From being an Abandoned who had rarely left the Hollowed Grounds, to embracing the call of adventure, to dying and being reborn first as an Ascended and then as an Ancient, Maea has gone through quite the amount of changes in her life. One thing remains common, though, in her attempts to find out just where she belongs; she’s always had a craving for knowledge which has brought her to so many places and to meet so many people here in Caido. We can’t wait to see what else is in store for her!
Congratulations, Maea!
Credits
Court of the Fallen was created in October of 2018 by Odd, Honey, and Crooked.
Skinning and hosting by the epically talented Kaons, and functionality fanciness by the coding magic of Neowulf. If you ever see either of them around, make sure to show them some love!
They carved the way for a quieter afternoon, as promised. Letters and rounds completed, trainings settled for the day, patrols cast upon the next set of warriors, and no other tasks set to follow them through the evening. A rare event, and probably to be rarer still, and so Deimos set upon the moments as he often did, with purpose and precision.
One of the few extra rooms had already been converted to a nursery upon Evie’s latest news. Bits and pieces here and there when they had time, a few more plants adorning surfaces, cabinets and rocking chairs and piles of things to be sorted. The Sword hadn’t taken to creating or manifesting everything yet, but the latest notions had been the crib itself.
Settled upon the floor, long legs outstretched, he handed Evie a sketch of a rudimentary design – expecting and wanting perfection – but opinions as well. The diagram was a blueprint of the carved wood, with insets of mountains along the timber, roaming wolves and luxere dotting the landscape. Roughened charcoal had marked and labeled a few potential colors, from darker wood to lighter, and then different bars and lattices for other perspectives. “What do you think?”
Come rest your bones next to me And toss all your thoughts out to the sea
Sitting on the floor has become a little too difficult with the growth of her belly, so Evie is perched on the footstool for the rocking chair beside Deimos, idly swaying it back and forth with little twitches of her heels. She sits soaking in the half-completed room, enjoying the plentiful sunlight streaming through the light, gauzy curtains, and startles slightly when Deimos holds out the diagram to her. Refocusing, she takes it with light, eager fingers, settling it over her lap to peer over it. The wolves and luxere are perfect foils of dark and light, both representing loyalty and family, all set on a backdrop of the home they both love so dearly. Her eyes soften visibly as her fingertips trace just beside the luxere, careful not to smudge the charcoal.
"I love the figures," she murmurs, equally pleased that he hadn't chosen to go with representations of the Evergreen and Sword such as cats or unicorns. A weight of comparison she doesn't want for their child. Tapping her finger near the notes he left, she leans sideways slightly to bend their heads together for consideration. "I think darker wood will make a great backdrop if we paint the wolves white, and the luxere can glow that way." Whether they'll need to paint it or he can craft and conjure the crib with the colors imbued is a matter of technicality. "These bars are safest, but I think lattice down here where the baby won't be?" Her eyes go to his from beneath her ginger fringe, gauging whether he agrees.
I'll pull up each of our anchors So we can get lost, you and me
He waited, for manners of approval or lack thereof, smiling as he watched her either daze off or return to their sanction. While she studied his paper, he did the same to her, careful and exact, trying to pinpoint where any notions or thoughts seemed to blend astray; if she was ailing, hurting, or otherwise unwell from the child growing within. When nothing came to light, his gaze adjusted, brow arching as she perused and gathered her thoughts.
Deimos was not one to place his, or her’s, sentiments onto a babe who’d be capable of becoming someone for themselves. No long, daunting Sword shadows, no hovering Evergreen beacons. Choices, nuances, and journeys would be carved in their own namesakes, and not for their parents – so to even begin outlining details of their lives into another’s seemed presumptuous and difficult to him. He wouldn’t, and neither would she, and so the youth could have a backdrop of the shelter, the world, they’d come into instead. “I like that,” he murmured in return, already beginning to alter the design on another draft; charcoal mixing along the darker wood and leaving the white imprints of the luxere alone. “Sounds good.” Pausing, wondering about sentimentality, his eyes lifted back to hers. “Do you want me to make it, or shall we construct it together?”
Come rest your bones next to me And toss all your thoughts out to the sea
She's certainly not unwell, and thank all the gods for it. After seeing how Hotaru and Cordelia had suffered with their twins, Evie thanks all her lucky stars for such a simple and unobtrusive pregnancy. Even the normal fatigue and cravings had been minimal and manageable - a real blessing given how much of a foodie she is.
"I don't think I have the energy for building, but if you'd leave the figures unpainted? I'd like to do that." It had been a newer hobby when she and Deimos had first reunited after the war, and she has continued to dabble throughout the years, though she doesn't think it will ever be more than a decently-skilled pastime. Still, it would be meaningful for her to be the one to paint it, and to feel more involved without having to put forth more physical effort. "I was thinking though, while you work on making it - we're quite close to the change of the season now, we should probably start settling on names." They'd thrown a few around here and there, but had yet to sit down and contemplate the idea with focused intent.
