[SE] hark the heralds

RONIN

"What if we get more snow after that? It'll cover the food colouring, and it'll just be harder to clear," Ronin complains as if this has already happened, grinning and surrendering one of his scarves to the love of his life (aren't you lucky, Remi). He does indeed plan on shifting to clear a path, opening the door and stepping outside onto the very fucking slippery deck. Gliding across to the side of the boat, Ronin is already giggling his way to full wakefulness.

"What kind of music? he asks. "Do you want to hire a band to stand outside? Or we could get a music box, or teach Oria how to play a teeny tiny little lute?" Still grinning, the Huntsman has to very awkwardly waddle his way into the snowdrift before he shifts to avoid setting the boat on fire, but soon enough there's a phoenix stretching out large crimson wings and hopping a melty pathway across the riverbank to the copse of trees.

soft spoken with a broken jaw
we step outside, but not to brawl

the lullaby

i don't want the world to see me,
because I don't think they'd understand

'If we get more snow, you'll still have to go and clear it. More snow will always mean more work, my way is just faster." Remi points out, and then with a grin adds: "And is more colourful."

Leaning on the doorframe (both to look cool as much as to keep his balance), he waits to see if his husband plans on shifting or only partially shifting. If it's the former, he'll get to work. The latter though? Well, Remi won't miss a chance to get an eyeful of leather this early in the morning.

"I meant a music box." Remi agrees with a roll of his eyes. "Didn't Rexanna have one? That always played?" He asks it like it's a question, but it isn't. Remi knew she had one; they'd used it at their wedding.

Ahh, a full shift it is. With a grumble, Remi sprouts wings and grows claws. Flying to the side of their home, the alchemist bangs his fists against her to knock away the thin sheet of ice that was trying to envelop her. 'Like right now, wouldn't it be nice to hear something other than the sound of your own breath?" Remi calls loudly through lips going slightly numb and with cheerfully rosy cheeks.

when everything's meant to be broken,
i just want you to know who I am

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

RONIN

I will find a way to make my way colourful, Ronin vows, already considering where he might find some colourful shells and stones to scatter along the path he's making. The full shift of a phoenix fulfils the levelling requirement covers more ground, and so it's only a few minutes before Ronin's feathers are ruffling and he's quite happily gazing back at a trail down to their houseboat. And I will keep it clear for us. Last thing you want is to go staggering into the Stonesong at Longnight, he says with a pulse of amusement.

I think she did, yes. But I don't know what happened to it - I imagine it's still with Bastien. He sent me a letter, you know. He's very disappointed with the fact that I'm abandoning my Ascended friends. It had been quite an emotive letter to say the least, but it never changed the truth in Ronin's eyes - his children came first. And while he can't give Remi a music box right now, the phoenix does let out a rather beautiful and melodic trill. How's that? he asks, blazing a trail back down to the boat.

soft spoken with a broken jaw
we step outside, but not to brawl

the lullaby

i don't want the world to see me,
because I don't think they'd understand

"Oh yes, me falling into the water. What with my aquatic shift and all. Whatever would I do." Remi calls back with a roll of his eyes. It is thoughtful and will probably be helpful for guests like..oh you know, their son.

Having not thought of Bastien in some time, Remi stops what he's doing to fully look over his shoulder now with a perplexed from. "He what?" He says of the letter and the accusation of abandonment both. "Who have you abandoned? Last I checked, wasn't it them who put up their death-barrier?" And as far as Remi knew, no one from the Order had ever stepped foot into the Grounds after being asked not to.

"Off-key." Remi lies as he balls up some snow into his hands and lobs it directly at his husband's face. Of course even if his aim is true, the snowball will melt and then become steam before it can hit the phoenix.

when everything's meant to be broken,
i just want you to know who I am

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

RONIN

Complain regardless? Ronin guesses with a pulse of smug enjoyment, shaking his tail feathers out to make sure his pathway is appropriately snow-free. Mmhm. He said something about how disappointed he was in me. I had to tell him that, much as it would be nice to not have to pick sides in a war, being Safrin's demigod does make it rather difficult to say no.

