bladeunbound

[bladeunbound]

"Sorry-! It's just a pretty view." The hand on his wrist was clear and he took a step back to keep himself from being odd again. Sometimes it really was easy to forget just who she was...but he liked that, liked her. Edelgard was just...Edelgard. "Yeah...I hope it wasn't anything too important..." When he pulled her away, he really hadn't been considering it. He just...wanted to make sure. It was fine to restate it, to reassure one another of where they stood. He didn't even need to think. Shez was at her heels before he could even answer a simple yes. "Heh, probably best we go separate though- I can't imagine accidentally getting you caught up in something. Uh...until next time then, yeah?" His smile was bright, fond. The doors opened and it was with a small bow he left off to help distribute towels.

-- end

hand in hand; my truth to you || edelgard & shez

ethereal ball 2025 * second half

[bladeunbound]

Really, he should have probably brought flowers too but that felt a bit forward.

Shez chuckles softly. "I made a promise to myself I'd try and see you before anyone else did, 'specially with how pack your schedule probably is. Did I make good timing?" Flowers would have been less forward.

He doesn't need to nod, but he does so anyways. It's an excuse to shift his bang behind his ear, though fringes and stray strands still try to obstruct his view.

He should look at her, instead his eyes start on her hands, watching her pet the bear. Did she know how cute she could be sometimes?

"It's nice to be seen after all, right?" Finally, he does raise amethysts to meet lilacs and his heart stutters as it always would. "I'm definitely not an expert but maybe one day... it's probably pretty far off though." They had their promise, by then he hoped to know exactly what to get her."

"Today is probably a bust, right? Maybe... we could have tea tomorrow? I went on a ride the other day and found this pretty cool grove. There were still some flowers in bloom despite how cold it was. It'd be nice."

Shez has a lot of things he wants to say. Some brief, some so long winded they break past what his mind could hold and push into Arval's space.

"Happy birthday, Edelgard," is what he settles on as first greeting. She was going to have tons of people coming to and fro, even getting up this early didn't guarantee he was the first person to interrupt her sleep like this.

His hands keep hold of two things behind his back.

"I know I haven't even known you that long, but you helped me out a lot. Never felt like you left me behind even though you kept moving forward." His left hand reaches from behind and he holds out a box of tea leaves. "I don't think I ever asked you what kind it was you liked so I just ended up getting what we usually had." Tea that was so citrusy always tasted funny on his tongue. She always had a calm look when she drunk it.

"It's not much -- I mean it is... kinda." His right hand holds out an armored stuffed bear -- the sort the market place was never short on -- that barely fit within his palm. Around its neck, a whistle.

"I don't know if it'll be useful or bring you any comfort but when I have that, I know I'm never alone. As long as I hold out. someone will come for me."

"I hope I can be there for you like that."

Birthday 2025

It is a busy time of year. The who's sort themselves in her mind while the why's settle elsewhere. A familiar voice beckons a raised brow to follow steady words: "Thank you. I was wondering if I would see you today, but I knew I wouldn't find myself disappointed."

She doesn't consider herself picky with her teas, instead shaking her head in disagreement with attention drawn to the glistening object intertwined with the cute bear.

Edelgard takes the animal into her hands— Light and fluffy as they tend to be. Lilacs saunter to the whistle dangling with every move she makes as she tap a finger atop it. "For me..?" She asks without expecting an affirmative answer. She already knows. The princess removes it from its neck and brings it into a free palm, curling her fingers around it.

Bringing the stuffed bear closer to her chest, she squeezes lightly and keeps her attention forward. "I will remember those words. And the one who spoke them to me. It would do me well." A beat; a pat on the head to the bear. "Not alone, hm..? Heh. You may not have known me for long, but you grew to read me fairly quickly. You have my gratitude."

[bladeunbound]

These jobs were, as another merc had put it, the worst kind.

Between the prep work being run downs of who you were and weren't supposed to look out for with only your intuition to guide you for what that meant because goddess forbid a noble make their job easy and the way in which those in attendance saw fit to critique every inch of clothing as if it wasn't their fault for paying in copper-- safe to say it was a pain.

