petalshields

[petalshields]

marisa’s features twist in confusion as she studies some of the statues, trying to find the beauty in their unusuality. the metal is twisted, confusing for her untrained eye and, though she can usually find something to like in art no matter what, she’s finding it more challenging than usual. her companion of convenience, not intention, seems to look at her with a scathing look to start, before quickly glancing away and marisa tilts her head until it clicks who she’s looking at. “kaia,” she acknowledges quietly, to not disturb anyone else who may be lurking around, but feeling an urge to fill the silence, speak to the other. “do you also think it is confusing? or can you explain it to me?”

Idle conversation only happens against her will. “Hello,” Kaia says awkwardly without glancing over. “Marisa?” She recalls bright, trusting eyes that prompt Kaia’s shyness. Their paths haven’t crossed since Kaia deposited her safely to her residence, but she hadn’t forgotten her. Expecting more speech to come, Kaia turns to read her lips. “I’m not much of an artist,” she admits. At minimum, Kaia hopes that this isn’t supposed to be a tribute to her mother. A beat. “I was hoping you could help with figure it out, but you’re as lost as I am.” 

[petalshields]

@efflorcscences​

Interesting choice. Kaia wonders who she has to thank for this obnoxious distraction in the gardens. With her hands clasped behind her back, she studies the new statue installed in the gardens with the airs of a professional critic, only vaguely aware of the presence beside her. Perhaps if she were more sociable or maybe a better person, she’d glance over to ask their interpretation of this...wasted metal. Her eyes flicker to the person beside her, which they seem to sense, because she feels their attention shift to her. She glances over with the intention of scaring them away, had it not the nag of recognition. Her features freeze, pensive at best, judgmental at worst. Both true, but she looks back at the statue again after clearing her throat.

[petalshields]

Kane’s buzzed on adrenaline, climbing up the stairs two at a time to get to his apartment floor. His steps could be more haphazard, but he’s cautioned by the plastic bags gripped in his hands. Stacked inside them are styrofoam containers filled with fried spam, veggies, and white rice that he can’t freaking wait to wolf down. More importantly, though, Rory might be tempted to scoff with satisfaction if he finds his favorite food waiting for him in the fridge when he’s back from work. But Kane? He’s not waiting that long. They haven’t visited their little Filipino restaurant in a minute, and Kane’s convinced the staff missed their favorite customers. His trusty ol’ intuition deterred him from dining in, however, but he managed to finesse an extra container just ‘cause. Shoving - as carefully as possible, the taut plastic hissing from the motion - the door leading to their apartment’s hallway open with his fist and his sneakered foot, Kane’s prepared to find a clear path to the finish line. He isn’t disappointed to see Aria lingering in front of their door, couldn’t be if he tried — hallway lights glinting the reddish highlights in her hair, and he can visualize an expectant expression on her soft features. Funny how he didn’t understand why he didn’t eat at the joint, but he finds the reason in the outline of her waiting for someone to answer their door. “Looking for me?” Kane calls, lifting his chin up in greeting as he approaches cooly. The urge to blow the rest of his adrenaline remains, but this time, the finish line isn’t his dining room table but wherever he can be in his friend’s presence. “I didn’t leave ya’ locked out too long, right?”

@petalshields​ : kane ; location: moon residence, kane’s apartment

A small brown bag in hand, Aria strides excitedly through the hallways of the Moon Residency on the floor of Kane and Rory’s apartment. She had been at Bundtmuda only minutes before, eyeing the new flavors of their monthly cookies, and one had made her think of Kane as she spied its pale blue icing and sprinkles that looked like crescent moons and stars. Without another thought, she had purchased it, and found herself heading to her friend’s apartment, knowing he ought to have been awake by now. Rory, she’s pretty sure, is out at work, but if she sees him too she’s prepared to offer him the second one she’d bought for herself— a s’more flavor she’s sure he’d love too. She thinks for a moment that maybe she should have texted ahead of time out of courtesy, but she’s felt so stable with the two of them lately that she’s happy to admit she thinks this is the type of friendship where you can always knock on the door. Besides, she likes seeing that second of surprise on Kane’s face— when his eyes light up out of their usual sleepy comfort and the corner of his mouth lifts into the perfect grin. Aria knocks twice on his door, and before it’s even open, she’s already grinning too.

