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+---- Thread: sleep when you're older (/showthread.php?tid=11289)
sleep when you're older - Flora - 05-09-2025
The Spyglass was quiet this time of day, golden light filtering through the tall, glass-panelled dome like honey poured over parchment. Dust motes danced in the beams, and the only sound was the soft shush of paper as Flora rifled through star charts laid out across the observation table. Her curls were piled in a loose bun, and she’d rolled the sleeves of her blouse up to the elbows, careful not to smudge the ink drying on the edges of her latest draft. The idea had been a good one, she was sure of it: a starmap drawn not just for accuracy, but for aesthetics. Something Sohalia could pin to her wall and smile at, a constellation of affection traced in silver and soft indigo.
Of course, that was before the binder betrayed her.
Stretching to reach it from the top shelf—tiptoes, one foot off the ground, nails glittering with leftover party polish—Flora let out a satisfied [say]"aha!"[/say] as her fingers grazed the spine...only for the whole thing to come toppling forward like a sleepy avalanche.
[say]"Ohshitno—!"[/say]
Maps spilled like a waterfall, parchment flaring wide and dramatic as they fluttered in every direction. The binder hit the floor with a thud, papers skittering beneath tables and curling in the corners, catching breezes from the vents like they had somewhere important to be.
Flora just stood there, frozen for a moment in the middle of her papery disaster, one hand still stretched upward, the other slowly rising to cover her mouth.
RE: sleep when you're older - Finn - 05-09-2025
Chaos in the Spyglass is akin to blasphemy in a cathedral, and the massive, ringing silence in the wake of Flora's mishap is thick enough to chew. No one comes running, though. No one curses or bursts through the shelves or demands she leaves before she ruins anything else. The soft turn of pages, though, has ceased, and she'll feel that weighty sense of judgement that can only be truly achieved through the eyes of scholars and librarians. That continues for some time, before the ambient quiet picks back up again.
Only then does a figure appear around the shelf she'd been reaching for, a book in hand with his finger marking the page, his stormy eyes a little concerned as he takes in the plethora of papers, maps and other unalphabetised bedlam. Finn, unlike the majority of his life, has come here for the simple pleasure of research and reading, to while away an afternoon where October is in surgery and he has nothing to do until the evening, when he and his guitar will go to provide soft music for a nearby bar.
At least, that had been the plan, and his eyes flick up towards Flora and then back to the mess without concern or irritation. Finn looks good, these days, his soft blue shirt well-fitting and his pants neatly pressed, his crown of curls less desperately tousled than it once had been. [say]"Would you like some help?"[/say] he asks, his rich voice barely above a whisper so as to not disturb the other scholars further.
RE: sleep when you're older - Flora - 05-09-2025
Flora freezes mid-crouch, one hand hovering over a rogue star map like she’s about to gently pat it and apologize for the trauma. The silence feels...biblical. Like she’s dropped a communion tray in the middle of Mass and all the old gods are watching. A single map flutters dramatically onto her head.
She grimaces, peeking out from under it, already preparing a string of apologies when a figure rounds the corner. At first, all she sees is curls. Her brain fills in the rest on instinct—tallish, scruffy, definitely her dad—and her mouth opens automatically to say something mildly accusatory like I didn’t break anything important, but then she catches the face.
Still curled and scruffy, but there’s a softness around the eyes, and a quietness in the way he holds his book like it’s part of him. Flora straightens slightly, brushing the paper off her head with a sheepish smile. [say]"Sorry, thought you were someone else for a sec,"[/say] she murmurs, dusting herself off. [say]"You look weirdly like my dad. Or like—if my dad had a twin who got normal amounts of sleep."[/say]
His voice is gentle, and that earns him a real smile—bright, rueful, the kind people offer when they’ve just made an enormous mess and someone still offers to help anyway. [say]"Yeahhhhh,"[/say] she sighs, pushing a curl from her face. [say]"Yes, please. I’m trying to make a gift and the maps just...staged a rebellion."[/say]
She crouches again, already reaching for the nearest chart. [say]"I’m Flora, by the way,"[/say] she adds, glancing up. [say]"You're Finn, right? Ever's dad?"[/say]
RE: sleep when you're older - Finn - 05-09-2025
[say]"I get that more often than you might think,"[/say] Finn says with the shadow of a smile on his face. Where once the recognition would have groaned beneath his skin like bone against bone, or like a wire pulled far too taut, these days it's little more than an acknowledgement of the strange nature of genetics. No drowning. No knives. No bloody feasts at tables where they sit with a dozen versions of themselves. Still, even mention of Remi outright is like an invitation, like a slip of silk tossed across a chasm, daring him to tiptoe over it and back into the mouth of madness.
Still, it's enough to hear that he looks like he's gotten enough sleep to look normal for Finn to step back from that chasm to set his book down on a nearby table - after memorising the page number - and go to help Flora with her papers. [say]"Yes, I am,"[/say] he says with another gentle nod. [say]"And you are Mateo's sister, yes? And Queen of Torchline."[/say] He adds a small and respectful inclination of his head at that.
