in these wild, wild woods

"What we plan and what happens are likely beyond our control," Vai points out, reaching down to muss up Remi's damp curls. I appreciate it, though. And let me know, if you do decide to make them. I am more than happy to help." It would be nice, actually, to do something that harkened back to her old hunting days. "Might I suggest asking nicely and also offering a bribe?" she grins, making the tea beside him and humming under her breath as she pours it into the two cups. Vai falls quiet to listen as Remi starts to speak about his date, and she settles to sit opposite him when the tea is done. Offering him his cup, her smile sparkles in her blue eyes. "It makes sense," she says. "You were exploring things together, by the sound of it. Both of you are so close and comfortable with each other, it's understandable that you would want to try out that next step. And sometimes, an awkward, weird sort of date like that between friends is something you can laugh about for years afterwards." Reaching out, she gives his cheek a gentle pinch. "You are beginning to look like a lion," she remarks, obviously meaning his beard and his mane of curls. vervain well i'll rest my eyes and i'll let the earth breathe

REMI

the lullaby

walk me home in the dead of night

"I will absolutely take you up on that." Grinning slyly, the alchemist can't help but feel the prickle in the back of his mind that too many pieces were falling too neatly into place here. He hadn't wanted to remain in the Greatwood—and had left it—only to find a surprising amount of support in Halo, and now Vai returning? Whatever it was though, fate or happenstance, the alchemist won't' deny how much more at ease he feels knowing Vai is around.

Accepting his tea and instantly burning his tongue on it, Remi hisses under his breath as he listens. "I am not really sure what to make of things now." He admits. Having never had any sort of casual relationships, this is all entirely new to Remi; the fact that he's married notwithstanding. "But I do not think I can just...have a friend with benefits, you know? At least...I do not know how. My emotions.." Rubbing his fingers over his heart as if he might itch away the source of his confusion, the alchemist twitches his lips. "..they get tangled." He concludes with an unhelpful shrug.

Chuckling, as if her comment was something to be proud of, Remi tilts his chin upward, allowing a few bits of actual mane to add to the afro of curls he's currently sporting.

because i can't be alone with all that's on my mind

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

"And I will absolutely let you." Smiling cheerfully back at Remi, Vai leans in suddenly (and carefully, given the tea he's currently burning himself on) to wrap the alchemist in a hug. "Thank you," she murmurs quietly, kissing the top of his head. "I don't think I realised how much I wanted to see a familiar face. Having you visit has made me feel a lot more positive about my decision to leave." Kissing him again before sitting back, Vai wisely blows on her tea instead of simply inhaling it as Remi had done. Reaching out, she pats at his knee and then takes a tenative sip of her drink. "Emotions always get tangled," she tells him with someone who has the weighty knowledge of experience. "Even if they aren't tangled for you, they might be for the other person. I think you were smart, for trying this out early. Hopefully you and Isla are on the same page, and you can settle back into being good friends." As for his mane, she can only grin and reach up to tug at the fur sprouting through his curls. vervain well i'll rest my eyes and i'll let the earth breathe

REMI

the lullaby

walk me home in the dead of night

Remi too is careful of his tea, though he'll absolutely spill it all over himself if that's what it takes to keep close to Vai. Stretching an arm up to curl around her, the hug is awkward but genuine and warm just the same. "I love you." Remi whispers with boyish sincerity as Vai sits back down, unable to help how he snorts under his breath to see her blowing on her tea.

With a groan, Remi runs his fingers over his eyes. "I know. And I have recently just learned how much better things are when everyone is open and honest but...sometimes I wish it did not always take so many words." He grumbles, before parting his fingers in time to feel the pull in his curls. Playfully snapping his teeth.

Reaching for his tea and blowing on it, mostly to mock Vai, Remi raises his brows. "So...after Sunjata and I made up, Nate tried to beat me up in an alley. And then Ronin went to talk to him, and...well, honestly everything is a mess, now."

because i can't be alone with all that's on my mind

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

"And I love you." Smiling easily back at Remi, Vai takes another sip of her tea and gets comfortable on the floor opposite the alchemist. It's remarkably easy for her to do so, given the life she lived before Northaven and Caido, and she turns her attention to the fresh drama in Remi's life. "You are right, of course. But I find it usually takes more words to fix things when they go wrong than it does to be honest and open. Rock and a hard place, sorry Remi." He blows his tea in mockery of her forethought, and so like a proper mature adult, Vai reaches forward to flick him in the forehead. "Oh...? Oh. Well that... that is a mess," she agrees, inhaling deeply before letting it out again. "Sunjata... came to see me," she admits. "Before I left - before I even knew I was going. He and Nate are... taking a break, I suppose is the right term. Sunjata had a child with Safrin." Her concern all but shines out of her, and she raises her gaze to Remi's, knowing he knows more than most the consequences of such things. vervain well i'll rest my eyes and i'll let the earth breathe

REMI

the lullaby

walk me home in the dead of night

She isn't wrong, but Remi's unhappy grimace says about as much as anything else about he thinks of her advice.

