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!
Aisha's teasing grin did falter slightly when he raised his shoulders in a shrug. Yeah that really did blow, the not knowing was the thing that always got to her and she could imagine it wasn't any easier for him. She might've thought to apologize for being so lighthearted about it all, but the response he scribbled down and the playful wink changed her mind. She gave a coy look and snatched the paper back.
Will do soldier, may it be swift and painless one, she held up the paper, offering her own wink and a playful mock salute in response. In reality she'd yet to go to a shrine and pray, it just hadn't seemed that high on her priority list. But maybe she would soon, just to see what all the fuss was about... or on second thought, here was living proof as to why visiting the gods might not be the best idea.
i'd probably still adore you with with your hands around my neck
The boy responded to the salute with a flourid bow in exaggerated gratitude, laughter dancing in his eyes as he grinned down at her. As in most cases he was taller than her - she seemed about his sister's height - but it had ceased to trouble him a long time ago.
Turning the paper over, as it was getting rather crowded with messages, he asked: "What brings you here?" and offered it to her, unable to help his curiosity.
He had his own reasons, and surely did she - and honestly, it felt good to just be interacting with someone. Too much of his time had been spent brooding lately. Laughing was a nice reprieve from all that.
Perfect, another who appreciated the art of sarcasm. She'd met many different people in Caido but he was among the few who reciprocated her exaggerated expressions. It was a humor that could easily unite or ward away, those cheeky persons who could communicate perfectly with no need for words were the ones she'd always been drawn to for camaraderie. In other words, Aisha was enjoying the interaction, and the playful tones he'd offered her.
She watched as he flipped the page and jotted down another question. He needn't hold it up for her, she'd been watching over his shoulder (or more around it considering he was so big). Instead of grabbing the parchment she simply nudged him out of the way, a sassy confidence about her, and wrote her answer under his. Bored. Looking for something exciting. It was partly true yes, she didn't feel like going into the rest of it, how she was new and exploring her new world, searching for answers. That was too much to write.
i'd probably still adore you with with your hands around my neck
She invaded his space with a casual confidence he found quite charming. Korbin gave way only slightly but stood his ground, and gazed down on the girl as she wrote her reply, a bemused expression on his face. There stood a pleasant fragrance about her; he caught himself breathing in a little deeper than strictly necessary and looked away, down at the paper.
He shot her a quick speculative look. Leaned in, scooting her hand off with his own and wrote: "Alright. And now that you've found me, what do you want to do?"
A dark eyebrow rose as he sought her gaze, his smile a bit more teasing.
The girl allowed him to push her hand away, resting her pen and fist against the table. She'd been unaware of his observations while she'd wrote, but now made some of her own, mostly about his hair as he leaned. It was dark, but not as tar, and though the color and tone was a striking feature it was the haphazard curl and cut that brought a smile to her face.
When he finished she read his new note. A grin and an amused huff, she looked back up at him with a quick toss of her head to keep her hair out of her face. She gave his a mischievously analytical look, then brought her pen back to the paper. Instead of a direct response to his question, she wrote, I'm Aisha. While it was no idea, it was her way of accepting his invitation, and coaxing a bit more conversation out of him.
i'd probably still adore you with with your hands around my neck
The smile warmed, widened, and there was a distinct sense of confidence about him as he let himself be scritinized. He seemed rather satisfied when she offered up her name - he wished he could hear her say it, not sure he was interpreting the pronounciation correctly - and the young man bowed his head in greeting. A little too gravely to be entirely serious.
Korbin, he wrote back. Nice to meet you, Aisha. Come here often?
Standard platitudes, but what could you do? His eyes glittered with humor at the lack of originality, and without really thinking about it, his amusement trickled down a bond he didn't know existed.
The grave bow warranted a curtsy, of which the girl provided in full. How formal of them, in any other circumstance where the levity was lesser, she would find such cliche's bland. Though mockery was always fun, and she'd stand by that till the day it wasn't.
