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Do you think a fully tailored outfit would be a prize that we could offer? I should be happy to lend my skills to such a thing!

I do not know Mr. Neal so well as some, but he painted beautiful murals for us at Bonnie's Flophouse. I would welcome him and his discerning eye. I will bring along some outfits I have, as well. They may be for more humanoid figures, but I do have something I had been working on for Mr. Caduceus before he left. He was a firbolg who was here some time ago. A grave cleric, and a dear friend.

You have stayed true while enhancing it to something well beyond my imagining. You may not be a god, my friend, but you have the grace of one, to be certain.

You shall do no such thing! You've already put more than enough time into this event, my dear. I'd be happy to work with the winner on a tailored piece free of charge. I think that's quite a lovely idea.

That's all I ever wished to do. ♥ I'm so pleased with all we've accomplished. Thank you for the lovely partnership. It goes without saying that I would be most happy to work with you on anything else you need in the future.

Rue! It would be my pleasure, and you cannot take on such a task alone. A compromise? We shall work on them together. My mother and grandmother taught me to sew, but I welcome the wisdom of one who has their experience and those of many of my forebearers all combined. It would also lay down a solid reason to work together in the very near future, indeed.

🦊🪦❤️

A compromise then, for nothing could possibly keep me from another chance to work alongside of you.

[Rue adores this woman with all of their heart]

It is going to be wonderful, Rue. I shall meet you for that check of the new confectionary whenever might be convenient. I hope you will let me treat you with a few sweet things from there to show my appreciation for all of your assistance!

Now how could I say no to such a delightful offer!

Please, I'll be free within the hour if you'd like to walk there together.

You are still in ADI's housing, yes? I shall meet you at the entrance at the turning of the hour.

[And as promised, Mercy is waiting outside the housing for Rue, a haversack over her shoulder. She lifts her hand when she sees Rue stepping out.]

Good day to you, Rue! Looking forward to some taste testing. Best part of getting to organize this, aye?

Absolutely!

[Rue greets Mercy with a warm look and a gentle brush of their paw against their friend's shoulder.]

In all the chaos of planning, it is one of the few moments of ease before we get to see everything else slot into place. I can't believe it's come up so fast.

That's the seasons for you. Keep on turning.

[It's... strange to feel that size and weight in the touch that absolutely does not comport with the owlbear's disguised form. Uncanny is how she might put it. Not wholly unsettling as she's used to it for others, but even Caduceus had seen less of a change by comparison to Rue. Mercy shakes off the thoughts and the underlying wariness they bring.]

But something big like this, it's always a race to the finish.

[She starts them walking toward the shop.]

What was the biggest celebration you got where you're from?

That it does! Even back in the Feywilds, I was quite aware that time waits for no one. Though I suppose the passage of it did not feel nearly as fast as it does here in this place.

[It is such a startling disconnect, to see one thing and feel another, to know another, but that is precisely why it was easier for Rue to hide their true form away completely than to try and explain why they felt the need to wear such a disguise in the first place.

Having to slip back into it, well, it doesn't get any easier, though it isn't too much that Rue avoids going out altogether.]

Why, that would have been the Bloom, which I hosted for many a fey millennia.

The Bloom! Sounds like a springtime celebration.

[Which would make sense given what she knows of Rue and their rather floral aesthetic.]

Was it to celebrate the season, or was it commemorating something else?

It does, doesn't it.

[It's a lovely day out, even with the brisk chill of winter the sun is shining above them, leaving the hope that their own festival will be blessed with such clear, pleasant weather.]

For most faeries, magic is our source of everything, including our lives. So much so that when the magic of a certain court runs dry, that court simply ceases to be. So because the strength of our magic is constantly in motion, those times when it's most prosperous and overflowing, we call the Bloom.

It's an event that I've thrown for most of my life, a coming together between the different faerie courts, to find joy and love and union between courts that normally would rarely interact outside of wartime. It's a time of peace and celebration together, while magic is at its peak. Before I relinquished my title, I was known as the Mistrex of the Bloom or the Emissary of Joy. It was an honor to be in charge of such a meaningful, wondrous event.

The Emissary of Joy sounds like the right title for you. But why'd you relinquish your title? Moving on to better and brighter things?

The... Super Bloom?

[It's so rare that Rue really laughs, something real and just a little deep and rumbly instead of the soft, practiced, posh laugh they normally go for. But Mercy drags a real one out of the owlbear, their slender shoulders shaking, a gloved hand jumping to cover their grinning mouth.]

