[se] and I say bright

Once Deimos was assured Evie was safe, content, and healthy (and somewhat watched over by companions alike), he’d begun his short rounds towards family, outlining surprises but not granting any over written word. It would ruin the notions of seeing shocked, surprised, or enthralled faces. Besides, by Ru’s vague terms, there seemed to be other things underlying in her wake.

He’d flown from mountains to King’s End, over multitudes of snowy squalls and long, illustrious fields, to portions built up since Sunjata’s reign. The Sword wouldn’t admit to any growth from the Flood, not without some notion of a wrinkled nose and petty disregard, but his narrowed eyes took in the floating stalls as he breezed over, pondering over the circumstances, and the ghosts, the wraiths, the specters, skimming along their routes and roots too. Even here, there was no escape from the slips of the veil.

Thereafter, he landed, shifting from massive thunderbird to rugged man a fair distance away, striving not to alarm anyone nearby. From those moments on, he glanced at passersby, intending to spot Ru amidst and amongst the small crowd formed nearby.

deimos

Never let them drain the river of your soul

eyes on fire, you are the unforecasted storm

It's not often that shrouded, occluded messages of exciting news are met with equally vague promises of the same, so Hotaru is admittedly full of pent-up frenetic energy as she flits through the small crowd of shoppers and travelers while waiting on Deimos' arrival. He's easy enough to spot in the sky given she's watching it so closely, and from there it's merely a matter of slipping through the crowd to where she had seen him touch down to find him as a man.

Her excitement makes her glow from within, but the new, endless magic makes her glow outwardly in a far more literal way. Like moving sunlight Ru closes the distance between them at speed, throwing her arms around him in a vivacious display of energy and excitement that betrays how grand the news must be. "You made it!" It vibrates up and out her throat in a joyous trill, though she doesn't cling for long, hopping backwards to take in Deimos' equally glowing visage. "Okay, who goes first?" Her impish smile makes it clear she's aware her own physical changes are more obvious, but the Sword rarely ever playfully withholds information that is not delightful, and Hotaru desperately wants to know it. Badly enough that she shunts social niceties and expectations to the wayside, intent on hearing the news immediately.

the Valkyrie

Despite Ru’s stature, she’d always been difficult to miss. She’d be likely to say and believe it was due to her charm, beauty, or vivacity, but the Sword likened it to simply knowing her. How she maneuvered through a crowd. How she outwitted and outlasted. How she commanded individuals. How she encountered the rest of the world. So he saw her well before she parted away from other milling strangers, and then narrowed his eyes in brief, flickering confusion.

A glow, mighty and encompassing, surrounded her entirely. Perhaps it was new magic. Perhaps something else had happened.

It didn’t wipe away his grin though, shaking his head while she threw her arms around him. It simply remained in the back of his mind, another tightened, contorted coil lingering throughout multitudes of threads and speculations. “I did,” he noted, hands encompassing her momentarily and spinning her around until they were blatantly out of earshot. “You have done quite a bit of work here. It looks good,” not unlike the way the Grounds had begun transforming from decrepit survivors to something out of horrors, King’s End spiraled away from denizens of graves and into something habitable.

As for the range of competitive edges and news, he didn’t have the notions of rivalry in this midst. “You,” he stated, settling her upon the ground as she released and toiled.

deimos

Never let them drain the river of your soul

eyes on fire, you are the unforecasted storm

After all the prior season had burdened them with, to see her brother smiling so freely only stokes the golden flames in her chest, full to the brim with love and appreciation. Though the time has been negligible, she has missed him, and she lets him spin her out and away from the prying eyes and ears of the citizens behind him without a second thought. More than happy to be carried and whisked along like a glowing sack of potatoes.

His praise has her smiling - not her excited, reverent beaming, but something solid and proud - and carrying her head a little higher. "We don't have many extra hands, so the work is slow, but we're growing day by day," she agrees, warmth suffusing her tone. Her regional pride can't compare to what she still feels for Halo, but King's End has nestled into her heart far faster than the Valkyrie ever expected.