He glances up in time to see the snowball lancing towards his face, clicking his beak even as it melts, allowing the phoenix to preen and fan out his feathers happily. Can birds even sing off-key? he inquires, sneakily shifting back, though the ruff of gold and scarlet feathers around his neck do clad him in black leather and keep him warm. Scooping up a snowball of his own, he tries to lob it at the back of Remi's head.

"Maybe the Sea of Branches will sell a music box, though I don't know how magical it will be." He grins.

soft spoken with a broken jaw
we step outside, but not to brawl

the lullaby

i don't want the world to see me,
because I don't think they'd understand

Well, Ronin probably had him there. If Remi did fall, kraken shift or not, he would absolutely make it Ronin's problem. 'Wouldn't it be nice to have the time to be disappointed in people? And to write them letters about it?" Remi chuckles with a shrug.

"Sure they can. You just did." Remi quips back, wondering how the hell he'd ever found a reason to be upset with the leather-clad man before him. (And not just because he suddenly was leather-clad, mind you). Suddenly struck, the alchemist wheels about with his eyes narrowed. Dramatically his wings flare from his sides with a snap. "I'll make you regret that." He growls, and in another world, someone might have accused him of doing a very bad Christian-Bale-as-Batman impression.

Leaping into the air with the full intent of pouncing on his husband, Remi makes a mental note to ask Ianto if he had such a music box.

when everything's meant to be broken,
i just want you to know who I am

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

RONIN

"Honestly, I'm surprised I found the time to read it. I think I was in Stormbreak at the time, back when I spent my days waiting to go to sleep to hang out with you." Ronin grins, checking on his new pathway and thinking it quite regal, actually. He might have to dazzle and touch a bunch of stones so he can light it up for his husband when he expects him home.

"Hey!" His attention snaps back to Remi because his singing as a phoenix was angelic, thank you, but then his husband is doing that monstrously-handsome-and-dangerous thing that he likes, and the feathers around his neck fluff up with his glee Stolas. "I could never regret time with you," he croons, but he's of course already running scooping another snowball to try and throw behind him as he goes.

"Lucky I made this path, or I'd really be struggling to run right now!" he calls.

soft spoken with a broken jaw
we step outside, but not to brawl

the lullaby

i don't want the world to see me,
because I don't think they'd understand

Remi doesn't bother to avoid the snowball haphazardly lobbed at him if only because there isn't much force behind it (well there is, because Ronin is still a demigod with ungodly strength, but it's nothing Remi can't handle). Torn between laughing and snarling something unsavoury under his breath, Remi opts for somewhere in between calling back: "Ronin you can fly." Is he still salty about not getting to decorate the houseboat?

Maybe.

With a burst of speed, Remi's instincts mingle and simmer. Feeling playful and murderous and very, very much in love, the alchemist lets enough of himself partially shift that he might roar ominously behind his husband to see if he couldn't coax more of Ronin's own partial shift out of him.

when everything's meant to be broken,
i just want you to know who I am

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

RONIN

"Shut up," comes Ronin's eloquent reply, which is basically the equivalent of: I forgot I could fly, fuck. He hasn't had winged shifts for very long, okay? But still, as the roaring reaches his ears, all of the parts of him that are not a predator react; more feathers shiver down the length of his spine and against his arms, though the Huntsman still doesn't take to the air.

Instead he skids to a sudden stop with fire smouldering in his eyes and a darkly charming grin for his husband, holding out his arm(capes) to try and bundle Remi into them as he swoops close. "Here, let me warm you up," he suggests, though his swerving about has caused him to lose the pathway he'd cleared. And so naturally, Ronin trips over a wall of snow and goes tumbling right into it.

soft spoken with a broken jaw
we step outside, but not to brawl

the lullaby

i don't want the world to see me,
because I don't think they'd understand

Remi has no intention of stopping but even if he did, gravity had no intention of letting him either. Ronin stops and turns, all leather and heat, and though Remi knows he's about to get burned no part of him at all shies away from it. Pitching over the fallen Huntsman like he was planning on using his body as a blanket to douse his husband's flames, Remi squirms in protest as Ronin's feathers begin to warm him up and then some.

