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[Arkhosia]

A Twilight Visit

"I- I mean, I am a girl now, yeah, but-" Oh gosh, how does she even put this into words that both solve this dilemma and are appropriate for an eight year old. "W-when I say my body's different, I mean- I mean that some of it is... still how it was back when I was a boy, and - um, I don't like that it is, so I don't like other people seeing it either. Even other girls."

[Gullara]

[A Twilight Visit]

Annie sighs at Ana's foolishness. She even rolls her eyes. "I already know you're trans."

[Arkhosia]

A Twilight Visit

Anastasia blinks, taken aback. "Wait, so... if you understand all that, then... why are you confused about me not wanting to change around you?"

[Gullara]

[A Twilight Visit]

"If I already know then it's okay, right? I'm not gonna say anything mean." Annie presses her point.

[Arkhosia]

A Twilight Visit

"Um..." Ana hesitates. "I guess so, but - even if I know you're not gonna be mean, I also just, uh, d-don't really feel comfortable like personally about it." She shrugs. "I don't like that I still have boy parts, so I don't like it when people see that I do."

A beat.

"Besides, like, I don't like being naked around or seeing family naked anyways. It's weird." A truly tragic thing for Ana to feel, considering the relative lack of privacy in this family compared to her earlier upbringing. There is no shelter in a cramped house with four other babs.

[Gullara]

[A Twilight Visit]

Annie furrows her brow and considers that. She gives Ana quite an intense stare for the duration. "Okay." She says abruptly, and then turns and walks back to their bedroom.

[Arkhosia]

A Twilight Visit

The foxgirl stiffens a little as Annie affixes her under intense scrutiny, watching her nervously. Her shoulders relax when the girl comes to her conclusion. "...okay?" She moves to follow.

[Gullara]

[A Twilight Visit]

"I said okay." Annie confirm as she pushes into the bedroom. "It's about how you wanna be seen. I know this stuff." She climbs to sit on the edge of her bed.

[Arkhosia]

A Twilight Visit

"...okay, cool." Anastasia smiles as she slips into her own bed. Annie is entirely correct, and she can probably tell how much Ana appreciates the fact that she understands.

[Gullara]

[A Twilight Visit]

Annie nods and lays down, pulling her covers over herself. "Night night."

[Morty]

The Dancing Fox Inn

"Oh." says Mist at the question.
"Well to make a long story oversimplified, I was on a dream quest to create an object of power when I chanced upon a nightmare created from a dead god. I tried to pacify it by promising to aid his people and calling to his former self, but all that really did was destroy it and leave me with a seed of his power. When I went to fulfill that promise they assumed I was there to take over for him and well...the seeds of a god's power grow with belief. It only completed because I did offer to take up the role if they truly wished me to. I wasn't really expecting the answer to be yes, though."
Really, the fact that they did say yes speaks to a great need, or they see something in him that he doesn't.

"It seems that these people were in a great need of their deity. Enough that they deemed an unsuitable god better than none. Or they do consider you suitable, more so than you consider yourself," Askeladd surmises. "Making a promise you don't believe will be taken is risky. As you well know now. One can hope your predecessor found a measure of peace, knowing his people would be cared for, at least."

[Ironsmith]

Butterfly Bay

CB wouldn't pay him knowing that Kyrie would refuse but he could use it as leverage to speed up the debt forgiveness.
And they already renovated the shrine so there's not much point in doing it again. Sure they were light renovations but CB doesn't really trust Kyrie with architecture. He's seen where he lives (he's in it right now).
"Well. Um. It's like this. I've been. Well it's more like. Um.
Kyrie would you be my personal trainer? I don't know if you've noticed but I'm um. Fat. Now that my body works like a normal mortal's again I can uh. Work on that."

[Buttefly Bay]

Kyrie watches Codebreaker fumble his way through that explanation and chuffs at Codebreaker's declaration that he's overweight. Even he seems to have trouble not following that up with some variation of "is that a fact? I hadn't noticed."

"Fortune has smiled on you." Kyrie replies, swirling his his cup and the wine inside. "I used to work at a battleschool in that capacity. I have many years of experience taking sedentary young men and bringing them to fighting fitness. And believe it or not, I have seen cases worse than yours." He throws back the cup and drains it, setting it back on the table between them with a little ponk. "But if I am to train you, I will need you to commit to it. You've become used to a lifestyle that lends itself to excess. If you want to be rid of that weight, you will need to make many changes. Will you be able to handle that?"

[Keeper]

Butterfly Bay

Codebreaker raises an eyebrow.
"I have trouble believing you've seen worse, but I guess you come from a world where a young guy can literally eat so much pork he becomes a pig."
He takes a long pull from his own glass.
"Kyrie," he says quietly.
"I think you would be surprised at how adept I am at adapting to new lifestyles."

