a thing; w/ ruinsprofessor & conductingresistance

[simulsimul]

universe list
canon
breached
confessed
dadly
future
grigori
mercenary
MEover
origin
reversal
titans


scenario list
canon: Kratos needs to stop running off
confessed: wing reflex
confessed: actual wingpull
confessed: turning Renegade
confessed: son meets father
dadliness: confrontation
dadliness: awakening
dadliness: illness
dadliness: a fundamental lack of understanding on the word 'abducted'
dadliness: updating parameters
dadliness: assassination assignation
mercenary: hiding in the library
mercenary: aftermath of librarian saviour
reversal: oracle destroyed
titans: storming the tower
titans: safety in the canyon
titans: night horrors


canon
- combo of Kratos and Zelos ending
- Zelos does the stupid thing, but not so far as his death, and is still the eighth member of the party to Derris-Kharlan.

scenarios
scenario one: Yuan tracks Kratos down at Dirk's.


breached
- canon right up until after Botta’s death
- no one uses Yuan’s name around Mithos so Mithos walks right into the Triet base with them
- cue an epic OH SHIT in which Yuan gets a lil bit beat up while covering the evacuation of the rest of the base
- until Kratos appears to intervene and have the Chosen group get Yuan out of there
- Mithos gets Kratos tho and he’s a bit mad cos, yanno, traitor and all
- time to be locked up and punished and need to be rescued
- kind of puts a crimp in the creation of the Eternal Ring plans
- mostly cos Mithos turns Kratos lifeless, with some armour to regulate his mana so he remains a seraph. can't have the seal becoming less powerful, yo
- it does mean he can only obey orders tho
- the first rescue fails miserably but at least no one dies and they know they need to reforge his key-crest
- the second rescue attempt (circumstances of canon-point under percolation) goes a little better, though Yuan almost gets killed by Kratos trying to attach the key-crest
- luckily that and the first telepathy in a while gets through and Kratos manages to break out a la Colette, and heal Yuan enough for Raine to get there
- after which, angreh father-son beatdown on Mithos.

scenarios
None yet.


confessed
- almost successful assassination lands Kratos as an injured stranger in Iselia (1-2 years pre-canon)
- recuperation leads to accidental-on-purpose 'holiday' in Iselia
- doubts result in a request for Dirk to make a key-crest like Kratos' own
- oracle room undergoes some stealth sabotage
- regeneration journey is slightly delayed, prompted by Genis and Lloyd being discovered at the ranch
- Triet is awkward. so very awkward. for the Renegades -- whose side is Kratos even on these days and why was he vanished for two years?
- initial overall journey similar to canon, save that Kratos is a bit less circumspect about advising Colette on how to cope with angel transformations
- there are more overt Dun Wanna Feelings
- then Luin, wherein things happen and the group is in town during the Desian attack. the others naturally want to fight but tis a mite difficult against an army and building-destroying magitech. luckily, angel on their side. unluckily, wingpulls in order to muster the power to cover the townspeoples' retreat
- questions and confessions ensue
- Colette rejects the key crest (for the moment) so there's still hopefully maybe ambiguity about Kratos's position re the last seal
- it wouldn't fit anyway, it's modelled for the hand like Kratos's is because he was a derp and did not specify otherwise, so Lloyd needs to make a thing to make it fit
- slow protective retreat toward Asgard.

scenarios
scenario one: Kratos confesses before Salvation; Raine wants to follow up.
scenario two: Raine's examination of an angel; and also Kratos realises how far he's put his foot in it.
scenario three: Kratos goes to taunt Yuan a little, and also ask for his help.
scenario four: in which Raine makes Kratos tell the children all the things, and Yuan takes too much amusement from it.


