To say the last few weeks had been hell was an understatement.
It wasn't even the events in the swamp at this point, no. Those were long since resolved (sort of), and he knew those secrets would stay with Aprife, at least for now. It was what happened after that,—what he had to come home to—things that he had been mulling around inside his head for nights. A ship crashed. Four Fronds burned. Such a large expanse of the beautiful forest was absolutely ruined. His hive hadn't been burnt down. Not completely. Only some. Only enough that mattered, t́he̶ ͝eàst w̸i͠n̨g̕ and ̧h̛is b͏̸̨ase̴̛m̀͞͞e͘ń̛͟t͏,̡ ͝h͏i̸̵͢s͘͏͟ ̢͟********, no, he couldn't start thinking about this sort of s**t, not right now. Muerte had enough on his mind and enough to deal with. He was tired. He was exhausted. He swiftly forced his thoughts into the back of his brain, but this city wasn't helping.
New Hemisect. When the hell was the last time he made it all the way out here? It had been sweeps at least. Muerte had picked his hive's location for a reason; the hunts meant a steady stream of subjects, the forest had been adequate privacy. If he needed supplies, there was the Fronds. And well, the Fronds was in absolute shambles right now.
Which meant a supply run to the next best place. Hello skyscrapers.
Fortunately, he had done his shopping quick enough, ready for the return trip home. Unfortunately, the next train wasn't for another hour and a half and that meant an absurd amount of time left to dawdle. Muerte had tried to find a quiet place, but in a city as big as this one it was proving to be near impossible.
And honestly, his search had lead him quite a ways away from the actual station, and he had already gotten himself lost a couple of times in his damnable maze twisting hellhole of a place. He was almost beyond caring at this point though, almost. He'd catch the next train for damn sure, but right now—
Oh.
A literal oasis in the middle of this over-communed desert. A small park sat itself situated in the hub-bub, benches sparsely placed under long looming trees. It wasn't that which caught Muerte's attention however, god no— it was what sat in the middle. A peculiar little pond, its shore and waters lined with the most plump looking quackbeasts. Muerte was enamored, placated for the briefest of moments, the city sound muffling into a drawl. He wouldn't usually find himself so easily distracted, but god oh god did he need one right about now. It was a welcomed one.
He was only going to take a quick look, a quick one. God, if only he had something to feed them with, even though it looked as if they were well fed enough already—wow look at the gradients on that one; are those ducklings? He wanted to take them home. Maybe just one. The mother wouldn't miss just one right?
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HOPE THIS IS OKAY DIES
Melancholies
Springtime Teenager
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blackbird cake
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Posted: Sun Sep 13, 2015 8:50 pm
In the peaceful evening, Elidae strolled along underneath the large trees beside a glittering pond, gazing up at the night sky through the moonlit foliage with a small bag full of bread in hand. She couldn't see the stars and the twin moons were barely visible due to the smog, but she knew they were there. Since she made her home in the middle of the urban jungle of New Hemisect, she rarely experienced the magnificence the nature of Alternia had to offer, but this tiny oasis of a park in the middle of the city was close enough to get a bit of "fresh air". In her hive, she kept an assortment of small hiveplants and a mini tree that vaguely resembled the vast forest of Four Fronds, but still, it was definitely not the same. Her hive was tiny and livable, but she'd rather be out experiencing and enjoying what was outside. Her lusus didn't seem to mind the outdoor activities she readily embarked on; he intended for Elidae to learn how the world worked and become a well-mannered civilian (under careful supervision, of course). Still, she was prone to trying to make all sorts of "friends", and while her amiable nature allowed her to get along with most trolls, Ladydad still remained weary and frankly exhausted with having to keep up.
But tonight, all she wanted to do was feed the cute little quackbeasts at the pond! That was all. No funny business. An occasional activity, simple and fun.
As she approached her destination, she noticed an unusual doctor-y looking visitor in her usual quackie feeding spot. 'Where are you going?' Ladydad questioned behind her, though she was already making her way straight towards him. 'Elidae, don't bother that greenblood.' He said more sternly, but it ultimately went in one sponge clot and out the other. Silly Ladydad, she wasn't going to bother him. Clearly, if this guy seemed so enamored by these little creatures, he wouldn't mind a little chat about them? Right? Right. Maybe he even wanted to feed them with her! A giddy feeling swelled in her chest as she approached and casually made her away around to stand next to him.
