Rankle the Second 'Rainier' Harbinger

RANKLE THE SECOND "RAINIER" HARBINGER the responsibilities i wear. i will wail for that death aonach. courier. ancient.

[opheliasflood]

his reaction was typical, obviously worried that perhaps she was faking what she meant and only inviting him in out of courtesy. ophelia couldn't help but roll her eyes, saying; "you can be dull sometimes, rainier," with only affection in her voice for a friend as dear as him. ophelia was simply thinking he may not enjoy being so exposed in a form he clearly wasn't very comfortable in displaying, even if she didn't understand why. "of course i do,"

a pale hand gently took his clothed elbow, not dragging but guiding the fae easily over the threshold and into her brothers place. it was not yet so clean, the telltale signs of play written out in scattered dolls and outfits, wands made from foil around chopsticks and edible spiders on the countertops. "sorry. just had a really intense bout of princesses and witches with my niece. we watched maleficent and she's insistant on being angelina jolie because she has wings to," ophelia chuckled, making room on the counter for the pot.

"what's that? fae soup? i was told mortals shouldn't eat fae food, something about it stopping us from going home..."she trailed off, unfamiliar with the old wives tales.

[ranklerainierarchive]

⌝ "I am dull consistently, it allows for the moments I am not dull to be far more surprising and pleasing," Rainier commented as she reached for his elbow, fortunately nothing there amiss and so Ophelia feeling nothing odd about what she touched. There was still a slight bounce to his step as his weight distributed itself.

⌝ "Well Maleficent is not a witch, she is a faerie," he noted, looking to see if perhaps her niece was still nearby but only finding an emptiness to the home, gaze shifting back to Ophelia and her crown that escorted him inside. "You, of course, most certainly suit being a princess however."

⌝. "It uh - it's actually a soup my mother used to make for me as a child since I couldn't eat certain foods, it apparently doesn't taste very good but it has healing properties, I thought it might...help," and yet, of course, with everything as it was, Ophelia looked fine. In the moment she looked a little exhausted and suddenly risen but she didn't look nearly as injured as what she should have given she was a mortal woman.

[opheliasflood]

tests had showed nothing but perfect health, bones and organs knitted back together without little prompting or work from the medical team. ophelia had only began to really understand the depth of her injuries since being discharged and obtaining a full list of them, eyes scanning the list often and somewhat obsessively. all it told ophelia was - she should be dead. if it wasn't lost on her, that fact, and it was something she was struggling to come to terms with. like many others, she'd taken some leave from work, spending more time indoors.

a knock on the door alerted her to someone knew - the one person who seemed to love having her at home all the time was norma. she'd decided on an afternoon nap after an exciting bought of fairies and witches, ophelia dressed in pink with a crown that was supposed to mimic aurora from sleeping beauty. she didn't even check the peephole, opening immediately to see - rankle.

the two hadn't really spoken since that day at his house, how awkward ophelia had made it. she didn't stare this time, just looked upon rainier like she always had - as a friend.

"do you want to come in?" ophelia asked him instead of greeting, opening the door slightly wider. her eyes fell to the pot he held, curious - she did not see him as a cook. more like the kind who got others to do those things.

really, ophelia wanted him inside so she could give him a huge hug without prying eyes.

[ranklerainierarchive]

⌝ Ophelia looked ridiculous, in a sweet way that made Rainier's heart hurt, all things considered. The beautiful pink hue she wore overpowered any tiredness on her, and the play crown she wore that had obviously made knots in her hair did not dissuade from the glimmer it complimented her eyes with. Ophelia suited being a princess, it just...hurt at the moment, Minho was gone, his prince gone. So much for Ophelias implication Rainier would get stuck there.

⌝ "Do you want me to come in?" Rainier asked because her lack of greeting worried him. Perhaps she was still upset that he had stormed out of his home, perhaps she was upset that he had not seen her sooner, perhaps - well, he could list countless reasons she might not want him to come inside.

