[se] reforged

Melita

Eating fire is your ambition
to swallow the flame down

A pretense, a manifested grimace, fired over her features at his first statement, then a snort to follow. “I’m sure you’d both find or make trouble somewhere.” The way life had always been here, brief little lulls where there were snatches and potential for happiness, for repose, for a moment, a breath, of peace, before something else came along and turned, churned it over. Another hum under her breath stole away the rising potential of more melancholy, striving to not bind and anchor her way into that particular deluge.

Thoughts upon jungles, rolling valleys instead – trying to imagine it. They’d once had the Hidden Falls in Helovia, but she’d never ventured over into those boundaries before the shadows took it all apart. The Rift was nothing she wanted to remember either, even if there could’ve been warrens of green amidst the haunting hymns. It’d been too much of a funeral dirge and lamentable march to begin with. “I think I’d like to see the desert again. With an oasis.” If it sounded far too specific, Melita didn’t venture any further into the notions, distracted momentarily by Fangorn grumbling back towards Sugar, some conversation she wasn’t aware of.

Then they were at the familiar homestead of Ronin and Remi – her eyes drifting back along it, forcing herself to waylay the wondering for another time. The youth expected to be left adrift, carrying her supplies the rest of the way, and she tilted her head vaguely at the offer of coming inside too. A portion of her knew his words were true, and the other half insisted on rampaging out into the heat, used to its measures. For once the wiser proportions won out over the more foolish edges, and so she nodded. “Sure. If you don’t mind.”

to be lit up from within, vein by vein
to be the sun

there is always hope

"Oh, so you have met my husband," Ronin says with a sunny chuckle at the implication that he and Remi could find trouble anywhere. They absolutely could and they almost undoubtedly would, when it came to travelling the world in a wagon with a mind of its own. While Sugar and Fangorn continue their conversation (and Ronin has no idea what the fuck it's about either), he tilts his head to Melita with his smile softening. He has never seen a desert, and he realises he knows very little about the places they are all from pre-Caido.

Perhaps it's a conversation to be had over a cool drink while they wait for the worst of the LongHeat sun to pass, and Ronin nods as she agrees. "We can leave the supplies outside for now." He gestures to the nimbus, before leading them into the shade. And as afternoons go, Ronin has definitely had worse.

~FIN