From being an Abandoned who had rarely left the Hollowed Grounds, to embracing the call of adventure, to dying and being reborn first as an Ascended and then as an Ancient, Maea has gone through quite the amount of changes in her life. One thing remains common, though, in her attempts to find out just where she belongs; she’s always had a craving for knowledge which has brought her to so many places and to meet so many people here in Caido. We can’t wait to see what else is in store for her!
Congratulations, Maea!
Credits
Court of the Fallen was created in October of 2018 by Odd, Honey, and Crooked.
Skinning and hosting by the epically talented Kaons, and functionality fanciness by the coding magic of Neowulf. If you ever see either of them around, make sure to show them some love!
no one wearing a crown,
comes in the name of peace.
It doesn’t occur to her that Peter is trying his best to act as a normal person should – she doesn’t find it strange when he can’t seem to stop touching the fabric she’d changed. She did the same thing the first time she changed the texture of something, and then she went to go change everything in her home to make it soft and inviting. She gives him a smile, wide and bright, happy that he loves the gift she’d given him as much as she loves the one he made her. It was the little things, after all!
But she watches as he shrugs, and she doesn’t think about it at all when he pauses and responds, offering a quiet laugh of uncertainty. She smiles to him, still, not wishing to push him away unless he had better things to do. “So, if we’re to be working together, perhaps we should learn a bit more about each other?” She tilts her head, turning her body toward where they came so they could perhaps spend some time venturing through the shops and chatting, unless he had a better idea. “Are you from a different world, too?” She asks, hoping to learn more about this boy that she hadn’t expected to be so drawn to.
The thin excuse for a smile clinging to Peters lips grows brighter when the expected dismissal doesn’t come. Instead, Rexanna invites him to spend yet more time with her, and gestures out towards the street again. Peters eyes flick up and down the alley before landing back on Rexanna. He is loathe to leave the relative quiet of the alley, but even more unwilling to leave her company until she requests it. ”I’d... I think that sounds good.”
It would be a lie to say that hanging around town was a new experience for Peter, but it was usually far lonelier. He follows along in her footsteps, several wordless false starts leaving his mouth before he finally settles on something. ”Yes, I... I am from a different... different place.” He confirms, the falls silent again to chew on his words some more. ”It’s not... or, it wasn’t as... alive as here.” Peter gestures along with his words, more towards the world at large than any specific facet of Caido. ”I think... maybe it was bigger? But I... I never saw much. I wanted to.” A melancholic sound sighs out of him before he’s continuing on. ”it was kind of... when I first came here, it was sad. I thought I...”
Peter stops then, his mind catching up to his words like a brick wall. There’s a beat of silence, and then: ”Are you... you are, right? From another... different place?”
PET
he is trying to tell you that there is some sort of shining star now buried deep inside him and he has to dig it out with a knife.
no one wearing a crown,
comes in the name of peace.
Walking with him toward the shops and merchants along the street, she keeps an eye on Peter through her peripheral vision. Not that she worries about him leaving or trying anything, but just to be sure he’s having a good time and doesn’t grow uncomfortable – of course, it changes when Rexanna asks the question most Outlanders have had the chance to express. It was so typical of them to talk about it that it was surprising to hear that he was from a different place.
Her head shifts toward him as she listens, nodding in agreement with a soft smile (whether its of encouragement or understanding, it’s hard to tell). His next set of words make a part of her feel sorrow for him, wondering what had kept him from experiencing the joys of his previous world. Unless, of course, he was like her. A prisoner in a way, unable to escape other than to run and run and run. And how much could you really experience when you lived a life like that.
She listens diligently until Peter’s tone changes, and he drifts off to ask her (or rather confirm) that she’s from a different place. She nods with a smile sent his way. “I came from a place called Halyven, though I lived in Aciend for a time.” She offers easily, a roll of her shoulders. “They were neighboring countries constantly at war with one another, quite different in their ideas and needs.” She explains easily, finding it easier with every passing month she’s away from the old life she had lived to openly talk about it. “But, like you, I didn’t get to experience much of my old world either. Traded one castle for another, didn’t get to see much outside of it until before I came here.”
It leaves Peter feeling strange to have spoken so long, and about himself as well. He’s much more comfortable listening to Rexanna speak, his lips silently repeating the places she mentions. There are parts of what she says that seem familiar, more similarities peeking out than differences, though the differences are many.
As soon as she falls silent, Peter speaks, giving voice to questions as tactfully as he can. ”Why did... why did you move? From... Halyven to Aciend?” He kept his eyes on her face, watching for any flickers of discomfort, ready to take the question back in a heartbeat. There was a silly question on his lips as well, asked after a beat, as if to give her an option of which to answer. ”What’s it like in... inside of one? A... a castle?”
The closest he would consider was the Launceleyn manor, and he turned, just for a moment, to glance behind him, as if he would find the house looming over them. It was the most elegant place he had ever been in, with a single incredibly uncomfortable exception. The thought of castles brings another question to his lips, this one said with a hushed curiosity. ”Are you... a queen?”
PET
he is trying to tell you that there is some sort of shining star now buried deep inside him and he has to dig it out with a knife.
no one wearing a crown,
comes in the name of peace.
Her tale is short lived only because she doesn’t particularly enjoy reiterating it, but she’s happy to answer questions as she browses the shops with Peter. Her head swivels toward him briefly as he questions why she moved from Halyven to Asciend, and she gives him a gentle smile in response. “I got married.” She offers it easily, avoiding the true terms of husband and wife, of prince and princess/queen. It’s an easy enough answer, and one that keeps her focus a bit away from him as she casually looks through a few of the fabrics a few of the naturals have lying around.