[oliver-sereno]

Thankfully Layne had only needed one night in hospital, and Oliver had been allowed to stay on a cot bed beside her, his cooler hand in her hot one all night. He’d slept little, waking every hour to make sure Layne was cool enough, and it had paid off - she’d slept, albeit fitfully, the whole night through. Oliver’s protective instincts had really kicked in and he was desperate to get her and the baby home to their cottage - that was their safe place, and he knew Layne would feel much more calm once she was free from the fluorescent lights and incessant beeping of the hospital. 

It had been a relief when the following morning she had been discharged, and now they were home, Layne napping on their new cooling mattress while Oliver worked on finishing a small, wooden cardigan he had been knitting for their soon to be born little one. A gentle knock at the door pulled him from the task and he set down the tiny garment, heading to open the door, a slight furrow in his brow - he wasn’t expecting anyone. The furrow smoothed as is eyes fell on Rankle, a warm but tired smile stretching across his face as he greeted the fellow fae. “Hi! Oh, it’s lovely to see you,” he murmured, taking in the altered appearance of the fae. He too was changed - his skin a little glittery and green, ears pointed and wings on full show - so it didn’t surprise him to see that Rankle looked different. “Come on in,” he added, stepping aside to to let him in. 

[ranklerainierarchive]

⌝ Rankle stepped within, feeling a little undignified stepping into another's home without his feet covered, spending a little extra time on the map wiping his feet just to be sure his was not tracking in any dirt from the outside. It was generous of Oliver, of course, not to comment on them but he still felt as he did because he had been taught and raised to obviously behave in a specific manner.

⌝ "I saw the news of your wife's admittance to Opulence Hospital, I hope that everything is alright with her, the news did comment she was fine, but I do not quite trust what is being conveyed to us as of late," he admitted as he followed Oliver inside the cottage, attempting to lower his height by bending the additional bend in his legs now on show. "It is, however, not why I came to visit with you."

[min-ji-min]

Pink lips pursed to the side, mulling over his suggestion of having her face be cropped, it was possible but she had a feeling the chat would complain about the camera position and ask her to fix it back to the normal setting. Still, might as well try. She scooted closer to the desk and turned on the camera, opening up the programs so she could at least just view herself from the camera's viewpoint and see what could be done, "Could try cropping..."

"Faceless.... maybe could do like an ASMR stream and have it be an entirely audio only?" She chewed on her lip as she messed with the camera settings, making a cropped box and zooming in on her face so it was the only thing visible. "Does that look weird?" She asked him, looking straight ahead at the camera so he could look at the screen capturing her features, the cropped image of her face stopped just below her chin and admittedly it did conceal her wings, for the most part, as long as she didn't spin around or move too much then they wouldn't be visible.

[ranklerainierarchive]

⌝ "I am unsure what ASMR is but if it is something typical of your streams then that does not seem like a bad option," he responded. His main concern obviously was that this would be an extended problem, the town was unsure of when things would get better - which they would, he was sure of it. "How long could you maintain that sort of thing?" he asked.

⌝ When she showed him the cropped image of her face it made him sad, not because it didn't work, he thought it a bit odd but admittedly it was not horrible. Just that it was sad she even had to do this, she was beautiful as she was. Stunning. To have to hide who she was like this was just unkind. "Perhaps say your camera is having issues and you can't change how zoomed in it is?" Unaware of all the annoying subs that would start telling her how to fix it.

[ranklerainierarchive]

⌝ Guilt weighed heavy on the man's heart as he stood before the Spaulding townhouse. He had put on his shoes that hid his feet and pants long enough to cover the peculiarities of his legs, but he could not hide the iron skull on his face, or the bones on his fingers. He didn't care. When he met Minho, and bid farewell to Min-Ji who entered the fae realm to escape what had happened, and was told of the events, of what had happened with Ophelia he was unsure what to do. Reaching out to her even if things between them had been good felt as thought he was unlikely to get through. So he focused on Minho. He continued to focus on Minho, as well as digging into his father's old journals to see if he could determine an origin for the creature, until he was at a point where there was nothing to distract him, and more news came of more hurt and he could not hold off any longer.

