Senecio adn Tide II

[VisAnastasis]

(OOC: Oh, that's absolutely whimsical scene! I love it!  (･ᗜ･)ﾉ♡. * ･ ｡ﾟ  I didn't know there were movies with it, where I remembered Singing Flowers was actually a Moomin cartoon from 90es, in one episode the travelling characters brought the damaged seed of a Singing flower to Moomins as a gift. When the flower bloomed at the very end of the episode of characters worrying and taking care of it, it was moment when everyone gathered up around the pot and were awed, and its song was really magical, I always remember it fondly ^^

" Some things don't grow too far, even if layers are different, so I plan to pick them up myself, but for lot of things, plants I want either grow further away or have owners I would need to barter with first, which would take longer time. So, for lot of things, I'm actually planning to make deals with Sun Spirits to bring seeds to us, " Girl explained brightly. " Since they are descendants of Solstice, Sun Spirits are usually looked upon very favourably by people who grow plants, so they shouldn't have difficulties making deals. Naturally, we'd have to compensate them for their efforts, but they are not exactly too busy, and they aren't in any rush to get back to Sun Court, so they somehow ended up staying after Long Night. One of them is even dating Mole right now, and it seemed everyone Solstice picked was people he trusted, and probably helped him with aiding Demons in the past, so by what I see, they seem rather pleased with how we treat vampires and little Erdel, since they often step in to help us out, especially in matters tied to them, and even donated some of their blood here and there. They are especially pleased with Simbels' recent changes, too, so, since they are quite fond of us, I have no doubt some would be willing to help with seed gathering for Simbel's garden, so when we finish the list I plan to talk to them last, so I can ask them for this, and bid them if there's any plant they'd love to grow here too, since they seem to want to keep living here for a while, too. "

---

" I can't say or promise any concrete option about treatment until I know more. I... have been wrong about so many things in this world... so I no longer want to make any hasty assumptions before I understand everything. But yes, since Riversong treated such cases with Death, we should ask him, " Simbel said, adding quietly. " As for Ben... Well, he is in a little strange mental state. He is missing an arm, and  normally, I think that would be a big blow to a person... And it will probably get to him over time, but right now, i seems like he's too relieved, that we woke up, and that it happened during your all's lifetime, and that nothing too irreversible, like Death dying, happened in meantime. It seemed he felt like he'll most likely die or perish... So it drags him forward, that he did not die, and it distract him, that he can use his powers again. Ever since he woke up first, he's constantly going back and further, between using his powers on others, and falling back asleep from exchastion. While part of it is distrascvtion from thinking about you, Death and Jake, it is clear to me he's suffered quite badly, from trying to fit into Riversong's shoes. Riversong always felt used, and he fell into same patterns, reluctant to use his powers for others, but then, he was devastated when, as he got sick, he could no longer do anything... so, now it seems like he's rushing, trying to overcompensate. It's a bit worrisome, but also cute, how much he curses Riversong under his breath... It seems to bring him some relief, to speak of him in third person, so I let him. I think it would be good for him, to not put himself into as tiny box as Riversong was in. He is quite exhausted and groggy, but he seems already much more secure than when he was trying to hold onto the person he no longer was, " Spirit shook his head thoughtfully, before he quietly asked Svarik. " He is clearly though, deep down with unsure and worried how confrontation with you, Death and Jake will go. It seems lot of Riversong's life was coloured by constant doubts of whether Death takes care of him more because he sees him as friend, or if he was just a troublesome subject that had to be taken care of more. It is a little sad, how things repeat as great Tree grows... Riversong's worries always seemed to colour the shape of worries Ben has. He hides it well, but he's always questioning if he's actually dear to people, or is just a troublesome burden people would be better without, and deep down don't like anymore, but just feel wstuch with. I have managed to convince him that I do want him in my life, so, whatever happens... All I ask from you, is to give him as sincere clarity as possible. Not gentleness... just as clear truth as possible, so he does not fall into Riversong's self-doubts again, " he spoke gently, as if to reassure him. " No matter what remaining resolutions will be, I told him I want to keep living with him, and that I would be sad if he were to leave or move away. So, when you confront him, just be clear about what role you hope he will have in your life. Only mistake you could make is lie to him that he means more to you than he does, because if he were to recognize the lie in the future, he'll fall into destructive doubts again. Whether you choose to cut ties with him, or renew your friendship, please, choose as you sincerely feel like, and I think he will be able to take it - but his sense of worth is quite fragile, I think it would push him back to his old habits if he anew grow to second guess everything he has with other people. Right now, when he's feeling relatively sure with my reassurances and his sister's Maira acceptance, he is much closer to how he was when we originally met him, Svarik. He looks... like he can finally breathe a bit better, now that he's further from Riversong's heavy shadow... "

---

Hans first glanced towards Tide - it seemed he did not want to reply first, so Tide wouldn't feel pressured to say yes if he doesn't want it.
" I... see... " Demon indeed seemed a little shy with attention, as he clearly didn't seem to have encountered such a subject much in the past. " To be honest, normally, I am not really into threesomes... Only people I had it with were Hans and Eros. If there was love involved, perhaps I would have a different impression, but since it was mostly done for fun, it didn't really fit with me. I prefer a one-on-one partner since I find it more romantic. So, if you asked for someone else, even Eros... it would be something I would have to consider more carefully. I would feel quite self-conscious of how I act, if it was just before anyone. But Hans is one exception, and he is one of the rare people who know about my senses and their unique ties to hunger, and... he is the person who helped me explore and choose my gender and understand my preferences in the first place. Jumping straight into a threesome would be a bit big jump without preparing my heart, but just having a role... yes. Hans is Hans. Nobody is quite like Hans. With others, it would be something that'd make me unsure, but with him, it would be fun... "
Spirit could not help but chuckle slightly with evaluation, his eyes shining fondly.
" Damn... You rascals are too cute, " he glanced back at Senecio. " Well, Tide is Tide, and you are you, and I'm always having fun with you guys. It's a silly thought, isn't it, that I'd want to refuse a chance to spend more time with you, right? Being thoughts on lovemaking are rather more casual than human, so me and Tide would be intimate here and there, either when we felt like it's been a while, for fun's sake, or for stress relief - some intimacy is always nice for calming down in turbulent times. So, we are pretty good at recognizing each other's boundaries even without voicing them. But it's true that while I had lot of fun in orgies for fun's sake, Tide's only threesome experience was with me and Eros, and it was outside of the context of the relationship, just for sake of learning and having a new experience. As for you, I doubt you have any healthy experiences to reference, so we must tread carefully. Since you are both new to those things, all I ask from you is to always keep track of your level of comfort, " Spirit said simply, speaking rather gently as if he tried to ease and reassure them. " I happen to be quite comfortable with what we have right now, and I'd hate to endanger it if being present at times you're most vulnerable would grow into discomfort with me even in times outside of the game. So, the first rule, is if you at certain points feel like you'd prefer if I am not there, just ask, and I can leave, non-questions asked. It's important that you know you can ask me to leave without feeling guilty. Second rule, mark your expectations clearly. When you say you would like me to join as a character, but not take part in a threesome, since your tastes are a bit unique, and the game isn't straightforward, what level of involvement do you expect from me? Is it more of something in between your steamy sessions, to fill in a role for plot progression, so the plot feels more fleshed out, with more than two main characters? Or did you have in mind to ask me to do things like whipping you, so Tide can be free from focusing on it to do other things? Is your invitation mostly to fill in the narrative gap, and you'd prefer me not to do anything else, or is it more along the lines of wanting me not to touch you intimately, but being fine with pain-related things where I don't touch you, so I can do things Tide can't safety do, due to his strenght? And, regarding touch boundary, since the script is involved, if the character you intend for me is a friend character, is moderate touching alright between your sessions, as long as it's not sexual? It would be a bit hard to imagine playing a friend character if your character is going through something bad and I can't hug him to comfort him as part of the narrative, that's all, " he grinned lightly, but he was watching the actor carefully as if trying to read his expression, as he continued. " Third rule... It is very important to me, in fact... that you understand, whatever role you hope from me... that none of this is some rite of passage. Even if all my role ends up being is narrative fill-in where we have fun discussing the plot you make, and things never escalate above it - can I count on you, that you won't create imaginary pressure on yourself? " he asked actor, whom he was clearly genuinely worried about, more than Tide, whose boundaries he was well familiar with. " It worries me, the way you say things like "not yet", you know. It is just not one of those things that are linear, where things must always escalapte just a little bit further each time, where after a while and enough steps pass we can go all the way then. Those things are unrelated. We may get to be intimate one day - but we may also end up never feeling like the moment is right for it, and we may never even touch each other intimately, even once, for the whole eternity ahead... and have just as great a relationship, whether we were intimate or not. Can you promise me that you'll always have that in mind? If I am to be able to have fun with your game, too, I have to be secure. Not the most fun and exhilarating game in the world, would be worth losing what we have, my cute apple pie... So, how much can I trust you, to make sure this fun, like any other fun, does not bring needless pins and needles into our friendship? "

[Mirach]

(OOC: The movie is from 1952 but very well known here (they often play in on tv during holidays), and thinking about it, the king in it is a lot like Svarik, actually. He's the one playing to the flower when he goes undercover as a gardener to get to know a princess that should become his wife)

"When you send them, tell them to also record the conditions in which the original plants grow best. Light, moisture, soil, any special care... We can then better plan what to plant where together," Lipka said, clearly excited for the project. "By the way, when you're with Conrad, can you reassure him that I'm fine with him being with Svarik? I was a bit nervous about talking to him, and he was anxious too, and I didn’t know what to think about the new situation myself at firsr. I should have come to talk to you first."

---

Svarik nodded. "It seems a lot of Beings are haunted by shadows of who they used to be after they outgrow them. It must be hard, to accept change when everyone knows you as what you was. Will you let me know when he's awake? Until then though, how are *you* doing with the news I brought you? I know it was a a bit of a shock."

---

Senecio nodded slowly. "The truth us, when I say "not yet", I don’t want to exclude the option sometimes in the future if things go that way, but I don’t really see that now and don’t want to aim for it consciously. I mainly just want to talk to you about the characters and help us plan, and I'd love to have another character when we figure out their place in the story. So more like scenes in between, in the role of a friend and ally. So touch is perfectly fine. But not hurting. To me, as a part of the game it carries the same level of intimacy as making out. It's not that much of a romantic intimacy though, I think? Damn, this is hard to put into words, I'm not used to thinking about it so deeply. I don’t think I'd want you to do it alone. But together with Tide, now that thought seems quite exciting..." he frowned a bit, trying to understand his own feelings better with no real reference and guide about how to do that. "For now though, I would just like to talk about the characters with you, and help us plan what to do with them."

[VisAnastasis]

(OOC: That sounds delightful, actually, king looks really serene and magical in this scene, I'm curious how the rest plays out ^^ It seems like there's a whole movie on youtube, but it doesn't have subtitles, so I'll have to see if I can find some, and if I'll convince my sister or mom to watch with me, it's more fun watching things together, but my sister is currently preparing for some exams, so I don't know when she'll have free time. But I'll tell you my impressions once I check it out, I really love whimsical bard-type main characters, so this seems like something cheerful I'd love, thanks for sharing (⁠◍⁠•⁠ᴗ⁠•⁠◍⁠)⁠❤

" It is alright, you don't have to worry. He would be anxious either way, so as long as we keep reassuring him, his anxieties would be eased with time. There's nothing about it that's your fault, he would be second-guessing everything anyway, " Melody comforted her softly, with a more thoughtful smile. "The best way you can reassure him is to be consistent and straightforward. It is not in my place to say too much, but... You probably vaguely know a bit about his past, and Svarik told you some more important things, right? The last ten years were... quite hard for him. Especially in the first couple years of trying to become underground leader, before he solidified his power, there were tries on his life on a daily basis, and whenever he'd let his guard down even a little, he would get poisoned or stabbed in the back. While Svarik's suffering in the last ten years was in running and isolation and inability to connect with people because of always being on the move, Conrad's suffering was in interaction with other people, and not being able to connect with them because people he could feel as somewhat trustworthy could turn untrustworthy but a moment later, if their interests grew conflicted, " she shook her head a little sadly. " So, it is not as much as in you, as it is a matter of trust that needs to be proven consistently, with clear actions, not words. No matter how big an ally someone is currently to him, he's never taken it for granted, always keeps emotional distance and is ready to be backstopped. Even with Svarik, it took him a long time, to believe, if circumstances change, that he would not backstab him if backstabbing ended up as the smartest choice for the land at the moment, so don't feel too bad, okay? " she asked gently. " It is definitely not your fault... just a consequence of his unique position. Right now, he's just a little too desperate, not to lose what he barely gained, so, even if you actually physically run a dagger through his guts, he'd probably endure and overlook it... That's how much, he wants to make this work. It is not your fault, that his mind always races to find the worst possible outcomes, and mentally prepares for it, instead of hoping the best possible outcome will happen. The best possible outcomes just... don't happen to him, so he'll have a hard time adjusting to simple, easygoing happiness with no conflicting interests, in any case. He never... had anything he did not earn, so it is not either your fault or mine, that normal path of casually getting to know someone and getting something good with no strings attached is such a foreign concept to him... "

