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seeing the world in ADHD - Flora - 01-26-2026
Flora sinks into the corner of one of the plush couches in the living room, one leg tucked beneath her and the other stretched out along the cushions, a tray balanced precariously on her lap as she adds the final indignities to the hat. The pasta strainer is already ridiculous enough, but the purple pipe cleaners need adjusting so they splay just right, curling outward like cheerful little antennae, and the googly eyes keep slipping, demanding patience she does not currently possess. She presses one back into place with her thumb, a little harder than necessary, jaw set.
Upstairs, water runs through the house, the steady rush of water from the shower Kai is taking, freshly back from Stormbreak, covered in grime that needs to be washed away but ready to lay his cards out on the table all the same. The house hums around her, content, nosy, a faint clatter somewhere in the distance as if even the spirits are settling in to watch.
Flora exhales through her nose, slow and controlled, and threads another pipe cleaner through the strainer’s holes. She is still angry. Properly angry. The kind that sits hot behind her ribs, sharp with betrayal rather than volume, because she had trusted Kai with something delicate, something not hers to ruin, and he had been careless with it in a way that makes her teeth ache. Danta’s startled face flashes unhelpfully through her mind, followed by Asta’s inevitable murderous fury, and Flora pinches the bridge of her nose before she can spiral too far down that road.
She lifts the hat, turning it this way and that, assessing her work. The Flying Spaghetti Monster stares back at her with vacant enthusiasm, absurd and earnest all at once. Her mouth twitches despite herself, and she scowls at it, but gods, it's going to be all the more impossible to stay angry at Kai with him wearing this, which she supposes is the point.
RE: seeing the world in ADHD - Kaisel - 01-26-2026
Where a shower would normally be relaxing, this feels almost like a last meal before the day set for his execution. Despite the time that filled the distance from her howler, the soft laughter that hummed over paper and the absurd hat he picked up on his way here, the weight of this inevitable argument weighs heavy. Not just because they'll be fighting, which is lead enough in his gut, but because what they'll be arguing about is too heavy to keep carrying alone. They have to figure some of this out together or risk being suffocated by it.
Shrugging into what plush comforts he can manage around the noose on his throat, he jumps into his navy basketball shorts and pulls on a gray, sleeveless undershirt, the pendant she gave him resting beneath it. A quick run of his fingers through his hair, ends starting to get too long, and he retreats from their room to the gallows, hat clutched in his hand like a promise this won't become ruinous, just painfully liberating.
Bare feet skim over tile with a faint whisper as he turns the corner to the room she's in, one hand pulling anxiously on the back of his neck. His eye is immediately drawn to the arts and crafts she's bent over, the picture of coiled frustration. [say]"You made mine?"[/say] he asks with a careful smile. [say]"You show off,"[/say] he accuses playfully, closing the distance to adorn her with his selection. His blue hair tie glimmers on his wrist as both hands hold out the hot pink and orange fabric fish, dunking its open mouth atop her head. He delivers a swift kiss to her cheek as he does before retreating to fully admire his choice, arms crossed, lips twitching with a smile he can't contain in the slightest. [say]"I think you should wear this even on good days."[/say] The fish-hat looks like it's trying to consume her head, it's body sticking straight up above her, tail flopping a bit to the side. A few sequins are woven into the cloth, catching stray light with a shimmer that's cast off on the ground like very reflective scales.
RE: seeing the world in ADHD - Flora - 01-26-2026
Flora looks up the moment Kai rounds the corner, and the relief is there before she can stop it, bright and immediate that he's finally back home. Instead of commenting on it thought, because they're fighting, she lifts one shoulder in a half-shrug, chin tipping toward the mess of pipe cleaners and glue still littering the tray on her lap, as if this is all very casual and not at all the result of waiting wound tight for the sound of his footsteps. [say]"I didn’t really feel like going out,"[/say] she says lightly enough, even as her mouth quirks at his praise despite herself.
She lets him put the fish hat on her head without protest, leaning into the kiss he presses to her cheek in a way that betrays her far more than her words ever would, her eyes closing for the briefest moment before she straightens again, spine firming as if she can physically brace herself back into the argument she has been rehearsing. When he pulls back, she lifts the monstrosity she’s made and holds it out to him, eyebrows raised in silent expectation.
