April/May Catchall

[phoenixblessed]

WHO: Diluc Ragnvindr, Baizhu, Neuvillette, Guizhong, Edmond, E’kayan Tia & perhaps you?
WHAT: April/May Catchall
WHEN: April/May
WHERE: Many places
WARNINGS: Will add as and when they are required.

Each top level will have a small rundown of likely places to find the character if you’d like to drop me a top level or request something specific. Also open to anything from the TDM or quests I didn’t write up. If you’d like to plot something, hit me up via DM or hardtostarboard !

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🔥DILUC RAGNVINDR

[phoenixblessed]

Can be found:
🔥 Sunwaning
🔥 the coffee shop he runs with Kaeya
🔥 Grand Colosseum, Autumn Guild, or Titanic Dome

-> Kaeya

[phoenixblessed]

Ugh-- Kaeya?! Are you-- ngh...

[So, call him stupid if you like, but the very moment the healers backs were turned Diluc had immediately bolted. If he's going to have to lay down somewhere to recover then he'd much rather it be at home.

He had drawn more than a few glances on his way home as much as he had tried not to, but the tension only leaves him when he finally steps inside.

There had been... many missteps along the timeline of events. The first had been going up against a vicious creature by himself. The second, getting himself injured to begin with. The third and most recent misstep had been not letting Kaeya know that he was about to arrive home still battered and with blood on his clothes.

He leans against the door with a small wince once it's shut behind him. The relief is almost palpable despite his continuing discomfort.]

Kaeya!

[Gods, is he even home?]

[icepatch]

[The last thing Kaeya expected to come barging into their apartment was a bloodied Diluc. Yes, his partner could come in however he liked but injured?! He turned off the stove in the kitchen and set down the utensil he had been using to make dinner, immediately making his way to the redhead.]

I'm here, what happened?

[As a Knight, and former Knight in Diluc's case, things like this wasn't new. So, Kaeya simply took Diluc's arm to support him to the living room. Really, it was to swell the initial panic at even seeing injured. He was going through the motions right now, but once the other man was sufficiently taken care of, he could let him emotions come out unchecked.]

[phoenixblessed]

Something with too many damn teeth.

[And claws, and too fast besides. Diluc winces as he pushes himself away from the door. In the very least he doesn't seem to be actively bleeding, so he either escaped that kind of injury or was healed at least a little before deciding to abscond home and spook his partner.]

I'm not dying, don't worry.

[At least, don't worry too much. He puts his arm around Kaeya to accept his support while they move to the couch and sits down on it gingerly, pressing a palm against his side.]

It looks worse than it is.

🐍BAIZHU

[physicianhealthyself]

Can be found:
🐍 Sunwaning (Solarpeak side)
🐍 his pharmacy
🐍 research centre

Note: Baizhu is in quite poor health and this would be obvious to anyone who has spent any time with him. He is also almost always accompanied by Changsheng - a white snake with a smart mouth.

-> Aeacinos

[physicianhealthyself]

[Despite occasional awkward moments between them (felt, Baizhu is sure, only on his side... he is certain that Aeacinos himself actually enjoys the sense of tension) the doctor has continued to utilise the other man's services as a guard on the occasions when he needs to go to somewhere more dangerous than he might be equipped to handle alone.

Today's excursion takes them to one of the more humid areas of the summer segment's jungles, searching for a particular flower that Baizhu has found to have potential. It's not an easy thing to find and both the heat and moisture in the air are taking their toll on him, dulling the edges of his awareness as he wanders just that little bit too far from his companion while the man's back is turned to him.

He doesn't notice the large snake eyeing him from a nearby tree until it's launching itself towards him with lightning flying out of its mouth. Baizhu barely gets a shield up in time as he falls back, hitting the ground hard and yelping out one word before he can even think to stop himself;]

Aeacinos!

