take only what you need from it

i have done bad things, did them to good people // got no self control, it's the root of my evil
wage war in my head when i'm tryna keep it peaceful // a little feels good, a little more and it's lethal

He nods in agreement, folding and setting blankets aside. “That was my thought.” Shifting so he might pull out the weapons he’s stashed away in the box, he moves to drag a small table over, splaying the weapons out across the wood surface. A few daggers here and there, a whetstone, a few arrows to go with the bow in the box that Vai perches on.

He glances back to her when the realization hits, though it doesn’t falter his amusement any. “Suppose I could send someone else in.” He offers, a crooked smile forming on his lips as he imagines sending Zephyr in and getting the boy back out. “Though who knows. Maybe I should try to talk to Phoebe again.” Another peace attempt, despite the way their conversations continually end in endless frustration, the nightingale’s ability to get under his skin always astonishing.

SUNJATA

Vervain

Speaking of peace talks whilst arranging weapons over the table? How very Sunjata. Vai grins to herself as she listens, nodding to him and absently folding the blanket he's handed her (and anything else he wants to pass to her as well), content to fall into the easy company of shared chores. "I mean, you are Governor now. It probably wouldn't do for you to be banned from arguably one of the busiest buildings in Torchline." She laughs.

There's a moment of comfortable silence before she glances up at him again, Vai's smile much softer. "I'm very proud of you, Sunjata," she says quietly. "You've come a long way from the day I first met you, and I think you've got a lot to feel good about. I hope that this time next LongHeat you'll have even more to look back on with pride."

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

i have done bad things, did them to good people // got no self control, it's the root of my evil
wage war in my head when i'm tryna keep it peaceful // a little feels good, a little more and it's lethal

“The hard part…” He begins, arranging the daggers on the table. “Is that she knows exactly what to say to get under my skin. I don’t even have to do anything and she gets in there.” He says with a bit of a sigh before shaking his head, having her help where needed. “But it can’t hurt to try again.” Because as she said, he was the Governor now. And she was back under his protection whether she liked it or not.

But, silence draws over them and he’s folding a dagger into a blanket so it won’t puncture through or bend the wood any when he replaces it, perking up only when she speaks. And he’s not sure what to say, spending a moment to chew on the inside of his cheek, a bit of a feathering in his jaw. “Thank you Vai.” He rumbles quietly, abandoning his task as he moves to wrap her in a hug. “I’m trying.” And he was.

The prospect of another year of growth was terrifying and wonderful, eternally grateful for those he had in his circle. And so he releases the witch, moving back to the box, having her help fill it up so that he might be able to bring them to the space he and Nate decide to build the house.

— FIN <3

SUNJATA