[PRP] Alpine Hospitality (Cerpin x Aerona)

[Sypon]

Aerona

x

Cerpin

 

[Sypon]

The rocky Scrall hive was brimming with light and utterly hospitable smells and sights. Clad in matching hand-stitched aprons, Aerona and her matronly lusus twirled around the nutrition-block in a sort of coordinated food preparation dance that was unmatched. Aerona set the table, spinning back around to avoid her lusus who was carrying a steaming glass dish of some herbed delicacy that a taunting savory aroma. Both lusus and charge were humming and whistling in harmony, laughing at near brushes, Aerona minding the spines and Sophitia making sure she didn’t muss her beloved troll’s well coiffed hair or carefully styled outfit. It wasn’t every night that Aerona paid such attention to her appearance, and Sophitia had no intention of getting in the way.

Aerona herself was abuzz, singularly focused on her lusus and their preparations that she hardly thought about her imminent company. Her hair was up in two intricate buns on top of her head, which fortunately was out of the way - unlike her wrap dress which was distracting and constricting at the same time. Who wore anything but pants, anyway? She tugged at her hem as her lusus chittered the time.

“No, ‘ma, I have no idea if he’ll be early. I’ve never seen him show up anywhere, no idea if he’s a ‘fashionably late’ kind of guy,” Aerona admitted. Her lusus muttered something about Cerpin better not be late, and food getting cold, and that alone took Aerona’s mind off of the stress. She sighed, she laughed, she continued to prep.

In no time, there wasn’t much left but to obsessively clean the counters before her date arrived. Aerona adjusted the quilt above one of the more destructive blast marks left from Leeroi’s near-fatal home invasion. Yeah, this would go well.  

[Yamashii]

It had been a long journey to this point but he was finally here. Cerpin Sugall checked his hair in a small pocket mirror. Looking good was one of the few things he was competent at lately it seemed. Might as well play to his strengths. Inside the hive, he could hear cozy sounds of hustle and bustle before they died down to a comfortable silence. He gave the door two strong knocks before trying the knob. He was just barely on time.

"Hey, let me in- it smells too good to stay out here!" In his arms was a bright bouquet of tiger lilies as requested by her earlier. It was not easy to get high quality flowers in the desert city of Chittentown and so he'd had to make an extra stop to NHC to get something good. He'd dressed nicer than normal but couldn't entirely ditch his usual flash. This visit would hopefully be a nice distraction from the confusing disaster that was his life lately. He caught sight of his date finally and his eyes widened slightly in surprise.

"Wow, you clean up pretty, don't you?" It was clear by the lack of his sleazy smile that he was honestly impressed. "You look nice, Rona." It was not her usual style but he thought it was good fun to dress up from time to time. You got to see a different side of people sometimes. All he knew about Aerona at the moment was she was easily angered, packed a mean punch and surprisingly kind to the vulnerable. What else would he learn?

"Is this your mom? Good to meet ya." He extended a hand towards Sophitia with a warm smile. Her mom looked adorable in an apron!

Sypon

 

[Sypon]

Aerona registered the knocks shortly before Cerpin entered. She rushed up to the door, brushing a phantom hair out of her face before greeting her guest. “Hey hey hey - watch the door, it’s a little… Fall-y.” She warned. Aerona checked the entrance. Since Leeroi had blasted the damn thing open, they had to find a new entrance covering. And, with the natural hewn rock hive and the new explosion-holes, finding a perfect fit was a challenge. After making sure that the wintry air was kept well enough outside, Aerona caught glimpse of the bouquet.

“Hey, you remembered! No point deductions tonight. You look pretty average for Cerpin Sugall, Prince.” She rolled her eyes and winked, taking the bouquet into her arms. “I’ll put these in a vase.” Aerona excused herself, slipping to the adjoining nutritionblock to rummage through the cabinets.

