old flames

wherever life plants you

It was beautiful. The flames spitting up towards the sky from the obsidian bowl. For a few moments the midwife stood mesmerized by the flame, simply staring as colors shifted and fire ebbed and flowed in its own unpredictable manner. That such a place was where Abandoned could increase their power was no surprise - the entire place pulsated with it.

She had come just to look though, for she herself was no Abandoned. The site held no more significance than a pretty view. And really, how could she visit Queen's Gambit without seeing the eternal flames? It would have been a real waste of a trip! But the flames could only hold her attention for so long before she turned to make her way back out of the maze.

Phoebe

bloom with grace

Code blatantly stolen from the fantastical, wonderful Odd

SUNJATA

i'm the lights out, i'm the guard down
the bated breath you take, you take and hold

He’d noticed it from the sky at first, the fire rising toward the sky with its orange and yellow fingers, lurching and reaching into the open expanse of nothing. But it takes him some time to land, to find a spot easy enough for him to land without getting lost. And her certainly doesn’t notice the figure standing beside the Eye of Fire watching it.

It’s about the time he’s made it through the maze back toward the center where the fire is located, wanting to do his best to get the nicest view possible of it. Complete with the walk up if only to see just how impressive it truly was. Yet as he rounds the corner, the view isn’t what he’s expecting, his eyes searching for the fire only to land on his ex-wife instead. He swallows hard, the scars on his neck where it’s ripped out his compass tattoos in a gnarled line bouncing with the movement. “Didn’t expect to see you here.” He murmurs by way of greeting, nodding toward the flame that’s settled behind her.

i'm the shade of doubt, i'm the mask and shroud
i'm the burning out, i'm the lie you tell, the lie you tell yourself

wherever life plants you

Seeing Sunjata behind her made her heart drop to her stomach. Ugh. Why? "Safrin must be punishing you for something I guess." Phoebe said a bit dryly. Why else would they end up in the same place at the same time with all of Caido available to them? She could say, at the very least, that Frey was above such trivial tricks. Too boring, the drama of mortals.

But now he stood directly in her way, the path out of the labyrinth blocked by her ex-husband. She gestured to it lamely, avoiding eye contact if only to avoid more conversation than was absolutely necessary. "If you move I can leave so you can look at the fire." she said, hoping to keep things short.

Phoebe

bloom with grace

Code blatantly stolen from the fantastical, wonderful Odd

SUNJATA

i'm the lights out, i'm the guard down
the bated breath you take, you take and hold

Honestly, the talk of Safrin is a bit surprising, and his gaze narrows a fraction as he shakes his head. “No, she’s punished me in more creative ways than this.” He says equally as dry, heaving a quiet sigh that for once doesn't cloud in front of his face, not as the fire offers a decent amount of heat around it. He shifts his weight a fraction, favoring his left side as he always did in situations that were particularly uncomfortable.

Dark brows rise when she mentions he could move to see the fire, as if he’s trapping her here, and there’s a small laugh that leaves him. “I’m not that big, Phoebe.” He mutters, angling himself sideways so that she might be able to slip past him, seeing as she thought she couldn’t before and he doesn’t particularly want to stick around her as much as she doesn’t want to stick around him.

i'm the shade of doubt, i'm the mask and shroud
i'm the burning out, i'm the lie you tell, the lie you tell yourself

wherever life plants you

"Like giving the man who wanted nothing less a child?" she asked in retort. Sometimes she could hold her tongue with Sunjata. Other times the snippiness just flowed with the ease of the Stonesong. Today was one of those days apparently.

At his comment she merely rolled her eyes. "I just wanted to make sure I didn't touch you, lest either of us burn." she said dryly. Though it was a statement made in jest, given how much he despised her, Phoebe was only mildly convinced that a touch would not result in some physical harm to his person - even if it was only a psychological pain. But thankfully he did move without further comment if only slightly. The Nightingale nodded in silent thanks and made to leave, not anticipating any comment about Safrin's punishments of him or his propensity to burn upon touch.

