The Princess of Talys

“Often times, yes.” She says, staff vanishing but barrier staying up. It was a barrier in the form of a half-circle, airtight and absorbant. “Any lightning bolts that strike will immediately misdirect themselves to more favorable areas.” She explains, sitting on air, it would seem. A trick of the eye? Perhaps.

Loki flowed a hand through her hair and turns around to stare at Caeda. “Have a seat, my dear. You’re very welcome.” Loki stated, patting the air a few inches to her right. The sorceress crosses her legs and leans back, pink eyes focused on the rumbling clouds overhead. Things were about to get loud.

Slowly, Caeda sits down, folding her legs underneath her. When she beckons, Tempest lies down beside her, folding his wings.

The silence is short-lived. Above their heads, lightning flashes, and it’s followed quickly by a roar of thunder. Tempest immediately whinnies in fear, his head snapping up, but Caeda intercepts him before he can get back to his feet, stroking his mane soothingly. “Shh... you’re alright,” she murmurs.

Change: What was a turning point in your muse’s life?

The obvious answer would be the beginning of the War of Shadows when she went from being the princess of a small island nation to one of the frontline fighters in a war, but Caeda would actually say that the biggest turning point in her life was a year before the war started, when she first met and became enamored with Marth. Talys was a relatively isolated nation, and the betrayal of Gra came out of nowhere, so, before this, Caeda was only vaguely aware that the rest of Archanea was embroiled in war. Being able to meet Marth, who was driven from his homeland and his parents slaughtered, came as a huge wake-up call, and she had already made up her mind to help him when he finally returned to Altea long before they actually departed from Talys. 

Death: Name one thing your muse has lost that they wish they could get back.

Although they’re all still young and relatively spry, Caeda and her closest companions are no longer in good health after the war. That is what she misses most about her life before the war--her health. Both her physical health, which was compromised by the injuries she’s sustained (being forced to limp around when her bad leg acts up always frustrates her deeply), and her mental health, which deteriorated during the war as well, leaving her and many of her friends with PTSD. Having a nightmare, panicking over something small, or flinching away from loud noises frustrates her even more than limping on her bad leg; she’s ashamed of herself for being hurt by these things when the war is already over (despite the fact that she can’t stand when Marth blames himself for his own mental illnesses).

Disease: What does your muse do on a sick day?

Blood: What’s the worst injury your muse has ever had?

Caeda was injured a lot during the war since she was A) a princess and therefore a prime target, and B) almost always on the front lines. Most of the injuries were fairly light, though, and she received help from the healers very quickly. Once, however, her left leg was badly injured in the middle of an intense fight and she wasn’t able to get help for a long time. While the injury is healed now, it left a nasty scar that sometimes acts up and makes her limp if she walks on it too much.

Curses: Does your muse believe in good/bad luck? How about karma?

Loki feigns a sigh, turning away and falling to her knees. “Oh, my fair maiden heart!” She sniffles, holding an arm over her eyes. “You’d sacrifice the life of your Pegasus for this? How noble.” She fake sniffles and stands up again, grinning. “Tch, and I tried to play the villain. Oh well~” She shrugs her shoulders and walks towards Caeda once more. Her staff formed into her right hand, the woman raising it and twirling it around betwixt her fingers.

Whilst she did, a circular barrier covering a range of twelve feet sprung up around the three. “This should keep us all dry.” She may have liked to see the rain and (most importantly) thunder, but she wasn’t willing to get her clothes wet while she watched.

Caeda startles as the barrier forms around them, not expecting the display of magic. Of course, Tempest rears up for a moment, and she hastens to comfort him; like most pegasi, he always shies away from magic, but he’s quick to regain his confidence when there are no further spells.

🌠 - Would your muse make a wish on a star? If so, what would they wish for?

Caeda would definitely wish upon a star; wishing on stars is exactly the sort of thing she would do--something that’s only really based on legends and superstition, but it’s harmless to try, so she might as well. She isn’t convinced that wishing on a star works, but she does believe that there’s some sort of magic involved in shooting stars. She would wish by blowing out a dandelion, too.

