#| meme

Oh that reputation. On one hand, entirely understandable, but on the other the ways it leads this genius to go about it has become a fun form of private study. It almost feels like an eternity ago when they navigated the nature of their relationship involving this. How let to a touch of confusion, open questions of how to navigate it, but ultimately how they've further cemented their selfishness for each other but readily stepping forth to face it.

Part of Caelus can't help but wonder how much fun she's actually having with all of this. The experimentation of these new scenarios, embracing selfishness, not to mention how those centuries of solitude found themselves unlocking a chest of countless remembrances due to getting this deeply involved with him. ..That said, the time for deep thought could wait for another Phantasmoon, because right now, speechless encapsulates him as that mouth of the Trailblazer briefly goes agape

How could it not when the lady of his dreams allowed some urban fashion to take the wheel? How beautifully fitting those jeans are, to that violet top (as purple is destined for her) serves as a compliment to those striking eyes. The fact she even magically whipped up a different brand of hairstyle really did sale the image of her looking like a completely different person. "..I- I- I--" He tries against, stumbling over towards her, and in this case, proceeding to quickly jolt around her figure, surveying her magnificence from all the perspectives these greedy eyes can get!

"I never found myself appreciating this reputation more than I have... It made this come to the spotlight?" Now don't get Caelus wrong! Their journeys across The Blue has introduced some of her more classic brand attire, but, there was a fiery excitement in seeing Herta experiment with a new element!

Inevitably, he's standing right before her, those warm hands briefly situated upon those cream colored shoulders as he gets righ tot the point.

"How in the three hells did I ever find myself being the luckiest man alive again?" That fondness and the smoky tinges of excitement was fresh in that dreamy tone. It was just impossible to hide what his beloved could enact in him. Deep within their united souls, that fireworks like bounce of the heart could be perceived, as if the damn thing was kicking back and forth within his ribcage.

...!

Wait.

Since this clearly isn't 'Herta' (but is) that's by his side now, does that mean..? Seeing how they were out in a more semi-public area, Caelus does not hesitate to test the boundaries, sweeping up to her side and abruptly settling one of those toned arms around her shoulders, keeping them intentionally pulled close. Would it be a moment of disapproval? Could she actively work with this if people were none the wiser here? The gentle sparks of the matter wasn't the only thing offered up.

"And even then, that reputation be damned, it sure hasn't stopped you from being a lil selfish with me, huh?" Cheeky bastard, he sounds prideful of that fact and the warmth imbued between them further solidified it. Briefly allowing the distance to close, a brief, appreciative press of the lips would be pressed upon her cheek, just around the corner of her lips before he eases back.

"Lookin' legendary as always."

Pushback, bewilderment, shock. There's no shortage of reactions on this side of things he's come to expect. Somehow, the rush of high traffic many stories below played to the hectic nature of such a decision, and not one singular lick of regret is reflected within his eyes. Herta's words were less of a question, and more of a minute realization, the idle tests of trying to pick apart the decision being met with no form of second thought.

No. There have been many nights underneath the Phantasmoon, within the comfort of his own bed, even with the malicious intent swimming within the innards and external makings of this wondrous world.

"Absolutely not." Caelus confirms that very thought with a smile that blazes with his pride. Back then during that headache inducing set up, meetings with IPC officials and how it all boiled down to a game of guessing intent, of 'cooperation' and sideline competitions, Caelus was quickly becoming accustomed to this atmosphere. Whether you're the lowest dreg, the cog, or even the invaluable 'piece' before their eyes, simplicity or peace were far cries unless this entire system could be wrangled into a headlock.

A small huff escaped from him. "I've lost too much damn sleep with the IPC deal making, and above all else I want to return that very favor for the rest of their days. That Jade woman wants an outcome for us arriving here, and true to hands of wealth, she was highly conscious of the all around benefit that could come to be."

"...And I think they're worried about that Stoneheart, Pearl."

The Arcadia's entire infrastructure is practically fraying before their very eyes. Strength remains, and further potentials are set to be realized, the Trailblaze would be a perfect path to unearth, extract and temper whatever diamonds in the rough that exist here. Still, that doesn't actually hone in on why he personally believed that, just the chaotic factor of his mood that served as the starting spark. A delinquent like swipe of the thumb across his chin was performed.

