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!
Oh gods, what had she done? Walked into a dragons den and picked up an egg, that's what. And now she stood there with it in her hands while the dragon looked at her and she had no idea what to do. Drop it and run seemed like the sensible option, but... for some reason she got the feeling that her adopted brother was not about to let her escape this. He was having too much damned fun with it.
"Well, I wish you luck," she said, stalling for time. "He is rather nice, not exactly shy... you're quite similar there. No mercy." She thought back to the open propositioning, recalled the reason why she'd been there to sulk by the sea in the first place... and recalled another place by the ocean where things had escalated far beyond persistent compliments.
Blushing quite scarlet, she averted her gaze and mumbled something intelligible that might have been words. Maea squirmed. It felt much too intimate a thing to speak about. As if describing it would somehow take away the magic of a moment far too precious to dissect.
I'm an angel bored like hell And you're a devil meaning well
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
Amun smirked as Maea grew incredibly flustered. As she tried to deflect by bringing up this mystery man, he chuckled, the sound dark, low, and merciless. "Yes yes, he sounds like just my type." Leaning forward, he fixed her with an amused, but firm gaze. "Enough about me, though. Let's talk about you." He smirked, not willing to let her off the hook so easily (or at all).
Cocking his head to one side, he considered her. "Alright. Since you seem incapable of telling me what you've done, I could just give you general tips." He dropped his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "First one. Guys like partners who know what they want. Sexually."
Ugh. No. Not enough about him. Let's just keep on discussing Amun's lack of love life for the rest of the evening, okay? But no, just as she'd suspected, he was not relenting, and Maea forced a deep breath down into her lungs. Tried to distance herself from the topic, treat it like... something technical. A study, perhaps, some dry text like the ones she'd read in the Atheneum.
She was still scarlet in the face, but at least she managed to speak this time. "And what if the partner doesn't even know themselves?" A valid point; she absolutely did not. Except... there were things the Flood had done that... were extra nice. But how would she know that before he did them?
Her hands had grown quite unsteady, and after she nicked the edge of the cup for a third time, she mashed it down with the butt of her hand. Kneaded it back down into a mere lump - taking some frustrations out on it while in the process - and then started over from the beginning.
I'm an angel bored like hell And you're a devil meaning well
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
Amun chuckled at Maea’s words. Giving her a cheerful, but unrelenting look, he reached out with an elbow to give her another playful shrug. "Well then. The partner should take strides to correct that immediately." Obviously his tone was teasing, but it was the sort of teasing that invited her into the joke.
With that, he pushed off the wall. Heading towards the cot, he knelt down and rummaged underneath it for a moment. Standing up, he had a small object wrapped in cloth in his hands. Returning to her, he set it on the workstation.
Then he dramatically revealed its contents. Inside was a glass dildo and some lube. Grinning triumphantly, he crossed his arms. "When was the last time you masturbated?"
Was it possible to die from embarrassment? Maea wasn't sure whether she wanted to cry or hit him or laugh hysterically as Amun presented her with the objects, grinning like a madman. She took a single glance at them and snapped her head away so quickly that her neck cricked, refusing to look at them.
The whole theoretical distance? It crumbled immediately beneath his question and she shook her head vigorously.
"I-I've nev - I don't... That is... no!" she floundered... and there was something almost panicked about the way she brought her arms up to shield her face. Completely ignoring that her hands were covered in clay.
I'm an angel bored like hell And you're a devil meaning well
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
Chuckling at Maea’s response to both the dildo and Amun’s question, he wiped his hands free of clay. Then he reached out to give her a gentle pat on the back followed by a squeeze on her shoulder. Crouching down, he gently tried to pry her hands from her face.
"There's nothing to be ashamed of." His voice came out softly and shockingly understanding. "Everyone has different experiences and different preferences, and there's nothing right or wrong about any of them." With that he let go of her, though he remained right next to her.
Reaching out, he picked up the dildo. "Now then. What bothers you so much about the idea of masturbating?" He titled his head to one side.
She resisted his gentle hands as he tried to move hers away, but only for a moment. Then she relented and looked at him. Perhaps because he wasn't laughing. Maybe because he had called her sister and offered to fight anyone who hurt her.
"When... I was thirteen, I was... cornered by a group of boys. At a festival. They tried to make me.. do thing. Show myself." It was a reluctant confession, forced out only because of his sympathy, the understanding that she found this subject difficult.
"Noah... found us before anything really bad could happen, but.. after that I just... pushed it all away. Any kind of thoughts like that. Didn't want anything to do with it, until... well, now." A pair of gray eyes and warm hands had changed everything.
I'm an angel bored like hell And you're a devil meaning well
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
As Maea revealed what happened to her, Amun's eyes flashed with anger for the briefest of moments. However, it was soon replaced with concern. Wrapping the dildo back up, he hid it behind his back.
