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+---- Thread: Simon says, get the fuck up (/showthread.php?tid=11034)
RE: Simon says, get the fuck up - Kaisel - 04-16-2025
At the insistence of her finger, Kaisel did his best to put a lid on it. All of him suddenly stilled, even his breath, but inside his heart still galloped away with unbridled joy. The attempt to not laugh only made everything that much funnier, and his cheeks puffed out with the strain of the containment. He ducked into the corner of his jacket, burying his head against his side, and hers. He pulled his jacket over him as far as he could manage, looking very much like a deviously caped crusader, as he stifled his laughter against the fabric of his shirt. He cast a furtive glance over a button as she drew his attention towards the unfolding scene.
The anticipation of something more helped squash the remnants of his hysterics, instead becoming a hum that jittered against his teeth once in a while, lips quirked up each time. [say]"Clever,"[/say] he murmured in response, attention fixated on the cocky beach bum. [say]"Although you might be responsible for a child or two tonight,"[/say] Kaisel smirked, one finger resting on his upper lip while the rest curled against his chin, propping up his head. His eyes widened slowly and his eyebrows lifted, a toothy, breathy laugh escaping him as the victim blundered through his return to the table. [say]"Never mind, there's no action happening for him after that."[/say]
Flicking his gaze to the bar to watch for the next unfortunate soul, Kaisel held out his other arm in a fist towards Flora, a quiet bid for some knuckles for a job well done. [say]"I always knew you were an evil genius."[/say]
RE: Simon says, get the fuck up - Flora - 04-16-2025
Flora bumps her knuckles against his with a soft clink of rings, solemn as a priest and twice as smug. [say]"Flora Kaito-Taliesin: Queen, bartender, chaos enabler,"[/say] she declares under her breath, gaze flicking back to the bar like a proud scientist watching her experiment spiral wildly into success. She doesn’t say what it means, that he called her a genius, but in light of every else calling her an idiot lately, the smile that curls on her lips is a little softer, a little more real beneath the glint of gold.
[say]"Two more drinks and that poor guy’s gonna confess to something completely unrelated,"[/say] she adds, elbow nudging Kaisel again. [say]"Like, ‘I lied about owning a boat’ or ‘I still sleep with a childhood stuffed animal.’”[/say] Her voice drops to a dramatic whisper: [say]"The berry sees all."[/say]
Another patron approaches the bar, and Flora perks up, positively electric now with anticipation. [say]"Round two?"[/say] she asks, brows lifting as she reclines back against the booth cushion, stretching her legs out beneath the table until her heel just barely taps his. [say]"Or should we really be responsible adults and sneak out the back before my staff catches on?"[/say]
RE: Simon says, get the fuck up - Kaisel - 04-16-2025
One eyebrow lifted in question as Kaisel suddenly turned his head towards her, the grin of comradery faltering into confusion. He'd been going along with everything she said until—[say]"hold on, are you saying you don't sleep with a childhood stuffed animal?"[/say] He leaned back from her, his look judgmental in all the worst ways. [say]"Huh,"[/say] he says with the faintest smile, resuming his original position beside her. He glanced back towards the view of the bar. [say]"Explains a lot."[/say] He would not be elaborating further.
He remained perched on the table while she reclined beside him, the after effects of the wild thrill just before leaving a noticeable void now as the adrenaline ebbed. He rocked his one foot back and forth against hers idly, some of his buried anxiety over her future unspooling with the motion. He looked under his arm at her as she spoke, lifting it up slightly, almost like a wing as his hands stayed on the tabletop. [say]"And what would they do to you?"[/say] he scoffed. [say]"Flora Kaito-Taliesin: Queen, bartender..."[/say] he spoke in a voice that tried it's best to mimic her tone and cadence, though he was by no means a trained impressionist so it left much to be desired. He stressed the bartender part and trailed off pointedly. He wasn't so dense as to miss her point though, so he relented, slumping against the table first. His arms folded together against the polished wood, and he rested his head on them, glancing at her sideways and talking over his arm. [say]"Sure, let's get out of here before someone's date goes so south we'll feel obligated to owe them flowers. Out of sight... out of mind."[/say] He didn't move though, because part of him wasn't sure where they'd go, of if there was even a they beyond those doors. He couldn't steal all her time, but if they got up, if they left this little nook of the world they'd stolen for themselves all this while, could they make it again out there, or would it all come rushing back and she'd head to her rooms to longingly thumb that note some more.
