#sol gettin all sentimental .. . . . ..

[alex-dontknow]

before i go eepying please consider

solmora stargazing at night and since they're technically looking at the remnants of their ancestors and what remains of the solarisapien race sol gets all sentimental about his choices to settle amongst the humans

"... would they ever let me return as one of them? I've strayed so far from what it means to be a warrior. have I lost my glory?"

amora turning to him with the sweetest look ever to reassure him

"you never fall from grace as a warrior. you've shown yourself to be even more courageous by choosing to protect and care for others. it's been eons, times will change."

"besides, our sons will be forever grateful that you're their father."

[carbo-ships]

Dancing

Okay, so, actually gonna post all of these. Phew. Here we go. This is... probably the best starting point? There were a few things before this but I was still sorting things out then. So we'll start here. All you need to know is that I was crashing with Aniketos before I started living at the mage sanctum, and I met Soldagand through Ani. And that Sol and Ani are dryads. Ok. I think that's it.

Part 1 [Soldagand x Carly Masterlist]

“Okay—I need your opinion,” Soldagand said, looking uncharacteristically nervous. He and Aniketos were having an evening drink in Soldagand’s den. “Alora’s already given me her take, but I wanna hear what you have to say.”

Aniketos eyed him curiously, swirling his wine. “Alright. What is the matter?”

Soldagand looked anxious, fidgeting with the handle on his mug of mead. “Why is Carly so nervous around me? Is she scared of me, or what?”

Aniketos let out a short laugh. “Well, perhaps, but that isn’t the main reason, no.”

“Then what’s goin’ on?” Soldagand pressed. “She practically hides behind you whenever I come over.”

Ani smiled. “Soldagand, I cannot even begin to explain how attractive she finds you.”

“What? Damn it,” he sighed, taking a swig of mead in frustration.

Aniketos gave his guest a strange look. “Were you... hoping for a different answer?”

Soldagand groaned. “Only because Alora and I made a bet on it. Now I gotta sharpen her daggers for her. Are you sure?”

“Yes,” Ani responded confidently.

“And what makes you say that?”

He sipped his wine with a sly smile. “She told me.”

“She—What? What do you mean? What did she say?”

“The last time you visited, it was clear she was very timid around you.”

“Yeah, I noticed, too—that’s why I asked.”

“So, after you left, I asked her if you made her uncomfortable or frightened, and she confessed to me that she finds you unbearably handsome.”

Soldagand’s eyebrows shot up. “You’re kidding!”

“I am not!” Ani laughed. “She would be horribly embarrassed if she knew I told you, so please keep this between us.”

Soldagand leaned back in his seat in defeat. “I... I’m gonna be real with you, I’m not sure how to fix this. I’m used to gettin’ the kids in town to warm up to me because some of ‘em think I’m scary, but this? I...” he sighed.

Aniketos smiled sympathetically. “Well, Carly is not a child. She is a young woman, with all the emotions that entails.”

“Yeah, I guess,” Sol mumbled.

“This is not news people are usually disappointed by,” Ani chuckled. “Most would be flattered!”

“Don’t get me wrong, I am! I just don’t want this to get in the way of her and I bein’ proper friends, with her always gettin’ all nervous when I’m around. She seems like such a sweet girl. I mean, you’re awfully fond of her.”

Ani smiled. “I am. But Soldagand, it is only a crush! Surely you can handle that! I am certain a few of the townspeople must share her sentiments about you.”

A small grin tugged at the corner of Soldagand’s mouth. “I guess it is kinda cute, innit?” he mumbled.

“I only wish you could have seen the look on her face when she told me. It was precious.”

Soldagand thought for a moment. “Do you s’pose you could help me get her to warm up to me?”

Ani chuckled. “I assure you, she already feels very warmly towards you, but yes, I am more than willing to help the two of you become better acquainted.”

“Hey,” Soldagand said as he sat up, suddenly reinvigorated, “why don’t I have the two of you over for dinner tomorrow? We can swing by that tavern in town. I’ll clean myself up a bit, try not to look so intimidatin’, and we can try to get her to open up to me a lil bit, yeah?”

//////

Aniketos and Carly entered the lively tavern near sundown. The warm air quickly melted the chill of the Spring evening from Carly’s bones. The tables arranged haphazardly across the room were full of chattering patrons.

“Well, well, well!” Soldagand called once he spotted them. He was seated at the bar, seemingly mid-conversation with the bartender. He slipped off his stool as they approached to properly greet them. “Ani, Carly, pleasure to have you both.”

“Hi,” she replied with a polite smile and a shy wave. Her nerves would have disheartened Soldagand if it hadn’t been for Aniketos’s explanation the previous night. He fought back a chuckle.