[illusionistic]

[ What this large predatory snake fails to realize is that there is an even larger more predatory snake just beyond the brush from where Baizhu calls out for help. Aeacinos is there in a flash, however, despite his size he is extremely fast and that snake will have a large clawed hand digging into its neck as Aeacinos all but rips its head from its body. The lighting is no joke but Aeacinos uses his own tail to deflect much of it. Some of it manages to burn and cut him in his arms and torso but he doesn't care about the pain or whatnot at the moment. He's holding the snake up by its head as it hisses and writhes trying but failing to constrict Aeacinos himself. A 6-foot-long snake is hardly a match for Aeacinos who is well over 25 feet long himself. Aeacinos' coils undulate and roil behind him as his tail comes up from behind Baizhu to shield the other man and contain him from any other harm that might be about. ] Dare try to hurt my charge, do you?

[ A growled hiss escapes him as he looks back at Baizhu. He finally puts the beast out of its misery with a quick snap of its neck. ] Are you unharmed, doctor? Shall I dispose of this for you? Or would you like to make a meal or perhaps an antidote with it?

[ His voice sounds ever so annoyed and tinged with anger as he asks the other man. ]

[physicianhealthyself]

I'm—

[Is he unharmed? He's trembling as he lets the Dendro shield pulsing about him drop and although he had fallen quite heavily the snake had not managed to lay as much as a scratch on him. His eyes are wide, looking at the dead creature in Aeacinos' hands as though he might give voice to a weak complaint that the man did not have to kill it...

But of course he would have killed it. That's what he's here for.]

It shouldn't go to waste. Snake meat does not tend to be palatable but I'm sure I can find some use for the creature.

[He pushes himself back up to his feet, wincing as he does. His heart is pounding so hard that it hurts, his breathing shaky from the sudden shock of adrenaline, and he can feel the light sweat beading along his hairline.]

We should, ah... continue.

🌊NEUVILLETTE

[inexorablejudgment]

Can be found:
🌊 Coldreach
🌊 Amberfall library
🌊 anything ‘beach’-like or near any water

Note: Neuvillette makes it rain when he's sad. Do with that what you will.

Run-In At The Library

[hathasacat]

[ Building up an information network from scratch is no easy task, and it's one made all the more difficult when you're still learning the area. Still, Lyney and Lynette were pushing through it; a few challenges like this weren't enough to make them set aside an entire skillset. ]

[ Basic world knowledge was at least easy to come by, and Lyney honestly needed the break from scrolling through the network. Though Lynette had offered to collect information in this domain, a second pair of eyes was always a good thing to have. Not to mention he'd be able to get in a bit of socializing to and form the library. ]

[ What he hadn't expected was to do any socialization within the library itself. But how could he have not reacted with surprise upon seeing the familiar figure browsing the shelves so casually? ]

Monsieur Neuvilette?

whee

[inexorablejudgment]

[Browsing casually, and no doubt dressed far more casually than Lyney would have ever had cause to witness, Neuvillette looks quickly in the direction of the familiar voice and then smiles gently.]

Ah, Lyney, it's you.

[A friend? He would like to think so by now, though his ability to discern when someone actually considers themselves such to him is often hit or miss.]

Forgive me my surprise - I hadn't been made aware of your arrival.

[hathasacat]

[ Neuvilette owning clothes other than the formal wear he dons in court? ]

[ Is that even legal- ]

There's nothing to be forgiven; Lynette and I have yet to make our formal debut in the local entertainment circuits, so only those we've run into in person would know we're here.

[ Which has been a surprisingly non-zero amount. But at least they've been mostly-friendly faces. ]

We'll be certain to let you know when we are ready for our first performance though, if you have an interest in attending.

-> Navia

[inexorablejudgment]

[Perhaps Navia had forgotten the idle question she had asked of Neuvillette some time ago - could he make plants grow?

Now, Neuvillette is no Dendro wielder, but the additional powers that have been granted to him by his presence in Ellipsa have allowed him something of that sort. Can he make plants grow..? Well, yes, in fact he can.

