comfortable, and more casual.

"Make my own mistakes and deal with the consequences later," Togusa echoes thoughtfully. "Now I suddenly understand why you're chasing after Dante and Prompto so much. If you could explain why I'm doing it, too, that would be great."

But he looks at Ardyn in a slightly different light. "But...Dr. Suttcliffe already knew, too? Didn't know you two talked so much....." Oh, his voice is implying exactly what you think it's implying, Ardyn.

"Dante and Prompto may declare that they don't need as much guidance as what is offered to them, due to the folly of youth. And I'm fine with letting them believe whatever it is they like; it'll not stop me from offering my advice, and even interfering, if I think those two boys are in over their heads. I imagine you just feel similarly as I do."

But that part of the conversation is cut short when Ardyn hears Togusa's implication. It rings out loud and clear, and if the arch of his brow could lift any higher, it would.

His grin sharpens a little, an expression that the other should be more than familiar with. Ardyn could just be straightforward about his relationship with Grell, or he could lead the conversation around in a big circle before getting to the point.

"I do talk to her quite frequently, in fact. Togusa, what on earth do you mean to imply?"

Oh, big circle? Okay, Togusa is game. He's had nothing to amuse himself for the last few days except a Japanese drama about a music conservatory, so he'll be glad to draw this out. He grins widely, but lifts his shoulders in a very exaggerated shrug. "Implying nothing, except that Dr. Sutcliffe is an incredibly knowledgeable woman. I just didn't know she was also that patient, too. If she's gotten to know you well enough that she thinks she can tell you what to do."

"I know better," Togusa reaches over to skritch Daisuke, even though the dog is still staring at Ardyn instead of his owner. "In some ways, you and I are still just the same as Dante and Prompto. Telling us we're not allowed to do something is the quickest way for us to find a way to do it and just not tell anyone else about it." See: the fact that all three of them ended up down in the subway.

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