He is attentive enough, he trusts his senses to tell him if something is off and so far, it was all above the line, no footfalls where there should not be or rustlings in the area around the place.

Yuzu, he imagines, probably hasn't been on this sort of thing before, at least not with how wound up she looked.

"Yeah, absolutely nothing here," he calls back to her. "Just a lot more time to kill."

Maybe it'd be good if he could fill it with something.

"I take it this is your first time at one of these? If we're lucky they'll be kind enough to feed us."

bells chime with blade in hand

non-mission task: pearlescent (sword+1)

[bladeunbound]

[ ASSIST ]: sender picks up and carries the receiver away for medical attention because they've been injured and can't walk easily.

"Alright, alright, that's enough." Maybe she's a hypocrite for stepping in, but she can't stop herself. It's one thing to have had to stumble her way back to her home after a job gone...not ideally, it's another for a student to go stumbling to the infirmary after pushing themselves too hard in training.

She can't do all the heavy lifting for him, but it isn't hard to jog over to where she sees him stumbling and hook an arm over her shoulders to help take some of his weight. "Come on now, let's go and get you looked at, yeah? I'm sure the healers will be so excited to see you again after..." she pauses her words for a moment before flashing a teasing smile. "What, a few days since the last visit?"

How he managed to land that wrong is beyond him. Shez wasn't clumsy! He didn't think so no matter how much a certain someone implied otherwise but he could admit, he fucked up this time around.

Shez bristles as she takes on most of his weight. His shin felt like it was on fire.

"Come on, I had good reason then!" Trying to navigate through trees and nearly breaking his arm from a fall did have purpose bo matter how many people didn't see the vision.

"... thanks professor." He knows himself, he wouldn't have gone on his own. He could probably just patch it up and walk it off but he was slowly getting used to accepting help that didn't feel some sort of transactional.

[bladeunbound]

He doesn't know how to explain it but... it felt kinda normal. Shez's softer tone and light jab had him chuckling out.

"Not a sip from me -- it's boring to treat it like a job opportunity but gold is gold."

An idea springs into his head and he holds up his sleeve.

"Oh! You know what'd be hella cool? A cape like this! I wonder if it's more or less likely to get caught on stuff." He certainly could take that theory on a partial test drive today.

Pinch at his cheek called a long whine from his throat. He hadn't heard that sound in years. When she lets go he holds nothing but fondness on his face.

"Awe, not even a scar to remember it by? I think people should fear you a little. Hard to be as known as someone like the Ashen Demon without a little bit of fear carryin' your name." And well, anyone bothering her that much probably deserved it anyways.

Shez can't help but chuckle a little as he steps up to other Shez.

"I'm kinda glad I went with this...but it might've been fun to watch people get confused all night." The academy's evening wear had been tempting, way too much so but...he wanted to do something just a little more special...a little more him.

He takes a step back and does a small spin, letting the sleeves flow and show off bare arm.

"It was so much work to get my hair to stay right too! Ugh...I kinda get why some clients take forever when they're getting escorted...but did I...do good?"

He had already had enough confirmation in the confines of his head but...it was a normal feeling to want to hear it from someone he cared about, right?

"It's nice that I don't have to wash this tomorrow," Shez admits with a laugh. Sure, it would've been cool to wear a dress totally unique to her... but the rental is more practical, right? Cheaper than a new dress, and it's out of her hands by tomorrow morning. Where else is a mercenary like her going to wear a fancy dress?

Still, Shez oohs and ahhs at her brother's outfit. Her eyes light up at the sight of glittering tinsel in his purple hair. It's not the stiff suit-and-tie that she sees other students where, but something breezy and free. Actually, it kinda reminds her of Arval. Shez wonders if her brother knows about them... no, probably not.

"Yeah, hair's such a pain," Shez agrees. If she doesn't keep up with it, it turns into a thick, knotted rat's nest. "But seriously, you look great! It really came together in the end."

