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Character of the Season
Frail in body but dangerously quick of mind, Nikandr is the sort of character who proves that curiosity can be just as perilous as any weapon. A necromancer, inventor, and problem-solver with more ambition than self-preservation, Niki approaches the world like a puzzle box begging to be opened, even when what’s inside has teeth. Blunt, dry-witted, fiercely independent, and carrying a history best left partially buried, he has a knack for making even failure feel fascinating. Whether he’s raising the dead, moving across Caido to King's End, or experiencing a hangover for the first time, Nikandr brings a wonderfully strange spark to Caido, and we can’t wait to see what trouble his brilliant mind wanders into next.
Congratulations, Niki!
Credits
Court of the Fallen was created in October of 2018 by Odd, Honey, and Crooked.
OG Skinning provided by Kaons, with functionality and many custom plugins made by Neowulf!
Flora might wait but Jack doesn't, taking a long, smooth drink from his glass before setting it down again, glancing up towards her with eyes made brighter by the lamplight. "I figured that was up to you," he says slowly, of what happens now. "If you wanted to leave, to take some time or just... be done with this. It wouldn't be what I wanted, obviously, but I'd respect the choice." And batten down the fucking hatches, too.
What Jack doesn't expect is the sudden interrogation on something that Flora surely already knows the answer to, the captain raising his eyebrows at her questioningly. "If Safrin - a livin', breathin' goddess, mind you - gave you a cosmic wet dream, then offered to do it in the waking world, would you wanna say yes?" he asks. "She gave me a choice, though. And I chose you."
And no, don't ask him to understand it either, because he doesn't.
fight so dirty but you love so sweet talk so pretty but your heart got teeth
Flora tips her glass back, draining it all in one go. The liquor scorches its way down her throat, burning away some of the sharp, tangled mess of her emotions and leaving behind a steadier sense of resolve. Setting the glass down carefully on the desk, she meets Jack’s gaze directly, aqua eyes unsteady but clear with determination.
"I’m not trying to pick another fight, okay?" Flora begins quietly, forcing her voice into something firm and even, despite the lingering frost in her thoughts. "I’m trying to be as practical as possible, because honestly, Jack—" Her throat tightens briefly, fingers flexing restlessly at her side. "This sucks."
Drawing a slow breath, she tilts her chin slightly, studying the captain carefully, earnestly, without accusation. "I’m not asking if you love me enough to make this work, or saying you don't know how, or.." Y'know, all the things she'd accused him of only a few days prior.
"But I do need to know if this is something you can actually commit to. Like—choosing the not-selfish option. Choosing me...us, over being able to just do what you want and get what you want." Because asking a man like Jack to constantly turn down trading sex (good sex by the sounds of it) in exchange for whatever Safrin was willing to give him, didn't actually seem like the most sustainable choice in the long run, but Flora knew Jack well enough to know if nothing else, it was his decision to make.
"Because I mean..I get it. Its only been a few seasons, and obviously Safrin could give you basically anything you wanted, so.." Flora's cheeks heat as she lets her gaze slip down toward the arm of Jack's chair, shrugging. So she'd get it if he picked Safrin over her.
"You don't have to tell me that," Jack mumbles - with or without his magic and the steadfast wall he's pulled up to stop from being dragged out with Flora's tsunami of emotions, the easy thing would have been to slip back on deck and go right to sleep. This does suck. But apparently this is a necessary evil for a semblance of a healthy relationship, whatever one of those is, and Jack joins Flora in knocking back the rest of his liquor, raising the bottle as if to ask if she wants another drink.
"Did I not already commit to it by bein' here with you right now instead of back in that shrine makin' my life easier?" he wonders; she might be earnest in her questions, but they still ring of an accusation of something he feels he's already admitted to - and turned his back on. Inhaling a slow breath and letting it out again, he scrubs a hand across his face and goes ahead to preemptively pour himself another strong drink.
