milliways_bar | (no subject)

Entry tags:

rae "sunshine" seddon

(no subject)

"Helpless" is not a common situation for Sunshine. At least not in this context. But she is. Pinned down, on her back, immobilized, unable to really move or hope to get away.

At least until Terry wakes up from his nap.

It's probably Sunshine's own fault for the child falling asleep on her as they rested on the couch following an afternoon of playing outside. Some naps even the most interesting story can't hold back.

The fair-haired toddler snoozes with his head resting on her shoulder, half of one of the couch's throw-blankets draped over them.

At least Sunshine had thought to have a book with her. She reclines against the armrest, holding the book open with one hand so she might read, the other hand idly stroking the back of one of the bar cats who had taken advantage of the situation and had settled in.

Unsurprisingly, Sunshine finds her own focus difficult to maintain, even for a favorite novel. Some days are just good days for naps.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

There is a small paper man wandering into Sunshine's field of view. Wei Wuxian is a few tables away, head propped in his hands as he appears to be drowsing over his tea. With his old body and his old core, powering a paper man didn't take so much effort, but... well. He'll get there. Surely.

It's the movement from the corner of Sunshine's vision that pulls her wavering attention back to the bar, and to the small paper figure nearby. The marks upon the paper man - the way the shadows move upon its surface - suggest who sent it wandering, and that sets a slight, comfortable smile on Rae's face.

"Well hello there," she murmurs quietly, closing her book on her thumb. "You're new. Exploring?"

Edited 2021-09-14 03:26 (UTC)

The paperman rocks on his feet, somehow conveying awkwardness as it rubs the back of his head with one hand, and gestures towards the sleeping child with the other. It's much easier to be quiet, when in paper form. He then drops into a bow, politely.

Sunshine inclines her head in return, but not far. There's a kid in the way, sorry.

"Play hard, nap hard," she murmurs quietly, amused. "We searched for shells on the inlet shore and played with the cats and he helped me pull up the tomato plants that were past producing, today."

"He's already getting strong. His mother is going to wonder how I manage to wear him out every time I take care of him for the day."

Edited 2021-09-14 03:42 (UTC)

The paperman nods, then hops off of the arm of the couch to float onto Sunshine's book, contorting in an attempt to read the title. It doesn't appear to be terribly successful.

Sunshine smiles, holding the book flat for him so the little paper man doesn't slide off the worn but smooth paperback. "I had thought he might be interested in the story of Lady Aerin Firehair, wielder of the blue sword Gonturan, slayer of dragons and savior of Damar... It has been one of my favorites since I was little, myself."

Of course it was. How many red-haired badass heroines does one come across?

"But maybe it's a story for when we're both more awake," she admits, grinning down at the fair haired child, fondly.

Edited 2021-09-14 04:52 (UTC)

The paperman appears to peer at the child, assessing just how asleep he might be. Reassured, he leaps up to flit over the back of the couch.

"Lady Firehair, huh? Should I be worried I'll find you waving a sword around one of these days?" Wei Ying wanders over, the paperman caught in his fingers, his voice pitched low to avoid waking the boy.

"Possibly," she admits quietly with a cheerful grin. "Halloween is coming up soon here, after all. It's an autumn holiday where people dress up in costumes of heroes and monsters and everything in between."

"Though you'd likely be appalled and aghast at my form, or lack thereof."

But then, horror is an appropriate Halloween mood.

"Mmm, probably." Wei Ying owns, rather than trying to protest that he wouldn't mind. "Though if you ever wanted to do something about that..." He trails off, shrugging. He wasn't first disciple of Yunmeng Jiang for nothing. "Of the styles I know of, Jiang would probably suit you best. Lan's style requires quite a bit more upper body strength, the Nies use oversized sabers you couldn't hope to keep under control, the Jins are stupid... Wen style might work, but I don't know that Wen Ning or Wen Qing are terribly interested or able to teach swordwork." Honestly he doesn't know much of the styles of the smaller sects, as they don't tend to come up in demonstration during cultivation conferences.

"I appreciate the offer," Sunshine replies, "though... I don't know that I would ever wield a sword for real. Just a costume replica, for fun."

The nature of her battles doesn't allow her to keep the violence at arm's length.

"What is the Jiang style like?"

