the seraphim shakes her head, “i’m sorry. i can be… a bit literal. i wasn’t offended, though.” she glances away, embarrassment colouring her cheeks as she realises she should have taken a moment to think through her response. since she knows she is too literal with things. and perhaps there was less of a general you in terms of referring to her court when it was just them, rather than the other courts now knowing. especially since she was not really part of a broader you before. “there was a blight. it overthrew the former ruler. he ruled the court of dusk. we became starlight later.” she bites her lip, the history making her realise that maybe that was connected to the notes she and night’s archivist had found. she knows that many of them have very few they are close to, but she had always assumed others would be similar in that they’d burn the whole world to protect the few they had. although… her own family had not. “i do what i can for the malgraves, and i would for the rest of starlight. but tia… she is my family.” she says. she watches him lower the knife, and she tilts her head a little, “i do not understand the people who do trust so easily, very well. it’s… confusing.” she says. but she’s always been a bit awkward and had difficulty understanding people. so it’s probably more her being odd. “i can agree to telling you what is important to know, in exchange for understanding autumn better.” she nods, after a moment. it would be helpful for her, to understand the other courts better.

he heaves out a sigh almost instantly as she explains the miscommunication and he's silently nodding, running a hand through his hair in silent relief that there wasn't any actual offense taken by his phrasing, but he's still as embarrassed as before, rubbing at the back of his neck, clearing his throat and glancing sideways before speaking up again. "good, good, I um...I should've phrased it differently anyway, I see how that can be...confusing." hearing her next words omar's brows furrow as he processes this, head tilting lightly in thought. "dusk...and then your court has been in hiding ever since? scared of another attack...? then what about hybern? why are they the only court to remember you all? did they ever come here?

starter: closed! for @commanderofthefall

omar had vowed to stand by his high lady's side when she chose him to step up alongside her and her second. as intimidating as he still found her, and as silently questionable as he found a few of her tactics to be (even then he could argue that he trusted her regardless, having known how long she had prepared for this), their thoughts on the new court was one they shared, for the most part. he did't trust this new kingdom that had seemed to come out of nowhere, with all these strangers with unknown motives. as far as they were all aware, there was nothing left to trust anymore.

Rivian stared at the man before him. Tired eyes, hands raised, a commander's bearing even in surrender. The blade didn't move. The voice was familiar. The face was familiar. Autumn Court? He'd seen him at the meetings, in the corridors, standing shoulder to shoulder with the others while chaos rained down around them. His grip on the commander's shoulder didn't loosen, but the knife stopped pressing. Just hovered there, a whisper away from skin, a reminder of how easily this could have gone wrong.

the second the man recognized one from summer and not an unfamiliar face from this new, unknown court, he had felt a bit of relief, though he was sure that wasn't what the other would have liked to hear so he kept it to himself. rivian didn't look too much better than himself, either. those...things just toying with them all had left them all so panicked and paranoid, now left alone for the time being with no answers or way out. his hands fall once the dagger is fully put away, still eyeing him for a few seconds just in case. "in my defense I was just needing to be alone. I didn't realize who you were, let alone a trigger happy spymaster...and I prefer the dark, anyway. it's comforting." the shadowsinger doesn't fully relax his stance either, though he does feel the silent truce between them.

she watches as his grip on the knife tightens. “i am not that old, but there was a threat to the high lord’s life when he hid our court away. there were wards protecting us.” she says. “i am 600. my family has been here since before the wards went up, though they were too awful for me to learn much of my own heritage. and the ones who knew are gone. so. it’s gone. but the court has been here, protected. no one knew if what threatened the former high lord would still threaten us if we let the wards down, or if we revealed ourselves.” tia was the most important person in her life, and she would destroy everything in this world to protect her. “if keeping a secret from the rest of prythian would ensure the safety of your closest friend — of the one fae in the world you trust and love the most — would you keep it? even if it felt wrong?” she asks, eyes softening more when he stiffens. even as she had began to make friends, she had kept her vows to protect her found family. and the few she had begun to have friendships with, even if barely, she’d have rather been the one to tell them at a time it was safe to do so rather than do it like this. “i do not trust easily, nor do i make friends easily, even within my own court. that is from my own past and trauma. i can say that our court does not intend harm on anyone. we would not have brought everyone here if given any choice in it when we hardly know anything of the other courts. we were just as unable to leave winter as the rest, and we are also just as trapped here.”

omar goes stiff once more as he hears her clear up that she isn't in fact that old, and he internally panics at the thought of unintentionally insulting her through miscommunication and he suddenly wants the ground to swallow him whole, starting to wring his free hand and fidgeting a bit in place before impulsively interrupting her "--th-that's not what I meant, I didn't mean to imply that you're...that old, just...y-your court, in general. hidden. for so long." he babbled, was that even a proper sentence? all he knew was now he couldn't look her in the eye until he knew for sure she understood what he had intended. "...wait, none of you know what threatened him, then?" the man can't help but wonder if there was a connection between whatever that was and what was now currently toying with them all.

