[se] i'm the best thing at this party

flora

Meeting Hadama on the coast was the most neutral place that the Doubletake could think of for this meeting. If manta crystals would let her speak underwater instead of just breathe, she'd have taken the bubble stream right down into the mercity, but alas, Flora didn't feel like having this conversation via a game of charades.

Was a week enough time for Hadama to do his thinking? Flora honestly didn't know, and while impatience was perhaps not the best quality in a leader, the longer the Doubletake let things stew in her mind, the more attractive a coup seemed to be. So really, it was in everyone's best interests that they just hammer things out before it got really messy.

Speaking of, despite the warm weather, Flora was wearing a long-sleeved shirt in order to cover the bandage on her arm. The stupid bite still hadn't healed despite her bathing in the healing fountain, and she really hated to look at the dark rosettes of blood that kept blooming through the white cloth. Tugging at her sleeve, Flora looked across the waters, her lip curling slightly at the unseasonably high waves churning and frothing farther out toward the horizon line.

No one calls you honey when you're sitting on a throne

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

Indeed, Hadama had taken the time to think long and hard about Flora's proposal. He had raised several of the cons with her during their last conversation, but the week had given him the opportunity to consider the other side of the sand dollar. He still grieved the loss of Harper and the manner of his leaving, but as the wound became less fresh it was easier to look past it to a future without the Stalwart at his side.

If Flora's invitation had come sooner than he was ready, it was still longer than he had expected. Hadama surfaced at the appointed place, manta form shifting halfway to man as he shook his steel-silver hair back and blinked into the light. The waters around him grew calm as he settled his gaze on the Doubletake, emerald turned to sapphire as his magic soothed the restless sea - at least in the area immediately around them.

"Flora," he greeted solemnly. He had spent the swim to this stretch of shore thinking, and he needed to know one more thing before he made his final decision. "If you ruled Torchline, what would you do with it?"

flora

Taking a sharp breath as Hadama breached the surface, Flora was suddenly aware of how warm her cheeks felt. She could feel her pulse in her ears, her thumbs, and the wound on her arm, all of which beat out a steady rhythm that she tried to tell herself was excitement, and not fear.

"Hey." She called back, not waving, but bobbing her head in greeting before walking the remainder of the way toward the water. "You know, we really should have like some sort of underwater meeting place that's like, half air half water." It's nervously said, though Flora is quick to try and conceal her emotions with a bright smile that lasts for just a moment before her expression turns properly somber but confident.

"I mean...protect it, obviously. There's like..lots to do, especially with all this Safrin stuff. I have lots of that on that too, by the way, but I'd also like...I dunno, leading can't just be about making people safe. It has to be about making them happy too." Swallowing, the Doubletake shrugs. "We all know Caido is a dangerous place to be, but like, people need a reason to keep getting up every day, you know?"

No one calls you honey when you're sitting on a throne

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

He had seen Flora in mischief and in grief; in anger and in triumph. But today she looked... stately. Holding herself with something of her mother's poise but still with her own unique style. Hadama's expression was serenely stoic, but he was reassured by the young woman's carriage - and by the flash of nervousness that proved that this truly was Flora, determined but still young.

Though not as young as she had once been. That, too, he had needed time to accept.

"Indeed. I would like to convert a few chambers in the palace for it." He tilted his head in recognition of the mutual frustration of underwater communication between Merfolk and non-Attuned. "Or seek a divine boon to extend the telepathic bond to all visitors within the Underwater City." But whether it would be possible, or get much use... Well. One thing at a time.

