and the hope of morning

[founderinglight]

Who: Izunia and you! And a kitty. (First prompt closed to Ardyn)
What: TWIN FIGHT TWIN FIGHT and general catchall. And a kitty.
When: Twinfight: Morning of Tues the 1st. Everything else, whenever whenever after that.
Where: The beach; around the Station
Warnings: All the hecking warnings on the twinfight.

Closed to Ardyn

[It takes some time to find his brother; as a result, people might see Izunia doing the "think murder and walk" thing for a half an hour or so around the Station before he concludes that Ardyn isn't there and heads elsewhere. Those with a careful eye will notice more than just his stance being different; he's clean-shaven and decked out in full black coat and boots, including a black tricorn hat with an impressive plume and a bird skull of some sort attached to it. If the growing heat of the mid-to-late morning bothers him, it's hard to tell.

Those who are more used to the casually-dressed, laid-back man usually seen around the Station could well be surprised to see this side of him. Today, the Founder King walks.

And so it is eventually out of the Station that he roams, and there spots the figure down on the beach from the cliffside. A thrown dagger hits the sand, leaving behind it the blue trail of a very long warp, and Izunia plucks it from the sand before crossing the last few yards to his brother.]

Ardyn. If you have some time, might I have a word?

[menacing]

May 2-4, aka the Heat Wave, around the Station

[Come the heat wave itself, however, Izunia is dressed at least a little more practically for the weather, though still in teeshirts and black pants. He can be found in all his usual places - the low-numbers kitchen, the deck, and the library - during the day, as well as sitting in the Annex underlevel on a blanket to enjoy the breeze in the cooler underground cavern. He's not completely immune to heat, only mostly.

Those who hang around the outside of the station at night, when things have cooled off a little more, will find him either on the deck still or out on the sand behind the stables, working with some sort of light magic as he turns it into different colors from his usual blue, and, eventually, into the shapes of letters and simple symbols. It seems like he's having quite a bit of fun, at least.]

Also May 2-4, also around the Station but more common room/kitchens/his room

[What's that sound? What's that flash in the corner of your eye?

It's a cat - the size of a full grown feline already, though her proportions mark her as not yet an adult - with a dark blue collar and a ringing bell.

And she is having the zoomies around the residential floor after escaping her dad's room. Nyoom, off she goes!

Or perhaps you're sitting in the kitchens or the common room when she finally wears herself out a bit, and you've been approached for Pettings, Please. Or perhaps you have food. Or perhaps your shoelaces have just become her new toy in place of randomly zooming around.

However it is you encounter this fluffy little monster, you can be sure that Izunia is not too far behind, led by the sound of her bell.]

May 5th, Night

[Once the heat wave breaks, it's finally time to make use of one of the Station's new features. With all the windows open to the breeze and the sound of the storm, Izunia is sprawled out in the hot tub in a pair of black trunks and nothing else. The way his head is tipped back, it's easy to mistake him for asleep, but the sound of someone else arriving makes him glance in the direction of the door. It's still fairly easy to tell him apart from Ardyn, though, if you know what to look for - blue eyes, still clean-shaven, and a black tattoo on his chest, the majority of it blurred by the bubbling water except for the two crows flying highest in the direction of his neck.]

Evening.

Comments

May 1st, lunch

[photoshooter]

[Apparently, Prompto was working in the tech lab when he got Izunia's message, because here he comes with grease smudged on his face and that oversized tent of a T-shirt (now relieved of its sleeves) and a yellow ball of fluff at his heels.]

What happened? What'd you deck him for? Are you okay?

[founderinglight]

[Izunia is just quite calmly working over the stove, in contrast. He's shed the thick black coat, but the rest of him is still dressed rather formally, black dress shirt's sleeves shoved up to his elbows as he stirs a delicious-smelling pot.

In contrast to Prompto's immediate anxiety, he seems to be in a fairly good mood.]

We had a fight that was a long time coming, for not ever telling me that he was absorbing the scourge instead of healing it, and I'm fine, it will take far more than a kick in the ribs to do me in, and even if it didn't, I'm quite as capable of making curatives as Noctis.

[He gives the pot a final stir before coming away from the stove, instead sitting at his usual table, which is occupied by...

A cat carrier? A cat carrier, and a small bowl of chopped meat, and, indeed, a fluffy grey kitty.]

Oh good, she's eating.

[photoshooter]

[The next dozen questions dry up the second Prompto notices the carrier. Here he comes to peer in, a respectful distance from the grate.]

What's this? You got a pet?

[Ardyn can wait, we have priorities here in Keystone station. Soft gasp.]

Kitty...!

[founderinglight]

[Kitty's ears flick in his direction as she continues to HORF okay not really but she is very dedicated to her food bowl here and still a bit nervous after a couple days in Scary Place.]

Oh - yes, I'm thinking I'm going to call her Verity.