Suddenly, the lusus of the hive rushed forward. She seemed a bit harried, claws fiddling in front of her apron as she gave a deep bow to the purpleblood in her midst. Sophitia reached up and circled around Cerpin, snatching off his jacket and hanging it up. She cooed and bowed deeply again, her body almost entirely reaching the floor as she showed her deference. Then, reaching into her apron, she produced a bright, cut stone. From the peaks of Busthind, a peace offering - an object of value and significance. She held the object up for Cerpin without breaking her gaze at his feet.

Yamashii

 

[Yamashii]

"Wha- whoa, haha! Hey-" Cerpin laughed as Sophitia took him by surprise and his jacket was gone before he knew it. He didn't mind being spoiled, it was something he was subconsciously used to despite his best efforts to break that expectation. The lusus bowed deeply and he returned the gesture with a bow of his own only to suddenly see a dazzling stone held up to him. He blinked in amazement before taking it into his own hands. It felt rude to refuse something like this.

"This is... incredible. Thank you! A woman after my own biscuit-" The purpleblood teased, taking one of Sophitia's claws carefully into his hand and raising it to give it an affectionate peck. He had no idea what he was going to do with such a rare beautiful stone but it would find a prized position of display somewhere in Underworld. It was too pretty a sight to keep to himself.

"So, what's new with you?" He followed Aerona into the other room with a casual disregard for if he was supposed to be in here or not. Cerpin went wherever he wanted unless told otherwise. And even then, he still tried. Aerona and her lusus had gone to a lot of trouble to put out a full spread for him and he figured he could at least help with the vase.

"Anything exciting since we last talked? Oh! That's right, Mahmud's doing alright, he's recovered from that crappy ship we did. Good as new." Aerona had been a great voice of reason on that mission through all of the chaos and his stupid rivalry with Sascha. Cerpin had been impressed with her concern over Mahmud, a total stranger to her, and thought she might like to hear the update.

Sypon

 

[Sypon]

The lusus chirped with gratitude as Cerpin took her gift. A burden off of her slender, chitinous shoulders. She was suddenly shocked by the sensation of her claws being touched, and blinked a couple of beady blinks through her eye-film as Cerpin gave her a peck. When he released her, she scuttled in place - unsure of what to do - and scuttled away overcome. Literally, out of the room. As she did, Aerona had leaned back from the open cabinet, her shoulders slumped and expression unimpressed.

“Gog, that’s so embarrassing…” She muttered. Aerona’s face was bright red with her embarrassment, her flush obvious and as frustrating as the obeisance that her lusus displayed. She closed the cabinet and deposited the freshly chopped flowers into the container she had procured.

“Prince, you weirdo, go sit down,” She gestured at the chairs around the table. “Mahmud’s better? s**t, the military health tech is amazing. I thought he’d be a cyborg for sure. If we had that stuff at the base…” She sighed. Aerona placed the flowers on the table and grabbed a bottle. She and Cerpin had time to chat before her lusus returned, after all. She poured herself a drink, then poured one for the purpleblood, and sat down with a sigh.


“I’m doing fine. I’ve been helping Soph with repairing the hive. A coolblooded military troll, Leeroi Furore - a*****e from my childhood and now a complete Imperial a**-puppet and bonafide sociopath - literally busted down my door and destroyed the place. Almost killed us.”

She shot Cerpin a glance. Leeroi was a turning point. Not a good one. The hastily covered ruins of her hive were evidence enough of his thoughtless cruelty. She scratched at the hem of her dress. “I’ve been meaning to get back to the swamp since the space mission, but I don’t want to leave her alone. He could come back and finish the job.”

A clearing of her throat. Aerona continued her thought - quickly, as though the idea just tumbled out. She smiled weakly. “He knows about me, so… I don’t know how much longer I have with her.”

Yamashii

 

[Yamashii]

The flush on Aerona's cheeks was a trophy to Cerpin and he relished in the embarrassed expression. It was endearing to see such a feisty troll care flustered a little when she was normally so put together. He accepted the drink and tasted it. Pretty good stuff. Maybe he'd bring her something nice from the more expensive collection at the bar next time. Drinks were always best when shared with good company.

