no bullies or bums, the chums are tens here

the bastion

Remi’s eyebrows lift, a soft shake of his head trying to brush away the lingering edge in Ronin’s voice. He tries on a smile, light and coaxing, before sending a low chuckle through the Attuned bond. The way I act is rarely a good template to follow, he teases gently, amusement threading through the thought as steady as a hand smoothing rumpled fabric. He adds, a warm shrug through the bond, And an innuendo between those two is about as surprising as Flora and Mateo bickering. If that's what it had been, even. Maybe Flora really had gotten a few good deals at the market.

As Ronin steers them away from the story of how they first met, Remi offers Kaisel an apologetic sort of smile and a small shrug. "Another time," he promises, before watching as Kai spins Flora out of the kitchen, their laughter softening the last of the chill that had settled across the room. Once they’ve slipped into the dining room, Remi exhales, the quiet sigh releasing tension like a knot finally loosening.

Turning fully back to Ronin, he reaches up to rest a broad hand on the Knight’s shoulder, squeezing affectionately. His smile deepens—warm, familiar, just shy of exasperated—but full of love. "What happened," he asks with a soft chuckle, leaning in enough for their temples to brush, "to making a good impression?"

I got a feeling inside that I can't domesticate
It doesn't wanna live in a cage,
A feeling that I can't housebreak

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!