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!
It mattered to Loren, but when Remi dropped the topic, so did the librarian. This time, he just sat and listened to the alchemist, finally willing to actually allow the other man’s words to sink in. When Remi finally finished speaking, the summoner took a deep, shuddering breath, then cleared his throat. ”Does that mean I should tell you that all I want to do right now is to go find some dark hole and curl up in it for a while?”
He gave the alchemist a shaky grin, unsure if it reached his eyes or not. ”But I guess I will settle for tea.” Pausing, the Launceleyn looked down, staring at the other man’s feet. ”And...I missed you. Everyone, but...especially you. And I’m sorry for leaving and not saying that earlier, and everything, really. And I feel incredibly guilty about leaving, and all I want is to try and make things right.” That had to be enough honesty for now, because Loren didn’t know if he could summon up any more. Unlike his creatures, the truth was nearly impossible for him to muster.
09-03-2019, 07:45 PM (This post was last modified: 09-03-2019, 07:47 PM by Remi.)
all our lives i watched you search beneath the fallen skies
"I am very good with earth magic, need I remind you. Dark holes are quite easy for me." No innuendo, much have been there. Instead there was such an adoring sort of kindness and an almost sleepy smile.
It was probably for the best that Loren had looked away, for Remi's lips parted in a silent O of surprise. Had Ronin the mind to notice (and had the blighted monster not chewed his wedding ring to bits), the king would feel Remi's heart start to pound unsteadily. The alchemist's wings fluttered slightly, his balance shifting as if the tremors in his heart were strong enough to knock him off his feet. Luckily his enormous wingspan did wonders for his balance.
"I...was told you I missed you to." Remi replied, his voice equally low and feather soft. It would be a testament to the time the two men had in fact spent together, that the Launceleyn would be able to understand the thickening of his accent. "For a long, long while. As long as was possible before my memories were taken. And still you were everywhere. Pots of blue paint that I never understood...copper cups, telescopes...all you, even when I did not know it." The feather twirled faster and faster in his fingers. "I..suppose it does not matter now. I lost my memories of you and a few others at the end of LongNight last year." He added uncertainly unsure if that was relevant information, or indeed, information that Loren might even want to know.
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
Loren didn’t need reminding, so he just shook his head at Remi’s statement. ”I think having you magic me a hideaway defeats the whole not wanting people to find me aspect. Besides, I’m perfectly capable of finding my own hole. I think I’ve demonstrated that fact quite well.” What with the whole disappearing for a whole year act the Launceleyn had pulled. The kindness from the alchemist was unexpected, or maybe not given who it came from, but it was definitely more than the summoner deserved, so he just wiped the tears from his eyes to avoid dwelling on the other man’s words and actions.
However, that proved impossible as Remi spoke of his own experiences over the past year. Fragments of forgotten memories and shattered relics of a time and a land long past: it was all they really had left of one another and the reminder was definitely a painful one. ”You’re right. I guess it doesn’t matter anymore.” Leaning his head against the wood behind him, the summoner let his eyes and mind wander. ”I don’t think you told me the details of how it happened. Or if you did, I wasn’t in any state to listen.” Honestly, the librarian didn’t know why he was asking, beyond a certain morbid curiosity.
all our lives i watched you search beneath the fallen skies
"There is no winning with you." The alchemist chuckled quietly. It wasn't offered as a critique, simply a sort of adoring commentary.
Remi tilted his head softly to the side, a gesture more feline than avian now as he studied the summoner. Biting the inside of his lip he looked down at the feather in his hand, his lips twitching into an almost defensive smile. "Well..During the...second? time? Ludo tried to kill me.." The alchemist began, nose crinkling and one eye closing as he tried to recall, his voice far too casual given the context. "It gave me its mask. Or..one of its masks, I suppose. It let me see outside of the barrier as well as a number of other things." Softly Remi shook his head, indicating this part wasn't important. "I brought it to the Rathskeller during LongNight thinking...well perhaps that it might help. It was stolen, a few days in. After much searching I went to the temple to tell Ludo."
