Court of the Fallen was created in October of 2018 by Odd, Honey, and Crooked.
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Standing in the sunlight laughing, Hiding behind a rainbow's wall
Falke, I don't know what to do. You think almost pleadingly. Yours has always been a fascination with the boy. The mind is its own troubling and wonderful thing, but there's a subjectivity to it that you've never understood. "Even now?" You all but whisper. You're close enough not to need to raise your voice, but something about the nature of the question demands it to be said in a hushed voice.
Touching Finn's skin is like feeling leather that's been left in the sun. It radiates heat and holds no smoothness to it at all. A fine layer of ash covers his entire face, such that she finds herself softly going over his skin, again and again, to find the proper colour beneath. Even the folds of his ears are coated, and she can't help but laugh as she curls her fingers around the strange shapes that his skin makes. "Maybe if you cleaned out your ears more often, the dirt wouldn't hold in all that noise." You say, looking down at him fondly.
As he speaks it cracks your smile, making you want to reach into the water and wrap your arms around him so tight that you block everything else out. Just doing my job, you almost say. And while that's true, you want Finn to know that it's more than professional obligation that has you here. "You'll always have a friend in me." You reply softly as you sweep the cloth over his closed eyes.
you are a terribly real thing in a terribly false world
”Even now,” he whispers back to her, though his eyes remain closed to enjoy the rarity of simple, gentle touch, something Finn so often goes without. ”I can hear the world moving. I can hear the stone cracking and shifting in the Tower. I can hear the whip cracks at the Needle, and people turning pages in the Archive.” Hallucinations, clearly, but it makes it no less real for the Spyglass in the moment.
He gives her a lopsided smile for her trouble. ”How am I supposed to hear the dirt if I don’t collect it so close?” he wants to know, turning his head into her touch. The remark about friendship nearly breaks him, and Finn has to let out a slow and shuddering breath. ”I didn’t think I had any, before this,” he mumbles. ”I don’t think I know how to be one back. I’m sorry.”
09-06-2020, 10:49 PM (This post was last modified: 09-06-2020, 10:50 PM by October.)
Standing in the sunlight laughing, Hiding behind a rainbow's wall
You listen to all of this and though it might be the fever talking, you think Finn would say there was some truth to it even on a good day. "Well for now at least, why don't we replace it with other sounds? Shifting rocks sound quite boring to me." You clear your throat, and though you're a much better pianist than you are singer, your voice is decent enough. It's nothing to write home about—nothing sultry, nothing that instantly inspires nostalgia—but it's in tune and sweet, if not a bit lacklustre. "Hey where did we go? Days when the rains came. Down in the hollow, playin' a new game." It's an old song, but your voice makes it bouncy and playful as you continue to wipe Apopo from Finn's brow.
Rather than being wounded by Finn's comment, you just shake your head. "I never asked you to be my friend, now did I?" You chirp back. "Just that I would be yours, so there's nothing to apologize for." And it's true. One-way friendships are just fine with you. You live to nurture and care. If someone ever tried to reciprocate, you'd probably go a bit mad.
'You ready to come out, or do you want to splash around a bit more?" You ask, already reaching for a dry towel.
you are a terribly real thing in a terribly false world
It’s the music that carries him away, ultimately - as it always has, and the smile slips from Finn’s face not because he isn’t enjoying it, but because he’s giving it his whole attention. He lets her finish her cleanup, her inspections, all of it. ”Alright,” he whispers, letting Tobi release him from the obligation of returning a friendship when he has no idea how, and he blinks his eyes open at the question, wrinkling his nose suddenly as if realising there’s water in the tub.
It runs clear now, at least, and while there’s little to be done for the rest of Apopo that’s taken residence in his curls from this vantage point, the rest of his body is clean. ”Getting out sounds good,” he mumbles, considering sticking his toe into the tap to see if he might be able to stop the water, but then Tobi’s reaching for a towel and that seems much more pleasant a prospect.