It tempers her excitement for but a moment, as the moment Deimos encourages her to go first it returns like an ocean swell to fill her up from within. More sunlight than lightning now, but still always gold. "Frey made me their demigod," falls from her lips in an excitable rush, each word trying to beat the next off her tongue. And though she has always suspected that Deimos never found the position appealing, he surely knows that she always has. She the eternally devout, the one who had stood by the Moon Goddess even in the wake of her parents' deaths and how the world had clamored against her with accusations of treachery. Hotaru had never expected it of Frey, had been content to serve them faithfully without such gifts, but to be chosen...it's everything Hotaru has ever wanted, since she was just a little girl in the foothills, hoping she'd someday shine brighter than her firefly namesake.

the Valkyrie

He wouldn’t permit the sudden and bitter onslaught of missing her, or that wholly encompassing loss, well along his chest. Even if it suddenly blistered at the pride in her voice and the wake of the earth churning; pressing it down, down, down because they’d agreed and he’d soldiered onward just as he always had.

Didn’t make it any easier though.

So he smiled, eyes lowering to rest on her features and wait – stunned, momentarily, by the words as they hit, echo, and then cycled back through. His gaze widened, shocked, bewildered, and then not, returning to rest in their habitual state as he shook his head, laughed in wonder. Because not everyone thought like him, because others had hopes and dreams of aspirations beneath a god’s ilk, and it was Frey, which meant she was safe.

It was okay. She’d be okay. And he’d repeat that to himself a thousand times over so it built like another one of his walls. That herald wasn’t like so many of them – and he bit the machinations, finding himself at war with his own thoughts. These weren’t chains. She hadn’t lost her power. “Congratulations,” he gave instead, entirely earnest and sincere. Along the way, she’d earned the prowess, the respect, and the honor, rising from Abandoned, to Hybrid, to demigod formidability. “What a fearsome thought though,” he teased, waiting for her rebuttal, granting another grin. “What are you meant to do with this newfound power?”

deimos

Never let them drain the river of your soul

eyes on fire, you are the unforecasted storm

He is not the only one to be daunted by the idea of becoming part-god, beholden to the herald who reshapes you. Hotaru had seen the effects firsthand on Sunjata, Remi, Nate, Wessex. If anyone had reason to fear, it would be her.

But she has equally seen how Frey had saved Sunjata and continues to. How they had granted him as many of his shifts and powers as possible. How they ask so little of him, and abide by the ideals they had presented to Hotaru from the moment she visited their shrine. It is why her faith has never wavered in Frey. It's why it does not waver now; and she hopes Deimos can see it, feel it, so that it might ease some of those concerns even if it will not dash them entirely. This is still Deimos they're talking about.

His congratulations feel sincere, and she basks in it, glowing inside and out with the force of her happiness. Though as her lips move to form her gratitude, they are frozen instead in sisterly pouting, broken only by her cherubic laugh that smacks plainly of mischief. "I would say the goal is to create chaos, but that aligns more firmly with Dygra," she titters. It shouldn't be complimentary, but she preens all the same at the idea that people should be wary of her newfound skills. "Truly though, I don't have much of a plan aside from self-gratification and the pursuit of power. That seems right up Frey's alley. At least until they have need of me." Given how infrequently Sunjata has been called upon, she's uncertain when that will ever happen, especially given the Flood is far more physically capable than the Valkyrie. But she will be ready all the same.

the Valkyrie

He worked on settling; something in his ribcage burned and his mind whirled, striving not to unwind into hordes of machinations. Even if Hotaru was confident in the alteration, he was not, but he’d pretend for her sake and worry elsewhere, like most other things. Any notion of unease was only to be noted in the restless edges of his movements, attempting to root himself down into the very grounds they stood upon with an unyielding force.

