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August-September 2024 Test Drive Meme
August-September 2024 TDM
Introduction
Welcome to Folkmore's monthly Test Drive Meme! Please feel free to test drive any and all characters regardless of your intent to apply or whether you have an invite or not.
All TDMs are game canon and work like "mini-events". For new players and characters, you can choose to have your TDM thread be your introduction thread upon acceptance or start fresh. Current players are also allowed to have in-game characters post to the TDM so long as they mark their top levels ‘Current Character.’
TDM threads can be used for spoon spending at any time by characters accepted into the game.
Playing and interacting with the TDMs will allow characters to immediately obtain a canon item from home, especially weapons or other things they may have had on their person when they were pulled from their worlds! There will always be a prompt that provides some sort of "reward" to characters who complete certain tasks.
🦊 New Star Children meet the Fox still in their worlds, and she brings them into the new realm of Folkmore. As you follow her, your body begins to change and new characteristics emerge. These may stay for a while, or perhaps they will hide away after. And during all of this, the Fox explains to you where you will be going: to Folkmore.
and then... you fall like a shooting star, falling to the land in a burst of starlight.
🦊 Experienced Star Children are already familiar with this time of the month. There are shooting stars all across the sky, and some fall to the land, which means the Fox has brought new arrivals. These newly arrived Star Children will face some tests, but Thirteen wants the more seasoned residents to participate as well.
Perhaps you follow the falling stars on your own, or perhaps the Fox simply teleports you there, but it appears you too will be part of this.
Content Warnings: Potential Wilderness Survival, Potential Death
New Star Children arrive in Amrita Academy, the largest school in Folkmore. They might arrive in the medical wing, or they could arrive in areas of the school that don't look like a school at all: forests with animals to hunt or gather, including for their medicinal properties; rocky crags with climbing routes; fields full of growing grains; meadows with sheep covered in soft wool; lakes and rivers with unusual denizens. It's like a miniature of Folkmore all in one school.
A fox with a clipped ear and a few scars greets each Star Child upon arrival. She explains that while things can be summoned with Lore, the best survivors learn to scavenge and to find what they need. New Star Children haven't earned much Lore yet, so that surely applies to them double. In fact, as befits a survival school, there are items that will help Star Children survive hidden all around and immediately outside the school. Star Children are directed to make a list on their Relic of everything they think they need to survive. Once made, the list cannot be changed. They will be more likely to find those items than others (though it will not be impossible).
Race, jog, or stroll around the expansive school in search of these items: clothes, bags, first aid kits, tents, survival supplies, etc. They might be harder to find than expected as they will be miniature and in little cubes aka survival squares (a misnomer). These cubes may be tucked away above, below, beside, or inside something. They also may float against a rock face or in the air among tree branches. The most likely locations are those densest in Lore. The longer Star Children explore, the more they will realize that these cubes are best and most easily obtained by working together. In fact, they will try to dodge and avoid the grip of a Star Child more than ten feet away from any other Star Child. Perhaps that's because two Star Children interacting are creating Lore and a Lore dense location? Once two Star Children touch the cube at the same time, the cube will disappear, and the item inside will grow to full size. Congratulations on being one step closer to survival. Remember to share.
Come mid-September, few cubes will remain inside the school. Star Children will have to check the perimeter of the school to find more survival squares. That task grows exponentially harder as the cubes are in the molasses-thick moat of concentrated Lore surrounding the school. Should anyone dip their spoon in the moat, in the Lorasses if you will, they will find that it tastes sweet, a rich spicy sweetness. Amazing! Less amazing? It is impossible to get past the moat of Lorasses. No matter how strong a swimmer or oarsman, it is impossible to make headway through or atop the Lorasses. Anyone attempting to fly across the moat will find themselves slapped by a giant sticky slappy hand rising like a goliath from the depths with perfect aim. Star Children can find themselves slapped anywhere from the shore to the center of the school. Star Children are free to get creative with ways to dig the survival squares out of the Lorasses, but beware! They'll have difficulty freeing themselves on their own from the sticky substance, should they fall in.
