Lucia shook her head when Luna seemed like she was nervous or worried about how things would go. After all, it was difficult for someone to truly understand their own worth sometimes. The reasons she thought Luna was capable wasn't because she was strong or even brave. Though she thought Luna might be able to achieve those things someday now probably wasn't the time. Instead, it was because Luna was so afraid she thought the girl could achieve it. "I believe in you because you're that kind of girl, the kind who will rush in to try and fight a monster for someone else even if you're scared. the kind who will run away from one if you're caught by yourself. Because-- Doesn't that mean you'll jump in to help protect anyone? Doesn't that mean you'll flee rather then hurt them when you're alone? If they chase you and try to hurt you, wouldn't they be bad eggs? But if they run too or chase you because they're afraid you'll come back with more people.... won't you be able to understand them the best?" Lucia offered. There were a variety of ways to look at things after all, and Luna had all of the potential to sympathize with the poor creatures of this game. Hearing that she was interested in studying and watching, it was a good start, but Lucia's smile widened into a grin as she gently pat the girl's head. "I need you to be better then that. Will watching and writing be enough to prove? Will people understand just because you've written it down? Pain isn't scary, then isn't it okay to see for yourself and be the first person to change things? To find those good eggs and take them to people directly so they can see?" She asked with a small smile, it seemed Luna was still trying to escape just a little, not wanting to expose herself, but Lucia didn't want any of that. Instead, she tried to give Luna a gentle push from their hiding spot. If Luna panicked, she'd just grab on a little bit tighter trying to bring her closer to that quivering little slime. The little creature didn't seem to notice them initially as it continued along it's path. It's quivering little form only stopping when it did finally notice someone approaching. At first it's little frame swelled a little, like a cat hunching it's back as it hissed or a lizard puffing up it's frills to look bigger or more intimidating. It quivered visibly, unable to produce warning sounds or hissing to try and deter it's enemies it quivered at them violently as if defending it's territory. The little thing didn't try to run though or hide, as if it understood hiding was meaningless, it's only option was to try and scare off it's enemies with a display. It lurched it's quivering mass forward every once in a while, like a creature clawing at air or a bull grinding a hoof into the ground in preparation... but it's small size made it less intimidating. Lucia at least was completely undeterred by such a thing. Slimes were weak, painfully weak creatures after all. "Don't freak out." She cautioned Luna as she tried to make the girl watch it rather then escape. "Does this look like a monster that wants to hurt you? Or one that wishes it could run too?" She asked with a mellow smile.
She was the right type of person because she was scared of fighting and getting close to some of the creatures? That....Luna wasn't sure if that actually made sense or not to her. It made a strange sort of sense, when she thought about it, though at the same time somebody that wanted to bring about a real change needed more than just a willingness to learn and teach people. In her mind, they did have to be brave and incredible at talking to and convincing people of things, wherever they went and whoever they talked to. Sure, she wouldn't chase anything down that only wanted to escape her and she'd never actively gone looking for a fight even though she suddenly had magic and could fight if she wanted to. That wasn't how she went about doing things, she wasn't some sort of hunter or glory fighter. She was just...Luna. The shy girl that only wanted to know more about the world, the people in it and more recently, the creatures that lived alongside them and contested them. She nodded along as Lucia spoke, though she was ever so slightly upset that the woman thought what she wanted to do wasn't good enough, but did her best not to let it show. But as much as she didn't want to say it out loud, which is why she didn't, she really wasn't quite agreeing with what Lucia was saying here. Taking the good eggs to show to people? Couldn't that be compared to something like capturing wild animals just to show them off to people? Wasn't that just as wrong as killing them? Or maybe it was okay? Lucia was the one suggesting it, after all. She doubted the necromancer would ever suggest anything that would be seriously wrong, considering how nice and thoughtful the woman was. Luna let out a nervous breath that turned into a stifled squeal as Lucia pushed her forwards before she could react, making them known to the slime which seemed to detest their presence. Luna frowned, making no real effort to move any closer to the slime, looking at it sadly. "Poor thing. We uh, w-w-w-we probably s-shouldn't get too c-close to him. He's u-u-m, h-h-he's p-p-pretty stressed b-b-b-by our a-a-a-appearance..." Wait, how did she know that? Maybe it was her beast taming mastery? It had said that it gave her slight empathetic abilities towards creatures. "E-e-e-even though h-h-he's no r-r-real threat...t-t-t-the stress m-m-might have a bad effect on him, I-I think..." It was probably best not to risk it anyway. "M-m-maybe not t-t-take the good ones t-t-to the people s-s-so much as take the p-people to the g-g-good ones? L-l-less l-like a zoo a-and more like a s-s-sanctuary...?" She offered, in place of Lucia's suggestion. God, she hoped the woman would like that suggestion.