His brow arched in response to chaos, because he’d never been told of that sort of brand of Frey (Dygra, or Ludo, certainly), but the semblances of ‘not much plans’ before reforming back to her old self – the Valkyrie of Helovia – caused an abrupt snort from his lungs. Self-gratification and power had been something seemingly always on her realm of calculations, no matter which land, and perhaps that was the notion that finally allowed him some sentiment of peace. “So not much has changed,” he added with a wry grin, permitting a loosening grip on his sentiments and emotions. Because at the very heart and soul of her, Ru was Ru, passionate and zealous, confident and seeking, intending to claim whatever laid in her path – and if this signaled some return to those bold endeavors, then maybe he could accept it without too many consternations.

deimos

Never let them drain the river of your soul

eyes on fire, you are the unforecasted storm

Hotaru has never been the tried-and-true optimist, but of the two she knows she is the inadequate stand-in when it comes to matters like these. She contents herself with the plan of proving her own safety through longevity; time, trial, and test alike. Actions are Deimos' preferred currency, and she hopes to repay his love and concern with it tenfold. Her own faith guides her, but the rest she will have to prove.

His sentiment makes her head fall back with a bark of a laugh that is far from her normal controlled elegance, caught out and happy to be. "More of a return to form, I think. New challenges, new horizons." For years she had been content with her might and accomplishments, and in part she had languished and rusted for exactly that. Now she feels like a polished Valkyrie of old; still impetuous but wizened now, voracious but focused.

One such manner of growth is her ability to look beyond herself, and she reminds him of his own news with a cheeky shove of her fist against his bicep and a toothy grin. "So what did you have to share?"

the Valkyrie

Actions reflected words; had the power of their testaments and convictions embroiled within. Perhaps everything Hotaru had said and uttered and spoke would come true – through her willpower, challenges, prospects, and dominions. He’d be disappointed he couldn’t see the everyday growth, the nuances and alterations in how she’d returned to form, but eventually it could, would, come all together. Maybe he wouldn’t be so worried then, or they’d have more answers than now – he bit it down, grounded into the commitments and tandems of his own promises.

So he smiled, granted her a nod and a grin, and ignored the cheeky shove, pretending it was something akin to a gnat. His own news hadn’t been forgotten, but he certainly hadn’t wanted to push it into her glow and announcements.

How Ru would respond to upcoming changes could go in various ways too – and though Kiada’s sentiments had gone well, Deimos could never rest on his laurels. Not with how many times people had altered before him, and circumstances she'd been dealt with when it came to children. So he kept his voice low, a rumbling whisper, but his corresponding grin was one of earnest contentment and happiness. “Evie is pregnant.”

deimos

Never let them drain the river of your soul

eyes on fire, you are the unforecasted storm

Such open and unfettered expressions are rare on Deimos, even in Hotaru's presence, and in the wake of happy nuptials she begins to wonder and titter within her own head, ideas abound until he lays it all clear. Hotaru gapes like a fool, mouth open and eyes wide, comically arrested by the information and left stunned stupid and silent. Her throat tries to work for a few long seconds, failing at every turn. Instead, some rough noise comes out of her and she loops one arm around his neck from where he is bent near her ear to drag him close and hug him tight.

Her eyes burn, lashes coated liberally with salt within moments. And though she has all the reason in the world to envy, resent, or ache, there is only joy for him to see and feel should he peer past the skin. Bittersweet only in the sense of respect and acknowledgment of all he has suffered to get here, and how happy she is to see him grasp it with both hands when sometimes she never thought they'd make it out of their darkest hours.

"Oh my g-gods," her voice warbles wetly, free hand coming up to briefly press at the back of his nape while the other splays between his shoulderblades. "Gods! Oh I'm so happy for you, I'm so - so -" and he should be the one emotional, she scolds herself, but she finds herself a wreck in this moment. Maternal to her very fibers, as devoted to him as any sister could be, and torn asunder with how fiercely she feels on his behalf to see all of that come together and shine the way she's always wanted to see.

Pulling away, she wipes pitifully at her eyes, trying to regain some measure of composure. "How - how far along is she?" And for a moment, just one single moment, she regrets the timing of her acceptance to become Frey's for the way it strips her of her healing touches, even if Evie certainly doesn't need it. It would have been an honor to fill some sort of nurse or midwife role. Instead, she will just have to be the best aunt she can possibly conceive of being.

the Valkyrie

For amusement’s sake he watched her striving to piece together everything beforehand. When reality finally hit, he then scrutinized for something akin to sadness or sorrow, for worlds to blend and revisit the pains and aches stemming from tragic experiences. However, it all seemed to awaken and unfurl in rapport and contentment, overflowing happiness, abundance of radiant appeasement and triumph.