Since Star Children are likely to find themselves in sticky situations quite literally, they may be pleased to know that Amrita Academy has showers available for use. Unfortunately, due to one student's experiment, the shampoo is all made of beer. That's right, beer. It's good for one's hair! Or so the study should demonstrate. Be sure to fill out a feedback card outside the locker rooms.
New Star Children arrive in Amrita Academy, the largest school in Folkmore. They might arrive in the medical wing, or they could arrive in areas of the school that don't look like a school at all: forests with animals to hunt or gather, including for their medicinal properties; rocky crags with climbing routes; fields full of growing grains; meadows with sheep covered in soft wool; lakes and rivers with unusual denizens. It's like a miniature of Folkmore all in one school.
A fox with a clipped ear and a few scars greets each Star Child upon arrival. She explains that while things can be summoned with Lore, the best survivors learn to scavenge and to find what they need. New Star Children haven't earned much Lore yet, so that surely applies to them double. In fact, as befits a survival school, there are items that will help Star Children survive hidden all around and immediately outside the school. Star Children are directed to make a list on their Relic of everything they think they need to survive. Once made, the list cannot be changed. They will be more likely to find those items than others (though it will not be impossible).
Race, jog, or stroll around the expansive school in search of these items: clothes, bags, first aid kits, tents, survival supplies, etc. They might be harder to find than expected as they will be miniature and in little cubes aka survival squares (a misnomer). These cubes may be tucked away above, below, beside, or inside something. They also may float against a rock face or in the air among tree branches. The most likely locations are those densest in Lore. The longer Star Children explore, the more they will realize that these cubes are best and most easily obtained by working together. In fact, they will try to dodge and avoid the grip of a Star Child more than ten feet away from any other Star Child. Perhaps that's because two Star Children interacting are creating Lore and a Lore dense location? Once two Star Children touch the cube at the same time, the cube will disappear, and the item inside will grow to full size. Congratulations on being one step closer to survival. Remember to share.
Come mid-September, few cubes will remain inside the school. Star Children will have to check the perimeter of the school to find more survival squares. That task grows exponentially harder as the cubes are in the molasses-thick moat of concentrated Lore surrounding the school. Should anyone dip their spoon in the moat, in the Lorasses if you will, they will find that it tastes sweet, a rich spicy sweetness. Amazing! Less amazing? It is impossible to get past the moat of Lorasses. No matter how strong a swimmer or oarsman, it is impossible to make headway through or atop the Lorasses. Anyone attempting to fly across the moat will find themselves slapped by a giant sticky slappy hand rising like a goliath from the depths with perfect aim. Star Children can find themselves slapped anywhere from the shore to the center of the school. Star Children are free to get creative with ways to dig the survival squares out of the Lorasses, but beware! They'll have difficulty freeing themselves on their own from the sticky substance, should they fall in.
Since Star Children are likely to find themselves in sticky situations quite literally, they may be pleased to know that Amrita Academy has showers available for use. Unfortunately, due to one student's experiment, the shampoo is all made of beer. That's right, beer. It's good for one's hair! Or so the study should demonstrate. Be sure to fill out a feedback card outside the locker rooms.
- All new Star Children arrive in Amrita Academy.
- Star Children are greeted by a fox who prompts them to write a list of what they need to survive. These lists cannot be changed once made.
- Star Children search for tiny cubes with survival supplies, especially ones on their lists.
- Star Children must work together to catch & open the cubes.
- Come mid-September, Amrita Academy is surrounded by a Lore-rich molasses moat—Lorasses. Thou shalt not pass.
- Once the moat arrives, most cubes are in the moat. Shower to get clean afterward with beer for shampoo.
Content Warnings: Forced Close Contact, Coerced Behavior
It can be stressful to arrive in a new place among strangers and strange things. It can be even more stressful, sometimes, to be among people one knows. The fact remains that in Folkmore, no one is an island. The Shattered Spoon Shrine is a testament to that. Interact or perish. Those interactions usually don't even have to be positive. An emotionally charged argument generates Lore same as a touching reunion. However, Amrita's iteration has taken charge of Folkmore this month. She values cooperation and connection.
