#( ren vc: have you considered causing problems on purpose -- )

[erabundus]

@drolliic &&. said... "I'm just dying to say, 'Hey, do you ever feel like jumping off a bridge?' or 'Do you feel an emptiness inside your chest at night that is going to swallow you?'. But you can't say that during an Adventurers' Guild meeting." so why does Aether say it to Ren so easily? Maybe because he's one of the few people who actually treat him like a human being. Plus, whatever blunt response he gets, it's going to be a lot more refreshing than being fed sweet lies about how everything is going to be alright.

❝  jumping  off  a  bridge  is  overrated.  ❞  the  wanderer's  response  is  curt,  slightly  off-putting  —  and  unapologetically  ren.  he  sits  with  knees  curled  to  his  chest,  back  pressed  to  a  tree.  a  book  of  poetry  lays  on  the  ground  at  his  side;  unopened,  a  single  dried  padisarah  jutting  from  the  pages  in  lieu  of  a  conventional  bookmark.  beside it, that familiar hat. it's  a  mundane  (  almost  innocent  )  sight  that  becomes  downright  STRANGE  when  taken  in  the  context  of  who  he  is,  what  he  is,  what  he's  capable  of.  even  ren  has  his  casual  moments.   ❝  i wouldn't want to disturb  the  FISH ...  ❞

arms  cross  atop  his  legs.  the  wanderer  rests  his  cheek  on  them  as  if  to  repurpose  them  as  a  makeshift  pillow  —  eyes  (  lit  by  the  faintest  electro hued glow  )  peering  at  the  traveler  from  beneath  his  bangs.  ❝  your  friends,  ❞  he  spits  the  word  with  a  touch  of  toothless  mockery,   ❝  seem  like  exciting  people.  if  it  were  me,  i  would  tell  them  anyway  just  to  see  the  looks  on  their  faces.  ❞  a  laugh  trickles  from  the  wanderer's  lips  —  but  of  course  he  would  wish  to  stir  the  pot  for  his  own  entertainment.  the  harbingers'  banquets  were  much  the  same;  so  many  delicate  egos  collected  in  one  space.  it's  amazing  to  see  what  power  a  few  carefully  selected  words  can  hold,  like  tossing  a  lit  match  atop  a  pile  of  kindling.  it  certainly  did  him  no  favors  in  terms  of  popularity,  yet  the  balladeer  hardly  cared  for  such  matters  to  begin  with,  and  the  wanderer  frankly  isn't  much  different.

the  mirth  bleeds  from  his  expression,  a  more  thoughtful  look  sliding  into  its  place.   ❝  let  me  guess.  they  want  you  to  be  their  HERO.  flawless  and  unshakable  to  match  the  idealized  version  of  you  that  they've  built  up  in  their  heads  —  without  any  regard  for  the  TRUTH.  ❞   it's  a  bit  amusing,  in  hindsight;  reputation  and  assumption  steeped  in  cynicism  once  had  him  writing  off  the  traveler  as  yet  another  naïve  do-gooder  himself.  how  times  change.  how  reality  differs  from  preconceived  assumptions.   ❝  i  don't  know  why  you  bother.  you  never  asked  for  that,  so  you  shouldn't  be  obligated  to  meet  their  expectations.  ❞

a  joyless  smile.  ❝  the  world  is  cruel.  life  is  unfair.  pain  is  inevitable.  ❞  he  speaks  as  though  he's  reciting  points  from  a  list,  then  shrugs.  ❝  if  you  ever  need  a  reality  check,  i'm  happy  to  oblige.  ❞