---

" He's currently in light sleep and is mostly napping to rest, if you'd like, I can ask Zephir to wake him up to prepare him that you've arrived. Would that be alright? As for me... well... " Simbel clearly tried to make a strong face, but his expression looked frail, as he confided. " I keep... always trying to tell myself, that I must not assume or conclude anything blindly anymore, since I was so biased for so long... But it is hard for my mind not to jump to conclusions. You speak vaguely, to ease me into it, but conclusions are just forming on their own, without me being able to stop them, even with little information. When you say things like, he was imprisoned and forgotten for a long time... Demon Slayers don't take prisoners, so that can only leave humans, right? What a horrible sin it is... to imprison a God. And I can not even dare to get heated and angry right now... I just have no right. What ifs keep swirling in my head endlessly, instead, " he looked down heavily, as he admitted. " What if I... was more trustworthy? What if I gave him reasons to believe I would accept him as he is? Times around which he disappeared... true, I was not that influential at the time, and only had one Listener, and there were wars everywhere, so I couldn't not carelessly send them away to risk their life - but still, if I accepted and knew him, was there a chance I could have spared him of his fate in some other way? Could we have made some safety net, if, after he had to take away and stop operating his main temple, he felt free to come seek me out and ask for my advice or protection in the capital? Would I have been able to prevent his sorry fate... or would associating with me just draw attention of the Spirit world, and get him caught by Hunters, instead of humans? What ifs plague my mind right now... But I can not indulge them, because I know well enough, that I was not a person that could see a Demon and accept them as harmless easily. You understand... don't you? The fear, that consumes me? " so very slowly, he looked up, and, as if offering proof, he raised his hand so Svartik could observe it - as if against his will, the palm turned toward him was visible shaking under the weight of thoughts he was trying to keep still. " This fear of demons... it is not merely White Eagle's legacy. I am trying to overcome it, yes... but something so hard to overcome... it is clearly mine, too, not just his. Ever since I outgrown him, I kept wondering... Where did he end, and I began? And... memories of his flesh twisting and burning... memories of his wings and arms being torn off... they are his... but they are mine, too. Because his death was my birth... no matter how much I agree that I am not him... I will never be able to give up that one moment of his life. From the moment White Eagle lowered his sword, Demons rushed to hurt him... even if it was a little more before he created me... I feel that it was clearly me. Because the line is too blurry. Memories are too strong. Every time vampires or Erdel or Eros or Alpha Centauri get a little too close and brush against my clothes... I want to fall back, to flinch, to think of something else desperately, but the thoughts that fash through my mind at those times are not under my control. I have no food in my belly, but it churrs on its own, and it wants to throw up what isn't there. I have no wings, but I want to fold them away, so they don't get torn off, " he smiled frailly, looking at his shaking hand with a complicated expression. " I hate... that if I meet him, lowly reactions of my body will reflect fear, regardless of my wishes. I don't want to disrespect him, like that. I am trying to deal with it, but it is long, long overdue, and this fear is too deeply ingrained in me. You must think it is so strange... how easily I was able to be brave at Long Night, while I am getting torn up right now? It is just... that it was so natural, to fall into the pattern, of being stoic, in always trying to deal with threats to my humans in the best way... It was easy to be brave when facing things White Eagle faced, and having muscle memory to fall back on. It is facing delightful creature, like Erdel, that leaves me breathless and ashamed. There is... no precedent in my feelings, where White Eagle dealt with Demons as allies, so... there's nothing he was, that I can fall back on and follow. Those clumsy struggles to overcome and overwrite his natural reactions might be only half successful and faulty, but at least they are, without a doubt, all mine... "

---

" Yes, don't worry. Let's just talk. It's not like I expect you to write me an essay on intimacy that I have to grade as passing before I say yes. It's enough to know that before anything, you'll always ask yourself clearly if what is going on is okay, and feel free to send me away without fear because sending me away or telling me to stop is not the same as not trusting or loving me. Just keep your boundaries strict and clear, and we can work it all out, okay? " Spirit spoke soothingly, but clearly, indeed, it being easy to see from his attentive response, who made sure to help Tide who didn't know much even about gender explore the unfamiliar subject without developing unhealthy habits. " Honestly, I am a little worried... After seeing how deeply you connect with characters when you get into the role. The whole thing with playing Spirit King where you had trouble losing yourself in the role was quite intense. So, of course, I'd worry a little, if, in the heat of the moment, you feel like it would be hot if the character assigned to me did something, but you later, when you shed off the character, feel uncomfortable about me doing it. So, all I ask is that you make sure to give me tools to never hurt your heart. If you feel like the character you give me would stay in the scene, so as a character you can't send me away, but you as yourself would feel better if I left, you can even give me safe words, where you don't have to break character when you are too deep playing it, but I can have word that lets me know I should stop and leave. You don't have to worry about making any request too big or too small, though - I am very good at refusing things I don't feel like, so you should know my sense of boundaries is excellent, so do never worry about that. If you were curious and asked me if I'd like to sleep with you untied to Tide, just the two of us - I'd have actually refused. It is not like I think we wouldn't have a great time - it's just that currently, you have all those strong positive emotions directed at me, with no outlet, and it's quite dangerous if I let you fall into old bad habits, and put pleasure on the table as something you can give me. You are too used, to having to return good done for you with physical favours, and I'm not going to make it easier for you to fall into unhealthy patterns, get it, you cutie? If you feel like doing something for me, you'll have to struggle to figure out an emotional return, and even if you were to ask me, I'd not sleep with you alone, because you're in a vulnerable state these days, and I don't feel like it would be healthy, and until I get that impression it's just a fun thing, I'll always refuse, so you don't have to worry about my boundaries. I'll always give them clear to you. It is good luck, then that you ask me for something I can do for you. Right now, you don't seem emotionally ready for a threesome if it was randomly thrown at you, and I'm quite proud, that you're putting it aside by instinct, even if you can't articulate it right. Whether you ask me to do something along with Tide, or I just stay a supportive side character, I'll be glad, if it reflects your true wishes. Don't think of it as a matter of practicality. It is not as simple as - oh, Hans's hands are free, and he can use a normal whip and doesn't have to worry about his strength, so let him do something while Tide does the other thing. Always think of it in terms of what you want, and feel free to ask them, whether it is an ask to step back or go further. I'm good with boundaries so you don't have to worry, I'll always make things clear to you, " he grinned a little more mischievously, and but lightly, as if trying to see if Senecio was unsure of it, he tapped his back slightly, as if checking if he can reassure him his feelings don't hold any lust and eagerness, just warmth and worry. " So, make sure things are always clear as they happen on your end too. I'm already so very proud of you, so how about it? Will you keep giving me reasons to be proud of you? I want to have fun with you, whatever form it happens to take as time goes on, but we all have things we can't sacrifice, and as for me, I can't sacrifice the comfort of companionship that we have. After all, I plan to heavily coax you to want to stay with me for eternity with the almighty power of friendship, and that won't quite work if our friendship gets weaker, now, will it? "

[Mirach]

Lipka nodded. "I just didn’t think I'd get that close to him, but now that we're in this relationship together, it does sound like a group project. Svarik is a bit messed up in his own way too, so it's actually better that we can team up for both of them and better figure out what they need. But now I'm wondering what brand of being messed up is mine to make me fit with him. Do you think I do have one too? It's hard to tell about yourself...q"

---

"Don't feel guilty about not reaching out to him when he was imprisoned. It was by a king, indeed, just like you was, and he also feels guilty that he didn't try to help when he was already rescued and you were starving under the Bull. You'll both need to move past the guilt if you are to meet properly. And I get your reaction to facing demons. It's a natural one, with traumatic memories being triggered. Maybe it's good to be honest. Not ashamed or guilty, just honest. I think our demon friends would understand and help you to overcome it, if you don't try to hide it in shame but admit what’s going on and that it's not their fault. Abd now, actually, you will have a precedent of White Eagle dealing with a demon as an ally. He didn't know that Janus was a demon at the time, true, but he is the same person as the one White Eagle allied with. That could be a start to overcome his ingraoned reactions. Do you think he would try to reevaluate his view of demons if he knew that?"

---

"We already have some safewords with Tide, so we can add to them. I guess we might end with something like a safe-dictionary if we keep adding to it..." Senecio chuckled. "Also, no offense, but if I could pick, I wouldn't ask you to sleep with me without Tide. You're not really my type. Which doesn't really exclude me doing such things in the past for favours, so, spot on. I'd much rather talk about the characters. Is it okay if I tell Hans what they were doing so far?" he asked Tide.

[VisAnastasis]

" Hm... Let's see... How about the brand that is distant and vague in uncertain situations where they are trying to keep control of the situation, which is useful and great when dealing with enemies, but terrible when people want to get to know you, because they can never tell what you're really thinking? A kind that responds to conflict by making a judgement for yourself, what you think would be best for others and acting by it, instead of asking others directly so they can choose themselves? Svarik was pretty devastated, when you argued with him on purpose, in order to push him to leave with Liron without guilt, before he finds out you're bearing his child. Whether it seemed wisest or not at the time, you still acted contrary to how you really felt for him, in order to achieve your set purpose. Since I am naming your brand being messed up, how about you name mine? It is hard to tell about yourself, after all, " Melody grinned but lightly, as her soft voice shone brightly with soft words. " I just hope you don't feel unsure about it. Truth is, I believe you have much more in common with Conrad than with me or Svarik. Conrad also went to insane lengths to keep the situation in the city under control on his own, through the Organisation, after Svarik got hurt, because he felt he would break if he had to face the people that hurt him too quickly. But still... it was a willful voice, that cost us in other ways... It is just that your particular flavour of it, where you choose to pretend to get angry when you don't mean it to achieve your goal, where you and Conrad will probably clash the most. For, if one can easily reach for a solution of pretending to be angry, can't they as easily reach for one of pretending not to be angry even if they actually are, in order to maintain peace? " the girl smiled a little faintly, as if preparing for a headache, as she looked back to the mansion, towards the wing where Falcon was currently writing in. " Well... We have a rather excellent starting point nonetheless, despite the ways all of us are a little out of tune, and it wouldn't be rewarding in the end, if we didn't have some things to overcome, now, would it? Those are all things that can be mended with time, as long as nothing escalates too much, so I am not really worried... I am just planning to take days as they come, and fill them with wonderful things for us all. As more good things keep piling up, instead of bad, neither Svarik can keep being insecure, neither you can keep feeling left out, and even Birdie, stubborn as he is, can't keep second-guessing good fortune forever... "

---

Simbel tilted his head wonderingly, appearing a little taken aback as if he didn't think about it that way, either in the context of Janus not helping him after he was rescued, or in his being White Eagle's Demon ally in technicality.
" In truth... since for a long time I was thinking of myself as White Eagle... I felt like it was natural, to believe that what I am is simply who White Eagle would become, had he not died. So, if he had not died, would he have not just turned out just like me? But it would be hubris, to claim that, since I was in lot shaped by my limitations, and inability to leave the pond, and... having to adapt my existence around it. Would White Eagle who potentially survived change his mind? Quite likely, if he got to see the time where Tide and Death sign a peace treaty, and can see for himself that such a future is good. But before that, when Demon roamed around corrupted, polluting the Land with miasma and violence and dirty tricks, killing and abusing humans? If you saw such sights every day, you'd have trouble believing Demon in power such as Janus isn't plotting something sinister and only acting meek on the surface. Just like you also don't know everything, but knowing what kind of creature Thief was, wasn't it natural for you to assume Bull priests would perform human sacrifices here and there? Even if not all Bull Priests would do that, wouldn't you suspect all Bull priests you see, because blood sacrifices are such an innate part of the package? So, while I believe in White Eagle's goodness.. it is precisely that goodness, and fear weak humans are being taken over by hidden evil, that would cloud his eyes, " Simbel clearly did not try to sugar coat or act as if his past was sweeter than it was, but, on contrary to his words, his expression grew brighter, as he shyly reached for Svarik, and timidly tugged at his sleeve, as if in childlike way to bid for attention. " So... it's a relief, isn't it... that we do not have to worry, even again, what White Eagle could have done, and who he could have hurt if he didn't realize his bias? Never again... Never again, do I have to agonize over what White Eagle would have done if he were alive, and feel miserable, that I am too limited and unable to live up to his legacy. Isn't it wonderful, Svarik, that this agony and anxiety that's consuming me and making me go mad with fear, is all of my own? That scary bastard, White Eagle, you know, even as he was suffering and dying, he gritted his teeth, and created me, so that even if he knew he'd die, he would drag those damn things that hurt him with him. What crazy bastard, right? " Simbel chuckled, the sound hoarse and broken up, trembling with fear and repulsion - but just as he said, a sliver of relief pushed and shone through, frailly and faintly through his shaking voice. " I... have grown too soft. I pity so deeply, the creatures, that I abhor, for searing their cruelty into my mind so deeply it shaped all of who I am. They choose violence... but they only ever knew violence in their lives. They only ever knew that if they don't kill me, I'd kill them one day. I am not sure anymore... that I could have enough anger in me instead of pity, to want to kill them... even after what they did to me. I feel sick to my stomach... but it is not White Eagle who is sick, but me. This sickness that is gnawing and tearing its teeth into my heart is all mine. How wonderful it is, to just have to think - what do I want to do, instead of what that magnificent bastard would do....? To just... feel what I want to feel, be it pity or disgust, without feeling like I need to do right by him and be resolute as he was? "

---

" Yes, of course. It's better if you explain because if I did, I might get too excited and sidetracked into romance discussion instead of plot discussion, " Demon chuckled shyly, at which Hans's expression softened more, although there was something more withdrawn upon it.
" Well.... I didn't want to pry, but I can't lie, since you both are so excited about it, I can't help but be super curious about what kind of plot you rascals are developing. So, yes, I as well would much rather talk about characters.... than get into an argument over sophistry. I just have to ask briefly first, so you aren't confused with my current feelings... Did you...  slip up by accident, or are you acting like it's normal for one to say things like * no offence, but if I could pick, I wouldn't sleep with you", instead of saying perfectly reasonable " no offence, but I won't sleep with you "? You have luck I am treating you more preciously, if Tide said such an appalling thing, I would grab him by the collar and yell at him, " Hans teased, but there was true, a shade of a little darker emotion, not really anger, but more of a mix of worry and a slight shade of frustration. He knew Senecio could feel his emotions, though, so he spoke gently and appeasingly as he instead from back, reached for his hair, and tousled it gently, as if trying to calm down the rising feeling by affectionate act, instead of jumping to argument like he's probably done with Tide. " You just got a free "get out of argument" coupon, but next time, I'll scold you properly, all the time, until you turn those persistent conditional clauses into proper straightforward negations. And before you say it - yes, yes, I get it, that you didn't mean it that way. I am not blaming you... just explaining emotions you can perceive, so you're not startled by them, okay? Next time you say such rubbish things... I am going to sue you for emotional damage, my terrible, sour lemon cake, got it? "

[Mirach]

"I think you are right... I can be a bit manipulatove. I guess I'm really more like Conrad that you or Svarik. And clearly, we all have a type, and Conrad's is Svarik and you, while Svarik's is Conrad and me. But being similar, I think it will be more challenging to get along with him. As to you... no offense, but I don’t really get the act of pretending to be a child. But, I think I don’t really get being an immortal Being, either, so it's hard for me to understand."

