the things that have passed

flora

Flora catches Mateo’s look and answers it with a quick, conspiratorial wink from the side of her face their parents cannot see, a small flash of solidarity tucked neatly between heartbeats before she turns her attention back to the group at large, expression already smoothing into something brighter and sharper.

"Pffft, speak for yourself," she says immediately, waving one hand as if batting the notion away. "I turned out wonderfully, and that is despite being borderline abandoned and actively hated as a child." The words themselves are unapologetically blunt, but she softens them with a flutter of her eyelashes and a crooked little smile, the kind that says she knows exactly how pointed she is being and is enjoying it. "I'm truly a miracle when you think about it."

She shifts in her chair, the sun warm against her skin, gaze flicking between them with a thoughtful wrinkle of her nose. "So, what? You are going to go and make a baby in King’s End, then? In the babypatch or whatever?" Shifting, she'll roll her eyes at Mateo before lowering her voice conspiratorily, saying, "bet you anything they'll ask you to water it within the first week."

The rumors are terrible and cruel
But honey, most of them are true

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!