He listened to her story about the hive and the sociopath, his expression slowly souring into a frown. Somehow it had always felt like Busthind would be safe from the dangers of political skirmishes. It was so remote and removed from the crowded cities where the hemospectrum presented itself in full swing on every corner. The flowers were a bright and cheerful centerpiece in a room with a mood that had drastically shifted.

"... and she wants to stay here, I take it? I don't think I could." He doubted Aerona was happy with that decision but how the hell did you challenge your loving lusus on such a thing? "I mean, my door's always open if you two need a place to go." He tried to interject but she continued on and he coughed mid-sip, hand flying to cover his mouth so he didn't spit liquid all over everything. Grabbing a napkin, he dabbed at himself with alarmed eyes.

"He knows?! What the ******** are you gonna do? Gog, s**t, and I thought I had it bad with Sasch." He had been feeling pretty ******** sorry for himself over similar problems with Lieutenant Diasis but at least the yellowblood hadn't invaded his hive and tried to kill anyone. As terrible as it was to think, Cerpin felt relieved that he wasn't the only member of the Initiative to slip up with their identity. He just wished it hadn't happened to Aerona or happened with such destructive consequences.

"Have you told her she could die if she doesn't leave?" He felt terrible suggesting this but based on what he'd seen so far coupled with Aerona's reactions, it was an option he was willing to try if it helped. "... would she listen to a highblood? I don't want to be a jerk but if it would help, I can play a part pretty well." He didn't enjoy using his status in such a manipulative and elitist way when he was trying to break those habits but... if it would help a friend, Cerpin was willing to play the part of a villain or a typical highblood.

Sypon

 

[Sypon]

Aerona cleared her throat, her eyes flickering back and forth to see if her lusus would return. She listened to Cerpin, sitting silent with her eyes narrowed… She was frustrated and - well, he was trying to help, but he was so damned purple about it. Above all of her spite, however, Aerona was ultimately defeated. The situation seemed hapless, and regardless of her irritation she couldn’t be roused to spite the man in front of her.

“Sophitia doesn’t know about the Initiative,” Aerona whispered, her voice practically a hiss. “She doesn’t know I’m a part of it. And if she knew, I don’t think she’d ever recover. Let alone thinking about her trying to live in shame in the swamp.”

She crossed her arms across her chest and lowered her head. “You saw how she greeted you. She’s loyal to the Empire, fully bought with all of this hemospectrum stuff. You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, according to her. But…”

The redblood pursed her lips. Moving would mean getting farther from Furore, but it meant abandoning her childhood hive. It was half-ruined, but… It was Sophitia’s home. Her home. But then again, how could she be so sentimental when she lived most of her time in the swamp? Aerona cursed under her breath. The wheels in her pan were turning, fingers tapping on the table.

“I--”

Aerona was cut off with the chatter and clatter of Sophitia returning. She’d shed her apron, now donning the few pieces of jewelry that she had. This was… New. Aerona immediately turned hot red when her lusus re-entered, showing off not so subtly to the royalty among them. Her teeth were clenched in a grimace as she tried her very best to make some kind of smiling motion.

“Shall we dig in?” She breathed, hoping the distraction of dinner would keep her lusus from jumping Cerpin.

The spread was impressive, to say the least. Breads and a casserole made from scratch, plus a fruit and mint salad that Aerona immediately shoveled on to her plate. She’d need another drink, too.

Yamashii

 

[Yamashii]

"What?! Where the hell does she think you keep going?" Cerpin's voice fell to a whisper as well to match Aerona's. He had not expected circumstances to be like this. How had the redblood managed to hide her involvement from her dear lusus? Cerpin was simultaneously impressed and flabbergasted.