Lucia chuckled oblivious to Luna's interpretation of her words, rather then capturing and imprisoning, Lucia's thoughts were more along the lines of befriending and touring instead. There were a myriad of masteries, all of which she'd researched before signing up for the game, there were some that supported that kind of behavior, friendship among creatures, partnerships among beasts. There was no reason one couldn't become close to one and then take it with them on adventures, Lucia herself had done the same with undead without imprisoning them or binding them to some kind of cruel will and fate. Lucia nodded a little, seeing that Luna was thinking for herself on what to do. Not wanting Luna to panic too much, Lucia grabbed her from behind, wrapping her arms around her firmly to make sure she kept watching the little thing. "We won't get any closer then this, after all, how else will you bridge the gap without communicating?" Lucia explained with a mellow smile, not pushing her any more but not wanting to let her run. Lucia was far from an expert on monsters after all, but slimes were one she was at least familiar with purely from her own adventures. Black Slimes and Blood Slimes were things she could make and control after all, so little common garden variety slimes shouldn't be too different, she gripped Luna a bit firmly letting her get used to her own thoughts and closeness. "See? Aren't you getting better at this? Thinking up better ways to get people closer to them? I wouldn't have thought of a zoo or sanctuary." She spoke with a mellow smile, but at the same time continued trying to urge Luna to advance rather then retreat. Even if the slime was stressed, Lucia hoped it would eventually calm down and adjust to their presence as strangers. Waiting as time passed, with Luna in her arms she continued whispering into her ear. "If people can't see how friendly they can be, they won't believe it. If someone doesn't take a chance to show them, they won't find out. You don't have to take it up in chains, or in a cage, but at least know a good egg when you see one. Know that it's something you can approach without it lashing out." She explained gently trying to soothe Luna's worries.
"Meep!" Luna quickly covered her mouth with her hands, jolting slightly as Lucia wrapped her arms around her and held them closer together, face dyed a deep crimson. Very close! Oh so very close! She could feel every curve of Lucia as she held her, but did her best to focus solely on her breathing and her thoughts, just as the counselor had suggested. Letting herself get too caught up in her panic or in the moment tended to lead to hyperventilation and then she risked passing out, so she had to distract herself from the feeling of Lucia's arms wrapped around her, of her back pressing into the woman's torso, of Lucia's chest pressed firmly into her. But boy, it was probably one of the hardest situations for her to even try to concentrate in. How did she get used to something like this? Luna gulped, placing her own hands on top of Lucia's and shifting so that she didn't look and feel like she was about to sprint away, sighing to herself. They weren't moving, which was good. They had to make absolutely sure that the slime didn't have a reason to feel threatened by them, which involved keeping their voices low. Making themselves as small as possibly would usually help too, but with a slime this small, there was absolutely no way to make themselves appear small enough for it to not feel threatened. Plus, with the way that they were so close together, they would only look bigger to the slime. Like a mating pair or part of a herd or pack. She closed her eyes for a moment, calming her breathing as best as she could and pushing a small smile onto her face, letting her muscles slowly relax. The more relaxed she appeared, the more relaxed the slime would be, right? "I-I um...I-I think I u-understand what you m-mean a l-little better n-now. O-o-opening a-an animal s-sanctuary on TS w-w-w-would b-b-be a really f-f-fun way to learn a-a-and teach people about the c-c-creatures here." It would be like being a zookeeper or that one lion whisperer guy online! She could be friends with all of the animals and go into their enclosures and just have fun with all of them! It actually sounded like a really fun idea. "I-I-I think um, t-that I'd r-r-really like to start a s-s-sanctuary..." She sounded probably more passionate than she'd ever sounded, though since she'd just found her passion she probably didn't even hold a candle to Lucia. "I-i-if I d-d-d-did would you, um....like, v-visit?"
