MINGLE - Post-Op(era) Recovery

[pumpkinhollow]

On this night we drink to the death of Sorrow.

After the Fall of Efrain With the Prince of Sorrow's Song dead and gone, the opera dissipates, spitting its victims out on the summit of Crane's Ridge where the Dance of Celestine was held some months before. It's getting late, and there is no one yet in town to run the train. Some will brave the trip home simply for the sake of collapsing into their own beds and achieving some sense of normalcy. Others will do so with the hope of returning with help. But many others will simply say "fuck it" and camp out on the mountain, still fitted with extra firewood from the festival and the means to build temporary structures in nearby storage sheds. The journey down will be safer in the morning, and there's solidarity to be had in a cool spring night spent under the stars.

Oh, look, there's even some non-perishable food and wine from the Dance. Combined with what can be hunted or foraged, as well as snacks and drinks stolen from the concession stand, there's plenty to go around. This might even be a little bit fun! Anyone up for another game of Never Have I Ever? Maybe a little Truth or Dare? Or perhaps you just want to chat and unwind with your friends. Whatever the case may be, have fun. This is your time. After darkness, there is a dawn. At the death of Sorrow, there is joy.

Comments

[not_a_traitor]

A funny thing can happen when a large chunk of your emotions get ripped out of you. Like clearing away a tangled overgrowth to expose the seedlings underneath, other, more pleasant things start to surface.

Are they feelings, too? Gaeta isn't quite sure. In an academic way, he's noticed that Pyotr didn't tear everything out of him. What's left behind is blunted, yes. But not gone like the grief is gone.

As Neil plays, Gaeta smokes a cigarette and watches with an almost dreamlike appreciation. There's no awkwardness or anxiety left like there was at Merrymeet. None of that self-deprecating embarrassment over feeling like a teenager at a school dance. Just this: Neil looks good.

[itsjustabaddream]

When the song ends, Neil takes a flourishing bow to the crowd. Their applause is tired from a long day, but genuine. Then, he takes a seat beside Gaeta.

There is still a slight air of anticipatory tension. They've been friends a while now, and in that time there have been... moments that seemed like more. A brunch over magical textbooks, an invitation to Merrymeet, and now this--- a breath caught at the end of a terrible day as Neil falls, exhausted but exuberant, into his seat on a log.

"I'm a bit rusty--- or rather, I was this morning. I'm fairly certain I've shaken it by playing all damn day," he jokes. "It's been a long time since I've gotten to play. How did I sound?"

[not_a_traitor]

"Good," says Gaeta. He still sounds hoarse as hell from his own time in the pit; he taps his throat with his fingertips. "Better than I would if I tried singing any more."

He cocks his head a little as he continues to study Neil, a slight smile curving his mouth. If the interest is academic, well... Gaeta has always been intense in his academic studies. "Glad they let you keep the suit, too. It would've been a shame to waste it."