"The best thing that's every happened to you, oh?" Cerpin rested his chin in his palm, elbow placed on the table. He looked incredibly pleased to hear this despite obvious evidence that Aerona did not share this same view with her mother. He shot her a cat-like grin and opened his mouth to ask a few more things.

Before he could probe deeper with more questions, there was the sound of someone approaching and he straightened up in his seat as if he were a schoolchild getting caught by a teacher.

"Damn, Sophitia, you look dope! You've got a good eye for quality, don't you?" The glittering jewelry was a show stopper and completely stole his attention away from the food for the first few minutes. While the hostess did not enjoy the presentation, Cerpin was more than enthused about making good with Sophitia despite her antiquated views on the hemospectrum. Ultimately, getting in good with Sophitia would improve his chances of getting in good with Aerona.

He glanced at the girl sitting across from him, her lips screwed up in an attempt at a smile with an angry flush radiating across her face. Although they'd had a rocky start and she was still an unpredictable firecracker, he found himself enjoying this. He snacked on his food with great enthusiasm. It was leaps better than anything Tevini demanded they eat. There was still work to be done on convincing her no really they had the money to buy decent food instead of the cheapest crap ever.

"So. I was thinking-" Cerpin smeared at his mouth with a napkin to be halfway polite, "You should come by Chittentown. I need your help with a project. You know that giant majestic tower that sticks up above all the others? Not the space elevator, no, the skyscraper. That belongs to me." He could see the clear disgust and disapproval forming on Aerona's face. Hey, he couldn't help that he'd been born into money and had spent a good amount of it before joining the Rebellion.

"I haven't been in there in months and I need help checking it over for squatters and stuff. Maintenance and all." In truth, he was fishing for another opportunity to see Aerona again and one that wouldn't raise any alarms in her mother's mind. They could talk and do whatever once they went inside. The important part was just getting her there!

Sypon

 

[Sypon]

Aerona put a roll into her mouth to keep her jaw from locking into a snarl. Meanwhile, her lusus cooed, her claws curling with joy as the highblood paid her a compliment. Sophitia caught Aerona’s glare and gave her a swift smack on the arm, to which Aerona grumbled. A series of chirps followed- the redblood shot some terse words and her lusus reciprocated. To Cerpin, their language was a cacophany of clicks and chitters.

At last, Aerona sighed. Her cheeks were still flushed. Clearly, something came up that could not be debated. The troll looked defeated for a moment before clearing her throat and picking at another chunk of casserole. Sophitia, meanwhile, clacked with many apologies to Cerpin, passing him the various plates of food and going to refill his drink.

Aerona’s eyebrows raised at Cerpin’s proposition. “The one they call The Trash Bulge?”

Sophitia gave her charge another sharp whack, and Aerona couldn’t help but snort with laughter. She was familiar enough with the eyesore of a building. Frankly, it disgusted her. As gaudy as the Underworld was, at least it wasn’t a monument to Alternian mediocrity basically gilded in drone exoskeletons. “I had no idea you still owned that thing. Mmm…. Yeah, sure, I’ll take a look. I mean, I’m already...”

Something clicked. Aerona trailed off, chewing on her food and swallowing with some deliberation. She slowly turned to her lusus, clearing her throat. “Working for... Hey, Soph?”

The lusus was interrupted from gnashing on the meal with her huge, crustacean mouth. She blinked once and cocked her head.

“So, I’ve got amazing news…!” Aerona tried to build her momentum, build her enthusiasm. She pushed her shoulders back, leaning forward to address the table.

“Cerpin owns a club in Chittentown. You watched the Superstar Authority in town, right? Underworld--”

Her lusus bobbed her head and then gasped, clapping her claws together with tentative excitement at the realization of who the infamous club belonged to. Sophitia’s garbled enthusiasm at last died down enough for Aerona to continue.

