[se] baby this rain changes everything

looking like that, you'll open some wounds

"Aww well. How very sad for you." Unintentionally the alchemist's eyes take in the stubble on Varus' cheeks, the line of his jaw, the blue of his eyes. He could easily be the prince, in any story. Maybe that's why he had to do his own rescuing. "Well. You never know in this world. Always more time for sleeping curses and princes."

That Cal was short for something else has Remi rolling his eyes. "Well that is completely unfair." He protests with a huff, before his eyes widen with mischief and intrigue as Cal tries his hand at bardic song smithing. Snorting laughter to hear that in Cal's version he's eaten by a pelican, the alchemist can't help but shake his head even as his smile widens and his dimples deepen. "With that metal arm? You would kill the poor thing. Don't you care about animals at all? Besides, then does not even rhyme." Tsking, Remi gives it another go now that he's got the man's real name to work with (so he thinks).

"There once was a man named Callahan. Who I am pretty sure is a con-man. Maybe he's a merman but one thing's for certtan, he's here to cut short your lifespan."

THE LULLABY

you were in the fallout and you lost some friends //

“I’d prefer a princess, if I’m being honest.” He admits with a soft laugh. “Change the roles, a sleeping prince and only true loves kiss can wake him up.” Tipping a wink Remi’s way, he quickly dives into the idea of rhymes and poetry, of musical story telling of his demise, even if he hadn’t given Remi the full name to work with.

So he sits back and shakes his head, glancing at the moon through the clouds and the rain, before he flexes that metal arm. “I think if anything could handle eating a metal arm, it’s probably a pelican.” He smirks, before he shakes his head, wraps his hands around the satchel’s strap as Remi dives into yet another poetic bout of rhymes.

“A merman? Gods, I wish.” He sighs dramatically, a hand rising to rest on his chest. “A merman, con-man, beach-side guards-man?” He cocks his head playfully, tongue darting along his lower lip as he thinks. “Eyes of cyan, who doesn’t like pecans…” Then, as his hands extend out in front of him, they wiggle as if he’s doing jazz hands. “Callahan!”

VARUS

looking like that, you'll open some wounds

"Of course you would." Remi chuckles, though it's without judgement. 'Alright, alright. I'll be sure to keep in mind that if I find any roving witches around to send them your way with specific instructions." Once, there was such a witch, though Arduinna thankfully, was dead.

Weighing the logic of this, Remi is forced to concede the point. Vicious things, pelicans were. 'They would probably figure out a way to make use of it. Catching fish for them or scratching them where they cannot reach themselves."

Wet as he is, the air is warm enough that the alchemist isn't terribly bothered that he's standing with his lower half entirely soaked. Not when he has such pleasantly surprising company to hold his interest. "Eyes of cyan?" Remi raises a brow and peers forward as if trying to judge the truth of the rhyme for himself. Huffing under his breath—quite blue, he'd give the man that—Remi quickly pats out a rhythm on his knees during Cal's dramatic pause. "You know, I am not sure anyone could top that. You will be quite a disappointed ghost when you do die, I think." Offering the other man a boyish and rather delighted smile, Remi holds out his hand. "I am Remi, and as I have no plans to die anytime soon, I think my own death song can likely wait."

THE LULLABY

you were in the fallout and you lost some friends //

The only downside to the idea of this fairytale of sleeping curses and princes to be awoken by princesses, is that Varus himself is very much not a prince and the only one close to a princess in his mind is a duchess, and he’s unsure where exactly that leaves him – but for the sake of amusement, it fits. As for pelicans and metal arms? Varus huffs a laugh. “It does make a good back scratcher.” Has he any experience with it? Nope. Doesn’t stop him from airing the thought, though.

They’re both soaked and as Remi pats the rhythm to his rhyme, Varus can’t help the crooked smile that blossoms even further, leaning in with a raised brow as Remi inspects his gaze to make him a liar. It doesn’t, though, and another resounding bark of laughter leaves him as he leans back. “Guess I’ll have to write it down before I go. Keep it somewhere hidden with a treasure map of its location.” He ponders this out, until Remi’s extending his arm and for a split second, internally, all Varus’ amusement fades away in a blink.

His gaze snaps to Remi but the smile remains as if he’s calculating just how to go about this. The man before him with wings and drenched to the bone, with a rhyming battle out in the street in front of the Atheneum was Ludo’s demigod, and also his girlfriend’s best friend and this… Complicated so many fucking things. He can be a good sport, though, and he reaches forward to shake Remi’s hand. “Pleased to meet you, Remi.” He comments, unsure if he should tell Remi that he knows who he is, given the name. “Ludo’s demigod, right? I imagine that does give you time to come up with your perfect death song.” Welp, might as well go for it. “Though I have to ask…”

He pauses for complete dramatic affair, even if it might backfire. “Does the watery death surprise have anything to do with a kraken?” The smile is still playful, still edging on not wanting to piss off Isla’s best friend, yet still a hint wary at the realization that this man is a demigod.

VARUS

looking like that, you'll open some wounds

"Might as well just inscribe it on that." Remi says, nodding toward Varus's arm. "Doesn't look like the sort of thing that might easily break, even if it is being used by Pelican's to scratch their various itches."

