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Infinite Consortium, Monday

Liliana was dealing with the most frustrating of indignities today. At some point Friday, she must have wandered into a spawning point of mosquitoes or something because she had a number of bites from the miserable little things. Normally, biting insects didn't bother her; her preternatural chill didn't register her as a potential food source for them, but apparently nobody had passed that fact along to the bugs on the island. They had decided she was delicious - which, obviously, but she would have been happier if they hadn't made that discovery - and she was wondering if she was down a pint or two of blood with the number of bites she's found.

None of which put her in a particularly good temper, no. Which was why she was ignoring today's shipment in favor of glaring in the general direction of the park and working on a spell specifically designed to kill mosquitoes. In droves. Possibly enough to unbalance the entire ecosystem.

Good.

[Inspired by my weekend, yes]

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There had been, naturally, an urge to make a comparison with said mosquitos every time a complaint about them had slipped past Liliana's lips, but at least Ignis had confidence in the fact that he would at least be significantly more charming and pleasant than those pesky pests.

Case in point was that he also usually came bearing food, which was miles ahead of what the mosquitos had to offer. That day, this included mango chili lime cheesecake bites and some garlic steak crostini, which arrived with his usual questing call of her name as he entered the shop to deliver them and either give her another chance to complain some more or distract her from this still lingering insult.

"Liliana?"

"I am going to defoliate the entire island!"

Sounded like Liliana had chosen 'complain more' of her options, but there was still the possibility of distraction!

Also, if Ignis made her itch like this, he was going to find himself fangless and so there.

Oh, no. Certainly not itch like that...

There was, a moment, as Ignis reached Liliana, where he carefully controlled just how much of that faint smile he allowed to appear, and he knew it wouldn't be a suitable balm entirely, but, hopefully, the soothing kiss and the hand reaching to bring her closer to him would provide at least a momentary respite.

"Please don't defoliate the island, my love," he said. "Too many people whose friendship we generally enjoy would be rather put out over it."

"I can live without friends," Liliana grumbled. "I've spent most of my life without them anyway."

You were very lucky this wasn't poison ivy, Ignis, or you'd likely have to drag Liliana off-plane to keep her from following through on her threat.

"How has your morning been?" she asked, almost accusatorially, since he clearly hadn't spent it suffering the way she had.

Harley bounded into the store with her usual level of inexplicable energy and enthusiasm. Complete with a loud, "Hey, Lili--" that swiftly turned into a, "Geez, who left a turd surprise in your Lucky Charms this morning?"

Hey, sometimes she could be observant! In a way that was actually obvious to people for a change!

Any plight Earth mosquitos could attempt to put on Ignis were nothing compared to what you'd got if you let Eosian ones get you, although, to be fair, they were much easier to avoid thanks to their size. Well. Some of them, anyway.

"Quiet," he admitted, "with a little bit of research into what sorts of things might help you to be less enticing to less sophisticated bloodsuckers."

Was there just the faintest bit of concern now in that soft smile? Perhaps. It was a silly thing, true, but there was a throughline here, that was stirring up a bit of fretting over potential future discomforts she might have to endure.

"Namely," he offered, "capsaicin from chili peppers and garlic." Which was very funny, really. "Admittedly, the evidence behind it making much of a difference is questionable, at best, but when the efforts are so delicious, it's more than worth trying, I should think."

But then a bit of worry touched his brow. "Is there anything in particular you need? Some calamine lotion, a cool, damp cloth?" Another smile surfaced as he leaned forward to kiss her again, one that seemed as though it was meant to be quick but decided to linger. "Engaging distraction through witty conversation or otherwise? Or perhaps a nice bulk order of citronella candles with which to surround the entire house?"

Liliana was quite self-absorbed, especially when she was in misery, like now. But even so, she still saw a bit of that subtle concern in his smile and it was easy enough to guess in which way his thoughts were trending. "Good," she said immediately. "There is only one bloodsucker I wish to entice, and he is quite sophisticated." She leaned in to kiss him, ignoring the persistent itch on her elbow to cup his face and hold it close. "After all, I remember how deeply and delightfully hungry you were that morning..." Another kiss. "And how I gloried in satiating yours while you lazily indulged mine..."

And if that didn't convince him that she didn't foresee any future issues in that...ahem, vein, perhaps a third kiss would.

"The mosquitoes know better than to come near our house," she added, because sure, Liliana, it was definitely that and not anything about the park having a pond in it. "A distraction will help, and when I get home, nothing will do but to have you rub anti-itch salve into damn near every inch of me."

"That is an incredibly evocative phrase, Harley," Liliana said with a surprised laugh. "And mosquitoes. Miserable things. I was apparently attacked by a swarm of them on Friday."

More fool her, only paying attention to the godzillas and not the real foe.

Harley blinked. "Mosquitoes?" she repeated, with an earnest sort of doubt in her voice, her head tilting off to the side. "Honey, I know you ain't from around here, an' maybe all the flora and fauna where you're from is all kinds of different - but I'm pretty sure those were lizards?"

"Oh, no, the lizards were no problem," Liliana said, waving that off. "They were easily killed and even more easily raised again. But the mosquitos were actually obnoxious."

Harley made a lightbulb noise. Meaning, she said, "Ohhh." And then nodded, more times than necessary. "Right! Well, that sucks? I mean, literally. But also figuratively!"

"It does!" she agreed with a huff. "Normally I don't register to them and they don't bother me, but 'normal' doesn't appear to apply to anything on this island."

"I dunno," Harley replied with an easy shrug. "Depends what you think normal is, don't it? Maybe that is normal for here."

And maybe the gal with ROTTEN tattooed on her jaw wasn't the best judge of that either way.

"Oh yes, darling. This island goes out of its way to be confounding," Liliana said. "In that we can agree."

"Enh, I don't get confounded."

True, or very selective memory? You be the judge. (But it was absolutely the latter.)

Either way, she grinned.

"I do the confoundin'."

"Oh, of that I have no doubt," Liliana said with a laugh. "How have you been, Harley? Did you have fun on Friday, too?"

Harley's forthcoming answer was pretty clear from how her eyes lit up, but also:

"I rode a lizard! All over town!"

Mostly in the direction it had wanted to go, but that still counted!

"Oooh! Did you and Steve get into a lizard race?" Liliana asked.

"... Who's Steve?"

That would be a no!

"Steve Rogers," Liliana said. "Married to Tony, throws the parties with the chandeliers in the tower in town...?"

She'd seen you at those parties, Harley.

"Blond, muscular, exudes a kind of earnest, good guy aura."

Harley considered that description for a beat, only to scrunch up her face like something smelled rank.

"Oh, one of the boring goody two shoes?" she asked, like something tasted off, too. "Nope, didn't see him, don't care to!"

At least until the next party! She didn't remember most people at those for very long afterwards, let's be real.

"Not as much as his demeanor would have you believe," Liliana said thoughtfully, considering his answers in class last week. "Though I'm certain he'd absolutely get all judgey over a few little war crimes."

Sigh.

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Infinite Consortium, Monday

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