dadliness
- Kratos retires in Iselia under the name Irving to raise Lloyd after the death of his wife
- no exsphere. ageing occurs! so does a beard and a braid
- teaches Lloyd swordplay, but on the sly, to avoid the other villagers noticing. his daytime job is weaving
- Lloyd finds the box of their exspheres and wants details. after some prodding by Dirk, Kratos explains how exspheres are made and that one is Anna's life. Lloyd is too young yet, but when Lloyd comes of age (~15) Kratos lets him make his own decision re wearing it
- Lloyd chooses not to wear the exsphere
- Genis befriends Marble and Lloyd meets her, as in canon; this happens before the journey begins, with the fallout
- difference being that Colette is still in the village so they can't be too horrible, so they just demand Lloyd be turned over for a flogging
- Kratos stands in his stead because natch. luckily, they're only mooks and don't recognise the bearded weaver as anyone important
- gives Lloyd his guilt complex early tho
- the oracle happens much the same way except Botta doesn't quite recognise the weirdly familiar bearded swordsman
- he does when he's reporting to Yuan tho
      'there was an exceptionally skilled human'
      /brief physical description/
      /did x other faintly recognizable thing/
      and both he and Yuan are aware that Kratos has been awol for a while, so there's a moment of pure silence and dawning 'no, it couldn't be'
- but then obviously one of them has to go make sure
- cue an interruption just out of Triet.

scenarios
scenario one: Yuan feels the need to investigate; this results in Kratos injured and abducted.
scenario two: Yuan realises he can't kill Kratos with his own two hands; Kratos gets mothered.
scenario three: Kratos gets sick on the heels of his recovery. Yuan mothers him some more. Botta disapproves.
scenario four: Kratos recovers and makes an escape attempt. Sort-of.
scenario five: Kratos recovers more and talks to Botta, when not needling Yuan about his lack of preparedness.
scenario six: Sheena's contract takes a slight shift into undercover instead of assassination work.


future
- Aselia is Earth ~10,000 years in the past
- all is peachy-keen except the tree is now underground and the elvens/half-elves/some humans are in hiding in the centre of the planet, hidden thanks to the summon spirits
- Colette is working with humanitarian aid in various impoverished nations
- Zelos is a diplomat in West Asia / Middle East trying to keep the peace
- Yuan is a crotchety lecturer at Cambridge who's also HUGE into environmentalism
- Lloyd and Kratos are having family time in space
- occasionally the trio on Earth meet reincarnations of people they used to know
- but rarely at the same time and almost never in a position where they meet
- but then they start meeting them
- lots of them
- all in the same span of years
- they're starting to think something's hinky
- until the space-elves attack
- and then they know something is hinky.


scenarios
None yet.


grigori
- at some point significantly before canon, Kratos actually calls it quits
- the Church's institution calls him a fallen angel of vengeance
- really he's just going around trying to help people and avoiding being taken back to Cruxis
- assigns himself to the Chosen parties whenever he can, up to Colette
- ????? idk some kind of profit somewhere

scenarios
None yet.


mercenary
- when Yuan visits Kratos at the beach when Lloyd is 3 months old, he does not manage to escape before Anna and Lloyd return
- accidental attachment to this kidlet who likes pulling his hair
- three years later, Yuan can't stand to hold back while Kratos fights Kvar, so he throws caution to the wind to help
- Anna is still killed but they rescue Lloyd and Noishe and both are branded as traitors
- Lloyd is raised as a Renegade with Dad, Uncle Yuan and the extremely reticent Uncle Botta (how dare)
- meanwhile in Tethe'alla Yuan infiltrates the castle as the library archivist
- stays out of sight, mostly, but has a good ear around the politics thanks to recruiting Princess Hilda
- also happens to stumble on Zelos hiding in the library right after his mother's death
- look he's got a 'nephew' he can't just do nothing (even if all he meant was to recommend a book)
- unwittingly accidentally 'adopts' the Tethe'allan Chosen by virtue of being the only one who doesn't treat him like the Chosen
- sometimes Kratos brings Lloyd to visit and basically they're all separate pairs of exasperated bros
- by canon Lloyd and Kratos are wandering mercenaries, helping people on the sly while gathering intel to send back to the Renegades
- Yuan and Zelos are actively building resistance to the Church using inside knowledge
- the ninja are all Renegades
- Colette is escorted by Raine and by the priests
- yes the 'chain up the Chosen and drag her to every seal if necessary' priests
- she meets Lloyd randomly in Triet but Lloyd doesn't know her as the Chosen. they're a bit out of touch on the Journey of Regen timeline
- stuff happens and they keep missing each other up until Palmacosta, which is a warzone between the Desians (and Dorr as their figurehead) and the Renegades (with Neil as their leader)
- Colette wants to help; priests say no
- out come the chains
- Raine objects, but she has no exsphere so what can she do
- btw Genis got caught in the Iselian ranch and tossed in as a traitor to be made a host
- he gets sent to the Palmacosta ranch
- right after Neil manages to take the city, after Colette and Raine leave it, Botta takes the Palmacosta ranch and rescues Genis, among others
- Genis becomes his little shadow and is much preferable to Lloyd, in Botta's opinion
- Lloyd and Kratos are still trying to catch up to Colette to rescue her when they drop by
- Genis hears what they're trying to do and insists on coming along.


scenarios
scenario one: in which Yuan accidentally adopts a Chosen instead of a book from a library.
scenario two: in which Yuan is accidentally-deliberately adopted by the Meltokio Castle Knights.


