{se} leaves slow, comes back fast
Tal
Hotaru Kaito
the Valkyrie
Masseuse / Headmistress

Age: 33 | Height: 5'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 3 - Strg: 38 - Dext: 38 - Endr: 54 - Luck: 40 - Int:
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#1
Hotaru

The journey is long, of course, and quite winding given the Draig cannot be crossed over and Talyson cannot fly alongside her over the mountains. Hotaru finds she doesn't mind. These days there is little to do but train, wait, and write letters. Tal's company is a breath of fresh air, and it rejuvenates the Valkyrie in a way she had not anticipated needing. She dreads the inevitable moment it is lost, and the period of time it will take of feeling the loneliness again before the numbness sets back in.

They must go south and around the mountains, which leads them into the Oerwoud. Ru is the one to stop them this time, recalling the placement of a shrine she has not yet visited. "One moment Tal, I'd like to leave something for Frey." She transforms into her bird form for a mere breath, just long enough to get herself into the twining branches overhead before she shifts back, sitting comfortably near the base of the altar. Tal is welcome to join her of course, but Ru will not ruin her pretty hands on things like climbing. That was what her shifts were for!

Plucking an ornamental pin from her hair, she places it on the altar, wishing she had more to give but knowing Frey did not mind overly much. Bowing her head, she prays for a moment, listening to the nature around her as it filters easily through her ears and into her thoughts.
a princess with lips made of glass
and a voice cut from steel
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.
Talyson Seawright
the Messenger
Courier

Age: 27 | Height: 5'10" | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 10 - Strg: 44 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 50 - Luck: 52 - Int: 1
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#2
Tal was used to the furry energy of his dog team traveling across the length and breadth of Halo. Often the only human in sight for days or weeks of travel but never really alone, it was different traveling with a person for more than a day or two.

Which wasn't the same as bad. Just... different.

But Hotaru knew when to let a comfortable silence rest, or when to tease him from his brooding and it didn't take nearly as long as he'd feared for things to fall back into familiar patterns and the wounds of distance to begin knitting back together, weaving a friendship even stronger than before.

He couldn't help but peer through branches and bushes when they reached the Oerwoud, looking for sign or root of a friend he'd recently settled in the area. He didn't have any luck finding Petunia, but when Ru asked for a pause he nodded. "Yeah, o' course. I've been meanin' to, too..." Without wings he had to climb the old fashioned way, but he was stronger than he'd been and climbing was one of the skills he'd been practicing hard at in the Barracks. He swarmed up the trunk a little ways behind his friend and soon joined her at the altar. He rubbed his hands awkwardly on his thighs for a few moments, realizing he didn't have a planned offering this time--

But Frey would understand, he hoped.

Inspiration struck as he knelt on the branch beside Ru and tugged at the opening of his Bag of Holding. He could spare a few feathers from his delivery to Torchline for the god, he decided, and used a slender vine to twist together a handful of black Gore Crow and white ningo feathers into a small, makeshift fan that he added to the alter before sending his own prayers of thanks to Frey.
Hotaru Kaito
the Valkyrie
Masseuse / Headmistress

Age: 33 | Height: 5'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 3 - Strg: 38 - Dext: 38 - Endr: 54 - Luck: 40 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
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Posts: 2,242 | Total: 6,169
MP: 9427
#3
Hotaru

By courtesy of Tal’s open emotions or Ru’s trained discernment of them, they neatly avoid dancing on each other’s nerves at every turn. It’s quite the pleasant foray through the wilderness, though it strengthens a quiet thought in the back of her mind that has been growing since the twins moved to Torchline.

It’s a thought she silences - momentarily, unfortunately - with the repose of prayer. Tal joining her is a muted presence on the fringes of her awareness as she touches her hand to the altar, eyes closed and thoughts focused in a conversational equivalent to prayer. She neither rushes nor lingers, withdrawing her hand only once she is content. Opening her eyes to dark hair and pale skin that occupies the space beside her.

“Have you devoted yourself to any particular herald?” It’s a simple curiosity. He could earn the same reaction if he named any of them in that moment - aside from perhaps Safrin - but it’s a piece of him that Ru would like to know.
a princess with lips made of glass
and a voice cut from steel
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.
Talyson Seawright
the Messenger
Courier

Age: 27 | Height: 5'10" | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 10 - Strg: 44 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 50 - Luck: 52 - Int: 1
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#4
Tal arrived after Hotaru to the shrine and it took him longer to prepare an impulsive offering. His prayer, however, was shorter. He had less personal interaction with the god though plenty of gratitude for the help They had been to Halo as a whole. Still, Tal wasn't the most eloquent of devotees; he was blunt and to the point and his prayers tended to be as well, so he and Ru sat back within seconds of each other and he took a deep breath, finding a moment of calm.

