[SE] the art of procrastination

kidnap me from my reality & crushed pieces of my soul

"Well, let me rephrase. I can protect you against physical harm." He corrects; not even Remi Taliesin, for all of his strength and demigod feats of ability, could withstand Ronin's ire if the Knight got wind of their plans.

Trying to recall, Remi bit at the inside of his lip. "My memory is...well, it has been messed with far too often to be reliable." He admits. "I am sure Ronin would know." As for the other things Maea mentioned, Remi nodded in easy agreement. "Flora has an invisibility ring. I think Deimos can make them, actually. That could be quite good, unless of course the Family can see through such things?" Another thing they didn't know. "There are also the compasses for quick getaways. I can teleport, as can Noah I believe. Not Deimos nor Ronin though." When it came to Sunjata and the newer demigods like Hotaru and Hadama, the Bastion had no idea.

"Maybe that is where we start. With trying to figure out who has what so that when someone goes to the Island, they can go as safely as possible."

colour me outside the lines

until my shattered heart is whole

REMI

Table & Gif-sniping by SKY who deserves our love and affection for always.

Maea

Oh, when the world is burning

Brightening with the growing list of things to do that she could actually do something with, Maea nodded eagerly. "I'll ask about with my friends too," she offered, "and then we can compare notes. Not before the ball though," she supposed, if a bit reluctantly, "I doubt I'll be able to work on much else before that's done." It might draw attention if she threw her event into the wind to start poking about after items, after all. Who knew if the Family paid attention to such things?

Feeling decidedly better, she caught sight of a pair of bangles in silver, from which a pair of bells dangle by a thin chain. Charmed, she picked them up and turned them over, measured the size and compared it with her horns. "What do you think, would it look silly?" she asked Remi with a dimpled smile as she held the jewelry up to her head.

Don't walk away

kidnap me from my reality & crushed pieces of my soul

"That sounds reasonable." The Bastion agrees, wondering just how much digging he could do without properly alerting his husband. The trouble was, Ronin was so much better at this sort of thing than he was.

Expecting the bangles to be slid over her wrists, Remi has to laugh under his breath at his misunderstanding as Maea gestures toward her horns. "No, not at all." Grinning, he reached forward to gently press against one of the bells, smiling at its delicate chime. Remi might have been lacking the stereotypical gay-man gene when it came to what was fashionable, but certainly, he still knew what he liked.

"I quite like them, actually. Would you wear them for the Ball, or just in general?"

colour me outside the lines

until my shattered heart is whole

REMI

Table & Gif-sniping by SKY who deserves our love and affection for always.

Maea

Oh, when the world is burning

They were probably meant for wrists, but why do what everyone else did? The sound of the bells was lovely, and she really did need something to spruce up her outfit for the ball. She rarely dressed up so when the chance came, Maea wanted to put in some effort.

"Mostly for the ball, but there should be plenty of other occasions where they wouldn't be out of place," came her musing, thinking out loud. Sneaking... was not it. Nor hunting. But how often did she do either of those things? "I'll take them," she decided, and reached into her purse to fetch a few tokens to trade with. The merchant wrapped the jewelry for her, and with a feeling of being suddenly rich Maea turned back to Remi.

You will be coming to the ball, right? There should be an invitation headed for you and Ronin both by now." As Ronin had inspired the idea in the first place, she really wanted them both to be there.

Don't walk away

kidnap me from my reality & crushed pieces of my soul

Remi, for whom the only adornments he ever wore were his wedding band and a small cord of red on his wrist, would be of little help when it came to justifying such a purchase, but he nevertheless smiled approvingly as Maea made the trade for the bangles.

"Oh, of course. Ronin would not let us miss it. It is all he has been talking about." The Bastion replies, his lips a crooked smile meant to indicate his simultaneous exasperation with his husband's antics and his love for the man. "Ronin used to be a baron, so Ballroom is his natural environment, you might say." Still, that wasn't to say that Remi wasn't looking forward to it as well.

"But it will be nice to see everyone altogether, and dressed up."

colour me outside the lines

until my shattered heart is whole

REMI

Table & Gif-sniping by SKY who deserves our love and affection for always.

Maea

Oh, when the world is burning

That was good news. "I'll do my best to make it a wonderful time for you both," she beamed. Falling back into the slow meandering stroll around the marketplace, she admitted, "I didn't have very high expectations for this job, you know? It's just what Danta offered, because I asked for something to do. But it's been good. My hands are full, I still get to keep moving... the past few seasons have been really good." It was perhaps not what she would have chosen for herself, but it was working, somehow.