Cal's initial reaction—the pause and the plastered smile—aren't unexpected. Remi knows who he is, and knows the things people know and say about him. His own smile fades by degrees, as he swallows, fully expecting their frivolity to come to an end now that Remi's identity has been confirmed. "That is me." He confirms with a nod, his expression shifting from disappointment to slow intrigue. 'Go on.' Remi encourages with a gentle nod of his head.

The mention of a kraken has Remi straightening, his eyes narrowing with suspicion, his cheeks flushing in the dark. "Well, there goes that surprise." He replies evenly, carefully. "Not many know of that shift." Remi continues, feeling an uneasy slosh of something dark and oily in his belly. "So how do you..?"

THE LULLABY

you were in the fallout and you lost some friends //

The metal arm extends before him as Varus peers at it, a crooked smile crossing his face. “It is pretty durable.” The metal plates shift as he flexes it, before he’s letting it sit idle in the face of the realization of what Remi says – of who Remi is. He notices the immediate dour of the conversation but he supposes it’s one that is inevitable. At least, he’d gotten to see what Ludo’s demigod was like before letting his judgements cloud his vision.

And surprisingly? Varus quite likes Remi’s company, even if Varus loathed the old gods with almost every ounce of his being.

He notices the narrowing of Remi’s gaze and Varus’ smile remains on his face, something easy, something idle. “Isla told me.” He shrugs lightly, head tilting to the side. “If it helps, your secret is safe with me.” It wasn’t like he was planning on running out and telling everyone about Ludo’s demigod’s kraken shift. Not unless he had to, of course. “I have to say, though, that you weren’t exactly what I was expecting when it came to an old gods’ demigod.” He offers with a softer tinge to his smile.

VARUS

looking like that, you'll open some wounds

Once, Remi would never have said he was a jealous man. Now? Oh yes. He is. Very much. There are few things he covets, and his strange relationship with Isla Lockewood is absolutely one of those things. So to hear her name mentioned so casually, especially in the wake of an experience he had taken to be...something special shared just between he and the medic, was jarring to say the least. "Glad to hear it. Because...if it wasn't, I would have to kill you." Said with a wink—this being the cliche phrase Varus had warned him of saying earlier—there's not not truth in it.

"No?" Exhaling through the worst of the emotions that coat his tongue and make his fingers want to ball into fists, Remi tries to blink himself back into focus. "I was covered in shadows when you first came upon me." He points out with a humourless laugh. "Should I have tried to kill you when I noticed you were an ascended? Or at least...I don't know, blinded you with sunlight or some such?"

Strange, that talking about all the ways he might have wickedly presented himself to Varus was preferrable to thinking of Isla.

THE LULLABY

you were in the fallout and you lost some friends //

The unfortunate thing for Varus is that he doesn’t exactly know what kind of hole he’s dug. He’s done his best with the realization that he needs to be on good footing with the Lullaby, if only to not complicate his own and Isla’s relationship any further, even if the trust for the relationship between the two were still a bit nerve wracking for the Ascended. Still, the cliché phrase sparks a bit more of a normal smile to cross Varus’ face, hoping that the awkwardness of prior might be swept under the rug.

Ah, if only it was that easy.

“Well, as far as I’m aware, no killing today. For either of us.” This is said with another wink back, though it does suddenly make sense why Remi had been so against trusting him with the puddle and watery graves – jokes aside. “And yeah, I mean that part makes sense. It’s just…” He pauses to gesture with that metal arm. “I was in the last war and the last thing I ever did was banter and write poetics with the old god followers.” He shrugs, as if it explains everything.

“I would appreciate not getting blinded by sunlight or murdered, though. I quite liked the death songs we came up with and I still have yet to write mine down.” This has suddenly become quite a bit awkward. If only because Varus doesn’t know the line he’s stepped over, nor does he know just how deep Isla and Remi’s relationship went. Sure, he knew that Isla had taken a shift from the demigod, but he doesn’t know the rest of it. The feelings.

Perhaps that’s for the better. Less jealousy for the time being.

VARUS

looking like that, you'll open some wounds

Remi doesn't hate Varus, much as the instant spark of jealousy makes him want to. Instead, he lets his shoulders drop from where they'd tensed and raised toward his ears. "Well, if it makes it any better, I would say I am the very worst old god follower." Snorting under his breath, he just shrugs. "I never asked for this. I...well. It is only because of Isla that I am a demigod at all, actually."

With a laugh that's almost entirely genuine now, Remi hums the jeopardy theme song makes a clock-ticking noise in the back of his throat. "Better not delay. Just in case. Pelicans can fly quite far, I am told." He grins. "But no, you would not get that from me. That is much more a trick of Safrin's—the need for pain and spectacle."

THE LULLABY

you were in the fallout and you lost some friends //

Despite the hiccup, things go well enough as soon as Remi relaxes and Varus slips back into his amusing attempts to push away the awkwardness that falls between them in favor for the fun of before. Life’s too short, after all. Sometimes you die, sometimes you get stuck under a hedge for a few centuries. Might as well enjoy the parts you can remember, right? “Yeah?” He asks, huffing a soft laugh, head cocking slightly. “What did she have to do with it?” He recalls that Isla had died once and been brought back by the Voice, but anything before that was a mystery for him.

