THE SKULL IS IN

[skulltasm]

WHO: Eshal, Haku, Laura, and anyone else!
WHAT: Catch-all threading
WHEN: During this heat wave, of course! But not during Monster Madness.
WHERE: Everywhere!
NOTES: Bad advice.

I. ESHAL

It is an ongoing mystery how Skull ends up where he does. He is frequently decorating some surface in the Seneschal's office, in the library, in the dining hall, or propping open doors, or being a perch for some damned raven, or being used to crack open hard-shelled nuts.

It's all very demeaning. Particularly when it forces you to depend on the kindness of morons.

"YOO-HOO, OVER HERE!"

II. HAKU

This time, he's in the storeroom, right next to a jar of pickles. Leering would work so much better if he weren't on such a low shelf.

"YOU'RE A LONG WAY FROM HOME."

He says it to a set of ankles. It's a safe enough assumption even for one who isn't fairly sure those ankles came from a different world.

III. LAURA

And then there's this one, with knives for bones and all the trappings of a feral child.

"AN ODD DUCK, THAT'S WHAT YOU ARE."

IV. OTA - WILDCARD

[[ Feel free to godmod where Skull ends up. He's bound to turn up literally anywhere. ]]

Comments

[justashotaway]

She is quite sure she does not need luck. Hefting the jar up, she hurls it at the wall opposite them.

[skulltasm]

Quite anticlimactically, the jar bounces off of the wall and markedly does not shatter. Though there is the sound of the skull clunking against the insides of the glass, and the schlorp and slosh of the green plasm within.

It bounces again when it hits the floor at Laura's feet. The skull turns itself in the jar to face upwards, two illusory eyeballs rolling around in its head cartoonishly.

"OH, MY HEAD!"

[justashotaway]

She's willing to try again. Ignoring the skull's quip, she raises a foot and slams the heel of her boot down on the glass.

[skulltasm]

Tong is the deep, hollow sound of heel striking the glass, but the most that happens is the jar rolls out from under her boot, spinning gently like a beer bottle at a party.

“ALMOST HAD IT, THERE. GO ON, THIRD TIME’S THE CHARM!”

[justashotaway]

She has the uneasy sense that the skull is making fun of her. Frowning down at it, she thinks about her options. Climbing to the parapets seems like the quickest option; even if it does not break when it hits the ground, it will be far away from her. But that will not be efficient, especially if it does not break. "I know a mage. He could break you."

Maybe.

[skulltasm]

“OOH, REALLY? WHICH ONE? PERHAPS I KNOW THEM. OR OH, SHALL I GUESS? LET’S SEE... HMMMMMM...ISAAC PERHAPS?”

[justashotaway]

Her brow furrows. "Who?"

[skulltasm]

“NO? HOW ABOUT...ANDERS? HE’S FOND OF ADOPTING STRAY ANIMALS.”

[justashotaway]

That elicits a growl from her. "I am not an animal."

[skulltasm]

“YOU DID JUST GROWL AT ME LIKE ONE. WELL THEN, IS IT KOSTOS?”

[justashotaway]

She would like to growl further, but the skull will assume it has won, and Laura has no intention of being bested by a few bones in a jar. "No."

[skulltasm]

What other mages does the Skull know of? Hmmm...

“WHAT IS THAT PIPSQUEAK’S NAME...NOT MATTHIAS, IS IT?”

[justashotaway]

The answer is yes, but Laura, having decided the skull is unpleasant, does not want it to have the satisfaction of knowing as much. "It does not matter who," she tells it irritably. "We will remove you."

[skulltasm]

If his default expression wasn’t the skinless grin of fully exposed teeth and empty sockets, Skull would be smiling smugly.

“LAY ON, MACDUFF.”

[justashotaway]

Laura rolls her eyes and, in a moment of annoyance, kicks the jar hard. It will not break, she knows that much--but it is satisfying nonetheless.

[skulltasm]

The jar rolls and spins down the corridor, the sound of glass on stone echoing off the walls. Off we go!

[justashotaway]

At some point, perhaps she will ask Matthias about the feasibility of destroying the jar and re-killing the skull. For now, she is satisfied to see it disappear into the darkness and walk away.