melodymania | Max Davis Voicemail

Thanks for calling. If you're reaching out to sell your soul, I'll already know and I'll be there soon. If you're calling to just talk, leave a message and I'll call you back when I can. Which will probably be soon. Talk to you then~

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[On the one hand, it's reassuring that this isn't the first time he runs this experiment. On the other hand...]

What kind of specimen did you create the last time?

I assimilated a creature called a Bane. A spirit of corruption. Made it my own spirit of Contagion instead.

This is more mapping than assimilation so it shouldn't change size.

[Once more, she can only marvel at how casually he shares incredible stories like this with her.]

Is it now your familiar, so to speak?

[She wonders where it came from - from Max' dimension or elsewhere -, but she doesn't want to keep Esme waiting any longer, so with one last glance at the cocoon on the ceiling, she turns away from it, ready to follow Max' lead.]

[Speaking of Esme, he's been very politely not listening in on their business even though it's apparently not a big deal and focusing on the tea. Black teas are pretty universal he's found, so he did that. A little cream and sugar for Max, cream for himself...and a small bowl of each for Freida because he doesn't want to assume too much or little.

It was impossible to miss the quiet splat of something hitting a surface though and he can't help glancing around the room as he reenters with a tray. Seeing the cocoon on the ceiling, being very obviously Contagion-based, he pauses mid-step with his brows drawn in concern. Then he decisively walks around the space beneath it and sets the tray on the coffee table with the plain tea and bowls closest to Frieda. He hands Max his, takes the other and tucks himself against his partner's side and looks at her again.]

I...wasn't sure how much you did or didn't want for your tea. I hope you don't mind.

[Before Max can answer, Esme returns. He sees the look on his face and takes his tea. Then he wraps his arm around Esme and gently pets his hair to help soothe him.]

It is kind of my familiar in the world where I made it, yes.

[There is more to it but he can explain that another time. He doesn't want to scare Esme or make him worry anymore needlessly than he already is.]

Thank you, love. You made it just the way I like it.

[Noting Esme's apparent discomfort with the Contagion cocoon (and who could blame him, really - Max could stand to run such experiments in a designated space, but it seems like such a thought hasn't occurred to him!), Frieda smiles at him as she adds both milk and sugar to her tea.]

Thank you! We were just done - you'll have Max to yourself again shorty.

[She says it jokingly, but seeing how she did come by without warning to Esme and intruded on their domesticity, it does seem appropriate. Even so, she can't help her curisosity...]

I have to assume that you two first met here in Ellipsa?

[Esme certainly seems as unused to Max' abilities as she is!]

[The petting and the compliment help soothe Esme and he smiles a little.]

It's fine. You're welcome to stay or visit whenever. The company is welcome.

[He doesn't want her to feel like her presence isn't welcome, even if he wasn't expecting her. Having a guest is really nice.

At the question, he shakes his head.]

No. Max was the very first person I met back home when I, um... [He hesitates, debating for a moment of how open to be. But if she's a friend...which he's assuming she is if Max is willing to help her with his Contagion AND here at home...then he can be honest. It can't hurt, right?]

Back when I first escaped. I walked in to his job in a shop.

[Max sighs with a face of relaxes nostalgia as Esme tells the story of their meeting. He nods along with Esme.]

It's true. Esme came running into the store I worked at and it was the best thing that ever happened in my life. Even with the child vampire coming in later and the attempted kidnapping of said child vampire.

[Immediately, she's intrigued. For most people, that kind of first meeting would already be adventurous enough, but of course, Max immediately supplements the next chain of unlikely events! One thing, however, surprises her above all others:]

Max worked at a shop?

[What kind of shop would employ a fae god - or, rather, why would a fae god be so mundanely employed? But then, who knows what kind of shop it was... and it may have been before his ascension to power besides.

Of course, she wonder what circumstances Esme escaped and what the entire story with the vampire child was, but one thing after the other!]

Right, Leopold. That was a lot.

[Esme blushes to his ears when Max says that it was the best thing that ever happened to to him]

Until a only a few days after we met, he did. It was a small store with a surprising amount of food and drink. I was only there for something to wear, which I found.

[Max can explain the store better than he can, so he trails of there. There's plenty of time to tell her whatever she gets curious.]

Oh yeah. It was a convenience store called Seven Eleven. Small little place. Had all sorts of stuff that was over priced. Esme got a hoodie because he was wearing super old clothes. He really needed something new.

It feels like forever ago now. Leopold and Dr. Dou and Eliza. When things were so much simpler really. Well, as simple as things could get in our complicated ass world.

You worked at the Seven-Eleven?!

[Those are all over Sunwaning and truly mundande (if terrifically handy) little convenience stores! It must have been a far simpler time indeed. (Little does she know that just over a month from now, she'll get to "meet" Dr. Dou in less-than-simple circumstances.)]

I didn't know they sold clothing too, but I'm glad they did when you needed it.

[Which begs the question (addressed at Esme):]

What kind of situation were you escaping from that you had no proper clothing?

That? Well...

[Max has told him some people don't really understand fae stuff when it comes to their world, so what would be the best way to make it simple...and not entirely ruin the mood...]

I was a prisoner in a different realm, but by the time I escaped so many years had passed that I wouldn't fit in wearing my clothes. And most of the world doesn't know magic, so it was important I wasn't too noticeable.

It was very fortunate that there was a hoodie I could have. And that Max let me pay, despite having the wrong money. And that our friends were also there.

[Max smiles and nods to the question. That he did.]

I was just a dhampire back then. [He lays out that last little bit of info and turns his head to kiss Esme's temple.]