"Can you?" he asks. "I know I can commit, 'cause I already did. But can you live with knowin' that and not overthinkin' it to death anyway? If you can't - if you can't trust the decisions I make and the reasons I make 'em, or if you feel like you need me to prove over and over again that I want this... it's already over, Flora. You won't ever be happy livin' like that."
fight so dirty but you love so sweet talk so pretty but your heart got teeth
Flora flinches slightly at Jack’s words, guilt pooling hot and sharp in the pit of her stomach as she's forced to face down the sharp edges of her insecurities again, still picking at the scabs of every wound she’d ever collected from not being enough. She wants to argue, to say that she isn't asking him to prove anything—that she’s just trying to be realistic because it’s one thing for Jack to say he’s committed now, but what about in a week? A month? A year? Saying he'd already made his decision and could stick to it felt a bit like Flora saying she'd never cause drama again just because she held her tongue one time.
Slowly, Flora exhales, blinking rapidly to clear the tears that have stubbornly risen again despite her best efforts, one hand coming up to rub roughly at her eyes. "I don't want this to be over," she says finally, though it’s soft and painfully vulnerable. "But I feel like you're just putting this all on me." Pausing, the queen holds out her cup for Jack to fill, before immediately downing it all again.
'Because—" She continues, despite the fire creeping up the back of her throat. "I mean, you and I both know you could be a little bit better." At communicating how much he loved her, at showing it in ways she understood rather than being expected to read his mind as easily as he read hers. "And yes I know you said you would work on it. but why is it when I say that I don't know if you'll be happy like this you double down and get offended that I'd even ask, and yet this is like the millionth time you've made me say that I want to stay?"
Biting his tongue to hear her out, and taking another swift shot of liquor to do so, Jack exhales a long, slow breath and gives himself a little time before he replies in an attempt not to give the words so many teeth. "I keep makin' you say you want to stay, because you keep makin' me tell you I want you. And not out of affection, or love - out of insecurity. Barely a day ago we were in this same place, and I said it then - I love you. Is that enough?" He raises his eyebrows.
"Because the more I have to do it, the more it feels like you're just tryin' to convince yourself that it is. You're right - I ain't Prince Charming, an' I told you a dozen times or more before things got this far that I ain't good for you, but we're here anyway. Ain't no one alive or dead that would blame you for walkin' away from this - me included. The gods know your dear old dads would be holdin' a party." Jack scoffs and tips another measure of amber liquid into his glass.
"And before you start, no, that isn't me tellin' you I want you to go. Forgive a man like me his reluctance to rip out his beatin' heart and show it to you."
fight so dirty but you love so sweet talk so pretty but your heart got teeth
Flora nods slowly, but there’s a stubborn set to her jaw as she regards Jack, the hurt in her aqua eyes sharpening to something clearer, something firmer. Because sure, the other day she had been dramatic, emotional, needy—exactly like he said—but this? This was different, and she had every right to ask.
"Jack," she starts carefully, trying to keep her voice steady despite the hitch that tightens her throat. "I’m not—this isn’t just me spiralling because of some insecurity." Flora exhales sharply, fingers tightening around her empty glass as she holds his gaze, willing him to see the difference, to understand the line drawn between yesterday's dramatics and tonight's genuine concern. "You slept with Safrin in exchange for one of the most powerful items any of us have seen so far, and apparently she's willing to keep trading with you like that going forward. Like, I'm sorry, but that seems exactly like the kind of thing we should clarify. Like you said, you're no Prince Charming, so forgive me for wanting to confirm that you're not going to resent the fuck out of me for picking me instead of cosmic sex in exchange for powerful items."
But it’s the second part of his statement that truly rankles, that sinks beneath her skin and twists uncomfortably—because it feels far too much like Jack's expectation is that she fix all her insecurities and issues on her own. That she either accepts the captain exactly as he is or leave, all while he just gets to shrug off every bad habit he has while expecting her to fix her own.
