From being an Abandoned who had rarely left the Hollowed Grounds, to embracing the call of adventure, to dying and being reborn first as an Ascended and then as an Ancient, Maea has gone through quite the amount of changes in her life. One thing remains common, though, in her attempts to find out just where she belongs; she’s always had a craving for knowledge which has brought her to so many places and to meet so many people here in Caido. We can’t wait to see what else is in store for her!
Congratulations, Maea!
Credits
Court of the Fallen was created in October of 2018 by Odd, Honey, and Crooked.
Skinning and hosting by the epically talented Kaons, and functionality fanciness by the coding magic of Neowulf. If you ever see either of them around, make sure to show them some love!
"Well, Amalia did mention that the metal was what made Tanau sick, and that's gone from him now. Also I don't know any fiery god who would want to spend his time around an angry leviathan," Ronin reasons, smiling at the kitchen that has suddenly appeared in their little house. The only things left to add are the woodstove and the sink, and Ronin will worry about that later on.
His joy promptly disappears as he turns to see his hawk-husband flashing his tentacles at him, Ronin closing his eyes and trying (and failing) to stop his smile. "I love you." He chuckles to Remi, stepping across to the windowsill where he's gone to perch and peering out of the open shutters at the Stonesong. "Oh, she absolutely wouldn't have mentioned that part, I don't think," he says with a snort.
"Either way, it's still a lead, even if it just turns out to be a trinket. I'd rather look and have it be nothing, than let it fall into the wrong hands" Reaching out, he lets his fingers brush gently across Remi's feathers. "Do I get to see your beautiful face today?" he wonders idly, the hint of a smirk curling at his lips.
I wonder how she came to know that. Remi replies with a dull shrug. Yes, Amalia had spent months holed up in the archives, but he'd lost a bit of trust for her insights over the days, weeks, months, she'd been gone. Hey now. You are a fiery god and I am not not a leviathan. You still want to spend your time with me. The alchemist counters playfully.
Close your eyes all you like, husband. Remi trills menacingly. I know you are still seeing me. As Ronin joins him, Remi flutters closer and spreads out the wing closest to the Huntsman as if he might use it like a hand on his husband's back. No, and why would she? It is just her daughter and her favourite star she is sending into potential danger. Why would she give you all the information you needed. Dryly said, if Remi could roll his eyes, he absolutely would.
Nodding at that, Remi's head tilts to the side as Ronin mentions his beautiful face, as if the one he was staring at didn't count. In a whisper of feathers, Remi is sitting on the windowsill with a look of mischief on his lips. "You're handsome as a hawk, Remi. Don't eat the mice, Remi. Let me see your face, Remi." The alchemist repeats sarcastically as he reaches out for the collar of Ronin's shirt to drag the Huntsman close. "Gods but you are demanding today."
He whispers as he leans in.
"Now, tell me more about the wrong hands you don't want the relic to fall into?" So saying his hands, presumably the wrong ones, snake up the Huntsman's sides as Remi intentionally keeps his lips close enough to kiss, and yet just far enough way should Ronin try.
who's got their claws in you my friend?
into your heart i'll b e a t again
Coding base by Sky!
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
"Books, probably?" It has clearly escaped Ronin that Amalia couldn't have learned that from a book given that it's very much still a current event compared to the history of the war they are expected to repeat. Either way, that's about as much thought as he wants to give it, especially as Remi calls him a fiery god. "I think I probably just have better taste than Tanau in that regard," he murmurs with a smile. "If you lived under a waterfall I'd stay with you, even if I was made of fire."
The wing stretched behind his back only has Ronin smiling further, though he does have to double check to make sure there are no additional tentacles attached. "Maybe she doesn't know all of the information," he ventures, almost in a whisper, like he's being blasphemous. And he sort of is, he supposes.
Whatever, though, because in the next moment the hawk has become his husband in earnest, and Ronin all but melts into whatever touch Remi wants to offer him. Having been away to Halo and back again, it feels like years since he last saw the Lullaby, and Remi's teasing is received with a mix of good-natured cheer and a frustrated possessiveness that has both antlers and scales responsible for its origin.
"I missed you," he whispers, leaning into the hands against his sides, his words nearly a caress across Remi's lips. "How are you feeling?" He'd not have left if the alchemist was anywhere near death, obviously, but that doesn't mean he doesn't want to make sure.
Uh huh. Who would have written such a book. Who would have that knowledge to pen it down? He doesn't ask though, deciding that, even if the information was wrong, Ronin would be safe enough given that there weren't many falling stars beneath the mantel of Caido's crust. You say the sweetest things. The hawk trills, imagining what it would be like to dwell beneath a waterfall with his fiery lover constantly doused with water. It would either be a comedy or a tragedy, though given their combined history, both was much more likely. Gods I love you.