⌝ He was unsure if Ophelia would be pleased to see him, unsure if she truly could not look upon his face without judgement but he still needed to check on his friend, knuckles gently knocking at her door with one hand, the other holding a soup that his mother used to make for him as a child. It smelled foul and tasted equally so but for Rainier it had always worked.

@opheliasflood

[opheliasflood]

his words had a certain finality to them, so ophelia ceased to tease him anymore. she was aware she had upset him greatly with her staring at his true form, now instead just trying to avoid his gaze entirely - it was almost accusatory. ophelia realised she had come to see if rainier was okay and yet, made everything a fraction worse in the process. not her intentions, of course but…well. the damage was done. perhaps rainier would never forgive her for it.

“oh. you don’t have to, ran-rainier,” ophelia checked herself quickly. “really. we’re just plain old humans. we’ll be fine. promise,”

[ranklerainierarchive]

⌝ "It is clear you do not wish for my company as I appear now," he stated, because though she seemed to have a gentleness to her face her words felt to him as though she was not trying to be considerate but rather wishing to push him away. The interpretation, of course, entirely based on his own insecurities, rather than based on her actual actions and words. "So I will not visit you at your brothers and I will not continue to bother you with my presence now, I have places to be regardless."

⌝ Without even waiting for Ophelia to leave, because he worried for her looking on his feet too long he stepped past her and through the door that was opened for him by staff, a car waiting for him.

[ranklerainierarchive]

Do you consider yourself romantic?

"It probably matters more whether or not Minho considers me romantic, which I hope he does."

@goldenchildminmin

[ranklerainierarchive]

Are you a cuddler?

"That is an entirely invasive question."

"Yes."

[amyinnile]

That sounded nice, to feel full of life so even centuries of it didn’t take as much of a toll - albeit Amy didn’t really know how old Rainier’s partner actually was. “Seems like your significant other has figured out some sort of a secret to, well, a life well lived or at least well enjoyed.” She smiled pleasantly, genuinely glad for her friend, for whom she wished all the best. Although Amy wasn’t curious in that way, her curiosity tended to look over her shoulder and into the very distant past rather than around her or ahead of her into the future, rarely one to indulge in gossip or looking into other people’s lives, yet she did feel somewhat disappointed this time that she wouldn’t be able to see the man who had captured Rainier’s heart. He must be an amazing man to have earned the affection of at least equally if not more amazing Rainier.

She nodded understandingly, after all they were all adults, with their work, obligations, schedules and whatnot. Amy was never the type who had to maintain frequent contact, she was perfectly happy and capable to simply pick up where things left off even after a long absence or a stretch of radio silence, never the type to get mad or take it to heart when being busy took over and prevented people from meeting up more often with her. That of course did not always apply the same way to romantic partners. “I hope that despite it, you two will continue to find enough time for each other.”

“Oh, as well as anyone else, I suppose.” She responded vaguely, fiddling with the purse in her lap, deciding to place it on the seat next to her and discard her bright red coat too, draping it neatly over her bag. “I will be counting exactly six months since I joined the town’s pod next week. I’m still adjusting, but I’ve been reassured many times and often that I can take as long as I need. Changing species is… a lot to get used to.” She nodded awkwardly, always feeling somewhat clumsy when she spoke of her newfound supernaturalness. Well, not newfound any longer since it has been four years since that fateful day, but Amy really meant it when she said that she’s been taking her time adjusting. Unless it was around high tide she often sort of forgot that she was now a siren. It seemed like only when she was in the water that she felt at ease with her new nature and state of being.

[ranklerainierarchive]

⌝ Rankle gave a soft tilt of his head, perhaps Minho had. The man was sensitive at times but being sensitive and emotional didn't remove intelligence and wisdom, Rankle had seen the way Minho was able to deduce what was needed in any given scenario and find his way to something both productive and beautiful. He often thought of Halloween night and the actions the other faerie had taken. "I am regularly in awe of him," he acknowledged.

