#lamiatomed

[kalamiascope]

putting down the small tray on the table, kora could not hide her grin as she sat, almost immediately reaching for the assortment of cookies krysta had made, just for her. as far as kora was concerned, krysta was almost as important as a guild master when it came to keeping the guild running. without her, most mages would probably have long despaired --- there was nothing quite like one's favourite comfort food after a job that had not gone well.

“ two things, ” she said as she looked at adam, setting aside his book and meeting her eyes. “ one, krysta just told me that neil got dumped --- for the fifth time this year --- so he'll be especially cranky. ”

should the mage ever find a magical being that granted wishes, the wish that neil would never make another inappropriate remark into her direction again would be tempting. and so it was hardly surprising that she did not feel much pity for him right now. she had never met the poor soul he had been dating, but if he had been behaving like he did in the guild, it was unsurprising that he was single again.

leaning back into the couch she was sitting on, her grin turned softer, warmer ---  nicer.  “ secondly, i'm supposed to deliver some papers to era and wanted to ask if you wanted to come along, ” she continued. “ or is your presence needed in zinnia? ”

@lamiatomed

[scythe-rps]

Late Night Visitor (closed RP with @lamiatomed)

The door to the Lamia Scale guild house slowly creaked open. It was the middle of the night, so of course the door was the loudest thing in the world. Gyrain floated through the small gap he had made, using his thin frame to his advantage, and closed the door. He stayed hovering in the air and began to slowly move down the hallway.

What he was doing there was definitely some secretive business, but he wasn't going to reveal anything unless questioned. However Gyrain hadn't noticed one of the room's doors were opened, which had a faint reading light on inside.

[kalamiascope]

[ entwine] - adam

HER MOTHER LIKED ADAM.  this should be enough to calm kora’s frazzled nerves as her mother was,  for understandable reasons,  the sort to eye her significant others with sharp eyes and a significant amount of  . . .  caution,  to put it nicely,  but sometimes,  it was only more unsettling that her mother called adam dear and had prepared coffee.  sofia bellezza was a complicated woman and her daughter would be always the first to state this fact  ---  and kora had spent years trying to figure out what made her mother tick,  how to navigate her moods  ( not that her mother was the moody sort;  she would not have lasted as long in the spy business as she had if she were ).  at first,  she had wondered if something about adam had reminded the older bellezza of kora’s father and that this explained the unexpected fondness,  but angelo had died long before his daughter could have formed memories of him  ---  and from her mother’s stories,  he had had a rebellious streak.

a rebel with a cause,  always,  her mother had stressed,  many times,  and kora squinted as she looked at her partner as he sat next to her on her mother’s couch.  there were much better terms to describe her adam than rebellious.  he was too patient,  too calm to fit the ever so romantic image of the rebel,  of the revolutionary  ---  though she could not deny that he would strike a handsome figure with loose hair and a sabre . . .  maybe she had read too many historical novels as of late. 

but what mattered was not why kora’s mother liked adam.  ideally,  the serpent knew,  the answer would be because he makes me happy,  but the mother was nowhere as sentimental as her daughter because she had never been allowed to be.  nevertheless,  kora treasured the book mage’s companionship,  the way he made her feel safe even when she was exposed,  how he laughed even when she took a bit too long to get to the punchline.  ( and he had such a nice laugh,  too. )  he was a good man,  from the golden crown of his head to the sole of his feet,  and kora knew how difficult it could be to find good people that she also happened to be attracted to.

his grasp on her hand startled her and she flushed crimson as she felt her mother raise an eyebrow from across the room where she was searching the cupboard for her favourite teapot.  or rather:  her current favourite.  kora smiled as she turned her head towards adam,  mouthing a i’ll tell you later and squeezing his hand back.  sitting in her mother’s living room with the man she trusted,  she was happy.  wholly,  entirely happy.

‘ ‘ i’m glad we’re here, ’ ’  she said as she counted the laughter lines on his face,  finding that there were more today than there had been the last time she had counted.  ‘ ‘ and thankful you agreed to accompany me. ’ ’

word prompts  /  accepting  /  @lamiatomed​.

[kalamiascope]

"just a clear warning now, kora—i have two left feet so i hope that you at least will do me the honor of leading this dance. since you plan to humiliate me in my own home in front of all the fish and domino." - adam ofc <3

‘ ‘ i keep telling you that i’d teach you any day,  then you wouldn’t have to worry about what the fish and domino make of your performance, ’ ’  she said as she rose from the couch where she had been reading,  legs neatly folded beneath her body.  it had come up a few times in the past  ---  mostly when she had teased him about what his plans were for  ‘ fitting in ’  at a fancy gathering.  admittedly,  despite the many times they had been at galas and the like,  his left feet had never doomed them,  but it was something she occasionally drew amusement from yet never to an extent that would be hurtful.  she was his partner,  not his enemy.  

and this,  well,  she knew that this was more for her than for him,  dancing relaxed her and she had been stressed lately.  a powerful rush of thankfulness flooded her and she smiled as she softly padded across the room,  rolling her shoulders before picking the remote of their music lacrima set from the windowsill and turning the music up,  just a little louder,  just to set the scene.  ‘ ‘ alas  --- today shan’t be that day, ’ ’  she added as she offered him her hands.  ‘ ‘ i’ll safely guide you through this.  and  ---  thank you,  love. ’ ’

unprompted  /  @lamiatomed.