Phoebe

bloom with grace

Code blatantly stolen from the fantastical, wonderful Odd

SUNJATA

i'm the lights out, i'm the guard down
the bated breath you take, you take and hold

“Regardless of what you think, my daughter isn’t the punishment.” He replies swiftly to her retort – unable to keep himself from slipping every time she was around. It was like she had sharp claws, digging them in deeply into bringing out all of his insecurities, all the things he feels as if he needs to defend. He does manage to sigh as she begins to snap about burning if they touch when it seems a bit over the top to the Attuned.

Regardless, he’s quiet for a moment as she moves to pass and when she finally does, he gives his answer.

“I’d say the punishment is when she tells my young daughter that she has to fear my husband.” He doesn’t look at her when he says it. His gaze drifting away from her to the flame as he remains with his back to the hedges. “That he’ll end up killing her.” His gaze flickers back to Phoebe with a deep set frown.

i'm the shade of doubt, i'm the mask and shroud
i'm the burning out, i'm the lie you tell, the lie you tell yourself

wherever life plants you

"Amazing. You might actually be capable of change, Jata. Shocked it hasn't sent you running for the hills." she said dryly. Because gods forbid that Sunjata grew to be anything more or different from what he was, based on how he clung to the past like a worn out security blanket. She couldn't even call it a shield for how sad it was.

That should have been the end of it. The final quip in a short lived exchange. But instead there was more, and it caused Phoebe to pause in her retreat. The midwife's honeyed gaze turned back to Sunjata, hard but concerned nonetheless. Even in the depths of despise she could not fathom a lack of empathy where children were concerned. "He very well might. And if not him, one of the other ascended will at the very least try. That is war, Jata, and you two are on opposite sides, and your child has a bounty on her head as the child of a goddess. Nate is as helpless to the whims of his goddess as the rest of us molded into something else by the hands of the divine. If she really isn't a punishment, then get your head out of the sand and decide which is more important to you, because you can't have both once this war starts." she said, glancing at the fire.

Phoebe

bloom with grace

Code blatantly stolen from the fantastical, wonderful Odd

SUNJATA

i'm the lights out, i'm the guard down
the bated breath you take, you take and hold

He’s been through so much that his past is used more as a mask these days, the things that make him shy away from the rest of everything. And so far, it had worked in his favor, to be cautious most of the time for good reason. So he lets that dry comment from her fade, figuring it isn’t worth the argument for it. Which is probably for the better when he gives her his honest answer and she turns around and throws it in his face, as if it isn’t what he’s constantly thought about for months on end.

A humorless laugh leaves him as he rolls his eyes, finding her gaze and folding his arms to wait until she’s done, because it’s easier than interjecting. “Why do you think we moved out here? Why we left Torchline? And regardless if you want to hear it or not, Nate and Kamaria are tied together. Nate’s fate relies on Kamaria surviving, on me raising her and protecting her. And if I do that then there’s hope for Nate after the war.” His gaze is still shadowed as he tears it away from Phoebe. Kamaria wasn’t a punishment, she was a bargain. “But I’m glad to hear that you still know so much about my situation to talk down to me about it as if I haven’t thought through everything.” He mutters, shrugging and waving a hand to her as he pushes off the hedges and steps away from her toward the Eye of Fire.

i'm the shade of doubt, i'm the mask and shroud
i'm the burning out, i'm the lie you tell, the lie you tell yourself

wherever life plants you

Phoebe was silent as Sunjata rallied against her. But his argument was weak, relying on a supposition that she wasn't sure was wise to make based on Ronin's description of the Voice; a view that Nate's own testimony of the not-goddess seemed to support. That it seemed to go over Sunjata's head was only fitting, as it did not fit this narrative he spun or the way the Voice made Nate feel. And as much fire as the Flood evoked in her...she could not help but feel sad for the man, who in his desire to have everything as he wanted it was risking everything being torn away. How sad and small his world view must be to think that his only way to attain contentment. "Then for all of your sakes I hope that the Voice values Nate's life as much as you do because he is as much a pawn as the rest of us." she said softly, the ire lost from her tone.

Then she turned on her heel and walked away, no longer willing to argue a point of logic with a man who made his own world to face reality.

-{FIN}

Phoebe

bloom with grace

Code blatantly stolen from the fantastical, wonderful Odd