⌝ "That is my goal," he agreed of trying to find time for Minho. He was aware that, at least, the last time he spoke with Amy she was single and so presumed she understood how challenging it could be. It was unfortunate she didn't have the time, she was quite beautiful and learned, there would many people he imagined who would enjoy time with her beyond even the enjoyment he got from it. Perhaps with her siren nature now it would come more readily than before, people more drawn to her.

⌝ Rankle nodded his head, "I cannot even imagine the difficulty, especially as your family is so present. Most, obviously, leave their families when they are turned if they are not born into one. I'm sure it is challenging for you to see your siblings living their mortal lives," Rankle mused, a bit of sorrow to his tone. "Has your pod been supportive of your adjustment?"

[opheliasflood]

his tone implied a level of hurt ophelia never expected rainier to display, especially about not being a pretty fae. was that all of this? insecurity at looking distinctly different from others of his kind? it was an issue she had little experience with, fae physiology. perhaps there was less understanding as ophelia knew she was particularly beautiful, and the only thing that would change that was time. though…she to was insecure, to a point. the blonde wanted to respond but, everytime she had done so far had only made the situation worse.

so she shut up, guilt in her gaze as she looked away from rainier. “sure you will,” ophelia knew him to be a man of his word but, wondered if he might stay with minho longer than originally intended. she simply wished him to be relaxed and contented with someone who clearly adored him. 

“my apartment is perfectly safe,” plus, she had those abilities now. the thought reading, the added strength and stamina. if anyone wanted to harm ophelia, she could quite easily dispatch them the moment they considered it. “but, i have been staying at thad’s,”

@ranklerainier​

[ranklerainierarchive]

⌝ "Minho has a home that is robotic and feels as though you are being watched," he asserted since her tone seemed to imply that perhaps that might not be true. The man's smart house was quite daunting for a man who had reluctantly put things like electricity into his own home. He liked things the old way and Minho's home was exceptionally modern. Eventually a time would come when they would officially move in together and then compromises would need to be made by each man.

⌝ He was ready to insist she find better lodging, that she was only perfectly safe so far as she knew, but fortunately she added that regardless she was staying with her brother, also human. It was good and bad, presently good, but who knew what would happen. "I will visit you regularly, check in on you both."

[opheliasflood]

it had not been her intention to hurt her friend with her gaze, it was just particularly difficult not to look when she was so used to rainier looking a certain way. the clothes were there, the tone, the poise but the visage was just…different. perhaps for many in opulence, a fae without glamour was a regular occurrence but, ophelia was human, and realising for the first time that she was only a one of a handful in a town full of those who weren’t. it was easy to forget, when signifiers were masked. 

the damage was done, however, and she felt only guilt. her wandering gaze stopped once everything had been taken in, asserting a ; “sorry. you’re the only fae i’ve really seen, and i guess i’ve never thought about what any of you truly look like without the…glamour?” it was true. ophelia knew it was there, a shimmering on the skin yet it had just become something normal to her. a second apology in such a short time, she really was fucking this up. 

“wow, moving in together already? that’s a big step,” she teased, trying to inject a little humour into a situation she was worried she had made doubly awkward. ophelia was relieved to hear the two would be together, at least, so she could visit them both at once. if they wanted her there, though she would probably insert herself between them anyways. “good. you’ll do each other good,”

[ranklerainierarchive]

⌝ The apology unfortunately didn't much help because while there was no specific harm intended there was a clarity to what she said. She'd never thought about how horrific he looked, even if those weren't her words, it felt like those were the ones she was saying to him. "The others are far prettier, perhaps you will get to see Minho and you won't be so horrified." He didn't mean to sound bitter, at least not as bitter as he did but he hadn't had many friends in his two centuries of life, and Ophelia being one and looking at him the way she did hurt more than if a stranger did it.