Beaming at this flush of possessive adoration that Ronin's various shifts reveal, the alchemist grins just ahead of the space between their lips. "If I say that I had many sore muscles requiring kisses and attention, would you believe me?" He wonders as his fingers simultaneously tug up the sides of Ronin's shirt so that they can dissolve into feathers as they trickle back down his sides. In fact, Remi felt fine. Vai had helped with some healing, but after several of Ronin's blasts of light (and his phoenix tears), it had taken only a few days to have the alchemist right as rain again.
who's got their claws in you my friend?
into your heart i'll b e a t again
Coding base by Sky!
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
They still haven't filled the space between them with kisses, and as fingertips dissolve into feathers that have a delicious shiver running up the length of Ronin's spine, the Huntsman lets his hand slowly start to walk it's way along the top of Remi's thigh. "My husband would never lie to me," he says reverently in response to the other man's question, though his crooked smile says that he knows better.
"What a shame that I just put a kitchen in place instead of a bed, else I could give you kisses and attention all morning, right here and right now," he laments, not that it's likely to stop them. His hand has reached Remi's hips by now, Ronin drawing the alchemist closer even at the risk of toppling him off the window sill. "You will have to tell me where all the sore parts of you are, though. I wouldn't want to gget it wrong."
"No never. But that was not a lie. Just purely a hypothetical." Remi agrees with a softly crooked smile as he leans forward, but not toward the Huntsman's lips. Placing his lips near Ronin's ear, the former Star will likely feel Remi's smile before he hears it in his husband's words. "Besides, I would happily tell you where I wanted you to put your hands and lips...your tongue and teeth too." He whispers, exhaling softly before pulling back with flushed cheeks that betray how casual he is trying to come across.
"Well. I have always known your priorities." Remi chuckles, inhaling slightly as the weight of Ronin's hands on his thighs becomes properly distracting. As his body is shifted on the windowsill, the alchemist swallows hard as his lashes flutter against Ronin's penetrating blue stare. Gods but his husband is unfairly attractive.
"No you wouldn't. Can you imagine, kissing me or touching me in places that aren't hurt? What a waste it would be."
who's got their claws in you my friend?
into your heart i'll b e a t again
Coding base by Sky!
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
"But of course," says Ronin of the hypothetical, his head tilting ever so slightly to welcome Remi's lips against the shell of his ear, his smiles and teasing words and all. He swears he can almost feel the heat in the flush of his cheeks, and his grip grows just a little tigher around the other man's waist. Whether it's the stag in him or the dragon is beyond Ronin by now, but whatever it is suddenly wants to blanket Remi entirely, to cover him in kisses and sweet nothings until no part of him is left untouched.
It's the Huntsman's turn to lean in this time, his lips whispering softly over Remi's cheek, even as his hands continue to roam upwards, over the expanse of his ribcage and his chest. "You are still a priority over dinnertime," he says with a flash of a grin - because that really is saying something, for Ronin. "I'm not sure it would be a waste, though. I'd just call it being thorough, right?" Another kiss, this time pressed just beneath Remi's jaw, not quite against his throat.
"I feel like I was gone for longer than just a few days. I hate it."
Remi cherishes moments like this, where all of their demigod strength is frustratingly reduced to small and measured touches. It has him shivering with heat and anticipation, and as Ronin's lips breeze against his cheek, Remi finds himself closing his eyes that he might be able to appreciate the gesture all the more fully. As a predator, the thrill of the hunt was not just in the blood dripping down his lips or the bright warmth that he associated with bones breaking. No, it was the chase as much as it was the victory, and though Remi was hardly moving, the tension that was building between he and Ronin made his muscles just as tense as running through the woods, would. "I am not sure there is a higher declaration of love you could give." Remi mumbles, trying to sound thoughtful but the flush of his cheeks has made his lips feel slow and unwilling to want to do more than whisper across Ronin's skin.
The pressure beneath his jaw has Remi's breath hiccuping as his teeth press together in an effort to remain still beneath Ronin's slow ministrations. "I also hate it. Maybe instead of always making up for lost time, we should start...storing time." The words don't come out quite right, but Remi doesn't care. "We should do the opposite of whatever making up for lost time is."{s/ay} He adds, trying again even as his fingers resort back to flesh and bone to try and slip Ronin's shirt off over his head.
who's got their claws in you my friend?
into your heart i'll b e a t again
Coding base by Sky!
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
"I'm glad you can appreciate how serious this is," Ronin murmurs, smiling against Remi's jawline. With new instincts awakening within him all the time, and the well-established possessiveness of a luxere thrumming through his blood, he's almost surprised by the intensity of his need for the other man. Almost - not quite, though. Remi always has and always will get him riled up; the only difference now is his reaction to it.