'NN!!!' The alchemist mewls as he's flicked. All traces of leonine bravado disappear, leaving only messy curls that will defy any attempts to be tamed. "A break?" Swallowing hard, the colour drains from Remi's face. Knowing exactly what those words entailed and having a good idea of the feelings involved, still he frowns, wondering if the men had split because of what had happened between he and Sunjata, just as Ronin and he had. What Vai says next knocks the air entirely from his lungs and wipes the remaining colour from his face.

"No," he breathes, horrified. For a moment it's all he can do to blink across at Vai and concentrate on not dropping his cup. Were this a sitcom, this would be the moment that Ronin burst into the room, all charming smiles and wet hair. It isn't though, and luckily that gives Remi a moment to clear his mouth of the foul taste suddenly built up on his tongue. "Che idiota assoluto. Cosa stava pensando?" The words roll of his tongue like an angry purr, his tone rising and then dramatically falling. "Cosa sta pensando?" Covering his mouth with one of his hands, Remi shakes his head a fraction as his eyes widen.

"Ronin is not going to take this well."

because i can't be alone with all that's on my mind

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

Giggling behind her cup to see Remi inconvenienced by her retaliation, Vai takes a sobering sip of tea as if to rid herself of her buoyancy. The conversation to come certainly isn't the humorous sort, and she nods gentle confirmation that yes, Sunjata and Nate were on a break. Reaching out to take his hand, she gives it a gentle and understanding squeeze. Late she might have been to the party when it came to the situation between Remi and Ronin, she can still appreciate how fresh the emotions must be for the alchemist. And of course, she knows it is precious little to do with what happened between Sunjata and Remi, but he isn't to realise that. Not at first, anyway. And as the stream of beautiful outrage leaves his lips, her eyes widen considerably, and she's smiling despite herself. "Mmhmm," she emphasises, particularly at the term idiota, though the fact that Ronin wouldn't be happy has her puzzles. "Why?" she wonders. "Also... I had no idea you knew the travelling tongue. You've kept that a secret for a long time." vervain well i'll rest my eyes and i'll let the earth breathe

REMI

the lullaby

walk me home in the dead of night

"Well...if the child was conceived in the usual way..." Remi's eyebrows raise. Jealous wasn't quite the right word for it, but it wasn't wrong, either. It was a strange brand of jealousy, possessiveness, and boyish hurt, if Remi had to guess the broad strokes of it. "And you did not see him after Seren. He was...she was..." It's unclear if the she is Safrin, or Seren, and Remi doesn't clarify. Instead, he shakes his head. "It will not be good." He says at last, jaw feathering slightly as he imagines conversations to come.

"Is it a secret?" He asks belatedly, not that it will matter.

As for the language, Remi flushes slightly as he nods. "Not so much a secret as...something no one has ever asked me about." The alchemist counters with a smile that's both sly and bashful, both. "If it makes you feel better, Ronin had no idea either. Not until recently, anyway.'

because i can't be alone with all that's on my mind

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

Vai listens, wincing a bit as understanding dawns on her. "I see," she murmurs, giving his hand a gentle squeeze before sitting back again and sipping at her tea. "I never got the impression that it was a secret," she says, shrugging her shoulders. "Not sure you could really hide a child, either. She would be obvious to everyone in Torchline before long." Unless Sunjata keeps her stuck inside, which she can't imagine he would do. Talking about his hidden language brings a smile back to her lips, at least, Vai smiling over the rim of her teacup at him. "Che bello," she remarks softly, almost under her breath. "A few of those I travelled with when I was a huntress spoke it as well. I picked up a few words here and there, nothing substantial. Hearing it brings back a lot of good memories," she admits. vervain well i'll rest my eyes and i'll let the earth breathe

REMI

the lullaby

walk me home in the dead of night

Remi's lips twitch as Vai speaks, but for the moment he says nothing. There is a growing feeling of discontent that's building up in his bones, manifesting in the alchemist shifting his legs around into several different positions before he gives up. "Was it..." Remi attempts, before exhaling. "I did not know Sunjata wanted a child with her." He says carefully, wanting to give the Governor the benefit of the doubt.