I'll pull up each of our anchors So we can get lost, you and me
Nodding, and wishing somehow he could grant all that energy back to her, he placed the figures and drawings down, and began to bring them to life. Tangible notions instead of mere sketches – portions and pieces of wood purposefully light to give her the opportunity to paint them with the highlights of their minds, lattice-works and boards, longer proponents meant to hold, others meant to withstand. Only when they’d become a neat but still somewhat scattered pile along the floor, did he unearth a little, mild snort, and stand from the surface, taking hold of sections in his hands.
The subject of names should’ve been expected, but his eyes widened still. It made the sentiments all the more a reality – not that crafting cribs didn’t - and his face settled swiftly into a wider, if slightly mischievous, grin. “Probably. Did you have any that you really wanted?” Figments of ancestry she wanted to honor? Aspects of places, people, held close to her heart? Or something new altogether – an identity all their own, yet again.
His mind reeled over other aspects, until pinpointing on latest conversations. “Kiada suggested something starting with Ere…but could not remember the rest.” But he’d gone on his own search thereafter.
Come rest your bones next to me And toss all your thoughts out to the sea
Evie watches the notions come to life, eternally entranced by his creations and the way they come into the world as easily as breathing. While he does, she uses her magic given the quickly crowding floor and summons her notebook in the corner to her fingertips, where she opens it and pulls the pencil from the spine to go over the few she'd already written down.
"There weren't many naming traditions in the Grounds aside from sharing the first letter of a parent's name, which I wouldn't mind. Though I'd prefer we only do that for opposing genders; a boy with an E name, or a girl with a D name." Otherwise, in ehr mind, they would risk having too similar of names the way siblings often did. Adding the same gender into the mix would only cement that. "My father's name was David, and my mother's was Maria. Neither Sam nor I followed in that tradition, so it wouldn't be tarnished to me." The way nearly everything else is when thinking of her family and the archaic symbolisms and rules they'd held to. "I'd prefer a name that doesn't have a more popular shortened name, like mine." Nicknames are delightful, but when Evie is more popular and tasteful than Evelyn, it seems ridiculous to pick the name that will never be uttered instead of simply naming them the easier version.
"A name starting with Ere has an E though! Maybe we can make a game of it, attach some endings to it and see what sounds best? Likeeeee Erec?" She starts them off with a smile, writing it down in her little book as she goes, content to scratch off the ones that don't work out so long as it ensures they don't double back or say them twice.
I'll pull up each of our anchors So we can get lost, you and me
Pieces began to slide into place, and he was content to work through the motions, hands and mind occupied in corresponding intervals – chasing away any looming restlessness. He couldn’t recall any naming traditions within Isilme, they were more hellbent on war and invasions than anything else, so his brow arched at the segments of names for opposing genders, on alphabetic hymns that almost made him laugh. “We could try it.” Pausing, tilting his head, he studied the shapes in his palms, and then clicked more into their firmer segments. “I took my father’s name for my last,” which she now shared; so there’d be no reason for dual Ignatiuses running about, “and my mother was Stone.” None of his siblings followed any similar sentiments, so he wrinkled his nose again, figuring those weren’t going to take shape in any of their children.
No popular names – though he did grin at her compunction.
Maneuvering around other portion, he wasn’t certain about…Erec. “Ere…,” he hemmed and hawed, and now one could see why he’d named his companions after family members – a much easier task. “Erosion.” At which he laughed, clearly not meaning it.
Come rest your bones next to me And toss all your thoughts out to the sea
Evie's nose unintentionally wrinkles at the name Stone, certain that their child would be tortured by their peers with such a title. "Wordsworth is a terrible name for a child, so that nixes all surnames." She wouldn't want to lend any honor or credence to her father either, may he rot in his grave. Given the letter Amalia had shown her, Evie is quite happy to be the one to squash the Wordsworth line forever, with intent and malice.
Evie barks a laugh unexpectedly at the departure from real names, and then casts Deimos a feigned stink-eye for having startled it out of her. "I'm not deigning to write that one down," she responds haughtily, though her twitching lips give her away plainly. Tapping her pencil to her lips, she hums, wondering what in the world kind of name Kiada could have been thinking of. "Eremias? I can think of more girl names than boys starting with Ere unfortunately." Not to say that Kiada's name wasn't initially a girls name, so maybe they're chasing their tails without that context given Evie won't name a girl with that letter. "Eremon? Erebus?"
I'll pull up each of our anchors So we can get lost, you and me
He laughed again at the segments of ‘Wordsworth’ being granted to a child – incapable of imagining an infant toddling about with such a moniker. At the very least, in all the other realms of seriousness, they were gaining tractions in amusement over the ridiculous follies – and understanding despite their teasing notions, none of these titles would befall one of theirs.
Deimos stuck his tongue out at her for the rejection of ‘Erosion’, maneuvering around the room again as he placed another portion of the crib together. The wood slid together neatly, intricately, as designed, and he took a few moments to test the proportions by shaking them. When nothing fell apart, he persisted, grabbing hold of another as he thought. The last portions rounded and sounded off felt more familiar to his ears – though he couldn’t place it – perhaps in a book or something. So his brows furrowed, voice coming along with certainty. “Erebos.”