"It feels especially nice to be able to make decisions. To take an issue, find a solution and set change in motion. I've never been able to do that before." Instead of waiting for someone else to have time, take interest and get it done, she now had... agency. Lose reins, too, and a huge problem to set her teeth into. If it didn't solve all her issues, at least it kept her going every day.

Don't walk away

kidnap me from my reality & crushed pieces of my soul

"I am glad to hear it. Sometimes the purpose you need is the one you never thought to look for." Certainly the Bastion never thought he'd find himself in such a passive role in life, and yet now that it had been thrust upon him, he'd never been happier. "I cannot imagine that Danta is the easiest to work for, either." He adds; not that Remi disliked the man, only that, while things in the Grounds seemed as if they really were going quite well, he couldn't help but think the Maverick was wildly ill-suited for leadership. But then, given how many times Remi had failed as a leader, who was he to judge?

"Oh?" Grinning, Remi couldn't help but find Maea's enthusiasm charming. "Honestly, I think having someone who wants to put in the effort is half the battle. Most are content to simply criticize from the sidelines but never do anything themselves." And yes, Remi was guilty of that as well.

"If I can ever help with anything, I hope you will not hesitate to ask."

colour me outside the lines

until my shattered heart is whole

REMI

Table & Gif-sniping by SKY who deserves our love and affection for always.

Maea

Oh, when the world is burning

"He is embracing chaos, let's just put it that way," she murmured, rubbing at the tip of her nose. "But... while he really doesn't seem to, I get the feeling that he really does care about this place. And about the ancients in general. I think that's more important than sticking to conventional leadership practices." Like opening letters, and keeping things organized. "Aside from that, he's probably the most carefree person I've ever met. Makes me want to loosen up more," she laughed.

"Yeah? Then I'm glad I can offer that, at least. And I'll make sure to let you know if something happens." Rubbing her hands together, she blew on them and looked around for another fire to warm them by. With the day wearing on, the crowd at the market was beginning to flow away towards jobs and homes, ships and wagons; lunchtime was drawing to a close, and Maea was reminded that she too had a lot of work left to get done.

Don't walk away

kidnap me from my reality & crushed pieces of my soul

"Ah, right." Having learned admittedly very little about Dygra, Remi can only nod. "Running a region is much harder than most give their leaders credit for." The Bastion remarks with a shrug. "Even doing a bad job of it takes quite a bit of effort, so when things are going more or less smoothly...it generally means there is a good deal of work going into it."

Glancing over his shoulder at Maea to see if the ancient was joking or not about loosening up, Remi can only snort a small huff of laughter. For all the wonderful things the loreseeker had become, loose was perhaps not one of the first words the Bastion would use to describe her. Not that it was a bad thing, of course, and if she felt the desire to soften some of her edges, he'd be keen to see what such a transformation might lead to.

Noting the slight dispersion in the crowds as well, Remi sighs softly before glancing back toward the stall holding the large canvas for him. "Well, I should be getting back." He murmured almost apologetically. "But it was lovely to run into you, and if I do not see you before the Ball, then I shall look for you on the dancefloor."

colour me outside the lines

until my shattered heart is whole

REMI

Table & Gif-sniping by SKY who deserves our love and affection for always.

Maea

Oh, when the world is burning

It was true, and Maea had to admit that she probably hadn't been giving the Maverick enough credit. Not verbally and certainly not so that he could hear it, despite the many little things he had made her feel welcome and seen. "Mmh, I should probably say more nice things to him," she murmured; then scrunched her nose in pretend at the look Remi gave her. Alright, she really was worse than just uptight - try tense, wary and standoffish. Better?

Humming in regretful understanding, Maea offered Remi a quick hug as they said their farewells. "And I'll see if I can stop by your place sometime before LongNight," she returned, curious to see the place he had chosen to live with his husband. "I'll be off to the Climb for a bit after the ball, but it shouldn't be too long of a stay." She had every intention of putting as many doors as possible between herself and the rest of the world before the long darkness.

Much as she would have loved to drag her heels and keep talking, duty called. So with a final wave goodbye, Maea veered off to go on her own way, hunched against the damp cold of the wind and actually looking forward to huddle up in a merchant's office for an hour or two. At least she'd have time to get warm.


{Fin} <3

Don't walk away