No, not the, ah, Super Bloom, as magnificent a title as that may be. To put it mostly plainly, I feel in love, and as such, could no longer devote the whole of my life to running the Bloom.

In love! That's Mr. Hob, right?

[Mercy is, perhaps, a sucker for romance more than she really ought to be.]

Aw... you two are cute together. I'm so glad you got to stay together here, even away from home.

[Look!!!!! Another thing they have in common. Rue will absolutely drag Mercy out to all of the latest romance flicks from now on.]

Yes, that's my Hob. [oh, even these many months later, rue's heart still flutters at the very thought. how incredible a feeling it is.] Thank you, dearest. I'm so grateful for it too. Though truth be told, we are probably much better off here, then being hunted back home. I have a feeling my keepers did not take too kindly to my renouncing of my title and court.

[Her brows lift in surprise.]

They... they're hunting you down for that at home? What on- well, that ain't right! Who's trying to get you?

[She'll find a way back to Rue's world and put a blade through them if she needs to.]

[Oh Mercy, you darling. Rue can't help the way they preen beneath their glamour, feathers ruffling up with gentle delight. With both Mercy and Hob at their side, Rue is quite taken care of.]

It's a long story, I suppose. But to put it plainly, both of our courts felt betrayed that we chose to leave them behind and run away together instead. Hob was a celebrated member of the goblin military, so he's especially been labeled as an oathbreaker to his former king.

[Not to mention the rest of it - the golden prince dead at Hob's hand, the furious reveal of Rue as the goblin's political saboteur - but in the end, it just doesn't matter. Rue would always choose to leave with Hob, every single time.]

Without the protection of a court, I imagine our first few months would have been rather difficult. Even with the work we've been doing with ADI, I believe our lives have been much more steady here than they would have been back home. It's been good for us.

That's a comfort, at least. [A small one.] Still... I don't- if we find a way back to our homes, I wouldn't want you going back to something like that. If you ain't gonna stay here, you should come with me. My world ain't so grand or fancy as this one, and we got-we have our problems. But it's a place where you and Mr. Hob could be together without anyone coming after you.

[She thinks. They'd be revered as gods, Mercy thinks, and that would give them power to do a great deal more than many others. And if they chose to form a religion... Mercy really wouldn't mind being their first cleric, someone to spread their names and words. It might be easier to bring such a religion as had gods manifested compared to the Dawnfather, even if she'd hold him in her heart for Garner.]

Truly?

[For a moment, as they walk, Rue falls into a brief, contemplative silence. It's such a significant, generous offer, the promise of true freedom on top of their chance to be together. No more looking over their shoulders, no more running and hiding, no more mere dreaming of a happy home at the end of their journey. They could simply have it.

To be free of the courts completely and to still have such a trusted friend nearby, the idea is so much more tempting than Rue ever considered.

Finally, they pause in their forward movement only to draw Mercy close for a quick, but careful, hug. Even though their voice is perfectly warm and even, beneath their glamour, Rue's feathery shoulders tremble with emotion.]

I should like that very much, Mercy. Thank you. I'll speak with him and let you know. It would not be a bad idea to have a back up plan for after all of this.

[They're nearing the shop at this point, and that's probably a good point to leave off discussion of other worlds around ordinary people.]

'Course. I'd love to show you my Evergreen.

[And... hope her family takes it well, showing up with a pair of new gods and then leaving again to go wherever Rue and Hob might like. Going back to the Spring Tide isn't an option. Nor is Brother Earth. And her feet itch for moving once more to spread some faith along with her healing. After everything she's been through, though, she knows she needs to go back, to settle things as an adult and not a confused girl trying to find her way. Mama and Papa and Granny, especially, will have to respect that. Hopefully, Colm won't kick. That's the best that can be hoped for there.]

And everything else that's just waiting to be explored. Now... [She holds open the door for the owlbear.] Let's have a look at these sweets.

[It sounds like a beautiful life to live, to spend their days traveling the lands, alongside of Hob and their dearest new human friend. Rue is certain to give this proposal a great deal of consideration over the coming weeks.

But for now -] Certainly! We have work to do.

[And company to enjoy while they do it!]

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good to ftb on them shopping?

i see the t in ftb now but i saw ftb and went omg rue and mercy friends with benefits yaas