Only once the pasta strainer settles onto his head, purple pipe cleaners wobbling and googly eyes staring out with unearned cheer, does Flora reach for the blanket folded beside her. She drags it over her lap and around her knees, the motion small but unmistakably defensive, a little barrier she hadn’t planned on needing. Her shoulders drop as she exhales, and when she looks at him again the heat has gone out of it, leaving something quieter and sharper behind.
[say]"I told you that Asta proposing to Danta was a secret,"[/say] she says, voice lower now, threaded with disappointment that hurts more than anger ever could. Her fingers curl into the edge of the blanket as she keeps going, gaze steady on him even as her expression wilts. [say]"And I could maybe have lived with you telling Asta you knew, even though that also wasn’t great, but telling Danta to get a manicure?"[/say] Her head tilts, incredulous and wounded all at once. [say]"That is one of the most obvious, proposal-coded things you could possibly say to him, Kai. It’s like lighting a flare and then acting surprised when someone looks up."[/say] She swallows, jaw tightening just slightly as she tries to keep the tremor out of her lips that wants to pull them down into a frown. [say]"I trusted you with that. And it isn't even just that it feels like you broke my trust, but you almost ruined something super important between two people who really mean a lot to me."[/say]
RE: seeing the world in ADHD - Kaisel - 01-27-2026
His admiration of the cranium cod is short-lived when her flying spaghetti monster is handed out to him with a restrained patience that sways and bobs on the end of each pipecleaner. He takes it without complaint, hooking the pasta strainer cap on with both hands and the airs of donning something extremely important and precious. This is no ordinary fashion statement afterall, this is a promise bundled up in metal and crafted stands of wire and fuzz. This is admitting to the hard things, to keep the softer things intact and protected. He'd wear anything to accomplish that, for her.
Arms cross against his chest like his own shield being erected, the anxious roar of blood behind his ears flaring up as they each settle. The stare the levels him with is not an easy one to endure, but he doesn't flinch from it, just leans into the wall with one shoulder in search of added support to withstand the blows. [say]"I never meant to break your trust,"[/say] he says simply, voice low with the earnestness of that, and of everything it's that which stings him most now. Guilt flickers in the edges of the frown that clips his mouth down, the spaghetti monster atop his head even more at odds now with its dangling merriment that sways with every meager head turn.
[say]"I just knew I had to ask Astaroth so that my plans for you also didn't ruin things for them. I'd hate to have your moment steal from theirs or be stolen from. That was equally as important, and I don't really plan on keeping secrets from you so it didn't seem too wild that I'd know secrets told to you either."[/say] He gives the faintest shrug, not in dismissal of her trust, but in how easily what he knows becomes what she also knows. Not just because he's bad at keeping things in, but because he has no desire to keep something from her to start with. Even keeping surprises from her for her are at threat of being overturned at any moment. He couldn't even rein back his desire to propose to her for fuck's sake.
[say]"And I really didn't think the manicure comment would tip Danta off,[/say] he sighs, frown deepening. [say]"I just thought that he'd appreciate being ready for his ring when the time came, and it would have been way more telling coming from Astaroth."[/say] He supposes he could have left Flora to leave that tip for Danta, but in the moment it had been his attempt at an olive branch, and a quiet hope that the ring would soon seal up Danta's wandering eye. His jaw works over that particular memory, and now his lips press into a displeased line. [say]"He hasn't made any moves on you since staying here, has he—Danta?"[/say] His gaze flicks down the hall as if he might find the ancient lurking in the corridor then and there. [say]"You know we were talking about you when this all happened, and he shared that his happiest moment with you is when you were pegging him."[/say] Kaisel scoffs, the sound drug deep from his chest. [say]"It doesn't feel great to hear that your friend's fondest memory of you is something sexual, or that he still would want to, Flora. If anything, I don't want to do anything to ruin their engagement. I'm hoping he'll fully commit to Astaroth with it."[/say]
RE: seeing the world in ADHD - Serendipity - 01-27-2026
As you pass through a clearing, your attention is drawn to a small arrangement at the base of a sun-bleached rock. Several bundles of kindling have been carefully tied together, each shaped into a crude, doll-like form.
The wood is dry and warm to the touch, twine wrapped tightly around twig limbs and narrow torsos. Some of the figures are decorated with bits of grass or charred markings, their silhouettes casting long shadows in the heat.