Ani gave him a once-over. He looked good. Suspiciously good. His typically unruly hair was actually brushed, and his shirt was noticeably tight across his broad chest. He may have even cleaned up his beard. Soldagand met his gaze and smirked. He knew he looked handsome. “I’m glad you guys could make it,” Soldagand said. “Please, have a seat.” Soldagand returned to his spot and Ani sat two stools down from him so that Carly would sit between them. “Anything you want tonight, on the house. The owner keeps insistin’ he owes me a favor after I carried that bear out of his kitchen a few months back, so I’m cashin’ it in.”

“Well, we appreciate you having us over,” Ani said, doing his best to act like this was a spontaneous idea and not a scheme aimed at getting his poor ward to loosen up around his friend.

He shrugged. “It’s nothin’. Really just an excuse to get to know the little one proper, if I’m bein’ honest,” he confessed, as if Ani didn’t already know. He turned his gaze to his new companion, who seemed entirely unprepared to receive his attention. “I don’t think Ani’s ever kept a human around this long. You must be somethin’ special.”

“Oh, I— I don’t know about that,” Carly stuttered, her face flushing under the genuine warmth of his smile.

“Don’t be so modest, lil lady! Ani told me all about the Circle. ‘Innate powers,’ and all that. You’ve got spark, sweetheart!” Ani and Soldagand briefly glanced at each other as the poor girl sputtered out a thank you. This was going to be cute.

//////////

The sudden shriek of a woodwind from the other side of the room nearly startled Carly out of her seat. All three turned over their shoulders to find a man with a fiddle joining the flutist by the hearth. “Oh, brother,” Soldagand groaned halfheartedly as many of the patrons cheered and jumped to their feet. “Things might get a little rowdy.” The first song of the night had officially begun.

“Hey, Soldagand!” one of the dancers called.

“Shit,” Sol mumbled, a grin sneaking onto his face. “I’ve been spotted.”

“Come on, what are you waiting for?” another man shouted over the music and chatter of the crowd.

“Not tonight, Einar—I’ve got company!” Soldagand motioned to his two guests.

More and more patrons noticed Soldagand’s presence and demanded that he join them.

“C’mon, Sol!”

“Get over here!”

“Soldagand!”

“Show us what you can do!”

He rolled his eyes with a smile as he shed his jacket. “Fine, fine, I’m comin’!” he called to the crowd, sparking a wave of cheers. “Two songs is all they’re gettin’. I’ll be back soon, I promise.”

Aniketos and Carly looked on from the safety of the bar as Soldagand was swept into the crowd. He was still very easy to spot on account of being the tallest man in the room. “He sure is popular,” Carly said, watching in amusement as he danced with the tavern’s more boisterous patrons.

“I am not surprised,” Ani said with a smile. “Some of the townspeople revere him almost as a god.”

“Seriously?” Carly exclaimed. “Like, a god god?

Ani nodded. “He is not a deity, as you know, but that certainly has not stopped the occasional person from praying to him. At the very least, most of the town uses him as an advisor and considers him a figure of authority. I think that might be why he likes this little tavern so much. Here, he is only Soldagand—as much as possible, anyway. Their adoration still manages to find its way in here.”

“Wow,” she mumbled in astonishment. “I hadn’t realized.”

“You know, I am surprised you stayed here with me,” he teased. “I was under the impression you enjoyed this sort of thing. I am sure Soldagand would be more than happy to dance with you, provided you were brave enough to ask.”

Carly laughed. “You think I’m about to embarrass myself like that, especially now that I know he’s some fancy not-god? No way!”

Ani laughed. “If you insist. Although I must confess, watching you lose your head over him is endlessly entertaining.”

“I’m not—I—Oh, gimme a break!”

“Please, you have been drooling over the man all night.”

“Oh, gosh, is it really that obvious?”

“No, no, I just know you well enough to notice.”

As the song came to an end and a new one began, dancers started pairing up. Sodlagand easily shouldered his way out of the crowd and made a beeline for his companions with a devilish glint in his eye. “I need a partner for this next one,” he said as soon as he reached them, “so one of you’s comin’ with me.”

“Ah, well, you know I’m a poor follow,” Ani grinned. “Why don’t you join him, Carly?”

Her wide-eyed gaze quickly fluttered between the two dryads in disbelief. “Me?” she asked timidly.

Soldagand offered her his hand. “Dance with me?” He had to stifle a laugh as he caught her face turning red. “Don’t worry, honey, it’ll be alright!” He caught her glance to Aniketos for help, who gave an encouraging nod. She cautiously took his hand, blushing madly. Soldagand escorted her away from the bar with Ani following close behind to watch.