"Aha can give exactly what they want, on top of making it impossible to seal their hands upon it. If I learned anything, they'll milk a deal until the day it dies, standing or not then proceed to bring back your ghost to continue on. That's where our favorite menace can practically piss on all of their parade plans~" A tinge of that personalized madness flared in his tone, a touch theatrical, spirited.

Turning to Herta fully, a few steps would bring him closer from that perch that overlooked the city. Uncertainty was long since consigned from his features, a familiar, grit like resolve taking the stage as the fire bloomed within those very eyes. " This 'Anti-Destruction Alliance' was kinda doomed the instant it was an IPC house deal. Any 'leader' made from the Express would be turned into solely into a figurehead. Then the possibilities and drives of factions, intel, personalized choices, all of it would need their stamp of approval." That very thought snagged a pulse of short lived irritation in the mind. He could not be more thankful to the journey of Gold and Gears to enhance his insight.

Elation could uproot that entire structure and have it supported on thin goddamn air.

"So who better can snatch the entire table, turn it into a circus while making it so that there's a figure they can't attach any debt or condition to? ♪"

Maybe his hubris did carve out this very scenario. If there was one thing that served as a fundamentally core past time between the two of them, it was Caelus always selling her the most ridiculous, ideas and stories that either hyped her up on lies or made conspiracy theories that even made her tell him to fuck off. Now how could he not be inspired to challenge this very indomitable wall, her judgy, six-phased eyes and have a misadventure to boot?

"I swear, you better wait until we meet Teyvat. I'm telling you that's flat earth disguised as a damn orb in that case! But-- okay, let's say you want to call that one a hot mess. There's another angle here you can't deny! So, watch and behold, this time I've come to the table with some proof."

Caelus' eyes were lit with determined glee as he got to work. From that interdimensional pocket boundary, one of his treasures finds itself tugged from that abyss of who knows how many materials and supplies. Set within a particular casing was an innocuous block of cheese, that's right, and it wasn't due to any radioactive properties too! "Behold. When I made the claim a planet entirely out of aggressive cheese existed, I meant it. Lemme show ya what this thing is made of!"

"And why we're going to travel there one day!"

All it took was that singular flick of the lock, for the steam to exhale from the capsule and for that cheese to be unleashed upon the mortal plane once again. Initially, it just flopped onto the ground, right next to the bundle of Peppy's dog food that he 'borrowed' for this experiment. (Asta has like a goddamn ROOM filled with hundreds of those bags, it's fine!) Caelus' eyes were eagerly awaiting the spectacle, and his heart jumped in joy once the cheese actually growled like a wild animal in one moment.

Then proceeded to slaughter that entire bag of dog food within moments. Yes, somehow this cheese was chomping upon its quarry, tearing into the bag and eating that too for some unhinged reason no less! Caelus, with his arms crossed, contently watched the spectacle. "And this is how a whole planet was birthed out there. Abundance blessed cheese gained resolve March, a need to feast, and it managed to become the apex predator of that ecosystem.. then literally became the ecosystem alongside oxygen. Dunno how that last part happened."

"But the point still stands!" He exclaims, pointing as the snarling cheese before them.

"A planet like this does exist, the One Piece of our cosmos! And damn it all we need to go there for training!"

Okay, so maybe, maybe getting her stream set in the 'time out status' for two hours is a reflected result of their mischief.

Caelus was already happily licking his lips, enjoying the remnants of helping this ever diligent streamer keep those cortisol levels low. Even now, that sugar sweetness remained upon the lips and had him dreamily sighing in reply. "Haah? It was the spook game special for this weekend, now how I was supposed to know that you were that sensitive with a tease there while I had a treat?" Damn it all, just the mere idea alone was beginning to stir up his appetite.

That immediately leads his eyes from spacing out upon the air, instead honing that concentration directly upon her flushed figure, that wondrous array of ivory, scarlets and pristine skin making those memories burgeon the front of his skull in a heartbeat. The way she squealed, those gasps, how she continually failed to hide the fact that something outright perverted was happening under that goddamn desk.