The arrangement feels deliberate, ritualistic — something meant to be burned, offered, or transformed by flame rather than left to decay.
You've found an offering for Tanau! Whoever is next to post in this thread will be the first one to see the offering, but if they wish to give it to someone else, they're more than welcome! No need to post in account updates, just keep track of this thread for the Longheat SWE!
RE: seeing the world in ADHD - Flora - 01-27-2026
Flora nods as Kai talks, small and steady, the ridiculous hat bobbing along with the motion as if it, too, is listening very seriously. She never once doubts that he didn’t mean to break her trust, and that certainty is exactly what makes this harder instead of easier, because it strips away any clean place to put the anger. [say]"I know you didn’t mean to,"[/say] she says, and there’s no accusation in it, just truth, her gaze lifting to his even as she tilts her head to the side, letting him finish. Her eyes briefly glance to a small doll-shaped thing presumably left by the spirits on the table, but her fingers smooth over the edge of the blanket.
[say]"And of course you’re going to know the secrets I know. I tell you everything, but knowing them doesn’t mean you get to talk about them, even to the person they’re about."[/say] She gives a faint, tired huff of a laugh that never quite reaches her eyes. [say]"If Sohalia told me something wildly embarrassing and I told you, that wouldn’t suddenly make it okay for you to go have a heart-to-heart with her about it, even if you thought you were helping."[/say] With a sigh, she shakes her head and shrugs. [say]"I get how our engagement kind of..changed things, but I just mean..in general."[/say]
She sighs then, softer, sadder, frustration threading through it because she can already feel the edge where they don’t quite line up. [say]"It just...wasn’t your place to say anything to Danta. Not to tip him off, not to hint, not to get anywhere near engagement-coded territory."[/say]
When he brings up Danta making moves on her, her reaction is immediate and unfiltered, brows shooting up as her head jerks back, the googly eyes wobbling wildly with the motion. [say]"What? No. Gods, no,"[/say] she says quickly, incredulous. [say]"Of course not."[/say] She pauses, shoulders lifting in an awkward little shrug as the rest of it lands. [say]"I can’t control what memories people keep, Kai, or what they decide they like best. I get why that's weird to hear from someone else, but...I mean.."[/say] Before she can say more about how it's really neither here nor there, Kai says that he hopes Danta will fully commit to Asta, and something sharpens in her expression all at once. She snaps her fingers and points at him, eyes widening with emphatic precision
Her hand drops back to her lap. [say]"I know you see things differently than they do, and obviously that's fine, but it was really mean to criticize his relationship the way you did just because it isn’t how you would do it."[/say]
RE: seeing the world in ADHD - Kaisel - 01-27-2026
Light dances around the room with her nods, the sequins bouncing it around in a distracting enough quality that it gives him something to glance at whenever he's inclined to clench his teeth tighter. [say]"Well, sure,"[/say] he agrees, one arm unfolding to swoop and carve the air with emphasis as he talks. [say]"I'm not new to secrets, I know I can't run around talking to everyone about them, or even the people who told them to you. This one mattered though Flora. Talking to Astaroth was important."[/say] His hand gives up on conducting air and ruffles through his hair with a fresh dose of uncertainty. [say]"I mean, don't you agree? Wouldn't it have been just as bad to steal Astaroth's thunder? It's not like I was telling other people, or talking about it for no good reason."[/say]
He huffs in response to her sigh and the tightening of her meaning, disagreement shaking his head faintly, spaghetti wobbling in defiance. [say]"Why not?"[/say] he demands. [say]"If it didn't actually tip him off, then what harm did it do? I was helping!"[/say] The path to hell is paved with good intentions as they say, and here he is descending to the flames (or the frost?).
What he expects from her then, when he reveals how Danta had upset him, is so dismissive that it immediately rankles him. Then the snap cracks out, like she's correcting a disobedient animal, and his own head jerks back now with the force of the disbelief. Despite the ridiculous fish-eating frame around the stern look of her, he can't escape the way newfound hurt blooms. [say]"So, what, that's it? Just your good friend, who can come stay in your house for days or weeks, can want to fuck you—can have that be their happiest idea of you—and that's fine? That's just something I'm supposed to ignore?"[/say] His tone has steadily crept up in volume, the incredulity trumpeting louder.
