[Training] so i guess all the rumors are true

I get them all worked up and down on their knees, you see

Even after their time apart, it was easy for her to pick up on his tells, brows knitting together in concern as he seems to wrestle with something for some time. A shadow settling across his face, darkening his steel gaze as he runs a hand through his hair one he has nothing left to fidget with now that his task of filling jars is done. Maeve lets him work through it, offering nothing more than a comforting hand on his shoulder, fingers curling there in a gentle squeeze that she hopes is reassuring as she meets his gaze. Eventually he speaks, sharing his insights and the ghosts of his past with her in the quiet of the Slagveld, leaving her with a ache that spreads in her chest.

She's not surprised by the information. Of course he won. He wouldn't be here if he hadn't. Korofi was a brutal place from what she knew of it. The idea that they had such a barbaric system in place causes her stomach to twist, but not because it catches her off guard. Instead it's because the idea of having to do such things to simply be allowed to live is enough to make her sick. Maeve lets her hand linger for a moment longer, drawing it away as he finally comes back to himself, offering her a small smile instead that chases the darkness away for the time being.

"I imagine it was difficult, having to do something like that just to survive, but I'm glad you did survive. As selfish as that might sound." Maeve murmurs softly, sea glass gaze holding his as she lets out this little confession, unsure of what it really means in the grand scheme of things. It's still so fresh. They're off kilter and trying to find their balance. Maeve lets the feeling pass as quickly as it comes, trying desperately not to linger in anything that might make her long for him again, knowing that won't do either of them any good. "I just hope that I kind find it in myself to do the same. I don't know what she wants me to learn by doing this... Not to underestimate myself? That I'm capable of it? I don't know, but I'm going to try my best not to disappoint her."

They take my fingers in their mouths like it's poetry

Maeve

daydream about me, and i know that you hate the nights without me

Korofi was a difficult place to live, made more difficult by the systems put into place to weed out the weak. And there’s one thing that Sunjata has barely learned to admit to himself that he’s refused to say the words aloud – and that’s how the nights leading up to his Trial, he spent so many nights laying awake, wondering whether it was more of a death sentence to participate than it was to run.

In the end, he’d won. But he’d never expected to. Something had shifted, something had clicked. And Sunjata had become that survivor that so many know him for.

At least he can break himself out of it for the moment, the smile he offers her lighter in leagues than it was when he was hopelessly drowning while the storms raged on outside. Indeed, the sun outside reflects the tinge of sunburn on his cheeks and his nose, to the lighter personality he harbors, the way he has a light in the dark. An end in sight.

Luckily for Maeve, Sunjata doesn’t read into her words as much as she thinks he might be capable of. It’s one of the last things on his mind right now, and so he simply hums a response, pursing his lips as he cocks his head as if he doesn’t quite believe it. “I’m glad I’ve still got a few people in my corner despite everything.” He admits with a huff of a laugh, before he shakes his head.

“Probably all of the above, if I had to guess.” He doesn’t presume to know what Safrin’s motives are. “When I asked her for my daggers, I needed to collect the blood of every race on one blade and use the other for justice.” He pauses, chewing on his lower lip as he considers it, hand rising to rub at the constellation tattoo that spans his chest. “I asked to be her dagger that day. Luckily I was Arbiter back then so it was easy to get the justice part.” He refrains from mentioning that he’d thought he’d failed the blood one, having not realized he’d gotten Fae blood when he cut Nate’s attacker as she fled from splitting Nate’s face open.

SUNJATA

I get them all worked up and down on their knees, you see

Maeve has noticed the difference in Sunjata even in this short time together. His smiles come more easily, his eyes are brighter, and it's like the sun has breathed a new life into him. She's happy to see it. Truly. Even if there is a twinge of jealousy knowing that it isn't because of her. The feeling fades, replaced by the simple contentment that he's doing better than he was before and that's really all she ever wanted for him. She just hopes it can last longer than a season.

Relief washes through her when he doesn't question her words further, taking them at face value and sparing her the awkwardness of having to explain. "Jata, love, you know I'm on your side. Even when you're being an idiot." It's said affectionately, a smile curling on her lips as she gives his shoulder a playful shove before shifting on the counter to get more comfortable.

Maeve nods, a soft hum of consideration rising in her throat as her eyes track the movement of his hand, watching as he rubs at the newest tattoo placed on him by Safrin. "Maybe I'll ask her when I go. I only hope that I haven't made a mistake by requesting this item. With all that's going on I'm unsure if I should have asked for something else. Anything else." She sighs, pursing her lips as she draws one leg up, bracing the arch of her foot against the edge of the counter as she wraps her arms around her knee.

They take my fingers in their mouths like it's poetry

Maeve

daydream about me, and i know that you hate the nights without me

Her shove isn’t very hard, but Sunjata leans away with it all the same, something crooked and playful crossing his face. He snorts at her quip, rolling his eyes before he takes a deep breath and sighs through his nose. “Hopefully I’m edging toward being a little less of an idiot.” His shoulders rise and fall with a hum of a laugh.

She stretches out and he rubs at his chest, over the mark left from Safrin in his skin. “I suppose if you’re that concerned about it, ask for another quest of something else to pair with it?” He doesn’t see the harm in asking, if the shield wasn’t something that she wanted at first. There wasn’t any harm in asking again.

But then, a glimmer of the sun through the windows catches his attention and Sunjata straightens up, looking through the window to see what time it was and to see how people started milling about in the streets again. “Mm, well, it’s gotten a lot later than I anticipated. Promised Nate I’d grab some ramphire meat on the way home.” An apologetic grin is shot her way, before he’s moving to grab his shirt again, clearing up everything else. “I’m sure we’ll talk again soon, Maeve.” He offers, head tilting a bit toward her in his departure, before he’s slipping out the door of the Slagveld to grab that promised ingredient for dinner tonight.

- FIN <3

SUNJATA