#i need to get a pair with the anti glare fr

[fingertipsmp3]

Why am I just now finding out how cute I look in these glasses

[terraclae]

Disturbance

lore pings: @yuushanoah-fr @cityofinoue @rasvimhia

A bit of a brief chapter today. It's mostly dialogue heavy but I feel like it was needed between Kassa and Arodan at the moment. 

'Dan.' Arodan had barely made his way up the stairs and he already was being spoken to again. This however wasn't Carmen's melodic voice or the booming timbre of Balam's, but the more nasal sound of Kassa. He slowly turned and found them standing behind him in a for their standards humble outfit. 'Do you have some time to spare?'

'I kind of was planning to get ready for bed.' Arodan started. He swallowed harshly before he continued. 'Is it urgent?'

'If I told you it wasn't you wouldn't come along.' Kassa said, their heavy eyelids barely hiding the red glow of their eyes in the dark. They spun on their heel and walked off. 'Follow me.'

He didn't intend to follow them but his curiosity acted faster than his reason. Arodan followed Kassa down the hall and soon he found them by their room, waiting by the open door. 'What's this about?'

'Broken things.' Kassa said, downcast. He could name a few things that would have gotten Kassa down but didn't intend to assume. All he intended was to be careful since he had not started trusting Kassa again. 'Don't stand there slack jawed. Come in.'

'... Fine.' Hopefully this is not a trap in some way, Arodan thought. He held his breath and entered. All the windows were open and Arodan only now noticed Kassa had taken a long cloth and hung it as a curtain in front of the door. Currently it was rolled up above it. The room was otherwise pretty devoid of personal baggage, save some fabrics. 'So-'

'Don't close the door behind you darling, but tug that curtain above your head alright?' Kassa interrupted Arodan, not meeting his eye. The came to sit cross legged by the pillows on the bed and pat in front of them. 'Give this room some air.'

'Right. Okay.' He pulled the cloth above him and it elegantly unwound to hang in front of the door. 'Aren't you wary of being overheard?'

'Well, what do you think I want to talk about?' Kassa sat upright and tilted their head. 'Are you expecting blackmail, a proposal for theft or arson, laundry scams? Hon, you know that is not the sort of person I am.'

'You know exactly why I'm wary of you.' Arodan grunted. He hesitantly sat on the foot of the bed in front of Kassa. 'Yeah, you have new gloves, what's different about the ones you wore first?'

'They're magical. Carmen took an old pair and magically imbued them with anti-Shade magic Sachi knew.' They waved their hands besides their head for emphasis, a bored yet annoyed look on their face. 'Look, Danny, these are also welded to my hands. I can't take them off, only Carmen, Sachi and Balam can by way of magical incantation.'

'And they will give me the same answer if I ask them?'

'I'm surprised you haven't asked already, but yes.'

That seemed that for the moment. No, he still did not trust Kassa on their word, but if it was true he at least had nothing to fear. 'Okay. What did you want to talk about?'

'How are you doing?'

'... How… How am I doing?' Arodan blinked a few times, then gestured at himself. 'You want to know how I'm doing? Why?'

'Because we are in a way still allies darling.' Kassa leant on their hand and looked at him in sideways glances. 'I've made a mistake. You're allowed to kill me for it. Is it not okay to ask about how your day was then?'

'I don't trust you, that doesn't mean I want you dead.' Arodan quickly responded. A hard look from Kassa brought him back to answering his question. 'I'm fine though. Saw town today, I met some people.'

'What did you see in town?'

'... Well… This city seems to be divided in neighborhoods who all have populations consisting of one specific flight each. Plague dragons stick to each other, as do water dragons. I've seen lightning dragons living in Water's quarter however, so it depends.' Arodan started, summing up the logical details first. Kassa was listening intently. 'This city was not built for dragons, but for two legged folk. There's people here that don't even know how to shift, did you know that?'

'I've heard of it.' Kassa responded quietly. Their eyes fluttered shut for just a moment. 'Are you going back?'

'Perhaps? I've met interesting people there and it would be rude not to at least stop by once more.' He looked over Kassa who sat hunched on their bed. '... Are you okay?'

'Well, that's a first to hear.' Kassa hummed, perking up. 'I could be doing better, but I could also be doing worse. It's a win-win really.' They waved their hand idly. 'Why ask?'