⌝ "It's not exactly moving in together, things will get resolved and I will return," Rainier assert as he looked to her, teasing feeling like she was judging simply because he felt judged and small. Ophelia was human, her opinions shouldn't have weighed on him the way they did and yet...he valued them. "That is the intention, I would hope you are also finding somewhere safe to stay," he continued, because he did care about her, even hurt. "You might be strong but we can't foresee what might come of all of this, you shouldn't be alone."

@opheliasflood

[min-ji-min]

Min-Ji balked at his suggestion, horrified, "You would bind my wings?" She folded them up tightly against her back, feathers visibly ruffled, her expression hard and very near furious at the very thought. "Absolutely not." She may not have known much of her fae culture but she knew what felt wrong when it happened and people touching her wings felt wrong in an inherent way she hadn't felt in regards to anything else in her life and the very concept of binding or limiting them physically felt like an affront to her very being.

"You mean a v-tuber? That won't work either," she returned, beginning to feel resigned like there was no plausible way to conceal her wings without magic before she was meant to stream, "I don't have an avatar or any animations or any motion capture equipment." She had a green screen but that was about it and she couldn't possibly scrounge up a fully animated avatar before she was supposed to go live. "Maybe I'll just have to do a faceless stream?" She grumbled, disparaged and plopped uncomfortably into her chair, needing to sit on the edge of the seat to make room for her wings due to the backrest and even still she needed to extend her wings a bit which would only make them more noticeable instead of less.

@ranklerainier

[ranklerainierarchive]

⌝ Rankle witnessed the visceral reaction that Min-Ji gave at the suggestion of binding her wings, the way they immediately drew back behind her, feathers ruffling and ultimately just trying to get as far from the other faerie as possible. It made it very clear how disconnected Rankle was from the feeling of having them, envy at his core that he kept below the surface. "I apologise for the suggestion," he offered immediately, so Min-Ji was aware that he noted her discomfort.

⌝ "Perhaps I do," he answered which meant he was not quite aware if that was what he meant, mostly aware his suggestions had not been remotely helpful for the young fae under such a time crunch. "Is there a way perhaps you could crop things so only your face is in frame?" he asked her, aware that her wings might still be in the background a little but perhaps cropped the right way it would just seem like something moving behind her. "Going faceless does seem like an option, rumours might spread though." About getting work done.

@min-ji-min

[opheliasflood]

she waited so patiently for rankle to come down, standing patiently in the foyer of the grand home with her hands clasped firmly around the treats she hoped he’d like. yet, the blonde barely recognised her good friend as he walked down the stairs, all guises of the glamour dropped - she’d seen some of it, while he was on stage but close up it was completely uncanny. ophelia was silent, eyes wide as they took in his appearance as a true fae. the outline of the skull, metallic that shone from the natural light that filtered through the windows was something the woman had never seen before. not once had she seen a fae without their glamour, friendly or otherwise.

her gaze moved down, whatever may be on his body hidden by clothing though not his feet - almost double jointed in a way, ophelia had not the words to describe them. perhaps like a horse, even, how he walked on his toes like they walked on hooves. it then occurred to her that she had been staring, and hadn’t answered him back either, very rude on her part. “sorry!” the blonde said, both apologising for using the wrong name and for clearly overstepping a boundary without meaning to.

“i’m fine. compared to most people,” she added afterwards, as ophelia had picked up a few little quirks but nothing too serious. “i wanted to see how you were doing. i brought,” the blonde lifted up the small cardboard box in her hands for him. “they’re no bake raw bars. dates and stuff - vegans have them i just thought you might be able to eat them?”

ophelia did feel a little stupid, stood there. “are you…going somewhere?” she hoped he wasn’t leaving. that felt a little unfair.

[ranklerainierarchive]

⌝ Rainier could feel the mortals eyes on him, lingering on the peculiarities of his form. This was exactly why he hid himself. He was not beautiful like Minho or the other fae in town, he did not have beautiful and elegant wings that ran down his back, and he did not have etherial hair that billowed in the breeze. He looked like he was the monster in a children's tale and he believe he could sense that opinion in her eyes.

