[SE] what in carnation

Melita

I never had a chance to be soft
I was always bloody knuckles

Melita hadn’t snagged at all her borrowed Halo clothes or stolen Iskra sweaters for this brief sojourn, thinking they wouldn’t be necessary as the season altered and changed; but she’d been incorrect on that assumption. Digging through her skyship had ensured she’d squirreled away a light jacket, adorned with Ludo and its many cats on the back, making the trek into the Inner Quarter and its marketplace a little easier. Maybe she’d gotten too used to Torchline’s warm air.

But even the Hollowed Grounds had a touch of chill to it – but maybe if they wound around closer towards the bonfire, they’d have less of an issue. “How’d LongNight go?” she started towards her uncle, ambling through the marketplace with a keen choice already laden around her thoughts. “We had empanada fire hoop jumping.” As a way of ‘top that’, as she circled around a kiosk full of flowers – though it seemed they were having trouble keeping stock in decent shape.

and shards of glass
I wanted people to be afraid of hurting me

// now we are hanging out in the backyard //

Infinitely familiar with the chill in the air that still lingered from the cold LongNight night, Sunjata’s decked out in a dark green sweater underneath a weatherproof jacket, hands in his pocket and warm boots. His gaze snags on the market they drift through, each stall bringing a smidge of curiosity as she asks how LongNight went, and when she says empanada’s, he’s hit with a distinct memory he’d forgotten about, with Nate’s voice and the snap of his fingers trying to remember the name encantado and resulting in that.

Charmed by it, even if he couldn’t feel the love for Nate in the state he’s in anymore, it was still amusing enough that he flashes her an amused smile as they stop by some flowers. “That sounds fun. We had a party with bonfires, sledding, markets, and music.” He touts a little playfully, nudging her with an elbow. “Did you jump through the hoops?” He asks as he reaches out to rearrange the bouquet closest to him.

the flood

// looking at a new point of view //

Melita

I never had a chance to be soft
I was always bloody knuckles

Nate had been an influence on all of them; so much so that Melita still hadn’t been corrected in the mis laden name. Despite that, there were still ways to carry on the Ascended’s time with all of them; so she winked and indulged where she could, perhaps for both of their sakes.

King’s End with bonfires, sledding, markets, and music still sounded like a good time – even without the fanfare of dolphins launching their way through hoops. “I didn’t have much of a chance – though it was hilarious to watch. Maybe next time.” She’d been wholly occupied by Iskra and their attempts to get on the same page with communication about the latest, sweeping news and information overload – where the Flood might be used to the arrangement and how quickly things maneuvered, the Abandoned certainly hadn’t been. “We did do the skijoring in Halo though!”

Pausing by the flowers, and ignoring the urge to jostle him back with her own bony elbow, she narrowed her eyes in brief speculation, before beginning to pick several hues of blue, green, red, and variances of in between.

and shards of glass
I wanted people to be afraid of hurting me

// now we are hanging out in the backyard //

“Ah, that’s fair. If you do next time, though, I wanna hear all about it.” He tilts his head to peer over at her with a playfully serious look, the kind he knows she’d see right through before it breaks into the easy lopsided smile on his face. It lingers as he explains what they did in King’s End. And as she brings up skijoring in Halo, Sunjata’s huff of a laugh slips from his throat. “And how was that? I don’t think I’ve ever been skijoring.”

He hasn’t been, he’s barely been sledding let alone skiing in anyway kind of way. But he keeps those thoughts behind his teeth as he waits for her to answer, picking through and rearranging some of the flowers they’ve stilled by while she picks a variety of colorful flowers. He doesn’t pick any for himself yet, content to look at them all and maybe run his fingers along a hydrangea that calls to him in particular. “The healing river should be done soon, hopefully. Though I think there’s gonna be some drama with it.” His nose wrinkles slightly with the thought, but his penchant for gossip and knowing she had one herself has him glancing sidelong toward her.

the flood

// looking at a new point of view //

Melita

I never had a chance to be soft
I was always bloody knuckles

Her smile turned distinctly Cheshire as she began surveying more of the flowers, arranging them in her grasp, picking at several more until it seemed full enough for her intentions. “Amazing! I rode while Iskra skied,” figuring he’d be the one with the most experience on them, given Halo (wrong). “And I didn’t even fall off!” which had been a near-miss. “You have to get rings while you ride the horse and the skier goes over jumps,” as she went on explaining, her free hand illustrating the launching mechanisms, imitating the movements and motions. “Fastest wins!”