RE: Simon says, get the fuck up - Flora - 04-17-2025
Flora gasps, scandalized. [say]"Excuse you,"[/say] she says, sitting up just enough to point a sharp, accusing finger at him. [say]"I'll have you know Mr. Bumble is a cultural icon and a war hero, and if you’d like to question his credentials, he accepts duel challenges Tuesday through Friday, after his morning nap."[/say] Her voice is perfectly deadpan, but the gleam in her eyes betrays the smirk tugging at her mouth. She sinks back down and sighs, theatrically tragic. [say]"Besides, I'd said he'd confess to something unrelated. I always bring up my sleeping preferences on a date."[/say]
His foot nudges hers and she doesn’t pull away, letting the quiet motion tether her to something that isn’t spinning out of control. It’s not much, but it’s steady; enough to hold her in place a little longer.
She huffs a quiet laugh at his impression, equal parts amused and fond. [say]"Honestly, they'd just make that drink into an official cocktail and name it after one of my failed relationships, I expect."[/say] Her fingers drift along the polished wood of the table, tracing a lazy path through a constellation of old water rings. The Koa, probably, for how the dragoon had worn his heart on his sleeve even when Flora had pulled out the fabric shears and began cutting.
Kaisel slumps, and Flora glances over as his voice follows, softer now. Her gaze lingers on him for a moment—his arms folded, his face turned to her, the quiet weight of the moment stretching long between them. The edges of her mouth lift, crooked and tired and maybe a little sad. [say]"Okay,"[/say] she says, after a moment. Not like she’s giving in, but like she’s agreeing to something unspoken. But still, she doesn't move either.
Instead, because she has long nails and he's all hunched forward, Flora’s fingers lift from the table, drifting toward him as if pulled by some gravity too gentle to name. Her nails skim lightly over the fabric at his back—barely there, just the softest trickle of pressure down his spine. It’s absentminded, maybe, or maybe not. The kind of quiet, intimate touch that doesn’t ask for anything in return. The kind she’d learned not to offer Jack, and never dared miss until now.
RE: Simon says, get the fuck up - Kaisel - 04-17-2025
He chuckled at her clarification, at the absurdity she always willingly jumped into with him. She was one of the few who didn't admonish him for not being serious enough. He could be serious. He wasn't a child after all, though most would say otherwise. Maybe, she trusted him too, and that was a nice thought. He often had to earn it time and time again, and while he did not normally let it bother him, did not dwell on it or let it sting, sometimes it was a lonely feeling to fight for the acceptance of your friends and family. Flora knew all about that. He lifted his hands in quiet surrender, managing to speak through his continued laughter, [say]"I wouldn't dream of facing off against Mr. Bumble. I usually try to only pick fights I think I can win."[/say] Which, he did think rather highly of himself, not like he had to compensate for the lack of it that others gave him or anything, so he usually thought he could win. Against Mr. Bumble though? No shot. That'd just be GG EZ.
They both agreed, and they both remained in spite of it.
His foot stilled then, like the rest of the moment, perched on the edge of something ready to change. Whatever it would be hadn’t made itself known yet—and Kaisel, foolish as it was, hoped the answer would be nothing. Life didn't like to remain so stationary though.