MEover
- Mass Effect crossover someplace in the realm of 15,000 years after TOS canon
- except started before then, cos elves are really from Feros, planet of the cranky telepathic plant
- got decimated by the protheans trying to assimilate them into their empire
- elves objected, got killed a lot, fled Feros and got stuck in Aselia's orbit
- kinda forgot a few things but planted a seed from the Ferosian mother plant on Aselia
- Origin hasn't forgotten tho, kinda has a grudge against grumblegrumbleprotheansgrumble
- the entirety of TOS happened, and then some
- Kratos, Yuan, Lloyd, Colette and Zelos are the only ones left, but tis okay, they have each other
- somethingsomething natural space disaster, Aselia is destroyed but they manage to move Yggdrasill onto Derris-Kharlan and do a quarian by becoming a roaming ship
- mana is a variant of eezo lbr
- Derris-Kharlan's too big to use the mass relays, but c'mon it generates its own mass effect field so they develop tech to do hops on their own
- they're in no hurry tho, i mean lbr primarily angelic, elf and half-elf population
- so they're just bumming around their local clusters doing thorough investigations on all the things
- so much eezo on their ship
- so much
- suddenly the Normandy running from a reapers comes along to hide behind them
- reapers start shooting
- everyone on Derris-Kharlan objects
- JUDGEMENT IN SPACE
- so much profit and judging of reapers.


scenarios
None yet.


origin
- Kratos tells Lloyd the dad thing in Triet
- dad and son feelings ensue
- they culminate at the Tower of Salvation in Kratos stabbing Yggdrasill in the back
- unfortunately he does not quite die but impales Kratos against a wall and goes berserk on the Chosen party to the point of Yuan stepping in to help
- that is, by threatening to stab Kratos in the back while he's vulnerable (with Kratos's permission)
- Yggdrasill calls his bluff and fails, and Yuan does the thing
- while Yggdrasill is distracted the Chosen's group nail him but good and he retreats
- luckily while heart-stabbing happened, Kratos's cruxis crystal is still intact, and between Raine's healing and Yuan's mana transfusion he survives long enough to be taken to the Triet base and a refresher
- stuff happens in some fashion or other up until opening Origin's seal
- as it turns out, the mana tranfusion has fused the lock, so to speak, and Kratos can't unlock the seal even voluntarily
- only way to get Origin out at this point is to let him fuse with Kratos, so Kratos becomes Origin
- stipulation of this: Kratos refuses to let go of his humanity
- luckily Yuan already has a literal bond with him thanks to the mana transfusion, so with him as his summoner Kratos can keep his humanity, and only use Origin's powers when Yuan summons them
- commitment like woah for a literal eternity
- but hey, they messed up but good and it's the only way they can reunite the worlds.

scenarios
none yet.


reversal
~ 2000 years in, Kratos and Yuan conspire to kill Mithos and succeed, sorta
- he's stuck inside his exsphere, possessing people
- but he manages to survive and while Kratos and Yuan claim Derris-Kharlan for their base, he takes most of the angels as 'fallen', as well as the Eternal Sword
- most of his bases are hidden behind dimensional slips created by the sword - Iselia included
- Origin refuses to trust either Kratos or Yuan with the job, anyhow, and they don't have a summoner
- instead they're forced to fight Cruxis, embroiling the worlds in an angelic war between Cruxis and the new organisation of Chayim
- the Chosen bloodlines are more important to Cruxis than Chayim, but Mithos seals the seals so only the Chosen bloodline can flip the mana switch. Kratos and Yuan need someone to do that until they can reunite them, so the Journey remains an institution, just without compulsory death at the end
- there is angelification tho, if only so Chayim gets more soldiers and so the Chosen can defend themselves against Cruxis
- Kratos sends Anna and Lloyd to Iselia, because even though enemy territory, it's the safest place there is for them
- Anna get word to Kratos that the Desians are using Iselia as a long-term cruxis crystal cultivation location, and that the sword is held there
- her spy succeeds but is intercepted, and Mithos locks down the dimensional slip to prevent exit and access by angels for ~15 years
- Lloyd grows up in a town with a heavy half-elf population and believing he's training to help the good guys
- he has his own cruxis crystal as a host, but doesn't tell his mother due to the faith-based propaganda encouraging hosts not to bring it up or risk the powers not taking
- he wants to help though, so he steals a key-crest to ensure he can fight
- Yuan and Kratos plan to assault the town and shrine but Mithos uses the sword to interrupt travel between worlds, keeping Yuan in Tethe'alla and forcing Kratos to attack Iselia alone.