"They're so cute, right?" Elidae said, shining a generous smile to him. "My favorite is the one over there." She pointed a tiny finger in the general direction of the little feathered creatures, though it was impossible to tell which one she was actually pointing at. There was just so many of them. So many quackbeasts. So many quackbeasts to love. Her lusus reluctantly flew up beside her, shooting her a cross look. Ignoring Ladydad, she returned her gaze to the greenblood and continued.
"Wanna feed them? I have-I have some bread!" Elidae held up the bag in her hand excitedly, "They're used to trolls walking around all the time, so they're super friendly and won't fly away!" She raised herself a bit on the tips of her toes and leaned in a little closer to him, putting a hand up to her mouth to cover it away from the quackbeasts, almost as if she was sharing a super duper confidential secret, "Plus, they really, really like to eat." Bursting out into giggles at her own joke, Elidae insisted eagerly for him to take a piece of the bread.
Melancholies
omg is this ok ;;
Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2015 12:33 am
So caught up in his feathery delusions of grandeur, Muerte had failed to notice the yellowblood as she inserted herself at his side. There was still something distinctively exhausted about his features, but something a little lively too as he watched the beasts waddle to and fro. The movements evoked an almost childish feeling. It was warm and gentle and it brought him peace, something Muerte hadn't felt in quite a while... well, realistically it hadn't been that long, but there was something about torment and misery that could stretch weeks into sweeps. The mind had such a strange way of playing games with itself. Muerte wondered if he would ever figure it out.
Not that it mattered, not right now anyway. The only thing here was him and these gorgeous (albeit silly) quackbeasts. It was becoming increasingly evident that he probably wouldn't be able to steal one and take it home like he hoped (it would be a fairly noisy train ride, he concluded), but perhaps it wasn't entirely unrealistic to say— oh he didn't know, grab a feather? He always could use a new one or two; surely he could finagle a more pristine one, right? Right. Oh who was he kidding? Every troll for himself—he'd grab as many as he could, he'd—
"They're so cute, right?"
Oh. Well then. Muerte totally didn't jump— except he kind of did. When the hell had the yellowblood gotten here? He was instantly miffed, poised to say something. He didn't if only because the child kept speaking, and he was honestly too tired to try and interject.
Except... bread? Oh, she had bread. His eyes glanced down to the bag in her hands before sliding over to regard her completely, reading bubbly and too-much-energy. He had no experience with kids; there were only a handful within the Initiative, and even then he didn't really interact with them. Hell, hardly interacted with anyone outside of Aprife, and all of those times had been strictly necessity. Now he just felt awkward, but at least it wasn't angry.
And she seemed thrilled enough about the quackbeasts. That was actually kind of nice. They were pretty great, weren't they? He agreed wholeheartedly, a rarity for the greenblood.
It was a bit of a late response, as Elidae wasn't really pointing in their direction anymore, but Muerte turned to look at the group of quackbeasts again. The vast majority was still occupied doing quackly things, but a sharp few seemed to pick up on their presence, and more importantly the presence of sustenance. Which one was her favorite? It was hard to tell when he was so unfamiliar with the flock, but already his keen eye was telling subtle differences from the individuals. Muerte was knowledgeable on featherbeast behavior, after all. Each had their own personality just as unique and set apart as every troll living on Alternia. Muerte was convinced, anyway. <********, here he was lost in thought. Silence was normal, but not as routine as his usual snarky bitterness. It seemed tonight wasn't necessarily time for that either, though. Elidae was urging a slice of bread towards him. He supposed anyone so eager to tend to something as beloved as featherbeasts wasn't so bad. Muerte wasn't in the mood for conversation really, but was he usually? The answer was no. Tonight was no different. Maybe a little different. It was hard to say no to his favorite thing and also this yellowbloods chipper vibe, or at least how her chipper vibe seemed due in part to the aforementioned favorite thing.
"Is... that so," Muerte hesitated for a moment before reaching over for a bread piece, looking over it carefully, "They are rather endearing, aren't they..."
Muerte set his bag down to rip the slice into smaller pieces, tossing the crumbs out into the fray, watching as pandemonium broke lose, every last quack for themselves. It was nice, though noisy. He tossed another piece, "You must come here often, to be so prepared..." he noted dully, some spark returning to his eyes as he watched the group feed. "Which did you say was your favorite again?"
Bringing up a hand to her lips to stifle a giggle, Elidae's amusement towards the greenblood's reaction increased alarmingly as soon as he took a piece of bread she offered. Her beam stretched across her face. Excellent. Now she was really, really excited. Regardless of the hesitation and the lack of liveliness, it all went unnoticed by Elidae. After grabbing a slice herself, she set the bag down, mirroring the greenbloods actions. Ladydad remained cautious of the older troll, eyeing him carefully.