(Her eyes land on her choker around his neck. Yeah... she'll have to write that one off as a loss.)

"Did you make it yourself?" She asks curiously. "What gave you the idea?"

[bladeunbound]

"Me?"

Oh...oh it was this kind of situation. He didn't think he'd feel that way so soon...but man, he kind of missed the whole 'we're equals let's do things together' vibe. But well...he had fucked up the white sage- actually...he fucked that up? Why were they sending him out again?! Much as he'd like to protest the decision, this guy was scary and the professor was way too kind. If he did it quickly enough then...they'd not have any reason to be mad, right?

Was there even a place to get water that clean? That storm had probably made run off of every river. He wouldn't complain. Besides if be just used his power, he could be back just as quickly.

Roll: 3; Bog Water

River found and little mind paid to the brownish tone it carried, he made his way back as quickly as he could before he forgot.

"Got it!" Shez held up the container before humming.

It wasn't really "cleansed" though was it?

He places it down on the sand not too far from the fire and his hands clasp in pray.

He was not saying it out loud. He could barely say it in his mind.

Roll: 15; Success!

Something changes. He can't really tell what but he picks the waterskin up and hands it to the professor.

"There we go!" Turning back to Andrei be give a little bow. "It should be fine... I think."

He got that Rawt in him

In which we exorcise Chuck E. Cheese out of Fauntleroy | @ulircursed @bladeunbound | focus on the guidebook guys

[bladeunbound]

"Really? You guys must be like...top dogs."

Shez Slowly found himself more and more...could he call it shocked? He knew this was how it went.

"Not really too many good options. Most groups worth a damn are all in Faerghus or Adrestia right now and all the jobs in Leicester are low risk." It made his choice easier in the end but it hadn't stopped it from being a pain to navigate.

"I think I've gotten used to it! And it's kinda good, not everyone has to be specialized in the same thing...I prefer fighting but if it lines my pockets I can be a door boy."

Shez bristled a bit. "You're really harsh you know....but you're right. I mean...my last group, we knew we were up against the Ashen Demon but...everyone thought we were doing well."

And that had ended with him barely even alive. He shuddered.

"I mean I'm sure your company has taken on some stupid jobs too, right?"

tailor? i hardly know her!

[bladeunbound]

Oh Gods, Ephraim was right: Strategy is so important to battle, but this isn't Tana's strong suit at all. How is she supposed to understand the way the professor lays it all out like a chess board? This is so hard, and this was never her role on a battlefield, why would it be so in the future? She can never tell Ephraim that she's struggling so much with this.

She's about ready to tear her hair out and yell in frustration, but when she looks up from her notes, she sees Shez not too far away. They haven't spoken before, but she's seen him in class, and he's good in mock battles. Maybe he'd have some insight?

Picking up her books and notes, she moves quietly across the library and sits down across from him. "I'm so sorry," she says softly. "Would you be able to help me? I really don't understand what the professor is trying to get across with this grid-thing. I've never been good at this kind of stuff."

He couldn't keep skipping that man's class so much. Even if he managed to get away, sooner or later a guy like that was going to catch him and it was going to be everything all at once and it was going to suck. Shez would like it if battles just...happened. When the guy who was stronger just won cause they were stronger, that made things a lot easier, way simpler. But that wasn't how the world worked. People thought before they did things...not that he did. When someone else started doing it for you, it was hard to bridge that gap again, even if he got chastised for it. And so...he sits...and he studies. He doesn't get it, but hey, he was looking at it. When someone joins him, he expects the worst, not some kind kindred spirit. "Aha- no worries but uh...are you sure I'm the best for this?" He looked back over his notes and a low note rang through his throat. As much as he was bad with maps and directions and stuff, a diagram like this wasn't too bad.

"I still don't really get it. He said 'Using the marked areas, make it to the goal without any casualties' but even visualizing this kind of thing is...tough." To begin with giving the enemies that many archers considering their range was like setting them up for failure...and yet Shez remembers having solved this problem well enough got the man's tastes. "One archer goes across from their mage, one sword goes for the door and one for the stairs, behind the one at the stairs is your mage and the last archer faces down the other archers."