What does this mean for Star Children? It's time to get along.
When Star Children fight—physically, vocally, emotionally—they get stuck together in a magical t-shirt. This plain white t-shirt has 'This is our get along shirt' written on it on both sides, one in each Star Child's handwriting. (If a Star Child does not have handwriting, Thirteen will invent a handwriting she feels best represents them). The shirt works exactly as written on the tin. Until the two Star Children can get along, they will be stuck together in the shirt. Getting along can look a few different ways. It could be working through the reason they were fighting. It could be cooperating to accomplish something else. It could be helping someone else together. It could be large or small. Somehow, Star Children will have to get along to accomplish something.
The shirt will disappear, leaving them standing next to each other, only to reappear duplicated in each of their hands, perfectly sized to fit each individual. Should they so choose, either can be used for a repeat performance, with both of them trapped inside again. While the same condition will apply—they must get along to get out of the shirt—the shirt will now make it easier for them to work it out. Note: only the two people who originally wore the shirt can put it back on. No one else can wear these shirts.
One time only, a Star Child's cooperative escape will have an additional prize: their souvenir t-shirt will be wrapped around an item from either their home universe or their partner's. That's right, getting along can get a Star Child something from another universe.
It can be stressful to arrive in a new place among strangers and strange things. It can be even more stressful, sometimes, to be among people one knows. The fact remains that in Folkmore, no one is an island. The Shattered Spoon Shrine is a testament to that. Interact or perish. Those interactions usually don't even have to be positive. An emotionally charged argument generates Lore same as a touching reunion. However, Amrita's iteration has taken charge of Folkmore this month. She values cooperation and connection.
What does this mean for Star Children? It's time to get along.
When Star Children fight—physically, vocally, emotionally—they get stuck together in a magical t-shirt. This plain white t-shirt has 'This is our get along shirt' written on it on both sides, one in each Star Child's handwriting. (If a Star Child does not have handwriting, Thirteen will invent a handwriting she feels best represents them). The shirt works exactly as written on the tin. Until the two Star Children can get along, they will be stuck together in the shirt. Getting along can look a few different ways. It could be working through the reason they were fighting. It could be cooperating to accomplish something else. It could be helping someone else together. It could be large or small. Somehow, Star Children will have to get along to accomplish something.
The shirt will disappear, leaving them standing next to each other, only to reappear duplicated in each of their hands, perfectly sized to fit each individual. Should they so choose, either can be used for a repeat performance, with both of them trapped inside again. While the same condition will apply—they must get along to get out of the shirt—the shirt will now make it easier for them to work it out. Note: only the two people who originally wore the shirt can put it back on. No one else can wear these shirts.
One time only, a Star Child's cooperative escape will have an additional prize: their souvenir t-shirt will be wrapped around an item from either their home universe or their partner's. That's right, getting along can get a Star Child something from another universe.
- When Star Children get in a fight of any kind, not just physical, they get stuck together in a magical t-shirt.
- The shirt says “This is our get along shirt” front and back in characters’ own handwriting (or imagined handwriting).
- As written on the tin, Star Children are stuck until they figure out how to get along
- When they separate, both partners will get a copy of the t-shirt that fits them. They can choose to get back into said t-shirt together to figure out how to get along easier in the future.
- One time only, Star Children receive an item from their home universe or their partner’s.
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[There isn't necessarily true recognition when Dan Feng regards perhaps the laziest creature he's ever come across... but the feeling is exceptionally familiar. The look in the gaze that watched him approach was familiar.
He doesn't allow his steps to take him all the way -- in fact he stays in the direct sunlight for now, out of the gentle dappled shade cast over the lion as the tufted tip of his tail quirks in idle curiosity.
Bright, calm eyes remain on the lion... but do shift enough to take in the red ribbon around its tail. That along with the familiarity... and the memory of soft ears and a tail on his old friend, well... could it really?
When he does speak up, his voice is barely louder than the breeze that rustles the leaves.]
