[SEASONAL EVENT] empty chairs at empty tables

RONIN if there's one thing i'm good at, it's surviving Ronin nodded quietly as Remi promised to make the linens sooner rather than later, and watched with a small and sad smile as the alchemist cooed over his daughter. He injected some life back into a place that Ronin was sure would be dead forever, the guildmaster envying him in that moment for being able to interact with the infant with such ease and cheer. Aoife fussed a little as he placed her down in the basket, though she was soon soothed as he produced the stuffed dragon and seabird. "Definitely all three," he commented ruefully, smirking and moving for a moment to silently clasp Remi's shoulders in a silent and sincere thank you. "Okay, let's get to work," he said. Ronin stepped away, first to gather the kindling he'd put together for LongNight so he could bundle it all up to carry off to the fields later. Once that was done, he moved on to the rather more unpleasant task of clearing out the rotten food.

Remi glanced up at Ronin and nodded with a crooked smile, before turning back to Aoife. "Told you." He whispered with a wink, before rising and glancing around. Waiting until Ronin was out of the room, Remi began to slowly work on creating the linens for Vanya. It was a relatively simple task of course, but he'd pour ever ounce of concentration he had into making it perfect. Closing his eyes, Remi thought of the sea. It had been a while since he'd seen, but after a few moments he could recall. He saw the Siren's Call gently rising and flowing a few hundred feet from shore, the way the waves seemed to reflect the sunlight in an array of colour. He couldn't imbue the cloth with the brine or the power of the waves, but he did his best to represent it as best he could. He was no Delphine, but by the time he opened his eyes and looked at the swath of linen before him, he thought that even someone who had been on the ocean their whole life as Vanya had, would be suitably impressed. Given his magical abilities when it came to earth, Remi decided to tackle the unpleasant task of cleaning up after Sugar. Frozen though her shits might be, that did not make his task any more pleasant. Opening a window (and making sure that Aoife was close to the fire so as not to catch a chill), Remi used both magic and might to thrust shovel after shovel full of poop outside. remi Don't pretend it's such a mystery Think about the place where you first met me

RONIN if there's one thing i'm good at, it's surviving "You wouldn't think that such a small creature could make so much shit," Ronin commented, joining Remi in tossing all the rotten food outside with the dragon poop. Little did the guildmaster know that, like small dragons, tiny babies also possessed the same talent. That could remain a surprise for the time being. Once the guildhall was clear of anything rotting or stinking and a clean, sweet draught was billowing through the open windows, Ronin swept up and around the tables and chairs, and mopped too. Only once he was finished with the floors did he approach the linens that Remi had made, his gaze softening as his fingers ghosted over the fabric. "I think she'd love them," he murmured, feeling suddenly and inexplicably thirsty for booze. He refrained, of course, but that didn't mean the feeling wasn't there.

"Everyone poops, Ronin." The alchemist quipped back with a grin. "Best you learn that lesson now, because I have a feeling it is about to get much, much worse." He added with a glance towards Aoife who, at some point, would need to be changed. As Ronin returned to a more or less put-together great-room, Remi watched with bated breath as his friend looked over the linens. Releasing the air in his lungs in a greatful woooooooosh, Remi gently squeezed Ronin's shoulder with a nod. Glancing outside and seeing that there was still enough light that it wasn't quite time yet to head towards the fields, Remi glanced around. "While I would assume that you monster-hunter types do not drink on the job, have you anything to pay your hired-help for his services? Or am I just expected to work for free, with nothing to quench my thirst with?" remi Don't pretend it's such a mystery Think about the place where you first met me

RONIN if there's one thing i'm good at, it's surviving "So I have been warned," Ronin murmured, following Remi's gaze towards Aoife and watching his daughter as if she was going to detonate at some point. He even managed a quiet smile at the apparent poopocalypse that his life was about to become. For now, at least, the guildhall was looking much more like it should, and Ronin straightened out tables and closed the windows back up and lit lanterns in the sconces so the place was alive with light and colour. Downstairs, at least. Upstairs was frozen, still, and even after Ronin wrapped Vanya up and they departed, he likely wouldn't want to go back up there for some time. "They are perfect," he assured his friend as he looked so grateful, before smiling and nodding. "This is a meeting place, Remi - it would be rude not to offer refreshments. Unfortunately all but the most bland food has perished, but I still have plenty of wine." So saying, Ronin grabbed a bottle and two mugs from a cupboard and moved to sit by the fire toc heck on Aoife. And drink. Obviously.