Come hear often? The blonde's smile remained wide, a humor that wasn't all hers stewing laughter in her chest. Oh yes, I stand here all day reading notes and doing nothing else. One of my top two favorite hobbies, this took a little longer to write but was worth it. She give a lilting cock of her head as she leaned back for him to read it, her own smug humor invading the bond as well.
i'd probably still adore you with with your hands around my neck
Ah, how fortunate that snark was his favorite language. Mockery, irony and sarcasm was up there too. The more bite in his words, the stronger his favor - or dislike - for someone was. This was a pleasant overture, a nice surprise to find in a place he'd only found dull and boring so far.
My my. And what might the second of those favorites be? His curiosity was lazy but rather genuine. Knowing little of the Hollowed Ground, Korbin couldn't think of much that would liven the place up.
Aisha was glad when he played off of her comment, a wry bite back poised on the tip of her tongue, or rather pen in this situation. After glancing to him she reached for the paper, this time putting in more effort to hide the words while she wrote. No peeking.
When she'd finished her one hand returned to her hip, and the other lifted the paper with a saucy flourish, Messing with the cursed and deaf men of the Hollowed Grounds, it read, a playful mirth in the smirk she gave.
i'd probably still adore you with with your hands around my neck
Oh, she thought she had him there. Very clever. He laughed aloud as he read her message, a deep musical sound that reverberated between the stone walls of the Temple. Deaf, not mute.
And here I was, thinking it was a Halo only kind of thing. Korbin made a tragic face in sympathy with all the other cursed and deaf men that must litter Caido for her to be so busy with them. You must be very busy then, shall I leave you to it?
He made a slow move to put the pen down, as if ready to leave. Of course Korbin had no such intention, but he wanted to see what she would do.
Aisha was feeling pretty good about her little comeback, but as any good adversary Korbin had his own. She finished reading his reply just as he began to drop his pen, but before he could Aisha stopped him, grabbing his hand and keeping the pen from leaving it. She glanced up to him again when her hand came into contact with his, her own warm against the soft back of his.
She let go after a moment, then reaching again for the paper and quickly jotting down, Seeing as you're the closest deaf cursed man, I guess I'll let you stay, another tease, pretending as though it was her who'd been contemplating departure, or sending him away. She liked to play the nonchalant jokester, but in reality she was having fun with him, and didn't want it to end just yet.
i'd probably still adore you with with your hands around my neck
The touch of her hand on his made his whole arm tingle. Korbin gazed back at her with a slightly raised brow. He didn't pull his away, just waited patiently, with a slightly smug twist to his mouth that only grew as he read her message. My, but wasn't she keen on keeping him around. How very interesting.
My lady is most generous. Give a poor backwater bumpkin a tour, maybe? He winked at her, indicating the Temple around them with a jerk of his chin.
It cost him nothing to give her the win, not if he got to keep talking to her. It had been some time since he last spent time in the company of a pretty girl... And no, Weaver, did not count.
Aisha shrugged at his smug look, pretending not to notice and give him that gratification. It was all a part of the game of course, the toying and roguish replies. She waited for his written response, this side of the paper growing rather full as well. She chuckled at what he'd written, a soft purr at the words he'd chosen. My lady, if only he knew how often she'd once heard those words.
She set to work under his response, using the remaining space to write her message and underlining portions of his. She emphasized, most generous, and drew an arrow connecting it to her own phrase, And don't forget it, bumpkin.
She allowed him to read it, then with a grin turned away, assuming he'd follow. She unfortunately hadn't spent as much time in the temple as she'd previously stated, and wasn't sure where to lead him first. No matter, she continued on with confidence headed toward the front of the building and past the dusty stone pews.
i'd probably still adore you with with your hands around my neck
He laughed again and offered her a mock salute to assure he had no intention of forgetting. It was too bad he couldn't hear her laugh... the smile she wore was quite lovely, and it made him wonder what kind of timbre her voice had. What color, what tone. Might she be a singer, or more of a dancer?
Aisha stalked off, clearly thinking he would follow like a puppy on her heels. But he paused for a moment, to casually filch some more of the papers and the pen he'd been using. When he eventually did come strolling, it was with hands tucked away into the pockets of his pants and an effortless grace to the long strides.
To be honest, Korbin didn't care much about the building. Or the town it was located in. Nor the region itself. It was foreign and fairly boring, gray and dreary... but none that sentiment showed on his face as he waited to see what she would choose to show him first. Just mild interest that had more to do with the girl than the structure.
