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wrapped all my past mistakes in barbed wire - Sohalia - 03-17-2026
It was an effort to get ready for her 'girls' night' with Kaisel. Every bone in Soh's body wanted nothing more than to lay in bed and watch the drizzle from the warmth of her room in Wildering House. Was it too late to cancel? It was definitely too late to cancel.
So she'd dragged herself to the pottery cafe, speed-walking through the miserable scream rain until she entered the bright, cheery shop. A fireplace crackled along one wall, perpendicular to the bakery counter. Soh stopped there first to order a scone and a coffee, then settled into one of the booths on the far wall, where she would wait for Kaisel.
It was strange to be talking to Flora's husband - and her ex-lover's (?) cousin - about what to do with the information she'd learned from Jude, but Soh didn't have many guy friends at this stage, and Kai had given her good advice before. She hoped that this time would be no different.
When the bell over the door jingled and Soh saw Kai enter the cafe, she lifted a hand in a wave. [say]"I've already ordered something,"[/say] she told him. [say]"Get whatever you want - my treat."[/say] Her quandary could at least wait until they'd settled in.
RE: wrapped all my past mistakes in barbed wire - Kaisel - 03-17-2026
The bell announces his arrival first, but the rest carries him well after. That, of course, being Kaisel himself. Potentially not immediately recognizable, his long, bleach-blonde wig at odds with his usual hair, his bright return greeting will secure his identity the moment he sees Soh. [say]”Hey gurl!”[/say] he calls out brightly.
He’s a sight to behold, stuffed into a crop top, which may actually not have been a crop top to start with, but is fighting his shoulders so profoundly that it’s given up the battle with his abdomen. Although given the solid branding of The Maverick across the front in very dramatic scrawl, it’s anyone’s guess how much body this shirt was ever meant to cover. The black and red top suits his pleated skirt well, the strawberry pattern dazzling the darker fabric until he looks like some alternative version of a cabbage patch kid. This is all hidden beneath his neon orange raincoat, which he promptly shucks off upon stepping inside, shaking it out and lending it to the coat rack.
Girls night requires going all out. He did leave the heels at home though. He’s practical, no sense breaking an ankle in the scream rain.
Grabbing a warm green tea and selecting his pottery of choice to paint, he plops down in the seat opposite Soh with a dramatic sigh. [say]”Gods, this weather.”[/say] Straightening his wig hairs with just the pointer fingers on each hand, he cups his tea in both hands and sips without breaking eye contact with Soh. [say]”Alright, lay it out plain sister, what the hell is going on? How many lads are barking up your tree right now?”[/say]
RE: wrapped all my past mistakes in barbed wire - Sohalia - 03-18-2026
Kaisel was a sight to behold in a blonde wig and striking clothes. As he slid into the seat across from Soh, she tried and failed to stifle her laughter. [say]"Oh my gods, Kai, I didn't think you were that serious about girl's night."[/say] Not that she was complaining - his ridiculous appearance had the effect of putting her immediately at ease. Not for the first time, she fit a new piece of the puzzle into place regarding his relationship with Flora; she had come to understand them better over time, and it seemed that each time she and Kaisel ended up in the same room, she could see a little more clearly what had convinced her best friend to marry the man.
But there was no time for small talk as Kaisel got straight to business, startling another laugh from Soh. [say]"No, it's not like that -"[/say] she started, her smile fading just slightly. [say]"Not exactly. Gods, where do I start?"[/say] Pursing her lips and drumming her fingers on the table, she then sighed. [say]"Okay, so, how much do you know about what happened with me and Koa wayyyyy back at the beginning?"[/say]
RE: wrapped all my past mistakes in barbed wire - Kaisel - 03-18-2026
His smile never fully seems to fade from his face, not unless he’s deep in concentration, aka big foci, which is usually only the case when he’s trying to study or is about to get into a brawl. For paint and sips though, he’s on the edge of a giggly bitch, although Soh’s predicament requires a bit more seriousness. Still, the ends of his lips curl up over his tea, pleased that his effort did not go to waste as her delight immediately feeds his soul.
[say]”Puh-leese, I would never treat girl’s night as anything less.”[/say] That he’d made a bold claim such as being better at this than Flora meant he really had to pull out all the stops, however blatant of a lie that’d been. He’d go down swinging on his word at the very least.