[say]"He ASKED Flora! He wanted to know why I was upset, which I would have thought you might have done too!"[/say] He's shoved off the wall now and starts to pace, pipe-cleaner noodles swaying with each footstep. [say]"I can't believe you're only defending them. It wasn't like I just walked up and told him that their relationship sucks, all I said was if he loved Astaroth, then Astaroth should be enough, he shouldn't want to fuck you, or even see you that same way anymore."[/say] The struggle to understand why this isn't just easily agreed with is real. Kaisel does not mean to condemn how others live their lives, but his understanding of love is the way he's known it, and the idea that her friend could still see her in that light feels like a threat.
RE: seeing the world in ADHD - Flora - 01-27-2026
For a moment Flora just stares at Kaisel, blank enough that it almost looks like she’s buffering, before she lifts one shoulder in a helpless little shrug, brows knitting as her head gives the smallest, impossible shake. [say]"I know it was important,"[/say] she says quietly. [say]"And no, obviously I didn’t want us to steal Asta’s thunder..."[/say] She trails off, frustration catching in her throat, and she shakes her head again, slower this time. [say]"It just makes it feel like the only thing I can say here is that secrets are important except when it comes to our engagement, and..."[/say] Her eyes lift to his, imploring, searching his face for confirmation or contradiction, because gods that seemed a selfish and shitty thing to say, but...was it true?
Her gaze flicks up to the wobbling strainer on his head, and she gives him a theatrically doubtful look despite herself. [say]"It absolutely could have tipped him off if I hadn’t lied afterward,"[/say] she adds, the emphasis sharp and precise. [say]"That’s the point though, babe. It wasn’t for you to help or not help about it. That was the whole point of it being a secret."[/say]
Then Kaisel flinches back, and something in her chest drops hard. Flora swallows, the fight draining out of her all at once as she realizes she’s stepped too far somewhere between the rehearsed arguments and the absurdity of the hats. She’s on her feet immediately, the blanket trailing after her for a few steps before slipping away as she closes the distance between them. Her hands come up to cradle his flushed cheeks, palms warm and steady, her thumbs brushing lightly as her aqua eyes search his, trying to pull the temperature down from where it’s spiked.
[say]"Yeah, I do think it’s fine,"[/say] she says softly, firmly, because she needs him to hear it. [say]"Because you’re my husband."[/say] Her fingers skim his jaw as she speaks, her lips trembling into a smile as she says husband. [say]"I can’t control the past, or what memories people keep of me, or what moments they decide mattered. But I gave my entire future to you."[/say]
She shakes her head slightly, more in bewilderment than disagreement. [say]"Danta can come stay in this house and think whatever he wants. It'll never affect me, because all I ever think about is you, Kai. That’s it. That’s the whole list. That’s the only person it’s ever going to be."[/say]
When he keeps going, she exhales, long and weary, her arms dropping back to her sides, something tired and sad settling into her posture. [say]"But babe, that’s what I mean,"[/say] she says gently. [say]"And I’m not only defending them. I’m on your side, always, and—"[/say] The words land, and she stills, the weight of them catching her off guard even as she means them completely.
She draws in a breath and lets it out slowly, looking at him with a mixture of solemnity and unmistakable affection. [say]"What does it matter to you if Danta isn’t the kind of partner you would be? If he loves someone and still sleeps with other people?"[/say] Her head tilts, soft but unwavering. [say]"Just because they’re my friends...you know that isn’t us, right?"[/say] Her voice drops, earnest and sure. [say]"I don’t want anyone but you."[/say]
RE: seeing the world in ADHD - Kaisel - 01-29-2026
The secret-telling is drowned out for the moment by the steadily rising roar of outrage over the men the secrets were about. She hasn't been the only one rehearsing this fight, but she'd gone off script here, and he's found that instead of tempering his feelings with the time and notice afforded to him, they've layered with every dress rehearsal and now stack too high to neatly sweep away. He feels the height of what he says, the way it builds and erupts from him, but gods he can't hold onto it before it's set loose with all the clawing fear splintering through the indignation. He'd once blamed Jack's shadow, but perhaps he's too quick to jump at them all, because now it's Danta's looming here, and he's still worried.