Finn is as helpful as he can be in his state, getting out of the bathtub, and whether or not he liked it, his chilled skin has resulted in a marginally clearer mind, however temporary it may be.
Standing in the sunlight laughing, Hiding behind a rainbow's wall
You sort of wish Finn would have stuck his toe in the tap, if only to add some levity to what is surely the strangest encounter the pair of you have had together. He doesn't though and neither of you are any worse for it. You rise as he does and for a moment you have the strangest urge to ruffle his curls with the towel and dry him off yourself. You resist though, thinking it probably best not to make light of this aspect of the situation, and so you merely hand Finn the towel with a smile. Leaning to turn off the water you step to give him room, a hand extended should he need it for balance. This is all done quite perfunctorily, and while some might think you cold not to be fawning over every movement Finn makes, you know that despite this illness, the man before you is one who likes to do things for himself. Despite your need to cuddle him like a puppy, his needs are front of mind.
Glancing at his dirty clothes, you think briefly about asking him for a bag so that you can clean them up, but getting him into bed is more of a priority. Continuing to hum under your breath, you wait until Finn has dried himself as much as he is going to, before holding out the feather to him. "Until it's cleaned you probably shouldn't keep it close..is there somewhere we can put it?" You ask, opening the door. A cold rush of air sweeps in as you do so, and while it might not be pleasant for Finn, you're more than happy with the assistance in keeping him cool.
you are a terribly real thing in a terribly false world
With the towel in hand, Finn makes clumsy work of drying himself off, something that furrows his brow with he first inklings of frustration. It isn’t a difficult task and it’s certainly not something that he’s ever found problems with before, but even with the cooling of his mind, his body has still been through hell. Huffing out a sigh when it’s apparent that he’s as dry as he’s going to get - but at least, blessedly, he’s free of ash - Finn wraps the towel around his waist. He shudders at the draught that blows in through the open door, giving a cursory glance at the feather.
”I think you should keep it for now,” he says before his mind can betray him and insist on having it beside him, and he takes a few careful steps towards the door. His hand extends to grasp Tobi’s shoulder when it’s apparent that he’s not going to be able to get far on his own, and he can already feel his vision darkening at the edges.
”Would you stay?” he asks suddenly. ”Only for a little while. I don’t... I’m worried about what I’ll do while I’m asleep.” He doesn’t sound as if he means the restful kind of sleep - more like what he’ll do when the fever steals his mind again.
Standing in the sunlight laughing, Hiding behind a rainbow's wall
Finn only looks better in a superficial way. He's let himself get scrawny over these past few weeks on the job, and the mottled bruises that have splashed over most of him certainly aren't doing a good job of contouring his muscles to look anything other than flat. Even so, you give him a smile of a job well done.
As he tottles towards you again the urge to shift sparks brightly in your mind. You're smaller and weaker than Finn, but you don't have to be. Swallowing down the bright flare of unicorn-magic in your bones, you steady yourself, softly placing your hands on his shoulders until he regains his balance. "A bit like those stupid dances in school, huh?" You ask of your position with a grin.
Trying to hide your sigh, disguising it beneath a small laugh, you nod. "Of course. You must not have been eating your apples, because you're not going to be able to keep this doctor away." You cringe at your own poor joke, softly patting Finn on the shoulder as you move to pull back, wanting him to try and balance on his own. It's the only way you can get the feather, after all.
"Do you normally sleep in something?" You ask, leading him out of the door, wondering if you need to make a pit-stop for clothing, or if this will work for Finn as is.
you are a terribly real thing in a terribly false world
”I wouldn’t know - I don’t think I ever went to any,” Finn says softly, a lopsided smile flickering over his face. He takes a few deep breaths and focuses on the wall beyond the door, as if to give himself a goal to keep his balance, and when he lets go of Tobi he at least seems a bit steadier on his feet. The look he levels at her, at least, is all Finn on a good day - her remark about apples earns her the withering amusement of a researcher, and he deigns to respond to her joke.
