waking the dead 2.0 | 1st of samhain, deardaoin (thursday)

[icarusalsoflew]

WHO: The War Hounds, Hikaru, Alistair, and Jason
WHAT: Base Camp Site 001, Arcadia
WHERE: An area off the roads of Akitagawa, somewhere between the Trods, the Hedge, and Arcadia itself
WHEN: November 1, Arcadian Year ???
SAFE FOR WORK? For now? Yes.
OTHER NOTES: Make your own threads as needed!


[ Tandang Sora, with Brianna and Alistair's help, clears out an area right beside a river - at least, it LOOKS like a river, even if it shines far too brightly in the light of the sun (or moon, depending on whichever one is shining upon the lot of you at any passing minute), and its ripples occasionally form watery mouths that quietly fill the air with song. Said song matches the whisper in the trees scattered about the area, and the laughing exchanges between Sister Sun and Brother Moon in the sky.

The Tower of the Lunargent Thorn, as promised, is always a fixed point somewhere on the horizon no matter where you turn - yet another weird thing to take note of in an increasingly bizarre place. The only "normal" thing in this area, beyond the lot of you, is the way the camp site has set up.

Tandang Sora has gone off to confirm the route that you will be taking. That means, thankfully, that the lot of you have some time to cool off your heels and attempt to acclimatize to how you have all changed. ]

Comments

[icarusalsoflew]

[ He felt that, all right. It isn't difficult at all for him to realize that you're thinking along the same lines that he is. ]

We could crawl into our tent, you know. Take a nap. [ Have a crooked smile, love, with clear mischief in your boy's eyes. ] Tandang Sora isn't going to be done for a while, and the rest of your party does need to it easy for a bit.

[ So do you. ]

[larue]

[ His response to that suggestion comes in the way he takes a moment to swallow because his mouth has suddenly gone dry, and the way his gaze falters from yours. On the periphery of his sight he notes the forms of the others, the color of that tent.

He knows you mean more than a "nap" -- but could you? The group is hardly in safe territory and it seems so damn indulgent... and yet. ]

[icarusalsoflew]

[ Following your gaze for but a moment, and knowing, in that singular gesture, what you're thinking. ]

We'll be fine.

[ He's never going to let anything happen to you, as far and as much as he can help it - and he's been known to make the impossible, possible. Besides, Alistair is around, Tandang Sora is capable, and the lot of you are formidable fighters. ]

Trust me.

[larue]

[ His eyes are back on yours now. ]

Always.

[ He means that. You've never done him wrong. And he loves you. That's what love is about right? Faith, trust. He doesn't have an incredible track record with the former, but the latter's something he's been consistent with -- or so he likes to believe. ]

[icarusalsoflew]

[ And that's all you need to tell him, really, for him to smile against your mouth before he kisses you again. That gesture is followed by him tugging you up, and leading you towards that tent.

More than an hour later, in the privacy of that little space you've both carved out for yourselves, your boy is pulling away from the circle of security that your arms have conveniently provided for him just enough so that he can reach for his pipe. The two of you have idled away in here, pressing close, letting hands and mouths wander over familiar territory. Pretty much all of the activity was innocent, though. The two of you aren't exactly alone out here, and there was a chance that somebody could need them at any moment. ]

[larue]

[ His eyes follow the way you move, taking in as much as he can of your grace. Funny how little gestures make up a person.

There's a smile waiting for you once you turn back. ] Tell me about where we're going?

[ He took in everything that he could from that crash course with the Vega sisters, but it's different, coming from you.

There's also the fact that this is your kingdom, a place you call yours in spite of the scars that Arcadia left on you. He wants to know these things. They matter to you, of course they'd matter to him. ]

[icarusalsoflew]

What do you want to know?

[ Smiling back at that, before he's bringing the pipe to his lips. He's also drawing himself up a little more, in order to smoke properly.

It's nice to see that you're feeling better. It's equally nice to know that he contributed a lot to that. ]

[larue]

[ He's turning onto his side so he can move a hand up your thigh. There's no heat in the gesture. He just really needs to touch you. ]

Everything, actually. [ Peering up at you now, a smile on his lips. ] But I guess we can start with what you like the most about it.

[ The look in his eyes is steady. He can't imagine how traumatic Arcadia was for you, but he saw the files, read your dossier. The Lightless Lands are a safe haven in large enemy territory -- that's the impression he's gotten. ]

[icarusalsoflew]

[ A thoughtful noise, before he's taking a good, long drag. He's missed the kind of tobacco and cloves that they grow here. He will have to thank Tala for sending some over. ]

That's a tricky question, honestly.

[ Because the Lightless Lands are, indeed, beautiful. It was not always like that. ]

[larue]

I figured it would be. [ He says that softly as he tangles his fingers with yours. ]

Let me rephrase that question then: [ a beat, ] It's your kingdom, Hikaru. And I want to know the most important things about it precisely because it's yours.

[ Propping himself up on one arm now, and lifting your hand to his mouth so he can press a kiss to the center of your palm. ]

[icarusalsoflew]

[ Words can't accurately encapsulate the mix of things in his eyes as he watches you. There's fondness there, a tinge of lingering disbelief that any of this is even happening, admiration, appreciation, and then some.