The sight of the fish swimming closer halts the trail he's begun to carve in the room, staggered by scales and confidence. For a moment his eyes pinch shut, breath fighting like something caught in the snare of his chest. The cradle of her hands around him pulls him back, and one look is all it takes for him to sink into the sea of her stare. This is what he'd been missing—his scene partner.
Even beneath the repetition of fine, her touch steadies him. Husband settles through the layers, a reminder of what they'd promised to each other, of the trust placed unshakibly in one another, and what they'd build hand in hand. He sighs, ribs loosening around the fight, the ugly thing tangled there scurrying off. [say]"You're right,"[/say] he murmurs, a hand reaching up to cup over hers, leaning into the feel of her as he holds her there longer. [say]"You're right, you're right. I trust you, without a doubt. Whatever way Danta feels doesn't matter beyond that."[/say] As she slips away, he palms both his own cheeks and pulls his face down for a moment, sighing dramatically and shaking his head thoroughly. [say]"It just was surprising, to find out your friend had been more, wants more, still."[/say] It felt like maybe that's all Danta would want, if that could truly be his happiest memory, but Danta did admit he wouldn't do anything Flora also didn't want. Even the bullshit explanation of the memory really being about her gaining confidence and not the sexuality of it all, there's maybe more honesty to that than he first considered.
A weak smile rises in response to the rest of her words. They work away each layer, softening him to the idea that there's no scary monsters hiding in this friendship after all. [say]"It doesn't matter what kind of partner Danta wants to be,"[/say] he admits slowly. [say]"I just...I don't understand."[/say] His fingers flex at his sides, searching for something to grasp that makes sense. [say]"I'm so in love with you, the idea of anyone else feels...wrong."[/say] It's not just his thoughts; he can feel portions of his body constrict at the very idea of being in someone else's embrace right now, as if on a physical level he's bracing against the very notion. Everyone else isn't ugly, exactly, but they hold so little appeal that it feels like being forced to go to prom with his Cousin (sorry, Noe). [say]"I wasn't trying to make him feel shitty, I just thought if he loves Asta, wouldn't he feel the same way I do about you?"[/say] He sighs, and this one isn't freeing so much as deflating. The realization of what he's managed to mangle much by accident.
[say]"I should have told you about this sooner,"[/say] he admits with a grimace. [say]"Instead of holding onto it and letting it build. I should have told you about all of it,"[/say] His hand waves off in the air above him for a moment before slapping down to his side. [say]"I should have told you what I planned to asked Asta, before I did it, because you're right, the secret was not mine to be bringing up."[/say] If he'd included her more in this, she could have asked too, could have found another route to carve out this plan even. [say]"I'm sorry I put you in that position."[/say] The one where she had to lie, where she had to be surprised, where she had to feel like she couldn't trust him with the weight of this. He steps in, reaching to draw her hand back into his, folding it into his grip and smoothing his thumb over her knuckles.
RE: seeing the world in ADHD - Flora - 01-29-2026
Hearing you’re right doesn’t land the way Flora expects it to. There’s no sense of victory in it at all, no spark of relief or satisfaction, just the quiet noticing of him easing, the tension slipping out of his shoulders, the tightness in his jaw loosening by degrees even if it hasn’t fully let go. She pulls in a breath that catches briefly at the top of her chest and lets it out again, head shaking as the fish on her head jiggles along with the motion. [say]"I don’t think Danta actively wants more,"[/say] she says, slower now. [say]"I think it’s more like...being introduced to a really good dessert when you already have a sweet tooth."[/say] Her mouth tips slightly as she searches for the comparison. [say]"You’d happily have it again if it showed up, sure, but you can also just as easily have something else, especially when it isn’t on the menu."[/say]
Her gaze lingers on Kai's smile as it falters and reforms, and she exhales before reaching for his hand, the sparkly orange hair tie on her wrist catching the light as her fingers curl around his. [say]"I don’t really understand it either,"[/say] she adds. [say]"When Asta came over and we talked about the whole hallpass thing, I told him I could never. Not in a million years."[/say] She stills as he talks, listening, and when he says that being with anyone else feels wrong, a smile slips out before she can stop it, small and helpless. [say]"Ditto."[/say]