"And for the record," she continues, voice steadier now, even if her fingers tighten nervously around the edge of the desk, "it isn't fair that you keep saying you're bad for me like it absolves you from having to actually do anything about it." Her gaze flashes sharply before she forces herself to take a breath. "While telling me I need to stop being so needy and insecure because you knew exactly what I was like when you decided to do this, too."
Setting down his yet-again empty glass to stop it frosting over entirely in his hand, Jack flexes his fingers a couple of times before he sweeps the necklace back off his desk and tucks it into his pocket. He doesn't respond, mostly because he doesn't think - he knows - that she won't like what he has to say, the Captain compartmentalising every dart he might throw that would strike true, instead clearing his throat to offer her a real answer.
"I didn't sleep with Safrin to get that item," he says softly. "She wanted a child. That's what I gave her." The method, he can already confirm, is largely irrelevant for the goddess's purposes. "So are you asking whether I'll stop shaking her hand in exchange for powerful magic items? Or is it the whole thing we're clarifying? Because I feel like that's important too."
As for the rest of it, Jack tips his head in quiet acknowledgement of her point, though he doubts it makes either of them feel better. "Sounds like there's a lot of work for both of us to do in the future, then," he mutters. "If that's a future you still want with me?" His fingers are starting to go a little numb, but he trickles another finger of whiskey into their glasses before raising his as if to offer her a toast.
fight so dirty but you love so sweet talk so pretty but your heart got teeth
Flora groans loudly, tipping her head back dramatically and squeezing her eyes shut as though physically pained by the turn of the conversation. Because, gods, clearly there was still more to talk about, just like she'd fuckin' said.
"Jack," she huffs sharply, lifting her head again to pin him with a pointed, utterly exasperated look. "Obviously I meant the whole—" she waves her hand vaguely, cheeks heating slightly as she glares at him, "—sex thing with Safrin. You can handshake or high-five her all you want. Knock her up a thousand more times for all I care—" (Okay, she obviously doesn't mean that but compared to the sting of knowing he’d been physically intimate with someone else, the idea of him spawning more kids barely even registers), "—but with your pants on." In dreams and awake. And if Jack wanted to float the idea of them having an open relationship, he was going to have to get a whole fuckton more charming and reassuring fast.
But when he asks if this is still a future she wants, Flora’s frustration flares white-hot, sudden and sharp, and she slams her glass down on the desk so hard it's a miracle the glass doesn't shatter beneath her hand. "See!" she snaps, practically vibrating with irritation. "You keep asking me to reconfirm whether I actually want to be in this relationship way more than I’ve ever asked you!" Her jaw tightens, gaze glittering fiercely as she gestures sharply at him. "Its been like three times in the span of this conversation, and again after I literally just said I didn't want to leave."
Reaching forward, and gods now the idea of slapping him seemed like it might actually make her feel better, instead, Flora places her palms on either side of the captain's cheeks, smushing his face until his lips puckered like a fish. "You are a no good smuggler idiot-" Pausing she leans forward to kiss Jack's obnoxiously shaped mouth. "-and I want to be with you."
"A high five?" Jack drawls with a smirk before he can stop the words from slipping past his lips. "Ahem. Right, though - noted. For the record, though, it's a lot easier to shake her hand when she doesn't literally walk into my dreams wearing next to nothing. Just in case she ever does that to you." Which, if Safrin ever did, and Flora ever succumbed to the goddess's incredible charms? No, she won't ever hear the end of it from him, you're right.
Jumping despite himself as she slams the glass down, the reproach on Jack's lips is entirely because there one of his favourite set and the whiskey inside is expensive, but before he can say as much and ruin things further, the Doubletake is squashing his cheeks and smooching him in a way the captain can safely say he's never been kissed before. Batting at her hands and rubbing at the scruff on his chin, though he does glare at her, the expression is nearly mischievous, as is the smile that curls across his lips.