---

"That's right," Svarik nodded gently. "His bad experiences with demons still influence you, but he's not here anymore. You can deal with it as yourself, on your own. Although, not really on your own, because there are many who wish to help you, if they can, including me."

---

Senecio was a bit taken aback by that. He repeated the words quietly to himself, as if only now realizing what phrase he used. "I wasn’t thinking about the formulation, but... I meant it. I said that if I could pick, I wouldn't sleep with you, because if I would have met you a year ago... if you would come to the theatre to see a play, and the director figured out that you have a lot of money... he would ask me to try to get a share of it for the theatre, and I would. I would take it as a challenge. So, I meant what I said. But it was meant for the past, nothing else. I don’t know why I felt the need for the conditional, but it didn't feel like the truth without it. But now I'm glad that you had no interest in the theatre before and I haven't met you then. I don’t want to dwell on that now... let's just talk about the characters, okay? Tide, how about you introduce the Beast King and then I introduce Sein Miru?"

[VisAnastasis]

" I see... I guess it can be hard to understand without experiencing it. It isn't as much in being little, as it is in feeling free. It is just my interests and look not matching society's expectations, " Melody smiled a little sadly, and she began explaining slowly, something she clearly did not have to voice often. " Hm... To be honest, I am not too powerful as Spirit, at least, not 8in ways that are flashy and seen in hight regard. As a nymph, my powers and tied to music and healing, not any tangible might, like with the powerful ones, like Death or Solstice. So, I always gravitated more to the human than Spirit world. But when you are just a young woman with no relatives, even if they mean well, you'll get face constant pressure of getting married and settling down. But I never wanted such things. Do you know how awful it is, trying to be friends and connect with people, and hoping you're developing something substantial, based on interests... and figuring out all they are seeing you is but someone they want to sleep with, and are just following along, without actually seeing you as You? If I'd be free and playful, they would not see me that way - they would only see me as mysterious and elusive and worth patiently listening to in order to entice and seduce eventually. Do you know how bleak it feels... when you open up, and tell someone that you are a Spirit, to connect with them, but they don't see you as you, but as the mysterious seductive lady from the Unknown world, and write a romance all on their own, in their head? When you are just a hot gorgeous Spirit lady in their eyes, not You? Young woman should be sensible, and responsible, and make a family... but I want to be as hot as fire, as buzzed as a bee, as free as a Melody, free as I'll ever be. Scratch it - both young man and woman are expected to be sensible and responsible, and are discouraged from having fun and doing things without visible gain, like playing - so, what is the only form where I can have fun and connect with people, to be seen as me, and not as someone to conquer with empty words and overblown love songs? A form of a child, of course. Don't get me wrong. I would often combine backstories as I could, sometimes acting as a child, sometimes a widow, sometimes an old lady wonderer... But only as a child, people won't be suspicious about your identity and doubt you from get-go, and... if I were an old lady, I'd eventually have to choose to die, and I didn't like, making people sad. It would be better to be a child, pretend to grow up into a person that wants to travel, and, when I grow old enough that people's attention grows into shackles, just set off on a road. After all, people you leave behind are sadder, if you're a nice old lady who passed away, than if you're a willful woman full of wanderlust, that went on a journey and settled somewhere far away and can sometimes send letters to reassure them she is alive and well. So... Even in this life, I had general plans... if I grow up and this life turns sour too, that I would pretend to have a teenage rebellion and go out there, to travel the world, and secretly slip away. Yes... it was certainly the plan, " " girl shook her head, looking up in the distance, toward the mansion. " Before everything turned upside down so much, it was a pretty simple concept, to be here for a while, and be helpful and useful and in turn eat some delicious things and play more freely for just a little while... before slipping away. It was a very solid plan, you see... "

---


" I... am so sorry. I am quite bad.. at asking for help, aren't I? " Simbel's lips quivered. " I am only making things more complicated for you, by staying silent. I am sorry. I... am too used to, trying to not ask for too much... not to take up too much space, " he retreated his hand and embraced himself around shoulders vulnerable, as if subconsciously trying to encourage and steel himself, to say things he was not used to. " I... I guess I might have idealized my time with kingdoms too much, just because being covered during the reign of the empire being horrible. But... it is not as simple, as before being good, and afterwards being bad. One... does not know how bad they have it... if they don't have anything good to compare it to. Before... before I had you and Conrad... Long before the thousand years of hunger... I did not realize how bad I had it. Back then... it was just normal, that I had to fight every day, for my right on opinions. That every time I disagreed, I would be sanctioned and tried to be silenced by force and questioning and slandering of my importance and credentials. I always knew... when I would object or disobey, that I would face hardships. I was happy to settle with eating less and facing harsh criticisms and plots, as long as my priests had a bit easier time, constantly fighting a legal battle with state, to make sure I maintained being seen as God, instead of just magical property that could be used as see fit. I was grateful I could keep being seen as person... even if I did not really treat myself as much of a person, either, only as means to an end, end being justice and the betterment of the world. I did not mind if I were treated as but a little pond on your property if you'd just not leave me alone... But... you treat me more of a person than I treat myself, "the creature tried to smile, but his lips were wobbling, and not obeying his will. Its eyes, pink and full of tenderness clearly shone with affection. " It feels shameless.. to ask for anything more from you... when you've gone so far for me. I am always ever so worried, if you'd meet someone White Eagle wronged, and have to bow down your head and make excuses and apologies in his name, for my sake... because I know you'd do it, and the thought makes me want to break down and cry. Even though it's more trouble for you, you offer to let me keep the vampires at my side, even though I eat too much, you just keep giving, even though you could pressure me with your ownership of land I dwell in and use me for my power without giving me anything in return... you keep going all our of your way, to give me as much agency and personhood as you can, " he shook his head, its trembling eyes reflecting both fear, but also an affection drenched with so much warmth and adoration that it was palpatible. " So many things you do make me want to weep... like real people do. Make me... want to be better, like real people do. I want... to be a person... you can be proud of, like... a real family can be proud of how far one they love have grown. It is... it is just so very hard... to break away, from being a little pond God, that only had integrity and pursuit of justice... and nothing else, not even personhood. It is hard, to even know what to ask for... when it is for myself, not the world. I could easily scream for justice and the righting of wrongs of people under me. I carefully bid my time, stayed quiet, and always saved all possible chances, when I could ask for something, to ask for such things. I... am not good, at asking for myself... "

---

" Why do you think I would have just cluelessly slept with you as if I could not easily connect greed for my wealth with the cutest member of the cast approaching me? I am a leader of the Smuggling Underground branch of the whole south and east, and a lawyer with excellent credentials, not your average nobleman... And whether it's your or the director's greed, I don't sleep with people in exchange for money. Besides, when in public, I am always on the lookout for potential cases, so, on the contrary, what actually would have happened, would most likely be me becoming your patron and trying to quid pro quo "you", not with sex, but money and promises of future, in order to draw our information about inner workings of theatre. Well... it would be fun in its own way, to see everyone think we're meeting up to have sex, while we'd be meeting up for me to try to coerce you to become my witness in trials. I told you I lacked good witnesses from theatres for a long time, didn't I? So, rather than imaginary what-ifs of being forced to sleep with me, you should be relieved you avoided years of being stuck in paperwork with me. When I hear you speak, I feel like standing up and getting to the theatre right now, and flipping it all over a second time, for good measure, " Spirit couldn't help but laugh a little, his shoulders shaking weakly. In his slightly sinister dark laugh, there was a clear shade of mischief, and as if through the crack, Senecio could see a little bit more malevolent shadow of a trickster God that Hans once was, while clearly thinking about people of the theatre and former director. Still, his hand, which was patting Senecio's head, was ever so soft, just like words directed to him - the actor had never had someone berate and insult him with feelings as warm and resolute as this. " So, treat yourself more preciously if you don't want me to go batshit and make a scene, you vicious bastard, okay? And believe in your family just a little more, you shameless punk. You absolute buffoon. You idiot sandwich. You soggiest, saddest aple pie. You fool of di Parvaios... " he kept insulting him gently, as he turned to Tide. " I am letting it go now, but next time, it's a dramatic bitchy yelling time, got it? For now, though, yes, how about you hit me with something cute? Come on, Tide. Give me some sugar to shut me up, or I'm going to stand up and go to the theatre and call over everyone and beat the shit out of them as they come until I create a scandal and make a shitshow of years of lawsuit time for us, got it? "

" You wouldn't make things harder for Senecio by doing that, but you don't have to worry, there's plenty of sugar awaiting. We're having a wonderful, romantic forbidden love story going, " Demon responded gently, as he seemed to understand Spirit is only worked up and needs to calm down a bit. He leaned back comfortably and started talking about the Beast King shyly, but with clear joy, indeed, speaking of it through the lens of his infatuation, as if narrating the start of a great love story. He spoke of a lonely King, harsh and rough around the edges, with great care for his country, but always easily misunderstood because his actions and appearance did not match his feelings. He spoke of King who had no time to breathe from always fighting for his people, and because of being perceived as violent and cruel, and people who revered him keeping distance from him, never being able to connect or confide with anyone. A king greatly feared, believed in and respected, but a king who no one yearns for, loves and misses. A lonely kind who has not even one person close enough to name him, but who endures, in hopes that, one day, his life could have something more special than just struggle. Indeed, with lot of romantic passionate tropes Tide spoke of, Hans's stern complexion cleared up more over time - still, even as he stopped patting his head, Spirit remained as he was, sitting next to the actor, their shoulders brushing slightly, pose leaned toward him, playing with the edge of actor's sleeve absentmindedly, as if contemplating about holding his hand, but not wanting to make him dwell on the darker conversation. Staying close clearly was helping calm him down a little with time, though - it seemed that he was usually used to clearing out pent-up emotions with arguments with Tide, and it took conscious effort to not argue things out now but to put it away.

[Mirach]

"I see..." Lipka said slowly. "It's hard to be free, being a human. I wouldn’t see children as free, either. They have more freedom in some things, but much less in others, as it should be when they don’t have the experience to stay safe. But if you pick a childish form when you want to be perceived as yourself, aren't you perceived more as a child, instead? Or is that how you actually perceive yourself? It just feels a bit strange to me. I wouldn’t want to go back to being a kid, even in pretense."

---

"If I met someone wronged by White Eagle," Svarik said, "I would not make excuses in your name. You aren’t him, you don't need to apologize for what he did. But I know that you would like to right the wrings he did, so I would try to convince the person to let you. And you’re right about the land ownership, that could be used against you, in some distant furture. I'll see how I can legally pass the ownership of the land around your pond to you. You *are* a person, alright? And you ask for things. But if you don't, I'll just try to guess..."

---

"And here comes Sein Miru," Senecio tied on Tide's description. "He's fascinated by the king, by his power and majesty, but not afraid of him. He is just a servant, but he is bold, and he wants to serve the king, in any way that makes the king happy. He doesn't really see his own worth, just the worth of a tool that can be used by the person he admires," he said, and glanced at Hans a bit apologetically, as he knew that said like that, it was a very thinly veiled allegory of who he used to be - and that was the very person on whose behalf was Hans angry right now.

