#progenitess

               A secret amongst secrets, chanced not even as a murmur slipping into the crags of darkness above his pillow. The Hero-King did not hold much faith in gods. Even if this indifference bordered on blasphemy, even if the revelation alone may spark insurgence from half the populace of Archanea, he could not help that Naga was only the mere whisper of a name. To him, a deity that had never come to light no matter how much he prayed.

               The common-folk said that fanciful words did not fill bellies. He has found their saying equivocal throughout all his efforts to halt the endless climb of casualties in his first war. Even the first Altean king, Anri, had not looked to the heavens for strength so much as paved his own way to retrieve the divine fang.  Be it through a sea of barbarians rippling against another sea of blighted sand or the belch of fire and frost flaying skin from bone.

               -and yet, the devotion he lacked did not mean he was unable to trust in a holy presence. Know the feeling of its fingers wrapped around him like a gossamer curtain as he had ever felt when stepping into a place of worship. The voice, however, throws him off as a pioneer of the experience and his eyes flashed from the glittering portrait of stars and constellations above. Spinning to his left, then to his right, before nervously buttoning his open collar up to the throat. Smoothing the creases along his lap as if observed by a most strict teacher.

@progenitess

Something’s here.

Someone, even. At least, that’s what it feels like.

But no matter how much Tibarn looks around, it’s to no avail. His eyes keep trying to convince him he’s by himself - on his lonesome - no one in sight whatsoever, no siree - at the training grounds.

Come on, now. He’s no Janaff, but his eyes are good. What the hell. He’s normally fine with being watched - he better be now that he’s one, a teacher observed by his students all the time during classes, and two, the only laguz most of those people ever have seen and ever will - but he’d at least like to know who is watching him and from where. 

With a sigh, he attempts to shake off the weird feeling and just go back to training. He transforms again, flies into the air, charges, swoops--

--and accidentally crashes into the training dummy and smashes the whole thing into pieces out of distraction.

... Oops. Welp, thankfully he didn’t hurt himself, but... uh.. he doesn’t think he can put this back together.

... Yeah okay, he’s had it.

He shifts back to his regular form, crosses his arms and just says out loud, directing it in no particular direction:

Official TOA Beach Day! || send 🔥 to gather around a bonfire with my muse

Kana could feel when someone was watching him. It was like a shadow looming overhead, an unnerving sensation; one learns to pick up on these little things throughout life (although he was a bit young to have learned such a skill already). 

Specter’s appearance flickers in and out of his field of vision; no matter how he squinted, he couldn’t see the one watching him clearly. Was she some sort of ghost, a spirit? Clearly not human, if the way she drifted away from the ground had anything to say about it. At the very least, he could pick out this spirit’s hair color, as whenever she popped into view, his vision was shocked with a beautiful verdant shade.

“My name is Kana,” he answers simply. Unlike her appearance, the spirit’s voice is loud and clear. Pointed ears twitch slightly. “Son of Queen Corrin of Valla, and heir to the throne.”

Her presence felt... familiar, somehow. Though he couldn’t quite place it. (He wishes he could smell her, and yet... nothing. She truly was just a spirit, wasn’t she?) 

Playing volleyball alone seemed rather depressing.

It was a game that was often played with friends at the beach; she had seen the nobles of the monastery hit a ball around in groups whenever they visited the beach. She thought it fitting to try it out herself now that she was in the right setting, though she supposes being alone sort of ruined the fun.

Still, not one to be deterred, Flayn continues smacking the ball around in silence. Sand flies upwards as the girl spikes-- well, the closest she can get to a spike, anyways-- the ball downward. She sputters as some of the brine and sea salt hit her face; how terribly salty!

The ghost of a giggle echoes in her ears.

A voice… was there someone else here?

She picks up the sand-covered ball and turns around, green ringlets flying through the air as she searches for the origin of the voice. In the corner of her eye, she spots a blurry figure with flowing green hair, floating on the coastline. Flayn squints, and the specter disappears in a flash.

A ghost, maybe? How mysterious… perhaps this really was the afterlife. She must investigate!

"Pardon the intrusion, but is someone there?" she calls, still scanning the beach for another flash of green. Silence. Maybe they wanted to play volleyball with her but were too shy to ask? Perhaps she should offer an invitation, then. "If you are here and listening, might I suggest we play a game?"

Flayn holds the ball up as if to show it off. Can the dead even play ball? She supposes she should find out here.

Beach starter for @progenitess

There was quite a lot about this place that was foreign to Byleth. Not only did it have a dreamlike quality, a beach and resort left all to themselves, but the amenities inside were unlike anything she’d seen before. The kitchen itself was clean and had a polish not even the monastery had, sleek and metallic. She looked inside cupboards curiously and examined the sink faucet, gladly drinking a glass of cold water from the tap, magically or otherwise purified.

One of the larger pieces of the kitchen ensemble was a sort of cabinet taller than herself that hummed with the low running of a fan. She approached it and grasped the two handles in front that opened like a pair of French doors, both swinging outward.

She noticed several things.

Firstly, the blast of cold air. So, it was used to keep things cold.

Secondly, there was in fact, a good amount of food inside along with bright colored beverages.

Thirdly, she was immediately met with the face of a familiar, green haired girl floating in front of her. attempting to rummage around inside.

Byleth immediately closed the fridge again.