His expression brights considerably to hear his language briefly roll from Vai's lips, Remi nodding appreciatively. "Ah, well. I am glad. My memories are not all good. Or...they are too good, perhaps." Smiling down into his teacup, Remi shrugs softly. "It reminds me of my mother. She was the one who taught me." The alchemist explains, finding it much easier this second time around.

because i can't be alone with all that's on my mind

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

"It was a pact he made, to keep Nate safe. That was the impression that I got, in any case. That's what caused everything to... between them both. I think Hotaru left, as well." The witch nibbles at the inside of her lower lip, still obviously feeling a little thorny about having left Torchline in the midst of all of this happening with the Flood. Like it or not, Sunjata is still counted among Vai's adopted family, though she does melt back into a smile as her attention returns to Remi. "What a wonderful gift for her to have left you," she says of the language, and the alchemist's mother. "What made you decide to start speaking it again? If you don't mind my asking, of course." Setting her teacup down, she rises briefly to her feet to fetch a pot of honey that they might sweeten it if they like. "Whatever the reason regardless, it sounds beautiful coming from you. Much more musical than some of those I heard speaking it." vervain well i'll rest my eyes and i'll let the earth breathe

REMI

the lullaby

walk me home in the dead of night

"...?" The alchemist says, or at least his eyebrows do. How could having a child with Safrin in any way protect Nate? To hear that both Nate and Hotaru had left him though? That has Remi hissing in a breath and wincing as he unconsciously spins the wedding ring on his finger. 'What a mess.' He concludes at last, wondering how this new wrinkle was going to be taken by the Star.

Remi's smile is secretive, almost, in how shyly it dimples his cheeks. "Your note. Or, at least that is what broke it through, after all these years. But Ronin heard it, and asked me about it." Remi doesn't add that it turns his husband on, to hear it. "Ah beh, è ​​tutto in ascesa e caduta. Era una lingua parlata per strada, sì, ma mi ricorda sempre il vento, o le onde lo stesso." So saying, the alchemist's hands rise and fall, indicating the pitch that he's referring to. "If it sounds beautiful, it is only because of my mother." He says with unfettered affection, as he reaches for the honey. Putting a ridiculous amount into his tea such that it gathers at the bottom instead of dissolving, Remi licks a line of it left around the rim of his cup, humming his approval.

because i can't be alone with all that's on my mind

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

"Isn't it always?" Vai says through a sigh, shrugging her shoulders and reaching out for the tea kettle to add a little more to each of their cups. "But we will figure it out. It always seems to work out in the end, for better or worse." With a gentle smile, she nonetheless looks surprised to hear that she was the reason that unlocked his mother tongue after so many years. "I hope I didn't worry you too much," she murmurs. "I really do feel happy out here in the woods, you know. It was like coming home." But then Remi is speaking again, and although Vai only catches certain words, like street and wind, it has her dewy eyed all the same. "She would be so proud of you, I'm sure," she murmurs, reaching out to brush a curl out of his face just in time to stop it getting dipped in honey. "I don't know if I believe all that much in the spirits of those who have passed, but if I did, I'd like to think maybe she nudged us together. Someone has to make sure you don't oversweeten your tea, right?" vervain well i'll rest my eyes and i'll let the earth breathe

REMI

the lullaby

walk me home in the dead of night

"You did worry me." Remi replies, ever earnest when it came to Vai. "But seeing you here, like this? I think I do believe you." He adds with a slow smile. Will he stalk the woods around Vai's cottage just the same? Of course. But that doesn't mean he doesn't believe the witch is happy, but a protective son Remi will never cease to be.

"Mmmm." Remi hums. He isn't as convinced, but Remi also believes to protest would be 'wallowing'. So instead he just grumbles good-naturedly as Vai saves his hair from an inadvertent hair-mask. "She would have liked you." He mumbles, slurping loudly at his oversweetened tea to emphasize just how perfectly sweetened it was.

Despite the rain, outside Remi can hear a game of hind and seek going on. Normally it wasn't a very loud game, but currently, Mateo was taunting Ronin, saying how he could never be found. "Ronin and I have to go and get some sap from a wicker woman. Do you think you could wrangle your grandson for an hour or so?"

because i can't be alone with all that's on my mind

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!