“Just follow my lead, okay? I’ll take good care of ya,” he said quietly when they reached the gathering crowd. Once she nodded, he guided her hand to his shoulder and planted his on her waist. “One, two, one, and—" His free hand claimed hers as he led her into a circle of dancers all performing some sort of rambunctious polka. The patrons who refused to dance clapped along in time with the music, cheering on their more adventurous friends from the sidelines. Soldagand kept his movements simple the first few cycles around to let Carly get her footing, mouthing out the steps to remind her and praising her for looking at him instead of her feet. A giant smile had snuck its way onto her face. Once she’d gotten the hang of things, Ani saw Soldagand lean down to speak in her ear. She nodded and Soldagand smiled broadly. As they danced, he removed his hand from her back to guide her into an underarm turn then seamlessly reconnected with her. Ani could tell from the oohs of the crowd that they’d caught the attention of several onlookers. He was impressed. Soldagand was a masterful lead, and Carly a very agreeable follow—things Ani had already known, but that were much easier to appreciate together.

Soldagand met Ani’s gaze and mouthed a “thank you” for helping him coax her into his arms. Ani smiled and nodded. Carly was much too distracted by the loud music and her handsome partner to notice that some of the other dancers had since cleared out in order to watch. A crowd had gathered around them in a wide circle. Soldagand was far from oblivious and decided to use the newfound space to show off a bit. Ani caught Soldagand lean down again to whisper something in her ear. She nodded with a smile, resting her hands on his shoulders. He seized her small hips and effortlessly lifted her off the ground, spinning her around in the air. She laughed gleefully, squeezing her eyes shut. He gracefully reacquainted her feet with the floor, quickly turned her twice, and resumed their dance.

He continued adding in little tricks here and there as the music dictated, delighting both Carly and their rapidly growing circle of spectators. She was small enough that he could guide her into nearly any step with the right push and pull of his large hands. Once he could tell the song was coming to a close, he took the opportunity to spin her into a sudden dip as the musicians struck their final chord. Their audience started up a joyous round of applause, peppered with praising whistles and the occasional aww. She broke his gaze and gasped as she finally realized they were the only two people left dancing. He pulled her back upright only for her to hide her face in his chest, embarrassed. He laughed heartily and engulfed her in a hug. “You did great!” he cheered, giving her a tight squeeze. With a protective arm around her shoulder, he led her out of the crowd and followed Aniketos back to the bar.

“Very impressive!” Ani praised them once they were far enough away from the musicians to hear each other properly. “The two of you had that crowd awfully worked up.”

Soldagand laughed. “Darlin’—sorry, can I call ya darlin’? You’re a real fast learner! We were on fire out there!”

Carly thanked him bashfully.

[next]

[triumphorce]

Drawing breaths with artistry, language of thoughts fostering a nostalgic being,

sentimental siege,

All brain, all range,

Clad in plaid collages of pad paper armor,

a militia plane..

brought up from a strained mind under endless terrain,

recycled garbage,

that permeated with what i saw as empty knowledge in

 a brief education & briefer accreditation

toward two empty majors, and even briefer burst of confidence that anything I do means a fraction of what I think it does..

but I sift, gain ambition

making any situation a domain to reflect, regain strength for the fight of a life time,

per se,

my thirst trained frustration to motivation,

juggernaut toward distraught teachers who only stay cause it’s a job,

while fallen hopes betray them all, I opened faces of milli-sided halls,

Walked along, until paths became the law,

Staring into hearts of the ones who stood and taught us,

ashamed and scared to ever face the thoughts of

themselves becoming a lost cause or lost, ‘cause right when they thought that they had shit on lock,

krogan locked,

life said,

“oh, hold up”,

and dropped a thresher maw

and in reply of shock,

they wonder in awe, wandering off,

Never embrace the wisdom in days lived

No, just stay in Dis, display our failed transition, derailed intentions,

In front of Pupils, who sittin, takin in, dreaming of becoming greater than the soul before them, forever chasin,

Archin before touching the top or bottom, Circling problems, repeating hate, tried restartin,

But made it complicated, all skulls, on legendary, whilst ordained to try hardin, lost in anger,

In the fear of being forgotten, emerges a pride undefined and tainted,

Causing all in front of them to disintegrate to smithereens, pitch black pov,

Shadowed in passing past waves, condescending and ignorant, more specific,

Ignorant to the fact that they are ignorant,

Arrays of misinterpretation, radiantly radiating blame on students aging, waitin for a reason to engage in,

Or believe, instead just misbehave, but as many minds decayed, mine dismembered and delayed,

Waitin silent for the time when it was safe, training to protect and teach any who secede to conceit of others to fight back and fight with what you know is right.

