legionmissions | TO HAVE AND TO HOLD [modplot]

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TO HAVE AND TO HOLD [modplot]

Who| Anyone who wants in
What| "To Have and to Hold" plot
Where| The planet Olum, Matihara Temple
When| Set vaguely the same time as "Gods Among Us" and "Other Mother"
Warnings/Notes| N/A

The planet Olum is a genuinely welcoming place. While the clothes they have to wear for the rituals are a bit...odd (provided they don't opt for coverups), they are comfortable, especially with such a balmy climate. Despite the Olumites allowing outsiders into their ceremonies, there's a distinct lack of tourist-ey elements; no gift shops, no merchants selling anything, just a spirit of genuine unity and celebration. The Olumite marriage guides seem to genuinely care about helping people with their relationships, and seem happy to share their cultural traditions with other species.

As far as missions go, it's definitely a nice vacation from the usual life or death struggles.

It means the Legionnaires have no distractions. They have to settle in and try to navigate this while faking sincerity as best as they can.

[ooc: All information about the setting can be found on the infopost.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Beach, Glades, Open

Relax, right. That's one thing Fareeha was never very good at. She does make an attempt, though, and you can find her lounging on the beach in a swimming suit and looking vaguely uncomfortable. Generally, she likes her downtime activities to be a little more ... active. At Legion, she has a routine of early morning runs, sparring sessions, and weight training. Nothing intense, but enough to keep her active, honed, and of a clear mind.

Here, she finds walking the glades to be much more rewarding; or rather, a brisk jog when she's starting to feel restless. Besides the excersize, she's enamored of the flora and fauna; so beautifully different than anything she'd seen on Earth. She'll be here most often when she's not tackling the rituals with Junkrat.

Additionally, she will consider any of the other activities offered - even if they're not her cup of tea - if someone else is suggesting it and it's a chance for friendship and conversation.

Closed to Junkrat

While she's here to help the Legion, she's not feeling the most eager about their ultimate mission. These rituals, however, are a good distraction - as well as a chance to get to know her fellow Legionnaire.

As they step up to the stones, she looks over at him. So far, he'd been a surprise considering what she knew about him from back home, and she's curious what this fake-relationship and rituals will uncover.

"Are you ready, Jamie?"

He seems a bit spacey, keeping his eyes on everything but the ground in front of him, which seems like a bad idea for a guy limping around on an unfamiliar prosthetic leg. The balance is a little off, but nothing he can't deal with.

He's far from distracted, though. As soon as Fareeha speaks up, his attention is on her.

"As ready as I'm ever gonna be!" he says cheerfully. The way he's rolling with everything almost makes it seem like he's thrown himself into this blind, caution to the wind, but the truth is he's researched this whole thing extensively and prepared adequately, just like any other heist.

Well, not just like any other heist. There are no explosions involved. Roadhog isn't here.

Fareeha does just fine though.

The clearing is more than official-looking enough to indicate they've come to the right place. Junkrat puts a single magitech peg leg into the circle cautiously, carefully watching if there's any kind of instant reaction, but there's nothing to note. He finishes the step and stands in the middle, holding out a hand to Fareeha if she needs it.

"Alright," he says with a smirk, "let's see what rock'n'roll they've got queued up for us."

Fareeha can't help but snort a laugh at his horrible pun. Don't worry - it's appreciated; she is quite capable of making horrible puns herself, so of course she'd acknowledge someone else's ability to do so.

And as much research as Junkrat's done, Fareeha ... intentionally hasn't. She'd stocked up on the basics so she wouldn't be going in completely blind (as much as it feels like Junkrat might have), but there's a certain thrill and excitement of jumping into the unknown and so, for all intents and purposes, she hadn't wanted to spoil herself from that experience.

Still, she politely lets him take the first steps in and watches curiously, maybe a little disappointed that nothing happens immediately. She takes his hand (not out of need, really, but committed to the ruse of the mission), and steps herself into the circle.

"Alright. Let the games begin." She gives him a cheeky smile, before glancing down at the rocks.

He matches her cheeky smile, but there are several seconds of silence that pass and his grin slowly fades before he, too, glances down at the stones. Are they broken? Or did they figure out that this whole thing is just a ruse, and they don't work if there's no--

Junkrat's thought gets cut off when the silent, empty clearing gets blasted with the sudden low drone of a didgeridoo. He flinches violently with a jolt at the unexpected noise, and the shocked expression morphs into a grimace with a sardonic chuckle, hiding part of his face in a magitech hand. It feels...inappropriate, in a way, because he doesn't have a drop of aboriginal blood in him. He doesn't deserve the kind of music that sounds like, well, music.

The drone picks up into an energetic warble, and he figures there's not a whole lot of room to argue with a bunch of singing rocks, especially at this volume. And even if he doesn't have much of a heritage he knows how to claim, there's few sounds in the world as iconically Australian as the didgeridoo, and there's no doubting that he sprouted from the parched Outback soil like a scrawny eucalyptus tree stubbornly digging its roots into an earth offering no safe purchase.

The warble gives to a lively rhythmic beat...but it still needs a melody.