Pulling the tea away from his face while one brow arcs slightly above the other, Kaisel’s lips purse over a thought that he polishes on his tongue. [say]”Well they should be, birch.”[/say] He winks, his smile tugging up into the movement on that side of his face. Girls might not say puns like that, but they do call each other slutty little names, and birch was as close as he dared go to the real intent for this arrangement.
[say]”Oh we’re starting at the start,”[/say] he realizes as she begins to hark back to ye olden times. Well, consider him sat. He’s here for the tale of how Soh and Koa met, consider it practice for their future kids, the cousin nieces and nephews he’d spoil the FUCK out of, partly just to be an annoyance to Koa. He’d offer to babysit just to hype them up on sugar and good times and send them back to his cousin. [say]”Let’s say nothing, I wanna hear your rendition.”[/say] Setting his tea aside and getting his color palette arranged, brush in hand, Kaisel glances up expectantly at her before following along with her words with his colorful strokes on the pottery. A salt and pepper shaker—a ketchup bottle for the salt, and a honey jar for the pepper.
RE: wrapped all my past mistakes in barbed wire - Serendipity - 03-18-2026
You are interrupted by a sharp, high-pitched screech, accompanied by a dazzling fork of lightning that leaves its image burning behind your eyes for a long time afterwards.
You swear the afterburn looks almost like a face, the mouth stretched wide in an agonised scream. If you blink too quickly in the wake of it, the face starts to look like someone you might know.
You have encountered one of the Scream Rain SE serendipities! You may use this to complete requirement 1. of the seasonal event. Please note: this serendipity CANNOT be used for levelling purposes.
RE: wrapped all my past mistakes in barbed wire - Sohalia - 03-18-2026
Where could she start but at the beginning when it came to Jude? Jude, who had predated even Flora, who had been her everything up until they’d tried dating. Up until she’d ruined it all. She couldn’t quite bring herself to regret the end of their relationship - she didn’t think they’d have made a very good couple, in the end - but she did regret the loss of a friendship. There had been something so easy and innocent about she and Jude, and that was something she’d never get back.
Shaking off the melancholy thoughts, Soh opened her mouth to start her story - but at that moment, a strike of lightning lit the inside of the cafe, a screech rending the air between them. Soh glanced outside to see the likeness of a face illuminated in the drizzle and shuddered, seeming, for a moment, to fold in on herself. [say]"Gods, I hate this."[/say] Gripping her coffee mug in both hands, she made herself take a sip to calm her nerves.
When she was ready, she cleared her throat. [say]"Okay, so... a long time ago, my best friend wasn't Flora. It was this guy named Jude. And about the time I started dating Koa, Jude and I got together, which is why I called it off with Koa before we ever became anything official."[/say] There, that was enough information, right? How much did Kai really need to know about the nitty, gritty details, anyway? [say]"I ended things with Koa because of Jude, but I was still in love with Koa, so in the end, I broke things off with Jude, too.
"Jude was hurt - like, really hurt, which, you know, fair. At first, I wanted to stay friends, but... it didn't work out that way. I've run into him a couple times over the years, and things have been strained. But recently... he reached out and asked to meet. So I said yes."[/say]
RE: wrapped all my past mistakes in barbed wire - Kaisel - 03-22-2026
Over the arrangement of color, he sees the way she seems to fold in a bit on herself. There’s a form of grief here, he realizes, and he wonders just truly what has transpired between her and Koa that he might not know the half of. Flora’s disgruntled thoughts on his cousin’s treatment might deserve more merit than he’d first given them, too protective still of his family when she whispered them at the festival.
Thoughtfully poised with paintbrush in hand, about to lay down his first stroke to keep busy while trying to analyze Soh without being blatant, the sudden scream lights up the cafe. His brush splays with more pressure than intended, attention swinging with a grimace and a splay of his wig to the rain-patterned windows and the bright, branching figure still there every time he blinks. [say]”Right?”[/say] he agrees, glancing back at her with a shake of his head. [say]”Almost makes me wanna call up Frey and ask them if everything’s gucci.”[/say] It’s giving angry breakup vibes, tbh.
Luckily, his art is not ruined, since the vast majority of the bottle needs to be red, but he approaches it with a steadier hand and more even strokes as Soh launches into her tale. He pauses to level her with a glance when she admits Flora isn’t her first best friend, a touch of surprise at that, though it’s completely normal. That’s about where the normal ends, or, is the most normal thing she says.
