Court of the Fallen was created in October of 2018 by Odd, Honey, and Crooked.
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04-17-2020, 06:15 PM (This post was last modified: 04-17-2020, 06:16 PM by Saiden.)
As Raza approached, Saiden shot her a smile. "Thanks." It came out in his deep rumble of a voice, but it was grateful enough. Giving her a grateful nod as well, he took the bottle and took his own swig before handing it back. "That's nice too."
When she asked who the lantern was for he glanced at it. "My sister Vanya. Found out she made it to Caido after all, but died before we could be reunited." Despite the matter of fact words, his expression had grown sad. "Did you hang any lanterns this year?" It was probably an intrusive question, but he figured she wouldn't be here if she didn't have a good reason.
They were interrupted by Remi's return, and the lurching of the heartbeat that had thrummed through his wedding ring, while acutely noticed by the Dark Star, was something that Ronin had been carefully trying to rationalise in his head. Now that Remi was back and whole and covered in blood pressed against him, he let himself relax a fraction.
"Sorry," he managed quickly to Amalia, once his lips weren't quite so busy, holding Remi close with the arm not carrying his daughter (quite a cozy family, they looked). "I love you too. Are you good? Do you want to go home, or...?"
I nod. It is a particularly good bottle of mamjuana. It seeps into my muscles, covers me like a warm blanket in the cool evening air. The lanterns are a little brighter, a little sadder. “That sucks. I’m sorry.” And I am. I can imagine what it’s like to have a sibling ‘cause I always wanted one, so losing one and knowing they were so close must suck balls.
I shake my head, but not too sadly. “Nah. Most of the dead people I knew weren’t worth rememberin’ and ya know, s’only me ‘n Hoa.” A shrug. No one’s caught my interest or attention. They come and go and realize I won’t leave the Hanged Man and pop out babies for ‘em. Or I’m not attentive enough, I don’t need them enough. People are funny. They need to be needed and I’m just… not needy.
It turns out Amalia will not need to wait for Remi's return: the Alchemist practically barrels into Ronin, pressing through the crowd and leaving the Shield momentarily dazed.
She recovers quickly enough, blinking and coloring at the flagrant display, her weight shifting uneasily on bare feet. She doesn't notice the blood that covers her friend (both of them, now), though the coppery smell will register in a moment to her animal-attuned senses. "Remi," Amalia greets, smiling crookedly, her eyes darting between the men as they separate by a hair. "If you two need a minute I can, um..."
Glancing over her shoulder awkwardly, she indicates that she can go elsewhere.
Quietly, a hushed entity, his hands maneuvered to intertwine the lanterns amidst the rest of their brethren. These in particular wouldn’t gain recognition the way some others death had – these were his and his alone, weights borne from bloodlines, ones he took on his shoulders without complaint. He tied the one embedded and laced in fire, fingers gliding over the wood until it was righted, and then the one intertwined and laden with water, waves and sagacity he likely wouldn’t ever bear for himself. The Sword’s eyes fell upon them once more, before a sigh trickled through, and he raised his head to suddenly stare upon the rest.
Hotaru was nearby, likely grieving Ru’in, or any multitude of lost children, comrades, and allies, and he slowly inclined towards her, as if a silent guard, another grounded, rooted thing if she required something else to lean upon.
under the bludgeonings of chance my head is bloody, but unbowed
everything i knew is turning into ruins in your shadow
"I just...I needed that." His tone wasn't apologetic so much as it was humbly confused, the Alchemist shaking his head softly. Ronin would understand later, when all was explained. Had he his attuned abilities he might have said and felt what he needed to in silence, but then, the pair were married and he'd not feel ashamed for taking something that had been promised to always be available.
With eyes that never left Ronin's, he smiled at Amalia's awkward offer to leave. "No." He breathed, cheeks flushed and eyes painfully full of a muted sort of joy and love. "Sometimes I just need a reminder, of all I have. You understand." Remi said without a hint of apology as he finally looked away from Ronin.
THE ALCHEMIST
i thought that i'd be ready but falling isn't steady once you let go
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
04-18-2020, 04:07 PM (This post was last modified: 04-18-2020, 04:10 PM by Morgan.)
MORGAN
Morgan, rather uncharacteristically, had been anxious when the event had begun that she wouldn't know anyone: after all, she did not recognise whom any of the lanterns were made for, each one so personalised for a soul she would now never know. When Loren approached her she was glad to hear a familiar voice, having felt herself dip into a rather morose place as she looked over the lanterns. "Go ahead. They are all lost memories, none better than the others."
Loren's lantern certainly was quite a bit more flashy though and she looked at it curiously, turning to ask him: "Who do you mourn tonight?"
