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!
Edmund had made good on his promise to show Soleil the ropes of praying to Dygra, but it had not ended up being in the Climb. Given she's been in the Grounds for most of the season now, she'd been delighted to find out there was a shrine - a singular shrine she believes - to the Ancient Goddess. No hiking through lava flows required!
Of course, Soleil isn't going to snub Edmund the second he does something for her, so Sol had procured kites from her satchel the moment he'd seemed remotely likely to try and politely excuse himself so she could pray. Apparently it was meant to be a fad this season, selling like hotcakes nearly everywhere else, but the downpour in the Grounds had led to many disgruntled merchants with far too many spools and shells - not that Soleil understands the logic of that. So far she's having a blast, even if the initial creation had been a bit hard with wet and slippery fingers. At least they're personalized that way!
So it is that they are huddled near the entrance of the cave, damp from being forced to swim out to the mouth of it, trying to use the slipstream of wind to fly their handmade kites without the rain taking them down. Soleil has been laughing herself sick already, and as her kite careens into Edmund's and nearly takes them both down, her voice squeaks and shakes as she tries to breathe through the laughing fit. "I think I understand why the seller had so much backstock," she wheezes, lifting a hand from the string to rub tears of laughter out of her eyes.
12-03-2023, 11:21 PM (This post was last modified: 12-06-2023, 11:54 PM by Edmund.)
Edmund had fully expected that his escort of Soleil would end at the shrine. Conversations with Mother are an intimate thing, and he hadn't wanted to intrude. Yet his friend had surprised him when she pulled kits to create kites out of seemingly nowhere. The young Ancient had taken his offered kite with a laugh, knowing better than to resist Soleil's adventures.
Her laughter rings through the air and Edmund cackles when his kite just barely survives the 'attack'. There's rain in his eyes but he hardly cares as another fit of laughter shakes him, "You don't say?" Even being waterproof, the downpour is something to behold. The kite's resilience is admirable but as they sway erratically in the wind, the Ancient doubts that they'll survive the storm.
His kite veers suddenly and Edmund has to scramble to stop it from smashing into the cavern entrance. With string tangled in his hand and wrapped around multiple fingers, he just barely saves it.
Soleil watches Edmund's kite go careening, and the way he scrambles kicks up pebbles and sand from the edge of the water, making her shriek-laugh with delight and put her hands on her knees to desperately try and get more air into her lungs that isn't immediately stolen by laughter. Unfortunately, that keeps her guiding hand off the string of the kite, which goes veering sideways; not hitting Edmund's directly, but tangling up the strings and tugging at the spool in her hand.
Yelping, Soleil straightens and tries to yank on the string, uncertain how to fix the situation when both kites are somehow still airborne despite being hitched to one another now. "Ah, crap! I'm sorry!" Even so her laughter is an undertone to her words, and she scrambles toward Edmund so the kites aren't trying to fight each other. "We should probably bring them down to separate them," she advises, trying to reel hers in against the wind while timing it to the same speed Edmund does.
Their kites clearly have minds of their own and Edmund breaks into poorly smothered snickers as they play twister in the sky. "Grand idea." The Ancient keeps one eye on Soleil's movements to better coordinate his own. Their kites begin a slow and hazardous descent, bumping and twisting around each other in some kind of drunken mating ritual. The moment the thought crosses his mind, Edmund turns bright red and lets go of his string.
His kite soars upward, only tethered from lying off by Soleil's own. "I'm sorry!" Edmund lunges forward and regains control of his kite. From there the slow descent begins anew until the kites finally touch down and he reaches out to grab his. "Who knew that flying kites would be so hazardous?"
It's always a delight when she manages to make him laugh. He's never uptight, but it's clear his upbringing was hilariously more formal than Soleil's own, and getting him to loosen up is a skill Soleil is eager to perfect. Turning her head toward him to make another quip, she's surprised to see his face go unexpectedly red; there's the desire to ask what's wrong, but then her tether jerks sharply and draws her attention back with a little yelp, the moment forgotten.
Luckily the kites were already halfway down when Edmund dropped his spool, so it's much faster to wrestle them down the second time. Laughing as she begins winding the spools back up - though the strings are now helplessly muddied from laying on the lakeshore - Soleil shakes her head helplessly. "Not me. Maybe it's a sales tactic? We'd have to keep buying more kite kits in order to keep flying them." Though that kind of persistence seems rather typical for Grounders, Soleil can't imagine doing the same. "Maybe that's why they only sell kits and not kites," she sing-songs with a mischievous smile and a wink, pleased by both the pun and the truth of the matter.
Soleil thankfully doesn't comment on his lapse and the kites thunk to the ground. He considers her line of thinking, lips twitching up at her wordplay, "Perhaps. Though the weather is also partially to blame." The rain is far from ideal for flying kites but the merchants in the Grounds had still picked up the trend from the other regions. With how much the region had struggled in recent times, the Ancient couldn't blame them for trying to keep up. Even if the climate was against them at the moment.
Taking hold of the tangled kites, Edmund sets about detangling them with nimble fingers, "I don't believe I've asked, but what are you planning to ask Mother? If you don't mind me asking." His tail flicks with curiosity as he glances up from the strings to lock eyes with Soleil.
It’s good to see that Edmund can’t resist a little wordplay, though he doesn’t feed into it (which is likely for the best given how many more Soleil has up her sleeve). Kite detangling is more of a one person job, so Soleil hovers near his shoulder to watch him work - eternally unaware of personal space - and listens to the cacophonous roar of rain hitting the lake behind them, which only emphasizes Edmund’s point.
The change in topic isn’t totally surprising given their location, and Soleil isn’t exactly a closed book. “I was always told not to go to them just for conversation, so I’m going to ask for a weapon. If I ever want to Attune in the future, it makes sense to actually get to know whichever herald I’m tying myself to, so hopefully she’ll allow some chatting.” So it’s a bit of a fine line to walk, but Soleil doesn’t mind proving herself in exchange for items. “Though I guess attuning to Dygra is just becoming Ancient,” she muses, lips forming a small, considering pout. Not something she’s really keen on doing, but it won’t stop her from giving the new (old?) goddess some recognition. Shrugging, she smiles. “I wanted to start with her regardless because nobody knows much about her, but they also don’t seem willing to just visit.” So why not do it herself?
Edmund is hyperaware of Soleil's breach into his personal space and his fingers pause for a moment on the strings. It's one part tension of having someone so close to his neck and at his back where it's harder to defend himself. But it's also because even though he trusts Soleil as a friend, normally only family gets that close if it's a benign interaction. Yet the Ancient relaxes before he can even fully tense up, secure in the knowledge that the sunny woman won't harm him.
Returning to finish untangling the strings, Edmund listens as his friend speaks. "I see. I believe you're correct that Mother won't Attune anyone. Asking for such a thing from her means asking to become an Ancient." He glances over his shoulder to consider Soleil, his brow furrowing slightly. "I'm not sure if that's something that you would want. The Ancient bloodlust is...intense. Especially when you first turn." Milo's face flashes through his mind and he shoves the image down with what was becoming practiced ease.
Edmund's lips twitch into a small smile as he finally untangles the kites, "Although I wouldn't mind having you for a sister." The conversation continues to flow easily as the duo flies their kites. When a brief lull in the weather comes, they take the opportunity to head to the shrine. Leaving Soleil at the entrance, Edmund waits patiently, hoping that Mother accepts her prayer.
