the brains of the operation

@terraena gets a random starter.

His mouth almost upturns in a smile, but he doesn’t want to scare her off. He can hear Brooke’s voice in his head: ’ it doesn’t matter how many centuries you’ve been in love with her, you have to wait for her. ’ & for some reason, when he looks at Syd … he gets it. The waiting. She could ask him to wait forever, & he’d do so gladly. But for today, he settles with a simple gift. When he’d gone to the surface to check on Maggie and Brooke, he’d stopped by a local flower shop & picked up some flowers. Of course, these had nothing on the blooms in Ari’s garden, but she was still out from her run-in with Murmur.

He offers Syd the bunch of flowers, nodding down at them. “ Here … & no, there’s no strings attached. They just … reminded me of you. ”

Hazel eyes look down at the bouquet in Zaxh’s hand for a moment, and Sydney stands, unmoving. Flowers were such a simple gesture –– yet they were one she’d actually never received before at all. Not as a human, nor as a demon. Sydney was anything but a fool. She knew that Zaxh had feelings for her, and that these flowers were a way of expressing them without coming right out and saying anything. He had tried before –– and Sydney most definitely did not react in the way he had hoped. She was never rude, not always, anyway, but she was also never forthcoming. Truthfully, she hadn’t given the idea much thought: love. Relationships. She pushed those things to the wayside as she ran around Terrena Inferni, managing it to the best of her ability alongside Orias. 

After a few short seconds, Sydney reaches out and gently takes the bouquet from his hand.    No strings attached.    He was highly aware of his current position in Sydney’s life, and though a part of her felt a pang of guilt upon hearing his words, the demon continued to push any of those thoughts to the back of her mind. Zaxh is sweet, loyal; he can keep up with her banter... 

No.

There was no time for that. And there was certainly no time for Sydney to let him down. 

❛ Get the heaven over here, you! ❜    She practically jumps on Brooke, her arms wrapping tightly around her as she pulls her into an embrace. She feels like it’s been ages since just the two of them had gotten to spend time together, and Sydney isn’t about to let any of it go to waste.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains, You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas. I am strong, when I am on your shoulders. You raise me up to more than I can be. 

Beloved. Courageous. Selfless. NATHAN BOWEN.  February 24, 1798 - June 7, 1850.