new beginnings

RORY

He hadn't mean to embarrass Remi, or to, well, how could he not sort of implicate that it affected his aesthetics to have a scar (or to not have a scar)? But he hadn't meant to imply that it.. well.. that he had thought Remi meant it was displeasing to look at; he honestly didn't know what had prompted the Alchemist to make the offer. Remi was a kind man, that was true, but regardless, Rory found himself holding his hands up in an effort to stop the other from feeling too embarrassed about the whole thing. "Remi, it's alright," he tried to reassure the other, a smile in his words, a smile on his lips. "And besides, you're right. I don't feel as well where the scar is." But was that enough reason to get rid of it?

Or would it get better with time? It was still so fresh...

So the mask Remi had mentioned wanting to show him was Ludo's? Rory blinked a couple of times in surprise, mindful of the lantern he still had, and curious about what it did. Aside from burn steadily and constantly, it hadn't really told him anything of its magical properties. "That's a shame," he commented, merely raising an eyebrow in surprise at the sudden feather. In response, Rory decided to suddenly have a sparrow, so, there was a sparrow. "I would've liked to see the mask." I would've liked to see beyond the barrier.

Some sort of vague plan formed in the back of his head, and .. well, who was surprised that Ludo had been upset his mask got stolen from Remi? He frowned. Such was the nature of their Gods, he supposed, but... He thought of his unanswered prayer at the Shrine, how he had not prayed in years, because in the end: it didn't seem so bad to stay away.

"That's, ah.. an oddly specific set of memories to take," Rory said lightly, gently, unsure of how to handle it. Physical intimacy was not something he shied away from, not even in conversation, but feelings .. now that was an area he avoided like the plague, at least in this context.

But then he laughed, rather helplessly, though he didn't really want to laugh at anything that described Remi in such unfavorable terms. "No, no, creative and dreaming, full of wonders," he said, still with a laugh in his voice.

Without much hesitation he held out the feather, though Remi didn't take it, but he held the sparking, flaming thing between them. Fortunately it seemed like whatever sparks it emitted were not strong enough to burn anything down on their own, but he still took care not to hold it too close to anything. In silent fascination he watched the thoughts chase themselves through Remi's eyes. Creative and dreaming.

Then the Alchemist came back from his thoughts, and if he wanted to hold the feather, Rory would let him. "Beauty does not help it if it burns my house down," he said with a laugh. "And besides, it does not cease being beautiful just because it is out of sight, mh? You're welcome to fiddle with it later if you want to, but for now, I'd greatly appreciate it—and owe you—if you could make me a pouch for it."

Said and done—when Rory eventually left the Alchemist's shop, it was with a pouch for his feather, keeping both it and his surroundings safe.

as if you were on fire from within,
the moon lives in the lining of your skin.