It's time for a tan [Open]

[Deleted]

As their lips pressed together, all manner of thoughts shifted and moved in her mind.

~This is nice,~ she eventually settled on before the touch disintegrated as he pulled away. It was strange the fact that he had closed his eyes when she had kissed him, was there something that he didn't want her to see inside them? Maybe he was nervous or she had done something untenable.  There had been no huge shift in temperature, like before, merely a little heat flush to her cheeks. Pulling back, she looked down at her skirts as the blush from before reappeared and spread a little across her cheek bones.

"It was...nice," she finally answered shyly. "I see what you meant earlier when we were discussing the matters of flirting and kissing."

She looked up at him from under her lashes shyly. 

[Leon Orcot]

Leon watched the blush spread across her cheeks with a sly smile. He was really glad he could make her blush still, after earlier. He hadn't lost his touch while overseas it seemed. The young woman in front of him was really green in his mind, having never done this before apparently. He would try to help her as best as he could. She would make some guy a lucky man. Not him though, he wasn't ready to settle down right now, he had other things to do. He listened to her for a moment, his smile growing a little bigger, watching as she looked at him through her eyelashes. "Well, I'm glad to be of service any time you need it. So, do you want to join me in something else now? I believe I'm done trying to even this blasted tan back out for the day."

He smiled at her again, this time just being a genuine smile of friendship. He remembered her saying something about sleeping and was curious as to if she wanted to head off to sleep or join him in doing something else.

[Deleted]

As to settling down, Desdemona had never really expected to end up in a relationship of any kind. She understood well that relationships nearly always involved a sexual component, but the events of her past had removed any interest or desire for sex, therefore the impetus for a relationship was gone. To be completely honest, there was a whole seething mass of inadequacy within her. Nobody would find her at all desirable, she believed, but now she was sitting opposite someone who might feel different. They had been kissing, after all.

"I would be happy to do something else with you, Leo," she answered after a while. "Did you have any idea what we might do?"

Her lips emitted a tiny smile in his direction.

[Leon Orcot]

Leon had no plans for the rest of the day really. He was just going to wander around all day after getting his sun on. He figured it best to put on more clothing before doing anything he supposed. His state of dress would more then likely attract the attention of several of the women around camp and that wasn't what he wanted.

He stood up as gracefully as he could manage, stretching out gently. He grabbed Mona's parasol, being careful to keep it over her body. He extended a hand down to her to help pull her up. "Well for now Mona, I think it best to put more clothing on. Unless you would rather continue to look at my body as it is now. I think it best to return to my cabin and at least place a shirt and some shoes on. So, will you join me? It would be best to also think about what we can do, as I had no plans besides maybe fiddle around with my car or build something in the forges." He smiled down at her and looked deep into her eyes again.

[Deleted]

Her pale white hand slipped into his larger one, lifting herself up effortlessly. Looking down at herself, she realized that she still had her shoulders and upper body exposed. Bending down gracefully to scoop up her top, she set about draping it over herself and reorganizing her clothing.  Dusting her clothing off, she looked at him and then tilted her head up to scan the sun and its strength with an easily seen glower. 

"Of course I will join you," she softly spoke and then looked behind her to see how far away they were from the cabins. "But we can get there easier."

Turning slightly away from Leon, she closed her eyes and then brought her hands to the center of her chest. Resting them level with her clavicle, she breathed out and then began to harness the darkness she could sense all around camp. Her skirts began to billow despite there being no wind, before a mass of darkness made a beeline for them. Grabbing them with a hand, she crafted them into an orb and then pitched them into the atmosphere. They settled down around them, forming a black portal nearby. Opening her eyes, she indicated it with a hand.

"Be careful they don't bite. Shall we?"

[Leon Orcot]

Leon helped pull her up before she put her top back on. He smiled as she said she would join him. He also didn't miss her glower at the flaming ball of gas in the sky, also known as the sun. He was confused as to what she meant when she said she could get them there faster. "Faster Mona? How so?" He then watched as she did, something. He noticed her skirt start to move, despite there not being a breeze at all. He then noticed all of the local shadows rushing towards them. He was surprised but not startled, after all, she had threatened him in the same-ish manner earlier. He watched closely as she formed it into a, portal? Yes, it seemed to be a portal of some kind.

"I suppose that answers that question, eh? So, this thing is entirely safe?" He gently handed her back her parasol as he walked over to the portal to examine it. Picking up a piece of driftwood from nearby, he did the most logical thing he could think of at the time. He began to poke at the portal with the stick. Finding the stick to come back unharmed he heard her next words and laughed a bit. He held out his arm to her and said, "I suppose I'm ready if you say it's safe. I trust you not to kill me, or dump me in the middle of Egypt." He smiled again here, a twinkle coming into his eye at the prospect of a new way to travel.