As for the rest of it, the humming song Remi offers is one that has Varus’ attention snapping a bit more intensely toward the demigod. “Gods, and it is Longheat, so if there were a chance… I guess I’m not going to the Oasis anytime soon.” He teases back, the banter easily falling from his lips now. Even though the mention of Safrin has him perking up. “Oh? Sounds like you’re not exactly on her good side. You’re in good company in that regard at least.” A wink shot back toward Remi before he’s gesturing to walk with the demigod, preferably somewhere out of the rain as the plinking becomes distracting again. Still, he opens it up for Remi to explain if he wished to, and Varus is nothing but the curious sort, preferring to hear stories and tales over much else.

VARUS

looking like that, you'll open some wounds

"Where you...going somewhere, before this?" Remi asks with a nod, that they might to wherever it was Cal had been going, rather than linger on the other side of a puddle.

"She died." The alchemist explains, softening entirely at the memory. His cheeks flush anew and his pale stare shines with a memory that he'd never be able to escape. "The first LongNight we spent here. There was a creature in distress, a luxere I think, and she went to try and rescue it." His lips turn up slightly with a sad smile. "And..she died. I got to her too late, and begged Ludo to save her. And...it did. In a way." His teeth clench. "It asked in return for one favour that I could never refuse. That favour turned out to be being its demigod."

Talk of Safrin has Remi grinning darkly, and it's in those moments that he looks more like the sort of man capable of cruelty and murder the way most expect of him. "Not at all. The things she's done...she brought my husband back to life, and she holds that over my head at any opportunity. But she also all but tricked him into having a child with her, not to mention the lies she tells." Remi's lip curls in a snarl which he quickly wipes away. "So no, I am not a fan of hers, nor is she one of mine."

THE LULLABY

you were in the fallout and you lost some friends //

“Was just heading where I’m staying.” He’s unsure if it’s wise to mention where, but it doesn’t entirely stop him. “I was staying in the Infirmary before it… Well, you know.” He had been there, after all, while Varus had been fucking ofd in Halo. “So now I’m staying at Isla’s.” Is it too early to call her his girlfriend? Especially in the face of her best friend? Probably. So he doesn’t for now.

Dark brows do rise, though, as Remi recalls the tale, a small frown crossing his lips. “Sounds tricky.” He admits, before his head is tilting toward Remi with an almost softer edge to his fanged smile. “I’m glad you did. Saved her, that is.” Even if it came at the cost of a demigod for the old gods, he isn’t sure where he’d be right now if it weren’t for Isla’s help with his return.

Safrin brings out what Varus thought the Ludo demi would look like, though, and it has the Ascended unable to keep the slight sympathy from his face with the information suddenly dropped. “That sounds… Complicated.” He admits, ruefully, before he shakes his head. “Never cared for Safrin, even before I ascended. Too… manipulative.” His nose wrinkles, face scrunching up with it as he shakes his head.

VARUS

looking like that, you'll open some wounds

"...huh." Remi hums under his breath, just as unsure what to make of Varus's comments as the other man is hesitant to make them. Staying at Isla's. Now, Isla is one to always offer aid, but surely there are other places this man could stay. Is he there as a body guard, then? Glancing briefly at the ascended over his shoulder, Remi's brows raise as he silently finds himself unable to discount the possibility.

He might have thought that's all it was, had Varus not mentioned his kraken shift.

"At Isla's?" Remi asks softly, not wanting to, but doing so just the same. "Or with Isla?" A subtle semantic difference, but Cal didn't strike Remi as the sort of idiot who would misunderstand.

"Manipulative seems almost too polite a word for it." The alchemist agrees, knowing well the walk to Isla's home as they stroll along. "I will not ever forgive her for the things she has done...but my husband's life is tethered to her, just as mine is to Ludo." He sighs. "They are all manipulative, I think."

THE LULLABY

you were in the fallout and you lost some friends //

It becomes quite clear that Isla hasn’t mentioned him to Remi yet, and that just makes this whole exchange of where he’s staying all that much more awkward. In fairness, though, they hadn’t been anything until just recently — A few nights ago perhaps? He’d only taken her on one date at the time, and now with another planned and the dorkiest confession between them, what did that make them?

Together, he supposes, even if the whole idea of this being how Remi found out made him feel off balance within his bones. So his gaze remains straight ahead on the path they both know well enough, back to the house with the familiar green door. “With her.” He corrects easily, before he’s reaching up to scratch at the stubble on his jaw. His gaze drifts back to Remi when Safrin comes up, a low hum of agreement leaving his throat.

“Yeah… Though I suppose it does make it a fraction easier than having to deal with opposing sides. At least the Old Gods are all, well, Old Gods.” A brow rises as he considers it. Eventually, his nose wrinkles with distaste and he offers a heavy sigh. “But y’know what? In the spirit of it, fuck Safrin.” His chin tilts up as if he might be able to glare through the clouds to the stars themselves.

VARUS