endless numbered days

REMI What did an alchemist do when he's taken as many reasonable precautions as he could for an upcoming week-long darkness he didn't quite believe in? Made banners for his friend of course. Though Remi knew nothing of Ronin's aesthetic preferences—knowing the ex-baron it would likely be something elaborate and entirely surprising—Remi went with what he thought would be best. No artist was the alchemist, still he thought maroon and gold were fairly safe colours? If not...well. He had learned a bit of a new trick when it came to slightly altering things. Having created several maroon flags with golden swords piercing the skulls of monsters on them (the original design had been dragon-skulls, until he remembered sugar and decided not to send mixed messages to the small dragonling about what her future might hold), Remi magic'd and stitched and painted until he was quite pleased with the result. No doubt someone like Bastien might have done a better job, but this was more of a gesture of support than anything else. Despite the cold, Remi arrived at the guildhall wondering if he should show his friend what he had made, or if he should simply go about hanging them and let it be a surprise.

Cold? Ronin knew a thing or two about cold right now. He was also learning more and more about what life was like with a baby dragon. For instance, Sugar had discovered something new about herself not five minutes before - she could breathe ice. How, you ask, did she realise the obtained such a skill? Why, by sneezing an ice storm into Ronin's ear. The guildmaster was still cursing softly to himself as he headed out through the guild's double doors, batting the snow from his shirt and out of his collar and wincing as he turned his head to playfully glare at the reptile riding on his shoulder. The left side of his face glittered with ice, and he'd likely have to sit with a warm cloth against his ear before he stood a chance at hearing out of it again. Hopefully it wouldn't drop off. "Don't you give me that look, you know what you di-- ah, Remi. What brings you to... blankets?" Obviously that's what Ronin thought the banners were. Obviously. RONIN I know this whole damn city thinks it needs you but not as much as I do

REMI Before Remi could decide fully what he ought to do, the doors to the guildhall burst open. Rather guilty the alchemist tried to hide the banners behind his back, but even partially frozen Ronin was apparently as astute as ever. "Ah...banners..for the..." Voice trailing off, Remi's brows knitting together before raising into a skeptical arch. "Ronin.." He murmured a bit sternly, stepping forward with amusement flickering out across his lips. "Far be for me to assume anything ... but are you aware that..ahh...your face is frozen?" Should he have perhaps been worried for his friend? Yes of course. But eventually you reach a level in your friendship where even concern can not supersede humour and so rather than panicking, calling immediately for a medic, or in anyway trying to assist the guildmaster, Remi merely crossed his arms giving his friend a quizzical stare.

Banners...? What did Remi have banners for...? Questions, questions, but before Ronin could think to ask any more of them, his friend drew attention to the very clear ice that glittered across one side of his face. His smile was a touch sharp (and it only really worked on the one side), Ronin casting a filthy side eye at the dragon on the opposite shoulder. Sugar, for her part, trilled cheerfully at Remi and flapped her white wings, all four claws clinging firmly to her master to stop her from actually taking off. "Ow," Ronin said as tiny pointy dragon claws bit into his shoulder, his tone dull as though he was used to it by now. "You know, I was aware, Remi. My mythical creature sniffed something that disagreed with her, and sneezed into my ear." He gestured to the dragonling, stepping side so that Remi could come into the guildhall. "Apparently that causes ice to come shooting out of her face. Who'd have thought it?" RONIN I know this whole damn city thinks it needs you but not as much as I do

REMI "Hello to you too. You seem not to be bothered by this cold." Remi said pleasantly to the ever-growing dragonling, before glance back towards Ronin. As a general rule Remi liked animals, but it seemed especially important to keep this one onside. "Who would have thought indeed. A dragon you felt hidden beneath a sheet of ice, who happens to be white, also sneezes ice." Wryly he shook his head, as if evening imaging anything of the sort was incredibly difficult. With a wink towards Sugar, Remi followed Ronin inside. "So are you planning on doing something about that , or are you going to let yourself thaw out naturally?" Remi tittered with a grin, setting the banners down on one of the rather large tables before turning around to face the guildmaster with a curious look. Without possessing fire magic Remi didn't know what he could really do to assist. Create him a...face...cozy, perhaps?