"Kind of funny when you put them in order though, the...myrmidon," he really needed to start using the right words. "They have to wait for the archer to take out the mage and draw attention. Then they rush up the stairs and get a hit in on the enemy sniper and get followed up by the archer behind them and in all that chaos, the second myrmidon takes out the archer in the top left-" His head hit the table and he groaned. "It's just a lot of assuming." He said. "A lot of assuming and guessing what people'le do. Like an archer is gonna look at what they can hit, if someone uses the time between reloads to close in then they're just screwed, that's kinda why you take out the mage first cause they're way harder to deal with up close and far away..." "Do you have any combat experience? I'm...pretty sure the only thing that saved me in this whole thing was just a bunch of "oh they'd probably go after this guy if I put them there so I shouldn't" since that kinda thing happened to a lot of the people I used to run with."

[bladeunbound]

Shez knew they'd be getting roped into the cleanup, he just wish he'd be getting paid for it instead of it being some community effort no one was getting compensated for.

And now they were getting into some...exorcism? What the hell had happened? He had seen that mask at the masquerade but...why was it burned now and better yet why did they have the birthday boy tied up?

Well, a mission was a mission. He ran off and looked around fir "sage" but...what was that exactly. It said "White Sage" but it was probably something green so...he'd seen something like that earlier?

That professor, he hummed as he brought over his spoils.

Material Roll

1d6= 2; obtained Oregano x1

"What...it looks about the same doesn't it?"

@egittae

He got that Rawt in him

In which we exorcise Chuck E. Cheese out of Fauntleroy | @ulircursed @bladeunbound | focus on the guidebook guys

[bladeunbound]

"I mean have you never had a job at some rich person's party? If you dress bad most companies I was with wouldn't let you participate...it kinda sucked."

Not even "kinda." Missing out on work cause you didn't have some stupid clothes was mentally draining.

At the ask Shez smiled. "Yep! Only here because some knights thought this was "repaying a favor" and I guess...in some ways it has been." Staying in one place was pretty sweet...if a little stifling when missions dried up.

"Yeah, either I get recruited out by another company or they all end up dying. Latter most the time unfortunately." And it was pretty hard to justify switching one company to another without a significant pay increase which really was what did it most the time.

"I mean you might get another guard job at a party, right? Or actually- you look more like the kind of guy who only takes on those really dire missions and then you're set for a while..."

tailor? i hardly know her!

[bladeunbound]

it's totally didn't get scammed...right? || charm tracker

The night comes to a close and Shez finds himself staring at the mask...it was fun, funny more than anything but- tonight had been...more than he could have dreamed of. A promise, a vow, whatever one wanted to call it...he had made one he was determined to keep to. The mask had been nice, but facing her with nothing between them had been so much better.

seashell: cynthia | ike | starfish: luthier | lyn | anchor: innes | edelgard | turtle: seteth | pearl: dorothea |

Masquerade Mask Reveal!

wyltkwb(when my hand feels better it'll be here)

[bladeunbound]

He supposed they had been done with it for now... that didn't stop him from missing her warmth.

"I kind of wish I had but...it's fitting for us right? It doesn't have to be something grand for the Emperor it's just...for Edelgard."

That was such a stupid way of putting it but maybe his heart would come across in it all.

"I'll show you exactly how much I meant it~" His smile stayed and silence finally overcame the estate.

There were a lot of...pretty mundane things he could tell her. He was still...he really had kissed her, actually held her hands...

"Ask me any time, anywhere, I can show you." Man. He was being impulsive.

Their hands had parted but he couldn't help it. His hand had lifted to her chin just as it had before and he stared at her eyes. He couldn't make this a habit.

hand in hand; my truth to you || edelgard & shez

ethereal ball 2025 * second half

[bladeunbound]

He couldn't hide the way he hesitated at her step back but... it had been a lot...but how was he supposed to do any less?

"Yeah..." His eyes turned to the windows and the last little bits of fireworks scattered in the night sky. "I meant it Edelgard."