scenarios
scenario one: Iselia is attacked by Chayim to claim the sword, with the sword already gone


titans
- Yggdrasill captures Kratos before Kvar finds Anna and Lloyd, but after Kratos makes an Eternal Ring
- Yuan figures hell no and raises the Renegades to try and take Derris-Kharlan, rescue Kratos and solve the split-world problem
- the attack fails. a lot.
- Renegades are wiped out, Kratos is still in Cruxis's hands, but Yuan manages to escape with the Eternal Ring
- Cruxis follows him to Triet base, which gets destroyed and the few remaining Renegades scatter
- Botta is still around tho, helping out how he can
- mostly Yuan just goes searching for Lloyd and Anna
- doesn't manage to find them before Kvar does tho, and Kratos hears from Yggdrasill that they're dead
- this is slightly inaccurate, cos Lloyd still winds up rescued by Dirk in Iselia
- where Yuan eventually finds him, not knowing that he's 'supposed' to be dead
- so Yuan settles in Iselia for a bit to watch Lloyd and the Chosen
- cuts and dyes his hair, the whole shebang
- learns how to carpentry, invents a new use of magic lightning and light can totally become a laserbeam amirite
- winds up being Genis's role model just because scholar and magic-user and half-elf who can pass but also takes no shit from people
- is one of Colette's companions on the Journey when it starts
- he's been challenging their understanding of the Church's institution this whole time lbr
- Sheena is still a thing because the ninja have taken over the Tethe'allan base, which has survived, somewhat
- a grilling ensues
- sometime just after the Asgard Ranch Yuan does have to drop the bombshell
- about how the Journey is just a front, he and his bestie are angels, btw his bestie is Lloyd's dad
- how they're out to topple the institution of religion
- forget sacrificing Colette for the Regeneration, when they get to the seal they can do that without anyone dying
- and then move straight on to rescuing Kratos in Derris-Kharlan
- then they get to the Tower and realise Yggdrasill has Kratos under a Prometheusesque punishment a la 'impaled on the Eternal Sword to suffer the Seed's pain and watch the Chosen get murdered'
- luckily this does not happen, as they manage to rescue him and escape Yggdrasill instead, barely
- retreat to Botta's hiding-place in Asgard so Kratos can recover
- and also find out that Lloyd is actually alive
- the Chosen group goes around to make as many pacts as they can while in Sylvarant
- they get up to Aska when Yggdrasill sends his angels to attack Asgard
- cue Yuan and Kratos being unstoppable battle gods together


scenarios
scenario one: in which Yuan leads the Chosen's party to the Tower of Salvation to dismantle all the traditions ever, and find Kratos waiting for them in serious need of a rescue.
scenario two: in which being in safety reveals that Kratos is not precisely unscathed, but he's doing his best.
scenario three: in which Kratos is emphatically not okay, but with Yuan's help, could be.

Comments

[simulsimul]

[Even with the resigned irritation of the realisation, Kratos hasn't truly been thinking about the impact. It's hardly an impact to him, save mild annoyance. Yuan's tone, and the accusation in his words -- unintended or not -- makes it abruptly stark that Kratos may have made things infinitely more difficult for Yuan.]

-- Yes. Probably. The older ones, at least.

[This explains why Zelus had been pestering him so recently, and why Nike's smile at him had leaned so persistently toward 'smirk'. Damn, and damn again.]

I -- forgive me.

[conductingresistance]

I'm alive, where I might not have been. I can bear some bitter ill-regard. If it wasn't this, it would have been something else.