[VisAnastasis]

" It isn't as much about wanting to stay a child forever. It is just that there are things innate to me that are only discouraged or misunderstood when you're not a child. Like running around freely, playing a lot, climbing on trees, playing music instead of developing more productive skills, running into your loved ones arms and snuggling with them tight, without your love being misunderstood as romantic... Children can get away with both more affection to offer, and more playing. So, while not ideal, I always thought before, that sacrificing some agency was a good enough tradeoff, for being able to live and show affection freely. It was so, until this life, " she grinned a little bit, not able to help from her thoughtful expression growing warmer with memories. " It is part of living in such large city... but all the more, I think it is in being adopted child of such a silly prodigy that was so obsessed with educating people and bettering their lives. It is the atmosphere of the whole home. You can't encourage so much learning and open-mindedness in such colorful gathering of people, and not have it create something unique. A place, where I could play, but also ask anything I wanted to learn and get tutors, without anyone batting an eye - because of course, Sir Falcon's daughter would be smart like him and have her own special interests. A place where all special talents are taken into account, and where playing music is not looked down upon, and where I could equally go to special missions to help with my music, in the same measure I could come down to the common room and play some fun music with Mole to cheer up people coming back after the long day to rest. The life where I could climb all the trees I liked, and pick the sweetest fruit for the people I loved, without being called silly and told to do something more productive. A life overflowing with people that worried and cared deeply for Conrad, and went out of his way to help me cheer him up whenever he was down. It was truly harder as time went along, only in that part - part of Conrad growing gloomier with time, and... me growing to care for him more than I planned. From that point on, more yearning for life he lost... it grew harder and harder, for it to not affect us all, " she admitted only a little more faintly. " So, it was not life without its sorrows and its own grief... But it was still a beautiful life, where I could finally just be... Seen. It were only three years, but they grew on me so much, that it feels more unusual to be called Morning Dew, than to be called Melody. It all grew on me so slowly and naturally, without me ever realizing it... "

---

" Are you sure... truly sure... that it is not too much? " Simbel could not help but ask hoarsely, looking up to him anew, with a shaky voice. " It... might sound silly, but... It feels so strange, to learn... that wanting things isn't... as bad and scary as I thought. It *is* possible to receive something, without the shackles of give and take. It *is* possible, to discuss boundaries, without being called out for being a piece of land, that should not burn the hand of its owner. It *is* possible to ask for things even if they are not bare essentials, without being called greedy. It *is* possible... To speak, without fear of being punished for speaking out of turn, " his gaze was conflicted and full of both pain and wonder, and a very frail streak of hope. " How do people normally tell... when something is too much? I keep thinking all you give me has passed the line of too much long ago... but then, you keep giving me more. Now I really can not tell... If I just had too little before, so I can not compare reasonably, or if you're the one in the wrong... encouraging me to take... more than is proper. What is the line... before a plea turns into a shameless request? You both feel of this place as your home... Isn't it shameless, to make you give up some of it to me when you've given me so much already? It was different before... my priests had been there since the village was first founded, so they held ownership of my land, where the area of the surrounding couple mansions was a large fenced meadow, with me in the centre, overflowing with bees and flowers all around... at a start, before, during bad years, little by little, kings would pressure us and buy more and more land from my priests, until only tiny area near the pond was left for us, and all around was surrounded by newly built mansions of their rich allies. But now, things are different. Now, even this tiny pond lies in your hands... but you take no advantage of it. How am I even supposed to ask for it, after all you do for me? " he gulped, as he added, more tensely and anxiously, as if, after talking about it before, he only now got to work up to the dare to get to the question. " Is it really not shameless, for me to ask for more... or do you just want me to be shameless because you care for me? I do not know... It feels shameless to ask you to keep vampires, to own a piece of your own land, and... so shameless... to accept Janus's offerings. How dare I want so much? Yet at the same time... I don't want to take other's lives for granted. I am... so happy, to have a vessel, like this, but... " he bit his lip so hard it almost bled, with grief. " I am well aware how limited my ability is, to protect anyone. Whether it is from nobleman enemies that would try to pressure you or Conrad to sell pond land to them, or whether it is from Demon hunters... I am so limited, in what I can do. White Eagle's swordsmanship suits me, and it is a relief I seem to naturally default to using his muscle memory... Still, he was much stronger than vampires are, and muscle memory fails me when I am not close enough to the pond to maintain control properly. It is shameless to accept, but if I don't accept, instead of helping, I may just end up as a liability to you all, whether in front of greedy noblemen or Hunters, and I couldn't forgive myself if my stubbornness caused us loss... "

---

While Hans caught the allegory, he also caught the apologetic expression following it, and that seemed much more important to him. As if to make sure the actor did not misunderstand the feelings he perceived, he anew lightly patted his shoulder, as if to reassure him he was alright, despite he needed a little more time to fully calm down in the circumstances.
" So... we have one character that needs to see he is capable of being loved even if he's scary and easily misunderstood and another character that needs to realize he is worthy of being loved even if he's not that powerful or useful? Well, well, at least you rascals are commendably self-aware, " he teased them gently as if to keep reassuring them that he wouldn't cause a scene, despite clearly seeming tempted to really come up with some plots to ruin the lives of people in the theatre with this most recent slip-up. Both his words and the light pat on the actor's back were very soft, as he focused on the matter at hand, continuing curiously. " So, how big a role do you want to give me? Because, all in all, I very well understand the temptations of setting two lovers up against the whole world... it is one of Tide's favourite tropes, after all, so so far it's all good. But unless your endgame is two lowers running away somewhere they can live freely, you just can't realistically have no allies at all. No matter how strong someone might be, it is just not feasible, to have them circled with enemies from all sides, and have them achieve peace all on their own, with no one to help them rule the kingdom. One can not do everything on their own. Now, whether we want to create them an ally that only recently appeared and is young and new, and joined their inner circle to replace someone else in the king's close circle that died, or if we want to have some character that existed for many years, and was before distant but also had respect toward the Beast king, that is a matter of preferance. But, if you're going for trope of Beast King and Sein Miru being first people to truly make each other not feel alone, we shouldn't give either of them already existing great emotional support, or you'll take away from their character development, and have no goods excuse why the hell they are still not confident in themselves as much as they should be, " it indeed seemed like he was being distracted little bit at a time, while thinking of how to help two insecure characters reflect the future he wanted for people he loved, blushing a little, as he knew his motivation is transparent. " Character development is most important. We need to give them someone who can give them enough security so they don't always fall into survival mode immediately... so they feel safe enough in that crazy lonely world you created, so they can grow as people and couples. But at the same time, it can't be someone who was either friend or close to either Sein Miru or Beast King for years, or he'd steal too much spotlight. If you're going for star-crossed romance, you need a supporting cast to feel more secure, but we must carefully measure so friendship does not overshadow romance, or it will turn into found family roleplay instead of romance roleplay. Which, sure, is great in books, and both Tide and I love them, but still, you know what I mean... Romance emotional highs and found family emotional highs hit differently, and only one leads to hot time in the bedroom, so we need to add just enough support so your poor warring kingdom does not crumble like a lonely cracker, without overshadowing the romance, either. "

[Mirach]

"I must admit I'm not used to a life where I don’t need to do something productive to contribute to the livelihood. Don't Spirit need to eat?" Lipka wondered.

---

"You don't need to feel shame for accepting things offered to you," Svarik told him seriously. "If someone offers, they would most likely be glad if you accept because they really want to give you something. You are doing them a favor by accepting."

---

"Maybe the plot can help us figure that out," Senecio said. "Where we are now, Sein Miru revealed a traitor in the king's circle, but nobody would believe his word against the traitor's, so he had to pretend to be a traitor as well, as reveal the other one's name under torture. So, he's seen as a traitor right now, and it's dangerous for him to leave the king's chambers, but he gets bored easily when the king is away most of the day, and so leaves the safe space through a hallway mostly just used by servants. But he meets the king's general there, who sees an easy target whom the king wants to punish anyway. At the end though, the king will imprison the general. He can give the reason of trying to enact justice in the king's name without his approval. But we eventually want to make the relationship more public, so that it can be used against the king by his enemies. But how should we do that when Sein Miru is still officialy a traitor?"

[VisAnastasis]

" Some powerful Spirits, like Solstice, don't need to. Death also usually did not need to, before he got ill. It depends on one's power, and a lot of things. But most of Spirits do need to eat, thought it varies how much. I can eat less than human and still be alright, and it is very hard for me to starve to death even if I feel hunger somewhat... Honestly, boredom is a big part of it, too. Some times, it feels too boring, to focus on making food, and it takes too much work, and you're tired, so you'd rather not eat a day or two, than labour. We also can't get sick unless our soul is hurt, so we don't need medicine nor do we need to save up to build houses, so if all that's left is food, that's not that huge thing to worry about. A little hunger is usually not a big thing when you are bored or sad and feel like sleeping in instead. But if you play a lot, you need to eat more not to get lethargic. More often than not, instead of starving to death, Spirits that eat less than they should slow down their functions and grow into deep sleep, similar to hibernation, especially when they are grieving or sad, and just sleep a lot for a while and don't wake up much unless something interesting happens. It did not happen much to me, but I heard it happens often, when you don't have many things in life you're passionate about enough to stave off solitude, " Girl replied, and slowly added, as if trying to explain the feeling better. " It is not that I want to eat without doing my part. It is just that... I guess you could call it the difference between a village and a city. Division and labour are different, although, not to idealize cities, in both, things I love are seen as less valued, and it takes people like Conrad to put them to good use. You don't have to go further than thinking about Svarik. If he lived his life as a farmer, he'd spend most of his life doing hard labor, and maybe play a little here and there if he was not exhausted. Would it not be a terrible waste of his love for music and talents, if all he did was grow food, when there are people in the world yearning for healing music, and so few that can play it? Yet, in most of the human world, his talents would rot, and he'd have to focus most of his life on survival. Isn't it a blessing, that he does not have to farm the whole day, but is it also not a loss in equal measure, that instead of doing what he is best at, he will still have to spend a lot of time doing official duties he is not nearly as suited for? He has luck he has Birdie that makes his kingdly tasks less time consuming and bearable. And even if we exclude healing music - why is it more valuable to make bread, than it is to bring music, and happiness and cheer to others? I am not against labour, I am just for equality of importance. It is in his nature to play, sing, and dance, but the world struggles not to let him. Without our sweet Birdie, he would not be able to properly balance his duties to do what makes his heart sing, either. He would not be able to give to the world what he is most qualified to give it. I feel the same. I can weave and knit clothes, work on the farm, or cook meals... I just don't feel like the only worthy contribution I can give it through things one can eat or own. It is not easy, living in a world where people tell you to focus on ploughing bigger fields or tending to more sheep, instead of creating more songs... Or a world where they tell you you should only climb trees when you have to pick the fruit, and small joys are a waste of time. There is a world of difference, between working to live well enough and centring your whole life around the value of labour and amassing more value blindly. I am not saying it is a universal thing... It is not like humans weed out those useless to them. They often care deeply, even for weak and those unable to contribute... but it is that feeling... the feeling that if I wish to contribute with joy, that it is not really a contribution from my heart, just an easy lazy way out of responsibility. I guess it is... a little similar to Sil Simbel's usual hurdles. He was a lovely God - but he was a warm affectionate Deity that could offer happy and soothing dreams and soothe restlessness - in exchange for a whole lot of food. Is so much food worth some good dreams? Perhaps, for those who dream horrible dreams. But lot of people would weigh that worth down carefully, like old kings did, and protest against it and call what they give too much for receiving too little like they'd call my offers of songs too little for too much. I am just not the type of person, that can stay in the place where what I give is seen as lacking. There isn't really anything that deep tied to it, but not being able to find a place that feels right, whether it was Spirit or the human world... "

---

From serious, Simbel could not help but chuckle so very slightly, with Svarik's words.
" There's no way such persuasion would actually work, you know... But I love you so much, for trying to make a case for it, even though I am such a bottomless resource pit. There's no way... giving me things isn't troublesome. It is just too much work, with too little to show for it. There are hundreds of things... resources are better spent on, than on me, " he shook his head lightly, but a small, slightly feverish, unsure smile, danced on his lips, as he looked up, trying to show determination, even though he had trouble refusing, after being so used to begging and taking anything given. " So... so even if he would plead... There's no way I can justify taking his second offer, of building dimension I can retreat to safely. Not while he is ill of health, not even if both you and he begged me. It is absolutely out of question, to take that part of the offer. And maybe not even then. While it is tempting... to not feel the fear, that if the city feel again, you'd all flee, and I'd be left alone anew... It is still a solution that can only be needed against Demon Hunters or Demons, isn't it? We are strong enough to resist humans... but Beings are another Beast. Still... Svarik... my Svarik, " he gulped, looking a little embarrassed, as he admitted, rubbing his fingers together absentmindedly. " If we were in actual danger from Beings... I mean... you are aware that I am not running anywhere, right? No, not as long as there's one person left to defend in the city. This is not my whim. You are aware of it, right... that I am still the oldest of you all? I have seen and lived plenty, compared to you, my beloved... " his expression was a little faint, but his determination was firm. " Of course, it is scary to die, since I only have one life, and no soul to pass away anywhere, so I will just fade away from the world if I perish... But vampires only have one life too, and they are so young. They barely got to live at all. You all have only one life, too. I am not special. So, if danger were to come, I would not prioritise saving myself, you know... When I was weighing down whether to accept Erdel or not, I wasn't just... talking about empty rhetorical acceptance. Whether it is you, or our vampires, or... our Erdel. It is an acceptance that is worth dying for.  There's no way I'd ever use some failsafe for escaping, as long as any of them are alive. I have lived too long to be greedy to make myself a priority. If such extreme time came... I'd never choose myself. You know that, don't you?" he asked him shyly, his sad eyes shining with warm, quiet adoration. " Just like, in the Long Night, I knew I'd choose you, over myself. You are... so, so loveable... and so, so terribly young. There's too much joy you are yet to experience, and I won't accept anything less, than you living to see all the best life has to offer... And same goes for all of them, too. It is a pity for Janus to spend so much energy, for a failsafe that I am not going to use. The only way you could push me into any damn pocket dimension would be to push me by force at that point, you know, because there's no way I'd ever accept, this ancient creature being given special treatment, while you youngsters are dying all around me... I thought through possibilities beforehand, so I can be certain of my feelings if the time of decision ever comes, instead of being forced to make a choice on the spot. My decision is already made, for whatever danger might come. Before anyone lays a finger on you, my Sun, I'd always choose to die first, you know... "