“Oh my gosh, yes! I try to come by often when I'm able to. Feeding the quackbeasts is so fun. So fun. Plus the park is really n-n-N-N-!“ While she tried to rip off a piece to throw, her excited behavior caused her fingers to slip, flinging the whole entire slice into the water. Plop.“Whoops…" There was a sudden silence, then complete and utter chaos as they crowding around, nipping, quacking, and flapping wings as it floated on the surface. "Hahaha! Oh my gosh. Nice. It’s nice here, I mean. I keep a lot of plants in my hive, but I rarely get to see, like… nature and stuff." She paused. "Well." Crinkling her nose, she squinted down into the lapping waters of the pond with momentary pensive thoughts. First impressions of the forest in the north had been caught up in flames and smoke, much to her dismay. "I did recently, but. The circumstances were a little… funny." Sighing hastily, she shrugged at the matter, sincerely not really wanting to dwell on it any further in fear it might bring drag the conversation she tried to attempt to hold with the odd greenblood. Besides, she'd much rather talk about the cute little feathered creatures, and she was plenty sure he would as well.
“But anyways! That one! That one is my favorite." Elidae pointed once again at the swarm of quackbeasts, only this time more specifically to a tiny, speckled one swimming around in circles. “Its tiny and got polka-dotsss. Like me!” Wiggling her body excitedly, she broke off a piece and tossed it overhand a little further than usual, finding the ones that followed amusing.
“So do you live here?” Elidae grinned eagerly at the thought of a new friend in the city. "Oh, oh, wait, you look really smart-its probably the glasses and coat but-are you a doctor? You definitely look like a doctor. Or-or-or a scientist!” Slapping her hands on her cheeks, her mouth hung agape. "Oh my gosh, what if you’re both?!"
Melancholies
she talks a lot im rly sorry poor tete
Posted: Thu Oct 29, 2015 6:48 pm
Had it been any other circumstance or any other time, Muerte probably would have been less than amused with the small child, what with how she chattered on and on and on and on about the most pointless, mundane things. Focusing on the quackbeasts helped. His exhaustion from the prior events muddled the would-be frustration ever further. Still, he couldn't help but jump as the yellowblood made a spectacle of losing her own bread slice, the object making a plop louder than most normal pieces of bread really ought to. It was like noise followed this child.
Though, it wasn't... terrible. There was Zeffer level obnoxious, and then there was... this, which all things considered could definitely be worse. Again, it was probably just the ducks placating him, he assured himself. If anything, feeding them was far more noisy than the child could ever hope to be. In fact, she was just a cut out of the proverbial cake when compared to the entire city. Yes, this was fine. As odd as this scene was—Muerte and this child—everything was fine.
Had he not been dealing with his own inner demons, he might have smiled at the tiny, polka-dotted avian.
But what caught Muerte off guard was the sudden deduction to his appearance. Feeling a tiny piece of bread between his fingers, he looked down at the much shorter yellowblood, giving her lusus a hesitant glance in the process (if only for a moment). "Medicine and science do tend to overlap..." he commented dully, turning back to the water as he flicked the small piece off to the side. His aim was by no means perfect (so many things weren't, so many he had realized, so sickening—) but he still felt a special sort of satisfaction when the speckled quackbeast found the wadded up bread anyway. Though small, it definitely had tenacity and character.
"But I suppose I prefer Doctor..." he adjusted his glasses, realization dawning on him as his eyes darting around the surroundings. It would be unwise to linger here too long; Muerte was forgetting himself. He was a wanted criminal at this point... at least no one here should recognize him. Should. He would be safe for a little while longer, surely. Possibly. Of course.
"Both still works." Muerte eventually concluded with a small nod. "Live her, however? Definitely not. It's far too noisy."
Muerte couldn't have guessed or even assumed that Elidae was present in the raid on the Initiative base. Such a possibility never crossed his mind. "I much prefer the solitude of..." he trailed off with a small pause, eyes fixated on something so very very far away than where the twosome were now, "...the, ah— well, ahem. I did prefer the solitude of the Fronds... The forest there is... absolutely remarkable."
