no raindrop touched oriane as she walked through the streets. she was, after all, a water mage. finding marcus irvine was a favour, nothing personal. still, she smiled gently as she found him. "marcus," she said. "déodat sends me." he was constantly watched, being a rosen son, but oriane bernards slipped away from view and was forgotten immediately. "he is worried, i think," she added quietly.
MARCUS had never been one to be bothered by the weather. When he was young, when the days were hot & dry, he would stay out until his skin was pink and sore. When it snowed, he'd throw on his winter coat & trudge outside until his limbs were numb with the cold. Rain, particularly, was little more than a minor inconvenience.
NOW, however, Marcus had no need for practicing. He'd long since given up on fantasies that he'd develop enough talent to rival his siblings, if he just worked hard enough. He hadn't so much as attempted more than a simple spell here && there since Drusilla had tossed him out. The shamed Irvine child, who couldn't light a candle much less survive a war.
( Not that there was a war, a teenage Marcus had wanted to scream. The Irvine's might have been warriors once, but what did that matter when there was no battle to be won? )
ALL things considered, Marcus likes to think he's adjusted very well to a normal life of paying his own bills, and turning up the thermostat when his apartment got too chilly. Marcus liked his job, accounting was a bit dull at times, but numbers made sense in a way magic never had &&& he knew enough about them to know he was being well paid.
MARCUS was friendly with his neighbors, with his co-workers, & even though he was still working on the whole making friends thing - sometimes the guys in sales would invite him out with them && that was going well. All in all, Marcus was still settling into this new way of living, but he was content enough.
HE had no reason to practice, but habits that ran so deep were hard to break. So he'd swapped spell practice for exercise, &&& he had to say, training his body was much more rewarding than magic ever had been. The hours he poured in showed & his effort mattered.
WHEN he'd woke up this morning, saw the rain dripping from the sky, he'd still laced up his sneakers && carried on with his morning jog as he did every other day. Marcus had never been one to worry about getting sick, either.
HE was stopped at a crosswalk, using the time to stretch out his calf, when he spotted Oriane. For a moment, he wondered if it was a coincidence she was here & wasn't sure if he was meant to pretend he hadn't seen her. But when she smiled at him, he beamed back. He hadn't been particularly close with the Bernards girl, but they'd always been pleasant as far as he could remember.
HIS grin dimmed, just a bit, at the mention of his cousin's concern. He didn't want to be a cause of worry for any of his family, with everything else they had hanging over their heads. "Well, it's still nice to see you Oriane." he greeted, taking a look at her dry hair. "I'm glad the rain hasn't deterred you."
MARCUS tried not to be embarrassed of his own wet clothes, a fabric math pun laying flat against his chest. "Even though my running in the rain may suggest otherwise, I'd appreciate you tell Déodat that while his concern is nice, it's also unnecessary. I'm doing alright." he paused, offering a wry smile. He wasn't sure if she'd understand, but he hoped he didn't seem too sad a story. "How are things going over there? I haven't heard much since I've been gone. Everyone is doing well though, yeah?"
