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!
Breathe in all the colors Never dream in black and white
It had been a while since Soh had visited the Greatwood, but she'd spent quite a lot of time there when she'd first left the Hollowed Grounds, and it was nice, sometimes, to come back to somewhere so familiar. Too often she found herself exploring new frontiers in the effort to make new maps of new places for her clients; it was rare indeed that she went back to see old places and old friends.
She'd written to Phoebe to see if perhaps her friend would want to meet for lunch, and so it was that Soh found herself in the Bodega, sitting at a table, her legs crossed and her foot jiggling impatiently. It had been too long since she'd seen Phoebe, and though she wrote often, it wasn't quite the same as seeing her in person.
When Phoebe arrived, Soh jumped up from the table to greet her friend, offering her a hug. "Phoebe, hi! It's so good to see you!" Soh squealed. "Come, sit! How are you?"
Phoebe had been more than happy to agree to lunch with her young pen pal. She knew her to be a friend of Jude's, so she was pleased to develop a relationship with her. But she was also a bright light in what could otherwise be a very dark Caido. Many times she felt like she was writing to her younger self. Maybe she could help Soh steer clear of all the suffering she had caused herself. That would make the Nightingale very pleased.
She arrived in a billowy dress, smiling warmly when she saw the girl. "Soh!" she said, hugging her tight. "It's so good to see you!" she said. The Nightingale took her seat and crossed her legs. Casually she ordered a glass of white wine. She was determined to havr a good time. "So what's the occasion that you wanted to meet instead 9f write?" she asked with a tilt of her head, hair flowing to the side in golden waves.
Breathe in all the colors Never dream in black and white
Phoebe was similarly a bright light in Soh's young life; having lost her parents at such an early age, she'd been left without a truly motherly figure in her life, and there was something nurturing in Phoebe that seemed to fill that gap. Soh had never wanted for much, growing up with Auden as her guardian, but they had never been particularly maternal or paternal, something she had only realized once she got out into the world and began to see what that meant for herself. She still loved Auden - she always would - but she could appreciate now what she had lacked growing up.
Soh ordered lemonade for herself, not being particularly partial to spirits - well, there was that one time with Koa, but that was the exception rather than the rule - and smiled at her friend. "There's not an occasion, really," she protested. "I've just been on a mapping trip to Halo, and I thought I'd swing by before I headed back south." It wasn't a terribly far trip by skyship, and it was worth it to visit the Greatwood and Phoebe.
Not an occasion? Well how touching! Phoebe smiled and sipped her wine. "You know you ought to be careful traipsing around all over the place like that. Caido is a dangerous place. Especially Halo." she said, but with a smirk. They both knew Phoebe had the same propensity to wander here, there, and everywhere. The difference was she was a demigod with ways to protect herself.
"So how have things been for you? Any new and exciting updates I should know about?" she asked with a smile. Soh wasn't nearly so settled as Phoebe was, so it was always interesting to hear what sort of adventures she had gotten into, life events that occurred, really anything. She felt close to her, as though she were a daughter in a way, so she wanted to know everything. "A girl as pretty as you, I am surprised I haven't heard about boys chasinf you around!" she said with a laugh.
Breathe in all the colors Never dream in black and white
Phoebe's concern was touching, and Soh smiled at her friend. "I'm always careful, and I met up with a friend there, so I wasn't alone. Besides, you know I've been training to defend myself." She'd been taking lessons in staffwork since last season, and in knife fighting ever since she was attacked in Stormbreak. Sure, she hadn't been doing it for very long, but it was better than nothing, and she was improving every day!
"Things have been good! I've spent most of the summer in Torchline," she admitted. "Except for this trip to Halo, and a little bit of time at home in Stormbreak." Unfortunately for Soh, it didn't really show: she burned more than she tanned, so she remained as fair-skinned as ever.