Ever since she had asked him that question the man had been on a very singular mission. Though the garden in the house he occupied in Coldreach was not the best of environments for growing things he had determinedly persisted at it until he came upon a cross-breed that was hardy enough to tolerate the chill. From there, he had changed his focus.

It couldn't just be a yellow flower. It had to be the perfect shade of yellow.

Neuvillette does not quite understand his own fixation on this. Though the emotions of others are often as clear as day to him he has always struggled to understand his own, and even now that has not changed. Even when Navia looks at him the way she does, how he feels an anxious flutter in the pit of his stomach whenever she's nearby, when she speaks to him or touches his arm...

He invites her over when he feels that he's ready and finds himself anticipating her company keenly enough that he waits at the door for her arrival, his pearlescent eyes keenly scanning the path outside the house and his hearing piqued for the sound of her footsteps.]

[buttercream]

[ Admittedly, the question has been forcibly dismissed from Navia's mind since that day. In a moment of weakness, she asked something selfish of him, something that by rights she should never have dared to ask. Could he grow flowers? It doesn't matter— they are friends, but he is dealing with all the same hurts and pains as she; what right does she have to ask him to ease a pain in her heart that was never his fault at all?

And so, when Neuvillette asks her to join him at his house, she thinks nothing of it, merely packages up some freshly-baked macarons and two flasks— one filled with homemade lemonade, the other with newly bottled water— and sets off along the short distance between their places. The scent of rain is in the air, but it's not yet falling— it's a nice day for a walk, and a nicer day still to visit a friend.

(A friend who sometimes makes her heart beat a little too fast and her breath come a little too short, but that's just another thing that isn't the Iudex's problem, isn't it?)

Navia's lips part to announce herself as she reaches his garden—

and her voice dies on her lips.

A sea of golden flowers crosses the expanse between the gate and his front door, cut in twain only by a narrow pathway.

Tears well in Navia's eyes as she wavers in place, and whether he can hear her from his vantage point or no, a single word comes to her lips: ]

Beautiful...

[inexorablejudgment]

[Truth be told he does not become aware of how self-conscious he feels until he sees Navia at the other end of the garden. He has been so focused on his goal - to find the perfect shade, just for her - that he hardly noticed how the progress of his work must look.

But then as she appears, as golden and beautiful as any flower he might have grown here, he feels the pit of his stomach twist in...

Anxiety? Anticipation?

He smiles a little as he moves away from the door and towards the gate, opening it to bid her enter.]

I, uh... I have something to show you.

[Something that is not, apparently, the sea of yellow flowers in his front garden?]

🌼GUIZHONG

[godofdust]

Can be found:
🌼 Dayrise
🌼 in her teapot realm if anyone wants to come see her
🌼 research centre
🌼 lurking around any junkyards looking for mechanical parts

-> Zhongli

[godofdust]

Oh, I love it when it rains!

[Guizhong's lust for life was present long before she arrived in Ellipsa but the extra time she has been afforded has only served to enhance her appreciation of everything around her. As she and Zhongli walk through one of the many busy market streets of Nightwake City (she chattering animatedly, he listening patiently to her enthusiasm), the sky opens and rain begins to patter down onto the shop awnings and cobbled street.

The adepti throws out her arms and spins under the water, tilting her head up and letting it splash against her face.]

Isn't it marvellous, Rex?

[Guizhong beams up at him and then reaches for the collar of his jacket, tugging him down so she can soundly kiss him. She has never needed much of an excuse, but something else seems to drive her in that moment. Something that makes her linger. She blinks up at him when she lets him pull back.]

Hmm. Do you feel that?

[brokebitchmountain]

[ It's much any other ordinary day that they've since been together. Zhongli is still unaccustomed to this, but he's not going to pretend that being with Guizhong doesn't make him extremely happy. He watches her as she animatedly goes about the market and he offers to pick things up for her that she might want, but also he does well to remember the things she doesn't allow him to buy for her. Perhaps it'll be a present for another time.

