three rounds and a sound

SUNJATA

the flood

He should realize he’s stepped over the border into the Greatwood from the Grounds – but with as lost in thought he is, it hasn’t quite registered yet. He hasn’t noticed the lush greenery around him nor the way the trees seem to warp and shift, all he knows is that he’s followed a path specifically to lose himself in, thinking it was just a continuation of the woodlands from the Grounds.

Only when he stops and actually looks around that he realizes he’s lost for the moment, and an audible and tired “Fuck.” Leaves his lips, a hand running through his hair, a huff of a sigh as he goes to turn around and stare back down the path he’d come, before his steel gaze drifts toward the sky. Maybe, just maybe, he can get his bearings if he’s high enough.

So he shifts to his Pegasus shift, a lesser threatening one, and the pale white and blue winged equine starts heading down the path he’d just come up, searching for a clearing that he might be able to break the treetops to figure out where he is better.

I've got hooks in my sides that you left there

img credits

I've been sleepwalking, Too close to the fire
But it's the only place that I can hold you tight

Why yes Sunjata, you absolutely should have noticed where you were. Regardless of whether or not the Greatwood tried to lure Caido's newest demigod into its depths was irrelevant. He was here, and as a certain manticore picks up his scent, said manticore isn't quite sure how he feels about it. Pursing on paws that grip the mulch and dirt beneath to soften his footsteps, Remi pins his wings against his sides and keeps his tail curled tightly above his back.

While it's true that fucking over Safrin is not something that would cause Remi to do much more than laugh at the goddess's misfortune, Sunjata's actions hadn't only affected him, but had rippled across and disturbed the Lullaby in a way that he did find annoying. Still, the cause and effect was tenuous at best, but we all know how well Remi handles his annoyances, even when they aren't justified.

Are you coming, or going? Remi rumbles once the familiar bluish whiteish equine is within his line of sight.

the lullaby

Styling stolen from Sky (obviously)

SUNJATA

the flood

Unaware of how the Greatwood constantly ended up fucking with him, he finds himself on some other path – guiding him right into the path of Remi, the accented rumble flooding his senses in a way he hasn’t felt in some time. In a way that has his feathers along his shoulders ruffling as soon as he spies the familiar manticore.

This shift is absolutely a prey shift and his steel gaze meets the Lullaby’s for a fleeting second before Sunjata’s dropping a hoof, tucking his wings in tight and lowering his head a fraction to stare at the pathway instead. Leaving. He offers immediately. I didn’t intend to get this far into the woods. It’s just putting me in circles now. It’s easier than mentioning that he’s not here to ruin anything else – sure that the sudden arrival of Kamaria hadn’t helped anything in Remi’s life, though it wasn’t like Sunjata had wanted any of this.

I've got hooks in my sides that you left there

img credits

I've been sleepwalking, Too close to the fire
But it's the only place that I can hold you tight

If only you could shift to something smaller and just fly out. Remi suggests a touch dryly; Sunjata was a veritable zoo. Surely a pegasus wasn't his only flighted option.  

Not knowing that Hotaru and Sunjata had...smoothed over their differences, shall we say, there were very few reasons that the Lullaby could think of for the Flood to be here. It is not that you are banned from the Woods, but this is not the safest place for you to be, all things considered. The manticore points out patiently, and though he has little control over the trees, he does pulse out a silent request that they let Sunjata out if only so that their roots won't soon soak up his blood.

Though maybe that is just what they want.

the lullaby

Styling stolen from Sky (obviously)

SUNJATA

the flood

I could. He agrees with a twinge of internal annoyance. He could shift to a bat or a bird and figure his way out of here, but without the hooves of his Pegasus shift it felt more prone and more open — more likely to be ambushed. And given Remi’s next statement he cocks his head, his multihued mane falling with the gesture, he thinks he might have picked right.

There’s a sense of apprehension as he makes it finally into the clearing yet closer to Remi but he can’t quite draw away yet. All things considered being what exactly? He asks, fanning out his wings, waiting a moment longer as one loose feather flies from his wings and floats harmlessly into the mossy growth beneath a tree as his eyes skate back to the predator. Because of what I did with Frey or because I came from the Grounds? Fraternizing with the Ascended, perhaps? Or was it something else?

I've got hooks in my sides that you left there

img credits

I've been sleepwalking, Too close to the fire
But it's the only place that I can hold you tight

So you are...just making this more difficult on yourself, then? Remi can't help the slow beat of annoyance that punctuates the first few words. From what he had heard from Ronin and what transpired at Safrin's shrine, Sunjata seemed to find himself buried up to his knees lately, alone, and holding the shovel.

