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!
You know there's many different ways that you can kill the one you love
Noe sank to the floor alongside her friend, keeping her face carefully neutral as an internal war raged. Gods, Sohalia had really fucked Jude up, and Noe hated her all the more for the hold she still had on the poor boy. But Jude didn't need her righteous anger, not right now - no, right now, he needed calm reassurance that everything was going to be okay. Which it would, of course, because who needed that dumb blonde anyway? Now she just needed Jude to see that.
As for what to do now - well, that, Noe didn't know. She'd only ever had flings herself, had never been on the receiving end of such heartbreak. She grimaced. "I don't know either," she admitted. "But I think we should do something. Sitting here thinking about it isn't going to make you feel better." Then, because that sounded harsh in Noe's ears, she added, "Does Torchline have a petting zoo? Holding baby animals always makes me feel better."
Even the small gesture of Noe following him to the floor feels monumental. It feels...nice to have her admit that she doesn't know what to do either because it makes him feel like a lot less of a fuck-up. Like maybe this is something other people his age go through and it's not a product of his own stupidity. Except what just happened feels a lot more like cruelty than stupidity, and Jude hates himself for that.
He chokes out a pitiful laugh at the idea of a petting zoo. He only knows the hels and the chickens that wander around the markets; neither seems particularly invigorating to pet. "I don't think so," he trails off, scrambling to think of what else makes him feel better that didn't just run off down his hallway in tears. "There's a place my parents used to take me...a secret cavern you can swim inside. Do you...um...wanna go?" Clearly shy given he's never taken anyone outside of the family there, Jude trusts wholeheartedly (naively) that Noe won't get the wrong idea about the rarity of the offer. He just wants to lay in the silt and shallows and stare up at the star-like sediments in the cavern ceiling and forget everything else.
You know there's many different ways that you can kill the one you love
Well, it was a shame about the petting zoos. The girl was about to ask if there were any animal shelters nearby that they might could visit, just to sit and play with puppies or kittens, but it seemed that Jude had another idea. She brightened at the mention of a secret cavern, although a cold and vicious part of her wondered if Jude had ever taken her there. Maybe not, if he was going there in an attempt to feel better. She nodded. "I'd love to go," she said, shooting the boy a bright smile. "Let me just go change..."
She extracted herself carefully from Jude's handhold. "I'll be right back, 'kay?" Then she hurried down the hall and into the room she'd been staying in, changed quickly into a bathing suit and cover-up set, and rushed back out to rejoin her friend. "Okay, all set!" Maybe if she was cheerful and bright, some of that energy would rub off on Jude. Then again, maybe it would only make him feel worse. Gods if she knew - but she was going to do the best she could to leave him better than she'd found him.
Her energy will transfer regardless, if only because Jude will ensure it. He feels terrible about Noe's involvement, no matter how willingly she sticks around, so if he can stuff all the negativity back into the box in his chest then it's the least he can do for her. Still, as she scuttles off to the spare room Jude buries his head in his knees and breathes shakily, grateful for a private moment to compose himself and pretend that everything isn't falling apart.
By the time Noe emerges, Jude has already made it to his own room to change into swim shorts and a different shirt, and he hopefully looks slightly more put together despite his wan face and shadowed eyes. He extends a hand to her all the same, any attempt at mustered dramatic gallantry an ephemeral wisp that dissipates into something not unlike two young children holding hands to safely cross a busy street. "Then let's go," he attempts to mimic her bright tone and smile, and though it falls short, it doesn't stop him from leading her out the door to a hopeful better end to the day.
