melody's cabin (sfw)

[enchanting_melody]

*after kurapika falls asleep in his own cabin, melody takes her leave to give him some privacy. she intends to return to the music room to vent some of her feelings into the piano, but freezes in place when the next door she passes has her own name on it. she opens it up and finds herself in an elegant bedroom open to a balcony overlooking a peaceful spring field, not unlike the one she conjures with her flute. gasping in delight, she runs to the balcony and clings to the railing, breathing in the fresh spring air with a peaceful smile.*

what a wonderful place!

ooc: feel free to come visit melody here any time!

Comments

[galacticgroovin]

Pitou leaves Gons room. Feeling refreshed after spending time with him and resting. She debates going back to her room but figures she doesn’t want to sleep more. So she ventured down the hall.

Her attention was quickly grabbed by a door sitting open. Out of curiosity she takes a peek inside. Only one person stood inside. A short female with brown hair. The rest of the room was pleasant and nature like. She didn’t think it could have a balcony in such a way.

[enchanting_melody]

*melody hears someone entering behind her and swings around, blinking in surprise when she sees a tall woman peering inside.*

oh! my apologies, i must have left the door open in my excitement.

[galacticgroovin]

Pitou nods. I was curious. I thought perhaps a new room has opened. She looks at the door seeing that it reads melody.

This must be your cabin. I’m pitou. She says happily. Most of her thoughts still locked on Gon.

[enchanting_melody]

*melody walks back toward the door to greet her, but stops once she gets closer and notices the cat ears peeking out of her curly hair, her mouth dropping open in surprise. she appears to have a tail, too, and her heartbeat doesn't sound very human either, running at a resting rate twice faster. the contrast of her external calmness and the chaotic drumming inside her unnerves melody, but she gulps down her reservations and responds politely as always.*

i suppose it is! that's my name on the door, melody.

[galacticgroovin]

Melody? I suppose had I not seen you in here, I may have suspected this might have been some kind of music room.

Her ears wiggle curiously as she observes the room. I didn’t think the airship could summon something like this for a bedroom. It’s a much nicer view than the window in mine.

[enchanting_melody]

**

the first room i discovered here was a music room! but this one seems to have been made just for me.

*she begins to wander the room, dragging her hand along the painted moulding. it's all so detailed and exactly to her taste, as if drawn from her imagination.*

my friend's room was a replica of his old home, which was destroyed long ago.

*she steps out on the balcony again, looking out on the field she's conjured so many times.*

this place seems to be very powerful... it can even access our imaginations and memories.

[galacticgroovin]

”Imagination? Perhaps that’s why some things aren’t the same in mine.”

My own is more like a replica of a room in the palace where I come from. It’s not completely accurate however.

It’s enough to remind me of home however.

[enchanting_melody]

a palace? *she gasps, then chuckles.* i don’t come from anywhere nearly as opulent. this place must have been made from my dreams.

*she beckons for the woman to join her at the balcony, feeling rude for leaving her at the door so long when they’re engaging in such cordial conversation.*

isn’t it beautiful?

[galacticgroovin]

Pitou enters the room joining her at the balcony. The spring air pleasant on her face. The field of flowers unlike any she had ever seen! Her eyes widening in delight!

It is..It’s…I’ve never seen anything like it. The area around the palace is…more like a desert and before there..it was a lot of thick forests. Nothing that was so open but colorful..

She was half tempted to jump off the balcony and roll around in the plants.

[enchanting_melody]

*melody smiles as she hears the woman's already-rapid heartbeat patter with joy at the sight of her precious spring field, and she finds herself just a delighted that it's come to life in this way, finally more than just an illusion of her ability.*

i find that a breezy field is the most peaceful place that can be! i'm glad you get to experience one now.

[galacticgroovin]

I don’t think I would call it my most peaceful. Her mind drifting to her fight with the white haired man before coming round to time spent with Gon.

Gon certainly takes the top spot for best excitement and comfort. Feeling him is the best experience.

This might be my top three. But it’s definitely the best to look at.

[enchanting_melody]

*melody chuckles at her ranking.* well, i’m glad you have your own ways of relaxing, too.

*she moves over to the beautiful piano in the corner of the bedroom and sits down, uncovering the keys.*

i like to play music to relax. can you play any instruments?

[galacticgroovin]

She shakes her head. I cannot. I’m not as…musically inclined as one of my fellow royal guard.

Always playing the violin. It was always the same song so it got rather boring to be honest. She leans on the railing tilting her head back.

Sometimes I try to sleep and can still hear it.

[enchanting_melody]

*melody chuckles again as she sends her fingers dancing along the keys, testing out the twinkling sound.*

that must be their way of finding peace.

*she moves from experimenting to playing in earnest, playing a lilting tune to compliment the chaos of the woman’s inhuman heart.*

pardon my curiosity, but your fellow royal guard, are they… like you?

