– golden.

[3moreseasons]

"Oh, uh... no, it's fine. Everyone's curious about me," you sigh, swirling the glass in your hand. "Wouldn't be the first time I've had to explain it. Probably won't be the last..."

Thankfully, the ball distracts people from wondering about how weird you are. Silver linings?

"But yeah, that's pretty much what happens. Honestly, I don't even need to eat or drink, but it's just nice to... remember it, I guess? I can still taste things, but once I swallow, it's just gone. But it's still nice to have something once in a while. I just... try not to take up too much space. Like, in our fridge."

You sip your drink. Is it awkward to say anything? The two of you haven't spoken to each other, but it's not like you're an easy person to miss. She must have noticed you by now.

"Uh, s-sorry I didn't introduce myself sooner," you say, giving a nervous laugh. "Especially since it's just the two of us in the townhouse. I just, uh... not really... social person. Yeah. A-anyways, I'm Gangle."

[lunarebirth]

" I think I get what you're saying." if rumi was in that position, she too would miss the feeling of it all, especially the one she so attributed to some comfort food late at night when sleep just isn't coming to her as easily as she'd like. but that didn't really matter at the moment, the shift in topic causing her to laugh awkwardly, weight shifting from one foot to the other as she exhaled softly.

" Sorry about that. I haven't really kept....normal hours at the townhouse." some nights are spent wandering the city, some spent at starberry in the studio, and the rest are spent patrolling, on the lookout for anything that might try to steal away someone's soul. even if she wasn't back home, rumi was still a hunter and a hunter doesn't slack off on the job just because they got kidnapped by some mysterious overlords and dropped in their personalized ant farm.

okay, maybe that was a bit harsh– she is able to see Jinu again, something the huntress doesn't take for granted in the slightest– but it was mostly accurate.

" It's nothing personal, I promise! I have been told I need to learn to relax and take a chill pill." but old habits die hard. it'd certainly be easier if mira and zoey were here but she made do as best she could. " Nice to meet you, Gangle. I'm Rumi. Oh, and you can take up as much space in the fridge as you want. I tend to order out a lot of the time anyways– I need a lot of energy."

[everybodyhatesjax]

Jax had already gotten used to seeing all the humans here.

Even the weirder looking ones, with the pointy ears, wings, whatever else and oh! The ridiculously long anime hair like the girl before him had. Seriously, she looked like an OC Gangle would draw.

Not that he knew what an OC was.

"C'mooon, just admit it! There's no way that thing is real."

"If that thing was real, it'd be stupid heavy. I bet your head is killin' you right now."

[lunarebirth]

" The only reason my head would be killing me right now is if I have to keep listening to stupid remarks like yours." she didn't think her trip to get something to drink would result in this.....situation and normally, rumi isn't so uncouth.

desperate times call for desperate measures, as they say.

grabbing her braid and sweeping a part of it over her shoulder, rumi whips it around in her hand easily enough, swinging it back and forth. " Look, light as a feather! It's just fluffed out to look big!"

[lunarebirth]

" I was beginning to think that maybe you had changed your mind." her invitation to him to join her had been rather last minute, leaving little time for someone to find a suitable outfit. not that jinu didn't look good in just about anything he wore but a sweatshirt and jeans weren't exactly ball worthy. and while she's still getting used to not hiding her marks, thankfully the dress she chose for the evening paired well with the iridescent marks.

" The artist they got to perform– she has such a lovely voice. Bobby would've become a fan instantly." thinking of her manager's reaction is enough to cause rumi to laugh as she offers a hand to the other, fighting back the slight nervousness settling in her stomach. this was their first normal outing....and she wanted to get it right.

" What, uh, what do you wanna do first? Food? Dance? Maybe snoop around the other rooms–"

@sajademon - wintertide ball

[lunarebirth]

rumi has seen many strange things during her time as a huntress and even in this city. there was no shortage of unique citizens and thankfully most of them weren't demons hellbent on stealing the souls of the people in this place. a blessing in disguise, really. and so far, most of the people at the ball were friendly.

the rest? well, the rest were a gamble on seeing who was a jerk and who wasn't. and this kids cartoon looking knock-off was certainly in the latter half.

" For the last time, no, you cannot 'borrow' my braid! It doesn't come off, and it's not a wig!"

@everybodyhatesjax - wintertide ball

[lunarebirth]

" Sorry if this is rude but I just can't stop thinking about it." certainly not the best of her ice-breakers but it was a curiosity that demanded to be satiated and the only way it could happen was if she just came out and said it. was this ball the best place for it? probably not but that's something for her to regret in the morning.