[say]”Oh, that sounds familiar,”[/say] he huffs, Jude rather sounding like his Flora in this, and sadly, Koa his Calypso. Makes sense now why she might have come to him. Yet, this clearly doesn’t end the same, because how else would she wind up with Koa? Did Koa burn down a bar?
Attentive, almost at the risk of his pottery, Kaisel nods as she admits having to end things due to a torn heart. Admittedly, he can’t relate to that part, but he understands. [say]”Wait, so why’d he want to meet?”[/say] Kaisel wonders, forgoing another coat of red as he reaches back for a sip of tea. [say]”I imagine staying away would be best for everyone? Although I get wanting to hear him out, you didn’t want to hurt him.”[/say] Want seems to have so little to do with the worst kind of hurt though. That it’s accidental does very little to reduce the pain.
RE: wrapped all my past mistakes in barbed wire - Sohalia - 03-22-2026
The flare of the lightning seared into her retinas made her uncomfortable, but she turned her attention resolutely away from the window to focus on their conversation once more. Picking up a small vase that she'd selected, she grabs a paintbrush and begins to work, meticulously laying each stroke of color just so. As Kaisel recognized that some of her story sounded familiar, Soh huffed a wry laugh. Sometimes she wished she could go back and tell him all of this before, that she could properly warn him about the dangers of loving two people at once. That it rarely turned out well, and that someone always ended up hurt. But that was then and this was now, and Kai seemed to have come out of his own love triangle none the worse for wear. Soh wondered if the same could be said of Calypso.
[say]"Well,"[/say] Soh said, dotting a bit of purple onto her pottery. [say]"That's where things get awkward. I had kind of resigned myself to the fact that we wouldn't be friends, but when we met..."[/say] She frowned at the vase. [say]"Apparently, Jude went to Safrin for a quest that would remove his romantic feelings for me - and, I guess, anyone else he wants to get rid of. I didn't really ask a lot of questions. But he was quite clear that he still had romantic feelings for me, and that he wanted to be rid of them."[/say]
Her memory of the incident was still fresh. [say]"The weird thing was, it sounded like maybe he'd want to try and be friends after - like we could just go back to the way things were after he removes his romantic feelings. So... one, I don't know if I want that, and two, if we did try to be friends, I'm not sure if I should tell Zavien, or what I would even say..."[/say]
RE: wrapped all my past mistakes in barbed wire - Kaisel - 03-23-2026
Blowing over the hot liquid, he tilts it back carefully and sips slowly while watching Soh. She’s let her focus drop to the painting now, and it gentles her features some as the words spill instead of are carefully placed. Not that she’s grown careless, but has shifted into something more like comfort, or a rythym for the tale and the path of her thoughts. Something more honest, Kaisel doesn’t doubt, as much for him as for her.
Setting his tea down to the side, a brow rises in response to the pause and the way it shapes her mouth down. The only good kind of but requires an extra ‘t’ and way more movement in some jeans—the one she’s offering sounds like trouble. [say]”Mm?”[/say] he encourages, picking his brush back up to angle his attention off her in case the spotlight of it will cause some wilting.
Letting the red coat dry, he’s moved on to the amber and gold tones of the honey jar, swiping his base coat easily, at first. The questing matter of Jude is a surprising portion to this, if o0nly because Kaisel disagrees with the idea of letting the gods smuggle pieces of you away, however tempting it is to give up all the hurt. Begins to blur the lines of who you are, and soon enough it’s easy to want to give all your pain away, but pain serves a purpose. It’s all in the same family of going back in time to change something, just doesn’t seem worth the unseen ripple effects into other parts of yourself, not in his opinion.