Still, it’s a wobbly journey back out into his apartment rooms, and the Spyglass is taken all over again by the familiarity and comfort of the space. He almost forgets to keep himself moving, swaying dangerously into the doorframe before remembering himself. ”I do,” he says of sleeping in clothes of some sort - probably not such a surprise to Tobi, given his past - but he nods up the stairs. ”There’s a trunk up there.”
Leading the way, his hand braced heavily on the bannister, Finn gets himself painstakingly to the top of the stairs, already able to feel his cheeks heat up with the exertion, for the objects in the room to begin to shimmer with halos of light. The loft contains a decently sized bed, neatly made, and a wardrobe, along with the aforementioned trunk and a side table. Above, light streams in from a skylight, but a pulley nearby brings down a heavy blind over it.
In the trunk Tobi will find Finn’s equivalent of comfortable clothing, and he nods at a pair of grey sweatpants as if to tell her that they’ll do.
Standing in the sunlight laughing, Hiding behind a rainbow's wall
"You missed absolutely nothing." You say with a grin. It's easy for you to say though. You'd always been pretty and popular. Not the top of the social hierarchy—you were too nice and sweet for such cutthroat positions—but the boys liked you for your face and the girls liked you because you never tried to steal their boyfriends.
His lack of response—or more properly the look he gives you in its place—has you beaming at him, all round cheeks and bright eyes. Following his gaze towards the trunk, you nod dutifully enough. Hovering behind Finn that you might catch him (read: brace his fall) should he lose his balance, you step carefully and with near-silence as you both ascend the ladder. It feels anticlimactic somehow, of which you're eternally grateful. As with the bathroom, you don't want to taint Finn's home with the awkwardness that this situation naturally wants to bring with it.
You can see the sheen of sweat that glistens on Finn's spine when you finally reach the top. Distantly you wonder if you shouldn't bring him some sort of...cup, or bowl to pee in during the night. But, as you mentioned before, you aren't planning on leaving. If Finn has to go, you're happy to help take him.
"Alright then." You hum, tossing the sweatpants at him and not allowing your eyes to linger on the rest of his clothes as you close the lid. "Straight into bed and if you're good you can have one story." You say this as if you're his nurse-maid and he some sort of naughty child. It's easier to live than the real narrative of doctor and mentally unstable patient.
you are a terribly real thing in a terribly false world
”I’ll take your word for it,” Finn mumbles, trying and failing to catch the sweatpants as she tosses them in his direction, sighing at himself and making quick if not clumsy work of getting dressed. At least when he’s finished he’s in something more modest than a simple towel - that remains abandoned on the ground, of course, as testament to the Spyglass and his state of mind.
He fumbles with the blind on the skylight, not wanting to peer into the morning sun, and the room plunges into twilight when he lowers it. ”A whole story?” he echoes, offering a faint smile to Tobi. ”I must be lucky today.” He has no idea - were it not for the doctor and the Star finding him, Finn might not be alive to reflect on it by now.
Without further preamble, he draws back the blankets and eases into bed, cocooned in the familiar weight and smell and feel of it all. His eyelids are fluttering even as he tries to focus on Tobi, and he’s already sneaking an arm under one of the pillows to bury his face in it. ”What story?” he wonders, already half asleep.
Standing in the sunlight laughing, Hiding behind a rainbow's wall
"Well, you'll have to. Those days are looong behind us now." You chuckle, suddenly quite interested in whatever is in the opposite direction of a naked-Finn. As soon as you hear the sound of the skylight being fussed over you glance toward him, glad not to see the Spyglass's naked ass peering at you.
"Mmhm, one whole story." You agree, knowing just how far his luck has stretched. Perhaps if you're allowed to return you'll ask Ronin how it was they were able to find the pair so quickly, to learn more about the ring on his finger and the strange connection between he and his husband. For now, you're just glad for whatever it was that let you find your friend in time.