[Yuan doesn't sound particularly happy about it, despite his words. His mouth twists as he turns to survey the rest of the area again, casting his eyes up.]

I was beginning to wonder where the catch was, anyway.

[It isn't that he thinks Kratos has those intentions. He would have noticed by now. All this simply seemed too good to be true without drawbacks.]

[simulsimul]

Nevertheless, I've made things unnecessarily difficult for you.

[That's worth an apology. He should have done something differently, Kratos decides after a moment. He didn't, but if he'd been thinking, he could have spared Yuan this, or come at it more tolerably. And what-ifs will change nothing.

[Kratos shakes his head and steps away from the fountain, against the pillar splitting the walkway back toward the aquifer.]

The garden. This is a more typical representation of a garden than the other two courtyards. The herb and vegetable rows are usually on the inside, with the flowers in the middle and the trees around the edges -- usually fruit trees. Most rainwater runoff comes down in the outer row, but the inside ones may need watering, if there's no comprehensive fountain present.

[conductingresistance]

Things are always unnecessarily difficult.

[This is dry, almost joking. Yuan follows, observing.]

I take it this is at the upper end of what I can expect to see.

[He's just saying. But it's good things to know; he makes mental notes, hopes Nan will actually provide something useful and readable about native plants.]

[simulsimul]

In terms of plants? No, not really. The only truly expensive plant to have in a garden is an olive tree, and even the poor invest in those.

[It makes their lives simpler. Kratos nods to this particular one, which is almost a centerpiece, at the far end of the courtyard.]

The public gardens and pleasure gardens are the ones which are more expensive, but only by dint of space and care. Everyone can use them, so the crown invests in them; and they aren't commonly used for consumables, save for their fruit trees.

[conductingresistance]

In terms of space and structure.

[But it's good to hear, nevertheless, that plants are accessible. Yuan will be able to make something work, between the options here. Even if it will take some getting used to the native plants.]

[He gives the olive tree its due attention; he doesn't see many in Sylvarant. Didn't.]

The fruit trees in public places are shared?

[Just to clarify. Yuan outpaces Kratos to go look at the olive tree more closely.]

[simulsimul]

Structure, no. Structure is more a matter of choice then necessity. Space -- well, many are smaller. But some are larger, also.

[Kratos follows at a slower pace, relieved to have found something to turn away from that other awkward subject.]

Sometimes. The ones in the palace are frequently open to anyone living there, but the fruit is reserved for the royal family. In public areas in the city, it's acceptable to pick some, but there's some laws and social expectations preventing reliance on them in lieu of one's own garden.

[conductingresistance]

[Anything other than what people assume would be better to talk about.]

Naturally.

[Yuan touches the leaves with a gentleness people don't usually get from him, and stands back from the tree once he's sufficiently familiar with it.]

What else is there I should know about gardens here?

[Culturally, he knows he's foreign enough there may be things which simply don't occur to him to ask.]

[simulsimul]

[... How interesting. It's one thing to hear that Yuan does enjoy the aesthetic of plants, even in a strange fashion; but it's another to see an element of fond gentleness in him when he approaches a tree. Kratos wouldn't have expected it, but it seems correct.

[Kratos comes to stand beside him, looking up into the branches.]

Invest in an olive tree, if you can. Most of our diet revolves around them, either in the fruit or through the oil, which can be used in a multitude of ways while cooking. It will be the single most worthwhile purchase you could make, plant-wise. -- Just don't eat the fruit straight off the tree. Olives need to be fermented.

[He turns to motion broadly to the courtyard.]

Consider the direction of the house, before you lay the foundation. Where the garden is on a hill will matter, especially given runoff and the aquifer you'll want to have built inside. Get a space beneath an aquaduct if you can; it will save you time, water and significant frustration in the summer. Do invest in flowers, as well as herbs; you'll want to attract bees, if you can. And do show it off. I guarantee you'll find someone interested in hearing about it.

[conductingresistance]

[Plants make more sense than people, sometimes. They're useful, aesthetically pleasing, and come in many varieties. What isn't to like?]

[Yuan nods absently.]

...what are they like raw? Are they unsafe, or simply unpalatable?

[It could go both ways. He turns when Kratos gestures, surveying the garden now with a consideration to the hill. Something else sticks out at him, amidst talk of flowers and bees. He isn't accustomed to dealing with bees, but gardening is not outside Yuan's scope really. He'll learn what he doesn't know, or figure it out.]

