14102/Pandora's box, a conversation

Pandora's box, a conversation
Date of Scene:	03 February 2022
Location:	Lucifer's Penthouse, Melville
Synopsis:	Lucifer has a conversation with Hope.
Cast of Characters:	Sinister, Lucifer

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Sinister has posed:
The night was quite a pleasant one, once distractions set in enough to take the Devil's mind off of the niggling things that plagued it. Stamina, for the win.

There's also just reciprocity and talking softly into the wee hours, without breaking contact. But that does give time for the thoughts to return and nibble like tiny fishes on concentration. When you don't need sleep, you can't even make that an excuse for anything either!

"You've made an art form out of staring at the ceiling and keeping entirely still, Luci. But I can tell you're not restful," Sinister's voice is soft at least, a matter of fact murmur.

Lucifer has posed:
Lucifer furrows his brows just a bit and turns his head to look over at Nathaniel after a moment. "Have I? Isn't this how we normally rest ourselves? Course... I don't want to come off as being afraid but..." He shifts then, rolling to his side to face Nathaniel a bit better. "No one has ever opened Pandora's Box right? I somehow am plagued with the idea that it should not be me who opens it. How ironic would that be? The Devil opens humanity's last grasp at hope?"

Sinister has posed:
"Is it? I tend to send my mind off to contemplate things when I'm resting my eyelids. Occasionally, I even astrally project and problem solve around the room. You can't see me, obviously..." Sinister props himself up a little pulling the pillows under his head so the he can look Lucifer in the face, shoulder tucked under. "Well, that is.... something. I am probably the wrong person to ask that of though, as I am not really invested in the legends as a truth, per se, as much as an allegory. Or I was until recently, so my opinions of such things, whilst not sceptical exactly, are less wonderous and more analytical? Matter of fact?"

He pauses, considering in the dark and gazes at the wall, visible and obvious as it helps when your lover's eyes glow. "This is one of those sympathetic magic situations, isn't it? The purpose resonates to humans, so it would be wrong for something not human at all, to be poking?"

Lucifer has posed:
Lucifer gives a little smirk. "Well yes, and I've been an extra in some of those more lucid dreams that you've been subject to have." He offers this and then takes a breath. "I also appreciate your opinion on things like this, regardless of the fact that they come from a mind that...is more...focused on the facts. Not something that sounds like it hopped out of a Harry Potter book."

Then the Devil sits up a bit, as if laying down was beginning to cloud his thoughts. "I do believe this is a sympathetic magic situation, yes. But perhaps...perhaps my ties to Askante will sort of grant me forgiveness for disturbing Hope. If...Hope decides to go back into the box after..."

Sinister has posed:
There was a chuckle at his lucid dreaming escapades and how to give the devil an adventure in one night.

"I take it that that's a possibility?" Sinister questions, arching an eyebrow up. "I appreciate that you consider my opinion worthwhile in such matters. Might I offer something now?" He asks, assuming a nod will be forthcoming, he continues.

"I approach things from the perspective of science. And that magic is an aspect of scientific cause and effect that originates from an as yet unstudied and unquantified force of the universe. But all of these things have rules, which I've slowly been observing have a correlation to what the task is mandated to do. Like the ingredients in a chemical reaction. Therefore the box itself, can be related to being a device, much like a radio, or a calculator or a set of scales; it was designed to do something, not just for the sake of whim. Therefore, I posit to you this... peel away your fear layer by layer and consider the box for its purpose and extrapolate then, what powers that box TO its purpose. Could it be that hope is the battery supply? And given that it might be a sentient being, whether it consented? That... may alter your interactions."

Lucifer has posed:
Now THAT idea was never in Lucifer's head to begin with, but the fact that Nathaniel can look at things from a practical view point - aside from the fantastical. Maybe even apart from it. That helps in many ways. "I never even considered. The embodiment of Hope is in that box... and it may be that it never wanted to go into the box in the first place. And here I've had it... for how long I do not recall... a being trapped in a box that might be more a prison than a place for safe keeping."

The Devil rises from the bed then. "It will have a choice, should it desire such. To stay in the box, or perhaps to go forth and be free. It may even want to visit Askante... perhaps this whole time it's been thinking that it is the only one left of it's kind..and yet.." He looks to the doorway. "A reunion could be in the making... and that would be a wonderous thing indeed."

Sinister has posed:
Sinister sits a bit more upright and just watches for a few moments. Because there's a lack of clothing going on and that deserves to be appreciated. But only for a moment, as he whisks himself off of the bed shortly after, grabbing his raven robe and sliding the claw tips over his thumb to hold the sleeves in place. Squeakysqueaky squeaky -- the slippers in quickmode are a comical staccato.