" If you drink something, does it like.....disappear?"

@3moreseasons - wintertide ball

[truemastermind]

THE CARRIAGE MOVES FORWARD AS INSTRUCTED, leaving them alone for a little while longer without offering orders. back then with gwi-ma... what was there for her to apologize for? in the end, he had technically tricked her, even if everything they had was real. the way he disappeared from the world, albeit selfish in his own eyes, had been for the sake of letting that very world continue on without gwi-ma's existence looming over it. the honmoon would be sealed with something brighter, where one's lies would not be what bound them.

his heart aches, wishing he had had a chance to live in a world like that, woven by her own hand alongside her companions一

❝ Rumi, you don't have to be sorry. ❞ instinctively, a hand reaches out to grab her own, as if to comfort her in all her stumbling mess. ❝ I was the one who turned everything against you. Used your insecurities in order to save myself... all because Gwi-ma reminded me of what he could do, ❞ he admits, returning his hand back to him, allowing for thumbs to twiddle just a smidgen against one another as he glances down at them. ❝ You... were right. What we had was real, but I couldn't commit to it. So I lied. Just like I did about my past. ❞

he frowns a little, shaking his head just a bit. ❝ I'm the one who should be sorry. For making it seem like I cared 一 I mean, I did! But it all probably looked fake, didn't it? If I didn't care, I don't think I would have did what I did. ❞ he pauses, letting out a small sigh. ❝ But... you did free me. If it weren't for you, I would've been trapped in that cycle. You brought back parts of me I thought I'd lost for good in those four hundred years, ❞ he adds, feeling strangely vulnerable, the truth that had weighed on him leaking out after so long.

❝ Rumi, I一 ❞ another bump, cutting off what he had tried to gather the courage to say, causing him to collide into her instead.

[lunarebirth]

eyes widen at the sudden proximity, her hands moving on their own to catch him as best she could, resting against his upper arms to keep him from toppling right on-top of her. if rumi didn't know better, she'd think that the horse pulling this thing was doing it on purpose. could animals...sense things like that? she remembers jinu's companions doing something similar and the idea of the horse getting tired of this back and forth didn't seem so far fetched anymore.

a silence settles as her eyes find his, as if searching. trusting him was like taking a leap of faith, but one she takes willingly. even after everything that has happened....he still gave everything at the end to save her.

" Jinu–"

it was now or never, wasn't it? she could keep this up, keep this going in circles as they stumble over words, unsure of what to say while only hoping that it doesn't come across wrong. it'd be easy to do but she doesn't want to take the easy path anymore. what if this chance never came again? what if she were to wake up one day and he was gone? rumi couldn't live with the regret of knowing she had a chance and letting it slip away out of fear and clumsiness.

even as her heart hammers in her chest, she refuses to listen to the demons anymore. there's no fear as she reaches out to take his hands in her own, grip firm and unrelenting. " I know it feels right, every time I let you in. I know it feels right, that I can tell you anything." her fingers slot themselves between his own as she squeezes, gentle and sure as the words flow in a melody meant only for them in this moment. " I don't know if what I feel can be called love but– I still feel it. I care about you, Jinu. I want– I want to do everything with you, everything we couldn't and more. "

" I want us to see the fireworks on New Year's. I want to know whether you like your coffee with tons of sugar or drink it plain. I want us to lose over and over again to the crane machines on the boardwalk but still try because we're having fun. I want to see what being 'us' means. " rumi only releases his left hand to press her palm slowly against his cheek, thumb resting just beneath his eye as she laughs, knowing at some point in the future she's going to be so embarrassed at herself. but right now? it didn't matter.

" I want to know the sound of your heart, of who you are. Not who Gwi-ma convinced you that you are or what those inner demons we all have say, but you. "

[lunarebirth]

" And just what are you doing over here?" while rumi was content to mind her own business and enjoy her evening, she couldn't help but to notice the slightly odd behaviour displayed by someone who didn't look like they belonged here tonight. try as she might to ignore it, the part of her that wanted to see what they were up to won over and before the huntress knew it, she was standing behind link, arms crossed, eyebrow raised.

" Where are your parents at? You're a bit too young to be at this party– you shouldn't be messing with anything."

