06 - week six

[afflictionmods]

WEEK SIX

Sunday starts with more aches and pains than you might be used to. Florence patched people up after Saturday’s lesson, sure, but it’s not a complete cure - not to mention it doesn’t ease the sting of betrayal. Some classmates that you thought would cooperate wound up breaking your trust in the end, and this week will be interesting with the fallout.

It’s hard to say what this week will have in store otherwise. Things are changing, and it’s not clear what this means for all of you. On the bright side, however, the creatures and places you once knew from home have suddenly disappeared, so that's less that you need to worry about. There are new areas for you to look at as well.

SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY

FLORENCE / LORELEI

FULL NAV

(CODE)

Comments

[partymagician]

[ Fai shakes his head. ]

Don’t worry about it!

[ He smiles a little as he heads over to sit next to him. ]

Are you working on heat tolerance?

[ The way Chongyun is fanning his tongue tells him so. ]

[cloudalike]

Uh, no, not yet. [ That's for later when he may or may not accidentally burn down a Camellia building. ] I would start now, but I need to be able to concentrate. If my spiritual energy is too unstable, these inscriptions may not work - oh!

[ Speaking of!! He pats himself down trying to find the amulet he made earlier for Fai. One of the first of his batch. Where is it - ah, here it is. ]

Fai, this is for you. [ He slides over the amulet, a small wooden piece with an intricate flower carved on both sides, though each image is just slightly different. The design is bordered by a circle of ancient Liyuen characters. ] It's an Inazuman camellia - completely unrelated to this place, of course! But um, I've heard that they bloom during the winter and survive the most extreme weather - and that made me think of you... Uh.

[ Closing his mouth with a click or else he'll keep rambling. And that's - embarrassing. ]

... I hope you'll do me the pleasure of accepting this small token of my regard for you.

[partymagician]

[ Oh.

Fai picks it up, running his fingers over it as he takes in the intricate design. The fact that Chongyun made something so lovely specifically for him leaves him reeling. The meaning behind the flower, too, is something Chongyun put a lot of thought into, and is clearly something he believes.

After all, he did see that horrible piece of Fai's past. ]

Thank you, Chongyun.

[ Fai smile at him, gentle and warm. While his smiles are normally friendly, this one feels much more sincere. Honest too. ]

It's beautiful. I'll be sure to treasure it.

[cloudalike]

I'm glad to hear that.

Wherever you are in the worlds, there will always be a piece of me that believes in you and hopes that... [ He beams. ] ... through your long journey and at its end, happiness and bountiful curiosities will follow you every step of the way. That sorrow may occasionally find comfort in your heart, but linger in only the ways that heal.

[ Okay, he really needs to stop rambling. ]

That's - that's it.

[partymagician]

Your words mean a lot to me, Chongyun, and I'll be sure to keep them close to my heart.

[ They're comforting words and maybe, just maybe, having someone else say them and believe them means they might come true one day. ]

You're a very thoughtful and kind person.

[cloudalike]

[ Sometimes you just need someone else to believe in it for you. ]

I don't know if it has anything to do with being thoughtful or kind. It just feels right to think that way about you. [ Hmm. ] In general, I suppose I'd like most everyone to find happiness in some way or other, but even I am selfish enough to admit there are some people I'd want to receive an overabundance of it. You, Hien, Shizuku, Shinei, Xingqui...

[partymagician]

[ Ah, so it feels right to feel that way about Fai? That's something he's never heard before, but he likes it. ]

There's nothing wrong with that.

[ And he's selfishly glad that Chongyun feels that way about Hien, so he can't fault Chongyun one bit for having favorites. ]

I wish for you to have an overabundance of happiness as well, Chongyun.

[cloudalike]

[ A quick grin as a thank-you for the well wishes. He's not sure if he can handle an overabundance of happiness - and the idea is already stressing him out - but he can settle for an overabundance of contentment, maybe. ]

You're good at that, aren't you? Encouraging, but in an easy-going manner. Never pushy. I don't have to feel like my boundaries are being tested. [ Though some would say that's a bad thing. But it's just comfortable the way their conversations go. ]

[partymagician]

[ He smiles softly to himself. ]

Well, I've got three kids, you know. I've had to learn how to balance things with them, encouraging for them to grow while making sure I don't push them so far that they're overwhelmed.

[cloudalike]

Three!?

[ BUT HE LOOKS SO YOUNG? ]

[partymagician]

Three! A girl and a boy that are only a couple of years younger than you, and a fluffy creature.

[ So. Not really his kids. ]

We met while traveling, but they really do feel like my children now.

[cloudalike]

[ Ohhh. Alright, that makes more sense. Even the part where Fai's apparently adopted a fluffy creature as his child, which reminds him of the Traveler with Paimon. He misses them. ]

... They must miss you dearly then.

[partymagician]

I hope so.

[ His low self esteem doesn't let him believe that they really do. ]

I miss them quite a bit. Before I knew it, I was attached to them.

[cloudalike]

If you’re like a father to them, I find it hard to believe how they couldn’t miss you. [ It’s simply impossible to fathom. ] I know I will miss you.

[ He wilts a little, saying that. Then immediately perks up earnestly. ]

You chose them to be your family and I’m sure they would choose you back again and again.

[partymagician]

Ah... that would be nice.

[ And a small part of him wants to believe that they really would choose him again.

...It's unfortunate that he's sure he'll die if he were to go back, though. He doesn't want to upset Chongyun, so he decides not to say it. ]

I'll miss you as well, Chongyun.