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!
06-09-2022, 03:42 PM (This post was last modified: 06-09-2022, 03:43 PM by Flora.)
flora
So. Flora had decided to move to Torchline.
Flora had moved to Torchline, but after having spent several weeks staying at the brothel, she realized quickly that late nights, early mornings, and the smell of sex coating everything she wore was perhaps not as glamourous as she'd naively thought it was. Maeve had mentioned that there were several small apartments she could move into, but after having spent her first night alone, Flora realized that this wasn't all it was cracked up to be either.
So what was she to do? Well, instead of admitting that just maybe setting off on her own wasn't actually the best plan, she'd instead decided to decorate.
Sending out notes to her twin (maybe she could convince him to move in with her?), to the entrancing mermanta she'd met (that had been a message in a bottle), and to Paige (who she wished she'd met as a girl, instead of now, but nevermind), Flora waited outside of her chosen apartment (conveniently located near one of the canals), for her trio of decorators to arrive.
see what you find there with grace in your heart and flowers in your hair
It was strange being friends with someone much older than her. Sure, Ever and Mateo were older, but only by a couple of years. Flora and Enzo had both shot up by more than six years. Everything that they would of had in common was made weird by the fact that they were older and yet not. Still, Paige wasn't going to let that stop what could be a good friendship. Thus when the letter arrived from Flora, asking for help decorating her new home, the Attuned made sure to show up.
The great thing about living at the brothel was that the girls were always getting gifts. Decorations, trinkets, paintings, books... Way more than they could ever use. Which made it very easy to gather supplies that was befitting of Flora's style. Carrying a crate full of various such treasures, the girl approaches her friend's new home, apparently the first one to arrive. "I, uh, brought some things."
A message in a bottle had arrived, curious and unexpected, but it offered a welcome opportunity to see how the other half lived – the dry half, at least. The canals allowed for ample opportunities to travel throughout the town and partake of the outdoor markets and vendors but they were, in their way, as constraining as the Underwater City’s reluctance to allow drylanders within its bounds. Mer could no more enter the homes of humans than humans could enter those of the mer.
And he couldn’t help but wonder about how humans decorated and furnished their homes to accommodate for two legs and no floating.
He found the address off the canal, manta wings shrinking from his shoulders so as not to weight him down as he pushed himself halfway out of the water, half-in and half-out, to examine what he could see of the apartment and give Flora and the even tinier human near her a courteous nod of welcome. ”Hello again,” his voice a deep, quiet rumble like distant surf. ”How may I help?”
Dama arrives!
Really, it's almost inevitable. Where Flora goes, Enzo follows, and the young man doesn't oft care to take the lead enough to make the reverse necessary. Essentially already a Torchliner by habit of bumming around the beaches nigh-often enough to be a resident (not like he has to pay taxes or anything (or would, let's be honest)), his twin's letter is more of a "RSVP for a headcount" than an invitation. So he swans in - last, and fashionably so - with an armful of goodies and all the long-legged grace of a boy who knows he's pretty but doesn't care to use it yet.
Dropping a loving, exaggerated kiss of greeting to his sister's cheek, Enzo winks over at Paige in greeting, dimples on full display as he hip-checks his twin for good secondary measure of physical contact and annoyance at once. "So what aesthetic are we shooting for here Flora-mine? Sad grandmother abandoned to the seaside by her family? You'd look dashing in a quilted coverlet-cape my dear." His mirth is genial and widespread, inviting in the other two who poke into the soon-to-be abode more tentatively like an eager octopus' reaching arms.
the colors in these veins don't glow like they used to they won't do it for you, they won't do it for me
06-13-2022, 05:16 PM (This post was last modified: 06-13-2022, 05:17 PM by Flora.)
flora
Beaming at Paige, Flora's aqua-gaze falls upon the treasure trove on offer with a childlike glee that her rapidly-aged up body is at pains to show. "Gods all of that looks amazing!"{/sasy} She gushes, though in reality, her response would have been more or less the same even if Paige had brought mouldy yoghurt lids.
Turning towards the canal as Hadama pushed himself through the surface, Flora is once again taken by just how exquisitely interesting the mermanta is. She can't quite put her finger on what it is that makes her want to stare and stare and stare at him as one might do to some fine work of art, but had it been anyone else to suddenly swan in other than Enzo, the girl would likely have just held her own staring contest with the mermanta. Instead, she meeps out a small "hello—" and an awkward wave.
