welcome to my

[manofmyword]

The deck of Jokers keeps on enchanting. It takes a few days. The ones with various sweethearts get various visits.

Slowly, everybody's aura builds up.

They're not just less powerful than the Bells'; they're different. Joker auras don't tell you they're attached to magic and power; it's not 'look at me, I'm important' or 'look at me, I'm magical' but 'look at me', the end.

Except that that is not the end at all.

Their auras track emotions, like the Bells', but far more responsively. They can be whimsical one second and terrifying the next; they can laugh while their auras cry and cry while their auras laugh. It's all in how you play it.

The initial differences are subtle. Beast's aura can make him seem more human, or more beastly, whichever form he's in. The others of variable species don't seem to do anything similar, at least not to nearly the same degree. Ghosty's is the most interesting, because she can show her aura without manifesting physically; suddenly she has a presence even when she technically doesn't.

Micaiah's aura is the first one to manifest an obviously unique feature, although 'unique' isn't quite accurate, because after a few more hours of spellcasting they all have one:

A soundtrack.

Pretty soon, they're all cuddled up in one of the guest rooms and the music is going strong. With the whole pile of them together, somebody's aura will start playing a song and the rest will either pick it up or add embellishments. It's tremendous fun.

Comments

[lifes_sake]

Between spells, Cam reaches in the direction of a wing, and pauses an inch short; he's not sure if he should trust aura-welcome alone. "Mm?"

[truthwright]

Petaal grins and stretches out her wing and folds it lightly around him.

"Aren't I cuddly?" she says happily.

[lifes_sake]

"Ooh. Quite."

[truthwright]

She wraps him in her wings.

[lifes_sake]

"Feels like - I dunno. Feels like something, anyway, on top of the feathers I mean." Snuggles.

[truthwright]

"Guess you haven't gotten around to reading your sweetie's mind, huh?" says Petaal.

[lifes_sake]

"No? I mean, we haven't even discussed it. I gather it's a thing, but the book said you and Amariah don't."

[truthwright]

"Not usually," says Kas. "But that's what it feels like, apparently - touching somebody's daemon feels like reading their mind."

"Being touched feels - different from that," Petaal adds.

[lifes_sake]

"What's it like on that end? I don't exactly like people to scoop up my Grace, but it doesn't feel like anything if somebody does." Luke has made this mistake. (Once.)

[truthwright]

"It's the best thing in the world when it's somebody we love," says Petaal, "and when it's somebody we just kinda like it's still pretty fucking good."

[lifes_sake]

"Path has a definite back off aura," Cam says.

[truthwright]

"Have you noticed how all our alts are huge sluts?" says Kas. "I think this is kinda the same deal. Most people, anybody touching their daemon who isn't their favourite person in the entire world is like... getting their soul fucked."

"But we just have a lot of favourite people," says Petaal.

[lifes_sake]

"Fair enough," Cam says. "Except I don't think that's what the word favorite usually means."

[truthwright]

"Yeah," says Petaal, ruffling his hair, "but we're Jokers. We don't do usual."

[lifes_sake]

"Guess not," snorts Cam. "'Nother spell?"

[truthwright]

"Mm, go for it," says Petaal, snuggling him.

[lifes_sake]

Another spell is cast.

[truthwright]

It is better with cuddles!

Most things are.

[lifes_sake]

Many things, certainly!

After he wears out Kas and Petaal, who wants next turn?

[edgeofyourseat]

"I'll do it!" says Alice cheerfully. "Show me whatcha got."

[lifes_sake]

"I don't know if it's going to feel meaningfully different from me as opposed to your own, but sure," laughs Cam, and to Saturn they go and through Alice he casts.

[edgeofyourseat]

"It's meaningfully different, it's just not practically that different," he explains.

He is just as fond of channeling as the rest of him. Slightly less cuddly about it, though. (He doesn't wanna squish the human.)

[lifes_sake]

"How d'you like being a vampire?" Cam asks conversationally betwixt spells. "Why'd Stella stab you with a syringe and nobody else has followed suit, is it not cool?"

[edgeofyourseat]

"Well it hurt a lot," he says brightly. "And that was fun. And I love my Bella and all, but I think most of us don't wanna do the vampire thing 'cause of how it fucks with your head. Jokes for sure, he would've killed himself if it'd happened when he met Nate, I dunno about now."

[lifes_sake]

"How's the head-fuckery work? Or should I just wait and ask Golden?"