Oddly enough, Hotaru's question didn't break it. Maybe because they'd been traveling together for a while, or maybe just because her curiosity didn't hold any barbs or hidden traps. The courier huffed out a sigh that was remarkably similar to Boreal's noise of amusement, though he still reached up to rub at the back of his neck with a little embarrassment.

"Mmm... no, not yet," he admitted, stealing a glance at his friend to see if she'd be disappointed in his waffling. "Remi... he told me to hold off on makin' any big decisions like that for awhile. An' so far none of 'em have tried to make me choose so..." He flashed a wry grin to the Valkyrie. "I figure I need all the help I can get, so I'll keep prayin' to 'em all as long as I can." He paused, then wrinkled his nose a bit. "The old ones, I mean."

Somehow it wasn't hard to guess which way Ru's preferences lay, and Tal nodded to the altar with a hint of heat in his ears as he looked away. "You uh. D'you prefer Nature Frey or...?"
Hotaru Kaito
the Valkyrie
Masseuse / Headmistress

Age: 33 | Height: 5'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 3 - Strg: 38 - Dext: 38 - Endr: 54 - Luck: 40 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
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Posts: 2,242 | Total: 6,169
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#5
Hotaru

Disappointment he will not find. Ru’s face is open and calm, receptive to any and all answers. It shows in the idle, graceful swing of her foot back and forth where it hangs over the edge of the branch they sit on. “Remi is experienced in being punished by Gods, he’s likely the resident expert even. It’s good advice.” Though Tal was unlikely to be cursed as an Accepted, nothing was impossible with a big enough mouth or a small enough foot.

Nodding accommodatingly at his correction, having assumed as much given their current presence at the shrine, Ru wonders how long he’ll be able to withhold declaring an allegiance. Then again, she knows very few Accepted, having surrounded herself with Attuned or Abandoned who were on direct opposite sides of the fence in terms of devotion to a herald.

The heat of his ears draws her from that rumination, and her smirk - while undeniably attractive - is sultry and pleased, basking in his shyness. “Do I look like I prefer Nature Frey?” Simpered in a nearly disappointed tone, emotive eyes affecting a feigned hurt. It vanishes like mist as she laughs, golden hair dancing as she shakes her head. “No, dear. Familiar as I may be with the elements, I have been loyal to Frey’s sexual side since I arrived in Caido.” All minor teasing aside, the Valkyrie tilts a curious head his way. “I assume you haven’t met them?” He doesn’t seem the type frankly. Certainly not with that blush.
a princess with lips made of glass
and a voice cut from steel
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.
Talyson Seawright
the Messenger
Courier

Age: 27 | Height: 5'10" | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 10 - Strg: 44 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 50 - Luck: 52 - Int: 1
BOREAL - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Cirago Offline
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Posts: 1,869 | Total: 7,219
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#6
Pale eyes widened in surprise at this news about Remi. Tal had heard the legends of the Lullaby, chosen demigod of Ludo, but most of them had to do with his Governorship of Torchline or his exploits since attaining his current status. "Punished by them? Why?"

For the time being Tal hadn't made any divine enemies that he knew of; though he'd never met the Voice. She might be rightly pissed that he was helping Halo prepare to fend off an expected Ascended assault, but after the last coup, well, who could blame him?

Hotaru's sultry smirk drew a complicated scowl from the courier and he glared stubbornly at the shrine after sneaking a peek at it. "Huh. Well... no. Don't really need godly help with that," he protested defensively. "So I've never had a reason to pray to 'em. Nature Frey, sure. They gave me a bracelet that keeps me from feelin' the cold." Some of his pique had faded by the time he finished and he held up his Frostbite Cuff for Ru to see. "But right now I'm tryin' t'do some things for Safrin so she'll make my goggles better. I gotta use 'em to study 'a creature with night vision." He repeated the goddess's words carefully, making sure they were exactly as Safrin had told him. "So... I dunno. Like a cat or somethin'?"

He looked to Hotaru a little helplessly, hoping for a suggestion.
Hotaru Kaito
the Valkyrie
Masseuse / Headmistress

Age: 33 | Height: 5'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 3 - Strg: 38 - Dext: 38 - Endr: 54 - Luck: 40 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
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Posts: 2,242 | Total: 6,169
MP: 9427
#7
Hotaru

Ru hums softly, noncommittal, in a gentle diversion from the topic. “It’s a long story, and not all of it is mine to share. I’ll tell you what I can while we travel.” She certainly wouldn’t be sharing any of her own history with Safrin. Talyson may not be a child, but there were many things from Hotaru’s rather painful past that she could not envision placing on his shoulders.