"But, well, recent events have compromised that." Muerte didn't want to talk about it. Hell, he probably shouldn't have even mentioned what he did, but... this troll was a child, a rather innocent one a that (if Muerte could ever judge character). It wasn't as if he was divulging secrets about the swamp, and it was likely the news of the fire had broken out. Hell, a spaceship? That was going to make headlines for a long time. He touched the bracelet absentmindedly on his wrist, though he ignored the glow that sprung up as a result. Hands devoid of bread, Muerte leaned on the railing that encompassed the pond, trying not to fidget.
"Anyway, you shouldn't judge someone merely on their appearance. There are far more facets you need to consider than that. That would be like—me looking at you and," he paused as he gave the yellowblood a once over, the inner workings of his mind obviously ticking and chugging like cogwheels in a clock tower, "Assuming you're some, some... tiny, freckled... adolescent hooligan that likes bows."
Okay, Muerte wasn't necessarily sure where he was going with that. Couldn't tell if he was being serious or joking or whatever the hell. It was hard to make heads or tails through the jumble of his head; perhaps he was merely attempting to redirect the conversation. His hands tensed on the railing. Relax already Perist, it's just a child.
blackbird cake
A MONTH IS A GOOD SPAN OF TIME RIGHT
Melancholies
Springtime Teenager
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blackbird cake
Adorable Gekko
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Posted: Fri Nov 27, 2015 1:56 am
Ah, recent events. Elidae gave the greenblood a sideways glance, piqued with curiosity. So did he used to live in Four Fronds? Was he there when the spaceship crashed? Where was he living now? Blinking, she tilted her head, trying to keep her mouth shut tight to prevent herself from prodding him with questions. Even if she really, really wanted to ask. It wouldn't have been polite. But gog, did she want to.
Innocently, Elidae leaned in, shuffling closer to him to listen to him continue to speak. There was something about his aloof, yet haughty demeanor that stirred an interest. And he was a doctor...! Additionally, that hair. So luxurious. Beautiful, shiny curls. Most trolls had coarse, unruly hair. But his- it was so nice. Instinctively she wanted to reach up and touch it, style it, do something with it; her fingers twitched dangerously, but of course she restrained herself. She mimicked him in leaning over the railing, though evidently was much shorter than he, as her arms barely made it over. Even if she sort of clung to the rail, she peered up at him behind the sleeve of her sweater with wide eyes. As he spoke about not judging someone on appearances, she puckered her lips and made an opposing ptthhhh! sound. Well, she hadn't meant to "judge" him! But if he was walking around in a white lab coat like that, it was safe to assume, right? Unless he just liked white lab coats. Then she looked like the jerk here. Oh nooo! When he finished after that pause, Elidae gaped in surprise.
"Ho-Hoo-Hooooooligan? Ahh! Hahaha!“ Elidae had to back off of the railing when she doubled over into a fit of giggles. She wiped away a few tears with the occasional gasp of air. Ladydad had clearly startled by the sudden outburst, flittering nervously and feeling slightly offended by the greenblood's comment. Squinting, Elidae simply waved him off. There was a long moment as her laughter died down and she gained composure, though her cheeks pained from the smile she wore. “I'm- hehe- so sorry! I've just never had someone call me that befooore! You got most of it right though!" Eyes crinkled from the widening of her grin, they sparkled in amusement. Elidae was not easily offended by comments such as that, but simply found them to be funny. Why on Alternia would he say that? To ruffle her up? Elidae laughed once more, shrugging her shoulders.
“I agree, though! But I also personally think outward appearances say a lot about who you are! Self expression, right?" She suggested, poking her cheeks with her pointer fingers. “I mean, you did say you were a doctor guy right? I was pretty on the mark, huh?" The yellowblood stuck her tongue out between her teeth in a teasing manner. Then, a sudden thought occurred to her.
“Oh my goodness, I never introduced myself! Hi, my name is Elidae! She started strangely as if just starting a new conversation. "But you can call me Eli for short if you wanna, doesn't matter much to me! What's yours?" The little troll clasped her hands in front of her, batting her eyelashes up at him.
Melancholies
IT CERTAINLY IS lays on ground
Posted: Mon Jan 18, 2016 2:48 pm
It was probably a good thing Elidae didn't ask for any elaboration on those recent events, but in the same breath Muerte probably wouldn't have cared. He was honestly past caring, and what the hell did it matter what he even said to a child anyway. Perhaps not the smartest thing, and certainly uncharacteristic of a greenblood who devoted his entire everything to the preservation of his own life, but...
Whatever, the ducks were cute.
