timeless.

when did you learn how to do that?

that was... weird.

that was you, right? you did that?

i'm imagining things, aren't i? that didn't just happen.

i'm going to pretend like i didn't see that.

who on earth taught you that?

that was a bit scary, i have to admit.

i didn't know you were capable of that.

could you always do that, or was that something you just learned?

just felt like you could spring that on me, i guess?

i have... so many questions.

so... when were you going to tell me about that?

i must be dreaming.

i guess i don't know you that well after all.

did they teach you how to do that?

where did you learn that?

so that's what you learned while you were away.

all right. start talking.

you can't just pull that out without telling me!

warn me next time!

that was... that was incredible.

was that magic?

we'll talk about whatever that was later.

a little warning next time would be great.

wait wait wait, before we go any further, i need an explanation.

don't just walk off! tell me what that was!

and here i thought i knew you well enough.

i don't like it when you keep secrets.

next time, tell me beforehand. that way i'm not freaking out the whole time wondering what's going on.

you don't see that every day.

can you do it again?

show it to me again.

i liked that a little more than i should.

give me a second to pick my jaw up off the floor.

you never told me you could do something like that.

you can't just do that stuff and expect me to be okay with it!

so that's what you've been learning.

could you teach me how to do that?

how long did that take you to learn?

i'm beyond impressed by you.

now that's more like it!

that was excellent.

you really are extraordinary.

i've never seen anyone do anything remotely as cool as that.

that must have taken you years to perfect.

show me again, and this time, let me see if i can do it, too.

when we're through with this, i'd like you to teach me how.

i never thought i'd see the day.

my heart's pounding.

Rhiannon, for her part, eyed the pastry hungrily and once Arawn had given her the go-ahead, snatched it up with a crumb-spewing; "T'ank 'ou!"

"Her name is Rhiannon," Arawn said, because Rhia's mouth was too packed full of pastry to introduce herself. "I actually live here now, but I hadn't expected to see you Jester. What are you doing so far from the Menagerie Coast?"

She shrugged at his question, pretending that traveling across the continent was no big deal. "I kiiiinda had to leave home in a hurry because of a..." She took a quick look at the kid, trying to avoid words that might get her some tough questions. "Business meeting that my mom had, and it kinda went sideways, but that was months ago and that's mostly handled now. And then I made some friends, and we started all traveling together and they went back home with me but then we had to run again because of... Another business thing, you know?" Jester could pull some pranks on her own, but that was nothing compared to the chaos that the Mighty Nein as a whole could bring.

Her eyes follow as Imogen raises her hand, an odd yet welcoming warmth spreading through her chest at the feeling of the gentle kiss. That purple deepens ever so slightly as she looks back into pools of lavender. "Together either way," she repeats with a small nod.

Imogen was too good to her, always willing to hear her out, to stand by her side no matter what. Nearing three years ago, it was hard to believe back then that she'd be where she was at now. Having a best friend, one that became her other half, her true love. Minus all the moon shit and Delilah potentially coming back, she was lucky all things considered. Her girl had truly saved her in more ways than one, and if it meant she ended up right back here by her side, she'd do it all again.

There was brief hesitation, expression softening yet keeping her focus on the woman next to her. "...remember when I told you back in Bassuras how I haven't accessed that part of my brain? I wasn't lying then. I had written love off for myself since I was practically a teen. With how everyone treated me back then, and after, throughout my years of wandering, I honestly thought no one could ever love me in that sort of way."

Laudna lightly pulls Imogen's hands towards her chest, holding them close to her heart. "Then you came into my life, and my perspective on it all began to change. I thought I couldn't love at all in any capacity but you showed such generosity and genuine care towards me, you easily proved me wrong." She leans forward, resting her forehead against the sorceress's, relishing in the contact, letting it ground her. "And once you asked if you could kiss me, and after it... it made me realize just how much I truly love you, and what I've been denying myself all along. Just like you said dearest, I never desired having someone either, and I don't want anyone unless it's you."