Right. Might as well try to answer you properly. ]

My realms are called "the Lightless Lands" because it's one of the places in Faerie that's eternally wrapped in darkness. That isn't an entirely accurate name for it, though.

[larue]

[ Nodding at that and looking back up at you with a small smile. ] Will there be more flying jellyfish?

[ Excuse the insertion of humor, love. ] Because those were a bit cool... if slightly weird.

[icarusalsoflew]

[ Chuckling at that. ]

If you already find those creatures weird, I'm afraid that you're not going to last very long in my kingdom.

[ ...Excuse him, he can't quite stop himself from reaching out and tracing the curve of your jawline with his fingers.] ]

[larue]

[ And he'll push himself up so that he can drink from your lips again. Sorry, love. He just really misses the taste of you. ]

Just because I said it was a bit weird doesn't mean I can't get behind the idea.

[ A smile now, as he pulls back. ] What are the people like?

[ He's seen how loyal Zangyaku your oni-tsukai are, how the hunters in Netsach, in the Vigil itself, consider you with so much respect. He was able to speak briefly with some Changeling from the Lightless Lands at the Winter Festival, but that's not much to go on. ]

[icarusalsoflew]

[ Mmm. Thank you for that.

...Anyway. ]

They're all survivors, and they can all be trusted. Many of them were ones part of Izanami's chattel.

[ And given that they stayed, you can probably guess how deep their loyalty runs for your fiancee. ]

I try to make the Lightless Lands as opposed to Arcadia as possible, just to see if things will catch on. The Gentry are much more malleable these days.

[larue]

[ Tracing your cheek now with one finger and letting his thumb ghost over your bottom lip. ]

You're one of the most compassionate people I know. [ A beat. ] I don't think I've ever told you that.

[ He'll lace the fingers of his free hand with yours at that. ] I know we're only going to be here a year, and that's not a short time, but I hope I can do something to help. And I don't just mean with the mission at hand.

[icarusalsoflew]

I'm pretty sure that you and the other Hounds will be able to do a lot down here. Your blade, after all, was selected for a reason.

[ Even if said reasons had been grounded on potentially cold, totally pragmatic thinking. Brianna was a logical choice. As for the rest of you... let's just say that your individual attachments to him were a big consideration for the Committee.

On a much more lighter note, though, he honestly couldn't imagine a better blade to have his back out here, beyond the three blades he was instrumental in bringing together back in 2012. ]

[larue]

[ He nods at that, and then sneaks a kiss to the side of your neck.

If he looks a little sheepish, it's because he is. ]

I was thinking along... different lines.

[ He's marrying you. Eventually. When this is all done and you two can actually work out the details of what kind of ceremony you'd like ( he's okay with whatever matters to you, he'll tell you as much, when the time comes. ) ]

[icarusalsoflew]

[ That piques his curiosity, and has him blinking at you, momentarily shelving what the two of you were talking about. ]

Okay...?

[ (Sorry, Josh. He's shelved this sort of possibility for so long, he's pretty rusty at considering all the strings that would come attached to it for himself.) ]

[larue]

[ He'll indulge in leaning in so that the bridge of his nose is snug against the slant of your jaw. What is it about you, here in this place, that he can't seem to breathe enough of you in.

Right: Arcadia.

Okay. Enough. Pulling back now and just... offering a slight shrug. ]

Do... do I still count as consort?

[ If that last word comes out awkwardly... it's because it's still pretty hard to say without sounding odd. To him, at least. ] I-it's just that... you know. I don't want to trip all over myself when we get there.

[ Yep. He's rubbing the back of his neck nervously now. ]

[icarusalsoflew]

[ Ah. Right.

Watching you a moment before he's leaning in to kiss you on the cheek. He doesn't pull back, though, because he wants to look straight into your eyes right now. ]

No. You're my Betrothed now. My Court is aware of it, and I believe that the news about us has traveled fast.

[larue]

[ A quiet nod. ]

I just... [ He wets his lips a little. ] It matters to me, you know?

To be able to stand beside you. To share whatever load you have to carry, if you'll let me.

[ He knows that sounds incredibly naive and young. But it's what he knows from the people he's watched and had in his life. ]

[icarusalsoflew]

No kid gloves. I promised you as much before, right?

[ And as things stand, he's getting better at letting you and other people he cares about share in that heavy portion of the world that he only too often takes for himself.

You're getting another kiss on the mouth, by the way, for that. It's soft and chaste and grateful, all in one breath. ]

Thank you. Having you close is really going to help.

[larue]

[ That makes him smile. This -- you, him, here and now -- makes him smile; puts him at ease. ]

Then it's a good thing I'm not really inclined to leaving your side. Not unless I absolutely have to.

[ Have an eskimo kiss, love, and a sigh. ] I can't get over the way you smell.

[ A sheepish chuckle at that. ]

God, that sound so lame, but it's true.

[icarusalsoflew]

[ Chuckling at that, because it's just like you to be so cute. ]

So do I taste better than I smell? Or is it the other way around?

[ Just throwing that out there, just to see if he can make you blush. (Or to see if you'll snap right to it, because you do, very often, manage to keep pace with him.) ]