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!
He kills the fish quickly and painlessly, and Weaver watches without flinching. Killing an animal is not exactly new to her, though she is curious to see how easily the fish goes limp at one hit. If only luxere were so easy to catch; one of those could feed her and Korbin for a season.
”Ningos are these fat white birds, and, if you ask me, are pretty stupid. Easy to catch, and their feathers are warm so just about everything in Halo is lined with ningo feathers. Luxere are like reindeer. I think they show up in any place that has snow?” She’s less sure about this, but she’s pretty sure the Hallowed Grounds gets them in Deepfrost too.
Weaver rolls to a sitting position as he goes to collect some firewood. Figuring he means to cook the fish, she reaches into her pocket for her tinderbox, dreaming of the day she won’t need it which has happened but this thread is old. Still, it is not hard to start a fire. ”Need a hand?” she says, striking the flint to create a spark. With a little help from her magic, it jumps to life in the wood, which slowly begins to catch.
weaver
-- ask no questions, and you'll be told no lies --
Not missing the way Weaver followed the fish, Saiden smiled. "Now that you've seen it done, you can come fish here if you'd like. Plenty of fish in the sea." He winked. "And if you need company, just say the word." His voice was flirtatious, but not outrageously so.
Listening carefully to her explanations about the animals, he glanced up every now and then from stacking the firewood properly. Retrieving a stick, he set it aside. Letting out a laugh as she took care of the fire, he smiled. "Guess you didn't need my answer." Taking his knife back out, he swiftly and methodically deboned the fish and removed its guts. Once it was cleaned with a careful twist of his magic and some saltwater, he pierced it with the stick.
She chuckles, giving him a playful sort of grin. ”This seems like an activity that is far more fun with company.” Though she is no stranger to hunting alone, it is never the same when she goes out without her usual crew. And in Halo you don’t really sit and wait, but rather set traps and leave. Fishing you just had to sit and wait. She could think of more interesting ways to pass the time.
”Sorry,” she says with a shrug, clearly not sorry given the grin on her face. ”Habit. I’ve been lighting fires my whole life.” It is one of the first things you learn in Halo, after all. Second maybe only to crawling. Okay fine, that was a slight exaggeration, but only slight. ”Though all those tiny little bones in that thing look like a pain in the ass to deal with.”
weaver
-- ask no questions, and you'll be told no lies --
Saiden grinned at Weaver. "In my experience, most activities are more fun with company." Winking, he turned his attention back to the fish.
Sighing dramatically, though his eyes sparkled, he made sure the tuna was secure on the stick. "I'm sure you'll find some way to make it up to me." The suggestive tone was back, though for now all his attention was on preparing their meal.
Shrugging, he knelt down and held the fish over the fire, gripping the stick firmly. "There's a method to it. I'd be happy to teach you, if you'd like to catch another after this." Turning the fish slowly, he glanced up at her. "This is going to take a bit."
She comes to sit beside him and the fire, closer to him than she probably needs to be, but enjoying the proximity all the same. ”You could just douse me with water again, I suppose. Or the fire, and start over, if you really wanted,” she teases, though there’s certainly something mildly flirtatious about the tone of her voice.
”Perhaps, though a swim after this might be nice. I am infinitely sandy right now,” she says, holding out an arm which is covered in sand, just in case he hadn’t noticed. Her eyes drift to the fish, watching as he turns it over the fire. She is familiar with this, of course. They had a permanent version in their home back in Halo, and her and Korbin spent a good amount of time turning something or another over the fire. ”Then tell me something about yourself, while we wait.”
weaver
-- ask no questions, and you'll be told no lies --
Laughing at Weaber's suggestions, Saiden winked at her. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were asking me to get you wet." His tone was appropriately outrageous, and he reached out with a tendril of his magic. Water rose from the ocean and he flicked it at her, leaving spots on her shirt. "Satisfied?" He arched an eyebrow almost challengingly.
Smirking a bit, he let his eyes sweep over her body even as his hands kept the makeshift spit going. "Maybe I should've doused you after all. But a swim can certainly be arranged."
As she asked for him to talk about himself, he nodded. "Only if you do the same." Humming thoughtfully, he finally sighed. "I'm having girl problems." There was something almost chagrined in the way he said it.
She can’t help the laugh that escapes, loud and honest. He flicks a small bit of water at her chest, and she flops back into the sand with a dramatic sigh. More sand sticks to her, but she might as well embrace it now anyway. There is no helping it. ”You really know how to satisfy a girl,” she says with a wicked grin and a teasing note in her voice.
After a moment, she sits back up, attempting to brush some of the sand from her braid at least. Not so much because it matters, but simply because it is something to busy her hands with as Saiden cooks the fish.