Imogen's heart broke when she heard Laudna talk about the way she was treated. Even before Delilah and all the trauma that she caused, Laudna had suffered enough to consider herself unloveable, locking away even the possibility of ever receiving kindness. It made Imogen furious at the thought of anyone bringing Laudna harm. Beyond that, it made her own pain echo around in a strange way. She was familiar with being strange, an outcast, a danger to be avoided or driven out. She wished Laudna had never known that feeling, or the isolation and the fear that came with it, but at least she could understand Laudna now, just as Laudna could understand her.

"Yes, I remember." How could she not? Each word from Laudna was a treasure that Imogen kept with her, and Imogen had obsessed over that particular piece of information for a while now. "I wasn't sure, back then, if that meant you never wanted that sort of connection in the first place, which would have been perfectly fine, or if you had just... Come to terms with it being outside of what was possible. You know, it hadn't felt possible to me, since I was very, very young. Or real. To love someone, to have them stay..." The last years at home flashed to her mind, having to hide from everyone she knew, her own father trying to pretend she didn't exist. And even before that, the absence of her mother, the sensation of being different from her peers that haunted her before she could even identify it.

She shook those thoughts away, reminding herself that that time was over. Imogen wasn't alone anymore. She had Bell's Hells, she had Laudna, she had a better understanding of herself and her powers. She wasn't there anymore. "I know exactly what you mean, my dear, and I have to tell you very clearly that, as much as those feelings were a natural result of everything you have faced, and as difficult as it might be to believe they are not the truth, you are loved, Laudna. And you are worthy of love and happiness and kindness, and you are one of the sweetest, most beautiful people I ever met. I love you more than words can say, and I know you care so much, Laudna, so much it almost hurts sometimes."

Imogen leaned into the touch, closing her eyes as she rested her forehead against the other's. "And you have me, Laudna. Whatever happens, in any plane of existance, you have me." She really couldn't believe her luck. The world was pure chaos and uncertainty, but maybe it would be alright, because they would keep saving each other. "Can I kiss you again?" Her voice was barely a whisper, as if speaking too loud would break the spell she must be under to be living this dream.

Then a little blue Tiefling charged past him towards the shop doors and Arawn felt...something. Some roiling mix of emotions, he didn't like thinking about those first few weeks after he'd been released, but this Tiefling, if she was indeed the same one, had been one of the few highlights.

"Jester?" he tried, waving her down. "Jester is that you?"

Before she headed out of the bakery to go back to her friends, though, a familiar voice called her name. She didn't expect to see him again, but the Traveler would always put some blessings on her path. She turned around to see Arawn waving, accompanied by the cutest, most adorable little child ever.

⠀⠀⠀𝐂𝐋𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐂𝐄 𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐎𝐑 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐓𝐒. ♡

⠀⠀⠀clarice lispector was a ukrainian-born brazilian novelist and short story writer. her innovative, idiosyncratic works explore a variety of narrative styles with themes of intimacy and introspection, and have subsequently been internationally acclaimed.

"Am I a monster or is this what it means to be a person?"

"I want vast distances."

"I only achieve simplicity with enormous effort"

"And I want to be held down."

"I don't know what to do with the horrifying freedom that can destroy me."

"Do you ever suddenly find it strange to be yourself?"

"Do not mourn the dead. They know what they are doing."

"I write as if to save somebody’s life."

"And it's inside myself that I must create someone who will understand."

"You don't understand music: you hear it. So hear me with your whole body."

"I've never been free in my whole life."

"I'm seemingly free, but I'm a prisoner inside of me."

"I do not know much. But there are certain advantages in not knowing."

"Holding someone's hand was always my idea of joy."

"And when even then I can't find the courage, then I dream."

"I go on speaking to you, risking disconnection"

"But don't forget, in the meantime, that this is the season for strawberries."

"Oh, living is so uncomfortable."

"I work only with lost and founds."

"Where does music go when it’s not playing?"

"I am only true when I’m alone."

"Never suffer because you are not something or because you are."

"To think is an act. To feel is a fact."

"I’m restless and harsh and despairing."

"I just don’t know how to use love."

"I’m in danger, as is everyone who’s alive."

"I’m searching, I’m searching. I’m trying to understand."

"The word is my fourth dimension."