perfectmatch | week three

[ That earns Rom an amused look, one brow arching high. ]

So that's what your little title is about. We could have used your ghost hunting skills last week with our little haunting, my friend. Or are you more the type of "paranormal investigator" who sets things up before hand to make a quick return on investment?

[ There's no judgment in the way he asks. He's seen plenty of such cons in his time, even pulled them himself, so whether Rom is the real deal or not, either seems perfectly valid to him. ]

[ Sigh. Once again, he is ruing Wei Wuxian in his head for that whole debacle with their 'temporary visitors.' His frustration is largely contained to his thoughts, though, as he just gives a wry smile. ]

Haha. I'm not the type to go banishing spirits on sight when they're not causing any harm -- that's a rather barbaric approach, isn't it? Not to mention, given who those spirits were, I suspect it wouldn't have been received well if I'd gone about with my usual work against them ...

[ Pause. ]

-- that said, if you're ever in any need of preventative measures, I can offer you plenty! Are you interested?

[ In other words: yes, he's aware of how much he comes across as a skeezy conman. It's largely by design. ]

[ That's certainly the sense that Aventurine is getting, though he can't help but wonder if that's all there is to it. Charlatans, schemers, conmen — he's seen all their tells before. Where does the production end and the real Shindou Rom begin?

Maybe by the end of this, he'll have a better idea. ]

— Actually, since you mention it, I might have a bit of a case for you. How are you with reading spiritual auras?

Aura reading?

[ A curious tilt of the head. ]

That was always more my Master's specialty, rather than my own. But yes, I can still read auras. What do you have in mind?

Awhile back, I was afflicted with a sort of...spiritual parasite. I'm not good at reading my own energy, so if you were able to take a look at me and tell me what form this parasite has taken, whether malicious or benign, it would ease my worries.

[ This is only halfway true; he was afflicted with the brand of the Harmony by Sunday's hand, but that Emanator of Nihility had already carved him free of it, and she doesn't do sloppy work. If Rom is the real deal, he expects he won't see anything unusual about his aura. ]

[ Rom's gaze remains even as Aventurine speaks, but a sharp eye might have clocked the way his brow lowered ever so slightly, jaw setting just a touch. A 'spiritual parasite?' Not something he's new to -- he's dealt with his fare share of hauntings and possessions. But ... ]

... perhaps we're using different terms, but there is no spiritual parasite of the sort I'm used to. [ A soft exhale as he rests his elbows on the bartop, casually leaning against the surface. ] Unless it's buried so far deep that even I -- [ yes he isn't above using that pompous language, 'even I,' because his spiritual sensitivity is something he's confident in ] -- can't sense its influence. Your aura seems stable as well.

[ Hmm...interesting. Very interesting....maybe there is some merit to his self-proclaimed gifts, then. Aventurine claps his hands together in polite applause, chuckling lightly. ]

Well done! It was a bit of a trick question, you see. That particular parasite is no longer attached to me, so thought it might make for a fun opportunity to test your skills. You are the real deal, aren't you?

[ Or, at the very least, he can read auras well. ]

[ A trick question ........... ]

Don't tell me you doubted my abilities, Mr. Aventurine? I'm a little hurt ...

[ So he says, except it really doesn't sound convincing at all when it's delivered mostly at a deadpan. After all, the sleaziness of his image is mostly by design; the less people are able to tell whether he's the real deal or not, the better for his larger scheme. ]

But you must have been going through some extraordinary circumstances. Most people who can't see such things aren't able to self-diagnose in such specific ways. Usually, it's just 'something feels wrong' or 'I think I've been possessed.'

[ Even if he had been a total charlatan, he can respect the hustle. Schemes are just tools of the trade — any trade, really — and there's a time and a place for them to serve their purpose. As Rom seems to have been upfront with him so far, he doesn't see any reason to withhold answers to his questions, even if they may not go as far as Rom would like them to. ]

You can say that again. That parasite was put on my as a sort of...punishment for "transgressions" a particular scoundrel believed I was guilty of. He was right, but I wasn't guilty in the way he thought, so it still didn't seem very fair.

[ He's out here spreading the gospel of haterism against Sunday even in other worlds. Get bent, Sunday. ]

However, I had an encounter with another individual who was able to cut me free of that sentence with the edge of her blade. Suffice it to say, I feel no lingering effects from its presence.

week three | dates

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