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 deserved the punishing tickles, and he knew it. Korbin put up enough of a fight to keep his sister entertained, and chuffed something between a laugh and a wince as her fingers dug into his sides. Once she was satisfied and slumped to the bed beside him, he caught his breath again and tried to flatten his hair back down, knew it was sticking up at odd angles.
"Maybe," he replied, but sounded oddly reluctant at the idea of leaving Halo again. Truth be told, the portal freaked him out. But Weaver sounded so eager, just like when she talked about the bar. "I'll think about it. Once we have your bar up and running."
A small concession. He might not be thrilled about it, but since it meant so much to her... Korbin would do what he could to help. "Just don't expect me to love that Sunjata fellow," he warned, with a smirk growing, far lighter than before. Now that the decision had been made. "Who's that cider making girl, by the way?" He sounded very casually disinterested.
korbin
Deep into that darkness peering, Long I stood there Wondering, Fearing
I'm a lady, like whoa I could bring you to your knees
Maybe he says, and honestly, if he was happy just being here she wouldn’t push him. Yet he seemed so unhappy here, or maybe just with all the changes here, that she wasn’t sure what to do to help him. ”We could go to Torchline together,” she offers, wiggling her eyebrows a little bit at the option. It really was beautiful. ”Or you could just go run off and find some other Attunded, you know. There are a bunch. More than here.” They had an influx of Abandoned with the school lately, but she’d run across all sorts of Attuned out there.
She smiles at the mention of the bar, and reaches out a hand to rest on his shoulder for a moment. ”Thank you,” she says, meaning it, before dropping her hand back down to her braid. She was hoping they’d have the bar done before Deepfrost and things got too difficult. There’d be little to no traveling for them during the worst of the winter anyway, with the portal too far, and no desire to get stuck in the Grounds during Longnight. But once that was all over, there would be good weather and time enough for exploration.
She laughs slightly as he brings up Sunjata. Her braid is mostly out, hair a wavy mess, not entirely unlike her brothers. Flopping onto her back, she turns her head to grin at him. ”No, I rather expect you to hate him, honestly. I think you’ve already made up your mind on that one.” Well, who said they had to share everything? More friends for her, apparently. ”Her name is Maea. She’s a natural from the Hollowed Ground, but has been here for the Academy. Apparently her family used to make cider. Said she would get the notebook she has on it and bring it by. So we’ll see, but people are definitely interested in helping.” Whether it is Maea or someone else, Weaver suspects there will be opportunity.
"As good an option as any," Korbin said, tone easy and uncommitted. Torchline, huh. All he knew about the place was that it supposedly was warm and had a lot of water. Oceans, islands, that sort of thing. Cushy, nice... the sort of easy place that would turn a person soft.
"I have not," he objected, elbowing his sister in the ribs - gently, of course - "but I don't know him either." He said it like that was all the explanation needed, and perhaps it was. For all the people skills he had acquired over the years, he still didn't let people in easily. Too guarded against the possibility of losing them again.
"Sounds like you're already friends with the girl though. Maea. I suppose, if she plans to stick around, new booze wouldn't be too bad."
That was another issue too. People coming and going. He didn't do well with that kind of loose loyalty.
Heaving himself up from the bed, the boy reached for the lute that stood by the bedside. One of the few luxury items he'd ever afforded himself. Settling in against the pillows, his fingers found the strings and began to pluck them, testing the tuning, adjusting as needed.
"Seen anything worth telling about, since last time?" he asked, as he began to play, a slow, drowzy tune. The ningos were waiting in the kitchen, but it was rare to hang with Weaver like this these days. He was in no hurry to end it.
korbin
Deep into that darkness peering, Long I stood there Wondering, Fearing
I'm a lady, like whoa I could bring you to your knees
Torchline definitely was the sort of place that seemed like it could make you soft, though Weaver was pretty sure its residents were anything but. From what she gathered in rumors, they were lawless and hard. Torchline was the sort of place that just waited for you to let your guard down and then emptied your pockets while you bled out on the sand. Maybe she shouldn’t take her brother to Torchline, though she feels safe enough at the idea if she’s around.