When he started describing ongoing shit in King’s End though, she tilted her head, reveling in her penchant for gossip and drama. “Ohhhh? Do go on,” because, initially, one might think amplifying a river wouldn’t have too many quandaries, but her first instinct was to assume it was something to do with her uncle.

and shards of glass
I wanted people to be afraid of hurting me

// now we are hanging out in the backyard //

“Oh good.” Sunjata laughs, warmly, imagining Melita riding a horse while Iskra skied behind her and went over jumps. Wondering for a second whether Iskra survived the endeavor without anything broken, Sunjata pushes past those questions as he continues to reorganize the flowers. “Did you guys win?” He knew Melita enough to know she’d give it her best shot to try and win – a competitive streak he also shares.

As for King’s End, though, and the drama therein, he knows precisely as it slips past his lips that he’d captivate his niece with the mention of drama and gossip. Letting his hand fall from the bouquet he’s been organizing, Sunjata turns toward her and gets a little closer, voice lowering so that she can hear him still but no one else nearby will.

“Sooo, Colt offered her help with the unicorn wrangling.. But also, her ex is helping, and from my understanding it didn’t end well.” His nose wrinkles a little as if he’s trying to figure out where to start on that whole ordeal. “But I have to have his help, since he lives in King's End. Sooo, it'll be a time.” #RQ Requirements.

the flood

// looking at a new point of view //

Melita

I never had a chance to be soft
I was always bloody knuckles

Glancing back and forth at the flowers, she figured she’d snagged enough for what she intended, and paid for the bundle with a few coins. “Gods no,” she chuckled, waving off that notion. They might’ve been competitive heathens, especially challenging Kaisel and Flora, but they certainly hadn’t been up there with the best of the best. “I missed the first ring, but like, so many others did too.” And genuinely, by the time they’d announced the winners, she and Iskra had already hopped off to other parts of the festival. “Excellent hot cocoa there though.”

As she made her way to a bench, she deposited the flowers, before snagging at a few, taking hold of a variety of blues. Waiting for her uncle, she gave no hesitation in tilting her head towards the dramatic footholds of King’s End’s quandaries – half-expecting some political nonsense or sedition. Instead, it was relationship based, and her mouth formed a round little o, then altered into a snicker. “Ohhhh, was it Vesper? I could’ve sworn she’s talked about him before.” Not ending well seemed to be a decent summary, though the Honeybee would have to wonder and dig a little further into the how of it all. “You could always try and keep them apart, I guess. In separate sections or something?” Or not and let it all blow up, which would be more of Melita's speed, but probably not especially viable for getting much accomplished.

and shards of glass
I wanted people to be afraid of hurting me

// now we are hanging out in the backyard //

“Damn.” Sunjata hums as Melita tells him that she didn’t win, though amused as he is, he does lament not winning for her – competitive as they both were. So long as they had fun, though, that’s all Sunjata really cares about. “Oh! We did a hot chocolate stand during LongNight.” He brightens with the idea, stepping away from the flowers now to follow Melita toward the bench she picks.

And all the while he trails after her like a little gossip hen, chattering about the drama that he was in for. Sitting beside her, Sunjata shoots a smile over at his niece before it breaks into a laugh. “Yeah, it’s Vesper.” And while Sunjata didn’t have any qualms with the guy, he doesn’t know whether his mother had mentioned him or not – especially if he was intending to come and live in a region he ruled.