Dancing Fox Inn

"I guess? They all seem pretty confident in me for some reason." Mist says, throwing up his hands.
"I mean I'm married to a knight and I've been throwing knives for years and my predecessor was a god of hunters so I guess they think that I have plenty of means to be good at these things if I'm not already. But uh. Yeah. I guess I do feel like it's more doable than you'd think? Belief helps. As for the other guy, I haven't a clue. All I met was a shade of a memory. Not really sure."
He also betrayed his people and shattered their society so Mist doesn't have as much sympathy for him as he might otherwise have had.

[Ironsmith]

[Butterfly Bay]

Kyrie raises an eyebrow at that. There's no particular reason for Codebreaker to suddenly be anxious, is there? Especially with a statement that affirmative. Something about that seemed... off.

...Then again, how many times has his life been upended just in the time Kyrie's known him? It's probably nothing.

"Very well, then." The wolfknight gives a little nod and refills his glass. "We'll begin tomorrow at dusk." He smiles and raises the cup in an impromptu toast. "To better days."

[Keeper]

Butterfly Bay

Codebreaker accepts the toast, cups clinking.
"To better days."
---

The next day Codebreaker is out on his porch in shorts and a plain white shirt, waiting for Kyrie.

[Ironsmith]

[Butterfly Bay]

It won't take long for the first temptation to arrive. Around four o'clock that morning, a bus pulled up to the house across the street, and since then, a group of four attractive-looking women have been unloading furniture, sound equipment, and groceries, bringing them outside. Nosy neighbors have noticed that one of them hadn't left the kitchen since they got here; the smallest, and probably youngest among them. Rumors and speculation are all up and down the street by nightfall as to who these people are and what they're doing here; so far, the prevailing theory is that they're a new chapter of a sorority house for a nearby university. Three of them are college age, they pulled up in a bus, and the lettering on the side clearly reads "THK", or Tau Eta Kappa.

Well. There go the property values.

But what does this have to do with Codebreaker, so close to nightfall? It's quite simple, really.

That's when the girl in the kitchen finally emerges, pulling along with her a little red wagon full of foil-covered plates. Her first stop: Codebreaker's.

The girl parks the wagon by Codebreaker's front gate, takes a breath to steady herself, and grabs one of the plates, starting up the driveway to his porch. She gets all the way to the doorbell before she realizes he's sitting outside already, and has been the whole time, which gets a delayed, startled yelp out of her. "Oh! Hi!" She breathes, nervously pulling her hair back. "Sorry about that. I'm, um... I'm Melody. We just moved in right over there, and I thought I'd come out and say hi to the neighbors." She smiles and holds out the plate to him. "So, hi! Nice to meet you, sir!"

[Keeper]

Butterfly Bay

Well they could afford a place here so that definitely says something. CB certainly wouldn't mind the town being shaken up a little. He's found that a good number of his neighbors aren't insufferable but a good deal of them are. They deserve to be annoyed.
"Hullo. I'm Codebreaker. It's nice to meet you. What brings you girls here?" CB takes the plate, peeking inside. He notably maintains eye contact with her without any issue which might not be the case of many of the people they talk to on a regular basis.

[Ironsmith]

[Butterfly Bay]

"Oh, you know. Nice, quiet town, good house, in retirement country. Seemed like a good place to kick up our feet." Melody replies evasively, stifling a little giggle. "My, um... well, friend, ah, got herself a very lucrative book deal, so we came into enough money to buy the place cash. We figured, hey, what's the point if you can't have a nice place, right?" She grimaces. "...Sorry, I'm not... that sounded weird, didn't it?"

Fortunately, the plate's contents need no explanation; she's given Codebreaker a quartet of peanut butter brownies, sans cocoa. They're still warm, and a little whisp of steam escapes when he lifts the foil enough to look at them.

[Keeper]

Butterfly Bay

"Must be a pretty popular book." Codebreaker says with a whistle. A place here, on one book? Maybe he'd heard of it if it sold that much.

He sighs at the sight of the dessert.
"Sadly my diet starts...as soon as my trainer gets here, and he has an angry beam sword with my name on it if I cheat so I better not have more than a taste."
True to his word, he has one single bite before laying the plate down next to him. He can pretend to give it to someone else in the house as if his maid can eat it.

[Ironsmith]

[Butterfly Bay]

"By my understanding, yeah." Melody shrugs. "The Littlest Imp. Apparently, it's all the rage with new mothers of the demonic persuasion. Seemed a little one-note to me, but eh, no kids."

"That's too bad. They're really something. Best recipe I could find." Melody shrugs. "And your trainer's definitely gonna know, right? Although... technically, diet hasn't started yet... food for thought."

That "one taste" certainly won't contradict her. It's not quite miracle food, but Codebreaker's new neighbor clearly knows the best use of an oven.

"Okay okay. I should... probably get going." Melody says, stepping down from the porch. "But before I do... consider this your official invitation to stop by any time. My friends and I would be glad to get to know you."