His scowl would be a pout or splutter on anyone else, and Ru knows it, so she merely stifles a laugh and stretches out against the tree trunk at her back. “They’ve given me my reflective bracers and ice spheres and slingshot. Not everything must be wholly related to the herald’s realm once you have a relationship with them.” Though Ru would always enjoy fulfilling the types of quests Frey gave them, enticing as they always prove to be.

Inspiration comes easily. “A cat hm?” Ru half-shifts her tail into existence, until the golden limb flickers with a lazy grace beside her leg. “I can call one for you if you’d like. We’re quite good at hunting from trees and remaining camouflaged, it would be a good challenge for you.”
a princess with lips made of glass
and a voice cut from steel
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.
Talyson Seawright
the Messenger
Courier

Age: 27 | Height: 5'10" | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 10 - Strg: 44 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 50 - Luck: 52 - Int: 1
BOREAL - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Cirago Offline
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#8
Tal nodded acquiescence easily enough. There was a long ways to go still, and he appreciated having stories sometimes to fill the time between comfortable silences.

Ignorant of Hotaru's own travails with the gods he instead peeked back curiously as she mentioned her own gifts, chewing his bottom lip thoughtfully. "Hmm. Yeah, I was thinkin' of askin' Nature Frey for a weapon soon... Been puttin' it off for ages," he admitted a little guiltily. There were always other things to do and the War had seemed so far away for so long...

But no longer.

First, though, there was Safrin's quest to complete and his eyes widened in surprise at the tail that flicked out from behind his friend. The last of his scowl fading, the courier nodded eagerly. "Yeah! That'd be perfect! Let's do it as soon as it gets dark!" Since he probably had to study the critter's own night vision abilities while he was at it.


A few hours later, as night fell over the riotous jungle...

"What kind of cat are you gonna call?" Tal whispered to his friend, adjusting his goggles and peering at her through the glass. He could see her clear as day... as long as she remained within ten feet of him.
Hotaru Kaito
the Valkyrie
Masseuse / Headmistress

Age: 33 | Height: 5'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 3 - Strg: 38 - Dext: 38 - Endr: 54 - Luck: 40 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
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Posts: 2,242 | Total: 6,169
MP: 9427
#9
Hotaru

It takes longer than planned for the sun to set, reluctant in its cradle with summer’s long days to sustain it, but it sweeps over them in time. Between cat naps (heh) and conversation, the time is easily enough whiled away, and the temperature never dips below the forest’s nigh-tropical warmth.

Talyson’s goggles are awarded a curious inspection of bi-colored eyes, whose slits reappear to aid with her own night vision. “They are called mountain lions or cougars. Very large, shaped like sea panthers, but with gold and brown coats. They are tree predators like most cats - they stalk from above - but are large enough to do ground takedowns too.” Which is the only hint he will receive from her, magic already reaching out to the world at large, plucking and beckoning on invisible strings for one of her soul-shapes to come to them. Meanwhile, Hotaru transforms her ears to golden peaks that nestle within her bright hair, allowing her to hear when the predator approaches from a distance. Her face gives nothing away, watching Talyson instead with a clear curiosity.
a princess with lips made of glass
and a voice cut from steel
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.
Talyson Seawright
the Messenger
Courier

Age: 27 | Height: 5'10" | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 10 - Strg: 44 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 50 - Luck: 52 - Int: 1
BOREAL - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Cirago Offline
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Posts: 1,869 | Total: 7,219
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#10
Tal had never seen a sea panther, either, and his nose wrinkled in consternation but he stayed quiet, listening to Hotaru's description. Tree predators, huh? "Gonna be hard to see 'em until they're too close for comfort," he admitted, reaching up to adjust the Goggles nervously. But just because he couldn't see them...

Staring back at Hotaru, his eyes were drawn to the feline ears that now graced her head and his eyes widened. A quick grin betrayed his flash of inspiration before he tilted his head, eyes going distant behind the glass of his Goggles.

Boreal raised her head from where she laid beside him and sniffed the air before rumbling a draconic mutter to herself and rising to shake off the jungle's dampness. Like a ghost in the deep shadows beneath the canopy, the pale dragon paced to a nearby tree and sank her claws into it before beginning a painstaking climb up to the lowest branches. Her own senses, far keener than Tal's, stretched out into the night, seeking the musk of a cat or the tread of a heavy paw over slippery leaves.