[petalshields]

ncxicus​:

         ❛    very  malleable.    ❜    you  can’t  get  more  lackluster  of  an  answer,  but  it  disguises  a  small  window  of  contemplation,  a  few  more  seconds  for  minjeong  to  think.  how  much  does  she  want  to  reveal  under  the  pretense  of  obscurity ?  some  things  are  better  left  unsaid,  keep  an  ace  up  her  sleeve  to  use  later.  saying  your  power  is  also  exposing  a  way  to  exploit  it,  a  way  to  pick  at  any  weaknesses  that  could  ensue.  drawbacks  don’t  have  to  be  revealed,  of  course,  but  it  barely  weighs  in  the  balance  here.  no,  the  point  is,  she  doesn’t  trust  kaia.  doesn’t  trust  the  demeter  child  to  let  her  pry  this  far  into  something  minjeong  herself  doesn’t  fully  understand.  and  maybe  that’s  precisely  why  it’s  not  too  bad  of  an  idea  to  give  into  the  mistrust.  all  in  the  name  of  not  being  herself  ;  minjeong  wouldn’t  bring  this  up  to  anyone,  even  less  kaia.  she  sure  couldn’t  make  a  conversation  as  bearable  —  enjoyable  wouldn’t  be  inaccurate  either,  but  let’s  not  push  it  —  as  this  one.  that’s  not  minjeong,  and  that’s  certainly  not  like  kaia  to  know  how  to  use  anything  but  annoyance  and  aggression  in  her  tone.  so  why  the  slower  pace,  the  deeper  looks ?    ❛    well,  sort  of.    ❜    fuck  it.  not  like  she’ll  believe  her.  not  like  minjeong  wants  her  to  do  so,  anyway.  but  if  kaia  can  allow  herself  this  new  approach,  so  can  she  —  and  just  as  well.    ❛    anything  between  amplifying  an  emotion  to  the  point  of  it  bursting  or  diminishing  it  completely,  i  can  do  it.  but  only  if  it’s  there.  i  can’t  just,  create  a  feeling.    ❜    she  wouldn’t  want  to.  hers  is  already  an  ability  she’d  deem  useless  for  most  part,  had  never  thought  it  would’ve  had  to  be  used  the  way  she  did  —  never  wants  to  use  it,  if  she  could  be  honest  for  more  than  a  split  lapse  in  judgment.  she’s  slipped  on  a  limit,  it’s  getting  too  close  to  others  still  linked  to  her  godly  heritage,  that’s  enough  sharing.   ❛    they  don’t  know.  but  for  how  long,  i  don’t  know  either.    ❜    a  reach  for  gratitude  hadn’t  been  in  her  mind  at  all,  reason  why  there’s  a  scoff  along  the  reaction.  minjeong’s  doesn’t  want  them  to  know,  didn’t  want  this  to  come  to  light,  what  she  does  best  left  in  shadows.  no  stranger  to  repercussions  of  her  actions,  she’ll  handle  whatever  bullshit  this  stirs,  but  it’s  a  fucking  hassle  she  would’ve  gone  without.  minjeong  should  know  better  than  to  aim  for  something  good.  that’s  why  the  assumption  that  she  could  be  a  sister  —  a  good  one  at  that,  leaves  her  a  bit  too  preoccupied  to  realize  she’s  fallen  speechless  to  arising  questions  plaguing  her  mind.  kaia  would  know  about  that,  sisters,  what  makes  a  more  than  decent  one.  it’s  hard  to  not  see  that    shared  bond  with  sila,  minjeong’s  poked  at  it  a  few,  extremely  risky  times.  ‘ would  you ? ’  are  two  words  sitting  on  the  tip  of  a  tongue  that  isn’t  familiar  with  the  imprint  of  her  own  teeth.  maybe  restraint  saves  her,  she  could’ve  lied  her  way  out  of  this  immense  tell,  but  that  probably  would’ve  resulted  in  a  guarded  kaia  ;  she’s  not  mad  at  this  current  version.  so  she’ll  wonder,  purposely  let  the  moment  go  to  be  replaced  by  something  far  more  comfortable.  all  too  easy  to  take  the  offering,  never  shy,  never  backs  from  anything.  the  shift  is  almost  too  quick,  but  there’s  an  expert  precision  to  how  she  slides  herself  closer ;  just  enough  for  both  black  fabrics  to  leave  no  gap  on  their  seat  —  close   to  catch  subtleties  of  the  shampoo  she  used  in  her  curls  —  curls  close  enough  that  if  she  only  lifted  her  hand,  she  could  reach.  she  doesn’t,  hands  showing  great  discipline.  but  minjeong  does  let  her  head  fall  back,  tilts  her  head  sideways  to  her,  grin  all  too  noticeable.    ❛    is  this  close  enough  for  you ?    ❜    it’s  not  for  her.

