birthday wishes
Amalia Chandrakant
the Archangel
Baker

Age: 29 | Height: 5'6 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Stormbreak
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#1
AmaLiA
the shield of safrin
There is a celebration to be had, amidst the dark.

It has been six years since Amalia celebrated her birthday, six years since her first tragedy struck. LongNight has always been a difficult time, but her Nani made it feel that much brighter. Every year without fail the old woman would make Amalia a cake in her favorite flavors: cinnamon and ginger, with a cardamom cream. How she managed to find the supplies in the middle of winter always mistified the girl, but Amalia had grown to relish that spot of brightness, that happy moment in the long dark week.

After her grandmother died, though, celebrating felt like sacrilidge, a brutal dismissal of all she had lost. Why should she be happy during the week when so many lived in fear? She hadn't wanted to remember her grandmother and those brighter, happier years. She'd been comfortable in her unhappiness, the easy depression that smothered her and shut out the world like the Longnight shades.

But this year is different. The amount that Amalia has changed and grown and learned in the year is truly astounding. Oh, the anxious, quiet girl still lives in her soul, but now there is more, boldness and brightness, wisdom and playfulness and most of all, hope. Hope for a future where the world is more, greater than the dark. Hope for a world where she heals instead of hurts. Hope for a world that is better for those who come next.

Like Aoife.

Amalia's steps are nearly silent as she slips into the girl's room, the cake clenched nervously on a plate between her hands. Ronin is there, of course, and for a moment she hesitates, not sure if she's ready to face the man after all she said when they sparred. Licking her lips, the Shield inhales a steadying breath before offering the once-king a hesitant smile.

Setting the cake on a nearby mantle, Amalia kneels to where Aoife plays in a pile of furs on the floor. His daughter is precious and growing swiftly, surrounded as she is by endless love, Safrin's starlight in her eyes. "Hello, Starchild," the Shield murmurs, pressing a soft kiss to Aoife's dark curls. "I made us a birthday cake." Dark eyes focus back up on Ronin, still a little unsure. "I hope that that's okay."
you're breaking your own heart
Ronin Taliesin
the Supernova


Age: 34 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 14 - Strg: 58 - Dext: 70 - Endr: 58 - Luck: 79 - Int: 3
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#2
RONIN
if there's one thing i'm good at, it's surviving
Amalia was right - there was a celebration to be had. But Ronin didn’t feel very much like celebrating. He had taken himself away from the hustle and bustle with his daughter, the guildmaster uncharacteristically unsociable, and luckily Aoife hadn’t seemed to mind not being able to look, burble and grab at any passing stranger. (For now). That didn’t mean that the baker’s presence wasn’t infinitely welcomed by the child, Amalia greeted by a broad grin and a coo of welcome as she kneeled down on the furs.

Ronin managed a quiet smile, having watched her enter the room, cake and good intentions and all, and nodded softly to intone that it was alright. ”I didn’t realise that you were born during LongNight as well,” he said, ruffling a hand through his unruly hair. He was exhausted, in truth, by this. Every time he closed his eyes all he could see was blood. Every time his mind wandered it returned to Vanya’s face, pale and wan as her life drained away.
Amalia Chandrakant
the Archangel
Baker

Age: 29 | Height: 5'6 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Stormbreak
Level: 5 - Strg: 49 - Dext: 45 - Endr: 52 - Luck: 49 - Int:
JYOTI - Mythical - Starwhale (Humpback)
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#3
AmaLiA
the shield of safrin
Amalia smiles at Aoife's greeting, entranced as ever by the star-eyed girl. Lying back upon the furs she lets her expression shift and change: now a leopard, now an owl, playful and fleeting in an attempt to make her laugh. It is a good distraction from the darker issues, Ronin's obvious unhappiness, the awkward words that hang unsaid. "I was," she says softly, glancing at the guildmaster. "At the end of the week, in the infirmary." Would Vanya have lived, had she been in the infirmary? Would Aoife have a mother now?