As for boys chasing her around... Soh turned pink, taking a sip of her lemonade. "Actually..." she said, grey eyes bright, "I would love your advice on something. See, I went on a few dates with a guy in Stormbreak, and I really liked him, but then..." Memories of her time spent that summer with Jude flashed through her mind, and her smile turned dreamy. "Well, my best friend - he kissed me, and we've been together ever since. And he's so wonderful, Phoebe!" she gushed. "He's so sweet, and handsome, and he just makes me feel -" And, honestly, there weren't words. "I just love him so much," she sighed.
"But anyway, I feel like I should tell Koa - the Stormbreak guy - something about why I stopped seeing him, but I haven't been home, and it's been a while, so should I just leave it alone?" she fretted, her brow knit in confusion
"I know you're not defenseless, but let me worry. It's one of my strong suits." she said with a grin.
But then it seemed she had a lot to say, and while she talked Phoebe ordered them some finger foods. Her smile turned warm as she gushed over this boy of hers and fretted about this other suitor. "Never leave someone hanging, Soh. I would tell Koa that you appreciated his time and like him as a friend but you're seeing someone else." she counseled. "Anything less would be disrespectful and unkind."
The Nightingale was far more interested in this Torchline boy though. "Sounds like this other fellow has really swept you off your feet." she said with a grin. Ah, young love. It was so effervescent. Thoughts of Emmett drifted through her head briefly. The first love always seemed to burn hottest. "What's his name and what does he look like? Is he a sailor?" she asked. Many young men in Torchline made their living that way after all.
Breathe in all the colors Never dream in black and white
Phoebe's advice was appreciated, and it confirmed Soh's gut feeling. Koa had been kind to her, and she owed him an explanation rather than simply disappearing. Unfortunately, it didn't seem like the type of thing to put in a letter, which meant she would have to face up to her non-confrontational nature. But that was trouble for a different time, when she finally went home to Stormbreak. "Thanks, Phoebe. He does deserve to know, you're right."
But it was hard to feel contrite when she was just so happy, and she perked up immediately at Phoebe's interest in her boyfriend. "His name's Jude!" she said happily, propping her head on one hand on the table. "He's about my age, and he has dark, curly hair that I love -" And she thought of all the times she'd run her fingers through those very same curls. "And his eyes - they're brown, and the way he looks at me is just -" Her voice softened. "He just makes me feel safe and loved."
The Nightingale froze, a finger sandwich halfway to her mouth. For a moment, Phoebe resembled her cat Branbast, eyes wide and unblinking. The rest of what she said washed over her ears like water, loud but muddled. Jude had a girlfriend? Why hadn't he told her? A mixture of dismay and irritation bubbled up in her stomach. What had she done to make him want to hide such news, and such a lovely girl?! "Jude Quinn." she said at length with familiarity.
"It just so happens that he is my son." she said slowly, still trying to process the news. Did Harper know about this? Was she the only one left out of the loop?? "And he neglected to tell me he had a girlfriend, and such a lovely one at that." she said, forcing a smile. Not because she was upset with Soh, oh no far from it. Her son however had some explaining to do. "How long have you been together?"
Breathe in all the colors Never dream in black and white
Oh. Oh, gods.
A look of utter terror crossed Soh's face. Phoebe's son? She'd known that Jude's mother lived in the Greatwood, but not that it was Phoebe. She was suddenly very uncomfortable, and she found herself wishing suddenly that a hole would open up in the floor and swallow her whole. Gods, she was oversharing. And to Jude's mother, who had apparently not known about her at all. Surely he'd just forgotten to write? But what if - was he ashamed of her? Scared to tell his mother about her?
She swallowed hard, realizing that not only was she now massively uncomfortable, but that she might have spoken out of turn, and she hoped desperately that she hadn't gotten Jude in trouble somehow. She tried to backpedal. "Oh, um, not - not that long, really," she babbled. "I mean, he's been my best friend for ages, but um, we just got together, um, recently. A little earlier in Longheat."
The look of terror on Soh's face reminded her to keep her ire placed well where it should be - and it was not with her.
