can't know if you don't go

Maea

give me shelter, or show me heart

"I will. It's a promise." One she intended to keep, no matter how uncomfortable she was with asking for things. It was part of the change she was embracing, where surviving wasn't the end goal and her friends wouldn't have to worry about the way she looked or what she ate and whether she had shelter for the night or not. Pursuing interests, learning new things, filling her cup with all the things that sparked joy, so that when misfortune and grief knocked her to the ground, the wouldn't have to search for reasons to get back up. Living, not merely existing. Thriving. 

Though what that looked like beyond vague intentions of taking better care of herself, Maea didn't quite know. "That's... sort of what I hoped to figure out by moving," she admitted with a quiet laugh. "I've always admired passionate people. You know the kind - they live and breathe a craft, a role, and while they aren't only their work, it is a part of them." Like the dogged farmers she grew up around, like Talyson the Messenger who had made his deliveries into a lifestyle or Hadama, who would never be anything but kingly whether he wore his crown or not. "I don't know that I can be like that - I don't have anything I'm that interested in that's actually feasible - but to have a role, some real responsibility that I can show up for, balanced with fun times and good friends... that might be a good way to live."
If not always peaceful, then purposeful. If not entirely calm, then at least consistent, intentional, and voluntary. Not because she had to, but because it was what she wanted.

Rolling her head aside, a pale horn made a hollow sound as it scraped against rock. "What about you? What does it mean to end your hermitage?" With heat settling deep into her bones, the healing properties of the water released tension from her body. For the first time since they met, Maea felt completely relaxed; drowsy in the buoyant waters, at ease with the conversation now that the awkwardness had faded. Perhaps it was a matter of getting used to seeing Liam with water beading on the skin and his golden hair darkened and tamed by the water. Maybe it was enough to remember that he was the same person with and without a shirt; a steady, calming presence she gradually was learning to rely on.

watch me fall apart
and I'll be yours to keep

All I ever wanted
All I ever needed

Liam could understand well enough, given that he wasn’t sure what thriving looked like for him, either. Maybe that was just life, and they were all trying to figure it out one step at a time. Maea’s description of passion had him smiling, swamped with a sudden nostalgia. What she described had been him, once upon a time, in an age that felt so distant that it might hardly have existed at all. When he’d been young and carefree, without any of the guilt and loss that seemed to have haunted him all these years.

”I’m… not sure,” Liam admitted. ”I thought, when I left Stormbreak, that maybe I could find peace somewhere else. And I suppose I did, in a way, at least until the Void came to the Greatwood. But… peace with no one to share it with…” He trailed off, shrugging. He’d become lonely, he realized, more so than he’d even admitted to himself. ”I suppose… I’d like to have friends. I think I’ve realized that life is better with people you care about. And I need to be able to make a difference, somehow. I’m just not sure what that looks like yet.” Whether he wanted to be a soldier again, or if there were other ways to use his talents - who was a to say what the future held?

Is here in my arms
Words are very unnecessary; they can only do harm

Liam

Maea

give me shelter, or show me heart

Rolling over to her side so that she could see him better, Maea hummed with a small smile playing on her lips. "Well, you're off to a good start, then. You have at least one friend already." A pale-skinned tail appeared above the water's surface, lazily pointing a spade-shaped tip towards herself. "I'm not sure what 'making a difference' mean either, if we're talking about concrete actions, but from my thinking anything that opposes the Void is a good start." Like searching for roses, or lilies, assisting those who could not defend themselves from the infected creatures running rampant, or supporting the heroic figures that one day would have to step onto Starfall and battle the evil at its core.

Drifting her hands through the water, she contemplated the Greatwood, and its lack of protection. "You do have a certain skillset from your time as dragoon, right? What if you made use of that around the village? Helped the fae organize better, trained up new soldiers, gathered the resources from the region to trade with other places..? There's a lot that can be done, though I imagine it will take a lot of work..." The same kind of effort she'd been longing to put into Torchline, really - since the Hollowed Grounds no longer was a place she wanted to pour her heart into. It wasn't a huge leap to transfer those sentiments towards the forest - and there she caught herself, once again casually trading 'I' for 'we' as if Liam's choices somehow reflected her own.

watch me fall apart
and I'll be yours to keep

All I ever wanted
All I ever needed

Liam smiled lazily at Maea’s declaration. Even in the short time they’d known each other, he found that he’d begun to rely on her presence in his life. He was going to be sad indeed whenever she found the rose she was looking for and inevitably left him to return to warmer shores. But for now, this time they had together was enough.