[galacticgroovin]

She hums. Her ears focusing on the music from the piano. Do you mean in terms of my appearance? Not quite.

He’s a tall blonde man of my people. Looks just like any other human except for the antennae that poke out of his hair. Or his rainbow wings.

Her tail flicks slightly. Sometimes I wish I got wings. The other guard doesn’t look as human as me and the other.

[scarlet_chains]

*Kurapika takes Pairo by the hand and leads him out of his own room and into the hallway again.*

We'll visit Melody first. She's right next door, after all!

*Stopping outside the neighbouring room with Melody's name on the door, he knocks a couple of times and calls out to his friend.*

Are you there, Melody? It's me, Kurapika.

[enchanting_melody]

*melody nods as the woman confirms what she already knows.*

so none of you are human, then.

*still playing, she looks over at her curiously. she can hardly imagine what kind of creature she is if the members of her species vary so much in humanoid and animal features.*

may i ask what species you are? i’ve never spoken to a non-human before.

[enchanting_melody]

*melody is sitting on her couch, reading one of the books from the music room when she hears the knock on her door. there’s two sets of heartbeats outside it, one familiar and one not; getting to her feet, she wonders who her friend has brought to visit her.*

coming, kurapika!

*she pulls open the door and comes face to face with a small boy her height, dressed in the unmistakable garb of the kurta clan. her eyes go round with shock, recognizing the pattern on his front immediately from what she’d seen of kurapika’s memories of the kurta massacre, now burned into hers as well. she’d just seen kurapika cradling this very boy’s mutilated body, and yet here he stands, perfectly intact and alive. she doesn’t know what to say, so shocked her lips can only tremble.*

oh, my…!

[phantom_memory]

*pairo hears the door open and greets kurapika’s friend with uncertainty.*

h-hello!

*he can’t make out her expression, but she sounds quite shocked to see him. he supposes that makes sense, considering she’s probably never met a kurta other than kurapika before. he looks up at his friend for guidance, gripping his hand.*

[galacticgroovin]

Well..to say I’m not human isn’t entirely correct. I am partially.

My people are called Chimera Ants. Our features being widely different between generations.

She strolls closer to the piano. Put simply, we are humans but more naturally advantaged. Be it in Nen or physical ability.

[enchanting_melody]

*for once, melody almost falters her playing in her surprise at what she hears. this woman, who looks so nearly human, is not a mammal at all, but an insect!*

then, you're a kind of hybrid! how interesting...

*she's a little put off by the mention of nen, guard raising just a tiny bit. she could sense that the woman had a strong aura from the moment she met her, but with no ill intent behind it, it didn't worry her. now, hearing the claim that her powers are stronger than a human's, she reminds herself to be cautious.*

[galacticgroovin]

I suppose you could say that. We don’t reproduce as most other creatures do.

She grazes her hand lightly against the side of the piano. Feeling the slight vibrations. She decides to tell the woman the same story she told Gon.

Our mothers don’t mate in the conventional sense. At least most of them. We gain our traits according to what our mother eats most of the time.

So we technically have two ways of reproducing.

[enchanting_melody]

*a cold chill trickles down melody's spine as she comes to the realization that the mother of this ant must have eaten a lot of humans for her offspring to turn out so humanoid. a frown tugs at her lips as she carefully responds.*

...i see.

*as the ant-woman circles the piano, melody's heart begins to pump faster as if trying to catch up to the rapid clatter in her hybrid breast, but her playing keeps her from panicking. after all, her dancing fingers are her weapon. if she is attacked, all she needs to do is play her special tune and her enemy will be mentally launched out onto the field beyond the balcony so she can make her escape.*

[scarlet_chains]

*Melody's shock is not surprising, considering what she saw in the memory room not long ago. Kurapika feels a stab of guilt for causing it, having not considered giving her a proper warning - he had just been so excited for her to meet Pairo. He tries conveying his emotions through his eyes - a mix of bewilderment, acceptance, sadness and joy at the situation, but he knows that Melody will be able to read him with her ears instead of her eyes. His eyes narrow just slightly as a warning for her not to give anything away, but greets her amicably in his next breath.*

I'd like you to meet Pairo. He's my childhood friend I grew up together with.

*The words are mostly for Pairo's sake, so he can follow their interaction. He squeezes the young boy's hand back.*

Do you mind if we come in for a bit?

[galacticgroovin]

Pitou notices the slight change in melody. The hesitation in the way she spoke. The slight way she seemed to tense up. “Is she scared?”

You seem..nervous. Is my presence uncomfortable? You have no need to be afraid. Had I wanted it so, you would be in danger.

I don’t wish any danger upon you. I’m sure you know Gon? Me and him are..close. He’s treated me well since my arrival. Much kinder than that other boy, Killua.