Loki’s hand brushed Caeda’s own, although it didn’t appear to move… an illusion perhaps? The Sorceress smiles kindly at the girl, then actually shakes her hand, right hand shaking Caeda’s hand. “Do you not recognize me? I figured everyone might. Ah well, it is no big matter.” Loki shrugs her shoulders and moves a hand to her chin, eyes closing. The Sorceress rolls her shoulders and steps towards Tempest. “Even up close, the beauty is otherworldly. Your words are truthful, young one.” Loki complimented.

Her brows furrow as she contemplates Caeda’s inquiry, an answer forming across her mind as she continues to stroke the pegasus’s fur. “Storms are a work of art to me. I like to watch them roll in… your Pegasus might not fare well, but surely you must know that given your penchant for wanting to leave.” Loki smirked, tilting her head to the right. “I can remove the storm, but you must do one thing for me: Give me your Pegasus.” Loki’s smirk widens, a wicked variation of it emerging.

The fake-out handshake catches Caeda off-guard, but she refuses to be thrown off. “Ah, I recognize your name,” she admits after a moment, “though I don’t think we’ve ever met before.”

Tempest is still antsy from the storm, and he eyes Loki warily as she approaches, but a reassuring pat from Caeda calms him down, and he docilely allows Loki to stroke him.

Now that the focus is on Tempest, Caeda allows herself to relax. Unfortunately, this also means that Loki’s sudden request completely blindsides her. For a moment, she just stares, wide-eyed and mouth gaping, before she manages to collect herself.

Her response comes easily. “No,” she says simply, turning to face Loki fully with both arms stiff at her sides. “Absolutely not. Tempest is my closest companion, and I, his. He is not up for sale--or for barter.”

Beside her, Tempest rears and tosses his head, and Caeda realizes that she’s begun to raise her voice. She hastily cuts herself off, closing her eyes and taking a slow, deep breath. Once she’s calmed herself down a bit, she opens her eyes again and places a hand on Tempest’s flank. The spooked pegasus continues to whinny uneasily, but he stops tossing his head, instead staring at her with big, alert eyes.

🌺 - Does your muse have a favorite flower? Why do they like it?

Caeda has VERY strong opinions about flowers. Talys was full of pretty unique vegetation, and, culturally, flowers and flower language are very significant in Talys. Caeda prefers wildflowers to garden flowers, but she still loves both; her favorite flowers are probably amaryllis or birds of paradise.

💅 - How does your muse feel about gender roles? Do they conform to them, or do they play by their own rules?

Though Caeda doesn’t necessarily reject traditionally feminine things, such as the color pink, sewing, dresses, etc., she doesn’t conform to them, either. The idea of acting in a certain way or doing certain things because she’s a girl makes no sense to her. It wouldn’t even make her angry if someone tried to tell her that she couldn’t fight because of her gender; it would just baffle her. This way of thinking is a bit odd on Talys, but she isn’t necessarily viewed as rebellious, just eccentric (and, since she’s the princess and her father is a bit too much of a pushover to tell her off, no one really has the authority to make her stop).

Pink lips curl into a mischeivious smile. Loki, steps backwards, eyeing the pegasus. “Such a beautiful creature you have, it looks well maintained as well.” She commented, eyes finding themselves on Caeda soon enough. With a hand with movements as graceful as a swan, the woman holds it outward and summons her staff, Thökk, into her palm. She pulls her hand back and holds the staff with both hands, length-wise, transferring the staff from right to left, then left to right.

With a flourish, her right hand slams the staff into the ground, using her magic to create a circle of flowers blooming outward endlessly. “Would be a shame if the fire burned all these beautiful flowers to the ground. Then again…” She rescinded the weapon, the flowers vanishing and grass becoming the mainstay once again. Loki trailed off, smirking. She throws her staff into the air and making it vanish by way of a simple hand-waving. Was it really that easy? She certainly made it appear to be.