[Deleted]

The shadows making up the physical appearance of the portal were not too happy about being poked continuously with a piece of driftwood and retaliated by snarling and snapping at Leon. The shadow manipulator smiled darkly at their happenings then reached out a soft hand to stroke at the irritated darkness with a gentle hand used to consoling errant shadows. "Less safe if you continue to poke them," she neutrally said. 

Smiling at him, she took his hand and hurried him through the portal into a new world of shadows and darkness. To Leon, it would be nothing more than an endless tunnel of blackness, darker than anything he would ever have seen. To Desdemona, however, the portal tunnel was awash with twirling colours and shadows lapping at her feet. Guiding him through the shadowy wilderness, a small dot of light appeared at the other end and soon they were out at the Cabins. Used to the glare, she brought her parasol up to protect her sensitive eyes.

Behind them, the portal closed and disappeared. "Your destination..." she murmured. 

[Leon Orcot]

Leon smiled as Mona pulled him into the portal. He wasn't really sure what to expect and was underwhelmed when he entered. All around him was a tunnel of blackness. "Well, I have to say, this is pretty, well, underwhelming. I guess I expected, more?" Leon shrugged his shoulders here. He followed Mona as the tunnel continued onwards into blackness. Before long there was a light at the end of the tunnel. The light kept getting brighter so Leon slipped his shades down over his eyes. Once the light faded to normal he took the shades off and looked at the Hephaestus Cabin right in front of him. "Okay, not going to lie, much cooler then normal walking. Quicker too from the look of it." He looked over to where the beach was in the distance.

He began walking up the short steps to the porch of the cabin. Pulling open the giant metal door he looked back at Mona. "You gonna stay out here while I change, or would you like to see the rest of me as well?" Leon gave her a wink before stepping inside the cabin. He had a feeling she wouldn't follow him, but just in case she wanted to, he left the door cracked open for her. Stepping to his bunk at the back of the room, he quickly disrobed before beginning to get dressed again.

[Deleted]

"Underwhelming?" she asked curiously. "I don't see why it is so boring in here. But I suppose you cannot see all the colours and designs that I can. Your eyes are not used to the shading of this place. I suppose you should be grateful you cannot see everything that I can."

Alighting gracefully from the portal, she turned her attention to the portal and brought her hands together gently as the portal slowly decreased in size. Her black eyes flared with ebony fire before she slammed her hands together and the portal disappeared with a puff of shadow smoke. Satisfied, she dusted her hands off each other and then turned back to see Leon again. Her left hand had been wrapped around the stem of her parasol the entire time, protecting her from the adverse effects of sunlight and shading her face from the view of most other people. 

"I will stay," she replied gently and watched him disappear up the steps. Approaching the start of the steps, she waited patiently for him to reappear. 

[Leon Orcot]

Leon thought to himself as he pulled on a fresh pair of cargo pants. She could see some kind of interesting colors in that swirling blackness? That would be pretty sweet in his opinion. All he got to see was a swirling mass of darkness. He shrugged on an black Pink Floyd t-shirt and grabbed his working goggles off his table, a handmade pair of steampunk goggles. He figured he would head down to the forges with Mona and see what he could get up to there. Pulling his combat boots on after a clean pair of socks, he walked back outside to Mona. Closing the metal door behind him he put the goggles on his head, resting just above his eyes. Smiling at her, he speaks, "Alrighty then Mona, let's head down to the forges. I'll see what I can get made up today."

He suddenly took on a contemplative look on his face. As he began to walk he was thinking on something. Deciding to voice his thoughts he called back to Mona, "Hey Mona, would you like a weapon? I can make just about anything so it can be whatever you'd like. I just want something to do with my hands for a little while." He twitched his hand for a moment before letting it settle back down to normal.

[Deleted]

As she waited, she let the thoughts swirl around her brain about this Leon Orcet. He was confident, sometimes a little too confident, and he was certainly more worldly than she was despite them being the same age. He had scars like hers, both mental and physical, which made her feel a little protective towards him and their...whatever you could call it. She supposed that she liked him, not in a romantic way, but more a emotional way. None of this showed on her face though, expression as neutral as it always was.  She had an excellent poker face. 

As he came out, she stepped back one half-step and adjusted her grip on the handle. Smiling back gently, she fell into step next to him as shadows leaked out behind them in a sort of train. Turning head head to look at him when he spoke, she inclined her head slightly to the side to think about it. "A weapon? I suppose it would be nice to have one, should it ever be needed. Do you think you could make me a curved sword, or scimitar? My half-brother has one and it seems to be more elegant than the traditional long or great sword."