"Fast and flexible, like the water of the river and the tides. Jiang sect relies less on brute strength than a lot of the others - while this can be a disadvantage if you're forced into a tight space against a stronger opponent, it otherwise tends to work out." Once upon a time Wei Ying could prove this theory, able to fight Lan Zhan to a standstill despite Lan Zhan's superior strength and heavier sword.

"It does mean much more footwork drills than some other styles, but it's worth it."

"...the footwork might be good to know, even without a sword," she muses. "My opponents are faster and stronger than me, as a rule, but I have some advantages that help even the field. Anything that can help me stay on my feet and react faster..."

Wei Ying grins, and pretty much any cultivator who has ever trained under the Jiang while Wei Wuxian was the first disciple could tell you that nothing good comes from a grin like that.

Well. Maybe good in the long run. Painful and intricate in the short term though.

"You should come do morning drills with me then. Shouldn't be too hard to start, I'm still trying to unlearn what muddled muscle memory the Jin left in this body."

(no subject)

sunbaked_baker - 2021-09-15 15:16 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

alongfallfromgrace - 2021-09-15 17:00 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

sunbaked_baker - 2021-09-15 17:07 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

alongfallfromgrace - 2021-09-15 17:12 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

sunbaked_baker - 2021-09-16 02:34 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

alongfallfromgrace - 2021-09-16 02:46 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

sunbaked_baker - 2021-09-16 02:50 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

alongfallfromgrace - 2021-09-17 03:32 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

sunbaked_baker - 2021-09-17 03:42 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

alongfallfromgrace - 2021-09-17 03:51 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

sunbaked_baker - 2021-09-17 03:58 (UTC) - Expand

Ye Baiyi stops as he passes the couch, a clear plastic cup of bubble tea in his hand. He nods to Sunshine with a wistful smile.

He remembers little Xuan-er napping on him like that, after a day of rigorous training.

Sunshine looks up from her book as someone comes up to the couch, and smiles with a faint chuckle.

"Play hard, nap hard," she murmurs quietly, fond of the fair-haired child completely zonked out with his head on her shoulder.

"I know," Ye Baiyi smiles. "My little disciple used to be like that, long ago. He loved the martial arts that I taught him, but sometimes he zonked out after practice. When he woke in the morning, he'd happily start all over again."

Edited 2021-09-14 21:28 (UTC)

"Terry helped me uproot and pull up and clear away the summer plants in the garden whose harvests were done, today. He's a very good helper and loves knowing he made a difference."

Sunshine's smile softens and fades a little, looking down at the fluff of fine hair and the sleeping boy. "His father was my apprentice, so I know where he gets his work ethic."

"What happened to his father?" Ye Baiyi asks, softly. He senses some story similar to his own.

"He died," she replies plainly, though there is some wistful note of guilt to the quiet admission. "Set upon by vampires on his way to the coffeehouse one morning before dawn."

Edited 2021-09-14 22:01 (UTC)

Ye Baiyi nods. "So you are taking care of his child," he says. It's obviously a very normal obligation where he is from.

"Whenever his mother needs me to," Rae nods, quiet.

Ignoring the feeling of personal responsibility her words carry, she adds, "...but the coffeehouse is like that, sometimes. When Emmy, one of our waitresses, got pregnant and her parents threw her out and the deadbeat boyfriend skipped town, we all took care of the baby in shifts until she could get into a more stable situation. Even after then. Now Emmy's married to Henry, one of our stalwart regulars, Emmy still waitresses for us, and Barry's going to be... Shiva wept, he's going to be ten next year."

"So your coffee house is as much a family as any martial sect or craftsman's guild," Ye Baiyi says. "And some ties are more personal in this web of love and obligation."

"I suppose it would be," she smiles, pensive and fond. "It's really a... community hub, in Old Town. It's where people come to see and catch up with one another. My landlady is the only person I've met who has come within the orbit of the coffeehouse and managed to hold out against becoming part of its community, but then, I do bring her a bag of baked goods from the bakery every week."

"The more you tell me about it, the more I like the place," Ye Baiyi says, with a smile. "However, I do understand that I can't come for security reasons; no worries."

Pause.

"Can I bring you something to ease your lot while you are trapped and stuck?"

"Something cold to drink would be brilliant," she admits, appreciating the offer. "I didn't think to bring something to drink with me when we settled down, and child-blankets are a little overly warm for late summer."