He supposes it’s not his problem, though, and instead he listens as she offers some tidbit of advice and he leans back against the bench, stretching out his long legs with a soft sigh. “I thought about it, but it’s all for the same goal. So maybe they’ll avoid each other completely or we’ll be in for chaos.” His nose wrinkles, but it’s clear he isn’t terribly put off by it. “I’ll let you know what happens, though.” Another pause, briefly, before he’s glancing over at his niece again. “I also made a new friend.”

the flood

// looking at a new point of view //

Melita

I never had a chance to be soft
I was always bloody knuckles

Hot chocolate was a reputable necessity in Deepfrost apparently, and she granted a grin at the notions. “Might have to keep drinking it, the way the weather’s been lately. Has King’s End been chilly still?” Maybe it was just a result of the seasons taking a little longer to alter and change, but with everything else going on, Melita kept her inward hackles raised about multitudes.

Nodding at the affirmation of Vesper and Colt being the issue, she snagged a few of the flowers, and began weaving them together, humming under her breath; peacefully (as much as she could anyway) listening to gossip and stringing hues along. “I mean, they’re all adults, mm?” but doing so with a grin to suggest that even then, the potential for upheaval remained (one would only need to use the Honeybee as an example – half the time she was looking for the more adultier adult).

Though her brow arched at his last statement – paying heed to it with a side of caution. Namely because it could just be a new sex companion, and quite frankly, she wasn’t as intrigued by her uncle’s dick escapades through Caido. “Oh? A friend friend or, a friend friend?”

and shards of glass
I wanted people to be afraid of hurting me

// now we are hanging out in the backyard //

“Ugh, yeah.” Sunjata drawls, settling in the bench with a huffy little sigh. “Ground’s still hard, but we’ve been working on digging out the spot the river would be. Figured it’d be more melted by now.” Such a shame, truthfully. That, plus the chill in the air has made it less than comfortable wandering around King’s End in Flowerbirth.

When it came to the drama of Vesper and Colt, though, Sunjata snorts and rolls his eyes – because they both know that meant nothing in the grand scheme of things. “Yeah, you’d think.” But given his Heartless nature these days, he finds he doesn’t care much. Whatever happened would happen and the end result just meant he’d get what he needed done – unicorns to purify the river.

But when it comes to his friend, Sunjata’s smile grows a little softer as he looks over and watches her weave the flowers – unsure what they’re for, but chooses to focus instead on the subject of him getting out more and actually making friends now. “A friend friend.” He says, because they really aren’t anything right now, nor would they be with Sunjata’s heart situation. So rather than give hope where there isn’t any for the moment, Sunjata’s pleased to talk about the friend he’s started to rely on Niki as. “I think you might know him.” His brows pinch together slightly before he’s tilting his head. “His name’s Niki, he used to live in the Greatwood but he moved to King’s End. He’s made a couple things for me before he moved and let me crash on his couch once or twice.” A soft laugh leaves him, shoulder rising and falling in a shrug, but he does quietly watch Melita’s face to see if there’s any recognition there.

the flood

// looking at a new point of view //

Melita

I never had a chance to be soft
I was always bloody knuckles

“Huh,” she added with a slight furrow to her brow. She hadn’t paid much attention to subtle differences in seasons in the past (save for when they were full of electrical issues and she spent nearly every waking minute on high alert), but nowadays they seemed to be fundamental in Caido. “I wonder if shit’s just taking longer to thaw,” and that was that – not something else deviating the lines.

Turning and twisting the stems around one another, her plan began to take shape, weaving the flowers in and out until they began to form a crown; hues blending into vibrant blues and subtle greens. All the while, she listened to his new friend notions, tilting her head vaguely when he mentioned someone she already knew. Her gilded gaze flicked to him, mind beginning to snag and pinpoint and wonder who before the name slid across. She kept her features neutral, save for the moment where she’d pinpointed the title in her memories. “Ohhhh Niki – yeah, I’ve met him. Likes dead things. Can reanimate ‘em.” Or had, at least with the butterflies, as if they’d been resurrected and turned back into more than just carcasses.