[photoshooter]

[Izunia can wait, too, because we continue to have priorities at Keystone station. Prompto kneels so he's at eye level with the kitten, arms crossed on the tabletop under his chin, and smiles with his eyes closed so he won't be so threatening.]

Aw, hey there, cutie. Is that a yummy lunch? Dude, she's so fluffy...

[founderinglight]

We're pretty sure she's not yet full grown, either.

[Gonna be a big kitty.

Verity looks up at Prompto briefly before returning to her food. It is very good and she is HUNGRY.]

[photoshooter]

Heh. She likes her food.

[Prompto stays like that a while, watching happy kitty eat with his cheek in his elbow before suddenly remembering he came down here for a reason.]

So why did you clobber Ardyn? What'd he even do?

[founderinglight]

You really were distracted by her, weren't you?

[He makes an amused sound before sitting down.]

Because, some two thousand years ago, he thought the best way to deal with the fact that his powers absorbed the Scourge was to suffer in silence instead of telling anyone about it. As I said, it was a long time coming.

[photoshooter]

So you punched him... because he was suffering.

[???]

[founderinglight]

I punched him because he was hiding things from me like an idiot all while saying that he trusted me and nothing was wrong.

[Huff. He's still annoyed about it, clearly, punch or not.]

For almost fifteen years.

[photoshooter]

Oh.

[Prompto winces a little, runs a quick mental check, and reminds himself he could really only have been hiding things from the guys for five years or less.]

So, you... worked it out...?

[founderinglight]

I don't know if I would say that yet. But it's... closer to being worked out than it was.

[It's a process and they have to start somehow. Izunia just watches the cat eat for a moment or two.]

...I'm sorry.

[photoshooter]

...To me?

[As if he can't automatically assume that, in this conversation. Sunshine keeps wandering around the floor behind him, looking for invisible crumbs to peck at.]

[founderinglight]

Yes. I keep hurting you trying to do what I think is right, and I'm sorry. You deserve better than that.

[The cat finishes licking her dish with a clatter and pads over to headbutt his shoulder. More?

Izunia just reaches up to pet her, which is acceptable.]

I don't know how to say things without upsetting you, and it's frustrating, and I'm very tired of it, and I'm sorry.

[photoshooter]

[Prompto tracks Verity rather than meeting Izunia's eyes.]

...She wants more food.

[That's all he says for a moment, rubbing his finger against a spot of nothing on the table. Eventually, he looks away. Watches Sunshine instead.]

I know you're not trying to hurt me. But it's like... I really feel like you don't hear me at all. Like you keep making decisions about what you think I deserve without asking me what I need.

[founderinglight]

[Breath in, breath out.]

I'm sorry. That's not what I'm trying to do. I'll keep it in mind and listen more.

[They can do this. He can do this.]

[photoshooter]

...Okay.

[He rubs his cheek, grimaces when his hand comes away dirtier than it already was, and gets up to steal paper napkins from another table. As he wipes at his face and hands, he says:]

I guess I don't even really understand what you're trying to do in the first place.

[founderinglight]

I don't know if I can truly explain it, either. No, dear, you're not getting more until later no matter how sweet you are.

[The latter is addressed to the cat attempting to convince him on the matter of more food by practically putting her tail up his nose.]

I suppose it comes down to wanting you to have some idea what a caring family is actually like. Because it's that or get unbearably angry at people I can't reach, and that doesn't do anyone any good at all.

[photoshooter]

[...]

You're making a lot of assumptions about how I grew up.

[founderinglight]

I know a bit, and some of it is... The way you act makes it rather obvious. A child raised with love isn't surprised by kindness the way you are.

[Prompto you're transparent as hell.]

[photoshooter]

[He throws the dirtied napkins away in silence.]

There were a lot of things my parents didn't do, that maybe they should have.

But they did keep me safe. They kept me safe until there wasn't anywhere safe left for anyone to be, and I understand enough now to know that couldn't have been easy.

[He holds his own elbows tightly, blinking down at the floor like the tiles will resolve into the right answer.]

I don't feel that way here.

[founderinglight]

Yes, well, giving you somewhere to live other than the wilderness is one of the few things I can commend them for.

[He's sorry about a lot. But he's not especially sorry about that. And if Prompto is being passive aggressive about it then he will be too.]

[photoshooter]

You--

[Prompto whirls to face him, fists balled, teeth gritted, but manages to hold most of himself in check. He bites his tongue for a second; as hard as he tries to keep it low and level, his voice still wobbles a little.]

You're doing it again. You're deciding for me, what's best for me without hearing the thing I'm actually trying to tell you.

[founderinglight]

I hear you fine, Prompto. I know you're terrified of Ardyn.

But I am just as terrified, myself, at the thought of something happening to you out in those woods because you ran off alone where no one could get to you in time to help you.

[photoshooter]

Who said anything about living in the woods? The beach is just fine, I run there every day--and, and that isn't even the point!

You don't get to make that decision for me. Especially--especially not the way you did.