Her shoulders lift and fall again, head tipping from side to side. [say]"Relationships are hard,"[/say] she says, a hint of doubt threading her voice despite herself. [say]"Maybe that’s just what works best for them."[/say] Then she rises onto her toes and deliberately lets herself tip forward, bumping into him so her weight settles against his chest, her nose brushing his as she looks up. [say]"I’m really sorry about how all of this made you feel,"[/say] she says, nose wrinkling. [say]"I never wanted you to hear about things from my past in a way that hurt you."[/say]
When his hand cuts through the air and drops back to his side, Flora huffs a breath that almost counts as a laugh and lifts her shoulders in a little shrug. Her grip tightens briefly around his fingers before she loosens it again. [say]"I get why you did it,"[/say] she says, quieter now, like she’s setting the words down instead of throwing them. [say]"And since we don’t have any more proposals lined up, hopefully we never have to do this again."[/say]
As he reaches for her, she draws his hand back to her chest instead, fingers threading through his and holding on. [say]"I appreciate you trying to make an effort with my friends. And that you were considerate enough to try and plan around Asta’s proposal."[/say] She lifts his hand and presses her mouth to his knuckles, holding it there for a breath before looking back up at him. [say]"That means a lot to me."[/say]
RE: seeing the world in ADHD - Kaisel - 01-29-2026
He can't keep back the laugh that breaks free as she holds up dessert in all its sacred glory for his understanding. [say]"Well, you are the secret ingredient,"[/say] he reminds her, and while he'd only thought it funny at the time, the same way sprinkles for him likely sounded to her, he's found that to be utterly true for his life. All this time, he'd been missing the secret ingredient to happiness, until her.
There's a fresh sense of relief that brightens his gaze. [say]"I'm so glad I'm not the only one who doesn't understand it."[/say] He thought perhaps she not only understood it, but might even want something like it, because understanding always makes it easier to accept things. She has reassured him with every insistence that it's them and them alone, that they won't be doling out hallpasses, and there's a certainty in that he hadn't realized had been undone by an assumption. She does not embrace Danta because she upholds every choice he makes, but she backs the man making them, and his right to choose.
His smile sparks again at ditto, the simple, single word continuing to perfectly encapsulate a feeling and trade it back without devaluing it—if anything, he feels it makes it more potent, as if each letter now carries profound weight. [say]"Maybe, if we're cupcakes...they're—cookies."[/say] The education of desserts continues, and perhaps there is nothing more untamed by human nature than romance and sugar. [say]"Cupcakes come as one, but cookies can sometimes spread out and connect to each other on the baking sheet."[/say]
Gladly he takes the floundering (because fish) shape of her into his grip, noodles brushing scales as his chin tucks in and their noses skim. [say]"Mm,"[/say] he agrees, on relationships not being a simple matter, an arm wrapping around her as she presses in on his chest, heart to heart. Everything else she says, the subtle ways she threads their hands together and keeps him steady in her space, it feels like this is love more than a kiss could hope to be. Little compares to being truly seen and supported, and he's ever grateful that she is exactly who she is, and that every moment with her, even the hard ones, feels better than any one without her.
The roll of her lips over his knuckles repeats like a flutter in his pulse, his chest suddenly buoyant. [say]"Gods, I missed you,"[/say] he confesses down to her, gaze skipping across hers before he leans in to press a long, soft kiss to her forehead, just beneath the lip of the fish cap, although his own hat makes the whole ordeal far less graceful than usual. She's incredible, and he doesn't feel he deserves her, or that the world does for that matter really, but fortunately both him and the planet are lucky enough to cherish her. [say]"Your friends are important to you, so they're important to me. I'm just sorry I made it a bit worse...I'll make it up to them."[/say]
Taking her in hand, he steps back towards the couch, pulling her along with him so they can both settle comfortably. [say]"Okay,"[/say] he says with an inhale once they sit, facing her with a new seriousness that's at war with his hat. [say]"What you said earlier, that hallpasses and whatever is what works best for them, I want to make sure we know what works best for us."[/say] Her orange hairtie grabs his attention, and a small smile edges in at the sight of it. [say]"No hallpasses,"[/say] he agrees, just in case that wasn't clear that they both agreed on that front. [say]"Buuuut, what about our last names, now that, I mean not yet since we're still, but when we do."[/say] He fumbles around the topic, unsure of what the outcome will be, or even what he wants. [say]"I think your name carries more meaning than mine,"[/say] he admits without concern. [say]"So I understand if you want to keep it, but then should I change mine?"[/say] He's never considered not being Ashborn, but now is a time when he just might. [say]"Although then it'll be much harder for you to yell-tease me,"[/say] he grins.