Offering Loren a wounded and strained smile, Remi's fingers instinctively clenched together for a moment and his wings tensed. "It was not happy, as you can imagine." The blush that had been on the alchemist's cheeks were now like scarlet smears of regret and guilt, highlighting what little green there was left in his eyes.
"It took you, Sam, Ianto and my mother. Anyone I had ever.." Remi's eyes flashed up to find Loren's for a moment, before looking back down. "...well, you know."
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
Again, Loren grinned weakly. ”You’re assuming this is a competition or a game to be won. I thought it was the start of a friendship, but I guess I was mistaken.” The brief moment of banter passed swiftly, however, as Remi recounted his experience with the gods. Well, one god in particular. ”I know.” Right there, though the alchemist couldn’t possibly have known it, the Launceleyn resolved to do everything in his power to bring back the other man’s lost memories. That, along with restoring the alchemist’s eyesight, were the least Loren could do to make up for not being there when the other man needed the summoner most.
The smell of tea that had been on the fire and steeped for a little too long filled the air and Loren's eyes darted to the kettle both men had apparently forgotten about. However, Remi—and his enormous wings—were still blocking the path to the stove, so the Launceleyn remained seated, hoping the alchemist would take care of it and give the librarian a bit of a reprieve from all these emotions.
09-03-2019, 09:19 PM (This post was last modified: 09-03-2019, 09:24 PM by Remi.)
all our lives i watched you search beneath the fallen skies
Remi snorted weakly. "Friendship or game, either way I have apparently got to keep you playing it, since you have so many others in the wings waiting on you." He said with a light shake of his head.
No, he didn't know. Gods help him if he ever found out what the Launceleyn was planning, though.
Watching as Loren glanced up at the kettle, Remi felt a warble of indecision. He...didn't want to move, but nothing tangible was keeping him where he was. Nothing he could name. And so with a shaky smile of something like apology, Remi stood, taking his feathery almost-cave with him. The air was suddenly much cooler, not warmed by breath and bodies and held in by feathers as it had been.
"Mugs?" He asked over his shoulder, moving the boiling kettle with his mind off of the flame. "Unless.." Sniffing the water, the alchemist sighed defeatedly and shook his head. "You like your tea slightly burned, right?"
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
”For all you know, I actually know how to play well with others.” Loren didn’t, but Remi had no way of proving that one way or another. Well, besides the Launceleyn’s disastrous reunion with Ronin. And the summoner’s behavior at the meeting. And the whole no touching thing. And that wasn’t even getting into the disappearing thing. Okay, maybe the alchemist had plenty of evidence that the librarian wasn’t good with others.
At least Loren knew where the mugs were. Released from the other man’s presence, the Launceleyn stood up shakily, walked over to the appropriate cabinet, and pulled out two mugs. They had the family crest on them, which made him grimace, but there wasn’t anything he could do about it, so he just brought them over to where Remi was standing over the kettle. ”I haven’t had it in a while, to be honest, so it’s entirely possible.” The summoner had been subsisting off of water even after his return; tea was not a luxury he’d allowed himself to partake in since, well, Northaven.
all our lives i watched you search beneath the fallen skies
"What does that make me, then?" Remi asked raising a brow. If he didn't fall into the category of 'other's, what was he then?
Looking down at the mugs, Remi frowned upon seeing the crest on the side. Biting the inside of his lip, he reached forward to take them (carefully avoiding Loren's fingers). As he did so, the crest transmuted itself. One changed into a lion, and the other a pair of glasses. "Before you argue, I can put it back. After." The alchemist said, glancing sidelong at Loren before lifting the kettle and pouring the tea.
"Good then. Perhaps you will love it. If not, that is one experiment we can cross off the list." So saying the alchemist took the mug with the glasses on it and not the lion. Instead of finding somewhere more comfortable to sit, Remi simply leaned his back against the cupboards and sank down where he was, gently blowing on the far too warm liquid.