Lucia chuckled a little, glad that Luna was getting into it more and more. With a sweet smile on her face, she nodded back contently. "Good girl... It's a lovely Idea, I'm sure people would appreciate and like what you're doing. It will be a big project, but I believe in you." She earnestly approved. It wouldn't quite be on the scale of a kingdom like her own ambition, but was a nice thing to do, something to be passionate about, something that can help and also make her stronger and more confident. After all there's nothing like having a family to strive for to make someone willing to take the extra steps when necessary. She looked forward to Luna's sanctuary, believing it would be something nice to see when it was done, she only hoped the girl wouldn't lose heart from the struggles and trials it would bring. Though the question made Lucia muse. Her own project would be difficult after all, a kindgom was hard to manage and build, but Luna's sanctuary was also something that clashed with a kingdom of undead. Even so though, that wouldn't stop Lucia from visiting someone she was close to. Giving Luna a thorough squeeze, she chuckled hugging the girl sweetly. "Of course, I would come to check up on you a lot, after all, it'll be fun right? I just wonder, after you've gotten so passionate about this, I wonder if you'll still have time for someone as silly and uninteresting as me~" She teased with a gentle smile, giving the back of Luna's head a gentle kiss, soft moist lips against her hair and head as she teased and squeezed the girl tenderly. "Just don't forget, if you want, you can come visit me too you know? Unless you're still afraid of the cruel and mean woman who's putting so much pressure on you~" She taunted jokingly teasing the girl playfully. Even as they talked, as she teased and played with Luna, the small slime had at some point lost interest, having gone back to scuttling over the crates and wagon once more. It's tiny frame quivered from time to time out of awareness but in the end, Lucia let Luna go, after a long time of playfully teasing her. Taking a step to the girl's side, she glanced at her giving her a subtle wink. "For now though, why don't we try watching him more. If you figure out what he likes, maybe you'll be able to even feed them by hand eventually." She offered knowing that that might be a nice way for Luna to connect with her hobby more.
"A-ahn~" Luna lost her concentration, once again noticing the woman's touch, her hands and the way they grabbed at her in places that couldn't be accidental. Lucia was driving her crazy and she really wasn't sure if she should speak up, if she even wanted to. She had to do her best to stay relaxed and the woman's touch wasn't exactly stressful if she tried to forget about the awkwardness she felt from having somebody be so grabby with her, quite the opposite really. She was sure if she were anybody else, she'd probably be relaxing into the woman's touch or maybe even thanking her for it, but right now she just couldn't bring herself to speak up against it. Especially when hearing the woman call her a 'good girl', as demeaning as most people would find it, felt so good and rewarding. She blushed, squeaking at the feeling of the woman's lips on her head. Had....had Lucia just kissed her!? She smothered a cough, breathing heavily as she counted from 50 to 0 in her head a couple of times, struggling to make out Lucia's words in the haze of embarrassment and nervousness. She didn't want to upset the woman after all, a kiss was probably just a symbol of congratulations where Lucia was from or something! That had to be it! And it was rude to speak up against somebody's culture in a way like she'd briefly considered! "A-a-ah! I-I-I'd n-never, ah, be t-t-too busy for you..." She panted out slightly, smiling even though the necromancer wasn't in any position to see it. "Y-y-y-you're t-t-the one l-looking out for me and y-y-you've been s-so nice! T-t-the least I c-could do is v-visit you when you've a-a-achieved your goal!" The fact that she'd said when and not if was a clear sign that she had nothing but faith in Lucia. She let out another soft moan, watching the slime lose interest in them and slide away, moving back to the crates as Lucia let go of her and moved around to her side. "F-figure out what he likes?" She hummed to herself, watching the slime intensely for a few moments. Lucia had said that the slime ate dirt, grime and other things like that. What else did it eat? She watched, through the slime's clear-ish body, before noticing something. "I-i-it spends a l-lot of t-t-time near the edges of the c-c-crates. M-m-maybe they like rust...?" She turned to Lucia, like a school child anxiously waiting to see if they'd done well.