“Yeah, Underworld. So, I’m finally…” She squinted an eye, forming the right words - something that her lusus would want to hear, while trying not to kill herself out of her own embarrassment. “Settling down a bit.” Settling being the key word, Cerpin, Aerona thought as she looked at him with faux doting.

“Cerpin’s offered me a job and housing there. I was thinking of moving in soon, because… We’re… Moirails.”

The shriek that emerged from Sophitia’s maw was deafening.

Yamashii

 

[Yamashii]

Whatever they were saying to each other seemed heated and fast. Cerpin focused on dolloping a good amount of jam onto a roll to give them some privacy. Not that he could understand them anyways. Chewing on it, he savored the taste and rolled his eyes at Aerona's nickname for his prized tower. Thankfully, Sophitia had his back and scolded her child in his place.

"That's right!" He brightened at the mention of his business. It had taken a lot of time, money and labor to get things to the point they were at now. Mahmud's work remodeling the place had helped transform the place from its former purpose as a collection of warehouses into a gigantic beautiful chaotic dance club, complete with housing for the staff in the back and beneath the first level. Tevini had helped engineer a working sound system and hookup on the stage. Meanwhile, Cerpin had set to work filling the place with all the luxuries beetles and networking could get him. The fact that they'd been able to participate on Superstar Authority had meant much more to him than he would admit to others. They were legit.

He nodded along with Aerona's words absent-mindedly until she mentioned settling down... with a job. In his house?

Because they were MOIRAILS.

Sophitia's shriek drowned out his own audible choking and he coughed, purposefully looking to Aerona with wide eyes of shock that could sort of be explained away as "surprise". He was "surprised" that she had... "revealed this to her mother". It definitely wasn't a lie! That would be crazy. He rose from his seat to wrap an arm around the redblood's waist with a dramatic flourish and the charismatic sparkling smile he used on VIPs.

"That's right! It happened recently. You raised a diamond, Sophitia, and I'm just-" He shared a tense smile with Aerona, His hand motions were enthusiastic and distracting as he talked. Cerpin pointed a finger at the excitable lusus, not a hundred percent sure what the hell he was doing but then again, when was he ever? As insane as this fib was, it was clear that Aerona was desperate for some way to keep her lusus safe from the return of the sociopath. With so many people living in his own hive, he supposed he could understand that compulsion to protect them. He'd play along for now.

"And so! We'd like your blessing in this. You've got to say yes, I've already prepared rooms for you both!"

He couldn't wait to see how Tevini destroyed him this time. Thanks, Aerona.

Sypon

 

[Sypon]

Thankfully, Sophitia’s shrieking blocked out all suspicions the lusus may have had about Aerona’s integrity. The reblood gave Cerpin a little impish smile, which faltered only when Cerpin put his arm around her. She cranked up the cheese on that smile - perfect.

‘Crazy about her’. Aerona’s chin wobbled as she tried to resist a burst of laughter. The showman really knew how to talk, and she was sure Sophitia would eat it up. But at the same time, hell was it obvious that Cerpin was laying down the tracks as the train was rolling. She had to give him the courtesy to at least finish what she’d started, rather than letting him fill in the blanks. It wasn’t as fun as watching him struggle, but Aerona sucked it up and put a hand flat on Cerpin’s chest.

“What do you think? I know you’ve worked so hard on our Busthind hive, but… I’m worried about you! And I want to see you more.” She smiled warmly at Sophitia, then Cerpin.

Her lusus rushed out of her own seat and up to the two, preening as she did. With some bubbling chirps to and from her charge, the decision seemed to be made. Sophitia was buzzing with energy.

Aerona turned to Cerpin, opening her mouth wide with a smile and extending her palms and fingers. “She said yes!”

Suddenly, Sophitia scrambled into the nutritionblock and pulled open the icebox.

"Uh - looks like dessert is early!"

In no time at all she returned with a full purple and gold sheetcake.

Aerona flushed hot red.

