exeggutorhead | 59th Transformation [FOURTH WALL]

[When the flash of light fades and Envy is once again fully a homunculus, he's…actually kind of surprised, because he's still sitting on the couch in the house, in exactly the same spot he was before. He was prepared to suddenly be anywhere, but not really to be in the same spot. Weird.]

[He gets up, idly changing his form in a few small ways as he does, just for the fun of it, and as he looks out the window he notices flickering blue candleflames all clustered around one spot in the yard. And hey, he's not doing anything else, he might as well go look. What he finds is about fifteen Litwick sitting on top of a knee-high pile of eerily glowing red rocks, very happily nibbling on them as though they were the best hard candy in the whole world.]

[Envy blinks. Turns. Goes back inside.]

[And comes back out to the pile carrying a pillowcase.]

[For the rest of the weekend, Envy can be found pretty much anywhere, but he's very likely to have that pillowcase on him, partway filled with red stones. And he just keeps reaching back in to pull one or two out and pop them in his mouth like popcorn.]

[MMM, DELICIOUS SOUL ROCKS.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Well...they're incomplete Philosopher's Stones. So they're made of alchemy.

[He shrugs.]

Maybe it's like eating those Proteins or power ups for them.

Ah.

[France drops his hands back to his side, face screwing up into a put-upon pout.]

It really is one of those times again. I thought so, since -

[He motions vaguely over himself, his gaze returning to Envy. A light of curiosity flicks on in his eyes.]

Were you going to eat them?

[Envy crosses the distance over to France, giving him a grin and nudging him lightly with one elbow.]

It's not so bad, we get our regular powers back and we get to do whatever we want for a few days. Even if it gets...weird.

We even stayed in the same place this time.

[And...oh yes there's that question. Envy glances down at the red stone still in his hand, a bit sheepishly.]

Well...yeah. They're like a power source, they keep a homunculus like me's body running.

[France sighs heavily.]

It really isn't the worst thing that this place has ever done to us.

[That would be the soul-stealing thing. France will never, ever forgive this place for that.]

[He eyes the pile of stones and Litwicks, more thoughtful now.]

So is this what you eat regularly back home? What does it taste like? Do you mine these, or are -

[He pauses, clearly restructuring his inquiry very quickly.]

Do I want to know what they're made of?

Yeah, they were just about all I ever ate. Homunculi don't get hungry, so real food wasn't something I usually sought out.

The taste is...hard to describe. [Maybe something like blood, but not quite. That isn't something he really wants to say out loud, though.] Except that they're really good to me. But not when I'm human, then they don't taste like much besides weird rocks.

[And then there's that. Envy nods, answering quietly and almost hesitantly.]

You really, really don't want to know what they're made out of.

[France listens very closely, nodding slowly at the end. He mulls over this information, his hand coming up unconsciously to play with his hair as his gaze wanders back to the pile of stones and Litwicks. After a long moment of consideration, he moves up to the pile and picks up one of the stone, turning it in his hand like a prospector analysing a particularly interesting and valuable find.]

When I was younger, there was a period of time where the belief was that certain gemstones and precious metals had particular properties. The consumption of those objects, powdered or ground or sometimes swallowed whole, was thought to imbue the person consuming it with those properties.

[He smiles distantly before turning his attention back to Envy.]

Do you miss them? I could try to replicate something like them in texture and taste for you when we're--well, when we're back to whatever we are here.

[Envy nods, watching France look over the stone. It gleams unnaturally red, and almost seems to pulse with energy.]

I remember when people believed things like that. I don't know what would happen to a human who ate one of those, but it probably wouldn't be anything good.

[He's surprised at the offer, and it shows. But then his face relaxes into the sort of soft, fond smile he really only gives France. France really is too good to--and for--him.]

The taste might be hard to replicate, but...there's that rock candy, isn't there? I think I'd rather have just that.

59th Transformation [FOURTH WALL]

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