The fact that Ronin might kill you yet. There is no good reason to think that Safrin won't ask it of him. Remi points out with as much of a leonine shrug as he can manage. As for the grounds? The manticore tenses slightly and the breath Remi exhales is accompanied by the attuned-bond equivalent of a frustrated eyeroll. There is also that. The Greatwood is off-limits to the ascended and with times being what they are, given you have no reason to be inside of our borders, it is not much of a leap to think you are trying to spy. Did he think it likely? Perhaps not. But as guardian Remi didn't want to think about it at all.

the lullaby

Styling stolen from Sky (obviously)

you promised me sunshine, why's it gloomy? we'll wait 'til the night to catch the moonbeam

Given my recent experiences, I’m trying to not be a walking target. He offers instead – not that he wants to make it harder on himself. He doesn’t know these woods, he doesn’t know much about what goes on within them and frankly? It isn’t his business.

But what is is business is this partially banned but not banned announcement coming from Remi, one that has the gears spinning in his head, that has the sensation of a sigh leaving him even if his wings stutter in their fanning out. If that were the case she shouldn’t have given him the option to save me, hm? I mean, Frey didn’t even come. He retorts dryly. But, it’s true. He shouldn’t be here. He isn’t spying. But he supposes with his track record of people believing the things he’s said? He should probably get out before he can’t anymore.

So he shifts to the macaw shift, his tri-toned feathers melding into the navy blue of his macaw as he shakes out his feathers this time, casting a yellow ringed glance toward the Lullaby. You know that I’m not spying, right? He asks, stalling if only to make sure Remi knew that wasn’t his intention, whether he believed it or didn’t.

SUNJATA

I've been sleepwalking, Too close to the fire
But it's the only place that I can hold you tight

And yet you've come here? Where you very much unwanted by one of the most powerful men in Caido? Remi says, trying to keep the note of incredulity from his mental voice and only finding meagre success. Ahh yes. Because if there is one thing we know of Safrin is that she is so very predictable. The manticore replies with a dry shake of his head.

As the pegasus keeps its blue but shifts to be much smaller, Remi narrows his eyes against the gold and sapphire and considers. Honestly, I do not know what you are doing these days. The Lullaby replies, and now whatever frustration was in his voice is replaced by weariness. Though I believe you now have the worst track records with the gods instead of me, so I suppose I appreciate that. He adds with a mild vibration of amusement. Though Remi had perhaps angered more of them, and though it was true Safrin did hate him, he wasn't sure anyone could match Sunjata in terms of scale now.

the lullaby

Styling stolen from Sky (obviously)

you promised me sunshine, why's it gloomy? we'll wait 'til the night to catch the moonbeam

Remi makes his points and Sunjata huffs a quiet sound, feathers ruffling just a fraction more before he smooths them down. It wasn’t his intention to make his way into the Greatwood in the first place until he’d gotten wound up and around and unsure of the way out. He eyes Remi from dark eyes ringed in yellow, his beak grinding against itself a brief moment as the words hit him.

Honestly, he doesn’t know what he’s doing either these days. Going with the gut flow, really, except his gut instinct was typically off. Can you indulge me on what happened between you and Frey? I’ve heard rumors but… The macaw’s head cocks toward the sky again, imagining that he’d depart as soon as Remi gave him a bit of an idea of the bad side of Frey that Sunjata had waltzed into without realizing it.

SUNJATA

I've been sleepwalking, Too close to the fire
But it's the only place that I can hold you tight

Which time? Remi wonders, his claws grasping at the soft soil beneath in lieu of being able to flit his tail back and forth. The first time I met them and they removed everyone's clothes, outed me as gay, and nearly gave Phoebe a heart attack by suggesting a group orgy? The time I happened upon them with Rexanna, and because we did not have sex right then and there, they took away all the feelings I had for the man I once loved? Or what about the time they demanded an orgasm race that resulted in the birth of two children I very much did not want nearly resulting in my death at the hands of my husband? Spreading his wings as one might with their fingers, Remi narrows his eyes and shrugs.

Take your pick.

the lullaby

Styling stolen from Sky (obviously)

you promised me sunshine, why's it gloomy? we'll wait 'til the night to catch the moonbeam

Which time? doesn’t bode well in the grand scheme of things and it truly stills the Flood as he peers over at the Lullaby, a bit of confusion flickering through the bond that he tries to douse. Each one is worse than the other, dropping from Remi’s mind into his own through the bond like it’s some kind of knell of worry, adding and adding more and more to the list of his uncertainties.

Was it better to be with the devil you knew than the devil you don’t? Would he have been better off with Safrin than Frey when he hardly knew anything of the deity? His beak clicks again and he shoves past the oily feeling in his stomach. Ah. It unhelpfully falls from his lips and he spreads his wings. He wants to tell Remi that he’s sorry that all happened to him, but what good would saying that do? The past was the past, was it not? And it wasn’t his fault. Thanks for, uh, giving me an idea. I think I’ll be heading out now. He murmurs, not wanting to stick around if all he's doing is bringing about more frustration and upset.

He pushes off the ground, taking to the sky now in a bullet of navy blue, aiming to break the treeline to figure out his surroundings and drift back toward the safety of the Grounds.

- FIN <333

SUNJATA