It is greedy to try to sustain this openness. When Minjeong evades an explanation at first, Kaia accepts she’s pushed it as far as she was willing. Her chin lowers, hands unraveling and readying to push herself off the cushion, but Minjeong interrupts her escape. She’s got quite the instinct for it, a godly power in itself. Under flickering lights, more complex sentences are harder to retain even with Kaia’s hearing aids. Amplifying. Emotion. I can’t create a feeling. Kaia hovers here, teeth clamped on her tongue, hands folded again. If Minjeong was willing to manipulate her best friend, would Kaia know if Minjeong used that ability on her? She could be pulling on a thread now, amplifying the composure that overcomes her paranoia. It’d be a waste on her anger, Kaia thinks, when the ire that Minjeong typically provokes can be incited with the faintest strike. Admittedly, she doesn’t know what to do with who sits across from her. This person wears a self-inflicted wound that Kaia doesn’t celebrate, nor does she wish to. She’d pity her if she wouldn’t do the same for her sister, though it wouldn’t be a contest in her case. Kaia cannot fathom someone choosing her over Sila. “I wonder what that’s like,” she says and signs, her black mask hiding her pensive look. Before tonight, the thought that more than malice motivated Minjeong never would have crossed her mind. Even their virtues overlap, adding another layer of recognition that Kaia can’t ignore. After tonight, however, it should be easier to abandon once their masks are off. “They shouldn’t,” Kaia agrees. Secrecy is the best alternative to gratitude, obviously. Forgive her for assuming the worst case scenario. “It’s safe for now.” Whether it will remain safe is another matter, but Kaia doesn’t involve herself in familial affairs. She hardly confronts her own head on. Combing through Nemesis children in search of Minjeong’s sibling would be painful and time-consuming, anyway, and Minjeong’s relationships are already precarious without her help. But Kaia is curious about this sibling, if she’s ever encountered them, if they’re anything like Minjeong — a thorn embedded in her skin despite all attempts at extraction. Kaia invites a deeper cut now, awareness raising the hair on her arms as the gap between them nearly closes. The cocky grin on Minjeong’s lips almost inspires Kaia to match it; it was inevitable that they’d fall into each other’s trap. Kaia’s gaze hasn’t drawn away from her since they’ve sealed themselves off from the chaos down the corridor, so she’s only surprised that her resistance lasted this long. Minjeong wants a distraction from it all, and Kaia wants to stall her growing curiosity. The simplest way to give them both what they want is less than mere inches away. “What does my body say?” Kaia taunts in a whisper, the recall of Minjeong’s desire stirring her own. Her hands are less trained, creeping the outline of her arms on their own accord, faintly tracing Minjeong’s jaw as a hint. Surrendering to her greed, Kaia presses her lips against hers, diving into the promised free mistake.

[petalshields]

solarstcrms​:

Rory is barely paying attention so when he looks up from his phone, it takes a second for everything to register. He gives Kane a confused look and sets his phone down with a sigh, then reaches over to link hands over the table. “Happy?” This is why Kane is so bitchless. He returns his attention to tearing through a slice of chantilly cake. “You want any of this? There’s too many strawberries.”

Without buffering, Rory’s confused look transfers to Kane’s features. He glances back at the retreating backs of the people who passed. A lightbulb flickers on over Kane’s head and he snickers as he returns to Rory. “Better, flattered. I didn’t know you felt that way about me.” Kane wiggles his eyebrows to be annoying, adding gunpowder to fuel Rory’s reaction. “The tattoos, man. The tattoos. Why don’t we have matching tattoos? Even you can’t say that wouldn’t be dope” Squeezing Rory’s hand, he reaches for the other fork. “You’re missin’ out,” Kane quips, stabbing a strawberry for emphasis.

