Feed Me Sunlight, Feed Me Air

[Sivan]

25th of Searing, Year 123 of Steel
Sivan's Garden

just like the seed, I don't know where to go
through dirt and shadow, I grow
I'm reaching light through the struggle
just like the sea, I'm chasing the wonder
I unravel myself all in slow motion.

It was summer, and it should have been warmer. At least in his little kingdom, though, the growing things were green as they ought to be, and many other colors out of nature as some things still flowered and others bore fruit. Flower had gone back to sleep in the Living Grave, that tree born of an ancient enchantment found in the archives. Everything had been curated, a conversation between him, the living things, and the wild elemental spirits he befriended. And for half a year now, there was also a crystal that beamed with Arcas' light set in an altar, and a seedling Destyn had brought from Ecith.

Their joint venture back to Ecith hadn't yielded anything in the way of wisdom with regard to the seedling, nor had the reborn god come to explain his gift. Sivan didn't know whether prayers were expected, and of course he hadn't seen the god-prince in almost two years so it didn't seem like a requirement. Their adventure to Ecith had yielded other things, though, and he flushed with remembered pleasure even as he carefully swung down from the tree with the day's excess honey collected. Even if it wasn't so warm as the southron continent, Sivan tended to work barefoot and shirtless in his garden, and the same when practicing with his blade through the moon gate into Laurevere's yard.

His neighbor had seen him in less now.

Sivan still didn't know exactly how cautiously tip-toeing around Destyn's feelings had turned into that, but he was glad at the dragonfae's manipulations, intended or instinctual. And if Urs ever came back... well, he would see if Destyn's fascination with the man was in a similar vein.

The golden hour was fast approaching, and he could hear the susurration of edible insects in the plants of his more recent husbandry. Having a steady supply of delicious snacks made Destyn more likely to idle at his home, and he liked it more when one or more of his friends were around. He could sense him now, though he didn't narrow his focus to find out exactly where.

"Destyn! These buggies aren't going to eat themselves!" Thankfully, he knew to leave the bees in peace.

[Destyn]

25 Searing 123
Destyn arrived on foot not by air, which was somewhat unusual. Lacking Sivan's preternatural senses, he'd checked the house for his friend, before hearing a voice from the garden beckoning him thence. Padding from the floor to the grass, Sivan would find him cradling his newish friend an Essenti wood elemental he'd taken to calling Twygg.

The creature didn't speak itself, at least not with words, but it cooed at the designation the first time Destyn had floated it, so it stuck.

"Hullo Sivan! The buggies will, I think, have to wait to be ate, because I think I have figured out, you know, how to help the seedling grow bigger." He nodded sagely at his own news. Twygg's big eyes darted to Sivan and the little creature leapt from Destyn's arms, landing with an unceremonious thud facedown in the grass. It scrambled up and waddled apace toward Sivan, trying to hug his ankle though stubby arms didn't make it all away around.

"Remember the vision I had a few seasons back? We were, you know, in the middle of talking and I zoned out and was somewhere else? I told the details to Twygg and he has, I think, an idea. We need, I believe, fertiliser. But a special kind, though. We can get it, maybe, here in Kalzasi but it is more, you know, abundant in Ecith. Will you and Laurevere help me to, you know, acquire it?" He paused, looking down at Sivan's feet, then his own.

"And maybe also I can borrow some of your shoes? I do not think we should walk in the dragon manure with no shoes, but I do not have any."

[Sivan]

"Oh?"

When Twygg clutched at his ankle, he reached down to pick him up like a baby. At least, that was how he had been taught to hold his siblings when they were born, but that had been a long time ago. He offered the little elemental some of the honey fresh poured from the nest. He spoke to him in the nature of spirits, and they seemed to be able to communicate well enough.

Sivan nodded seriously at the memory of Destyn's shared vision, and his eyebrows slowly rose as comprehension dawned. He nodded again and set the honey pot in Destyn's hands as he moved toward the door that led into the tower. The elf would hold Twygg until the cute sapling decided it wanted Destyn back or other freedom.

It wasn't difficult to find a spare pare of boots and extra stockings.