The Nightgale raised her hands slightly to calm the girl down. "Don't worry. I'm not upset with you. In fact I am quite pleased." she said with a soft smile. "Harper and I raised our son to be a gentleman, and it sounds like our labor has paid off." she said. Soh had said nothing short of glowing reviews of Jude after all. She had no qualms with his decorum, just his discretion.
And just before Longheat was a bit too long for her.
[say{\"I\'m just hurt that he didn\'t tell me. This is good news, why not share it with your mother?\"[/say} she said with a slight frown. She took a sip of her wine. It really was getting to her. "But I am happy that both of you are happy. Love is a wonderful gift." she said with a smile, then smirked a bit. "I'm jealous really."
06-15-2023, 07:55 PM (This post was last modified: 06-15-2023, 07:55 PM by Sohalia.)
Breathe in all the colors Never dream in black and white
To say that Soh felt horrible would be a terrible understatement; the level of guilt she felt was clearly visible on the girl's troubled face, despite Phoebe's reassurances. "Oh, it absolutely has! He's a perfect gentleman." she agreed. He was always gentle and kind with her, and he'd never made her the least bit uncomfortable. "I'm so sorry," she said suddenly. "Of course I know that his mother - that you live here, I just never put two and two together." She bit her lip, her brows creased in a small frown.
"I'm sure it wasn't purposeful," she said, fidgeting with her hands in her lap. "He loves you. I'm sure there's some explanation. Maybe he sent a letter, and it got lost, or something?" she suggested helpfully. In truth, it was nagging at her, too - why not tell Phoebe about her? But as Phoebe insisted she was happy for them, Soh began to relax. "Thank you, Phoebe. I - I'm sorry that you found out this way. I - I didn't mean -" She sighed, frustrated with herself. "This isn't exactly how I'd envisioned meeting Jude's mother."
Phoebe smiled at Soh warmly, reaching across the table to pat her cheek in a motherly manner. "You've nothing to be sorry for, dear. It's Jude's poor communication that put us in this position." she said. She would not misplace blame here. Soh had just been doing what any girl would have, gushing about her first boyfriend to a trusted friend. That the world was apparently smaller than they thought had been a surprise to them both.
She laughed as Soh tittered, trying to make excuses for Jude. "I think" she started with exaggeration. "That Jude is a teenage boy and forgets that his parents would still like to know and be a part of his life." she said with sageness. "This is not your fault. So don't worry your pretty little head over it." she said with a grin. "At least I can say my son has good taste." She would have added just like his father but...well he was with Maeve now and that was an entirely different scenario.
Breathe in all the colors Never dream in black and white
Soh's fear and guilt lessened as Phoebe patted her cheek, and though she longed to defend her boyfriend, she had to admit that Phoebe was right. She had to wonder at the omission, all the same. It was something that she might have discussed with Phoebe, had she not been revealed to be Jude's mother. What did it mean when one's partner kept them a secret?
Well, she'd just have to find out for herself.
Soh rather doubted that Jude was the average teenage boy - at least, in her mind, he was so much more than that - and it seemed unlike him to just forget to involve his parents in his life. Still - perhaps it was because she'd been around he and Harper so much more that it hadn't seemed like much of a surprise to him when they'd gotten together. Maybe she'd just assumed that Jude and Phoebe were the same way.
She blushed faintly when Phoebe complimented Jude's taste. "Thank you," she said shyly. "So... you're... okay with it?"
Phoebe had never felt distant from her son until that moment. What other things was he hiding from her? How much of his life was she left out of? It hurt her heart to think that her son would find a reason to exclude her that way. What had she done wrong? Alas, she would have to ask him to find out.
"Okay with it?" she said, then laughed lightly. What a silly question! "I'm more than okay with it. I'm beyond happy. Two of my favorite people finding happiness together? What's better than that?" she said with a grin. Soh was a lovely girl and she was glad her son had picked so well. He could've picked someone absolutely horrid after all. She'd had the propensity of picking poorly herself after all - hence why she now found herself alone. Her life was too unpredictable for any man to want her in the long term.