Sitting up, Amalia turns to look at Ronin, though she does not neglect the infant entirely. The long, lush tail that sprouts from her lower back is now more qilin than feline, supple and slender with a thick and soft tuft of rich lavender-silver hair at the end. It tickles lightly on Aoife's face as the Shield turns her dark eyes to the Fallen Star, biting her lip in obvious thought, a pensive expression on her face. "Ronin... I don't know how much you remember, but... I'm sorry. For what I said."
you're breaking your own heart
Ronin Taliesin
the Supernova


Age: 34 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 14 - Strg: 58 - Dext: 70 - Endr: 58 - Luck: 79 - Int: 3
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#4
RONIN
if there's one thing i'm good at, it's surviving
Aoife, ever wearing her little heart upon her sleeve, was a delight to entertain. Cackling happily at the furry and fluffy shifting in Amalia’s expression, she clapped her hands together and burbled delightedly at the baker. Undoubtedly whatever conversation was going on her side was riveting, and so it was a good thing that she was preoccupied by the suddenly fluffy tail; it prevented a tantrum as guildmaster and baker began to speak.

”Ah, I see. Well... happy birthday, Amalia.” Ronin’s smile was as bright as he could make it - because as unhappy as he was, there was still a life to celebrate for all the horrors of LongNight. She and his daughter were evidence of that.

Brow furrowing as she brought up their last conversation - it had been in the labyrinth, if he remembered rightly - he could only guiltily shrug his shoulders. ”I am not lucky enough to forget,” he said, ”but you said nothing you need to be sorry about. I’m the one who should apologise. For when I was blighted, and for everything else... I know people were counting on me to rule with Wessex. But it just isn’t in me, after all that has happened.”
Amalia Chandrakant
the Archangel
Baker

Age: 29 | Height: 5'6 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Stormbreak
Level: 5 - Strg: 49 - Dext: 45 - Endr: 52 - Luck: 49 - Int:
JYOTI - Mythical - Starwhale (Humpback)
Played by: shark Offline
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Posts: 3,098 | Total: 4,577
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#5
AmaLiA
the shield of safrin
Wincing briefly as Aoife tugs upon her fluffy tail, Amalia reaches out to wrap the prehensile length around her, seeing if she can lift the girl with only the long and slender appendage. It is a good distraction from Ronin, the sadness and remorse he wears on his face that she knows she has only helped to cause. Pulling at the fibers of the carpet, the Shield shakes her head. "When you were blighted... it wasn't you," she murmurs, needing to believe it. "You didn't mean it..." She looks up at him with beseeching eyes, begging for honesty, for some sort of truth. "...did you?"

As for being king? Now it is time for Amalia to look chagrined, guilt settling in her stomach like a rock. "No, Ronin- you never wanted it. I... I pushed you. Ever since we met, I've tried to put my ideals onto you." Looking away, the baker sighs, slender fingers slipping up to wrap around her arms. "I was jealous. And petty. And I thought- I thought that the Gods choosing you meant you had to be better than the rest of us. I don't know." She trails off, shaking her head, not sure how to explain it. She had wanted him to be everything she was not, everything she was afraid and angry that she would never be.
you're breaking your own heart
Ronin Taliesin
the Supernova


Age: 34 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 14 - Strg: 58 - Dext: 70 - Endr: 58 - Luck: 79 - Int: 3
SUGAR - Mythical - Dragon (Ice Breath)
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#6
RONIN
if there's one thing i'm good at, it's surviving
Whether or not Amalia was strong enough to lift Aoife mattered not to the girl - she squealed delightedly as the qilin tail curled about her and did its best to pull her up from the ground. Naturally, she squirmed and raised her little arms and did her best to be as awkward as possible - Ronin smirked as he watched the two of them. Any kind of sunshine that had dawned in his expression, however, disappeared again entirely at the prospect that he had ever intended anything he had said and done while blighted.

”Of course I didn’t mean it,” he said, horrified. ”Being blighted was like watching myself from behind glass. Nothing I tried made a difference, until those roses.” Rubbing at his forehead, he gave Amalia a sad smile. ”But I’m still sorry for it, and any hurt I ever caused.”

As for his kingship... Some tension in the guildmaster snapped and he relaxed as Amalia spoke - not because he was happy about what she was saying, but because there was no bad blood between them as a result of it. ”I get jealous of you too,” he confessed. ”You, Remi, Deimos, Jigano... all of you who continued to grow, to hone your skills... Everyone lauds me as some sort of demigod. You can’t imagine how weak I was when I fell out of the sky. How weak I still am, compared to the man who left.”
Amalia Chandrakant
the Archangel
Baker

Age: 29 | Height: 5'6 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Stormbreak
Level: 5 - Strg: 49 - Dext: 45 - Endr: 52 - Luck: 49 - Int:
JYOTI - Mythical - Starwhale (Humpback)
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#7
AmaLiA
the shield of safrin
A relieved exhale as a weight falls away, though Amalia remains somewhat pensive, her dark eyes flickering back to Aoife as she remembers the things that Ronin said. Some of them were true, she knows this, but it isn't for him to bear that guilt. He has suffered enough, through darkness and despair, through a crown he never asked for an a kingship he did not want.

