are we having fun yet?

Deimos

Dare we know the halo's hanging low

Deimos released a long, slow breath again, nodding at the insinuations. While he wouldn’t reveal everything, likely because they solely mattered to him, and he’d never do the same to Kiada, he allowed a small smile. “A release, I think, from all the guilt I had been holding,” he expressed; because that was one more burden no longer tied and tethered to his shoulders – liberated by the Penumbra, the only one he’d allow to pull those knots. Others could’ve said multitudes and it wouldn’t have mattered – not until the one who’d perished upon that horrendous LongNight offered the deliverance. Disentangled and gnarled and then gone again was a strange circumstance for the Sword, who held onto his remorse and sins as if they were a very part of his foundation.

Erebos tucked himself into his father’s elbow, and the Warden waited for Kiada’s response. He wasn’t certain if it pressed into boundaries they didn’t want at the wedding – ultimately up to them on how far they let the ghosts stretch and unfurl. “True. You would have quite a few to bring,” he remarked; a tease to go with the sorrow as well. Ru’in, Bastien, Rexanna…and still more after that.

if through some miracle, you are granted the chance to see him again

whether in this life or the next

He doesn’t have to say much for her to figure out the in between. And as she sips from her cocoa and lets her iceberg gaze flicker between Deimos and Erebos, the small smile on his face is reflected on her own as she nods, swallowing the hot cocoa. “About the door?” She asks softly – not wanting to pry, but knowing that it bothered him years later, despite how everyone (herself included) had told him it wasn’t his fault. But, much like her own experience with her mother’s reappearance, there was something soothing about hearing what you needed to hear from the one it affected the most.

As Erebos tucks into Deimos’ elbow, her gaze flits back toward Deimos’ face only to immediately roll her eyes, feigning a small frown and focusing partially on her cup of cocoa, tracing the rim of the glass with a long finger. “I wonder what he’d make of it.” She starts off, slowly, head tilting slightly. “He did ask me to marry him the year he died.” She’d never forgotten and she's sure she's told the Sword before. And in spite of being unable to save the tinkerer as well as forcing herself to move onto Chulane – someone whom she still grieves despite the fact he isn’t gone - then being wholly swept off her feet by a silly, introvert of a monster hunter.

you are, and always shall be, his

KIADA

Deimos

Dare we know the halo's hanging low

He’d gone back and forth over that nightmare of an evening close to a thousand times; picked upon nuances and changes and what might have beens. None of it had ever eased or erased the guilt. What if he’d chosen something else to protect their threshold with? Would Rexanna still have perished, simply under different circumstances? What if he’d done naught at all? But that wasn’t him – all those notions of a listless man weren’t in his entity. And try as they might, so many had strived to give him that permission to leave it behind, to sink it into the past, to cast blame not upon himself, but the Voice, LongNight itself, or any other semblances – and he’d refused. Let that shame and iniquity claw into his bones until he could speak to her again, either in Mort’s Realm or through other circumstances. Luck had prevailed amidst the Festival. “Yes,” he surmised with that quiet and small smile, the gradual tilt of his head as he glanced down at Erebos, the infant’s eyes beginning to close. “I needed to know from her.” If she’d detested, loathed, and abhorred, forgave…

Then he permitted another long, deep breath, ignoring the roll of her eyes at distinctions. He hadn’t expected semblances to immediately go towards Ru’in, but all of them had so many heartaches, perhaps it should’ve been a given to roam back to her first. “He would likely be proud of you.” For so many things; but namely the amount of obstacles, even death, that she’d overcome. “If you really want to know though, I heard Remi could bring messages to and from the dead.”

if through some miracle, you are granted the chance to see him again

whether in this life or the next

“I’m glad you got the chance to hear from her.” The harpy says with every ounce of sincerity behind the words. She hadn’t realized leading up to it how much it had mattered, but once it was over it felt as if her heart h felt less frozen. Like she was somehow less scared of being hurt, after all of the boards she’d used to protect it in the box that was her chest cavity.

And look at her now.