But had he thought it through...?

"Does it have to be?" In most cases, absolutely but tonight... "I just kind of followed where my heart went you know?" That it had led him to her, led them to this room...he really hadn't thought about any of it.

hand in hand; my truth to you || edelgard & shez

ethereal ball 2025 * second half

[bladeunbound]

how does this keep happening? it's like he keeps blacking out. one minute he's in a set location, the next he's elsewhere entirely. surely there's a strange magic in the air. he can practically smell it — nefarious saforces at work dragging him out of his happy little hole.

ah well.

"…i have noticed a lack of cats in the area."

a poor excuse for small talk, but luthier supposes it's worth a shot if the purple-haired stranger behind him is as quiet as he looks. "what a shame. i'd have given them one of these silly trinkets to swat at. they're often fond of that."

he holds a starfish out. "are you one of the people looking for this? i still don't understand the purpose of these exchanges. what use does it serve?"

"I think cats hate getting wet so they'd probably hate the sea...but they like fish a lot so maybe it's just a funny give and take."

It was a pretty bad storm, most cats probably were holed up in the rooms with fireplaces.

"Oooh- thats actually a pretty good idea." Shez mimicked the action on his own charm, it was kinda fun.

The starfish is tempting as well. He offers a singular swat at it before nodding and holding out his own seashell.

"To get to know people...and probably show off that this guy can give away that many things in the first place. Nobles have their little games like that I guess. Thanks! Maybe we'll meet again because of this little starfish, you never know."

[bladeunbound]

It is...hard he thinks- to give control over to someone else and let them guide you. There is trust and there is unspoken promise of not being let go of.

As he takes Lucius's hand, Shez makes sure to keep his eyes and ears sharp. He doesn't have much sense for these things, but he would trust that Lucius did.

The pull, the need to get so close despite the sword. He's quiet and contemplative as he does his best to understand each step, each movement.

"I...dont have much I can give you, but I think the bracelet would be a nice thing in the meantime...like a promise to meet again," he speaks during a moment where he feels the song calm enough to.

your best foot forward

⤷  ethereal ball 2025: continued from here

[bladeunbound]

He wanted to get used to this sight. Confidence unshaken and all too human. The slight stutter of her words before edges were smoothed, he couldn't feel any fonder if he tried.

"We don't have anything to commemorate it but...our word and our hands right now are enough..." He still wanted to do something so commemorate it. Had he planned better, he probably could've brought his whistle...

The intensity of the fireworks was hard to speak over, yet this close, he felt no need to raise his voice. It was quick, leaning forward to speak directly into her ear as his heart rivaled the booms of distant fireworks.

"I love you."

As quickly as words were said, lips pressed gently to her forehead and it took everything to still himself, his hands hesitating even as they wanted to hold onto her so tightly it wasn't possible to let go.

hand in hand; my truth to you || edelgard & shez

ethereal ball 2025 * second half

[bladeunbound]

[ TOWEL ] - With everyone drenched, getting dry becomes a top priority for most. Perhaps offering something to dry someone else off with is just what you need to get closer to one another…

well. in seteth's case it is less about the rain, and more about finding a towel for the baths. in the pandemonium for everyone else to dry off, the shelves had been emptied—not a loose thread left in sight.

"... hello." seteth musters an awkward greeting, after he's finally spotted a boy with a few spares. the girl beside him—ah, bernadetta?—had only needed one to cloak her mousy frame. wonderful.

"i apologize for the interruption. would you be so kind as to spare me a towel?" he doesn't have much. not even the damned shirt on his back. but he does hand shez a turtle for his troubles.

It's impolite.

But really how else is he supposed to react?

"Hi...Seteth..."

Oh yeah he had grabbed a fee to hand out but like...what...sure the storm was bad but was it really that bad?

"No no- you're uh...all good." Was a towel really gonna solve his problems? "Here ya go, and uh, seashell. Good luck charm." Even if it's a lie, Seteth needed some kind of hope.

Handing over two towels of good measure he looked back at Bernadetta so confused.