He saw the subtle shift of her arm, closed his eyes against the light arc of nails against his back. It was an immediate comfort, a tingling that bloomed under her fingers and raced to the top of his head. The hairs on the back of his neck lifted slightly as goosebumps rippled across his arm. [say]"You're far too hard on yourself, you know,"[/say] he murmured over his sleeve, thinking of that last remark she'd made about naming drinks after her failed relationships. A jest, but one born from a hurt she carried and tried to cover with a smile. He exhaled loudly, and loathe as he was to do it, he lifted himself off the table and leaned a stretch up into the air with lifted arms, the motion buffeting against the lazy tracks she was tracing on his spine.
It had felt good—but so could the edge of a knife, if it scratched the right itch. He was close to her, had been ever since her and Koa had become, something. He would never risk losing that by trying to turn it into anything else.
RE: Simon says, get the fuck up - Flora - 04-17-2025
Flora chuckles under her breath, the sound soft and knowing. [say]"Believe it or not,"[/say] she says, tone dipping into something wry and self-aware, [say]"I’m not even my harshest critic."[/say] Her fingers trail once more over his back as he stretches—light as seafoam—before slipping away entirely, folding into her lap like she hadn’t just drawn something delicate between them only to let it go.
And gods, there is something there. Tension, yes, but not the wrong kind. Not the kind that should make her retreat. If Kaisel were someone else, someone simpler or more distant, she might've leaned into it. Might’ve asked him to walk her home in that particular, pointed way that didn’t actually mean home. But he wasn’t just someone else. He was Koa’s cousin, Koa’s friend. And even if Kaisel didn’t say it, she knew that still mattered, and that he was likely breaking some sort of bro-code just by sitting here with her instead of hating her out of principle.
Her voice is lighter again when she speaks, nudging them back toward safer waters. [say]"You sticking around Torchline for a bit?"[/say] she asks, looking sideways at him with a faint smile. [say]"If you are... would you maybe want to swing by my place one afternoon? Help me pack up some stuff before I move out?"[/say] Her tone is casual, but there’s something careful beneath it too. A way of asking without asking if he’d still be there—if she still gets to have this, whatever this is, even after everything else starts to change.
RE: Simon says, get the fuck up - Kaisel - 04-17-2025
The absence of her touch left an aching prickle that reverberated through him. It did not always feel like this, as if a ghost had passed through him on its way to the afterlife. How often had they brushed shoulders, sat close and felt their body heat echo off one another, even the kisses he'd peck onto her head or her cheek, they were all affectionate and loving in a way that did not burn as ice did. Maybe he'd inhaled a smidgen of blushberry, he thought absently, and shoved the sensation far away, letting them wither beneath the weight of so many other things he considered much more important.
The goosebumps vanished along with the tingle, and he breathed in after his stretch, normal instead of adrift on the coast with only the bar table to grasp.
Her question earned a thoughtful look as Kaisel pulled his arms back down and stuffed them into his jacket pockets, leaning against the back of the bench. He hadn't thought much further ahead than showing up here and getting some verification from her—that need felt like a lifetime ago now. She went on, solidifying his answer for him as she explained, kinda. She'd said it was tomorrow's problem, so he'd buried it for tonight, but ultimately she was the one in charge and if tonight ended before midnight, that was her call.
[say]"Is that your plan then?"[/say] he asked, cautious of delving into something that might yank the smile off her lips any more than today had. Then, not waiting for an answer, or actually needing one, he nodded. [say]"I'll do whatever you need."[/say] A broader grin streaked across his face then as he twisted in his seat to better face her, hands freeing from their pockets to flex his arms in front of his chest again. [say]"Sounds like you need some real muscles."[/say] That had to earn him at least one more relic point tonight.