"If they are too big, you can wear more stockings," he advised. He couldn't actually recall if he had ever seen Destyn wearing boots. Strange. "Should I see if Laurevere is available?" he asked.

As soon as he asked, he remembered what had happened the last time Laurevere had accompanied them to Ecith and began to blush - not because he was ashamed of what had happened (far from it!) but because he didn't want Destyn to think that was why he suggested it, or that it was assumed he would want that too. Perhaps he needn't have worried because none of them were aroused by the idea of dragon manure - at least as far as he knew (and hoped).

"To guard us, not... never mind..."

He sat down and pulled stockings on his dirty feet. Stockings were easier to wash and he didn't want to slow Destyn down. The Fae asked so little of him, he liked to make good on those few requests when he could. He looked over to see how Destyn was faring with the boots.

[Destyn]

25 Searing 123

Twygg cooed and rolled happily in Sivan's arms upon being lifted. His the smile on his little maw grew larger than it looked like it ought to be able to to welcome the offered honey. Destyn approached, speaking his mothertongue, which the wee elemental seemed to enjoy the sound of, whether or not he understood the nuances of the words:

"Ná bac le Sivan, Twygg!" He said, plucking him away and extending his arm for Twygg to climb up onto his shoulder, to plop down there as Sivan stepped away.

"Ooh..." He happily claimed the honeypot as well, sticking his finger into it and then plunging it into his mouth, which elicited a high-pitched wail from Twygg.

"Och! Bí ciúin! Is féidir roinnt a bheith agat freisin!" Destyn countered, repeating the gesture with his finger and offering the sticky sweet up to Twygg this time, who gleefully nibbled along the sides of his finger to lap up as much as he could.

"But what if they are too small, though?" He tilted his head, confused at why Sivan would assume the counter. "It does not matter. I can just make my feets smaller or bigger." He said with a shrug.

"Yes!" At the mention of Laurevere, Destyn's eyes went wide and he answered with instant affirmation, which sort of overlapped with Sivan's diminishing clarification.

"Right, of course, to guard us, yes, yes..." He quickly confirmed, as he placed Twygg and the honeypot onto the grass to sit and try on the extra boots Sivan provided. Indeed, he had never worn boots in his life. Only leaf-thin turn-shoes, many of which had been made of actual leaves. He looked to Sivan, as if requiring demonstration and was glad of it, as he'd have neglected the stockings entirely otherwise and taken them for cleaning rags or some such thing. As he pulled the first one on, he glanced over and noticed Twygg had hoisted himself up and was halfway into the honeypot with his little legs kicking out the top.

"I dtigh diabhail, Twygg!" He knew the little fellow wouldn't (and couldn't) drown in the honey, but he didn't want Twygg's formidable appetite to claim all of Sivan's haul. He leaned over to pull him out by his ankles (or the equivalent thereof) and place him rightside up on the grass. Twygg, for his part, seemed perfectly happy covered in honey and was licking as much as he could and absorbing still more into his bark.

"Sábháil roinnt do Sivan!" He chided, shaking his head. "Sorry about him, Sivan. Elementals, you know?" He sighed, and grabbed a boot to try on.

[Sivan]

"Well..."

Sivan hadn't thought of that. Sometimes it surprised him to remember that they were of a height; Destyn had the air about him of someone who needed care, so perhaps that was why he seemed smaller in Sivan's mind's eye. Perhaps he oughtn't to infantilize him, though, considering he had survived this long and - well - they had done rather adult things together. He coughed and nodded. Laurevere would be invited along, then.

"I never know how much time and effort it takes to change things," he offered, then wondered if that was why he sometimes thought of Destyn as shorter. In any event, he did look positively radiant smiling up from the grass, squinting in the sunlight, or hair slicked down like an otter's in the river.

"Bidh mil an-còmhnaidh a’ sruthadh," he promised in his limited Valasren.

After the impromptu lesson in the wearing of boots, he gave Destyn's leather-shod ankle a squeeze and deemed them a good enough fit.

"I will be right back." He stood up, and disappeared through the moon gate. A few minutes later, Laurevere's footsteps sounded in time with Sivan's against the flagstone steps.

"I suppose it will be a nice change from the everwinter of Kalzasi," he said with apparent boredom. "Destynrael. Twygg." He nodded to them. Then he stared at Sivan, whose smile eventually slipped away.

