soft embers

Isla

"Oh, shit," Isla blurts, because whenever she thinks the and thens of Sunjata's trauma have finally reached the end of the line, another one spills out. "I mean - I'm sorry," she continues, huffing out a long sigh and ruffling her fingers through her wind-tossed hair. "Where are they now?" His child, she means.

Not expecting to feel relief that Sunjata has no intention of stepping back into Safrin's starlight, but indeed feeling it nevertheless, the Remedy shuffles to lay with him again, throwing an arm back around him and peering up at the sky. "I'm proud of you, for talking with Bart and Mel tonight," she murmurs. "Maybe soon you'll be able to think more about the future than the past."

Realising all too quickly that Sunjata might not want to in some regards, Isla winces. "I don't mean about Nate," she adds softly and apologetically. "Just about your other relationships. Ones that you could make good again, you know?"

sooner or later, we all have to wake
and try forgetting everything

i thought how your courage would never cease, like the waves of the sea

Sunjata immediately shakes his head at Isla's apology. She doesn’t need to, he’d known what it meant getting into it, doing it solely for a reason that didn’t even matter anymore. But he can answer the question she asks, still looking at the sky. “Safrin spun it in her head that I was a monster, let her run off with Ronin, and now I think Safrin’s sequestered her in the stars.” That’s the last he’s heard of it, at least. It’s a thought that has him sighing inwardly.

Isla shuffles to lay with him again, soaking up his overheated body, and when she tells him that she’s proud of him, before following it up with something he’s too drunk to actually read into. So he works his jaw slightly as she covers what she means and he nods, silent for a few more moments longer.

“Yeah. Hard to kick the habit, though.” He admits, exhaling a sigh and shutting his eyes despite the way his mind wants to make those hateful stars swim behind his closed lids.

the flood

say it once more, speak to my chest; i wanna bleed all of the words you've said

totally sniped from odd ilu

Isla

Huffing out a sigh and letting her cheek loll against his chest, Isla furrows her brow and tries to direct her gaze down at the ink-black sea and the crackling bonfire, rather than up at the sky full of eyes overhead. "Mm, that's true," she agrees about his last point, at least, the Remedy peeking back up at Sunjata and offering him a soft smile. "Easier to kick sober though, I bet," she points out with a gentle nudge.

"Maybe let's try to get some sleep here? If nothing else, there will only be one star in the sky come morning." Not that she believes the sun will be very friendly to the Flood after a night of very heavy drinking, but it might still be better than this, maybe. "And whatever happens moving forward, just say the word and you know I'll do whatever I can to help."

sooner or later, we all have to wake
and try forgetting everything

i thought how your courage would never cease, like the waves of the sea

Her gentle nudge has a half committal grunt leaving him of agreement. Things were much harder to do drunk even if the emotions attached were often far more detached to do so. So his arm wraps around her and he opens his eyes for a brief moment, just enough to tilt over toward Isla onto his side, tucking her in against his chest, forgetting the bottle of liquor in the sand to press his chin on the crown of her blonde hair as he shuts his eyes again.

“Thank you, Isla.” He murmurs quietly, exhaling a soft sigh, trying to let the tension in his body relax. “Sleep well.” Comes the quiet mutter, as if he’s already halfway there, tugged away into the deep sleep offered by how drunk he is and the rhythm of the ocean that had often lulled him to sleep during the time he ruled here.

- FIN <333

the flood

say it once more, speak to my chest; i wanna bleed all of the words you've said

totally sniped from odd ilu