Snorting softly at his admission, Kiada nods, letting the smile play on her face as she watches Erebos settle into Deimos’ lap. “I heard about that. I don’t think I want to bother him if he’s finally found peace.” No longer tormented as a LongNight monster, but in Mort’s warm inviting realm. A place she remembers what it was like, which is probably why she feels as if it isn’t worth it for her own quiet worries.

you are, and always shall be, his

KIADA

Deimos

Dare we know the halo's hanging low

“Maybe now we can give her a break,” and he winked; trying to dissolve all those painful fragments into something meaningful – tied together with filaments of strength, perseverance, and fortitude. She’d be there when they all crossed into Mort’s Realm, and the segments of the world weren’t so hollowed, so grave, so choking. There were other moments, that much was certain, but Rexanna and her ghosts didn’t rankle down either of their spines any longer. “So we can cherish, instead of simply mourn.” Maybe they’d all been doing that well before him – but such was the way he carved his own path.

His head tilted at her answer, careful to ensure Erebos was still resting in the crook of his arm. “I think that is fair.” Just that the option was there. Nor did he believe Ru’in would be the sort of bitter and jaded individual, against Kiada’s contentment and happiness after all these hard-earned years, but it would ultimately be her decision either way. Altering the subject, he pondered over other portions. “Do either of you need anything for your home? Specific wedding gifts?” Because gods knew he fully intended to spoil her.

if through some miracle, you are granted the chance to see him again

whether in this life or the next

Nodding and snorting a soft little sound, her shoulders shrug in an agreement that also has the appearance of shrugging off a coat of mourning, of missing each and every portion of a previous life that she no longer fit into. At least she has the Warden sitting across from her, revitalized and new in this world, able to touch and hug to her hearts content. “Yeah. It’s about time, right?” She asks, flashing him a slightly amused smile as she pulls herself from the sorrows of before.

As for Ru’in, she chooses to do the same. Believing that his peace was more vital than her own worries and fears, not like it mattered. She’s sure that if Ru’in could see how Fox treated her, he’d be proud too. Happy, even.

When it comes to wedding gifts specifically for her home, the Harpy takes a moment to think, brows pinching as she sips the last dregs of her hot cocoa and considers. “Uhhh…” Lips pursing together before she smiles a touch fondly. “I’m not sure. Fox hunts, so we have plenty of fur and things… Maybe some tools for his monster hunting and more pots to cook with?” An awkward laugh leaves her, having never thought of asking for such mundane things when all she’d ever wanted before was armor and weaponry.

you are, and always shall be, his

KIADA

Deimos

Dare we know the halo's hanging low

Deimos was both slow to love and slow to let go, as if those who finally fully embedded themselves within his soul meant they were supposed to stay there for an eternity. But worlds didn’t work that way, and he’d learned through loss after loss, mourning after mourning, those listless, nefarious days where it was easier to become a stone wall. Rexanna was another one of those pillars crumbling, rising elsewhere, no longer a necessary bulwark and rampart against himself. “Sometimes it takes a while,” he noted with another small smile, a statement to match over the ages and lifetimes. An acceptance, when all the finality fell into place.

Gently picking Erebos up from his lap as the infant began to fade, he placed him firmly against his shoulder, holding him in place as the impromptu nap came to call. Listening to Kiada, he couldn’t help but give a light chuckle; it’d been a simple inquiry, but certainly not one that she was prepared for. She’d come a long way from surviving amidst nothing multiple times, biting against armor and weaponry and hoping for nothing else. His grin was fond as she answered, conforming to the potentials in his mind. Nor should she be surprised if she arrived home one day with a pile of gifts left on their deck. “That can be arranged.”

if through some miracle, you are granted the chance to see him again

whether in this life or the next

Nodding her horned head in agreement, the harpy pushes aside her empty cup of cocoa to watch as Erebos begins to fall asleep and Deimos cradles him perfectly in the strong comfort of his arms, smiling softly at the thought of being able to grow up in a place that while it had its troubles and difficulties, was surrounded by those that would do anything for him to keep him safe.

So she makes her suggestions over the gifts he could send her, unsure what else would be an option – likely something that might occur to her when she isn’t thinking so much about it – when she’s working around the house or doing her actual job and she has a split second of that would be nice. But for the moment? Fox’s house was inherited from his family – it had the majority of things they needed already equipped within its confines.

So when he says it can be arranged, she shoots him a playful look. “If I think of anything else I can send you a letter?” She suggests, flashing him a brighter smile.

you are, and always shall be, his

KIADA

Deimos

Dare we know the halo's hanging low

The response inspired another deep laugh, careful not to jostle the infant in his arms. “Of course.” He could imagine coming back to the Grounds with his Bag of Holding stuffed to the brim with all the necessities and assortments required.