Gathering star charts and maps and various other bits of paper, he also reaches for the sorry looking, empty binder nearby. [say]"What kind of a gift?"[/say] he asks, softly curious.
RE: sleep when you're older - Flora - 05-09-2025
[say]"Oh really? That's weird,"[/say] Flora says breezily, shuffling a few more star charts back into some semblance of order. She doesn’t ask Finn to elaborate. If there’s anything she’s learned about her family, it’s that asking too many questions tends to open doors she’s not always ready to walk through.
Still, she flashes him a grin as he confirms her hunch. [say]"I am,"[/say] she says, a little proud and a little sheepish all at once. [say]"And guilty as charged on both counts: Mateo’s sister and queen of the world’s most aggressively tanned region."[/say] The title still feels like a hat she’s borrowed from someone older and more serious, but there’s no denying she’s worn it long enough now that it mostly fits.
She accepts the recovered binder with a grateful nod, tucking in a few curled edges. [say]"My best friend’s a cartographer,"[/say] she explains, her smile going a little soft at the edges. [say]"So I’m putting together a sort of celestial map. But not just stars, but like, mapping it onto her life, you know? The places that matter. I figured, if anyone would appreciate something full of impossible connections and constellations only we could name, it’d be her."[/say]
Her fingers tap against one of the unfolded sheets with a mixture of affection and nerves. [say]"I just didn’t expect the archive to fight back about it."[/say]
RE: sleep when you're older - Finn - 05-09-2025
[say]"It is, but you learn to live with it,"[/say] Finn agrees readily enough; he's learned to live with enough in his life that his similarity to Remi Taliesin somewhat pales in comparison these days, despite how much it used to consume him in his unhealthier seasons. Smiling at her quip - something he's learned to do despite wanting to query further - what makes the tan aggressive, for instance? - and reaching for a few more notes and charts, Finn thumbs through them and promptly reorganises them based on date, constellation and time, stacking them into part of a larger pile of rogue paperwork.
[say]"Oh? That is quite a thoughtful gift,"[/say] he says, raising his eyebrows with interest and glancing from the binder up to the top shelf where several others are neatly tucked in like soldiers at rest. [say]"The binders can be stacked quite tightly together,"[/say] he agrees, before gesturing innocuously to a nearby stool she might have used to step up and get herself more level with the shelf. [say]"Perhaps that may help next time? For now, would you like to look through these for anything useful while I collect the rest of the paper? It will be faster for you that way."[/say]
RE: sleep when you're older - Flora - 05-09-2025
[say]"Ugh,"[/say] Flora groans dramatically, pressing the back of her hand to her forehead as if wilting under the weight of the obvious. [say]"You mean using the stool? Never would have occurred to me."[/say] Her grin peeks from beneath the performative shame, bright as a flare.
Still, she accepts his help gratefully, settling herself cross-legged on the floor among the scrolls and papers he's already gathered. The stack he’s so neatly sorted earns an appreciative look—date, constellation, time—okay, so someone was an overachiever. No wonder Everest was the way he was. [say]"You’re good at this,"[/say] she murmurs, mostly to herself, flipping open a page with one finger before shooting him a smile. [say]"Thanks. I really do want it to be special."[/say]
Her eyes flicker back to the charts, studying them with more focus now. [say]"What about you?"[/say] she asks casually, not looking up as she begins pulling out ones with particularly vibrant constellations. [say]"You making something for someone too, or is this just what dads do on their days off?"[/say] Flora always liked knowing what people made time for when no one was asking anything of them.
RE: sleep when you're older - Finn - 05-09-2025
[say]"Learning by experience is one of the most effective methods for some people,"[/say] Finn says, the words polite and the tone warm yet dry in a way that suggests humour for those who know him well. [say]"Perhaps next time you will not be caught unaware by the binders."[/say] In the meantime, as Flora takes a seat on the floor - not his first choice, but each to their own - he rises and goes to retrieve the rest of the fallen maps and papers, already neatly arranging them before returning to her so he might sort through them as well.
[say]"Ah, well. I have a highly decorated past in research. We researchers love to alphabetise, you know,"[/say] he tells her, smiling in return at the offered compliment. [say]"And I am sure it will be special for no other reason than because it came from you. Not that I doubt you will make it look wonderful."[/say] Setting a few more maps down to add to her stack, Finn rises to his feet to go and search out any rogue escapees.
Himself, though? Finn offers a mild smile. [say]"I was reading about invasive species,"[/say] he says, gesturing to the book. [say]"How they manifest, how they spread. How they might be stopped."[/say] No lines to be drawn with the current state of the world, of course. No siree.