[Coincidentally, Frieda understands what it's like to experience strange time shifts (because Esme looks far too young to have been out of the picture for enough "regular" time to stand out egregiously upon his return), though in her case it's less of a literal difference in the passage of months and years, but rather a mental distortion caused by her millennia of inherited memories.

About to express her condolences for Esme's ordeal, she feels heartened by his mention of his and Max' friends (old or new ones, she wonders) and smiles - however, at Max' addition, her eyes wander to him, once again filled with puzzlement.]

A dhampire? Is that something like a vampire?

[Is that how he started out in life, then..? Can anyone in his world just attain godhood if they're smart and ruthless enough? (Before long, she'll speak with Mike for the first time, and he'll shed some more light on the matter, but right now, she feels as overwhelmed as ever.)]

[It's the strangest thing to think only a few years have passed only to find out it's been centuries. Probably not as weird as it involving memories you're not even around for.

Blushing a little at the show of deep affection, he nods. Freida can't see it, but under his human disguise his tail curls around Max.]

They're related. Max's mother is a vampire, but his father is a mage.

[He tilts his head back and looks up at him as he continues.]

But he wasn't Just a dhampire. We wouldn't be where we are without him being willing to act.

[Max nods as Esme explains it very well. He blushes and makes the cutest smile as Esme puts him in his place in the best way.]

Awwww. Thank you, love. I mean, you know I'd do anything for you. And our friends. Mostly you. I'm biased as all hell.

[Esme's tail may be out of her sight, but even so, she clearly sees a lovey-dovey couple in front of her, and in a way, it puts her further at ease. Seeing how she constantly has to internally reassert her trust in Max whenever he tells her some horrendous story from home, especially ones of him transmongrifying his enemies, it's heartening to see him as happily in love as anyone else, and his statement makes her laugh as she sips her tea.]

We all have our biases!

[She may not be able to act on hers, obligated to act in the spirit of utilitarianism, but here in Ellipsa, even she has been able to carve out some personal happiness.]

Your world seems really dangerous, so I'm glad that you were able to build yourselves a good life.

[Seeing how Esme was imprisoned and Max experienced things like losing a piece of his soul, it seems like a wonder that they came out on top, and she can only assume that being in Ellipsa is a welcome breather for them, too.]

It is. But there have also been many kind people to help us along the way. And I'm grateful that Max always comes back.

[If Esme knew half of what she does, he wouldn't blame her for any unease she feels. They aren't from the same point though and Max hasn't told him much of their future...partly because he hasn't asked.

But knowing that your partner just one of the shadiest people you know...he's just happy that she's here, willing to trust Max.]

I'm also biased. We aren't from the same time, but I'm not sure where I'd be if Max hadn't arrived with me.

Love makes it all worth while.

[He is dreamily watching Esme and relaxes fully as the conversation turns to the good instead of the bad of their world. Or the good in spite of the bad.]

You'd be making friends and have so many people crushing on you. I know it. You're magnetic, love.

[As it happens, Frieda has a shady partner too. Jade arguably spends more time meddling in Nightwake's underground society than mingling with his fellow otherworlders, maintaining just barely enough of a veneer of legitimacy that she can't catch him out (yet leaving enough of a trail that she'll confront and chide him, to his great enjoyment), but how many people would have accepted her with all her dark secrets? Of course, Jade and Max operate on different scales, but at a baseline, she understands Esme all too well.

While she supports Max in gassing Esme up - he does come across as nothing but friendly, approachable, and inviting -, something else catches her attention.]

If you're from different points in time, this has to be nostalgic for you Max - seeing Esme like this again, I mean! And you, Esme, did you even recognise Max when you first saw him here?

[That last question was clearly in jest, but she does wonder how changed he is from the version of himself that Esme knew back home.]

[Gassing him up? Or trying to make him combust through blushing?]

M-Maybe...

[Something to bond over later, shady partners that they love dearly. Though odds are Esme would absolutely welcome her despite dark secrets.

He becomes attached easily, and he likes to make friends.

At her question, he blinks and cocks his head thoughtfully. Almost like a dog would.]

He is very different now, in a few ways. But his eyes are the same. And his smile, despite the sharper teeth. So I knew it was him when I saw his eyes.

It is nostalgic. Also a little...well concerning I suppose. Honestly.

[Max looks at Esme for a moment, his eyes scanning down to his chest for a long moment. His eyes almost narrow and seem to glow as he remembers something then he snaps back to a happy and relaxed demeanor.]

It's also a tag weird. Because now I'm from two timelines forward form him. Which means next time Esme disappears and comes back, I have no idea which version he'll be. Which is kind of exciting but also nerve wracking, to be honest.

[Bless you for being so accepting, Esme! Frieda's expression turns curious as he describes the differences between past and future (well, current) Max. How'd you get these sharp teeth, then..? How many transformations did he undergo to end up where he is now?

At Max' input regarding Esme, her eyes automatically follow his for a moment, then quickly dart back up to Esme's face. Far be it from her to ogle a man right in front of his partner!]

On top of different dimensions, there are different timelines in the mix? Do you end up getting tossed about times and places just through bad luck, or do you pursue it?

[If she had to guess, she's assume that it's the former for Esme and the latter for Max - but who's to say?]

[For a moment, Esme's confused why the attention on his chest, over his hear...ohhhh. He loops an arm around Max's and holds it to his chest, just trying to be reassuring. He definitely doesn't think anything of Freida following Max's gaze. He'd have done the exact same thing.]

I don't really understand, but it sounds like things just...start over but are a little different. Different friends and such. One of our friends was here also from a different time, and didn't trust Max at first because as far as she could tell he just appeared being...Max, and very familiar with me even though that me doesn't know him either.

[The idea is actually perplexing.]