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
The corner of Loren’s mouth quirked upwards. ”Not other. Duh.” What exactly that made Remi, well, that was for the alchemist to worry about and the Launceleyn to ponder. However, when the other man somehow transformed the mugs, the summoner shook his head. ”Nah, keep it. I’ve been trying to strip all the crests and dark fabrics anyway, but I guess I missed a few.” Giving Remi a slightly sad look, Loren added, ”I thought this place could use some light for once.” However, it was very low on his list of priorities, for obvious reasons.
Taking the mug from the other man gingerly, the Launceleyn blew on it a few times before taking a cautious sip. Even though it was too hot, even though they’d let it steep too long, it still was delicious; Loren’s eyes even closed and he let out an extremely pleased sound, almost transported to somewhere else for a moment. But when he opened his eyes, he was still in the almost unfamiliar kitchen with the man the summoner had once known but was now a stranger. It wasn't quite a letdown, but it was a stark reminder of how far he still had to go.
09-03-2019, 11:34 PM (This post was last modified: 09-03-2019, 11:35 PM by Remi.)
all our lives i watched you search beneath the fallen skies
"You heard it here first. From the astute mind of Loren Launceleyn, the world neatly divided into other, and not-other." Remi quipped giving the former duke a bland stare; one which quickly dissolved into a warm smirk.
Glancing around and noting the gothic darkness that still indicated Zariah's presence, Remi bit the inside of his cheek and nodded. "I can help you with that too you know. Without taxing myself." He added, already hearing Loren's rejection of the offer. "Transmutation does not take much out of me." Not much does, actually, but maybe that didn't quite need saying.
Glancing up as Loren tried his tea, Remi smiled more to himself than the summoner (given that his eyes were closed). Silently he was pleased that, even if he hadn't done something right, at least he'd not done it wrong. Blowing on the tea enough to cause his face to warm, Remi too breathed in the scent and let himself linger in it. "So..the doors." He said, tilting his chin up given that Loren hadn't decided to sit. "Am I just..showing you were they are? Are we...breaking them down? Am I making you keys?"
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
Actually, that division was not so far off from the truth, but Loren knew better than to say that. ”Hey, I never said I was astute. You just assumed that. You want astute commentary, go talk to, well, literally anyone else.” It shouldn’t be all that surprising that someone who’d been gone for nearly a year had little to say, even if Remi couldn’t remember the summoner.
Sighing, he just curled his hands around the mug, ignoring the bite of heat in his fingers. If he actually burned himself, he could always heal the damage, and the pain was only a fraction of the pain he’d experienced over the course of his lifetime. ”Fine. But only because you’ve already told me the Manor has an image problem, and because I can’t stop you, and because I know if I say no, you’re liable to keep coming back until I finally cave.” That last part didn’t sound too bad, actually, not that Loren was ever going to admit that to the other man. Or at least, not for a long time. Loren was supposed to be honest, now, but that wasn't exactly a lie, just a truth that hadn't yet come to pass.
As the alchemist brought up the actual reason behind the visit—and without the Launceleyn having to say anything about the subject at all—the summoner gave Remi a pointed look. ”We? What is this we? I cannot summon a kitten after your totally uncalled for attack, remember? So while I had this grand plan of showing you this awesome creature I stumbled upon that was going to hunt down the keys and the doors, I am simply going to sit back and let you do the work, since casting spells apparently does not tax you.” The Launceleyn sniffed haughtily, though amusement twinkled in his eyes, and he sipped his tea contentedly. It was time for Remi to show off his fancy new magic skills.
all our lives i watched you search beneath the fallen skies
"Well. I do not know about literally anyone else." Indeed, the alchemist could think of quite a few who couldn't hold a candle to Loren's linguistic skills. And that was saying something, given the summoner wasn't even really treating Remi to his full verbal offerings.
"You could stop me I bet. For a few seconds, anyhow." The alchemist said raising a brow and looking entirely smug. "I would not do it without you though. Blind, remember?" Looking around, Remi just shrugged. "It is all grey-tones to me. You would have to tell me what you wanted." As with so many things, it would seem.