The sudden didgeridoo nearly causes her to jump out of her skin, making a quick - instinctual glance at her six before settling down with the realization that the music has started. She catches Junkrat's embarrassment and gives him a quizzical little frown in return. She does not, however, speak, as it feels that would be disrespectful to the stones that are crafting this masterpiece specifically for the both of them.

Masterpiece, of course, open to interpretation. The melody that finally lays itself over the rhythmic drone could have come straight out of the pyramids themselves; lilting and worlds away from Australia, but complimenting it in an odd sort of way. It's a strong melody, definitive and driving, but here and there it slides into something more melancholic and, at times, fully dissonant.

As soon as her side of the music starts, Jamie's eyes light up with fascination. Oh, that's right - Egypt! So maybe that's how things just roll here. They work so well together, despite being half a world away from each other.

He lets out a laugh when the first discordant strike. His rhythm is steady, strong, frantic, and no matter how off-track her own melody gets, his beat stays the course like a one-track mind. Despite his past there's very little that could be considered troubled, because whenever things are said and done, Junkrat has always stayed his own course without anything bringing him down.

Wordlessly, he holds out his hands to her in silent offer. He could try to actually ask, but the music is too loud; she's free to decline, because he'll dance no matter if she decides to join him or not.

It's Fareeha's turn to be embarrassed, hearing those discordant bits and feeling responsible for the way it effects the music. She's not allowed too much time to stew in her own thoughts, though, the way Junkrat reacts with a laugh. It's truly hard to be completely down around him; his enthusiasm is nearly as infectious as it is worrying at times.

She's a touch envious, that his musical strains are so carefree and unfettered, but she appreciates his ability to drag her from her own thoughts. After a moment, she reaches out to take his hand and offer to dance. There's something comforting, too, about the wordless communication.

There's no reason to get caught up in the imperfections, reflections on flaws, because the thing that makes this world--this universe--so beautiful is that it isn't perfect, in his eyes.

After all, his song would be an awfully lonely, lively beat without a melody to go with it.

His grin grows when she takes his hand and immediately jumps into the rhythm. Jamie knows no fancy moves, but he knows how to keep time and, more importantly, knows how to avoid stepping on her feet, despite his uncanny lankiness.

Fareeha is usually so focused on the details, the faults, looking for the cracks so she can fix it - whether it's in a mission objective or her own personality - that it tends to permeate her existence and she looses track of the bigger picture.

It seems she could learn a few things from him, as much as she was trying to keep an eye on him. His smile is infectious, and as they dance she lets a little more of herself go; another wall breaks down, and she's having fun.

He's continuing to surprise her, and for a moment she forgets entirely about the mission at hand.

Mission? What mission? All that exists is the moment.

He hasn't the slightest idea how much time passes, because he doesn't care enough to pay attention. All that matters is the music and the company. Even at the most discordant parts of her melody, he takes her by the waist and tosses her into the air and catches her just to spin her down to the length of his arm, a wild ride to endure the pain.

But all good things must come to an end, and the song is no exception. As it dies down, so does Junkrat's feverish attempt to keep up the beat, and through his exerted panting he still maintains a bright, amused smile.

A few moments pass, he bends down to wrap his arms around Fareeha's waist to pick her up and does a neat spin on his prosthetic leg, laughing the whole time. When he comes to a rest, he doesn't quite let her go, still panting and grinning at her from a vantage he doesn't get very often: looking up at her.

He's moving her fast enough that she doesn't have time or inclination to really think, instead simply reacting and following his lead and finding herself thrilled by the whole experience. She's tossed to and fro, pulled in pushed out, tossed up, all against this mashup of what the stones dictate their inner music is. It's an other-worldy experience and Fareeha has no other choice than to hang on and enjoy the ride.

And enjoy it she does. She's smiling wide, laughing when the mood strikes her, and letting him take her away when the music hits its darker strains. If she's honest with herself, she hasn't felt this light joyful for a long while.

When the tones die down and the beat fades away into the air, she's left panting as well, hands on his shoulders, looking down at him and looking grateful. Words seem to escape her for the moment, between the experience and the excursion, but her gratitude is clear.

After a breathy laugh, he finally bends down and gently lets Fareeha back down on her feet. What--what are they supposed to do now? After a moment like that, it feels wrong for everything to come to an abrupt halt, and Junkrat feels like there's something else to chase down here, even though he hasn't the slightest idea what it could be. Black-painted fingertips still linger on her upper arm, not quite in grasp, not quite ready to break the contact.

"Reckon..."

The silence feels deafening in comparison to the music. What do people usually do after dancing? What do people usually do here?

"...I could go for a swim now, yeah. You comin'?"

Yes yes yes yes please say yes.

It is an incredibly odd moment, with the sudden silence pressing in on her ears. She's not sure how she feels in the aftermath, with a growing objective clarity. She's here for a mission, and to keep an eye on him. She quietly reminds herself of that face, closing off a little as she glances away while she gets her bearings.

But, she doesn't shift away from him. "Yeah, sure. That sounds like it'd be fun." She looks back and smiles; it's all good, really.

Fareeha

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