He joins Lucifer in the living room, sitting himself in the armchair, because this might take a bit and the box... may be elsewhere and need to be retrieved. "You know, when you're impassioned, you have a glow about you."

Lucifer has posed:
Lucifer has managed black silk boxers and his stylish red robe as he enters the living room. The smart thing would likely be to have this precious box tucked away somewhere that takes a bit to pull into existence here. However, this is not the case. The box is right there on one of the shelves of his mini-library and he plucks it from said shelf, looking it over.

The box itself is beautiful. Ornate, encrusted with jewels, and radiates with a gentle thrum of power. He moves to the couch, sitting down and placing the box on the coffee table. "Do I? How about that." He reacts to Nathaniel's comment with a grin and then takes a breath. "Here goes nothing..." And he opens Pandora's Box.

Sinister has posed:
... ... ... ....

"Well, that was anticlimactic," Nathaniel observes as the box does little more than gift the air with a very faint glow. It lights Lucifer's face up from beneath, where it sits on the table, but no great smoke, no crackle of lightning, no whispers or sussurations. He leans forward, as if to try and peer inside.

MInd, this isn't the reaction that the one looking INTO the box is getting. Lit from beneath, Lucifer's awareness is pouring down the rabbit hole into that faint glow. The walls seem slippery, but he has wings. But it also feels dangerous, to the devil... nobody knows how to put this box in reverse, but someone at some point, knew. Knew how to entrap all the evils of the world and sometimes, in the past, he definitely counted.

But there's the dark and there's.... this dark. It has a soft glow, the bottom of this bottomless light shaft. Like a candle.

DID YOU FIND OUT HOW TO CATCH THEM ALL AGAIN?

Lucifer has posed:
"Careful, love... not entirely certain how this works...and..." Lucifer pauses, shakes his head. "Might be dangerous... oh but how interesting indeed..." He offers this much more and then peers around the box on all sides that he can before looking into it again.

"There's nothing to be caught. No one here but the Devil and his Doctor. Was someone supposed to put back that which was released?" Which, doesn't seem right. If Askante is still around - but then he has to try and remember what all was trapped within the box before it was opened the one time. "That glow is mighty pretty..."

Sinister has posed:
The disembodied voice in the box sighs softly, a little huff of mild disappointment.

WELL, THERE ALWAYS WAS A CHANCE. ONE JUST HAS TO HAVE PATIENCE, MMM? ONE DAY SOMEONE WILL WORK OUT HOW TO PUT THEM BACK IN. IT'S VERY NICE TO HAVE A CONVERSATION THOUGH, IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME.

"Honey, are you alright? You're just kin of staring into the box." Sinister reaches out, because well, what Lucifer's thinking he's doing and what he's actually doing are not quite the same thing. "I guess you are, you seem quite relaxed." A little probe reassures.

Lucifer has posed:
Is very entranced at the moment, caught up in the conversation with the voice that comes from the box. That fills him, and likely only him, with words of a gentle sort. "I think most of what was released are...gone...in a sense. The world still struggles, but that which was here is no longer. Perhaps save for one." He speaks, unsure for a moment if Nathaniel can even hear him speaking or if this is just a conversation between him and the entity within the box.

"It might be a long time waiting for someone to put back in what was taken out. It may never come. Do you wish to remain here? Trapped, alone, without any company?"

Sinister has posed:
There's silence for a few, but it seems quite a comfortable silence, with a hint of quiet purpose.

I PROBABLY SHOULDN'T LEAVE. I'M NOT SURE IF I WOULD KNOW HOW TO FIND MY WAY BACK, IF I DID. THE OTHERS WERE TERRIBLE COMPANY AND IT WAS VERY CROWDED, BUT I AM CONFIDENT EVENTUALLY I WILL HAVE SOME COMPANY AGAIN.

Because Hope always remains true to itself.

WHY IS THE BOX WITH YOU? YOU ARE A KEEPER OF THINGS THAT MUST BE KEPT, I SUPPOSE, BUT... DID THEY FORGET ABOUT THEIR DUTY?

Lucifer has posed:
"They...owed me a favor. I cannot lie. I do not know if it is because they forgot their duty or decided to shirk it. I am the keeper of many things. Though obviously not the one tasked with filling the box again." Lucifer answers.

"I understand the thought of not wanting to leave, because you may not be able to find your way back. Yet... the entire reason I have opened the box...is because I have a friend. It's name in my world is Askante. I am sure you know of it well. It is...lonely. Doesn't know if any others of it's kind are even still bound like it is." There's an implication within his story, if Hope can decipher such.