However, before he had the chance to answer or Morgan to ask him anything further, the man was being screamed at by a...man? Beast? That she had never seen before: the Captain swiftly took steps back to distance herself, knowing when to stay out of a personal mess when she saw one. She'd ask him about the lantern later.
Saiden nodded slowly. "It does suck. But I mourned her already, when I first came to Caido. My whole family, really. So this is...it's nice to at least know one way or another what happened." Still, his grief was apparent.
As Raza revealed that she didn't have a lantern for anyone, he gave her an almost curious look. "Well, Hoa is very good company." Still, his eyes searched her features. Finally he shrugged. "I guess most people aren't worth knowing, when you get down to it." And if he thought that her life sounded more than a bit lonely, well, he very wisely chose not to comment on it.
Alina had been minding her own business when the commotion unfolded. Scowling that someone would disrupt a festival to Ludo in such a selfish way, she glared at the two men who seemed to be at the center of it. When one fled and one stalked off, she found herself drifting towards the woman who'd been standing beside the one who'd literally flown away.
When she was close enough, she spoke in a soft, but firm voice. "Any idea what that was about?" Honestly, the Fae was mostly curious because she saw an opportunity to gather information that might be used to drive a wedge between the outsiders. If they were fighting one another, they'd have less time to make trouble for the Greatwood.
Amun ignored the disruptions going on around them. Honestly, Ronin, Remi, and Loren all had a nasty habit of sucking up all the attention and oxygen in the area. Everything just had to center around them and their latest drama. There were others guilty of that particular grievance as well, and the potter ignored them as well.
One figure, however, caught his eye. For a moment, he hesitated. Then he found himself making his way over to Delphia. "Delphia." His jaw feathered with a bit of tension, mostly because he and the demi-goddess weren't on the best of terms. "I was wondering if you could tell me how Maea died."
It seemed Oliver had stumbled in during some massive drama. Go figure. When could they ever have a festival or massive group event where something didn't go wrong? It was frustrating and really, Oliver didn't want to waste the energy nor time figuring out what exactly went on prior to his arrival.
So instead, he found himself walking off to the side and finding a nice place to sit down. There were quite a few people who caught his eye, but all seemed extremely busy. Hopefully someone would notice him and come over. If not? No harm done. He'd just leave and be about his way. Maybe he could even stop by the bar here, seeing as they had one.
smile for the camera, it's just a shot in the dark
Her hands still tremble when she lowers them back down to her sides. The drama that's going on draws her attention for a moment, and though she recognizes Loren at least, it seems he handles it just fine on his own. She feels too blank and numb to get involved anyway, and a part of her is bitter towards the pair of involved parties for intruding upon this memorial space with their frankly ridiculous drama. It's disrespectful and crass.
She feels Deimos presence before she recognizes it consciously, and she steps backward to take his hand automatically, searching for that support that he offers and turning it into a physical bastion of comfort. Leaning her head against his shoulder as if to disappear into his side so that she doesn't have to feel the weight of all her lost children upon her shoulders.
my heart bends and breaks
so many, many times
HOTARU
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.
It was hard to miss the shouting when it happened, but the voices weren’t familiar and it seemed to be over almost as quickly as it had begun. If there had been less people around, Rance might even have been curious, but instead he rolled his eyes and continued to watch the crowd. There were a few familiar faces — Quanil, someone who might have been his little-seen employer — but they were all busy with their own conversations and Rance wasn’t about to interrupt just because he was a feeling a little twitchy.
The blond head that his wandering gaze finally landed on lightened his mood a bit. He moving away from the majority of the crowd and apparently not headed towards anyone in particular. With the uncertainty of the light, Rance probably wouldn’t even have noticed him if it weren’t for his pale hair making him a touch easier to spot. Pushing to his feet even as the younger man was sitting down several yards away, Rance called out, “Oi, Oliver.” He brought his hand up in greeting. “You came down, too?”
With all the commotion and hustle and bustle- Oliver was almost lost in a trance of sorts. Completely absorbed by the sights and sounds, zoning out and falling into a thoughtless world. Then he heard his voice. Blinking, Oliver lifted his head and looked for the voice until his eyes landed on Rance. Thankfully, Rance was tall and thanks to his very recognizable appearance, Oliver was able to spot him within the crowd. A smile spread across his face and he waved towards him before gesturing for Rance to come closer.
"Hey! And yeah, I try to come to all of the festivals and stuff. Since I'm living here, it only seems right to try and learn as much about the culture. Take part in it. Ya know?" What was the point in ignoring it? Avoiding the world and shielding himself from it. That sort of life wasn't something Oliver wanted to live and so far, he seemed moderately happy with his choices.
Once Rance was hopefully closer, Oliver would continue to speak. "What have you been up to since the last we spoke?"
smile for the camera, it's just a shot in the dark