Then he could let himself revel in it too – hugging and snagging her in return, allowing a warm laugh to burst through his chest. Still it was soft and muffled, against her and whispering into the world around them, and while he didn’t voice everything he was feeling, she did it for him. “Thank you,” he extended eventually, when the emotions were bright and vivid, when the colors burst between, when hope felt like something tangible instead of enigmatic portions of dread. And no, years before in their echoes and undulations of what it meant to be rendered into nothing but pieces and shackles, tethers and lines, he never would have expected this.

But it was growth and healing and allowing oneself to do all of that – and finding another willing to do so alongside.

He wiped at his own eyes before laughing again, shaking his head to rid himself of things that felt vulnerable. “She is due in Deepfrost.” Ru would understand the parallels of the unknown rippling through; first time ventures and confusion notwithstanding. “I intended to shop discretely while I was here,” or at least acquire some ideas that he could simply recreate at home. He gave an impish grin, tilting his head vaguely. “You would know best.”

deimos

Never let them drain the river of your soul

eyes on fire, you are the unforecasted storm

It takes longer for Hotaru to compose herself, admittedly. She had teased and needled about Deimos having children someday in the past, but somehow it had never actualized in her mind. She certainly hadn't expected to have such an intense emotional reaction on her own behalf either, but she aches with how solidly she knows Deimos deserves this. Having children had changed her forever. Now, she can watch parenthood change the closest family she has, and she can't wait to see it happen.

The thought forces her to wipe her eyes a second time around but at least Deimos had to as well. Composure settles on her shoulders quickly enough, though her eyes remain pink-rimmed and glassy. Gods, but Deepfrost is so soon. She'd been in Halo recently and hadn't even noticed a difference in Evie. Certainly not twins then, she'd be willing to bet.

"I would," she agrees with a matching impish grin, "and now I have the perfect disguise. We can shop around but I can do the purchasing, and you can be yourself posing as a friend?" He would be far too recognizable otherwise, so she puffs her lip out slightly, considering. "Or we could try and disguise you, though we're short on materials."

the Valkyrie

He wouldn’t sink into the rubbled roads of ruin that led them here – eventually the stretch of paths had turned into trails of their own making; unwinding, unfurling, into tangible bliss. They were reflections now, of all the hardships and long-fought victories, savoring what they had created. He wouldn’t argue whether they deserved it either; no need for the debate or discourse when the answers appealed directly in front of their eyes.

The Sword laughed as they both pretended to dash away something else; searching for composition amongst the unknown lines drawn and skirted. The impishness was enough, the juvenility more to sink into, the arch of his brow appearing all over again as she declared disguises. “Do you? A new trick?” Unless she was about to pull out some other created notions – which he was half-inclined to do anyway. Or hide under his invisibility cloak, make her look foolish and bizarre as she talked to herself.

His height, dominion, and actions in this life preceded him, it was true enough, so he snorted at the implications. On a long sigh and huff of boyish air, his gaze went towards the market a fair distance away, people milling about on the street. “Would a hat and sunglasses be enough?”

deimos

Never let them drain the river of your soul

eyes on fire, you are the unforecasted storm

New trick? Always. Hotaru's grin remains her own, but her hair bleeds from the roots downward into inky black to better match his, eyebrows smudging the same color and skin losing golden shades into something more ivory. Her recognizable heterochromia fixes itself into hazel tones, one closing in a wink. "What do you think? Incognito enough?" And if she puffs up like a proud bird, waiting to be praised, well - that's simply just like her.

Turning, she hums and props her hands on her hips. "Maybe if we also tie up your hair beneath the hat," she agrees, and turns in a whirl of hair that still glows but is barely perceptible now with the darker shades beneath. "I'll be right back!" And off she goes with a skip in her step, heart as light as her feet, to fetch the hat and glasses and return with them in all of a moment to hand them over to the Sword. She'd been fair with the glasses, plain black, but the hat is a horrible plaid that has her grinning unrepentantly as she holds it out.

the Valkyrie