Instinctively, and then because she wanted to, Flora wraps her arms around Enzo in return, pinching a bit of nonexistent fat on his hip. "Well brother-mine, I was thinking forlorn twin, pining for her better half who is an entire continent away. But now that you're here...?" Grinning, she snuggles against him and waggles her dark eyebrows. "Maybe brother-sister boho chic with a bit of recently declared independence sprinkled about?" She grins. "So like, abstract paintings, anatomical drawings and lots and lots of textiles."
Prying herself from Enzo 's side and glancing around, Flora narrows her eyes thoughtfully. "Why don't you and Paige see what should be kept from the things she's brought?" She offers to her twin. "And Hadama, maybe you can bring me some samples of the sorts of things the merfolk use to decorate down below?"
Enzo and Paige! Go through the things Paige has brought and decide what to keep.
Hadama, can you bring samples of the sorts of things the merfolk use in their decorating?
Fever dream high in the quiet of the night You know that I caught it
In truth, Hadama was also interested in what Paige had brought, but though he noted the names of his fellow assistants and nodded a polite greeting to the small human and the young man, he didn't linger to distract them from their appointed task.
He had one of his own to do, and he dove back between the water with barely a splash to mark his passage as he headed back to where he'd stashed a few decorations leftover from the Fountain tunnel. Some would work, some would not survive being out of the water, and some needed a little assistance in that direction, but he soon had a small collection of items that demonstrated the merfolk style and that might suit the lovely young drylander's new residence.
Swimming back, he surfaced and began laying the items out on the edge of the canal for the others to see:
A small piece of interestingly branched coral that he had hastily secured to a piece of wood for stability
A section of wide-woven fishing net that he laid out and then placed shells atop, showing where they could be secured with a bit of time and effort to create a wall hanging
A curving branch of black driftwood that he then decorated with a handful of shiny rocks, pieces of seaglass, and chips of amber placed loosely into its knots and cracks so that they glittered like stars from the dark backdrop
Hadama brings some examples of merfolk decorations that will need some work (or a search for larger pieces) to be usable!
Enzo makes a playfully exaggerated noise at the pinch of his sister’s unerringly accurate fingers, wrapping an arm around her shoulder in return - and summarily catching a lock of golden hair in his own hand to tug on. “If you have an extra room and promise not to try and cook without my explicit supervision, I think I can be convinced to stay,” he grins back, the hand that had tugged her hair now curling it idly around his knuckles. Enzo doesn’t trust her cooking, bless her heart, and he doesn’t want to be laying on a couch while she brings back her conquests - which he’s certain she will, with no parental supervision and a city of prey to choose from.
Pulling away he salutes cheekily and saunters over towards Paige, eyes flickering over her face to try and gauge her emotional state without revealing that he’s worried it’s stormy once again. Comforting girls is not his forte. “Hey PG! I brought some stuff too, but I’m sure Flo would appreciate a girl’s touch - or for me to not make this place a greenhouse. Want to lay them all out and see what fits for her vision?” He gestures back to where he’d dropped his armload of things, ready to combine and conquer this whole aesthetic-creation thing. His own items were merely comfort things from their former home - plants he’d grown for Flora (and would need to also keep alive for her), wall hangings with strips of fabric and beads at the bottom, family pictures, the kinds of things he thought she might miss given enough time away.
- - -
Enzo presents his own items and suggests laying them out with what Paige brought to determine what should be kept or tossed.
the colors in these veins don't glow like they used to they won't do it for you, they won't do it for me
see what you find there with grace in your heart and flowers in your hair
Paige’s smile is just a touch strained as Flora beams at her, incredibly bubbly and not at all like her brother, but the Attuned doesn’t hold it against her. ”The girls were willing to share. They had a lot to spare.” She says with a shrug, setting her box of goodies to the side as Enzo makes his appearance. It’s with the typical teasing and showboating she’s come to expect from him. Her smile comes more easily as he approaches, a faint flush on her cheeks, ”Hey, Enzo.. Do you actually have any idea what she likes?”
Aside from girly and flashy, Paige has absolutely no idea at all. Thankfully that’s most of the girls at the Halenani, too. Carefully she begins to lay out the different items. Vases, mirrored vanity trays, picture frames, trinket boxes, and lush bedding. All of it definitely something that Flora would like.
Busying herself with a bit of cleaning (gross, she hated it), Flora was happy to abandon her efforts as Hadama surfaced. "Oh my gods!" She gushes, clearly delighted but happy to make an even bigger show of her appreciation. "These are incredible!" Her fingers trickle over each item, though it's the darkened driftwood that fully captures her gaze. "This one. Only.." Touching a bit of amber such that it falls out, Flora frowns before raising an aqua stare to Hadama. "How do we...you know.." Giving her head a bit of shake which shouldn't communicate make it so that it won't fall apart and yet absolutely does, she raises her eyebrows.