"How astute of you." he replied dryly. "Though self expression only has so much over practicality." he looked down at the jacket he wore over his clean white garb. It did feel a little awkward and constrictive; he much preferred the rolled up sleeves and dainty cravat. Ah, but the cravat had nothing to do with science, did it? Perhaps the yellowblood was onto more than he initially thought. Self expression, huh...
He rolled his name over his tongue silently before speaking, "It's Muerte." he decided not to divulge his last name. It wouldn't matter either way. Elidae obviously had no idea who he was. Thumbing over another piece of bread in his hand, he lazily tossed it into the water again. It wouldn't do to get buddy-buddy with a troll he'd never see again, so Elidae was just fine to him.
"And only Muerte." he said tersely, though it wasn't directed at the child. Playful jaunts and images of Aprife and Maneki and Zeffer spouting tete filled his head, making him want to groan in abject rage. Nothing infuriated him more at this point, honestly. Ruined the suave smart scientist spiel he'd spent his entire life building up. Ruined the notion of the cool cravat. Damned either way, but he could at least control his name in one instance of his life.
He gave a glance down at the yellowblood, instantly regretting the way she fluttered her eyelashes. Who even was this kid. Why did kids like him. It was a question even science couldn't solve, he was sure.
Well, he could always ask.
As he finished tossing pieces of the bread in, he was left with nothing more than a few crumbs on his fingers. Ah, well, it was fun for a little while he supposed. Passed the time at least. "Tell me, Elidae." he started out of nowhere, "Why approach the smart, boring looking doctor then? Surely you have better things to do."
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hope this is okaaaaaayyyhgfgfgf
Melancholies
Springtime Teenager
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Adorable Gekko
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Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2016 9:40 pm
"Oooh! Muerte! Muuuuerte. Muerte, Muerte, Muerte!" Elidae chirped to herself, wearing a bright smile while doing a shoulder shimmy. There was always something pleasant and magical when learning someone's name. Now she wanted to learn the rest of him! She could sense the sweet, joyous sensation of friendship already. When he referred to her by her own name, Elidae made an immediate turn to him with a gigantic, toothy grin. The excitement never ceased.
"Boring?" There was a perplexed tilt to her head. "Who said you were boring? You look kinda fun if you ask me! Smart and fun doctor." She stuck out her tongue between her teeth.
"But its you kinda look like the kind of troll who has more important things to do." Glancing over, Elidae gave him a deliberate smile. Truthfully, she did try to befriend many trolls who either seemed disinterested and ignored her or made a blatant show of aversion to her goofy behavior. It didn't bother her. Maybe that's how he was feeling right now and he was merely being polite, but the girl certainly appreciated in her own way him playing along in his own way. To be honest, that wouldn't stop her from feeling happy about it. Or trying to prolong this interaction.
She gasped loudly at a sudden realization. "We're out of bread!" Eyes darting between the clearly malnourished quackbeasts and the empty bag, she finally settled on Muerte. "They still look hungry!" Elidae blinked up at him with wide, mildly concerned eyes. The cogs of her thinkpan started turning vigorously as she stared at him. It only took a moment for her to jump with energy once again. "Do you wanna get more bread?!" While the tiny yellowblood seemed to ask this as a sincere inquiry, she already began skipping away down the path that lead out of the tiny oasis and back into the city. She was practically dancing on her toes, humming to herself a cheerful tune. Halting on her heels, she turned to look back at the greenblood, waving him over dramatically.
"Come oooon! There's a corner store right around here!" She spun on her heel and twirled a few feet, then turned back towards Muerte once again. "It won't be long!" Repeat twirl. "For the quickbeasts!"
Melancholies
no public shame for meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2017 1:21 pm
Elidae was an absolute whirlwind of speech that Muerte was honestly too tired to keep up with. "Alright, alright." He sounded absolutely exasperated, but he wound up following the yellowblood anyway. For the quackbeasts indeed, because he sure as ******** wasn't doing this for the child and he sure as ******** wasn't doing it for himself anymore either. Featherbeasts though; that was something he could always get behind.
He zipped up his jacket to further conceal his symbol before getting swallowed up by the city masses. "You know, there are other featherbeasts around here that are just as deserving." They passed a flock of them on the way to the store, actually, the pigeons (or troll-noun equivalent) erupting into a miniature cloud before landing again. His eye gleaned over them. "They're much more tame too. They let you pick them up sometimes," his nose wrinkled, "But I wouldn't recommend it, they're rather dirty."
When they finally rounded the corner to the store, he stepped aside to let Elidae have first dibs. He wasn't much in the mood for interacting with the public after all; not past what he was already doing.
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