He doesn’t manage to voice any of this before she continues, her next points completely understandable and—[say]”Why would Zavien care?”[/say] His brush flicks up abruptly, yellow paint flung, brow scrunching in thought. He didn’t want to look at the answer key for this connect the dots game, so sure he had the kid’s menu down, but the shape of it just become more difficult. He smooths out the temptation to cheat, committed to drawing onward. [say]”I mean, sure, he’d have something to say, but it’s Koa that I’m worried about. Although if Jude is willing to go through all that just to be your friend again, is there even any risk left?”[/say]
RE: wrapped all my past mistakes in barbed wire - Sohalia - 03-24-2026
Her vase began to take on color and life under her careful strokes, growing more visually interesting with each passing moment. It helped to have something to focus on as she shared her tale, something to take her mind off of the vulnerability she felt in sharing something so personal with someone that, let's be honest, she didn't know all that well. But as Flora's husband, and even as a friend, she trusted Kai to help her decide what to do now that she'd been burdened by Jude's decisions -
The thought hit her like a ton of bricks. It was the first time she'd thought of Jude as someone placing something unwelcome on her shoulders rather than the other way around. A novel concept, and one that floored her enough that her words stumbled momentarily. But she shook it off quickly enough, just in time for her gaze to jump to Kai's face and her brow to crease in confusion. [say]"Why would Koa -?"[/say]
Oh.
[say]"Wait, you thought -"[/say] This was all her fault, really, for not being more specific in her letter. Kicking herself mentally, she shook her. head. [say]"I'm not dating Koa."[/say] She did her best to keep her voice level, suddenly nervous. She hadn't considered that maybe Kai wouldn't want to help her if he knew who she was dating, but she did now - and given that there was a history between Kai and Zavien, she was suddenly unsure that this had been a good idea after all.
She studied her vase. Quietly, she said, [say]"I'm dating Zavien."[/say]
RE: wrapped all my past mistakes in barbed wire - Kaisel - 03-24-2026
His paintbrush now feels like a brace in his hands, uncertain fingers curling around it like it could haul him back to the shore of understanding. He’d been listening, not letting the paint absorb him, a simple enough task to lay such plain colors, but it feels like the conversation just removed a step from the staircase too early.
Kaisel reels a touch, confusion crumbling into outright loss. He’s lost the plot. [say]”Wait—what? But you said…”[/say] It’s about then he realizes that she never named anyone beyond the label of boyfriend. Predictably, he’d thought it’d be his cousin, the two circling each other for so long it seems they’d both forgotten who’s the shark and who’s the blood.
His frown deepens into an impressive line when she so kindly extends further clarity. She tries to put the step back, but he’s well and good stumbled off it. [say]”Zavien???”[/say] His tone is as incredulous as his face, head sucking back like she’s just dealt him a blow instead of a name. His neck hairs prickle in response, hackles fluffing at the fresh news of hurt being directed to his cousin, surely under some noble disguise again. [say]”His best friend?”[/say] Kaisel demands, the rough laugh of something too awful to be possible forcing itself free, the sound rich with distaste instead of humor.
[say]”Wow, he sure moves on quick. Didn’t his girlfriend just die?”[/say] Kaisel hums with a shake of his head, far too focused on carving out his shock and displeasure to recognize the splatter effects of it, as if each word is him flicking his paintbrush about.
RE: wrapped all my past mistakes in barbed wire - Sohalia - 03-24-2026
Soh should have realized that this was a bad idea, should have known better than to involve Kaisel in something that, in retrospect, he would understandably have some big feelings about.
She took a deep breath, trying to center herself. Obviously Kaisel had questions - so would she, in his shoes. Of course the assumption would have been that she was dating Koa, after all the back and forth with him over the years. It wasn't like she'd put up a billboard saying that she was moving on, tired of having her heart tugged this way and that.
The first question was anticipated. [say]"He talked to Koa -"[/say] she said, perhaps a touch defensively. Sure, that had been after they'd slept together, but she certainly wasn't going to tell Kaisel that. Let him get whatever information Zavien had shared from Koa. Adding her side of the story felt akin to throwing a match on gasoline. But it was the second question that made Soh still, fingers tightening on her paintbrush. She knew there was bad blood between Kaisel and Zavien, but she still hadn't expected such a low blow, and for a moment, all she could do was stare at Kai as though she'd never seen him before.
Soh was not quick to anger; in fact, she could count on one hand the number of times she'd raised her voice over the course of her lifetime. She typically favored diplomacy over harsh words, and it was far more common for her to placate someone who disagreed with her than to argue back.
But just now? She was suddenly furious.
[say]"I wasn't aware there was a timeline that was acceptable for processing one's grief."[/say] she said coldly. It wasn't her place to share that Zavien was still working through those feelings, despite new ones growing for Soh. Especially not to Kaisel.
This had been a mistake.