[Leon Orcot]

Leon started thinking to himself. A curved blade, a scimitar she said. He took another look at her and sized her up to get a better idea of just the right size and weight for the blade. She was roughly, six foot he would say, based on his own height. He wasn't exactly sure on her weight, and it was considered impolite to ask, so he let that one slide. He had gotten a good enough look at her arms to know about how strong she should be. "Alright, I think I can manage that. Would you like a sheathe for it, or would you like me to enchant it into a piece of jewelry? And what metal would you like it made from?" Leon asked her these questions as they arrived at the forge, opening the door and allowing her to enter first.

He walked over to where the refined, but unused metals were inside the forges. He bent down and picked up a pair of gloves and placed them on his hands. Grabbing three bars of metal he laid them out in front of Mona on the station he would be working at. "We have Celestial Bronze, Imperial Gold, and Stygian Iron. Got a fresh shipment of gold in from Camp Jupiter a week ago I believe. Take your pick, and then tell me what if you want anything inlaid into the metal, like a patter or colors, and what you would like the hilt to be made out of. I need to warm up the furnace." He walked over to a nearby furnace and using his powers set it alight. He then turned to the nearby bellows and started to pump it manually, forcing fresh air into the furnace and heating up the coals.

[Deleted]

"I think that it would be better if it was enchanted," she replied as they entered the forge and she took in the surroundings. Keen eyes studied the walls designed to withstand great heat, the work benches, the anvils and heating equipment and the items of great worth that had been created here.  "After all, carrying around a visible weapon can be a red rag to a bull. I mean, one sniff of weaponry of any kind and the Ares cabin will be out in force. Perhaps a pendant would be best, something simple and elegant while gothic in its disguise. "

Seating herself on a nearby stool, she watched his movements with interest. "Stygian Iron, of course. My mother has a chariot made out of it, so it would make sense for her eldest to carry a weapon of the same."

"I suppose," she spoke after a while of watching him, "the blade should be inlaid with a pattern. Maybe something darkness related? I think I will allow you to choose it. And the hilt would be wonderful if it was obsidian. But I defer to your creativity, Leo."

[Leon Orcot]

Leon chuckled at her choice of words, red flag indeed. He gave a small smile and turned back to the metal in the bins. Putting away the bronze and gold, he pulled out a larger bar of Stygian Iron. He walked over to beside Mona and held the bar up beside her. He nodded to himself before placing the bar into the now hot forge, it needed time to glow so he could begin to bend and shape it into the proper curve. Going over to a chest off to the side, he started digging around in it. This was where they kept different types of stone and wood for projects like this. "Ah, this bit should do nicely."

Smiling he turned back to his table and looked over to Mona sitting on a nearby stool. "Well now, it's time to shape this hunk of rock, down into a beautiful handle." Carefully channeling his power over fire, he formed a small intense flame on the end of his finger, much like a blowtorch. He used it to cut off most of the excess rock until he was left with a rectangle of obsidian on the work bench. Checking up on the iron before continuing he found it needed a few more minutes of heating up, so he had enough time to finish up the handle before he needed to pull out the iron. "Ah, next set of questions. Would you like this as one handed or two? Would you prefer a cross guard or a hand guard? I would also like for you to try to describe what it looks like inside of that portal of yours. I'll see if I can get a similar design on the blade so that it looks as beautiful to you as it is deadly."

[Deleted]

She watched without emotion, her black eyes barely blinking as he held up the long bar of Stygian iron. The raw material had a long and dangerous history, and a worse reputation, but the innocuous material didn't see to deserve it in a way.  It was cold and dark, yes, but it held no shimmering aura of vengeance or a desire for power and energy to sate its thirst. No, it just sat there. Settling her skirts around her, Desdemona watched the process start as he used his finger as a cutting tool to shape the obsidian. A part of her wondered why she hadn't coupled the stygian iron with the other mythical materials to create a deadly weapon on both ends. 

As he communicated with her, she schooled her features pleasantly. "I would prefer one handed with a cross guard, please," she answered. When he he asked her to describe what she had seen in the portal, pale lids slowly covered her irises as she thought deeply.

"When I look through the portals," she began, voice wistful, "the first thing that I see are the shadows themselves, writhing and snapping as they try to fight my control. They can be so independent minded some times. Then as I step through, there are colours. So many colours, soaring and arcing through the inter-dimensional space. Like shooting stars on a black background, curving and twisting around the enclosed spaces."