'... I don't know.' Arodan's gaze drifted off to elsewhere in the room so he didn't have to meet Kassa's eye. 'Back on the boat you said that after all of this, after all the Shade was purged from us, you intended to die. Did you mean that?'

'I keep a lot of secrets but yes, I meant that.'

'Why?'

Kassa shrugged, and then it seemed their turn to be too hesitant to look at Arodan. 'I mentioned I have a difficult relationship to the Shade. It's the one thing that gives me true power over those like me but it also might drive me mad someday. I don't intend to see the day that happens.' They said, rubbing their hands. 'You know, I came from a small town, from a very humble family. Living day after day is a blessing because that's just how it is in this world.'

'Then why not purge yourself from it?' Arodan asked. 'There's people out there that can, people trained in purging Shade.'

'Then you'd have to cut off my hands. Thing is, when I bartered with the being that gave me my Shade they stated there would always be some sort of repercussion. In my case that was that my Shade would be fully ingrained in my hands.' Kassa held up their hands and wiggled their fingers. 'It's odd. These gave me my talent for sewing and control, but it is the most awful thing about me.'

'Are you sure it isn't your secrecy?'

'Always sharp.' Kassa snickered and continued. 'I hate it, and I love it. Without my hands, no one will have me. What a dilemma huh?'

'And you intend to help us all still?' Arodan asked, tilting his head.

'Of course. I'll help you. Said you were a good egg, didn't I?'

'Good egg, huh?' Murmured Arodan, mostly to himself. 'Why do you think no one would have you without hands Kassa? Who are you really?'

'That's a good question. Who am I?'

'Stop being cryptic.'

'But I like being cryptic!' Kassa exclaimed, a big grin on their face. They threw their hands up in an unknowing fashion. 'Again, where I come from it was very much kill or be killed. That did not always mean people wanted to see blood, sometimes that meant stealing ideas, stealing possessions, whatever to further yourself. It's not a secure life to live but that's how it is in this world sometimes. I left that place because of that sentiment, I wanted more. So here we are.'

'How did Balam find you then?' Arodan dared to ask. Kassa responded first with a long sigh. They then stretched, like maybe a cat would which was odd to see at the very least.

'He did not find me. I found him by chance, when he was younger, more mischievous than he is now. Waldemar was king back then and he did not like-' Kassa raised their hands and curled their fingers to communicate quotation marks. '-my type. Fair enough, I was a con artist at that time with longer hair, different pronouns, but it is still hurtful thinking about it. What made me change was Balam.' Kassa lowered and folded their hands pensively. 'We used to play a lot of pranks back then, some involved stealing things. Balam made me return them but we laughed about it nonetheless. I don't know what it was about him but I didn't feel like leaving his side anymore at some point.'

'That's up to you.' Arodan stretched too but he could not mimic Kassa's particular movements. 'This once home of yours, was it a bad place?'

'No.' Kassa said, with no doubt to their answer. 'There are those that look out for you too even if they don't have a lot to spare because their sentiment is that an eye for an eye will not keep us happy, just breathing for another day. Plague folk are tough and introverted sometimes, that doesn't make all of them cruel.' Kassa smiled, red eyes glimmering with a fondness for a memory Arodan would not get to know about. 'There's those that embrace pack structures and that's what keeps us happy. It's what I ended up doing it seems, shame I near destroyed it.'

'You're still here. No one's dead or anything.' Arodan lay down idly, allowing himself to relax. 'I don't think I mind it anymore you nearly killed me on Paramo's bunker, but that is because we have bigger things to focus on.' He met their stare, fiercely so. 'That doesn't make you forgiven or that I'm not keeping my eye on you, but it just means we are back on neutral terms.'

'Just that one eye? I'm honored.' Kassa flatly responded. Arodan shot them a glare and Kassa only could grin looking at him. 'Neutral terms works for me darling. Does that mean I get to make you an apron now?'

'No, because I don't need one. Why did you make those for Dmitri and Balam anyway? Did you guys talk?'