Yamashii

 

[Yamashii]

The logistics of how this would work were going to be an impressive headache to figure out. Not to mention, there were a couple of things he would have to tell Aerona, privately, before she made herself at home in the depths of Underworld. But catching her alone when her lusus was so eager to celebrate was basically next to impossible and he opted to leave that discussion for another time.

Besides- CAKE! With-

"Are you shitting me- is that edible GOLD?!" He was truly hypnotized by the sheetcake and place his hands on the table to lean over it for a closer look. ******** magnificent! He looked to Aerona with the eager excitement of a child as if to check that she too was mesmerized by this treat. Her expression was less enthused and more embarrassed although he couldn't fathom why.

"Sophitia, you are a goddamn treasure!" Cerpin pulled his hands back from the table and reached underneath the lusus's arms to lift her up into the air in joyous celebration. He let out a sincere laugh and smiled up at her before putting her down on the ground again. This was so going on the menu at the club.

"Oh man, you know what would make this even better?" Aerona's smile earlier had been adorable and almost sweet but he couldn't have the redblood getting too comfortable. Not when she was so fun to tease! He accepted the slice of cake that was presented to him and tried a bite of it. Damn, the club food was really going to improve if Aerona and Sophitia were willing to provide recipes like these! Cerpin could cook okay but nothing at all gourmet.

"I wanna see what my moirail was like as a wriggler! I know you've got to have pictures somewhere around here." The devilish grin was back.

Sypon

 

[Sypon]

Sophitia slapped her claws together. As soon as Cerpin even breathed mention of wiggler photos, she skittered down the hall and nearly wiped out when turning into her respiteblock.

Aerona sighed and slapped Cerpin on the shoulder. "Okay, one: I'm desperate, don't hate me. Two: Don't ******** swear in front of my mom, you're not a juggalo. Three: I was an adorable wiggler and this absolutely won't embarrass me. Nice try, a*****e."

Her smile twitched and she clasped her hands around Cerpin's arm when Sophitia poked her head out of the block and chirped at Aerona. In a stroke of luck, she had rearranged and misplaced some of the photo tomes during a flurry of scrapbooking. It would take some time for her to procure said elicit wiggler pics.

"Oh, ma! Don't worry. We're all full up from dinner and cake anyway. We'll take a walk to burn some of this off so that you can get ready. That okay?"

A chirp of affirmation and Aerona felt the massive pressure leave her shoulders. She'd bought time alone. "C'mon, Prince, get your coat and let's go."

She shuffled over to her thick hiking boots and eagerly pulled them on, tossing a thick coat over her shoulder while opening the door. She couldn't leave fast enough.

Yamashii

A TAG!

 

[Yamashii]

"Your mom's cute. Hope she likes rock and roll. She's gonna be hearing a lot of it soon." Cerpin commented as the door shut and the cold night air washed over them. He finished zipping his own coat up and looked over the trail. Navigating Busthind was always kind of a mystery to him but Aerona was a local at least. She'd let him know if he was about to walk off a cliff. She'd have to now, anyways, since they were apparently moirails.

"So then. 'Moirail'. There's a lot to tell you if you're moving in." He nudged her with his shoulder, half in playful teasing and half in tense irritation. Did she know what she was getting into? No, and she was probably not going to be happy about it. Aerona's explanation that someone had discovered her identity made him feel less nervous to explain his own situation but he knew that he'd still ******** up worse.

"Mahmud knows about us being... yeah. And so does Deimos, this other guy helping Vee and me work on the space program. I'll tell them not to bring it up around your lusus." Those two were the easy confessions. He awkwardly looked ahead.

"... Sascha knows about me too now. I'm not sure if he plans to do anything about it." It would definitely boost Sascha's career to drag in a rebel stealing data and equipment from the space elevator. Not by giant leaps and bounds but it would likely be impressive. The thought had haunted Cerpin enough to consider shutting down Underworld but he hadn't been able to go through with it. All he could do was hope Chittentown was big enough to avoid running into Sascha again.

Sypon