#rp12

Looking away, Nightmare's eyes darted to the ground below, trying to lock on to anything at all. "Then perhaps we can try them all and see what you like....if that's what you want." He offered. "...Ivan...doesn't want to get any? How strange...I wonder why..."

He looked taken aback by the question for a moment, his hand playing with the fur on the cuff of his sleeve. "W-Well....see, I....I've never had any ice cream, so...so yeah. I don't have a favorite, then. I was thinking that...you know, uh...we can work on my character by going out for ice cream together...as a d- er, fun activity."

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“Hmmm... Maybe I’ll just have two. If I don’t try them all, we’ll be able to go out for ice cream together more times,” Evian nods decisively. She doesn’t seem to notice Nightmare’s hesitation, or if she does, she’s being very accepting about it.

His response comes as a surprise, however. “Wait, you’ve not had ice cream yet?!” 

Evian’s shock quickly turns to glee, and she offers her hand. “Well then let’s go!! Right now!!” 

The farmer’s market after the bonfire morphed into a rather odd turn of events. Mid-morning, the sun illuminating the world even with a flat sheet of grey clouds concealing it- An unexpected face darted through the market and straight for where Winnie and Nero leaned up against the table, two steaming mugs of tea in  hand.

Marta. And without Helena in sight whatsoever.

Eyes darting about and words tumbling out of her mouth faster than Winnie or Nero could fully comprehend, Marta blubbered out an apology for the night before. Didn’t realize their relationship status, got fed-up from some other things going on in her life, swearing it would never happen again. Winnie couldn’t help but wonder if she just felt- Lost without Helena guiding her. 

The thought never had the chance to hit the air. Marta didn’t even linger long enough to hear her verdict of forgiveness or guilt. The first breath she got after prattling all of that out, she turned and whirled away and out of sight. The crowd swallowed her up in a river of milling about and cooing murmurs over various goods.

“Did... D-Did that just h-happen-?”

---------------

 The two of them didn’t linger on it long. Marta had apologized and seemed like she really did want to make good with them. On top of that, it seemed like Helena and Marta came from a rather sheltered existence before ending up in Harvent. So, why not let it slide? No point in holding a grudge, they figured.

Besides- Why ruminate over that when they had another date planned that evening?

Unlike the last one, they decided to make it feel more like a genuine date by splitting apart and meeting back up at their agreed location. Just as Nero wrapped up the farmer’s market stand for the day with a bunch of empty boxes ready to get filled with honey again for the next week, Winnie slipped away to go to Abi’s and prepare a picnic for them to enjoy. Sure- It was mostly sandwiches. Easy stuff. It still gave them the chance to talk before Winnie drove off to meet Nero at the base of a mountain trail she’d been quietly yearning to show him for a while now. 

And, well- Edgar had been dying to soar through the mountain air currents, too. Maybe do a big of foraging himself for berries, lizards, and bugs. His favorite snacks.

Because none of the staff had questioned Sabi hanging around with Tay at the palace, the two had become lackadaisical about being seen together. Not completely of course; Sabi had taken to disguising himself as a soldier if they ever left the palace, but while inside he’d stopped covering his face at every footstep and door creak. He didn’t act lordly enough to be mistaken for the emperor, anyway – whereas Tay spent every given moment lounging and leaning on any comfortable surface like he owned the place. Because he did.

At this current moment, however, Sabi was reflecting on one of the few times he had been mistaken for Octavio. And he’d rolled with it, too. How embarrassing. It’d worked, but he still cringed to think of how he’d lied to that soldier. They’d been so enthusiastic.

No use worrying about it, though. Sabi tries to focus on the book he’s reading, but can’t amidst his thoughts, so raises his head to speak to his brother.

“Tay, er… do you think if you shaved your moustache, you’d look like me?”

The Emperor doesn’t look up, as his attention is focused on a small handheld gaming device. Instead of playing it, he’s unscrewing it.

“Perhaps. All the more reason not to, eh?” He carefully places one of the screws on the little table before them. “But we’re very different in our mannerisms. You could always try growing one instead.”

“Yes – And no. I am not doing that.” Thinking he heard shuffling at the door to the little library they were in, Sabi glances over his shoulder. “Do you – did you hear something? Someone?”

"Ice cream? Sure, that sounds like fun!" Evian twists her fingers. "I haven't tried all the flavours of ice the world has to offer. I don't know which one I like best yet. Ivan always seems hesitant to get any, for some reason. That's just too bad."

When did his loved solitude become almost a punishment?

Across nearly half the country sat a cosy man on a stone bench surrounded by trees, all his clothes especially his trousers were linked with fur he had made himself - crime doesn't just wait to happen, neither does the sun setting after twighlight. This year is ending with a bang.

Le brun posa un baiser à la base du cou d’Amara et lui prit ses bras tendus et les monta devant elle. Placé dans son dos, sa tête à côté de la sienne légèrement en retrait, il la fit pointer vers la cible au fond de l’atelier. “Quand tu es prête, tu peux relever la sécurité.” Après matinée au lit puis la plage, Tony avait tenu sa parole et lui avait donné une arme non sans une certaine appréhension, une impression éphémère qui avait traversé son visage, peut-être juste non fondée. “N’essaie pas de viser. Fixe simplement ta cible et tes bras feront le reste.” dit-il en posant une main sur une épaule pour les lui faire baisser. “Tu ne tires pas avec tes épaules, mais avec ton doigt et ton regard. C’est un angle. La ligne de ton regard et la ligne de tes bras. Et ton point.” Glissant une main sur son bras, il le lui remonta très légèrement puis garda ses mains sur ses avant-bras. “Retiens ta respiration et quand tu veux.”