[petalshields]

solarstcrms​:

He can sense her hesitation but communicating like this can get a little fuzzy. They shrug. ‘Sort of? Do you ever stretch so hard it kinda hurts but then your body’s like, hell yeah?’ Dylan’s brows knit together at the unfamiliar scientific name but, phone always in hand even now, a quick search lights his features with understanding. ‘Oh, it’s a fern! Those are so fun!’ Underrated, even. His shoulders sprout long, toothy leaves in bunches as he looks over at Kaia expectantly.

"No, just you,” Kaia smirks, teasing. It is a silly question to ask. Of course she does. One perk of this form of communication is that her meaning is clearly conveyed. She watches with equal parts repulsion and wonder as he changes into a half mortal, half fern...thing. Her brow furrows. “Honestly, you’ve never looked better.” She means it, somewhat. “You must be a hit at parties.”

[petalshields]

closed starter for @solarstcrms​

Kane is seated across from Rory at Bundt-Muda, attention catching on a couple striding down the sidewalk on the other side of the huge window. They’re holding hands but that’s not what Kane’s focusing on. “Why don’t we do that?” Kane says, gesturing with a nod of his chin to the pair.

[petalshields]

A season of infinite possibility, summer passes too quickly for Kane’s liking. The days are leisurely and un-rushed, each minute molded by whatever Kane and Rory decide to do with their time. At the end of it, collecting so many unstructured memories feels unreal, like stirring awake from a deep dream. Kane’s found himself in a dream or two, even meandering through other people’s dreams like a stranger visiting a foreign city. Involuntarily knowing so much about his friends and people he barely knew was why he escaped to the cliff’s edge to train instead of the gym. It’s quieter here, and Kane focuses only how he swings his sword, how he lunges, how to grind his feet into the dirt for balance. The sunlight glaring off the sword — courtesy of the Heph kid behind the desk at the armory, they talk — blinds Kane, squeezing his eyes shut a second too early as he attempts to pivot away from an imagined jaunt. With a foreboding grunt, his foot slips, and the next thing he knows his back collides against the earth, gravity knocking the sword out of his hand. Adrenaline courses and he lifts his head despite a pinch between his shoulder blades, scanning that every limb’s intact. Kane’s not a kebab, thank Tyche. A hand thuds against his chest, Kane exhales a relieved sigh. Resounding footsteps shake the ground, and he thinks he’s dead-meat from the crazed look in the intruder’s face. Kane snorts too hard, upsetting the pain in his chest. “Fuck.” Kane makes a face. “Yeah, but you saw that? Did it look as cool as it did in my head?” He’s judging that it did not, but that possibility’s the only way he scrounges up enough dignity to take her outstretched hand. “Kane Alegre, that asshole.” They’re already hand-in-hand, he might as well offer his name to go along with it. Kane bends his knees and, with her help, leaps back onto his feet. “Why’s it your fault that I broke my back again?”

@petalshields​ : kane ; location: the small cliff, sometime late May

Most days of the summer Aria wakes up wondering what to do. Without the routine of schoolwork and the open-ended-ness of a vacation, she doesn’t ever really know where to find purpose. Ginny mentioned something about nature walks, which just sounds like hiking to Aria, but with the energy and glowing face her friend has, she might do well to listen. She finds herself coming upon NL’s picturesque cliff and for a moment thinks Ginny might be onto something when she catches sight of the scenery. That is, until she notices a figure with a sword attempt a wildly fancy maneuver, catch his foot on the wrong side of the grass, and fall past her line of sight. Her heart shoots into the ground beneath her as her feet start running— without a plan, without a power or knowledge to help, only the fear that she has to do something. But as she runs closer, and her heart catches up with her, what she finds is a boy laid out on his back past the tiny hill of grass she had assumed was the edge of the cliff. Wild eyes latch onto his looking back at her, alive. “I thought you— When you fell, I— It looked like—!” She can hardly catch her breath, expression fixed in genuine worry and she realizes belatedly she must look insane so she tries to close her gasping mouth and get it together. “Who trains on a cliffside?” Aria huffs, then sticks a dainty hand down to him. “Sorry.”