Though wrapping Vanya up would have been easier with Remi's magic, it seemed an all together too intimate thing for him to aid with. As Ronin went about this task, the alchemist told Aoife whimsical stories of constellations and heroes, using the stuffed dragon and bird as characters. 'Good thing monster hunting does not require good listening skills Ronin, or else you might have noticed I said I was thirsty and not hungry." Remi said with a laugh, leaning against the stone slabs next to the hearth and waiting for Ronin to return. "I suppose I should mention that I apparently have lost some of my memories. I think I have been more or less filled in about the details but ... " The alchemist trailed off, giving one of those fill in the blank sort of shrugs. "Obviously I have not forgotten you, so there's no need to worry yourself." He added with a smirk. remi Don't pretend it's such a mystery Think about the place where you first met me

RONIN if there's one thing i'm good at, it's surviving "Good thing I offered you wine as well as food then, isn't it?" Ronin said mildly and with a hint of his old camaraderie, having taken a seat beside the basket in front of the fire now, pouring wine into the two mugs and holding one up for Remi. "None for you though, madam," he tutted at the baby - Aoife was clutching the tail of the stuffed dragon in her little fist, though obviously she was far too young to know what to do with it or the wine. The news that Remi had lost his memories had the mug pausing halfway to Ronin's lips, the guildmaster fixing his friend with a concerned stare and tilting his head. "You are remarkably calm about this," he said. "How did you manage that, if you don't mind my asking? And I mean... who or what did you lose? Wait, that's a stupid question..."

Remi took the mug appreciatively, before glancing down at Aoife. "You are not missing out. I did not make this wine, so it probably is not very good anyways." He told the baby with a grin. Not pausing as Ronin had, the alchemist shrugged as the wine flowed easily down his throat. "Yes it is a stupid question Ronin, but thank you so much for reminding me that I have no way of knowing exactly what has been taken." Remi said with a wry grin. "It was Ludo who did it. I lost something that it gave me, and I suppose this is my punishment. What I do know is that it has taken memories of my mother." This he said with a palpable emotion, though it was hard to say what it was. It wasn't quite sadness, as Remi couldn't remember her to be sad about it. It was a strange melancholy, to miss something you couldn't remember, but Remi felt it acutely. "Also a man called Samuel who I was apparently..." Remi's cheeks flushed with colour as he placed the mug to his lips again and drank deeply. Clearing his throat, he continued. "And a fox-shifter named Ianto, and someone called Lauren." remi Don't pretend it's such a mystery Think about the place where you first met me

RONIN if there's one thing i'm good at, it's surviving "You haven't even tried it yet, how do you know you didn't make it," Ronin said haughtily, sipping at his mug and already knowing that it was true - this wasn't nearly as good as one of Remi's vintages. He smiled at the alchemist's quick quips, though it didn't reach his eyes and he could only shrug in response. "I have been somewhat preoccupied," he murmured. "Ludo, you say? What did you lose that belonged to it...? If you returned it, perhaps it would give your memories back." That seemed logical enough, but then when did logic matter to deities? Sipping again at his mug and gently rocking the basket next to him to lull Aoife to sleep, Ronin's brow furrowed. "I'm sorry to hear that," he said, though it likely didn't mean anything to the man who had no idea what he had lost. Only when he noticed Remi's obvious blush did he realise what losing those memories truly meant. "Loren, too? He was..." He sighed. "He hasn't been seen for a long, long time. So it might be better that you don't remember him. He was unkind to you."

"Because this bottle doesn't have a label." Remi replied with a grin, taking a rather large sip—nay, gulp—and trying not to shiver as the alcohol flowed down his throat. It was awful and tasted terrible and was probably going to give him a hangover, but the warmth that coiled in his gut was precisely what he needed about now. Vanya deserved the best, but something about drinking something this terrible while they waited for the sun to sink down to bury the beautiful sea-bird. "A mask. The one that let me see through the barrier." Remi replied with a sigh, before nodding. 'Yes, I had hoped that maybe that would work. Now that LongNight is over I do plan on doing some..investigating. " Glancing across at Ronin, the alchemist studied his friend's face for a moment before shrugging gently. "I have not heard much of him. But if he is not around, I wonder if the loss of my memory of him means that much. Did you know him as well?" remi Don't pretend it's such a mystery Think about the place where you first met me