Sugar chirped and flapped her wings further, snapping her sharp little teeth at a few falling flakes of snow. It was testament to the fact that she was being taken care of that made her so damned boisterous, not that Ronin was in the mood to hear or think such things right now. He clicked the door shut behind Remi - he had been headed outside to find something to entertain Sugar while he sorted out his frozen face - but now the alchemist was here and would do quite nicely. "Oh you are funny." Ronin rolled his eyes and smirked with one side of his mouth, waiting until Remi put down the banners before clapping a friendly hand on his shoulder, causing Sugar to clamber her way down to the alchemist. "You can dragonsit while I thaw out," he said cheerfully, nodding towards the fire crackling in the hearth and a cloth that was soaking in some warm water. "And you can tell me all about these banners." RONIN I know this whole damn city thinks it needs you but not as much as I do

REMI "It has been so long since someone told me that I was, I was starting to worry I'd lost my humour." Remi replied dryly with an eyeroll for added effect. As Sugar made her way up his arm, Remi gave her a stern stare. "If I'm frozen, that means I will not be able to give you things like this to eat—" So saying he pulled a bit of dried meat from his pocket. Before giving it over though, Remi tried to make as stern eye-contact with the dragonling as was possible. "Do we have a deal?" He asked, though regardless the meat was hers. Glancing over his shoulder at the banners, he winked playfully at Sugar (using his magic to wave bits of meat in front of her face for her to snap at), but walking towards the fire himself. "Well with Vanya understandably taking it easy these days, I thought maybe I would lend a hand to try and brighten the place up. I mean, what respectable monster hunting guild does not even have banners?" With a wave, one of the banners unfurled from the table, shakily hanging itself in the air to reveal the golden sword slashing into a monster skull on a field of maroon.

"You? Lose your humour? For shame, Remi." Ronin couldn't quite sound as amused as he wanted to because of the frozen face and such, but the smirk was still half there as he made his way back to the fire so he could sort himself out. Sugar levelled Remi with a stare that should have been stern but it was ruined by the forked tongue that slowly slid from her mouth to taste the air. Apparently they had a deal - whatever that was - because she happily snapped up the offered meat and made herself comfortable on his shoulder. Whilst Remi amused his dragon with floating snacks, Ronin relaxed back into his seat to hear about the banners. The warm cloth was pressed against his face and ear, and slowly he felt feeling start to return to his jaw. That meant he was able to give his friend a real smile as the banner unfurled magically before them, Ronin sitting up in his seat and seeming obviously delighted. "You didn't have to do that, Remi. Thank you very much - it definitely makes it seem more official." RONIN I know this whole damn city thinks it needs you but not as much as I do

REMI "Mmm." Remi nodded gravely. I guess this is what it feels like for Vai, Remi thought to himself, feeling both weirdly powerful to have a tiny predator on his shoulder, but also waiting at any moment for there to be talons or teeth piercing his flesh. Watching Ronin's face quite literally melt into a smile made the alchemist happier than he could have said. Sitting across from the guildmaster, Remi waved a hand and grinned. "Well there had to be some way for people to think this a legitimate guild." He teased, floating another piece of meat upwards for Sugar. "So..." Remi said with a crooked smile, ruffling a hand through his hair. "Someone asked me on a date."