Despite the words, those beautiful glares, shouldn't the Trailblazer note how it's huffiness on the matter while keeping close? That streak of deviancy didn't fell like settling with calm. Instead the distance closes between them once again, those broad hands drawing warmth and contact upon those skirt clad thighs as he leaned down. "But this is a tough spot, huh? Compromising your bounty of Wishpower is out of the question, a lady needs to keep busy."

Those hands continued their travail, smoothing down to those bare thighs, offering a hearty squeeze as they began to retract, hiking up that article of clothing as an impish kiss is situated along the nape of her neck. The contact ushered a hum of approval, and that gilded sharpness in his gaze said it all. "I'll make up that difference, and give this hardworking streamer a break all in one. Gotta make good on that surprise ya gave me this morning."

Her and those excitable nightwear choices!

"Isn't that par the course, walking alongside a natural disaster?" Fluttering lights situate at a more private end of the Soaring Clockhand, a personalized boat made a now core shareholder of Penacony's grand workings. Power like this he finds isn't all too bad, being able to shove an eager crowd away at some points, and in others having 'reserved' Captain spots for him and company that need as little eyes as possible upon them.

Even the very memoria wove around these locations (with a few modifications by his Remembrance) offered a reprieve for his allies, regardless of their walk of life.

Still, that doesn't change how there was a tinge of self-depreciation in that earlier statement. Robin's words, her fire just had a powerful impact upon him in the passing days, the means that made his gaze persist upon her whenever they shared their time together. How those gallant eyes to the stir of those ivory wings, maybe a higher concern should be held in staring someone down this adamantly. "But if it makes you feel better, I can say my behavior has been situated more towards the realms of improvement."

Caelus never stopped holding that confession of her inner anger close, due to the very nature that conceptualized this newest round of his life. Despite the heat, the thorns, cradling that moment of shared intensity has often served as the lighthouse upon the shore. Compromise was the best he could manage, a better lens of understanding in order to differentiate. His initial lean upon the railing switches up, altering it with a short hop that sits him onto that highly risky seat, yet his balance remains flawless, leaving his legs to lightly kick in the dreamy wind.

"Nothin' flawless," As if Robin Oak would ask for that. "Just good enough in my personal judgement. ..I've been a bit more thoughtful of the 'Miss Notes' out there."

"Guess you can say there's been a lil devil hanging on the shoulder nowadays." Those eyes intentionally honed upon her figure at that point.

"Who's been deadset on making sure recklessness and me don't get along the ways we could."

Angel, no matter how he tries, does not feel fitting for the mischievous soul alongside him. Despite the way she cares, the way she reaches through the thread of her music to stir inspiration, hope and warmth to the upbeat and lost souls in equal measure, it certainly didn't mean the other true masks had to come into play at those moments. Somewhere amidst this talk, Caelus wasn't even aware of the smile set upon his lips right now.

Discovering these sides of her has helped in some way that can't quite be named as of yet. Somehow, the friction set between them sparked a bond to be pursued further, to be better learned and safely kept. How he'd be enriched with determination to ensure their roads can continue like this, at times distant, and others often intersecting in these familiar ways.

In an abrupt sense of impishness charged from his own wild design, the shared moment is quick, brief between them as those fingertips would make an abrupt and gentle flick upon the songstress' nose.

"Maybe my question should be why you love hanging around danger so much, you look like you belong."

He finds himself stalled by those words encouraged with a hopeful resonance. The feeling of pride in her voice, how those beautiful eyes shimmer in being able to put those pieces into play, the welcomed majesty of her very home and the way it thrives with life more than every ritzy establishment could ever dream of. Settled upon that couch alongside of his Firekiss, he can't stop the way his body freezes, that important thread of a question cooling the normally internalized warmth of the mind.