Making sure drive is free of any ounce of foul bias,

Maintain a sole desire to find balance,

Weight-wise, only sided to resizing peace of minds’ states,

Seeing a single race, endless potential.

Peaks beyond our Sol’s existence.

Patrolling distant lights in skies above.

From here on I’m only speaking biased toward a pride instilled in life, no more pride in might.

Writing based on finding the right

Words to describe ideas, inscribed with The Mightiest,

Idealistic in sight’s trim, a righteous rim, finding out daily this is more of a fight than predicted,

So many objections, how to explain them becomes a drawer of cables,

Tangled cords mixed, a mess of mass discretion break away the paths’ progression,

So how to relay said hopes’n opinions with flow and rhythm has become the extract of pensive obsession

Always bounce back with direct direction, from troubles I elude by jumping up on joust equestrians to stick it out with doubt and pity, Directin weapons toward negativity to secure a victory against the likes of evil, gold medalist perfection,

Reactivate negated dreams, defibrillate any being left behind and convene in rehabilitation,

Away from lies and emerge unafraid, a lion wild when

Complying to mal-authority, forget the order of things, like a coup,

Like I’m Luke, I draw my light of truth and smite the roof caging tolerance,

Then I light the fuse leading to the point where you want to disconnect completely,

An artist’s mission; to bend “reality” around the ones leading and defend the soul without technicalities,

Non-generic talent to bring death to flawed morality, born in sin, but found that better than

Being bored, free of lore able to distinguish what is permissible

Toward myself and dismissin those who ridicule, ones who didn’t live full,

Those didn’t win fools, who focus attention on instances of chances missed,

Steady

Descending electrical currents, discharged negativity to bring

jetstream connectivity to repressed neural energy,

Trek through a universe, telepathy to the muted me, suppressed relativity of relative tales, reveal trails, look like ninetails,

My failures pale in comparison to inner murals of flames, Amaterasu lyrics, vivid paints, cel-shaded imagery to share frames of memories,

Or portraits of Watercolor flow in diction, lyrics renditions, eccentric linguist, all tomorrow and to infinity,

Distant because I’m weary to adhering decisions people try reliving,

Clearly headed to perfection and I travel gravel discarded from

Shattered mountains my mind has battled absent of intricacies,

A promise to remain a person worth the mention of words delivered,

Imprison deceit, like a prism shimmering enlightenment is released,

A schism in derivatives and who I’m changin into presently

And no more givin in, given them more than sufficient definition

Might just be a blur because of all this sprintin With letters

Resemblin a piston burst, ricocheting embedded urges off of pages, forming leaded barriers,

Thus creating that schism, separating harbored confidence and people hating,

Hoping by the time they catch me, I’ll already be ahead of

Where they didn’t think I’d step, adept enough in sabotages,

crept up like a larcenist, beg no questions, answers are always an option,

Remaining slept on but my alarm is gettin ready, bells bangin

Eyes open,  targeting instantaneously,

One above runner up, marksmen lock, C'zar in archery

When arms volley pens across tarps of bark and bleed

Words seen in endless dreams, all apart from envies, greed,

And anything tempting me to dismissing potential genius,

End up regrettin decisions, Like why I ain’t do that? Over what?

Because I believed what people said and disapproved of?

What I’m doin had me confused but not too soon after did

I see through the crafted abyss of blame, made grafted from lavish and sin did the rest become latter,

Realized the here, now I’ve appeared from dreams, clean as Casper’s seen,

Laughin while I’m rappin in my head, absent minded

To dettachments distracting me from finding time for more important matters,

typin into drafts what you view and leave the medulla interactin

With that sensation I’m attractin, producin classics, compacted in the back of minds,

Intrusive lines matched to muses alike, imported traction

To remove the fractions, causing friction, depleting factions of my blissfully factored fiction,

I abstractly live in, making peace out of the non-existent to

Apply to how I’m livin, find the light and deliver to the withered,

And despite all debatin, I ended ignorant intentions and interpretations

Erased irrelevance in a future I’m inventin, no more taking any notions

Of people’s wisdom, and I’ll admit it, what’s spoken ain’t always potent

But I stay open, so I’m given what I’m givin, disownin focus in peeps

Hopin for me to give in, consulted opinions insultin my intelligence,

Only a fifth a percent completed till I’m the person they predicted I’d be,

Redirectin high beams, still learning to finally eclipse and diminish dim

Witted people missin bigger pictures imprinted in visions emitted via

Antennas, receivin indica signals, absorbin instrumentals, mental drive,

As I instant transmission to beyond light years and I’m gone again,

Fin.