❅

With the most of her body now supported by the stone balcony, the tail hung over the dented railings edge. Arms were crossed beneath her face, chin resting upon it and staring across to the flustered and embarrassed human.

Now, Robyn was hardly stupid even for her years of incarceration beneath the waves.  The reddened cheeks and averted gaze with Winter’s prior comment was plenty of her jumping to conclusions about how the other felt; confidence flooding back through her veins after a moment of processing–

“I’m glad you’re not too upset about that–…” Robyn huffs out a faint laugh as her gaze remains upon the woman. Her gaze lingered for far too long, taking in the blushing features with no sense of shame to being caught.

It was getting late and she knew the other should sleep soon but the idea of losing her company was becoming a sore spot for the pair of them.

She could name at least one person who would care about a dented railing, but his opinions meant little to Winter personally. And so long as he didn’t lay eyes on it, which she doubted he ever would considering the lack of times he ever stepped foot into her room, there wouldn’t be any issue about it. 

Winter just wanted Robyn to be comfortable talking to her, and if that meant making some frame of redecorating in terms of rebending the railing to fit her frame to the stone balcony -- so be it. 

“It's okay, really.” words are spoken from below her fringe, the hair swept in front of an eye in hopes of hiding the flush of her skin. “I could… probably see to it being removed entirely. If it would help you up here better?” 

@showamity // liked this for a gods au starter !

          It’s a cold night, the coldest winter night this year yet. ( Is it this year’s ? Or is it this week’s ? This month’s, maybe ? He isn’t sure. He isn’t sure about a lot of things, anymore. ) Breath steaming in the chill air, a light snowfall dusts his shoulders as he sits hunched over, supporting his weight on his staff. Gaze tired, listless. Hushed prayers hover just at the edge of his hearing but he barely stirs, slowly but surely becoming one with his surroundings.

          ( At some point, he’ll remember. He’ll rise, dust himself off, and shuffle back to his ruined temple, but just then he doesn’t remember having a temple. Doesn’t even remember his name. )

          So he sits, and listens. Shoulders slumping forwards a fraction every so often, until he hears something other than the never-ceasing, ever-changing susurration of prayers in his ears. A shuffling, a slow, measured gait through the snow. He opens his eyes, seeing a figure hovering between the trees, with pale wings and pale hair. Something about her makes him stir, makes a shiver crawl down his metal spine and his posture shift.

          ❝ You — ❞ he starts to say, then cuts himself off. Face twisting, he brings a hand to his head, then grimaces. She’s familiar, in some way he feels he ought to remember, but he can’t — he just can’t pick the pieces apart. ❝ You’re — important, somehow, ❞ he finally says, dark blue eyes — like azure, though devoid of the starlight that was once so bright in them — settling on her. ❝ Why are you important ? ❞

For what drew the god to what remained of once a place of refuge to her -- the temple of an old friend. A place belong to the man so titled as many within his own domain, but only father rolled from her tongue when addressing him -- she did not know. 

Where she sought out those lost to the brittle bite of her name-sake, it wasn’t often she walked to a friend - a fellow pantheon. 

Winter had heard of what fell the once iron will of the stars but had she yet seen with her own eyes what the ancient whispers entail. And as she stood before the man now, her heart bled. 

Cyan gaze kept hold darker azure -- the memory of what they once showed pulling at her frown.

Eyes narrowed and a hiss of air escaped Robyn’s maw. The stark and sore reminder of her indenture loomed over head much akin to the chains that had grown to second skin; raw and ever aching. There was little need for the verbal reiteration if anyone had bothered to ask but long since were the days when the Truth-Seeker was sought upon for knowledge–

Be it sympathy or misplaced lighting, the imprisoned being felt her heckles raised and a wave of irritation at the prodded questions that rubbed salt into centuries old open wounds; festering and virulent. 

A snarl builds in her throat, echoing the chamber as chains rattle and Robyn closes space between her and this stranger. “You know not who you are antagonizing.” 

But, perhaps, it did not matter. Not when she was bound so clearly for the other to see; a lion with no teeth nor claws to be spoken of. There was no threat here, just an empty husk of a broken woman.

“Return from where you came—” The beast snaps, “There is nothing but lost time and death awaiting you here.”

Where one would cower in the gaze of venom laced threats,  cower and beg forgiveness before the maw of their untimely demise -- Winter did not. The goddess of icy hues stood before bared teeth and groaning chain. But not without fear, for that rolled in waves from her very skin.

She accepted death at this moment would it come to that, but she suspected the arcane that held the beast bound also prevented anyone from stepping closer. 