Her answer to his question brought neither a smile nor a frown to his face, but he considered it thoughtfully before nodding. "Yes. It is advice you have given before. And it is good advice." Advice he had followed - in spirit, if not to the letter - and not regretted. That, too, had weighed significantly in his decision. He took a deep breath, feeling the uncertainty in his chest settling and the following question he posed held less formality, though more respect. "What direction should we take next?"

flora

"Could even be like..halfway out in the ocean or something too. That way it feels neutral." Imagining in her mind's eye giant floating glass bubbles with openings in the bottom which would let a mer in, while allowing for air for the land-breathers. Even Flora who wasn't well versed in physics knew that magic would likely need to come into play, but so what? Bobbing her head as Hadama seemed to be thinking the same thing, the Doubletake tugged at the bottom of her shirt sleeve in an effort not to fold her arms across her chest lest it come across as being more confrontational than comfortable.

"Welllllll..." Twitching her lips to the side despite having already thought long and hard about just this question, Flora takes a breath and slowly lets it out. "I think maybe it's time to talk to Frey, or Rae if we can." She begins. "I know that they're going to say that like...animals and plants have a right to be here or whatever, but I think there's probably a way of posing the question to just ask if all these new things are going to pose a risk to Torchline in the long run." Both Rae and Frey could be tricky in their responses adn in the things they cared about, but Flora was fairly sure that a well-thought out question could probably yeild the answers they needed.

"Or, and like, this is kind of a thing we'd really have to talk through, but....well, I was thinking about Safrin's warning and all the things everyone said at that meeting you called." Though she doesn't turn her gaze away in apology for what she'd said that day, her tone does soften. "I think it's silly for every region to try and defend itself against every single type of threat. And since we're all pretty much on good terms...why don't we all specialize? You know, like if the danger was some land-threat, we could all go to Stormbreak since it's so high up. If it's fire, we could go to the mer city. If it's an infection, maybe Halo where the cold might slow things down."

Pausing, Flora takes another breath and shrugs. "I don't think there's time to prepare for everything Safrin could have warned us about, and I'd hate to get it wrong."

No one calls you honey when you're sitting on a throne

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

"Near the Kuali'i Isles would be an easy place for both to meet," he agreed, a reasonable compromise to make for neutrality in such an undertaking as Flora suggested. It was welcome to bounce ideas back and forth with someone again after Harper's increasing absences in recent months. And if she was not as confident as their previous meeting, her earnestness still came across regardless of the difference in their ages and species.

He asked his question without bias, stilling any expectations he might have held in order to listen to her answer with an open mind. At the mention of Frey and Rae he tilted his head in agreement; a reality that he had discussed with his former co-ruler. Not his preference, no, but the situation was too serious to linger over things that could not be. He gave a thoughtful hum of acknowledgment at the conjecture on their likely reply, but did not interrupt as she continued.

And it was good that he had not.

He met her gaze calmly, not expecting an apology nor disappointed when one wasn't forthcoming. He had asked her about the future, not the past, and the answer she gave...

Well. When she had finished he floated in the water, gaze turned inward as the waves pounded around them beyond the reach of his calming magic. The silence that stretched between them was even louder, however, as he turned around the ideas she had shared and how she had reached out to him.

At last he lifted his eyes to her once more, and the subtle crinkles were there at the corners of his eyes for those who knew where to look for them.

"A final question," he rumbled, solemn as ever except for the glint in his gaze that Flora might remember from simpler days. "Would you remain the Doubletake? Or would you take a new name as queen?"

flora

That Hadama wasn't saying much was either a good thing or a very bad one. For all of her ability to read body language, the intricacies of silence often left Flora confused and filling the silence with her own chatter. Trying not to read into the sparkle in Hadama's gaze lest it just be a trick of the light, Flora once again tugged at the sleeve of her shirt so as not to fidget or otherwise come across more childishly impatient than she was.

Eyebrow raised, wondering what the King's final question might be, his words had her huffing out a relieved sigh which quickly turned into bright laughter. Rolling her eyes thoughtfully, Flora nudges a bit of the sand with her toe and shrugs. "I think I still like Doubletake. I think I'm always going to be judged wrong at first glance and you know what? I'm kinda into it."