... A-Yuan..?
[If he's correct... truly what right does he have to interrupt this moment?]
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jing yuan rolls upward again, stretching out his front legs in a stretch that displays the savage hooks of his claws, but they retract a moment later as he relaxes again, and offers a wide, sleepy yawn. this is a good feeling, he thinks - being a lion. he could get used to this.
tail twitching he regards dan feng. ]
Are you going to stand there all afternoon, or do you plan to sit with me?
[ lions can't really smile, but jing yuan appears to be doing just that. ]
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... yet at the same time, he'd been invited, and the last thing he wanted to do was keep walking away from his old friend.]
... I'll not refuse such an invitation.
[The 'not anymore' goes unsaid between them, but is certainly clear in the way his tail lowers as if beneath the weight of their past.
There is perhaps only a moment's hesitance, before he steps beneath the shade of the tree, settled carefully into the grass only just within arm's reach of this white lion's side.]
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The sun feels good.
[ he says, humming a purr in his throat, his heavy head turning toward dan feng. ]
How are you settling in, Feng-xiong?
[ funny, calling him that now, when jing yuan is now the elder.. but he will always feel like a young man around dan feng. ]
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It feels nice, settling in the grass... with no real expectations held over his head or weighing down his shoulders -- not in the same way at the very least.]
It does... I'd -- [The pause is so brief, but there.] -- nearly forgotten it..
[The way his tail has curled around him adjusts slightly, curling perhaps a little more tightly as the tufted end flicks -- its appearance far more agitated than he seems otherwise.]
Mm... I suppose as well as could be expected. There have been more than a few necessary adjustments to be made.
[Honestly such as having a tail all the time. There were others of course, but the tail had certainly not been all that helpful in keeping his thoughts entirely to himself.]
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as for dan feng's tail.. annoyed though the high elder may be by it, jing yuan finds it charming. it's a good barometer of dan feng's mood, saying more than he will allow himself to say with words. shifting comfortably in the grass, jing yuan rests his heavy head on his crossed front paws. ]
Mm. I feel lighter, here.
[ a thought that makes him feel a little bit guilty. ]
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His tail shifts just a little as his eyes lift to the leaves swaying above them in the gentle breeze, not noticing when the tuft alone rests against the side of one of Jing Yuan's front paws.]
I feel rather guilty to admit to the same... but there's undoubtedly a weight that's been lifted.
[... would he ever feel as if he deserved that ease? He couldn't be sure, but he certainly didn't feel as if he did now.]
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[ jing yuan feels that guilt, as well. he should not feel so relieved to be free of his duties, but after hundreds of years spent performing constantly as the arbiter-general, working sun-up to sun-down, he is tired. the weight of it all has taken its toll. he has seen loss, and war, threat after threat to his people, death after death on the warfronts, the idea of simply.. existing here is comforting.
he was reaching the time of his retirement, after all. perhaps it simply came a little bit earlier than expected. ]
Well, I can certainly believe that, all things considered.
[ after all, for dan feng, it was the shackling prison, before this. nearly anything is an upgrade. ]
Try to do what you can to enjoy it.
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[It was never something he'd considered admitting to another soul, not even one so important to him... but Dan Feng was exhausted. Living those centuries in the shackling prison had reached the end of his strength... even if otherwise he'd still have a fair amount of time before it was truly time to withdraw into his hatching rebirth.
... being in this place had been a breath of fresh air in more than just the physical sense. Luminous eyes drift closed, and he hums softly as his first response.]
I will... I hope that you can as well.
[After another breath, his voice quiets -- to the point where if it weren't for Jing Yuan's little round lion ears, he may not be easily heard over the rustling leaves at all.]
... to start, I think... I'd simply like to be warm..
[... even to this day, speaking about what he wanted for himself was far from simple.]