RE: seeing the world in ADHD - Flora - 01-31-2026
Flora wrinkles her nose at him, the expression folding her face in on itself in a way that makes the fish on her head wobble precariously before she gives a small, decisive shake of it. [say]"I really don’t,"[/say] she says, as if that settles the matter outright. [say]"I can’t even picture a situation where I’d want to share you with anyone else."[/say] A moment later she snorts, the sound catching on itself. [say]"I can barely handle it when I dream you’ve cheated on me."[/say]
When he leans down and presses his kiss to her forehead, the breath she lets out feels like something finally unhooking inside her chest, the last tight thread of the argument loosening its hold. She tips her head forward just enough to follow the warmth of it. [say]"I’m really glad you’re home,"[/say] she murmurs, the words tucked close between them where they won’t drift. At the mention of making things up to Danta and Asta, she lifts one shoulder and lets it fall again. [say]"Maybe just give them a little time,"[/say] she says. [say]"They’re here on vacation, so I'm not sure how in the mood they'll be to talk it out, or how sober."[/say]
Flora goes easily when Kai takes her hand, happy to let herself be pulled back to the couch, and the moment she sits she sprawls into him without ceremony, one long leg looping around his and hitching around his hips to keep him firmly anchored in place. Her head bobs in an emphatic nod. [say]"No hallpasses,"[/say] she says, as if she’s underlining it.
The conversation shifting to last names sends a warm, electric flush skimming under her skin, excitement fizzing somewhere just behind her ribs. She shakes her head when he says her name carries more meaning, not disagreeing so much as refusing to linger there before her mouth curves, sharp and delighted. [say]"You are always going to be Assborn when you’re in trouble,"[/say] she tells him, eyes bright with mischief and affection.
Her thumb drags slowly over his knuckles as she thinks, grip tightening and loosening again with each passing thought. [say]"What if we came up with a new last name together?"[/say] The idea seems to settle as she speaks it, taking shape. [say]"When I was born I was Flora Kaliesin. Then later I pulled it apart into Kaito-Taliesin, because it mattered to me not to feel like I was just..a blended product of my parents."[/say] She swallows, then looks back at him, her fingers curling more firmly around his. [say]"I don’t want to hyphenate it longer than it is now, and I don’t want to mash everything together."[/say] Her smile steadies, softer now but no less certain. [say]"I want something that’s just...us. That's how I want to be known."[/say]
A different spark lights in her eyes then, cautious but buzzing with barely-contained glee. She leans in a fraction, lowering her voice even though the house already knows everything. [say]"So..is this going to stay a secret forever? Do we just tell everyone we’re engaged and then pretend the wedding we throw is the real one?"[/say] The question trembles with delight, with disbelief that this is still theirs. Married. Already.
Her voice drops another notch, intimate and conspiratorial as her gaze searches his. [say]"When can we tell people? That we're engaged, I mean."[/say]
RE: seeing the world in ADHD - Kaisel - 01-31-2026
She doesn't need to remind him, not when there's been more than one terse morning when he'd woken up to some dream version of him having wronged her. He does chuckle faintly at the memory of it, and if anything, it's more proof than he should need of just how true her sentiments now are. Just them, even in dreams.
The embrace of the couch is a welcome one, as much for its comfort as all the familiar ways he and Flora instantly tangle into one another across it, as inevitable as wired headphones placed inside a pocket. His hand curls against her leg, keeping the wreath of her limb against him snug. [say]"Oh good,"[/say] he huffs on the edge of a laugh, absolutely sincere. He has always, secretly, adored her angry name for him, even if the force of what's behind it has always been terrifying. [say]"I was worried something longer wouldn't roll off the tongue as well, and KASSito-Tal-teach-you-a-liesin is just missing the same punch."[/say] He should know, or he would have been firing back with it already.