RE: sleep when you're older - Flora - 05-09-2025
[say]"Invasive species, huh."[/say] Flora repeats, blinking once before grinning like she knows exactly what he means, even if he hadn’t said it. [say]"Sounds like light reading."[/say] There’s a glimmer of mischief as she peers up at him, fingers still delicately arranging one of the constellation charts he’d returned.
But despite the smirk, there’s an edge of understanding in her voice that says she’s not really making fun. Maybe just trying to soften something sharp with a joke, like she so often does. Her gaze flicks to the cover of the book he’d gestured to, wrinkling her nose.
She tucks a lock of hair behind her ear before adding, more genuinely this time, [say]"Also sounds like a pretty intense thing to be reading, err...uphere."[/say] Then, as if catching herself saying something that might possibly give away their doublespeak, she flashes Finn a sheepish grin. [say]"I just mean you seem like the type of person to collect birds or fly kites or something."[/say]
RE: sleep when you're older - Finn - 05-09-2025
[say]"Just something to while away the afternoon,"[/say] Finn agrees, his expression never moving beyond quietly neutral, as if he's well practiced in the art of being innocuous these days. (Especially since the debacle where Remi had asked him to use his glasses to help identify members of the Family - or their friends - and he had been promptly told no). Finding a couple of stray star charts hiding against vents or under nearby chairs, he retrieves them, checks one more time, and then returns them to Flora's waiting pile of resources.
Smiling, as if to tell her that intense is a sliding scale (one he's been on the extreme end of more than one too many times), Finn goes to retrieve his book to tuck it back under his arm, the tome positioned just so that she might be able to discern its title. [say]"I could never cage a bird, even briefly,"[/say] he tells her with gentle honesty. [say]"And I would not recommend kite-flying as a hobby in a place called Stormbreak."[/say]
Look, wordplay! He's come so far.
[say]"For what it is worth, though, I am the type to write and play music. So once I am finished with my foray into biology, that is likely where I will return."[/say] No harm in a little extra interest though, right?
RE: sleep when you're older - Flora - 05-09-2025
[say]"Gods, even the way you say that sounds suspiciously academic."[/say] But she doesn’t press, especially not when he returns with the last of the wayward charts. [say]"Thanks,"[/say] she adds more genuinely, smoothing one corner before stacking it with the others.
When he mentions not caging birds, her brow lifts—not in challenge, but in mild surprise. [say]"Yeah, that's fair,"[/say] she says softly, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. There’s no joke here, no glimmering metaphor. Just a quiet little note of consideration, like maybe she hadn’t expected that answer, but liked it anyway. As for the kite-flying? Flora’s smile blooms again. [say]"Okay, fair. Sounds like a great way to get smited by lightning."[/say] She shifts to sit a bit straighter as he collects his book, her eyes flicking briefly to the title before glancing back up at him.
When he mentions music, though, the surprise returns—warmer this time. [say]"Wait, really?"[/say] she asks, clearly delighted. [say]"You should come and play at my—"[/say] bar sometime, she was going to say, only she didn't have a bar to play at anymore. Quickly clearing her throat, Flora shakes her head breezily. [say]"I mean, where do you play? I'd love to come and listen."[/say]
RE: sleep when you're older - Finn - 05-09-2025
[say]"Yes, or to be caught by the wind and carried off the edge of the city,"[/say] Finn agrees with a mild nod. [say]"And I assure you that I am strictly academic without the suspicion. Or so I have been told."[/say] He's had a lot of descriptors in his life, not all of them pleasant, but suspicious isn't one of them just yet. There's always time though, he supposes.
Nodding - yes, really - in response to her question, Finn is left awkwardly standing over her as she remains seated on the floor, not that he makes any motion to join her. That sort of thing is relegated to indoor spaces where he considers himself comfortable to the point of removing his shoes, and the Spyglass, while quiet and peaceful, does not make the list.
[say]"I play at a bar in the Pacifist Plaza,"[/say] he tells her. [say]"It is called The Loft. I am there most evenings on the ground floor."[/say] A beat of silence, before he hastily adds, [say]"Acoustic guitar."[/say] Because he anticipates that might be her next question.
RE: sleep when you're older - Flora - 05-09-2025
Flora grins up at him, sunlight catching in her curls as she begins carefully stacking the final constellation charts. [say]"Thanks again,"[/say] she says warmly, glancing toward the shelf she’d nearly decimated. [say]"Next time I’ll use the stool—promise. Or, at the very least, not try to muscle a binder off the top shelf like I’m in some kind of paper-based action sequence."[/say]
At the mention of The Loft, her smile grows. [say]"I’ll definitely swing by,"[/say] she assures him, rising smoothly to her feet with the binder now properly filled. [say]"I’ll bring my brother, and maybe see if we can make it a double date with Ever and his girlfriend."[/say] A wink follows, teasing but not unserious.
With that, she gives him a final, grateful smile before slipping back toward the drafting table she'd been using as a desk.
~FIN