let it move through you

he said "i bet you don't remember me"

"Make sure to hold on tight." Remi warns, though there's no real need for it. This isn't Enzo's first ride on his father as a manticore, though it will be his longest. Still, there is no time that the alchemist is more protective than he is when it comes to his children. Sailing through the skies towards the jewel-toned jungle, it occurs to Remi that he should probably find some sort of ring like the one he used to have with Ronin, that would allow his children to hear him while he was shifted. Strange that none of them were attuned; then again, perhaps it wasn't strange at all.

The jungle spreads like wildfire beneath them, but it's the strange and cavernous undergrove that Remi has his sights on. Landing lightly and waiting for his son to dismount, Remi shifts back into his body with a crimson flush of adrenaline on his cheeks and a sparkle in his eyes. 'How was that? Not too stiff, I hope.'

THE ALCHEMIST

and i said, "only every other memory".

Enzo

“Aye aye!” Enzo crows as his soil-stained fingers sink into Remi’s thick mane to get a good grip, ready for the initial unsteadying lurch of liftoff. It might come as a surprise that flying on a manticore can be boring, but since his dad won’t do loop-de-loops (often) and the journey is relatively long, it’s easier to lay his torso down and curl his arms around the giant’s neck to doze slightly as they fly. Remi had already nixed the idea of doing anything fun with his hands while they fly that might otherwise absorb his attention.

Luckily the boy is too sprightly to be saddle sore so to speak, sliding off his dad’s shoulder to hit the ground with a bounce. Already staring around with a ravenous curiosity at the foliage around them. “Nah, all good!” he distractedly responds before turning and grinning up at Remi, foxlike slant to his eyes. “So what are we doin’?”

you are young and life is long
and there is time to be killed today

he said "i bet you don't remember me"

Enzo's mischief was infectious, such that the alchemist found himself grinning wolfishly at his son's side before nosing towards the jungle. "We are here for a sapling. Any kind will do." Remi explains, parting some of the nastier brambles overhead that prevent their progress. Hanging vines slither down from on high, tickling Enzo's ears while subtly trying to loop themselves around his neck. It's with narrowed eyes that Remi cuts these vines away with his claws, allowing the more peaceful flora to remain.

"Do you remember when I explained to you that there is only one way for me to really die? And that any other time, I will always come back?" Speaking slightly louder that he might be heard over the birdsong that sweeps through the trees, Remi continues. "I have asked Ludo to make me a very special sort of hourglass, so that if I ever do temporarily die, you will be able to see how long until I am back." Grinning, he adds: "That way you can make sure to have a sandwich ready for me. I am sure I will be hungry." Was speaking about death the sort of thing that should be so casually done, especially between a father and his young son? Likely not, but then, as the child of one of Ludo's chosen, much of this was already commonplace among Taliesins and Kaliesins alike.

THE ALCHEMIST

and i said, "only every other memory".