⌝ "Compared to the supernaturals I am sure you are, I wasn't asking on your physical self however," he responded to her, a dismissive tone to his voice because he was hurt by her eyes and despite his age could not hide that. Of course, she had to follow it up with a kindness, an action he wondered if she would have made had she known what he looked like now. "Yes, thank you, I will take them with me," he agreed, though he did not reach for them, with hands full both her cardboard box and his baggage was taken by staff members and out the front doors leaving each empty handed.

⌝. "I cannot use my magic, and as my area of the fae realm is within Opulence I am unable to connect to that of the realm and so cannot prevent my ageing presently. If I must age I will be doing so in good company, I'm going to Minho's," he explained. Other fae could likely god back to their areas of the faerie realm and be fine, because they would no longer be in Opulence, but Rainier did not have the privilege. He was a part of Opulence through and through.

[min-ji-min]

Location: Min-Ji's apartment With: @ranklerainier

“I was thinking I could use a green screen to cover my wings but if it glitches or if I move weirdly it might show them by mistake,” Min-Ji explained as she was folding up the green fabric she’d used to try and shield her wings, lining up the edges and folding it into itself. “Aish, this is really inconvenient for me,” she whined with a frown and just ended up tossing the fabric into the closet that was part of her streaming room but kept the door open so she could look inside, not moving, just thinking of what was in there that could be used to hide her wings. “For photoshoots it’s easier to pretend they’re fake cause I can just put some kind of tinsel wire around my shoulders to look like straps but in motion it’s harder,” mechanical wings or fake wings bought from a costume store couldn’t move in the way that her own did and she often moved them without thought that she would certainly not be able to keep them still for very long and pretend they were just removable attachments. Even now, her wings were fluttering slightly from her agitation, long white feathers rustling against each other with fluffy wisps. 

She adored her wings, she truly did, but for things like this when she needed to do a stream or make a public appearance it was easier to conceal them with her faerie glamour but all that was gone now and she couldn’t hide them. It made dressing more difficult too, now needing to pick something she could pull up from the bottom instead of pull down over the top because trying to work her arms and her wings through some small neck hole wasn’t going to work. She wore a black tube top that she’d had to step into and a black denim skirt. “I’m supposed to stream in like twenty minutes,” she lamented morosely.

[ranklerainierarchive]

⌝ Rankle nodded as Min-Ji proceeded to explain her dilemma when it came to her wings and streaming. The issue was, of course, while Min-Ji did play with the fact she was fae on screen certain things would end up getting blocked by the innate magic of the barrier. If Min-Ji's wings were moving and people noticed they were not quite as mechanical as cosplay wings should be then... Rankle let out a matched sigh for her frustration.

⌝ "Perhaps the best course of action is not to hide them, or to cover them but to hinder their ability to move, it might be a little painful but we could always try and bind parts of them, so when you do move them, purposefully or otherwise their movements are less fluid?" he suggested, though that wasn't much of a suggestion because how long could she realistically stream for when she was hurting a part of herself, even mildly.

⌝ "What's that thing some streamers do, the like uh...image instead, where it is a uh...it's like a video game?" Rankle asked unable to find the correct words for 'virtual streamer.'

[ranklerainierarchive]

⌝ Life had a funny way of timing things. Everything could be right in one moment and terribly wrong in the very next, or, at the very least, complicated. This situation felt complicated. Oliver had asked Rankle to attain information regarding his mother, but Rankle had not expected to have the results given to him only a few days following what had happened on Founder's Day. When he did he contemplated waiting on things, on holding onto it until things within the town resolved, but had thought better of it. Who knew how long this would go on for, and Oliver's child would be born any day now.

⌝ So Rankle had left Minho's home and headed to the small cottage in the suburban neighbourhood, approaching with barefeet as the man's fae nature had been exposed with all that was happening and the man had to stand with his additional bend and elongated feet. Make-up had been unable to hide the metallic iron skull over his face either, so hopefully all things combined would not frighten the other fae while Rankle gave him the news, knocking gently and waiting.