”Mm, true,” he said, pondering the Void. He hadn’t done much so far, but he hoped to get stronger and be able to face down that which would come for them. ”I certainly hope to be able to contribute in that regard. I’m not sure exactly what’s coming, but I want to be ready for it all the same.” And he’d put in the work: training, questing, protecting, as well as he knew how.

Liam stretched his arms up, lacing his fingers behind his head. Warm water dripped from his elbows back into the hot springs. ”When I first moved to the Greatwood, there was a woman named Phoebe in charge. I had offered to help her with security, but when she disappeared, I guess I sort of… lost direction. Now I wish I hadn’t.” That he’d stepped up, given more of himself to protect the place he’d somehow come to call home. He looked at Maea thoughtfully. ”It would be easier with a friend,” he offered. The Greatwood could certainly use someone like her - far more, in his opinion, than Torchline, which was already well-established.

Is here in my arms
Words are very unnecessary; they can only do harm

Liam

Maea

give me shelter, or show me heart

That willingness to put in the work even when the outcome was uncertain was something she admired in him. Maea knew it certainly didn't apply to herself all the time. Maybe when she was younger, before painful experience brought a hesitancy into her, but these days... Perhaps that was why she was so set on Torchline. Even though it was a new start, it wasn't a new place, nor entirely unfamiliar, and certainly not un-established. Frowning softly at the realization that she might be seeking the easy way out here, it took her a moment to realize that there was more to Liam's words than a thoughtful conversation.

Sitting up, she sought his gaze almost cautiously, not sure she understood his meaning. He had worked... for Phoebe? and now he said it would be easier with a friend... but.. 
"What... are you suggesting?" she wondered, ignoring the way her pulse picked up speed. Unsure whether this feeling was hope or nervousness or something else entirely, she had to make sure she understood before leaping to any conclusions, before she began to get her hopes up about the completely wrong things...

watch me fall apart
and I'll be yours to keep

All I ever wanted
All I ever needed

Liam watched as Maea sat up a little straighter. He met her gaze squarely. He wasn’t entirely sure what he was suggesting, either, but now that he’d said it, a plan was beginning to take shape in his mind’s eye. After all, Maea had a home in the Greatwood now, and she didn’t seem as eager to leave as she might once have been. And the forest did need support. It had so much potential, and now seemed like the perfect opportunity to capitalize on it, now that so many people were flocking to the Greatwood in droves. If they could establish the region as one to be visited, to be inhabited…

”You could stay,” he suggested softly. ”I know we just met and all, and the Greatwood isn’t as… habitable as Torchline. But you have so much to contribute to wherever you go, and I guess I was just thinking… why not the Greatwood?” Feeling suddenly flustered, Liam relaxed his arms, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand. ”I get it if you don’t want to change your plans. It was just a thought.”

Is here in my arms
Words are very unnecessary; they can only do harm

Liam

Maea

give me shelter, or show me heart

A flush of heat rose into her cheeks as the pulse drummed away in her neck. Why not the Greatwood, indeed. What had once been a vague presence on the northern border of her home, little thought of and even less cared for, had suddenly grown vast with potential in her perception. Where Torchline - or rather, its queen - had only pushed her away, the forest and its people had accepted her beneath its boughs without question. There was no need to prove herself there, no conditions or repentance to be made, no toll to pay to tread on those winding paths.

"It almost sounds like you want me to stick around," she teased, laughing weakly because she didn't know how else to respond. It was a bit too big, truth be told. This sensation of being wanted - what did he mean, 'she had so much to contribute'? All she'd done so far was look for flowers and ruin a camp, was that... something to praise? "I mean... it's not like my plans are carved in stone. But... do you mean I should give up on the flowers?" Maea wasn't sure how to feel about that. As pleasing it was to be asked to stay, she wasn't sure what to do with herself if her singular goal of the past few weeks suddenly wasn't there anymore.

Could she really... just stop?

watch me fall apart
and I'll be yours to keep

All I ever wanted
All I ever needed

Liam’s suggestion was met with less resistance than he’d been prepared for, and he felt himself relax into the water, letting out a breath he hadn’t even known he’d been holding. Joining Maea with a laugh of his own, he said, ”Guilty as charged.” What was the point in trying to deny it? He’d come to enjoy her company far more than he should. The Queen of Torchline must be mad, he thought, to keep someone like Maea from her shores. The woman he was growing to know wasn’t deserving of such an exile. But perhaps it was for the best. Perhaps what happened had to happen to lead her here, to the Greatwood, to him.