---

" While some deception and public propaganda could be used, naturally, or some darker more controversial battle for power plot points, it depends on the way we want to go. But if we're going for a clearer happy ending - wouldn't the best way be to counter treachery with a merit bigger than the transgression? " Hans inquired curiously, his darker thoughts slowly clearing away - it seemed he really thrived with writing and art subjects and was looking forward to helping find the path for characters that reflected people he loved to grow: " Whether we get Sein Miru to actually go out of his way to be brave and stop something terrible from happening or do something heroic and save a lot of people to get public support, or we go the more risky route of fabricating some achievements, we do need to set power in motion that can be acting as a shield to protect the two of them somewhat, otherwise, when their enemies come to criticise them, they will have no one to lean on. The situation should be dire, but not unsolvable. You say the former general is about to find and hurt Sein Miru and be imprisoned - so, how about giving me the role of the new, upcoming general? So I could be a character that turns out to unexpectedly be your strength? " Hans tilted his head curiously at them. " I could be in a position of relative power, depending on you and fearful you'd discard me like the previous general, but also sympathetic to your situation. We could always have the character be someone that was always somewhere in the background of things happening, but had no friends of his own and could not properly make connections, either, and happened to find out about a more genuine side of their relationship, and has to dance, between not pissing off the king by outing them publicly, and trying not to end up discarded? Or, if we don't want to have him be someone who lived and fought for the kingdom for a while, how about we have a power imbalance from the current general's absence last for a while because no good enough replacement can be found, and be the result of the unfavourable political situation, and only later by chance appointing me as general even though I am not as qualified? We could even also have my character not be that powerful, but more of a smart, fox Beast type, so he isn't just an easy-to-use card in case of trouble. We could have Beast King who is strong, Sein Miru who is resourceful, and a new general who is strategic. Hmm... We could also maybe not have my character be important from the smart, but be a newcomer who only accidentally walked into a general position by doing a great deed. For example, he could be the one helping Sein Miru do a deed with great merit, so they both get rewarded together, one by consort one by general position, and it would be controversial and create new hardships, but still develop in the right way. "
" Hmm... Old general is imprisoned, but we did plan for him to at one point burst out of prison to seek vengeance on Sein Miru, " Tide tied in thoughtfully. " Maybe a deed of merit would be in killing him? "
" It won't be enough to just defeat him quietly fresh from prison.  Stakes would be too low. It would be just like solving a problem before it escalates into a grand danger. People won't thank him that much... Buuut... What if a former general, bitter and betrayed, took the side of the enemy army, and betrayed the country, using inside knowledge to deal it a big blow and bring enemies close to the capital, threatening the kingdom's safety? " Spirit suggested thoughtfully. " Then, his betrayal could be a huge deal, and his kidnapping Miru to torture him would be extremely high stakes, especially if he's kidnapped far away, to an enemy camp, where Beast King is too far to save him easily. If Miru even then kills him and finds a way to stop the invasion of their enemies, whether alone or with my character's help, that would be a big enough deal for him to break down some walls of their distrustful subjects' hearts, wouldn't it? It doesn't have to be it, of course, but it should definitely be something with huge stakes, " he winked suggestively. " And naturally, something poor Sein Miru would have to suffer a lot of pain and abuse to make possible... You can't be captured by the enemies who hate you without suffering serious ordeals, of course... "

[Mirach]

Lipka nodded. "I feel the other way," she sighed. "I like the feeling of being useful, of doing the work that needs to be done, so that someone like Svarik or you, who gove much more to the world by playing and making music, don’t have to. But being here, I feel like I can do some work if I want to, but I don’t know how to make it meaningful. I could cook, but you have trained cooks who know a lot of recipes and can do it much better than me. I could grow things, and I would like to do that with you, but nothing would happen if I wouldn’t do it. I have some ideas for what I could do as a queen, but I don’t know how meaningful they are. Maybe you could help me to figure that out..."

---

"What if our choice is either stay and defend you from danger, or flee from it together?" Svarik asked. "If you can’t flee with us, we would stay with you... Do you think we would lieave you alone to fall into enemy hands?"

---

Senecio smiled slowly. "I like that! It fits together so nicely... And you could indeed be the new general who helps the king to free Sein Miru, because he can’t officialy send the army on a mission to save a traitor."

[VisAnastasis]

" I think you don't understand fully what I meant... It is not that I think what me and Svarik can give to the world is more important than what you can give... Burt that they are equally important and valuable and that only pity is that we can't always give what we are best at, because the world views our gifts as more trivial compared to jobs that provide more tangible gains and results. I do not crave superiority... just equality, " Melody replied with a little smile. " Are people sweeping streets less important than people making art? No. But life is not about merely how much what you offer is worth, and how skilled you are at it. Even if we disregard the fact that even the best cooks started out with poor skills - why would it matter? Conrad can snap his fingers and receive the most exquisitely made meal brought to him - but do you think I have ever seen him eat something with more pleasure, than pears I would pick for him myself? Do you think I've ever seen Svarik smile as softly and happily when he ate, as when he ate fish baked with corn and apples I made for him? And we have so many excellent cooks... but is there no equal value, in a delicious meal cooked by a professional, as is in cute homemade meal put in a cute pot, with get well messages with hearts, sweeps and curves? " girl tilted head toward Lipka warmly, as she inquired curiously. " Things made by you have value for your loved ones solely by the fact they were made by you. Skill is irrelevant to it. Do people keep preciously expensive warm cloaks they saved up a long time to buy? Yes, sure. But they can equally keep an awfully shabby thin poor sweather that their mom knitted for them, and wrap it up and hold it more carefully than if it were made of gold. The objective value of labour is just an illusion. There's nothing objective about it. Whether you spend money on accomplishing something or do it with your own hands, it is just a technicality. Value is in the eyes of the beholder, and in doing our best to think what the eyes of our loved ones see, and give them things they find beautiful, not things we find beautiful. Erdel, who always lived poorly, for example, felt so touched when Mole would buy him expensive clothes since he felt happy that Mole showed by his actions that he believes he deserved such expense spent on him, while my cute Birdie would not bet an eye on most expensive clothes if only quality was taken into account... but on the other hand, even if Svarik gave him the poorest handkerchief, that cute fool would definitely preserve it most carefully and treat it as if it's family heirloom... He is just that kind of person. Scratch it.. if Svarik gave him a pencil, he'd probably be either saving it for special occasions or using it until it was so spent it could barely be called a pencil. I understand what you worry about, but if your love language is doing things that help the ones you love, as long as you keep trying to gauge what kind of value the person finds meaningful, won't it feel meaningful, to give it, even if they could get value in other ways, too? Just because someone can buy a slice of delicious pie on the street, doesn't mean a picnic under the shade of the ancient trees with soggy homemade apple pie isn't something just as valuable as a professionally baked beautifully cut one. "

---

Simbel's face paled, his eyes widening in surprise and horror - it was clear Svarik pulled out one single argument that could make a dent in his determination.
" You... you wouldn't stay if I begged you to go... would you? No... " he shook his head slowly as realization dawned on him, appearing more distressed than by the possibilities of his own death that he had already accepted slowly over the last weeks. " You might actually stay, even if I beg you  to save yourself... But what could I possibly do, then? " he slouched his shoulders in defeat, almost like a child sulking, clearly conflicted, much more than when deciding if his life was worth sacrificing. " I can not possibly have you all stay just for my sake, if danger is dire... But I can not possibly accept his offer. You wouldn't look so uncertain if he was not really ill, and while some objects build by him in the past had some echo of space manipulation, this seems like such a larger scale of effort...There's no way it won't come at a huge cost for his health, and if he's admitting a little worsening, than it's definitely going to be worse than he admits... There's no way it won't cause him pain or damage. How do I possibly make a moral choice? White Eagle... White Eagle always had to make heavy choices, to save as many people as he could... If we went to the East, he could not be there if people in the West needed him. He always made many hard choices as to where to go and what to do. But this... Is different. How do I not end up as a villain at this rate? I'd be a villain if I don't accept it, and you all die with me... but I would also be a villain if I injure him and damage his soul irretrievably, just for the sake of my own safety. There's just no way, where I am not carrying someone's life at my conscience, then... "

---

Hans's face lit up with a little wider smile - he could not hide that he was pleased, both now, and in the past whenever Senecio would like his ideas and thoughts, whether in writing or in life.
" Well, what can I say...? If you need to come up with believable fabrications and justifications, I am your guy. I haven't been a master of propaganda and deception for nothing, " he coughed, trying to keep under wraps how pleased he was. " Since the world is not fully set in stone, we have a lot of space to build into things we like. Worldbuilding does not have to be that detailed if you don't feel like focusing on it, since romance is the main focus, but it has to be detailed enough so that hardships feel like they have consequences, and something dangerous in one moment doesn't end up trivialized moments later. After all, the build-up toward a happy ending won't feel real, if you keep it too vague, but you guys seem to have been doing surprisingly well, considering how much improvised the whole thing is. You even have a vague power structure set up. We just need to define it a little bit, so my character does not feel like a glorified self insert that it is but fits naturally into the world as if it was always meant to be there, " He grinned innocently. " So, what kind of backstory and level of involvement do we want to give to this new general? We don't have to make some incredibly dramatic narrative contrast between him and two other characters, we can focus on the fun factor, as long as it doesn't step outside of the narrative we build up, we should focus on things we think would be fun to go through, not only what would seem most refined and poetic, like we had to when we made a play about Being wars. As I said before, for starter, regarding logic, I think we should go with the path where my character pales in strength to the current general, but compensates for his lack of strength by using his wits. That way, we can avoid lowering the stakes. We don't want to create characters whose simple show of strength would be automatic problem solvers for whatever the main couple faces. And we shouldn't make him initially have too close bond with either of them, so it doesn't take away from them feeling valued and close to someone for the first time. Other than those two, I think we can give him anything we like. Whether he is from a weak Beast Tribe, and rose up through his wits, so he is drawn to Sein Miru who is smart, or whether he admires Beast King who helped him in past so only tolerating Sein Miru at first, before he gets to know him more, or he likes both of them from the start because he sympathises with them, but isn't in a political situation where he can publicly support them at first, while old general is in power... we can really have whatever we feel would be most fun. "
" It sounds wonderful, " Tide replied brightly, clearly warming up and looking forward to the unusual new arrangement that felt unexpected, but fun indeed. " I am just a little worried if there won't be an emotional enough rescue scene, if the new general and Sein Miru have no prior history, at least a littlest bit. While Beast King can send a New general to save Miru, I would also love it if he were also at least a little worried and wishing to save him, so when they meet, Sein Miru can feel he is trustworthy, and save with that person... There should be a terrible sense of urgency and relief for both of them, once the rescue is successful...  "
" You and your dashing rescue tropes... " Hans chuckled, gazing at Demon with a soft look. " As I said, we can have him be literally anything since world-building is fluid enough that we can craft good affiliation for him. Hmm... If you'd like, we can always have him present at Beast court from the start, but make him last General's underling, who was always blackmailed and bullied to stay under him, and only after General is imprisoned, can he finally breathe and his talents can shine. We can have him feel like he's free thanks to Miru, and approach him with thankfulness, and build things off from there, with Miru still vulnerable and affected by the ordeal, but glad to feel like he's making at least one friend unexpectedly. Or, we could have him be one that always secretly made tactics for the old general, not able to stand up for himself because he was physically weak, and we can have the old general, after breaking out of prison, kidnapping both him and Sein Miru, one, to torture, other, to use to help him with battle tactics in enemy army. That way, we can have an excuse why both work together to stop the evil plot, since they happen to be in an environment where they can only have help from each other, where they stand up to the bastard that made their life hellish together and bond over fighting to keep each other alive. But likewise, if we have new general be weak, but also be shapeshifter, we could also have a spy infiltration instead of two kidnapped little guys - he could infiltrate enemy camp pretending to be some insignificant guy, and exchange many faces and pretend to be many people as he needs to, to throw camp into the mayhem on his mission to save Miru secretly. If he were a shapeshifter, we could always have some cute backstory moment where he likes Sein Miru because he was helped by him in the past, but if he had different form, Sein Miru wouldn't be able to realize it at first, before he recognises his body language. Classic good old shapeshifter tropes. Buy really... the fun part is we can have whatever we like, and I am super curious, what would you like, you know. What ideas you think would be fun to see, you cute bastards? And do you want me to do a different voice for the character, and maybe take on a different form as the main form for him? I don't have nearly as ridiculously many forms as Tide, but I was also primordial critter, so I have a decent amount to choose from still. There's no reason, when roleplaying with the Being, for us to just pretend I am someone else, when I can literally put on another form and voice and give off a completely different impression... "

[Mirach]

"That's not what I meant, either. When I say meaningful work, I don’t mean that the product has to bring joy to someone, or make them feel loved. That's Svarik's specialty, and I think yours as well. When I say that I enjoy my work being meaningful, I mean that I like to cook, so that my family can eat the meal and not be hungry. I like to weave yarn, so they have clothes to wear. I'm not comparing myself with the trained cooks here. I don't think a meal that I cook is that much worse, but if I wouldn’t cook it, they would and nobody would be hungry. I can weave in my free time here, but if I don’t, nobody will lack clothes. I would just work for myself, to keep busy, but the're not much value in it. You said I'm more like Conrad, and I suppose it’s true. Do you think he would be happy just keeping himself busy doing some paperwork that a scribe could do instead. No, when he does paperwork, it's important. I want to do something that's important, too."

---

"Well, I can see one easy solution," Svarik said. "You accept his offer under the condition that he lets us treat him and he can only start the work when he's well enough that it wouldn’t hurt him. It's a win-win."

---

"Dashing rescue is a great trope, sign me in under that," Senecio grinned. "As I see it, Sein Miru gets captured, does something heroic that overshadows his image as a traitor... I'm not sure what, though... and then is rescued by the Beast king together with the new general, who was able to get them in secretely. It would be cool if they could watch the heroic thing, but can only get to Sein Miru after he's left alone... Then the new general gets them safely out, too. About his backstory, I think any of them makes sense and you should decide yourself, since he's your character."