[Keeper]

Codebreaker’s Home

”Well I can’t imagine why you’d want to get to know me of all people but I’ll try my best if Kyrie hasn’t killed me by tomorrow. Thank you for the snack; your cooking is lovely.”
He has no reason to lie so it’s probably a genuine compliment. Though he’s not sure why she’s so sure his trainer will know. Unless he’s right behind him? He will because CB doesn’t intend on hiding it from Kyrie but he could totally throw the plate into the bushes if he wanted to.

[Ironsmith]

[Butterfly Bay]

"Why not you? You seem nice." Melody beams at the praise and starts off with her wagon again. "Bye!"

And off she goes, with a gait that suggests she's going to start skipping any moment now. Codebreaker might get the impression he's brightened up her day just by talking to her.

Meanwhile, coming up the other end of the street, conveniently timed so that they'll arrive just as Melody disappears around the corner, is a certain wolfknight and his niece. They seem to be deep in conversation.

"...I take it he wasn't receptive?"

"Nope. Just pointed out that I could have just told him my phone number."

"...Instead of handing him one of your bones."

"I know, I know, I just kind of panicked..."

[Keeper]

Butterfly Bay

CB gets up and goes to meet his friends by the gate.
”Good evening, you two. You uh. Doing okay?”
From the sound of conversation involving bones he would have guessed no if it was anyone else…

[Ironsmith]

[Butterfly Bay]

"Nothing much. Met a cute guy, tried to make a good first impression, failed spectacularly." Owena shrugs, as though this wasn't a particularly big deal.

Kyrie coughs and shifts awkwardly, clearly at a loss for how to actually handle that subject, before turning his attention back to Codebreaker. "Right. Anyway." He draws the longsword he carries on his belt and flips it hilt-out, holding it ready for Codebreaker to take. "Give that a few swings. I know you are more worried about your weight than your strength, but I need to know both to train you properly."

[Keeper]

Butterfly Bay

If Owena's strategy for meeting boys is to rip one of her own bones out CB might need to give her some advice. Usually Owena is the one he doesn't usually worry about but yeesh.
"Don't people normally start with swords that aren't sharp? I can't regrow my paws if I accidentally slice one off." yet CB takes it anyway. He's not really surprised by the setup. Kyrie was a soldier so of course his training regiment is going to involve this.

He takes a good many steps back even though either of them would be fine if the sword flew out of his hands and into them. He takes a stance that's actually almost correct, and takes a few swings that are also almost correct (if he was swinging an axe, that is). Kyrie might get the impression that CB has received self-defense training before, but is...out of practice perhaps?

[Morty]

[Dancing Fox Inn]

"I guess? They all seem pretty confident in me for some reason." Mist says, throwing up his hands.
"I mean I'm married to a knight and I've been throwing knives for years and my predecessor was a god of hunters so I guess they think that I have plenty of means to be good at these things if I'm not already. But uh. Yeah. I guess I do feel like it's more doable than you'd think? Belief helps. As for the other guy, I haven't a clue. All I met was a shade of a memory. Not really sure."
He also betrayed his people and shattered their society so Mist doesn't have as much sympathy for him as he might otherwise have had.

"That's the second time you've mentioned being influenced by their belief. It's not a mechanism I'm familiar with," Askeladd admits. "If you could go back on it, would you?"

[Arkhosia]

Suncrest Manor

It's a slightly cloudy afternoon the next time Anastasia visits Suncrest Manor, making her way to the front step and ringing the bell with a bit of nervous excitement. It's been a month since - well, it hasn't entirely been a month since she last saw Eliseo, but it has been a month since he was grounded, and being able to finally spend time with him at his place still feels like an event. She's even picked out that off-white dress Eliseo likes seeing her so much in.

[Gullara]

[Suncrest Manor]

The door swings open, but it's not Eliseo that greets her, but Nadia. "Hello Anastasia. So nice to see you." She steps aside to let Ana pass. "Come in, come in. How have you been?"

[Arkhosia]

Suncrest Manor

Anastasia straightens a little. Oh, that's not who she expected to see. "Hey! Um, Ive been... well, a little up-and-down, but things have been going pretty good recently." She gives Nadia a friendly, easygoing smile as she steps into the house.

[Keeper]

[Dancing Fox Inn]

"That's the second time you've mentioned being influenced by their belief. It's not a mechanism I'm familiar with," Askeladd admits. "If you could go back on it, would you?"

Dancing Fox Inn

"It's hard to explain. But my title came from them and what it comes with was determined by that. I have a power source that I get from that belief, but it also shapes what I can do with it a little." It was the most influential on him his first 24 hours, but getting Grist from his followers' belief is still important.
He should really ask Leah why it's called that.
"Eh. I dunno. I was going to be immortal anyway. Having a purpose to keep me busy for all time is kinda nice." Mist says with a shrug.