Biting at her lip and bobbing her eyebrows toward the King, Flora affects a feigned look of innocence for a moment. "Sooooooo, does this mean I have the job?" She wonders, not quite able to fully hide the brimming enthusiasm that warbles her words, but not necessarily minding it either.

No one calls you honey when you're sitting on a throne

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

She was motion to his stillness, and perhaps he could be the calm at the heart of her storm. He had thought that he and Harper had been complimentary, but perhaps they had, in truth, been too similar, from the letter he had received. It was not something that he and Flora would ever be accused of being, however, and a more dynamic leadership would hopefully do Torchline well in the coming days.

The coming crisis, if the increasingly dangerous strangeness around Caido was any indication.

He inclined his head at her decision, accepting the truth of her words with the understanding that he had also misjudged her. When he raised it again the hope was in her eyes and he relaxed his guarded expression enough for the smile to lift the corners of his lips. "Indeed," he said, giving the word the solemnity it deserved for such a momentous decision. "We may make the announcement this afternoon." Knowing that the Doubletake was unlikely to wait any longer than it took her to return to Haulani anyways, and choosing to bow gracefully to the inevitable.

"You should know what has already been done this season," he added to his new co-ruler. "I have continued the training of our soldiers. To help against threats. Or during evacuations." Not the Coast Guard he had originally envisioned, perhaps, but protectors for Torchline nonetheless. "And I have sent the Adventurer's Guild to investigate the place the LongNight lights came down." Now a slight frown creased the skin between his brows. "Though I have not heard back from them yet." Truly he had hoped for a quicker report from young Edmund, but he would rather the young man and his guildmates be safe than swift. "And I have begun rooting out those shadowy flowers we found last time, whenever they are in reach." He paused, then inclined his head. "So far, I have not had any reports of dangerous new plants underwater."

flora

While Hadama effected the solemnity he judged the moment deserving of, Flora squealed her delight. Clapping her hands together and smiling widely, she danced her way towards the water's edge in order to hold out her hand. She was more of a hugger than a hand-shaker, but given the watery barrier, this was probably the easiest thing. "I won't ever intentionally let Torchline down." This wasn't to say she'd never make a mistake, only that she'd not do it on purpose.

Switching from joy-filed to contemplative in a heartbeat, the new Queen listened intently as Hadama described what had already been decided. "That makes sense." Flora agreed, before flashing the mermanta a wry smile as if to point out how agreeable she was being. "Oh! Well I can tell you about that. I bumped into them on my way back from seeing my mom. We didn't really find anything, although Edmund took all sorts of measurements and whatnot. It's just...a big hole. Clearly something hit it hard enough to carve out a good amount of dirt, but otherwise..." Her shoulders lifted and fell again. "If you didn't already know what happened, you'd just walk right by it." It was certainly no ground 0 by any streth. "Though...when Mel and I were in the Climb we ran into his infected fyrhund. It bit me before we killed it, but.." Tugging at her sleeve—up, rather than down this time—Flora revealed the white bandage which was already soaked through with blood. "It just won't heal. It's so weird."

Pulling her sleeve back down, Flora glances up the beach and nods. "We could go talk to Rae if you wanted to? Or...I dunno, once the fountain is done maybe the next one could be with Frey. I'm sure they wouldn't want us harming any of the new stuff, but maybe if we could just protect Torchline against it?"

No one calls you honey when you're sitting on a throne

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

Her delight was palpable, and a slow smile spread across Hadama's solemn features as she danced forward. Hugging may not have come easily between mer and humans, but he had had enough motivation to learn how to make it work. He gathered his water magic and pulled the ocean beneath him up in a slender pillar so that he was of a height with the new Queen. He reached out to accept her hand - and then pulled her (if she was willing) a step into the water so that he could lean forward and hug her properly.

"We will hold each other to that promise,' he rumbled, satisfied with the oath before he let her go and subsided back into the waves so that he could focus on keeping them calm around them.

