Oh boy. Really coming for my heart. Also I’m not sure this got angsty enough, I might owe you some additional angst to this.
26. “We’ll be alright, won’t we?”“Hey, Ira.”The familiar voice cut away the silence that had lulled her eyelids into closing. Humming in a lazy reply, the woman blinked the sleep away to look down at Exta’s face. Hair spilled over her crossed legs, where his head rested, and soft eyes that fought his own sleep, just to stare into the dark night sky above them a moment longer.“We’ll be alright, won’t we?”. The question, muttered in between a breath and another, caught her off-guard. Ira knew what he meant. With the summit date slowly drawing closer, the preparations for the trip had already begun and - well, she couldn’t say she hadn’t been particular anxious about it.
The constant etiquette classes about local customs and lectures over “the importance of shaping your words in order to cause a good impression” and reminders to “make yourself available and useful, but not be completely given” didn’t really help the idea to seat well with her. She could only imagine how that was affecting Exta, who rarely thought a word through before a whole phrase had already left his lips - but also, who grew up being comfortable enough to speak this freely.
While Ira felt, among her people, like an unwanted guest that had come to spend a weekend and decided to stay for the rest of the month - or year -, Exta felt at ease among the other hunters and the animals he rescued. He had always been good with both animals and people alike - and to be amidst those that cared about him now felt the closest thing to home that he could imagine. No wonder he’d be nervous about parting with it to thread a scenario of politics and possible hostility, even if just for a week or two.
Never mind Ira’s assurance that he could stay in the village and not throttle along as her bodyguard, for she was already to be accompanied during the event - he had his and Powi’s things packed even before she started to plan what to take for the trip. That initial courage burst seemed, however, to wither now, in these final nights before departure.
“Try not to worry yourself over the Summit.” She whispered with a tiny exhale, trying to reassure her brother, as much as herself. The movement of his head turning upwards inclined her to glance down at him, before continuing. “Just be yourself and you’ll be-”
And still, as she brushed the hair away from his eyes, he glanced up with eyes that seemed to ask her about something else entirely. Even if she didn’t want to think about it, she could feel what they were alluding to, and soon the words trailed off.
He didn’t want to know if they were going to do okay in the event, but if they were going to be okay without this - their comfortable and safe refuge beneath the stars and swaying tree tops, away from the people’s eyes and closer to each other’s truth, whispered in silences. Away from what they claimed as theirs, and what claimed them back.
It felt the same as when he’d come to her bed at night, when they were just kids - scared of the dark and all the things they’d imagined to be hiding within it. This time, however, she couldn’t cover him in blankets to hide him away from the eyes in the shadows. The Summit was an obscure path laid before them - the world out there, so different from all they knew, sounding more and more like a dive into a endless river, a walk through a dark, twisted forest with no opening to see the sky.
In such a simple question, now, resonated a familiar kind of uncertainty. One which enveloped both of them when they hugged for the first time, after years without trading a single word. In the middle of that awkward and desperate hug between someone too confused to hold back and another too yearnful to let go, Exta had asked her the same thing - and between choked tears and broken sobs, she couldn't remember if she even managed to answer.
Would they be okay, heading blindly into the darkness?
“Yes,” with her eyes glancing back into the horizon and her heart tight against her chest, the whisper fell from her lips with a shaky breath. Her voice provoked another stir and a soft mumble from the boy laying down, who had already fallen asleep, apparently. She didn’t even spared a look back down, the smile was already growing on her lips as her hand brushed the loose locks of brown hair. “We will be alright”.
@dalishlesbian replied to your post “wanting to invite ppl to play dnd but not knowing how to dm”
dming is fake & 100% tired improv
klasjd i did dnd this year and our dm was a seasoned veteran who knew everything and i wouldnt pay attention so i had to keep asking what things meant and which dice i have to roll i think he hated melaskjdlakj. anyways thats why i have no faith in myself to dm
sometimes you just want a grappling hook in space & i’m still waiting on the party to realize i literally named their ‘dead’ captain, who’s a kalo mind you, the equivalent of ‘fishman seaseasea.’ plot wise he had to fake his death in order to set off this carefully constructed plan he spent months on but his crew literally just dicked it all over in 5 minutes flat so when he wakes up from his self inflicted cryosleep he’s gonna need to be on life support from stress.
it’s mandated practically by tabletop rp law to have a train-wreck of a session & so far our reptoid icon envoy has been knocked out twice & left the party to go buy a grappling hook for no other reason then a dramatic entrance. also the lesbians are carrying the entire crew even though they’re all bad at interacting with attractive women. this has all been happening while they’ve been lugging around their dead captain who’s the start of all the conflict they’re stuck in.
Wow that is...quite the chaos.
In the game I’m spectating/playing in the android solarian has a grappling gun and...100 yds of tether? Which is entirely useless so far because the group has almost entirely gotten jump jets or jetpacks. So useless grappling/climbing apparatus are apparently a thing, haha.
hi! i just got into starfinder, granted i’m space dming a campaign for it despite being gay & bad at math, & it’s so cool to find other folks who actually know about the game. so it’s nice to meet you!
Hi! Nice to meet you too! I feel you on the gay and bad at math. That’s why I never DM anything despite having my own setting for D&D. WHOOPS.
If any interesting shenanigans happen in your game, let me know! I love hearing stories from other peoples’ games!