Though she was out of sight, man and dragon swiveled their heads as one and liveliness returned to Tal's gaze as he focused his own eyes through the goggles properly, though he kept a light connection with Boreal as the cat approached. He didn't dare make a sound, but he reached out to squeeze Hotaru's hand to let her know the game was afoot.

Apaw.

...Close enough.
Hotaru Kaito
the Valkyrie
Masseuse / Headmistress

Age: 33 | Height: 5'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 3 - Strg: 38 - Dext: 38 - Endr: 54 - Luck: 40 - Int:
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#11
Hotaru

Hotaru’s smirk is somehow both encouraging and teasing. “Did you think I’d make it easy for you?” Familiarity with his goggles would not come without effort, and Hotaru believes in his skills. He would do well, she’s sure of it, and the inspired grin only reaffirms her certainty.

Boreal will have to listen closely, as the cat moves slowly and with long pauses between on Ru’s command, but it creeps closer all the same. Ru feels Tal’s hand squeeze around her foot, and she grins freely in the dark of twilight. Enticed by this long-range coordinated game of hide-and-seek. It is a good exercise of her own powers, the ability to give more detailed instructions to her compelled animals. She exerts it willfully, commanding the cat to circle wide to try - it had arrived from behind Hotaru, so she directs it to slowly try and make its way around to approach Talyson from his right.
a princess with lips made of glass
and a voice cut from steel
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.
Talyson Seawright
the Messenger
Courier

Age: 27 | Height: 5'10" | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 10 - Strg: 44 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 50 - Luck: 52 - Int: 1
BOREAL - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Cirago Offline
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Posts: 1,869 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#12
Tal huffed at her teasing, but his eyeroll was as fond as it was exasperated by the challenge. She might have even had a point; the harder he had to work for it, maybe the more powerful Safrin would make the Goggles? But he couldn't do anything about it either way, so he focused in on Boreal's senses and tried to tune himself into the rhythms of the jungle.

Which were way different than those of Halo. He could hear a wolf or an ursur coming up on his camp even half-asleep in the dead of night across the snow, but the Oerwoud was so noisy it made him want to growl. Insects, nightbirds, dripping water, screeching monkey... things...

If it wasn't for Boreal he wouldn't have a chance. Luckily the dragon was alert and willing to help out and she hunted Ru's hunter as much by scent as by ear. The dragon wasn't sure of exactly where the mountain lion was, but she had enough general direction that Tal's head slowly swiveled where she indicated; sometimes a little off to one side or the other, but more or less in the right quadrant.

"It's gotta be close enough for me to study," he piped up - albeit quietly - to Ru as his eyes began to water inside the Goggles. "Just lurkin' around in the darkness too far away t'see probably doesn't count..." And he just knew she was doing it so she could surprise him with the critter when it popped out of concealment, causing the ghost of a scowl to tug at his lips as he squinted even harder into the night, determined not to jump when it did.
Hotaru Kaito
the Valkyrie
Masseuse / Headmistress

Age: 33 | Height: 5'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 3 - Strg: 38 - Dext: 38 - Endr: 54 - Luck: 40 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
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Posts: 2,242 | Total: 6,169
MP: 9427
#13
Hotaru

His complaints make her hum-laugh. “She’s coming, just slowly. Speed is easier to discern in the dark; I won’t have her pounce, promise.” And for all her juvenility and predisposition for mischief - not unlike Deimos - her promises have weight that Tal will hopefully find comfort in.

Obligingly, the cougar comes closer when Hotaru bids it. No sense in leaving the courier in suspense. If he looks discerningly, he will see the slow sway of a long tail and perched, giant paws. Not close enough yet for the glint of eyes to be perceived, but if he didn’t spot the outline of the cat’s body first, that would be visible shortly enough.
a princess with lips made of glass
and a voice cut from steel
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.
Talyson Seawright
the Messenger
Courier

Age: 27 | Height: 5'10" | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 10 - Strg: 44 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 50 - Luck: 52 - Int: 1
BOREAL - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Cirago Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,869 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#14
"Hmph." A half-hearted huff was all he could come up with because Hotaru was right about the speed. He squeezed her foot again at the promise, but had to finally blink and squeeze some of the tears from his dry eyes.

Which, of course, was when the cat ghosted partially into view. Though 'view' might have been too strong a word for the blurred silhouette of a shadow against the darkness beneath the canopy. He sensed more than saw the flicking of the tail through the air and that was what drew his attention to pinpoint in on the mountain lion. There was a feeling of presence from the branch, and a denser patch of night just beyond the reach of his Goggles. Tal squinted harder, trying to force the magic to see farther, but it was to no avail. "She's there," he whispered, tugging at Ru's foot in the direction of the cat. "Just a little closer..."


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