The soldier hummed thoughtfully. ”I don’t think you have to give up on anything you don’t want to,” he said. ”The flowers will be useful no matter what you choose to do with them. Just because you bring a flower back to Flora to mend your fences doesn’t mean that you’re required to move to Torchline, does it?” He tilted his head at her, considering. She was brave, he thought, and loyal, too, to want to finish her quest even when she had an out. He admired her tenacity and her strength - both of which could benefit the Greatwood in abundance. If she chose to stay.

Is here in my arms
Words are very unnecessary; they can only do harm

Liam

Maea

give me shelter, or show me heart

A stillness so complete that water no longer rippled around her body settled over her as Maea considered that angle. It wasn't as though she'd never thought about it - to just present a flower to Flora for the sake of visiting the region whenever she damn well pleased, then walk away - but she hadn't quite gotten to the point where she really considered doing it. Now, though...

Liam wanted her to stay.

The hint of a smile teased the corner of her mouth. She made an attempt at suppressing it, yet no matter her efforts it kept returning. A little sheepish, a little shy; altogether happy. She'd almost forgotten this feeling. How sweet it was, how it brought on a different kind of weakness, like she might cry. To be wanted, even just a bit. Even if it was in a friendly capacity, to work towards a common goal. How could she say no?

"In that case... sure. I'll stay." It was that easy, huh? Just a single word. Just a simple 'yes', and her whole world shifted. No longer vagabond. No longer a nomad on a quest for fertile soil to plant her roots. Just like that Maea Valair had a home again, and a friend to share it with. Another little laugh spilled from her, breathless and decidedly moist; she looked away, embarrassed to show her tears when they were so unfounded, so completely opposite of what she really felt.

watch me fall apart
and I'll be yours to keep

All I ever wanted
All I ever needed

It took Maea a moment to answer, but when she did, Liam’s face split into a broad grin that he didn’t even try to hide. He hadn’t made a complete fool of himself, then, by asking her to stay. Her ready acceptance made his heart swell with joy, and he might have whooped or grabbed her in a hug or something similarly idiotic had she not seemed so overwhelmed with emotion. Instead, he glanced around, looking at the cavern again as though searching it for lilies, giving Maea a moment to collect herself, should she wish to do so.

”Good. That’s - great!” he stammered, unsure what to say or do now that it had seemingly been decided. ”Well, you already have a house, so I guess I can’t offer to take you house shopping.” Not that there was much of a market in the Greatwood; most of the homes belonged to the Fae and were occupied. It just felt like they should do something to mark the occasion. ”But we should do something to celebrate!”

Is here in my arms
Words are very unnecessary; they can only do harm

Liam

Maea

give me shelter, or show me heart

Catching only the tail end of his wide grin, a little blurry due to the tears rising in her eyes, she felt the brightness of it all the same. It lent her decision a new kind of weight, consolidating it in the joy of this person; this friend, who genuinely seemed to care whether she was there or not. Laughing again from the sheer infectious excitement in his voice, Maea sniffed and splashed some water over her face in an attempt to gather herself.

"Ah, yes. Sure. Maybe... we can do a housewarming party? Since I'm changing my plans, I'll need to tell my friends, and show them I've actually had some luck, after all." It was ironic, in a way. By sending her away, Flora had inadvertently brought on an avalanche of fortunate twists to Maea's life. If the queen had intended to punish her, it had backfired royally.
A smug, vindictive little grin granted a glimpse of her sharp fangs; "Maybe I'll invite Flora, too. She should be happy to hear I won't shade her sand after all."

watch me fall apart
and I'll be yours to keep

All I ever wanted
All I ever needed

"A housewarming party sounds perfect," Liam agreed, still grinning ear to ear. He glanced back at Maea to see her bare her fangs, and he snorted at her suggestion. That was certainly one way to stick it to the queen, but Liam had always been taught not to burn bridges. Still, this was one circumstance where he would have felt vindicated by proxy if Maea actually did as she said. "Are you sure you want to have to clean her blood off the brand new floors?" he joked, even going so far as to flick the surface of the water, sending tiny droplets Maea's way.

The rest of their trip was spent in comfortable conversation, discussing plans for the housewarming party before eventually turning to other topics. Not for the first time, Liam was struck by how easy Maea was to talk to. When they finally headed for home - home, truly, for perhaps the first time - Liam's heart was full.

fin

Is here in my arms
Words are very unnecessary; they can only do harm

Liam