“My name is Loki… surely you must have heard of me.” No tricks, this time.

“Ah, thank you,” Caeda says, brightening up immediately at the mention of Tempest. “I’ve known him for a long time! He’s very gentle, so, if you’d like to... approach him...”

She trails off, losing her train of thought, as the stranger pulls out a staff. Flowers bloom beneath their feet in a beautiful array of colors, and Caeda watches, transfixed. Only when the flowers vanish does she snap out of her trance, and she quickly looks back up, just in time to see the staff disappear with a wave of the stranger’s hand.

So she is armed, after all--and, not only that, she seems to be more than proficient with her magic. Caeda is relieved that she’s in no danger, but, at the same time...

She doesn’t want to be suspicious of someone who hasn’t done anything wrong, but...

“Ah... Loki, was it?” Caeda’s mind races. Loki--she certainly had heard that name before. Perhaps she had a good reason to be suspicious, after all. Then again... as far as Caeda knew, Loki wasn’t evil by nature--the Summoner had even joined forces with Loki at least once, though that may have been a Loki from a different world...?

Closing her eyes, Caeda shook her head roughly. No, no; she was overthinking this. Loki hadn’t attacked her or done anything with malicious intent, so she would have to trust her.

☆～（ゝ。∂）= How the character greets people

Caeda is very straightforward and sociable. Even if it’s someone she doesn’t know--or even someone who intimidates her--she’ll stride right up to them with a big smile and cheerfully ask for their name. If the person gets hostile or cold, she’ll act even more cheerful and smiley, but, if they seem shy or put-off, she’ll tone it down a little bit--only a little bit, though. She also almost always offers a handshake.

｡ﾟ(TヮT)ﾟ｡ = What makes the character laugh

She has two laughs, in a way. One is a soft giggle that she usually hides behind her hand. That’s how she laughs when other people make jokes or when she’s teasing someone. She can also giggle on demand, usually when she’s trying to get someone to lighten up or ease tension in the room.

Now, Caeda’s real laugh is a very loud, breathy cackle. As in: only slightly less shrill than a stereotypical witch’s laugh. It’s very noisy, very boisterous, very much not a “proper” or “ladylike” noise, and it’s usually strong enough to make her double over or sometimes even collapse. Not much can get her to laugh like that; it usually only happens when something she finds hilarious happens unexpectedly, without giving her time to brace herself.

♪ = What music the character likes

The obvious (and somewhat trite) answer is “her friends’ happiness”. It’s silly, but true; something as simple as seeing Ogma share a laugh with his men or watching Marth fawn over a young animal never fails to make her heart swell. Flying with Tempest also makes her feel on top of the world, no pun intended. As a young girl, she couldn’t do much traveling or exploring, and, even if she could have left the palace, Talys is a small, isolated island kingdom; there was nowhere to go. So the feeling of being able to fly around freely above the clouds is absolutely euphoric to her.

Caeda tends to get lost in thought a lot. Growing up on a small island, in a small castle, where there were very few children her age to spend time with, she had to keep herself entertained for long periods of time. Nowadays, she still daydreams a lot, often while cloud gazing or taking a ride with Tempest.

“Drenched?” Loki didn’t have her staff out. The woman folds her hands and turned toward the girl, a devious smile lining her lips. “What do you mean, storm?” She asks, as if questioning the girl’s sanity. “All I see is harmony, peace… solace in the gray clouds~ the storm~” She explains, stepping back. The clouds above were stirring and rapid, flashes of blue and white roaring within, the cloud’s growling echoing across the land. “I enjoy seeing storms, but the destruction caused to the land often makes me worry~ what would happen if this entire field was destroyed by those clouds?” She asked, pouting. A straight-faced lie, Loki couldn’t care less! In fact.. she yearned for the destruction, craved it. Now, she tackled the girl’s inquiry, “Me? Simply basking in the display before me, admiring nature.” She explains. The war mention piqued her interest, but she didn’t wish to start a seminar with this girl. One thing at a time.