So. There was need to bring Flora up to speed on the current direction of the tides, and to learn in turn the news that she brought from King's End. Her willingness to work with him was certainly noticed, but he made no fuss over it. He had decided to trust her; this was their first day working together, and it was an auspicious start.

Even though the topics were far from cheerful.

A 'big hole' had him tilting his head, nodding in acknowledgment until she mentioned the Fyrhund. Then his brow creased in concern as she revealed the bandage with its white linen dyed red. "Does it hurt?" he asked first. He trusted any Torcher to drink from the healing fountain when injured, and if it was still bleeding after being treated with mastered healing...

His brow furrowed further, concern shifting to worry in green eyes.

"Hmm. I have not heard of any other region having a quest from one of the Older Gods," he admitted. "I wonder if the blessing would be stronger?" Untested territory, but perhaps worth the risk if it would protect anyone else from such lingering injuries. "Should we ask to keep the infected plants and animals from taking root in Torchline? Or to at least keep them out of Haulani?" To protect the city, even if the whole region couldn't be kept free of this strange new influence.

flora

"Ooooooooooh!" Clearly delighted, the Doubletake gripped onto Hadama's hand not because she was worried that he'd suddenly drop out from beneath her, but partially to see if any part of the column of water could bear her additional weight. "That's a pretty good trick." She purred, wrapping her arms around his broad shoulders and snuggling in for a hug.

As for her arm? Crinkling her nose and maintaining the same sort of well it isn't going to kill me expression she'd tugged on each time someone asked, Flora shrugged and nodded. "Yeah. It makes throwing my feathers kinda hard, because my fingers go numb." She explained, trying to waggle her fingers as evidence of her limited range of motion, before grimacing and stopping.

"I would think it would be? Or, if not I'd at least think maybe they'd...be more capable or have better ideas." Pushing her lips together and folding her arms comfortably over her chest, Flora had been wondering precisely the same thing. "Yeah, I worry if we say we want to kill all the new stuff, Rae would be against it. So if their whole thing is like...just letting nature go and do its own thing, then maybe saying since we're part of nature and have a right to protect ourselves, that that's all we're doing?" Biting at the inside of her cheek, she glances over her shoulder back toward Haulani, before looking up the coast.

"I dunno. I almost worry that if things get really crazy out here in the water or surrounding areas, it could really fuck up the whole ecosystem and our food and water and stuff. Whereas Haulani since it's all us, we might be able to manage ourselves, you know?" Of course that meant leaving the people unguarded for the sake of the actual land, but maybe since Hadama had been doing so much soldier-training lately, they could manage?

No one calls you honey when you're sitting on a throne

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

Hadama might not have expected the additional weight, but both he and his magic were strong enough to support Flora. If he needed to strengthen the water that held him up with a little extra ice to adjust, well, his Academy blessing kept him from noticing the cold as anything other than a mild inconvenience, and one well worth his friend and co-leader's delight. "Thank you," he rumbled, pleased at her praise, though it faded all too soon upon seeing Flora's injury.

"Hmm. Until a cure is found, would you like help practicing throwing with your other hand?" he offered, having no great healing abilities of his own to call upon. His frown tugged a little deeper at the corners of his mouth as she grimaced in clear pain, but if she didn't want to linger on it, he wouldn't force the issue.

And with Torchline's future under discussion it was easier to let his attention be shifted. Flora raised a very interesting possibility with Rae's name, and Hadama nodded agreement to her thoughts on their approach. "To keep them out... Or to change them directly? To remove the corruption from those that grow near the city?"

He grew silent, considering her concerns before nodding slowly. "The Mer could shelter in the canals if the ocean becomes dangerous," he said slowly. "More easily than the humans could shelter in the Underwater City. But there must be a safe place for people to gather. A place without flowers that cause fear and nightmares. A place without animals that cause wounds we cannot heal." And Haulani at least had safe water from its Fountain. Food would always be a worry in any time of trouble, but... "We can begin stockpiling supplies now. As we did before the War. Food and medicine, while things are still quiet." He might hope that they would stay that way, but Safrin was still gone, and there had been a strange new star in the sky of late...