Since when? Caelus can't help but find himself an impossible number of metrics of what encapsulates a hero. Naturally his mind doesn't fall to a Tyrant's perspective, the penultimate tool to enact their will, or merely slaying the countless that weren't approved of. Yet, these same hands can't deny the scale of blood that's situated upon them already. At this point, it feels so bizarre to become self-conscious about it. His throat gently flexes, and it's hard to truly drive up the same level of gumption as he'd normally display.

"..Have I?" The question is gently placed, framed with more vulnerability then any original intent wished for. Still, he's in a realm of safety and that alone is what makes him lean a bit more weight upon Guinaifen, not quite gaining the strength to look her in the eyes.

Set before him is a golden laced with gilded and coral colored blooms. A positive image of the Nameless, reflected by the soul who just the other day, beheaded a foe that aimed to drive people to oblivion compared to talking them down. Somehow, it's when he's with her that another aspect she talked on comes to mind, the way her father was loving to them but compared to the world, truly did leave it to burn. While he can assert with confidence he'd never be driven anywhere close to such hellish idealism.

Isn't this running a bit too uncanny?

"The idea of Hero holds angles in the eyes of a whole damn lot of people out there, it has so many ways it can be. Firekiss.. How can I say for sure if I'm meeting that? Or if I haven't screwed some secret condition to that long ago?"

Each bloom of Guinaifen's hopes meet him with gentle brushes, and that same care held in a mind capable of no mercy plays a different image. How recently in Planarcadia, he's learned of a created beings wish of vengeance, how they fought across iterations to remember and combat against a man's sick obsession. How Caelus, once made privy, played both judge and executioner both in allowing himself to witness the final hours of that man being torn apart.

No regret remains in his head, but still, that idea lingers.. And right now it makes his heart pulse with uncertainty.

Would this sully the view that his girl carries?

A careful motion of the hand closes the distance in one way, smoothing his fingertips along the back of her palm, soon encompassing it with a tender squeeze from a gloved grip

"I've done cruel things in the name of what I thought was right. Moments that matter more compared to the big bad taken down, battles I've seen to the end after making a judgement, even if it could've ended differently-- Would your hero do that?"

A day that defies. A fate facing its inevitable retribution for the price cast upon a beautiful soul. Even now the weight of those emotions were worn like a heart upon her ivory sleeves, the heaviness set within those violet eyes of Death's Daughter, it leaves him speechless to see what countless perceive as a curse upon his very being to become her blessing. The Stellaron, the World Cancer, the eventuality that restlessly works to devour the very reality they can stand upon, and all it's countless forms.

Just as it denied the immortality of the Abundance, here does it defy the divine order of Castorice's Coreflame. There would be no hoarfoast or stolen soul applied by her touch, no, instead they draw beyond that border and discover the warmth that awaits them both. A grace that's been taken as an everyday simplicity for the Trailblazer differs for her position. Allowing the connection to simply be, to never risk melted flesh or the fading warmth and bone beneath for her.

It leaves them speechless to find success, even if once upon a time her very aura felt as it drained him away. Yet the Stellaron as the crawling chaos assimilates and adjusts to that nature of Ordered Death. "And it's not a dream.. No accident, nothing like this. Castorice." His voice rumbled with conviction, with a form of hope that even stirred up his emotions as he faced her, a genuine happiness pulsing in the fire of that very chest. He refuses to let this fall under the threat of doubt.

Not when the border of tears, of disbelief, to the hints of a hopeful smile causing countless blooms to grow envious due to the nature of his luster.

Caelus' battle calloused fingertips brush a gentle stir along her fingers, smoothing upon the grooves until they drew higher towards the very fingertips. Seconds, minutes, they could harmlessly pass. The present and history tells of silent details upon contact, of how well she cares for her physical form, the bewilderment and newness of touch, how a fragile of hope found itself actively growing.

"This is no dream. It's your future." Strength forged from truth and journey would temper those words, prompt a heat that intends to encompass her very heart would comfort, if accepted. He couldn't resist the desire to truly hold her hand. He allows for their fingers to carefully interlace, locking briefly with a grasp and offering a squeeze of support as a step is taken closer.

"I'm only the first, this world should be a place you can experience well beyond just words."

On his drive as a Nameless, he'd ceaselessly fight to ensure such a future is set in stone.