He shifts back just enough to let the other man slip his shirt over his head, but even that is too much distance. Ronin moves to stand between the Lullaby's legs, fingers twisting through his shirt to draw him closer once again. "I think it's called making time." He grins, mere inches from the alchemist's lips, his palms splaying across his chest. "And I think that's a great idea - easy to do as well. For instance, I'd like to make some time with you this evening. There's a bar in the Sea of Branches I've been wanting to try out - I thought we could spend the night judging their gin and wine."
The quick distance is a welcome price to pay for an unobscured view of Ronin's golden skin and the pathways of scars thereupon. Walking his fingers across his husband's shoulders as the Huntsman slips between his legs, Remi locks his ankles together against Ronin's thighs to keep him close as much as entice him even closer. The pressure and heat of him has Remi drawing in a deep breath as his ribs expand as if more oxygen was all that was needed to keep his wits about him.
'Ahh right, of course.' Remi agrees as if he might have come up with this on his own (he wouldn't have). This close, Ronin's eyes have melted into one kaleidoscopic shade of blue which becomes obscured by black every few seconds. "Oh?" Remi's eyes are tugged down to the former Star's lips as if pulled by gravity, and for a moment his mind is unable to understand the words gin and wine. "Is there actually a bar? Or is this your way of trying to get me drunk by the river?" He wonders as one hand grows talons and the other bleeds away into feathers; both pressing into the Huntsman's back.
who's got their claws in you my friend?
into your heart i'll b e a t again
Coding base by Sky!
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
Ronin shudders in a breath to feel the ankles lock around him, anchoring him against Remi in a way that feels simultaneously familiar and completely new. He lets his fingers drift down towards the hem of the alchemist's shirt, enjoying the way the fabric hugs his form, the warmth of his skin as the Huntsman's fingers slip beneath it. With almost exquisite gentleness, he leans in to brush his nose against Remi's, a warm and crooked smile tugging at the corners of his lips.
"There is actually a bar," he says through a soft laugh. "Though it is by the river, so I suppose it counts as both?" His hands are straying further quite without his permission, and his back arches at the sudden press of talons and feathers. "What do you say?" he asks. "Want to make time with me, getting drunk by the river?"
Though Remi swallows hard, his mouth is completely dry and so it ends up being more of a gulp than anything else. "So...am I to understand by that..." The words stutter and then stop completely as Ronin's hands wander. They have been together for so long that fire doesn't suddenly just roar in the wake of any old caress anymore, but Remi's mind is eager to supplement the moment with every other one he can think of that has started this way and ended with the pair twisted around one another. It has him flinching slightly as phantom teeth bite at his ear and memories of Ronin's lips against his throat that press hard enough for his breath to be cut off briefly.
"...that you mean for us to finish the kitchen first?" He wonders, breathlessly, wanting to laugh as well as scream his frustration. Instead, Remi simply raises his chin slightly to bring their lips close together once more. 'Regardless, yes. I absolutely do want to get drunk with you beside the river." He whispers with a shaky smile.
who's got their claws in you my friend?
into your heart i'll b e a t again
Coding base by Sky!
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
"Well of course I mean for us to finish the kitchen first," Ronin says, his smile audible, though at his husband's flinching and stuttering he gets the impression that Remi might disagree. "It's very nearly done, apart from the aesthetics. And I thought we'd leave that for when Mateo visits." Not that he expects them to even get the very nearly done part finished by this point - not any time before lunch, anyway.
"Then it's a date," he all but purrs, pressing a very gentle, very chaste kiss to the corner of Remi's mouth. "We'll head to the bar this evening. We'll finish the kitchen today. But I think maybe we've earned ourselves a break for a bit, mm?" By they does he mean he? Maybe. It still won't stop him from taking full advantage of the heat in his blood, the way he wants to press himself all over Remi until the other man can't stand it.
we are like birds of a feather, we are two hearts thrown together
The Huntsman will likely feel the way Remi holds his breath and then feathers his jaw at the kiss pressed so tactfully against the corner of his mouth. 'Ronin?' Sweetly whispered, the fingers on his back now resemble feather-tipped needles, and will feel just as one might expect. 'You are an absolute menace.' So saying, the alchemist will do what he can to ensure his lips find Ronin's. There might have been more build up that could have followed but with the Huntsman having been gone for what felt like weeks, the alchemist is quite certain he'll end up digging his claws into Ronin's carefully created woodwork (euphemism? you decide) if his fires aren't partially tended to. Letting his tongue and teeth hiss out his frustration and brazen lust for the Huntsman as his ankles try and lock their hips together, Remi's full and tactile presence won't last long.
Shrinking into a ball of feathers, Remi tumbles out of the window catching himself with his wings just before hitting the water. He had promised to catch them lunch, after all...and as Ronin had pointed out, Remi would never lie to his husband.
THE ALCHEMIST
we will be forever as one, my brother under the sun
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