The idea that he should be jealous of her makes the baker's head snap up, utter surprise and bemusement in her expression as she half-smiles uncertainly, furrowing her brow. "You're far from weak. I know that first hand." Rueful and wry, she shakes her head, the ache of the fight still there. "Less than a year ago you were dead, and now you have a daughter and a husband and nosy bakers forcing you into a role you didn't want."

Biting her lip, she grows silent a second, trying to find the words for what she wants to say to him. "You- we- were chosen for who we are. Not who others want us to be." She thinks of Jigano, wanting her less fragile; of Wessex, wanting her less committed; of Roana, wanting her more forgiving. But Safrin said she loved her, for exactly who she is and who she wants to be. And who is Amalia to argue with a god? "Maybe it's time we stop trying so hard to be good enough, and just focus on being good."
you're breaking your own heart
Ronin Taliesin
the Supernova


Age: 34 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 14 - Strg: 58 - Dext: 70 - Endr: 58 - Luck: 79 - Int: 3
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#8
RONIN
if there's one thing i'm good at, it's surviving
Ronin couldn’t help but smirk at Amalia’s obvious surprise, shrugging his shoulders to her. ”You never fought me before the Spire demon,” he reminded her with a good-natured laugh. It wasn’t something he thought anyone would be able to understand. Regardless of how far he’d come, how much he had learned - indeed, the new skills he had learned - he still stood in the shadow of the man who had died. Until he could step out of that shadow, he’d forever feel unfulfilled.

Still, he wasn’t so negative as not to accept the goodwill for what it was, nodding gratefully to the baker. ”Thank you, Amalia. It’s difficult sometimes to remind myself of the things I have, compared to the things I lost. I always appreciate being nudged back onto the right path.”

Speaking of right, and good, and his goddess, a pensive look suddenly passed across Ronin’s face. ”Amalia,” he asked, ”what do you think of Safrin?”
Amalia Chandrakant
the Archangel
Baker

Age: 29 | Height: 5'6 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Stormbreak
Level: 5 - Strg: 49 - Dext: 45 - Endr: 52 - Luck: 49 - Int:
JYOTI - Mythical - Starwhale (Humpback)
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#9
AmaLiA
the shield of safrin
Ronin's gratitude elicits a smile from Amalia, though there is uncertainty in her almond stare as she regards the guild master, a slightly troubled quirk to her lips. Is she being too preachy, too judgmental, too convinced of her own ideals to let others voice theirs? It is something she's begun to notice about herself.

Another thing to dislike.

The shift in conversation catches her by surprise, causing her to blink up at Ronin. "I... what do you mean?" Confusion and uncertainty crosses her face as she uses her long prehensile qilin tail to lift Aoife around and into her lap, offering the soft end for continued play. Her thoughts on Safrin have always seemed fairly obvious to others, though the memory of the deity's blighted fury snaps and claws somewhere in the back of her mind. "Why do you ask?"
you're breaking your own heart
Ronin Taliesin
the Supernova


Age: 34 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 14 - Strg: 58 - Dext: 70 - Endr: 58 - Luck: 79 - Int: 3
SUGAR - Mythical - Dragon (Ice Breath)
Played by: Honey Offline
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Posts: 6,100 | Total: 16,318
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#10
RONIN
if there's one thing i'm good at, it's surviving
Smiling softly as Amalia brought his daughter around for a cuddle - and feeling secretly pleased that the baker’s presence seemed to be enough to stop Aoife trying to squirm away on her own adventures - Ronin plucked at a stray thread on his chair. ”I meant exactly what I said.” He smiled warmly, sinking back in his seat that he might explain a little better.

”I had an impression of her in my head, I think, even given that I’ve spoken to her so often compared to others. But I misunderstood her. So I wanted to know your thoughts - you’re the only other person I know to have spoken at length with her.” That and he knew that Amalia would be an invaluable ally in what he thought he might do.
Amalia Chandrakant
the Archangel
Baker

Age: 29 | Height: 5'6 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Stormbreak
Level: 5 - Strg: 49 - Dext: 45 - Endr: 52 - Luck: 49 - Int:
JYOTI - Mythical - Starwhale (Humpback)
Played by: shark Offline
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Posts: 3,098 | Total: 4,577
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#11
AmaLiA
the shield of safrin
Amalia listens carefully to Ronin's explanation, growing steadily more confused and ill at ease as he goes on. "And now?" she ask softly, meeting his blue eyes with her own unsteady black. He'd misunderstood her- does that mean he does, now?

