the gentle giant.

she  gave  half  a  thought  to  neyvin's  shock,  and  gently  sighed  to  mark  her  presence.  it  was  not  a  shadow-cursed snake  in  his  tent.  perhaps  such  a  pest  would  have  been  preferable.

(but they had also noticed that mordred had been withdrawn from most of the camp, and not just them, so they hadn't taken it too personally.)

"good evenin' to you to, then." he mutters in mild amusement, setting his project aside. at the demand, neyvin blinks a couple of times, processing the request. "i...alright." he thought for a moment about chiding her for manners, but neyvin knew some things were a battle not worth picking.

she sits up, easily and instinctively, folding herself up slightly to make more room for mordred to come inside. she gestures for their leader to come in. the tent would seem spacious by the standards of most... unless you were the 8'7" tall occupant. in which case, neyvin found the tent to sometimes be a little squished, but they also often didn't bother. if they were not currently in the shadow cursed lands, she wouldn't have even bothered with the tent.

Modern AU Starter for @harpersoath. . . ♪~

It wasn't easy to manage the shop when Verathandi was out. She was the druid, not Faenethra. And in a florist's shop with a tearoom, a druid's skills were quite helpful. It was Verathandi who was able to design the shop, with its naturalistic flair, the flower-covered vines growing over the walls, the warm, dark oak furnishings...

In truth, Faenethra just worked here. That's all she could do. She couldn't grow the flowers before the customer's eyes, and she couldn't encourage the tea leaves to grow as a patron requested that certain blend. But she knew how to make the tea. She knew how to arrange the flowers. That's all that really mattered, right?

she gives a warm smile to faenethra. "ah, yes! i've never been in here before, though i've walked past several times." she said, with a warm chuckle, rubbing the back of her neck. neyvin looked at the different bundles of florals, recognizing most. "hang on — I think I got a list somewhere..." she said, digging in her pocket, before pulling out a piece of paper, worn and crumpled, and worried over. the handwriting is legible, but smudged. "here it is!"

they had never been druidically inclined as many of their family were. they loved nature but lacked the affinity for flora and fauna that many of their siblings had. they could tend a garden, recognize toxic plants and fungi, and brew a rather terrible tasting healing tonic (but the last should really only be used in a pinch).

he flattens the paper out...or tries to, before resding aloud, "bellflowers, purple hyacinth, lavender, white tulips, and blue violets." he offers the paper, slighlty anxiously, to faenethra.

they shift their stance, going through the usual motions of subtly trying to make themselves as small and unobtrustive as they could. it was a bit hard, given their size, but they did try. most places and buildings, despite some considerations, just weren't built for folks his size to not feel like a bull in a china shop.

Avatar the Last Airbender || Leaves from the vine

Happy birthday my son,

oops mine own armor hath fallen off accidentally

By @raspbearyarts

Very happy to see destroyable armor going back to it's sexy, sexy roots.

-wincenworks

Picture 1: ft. Ben Clanton, author of several kids books (including the Narwhal and Jelly series)

Picture 3: ft. Lee Knox Ostertag (author, illustrator, animator, and someone who is a major inspiration for myself)

"Someone hasn't told you yet, have they? The bigger they are..." he broaches. It's Henry. Aye, the harder, of course, they are likely to fall.

"i manage quite fine, thank you. and i... sleep." neyvin huffs, turning halfway to glance back at henry. there is a fond sterness to the look — the same sort of expression he would give the children often. the children peered curiously at the other adult but quickly went back to their play. she chops the carrot tops off and tosses them into the scraps bucket. (they would be saved for stock, mostly.)

sighing, neyvin shoos them gently, ruffling their hair and sending them outside to play. it was truly a good thing for the city that neyvin was not the sort to wish ill, or they would have a whole army to wage war on their behalf purely from the gaggle of children. not all were hers. in fact, most weren't. not officially. some had actual families, for better or worse, that they returned to. some merely flilted through.

neyvin had learned that some kids needed a figure like her to cling to, but were not willing to be 'adopted', or even commit to living in a home fully. instead, they came and went like a small ocean tide, always knowing there was food, clean clothes, a soft bed, and warm fire when they wanted it. and he was quite content with that. he found that caring for them, looking after the little ones...it filled his heart. ke'laun had always adored children. he had a way with them, and they'd always wanted their own. they'd been planning to properly look into it, before the summons to reithwin. before everything went...wrong.

"i am still stronger than a breeze." they retort, dryly, once the room is not crawling with children underfoot. "and some of the older ones help out." neyvin adds, easily. henry is not the first, not the last, to tell them such things. even before ke'laun's passing, they needed to be reminded often. in the direct aftermath? it was practically impossible to make them stop. so, they knew it was true. the words are the same hypocritical ones he had given out many times before. they were not a fan of the point henry was making, but he wasn't wrong.

neyvin was a pillar. but if the pillar bent, how much easier would it be to snap entirely?

she sets down the knife, brushing the carrots into the bowl beside the chopping board. neyvin leans on the counter, eyes focused on the fire in the hearth. she's thoughtful — and the exhaustion behind that thoughtfulness makes it clear she is much older than she seems at first glance. "i'm going to visit his grave, later. if you'd like to come."