Lucia chuckled clinging to Luna visibly pleased that the girl was that receptive of her. Nodding back, she didn't hesitate to keep a good hold on Luna. Though being told a lot of good things about herself, Lucia's grin widened, she really did adore attention too much. Giving a firm shake of her head though, she gently gave Luna a stronger squeeze then before, a playful punishment when Luna said she'd visit her when she achieved her goal. If that was the case it would just be too long! Lucia's goal would take ages, she herself understood that well, she wouldn't wait that long before enjoying Luna's company again, no way. "You'd just leave me all alone by myself for that long? That's so cruel~ I won't stand for it, bullying me like that." She teased, her tone gentle and playful making it clear she was joking a little. "You, add me as a friend right this second, if I don't get to talk to you at least once a day I'll be sad~" She whispered her words sweetly to Luna, a warm playful grin on her face as she punished the adorable girl thoroughly for her mistake. When Luna began getting back into the slime's habits though, Lucia began to lower herself down, sitting down, crossing her legs. Luna she would pull down by her outfit, gripping her dress softly to tug the girl down into her lap. "Maybe-- I wonder if what it eats changes what kind of slime it grows into? After all I've seen a bunch of different ones in my travels. What do you think is this one's favorite?" She asked with a sweet tone trying to set Luna up briefly lowering one hand from the girl's chest to Luna's, she lifted the girl's hand as she spoke. "Don't just sit around thinking either, now's the perfect time to make a recording and take some notes or maybe a sketch." She tried to urge Luna to open up her game's interface and try her hand at understanding the little guy on a deeper level. Lucia on the other hand, merely lent Luna the softness of her lap to sit in, the warmth of her chest to lean against. With her arms wrapped around her gently to support her and keep her feeling safe, she rested her chin against Luna's shoulder hoping the girl would let her passion for the game's creatures' burn brighter. Somewhere in the middle of Luna's note writing and questions, Lucia would gently slid a hand into Luna's holding it softly. The gentle grip of her hand holding the other girl's was a bit different from the her playful wandering hands. It was a very precise and decided action, holding Luna's hand as encouragement, Lucia watched her with a content expression letting the girl work diligently.
"Ah!" Luna blinked as she was squeezed tighter. It wasn't anywhere near enough to actually hurt her, in fact all it did was feel even better than the woman's wandering hands had felt before. She turned to look at Lucia, spending far too long staring at the lips she knew had kissed the back of her head a mere moment ago, feeling her own lips feel a little dry and her throat suddenly felt far too narrow. That was before Lucia's teasing kicked into high gear, Luna's eyes flying wide open as she giggled, probably for the first time that Lucia would hear. She didn't giggle often. "G-g-gosh! I-I-I thought it was o-o-obvious I w-w-wanted to speak t-t-t-to you m-m-more than that!" Her fingers moved deftly, sending out a friend request a mere few seconds after Lucia had playfully admonished her. She smiled, watching Lucia sit down and turning to watch the slime again, only to be tugged into the woman's lap with a loud squeak, hands moving just behind Lucia's hips to catch herself before her full weight landed on the woman. One of the woman's hands were back on her chest, though the other grabbed her by the hand. Luna blushed, blinking and nodding at the woman's musings. "M-m-m-maybe. I-I t-t-think it c-c-could definitely h-h-have an impact. D-does that m-mean all s-slimes are born blue...?" Such musing also brought to mind the question of how exactly slimes reproduced, though she would have to save that for another time. This little one was still far too young. She sighed happily, using her free hand to open her menu for a moment before opening a notes page, tapping away at the screen as she watched the little slime eat, noting down what she physically saw and what she assumed her sightings meant. The slime seemed to be focusing primarily on rust and soot, which maybe were better food sources for slimes due to how much mass they had? Especially for one so young. It was definitely fun, sitting in Lucia's lap and just enjoying the woman's company (and hands) as she continued to make notes, occasionally asking for her new friend's input. They'd be there until long into the sunset, together.... [End Thread]