"Not a pirate?" He raises his eyebrows, before clearing his throat. "For the record, you are a dramatic literal queen, and I want to be with you too."
fight so dirty but you love so sweet talk so pretty but your heart got teeth
"Well maybe I'll just have to have a little chat with Safrin about that myself." It's a bold claim, but one Flora feels entitled to make given how hard its felt like she's had to fight for Jack over the past few days. The Doubletake rolls her eyes, though the relief washing through her is palpable enough that it nearly sends her spinning. It glimmers through her thoughts like sunlight filtering through storm clouds, brightening and warming the sharp edges that had cut so deeply moments ago. She flashes Jack a slow, crooked smirk, one brow arching playfully, eyes glittering with mischief as she tilts her head, considering.
"Mmmm, maybe I’ll make that reason number two and three for you to marry me," she hums thoughtfully, her grin teasing but warm as she trails her fingertips lightly along his jaw. "I'll never call you a pirate again, and I'll stop calling the Ark a boat." It's almost a whisper as she leans forward, nudging his nose gently with hers, lingering close enough for him to feel her breath, warm and soft against his lips.
"And until you say yes," she purrs softly, "they’ll both be my favourite insults."
Before he can protest or correct her, Flora tilts her chin up, pressing her mouth fully to his—kissing him slow, sweet, and deep.
"I am certainly not gonna stop you," Jack says with a shrug of his shoulders. If anyone stands a chance agains the mercurial goddess it's Flora, though in truth, deep down Jack doesn't think it will have much of a difference. But at least this way the Doubletake might see the difficulty in the scenario he'd found himself in.
Piracy is one thing, but to hear The Ark called a boat in his very cabin has Jack hissing in a breath and cringing harder than he ever did to tell Flora about his liaison with the goddess. Reaching out to hook an arm around her waist, he drags her into his lap at the same time as she steals any retort - about his ship, about marriage, about insulting him - with her lips, Jack melting into the offered kiss if only because it stops either of them from saying anything else too stupid.
Sitting up enough to settle her properly in his lap, his hands greedily keeping her put, he draws back just enough to raise his eyebrows up at her. "Now I can come back to bed," he says.
fight so dirty but you love so sweet talk so pretty but your heart got teeth
Flora melts against Jack almost immediately, every remaining trace of her lingering hurt evaporating beneath the heat of his mouth and the familiar press of his fingertips against her skin. Her emotions flare bright and mercurial—sharp as a storm but quick to pass—and gods, if there was ever a way to soothe her temper, it was this. Him.
The storm of their argument dissipates beneath the magic of his touch, forgotten entirely as Flora sighs softly into his kiss, the tension slipping from her shoulders as she sinks comfortably into his lap. Her fingers thread lazily through Jack's hair, nails tracing feather-light against his scalp as she winds her arms around his neck, all but melting into him with a soft, indulgent sigh.
Breaking the kiss only long enough to smile crookedly against his lips, Flora brushes a gentle kiss to the corner of his mouth, tracing along the rough scruff of his jawline before nudging his nose gently with hers again, practically beaming now as she curls into him. "Bet the bed has gone cold after all that arguing." Flora sighs dramatically, though her grin returns quickly enough, bright and teasing as she tilts her chin back up at him.
"S'pose it's up to us to warm it back up then, mm?" Jack raises his eyebrows up at Flora, a crooked smile of his own curling across his lips. If the heat of her body moulded against his own is anything to go by, it certainly won't take long, and though things are still a little raw in the wake of yet another argument, the captain has no qualms in rising to his feet to take them back to his bunk.
"Since we'll be docked in the Greatwood for another couple days, I assume it doesn't need to be said that I'll not be gettin' up with the sun." Code for if anyone tries to wake us, you have full permission to channel something nasty to tell them to fuck off. And that's if Jack doesn't freeze or shock them out of the way first.
Sinking into the blankets and sending a soft breeze about the room to extinguish the lantern, though he's aware, still, of the starlight pouring in through the windows, Jack drifts off thinking instead of aqua eyes and golden curls.
~FIN
fight so dirty but you love so sweet talk so pretty but your heart got teeth