He elbows her and she chuckles, elbowing him back playfully. They were so different when it came to people. Weaver let them in easily but she didn’t have expectations of them. Some part of her expected them to leave, one way or another. That was how life always was. When it came down to it, it would always be her and Korbin against the world. Yet, they could let others come and go. Well, she could.
She knew he had a harder time of it. Where loss made her more accepting, it left him guarded and afraid of getting hurt. He mentions Maea, and she nods, humming thoughtfully. ”I hope so. She has water magic, and we spent some time comparing notes, so to speak. She helped me figure out how to conjure flame.” And honestly, it was just nice to have a girl to talk to. Not that she didn’t love spending time with her brother, telling him stories, finding out what he had heard in the market. But he wasn’t a girl, and sometimes a girl just needed another girl.
She watches as he goes for the lute, not moving from his bed but letting him go collect the instrument he loved. She had weapons, he had a lute. She leans back, staring at the ceiling again, listening to the notes as he plucks and tunes. ”There are birds in Torchline that, when they sit on your shoulder, let you walk on water,” she says, voice a little dreamy. ”And a man who knew enough of this to show me and not turn me into sea monster food. I was careful, we didn’t go out too far,” she adds, knowing how her brother would feel about her trusting stranger. And she did trust them, but only to a degree. ”Oh, and Ludo showed up in Torchline. Turned a toy boat I brought for him into an actual ghost ship, which I admit I did not board. I was not entirely sure where Ludo planned to sail it ‘back’ to.”
03-24-2020, 09:57 PM (This post was last modified: 03-24-2020, 10:02 PM by Korbin.)
A peace came over him, when the lute was in his hands. The sounds he plucked from the strings were slow and lingering, hovering in the air like so many beads of shimmering light until they died away. There was no real plan to the music, just big hands moving with delicate grace over the strings, for the simple pleasure of filling the barren, cold room with something more.
He hummed acknowledgement when Weaver confirmed his theory, a brow rising when she admitted that the girl had helped teach her magic. Sounded like some girl, if his sister accepted instructions from her so easily. Not that he pegged his sole remaining family member for stubborn or proud, but... she had her moments.
"I'm glad you found a friend," he said, and actally meant it too. Just because he was mistrustful and closed off, didn't mean he wanted the same for her. His only real objection against the Sunjata person was how his existence had suddenly intruded on Korbin's personal routines, before they'd even met. Weaver was, of course, free to like him all she wanted.
The little anecdotes she mentioned brought a smile to his face. Grinning a little mischievous, his found their places on the lute and the stray notes solidified into a simple tune, still slow and a bit melancholy, but with the occational trill inserted that made it wholly playful. His voice was deep and smooth as he sang, weaving a story from what she'd told him.
"Weaver's grown bolder
with a bird on her shoulder
and waves rolling blue under feet
that's gone dancing on beaches
'mongst scoundrels and screechers
and Ludo's wee ship full o' ghosts
Sail on, sail on, to a far off dawn,
and dream until dreams come undone..."
korbin
Deep into that darkness peering, Long I stood there Wondering, Fearing
I'm a lady, like whoa I could bring you to your knees
She was definitely both stubborn and proud, but she was always aware that her magical skills were sorely lacking. It grated on her now more than ever. Ignoring her magic had done her no good. The gods still did not respond to her, and in the process she’d lost her brother. She could claim it was because she was too busy surviving to learn, but there had been reasons beneath that. And now? Now she just wanted to make up for lost time, wanted to have every tool at her disposal to help those she cared about. And if that meant taking advice from others, so be it.
As she talks, Korbin turns the disconnected notes into a tune. Simple and sweet, and she lets the conversation itself lull as he plays. Though soon he fills in the gaps with a song, of sorts. A slow, melancholy tune with a bit of joy thrown in and lyrics to poke fun - the perfect song befitting of their lives.
She props herself up on her elbows, listening, with a smile on her face. She is absolutely not musically gifted, but she can carry enough of a tune and besides, she does not care with only her brother around.
