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!
Should'a seen what I wore I had a cane and a party hat
The flinch has Mateo retreating away again, though his other hand remains over the stain, and he moves to take a large sip of his wine instead. "My special night, huh?" He smiles, able to paint on a very convincing smile compared to his friend. Ever isn't going to tell him anything about this - if he was he'd have done so instantly - so the florist commits to playing his part for the night.
"Well, we'd better get some food in you," he says cheerfully, opening Ever's menu for him and doing the same with his own. "I'm great, I told you that in the car," he says softly, scrunching his nose as if to remind the other man of that fact. He has also seen their various cheerleaders, but he's pretending not to. "How are you? You can relax now at least, right? We made it here on time, the car ride was incredible and I don't think either of us have work tomorrow."
I was the king of this hologram where there's no such thing as getting out of hand
He's in absolutely no position to explain to his friend just how much this charade of normalcy means to him. Even in the best state of mind he'd likely not be able to find the words, but the way Ever is able to settle into himself as Mateo plays his role of charmed guest of honour does wonders for the paramedic's unstable pulse.
'Of course. I thought..' Ever gives his head a slight shake. He'd thought what? That something had changed in the last 10 minutes? But no. He'd just forgotten, as he likely would continue to do for the remainder of the night. Mention of work has Ever's eyes closing, his nostrils flaring as he forces himself to take a breath. "Right." He agrees on a shaky exhale, just as their server reappears and begins listing off the wonderful things they have on offer. Letting Mateo choose for them, such was the florist's specialty anyways, Ever tries his best to shove that evening's trauma away for later appraisal.
"I...am realizing that it probably looks as though one of us is going to propose." He murmurs after having nonchalantly drunk his entire glass of wine.
even if i had to lose you to know you, i'd still be that temporary phase that you grow through
Should'a seen what I wore I had a cane and a party hat
Mateo does indeed order for the two of them, slipping into seamless Italian with their server and giving no indication whatsoever about what he's got on the way to Everest (it's all the things he'll like and none of it is a curveball). Once he's had his friend's wine refilled and taken another generous drink of his own, he settles back and the server sweeps away again, leaving them to it. Still admiring the floral centrepiece - because it's absolutely the best thing about the table, apart from the company - he glances back up to offer a bright smile.
"Well, then I suppose we have a choice," he says. "One of us can propose, and we can suffer through that brief attention. Or we can do nothing and people will keep staring all night long." He doesn't seem remotely bothered by either prospect, because this is Mateo. "Or we could just ignore everyone and have dinner."
I was the king of this hologram where there's no such thing as getting out of hand
"I didn't bring a ring..." Ever says thoughtfully, and though the subject of 1. proposals, 2. public displays of affection 3. gestures that invite applause and tears would otherwise make him squirm in his seat to think about, with the dark thoughts already polluting his mind, this is actually easier to think about it. "I suppose we could use one of yours, but..." Trying on a smile and finding the muscles of his face unable to support it for long, the paramedic takes another healthy sip of his wine.
"Wait so, this isn't a proposal?" The photographer interrupts, looking quite confused. Turning, his eyebrows furrowed Ever shakes his head. "But...the centrepiece..the outfits..." Looking as though he wants to say something like, and you, who looks on the verge of passing out but wisely doesn't. "Mateo has been nominated for a big award." Ever explains with a frown. "Why would we want this moment captured?" Given that he was being paid the paramedic couldn't think why the photographer would care what he was here for, Ever turns back to his roommate.
"To quote Taylor Swift, this is why we can't have nice things."
even if i had to lose you to know you, i'd still be that temporary phase that you grow through
Should'a seen what I wore I had a cane and a party hat
"Hey, we haven't decided yet whether it's a proposal," Mateo smiles to the photographer, taking his questions and comparative outrage with ease. "And I suppose we could use one of mine... Oh, perhaps we're already engaged!" Wiggling his fingers and the shiny rings thereupon, he takes one piece of jewellery off and places it instead on the ring finger of his left hand. "There," he announces, raising his hand (and people do look, assuming they've missed the getting-on-one-knee part).