Pondering gifts aside, his mind roamed elsewhere. Little did he realize free time was going to be nearly nonexistent come the following season, given everything about to occur, but it didn’t mean his machinations didn’t frame all sorts of aspects and possibilities. “Would you want to go on a monster hunt with us some time?” Presuming Fox would like to as well – given it was his occupation. “Outside of Halo, obviously,” he grinned, giving her a light wrinkle to his nose again.

if through some miracle, you are granted the chance to see him again

whether in this life or the next

At least sending him a letter would ensure that she had a chance to go home and see Fox and figure out if there was anything else they needed or wanted – after all, it was a time they could be selfish in asking for a variety of things. She also knows it’s far more likely for her to be selfish than it was for Fox to indulge in it. But, at least they’d be happy and content and together, even if she had to be the more selfish one between the two of them.

As for the question, she snickers a little to hear the clarification of it being outside of Halo. She hasn’t been on one in years and the thought immediately sparks some apprehension – despite how she knows he would never let anything happen to her or Fox. And likewise. So, tilting her head curiously, she flashes him an amused smile. “I don’t think Fox has ever seen me hunt like that. It could be fun.” She’d talked about it, of course, and he’d been able to put the pieces together that she could be ruthless when she wanted to. But sometimes showing was more fun than telling the stories later.

you are, and always shall be, his

KIADA

Deimos

Dare we know the halo's hanging low

“Oh, I see. To show off.” His nose wrinkled, boyish again, to tease and taunt. But there were always those layers, to both of them, where ruthlessness resided; the Sword rarely got to embody it nowadays, unless something made him infuriated and incensed. And sometimes, it simply felt liberating to release all of the merciless, unrelenting, harsh, and vicious energy – to remind the world exactly where the ferocity laid.

Tilting his head again, and sipping at the last portions of his hot chocolate, he snorted. “Any particular time?” Now with spring christened as the wedding date, they’d be left with other portions available or not (unbeknownst to him on how he’d be spending his time within Deepfrost).

if through some miracle, you are granted the chance to see him again

whether in this life or the next

“Of course it’s to show off.” She shoots back with a laugh to hear his teasing and taunting. She rolls her eyes affectionately, letting the smile remain on her face as she does consider what it might be like – what sides of her Fox would see for the first time. “What else could it be for?” She pinpoints the question to him, amused and playful, despite how she settles more with her own mug of hot cocoa, now empty and deposited on the bar.

As for time? She leaves the soft smile on her face as she considers, shaking her head lightly. “Hmm, not sure what time. Longheat, maybe? When he doesn’t get a chance to change his mind?” There’s a glint of humor in her iceberg gaze, the Harpy stifling her chime of a laugh.

you are, and always shall be, his

KIADA

Deimos

Dare we know the halo's hanging low

“Actual hunting,” he mentioned casually, rolling his eyes as well and finishing off the remains of his hot chocolate. Patting Erebos soothingly as the youth gave a small squeal in the midst of whatever dreams were occurring, he listened to Kiada’s insights. Longheat was a distance away, and likely no matter where they hastened, save for Halo, the Ancients would be able to conquer a multitude. “That could work,” he supposed – he’d make it so in the reels of schedules, duties, and responsibilities.

As for Fox potentially changing his mind, he arched his brow; uncertain why the monster hunter would be adverse to exactly those actions. “Propose it to him and see what he says?” He gave a quirk of a smile at the intentional pun, contemplating other reaches. “Then let me know.” Not everything had to be decided right then and there.

if through some miracle, you are granted the chance to see him again

whether in this life or the next

“Nah.” Kiara teases, flashing him a bright grin and a wrinkle of her nose to specifically be as petulant as she can be for the moment. It’s a temporary, fleeting thing, but her happiness still radiates from her as she settles back onto the bar stool, letting his next round of comments reach her.

He could potentially change his mind based off of her joining up, or if he’s too close to his bloodlust — something her fiancé was quite sensitive of. But for the meantime she could figure out when it was, make sure he’s not nearing the end of it, and everything should line up perfectly. “I will.” She smiles softer at him, already figuring out a way to propose it, snickering at the pun under her breath.

you are, and always shall be, his

KIADA