”While her brother stays home
and lets the fires grow cold
while memory snow blocks the front door.”
She grins, her verse terrible in comparison, but she is not trying to be good at this.
He grinned when she picked up the melody and started to improvise her own lyrics. Generously, Korbin accommodated her cawing by shifting the tune to fit her words, rather than the other way around, and supplemented a continuation;
"Then a stranger came calling
while the leaves were a'falling
with sweet promise of change from the old,
Sail on, sail on, to that far off dawn,
and dream until dreams come undone..."
He could keep going forever. Normally, this kind of song would have grown baudy and indecent, full of innuendo and strange events spiralling gradually out of hand. But for some reason, Korbin felt pensive today. Melancholy, in a way that showed through in his words... and for all the teasing, the worry he felt at this new element introduced to their lives couldn't be set aside.
His fingers stilled on the strings, and with a grimace he sighed. "Sorry. Seems it won't get more fun than this. I'll give that friend of yours a chance, Wee, but... be careful, alright? I can't help but feel something's off about this whole thing."
His intuition told him it was more than just a dude offering help to a stranger as a nice gesture. Why would anyone put any effort into Halo? Especially an outsider? It made no sense.
korbin
Deep into that darkness peering, Long I stood there Wondering, Fearing
I'm a lady, like whoa I could bring you to your knees
He adjusts the tune to tolerate her less-than-stellar musical skills. It’s a good thing she could wield a knife or a sword, because she was useless at the arts. Though according to Oliver she told a good story. How much credit she could take for that skill though was up for debate. Their mother told a good story, and Weaver just happened to remember well enough to parrot.
The song is cut short, a sure sign of Korbin’s mood today. Today. Most days. He had lost something of himself after the accident, and she hated knowing that she’d been part of that reason. Even if all the blame in the world did not change things, even if all the conditions could have been perfect and it may not have mattered. She still feels responsible.
He brings up Sunjata again, and she turns to face him, propped up on one elbow. She wants to tell him the whole truth, because he’s right, there is more to it than meets the eye. Yet the truth is she can’t trust him with the full knowledge. He’s too against, too rebellious, too different now. ”You’re gonna have to trust that I can take care of myself, little brother.” It wouldn’t be a surprise that she’d found an underground guild, but of course, the whole point of underground guilds is not to talk about them. She knows the black market in Halo, has been trying to get herself into the black market of Torchline….Weaver wasn’t exactly the sort who kept her nose out of trouble.
His eyes narrowed on her. There really was something she wasn't telling him. Why? She asked for trust, but that seemed to be an awfully one-sided request these days.
"I trust you," he said. But the words came out clipped, and Korbin set the lute down and pushed himself off the bed. Got to his feet, and shoved his hands down the pockets again. "If you don't want to tell me it's fine."
Only, it didn't feel fine at all. Since when did they keep secrets from one another? More things than one had chanced, and Korbin didn't think it was all on him.
He headed for the door, to make for the kitchen and the waiting ningos.
korbin
Deep into that darkness peering, Long I stood there Wondering, Fearing
I'm a lady, like whoa I could bring you to your knees
She gets up from the bed, following him toward the door. She’s not entirely sure how he could have decided there was something unsaid from what she had told him, but maybe he just knew her too damn well. ”I told you I was trading him secrets and you don’t even believe me. What do you want me to say, exactly? What do you think is going on?”
Because honestly, she could tell him about the guild, but what would it change? She’d told him the important truth, and he didn’t believe her. All she knew about the guild was it existed and she’d joined, but he’d probably shit a brick when she couldn’t even tell him who else was in it. ”I’ve told you the truth and what I know, but you are convinced of something else.” And it was true. She didn’t really know much more to tell him. Just that the guild existed, but she did not entirely trust this version of her brother.
If he leaves, she’ll simply follow. They could pluck and skin ningos together and keep fighting, which seemed to be all they did lately. She didn’t know how to bring back the brother she’d lost. Because in some way, she’d lost Korbin too that day. The little boy he had been died, and before her stood a shadow of who he might have been.