"We are engaged!" he calls out brightly - and oop, there's the applause, there's the cheering, there's Mateo raising his wine glass and clinking it against Ever's. "Now we can have a wonderful night and no one has to stare at us anymore." Turning to the photographer and flashing his 'engagement ring', he nods that he should be doing his job about now.
I was the king of this hologram where there's no such thing as getting out of hand
Ever watches Mateo reassign his rings without much interest. Instead he's concentrating on not imagining his roommate's fingers becoming slender and feminine (more than they already are), with blood and glass stiffening the knuckles. However as the florist announces their engagement (much to the outrage of their photographer who is nonetheless quick to raise his camera), Ever blinks with surprise and nearly spills his wine as Mateo congratulates him. Them?
Rather than putting it all to bed, their EnGaGemEnt somehow draws more attention. Most notable is the arrival of two young women who approach the table with drug-heavy eyes and wide smiles. 'You two are so fucking brave." One comments. "Yeah. Good for you." Her friend comments, before getting to the real reason for their approach. "Y'know, if you aren't gay-gay, we'd be totally down for a bit of fun." Biting her lip in an attempt to look coquettish (and she might have done, Ever was a poor judge), the other winks at the cameraman as if this was some reality TV show.
even if i had to lose you to know you, i'd still be that temporary phase that you grow through
Should'a seen what I wore I had a cane and a party hat
Hopefully there's a photo, when they look back on all of this, of Mateo smiling into the camera with an I told you so look in his eyes, as if this whole thing could have been avoided if the photographer had just kept his mouth shut. Regardless, the florist has settled down to enjoy their night, finishing his glass of wine and reaching out to refill both - a 50 year old vintage goes down very well indeed on an empty stomach, apparently - when they're interrupted.
This isn't a club and so Mateo is momentarily bamboozled by the sight of the two drug-addled beauties, but gods if they aren't painfully attractive to every part of him that graves the oblivion-blank sweetness of a good hit. And he's been very good since the new year, and he's even been to the gym, and--
Drawing a shuddering breath and digging his nails into his palms, he reaches out (sorry Ever) to lay his hand over the other man's. "Bellissima as you both are," he says, thickening his accent around his regret, "I am as gay-gay as it gets. And we are having a moment."
I was the king of this hologram where there's no such thing as getting out of hand
The muscles in the paramedic's lower arm tense, but Ever does manage to keep his hand where it is. Naive to many social niceties though he might be, this he does understand. He even goes so far as to splay his fingers so that Mateo's might fit all the more neatly against his own. "Would you give him up, if you were me?" Ever wonders; hypotheticals aren't lies, and even if they were, this was much easier to bare than the truth just now.
Pouting, properly pouting, the girls look at one another seeming to have a silent conversation between themselves about what to do. Looking almost choreographed, one leans towards Mateo while the other goes for Ever. Wrapping their arms about either man's shoulders, they each whisper a variation of since you clearly like an audience, we'd be happy to watch, as they try and press their breasts forward. The one with Mateo lets her teeth graze his earlobe as the one with Ever tries to flourish her words with her tongue. This unsurprisingly is not easily endured, and the paramedic finds himself half out of his chair in an attempt to push the girl away before he remembers himself and instead grunts an unhappy, 'No thank you.'
even if i had to lose you to know you, i'd still be that temporary phase that you grow through
Should'a seen what I wore I had a cane and a party hat
It takes a lot to rile Mateo Taliesin - like, a lot. Even Everest can likely count on a single hand the times where the florist has properly lost his temper, but he's about to add another finger to that list. As the girls operate a divide and conquer approach, thrusting breasts and nibbling earlobes, Mateo's hand forms a fist which slams down on the table before them. It's only once, and it isn't even especially loud, but it's enough to get the attention of every server in the vicinity and to wobble the wine in their glasses.
"I wasn't aware that consent was optional in New York," he snaps, high points of colour in his cheeks that (mostly) have nothing to do with arousal. "This is a restaurant and we are at a table for two, if I'm not mistaken. If you want the table, by all means have it. You can have the bill attached, too."