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jing yuan certainly remembers the cold depths of the shackling prison, the freezing air. he'd been there multiple times, after all, for work, but also to visit dan feng, to spend time with him even in his silence. the chill had been biting, and to exist in that cold for so long..
jing yuan is silent for a moment, before he begins to move, shifting closer to dan feng, pressing his side up against him. he is, of course, very, very warm, and after a little further thought, he rests his heavy head on on dan feng's thigh. ]
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... surprise that only deepens when he feels that warmth against him -- something shown specifically in the way his tail shifts quite abruptly, only to settle across Jing Yuan's front paws when his heavy head comes to rest on his leg.
Before he can really think about it, Dan Feng can feel the way the warmth makes his posture relax, even a little. The sun had felt nice, but this was entirely different. He almost has no idea what to do with his near hand... before with some minor hesitance he rests his palm atop Jing Yuan's head, just in front of the rise of his mane.
Perhaps in the future he would take greater care with what thoughts he put to words... but for now... the two words he does speak are quiet, but grateful.]
... thank you.
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there is still so much left unsaid between them, so much pain in their past that has yet to be resolved, but being near to dan feng in this way relieves much of the pressure. he knows that his old friend is in pain, is likely struggling to settle into this life after so long spent in the shackling prison - if jing yuan can bring him a little comfort like this, then all the better.
he hums softly, and when dan feng's hand comes to rest upon his brow, his golden eyes close, the tip of his tufted tail flicking, happy and content. ]
You're welcome.
[ there is no need to say more, no need for conversation beyond what they can say with this easy closeness. before long, a deep purr begins to roll in jing yuan's broad chest. ]
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His long, cool tail curls a bit closer around the warm lion in his lap, tuft rested over top of him around his ribcage. It's true in the end, that there's no further need for conversation -- not right now certainly.
Dan Feng has bowed his head by the time that low purr reaches his ears... and he doesn't need to think about it before the hand atop Jing Yuan's head shifts just enough to idly scratch his brow and between his soft ears.]
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of course, he hadn't been imprisoned, but truth be told it has been a very, very long time since he was ever so physically close with someone. he hasn't taken a lover in.. a long time, really, and his trysts are few and far between. he doesn't have much time to spare, and besides, jing yuan is a bit of a romantic at heart, intimacy without strings isn't really his speed, and he simply doesn't have the bandwidth for romance.
or he didn't, as arbiter-general, at least. nevertheless, he quite likes this closeness. eyes closed, purring deeply, it isn't long before jing yuan is beginning to feel drowsy under the sunlight, with dan feng's fingers rubbing against his brow. he feels at peace, comfortable. ]
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[A faint smile tugs at the corners of his lips as he listens to the deep purr. He knew rather well of the soothing nature of a cat's purr... and it seems that the same seems true even when the one purring has simply shifted forms to a lion. This moment... really it's nicer than he'd have expected to feel again, even after arriving here.
Dan Feng's eyes drift closed after a moment, in which he shifts carefully -- just enough to allow himself to lean just a little into the warmth curled around him. Honestly, Jing Yuan is certainly not the only one to begin to find himself a bit drowsy in this warmth.
... but being a little drowsy isn't enough to stop the way he idly scratches around the bases of soft round ears -- even if he does pause only momentarily to remove that glove and apply his nails instead to each little scratch.]
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but he forces himself to keep awake, to enjoy every second of this. dan feng was taken from him long ago, and jing yuan wants so badly to savor every moment of their time together here, for who knows when he may disappear again? slipping through his fingers like sand through an hourglass? jing yuan inhales deeply, then exhales in a slow, soft sigh. ]
.. I have missed you, Feng-xiong.
[ he says softly, his voice smooth and serene, but there is no mistaking the painful aching undercurrent. ]
It has been.. so long.
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Just how was he supposed to respond to that? He missed his old friend, because of course he had... because even those visits hadn't been what either of them really wanted them to be. Dan Feng hadn't wanted to risk dragging his old friend down with him, but it had still hurt to give silence to someone he'd spent so much time laughing with.]
... I am sorry... for having left you alone.
[His voice is quiet when he does speak, the path of his fingers slowed in scratching around the base of one soft ear.]
While it may have never seemed that way, I have always missed the time we'd spent together before.
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I know.
