#* // ♦︎ 003. — › O P E N

[monogatcri]

━━ ˟ ⊰🍁❝ MAY WE CONSIDER OURSELVES FORTUNATE the shelter we have stands strong against the coming storms. ❞

[monogatcri]

━━ ˟ ⊰🍁❝ MAYBE THE WORLD CAN BE cruel , but it's filled with people worth fighting for ; not everyone holds malice within their hearts meant to destroy the innocence of another. ❞

⊰🍁LIES THIS OPEN AT YOUR FEETS.

[monogatcri]

━━ ˟ ⊰🍁HE'S JUST A LITTLE TIPSY from Dandelion Wine -- ! ❝ Mm, Mondstadt really doesn't hold back, right? ❞

[monogatcri]

━━ ˟ ⊰🍁HE'S STARING , eyes alight with a shimmer of nostalgia, at the flowers that bloom so carefree before him. Sumeru truly was a magical place, wasn't it? ❝ It reminds me of the hills over Tatarasuna. ❞ So many days spent there, lying on his back, laughing as he pointed at the skies littered with clouds -- jokes were shared and memories formed. Perhaps there should exist sorrow from a past so far gone behind him, yet the bladesmith's expression remains strongly poised in that wistful innocence of pure bliss.

[monogatcri]

━━ ˟ ⊰🍁HIS HEAD LAYS UPON DESK , papers scattered about around him, an unfinished blueprint of a new blade -- the Niwa Tatarasuna, homage to home. All night he worked on the sketch, and when the sun peaked through the windows, he refused to lie down, and now that it's hit the afternoon ... THUMP! goes his head, unable to remain upright any longer. ❝ Zzzzz... ❞

[monogatcri]

━━ ˟ ⊰🍁ARMS ARE LAID UPON CHEST , the grass tickling and soaking the back of his neck as irises scan the skies above -- a clear night (perhaps there was a ceiling he pretended not to see and a hard ground he pretended not to feel) ... The storm that had descended upon them prior departed not too long ago. While he feels a sensation of disgust at his garments taking on moisture, he cannot escape the trance the sky has captured him in.

        They were alone.

        The silence relaxing him, creeping his senses into peaceful verisimilitude, the half-lidded countenance a daring sight against the potential for attack. ❝ I used to do this all the time. ❞

[monogatcri]

━━ ˟ ⊰🍁TAKES A BITE OF RAW LAVENDER melon and chews it, eyes narrowed at nothing in particular except the taste before he sticks out his purple colored tongue.

[monogatcri]

━━ ˟ ⊰🍁LEGS DANGLE OVER THE LEDGE , suspended over a hundred feet in the air and kicking about as though he weren't above a death-inducing plunge should the wood beneath him give way. There is no fear of heights -- only a fear of falling -- but Niwa didn't pay it much mind as digits clasp the edge of wood, body leaning forward to call out with a laugh, ❝ I feel like an archon with a view like this! ❞ Tacking on to the end, his voice faux haughty: ❝ You should kneel before you archon! ❞

[monogatcri]

━━ ˟ ⊰🍁EYES REMAIN FIXATED UPON THE naku weeds , their vibrations before his very eyes causing a solemn nod to appear shortly after. Knees that were bent straighten out and he'd turn to other, gesturing to the flora with one arm, ❝ Do you know what this means? ❞ A question inquired in earnest, meant to test the knowledge acquired or lacking in other's mind. Niwa knew the extent of the flowers and their meanings, but he knew better than to assume. Perhaps this moment is meant for a learning experience...

[monogatcri]

━━ ˟ ⊰🍁❝ I PROMISE THAT I'M NOT tired ... ❞ A pathetic attempt to convince himself as well, eyelids heavily drooping as pencil rested against parchment before him. A simple sketch rested upon the pages, a drawing of a sword of centuries' past (a potential recreation he wished to attempt on a smithy when they found one). A soft yawn, fanned away by hand in a brutal battle to pretend that didn't happen, despite the noise pushing forth. Feet refused to stop their pace forward, geta pushing up dirt as the path winded on. ❝ Don't worry about me. I just need to finish this and then I'll actually be tired, really. ❞

[monogatcri]

━━ ˟ ⊰🍁EYES GLAZE OVER IN UNREADABLE manner , thumb's bloody knuckle just in sight. A simple slip of the blade and he'd managed to slice open skin cells across the center of his palm all the way to the very side of opposable appendage. It's a disconcerting sight, yet he finds himself unable to look away -- was it shock? ❝ ...This is irritating. ❞

[monogatcri]

━━ ˟ ⊰🍁 ❝ DID YOU KNOW THAT IN order for you to say smile, you have to smile while uttering the word? Try it -- prove me wrong. ❞ This test also includes him leaning forward while smiling himself, awaiting results.

[monogatcri]

━━ ˟ ⊰🍁 ❝ LIFE IS FULL OF STEEP hills , but the climb is well worth the effort. ❞

[monogatcri]

━━ ˟ ⊰🍁 ❝ THROUGH SKIES STEEPED BY PAIN         ❝ MADNESS LEAKS ON FARMS IN TWAIN         ❝ MEN YEARN FOR CALM WIND. ❞

⊰🍁OPEN.

[monogatcri]

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