mingle a little Mor tonight

[catamite]

Who: Everyone!
Broadcast: Sure!
Action: The wonderful world of Mor, nearby way-stations, and ships!
When: The first week or so of arrival

[this is it-- Atroma's surprise vacation stay for you all! it's time to explore, speculate, relax, and totally behave yourselves. right?

how are you all dealing with the ever-so-educational volcano? have you played around with the visual toggle on those collars yet? aren't they cool? aren't these peasant clothes rad? if you haven't had a decent meal since Abeo, maybe you could afford some of that authentic farm-raised meat they have here. historical!

I bet you're all excited and completely thrilled to be here! who wouldn't be? ...so, make some discoveries, make some friends, and have fun!]

Comments

[lord_wizard]

[The sad fact of the matter is that while all of that was a painful fact piled upon another, it was but the ones closest to the surface as far as the mountain of truths and lies that made up his life. In a strange way he didn't even resent the experience as much as it seemed. Yes, he hated it, but Paradisa was simply only doing what it needed to survive]

Of course you had no idea. It sounds perfect on paper. It was perfect model of a gilded cage. It lived off our emotions. Every party, every arrival, every death, was just another way to get what it needed from us. And some were better subjects than most.

[Meaning himself, of course. It shouldn't be that strange of an idea to grasp, coming from a man who arrived in the fleet to the tune of a violent temper tantrum. He'd always felt things quite strongly, even if the effects of those never rose close enough to the surface to see.]

It would have been difficult to for me to pretend that none of that ever happened. [Not when he has so much else to lie about, but those are easier by merit of time and repetition.]

[He glances aside with a sigh, taking in the eager sadness that Mattias regards him with. It would be very easy to dig for something terrible, but these memories aren't worth that kind of retribution. Asking why he called himself a traitor, for example. He lacks the context for Mattias did, however, and has an equal chance to stumble into briers, but a less openly prodding question comes to find after a few prolonged beats]

Tell me about your family. You only mentioned your uncle in relation to them. Why?

[noctiphile]

[Asking why he was a traitor would almost be a point of pride. In a way it was an accomplishment. A badge of his success in reward for achieving his lifelong goal. He didn't mind the name, just the inherent consequences.

His family though, that makes him freeze. Makes his eyes hard and his lips thin. He keeps it momentary, forcing a smile that doesn't reflect in his eyes.]

Ah, well. There's my cousins, too, I suppose. I simply didn't think you'd have any interest in hearing of them. My aunt as well, though she doesn't like me much. [He's inferior in her eyes. An insufficient replacement for his mother.] My cousins, though. You could say they were my only friends growing up. Friends and siblings. Ana and Elijah are their names. Elijah was a bit more distant. Older, so he saw our interactions more as babysitting. Ana, though. She's a spitfire. [He chuckles.] She and I—we'd practice courtly manners with each other. Curtsies and courtesies, you know. Actually—[He raises a finger.]—she was my dance partner. Though she's got two left feet.

[Another chuckle before he waves the thought away.] Anyway, while Ana and I were teenagers, Elijah was sent off to serve at the border. He was killed in a raid. Uncle Martell was a mess. His wife even more so. It led to their divorce and left me the sole carrier of the family name. Uncle was quick to appoint me his new son. Unofficially, of course.

[It sounds convincing. This time he doesn't falter. Keeps up the good cheer right on through, timing laughs and smiles in all the right places. Still, it feels odd. Recently, his heritage was the least important thing about him and back in Oramos... Well. Everyone had already known. To have to actively hide it felt strange.]

[lord_wizard]

[Before he even speaks, Felix knows he's miscalculated, and mentally winces at the reaction. He doesn't buy for a second that this is all cheer and fond memories, outside of the complete lack of mention of his parents. He's seen too many of these lying masks. It's a courtly skill to be sure, to respond neutrally while shoving the core of the matter away where it can be safely forgotten.

He decides to let Mattias get away with the evasion. It saves them both in the long run, because what did he know about families, really? He never had anyone to look up to or live up to. No one to miss. Not in that same way. It was a bond he'd maybe never really understand.]

Hm. Politics...[he mumbles noncommittally, and returns his gaze to the town in the distance.]

Many of us have left a lot behind us.