"Oh, of course...!" He ran inside and returned with his sheathed blade in hand, but he had forgotten any sort of shirt. "Are we ready then?"

Laurevere sighed. He was always ready; when one stayed ready, one didn't have to get ready, he always said.

[Destyn]

25 Searing 123

"They are, you know, actually a little tight." Destyn asserted, as he took a few constrained steps to get a feel for them. When Sivan stepped away, Destyn crouched down closer to Twygg's level.

"Is féidir leat fanacht anseo áit a bhfuil sé sábháilte. Agus dúirt Sivan gur féidir leat an mil a ithe." He smiled and reached out to cup his hand onto the elemental's bark, gesturing with a nod of his head toward the sapling.

"Tabhair aire don chrann leanbh. Coinnigh slán é."

Twygg, wide-eyed, turned his whole body (for he had no neck to crane) to regard the fledgling tree that had drawn him from the aether, but hadn't grown much since that day. Destyn moved the honeypot nearer to Twygg's leafy charge and turned it on its side so he wouldn't get stuck upside down again while they were gone for an indefinite amount of time. He would have to remember to tell Sivan to urge the garden spirits to help him if he got himself stuck somewhere. He might have thought to do so upon Sivan's immediate return, but then there was Laurevere.

"Oh, um. Hullo Laurie..." He paused, staring at length until Sivan address him directly. Then he would burst back to life, "Yes!" He reached for his Amulet of Wandering, and closed his fingers around it. "We must, you know, go to Ecith to find a Green Dragon. Or if there is one closer that is fine, also. I do not know if they are in the part of Ecith I can portal to. I do not know where they are at all. Uhh... Maybe no, I am not ready? Should I pray, perhaps, to Talon and ask Him?"

[Sivan]

"Rumor has it a green dragon stalks the wilds near Kalzasi," he offered, "though I have little information beyond that." He considered. "Pray if you wish. I will wait. Perhaps we ought to pack for an extended foray into the benighted continent... and perhaps it would behoove you to dress appropriately, my dear Sivan. I am certain the air will be sweltering, and yet you leave yourself open to dire-mosquitos."

There might have been the hint of a smirk upon his fine features. He picked an invisible speck of lint from his sleeve and flicked it away.

Sivan flushed, and went back into the tower for a shirt, though perhaps Laurevere was right and they would have to pack, or perhaps plan, for something more extensive. Here he was flying by the seat of his trousers - and forgetting his shirt.

With Sivan out of earshot, Laurevere looked Destyn up and down critically. A platinum brow rose archly.

"What fetching boots, Destynrael. Fear a 'bhaile."

How much Valasren he knew was anyone's guess, but his accent was impeccable.

When Sivan returned, he had a shirt and a pack with some foodstuffs and such, the same pack he had brought with him to Ecith the last time. Blue eyes darted between the men, hoping Laurevere was being kind to Destyn. It seemed that way, at least.

"So... reconnaissance via divinity?" Sivan didn't know what had been decided in his brief absence either. But Destyn wasn't crying, and everything seemed fine so he supposed that was good enough for now. But the elf was a terrible adventurer; he didn't need Laurevere to tell him that. But Laurevere did. Ah, well, he showed his kindness in other ways.

[Destyn]

25 Searing 123

"A green dragon in the wilds?" Destynrael knitted his brow, and considered. The wilds surrounding Kalzasi had been a regular haunt of his clan since long before he was born. How could they have missed that? He pondered for a moment, but Laurevere's attention and a comment (in Destyn's mothertongue no less!) drew his wide eyes elfward.

"Th-th-thank you, sir." He replied, gaping at length until Sivan returned with more clothes and questions of clarification, which were not historically well answered by Destyn.

"Well, I was thinking about what you said about this, you know, rumour about a green dragon near Kalzasi. I do not know how there could be-... Tá mé ghnóthach, Twygg." He glanced down to the grass at his ankle, where Twygg was tapping at the leather of his boot with his wooden arm.