”Fair deal,” she says, perfectly happy to answer questions in return. For the most part, she is an open book with few secrets. There are a few, but they are easy enough to avoid. ”Would you care to elaborate on your girl problems?”
weaver
-- ask no questions, and you'll be told no lies --
Barking out a laugh, Saiden grinned at Weaver. "That's what they keep telling me. Right before they leave and I never see them again." Actually, he was one of the better lovers in Torchline for both men and women, but he wasn't above poking a bit of fun at himself.
Shrugging slightly, he continued to spin the fish on the stick idly. However, his expression had grown almost puppy dog sad. "Not really sure what to say." He sighed. "I came to this world with a girl who I loved. But adjusting was tough, for both of us. I got clingy, and she wanted to be free to make her own way."
Tone guilty, he glanced over at her. "We're on the same crew now. But we still mess around, even though she's taken up with another man."
Torchline was a pretty large place. It seems hard to know if you are a better lover than such a massive population without having gone through a number of them, which Weaver isn’t necessarily judging. Halo on the other hand was a small place. To be attractive and willing was half the requirement, so honestly, for all she knows she’s terrible. But in Halo? Well, no one gave a damn. It was cold and they were bored. ”Maybe you are just so good they can’t handle another round with you,” she says with a wink.
His tone sobers though, and she listens as he explains the situation. ”Yea, that kind of sucks,” she agrees, not necessarily trying to make it better through some excuse or another. Sometimes some situations just sucked. ”Do you still love her, or just the idea of what you were?” Maybe it was hard to tell the difference, and she wouldn’t be able to help much. Weaver hadn’t actually been in love, so she cannot speak from experience, only her head.
weaver
-- ask no questions, and you'll be told no lies --
Laughing at Weaver's response, Saiden winked playfully back at her. "Aye, that must be it." His free hand slid down his chest. At the same time, he arched an eyebrow at her, as if to say 'who could resist this?'
Humming in agreement, he continued roasting the fish over the open fire. From the smell (and experience) it was close to being done. "Yes." He smiled, though his expression was longing. "We were good together. Still are, sometimes." Shrugging, he gave her a questioning look. "Do you have anyone in your life?" The question came out just a bit too casually for it to be casual.
She laughs at his response and the way his hand slides down his chest. Her smile is wide, her amber eyes sparkling. ”Clearly,” she says, leaning closer to nudge him slightly, careful not to disturb his cooking. Though she returns to her own space, she is still unnecessarily close to him.
His answer sounds like nostalgia to her, but she cannot know his heart. Not really. And besides, she is not one to judge. Weaver has little experience in the love department. There had been boys, of course, and ones she cared about. Though the pickings in Halo were slim and none were truly right for her. ”Nope,” she says easily enough. ”I am picky and difficult and flighty. Hard to love, I suspect.” There’s some truth in there, though only some. She is the sort of girl that would indeed be hard to love, but she is also the sort of girl that would be easy to love. She is indeed picky and difficult and flighty, and yet she is fierce in her kindness and her caring.
weaver
-- ask no questions, and you'll be told no lies --
Simply grinning, Saiden nudged Weaver right back. Then he took a moment to shift just a little bit closer to her. They weren't quite touching, but the distance between them was negligible.
Laughing at her description of herself, he glanced over at her. "Sounds like my kind of woman, honestly. And I'm not just saying that as a line." Tone openly admiring, he bumped her with his hip.
Then he lifted the fish from the fire. "Alright, this is done. Just give it a bit to cool off." It seemed and looked delicious, in his opinion. Although fish was sometimes an acquired taste and he hadn't seasoned it at all, hopefully she would like it.
”Oh?” she says, giving him a slightly flirtatious but also mischievous grin. ”Are you also picky, difficult and flighty?” Her brows raise slightly, and closes the rest of the distance between them so their sides are touching as she leans lightly against him. ”That sounds like a recipe for a fun disaster, probably.” Possibly the story of her life right there.
The fish smells delicious, and she is slightly distracted by it. Damn Korbin, he was right. She was absolutely going to end up fat with how much she enjoyed food. Yet it was such a luxury to not starve or eat ningo that she couldn’t help herself. ”Mmm, it smells wonderful.”
weaver
-- ask no questions, and you'll be told no lies --
Snorting, Saiden nodded. "Oh absolutely." Then he grinned. As she leaned into him, he leaned into her as well. "Nah, I'm easy-going and steady. Picky, though. We've got that in common." He laughed at her comment. "Either way, I'm not opposed to fun, even if it is a disaster." Though he made no further move towards her, there was a slightly questioning and slightly suggestive tone to his voice.
As she commented that it smelled delicious, he smiled. "You're just buttering up the chef." Still, he used just a touch of air magic to help the tuna cool. Once he figured it was safe to eat, he held it out for her.