'I make absolutely no promises." Flora trills to her twin, shooting him a wink as he and Paige get to work.
Hadama! What things do we need to make option 3 workable?
Paige and Enzo -- Find items that will work for the bedroom, the dining room, and the bathroom!
Fever dream high in the quiet of the night You know that I caught it
The merman was quietly pleased with Flora's enthusiasm for his own efforts, and he bent his head in an acknowledging nod. He looked up again to watch her expression as she examined each in turn and his stoic expression held perhaps a hint of satisfaction at her choice. The question that followed, however, made him pause and consider the problem in a new light.
"Normally, I would use mussel glue," he mused thoughtfully. "But I do not know if it will work in air. Hmm." He considered the disparate shiny bits for a little while before catching Flora's eye again. "Perhaps... fish glue?" he suggested after another few moments of consideration. "Dyed black with squid ink. To embed the stones and glass into." So it would mesh with the dark driftwood's cracked and whorled surface, and wouldn't yellow with drying or age as uncolored glue might.
Hadama suggests fish glue dyed with squid ink to secure the shinies into the driftwood.
Enzo makes a playfully rude gesture in the split second before Flora spins back around, but it’s made moot by his fond grin. Yeah, he’s moving in, it’s pretty much sealed now.
Paige seems to open up a little more with him than Flora, which makes no sense to Enzo because Flora is way more charming, but it makes the little move-in party far more bearable so he’s going to keep his mouth shut about it.
Laughing at the question he shuffles his own items into the pile to get them all together. “I sure would hope so given we’re twins who like each other enough to live together as adults,” he chuckles, knowing some siblings aren’t that lucky but similarly aware that it’s painfully obvious how tied at the hip he and Flora are. “Trust me this is all way better than what I brought. Let’s get it sorted huh?” Winking, he begins setting the items into groupings, occasionally setting ones he’s sure Flora wouldn’t like aside. It’s a pitifully small amount, but his sister has crow syndrome and a love of hoarding so it has to be done for her own sake. And his, actually, since now he’ll be living in that crows nest with her.
“Alright, I think the mirror trays should be bathroom, and maybe one of the trinket bowls for her jewelry. Bedding is self-explanatory…” he trails off as he begins sorting, allowing Paige to move closer to do the same alongside him.
the colors in these veins don't glow like they used to they won't do it for you, they won't do it for me
see what you find there with grace in your heart and flowers in your hair
It might not make sense to Enzo why exactly Paige has an easier time with him than Flora. To be fair, it doesn't make much sense to her either. She's entirely unaware of the fact that despite being raised in a house that's primarily inhabited by women, all of her real friends happen to be guys, making her very uncertain of how female friendship is meant to work. Plus there was the fact that both Enzo and Flora left Paige with a fluttery feeling in the pit of her stomach when they turned their full attention on her. She was only just now starting to realize what crushes were, but the girl had yet to put two and two together.
Watching as Enzo sorted out the different items she brought, Paige let him set the precedent before offering her own thoughts and opinions. "Well, she'd probably want some picture frames for the bedroom and living room. Maybe a vase for flowers in the kitchen..." She suggests, glancing towards the twin in question, eyes lingering for a moment as she focuses on whatever it is that Hadama is saying.
"Muscle glue?" Flora repeats with a frown, imagining he meant something like sweat (having repeated the homophone of what he actually meant). "Oh!" Sounding as if she understood perfectly thanks to his clarification (but of course having no idea), the girl smiles brightly. "Do you happen to have any? Or do you think the market might?" Hopefully the answer was yes or probably, let me just swim through the canals and fetch you some! because really, Flora had absolutely no idea what fish glue might be.
As for the unlikely but adorable pairing of Paige and Enzo, the Kaliesin has the right of it in his suggestions. Place your decorations and bedding, and maybe pour everyone a drink if you finish early (virgin (or not) for Paige? wink)
She seemed to understand so Hadama didn't try to clarify further, but her enthusiasm was downright contagious and he gave a smaller nod. Emerald eyes twinkled as he pretended to consider the task with deep and heavy thought... but only for a few moments.
"I have seen it in the market," he agreed. "In many colors." He left it at that, slipping silently beneath the water and swimming at a pleasantly brisk pace to where the craftsmen and their vendors had set up.
The fancy fish glue vendor was conveniently set up near the canal (so they could fish while business was slow?) so Hadama was able to arrange the trade quickly and return. He carefully poured the black glue in delicate streams into the cracks in the driftwood and set the shiny stones and glass into the tacky substance so it would dry firmly around them.
Hadama obtains black fish glue and makes the driftwood decoration sparkle!