RONIN if there's one thing i'm good at, it's surviving "Mm, good point... and a mask, you say? Oh. That mask." Ronin winced, partly because of the bitterness of the wine and partly in sympathy for his friend. "You are not a very lucky person, Remi. You know that?" His tone was sad and serious, and it must have been bad for someone in the guildmaster's position to be saying it. "Well... if you need any help, know I am ready and willing to do whatever I can. Honestly, I doubt I'll be able to stay in this place... might just have to shut the guild." His gaze drifted up towards the ceiling briefly, and the tragedy that lay waiting there for him. Alone in this place where Vanya had died... no, he didn't think so. He was silent for a few moments as he tried to find the words to describe Loren, before finally settling on the truth. It would be hard, but Remi would likely not thank him for keeping anything back. "He was one of our best friends," he said slowly. "And he was the first person you ever loved. He left you, without reason and without a word, and we haven't heard from him since."

"Oh don't say it like that." Remi scoffed, the wine already making his head buzz slightly. "I know I messed up. You do not need to rub it in." The alchemist waved a hand through the air with a shrug. "And it is not bad luck, but my own stupidity as I have been so recently led to believe. But perhaps it is as you say , if I find the mask, perhaps I can also find Ludo's forgiveness." Remi nodded appreciatively, though his smile dissolved immediately as he followed Ronin's gaze upstairs. He'd never lost anyone (not that he remembered now, anyways), and certainly not in any circumstances even slightly resembling what Ronin was going through. Still he thought he understood, or understood well enough anyways. "Same for you, you know. Today aside, you know you can always count on me." Raising a brow, Remi couldn't quite believe that beginning details that Ronin was attributing to Loren. Once of their best friends? Then why would it be better to not remember him? Oh. That was why. Turning his eyes away, Remi looked into the liquid of his cup for a moment, sucking on his lower lip in silent contemplation. "Well." Remi said with a sigh, raising his mug to his lips and draining the contents. "My glass appears to be empty. " He said vaguely, holding it towards Ronin for the guildmaster to refill. Sam had already said that Remi had loved someone else before, so it wasn't a terrible surprise, and the alchemist was dealing with the fact that he'd forgotten some important firsts in his life. But if Loren had done what Ronin said, then perhaps it was best that he had forgotten him. It wasn't as though it sounded like there was anything he could do about it anyways. What he could do though, was drink. remi Don't pretend it's such a mystery Think about the place where you first met me

RONIN if there's one thing i'm good at, it's surviving "You are not stupid," Ronin said with quiet certainty, taking another long sip of wine, though he resisted the urge to gulp it back as Remi was doing. The urge was strong, stronger than it had ever been, but the infant sleeping in the basket was enough to still his hand. Vanya would have done anything for their child, and so would Ronin. "You put a lot of weight on your shoulders. That's probably the only stupid thing about you," he informed the other man. Snorting softly, Ronin shook his head. "Whilst I appreciate it, Remi, you can hardly move in here with me and start hunting monsters. You're busy enough for both of us," he murmured, staring into the fire with a troubled expression and only glancing up as Remi held out his glass. Ronin nodded quietly, refilling it for him without question. "I'm sorry you had to hear it like that. Or that it happened at all..."

"Did you just call my shoulders stupid, Ronin?" Remi asked almost playfully, wanting very badly to fall into their easy camaraderie but feeling selfish for doing so. "Well I suppose I'll just start with moving in, then." The alchemist quipped back with a defiant sort of smirk. "Besides, I think my monster-count might nearly be as high as yours is. And we've both got magical companions. Mine just also happens to have a medical degree." Looking at Sugar, Remi grinned and winked. "No offense." Remi shrugged easily, taking another far-too large sip that burned going down and sat heavily in his stomach. Leaning back against the stonework, the alchemist closed his eyes and let himself bask in the warmth of the fire for a moment. "It .. I suppose it does not matter. I do not remember it, so it does not hurt. It is like a story that happened to someone else. Someone very similar to me, but ... not me." Opening his eyes, Remi shrugged again. "I know that is not true, but it is how it feels. And without these people around to remind me, it is like it never happened." remi Don't pretend it's such a mystery Think about the place where you first met me