His copper stare drifts down to the place where her touch drifts back and forth, watching the trail of her thinking there and pouring his own into it, uncertain what he truly wants the answer to be. His gaze leaps back up with a new flash of excitement as she proposes something he hadn't even considered. [say]"You're a GENIUS!"[/say] he gasps loudly, tugging her towards him with the hand grasped in hers to press an obnoxiously loud and dramatic kiss to whatever part of her is within reach soonest. Vibrating with the possibilities as she explains her past attempts at this prior complication, he nods in agreement with her assessments of adding more hyphens or mashing them further. Kaliesinborne or Ashkaliesin each earn a quick, crinkled face of distaste as those names flash through his mind. [say]"Yes, exactly."[/say]
It fits well with what they've promised each other so far, making something of the world for them, and it feels like the next step in building something with her, that belongs to them. [say]"Whaaaat about, Truelight? Foreverbound? Saltmade?"[/say] Even as he says them he shakes his head, the first ideas sounding less ideal once said aloud, and using more of his family's style. [say]"Or, do you know more words in your dads' special language?"[/say]
The thought takes a backseat for a moment as her question earns an immediate [say]"no!"[/say] He straightens up a touch, grip cinching down on her leg, as if pressing her tighter against him could force the understanding faster via some osmosis form. [say]"Gods no, I don't want this to stay a secret. I want to love you deeply, outloud, in front of everyone important to us."[/say] Except, he does still want to ask her fathers, even if the question feels hollow now. Their approval still matters. [say]"Did...did Astaroth ask Danta yet? I wanted to wait until then, if it's soon, and I figured we should give them some breathing room, so maybe announce it in a week or so?"[/say] He doesn't want it running up on her birthday either, because his devotion to her is not a gift being given for that, but is standalone and monumental.
RE: seeing the world in ADHD - Flora - 01-31-2026
Flora feels herself settling even before she realises she’s doing it, the way her body always seems to recognize Kaisel's reach before her mind catches up, easing into the familiar geometry of them tangled together on the couch like this is the most natural shape she’s ever known. There’s no grabby urgency to it, no edge of neediness or possession, just the quiet certainty that this is where she fits, that some part of her is always reaching for some part of him, the way roots find water without ever needing to be told where to grow. His hand on her leg anchors her, and instead of resisting it she lets herself sink into the contact, warmth pooling low and steady in her chest as her thoughts spiral happily around the fact that even after a fight, even after sharp words and flared tempers, they always end up here, laughing, touching, choosing each other again without hesitation.
Her grin comes quick and wicked at his teasing, brows lifting as she reaches up to flick the metal rim of the pasta strainer perched on his head, the soft ting of it punctuating her whisper as she leans in conspiratorially. [say]"Oh, I would absolutely bring the punch,"[/say] she murmurs with mock menace, eyes bright and daring.
His enthusiasm catches her off guard, enough that she flinches a fraction before delight breaks clean across her face, surprise melting instantly into amusement as he rattles off name ideas with breathless energy. [say]"Saltmade,"[/say] she repeats, nose wrinkling dramatically as if she’s tasted something awful, tongue sticking out in exaggerated disgust before she laughs and shakes her head. [say]"Ewwuh."[/say] She pauses, her mouth tilting as she considers the rest of it. [say]"I dunno...since neither of us actually speaks the travelling tongue, I don’t really want to borrow from it."[/say] She hums, thoughtful but smiling, unwilling to stamp out his excitement entirely. [say]"Maybe we just...think about it?"[/say]
The way his grip tightens on her leg makes her lips twitch, a smile she doesn’t bother hiding now, because she loves him like this, animated and earnest, touching her as if it’s instinct rather than intention. She hooks her leg more firmly around him and shifts without asking, sliding fully into his lap. An arm slips around his shoulders, her forehead nearly brushing his as she leans in, voice dropping into something fond and private. [say]"You already do all of that,"[/say] she tells him, soft but certain, the words pressed close between them. Still, she beams, because she knows what he means, and it lands exactly where it should.
At the mention of Danta and Asta, she chuckles, the sound warm and unguarded as she leans back just enough to look at him. [say]"Pretty sure, yeah,"[/say] she says. [say]"While you were out on patrol, I distinctly heard moaning followed by the word fiancé several times, so."[/say] A shrug, casual and amused. [say]"They haven’t come out of their room since that I've seen, so I’m calling that a yes on both counts."[/say]