[But--]

...is it customary, for citizens to construct their own homes?

[simulsimul]

Extremely unpalatable -- but not unsafe.

[Kratos turns, considering the garden and what else might be useful for Yuan to know.]

No, not generally; but it is possible to buy packages of land to hire someone to build on, if you like having control over the process. There's some constraints, if you do, but it does allow for some degree of customisation.

[conductingresistance]

[He's just ensured that Yuan will try one at some point, if only to get better acquainted with the fruit. It may be ill advised, but he'd like to know.]

It isn't quite feasible, to do that in Nidavellir.

[Yuan likes having control of his surroundings, he knows; it would be nice to be able to have something that's exactly the way he wants it. If he can find workspeople who will deal with him honestly, and if monetary constraints allow. Perhaps he's thinking too far ahead already, but...]

What sort of constraints?

[Kratos has been talking like Yuan would be overseeing construction anyway.]

[simulsimul]

[Please just let Kratos be there when he does.]

Mostly relating to size and some specifications. For instance, houses with more than one storey are banned in some areas of the city due to a lack of bedrock, or the low overhead of the aquaducts. Those are elements any builder worth their salt will take into account, but if you're choosing the blueprint, it's something you ought to know.

[He nods toward the back of the courtyard, where the olive tree hides a set of narrow steps leading to the roof-top garden and the sluice connected to the aquaduct -- and, by extension, the steps leading to the aquaduct walkway.]

Would you like to go up, before we visit my siblings?

[conductingresistance]

[Maybe he will. What then, Kratos. What then.]

Builders ought know best what they're doing, after all. I'm sure I can look into the regulations.

[It probably matters less here, where they're not carving homes from the mountain itself, but all the same-- it's wise, to respect masters of their crafts.]

[He glances toward the stairs. He did want to see from above; and if Kratos's siblings are training, it would be best to put off an interruption. And putting off what Yuan is suspecting more and more will be a miniature interrogation also sounds appealing.]

I'd like to see from that angle, yes. Is it common for people to do so, apart from maintenance?

[International customs and taboos can be very strange and unexpected.]

[simulsimul]

[Then Kratos gets to observe and enjoy the face Yuan makes when he realises that fresh olives taste terrible.]

It's frequent -- if mostly limited to those with access from houses. There are security precautions to prevent incursion by outsiders. It's very common for people to buy passage up to the walkway during festival time, actually.

[He motions Yuan to follow and steps around the olive tree to the stairs, leading the way up. It's narrow, along the back wall, but on the roof it's flat and a touch more spacious, corresponding to perhaps half the space of the rooms underneath (accounting for roof slopes and eaves). There are, perhaps unsurprisingly, more planters up here, fed directly by a secondary sluice connected to the main leading from the aquaduct. All of these plants are flowers, however.

[Kratos checks the dampness of their soil, but once he's satisfied they've been tended he moves up the second flight of narrow steps. The aquaducts here are lower than they are in most areas of the city, owing to the slopes -- but looking down, it's clear that at least of the villa's buildings, the children's sleeping quarters in fact, is nestled in a dip between the hills, beneath the shadow of the ducts.

[Even still, the aquaduct walkway is high enough to catch the breeze and be almost on sight-level of the city walls. It's certainly enough to see a good portion of the city's sprawl.]

[conductingresistance]

[They'll just see about that.]

[Yuan follows Kratos, ducking the closest branch of the tree instead of skirting too far around it.]

Buy passage from home-owners, that is?

[Clarity. Yuan stops to appreciate the flowers here, categorizing which ones he does and doesn't recognize. The color is good to see.]

[When they're up to the aqueduct proper Yuan tilts his head back first, looking up to the sky, less obscured now and clear in its color. The breeze catches the long tail of his hair, the fringe that isn't quite long enough to tie with the rest, and Yuan grimaces, turns his face into the wind to stop himself being hit in the face.]

[He really does have an excellent view of the city from up here.]

[Perhaps, Yuan thinks, for the first time conscious of it, he could learn to love this city, too; and for all that he's faintly irritated as is customary, he's still softer than he is much of the time.]

[simulsimul]

That's right. It isn't usually all that much, but it's some extra coin.