[ he says, softly, his head weighing a little heavier in dan feng's lap, purr continuing to roll when he is scratched behind one ear. the tip of his tail curls. ]
I have missed you every day that you have been gone.
[ him, and all the others. yingxing, who is little more than a maddened beast now. jingliu, who he had needed to put down with his own hands, yet who still endures in the shackling prison. and baiheng.. baiheng forever lost to them, her sweet smile erased in a single moment, shattering everything. ]
I'm glad to see you, again.
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All of it had been his own fault.
When Jing Yuan's head rests a bit more heavily in his lap, Dan Feng lifts his free hand, tugging his glove free with his teeth and setting it aside -- still scratching around and between soft ears as he first lightly scratches along the top of his nose... then lets his hand come to rest at his jaw, idly scratching there as well.]
I... am glad for this chance to be by your side again.
[His voice is quiet, head bowed and the lightly breeze fluttering his long hair. It's only slight... but the way his tail curls around Jing Yuan tightens ever so slightly.]
I've no intention to waste this blessing of time...
[For someone like him... what else could this be but a blessing?]
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he'd always enjoyed dan feng's attentions, from the moment they met, when he was little more than a boy, starry-eyed at the majesty of the high elder. dan feng had been glorious in his prime, breathtakingly beautiful, effortlessly powerful.. surely jing yuan was not the only one who looked to him with incredible excitement and misplaced fondness.
but then they became friends, and jing yuan learned what dan feng's smile looked like, what his laugh looked like, and that fondness never faded. it didn't fade even after the sedition, even after dan feng's imprisonment, and it hasn't faded now. jing yuan hums, his eyelids heavy, his purr loud and rumbling as that serpentine tail comes to curl more closely around him. ]
Neither will I.
[ if this is how he is to spend his retirement, well.. he can certainly think of worse ways. ]
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Dan Feng breathes a soft hum after a moment, the little smile coming through in the warm sound as his hands continue the careful scratches.]
.. purring like this suits you, I think.
[A warm, soft sound -- a drowsy sound fitting of someone who'd always seemed as if a nap in the sunshine suited him most.]
Something soft and warm. [He pauses briefly.] ... perhaps just moments away from a nap, hm?
[He could tell his old friend was tired... but he could guess at what could very well be keeping him awake.]
Should you sleep, I'll still be here when you awake, A-Yuan.
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Oh? You think so? Mm..
[ well, he has always been quite fond of lions. that he should make a decent one himself is no surprise, he supposes.
but dan feng is correct. moments away from a nap.. yes, he thinks that a nap would be quite nice right now. soft and tired as he is feeling, and so very comfortable, jing yuan could close his eyes and rest here very easily, with his head in the lap of someone he trusts.
and so he does, humming softly as his eyes close again and his body begins to go slack, the tip of his tail flicking gently back and forth. ]
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[His voice is quieter when he responds this time, and Dan Feng finds that it's grown somewhat easier as the moments pass to read his old friend's body language more accurately in this new shape. Form of a lion or not, this was still Jing Yuan... and even centuries hadn't dulled this recognition.
His hand stills gently against the fuzzy line of his jaw, while the other continues to leisurely scratch between and around soft ears. Jing Yuan isn't the only one who could sleep, with the peace settled about them.. but part of Dan Feng would rather ensure nothing interrupts this peace. He still bows his head and closes his eyes... but he listens to the sounds around them.
Even if just this once after so long... he wants to give peace and nothing more.]
no subject
in fact, jing yuan is sure that he has not felt so much at peace in a long, long time. it has been a long time since the sedition, long enough that jing yuan's raw and open wounds have had time to heal and scar over - he has found new purposes, new people with which to spend his time. it is not the same, but it is.. comfortable.
and yet, having dan feng near again..
ah, it puts his aching heart at ease to see his old friend, to be close with him again after hundreds of long years. he may have recovered from that loss, but old wounds do still ache sometimes. dan feng's presence and touch is a warm balm to his soul.
it isn't long until his breathing evens out at last, his head growing heavier and heavier until at last, he is asleep. ]