[petalshields]

natesungkad​:

Nate’s eyes widened slightly when he caught a glimpse of the other man’s dilapidated-looking shoes. “You know what?” he said. “Maybe you should have these heels instead.” He offered the pair towards him. “The loafers complement my jacket more anyway.”

“You don’t hav—.” Nate extends the shoes and Kane catches them on impulse. “Thanks.” A thumb sweeps over the buttery leather. He’s never held anything so expensive, while Nate’s comfortable enough to have two pair, one of which to give away. “These might be all right. You think you can kick therios butt in these?”

[petalshields]

“I know you aren’t snapping your fingers at me...when you are dressed sharp yourself!” Her personal shopper is out retrieving a special order from the desk, but she wouldn’t mind a fine-ass father giving her orders under some candlelight. “Children? Ugh, they bring so much joy and happiness into this cruel world, don’t they?” She’d rather have her eyebrows threaded with barbed wire than be left in the room with a small human being that shits on itself. But her hands press into her chest in earnest, an expression of fondness etched onto her features. “How old are your little angels?”

LOCATION && WITH WHOM : : VANITY W / @petalshields​

“Let’s see… ah, yes, you there!” Zeus waves Freya over, smiling brightly at her. “You look like someone who understands the fashion of today. I need help with looking for some shirts, for myself and my children.” 

[petalshields]

efflorcscences​:

“thank you, darling.” her smile widens with gratitude naturally, practically glowing. “i owe you one, really, lucky or not. i’m all turned about already, and it’s hardly been any time.” she quickly falls into step beside kaia, walking just a little too close for a perfect stranger. “what’s your name, by the way? so i can return a favor eventually.” 

Kaia’s ill-suited for a spotlight of any kind, her shoulders hunching imperceptibly from the stranger’s beaming face. “Mm-hmm,” she hums absently, tuning out for a moment from the stream of consciousness she’s subjected herself to. The thank you would have sufficed. Kaia extends more grace to the physical closeness more than the fluff, keeping her eyes trained on her face. There’s a freckle on her nose that Kaia decides is cute. “Tell me yours first and we can call it even.”

[petalshields]

moonsprks​:

otis whips out his phone, showing her the top feet on the site. “right above you is robin and number one is gigi. isn’t that wild? to think the best feet are in nemean. if i brought you up to first place in such a short time, it’s be weird and the type of people that are on here would definitely come up with conspiracy theories about it.” though, maybe some video essays on the quick rise of freya’s foot ranking wasn’t necessarily bad pr. 

Freya can’t knock Otis’s phone out of his hand fast enough. “What’s wrong with you? No visual aids,” she scolds with a wagging finger. “As a matter of fact, how did you get past security?” And the better question is where is her security? Nemean Lion’s national treasure is unguarded among the foot-obsessed weirdos.

[petalshields]

@kaloxia​

“Uh, it’s Saturday.” Head tilted to the side, he stared down at the other. “Of the year 2024. Bro, you’ve been asleep for two years! We’ve been trying to wake you up but nothing was working so we left you here. Thank the Gods you’re awake now.” 

“What if I wanted to sleep ‘til year 3000, huh?” Kane jokes up to Xavier, scratching the back of his head. “Thanks a lot. Now I gotta try again tomorrow.”

[petalshields]

alreadyovcr​:

Regan watches her shadow slide up her brother’s body as he finally sits up. She’s thrown three or so pebbles at him, but by the time he’s fully conscious, her arms are folded behind her back innocently. She makes a face. “Don’t call me dude.” There’s a bit of a stereotype surrounding their family’s sleeping habits, but he’s just being dramatic. “The same day it was when you passed out, you weirdo. Is something wrong with your bed? Surely it’s still better than the dirty ground.”

Kane thought that he’d meet the beginnings of rainfall when his vision adjusts, but there’s mostly clear skies sprawling behind Regan’s head. His sister looks unimpressed, nothing to be alarmed about. Kane lets his head connect with the floor again. “Weirdo’s worse than dude,” he points out to be annoying. “Ssh, you hear that?” Kane pauses, relishing in the silence. “That’s the sound of me going back to sleep.”