Sugar was content to shriek and trill and attack the miniscule prey that Remi floated about her, though he might find that her claws did grip a bit hard when she was trying to lurch up and catch the meat; something Ronin was all too familiar with, if the healing punctures on his shoulder were anything to go by. Dabbing carefully at his cheek and his ear and eventually lowering the cloth so he could massage his jaw, the guildmaster scoffed at his friend. "I suppose the killing of banshees and plotting the hunt of the Spire demon aren't enough," he said. "What we needed was banners all along." Chuckling, he settled back in his seat after putting the cloth down, more than content to let Remi keep his dragonling for a bit. It was like having a newborn, and he was going to experience that soon enough anyway. Still, his eyebrows shot up at the alchemist's next comment, Ronin grinning broadly and leaning forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "Oh? Do tell. Have you been on it yet? Was it glorious?" RONIN I know this whole damn city thinks it needs you but not as much as I do

REMI "Oh it was a banshee, hmm?" Remi asked with a raised brow. Given how it had screamed at them the named seemed apt. Waving a hand at the mention of the Spire demon, Remi shrugged (mostly with just the one shoulder, as Sugar was surprisingly heavy). "Well I think we are all plotting the hunt of the Spire demon." He added with a dismissive grin. "Uh, yes. He came over and suggested that it happen right after he asked." Leaning back into the chair rather than forward as Ronin had, Remi exhaled a slow and steady stream, trying to shrug again beneath Sugar's weight. "He had set up some tea and chairs upstairs in his shop." Steepling his hands in his lap, Remi twitched his lips. "He is the man from the cave.." The alchemist began, rubbing a hand across his forehead with a bit of a sigh. "I have actually never really been on a date like that before so...I suppose it went well?"

Ronin would give Remi that much - they were all working together to rid the Spire of the creature that guarded it, and he couldn't have been more pleased. The guildmaster smirked and watched as Sugar snapped up the offered shred of meat, chirping as Remi sat back and snuffling into his ear before settling down upon his shoulder. Her silver slip of a tail looped comfortably around his neck, and she got all too comfortable all too quickly. Arching an eyebrow as he listened, Ronin couldn't help but smile as he listened to his friend. "Right after? Keen," he remarked, rising to his feet now he was in warmer spirits so that he could get them something to drink while Remi explained. It sounded adorable, quite frankly, but Remi was describing it like he would explain how to make a stew, or something similar. "You suppose it went well? Forgive me, but if you aren't sure that isn't good," he said slowly. RONIN I know this whole damn city thinks it needs you but not as much as I do

REMI "We had a deal, remember." Remi warned at the sound of dragon-snuffles in his ear. Still, the way her reptilian body sent shivers down his spine was not actually that unpleasant. "Mmm." Remi agreed with a thoughtful if not completely ambiguous hum of agreement. Glancing across at Ronin, Remi gave him an amused sideways smirk. "Well we all cannot be experts at dating, Ronin." He replied pointedly, knowing actually very little about Ronin's past but assume that it must be about as scandalous as his present was. "And I don't really have much to compare it with, have I? It is not like Loren and I ever.." Clenching his teeth around his reply, Remi exhaled with deliberate slowness. "I don't know how I feel, I don't know what I'm doing, but he asked and I said yes and it was nice to have something just be nice for a change. No pretending to be someone I am not, no banshees popping up to try and shatter my eardrums, no bards telling me what a shit person I have become." Shrugging gently, Remi shook his head. "Hearing that said out loud does not seem like a terribly good reason though, does it?" He asked with a sheepish bowing of his eyebrows.

Snorting softly, Sugar busied herself nestling her nose into Remi's curls and finding somewhere soft and nice to nap for a bit while Ronin returned with their drinks. It was some form of hot mulled wine, and Ronin had made certain to have plenty of it stocked at all times since it had started to snow. He could thank Vai for that one. Offering Remi a cup before returning to his seat, Ronin huffed and rolled his eyes playfully. "If you ever meet a dating expert, I'd gladly take their advice," he shot back, though his amusement faded as talk of the missing librarian came up. Ronin had been unable to find Loren at the Atheneum, and if it weren't for what Remi had said the guildmaster would have been worried. He hummed in agreement, nodding slowly. "I'm sorry, if you don't feel as though you can be yourself around me. And I am more sorry that a bard called you a shit person, because it simply isn't true. But... no. They sound like valid reasons, but I'd say the only reason to go on a date is because you want to." RONIN I know this whole damn city thinks it needs you but not as much as I do