“Crashing on the couch” made her snort. “Conveniently couldn’t make it home?” came on a wink, but nothing more, turning her attention back to the circlet. “What’d he make for you?”

and shards of glass
I wanted people to be afraid of hurting me

// now we are hanging out in the backyard //

Sunjata nods with a slight scrunch of his nose. “Yeah. I think it’s been so cold lately it’s all been fucked.” He shrugs a broad shoulder, unsure what exactly was causing it, but supposing he should probably go and give an offering to the Flowerbirth deity if only so maybe he might make it so the world wasn’t so fucking cold everywhere.

Offering up some little tidbits about the friend he’s made, Sunjata’s steel gaze drops to the flowers in her hands, the way the stems weave and curve around each other until they’ve made a crown of the hues of the sea. It’s pretty, and all of his favorite colors, but when she offers the recognition of the necromancer does Sunjata nod and huff a soft laugh. “Yeah. That’s him.” It was why he’d picked the house for Niki that he had – backing up against a row of graves to give him something to look out on that he liked.

But her question has him snorting again, sitting back on the bench and stretches out his long legs. “Well, it was the Greatwood and I didn’t really wanna fly the whole way home. And he offered.” So that was that. As for what he made for him, Sunjata hums a little sound and glances over at her. “Well, we designed this metal box I was originally going to use to have a bunch of things in it that Ru liked for the wedding.. but when that didn’t happen, he made it into a really pretty candle holder.” His smile twists a bit softer with that, charmed in the shift of turning something that would have just sat there as a reminder of what didn’t happen into something that he would actually use and get enjoyment out of.

the flood

// looking at a new point of view //

Melita

I never had a chance to be soft
I was always bloody knuckles

“Well, maybe stuff will return to normal soon,” on a whim and shrug of shoulders, uncertain if she believed in that statement or if it was something to fill in the void. Truly, she didn’t really need one more think weighing across the back of her mind. She already had Ludo’s disappearance and the weird dreams to content with – and even then, the former was going to take precedence. It would be easy to dash away the rhyme and reason of the seasons into something else, but there’d already been a pattern established, if any of them took the time to stare at it.

Regardless, she kept weaving, her hands busy floating and flickering over stems and petals as her mother had once done – only with herbs and bandages. Melita never had the talent for the latter, but had learned enough of crown pieces now from years amongst Caido, where the cheer of spring dipped into Fiat Lux and before it had been blown to pieces. She paid attention all the while, able to deviate her focus from one to the other, half rolling her eyes when he couldn’t quite catch them. “Mhm, sure,” came on a disbelieving snort, accepting of his answer but presuming underlying fixtures just the same.

Metal boxes…for weddings. Her features sunk into a tight grimace for half a moment, before taking a breath and moving on, fingers quicker now, then pausing, taking a couple turns of the circlet to examine it before plucking something back together. “Well, that’s nice,” that something could be reshaped after heartache and loss and the brutal mess of nothingness. She added naught on that accord, other than a long huff of breath before handing over the flower crown. “There. I can make things too,” with a cheeky grin and a dimple to her cheeks. “For you.”

and shards of glass
I wanted people to be afraid of hurting me

// now we are hanging out in the backyard //

Hopefully it did return to normal, but they both likely know that it wouldn’t happen. There was a history here that things would always happen and end up being something more than they expected. So the healing river has become a priority, just to keep the region safe, then maybe the Heartless can focus on a weapon that would suit his region.

In the meantime, though, he’s going to need to get his heart back and his life back in order.

As she works on the flower circlet, Sunjata watches idly as he answers her, letting a bark of a laugh leave him as her disbelief is heard in the low thrum of her voice. “Hey, you know how long the trip is from the Greatwood to here.” He protests with an underline of soft laughter. It fades away as he speaks about the metal boxes turned candle holder.

He nods, his smile softening at the thought of it before surprise overtakes him, brows lifting as the blue flower crown is handed to him and his gaze flits between it and Melita’s smiling, golden face. “Aw,” he starts off, like he’s not sure exactly how to receive gifts still (he isn’t). But his smile turns lopsided and he lifts it to place it on his head. “That’s sweet, thank you! How do I look?” He asks, striking a playful pose with a straight back and an amused smile, a makeshift king of blue flowers.

the heartless

// looking at a new point of view //