Sinister has posed:
I SEE. WELL, IT'S A GOOD THING THAT IT'S BEING KEPT SAFE.

Pausing, the entity within the walls of the box seems to loom closer for a bit.

OH, MY. WELL, MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS, I CANNOT FEEL WHEN I'M IN HERE. IT ISN'T DESIGNED THAT WAY, THE WALLS ARE MEANT TO HOLD AND THE DOOR IS ONE WAY OR THE OTHER. IF I LEAVE HERE, WILL I BE SAFE?

Hope is a delicate thing, fragile, easily lost to despair. Even though it remains with humankind, it is nevertheless a truth that it IS easy to lose hope.

Lucifer has posed:
Lucifer blinks once, and then again. He can feel Hope coming closer, perhaps because it gets a little warmer...but not like with heat...but with something...he can't quite describe. Like a comforting hug.

"I can say that if you leave there, I will keep you safe. If you leave me, then I cannot keep that promise. I can see how the box works first. Figure out how to get you back, so that if you ever feel the need we can do so. Perhaps...give you a reunion within my home. With them. And we can go from there?" Yes, Hope is a delicate and fragile thing. Lucifer does not want to lose Hope, nor have any harm brought to it either. But he does want to help as best he can as well.

Sinister has posed:
...I HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT THE BOX WILL WORK. IF IT EVER GETS FILLED AGAIN. IT WAS VERY IMPORTANT THAT WHO I AM REMAINS WITH THE BOX IN ESSENCE. IF I LEAVE IT FOR GOOD, MY POWER WILL FADE OVER ALL THE ILLS THAT LEFT AND IF THAT HAPPENS, I DO NOT KNOW WHAT WOULD OCCUR. PESTILENCE AND FAMINE MADE THE CROPS FAIL, BUT THE FARMERS ALWAYS KNOW THAT THERE MIGHT BE A GOOD SEASON NEXT PLANTING. I DO NOT UNDERSTAND ALL OF IT, BUT...

But if you were going to make a box of possible horrendous consequence, that was guaranteed to work only on the Hope that people wouldn't be curious enough to open it, you definitely need to put a failsafe in, just in case some silly girl took a peek and let it all out, or all humankind would fail. Hope keeps a chain on all the ills, even though they are free. Because of the box? As a side effect of the box? It IS a prison, but it might also be a home, to the most delicate of Daemons, with one of the most profound powers in creation.

I WOULD LIKE TO TRUST YOU. THERE IS GOOD IN EVERY CREATURE WITH A SOUL.

Lucifer has posed:
"Then let me see what I can find. I know many in this world who have studied the theories and stories around the box for a long while. Lifetimes even. I will find out what I can, and we will see what we can work out. If nothing else, I will bring it here. At least to let you talk to one another." Lucifer offers this much more. "It may take some time, but I will return and speak with you again. This I more assuredly promise you. And in time perhaps with promises kept I will gain your trust."

It's this and then once Hope has responded, he will close the box, which will break the trance and cause him to take a deep breath in and out.

Sinister has posed:
VERY WELL. I WILL LOOK FORWARD TO SPEAKING TO SOMEONE AGAIN!

So peppy that response, filled with all the warmth of a morning shaft of sunlight on a bright spring day, when just about anything could turn out for the best. That feeling though, ephemeral and terribly difficult to pin down, remains even when the box has been shut. It's like having a warm bath in optomism, having a giddy feeling at all the possibilities that tomorrow might bring, being excited at the prospect of a first date that could go so very well. And such will last a while, because having hope is a very, very powerful effect.

"Luci? Are you ok?" Sinister asks. He was over there, he's now here, beside and gently shaking the devil's shoulder. "You were in some kind of trance. I thought it wise not to interrupt you, but also thought it wise not to look into the light."

Lucifer has posed:
"I'm fine. I...was having a lovely conversation with the light within the box." Lucifer offers as he stands, taking up the box and placing it back on the bookshelf where he pulled it from. "Apparently someone was charged with putting back into the box all the things that escaped. I hate to think of what will happen if Hope realizes that's near impossible." A pause. Then he relays the rest of the conversation, the cliff notes version of most of it. At the end he smiles though. "I think I can help. I think this is a nice little project for me...us?...to take on. On top of the other twenty things we have in the works. But for now... I think I want to rest my eyelids a bit more." A pause, and smirk, as he saunters off to the bedroom, shedding layers as he goes. What few he wears. "Coming?"