Come rest your bones next to me And toss all your thoughts out to the sea
Evie watches him between glancing down at her notebook, grinning sharply at his wrinkled nose and protruding tongue or fondly observing the way he shakes and presses on various hinges to ensure their safety. His pause makes her do the same, unsure what has caught his ear among them offerings and willing to wait out the time it takes for him to consider.
The return he gives is certain, solid, with a slightly different sound. Evie hums, rolling it on her tongue. "Erebos. I like the 'o' sound more actually. Feels newer, but still regal like yours." Not something so archaic as the ancient figure with the name she'd once read in one of Sam's books; never the type of material she was inclined to pick up herself. "You seem to like that one a lot. Top of the list for now?" She shoots him a grin, happy to do so but also poking fun at the other lackluster options she'd flung his way.
"Evelyn and Evie are much simpler than Deimos. The only E names I can think that match it would be plain, like Elliot." So perhaps that's a bit of a dead end. E names seem to fit better with Deimos' style name. "Emmett? Elias? Ezekiel?" Her pencil taps against her lip as she shoots them out, choosing only ones she's already partial to in order to see if they hold a candle to their current choice.
I'll pull up each of our anchors So we can get lost, you and me
He hadn’t ever considered his name ‘regal’, but he’d take it with another light laugh and the audible snap of the wood coming together again. In the interim of their word play, he’d managed to build the back of the crib with little issue, and now reached along the latticework, smoothing out some of the edges with his earth magic. “Yes,” in agreement, to the top of the list.
As for the others, he hemmed and hawed silently. Ezekiel had been Noah’s brother’s name, if he could recall, and that wouldn’t go well. Instead of saying no outright though, he rattled off some others that might be contention, or hold water to her ears. “Ethan, Evan, Edgar?” Nothing quite as suitable as the one prior, but he also meandered around and away from any recruits or warriors he knew, either in the past or present. "Ernest...," then wrinkled his nose immediately in dislike. "Emile?"
Come rest your bones next to me And toss all your thoughts out to the sea
Evie obligingly - and dramatically - flips to a new page where she makes two columns for each gender and a third for names that could work for either, and puts Erebos firmly at the top of the male side. It's a lovely name, and she's quite happy to leave it there.
Unfortunately, the others that Deimos shares makes her nose wrinkle, and she can tell by the way he makes no commentary on her own that he likely feels the same about hers as she does about his. "Emile is the only decent one of those, and I still don't love it." But shouldn't they have at least one other option? It's not like either of them has ever done this before, so social norms weren't exactly relevant, but it feels a little too easy. "Emrys? Elwen?" She shrugs to herself and turns her gaze back to Deimos. "Honestly I'm not liking many of the options with that letter. But it feels too easy, right? I don't think most parents settle on a favorite that quickly do they?" Humor hangs on her lips, at a loss but not unpleasantly so.
I'll pull up each of our anchors So we can get lost, you and me
Once the latticework was smoothed over, he placed it amidst the structure, stepping back to admire the work. Content with how it came together so far, he brought his attention along the other pieces remaining, and beginning to parse his way through the front.
As an individual who commonly made decisions through machinations, calculations, and unfurling pathways, the ones marked by baby names was a newfound terrain. He probably should’ve asked Ru any advice on the matter at hand, but given where they were now, it scarcely mattered. He made a face at Emyrs and Elwen, unfortunately incapable of masking the features in Evie’s presence, and pondered over the sentiments at large. “I have no idea.” They were fortunate he’d studied cribs while window shopping; otherwise everything else would be murky and out of his depths too. “But does it matter, if it was easy?” Something had to be – in this grand scheme of things – with all the chaos, all the loom, doom, and gloom. “We do not have to follow everyone else’s path.”
Here he gave her a boyish smile, and a firm, collected breath. “And I can nearly guarantee no one knew what they were doing the first time either.” Easing that burden off their shoulders, he slid the foremost piece into place.
Come rest your bones next to me And toss all your thoughts out to the sea
Evie stretches her legs out in front of her as the pieces find their way to the proper sections, allowing her more leg room. If she truly wanted to she would leave the footstool and go to the actual rocking chair, but for now she's happy to sit hunched over her belly writing in her notebook while watching Deimos work.
It's sometimes a joy to know he's as clueless as she is, and Evie laughs quietly at their joint blindness. "Maybe it is that easy. Usually by time I'm involved, parents have already settled on a name." While she has brought many babies into the world and attended to their milestone checkups, it seems she still has much to learn about having one herself. "Okay, how about we leave that one for now and focus on the girls? I think I may have put us in a bind with the letter tradition, let me think of some D names..." Unfortunately the first to come to mind is Dahlia given the current state of affairs, but Evie refuses to let that throw her off the topic. "Dove? Delphi? Danae?"
I'll pull up each of our anchors So we can get lost, you and me
