#rah corvus

[saintreinettewrites]

The bite of salt from the ocean breeze on a cold day. The hurried steps taken on the way home when a blizzard approaches. Worries melting away at the fireside. The light of dawn easing the sky back into warm colors. The scent of orange blossoms. And always, always a hand at your back, promising to catch you if you fall.

[saintreinettewrites]

FFXIVWrite2023: Off the Hook

Rah stood on the shore of Loch Seld, his tacklebox on a stand at his side. Geist stood beside him, peering out over the salty waters. They both had their fishing rods in hand, preparing to face off against a most implacable foe.

Lightning coursed through the air around them, the static of Rhalgr's energy making the air crackle.

"You're sure about this?" Rah asked. Geist just grinned.

"Absolutely."

With silkworms attached as bait, they cast out their lines in unison. The creatures that tugged at their lines were fierce, but what Rah was looking for was a fish with a slightly lighter touch.

"Aha!" he shouted, finally reeling in a rock saltfish. Geist cheered him on as he recast his line with the rock saltfish still attached.

Rah's and Geist's eyes -- violet and green -- scanned the waters of Loch Seld. Both men found themselves holding their breath.

Finally, a powerful fish tugged at Rah's line. He began reeling it in, struggling against its strength. Geist held onto his leg, anchoring him to the shoreline.

A fin broke through the water's surface -- shark-like but jagged -- and Geist started hollering.

"That's it! A sculptor! Reel it in!"

Rah struggled with his fishing rod, doing his best to pull the monster in without drawing his line too taut. Just when it seemed like the beast was relenting, though, Rah's line snapped with a horrible twang.

"Ugh..." The Miqo'te stumbled back; it was a good thing Geist was as sturdy as he was, otherwise Rah may have accidentally kicked the Lalafell into the water. "Not again..."

The thunderstorm began to fizzle out, dashing the men's hopes of hooking another sculptor on either of their lines. Geist patted Rah's knee thoughtfully.

"Don't give up. We'll try again in the next storm."

[saintreinettewrites]

FFXIVWrite2023: Bark

"Flora, sit!" Rah commanded. The mameshiba obeyed, her curly tail wagging just the slightest amount. "Good girl." He patted her on the head and handed her a treat, which she took from him gently.

She had been a Starlight gift from Rah to Tacitus years ago, before they had adopted Ahnu and Ophelia. The children referred to her as their big sister, and she played the role well.

She laid down with her treat, holding it between her paws as she chewed on it. Rah chuckled at that.

"You've always been immensely cute, you know," he told her, reaching down to scratch her behind her ears.

She had quieted down from when she was a puppy. She hardly ever barked these days, but Rah knew she would if Ahnu or Ophelia were to come to harm.

[saintreinettewrites]

FFXIVWrite2023: Envoy

On the road to the Seventh Hell, it was good to have a healer on hand. That, at least, was the reason given to Rah when he'd been asked to join the Ilsabard Contingent.

In reality, he knew it was not just because he knew his way around both an astrometer and a medical kit. His rank in the Immortal Flames joined with his connection to House Durendaire made him an excellent candidate to bring the different city-states' healers together.

Perhaps most importantly, though, he thought to himself, rubbing his hands together to generate some semblance of warmth, is the fact that I have a primus medicus for a husband.

He glanced up at Tacitus. The Garlean man seemed unbothered by the frigid wind, though the way he was chewing on his lip indicated he was fretting over something else. Rah had grown accustomed to Ishgard in all its frozen seasons, but there was something more bitter in the cold of the Empire that Tacitus had once called home.

"What's on your mind?" Rah asked. Tacitus blinked a few times before letting out a heavy sigh. The way his shoulders sagged beneath the weight of his greatsword told Rah everything he needed to know.

"We are here to help, not harm," Rah reminded him, though he spoke those words loud enough that the other people in their caravan could hear them. No small number of the other members flinched at his words, though they did not speak up.

Tacitus nodded a little, but couldn't seem to stop chewing on his lip. Rah lowered his voice again so that Tacitus knew his words were for him alone.