"I mean my clan travelled these woods for many years and surely we would have come across signs of-... Twygg, nach bhfeiceann tú go bhfuil mé ag caint?" He sighed, trying to reclaim his train of thought now that the essenti was banging on his shin like a drunk trying to get into his favourite pub after hours. Twygg was about that steady on his stumps, after all.

"So I am certain that we should go to Eci- Céard?!" He snapped, looking down at Twygg, who stared up at him with wide, glassy eyes. Destyn blinked, Twygg conjured the approximation of a pout then began to wail in a high pitched sob. Destyn crouched down adn scooped him up, rocking him back and forth and cooing in soothing tones: "Céard atá mícheart? Tá brón orm. Ní raibh sé i gceist agam." Looking to Sivan and Laurevere he explained, "He is leaving the honey alone so this is, you know, maybe important." With that, he looked to Twygg, who looked back at him, and both got silent for a moment.

"Ar ndóigh! Is leathcheann mé! Go raibh maith agat, Twygg!" Destyn grinned and placed him back down near the honey. "I forgot what the plants told me then, but when I was in hospital there was a green dragon minding the Tranquil Gardens! We should begin our search there! And Twygg should eat as much honies as he wants!"

[Sivan]

Twygg's wail changed the feel of the garden; it disrupted the placid patterns of aether, caused birds to chirp in agitation in the branches, the hive to drone in confusion. But Destyn knew how to soothe the little creature, and soon enough, all was well. Sivan couldn't catch all of the Fae speech, but he gathered enough that he wasn't completely surprised when Destyn told them of an even nearer draconic resident of their fair city.

Laurevere looked thoughtful, if perhaps a touch vexed he didn't have the best intelligence of the three of them. Then again, he wasn't sure he believed that Destyn was correct.

"Bi mothachail air na seilleanan, Twygg," Sivan said thoughtfully. He was distracted now, but as long as Twygg didn't molest the bees, they were likely to share with him. That is, if he finished the pot and wanted more. The industrious hive knew it would not go hungry in Sivan's care, nor would any damage to their home take long to be restored. "Well, then I suppose we ought to investigate the hospital before launching ourselves across the world, hey?"

Laurevere nodded. "It will certainly require less in the way of provisions."

While they were unlikely to need his protection in the Tranquil Gardens, he didn't seem keen to quit their presence. For whatever reason, he had taken a shine to his common neighbor and even tolerated Destyn with a touch less hauteur these days.

"Shall we?" Sivan asked, a smile on his face. On his way through the tower, he plucked his magical cloak off the peg and pulled it around his shoulders. It swirled perfectly—probably part of the magic rather than any showiness on his part. He was immediately comfortable, neither overheated from his work, nor chilled by the continued cold in the air. In any case, his home was a haven against the elements even when they were in good working order. For a moment, he felt a pang that Urs was unlikely to be at the Tranquil Gardens, but he didn't let that distract him as he held the door for his friend and his neighbor to pass without.

[Destyn]

25 Searing 123

Twygg looked up blankly at Sivan's utterance, his little mouth slightly slack as he gaped. Then he looked to Destyn, who crouched to give him a pat on the head.

"He has no idea what you are saying, but I am certain the bees will be, you know, fine." The Fae offered as he launched back to a standing position and skipped over to Sivan, glancing sidelong to Laurevere as he passed him.

"We, you know, shall!" He affirmed, gleefully. "Do you know how to fly yet? That would be fun, but... Oh. I guess, maybe, Laurevere cannot fly. But he is good at making sexy times so we will, I think, forgive him." Destyn noted with a matter of fact shrug as he made his way through the structure toward the front and out onto the street. His wings remained folded, though they did twitch a few times as if independently desirous of their host fae's attention.

"It is, uh... trivia of my life, I think? That the Tranquil Gardens were the first place in Kalzasi that I went to. Remember when I was hurt when you first met me? They toiled to mend me there. And then, sometimes, after the attack on blessed Talon, when it was not so easy to leave the city? I would go to the gardens part of the Tranquil Gardens, which is also, you know, a hospital and not a garden but people still call it Tranquil Gardens which is, I think, strange but city people, you know?" He paused to take a great big breath, because he hadn't for that entire stream of consciousness.

"Anyway, it is nice. The grass is very gossipy, which is, to me, quite fun."