[VisAnastasis]

" I see, " Melody smiled a little more softly, as she carefully tied in. " There are a lot of things that would be done anyway, if you did not do them directly... but also a lot of things you can't know if they'd be done or not, if you did not choose them directly. Rather than focusing on trying to scrape by and figure out what definitely wouldn't be done, why not instead focus on what you'd definitely like to see done more of? You could help in passing and enforcing new laws if you seek for job that definitely makes a difference. But you'd feel like it's still not meaningful enough, wouldn't you, if it's something Birdie can do better than you or Svarik, right? How about focusing on charity work, instead, then? " she inquired, sharing her own experience more timidly. " There are many ways to do charity, and charity work could be work helping people in areas where Svarik and Birdie are yet to tackle, where legal official help can not be implemented yet, but you can have freer way to act and help under the guise of charity. It could be a great aid to those, who are focusing so much on official changes if they have strong support from someone helping them on path they have trouble reaching. When I was a Queen for that brief time, I had money allocated to me, but I barely needed any of it, for I did not wish to throw lavish parties and events while I had to live in the palace anyway. It might have been my mistake, for I may have been more known and bribed people into loyalty, had better chances to protect my child if I had been more present - but you don't have to worry about the same power struggles, and can choose to use your means more freely without fears it would get back poorly at you. I used most of my money for charities I enjoyed, and you can do so, too. Charity work is something that is definitely a kind of work that won't be done unless someone steps up and does it. If you think about it from terms of what is given, isn't what Birdie was doing in last ten years basically overriding the Underground, so he can use profit generated from Underground activities and funnel them into helping different people, where it is most needed? Perhaps he did not change the land, but did it not make difference, to people he helped? All people under him, one way or another, were people that would have ended their lives badly if not for his intervention. Most of the very cooks you speak of were kids he got through schooling and supported to accomplish their dreams, and most of wondering members you see are people he pulled out of the gutter with his own hands. Right now after Crow who was his greatest helper died, and he himself is so focused on official work, there is a level of power vacuum, where people under him have to carry more work to balance things out, so there's always ways things can be improved on. It would have been quite messy, if Mole, who is too injured to keep working on the field, hadn't taken over the biggest brunt of the labour in Birdie's stead. Only Mole from the Grand Seven can think to tackle as huge volume of work that Conrad used to process daily. So, if you choose to go through the charity route, for example, Mole, who is the current Information Guild leader, could be a good place to start, since he, doing a lot of Birdie's work recently has a good feeling of where things are currently most lacking... "

---

" So... What we wish to do... is prevent him from harming himself... by putting on this condition... and what you want... is to prevent me from sacrificing myself... by putting this condition on me? " Simbel bid carefully, trying to wrap his mind around the idea. " If... I do agree to do it that way... but something bad happens before he gets well enough... Could you promise me that you'd leave me behind and escape? " his voice was shaky, but his eyes were desperate, as he begged quietly. " Before we talk about it with Ben and see how quickly and how much we can help, I can't guarantee how quickly and how good we can do, even though I am very hopeful, with my recent research with Zephir and the others. But I can't promise results before we form a plan, and... if you can put conditions on me, isn't it only fair that I can put conditions back on you? " he gulped, speaking up slowly as if giving his best to be brave enough and ask something honestly. " If you do not accept, I will feel pressured in time, and we might just end up doing a sloppy job, and he might feel pressured and miserable, too. I... can not do this with peace of mind, if I know that if I don't have fast enough results, I may have to see you all die. It's... it's not fair. If I accept what he offers once he gets well enough, and once danger comes, agree to... retreat with you, instead of staying behind.... " he spoke of such possibility with wonder, as if it felt strange to say such an unbelievable thing with his own lips. " If I promise I will leave to safety with all of you if by that time that safety measure is already built... if, by chance, danger comes before safety measure is built... can I count on you to listen to me when I plead you to run away? I know I am being difficult, but it is not... just about you guys being young, " his eyes were shaking with vulnerability. " You... you said you are my family. You did a family-binding ritual with me... Was all that just for show, or was it real? Do you think living for a couple of minutes longer, or even surviving to outlive you thanks to your help, would ever be equal to dying while knowing you all are going to be safe? It was hard when people left me when the city Fell, but, not for one moment, did I ever wish that they stayed to fight a losing battle and died, even if their choice to stay ended up in our victory, and I never had to face those thousand years of solitude. Never. If it was a fair tradeoff in my eyes to be left on my own knowing my priests were safe, why would I not be even more glad, if it was my family that was safe instead? "

---

Hans was a bit taken aback by the offer, as he likely wanted to adjust to what they would find most fun. He slowly nodded.
" Hmm... If I am deciding, then... for a start... I would not have my character get into power too soon, because I dislike when characters feel like a too convenient solution to problems instead of their own person. I would rather he is high enough official under the old General, hated and taken advantage of by him, but that he does not become the new general until Miru and he gain merits. We need to earn it instead of it being an empty promotion, and by the time he becomes general, he should already have at least some emotional connection with the couple. So, either way, I'd like Miru and him both to be forced to stay in the enemy camp and figure things out together. Now, in an adventure book, there'd be some adventure and action shenanigans, but this is erotica, so the rule of sexy overrules the rule of cool, doesn't it? " he grinned teasingly to Senecio, as he suggested. " So, I imagine we want to get as much use of violent vengeful old general character as we can until we kill him, right? So, shouldn't we centre his defeat a bit around it? Hm... Do rules of Deals work with Beasts just like in Beings? If Being promises something, they can't break their word easily without great harm or dying, though loopholes can be used to bend the Deal a bit. We could have my character making a deal in the past where in exchange for the general's help, he promised to forever serve him and never refuse his orders. That way, we can set up that even if my character hates him, he can never disobey his commands or kill him. So, when the old general breaks out of prison, he can kidnap Sein Miru and force my character to follow him. My character can't directly kill the general - but he can conspire with Sein Miru and give him weapons to kill him. He can on the surface be helping, while secretly leading the enemies into Beast King's ambush. Still, the old general is too perceptive, so we could have it that Sein Miru has to incur his wrath and keep his attention with his body, so he doesn't notice the plan. Perhaps have it so that the general is too powerful, and can only be killed when he is distracted enough by the pleasure, so Miru lets him play with him while bidding for the right moment? Or, if we want a more heroic act, how about there are prisoners involved, and my character needs time to save prisoners and bring them to Beast King and reveal secret camp location to him, but to have enough time to do it before old general finds out and stops him through Deal they made, Miru decides to stay, to risk his life to buy them time, hoping if he endures long enough, he will buy enough for people to be rescued, and for Beast King to come? We could create a decent amount of despair for such a scenario, where Miru could be in agony, worrying if his new ally and Beast King will choose to come once they are safe or if he will turn out to be a sacrificial pawn. We can either have him be rescued right away or, if he were to kill the general himself but rescue does not come immediately, we can always have him be seen as getting out of the situation too easily by just being killed, so we could have him become soldier's plaything until he is saved too, depending on how far you want him to fall before salvation. Or, if you;d rather have more openly heroic act than an underhanded one, we could always have some classic calm being on high cliff, Beast King and his army below it, and Miru and General above it, General threatening to hurt Miru in from of his loved ones to take vengeance on him, and Miru throwing him off the cliff instead, even if he knew he would end up imprisoned and become soldier's plaything, choosing to do so to kill Beast King's enemy and stop him from leading following battle well. That could be pretty heroic too, while also having its own angst and be a race against time. We can even find some real life cliff and do the little play there, with real danger. Who says all the play has to be indoors? We can up the stake of the game however and whenever we like. I am fine with however twisted we want to make the story arc go, as long I don't have to play a character that hurts you. Emotionally, I mean, " he clarified clearly, so Senecio does not get the wrong idea. " I have no qualms if you'd at the moment feel like it would be neat if, in order to trick general we are not allies, my character would have no choice but to roughen you up a little. I just feel pretty good about being an ally, and you have enough enemies, so there's no need to build any actual slightly villainous tendencies into your one single ally in whole story, I mean. With everything centred around Beast King and Sein Miru suffering physically and emotionally, I feel like my character should definitely be support for them without any backstabbing or ambiguity. AS pure, clear support, without any worries of betrayal - after the juicy war arc is done and he becomes a new General, I mean. While Miru is suffering and wondering if rescue will come, he can worry to his heart's content... "

[Mirach]

"I was thinking about something along those lines," Lipka nodded, the idea clearly not new to her. "I wanted to see if the needs of women are well represented in the council, and do something about that if they aren't. I think that some women might find it better to share their problems with me than the male officials. You think Mole can help me with that?"

---

"I would accept such condition," Svarik nodded. "At the sane time I'm really hoping that we have enough time and it won't come to that, but yes, I accept the risk."

---

"I agree, that’s why I asked you to join the game because it would be nice to have another supportive character," Senecio said. "And yes, definitely let's do that part somewhere outside. I like your ideas a lot, but I'm not sure which one I like more yet. We still have enough time to figure it out before we get to that part, so there's no hurry. But the deal to obey the general is a very good plot point, let us do that for the backstory."

[VisAnastasis]

" There is indeed a big difference between expectations between the treatment of man and woman, at least, in more commoner circles. Nobleman circles are better, as it has become possible recently for women to inherit the noble title, and in the last fifty years, there have been better conditions for woman to join professions instead of being married off, as arranged marriage practice has stagnated a little bit. There's still long way to go, even there, as it depends on family to family, with some families like Namelesses and Moonwalkers treating next generations equally, and Ciel Moonwalkers Heir being his daughter, too. I as well, was designated to be Heir to my noble family, though it wasn't really my intention, as I did my best to sway Conrad away from thoughts about duying. But there are more systemic problems for most women, that Conrad has been trying to help against with his direct support, but there's only as much that he can do for those more subtle issues when issues of murder, lawlessness, drugs and poverty were more urgent. He was mostly patching up holes as well as he could, rather than striving to make huge progress. But if that's the part of land's problems you are passionate about, I know him, and I know he would feel only thankful, if he could have someone he can rely on to help him by taking part of the work he can't do as well as you can, being a woman. Ariel... was mostly in charge of such matters more, before she died. There is emptiness, where her contributions lay before, " the girl admitted a little more quietly, looking aside, toward little graves in the garden. " Her Brother, Mole, is trying to fill in as much as he can, for both Crow and Ariel that are gone. If you're looking for an ally, no one is better than Mole, he may look a little alloff, but he's one of smartest and most qualified people we have, having been highly educated as a nobleman since he was a child, being born into an afluent family that did not spare for his education, before he threw it away to join Conrad in his fight to take over Underground once his wife and child were killed. I would have helped him if I could, but it is just not something in my skillset and where I feel I can help the most. I am more passionate about improving healthcare, to be honest, if I'd have to pick, " she admitted a little shyly. " We haven't talked of it yet, but I also am thinking about bringing seeds of healing plants and fruit from deeper layers and trying to grow them - even hard-to-grow things should have a higher chance to grow here, so I think it would be lovely, to with lovely healthy food, also try growing medical herbs, and see how we can create new medicines by combining them with Simbel's flowers and water. Zephir is also very passionate about medicine, and he always used to give any healing herbs he could grow at a side to the needy, I feel like he would grow more happy and confident, if he had a chance to make a difference there, so to make him thrive, I hoped I could include medicinal herbs in what we grow anyway. Ultimately, perhaps being able to combine things artificially, and create fruit that would have slight healing properties is a more distant dream, but with Simbel properly fed, instead of always hungry, I feel like it's an effort that is worth the try. I feel like that is an area where I could help both the world and our little rascals more. On one hand, advancing healing arts feels like something that would be fulfilling... on the other hand, if I could make achievements in the field and tie them to our new God, it could help strengthen that shield to defend Conrad one day, too. Ciel Moonwalker is already highly accomplished, and he is going to be the worthy high priest, if I am to see if I can become the high priestess, I need to show results equal to results Ciel worked for his whole life, in a much shorter time, so, just like Conrad can not be in two places in same time and must pick his battles, and like you're picking by your passion, I must also pick, what load I feel like I can best carry... "

---

" Thank you... That's all I need. I... I want to help him, even if it doesn't help me. But it would be a horror to wonder if you'd all die defending me if I can't help him quickly enough. I... have lot of hopes, since vampires hunger is soothed in my presence... but I don't want to... be punished for not doing well enough, quickly enough, with fear of your death, " Simbel's dark expression clearer up like sky after rain, and he breathed out shakily in relief as if he was holding his breath the entire time, the instinct to breathe out being engraved and working on its own, despite he did not technically need to breathe. Only with this fear cleared up a little, did he again feel free to reach for Svarik's head instead of his sleeve, and shyly, he patted and brushed his hair, as he whispered. " I... know I ask from a lot of you... If you love me half as ardently as I love you... I know my death would be hard for you. But... do not worry too much, okay? I will put in all possible efforts so I don't have to break your heart. I merely must know that, in case it's obvious that I'll fail, you'll let me buy you all the time to run away... But I'll use all I can to survive first. I plan to train the vampires well, so they can not be killed as easily as now, when their discipline and teamwork are lacking, and so they can fight alongside me. And... if we are faced with numbers greater than anticipated... I have no qualms with dirty tricks. No matter how stoic they may be, I have memories of them I can use to my advantage to sway them to some extent, and they have too fond memories of White Eagle. I am confident enough in my ability to act pitiful... and stabbing someone in the back while their guard is down is new... but I will definitely do it if the need comes, " he grinned shyly as his hand gently brushed across Svarik's hair, his expression a little embarrassed, but filled with a clear desire to reassure him. " Is it dirty to use their fondness for White Eagle to my advantage? Sure. White Eagle never had to do dirty tricks, because the bastard was ridiculously strong. But because I am not if needs arise... I will be ready. I.. am not quite ready yet. Ideas of deception are not something White Eagle's memories prepared me for... But I am not him. I am adaptable... I will learn. I... have precedents. We are lying right now, to the whole world, with the whole Bull's Brother thing... so why should I shy away, from deception, if it helps us? I don't care if some say that White Eagle's legacy has gotten rotten... I discarded White Eagle's name already. Discarding all superficial and unfitting things will be hard, too, but it is also something I must do... "

---

" Indeed, if you're barely introducing the evil General, there are plenty of things you have yet to decide as you go along, " Hans agreed reassuringly, smiling slightly, with curiosity, clearly looking forward to finding out how things turn out, like someone waiting patiently for the next chapter of a beloved book. " There's no rush, to decide, indeed. Far it be for me, to make you choose right now. We are not under a time limit, as we were to write a Spirt Wars play, so take your time, just keep me updated with the plot as it develops. There's only one thing I'd like you guys to think about and tell me as you decide. It is a little awkward, to keep calling characters Previous General and Future General. Make sure to decide on names, and tell me what they are, so we can more easily speak of characters afterwards. "
" Now you're just obviously trying to bait for a nickname, aren't you, you sly fox? " Tide couldn't help but chuckle, with the laugh that reached his eyes, as he watched Hans who innocently with dramatic flair waved away, gesturing to him in dismissal.
" My, my, how preposterous! Me, great Elder God Llyr, baiting for a fun and lovely new nickname from a pair of goofballs such as yourselves? Whatever could have possibly given you such a silly notion? " he crossed his arms, speaking with the same dramatic bravado, while teasing them, acting all innocent and pitiful as he teased them. " Would great Llyr bait for a name from two sorry lemon cakes like you? Surely not... But then again, as you are aware, you made a world reflecting our own, where names given but loved ones are extremely valuable, and you already had Beast King give the name to Sein Miru, while setting the stage for Sein Miru to give the name to the Beast king. You have a lovely and consistent theme of name importance, so are you seriously not going to weave my character's name into the overall theme, and choose it in a way that reflects the importance of naming in some interesting way? As a proud writer, I am merely speaking out of concern for the plot consistency, you understand, right? "

[Mirach]

Lipka looked a bit more content now, as if having something to do to be useful was a base for her that made everything else feel more stable, including relationships. "Do you want any help with that right kow, or is it just in the planning stage?" she asked.