Korbin did leave, heading out into the kitchen and the waiting work. He bit his jaws together and tried to keep his temper from flaring, focusing on the task of plucking the ningos. "I believe you, but there's still something you're not telling me," he insisted stubbornly. "Why would an Outlander be interested in the gossip of Halo? What's he gonna use it for, and why be sneaky about it unleas it's shady? I trust you, sis, but I don't trust anyone outside of Halo to know anything about this place, or our people. Whatever your friend is planning, it's not likely to be good for anyone here."
He sounded calm enough, but there was an agitated tension in his hands as they moved with practiced ease about the dead bird.
"Did you ask about it? Did you consider what selling their secrets would do to the townsfolk?" The accusation was there, for all that he didn't want to voice it. He felt... somehow betrayed, by it. Like she was selling out him too. How many of his secrets would she give away for a few casks of booze?
korbin
Deep into that darkness peering, Long I stood there Wondering, Fearing
I'm a lady, like whoa I could bring you to your knees
Weaver grabs a ningo and starts plucking, tossing the feathers into a pile for some later use. Another blanket maybe, or some new pillows. There was always a use for them. Korbin goes on, and she lets him, letting the task keep both their hands busy as he vented his anger.
”You wound me, brother.” Her tone is mildly playful, though there’s some truth to the statement. ”My conditions to this deal were that I would not give him information that hurt my family or Halo.” She gives the word family extra emphasis, even if it’s just the two of them with no real secrets to hide.
”I don’t know exactly what he wants, but he told me he wants to get more info to help open up Caido.” She flips the ningo over and begins plucking another part of it. ”And from what I can tell, whether we want Caido open or not is irrelevant, because it’s happening. And I’ll get a better idea of him and what he wants, and what exactly I am willing to tell him, as time passes. I never agreed to tell him every secret I hear. Besides, I can just give away the secrets of those they pass through Halo. We’ll have rooms and food and will be an attractive place to stay a night.”
As it turns out, she is not a complete fool. He may not remember their mother, but she does, and she’d learned something from Straia in what time they did have together.
She made it sound so simple, even though it wasn't. Korbin could see a number of ways this could go wrong, and several of them involved her being in too deep and getting hurt. And he wouldn't know a thing, wouldn't know to help her, because of the secrets she wouldn't let him share in. The notion made him turn cold, made fear close its clammy fingers around his throat.
But as he glanced at her over the table, he knew there was no point in arguing anymore. She would do this with or without him. That much was crystal clear.
He sighed, a long and heavy sound that spoke of all the things he didn't say, doubts and pains and fears he kept swallowing down so he wouldn't trouble her with them. Gods knew she had enough worries anyway.
"Look... I'm sorry," he said, bracing the hands against the table. "I don't know why, but this whole thing just makes my skin crawl. I can't even explain it, Do what you want, Weaver. I'll help you with what I can, as always."
But there was no real conviction in the promise, and the usual smile didn't show as he turned attention back to the birds. He knew he ought to, if only to make the apology more sincere.
But he didn't want to lie to her.
korbin
Deep into that darkness peering, Long I stood there Wondering, Fearing
I'm a lady, like whoa I could bring you to your knees
He apologizes, but she knows her brother, and it’s not real. His reality is that long, heavy sigh. It is the fear he cannot shake, the fear that she cannot live beneath. They have become two very different people, and it hurts in some ways, but she cannot stop him from growing up, from changing. She cannot turn him into the little boy that jumped out of closets at them. He had earned his worries, after all. Weaver just never lived by such things.
”Well you will be here to remind me not to be a fool,” she says, stopping her work to look at him for a moment. They could balance each other out, if nothing else. He is the voice of reason, the kill-joy, the keeper of their safety. She is the adventurer, the reckless wanderer, the symbol of a very different life.
Weaver returns to her work, pulling a knife out of her belt to start carving the bird. ”Let’s finish these and we can make some dinner. And I’ll start a batch of your favorite jerky.” It is an olive branch, at least. It is the best she can offer, for she cannot be who he wants.