"It's a means of self-defense, nothing more. Besides, Seoc built your sword specifically so that you could incapacitate enemies without... killing them." Rah slowed as he spoke, as if he realized that his words were only making Tacitus more anxious. "I'm sorry."

Tacitus shook his head, finally looking down at his Miqo'te husband. Rah's brow was furrowed and his violet eyes silently voiced his concern.

"It's... not even that, necessarily," Tacitus said slowly, doing his best to straighten his shoulders to make Rah worry less. "I don't know how I imagined my homecoming would be, if I ever had it at all, but it wasn't like this." He gestured toward the horizon, where the Tower of Babil jutted forth from the earth like a bloody stalagmite. "It wasn't with my home burned, or with my parents tempered, or with Junie missing." His voice cracked when he said his sister's name and he swallowed hard to suppress whatever else may have spilled from his mouth.

"We'll find her, Tac." The earnestness in Rah's voice calmed Tacitus, if only a little. He reached out and took Tacitus's hand in his own. They both wore gloves, but Rah laced his fingers through his husband's anyway. "We have to. Otherwise, how will she get to hand your ass to you for defecting?"

Tacitus grimaced a little at that, but it turned into a smile as Rah squeezed his hand.

"She is so going to try. And definitely succeed."

"And I'll be there to patch you up, don't you worry," Rah teased. Tacitus gave his hand a small squeeze back.

"Thank you for coming."

"I wouldn't have had it any other way."

[saintreinettewrites]

Celestial

[Written in response to a weekly prompt from Writeblr Retreat.]

"We call it the Bole," Rah said, a crisp smile upon his lips as he pointed up at the constellation. Tacitus tilted his head to the side as he followed Rah's hand, his blue eyes held captive by the stars.

"What does it mean?" Tacitus murmured.

"It's a tree. Some may call it the tree of life." Rah raised both of his hands, tracing invisible strands between the stars. "See how it branches?"

"Yes, I can picture it."

"Now, follow the stars down to the roots. They could be planted all the way down here in the earth, for how far they reach." Rah lowered his hands and turned to Tacitus. His violet eyes searched the taller man's face for a moment -- just long enough for Tacitus to notice the warming of his cheeks.

Rah cleared his throat.

"The Bole is sturdy, unwavering. A protector in the simplest terms. A nurturing force that has weathered every storm, that has provided for smaller living things the whole of its life."

Not unlike you, Tacitus, he failed to add aloud.

"I turn to it often, I'll admit. When I feel regret about where I've come from; when I feel doubt about where I'm going." Rah drew a card -- the Bole -- from his deck, and handed it to Tacitus almost shyly.

Tacitus bit his tongue, concern of some variety knitting his eyebrows together. His eyes were soft, gentle like spring rain, and Rah wanted nothing more than to cup Tacitus's jaw in his hand and caress his scarred cheek.

"What's wrong?" Rah asked.

"It's just..." Tacitus hummed a little to himself, examining the card Rah had given him. "There are other places you can turn, aren't there?"

Rah smiled at that.

"Of course there are." He nudged Tacitus's side with his elbow -- not hard enough to jab him, just enough to reassure him he was there. "And now I have you to turn to as well, don't I?"

Tacitus blushed and Rah suppressed a chuckle.

"But back to the lesson. The Bole represents many things, but it is still only just that -- a representation. One of the most important things to remember about astromancy is that the future cannot truly be foretold. The stars and the cards both merely serve as suggestions, and the mortal mind is nothing if not suggestible."

"Then when you turn to the Bole, you are turning to yourself?" Tacitus asked.

"Aye. To myself, but also to other constant forces in my life. To people I know I can rely upon; people who have earned my trust."

Tacitus blushed harder, deliberately avoiding Rah's gaze by focusing on the card he still held.

"The art is very pretty," Tacitus stammered, holding the card back out to Rah. Rah plucked it from his hand, his fingers just barely brushing against Tacitus's palm.