---

"Yes, we are lying, just like the Thief was," Svarik sighed. "Is it wrong, to lie for a good purpose? I'm not that comfortable with it either, but I'm willing to lie to prevent people who believed the Thieve's lies to be broken by the truth. I don’t know if it’s right, but it seems like the best choice."

---

"Should we come up with a name for your character then, or do you want us to give him a new name within the play, during some special occasion?" Senecio asked.

[VisAnastasis]

" If you mean on mixing up of healing plants project, after we finish the inquiry about what nice seeds we could gather to grow, I also wanted to go talk with Owl and Zephir, so we can talk about healing plants, and discuss various combinations we should try combining. Healing plants and growing things was my long-lasting passion, but in nature, many things in deeper layers can not thrive well in the first layer, Simbel's presence eases up a lot of those restrictions, so it's exciting to think about what can we manage to pull off if we put our hearts and minds to it, " Melody explained brightly. " Would you like to join us in talks about it? Mansion has a vast collection of botany books Birdie got for me, too, so I thought to pass through them, so we can browse through and narrow down what local species to coax into growing as one with things from deeper layers. For healing herbs, since space in the garden is limited, I was thinking about checking out smaller things that can grow in pots, so we can keep them on windows and so they can receive Simbel's warmth without taking up limited space in the garden. After all, we have few floors, but every inch of the garden we can spare for growing things is precious, so when it comes to healing herbs, things that can be placed by windows to grow would be lovely. There is so much to decide, but since I'm a plant expert of our sweet capital, there's no real need for me to find botany experts to consult, " she grinned innocently as she suggested. " So isn't consulting the loved ones that will help me grow things and have fun exploring new possibilities with me much better, since botany expert, Singing expert, and local healing expert are already covered by me, Zephir and Owl? What do you say? Will you join us? "

---

" You know, my Sun... I know it is hard to think in such a way since he was such a huge shadow over your life... but not everything Thief did was automatically bad just because he did it. Or should we call smiling bad, if he smiled sometimes? I keep learning more and more how wicked he was... but I refuse to believe even the evilest person would not smile sincerely even once. Thousand years is too long of life for him not to. So, should we feel guilty over smiling? " Simbel grinned ever so softly, his anxiousness seeming to ease a little as he was able to steal this moment of patting Svarik's hair gently, doing so with clear longing. " Just because he deceived, does not mean deception is evil in itself. Do parents not also lie tot heir children, when they tell them stars are little fireflies that twinkle as they fly, just to see them smile? I understand things you fear. Continuing these deceptions of the Bull could easily lead to Bull fanaticism growing ever firmer. But we won't let that happen. It turned out that way, but I won't let you regret, choosing to deceive the world for my sake, " the hand caressing him was shaking ever so slightly, but he tried to put on a brave face. " I know offers of more harvests and better dreams do not sound that impressive, but increased food input will definitely better quality of life. I read through the record, and it seems there were quite a few famines appearing sporadically in the last millennium... Let's not get too big goals of world hunger solving like Conrad wants, that feels too intimidating right from the start, but at the very least, let's aim to eliminate famines first, deal? And... while it is not fancy like Erdel's, I can still heal wounds, like I healed yours, so it is still a plus we can tie with religion easily, with pain coming with it being claimed as a prize to the Bull in exchange for healing. Since I can get energy from blood, too, I plan to pull as much of Bull's current blood sacrifices into blood sacrifice to me. Mole is working hard to compose songs to shift public perception of it. I am also doing quite well, distracting Bull priests with White Eagle's swordsmanship. They quite like it, and teaching them a few tricks here and there keeps their interest, so I keep planning using all White Eagle's knowledge to distract them from growing desperate thoughts and doing human sacrifices as Tarmagil did. I... I can not promise what will happen if I die, but... As long as I live, I'll make sure your conscience does not get hurt, for choosing to do what you had to do, to give me a chance to be accepted. To be honest... More than White Eagle... the creature in the world to whom I am closest to in nature is probably the Thief, " his tender smile was shaky. " My thoughts keep returning to it those days, the more I see how Bull priests see me. Honestly... It would not be hard, for me to press souls around me with my presence, even if I don't possess them directly. While he only ate the Emperor's soul directly, Thief drew certain level of strength by people whose minds he affected, by that subtler form of parasitism, which led people to lean toward trusting him and be lulled into a false sense of security when he would be close enough and order things to them. If I did the same... The Bull priests would definitely feel the same kind of oppressive feeling as they did while Thief lived, from the Emperor, and feel more secure about my identity as a God. Soul damage wouldn't be that great from indirect influence, so it's not like it wouldn't be an easier way out to secure our situation. But... what's the use of keeping them under check by reminding them of such a toxic, abusive relationship? I know I am playing a more dangerous game, by taking bigger risk, and insisting on being a gentler Deity, when they crave a booth of the violent, decisive one... And it is not like I am aiming to save blameless people. In their despair of the last decade, many priests did unsightly things like Tarmagil. But I still can not give up on them, either. There's no mercy or higher justice to my desire.... I just want to prevent people who believed the Thief's lies to be broken by the truth, just as you do. If White Eagle's well-meaning crimes can be overlooked if he's trying hard now, I will just... make sure to make them all try hard till the end of their lives, to be better. But leading them anew into a new abusive bond to a God just because it is safer would just be too heartbreaking. When from a young age you are beaten into being a vessel of obedience, how can your mind not be fragile? I am not sure how well I will do... I am not even sure what kind of God I really want to be this time. I just have this gut feeling, and a dull ache that echoes deep in Tarmagil's sad, worn-out bones... I want to steal, everything Thief had claimed so forcefully for himself. I already have stolen, the loveliest, gentlest Derhain he ever had, " he gently fixed Svarik's new forget me not pin as he promised. " And I even stole his dead high priest's body, so isn't that a great start? I will keep stealing back what he took, even if it's just one person at a time until all Bull Priests are Bull priests in name only. I am sorry... My hearts burn to do more, but my nature limits me. I can not give people the same Certainty and false sense of security and courage Thief could... such things come from influencing and parasitising on souls oppressively and making them feel like they are part of you, and have to obey you for their own good. But since I am never going to turn my symbiotic kinds of bonds with souls into parasitic ones, we will have to find ways to appeal to the same people he did in different ways... I know it is hard right now, because we barely started, but I will make sure that I don't let you be plagued by fears of becoming as bad as Thief was just because you twisted the truth of our situation a littlest bit to help me, my poor Sun... "

---

" Hmmm.. How about this? Beings have very intricate relationship with names you see. Unlike with humans, where even orphaned children are named for the sake of convenience, for many Beings being named in a human sense does not have to be a standard at all. Especially it was so in the early days, before some structure and expectations were set in Being world around it. Back then, it was completely possible to live for a long time and never be called by something special. After all, unless you live with other people, do you need to be called anything? But changes came when lone Beings began to form societies. In society, in language, you can not just be "you" forever. But name culture is intricate - you can not just name everything as you wish. So, while Beings usually nowadays have names they consider their main real ones, either given or picked by themselves, they usually have aliases that developed from nicknames, that they can use when they want to be more largely known in certain groups. Just like Hans is an alias, in a way, too. After all, I am not going to tell strangers my truest name is Lyr now, am I? " he coughed innocently, as he continued. " But not all nickames and aliases come from a good place, especially for weaker Beings that can be bullied more easily. Some people will even make their own nicknames cruel if they feel self-deprecating. The smallest child of the family might be called a Runt, and while out of cruelty given, it is still a name, isn't it? So... how about giving me two names? One, most terrible, cruel, deliciously wicked derogatory name you can imagine, that Beast King gave to the weak young nameless little Beast, that everyone calls him to tease and mock him... a name he hates, but can't shake off, as it reflects his obedience to General that gave it to him, " Spirit was grinning widely with pleasure as he spoke. " But, when old General dies, and my character is supposed to become a new General - does it make sense announcing him to the Beast Kingdom under a derogatory, cruel name? So, after sufficient plot progression with Sein Miru, wouldn't it make sense for his new best friend Miru to give him a new name that comes from the strengths of their new friendship?"
Tide could not help but laugh fondly with the suggestion.
" Wow, I did expect you to be fishing for a name, but this is really something? Come on, admit it, Lyr, you're just trying to sneak your way into taking two names now, aren't you?"
" What a terrible slander from my best friend. What has this world come to? " Spirit teased back, though adding just a little more quietly, with a little more timid embarrassed tinge of excitement unable to be hidden in his feelings. " But if there's a neat chance to educate Senecio in the importance of names, why should I not take it, when it's already relevant in the plot? I doubt you rascals ever talk in debt of those things when your hands are all over each other most of the time. How will he know, if we don't tell him, you oversized doughnut? " he gently acted as if he was hitting Tide's shoulder, but the brush against Demon's body was ever-gentle and fake and gentle. " When is he supposed to find out that the closer you feel to someone, the more personalized names and nicknames you are supposed to give them, and that giving each other names and nicknames is a dance between two people, as they struggle to one-up each other in a context of who gives the other one name more filled with respect, love or affection? That it is a big thing, where effort you put reflects how much time you spent, thinking of how to put person you love best into words? Is he supposed to find that out in a century? Or worse, what if Janus happens to casually talk to him about Being culture of naming before I get the chance to, and he ends up getting the first nickname before I get the chance? " Spirit waved away dramatically, leaning on Tide as if acting he is going to faint, with clear love for putting up the show with pathos and flair, making sweeping hand gestures." I can't allow myself to be beaten by the technicality, no, good sir! I am very feisty after all, and whenever Janus gets to that point of relationship with our cute Youngest soon or not, he is sure to get a cute nickname because he is so harmless and soft-spoken, but I am as sharp-tongued and sharp-edged as the knife. Since expecting cute nicknames isn't realistic, I should at least use those humble silver-tongued trickster skills I have to get two names for the prize of one as a headstart, shouldn't I? "

[Mirach]

"I meant, I'm not really an expert, but it's an interesting project that I would like to be a part of if you don't mind," Lipka said.

---

"You know... I think it will turn out alright," Svarik smiled, looking reassured. "By the way, the pain being claimed as a prize thing... that's exactly how we can feed Janus so that we can start treating him when he's not hungry anymore. Do you mind asking Ben if he's fine with me coming to him?"

---

"You're wrong there, Tide already told me about the tradition," Senecio smiled. "We discussed giving a name to the Beast king. And I gave a name to him already. He can tell you, if he wants. I mean Tide, not Beast king. It's a different thing, you know. At least to me. A name for the character you are playing is not the same as a name for you. But I still have questions. I feel like my method of coming up with a name is... a bit inadequate, or at least not conventional? Tide liked it, but I'm not sure if it's just him, or if it really is okay, because you said that it is a big thing, where effort you put reflects how much time you spent, thinking of how to put person you love best into words. I... don't really feel like putting a person into words. Their meaning is too confining. I prefer sounds. The way I made Tide's name was just thinking about the feeling of him as I perceive him, and putting it into sounds that felt right and most similar to it. But it didn't take a long time and it wasn’t too hard. It just felt natural. And I was also wondering, when is it considered appropriate to give a name to someone? By my method, it feels natural to do it when you are close enough that there is a unique feel associated with the person to you. Is that a good measure? That's how I would make a name for you, if you would like one. Do you?"