she was always a bit too awkward to make friends easily, especially with how distrusting she is. and now there is even more reason for others not to trust her. they had been hidden away for millennia after the original blight — something long before her own existence. and with the losses faced by so many of the courts, and the distrust everyone already held for each other, she knows this just makes it worse. even if she hates the idea of all of these strangers in her home, she hates that they weren’t revealed to the world on their own terms. that she couldn’t explain things to the few she’d befriended before. she sighs when she sees omar ahead of her, knowing that he won’t be happy knowing that she’s been lying, especially with the way they had been headed towards friendship — something that was rare enough for her without this all. she eyes the knife, and she keeps her hands folded in front of herself. “our ancestors hid themselves away after a blight threatened the high lord’s life. we haven’t been a part of the mainland in millennia, and we have been isolated for millennia to protect our people.” she says, staring down at her hands as she wrings them. “i am second in command. my high lady is my closest friend, and i made a promise to her parents that i would always protect and look after their children. i wished to be able to tell you before any of this, on our own terms. we were initially brought to the winter court because a blight took our wards out. we didn't know anyone but hybern, didn't know how the other courts worked. before the fake memories, we did not know who we could trust, and then after... with everything happening... what else was i supposed to do? i cannot go against my court...” she trails off, and then; “i am sorry.” it’s rare, her apologising.

his grip on the knife tightens just slightly as he stands, eyeing her carefully as she starts to explain herself, keeping his guard up, unsure what he's able to believe anymore. but the more the woman spoke the more he had more questions, eyebrow furrowed as he stayed stood in silence. "...a...a millennia? you're telling me you've all just been around. in silence. for this long? how...how am I supposed to believe that you all survived that?" he was confused, alert, not sure what he was supposed to make of this, but, in spite of himself, there was also a small voice in his head. why would she lie about about being in survival for a millennia?

to: open! location: on a roof somewhere, starlight

omar is standing by with a smoke in hand, not really planning to do much in the moment but to just be. he's exhausted, and wary, as they all should be after everything had happened like it did. after deciding to meet with other fellow commanders and captains once they all settled into the new court the man just needed a moment alone. it wasn't until long though that he noticed there was someone else up there with him, and it took him a second to gather himself before starting to make his way over, when the other moves faster, raising his hands up, tired as his eyes set on the dagger he has in hand, and he moves to dodge it, only for the man to press it up against the other side of his throat.

time & place: tavern in stellaria. dusk. availability: open to everyone.

omar had been sat near the other in the tavern, deciding that he was due some fae wine after all they had been through, he was exhausted now, mentally planning out to meet with the rest of the fellow commanders and captains of the courts to figure out how to keep everyone left safe, but he would be lying that it was hard to keep his head up now in a new court that had been hiding this whole time. why was it kept a secret? why did they keep the charade going for so long? hearing the woman's words he tenses for a second, glancing over to her with a nod in greeting, trying to silently decipher what she was trying to get at with her tone. "i'm not...you must be happy to be back, though?" he can only assume this is her home, since he doesn't remember ever seeing her. it was unsettling, a whole new set of strangers with motivations a mystery to the rest of them.

☆ﾟ*·ﾟLUC SHOOK HIS head, allowing a chuckle to slip through his lips. "No, no, just frustrated with the requests to try and get answers. Nothing has provided them, so why should I keep trying." He was sick of people asking. For just a little bit, Luc wanted no one to ask him or even know that he could scry. Perhaps talking to someone he really didn't know would help. "I can be quiet, or you can talk, if you need to."

"...ah." he nods shortly, still lingering in place as he tries to figure out what to do with his hands. being so used to isolating himself because of his own abilities he couldn't imagine what it was like to have others just...pester you for whatever because of them. especially with how everything had played out so far...but the man wasn't really one to be very helpful when it came to...cheering up. distractions, however? distractions he knew fairly well. "...ya I probably would just hide out if I were you...i'm not...even in your position and I still can't...deal with...so many people in one place." he's a little surprised when the other then offers to stop talking, or even to let him speak himself, already having been mentally thinking up where else he could go from here to leave the other alone. "...oh. um. i'm not really one for...talking...trying to find answers myself has led me nowhere so...I dunno. I've got a smoke if you've got a light..? if you even want one, that is..."

— closed starter for omar finnigan ( @commanderofthefall ) / 𝚏𝚒𝚛𝚜𝚝 𝚏𝚒𝚛𝚎𝚜 — scene: balcony outside the great hall, during a feast

omar tries to linger around with his court as they all are gathered together, he really does, but after a second it's hard not to want to stray and find some peace and quiet. he's quick to slip out and he thinks that he's lucky enough not to catch anyone else's eye while doing so, but the immediate stiffness that usually follows when usually realizing he's not alone melts away once he recognizes the voice of the other. if it were anyone else the man would have been a bit exasperated at being followed. he felt as though he had been bumping into almost everyone while they were all here in winter, it was a bit much for the introvert to take. but his third had seen him through a lot so...he had his privileges...whether the fae would actually admit to them or not. that didn't keep him from letting out a deep sigh, though, trying hard not to let the other see him crack a small smirk at the comment, trying to save it by crinkling his nose a bit at the thought. "uh...don't think tonight's really the night to put them all to...shame like that just yet...you, um...are you holding up?"