@phantommirrored - wintertide ball

[lunarebirth]

" Just what the heck are they playing?!" rumi didn't mean to interrupt the conversation with anis so suddenly, but the second a voice starting singing along to a tune all too familiar, her smile of pride quickly vanished. her half-filled glass of wine nearly spills as the idol turns on her heel, eyes narrowing at someone standing near the audio system with a grin she's seen far too many times on zoey's face.

" That is not our song!! It doesn't have any bad words!"

@starmament - wintertide ball

[lunarebirth]

now that i'm home, it's time to add rumi into the fun as well. here is a starter call for wintertide, uncapped because they'll be relatively short!

[lunarebirth]

wintertide info–

finally getting a chance to attend a party without being swarmed by the media? sign her up! rumi is attending the ball and while she has no date, she's moreso going to cheer herself up because she misses home and her girls. her dress can be viewed here!

while not there in an official capacity, she'll be moving between what's offered, dancing or eating or talking others up

[truemastermind]

AN AWKAWRD CHUCKLE ESCAPES HIM, finding it a little funny though, in truth, not certain if he should really be laughing at it with so much left unsaid. ❝ Yeah... better that, ❞ he replies, voice trailing off as he mentally cringes. honestly, he feels even more like he should hide in a hole, especially having invited her out like this without so much as an ounce of an apology given her way when he did. so much for working on himself, the voice in his head once again beating him down and down and...

❝ Yeah, Rumi? ❞ the voice silences, hearing his name fall from her lips, causing a skip in his heart just a smidgen before he processes what she says. she was... apologizing? but why? it wasn't her fault any of that happened, especially after how things wound up in the end. he falls silent, the bump in the carriage welcome as it gives him a little more time to prepare to speak.

❝ You... don't need to be sorry. ❞ especially after all they've been through. ❝ I could've just, you know... not? Said those things? ❞ was this the right way to go about it? he wasn't entirely sure, but he turns to her, feeling another bump as he does that nearly knocks himself into her space. he's quick to retreat, pressing his back against the carriage wall with a cartoonishly awkward smile. ❝ That was the cart... ! ❞ like he needed to explain that. great, this was going just about as well as he'd hoped. ❝ ... look. You don't need to apologize. I get it. What we said? It was just hurting ourselves all over again. Especially in a place where we can finally be... free. ❞

[lunarebirth]

for a split second as he retreats, disappointment washes over her. it's stupid to feel that way but she wished it lasted just a bit longer. maybe it was because it's been so long since he's been close enough to touch and her heart ached for it. a familiarity she hasn't felt in this city that brought her peace, awkwardness of the situation aside. and yet, there's something comforting about the way the both of them stumble over the littlest of things.

it brings a smile to her face.

" I know, but, it's not just that I want to apologize for." the carriage comes to another halt and her gaze snaps forward, forgetting just where they were. "Um, go forward." the wheels turn once more and she can only hope she picked the right direction. or not. it would give them more time. " Back then, with Gwi-ma and everything, I–" eyes close as she takes a breath to steady herself, twisting until she fully faced jinu. now was not the time to hesitate, evident by the way she reaches forward to place her hand over his, pretending that the heat she felt growing in her cheeks was just due to the weather. somehow. because that's believable.

" I'm sorry for that, too. I really did want you to be free but I was blinded by all my lies and I went about it all wrong and I shouldn't have used you like that. I thought what I was doing was right– not that I'm trying to make excuses! It's just that I want you to know I did care– do care I mean it's not like I stopped caring, it's just–" words come to a halt as she grimaces at her own inability to finish a sentence. " This....sounded a lot better when I practiced earlier, I swear."

[truemastermind]

legend of sandy hollow

HOW LONG HAD IT BEEN SINCE THEY TALKED? that day, back when they both got into a fight, it was a mess that jinu couldn't bring himself to face. again, he had been nothing but worthless to her, even if her claims stated otherwise. perhaps that was why he had extended an invitation to her to go for a little ride, though it seems there was more in store for them here. ❝ I had hoped it would be just a normal ride, but, uh. I didn't think we'd be hunting down a head... ❞ he trails off, rubbing the back of his head as he thinks it through.

he continues to sit in the seat beside her, hands fidgeting a little as he tries to think of something to say fully 一 how to address their predicament, especially now alone in this carriage together. his mouth opens, ready to speak again, before the horse-like creature sounds displeased, him noticing briefly that it was stuck at a fork in the road. glancing to rumi, he returns his gaze to the paths, looking between each before pointing to one.

❝ I think... this way? ❞ the ride turns to where he goes, finding a sense of relief that it was the right way and no obstacles obstructed their path, allowing them some reprieve to talk more...