Then, a stray thought. [say]"I haven't booked a room though."[/say]
RE: Simon says, get the fuck up - Flora - 04-17-2025
Flora hums, low and pleased, at the flex and the grin and the not-quite invitation tucked at the end of his sentence. [say]"Real muscles?"[/say] she echoes, eyeing his arms with deliberate appraisal, the sort of look that drapes itself in mischief but lets her linger long enough to flatter. [say]"Mmm. I guess I could use someone to carry all my boxes of shoes."[/say] She tips her head, curls shifting like gold leaf in the dim light. [say]"Because let's be honest, my shoes and my emotional baggage probably weigh about the same right about now."[/say]
But her smile softens as she leans back again. [say]"That is the plan,"[/say] she says finally, tone a little quieter, the shine a touch more vulnerable. [say]"We just had a meeting with all of Torchline about whether or not to protect the city or the coast and they all chose the city."[/say] She shrugs. [say]"I didn't mention my deal with Dahlia because I didn't want to sway the vote, but..."[/say] Maybe it's easier to say it now, now that there’s laughter still warm between them. [say]"So yeah. I’ve got to pack. Clear out. Find somewhere new to haunt."[/say] Then, more lightly, [say]"Everyone else in my family lives on a boat these days, so I thought maybe I'd give that a try."[/say] Nevermind that for the past few seasons she'd been sleeping on the Ark and now found it almost impossible to fall asleep without the waves rocking beneath her.
Her gaze flicks sideways to him, considering, forcing herself not to read into his admission. [say]"You want one, or are you planning on sleeping on the sand? Cause I have space at my house. The guest room is still made up from when Sohalia was staying with me."[/say] Her voice is still casual, but there's a thread of invitation there—open-ended. [say]"Or I can walk you to a nearby Inn,"[/say] Flora quickly adds.
RE: Simon says, get the fuck up - Kaisel - 04-17-2025
The thing with Flora was, she was always incandescent. Even if she was dim, she still managed to be bright.
Each comment, each joke, shined. It sometimes seemed as if the light was only there to make it harder to see anything else, so that she could keep bits and pieces hidden in the dark, doubts and sorrows tucked away in a cache of regret. Bask in her glow long enough, and you'd start to melt. The darkness would fade more and more, until all you had left was the blinding, dazzling brilliance.
He glanced at her golden radiance as it shifted and danced across the table in the curl of her hair and jests. The shadows glittered there too, flitting through the light, giving it more contrast to beam forth. He held a grin like an extended hand, like it could do more than just soften the hardships that darkened her in all the moments he didn't see, and the few he did. [say]"You've done something very admirable,"[/say] he could not understand how others couldn't see that. All that she'd risked, all that she'd given up. A queen only ever kneeled for her kingdom, after all. [say]"A house boat seems very you"[/say] he admitted, the humor creeping back over the solemnity he'd let break through. What had happened, happened, and she seemed set on a new path to forge ahead with. Whatever her actions were, wrong or right or just, Flora, it didn't change the route.
[say]"Definitely not the sand,"[/say] he said it with a surprising force, his opinion unwavering as he made a face. [say]"I'm itching just thinking about it. I honestly don't know how you stand to have it around you all the time. Shit's like stationary mites or something."[/say] No thanks. He'd stick to his stone city and the smooth polish of those rocks. Saying as much also gave him a little more time to consider her offer, and the weight in each. Something told him an Inn would be the wiser choice, given whatever little static had just passed between them, but Kaisel wasn't particularly well known for being wise. Besides, he didn't feel like she should be alone, not with all this hanging over her like a version of gallows. He couldn't save her, she didn't need saving, but he could face some of it with her, and that was perhaps better. [say]"A sleepover with Flo-ro?"[/say] He was positively wolfish with his grin. [say]"That takes me back. Can we make popcorn and you braid my hair? I'll make pancakes in the morning!"[/say]
RE: Simon says, get the fuck up - Flora - 04-17-2025
Well, Flora had said earlier she wanted to do something stupid with Kaisel, and certainly having him spend the night seemed to qualify. But then again, did it? In the grand scheme of things, there are a dozen worse decisions she could be making.
[say]"You’ll have to come see it once it’s done,"[/say] she adds, chin lifting with something like pride. [say]"The sailboat, I mean. I’m going to get her enchanted to fly."[/say] It’s said with all the nonchalance of someone announcing they’re buying new shoes.