I was the king of this hologram where there's no such thing as getting out of hand
The slam doesn't have the immediate effect, if only because the girls' senses have been encased in a warm sphere of euphoric sludge. When it does register, they straighten and both turn twin pairs of startled eyes towards the florist. Whether they simply aren't used to being turned down, or if the drugs in their system have made them wildly off in their calculations is irrelevant. Straightening, they clutch at one another, swallowing awkwardly and trying to laugh off the strange looks that they're now receiving from the entirety of the restaurant. 'No, sorry.' One mewls, turning her eyes toward the table as her cheeks turn bright red. The other, undaunted, just runs her tongue over her teeth. "We were just trying to say congratulations, jesus. You don't have to be such assholes about it. Enjoy aids, fuckers."
Reaching for Mateo's hand—the one he'd slammed onto the table—Ever tries to part his friend's fingers as they had been only moments ago. Now finding himself in a care-taking role has soothed the paramedic such that he could compartmentalize properly again. "Don't." He whispers, squeezing Mateo's hand. "Please don't. Have some more wine."
even if i had to lose you to know you, i'd still be that temporary phase that you grow through
Should'a seen what I wore I had a cane and a party hat
Happy and willing to show more of the razorblades hiding beneath his usually silver tongue, Mateo's lips part just as Ever's hand lands over his own. Disliking his own loss of temper just as much as everyone else in the vicinity, it's not a difficult thing for the paramedic to tease Mateo's fingers out of the clenched fist they've curled into. He grumbles something disparaging and Italian under his breath as he ignores the girls (who, for their sake, are hopefully leaving them alone now) and turns back to face Ever properly.
"It is good wine," he mutters in response to the other man's instruction, reaching out to take a measured sip of his drink just as the server arrives with about a dozen apologies and their appetisers. "Sorry," Mateo murmurs to Ever once the server has left again, lifting his eyes to his roommate's face. "I didn't mean to ruin things."
I was the king of this hologram where there's no such thing as getting out of hand
Their photographer has captured every awkward moment as if this was Britney Spears' 2000 meltdown, and suddenly seeming much more invested in getting through the rest of dinner with his camera raised.
Snaking his hand back just as soon as the girls had disappeared, Ever rubs blearily at one of his eyes before letting his hand flop into his lap. "This is your night. It is only ruined if you say it is." He replies reasonably. Inwardly though, Everest feels shaky and exhausted for all these sudden bursts of adrenaline and were it any other night, he'd have already asked for a rain cheque.
It isn't though, so he doesn't, and they make it through appetizers and their main courses without any more difficulty. The waiter doesn't ask about dessert, but instead brings out a classic Italian lemon cream cake, the recipe of which Ever may or may not have stolen from one of Mateo's albums at the house and demanded the restaurant make.
even if i had to lose you to know you, i'd still be that temporary phase that you grow through
Should'a seen what I wore I had a cane and a party hat
Mateo wants to say the night is ruined, because then they can go home and order Chinese food and watch TV in the dark, but of course he doesn't. He also wants to slap the camera out of the photographer's hands, but he doesn't do that either. Both he and Everest are sucking it up for the other tonight, but at least the florist is a good actor. And he doesn't even have to pretend at enjoyment as the lemon cream cake appears, his eyes lighting up and a dimpled smile spreading across his face.
"You did this," he accuses warmly to his roommate, having scanned the menu for the possibilities of dessert before they had even ordered appetisers. He'd seen no cake, of course, but he had secretly wished there was one. And here it is. "Thanks, Ever. If I win the award, maybe we can celebrate by making another one of these at home?"
He makes it sound like he wants to do it as a gift to Ever for his generosity this evening, but of course Mateo would actually enjoy it as well. It must be the sobriety.
I was the king of this hologram where there's no such thing as getting out of hand
'How could I have? I've been sitting here the whole time. I certainly didn't have time to make you a cake." Ever argues with an obnoxious tilt to his head that says I couldn't possibly be lying, look how good of a liar I am. "When." The paramedic clarifies, fixing his smile onto his face with an almost pained expression as the photographer clicks away.
Rubbing at his ear having just remembered the way the woman's tongue felt as it slithered along his earlobe, Ever frowns and glances skeptically around the dining room. "Well, we've been photographed, got engaged, were nearly assaulted, and have now stuffed ourselves. Where does that put this restaurant in your rankings?"
even if i had to lose you to know you, i'd still be that temporary phase that you grow through