He rested his free hand on her shoulder. "Hey, look at me." Voice gently coaxing, he would not insist on it, nor would he wait for her. "What happened to you was not your fault." His voice was incredibly certain about that.
Still crouching beside her, he gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. "We don't have to talk about anything you don't want to talk about. Now or ever." Smiling, words soft, he tilted his head to one side as he waited for her response.
Looking at him, she managed a little smile. The painful awkwardness easing a bit, she nodded, showing she understood the escape he offered. But... at the same time. It wasn't really a topic she could escape forever, was it? While the memory was bad, she had good ones too now... of being safe, free to choose and decide for herself what to do.
So she straightened herself up as best she could. "It's... not that I don't want to talk about it," she admired, red faced. "It is just... hard. I don't... have much confidence about this. Sex." Just saying the word made her squirm. "When I'm with Sunjata, it's so easy. He's safe, and I don't have time to think too much, just... go along with his flow."
Washed away, was more the feeling. It was the talking about it, the analyzing where she had to actually look at herself and describe what she saw where everything balled up in a horrible knot. That's where the awful feelings from the past came alive again.
I'm an angel bored like hell And you're a devil meaning well
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
Amun nodded as Maea spoke. Gently, he placed the dildo and lube back on the table, but kept them wrapped. "Well, good thing I'm not asking you to do much thinking, then." Although the words were slightly teasing, his eyes were kind. Gently, he reached out with his now free hand to tilt her chin up.
"Listen, again, only do what you're comfortable doing." He cocked his head to one side. "But I think it would help with your confidence, if you experimented a bit. On your own. No thinking just feeling, yeah?" Letting go of her chin and her shoulder, he stood up and stepped back to give her a bit of space.
Considering what she had been through, it was quite the miracle that the girl could stand to have anyone touch her at all. But while it was a trauma, it could have been far worse and she was perhaps stronger than she looked. Friendly hands on shoulders and well-meaning hugs, playful nudges and loving kisses were not a problem, nor was the kind, brotherly concern Amun showed as he tilted her chin up.
It did not take much for her to meet his gaze, see the sincerity in it... and she nodded. A little grudging. "I'll... try." The quick glance she shot to the package on the table was one of a person about to go to war.
When he stood and stepped back, the girl straightened and breathed a deep sigh, letting the tension leave her at its own pace. Turning back to the clay, she stared at the half-formed lump and pursed her lips. Went back to working it with new determination - and it was a little easier this time, enough that she soon had the basic outline of a simple, rustic cup before her. A little small, a little wonky and not very elegant, but functional. She hoped.
An idea came to her then, quite suddenly, and as a smile brightened her expression once more, she turned to Amun. "Do you think I'd be able to make a jug? On the bigger side, the kind you'd use to hold liquour?" She held her hands up to indicate the measure of it, large enough to contain at least a gallon of liquid.
I'm an angel bored like hell And you're a devil meaning well
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
Amun couldn’t help but chuckle at the fierce look Maea gave the wrapped dildo and lube, though hopefully she’d be able to tell he wasn’t laughing at her. ”I have no doubt.” Indeed, his faith that she’d overcome this was genuine and apparent in his tone.
As she went back to making her cup, he nodded approvingly. "Good!" Indeed, his voice was weirdly proud.
Her question earned her a raised eyebrow and a head cocked to the side. "I mean, eventually. And if you can't, I can. And have." Crossing his arms, he gave her a quizzical look. "Might I ask why you so suddenly and enthusiastically need a jug?" He glanced at the shelves, where there were several jugs on display.
Raising a brow at his praise, she gave her first attempt at pottery a critical second look. She wasn't sure it was very good. Certainly not enough to warrant that prideful tone, but... Well, it was a start.
"Hmm, I've been thinking about what to give Sunjata for his birthday," she admitted, a little sheepish. "Nothing's come to mind so far but... perhaps I can make some liquour for him. I know the process, have done small batches before myself too. Just... I'd need something to keep it in, and a place to store it. Where he won't find it." Which meant, not at the VlamVloed, where he came and went all the time as he pleased.
"I did think to maybe.. I don't know, bake a pie or something. But I don't want him to get sick, or lose his teeth." Her grin was a little rueful, but Maea didn't try to hide how likely those outcomes might be. Her cooking was usually of the weapons grade quality.
I'm an angel bored like hell And you're a devil meaning well
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
Amun grinned when Maea revealed why she wanted a jug. "Ah! Now that, I actually can help you with." Pushing off the wall, he headed towards a shelf. "I gave him a similar gift for that event last season." Scanning the goods on display, he plucked one off and headed back towards the table.
Placing it before her, he grinned. "This is an amphorae. It's a much better container than a jug, trust me." It was currently plain and unadorned, but he set about gathering his paints and glazes. Setting them next to the amphorae, he added a few brushes and a cup of clean water. "Why don't you decorate it and then we can throw it in the kiln to set the glaze?"