She flashes him a grin, then, all sugar and mischief, before letting it morph into a full-body laugh at his disgust for sand. [say]"That’s why the ocean is right there,"[/say] she says, gesturing vaguely in the direction of the coast. [say]"You get itchy, you go for a swim. Instant rinse. Honestly, it’s half the appeal of living in Torchline. That, and the fact that clothes are mostly optional."[/say]
At his next comment, her grin turns sharp, almost dangerous in its delight. [say]"Oh it’s a sleepover now, huh?"[/say] she says, tilting her head at him before ruffling her fingers through his hair. [say]"Alright. But your hair’s too short to braid, so you’re out of luck there."[/say]
She plucks at her own curls and then shrugs, already scheming. [say]"Face masks and ice cream, then. The good kind, too. None of that chalky storm-churned sorbet people try to pass off as dessert."[/say] Naynay, she wanted the sort of thing with calories; comfort food. She nudges him with her foot under the table, playful and warm. [say]"And pancakes in the morning? I'll be sure Spice is around to put out any fires you start."[/say]
RE: Simon says, get the fuck up - Kaisel - 04-17-2025
Whoever thought granting Flora a pilot's license was a good idea was surely insane. Oh wait, it was Flora's idea wasn't it? Checks out. [say]"Good, then you can visit Stormbreak more often,"[/say] he offered, the words heavy with the agreement that he would definitely come see her new boat.
[say]"Oh, right, salt water is well known to reduce itching,"[/say] he huffed in response, though it quickly morphed to something a bit more devious. [say]"I can definitely get behind optional clothes though."[/say] Torchline also had a nice way of giving everyone a lovely crispy shade to their skin, that he held a fondness for. A brief stint here didn't sound so bad when she framed it like that.
He arched a 'brow at her emphasis on sleepover. [say]"What, you were only going to loan me the room for the day?"[/say] Then she was mussing up his hair, and he gave a complaining [say]"Hey!"[/say] and ducked out from under the attack, one eye squinted shut as he recovered with a laugh. He ran his hands through his hair to reset it, tempted to return the favor, but he wasn't sure he'd be alive afterwards if he tried to mess up her hair. [say]"Oooh I want strawberry,"[/say] he hummed, the taste a dream on his tongue. It scattered as she nudged him, and he elbowed her in turn. [say]"Yeah yeah, you accidentally burn something once and never live it down. Now move your ass I'm craving ice cream now."[/say] She'd have to lead the way, he was lucky he'd even managed to make it here in one piece with all his worldly travels and excellent sense of directions.
RE: Simon says, get the fuck up - Flora - 04-17-2025
Flora arches a brow, skepticism painted clear as day across her face. [say]"Stormbreak? Bold of you to invite me to the actual seat of Family power like Dahlia didn't just make me clean up broken glass with my bare hands last time I was there,"[/say] she says, casually, like she isn’t half-joking and half-dead serious. [say]"Should I wear a sign that says 'Please Don’t Stab Me, I’m Just Here for Ice Cream And To See My Stupid Friend?"[/say]
Still, the edge of the remark softens under the curl of a smile that says she'd probably go anyway, just to spite the danger.
She makes a wounded little sound at the elbow to her ribs, clutching her side with the drama of a seaside widow watching a ship vanish into storm clouds. [say]"Rude,"[/say] she declares, even as laughter slips through the edges. [say]"First you insult my home, then you insult my hospitality, and now you’re assaulting me? In my own bar?"[/say] But even so, she doesn't move. Not right away. Her aqua eyes stay on Kaisel for a long, lingering second, and something flickers there, something softer beneath all the sun and sass. The kind of look that says thank you without cheapening itself by saying it out loud.
Then, because softness isn't sustainable and her knees are already too close to buckling, she kicks lightly at his ankle and grins. [say]"You're the one in the way, genius,"[/say] she says, chin tilting in challenge. [say]"Or did you want me to crawl over you? Because I will. I’ve got long legs and no shame, and you’re sitting directly between me and the door."[/say] Her brows arch like twin crescent moons, daring him to test her. [say]"Last chance before I start climbing."[/say]
RE: Simon says, get the fuck up - Kaisel - 04-17-2025
Oh.
