Hotaru
Hotaru keeps idle track of those who pass by, so the newcomer doesn’t go unnoticed, though she does little more than catalogue their presence. At least until they shift, and the afternoon sun glints sharply on their fair complexion. That is enough to make Hotaru pause, fingers flexing against her palm to ease the tension out as she lifts the back of her forearm to wipe the slight sweat off her brow, blinking it and the sun away in tandem to better view the person approaching her.
Her name falls from the woman’s lips at the same time as Hotaru breathes, “Maea?” She hasn’t seen the woman since the swamp, when she had been so full of turmoil over her Ascension, and Hotaru had advised her on what it meant to be a predator. Such an unfitting summary for all they’d discussed, but Ru had been left with only tumultuous emotions and a constant sorrowful wondering after. They hadn’t met again, and then the Voice had fallen. What more was there to think? Maea’s presence in her mind after the war had been accompanied by mourning, but it seems she was wrong. The horns and tail - familiar to Ru by virtue of her niece - tell a story without Maea’s permission.
“It’s good to see you,” she calls across the short distance, wanting Maea to be certain of her welcome as the Valkyrie closes the distance with quick strides. Her smile is warm as she reaches for Maea’s hands, hoping to clasp them in some way. “You look beautiful. It seems you’ve changed yet again, my dear.” But there is no somber note or expression to accompany it, hoping to lead by example with her relaxed expression and complimentary tone. These are slightly better changes than Ascending, she suspects, at least given what she remembers of Maea’s hesitations back then.
Her name falls from the woman’s lips at the same time as Hotaru breathes, “Maea?” She hasn’t seen the woman since the swamp, when she had been so full of turmoil over her Ascension, and Hotaru had advised her on what it meant to be a predator. Such an unfitting summary for all they’d discussed, but Ru had been left with only tumultuous emotions and a constant sorrowful wondering after. They hadn’t met again, and then the Voice had fallen. What more was there to think? Maea’s presence in her mind after the war had been accompanied by mourning, but it seems she was wrong. The horns and tail - familiar to Ru by virtue of her niece - tell a story without Maea’s permission.
“It’s good to see you,” she calls across the short distance, wanting Maea to be certain of her welcome as the Valkyrie closes the distance with quick strides. Her smile is warm as she reaches for Maea’s hands, hoping to clasp them in some way. “You look beautiful. It seems you’ve changed yet again, my dear.” But there is no somber note or expression to accompany it, hoping to lead by example with her relaxed expression and complimentary tone. These are slightly better changes than Ascending, she suspects, at least given what she remembers of Maea’s hesitations back then.
what I did, do, to me and you, keeps me awake
if I were a ghost, you'd be the proof
if I were a ghost, you'd be the proof