[VisAnastasis]

" I told you, plant expert, healing expert and singing expert are already on board - so all remaining spots we open up are for friends that would have fun with it. You don't have to worry about expertise. You can always pick things up from all three of us and become an expert in your own right in a few years. All that matters right now is how much fun you'd have, " the girl stood up energetically and offered her hand to Lipka with a dazzling smile that she could only have because she was thriving here, in the little free world Conrad made for her, where she could be anything she wanted to be, and it showed, in the brightness of her gaze and confidence. " So, what do you say? Will you join us and have fun with us? "

---

Simbel's eyes grew a little distant for a moment as he must have focused on the task, before he nodded slightly.
" His sleep was light for a little while, so he was waking up slowly on his own for a few minutes now, I just asked Zephir to check on him. He just woke up with it, Zephir is informing him right now about your arrival, he is taken aback and nervous, as he did not expect you to arrive, as he was supposed to go to the sea with Lipka, but he's asking for you and what you're doing right now. Should I tell him you'll come to him? And should I tell Zephir to leave him, so you and Ben can talk on your own? " he asked, prolonging the moment a little bit as he spoke, to steal a little bit more time caressing the king's hair fondly, as if to encourage him, too. " Don't worry, whatever you choose and however it goes, I'll support you both... Let's do this however you feel is right. I can also wait in front if you'd like to be on your own before we talk about Janus's condition. I don't have to be present, but I would like to stay close by, in case either of you need some comfort or reassurance. "

---

Hans's heart fluttered slightly, and he turned back to Tide, clearly pleasantly surprised.
" Oh, damn... I do not doubt your bond, but I definitely did not expect this cute bastard to have gotten a name and not have been so mad with excitement that he ran off to tell me right away. May I ask what it is? "
" I really wanted to tell... but we were having so much fun, so there didn't seem to be a good occasion to divert the conversation to it," Demon replied shyly, his eyes foaming up with excitement and sentimentality, as he seemed delighted that a chance appeared to share it, and he whispered it softly, with the same enthusiasm as when he'd speak of the sweetest dessert. " Seine said I could tell you. The name he gave me... is Sihil-Tarak. "
"Congratulations on your new name, little buddy... It's been a while since you received such a cool name from someone other than me or Sage, " Spirit's eyes and feelings clearly showed he was so happy for him, and he lightly put his both hand over Tide's big palm and pressed it firmly, showing his support with that gesture much more fiercely than any words could. Still holding his hand, he turned to Senecio quietly. His cheeks were but slightly flushed, but it was clear he was too prideful to respond to Senecio's question directly.
" And well... Naming is one of the central parts of Being culture, so what Being wouldn't like it? As long as it is a name that isn't given in try to score points, but genuinely given from the heart, you will have trouble finding a Being that would dislike exchanging names and nicknames as you get closer, " he cleared his throat with as neutral expression as he could muster, dancing around it, as usual. " And rather than saying it is important it reflects effort in finding just right name, perhaps I should rather say what's important is... how clearly it reflects the unique bond between you, from both sides. On one side, how much it reflects what's important to you, on the other, how much it reflects how dearly you perceive the other person, and in which way that tenderness seeps into the words chosen. It depends on the nature of both people, " he explained brightly, clearly excited to share an important part of their culture with Senecio, as it seemed like it wasn't something he did often. " There is a Demon and Spirit that started off as enemies, but later got together as lovers in our kingdom, and you'll never find someone call each other "bastard" and "son of a bitch" with as loving tone as they use on each other.  We also know two Spirits under our care, that really adore human poetry, and they often give each other nicknames based on their favorite poems and poets. There's also a lot of richness in whether you choose to name someone by common naming, like Morning Dew,  that is closer reflecting their true nature, or something from endearment, like Melody, that reflects more affection than nature. Does your name reflect more of who person you love is, or how they seem in your eyes? There's lot of layers to this. Also, lot of ways one can be named. I agree not all names are equal, so names given to me in a play are not the grandest, but they are still given to me, so they are still something for me to keep as use as see fit, just like both Seine and Sein Miru are names given to you to use as you see fit, even if Miru is the name of a character. Whether it is Sihil-Tarak or Sein Miru, or a Pearl, or an apple pie, those are all names, just as John is as equally a name as Rose is a name, no matter if it's obvious in your current language what name means or not. Names based on emotions are also common. I've seen quite a few Beings that have a tendency to name those they love things like - my joy, my happiness, my dark temptation or my sweet torment. Also, those for whom jokes turn into names, like Hans turned into my most often used name in the last few centuries, and Tide is an endearment pun that came from the phrase "tide over". There are people that adore colors, and will give you names based on rarest, most precious colours they can find. There are people that know you adore flowers, and will seek flowers they think you'd most like, and give them to you and name you by them. And there are people like this rascal here, that will call you delicious with the same joy someone says "my love"," Hans chuckled slightly, and he raised one of his arms, and patted Tide's head innocently.
" Well... I am guilty as charged, " Demon admitted timidly, though he added, with a little more careful voice. " What Hans says is generally correct, for the most part. It is all in all common knowledge, but the matter of who initiates first really depends on the circumstances. One thing that worries me a little bit when it comes to Janus in particular, is that you may feel like he doesn't think too closely of you if he does not name you as time passes. But there are cases when Beings don't take much part in Being culture, and Janus is one of those that due to his circumstances barely even knew any Being other than Solstice, and even as a God, he had to hide a lot, so his bonds were limited. As far as I know, he was nameless when he met Solstice, and Solstice gave him his first name, Polýphrōn, and he used it, all until humans named him Janus, and he stuck with it ever since, throughout his whole religion. Those are only two bigger names he has, and any other passing name he got was given by his worshippers, to him as a dear Deity, in praise or prayers, but not directly to him as a person they knew, so regarding naming culture, it would be hard to expect from him to have a common sense of how or when one usually initiates such things. "
" Indeed. He had occasionally been asked as a God to give names to newborn children, and he did so, but those were all believer's requests. I really do not think he'd know how to initiate, and probably he wouldn't even dare to presume you like him enough that you'd think about naming him. Whenever you decide the time is right for it, you'd probably be the better one to initiate, because he's as much of a beginner in naming others as you are, if not more. But you don't have to worry. It doesn't have to be a grand, solemn kind of thing, just like with Sihil-Tarak, choose what feels right to you. It can even be something more lighthearted. Just like Tide calling you delicious means more than if he calls you pretty, there can be people that, for example, really love creampuffs, and can call you something silly like creampuff with more love put into it than in any serious name, " said the Spirit whose favourite food was apple pie, and who yet did not know Tide told the actor all about it, as he added with a wink. " So just go with the flow, my silliest, litlest apple pie, alright? Whether it's by sound or by meaning or silliness, only heart put into it is important... "

[Mirach]

"Now I feel like I should start working on my own projects right away to be more useful," Lipka said. "But a few hours won't make a difference, will they? I'll join you for fun and to learn something."

---

"Yes please, give us some space," Svarik said and went to where he was told Ben was.

---

"Well then, if it’s okay, then I can show you how I think of a name, so that you understand better," Senecio said. "It feels like sculpting the sound to resemble you. For you, I would start with a letter. L. It's a soft letter, but not too soft, makes a solid foundation, but doesn't weight the word too heavily. Now we need vowels to frame it. But I would put them together, to make them rise and sink, like dancing. Ea... Ae... Lea... Lae... Ael... Aella... Yes, that's it, Aella feels right, but still missing something. Something sharp to contrast it, like a K or a R. Aellair. Aelláir. Aellaír..." Senecio tried the word with different accents, like a sculptor adjusting the details of a statue made from sound. "Aellaír. That feels right. I can’t really explain
why, but it does. That's what I would name you, if you accept."

[VisAnastasis]

" Yes, working hard is important, but having fun is important, too, " the girl coaxed her gently, and then, she went all around the mansion with Lipka, surveying the best seeds to pick. While she appeared happy before too when speaking with the cooks, she was clearly even happier now after the talk and with new company, and her steps were light and playful.

---

Since there was a smaller aboveground and a vast underground level in Simbel's little home, and since Pond God gave a lot of below-ground level rooms to vampires for protection from the sun, he gave Ben one of the four rooms that were on the ground level, probably so he'd not run into vampires as often. He must have been so eager and happy to be able to give it, since at the door, a piece of paper was glued, and like a child's first writing, with crooked Simbel's first words was written "Ben's room". Doors were not closed fully after Zephir left in meantime, and when he opened them, Svarik could see the room was little, with a bed, a simple bare table with a couple of chairs, and still an empty cupboard and a closet. Since it was a room just moved in, there were yet no clothes nor tablecloths yet, nor food on the table, nor many traces of the living there - anywhere, but on the little bed, that hed a soft disheveled blanket, and a person that barely woke up sitting on top of it, that was until the moment Svarik entered sitting on the bed, rubbing his eyes awkwardly with one hand, unused to such movement, trying to wake himself up more. He wore simple clothes with long sleeves, but one of the sleeves was empty, much like the little lonely room.

The moment the door screeched when the king entered, the creature's head turned toward it sharply. Ben looked quite exhausted and sleep-deprived after using his powers abundantly in the last two days, but still, he sprung to his feet, supporting himself slightly by leaning against one chair that was beside the bed, as if his body was unused to walking. It did not seem like he had any time to think through anything more than this, though - he moved nor away nor closer, he just froze and held his breath, as if at a loss of what to do or say now that it came to it so suddenly. Svarik could see long, soft ears peeking through the hair being hung low with anxiety, and dropping even lower as their eyes met, as Ben was clearly stuck, losing courage when it came to facing him at last, no matter how much he must have rehearsed it in his head before.

( OOC: I don't know if we discussed his look too much, quick update. When he was Spirit before lifting the curse, he used to have horns and look a little more inhuman and more brightly coloured, while afterwards, he managed to lose the horn and look much more as he was before, though instead of horns he now has long ears same colour of his hair. Ultimately it doesn't matter to the plot much exactly how he looks, I just thought giving him long fluffy ears that are normally hidden in the hair but raised up and visible when he's emotional would be a fun detail like in Lego figurine of him I built ^^ Heroforge has added lots of options since last time we talked of it, so I just edited Death, Ben and Xia old file to update it a bit, so just sending it for fun, they added a whole lot of crazy cute fluffy ears, it's delightful^^ https://www.heroforge.com/load_config%3D519742288/

---

Hans held his breath, his whole body tensing up. Only when the actor finished speaking, did he shakily breathe out.
" Aellaír... " After a moment he repeated Senecio's words wonderingly, ever so carefully, as if savouring every letter. Slowly he smiled, his pupils trembling and his lip wobbling ever so slightly - it seemed hard to keep a neutral expression now. A gifted name was something clearly very personal to him, but not something that would be sweet unless given when it was earned, not pressured into. He clasped his hands together, as if trying to steady his heart, like often when he'd get emotional, not able to help but put his feelings into hand gestures. It was hard to grasp the emotions he was feeling right now clearly - there was love and thankfulness to it, but it wasn't passionate and loud, but gentle and soft, like the consistent warmth of a cracking fireplace, full of dim tender light. " Well... if that's the name our dearest Youngest feels is right, how could I possibly refuse? I'd accept the name that spews poison if it was from you, so how could I possibly not accept the name that dances so freely? This humble Aellaír has no choice but to comply, " he bowed his head slightly, and then subconsciously clasped his hands closer, in a rising anticipation, as he offered. " Now, it's really not fair if only me and Tide are on the receiving end today. Tide already gave you the name of Seine, so to even the score... if I offered you a name, too, would you consider taking it? And... Will it be alright, if our ways of picking names are different? " he paused hesitantly before he explained. " I could pick your name by the sound... but as a former Singer, if I did so, such way of choosing would feel more like a cheat, like deciphering a name that's already written down in your soul than truly coming up with my own endernment. Would it be alright, even if I choose in a different way? I have been thinking about it for a while, ever since Sein Miru's name that I and Tide discussed was already taken for your game, and I've had another name in mind this time, one I researched anew and chose on my own... "

[Mirach]

Lipka went with her, to help her, to learn, and to have fun.

---

Svarik just looked relieved to see him awake. "Hello," he smiled. "It's so good to see you. I wanted to be here when you wake up but I couldn’t, I'm sorry. How are you doing? How are you feeling? Is it okay if I hug you?"

(OOC: it looks great!)

---

"Yes, I would like that," Senecio said. "But I would also like to know the name that feels like a cheat to you because it’s too easy. It may be easy to you, but I don’t know it, and I'm curious what name is written in my soul. It doesn't have to be now, if you don't want to."

[VisAnastasis]

They went through a lot of people, gathering advice and tips. Melody was very energetic, thriving and in her element with pleasant hopes about the project, but she also seemed happy to introduce her to everyone officially, since, even though Lipka met part of the people on her own, there was no chance to do it on a larger scale since when she first came to the capital days around Long Night were turbulent and anxious. Through the talks, Melody made sure she got to meet everyone and understood their place in the household casually as they talked, to help her get a closer insight into the people living there so she could feel more secure in the still new environment.

---

With an unexpected breaking of the ice, Ben's eyes shook. With each word, reminding him on so many countless occasions Svarik has already asked him similar things, a familiarity and longing arose in his gaze. With the last question, it seemed like he tried his best not to tear up. Spirit made a hesitant, subconscious step forth, but then he suddenly stopped.
" What... about you? " Svarik heard a very familiar voice for the first time in quite a long while, hoarse, anxious, but despite unusually quiet, clearly belonging to a person he knew, one that always pretended to be practical and indifferent, but whose worries clearly shone through whenever he was distressed enough to fail to hide it. " I... I heard that... that I cut you quite deeply across the chest when I was... not myself. Simbel... Simbel reassured me he healed you, but... Miasma wounds are usually quite serious and can last for a while, and, and I... I mean, I am a bastard, but I am not heartless. Only a heartless bastard would not... ask about it. How are *you* feeling? Are you... okay, too? " he returned Svarik's question back at him, with a gaze trying to remain steady, but clearly unable to hide all the worry and guilt. While it has been a while for meadow king since it happened, to Ben, it must have felt like it was as fresh as yesterday, and despite being reassured by Simbel and others, it was hard to not have his thoughts wander back to it as he waited for their reunion, and he clearly feared that if any aftereffects remained it may hurt Svarik or bring unpleasant memories if he hugged him.

(ooc: Yes, Herforge has come up with loads of new things in the last months so it's now really fun to customize things, it's a great inspiration for character design, I just didn't get too much time to do too much yet from regular work. :) Faces especially had huge improvements done with customization, this is for example my latest Svarik and Conrad try ^^ https://www.heroforge.com/load_config%3D518003290/

---

The softest, brightest flash of excitement passed across Spirit's face with the unexpected request. His gaze was soft and a little mischievous, as he whispered.
" Well, you know, usually Beings like to spread out such joys in smaller packages, so it lasts longer and they have more time to savour every part of it... is what a boring, old-fashioned Being would say. This cool Spirit King, on the other hand, clearly promised his littlest apple pie that he could get anything he wants, so, what would you prefer? " he asked curiously, looking quite joyful as he was asked something he was able to provide for him, and that it was valued so - it must have been quite a while since he spoke of any such deeper layers things requiring close looks and perception as he could no longer Sing, so such insight wasn't something that could be useful in their everyday life. " Would you like to hear only one of the two, my choice or cheat choice, and if so, which one, or would you like to hear both, and which would you like to hear first? On a scale of one to ten, how curious are you? "