Yeah, he kinda forgot about—that.
Crazy that living with the Family had become normalized for him. He didn't like that one bit.
His face lost all color as her casual-but-actually-its-not-casual-at-all remark slid free with some extra bite to it than the other glittery jokes they'd shared. It's by no means cutting, but it landed with a flinch all the same and he inhaled audibly. [say]"Well, maybe make sure it flies really fast and we can outrun them? And I'll take a running leap onto a rope ladder that you drop and something will probably explode behind me so it'll look awesome. Equipping it with cannons could also help."[/say] An attempt to backtrack on his stupid remark with some grandiose plans, as always. [say]"Guess I'll have to get used to the sand,"[/say] he finished, trying to keep his distaste from showing too heavily.
He rolled his eyes at her dramatics, but could not keep the smirk from setting an ache to his cheeks. Gods he'd been smiling so much tonight he might be sore tomorrow. [say]"You're fiiiiiine,"[/say] he said, although he glanced over to be sure he hadn't jabbed her harder than expected. In response to her list of offenses, he nodded vigorously. [say]"Yes and I'll probably do it again."[/say] He holds her stare, and his lips twitch in response, understanding her unspoken intent.
The moment quickly dissolves as she clobbers his ankle. He winces audibly and leans down to clutch at the offended spot, simultaneously pulling the leg up so fast to shorten the distance, that he slammed his knee on the bottom of the table. He groaned, rubbing at the injury rapidly, the friction a better sensation than the dull ache that threatened a bruise. He keeled over sideways onto the seat, half of him hanging off it, as he kept his knee hiked up and under the first aid of his fingers. [say]"Ugh, I'm wounded now. I can't go on, you'll have to leave me."[/say] Yeah, he wasn't moving, committed to becoming part of the bench now, if she wanted out she was going to have to crawl.
RE: Simon says, get the fuck up - Flora - 04-17-2025
Flora snorts, not unkindly, as the light drains from Kaisel’s face like a stormcloud blotting out the sun. Her elbow perches on the table, chin resting in her palm as she watches his pivot into theatrics with an amused glint in her eye. [say]"Cannons, rope ladder, a dramatic explosion in the background?"[/say] She clicks her tongue, nodding with exaggerated approval. [say]"Only if we have matching outfits. Or at last coordinated ones."[/say]
His yelp at her ankle-kick earns a delighted little gasp, but when he cracks his knee in the process and goes sprawling like a shot soldier in a street play, she claps a hand to her mouth, eyes wide. [say]"Oh my gods,"[/say] she wheezes, shoulders shaking as she half-laughs, half-watches him crumple like a marionette with all the strings cut. [say]"You're even more dramatic than I am."[/say]
But when he dramatically declares himself wounded and beyond help, she plants both hands on her hips and stands. "I warned you," she says, every inch the sovereign about to declare war.
And then—well. There’s no polite way around him, not with the way he’s sprawled, limbs half-hanging off the bench like a man trying to become furniture. So Flora does the only logical thing: she climbs over him. Carefully—though not without a little vengeance—but there’s a moment in it, unintended, that feels more intimate than she means for it to. Her knee brushes the edge of his thigh as she steps, the curve of her calf ghosting along the back of his arm. One hand rests, just briefly, on his shoulder for balance, fingers curling into the fabric of his jacket. Too close. Too steady. The warmth of him, the shape of him beneath her hand, all of it registers at once. It's not the kind of touch meant to linger, but her fingers twitch anyway.
Her breath catches, just for a second. Just long enough to notice the flutter behind her ribs. And then she’s down on the other side of the booth, reaching out with her left hand to impart a bit of healing from her ring onto her oh-so-wounded comrade. [say]"You brought this on yourself,"[/say] she declares, voice light as she flashes him a grin over her shoulder, bright and unbothered. [say]"Come on, drama queen. The ice cream won’t scoop itself."[/say]