@oliver-sereno

[opheliasflood]

the moment the green mist had enveloped the fayre grounds, ophelia had sought out her brother and niece over everything else - though the panic came soon after meant even that had been a feat in itself. what she hadn’t realised was that it would affect her to, in ways she couldn’t imagine - ophelia had pulled at her dress strings hard enough to completely pull them off, something odd. there was one person that she knew she wanted to see, though, to check if he was okay. that being rankle, he’d been up on stage when it all happened and there had been something…different about him. the same with minho, a change she couldn’t understand for the intricacies of the fae were lost on the mortal.

ophelia hadn’t really announced she was going to visit, perhaps worried that rankle wouldn’t want to see her but, she was worried about her friend. the harbringer estate was vast, it reminded her of her parents country home out in the valleys except there was less white marble. the gates guarding the manor were weirdly easy for ophelia to open, just enough to slide through without announcing her presence just in case rankle didn’t really want her here.

which was a possibility but, ophelia had resigned herself to being persistent, to the point she had picked up some raw bars from a local vegan place before coming up. from what she’d picked up, they weren’t baked so technically her fae friend might be able to eat them? the blonde ignored the front door bell, knocking on the door instead with a resounding boom. enhanced strength was not her forte for controlling.

“rankle? you in?”

@ranklerainier​

[ranklerainierarchive]

⌝ The door was opened, but not by the master of the estate but rather an employee, as was the norm. Rainier was only at the estate for the shortest of times, intent on getting back to Minho, and did not hear the knocking as he descended the stairs with bags in hand. He looked himself but not entirely. The man's dark skin was complimented by iron shaded metallic in the shape of a skull, reflecting with the various lights of the home. This metallic went down his neck and beneath his attire, implying it was everywhere. But more obviously his step had some bounce to it as the tall fae walked on his toes, a peculiar bend to them that mortals tended not to have exposed by the fact he was without shoes - why where them now when they'd hide nothing and were perpetually painful?

⌝ "The realm did nothing to help," he stated to the staff, because while others entering the fae realm to prevent what was happening might have worked the entirety of Rainier's own area of the realm sat atop Opulence and so was unfortunately also being affected. "I will be residing -" but his words were cut off as he saw Ophelia had been let in by staff. He had intended to check on her, once he got settled, via message so she need not see him. Dramatic as it was, since compared to others he did not look so bad, but he did look a way he presumed did not fit the persona he tried to share with the town. He was death, looming and ominous in this way, and that did not make people feel at ease.

⌝ "Ophelia, you are not fae," he reminded her in greeting as the woman seemed perpetually unable to call him Rainier. "Are you alright?" Rainier checked however.

[min-ji-min]

Min-Ji remained in his arms, clinging onto him tightly, tears slow and silent now as they streamed from her large eyes, traces of her mascara seeping down to mix with the thin layer of foundation she wore and all the wiping of her face had all but removed the pink blush, replaced now by her own natural flushing features from the emotions that welled within her. She listened though, more so to the intonation of his voice which was always so calming in nature that it really didn't matter all too much what he told her. The story itself did not sound very sweet to Min-Ji but it did calm her down, giving her something else to focus on and she asked him with a softly quiet sniffle, "What were you trying to reach?" Since he hadn't specified.

[ranklerainierarchive]

⌝ "Usually food or toys," Rankle actually laughed because it was, of course, so childish. At the time the things had seemed pertinent and important but obviously as he was much much older now the idea he had worked so hard to reach some strawberries was actually sort of silly. He allowed her, as he partially withdrew from the hard to see his smile. "I wasn't always so dull, though, I'm sure the games we had in 1823 were nothing like the ones you play now. Why don't you show me how to play one?" he suggested, hoping that would take her mind off the topic, getting to tell him how bad he was at whatever she showed him.