Clenching her jaw, Soh bit back all that she wanted to say. Unfair accusations about Kaisel and Flora's relationship circled her mind, but all that would do was hurt her best friend, and that was the last thing she wanted. Instead, she sat her paintbrush down. Slowly and deliberately, she wiped her fingers off on a nearby paper towel. [say]"You know what? I don't owe you an explanation."[/say] She made to gather her things. Maybe it was running away, but she had no interest in quarreling with Kaisel over this - not when his opinion didn't matter.
RE: wrapped all my past mistakes in barbed wire - Kaisel - 03-25-2026
Well, he is a collector. Demi-god and leader line merchandise, and it appears also the anger of each of Flora's friends. It does extend far and wide, although Koa, Zavien, and Calypso feel like outliers, so maybe he'll just go the completionist route and gather some from everyone in Caido. This is surely going to tank his rating for future girl's nights, and he definitely won't be beating Flora's score at this rate.
Realizing, too late, that he'd said inside thoughts outside, Kaisel promptly clamps down on the biting response of once the body is cold. He swallows it down, the only way he's ever found works to endure the things he disagrees with, other than pummeling them into the mat. It's precisely why he pops occasionally, eventually running out of room to keep stuffing the truth into, the pressure kicking back at the worst times, little better than a soda that's been dropped. The result is always a sticky mess that he's embarrassed about.
[say]"Soh,"[/say] he starts, rising up with her, the sudden push back of his chair toppling it over with a sharp clatter, strawberry skirt flaring briefly. Everyone who hadn't already keyed into the rising drama is surely staring by now. [say]"I'm sorry, that was out of line."[/say] Much like Apollo the parrot, Kaisel needs to learn to say it better. He doesn't mean any of it any less, soda's still the same flavor whether you've opened it or it's exploded, but one experience is certainly better than the other. [say]"I'm just—"[/say] He pulls a hand up to run it through his hair, forgetting the wig and promptly pulling it down and flopping it on the table. [say]"Surprised,"[/say] he huffs after a moment.
It doesn't feel like enough, but he'd been so sure she and Koa had just agreed to make themselves happy finally, and now he's just discovered that his family has been wounded all over again. Whatever Zavien and him said, Kaisel's lived the exact same thing, and he knows Koa is hurting over it. Deserved or not, it doesn't change the truth that Koa keeps being betrayed by the people he thought safe enough to lean on when he'd struggled through his feelings and choices. It's a shitty feeling, and Kaisel has never not regretted talking it out with Koa before making some of his decisions. [say]"I didn't realize it was, over, between you and Koa."[/say]
RE: wrapped all my past mistakes in barbed wire - Sohalia - 03-25-2026
Her name stopped her from storming out, and though she suspected that his apology wasn’t entirely genuine - why would he have said it, otherwise? - she still paused long enough to hear him out. Realizing that the rest of the cafe was staring, she slowly returned to her chair, cheeks flaming crimson. Her lips were pressed in a thin line as she glared across the table at Kai, trying to bite back all manner of snide retorts.
Offended for not only Zavien, but for herself, Soh huffed a humorless laugh. [say]”I’ve been waiting on Koa to see me for years,”[/say] she said. [say]”I don’t want to spend any more of my life pining after someone who doesn’t want me enough to stay.”[/say] Realizing how bitter she sounded, Soh sighed, deflating slightly. [say]”Look, things are over with me and Koa, but there’s no bad blood or anything. I wish him well. I hope he finds what he’s looking for. It’s just not going to be me.”[/say]
She fell silent, staring down at her half-finished vase, fiddling with the paintbrush she’d thrown down in her haste to leave. A part of her wanted to explain, wanted to smooth things over, to put this disagreement behind them. But something about Kai’s disdain for Zavien wouldn’t let her forgive so easily. How dare he presume to know anything about Zavien’s grief, to have any opinion on their relationship? Did he not realize that whatever he had to say about Zavien moving on too quickly could also be applied to Soh moving in on her dead friend’s boyfriend?
[say]”Lena was my friend,”[/say] Soh said softly. [say]”Her death was tragic. If she was alive, I would have wished them well and hoped for their happiness. But that’s not how things went.”[/say] Shaking her head, Soh looked away. [say]”Sometimes feelings just sneak up on you. I won’t apologize for trying to find happiness in a world that is so often cruel.”[/say]