[kalamiascope]

it’s been really tough, but this too shall pass. - adam

she did not slam her hands down on the table,  she quietly rested them there as she watched him pour her a fresh cup of tea.  she had chosen well when she had fallen in love with someone who knew that most of the time,  this was all she needed:  a nice cup of tea and someone who listened to her.  and adam  . . .  adam was one of her favourite listeners.  there were many things that she liked about him,  but this had been one of the earliest things she had noticed about him and it always made her smile to remember it  /  to be reminded of it.

‘ ‘ it has been difficult with all the  ---  shenanigans from the usual troublemakers,  especially neil,  but we figured a lot of things out last week, ’ ’  she said as she regarded her partner with great fondness.  with the usual fondness.  she might make roll her eyes at other members of their guild when they had naught but heart-shaped stars in their eyes whenever they glanced at their beloved,  but kora was not better,  just more subtle.

she rubbed her temples,  willing away the first dull beats of a headache as she sunk into her chair as he placed the teacup in front of her.  ‘ ‘ nevertheless  . . .  i am exhausted,  adam, ’ ’  she grumbled as she fanned the tea’s steam towards herself,  pleased to smell that it was her favourite green tea.

it was not something she had to tell him because he knew of the dark circles beneath her eyes,  just like he knew how late at night she found her rest and how early in the morning she woke,  but only a few hours ago,  she had snarked at some of the newcomers to the guild and put into them not just the fear of a cranky transformation mage but also the knowledge that communication was key.  and unlike teal hair,  hypocrisy had never been a good look on her.

deicide  /  accepting  /  @lamiatomed.

[coeurspire]

"I am sure you do not need me to tell you this but," adam's gaze was on the young children, happily sleeping in the stroller he and kora had bought for them. well. for their parents, but details, details. "your children are quite cute. i think they get cuter every time i see them."

it was not often that sherry brought the twins to the guild, but it was supposed to be a short day at work — most mages were out on quests and she  was  on top of all paperwork — and she had successfully convinced lyon to take a quest, too. a short one, yes, but he deserved to get out of zinnia and stretch his legs. and really, she did sometimes worry that she was not spending enough time with her children, that she was putting too much responsibility on lyon.

of course, there was no way she could take the twins to the guild on busy days. then, she would have either to neglect her role as a mother or her duties as a guild master, and either outcome would cause trouble as it would make for an unwinnable situation. but on days like today when the guild was quiet and she could eat lunch in the garden, the spring sunshine warming her face.

she had been glad when adam had joined her for lunch; he was calm and his insights were typically laced with wisdom. on busy days, lunch meant time spent on contemplating possible solutions for problems over food. on days like this, lunch was spent chatting about all matter of things, ranging from restaurants over books — adam  always  had a recommendation at hand or so it seemed — to the flowers the guild had planted and that had not yet come to bloom.

“ i think being told that your children are adorable is something no mother ever grows tired of, ” she said quietly, careful not to disturb their peaceful slumber. especially not damaris’ — she might have seemed to have inherited lyon’s early-bird-genes, but she  also  was just as cranky as sherry tended to be whenever someone woke her up before she had slept enough. it was fascinating, without a doubt.

taking a bite of the meal krysta had cooked, sherry angled her head. “ i think zinnia is a good place for a child to grow up, ” she mused aloud. she had spent a part of her childhood there and while she would never be able to say that this was where she came from, it was still the place she considered home. “ when i grew up here, there were many other children for me to play with … well, for all the wrong reasons, sadly. still, i hope that mari and jules will have all the friends they want when they get older. ”

[kalamiascope]

"sorry i'm yawning so much." adam said, rubbing the back of his head. he smiled at kora as she sat across from him. the guild hall was buzzing with life, but it was not too loud. enough for them to talk a normal level. "you see," he smirked at her. "i had a hot date last night and did not get home until late. you would have liked her, i think, she was quite...a wonderful conversation partner."

if anyone were to overhear them, oh, kora could imagine the scandalised gasp, but fortunately, no one seemed to be paying much attention to them. though if she was completely honest, she had entirely too much fun when it came to leaving the entire guild in a state of perpetual confusion regarding, well,  them.  it had started, probably when a former guild member had found out that not only were they working together, they also shared an apartment. and as these things tended to go, the rumours had only grown. and although kora would usually consider herself to be a nice person, she was also someone who kept her secrets. and someone who liked to play around with her magic.

“ i heard, ” she said dryly, her eyes gleaming as she reached for her teacup. “ neil saw you. ”

this, well, this had not been planned. it was no secret that neither of them had a good opinion of the fire mage. for her part, kora could not stand his prying nature, the questions he kept asking. it was no secret that he did not like that sherry had become guild master, just like it was no secret that between missions, kora had helped ooba-sama. for neil, this made her now the prime target for his inquiries as to  what ooba had been thinking.  the woman did not think that neil had been thinking something similar to what kora was thinking now: that sherry was doing a good job.

she smiled, near apologetic, when adam grimaced at the mention of the fire mage, and leaned closer, her voice low. “ knowing your popularity with the ladies, i’m certain that she’ll want to see you again, ” she muttered quietly as her eyes flickered across the guild, ensuring that everyone else was still as absorbed in their own conversations. or, in neil’s case: their own ego. “ especially when the conversation was good. maybe you should bring her over for dinner after i get back from my solo mission? ”