"I really am sorry for last night!" Remi laughs, wondering if this was punishment for spilling hot soup into Ronin's lap the night before. Holding his wings up so that his feathers wouldn't be singed, the alchemist tries to dart down and place a kiss against Ronin's neck before the plumes of feathers around his throat burned his cheeks.

when everything's meant to be broken,
i just want you to know who I am

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

RONIN

The snow hisses and sizzles as Ronin's phoenix feathers touch it, and he and Remi make quite a fetching (if not clumsy) snow angel as they tumble back. He's wriggling as well, torn between letting his husband get singed and wanting to make sure he's alright, and eventually the feathers do melt back into his skin. It leaves him in his coat and scarf, though the heat in his eyes is no less intense. "I believe you and I forgive you," he smiles cheekily, before promptly rolling them over so he can pin Remi against the ground.

"You know, I've always wanted to have sex with you in the snow. But maybe we can try that when we're a little more used to the cold, mm?" he suggests, but it doesn't stop him from smothering Remi in cold kisses. "What do we need to do for the boat? Chop wood? Stockpile good food? Sail her to Torchline?"

soft spoken with a broken jaw
we step outside, but not to brawl

the lullaby

i don't want the world to see me,
because I don't think they'd understand

Resisting only long enough that his wings might disappear so as not to be crumpled beneath his weight as Ronin rolls him over, Remi slumps onto his back breathless with joy. Perhaps that's why Ronin's comment has the alchemist all but gasping for air as he blinks a touch bashfully (thought at this point, why?). "Really?" Remi's fingers try and burrow their way beneath Ronin's jacket, but it's almost impossible to find some part of the Huntsman that's not covered by fabric. 'You know, it's only going to get colder.' He chuckles suggestively, alreadying imagining building them a little fire and bedding the ground with some pine boughs.

Letting himself be kissed while enjoying the weight of Ronin on top of him, Remi snorts at the last of his husband's suggestions, shaking his head. "Torchline is one of the last places I want to be. Warm or not." There was too much drama in Torchline for his liking. Too much Safrin, too. "But yes. Wood and food." Remi agrees, hooking one of his legs over Ronin's and leaning up to steal another chilly kiss. "We should get enough for Vai too." And not only because she was looking after his twins, but because it was about time he and Ronin started acted like proper and good sons to her.

when everything's meant to be broken,
i just want you to know who I am

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

RONIN

"Just an excuse to try really hard to stay warm," Ronin murmurs against the crook of Remi's neck, grinning and nipping at the soft skin before drawing back enough to gaze down at the Lullaby with flushed cheeks and snow in his hair. "We've got all season," he says with a small shrug. "No rush. We can try it a few times until we get it right."

He closes his eyes as Remi closes the gap between them, and it's a dangerous thing to lay out here in the snow; the more time passes, the more he's tempted to throw away their plans for the day in lieu of this. Of kisses and trying to fight their way through layers to touch warm flesh, of moans that will be swallowed up by the muted ground and frosty air.

"Alright," he grumbles eventually, drawing back and trying to roll away to get to his feet, holding his hands out to help Remi up as well. "We can drop down to the Sea of Branches to get a flask of cocoa and a sled, and we'll collect wood for the two of us and Vai. We can grab the food on the way back from her place?"

soft spoken with a broken jaw
we step outside, but not to brawl

the lullaby

i don't want the world to see me,
because I don't think they'd understand

'Sounds like all the more reason to practice.' Remi counters, predictably huffing his disappointment as Ronin says there's no need to rush right on the heels of having metaphorically plugged in a neon sign in Remi's mind saying I WANT TO HAVE SEX WITH YOU. The Huntsman isn't wrong of course, and they do have plenty to get accomplished today, but, "You are the most cruel man I have ever met." Remi whispers against the shell of his husband's ear, hardly even able to feel the rises and falls of cartilage his lips were so numb.

Rising with a sigh, the bulk of his Deepfrost clothing hiding whatever may or may not be trying to kindle in his pants, Remi scrubs his fingers through his curls making them look wild instead of tamed. "Only if you pull the sled." The alchemist replies as if it were some sort of protest. "Though I think we will need to do more than a bit of hunting. Especially for LongNight."

when everything's meant to be broken,
i just want you to know who I am

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!