His next question is easier to answer, and she picks up a fabric and looks at the details of it curiously as she responds. “It’s a bit lonely, draft, and cold.” She remarks with a quiet laugh. “But, there’s people that are always there whether you see them or not. It isn’t as bad as I make it seem.” She puts the fabric down to pick up a shiny metallic bracelet from another stand while she contemplates the questions.
But then he asks the question she doesn’t expect, and Rexanna almost drops the bracelet in her hand in surprise. She sets it down and turns to look at him with a bit more of a serious look, as though it’s a secret she very dearly hopes to keep away from Zariah. Clearing her throat, she moves away from the stand to focus a bit further on Peter. “I was the Queen of Halyven. I was married to the Prince of Asciend.” She says quietly, hoping it’s obvious enough that it’s a secret.
It isn’t his fault though, and she smiles to him warmly to ensure he doesn’t take it the wrong way. “There’s a select few people here that know that… I’d like to keep it as much of a secret as I can.” She says with a quiet laugh. “Can I count on you for that? Especially in regards to telling our Queen?” She asks with a small amount of desperation glinting in her sapphire gaze.
There are more questions blooming on the tip of Peters tongue, but he knows when a subject is finished. Even if the way Rexanna says it is light, the shortness of the explanation closes the door in the face of more inquiries. There are other questions to be answered, different lines of thought, and Peter is content to leave this one alone.
Peter barely spares a glance to the stalls they pass. He doesn’t want for anything, and even if he did, he has nothing to trade. Instead, all of his focus is on Rexanna, soaking in her words. ”I lived... I stayed in a... in a place like that.” What Peter was remembering was a far cry from a castle, but it had been cold and lonely and drafty. ”The... other people? They’re...” Peter made a face and shook his head, not sure of the word he wanted. He knew he was under constant surveillance now, but something about being watched didn’t feel as uncomfortable as being observed.
Shaking off the memories (shaking off, stuffing down, same thing) Peter stiffens at the serious look he is pinned with, his lips closing in a tight worried line. He’d done something wrong, said something wrong. He always did.
To his surprise, Rexanna leads him away from the stalls then leans in. The secret that’s shared is met with an awed look. All Peter can do is nod, his lips closed tightly still, but now being held with the weight of a secret, of trust. It’s a feeling he’s been allowed only rarely before now. ”I won’t tell!” He promises immediately, raising a fist to thump against his chest.
”I knew you... no, not knew, but you... but you, you’re like a story. Nice, and... pre-pret... shiny. Like a story.” Peter is babbling, knows he is, but excitement steals his tongue away from his sense. A thought occurs to him suddenly though, making his stomach drop and his demeanour get serious again. ”If... if she knows, will she... hurt you?” If he doesn’t say a name, it’s not real, but Peter knows he’s being clear enough to be answered.
PET
he is trying to tell you that there is some sort of shining star now buried deep inside him and he has to dig it out with a knife.
no one wearing a crown,
comes in the name of peace.
His words reach her, and she listens as he begins to explain the place he lived before – how it was similar, cold and drafty, and she nods. Kindred spirits, if only he had a bit more fire to him. She doesn’t dwell on it, however, not as the next words leave his lips and she pins him to the spot with bright eyes as she explains quietly, pulling him away from the group of people. As he promises he won’t tell, she smiles and exhales a sigh she didn’t realize she was holding in.
She hopes her smile is enough to keep him from worrying that she’s mad. She isn’t, it’s just that it’s such a well kept hidden secret that she wants it to remain this way – just in case, one couldn’t be too safe after all. Her eyes linger on him as he babbles, that smile softening into something charming and sweet. And she offers a quiet bubbly laugh in response. “I like to think I would’ve made a nice queen had things been different.” She says softly with a quiet shrug.
But then, Peter grows serious and her eyes flit back toward him as he questions if their Queen will hurt her. A frown replaces her smile and she’s uncertain how to respond. “I don’t know.” She admits quietly, huffing a quiet sigh. “It’s unlikely it’s a place she’s heard of, but if she thinks I threaten her rule she could take drastic measures.” She runs through the possibilities in her mind. “I serve our Queen, but that does not mean I won’t go down without a fight.” She says, offering Peter a small but determined smile.
After a few moments, she directs her attention back toward the shops and gives him a brighter smile – pushing all those subjects aside for a less popular location. “Shop with me?” She asks with that same charming smile, hoping perhaps her new friend might peruse the stores with her for the rest of the day.
The smile and the bright laugh are more than enough to reassure Peter, and he nods his emphatic agreement to her words. He’s hardly known her an hour, but already Peter believes she’d have been a good queen, in another life. The answer to his second question is met with a touch less enthusiasm though.
Court was not something familiar to Peter, he knew there was a game to play but it was beyond him. All he did was watch the pieces move and try his best to understand. ”I think... don’t think... I hope she won’t do anything.” Peter sighed, chewing his lip. He wants to be able to say that he would support Rexanna, but the more honest per of him knows that is not the case. He is loyal to Zariah, for better or worse.
Peter isn’t sure if Rexanna is going it for him or for herself, but she shifts focus back to the market around them and offers him a smile. Bright enough that Peter offers her one back, shy and hesitant still, and nods. ”I’d like that.” He isn’t much for shopping, but he does like Rex, and how easy it is to spend time with her. It’s not like he has anything else to do for the afternoon.
PET
he is trying to tell you that there is some sort of shining star now buried deep inside him and he has to dig it out with a knife.