[petalshields]

moonsprks​:

@petalshields​ || freya & robin

things have been a little too good to be true for robin lately. her latest single was doing well, her personal relationships were great, and the media wasn’t hounding her ass the way it usually did. most of the recent press had been in her favor even though she’d been very publicly spotted with juniper for a while now. it was too good to be true, because freya was back on campus and nothing was worse than running into her just as she turned the corner. at least she managed to stop right before crashing. “you’ve got to be kidding me right now. i thought you were on tour?” 

Freya is aggressively disliking a photo of her and her, the tap of her persimmon-colored nail annoyingly insistent on her phone screen. Gods, the scrawny lemming churning the gossip mill must be so out-of-touch. The wheels of Freya’s plane touched down on LAX tarmac hours ago, and her presence has already graced NL’s commoners for twenty minutes. Why hasn’t this been reported yet? What else must she do? She’s already done the most extreme stunt with so little payoff, so she’ll have to consult her new publicist about strategies that don’t involve anthro attacks. Her hand, besotted with bling, tucks her phone back into her Birkin, and the brief glance away from her path almost sends her toppling in her high heels. She doesn’t, however, her jolt merely disturbing her wispy blonde bangs. “Gods, can you learn to walk in those clunky boots?” Freya fusses. She hasn’t actually noticed Robin’s footwear, but after a rather traumatizing experience, she won’t check! “You’re lucky I didn’t fall and break a bone. That single of yours won’t help pay the infirmary bill.”

[petalshields]

efflorcscences​:

“extremely,” she replies drily, resisting the urge to roll her eyes. it was cool, but she would never let someone like kane to catch on to that. “so why are you still hanging around? isn’t a simply ‘thanks, aria’ enough?” 

His head falls to one side, like a dog heeding a distant whistle. Kane doesn’t know if he’s hearing a tone. “What, do I smell?” Kane offers in good humor. Ginny is one of Aria’s good friends, and he isn’t trying to get on her bad side. But.

[petalshields]

ncxicus​:

          minjeong  has  no  plan  to  stay  and  stargaze,  eyes  persisting  on  something  else,  anyhow.  reluctance  to  give  up  is  going  to  have  its  limit,  but  the  cadence  isn’t  unsustainable  yet.  she  thinks.  time  doesn’t  mean  much,  minutes  are  a  concept  turning  eight  and  eighty  into  an  awful  blur  at  the  moment.  words  are  clearly  moving  kaia’s  lips.  but  minjeong  is  the  one  missing  any  sound  emitting  out  of  them.  pardon  her  for   being  too  caught  up  in  her  own  loud  thoughts  saying  she  could  do  both  a  better  and  sloppier  job  at  cleaning  kaia’s  mess.  she’s  got  some  hunger  for  a  multitude  of  things,  unsurprisingly.  the  semblance  of  enjoyment  slipping  out  of  the  demigod  sitting  more  than  armlength  away  is  enough  to  bring  her  out,  not  missing  a  beat  for  the  answer.  that  word  hasn’t  rolled  off  her  tongue  in  quite  some  time,  nothing  in  her  bag  is  enough  to  break  the  streak.  besides,  kaia  can’t  hear  her  anyway,  she  has  nothing  more  to  say.  but,  anyone  can  read  the  rise  of  a  middle  finger,  especially  hard  to  miss  when  accentuated  by  black  ink  and  red  scratch  at  the  base.  with  the  smile  behind  the  gesture  combined,  that  ought  to  be  enough  of  a  please.

That is quite rude, and Kaia predicted nothing less. It does bother her to know Minjeong well enough to soften a moment from adversarial to humorous, but Kaia also suspects more unexplored depth to her. Discovering it was never her intention or desire, but Kaia can acknowledge it quietly. A smirk just as benign sits on her lips, shoulders rising in a weak shrug. Minjeong’s loss. Guilt tugs pathetically at the scarring lash on her hand, a reminder of their volatility that should keep Kaia on edge. But Kaia draws up one knee for a more comfortable seat, her arm draping over the cap as the other leg extends and falls open naturally. Whatever Minjeong might be capable of, it is nothing Kaia can’t handle or match. Another bite, and she calculates. Tentatively, her right hand hovers over her chin, all fingers but her thumb curling twice. “Charming,” she recites, rolling her eyes for sarcasm, albeit less emphatically than normal.