In some sense -- she was safe to say and do as she wished, with only consequence spat words.

A pause waited, the need of staying to prod outweighing that of flight. Cyan hues roamed the spindly form until matching with dull purple between where the metal muzzled the eldritch being. “Indeed I know not... so being of lost, who am I challenging?”  

Wings torn to the point of no flight, the young god pressed them firmly to her back. Hands placed to either side, she held no sign of taking a step back down the pathway to exit this eroded prison.

A small hike of Robyn’s shoulders is given, already making her way over towards the boxes of belongings that Winter had brought with her. The sooner they started on this chore, the better–

A smirk was cast over to Winter, nonchalant in the given nickname and whatever implications that this woman chose to take from them–

“Is there issue?” She asks back, mirth written across Robyn’s tan features. There was silent appraisal, testing to see if there was any doubt in her mind that offense was to be taken or if the Schnee heiress was merely perplexed on the name.

A suitcase was opened, peering inside for clothing content before dragging it across the room to the wardrobes provided. “I can think of another if you would prefer– Snowflake, Ice Queen.” There was a pregnant pause before Robyn snorts, “Well, Ice Princess. You’re not a queen just yet.”

Staying still for only a moment, Winter was trailing behind Robyn towards the pile of her belongings. A soft look finding it's away across her face, the ice hued princess gave a slight roll of her eyes.

“No issue at all... I actually rather like it.” truthful to her words, she did rather like the name. Much more than the other two Robyn suggested, her face scrunching at the last one. Ice Queen sounded like it was half an insult, and Princess -- while her title -- didn’t have the same ring as Snowdrop. 

There were many things that Winter Schnee could thank her for but providing a safe and happy space to reside in? Now, that should just be a given. This woman needn’t even ask and Robyn would jump hoops to see her, at the very least, content in her new life.

“All’s good, Snowdrop. You don’t need to thank me for anything, alright?” There is a distinct and dramatic pause as the woman smirks, “Well, maybe for helping you unpack the entirety of your closet and life belongings–”

The sheer amount of boxed attire and items was consuming a corner of the room and Robyn could only pity the poor porters that had to drag them all the way up three flights of stairs and across the front gardens. 

“But i’ll let you do that after we get you unpacked.” She winks, amusement wrote over her features as her expression brightens up. “So no more tears, alright?”

It was a tell of how her time had been prior to traveling to marry that she felt the need to thank for such simple things. Saftey had a different meaning to her, and comfort wasn’t within her personal vocabulary. But that was all over, and for now, she could start republishing her dictionary of commonly used words by Winter Schnee with additions. 

The first being love -- a word she had never so spoken unless directed at family. 

Winter followed Robyn’s gaze to the piles of her belongings in the corner, a sheepish look as she truly didn’t realize she had packed the entire carriage (originally she believed it was only half.) A quip on her tongue but lost as she backpedaled to squint at the blonde, brows raised. 

Why this foreign god still stood before her was a mystery to the eldritch monster. Most all who stumbled their way down here did naught more than check the beast still lay in slumber and move on. 

Never once in time of her imprisonment had she ever been graced with a visitor that was not her jailer or another older deity that aided in her downfall; never once had someone visited with genuine intent or curiosity—

Those hollow purple hues remained locked upon this stranger, huffs of condensed air passing through the magicked iron muzzle that sealed her lips away; the truth dared not uttered from this corrupt maw.

A low rumble of laughter from a hoarse voice echoed the small chamber as Robyn’s form stretched and twisted among the rattling chains. For as far as her head could lean forwards, Robyn inched to the very edge of her reach towards this woman of icy hues.

“Child of the Stars—” She rasps, head tilting faintly to one side as metal clashes against metal. “You are… lost among darkness here. It is not befitting of your kind to remain.”

Of iron will and icy grasp, the child of old could only stand and bear witness to the being long since lost. Damned for speaking out, sent to rot for the attempts of the greater good. Not that the frosted maned godling had ever heard of a such a tale -- nor a prison below the library. 

The knowledge these eroded walls could tell had they a voice -- or inmates not reeled back in a threat of striking towards the young celestial. 

For now, in the audience of the chained fiend, the chamber rumbled by a peal of hollow laughter. Winter found herself drawn to the being in the center of the ancient runes, a thought of reaching out a hand -- forming a fist at her side to prevent. 

“Lost... I am not the lost one here -- but you, forgotten one.” words tentative on frosted lips, Winter kept her ground to this looming creature of eldritch ties. “...my kind left you here. Time has passed -- do you even know how long?”