finer food, but no music

[promittere]

[Well that was...unpleasant, to say the least. Two more deaths, but this time there's the matter of whatever's happening to Seteth as well.

Ignis is trying not to think about it, which means he's thinking about it a lot, which means he spends a few moments pacing and trying to figure out what to do. He thinks back to the party - for as much as you could call it that - that Olivert hosted, and, well... He's not sure how much morale can be boosted, but it's worth a shot, isn't it?

The decorations of the opera house are much simpler this time around, but the food is noticeably better, between the actual operational kitchen and the fact Ignis is much more skilled than Olivert. The food is well made and it even looks delicious from where it's set up, and there's a sign outside the opera house that reads:]

A not as grand feast, for all of us to enjoy.
Attendance is not mandatory, but it might be better than staying alone.

Catered by Ignis Scientia.

[At least there are less rose petals this time.]

Comments

[p_q]

Of course. That's the type of creature you are.

[That's the long and short of it, and also both the pro and the con of dealing with this particular Hollow, to an almost ridiculous extent. And of course, he'll go gallivanting off whether or not Ulquiorra agrees; but conversely, whether he goes tearing off harebrained has nothing to do with what Ulquiorra himself may or may not do.

He's been accused of being slow to move, but:]

... Only under certain conditions.

[moonfang]

[It's the kind of creature Ichigo is, after all -- he does things his own way.]

Oh? And what're those.

[p_q]

[The kind of creature that's annoying as hell -- it's only slightly less grating in Hollow form, and that only because he doesn't have to deal with the rollercoaster of his spiritual pressure, just as needlessly loud as its owner. Instead, he just has to deal with this.]

There will be no attacking nor interacting with the creatures until or unless absolutely necessary.

If I deem it necessary, I will simply leave. Is that understood?

[Notably, he doesn't bother stipulating whether Zangetsu will or will not retreat at that time. It's not an alliance they're contemplating, but simply tandem action.]

[moonfang]

[Well, Zangetsu's spiritual pressure would be equally loud and oppressive... it's just turned off for the moment]

That seems reasonable, so... deal. I mostly just want to get a better look at them. Figure out if they're corporeal enough to use one of the store's bear traps on.

[p_q]

The individual who calls himself Rembrandt Meijer seems to act as their keeper.

I have my doubts he'll allow you to lay a hand on them, whether or not they are corporeal. But before you get ahead of yourself, it will be necessary to understand the extent of his protection and jurisdiction over them.

[They've probably just been moving through the rain this whole time, Ulquiorra ignoring the ridiculous amount of water hitting them as though he's strolling through someone's living room. But of course, there's nothing particularly living here.

He picks up the pace, moving them ever closer to the clock tower, the needle on the pulse of the city.]

What else have you tried?

[moonfang]

They definitely seem scared of him, but I ain't sure if that's because he's responsible for them, or because they sense his power and fear him.

[But that's a good point. After all, they saw Rembrandt take several blades of light right into his body and keep going. Zangetsu suspects he might be a tough customer even WITH his powers...

Either way, rain sux and he'll be happy to get inside]

Aside from the ice trap at the trial? Nothin'. Oh. I did attack the one in the mail chute, but I missed. I didn't get a chance to try again before Rembrandt put the kibosh on it.

[p_q]

Both, I'd wager. He oversees this city and whatever is in it; the woman is harder to quantify.

[Certainly, the Lady is the one steering the ship, but if there's such a thing as metaphorically steering the vessel with her foot while chugging rum and forgetting to consult her navigator, she's doing an amazing impression of it.

It's quite possibly his least favorite type to deal with. Which is why he rarely does deal with her. By the time they arrive at a properly higher floor of the clock tower, Ulquiorra just settles into pacing -- that was probably his real goal here.]

He may only intervene if he sees the interaction personally, or if some kind of attack is launched. As I recall, the one named Sakaguchi Ango came into contact with them last week and yet did not mention being herded away.

By all accounts, the creatures don't move around a great deal, if at all. At least, it's rare enough for us to encounter them. Therefore--

Finding their haunts may be enough for now.

[moonfang]

[Zangetsu stands a distance from Ulquiorra and shakes off like a dog, also removing the trash-hood from his head]

I still think Rembrandt is actually runnin' the show. He just lets the Bitch think she's in charge. But that's just a theory.

[a GAME theory

He listens to what the Espada has to say, and finds himself agreeing]

Yeah. Ango got outta dodge because the things were trying to get at him. As long as we don't rile them up we should be able to get a good look with the goggles. The best place to look would probably be some of the buildings that are still dark.

[p_q]

[The fact that he properly keeps his distance saves him from Ulquiorra's disapproval; which may be somewhat milder here, but who wants to find out. He gives the trash-hood a last disdainful look before turning away again.]

It's an easy theory to come to.

[Which means he doesn't entirely buy it.

The Lady is still too much of an unknown quantity, for all her ridiculousness; Rembrandt is almost, but not quite, something more of a known quantity. The shape of one, anyway.]

Engaging with them is futile at this point, and may cut the observation short. They're relatively aggressive in the wild, but the fact that they must have stayed in their territory and the outskirts means that there are other ways to approach them.

[moonfang]

But not one you agree with, right? Whatever she's doin', she does it entirely out of view. It's kind of frustrating. As flashy and self confident as she is, you'd think she'd have slipped up by now.

[He's learned a thing or two about villains and how they tend to act...]

Well, we ain't gonna find out anything by just talking about it. We need to observe them in their natural habitat.