Tucking Finn in, careful to press the blankets against him but taking care around areas that you know to be sensitive, you plop down on the bed next to him. Crossing your legs (Finn, why ever do you need such a large bed?), you lean your cheek on one of your hands as you brush a curl from his eye. "It's the story of another world. A place called Earth. It's where I got my name from. October is how they call one of their..." You pause, searching for the word. "Months. They have seasons the way we do, but they also divide up their years into smaller segments as well." You shrug your shoulders a bit at this, not really knowing why.
Of course for you, your stories are less narration and more fact-based, but that's alright. By the slow flutter of Finn's eyelashes you judge that so long as you aren't talking about volcanos or his twin, there's probably nothing you could say to rouse his interests now.
you are a terribly real thing in a terribly false world
It’s a strange and not-quite-real feeling, to be tucked in like this, and Finn is only half aware that it’s happening. The part of him paying attention, though, can’t help but smile sleepily into the pillow, relaxing bonelessly into bed and latching onto the sweet sound of Tobi’s voice. He learns about October and the way that some Outlanders divide their calendar up; he learns about the parallel seasons and the ways they bleed into each other, and the names of other months too.
Finn slips off into sleep thinking that he’d quite like to be named after the month of August, and saying so is sort of on his lips as he drifts off, though it’s mumbled into fabric and incoherent at best. Fever or no fever, the Spyglass has never slept like this. He’s exhausted beyond rational capability, and no amount of mental gymnastics or bad habits will keep him from the rest his body desperately craves. Not here, not now that he’s someplace he feels safe, with a friend watching over him.
Standing in the sunlight laughing, Hiding behind a rainbow's wall
You're watching Finn, but only to make sure that his breathing stays steady. So it is that you hardly notice when he properly drifts off to sleep. Your mind has been working out different things you might say to Falke. You need your counterpart to know what a bad way Finn is in without your tone immediately drawing him here. You feel an overwhelming need to protect (and this is only half because of your canine-tendencies), and though you trust Falke infinitely with Finn's wellbeing, still you think you want to keep him here, in the safety of this stillness for just a while longer.
Rising slowly from the bed, you pause to make sure that this slight change hasn't woken Finn. Though what you're about to do is a dangerous and reckless thing, its already grown roots in your mind. Moving to the other side of the bed, away from where Finn's closed eyes are facing, you lean down and whisper softly: "Okay Finn, I need you to keep your eyes closed, okay? Just keep them closed." Your heart is in your throat now as you glance over your shoulder. There is not a lot of room up here for what you're about to do, and you're absolutely kicking yourself for not having prepared better.
Swallowing hard, you lean into the opalescent swelling you feel inside of yourself, shifting as seamlessly and silently as you can manage. It's difficult though, with four cloven hooves suddenly on the ground and a body not meant for small a-frame spaces. You're so white as to nearly shine despite Finn having drawn down the curtains and the low light in this room. Stay asleep, Finn. You plea silently as you curl your neck and touch his shoulder with your horn.
you are a terribly real thing in a terribly false world
Finn is dead to the world, having finally received the thing he needs most - rest and quiet, in a place that isn’t out to get him. His breathing is deep and heavy, even as Tobi gets off the bed and starts to move around the loft, and he lets out a gentle murmur in response to the sound of her voice. In his head they’re having an imaginary conversation, the Spyglass telling her all about the demigods he’s met in greater detail, about the hidden trinkets in his apartment, about the constellations he can see.
At the touch of something against his shoulder he shivers, but luckily does not turn into it and risk impaling himself, though the floorboards to groan uncertainly under the weight of a unicorn. Mumbling into the pillow, Finn pulls the blankets a bit further over himself, but otherwise leaves Tobi to her devices - whatever they might be.