But that is neither here nor there as the rain comes down from the sky. This is a different sort of rain and he's remembering now that the rain has had this effect on people before, including himself. So now that they're both in it Zhongli is feeling its effects. The kiss from Guizhong makes his face go flush as he takes in a breath before pulling himself away from her. Those amber eyes of his staring directly back at her with some intensity to them. ] I do. I believe the rain has some...interesting properties at times, this is one of those instances.

[ He will murmur as a gloved hand reaches up to brush some of Guizhong's hair back behind her ear. ]

[godofdust]

[Guizhong, likewise, is not going to pretend that being with Morax makes her anything less than overjoyed. All the time they had known one another and she had never been able to tell him how she felt, only to be given this unique opportunity so long after her own death (by his reckoning, at least).

She remembers this type of rain and her mind connects the dots even as he's speaking. Looking up at the sky, she blinks against the droplets that fall against her eyes and the patter of water against her cheeks, and she laughs.]

Is that so.

[Another chuckle escapes her as she tilts her head against his hand.]

I have hardly needed the influence of any magic to want to kiss you, my love. Shall we indulge ourselves?

🐈E'KAYAN TIA

[orangebrained]

Can be found:
🐈 Amberfall
🐈 botanical gardens
🐈 generally around fighting wild beasties in the segments and at the Darkness barrier (he favours using magic but can sometimes be found with a sword... while simultaneously using magic. that Red Mage life)

-> Hermes

[orangebrained]

Oof--

[Fishing is something that E'kayan learned how to do when he was quite young. At the time it was a means of survival - when you're all but homeless in Limsa Lominsa, you need to find a reliable way to feed yourself that isn't just stealing the occasional scrap of bread or begging a meal from the Culinarian's Guild, and in a place like Limsa Lominsa fishing would always be the way to go.

Nowadays he does it for fun, or to relax, but whatever he currently has on the end of his line is far from relaxing. The rod bows almost entirely down to the water even as the Miqo'te pulls it back against his shoulder and although he's planting his weight against the ground he seems to be fighting a losing battle against his quarry.

E'kayan puffs out a breath, trying to snatch another without giving too much slack to the line, and pokes his tongue out between his teeth for a moment.

He almost misses the sensation of somebody else's eyes on him.]

H--Hey. [He can't turn around to look, but he knows someone is there.] Are you going to help me or just stare at me?

[answerseeker]

[ Hermes had simply walking-as was his wont-when he spots the smaller man. By all accounts, he should at least say hello, but the miqo'te looks...occupied? Perhaps it would be awkward. He pauses a bit too long and when E'kayan speaks he knows the decision has been made. ]

I-Yes, certainly! [ Hermes notes the sense of urgency in the other man's voice. While he hadn't partaken in it, he was vaguely aware that fishing had been a pasttime in Elpis. Why not? It was a novel enough concept. Though it doesn't look particularly novel at the moment with E'kayan wrestling with the rod... He hustles over and another pair of hands is suddenly grasping the rod and aiding in pulling it back towards land.

He is helping! Maybe??? ]

-> Erenville

[orangebrained]

[E'kayan would not call himself a needy person, or a needy partner, but sometimes he just wants attention and decides to go about it in the most direct way he possibly can. Today, that means he's crawling up along Erenville's body and nudging in under the book he's reading, edging it out of the way like a petulant pet cat bothering for scritches.]

Hey.

[He smiles as their noses nudge together, having planted himself firmly between the book and Erenville's face. His tail flicks from one side to the other.]

Are you done reading?

[gleaner]

[Erenville grunted softly as E'kayan shimmied his way up like that. He let the book rest on the small of the miqo'te's back so he was lightly hugging E'kayan.]

I am now, it would seem.

[Came the wry reply, sliding a bookmark into the book to set aside.]

What brought this on?

💎EDMOND

[sapphireknight]

Can be found:
💎 Amberfall
💎 Nightwake City on police patrols
💎 Titanic Dome