@lunarebirth

[lunarebirth]

there's a part of rumi that wouldn't mind if a hole opened up and swallowed her right in this moment. while part of her was relieved that jinu still wanted to talk to her– that he reached out to her– approaching the topic was another matter entirely. she was more than happy to give him the time he needed, but now that they had a chance to talk, it was as if everything she prepared beforehand decided to fly right out of her brain. " Well, better a head than a body, right?" the laugh that follows is more of a half-hearted chuckle which quickly dies off as she scolds herself silently.

this couldn't go on forever. someone had to start first. rumi decides to steel herself. no matter what the outcome was, she would accept it. even so, her gaze remains focused on her companion, that tiny fear of him disappearing if she looked away for too long keeping it in place.

" Um.....Jinu?" wait, no, don't sound so unsure. confidence! that's what mira would say! "Jinu. I....I'm sorry. For yelling, I mean. All those months ago. I–" the carriage rides over a bump, which startles the hunter for a few brief seconds. " I don't know what came over me."

[existentialismee]

–  ( ❀; @lunarebirth )

Slowly, Watanuki was beginning to realize that he wasn't the only person in this predicament-- confused, lost and alone, taken far away from home. The more he wandered, the more he happened on people who seemed just as scared as he was; and though he tried his best to reach out to them.. most, if not all, were too wary to even come close to him.

As he stared at the woman in front of him now, frightened and cowering away from the crowds on the street, he hoped with everything in his entire chest that she wouldn't be the same.

"-- wait!" he called to her, nearing her side.. and it was only then that strong sense of something rippling from her hit Watanuki like a ton of bricks. Eyes widening, he noticed the patterns scattered across her skin; glowing with hues of deep pink.. like fissures from the bottom of the earth. What.. was this? Was she hurt? Or could she be some sort of spirit..?

"Are you alright?" the words left his lips without even a second thought, concern lacing his brow as it furrowed ever so slightly. She seemed almost unsteady, so the boy offered her a hand-- in case she needed it. "You.. don't seem like you're from this place, either. I just got here too, so I understand how scary this can all be.. but if there's anything I can do, I'd be more than happy to help you."

[lunarebirth]

the voice startles her, tension tightening every muscle in her body with a sharp intake of breath, eyes wide and wild as she instinctively takes a step back, her mind repeating the same thing over and over and over again as she tries so desperately to melt into the shadows.

no, no, no, no, no! don't look at me! look away, please, please leave me alone please don't leave me alone–

this place was not home. it smelled different, the noises were too loud, baring down on her ears like the roar of a hundred drums. her skin crawled with the itch to get away, to run and never look back. (just like she did before. just like they did. because why wouldn't they? everyone should. everyone should run away from her.) the second the source of that voice draws ever closer, rumi flinches, retreating until her back is pressed firm against the brick wall. she's– she's bare. she can feel the sun caressing her arms and it only heightens the panic threatening to swallow rumi whole. i have to cover them. like celine said, i can't let anyone see– but as her hand with purple etched into her skin and claws unfitting for a human reaches, there is no fabric to grasp, no oversized hoodie to tug tighter over her frame.

her gaze snaps up, meeting the worried eyes of the stranger and a rock sinks into the put of her stomach.

there is nowhere to hide.

" I–" her voice cracks, shame creeping ever higher. " I don't– there's nothing you can do to help me." rumi shakes her head as if to convince herself of her own words, gaze dropping to the ground, face contorting as she sees her own marks. her shame. " Just– just go. "

[lunarebirth]

makes good progress towards accepting who she is is faced with herself from the past who hid from shame

bobby come pick me up i'm scared

[lunarebirth]

" Ha......Zoey and Mira would be having the time of their lives right now if they were here. We never really got to celebrate Halloween like normal people...."

[charadrxxmxrr]

“First of all, I do not attend the proper educational facilities due to asocial tendencies, a moderate dose of generalized anxiety disorder, and the fact that i have a Whole Ass (part-time) Job.

Also, today is Friday. Also-also, I am a being who craves chaos.”

[lunarebirth]

" Right right." sounds totally believable. not like she can judge anyways, she's never went to school normally.

" As for the chaos part, you're not going to commit arson or anything like that, right?"

[lunarebirth]

charadrxxmxrr said: “Everything is legal when you do not care about consequences.” Who is this sassy lost child.

" Shouldn't you like, be in bed for school in the morning or something?" Rumi, it's the weekend.