Loki shifts her weight onto one heel and stared at the girl. “Who would you be, exactly?” The woman backs up and runs a hand through her hair, her hat’s ornaments moving and swaying as she moved her hands.

“Harmony?” Caeda asks, caught off-guard by the strange answer. She follows the strange woman’s gaze up at the clouds--jeez, the storm’s really starting to roll in now. “I... suppose there’s a certain kind of peace in storm clouds,” she says after a moment. It’s a bit of a strange reason to be out here, but this woman doesn’t... seem to be lying--and, besides, who is she to judge? She used to be an avid cloud watcher as a kid, so it’s not as if she doesn’t understand the appeal.

“Like you said, though, storms can be dangerous. If lightning strikes dry wood, it could easily cause a forest fire big enough to burn down the whole plain.” Caeda frowns at the thought. It isn’t very likely, but it’s certainly possible, and the idea makes her a bit nervous. “If that’s the case, though...” She turns back to the woman. “Aren’t you afraid you’ll get caught up in the fire if that does happen?”

Caeda considers this for a moment, then shakes the thoughts out of her head. “Oh--I’m sorry, where are my manners?” She smiles and holds out her hand for a shake. “My name is Caeda. I live over to the west, in the Askran Castle. Tempest and I--” she gestures over her shoulder to her pegasus, who tosses his head at the sound of his name-- “were just out here to scout for enemy camps.”

Caeda’s flustered, but it’s nothing in comparison to Marth. 

Every coherent thought in his mind has completely evaporated, leaving him nothing but a flustered mess, with his knees drawn to his chest and his face held in his hands.

He hears Caeda yelling at him and gods, can he only think about how her skin felt against his lips. He curls up even tighter and– oh, those high pitched noises were coming from him. 

“I-I sincerely apologize, Cae-Caeda,” He manages, still hiding behind his hands. “I-I wasn’t- I didn’t consider- I didn’t think- Oh, gods, I’m so sorry. I should’ve- I didn’t think I would- I didn’t think-,”

Gods, he really did that! He really just- Oh, by Naga’s grace, he kissed her. He really did that, he really did that-

Marth realizes that he’s been stammering out apologies and various excuses for a solid thirty seconds and peeks out from between his fingers at Caeda and OH, SHE’S TOUCHING THE PLACE HE-

He stumbles out of his chair, wheezing.

“No, that’s--that’s not the--that’s not the problem--that’s--”

Gods, she shouldn’t have yelled, and, more importantly, she should be reassuring him right now, but she just--can’t seem to--get the words out. By Naga, is this what Marth feels like whenever he stutters? Caeda doesn’t usually have that problem. She’s usually the composed one. But she’s still shell-shocked, and the words aren’t exactly coming easily right now--

“Marth, you’re fine, you’re--the k-ki--that was fine--” (Oh, her mind sneers, fine? What a glowing endorsement for a kiss.) “I’m not mad that you--that you k--it just doesn’t count!” she blusters, ignoring the persistent flush on her cheeks. “I-it just doesn’t count--as an arm wrestle! Because k-kissing your opponent is cheating, and...!”

She trails off, her chest heaving and heart racing like she’d just sprinted all the way here from Talys. Judging by Marth’s expression, her little tirade isn’t really helping matters. Yelling at Marth was never a good plan--she knew this well--and she knew it would take more than a few paltry reassurances to convince him that it was alright. But what else could she do?

...Well. She knows exactly what else she can do. She’s just... incredibly nervous at the thought, and not nearly composed enough to overcome those particular nerves at the moment.

But it wasn’t as if Marth hadn’t been nervous when he... when he did that, and he’d still gone through with it, so... wasn’t this the least she could do?

“...”

Caeda had never been much for deliberation. She preferred acting to sitting around considering whether to act. And she always preferred the course of action that would spare Marth the most pain.

Squeezing her eyes shut and ignoring the fluttering in her stomach, Caeda strode forward and pressed a lightning-quick peck against Marth’s cheek, closer to his lips than she’d intended. With that accomplished, she dared to pry her eyes back open.