It is certainly more than Amalia can say.

Licking her lip, the baker looks down at Aoife again, at the dark curls and starlit gaze of the little life that Safrin saved. "I think... I... I will never really understand her." She shakes her head, but it isn't meant as a cop out, and the smile that curls her lips is fond. "She's seen the life and death of stars- compared to that, our lives are barely moments."

Her expression falters, and she looks up at Ronin, not sure she's being successful in conveying her point. "I'm not saying that she doesn't love us. I think she loves more fiercely than anyone else in the world. But I think she, she has a different understanding of love and hate and life and death and good and bad and everything, than we do. If that makes sense." It doesn't, but time and experience has shown again and again that she is terrible at giving voice to her emotions.
you're breaking your own heart
Ronin Taliesin
the Supernova


Age: 34 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 14 - Strg: 58 - Dext: 70 - Endr: 58 - Luck: 79 - Int: 3
SUGAR - Mythical - Dragon (Ice Breath)
Played by: Honey Offline
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Posts: 6,100 | Total: 16,318
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#12
RONIN
if there's one thing i'm good at, it's surviving
It might not make sense to Amalia, but Ronin understood where she was coming from well enough, and his warm nod made that clear. “She is aeons of starlight, comets and the void between the stars, all of it,” he agreed. “I think I had it in mind that because of her association with Vi, that she would be less... nebulous.” He smiled boyishly; a foolish assumption.

“I asked whether I might hunt the Voice. The same as any other monster I would slay...” Frowning, he glanced up at Amalia, aware of the impossibility of his plan. “But Safrin told me that if she dies, the Ascended will never reach Mort. Their souls will remain trapped in the Spire...”
Amalia Chandrakant
the Archangel
Baker

Age: 29 | Height: 5'6 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Stormbreak
Level: 5 - Strg: 49 - Dext: 45 - Endr: 52 - Luck: 49 - Int:
JYOTI - Mythical - Starwhale (Humpback)
Played by: shark Offline
Change author:
Posts: 3,098 | Total: 4,577
MP: 2580
#13
AmaLiA
the shield of safrin
The comment about association with Vi earns a nod from Amalia, understanding warming her smile. "Yeah... She loves Vi, and serves him, but in a way that is hers." The tulmhainar called her a foolish child, and in a way perhaps the goddess is. A child like them, born into a larger world but still learning, growing, doing her best.

The idea of slaying the Voice sets a knot in her breast, though in truth Amalia would have no qualms with such a task being undertaken. But the Ascendeds, their souls... "She told me something similar," the Shield admits, glancing up to meet Ronin's gaze. "She also told me that Ludo once bargained for some, which makes me wonder..."

Is he considering the same idea she has toyed with, of a soul heist means to release the trapped souls back to Mort? "If they're in the Spire somewhere, maybe... Maybe we could find them. Or convince the Voice to let them go."
you're breaking your own heart
Ronin Taliesin
the Supernova


Age: 34 | Height: 5'10 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 14 - Strg: 58 - Dext: 70 - Endr: 58 - Luck: 79 - Int: 3
SUGAR - Mythical - Dragon (Ice Breath)
Played by: Honey Offline
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Posts: 6,100 | Total: 16,318
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#14
RONIN
if there's one thing i'm good at, it's surviving
Ronin laughed at that - yes, Safrin certainly did things in her own way, even if it was ultimately in servitude to Vi. It had taken him a while to learn that lesson about the goddess who had put him in the skies, but learn it he had. Better late than never. Eyes widening at hearing that the baker had been told similar about the Ascended souls, that all but sealed the deal for Ronin. After all, Safrin wasn’t the type to chat for the sake of it.

“Maybe,” he agreed with a quiet nod, smiling now at his daughter as she squirmed about in the qilin’s grip. “Once LongNight is over, you and me and Remi ought to meet to discuss this further, I think. For now... well. As fun as it is to sulk up here with Aoife, maybe we could enjoy some of the cake you made? It is both of your birthdays, after all.”


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