'I talked for quite some time with Balam, very much like we are now. We talked things past, present and future, and even now we are somehow alike.' Kassa hummed. They averted their eyes then, towards the piles of fabrics. 'I'd rather keep that between him and me, but you know what? I'm glad we did. It felt like how things used to be. Then Marlowe was all "Oh, you sew?" and gave me his wife's old collection of fabrics and I made Balam an apron while we talked some more.' Kassa laughed softly to themselves, a blush deepening the red color of their skin. 'I wonder why I'm the way I am.'

'Again, I can't tell you that.' Arodan sat up and he found himself reaching for Kassa. His hand hovered on a distance when he remembered he probably shouldn't touch Kassa if his own Shade could perhaps act up and he would see something he wasn't supposed to see. 'I just know you need to be the best version of yourself, or something like that.'

'Thanks Dan.' Kassa said. Their eyes flitted to his hand for the briefest moment, then back to his face. They particularly were focusing on his eyepatch now. 'You know, Caer wouldn't even give this a second thought… But Stratus knows how to make artificial limbs and organs.'

'Wait, what?' Arodan blinked a few eyes in response and his hand flew up to his eyepatch. '... Does that actually work? It doesn't kill the wearer right?'

'As far as I know they have working examples.' Kassa stroked their chin and focused more deeply on Arodan's bad eye. 'Interested?'

'Well… I have adjusted to living with just one eye for a while, but it'd be nice to look people in the eye properly, or see more depth again.' He rubbed his eye, and it stung just slightly. 'How do I know this would be safe and could I even afford this?'

'Oh, they're dang expensive. But Balam's friends with Odin so you can always ask him.'

'But Odin didn't want to help us immediately.'

'He's a businessman, that's just the way it is. Back in the old days he had more time to drop everything to come help out but now he doesn't. These are volatile times we live in.' Kassa responded, more bluntly than before. 'Look, he might just ask you about your eye. I know this because-' Kassa pulled a letter from underneath their pillow. '-we have been invited to a gala of sorts in a week's time. The others know this too and I suspect that's when we get to hear what will be Odin's decision.'

'A gala? A week? Really?' Arodan said, baffled. He pinched his nose and took a deep breath so he wouldn't start speaking too loudly. 'All of us?'

'All of us.'

'I'm not a party person. Is it mandatory?' Arodan had a difficult look on his face as he said this, his brow locked in a deep frown that near made a crevasse in the middle of his head. Kassa nodded silently and defeated he slipped from the bed onto his feet. 'Okay, fine then. And I should expect to be questioned about my eye?'

'Yes, that's what I'm getting at. What color suit do you want?'

'Do dark blue or whatever you think suits me because I am not going to doubt your knowledge on fashion.' Arodan held up his hands and started to back out of the room. 'I should go though. It's getting late and I'm sure Atlas is waiting for me.'

'Yes, yes, go to your sweetheart.' Kassa waved at him and smiled. 'All I wanted to do is ask about what color suit you wanted, so that's enough for me.'

Arodan stopped in the doorway and glanced over his shoulder. 'Then why all the preamble?'

'Because I felt like it.' Kassa rolled around and gestured for Arodan to leave. 'Night Danny.'

Arodan stepped into the dark hallway and made sure the curtain covered the doorway neatly. On that note he took his leave, towards his and Atlas' room. Occasionally he heard snores, other times he heard stumbling around and he wondered who was up at this hour, who it could be. The sounds in the distance had to be patrons of the adjoining establishment sneaking through the courtyard. He arrived at his room with a wandering thought of what exactly he had spoken of with Kassa and what he felt about it. To be fair, he didn't know what to think.

The door quietly opened and Arodan slipped inside. Atlas already was asleep, wrapped in the blankets of the bed and Arodan didn't feel the particular drive to pull them from his grasp. He took the easy way and pulled a new one from the closet, laying it out next to Atlas.

'You okay?'

Arodan perked up, his hands on the lining of his shirt. He took it off before answering Atlas who was watching him with golden eyes from his moon illuminated spot on the bed. 'I am, it's just been a long day. We can talk about it tomorrow if you're tired.'

'Hm, sure.' Atlas murmured, wiggling himself deeper into his blankets. 'Come here though, I missed you today.'

'Yeah, I'm on my way.' Arodan said, a giggle escaping him. He set his bag down next to the bed, slipped out of his pants and crept close to Atlas who pulled him right into his blanket pile. Whatever it was he was thinking of, it fled him and soon he was fast asleep in a dreamless sleep.