[It really is a nice view. Kratos gets a similar one from the castle; but here or there, he does enjoy coming up to a height to look over his city. He leans back against the side of the aquaduct, listening to the quiet rush of water within, enjoying the breeze, tracking the flow of people visible within the streets.

[It's not quite conscious, when he starts to talk.]

That line of pillars just below is our street. It ends against the wall, with a path only local residents use. That line of purple eaves is the boulevard -- the Royal Boulevard -- it leads in a circle all the way around the city, from east castle gate to west castle gate ...

[The castle itself is three corners inside the city, which should be eminently visible now. Kratos continues on, pointing out some specific districts, landmarks, public parks and the bath-houses -- each landmarked from above by painted colour and patterned mosaic.]

[conductingresistance]

[When Kratos starts talking, Yuan follows his words in the city below, looking down the line of pillars, and tracking the purple eaves.]

[He doesn't, at first, remark on Kratos talking; it sounds half-absent, and half like some echo of his earlier passion. It feels-- like a rare privilege, in truth, not a trespass.]

[At length, when Yuan hardly thinks there's any more that can be catalogued:]

You really do love Vanaheim, don't you?

[simulsimul]

[Kratos has just taken a breath on his soliloquy, and a pause to consider what else might be good for Yuan to know about the city, balanced by how much Yuan might want to hear. Kratos has, he considers ruefully, found it difficult to stop talking today.

[But at that question he cants his head.]

You sound almost surprised by that. Vanaheim is my home. Why wouldn't I love it?

[conductingresistance]

You don't speak much.

[Or didn't; Yuan isn't sure where the present and past are to blur together, there.]

[He hesitates over the actual truth of the conversation, looking faintly troubled.]

There's a difference, between a place being your home and loving what it is.

[simulsimul]

Is there? Why would it be your home, if you didn't love it?

[This makes Kratos frown, but in thought more than any real emotion; and the glance hs gives Yuan is measuring.]

Do you not love Nidavellir?

[conductingresistance]

Where else would be my home?

[Yuan hasn't thought about this deeply for a while. He measures Kratos up right back, thinking about the difference between them. He misses... hm. What does he miss?]

[He misses the braids, and the bright shocks of color of flags and bunting against the striations of the stone; and he misses the tree in the corner of the bedroom and the way he had the mirrors angled to slant sunlight morning-clear through the windows; he misses the softer grays of the counter in the kitchen and the way the water could turn them to a deeper blue; he misses the well-worn lineup of books, each known as well as his own hands.]

[He misses the wind. He misses his weapon in his hands, the curve of its blade more completing than another person.]

[It strikes him, too, that very few of these things are specific to Nidavellir. What they are, what they were, is his.]

[Yuan swallows past odd emotion and shakes his head.]

Things about it. Not the city as a whole.

[simulsimul]

[Yuan says little, but there's something in his bearing which changes; and it's nearly obvious, given that Kratos hasn't taken his gaze off Yuan yet. It might even be the first instance Kratos remembers, of Yuan showing that he would miss anything he'd had to leave.]

Would you tell me about those things?

[Perhaps it would help, to be able to talk about them. And if they're things Kratos can do to make it easier, then he'll know.]

[conductingresistance]

It seems foolish to linger on them.

[But nevertheless Yuan looks like he's thinking about saying something more. After a few moments he speaks again.]

There's an art in carving things from Nidavellir's stone. Not just the shape-- finding the right angle to maximize the colors in it without sacrificing any more than is necessary. My own home was mostly blues-- too far into the cliff for much green. And the colors changed, in the light. It was always something different.

It made harmonizing the plants and furniture more difficult, naturally, but worth the effort. The plants I had from seedlings, even the orange tree...

[Where is he going with this? Yuan feels abruptly exposed, and stops, unfinished.]

[simulsimul]

[Kratos doesn't dare respond to the first assumption, if only in case it makes Yuan decide not to say anything at all. He doesn't agree; but it's a conversation they've already begun, and one Kratos intends to continue. Later.

[Instead he listens, trying to imagine it. Vanaheim is made of stone, but the way Yuan talks about it makes it sound like stone is almost a being unto itself; which perhaps follows, given where Nidavellir is located. Kratos is intrigued.]

I've never seen stone naturally in colours, as you describe. Everything here which is coloured is painted. Is that sort of stone only found in Nidavellir?

[It would be interesting to see.]