An abundance of caution would not hurt.

He met her eyes squarely, then inclined his head, welcoming her suggestions and the creativity of a different viewpoint. "We have one idea. What other options could we ask Rae for?"

flora

"You know what...I would." The Doubletake declares as if the idea had been her own and not the King's. She'd honestly been planning on just trying to find some other means of defending herself; quite why becoming a touch more ambidextrous had never crossed her mind would be something to puzzle over later.

"Well, I'd like to say that we just remove the corruption, but I worry that Rae might ... I don't know, say something about changing them too much. Like, if we alter them because of the corruption, why not just start altering all the other things we find harmful, you know?" Raising a shoulder, Flora can only sigh. "I really don't know who we could ask to get a better read on what Rae is like, but that's the sort of answer I'd expect from Frey, so.."

Pushing her lips together, Flora considers Hadama's words not as some immediate challenge to argue against, but thoughtfully instead. "That's a good point. Maybe you're right then. Maybe just some sort of...warded dome against everything. Like what Halo has, but for infected things instead of the cold."

It didn't surprise Flora that Hadama would seek alternative suggestions, and though she did think her first idea was her best, the Doubletake was rarely out of things to say. "Maybe some sort of bubble around all of our citizens? If we can't uproot the infected plants and animals, maybe Rae can make us immune? Or....I dunno, some sort of cleansing rain over the area? Instead of a weapon that harms, maybe we just focus on healing? Orr....maybe the higher end of the city could break off in times of trouble if we ever needed it to? I mean, Stormbreak seems pretty alright from what I've seen, so maybe there's some advantage to being up high?"

No one calls you honey when you're sitting on a throne

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

More items in the arsenal couldn't hurt, but quests took time. In the short term, at least, they could practice with what they already had, and Hadama gave a contented nod when Flora approved of training together in the near future.

It was his turn to look thoughtful as she pointed out the flaw in his own suggestion, and he reluctantly inclined his head in agreement. "I know nothing of Rae," he admitted. "But that sounds true." And none of the gods were known for snapping their fingers and making problems go away. Giving people the tools they needed to deal with problems, yes. And Hadama could see the wisdom in that, given how fresh the world's reshaping still was after the War. Having gods be too involved in the world did not always end well for the mortals in the area.

He watched her expression, cautious but attentive to how she would respond to his own suggestion. Pleased once more when her agreement came with an example of an existing defense that they could set before Rae, he gave another nod, eyes crinkling at the corners. "Yes. And I will set more Mer to finding cloud manta crystals. We can focus our efforts on Haulani. But we will have the Underwater City as a place to retreat if the infections worsen." As long as the infected flora and fauna remained landbound, at least.

Just as Flora was not surprised by Hadama's request, he was not surprised that she had other ideas. His brow creased in thought at the mention of a citizen bubble and immunity before he gave a slight shake of his head. "Hmm. To affect every citizen... I have not heard of such a quest in other regions. Each person may have to pray for protection like that on their own," he said slowly. Though given Flora's injury, it might not be a bad thing to pray for. "You said we could try to rely on the other regions for some things. I agree that we are not as well-suited to fighting as Halo and Stormbreak." On land, at least. At sea would be another matter. "But a way to call cleansing rain to clear an area... yes. And perhaps the bridges of Upper Haulani can be altered so they can be retracted to isolate themselves from below?" That, at least, was something they could do themselves without divine aid.

After a little more thought he looked up again to meet her eyes, his own emerald gaze clear and bright. "I think the dome, for our first priority. But if Rae turns it down for any reason, then we can ask for a way to call rains to wash an area clear of infection?" It might end up like a game of 'whack-an-eel,' cleansing one area and then needing to send the rains to another as soon as they could be summoned again, but hopefully the effects would linger for a time. Enough to have safe areas for gathering food and medicines for awhile.