"I bet you have more in you than you are letting on." Remi said dismissively. "But that is fine. Would not be the first time I have been summoned to a noble's home for manual labour." His grin was positively wicked now, smothered only by an attempt to drink his tea (and burning his lip in the process). "So." Glancing up, Remi leaned his head back against the counter and let it slide slightly. "What was this awesome creature I was going to behold before you had to defend yourself against a terrifying racoon?"
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
”You don’t know literally anyone else? And here I thought I was the friendless one.” Loren wasn’t going to let that particular comment stand without getting in a quick dig at Remi. However, the teasing tone in the Launceleyn’s voice was growing stronger with each back and forth they had.
The summoner wasn’t sure the other man’s claim about the librarian’s ability to slow the alchemist down was true. ”By what, clinging to your leg and making you drag me?” Somehow, however, Loren had again forgotten that the alchemist was at least partially blind. ”Uh...no, actually. Sorry. I forgot. Again. I’ll get it right eventually.” Perhaps if Loren was ever able to meet Remi’s eyes on a regular basis, that would even be true. ”Well, even white would be better than what we have. Tough to clean though, so maybe a light grey? Regardless, I don’t think you would ever make something anything less than tasteful.” The Launceleyn realized he was babbling to cover his embarrassment, and shut his mouth, before giving the alchemist a curious look. ”So...I’m sorry for asking. But you really can’t see the honking big crests with dragons on them?” Zariah’s taste trended towards oppressive and ostentatious, and it showed.
”I really, really don’t. Kittens all the way down.” Well, if Loren kept forgetting the other man’s blindness, at least it seemed that Remi had forgotten their earlier conversation. ”You abolished all titles by royal decree, remember? So this is not a noble house. The manual labor part is quite true though.” When the alchemist asked what creature the Launceleyn was going to summon to pierce the veils around these mysterious hidden doors, he walked over to the children’s book, tea in one hand, and picked up the volume, flipped it to the appropriate page, and brought it over to the other man. ”Hounds of the Wyld Hunt. They are able to track their prey anywhere, and nothing escapes their grasp.” Although he hadn’t been sure keys or doors would actually be prey they weren’t going to test that theory so it couldn’t be disproven. He took another sip of the slightly cooled tea while he waited for the alchemist's response.
all our lives i watched you search beneath the fallen skies
"I think you need to clean out your ears, Loren." The alchemist quipped back with a grin. "I do not know about anyone else." He repeated for clarity, rolling his eyes as if the strain of repetition was simply too much to bear.
"Could do. Or you might throw your tea at me. That might make me stop for a second or so." Remi said thoughtfully. As it was he was quite sure he'd be able to drag along the summoner with little to no effort at all, though that would require Loren touching him, so they'd likely never find out. Shrugging off Loren's apology, Remi merely blinked up at the summoner, before looking crookedly down at his own white shirt, stained with various things from just that day. "Is white hard to clean? I had not noticed." He said, wiping away at some charcoal with his finger and making it disappear. "Must be my eyes." Remi added, glancing back up at Loren with a mischievous grin.
Glancing around, Remi narrowed his eyes slightly and then almost entirely, as he gazed about. "Not when they are not close, no. It ... it is like the majority of the room has been painted by someone without much skill. It is without depth or contrast and no detail. You are the only thing with any real definition. Your eyes are—" Remi cleared his throat slightly; the beginning of his description had been said with casual ease as Remi surveyed the room. Looking at Loren though made him think of jars and jars and jars of paint. The elusive Launceleyn-blue, and yet there it was. "—really, all that has colour." He added in a lower voice, eyes slipping to his tea.
"Ahh, right." Remi agreed with a chuckle, having forgotten his abolishing of titles. "Good thing I have you to remind me." Watching with interest as Loren picked up the book he'd been holding, the alchemist tried to school his face into a disapproving frown as he looked up at the summoner. With a hand on the counter to help himself up, he took the book from Loren before giving the man a flat stare. "A dog." Crossing his arms and turning pointedly to the summoner, Remi raised a brow, wondering if his almost-friend would find the humour in Loren turning to a dog given the alchemist's feline-shifts.
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
