go forth & survive .

       there’s a wisp of movement and suddenly the room is significantly darker, a lazy bit of magic drawing their curtains shut with a wave of her hand. cäcilia rolls atop him smoothly, settling in between his splayed legs and her fingers drawing absent-minded patterns across his chest. there’s a sleepy smile on her face as she leans down to press a kiss to his lips, slow and hazy and everything he needed first thing in the morning. “mmm, but i thought you wanted to go out for brunch, sweetheart. i’m more than happy to stay all snuggled up underneath the covers, though.” 

         “ That was--- ” He’s long since stopped trying to figure out the truth of it, but damn, does she manage to catch him off guard every. Single. Time. For a mercy, his face isn’t nearly as red as it can be. Nor has it been so for a good, long while. Not that it matters --- not when she can read him like a book. Especially when she’s so close. Almost too close, one would say. ( Bullshit. As if there was such a thing--- ) Not him. He’s much too busy gathering his thoughts and reciprocating with a kiss of his own to delve too deep into embarrassment. For now.

bites his ear lobe. just for good measure. 

         “ Careful--- ” Well, this certainly isn’t like the books said it would be. Enzeru is able to catch her in his arms and prevent her from falling, true, but he hardly looks as graceful and dependable as the stories often depict. If anything, he’s the opposite---frantic, trembling, and short of breath.

   As long as she’s alright, though. Right?

         “ ...found it. ”

   He sure did; that’s definitely a wrench in his [admittedly feeble] grasp. Never mind that it struck him on the head before falling into place. He’ll be fine. Hopefully. The most important thing is for him to hand it over to her, which he does at his own pace. ( Due to exercising caution and the fear of something else getting a shot at him. )

         “ Was that everything ya needed? ”

         “ Uh... hello? ” Poke. “ You awake? ” Poke poke. “ ...or alive? ” Poke poke poke. “ ...please say yes--- You’re kinda freakin’ me out over here. ”

It is with innocent and childish excitement that the Astrologian grips onto her companion’s arm and begins to shake it, all the while loudly proclaiming, “Aaah, I love him! I love this bird!! He’s a good bird an’ I love him!”  Ah, and how her name truly suits her in this moment, for there are twinkles in her eyes that rival the light of a thousand stars. Meanwhile the bird in question, a lanner of beautiful cyan feathers, preens himself and proudly basks in the fact that all his mistress’ attention is lavished on him and no one else.

   HER EXCITABLE OUTBURSTS aren’t anything new. In fact, they’re what endear her to him; this instance being no different from all the others. Yet a wave of curiosity---or concern; he’s not sure which to call it---comes over him the longer he keeps his gaze fixed on the bird in question. The little guy definitely wasn’t around the last time he saw her.

   ...was he?

      “ ...but to those who fall and vanish with the night sky, dawn never comes. ”

The first one is cats. While he never had one of his own, he used to play with this one stray that would occasionally hang around his house when he was a kid. He’s still very fond of them as an adult to the point where if he could, he’d stop whatever he was doing just to give one a pet. Maybe even some food if he had anything they’d be able to eat. They’re like a remnant of how he used to spend his time before his life changed, so he cherishes every moment he gets to just quietly hang around cats.

The second one---the big one---is children, which is something he developed after being accepted into Eden with Edna and the orphans. Helping Edna take care of them not only gave him a sense of responsibility, but also a general fondness for children in general. Much like his demeanor when he’s in the vicinity of a cat, En will 100% try to make nice with a kid if he knows he can. (Social norms and tact are still concepts in his setting, so he knows he can’t just walk up to one all willy-nilly and say hi. Stranger danger and shit.)

In regards to the orphans specifically, En starts to lean on them as a sort of emotional crutch after he kills Edna. Both as a way to help him cope with her being gone by working extra hard to take care of them and to remind himself that he’s still human despite having committed murder. (Necessary murder. But murder nonetheless.)

*Unfortunately, that mentality is tossed out of the window when he has to mercy kill Lucia, one of the children under his care that ended up being injected with Advent Serum (thanks to Ilia of L.E.G.I.O.N) and subsequently went on a rampage. That incident causes him to renounce his humanity and embrace the Gene inside of him, with his reasoning being that “monsters don’t have a right to be around people, let alone children.”

That phase doesn’t last forever, though. After self-reflection (induced by the lingering spirit of his grandfather) makes him develop a new outlook on things and come to terms with everything---his sins, his powers, the path he’s on, and what he should be striving for---En has no issues getting close to children again. What’s more, his fondness for them is later supported by a newfound sense of devotion and a promise to fight tooth and nail for them. 

It’s that mentality that brings him back to Eden in Ending B of his story, where he lives out the rest of his days making sure no child ends up going down the same path he did.

   HE HAS TO double--- no, quadruple-check to make absolutely sure his eyes aren’t playing tricks on him. It’s actually kind of a shock---especially to him---that he isn’t getting dizzy from rapidly swapping his attention from her to the paper in his hands and back again like a machine. It’s definitely her, though! No two-ways about it. Once he’s sure of that, he finally points at her and speaks up.

         “ Oh, you’re---! ”

   This would have been the part where he pointed at her and exclaimed where he remembered her from. Thankfully, he’s quick enough to remember the finer details about that moment---for once---and keep his mouth shut for the sake of exercising caution. When he speaks again, his voice is barely above a whisper as he inches closer to her. Away from any listening ears.