[closed] might as well be walking on the sun

[eternalshield]

Who: Zeno and Kaya
Where: Hebe's Temple
When: ...eh.
Summary: Zeno feels like spoiling his adorable wife shinki.
Warnings: Domesticity.


"Ka-ya!"

It's practically sung, and sounds like it's coming from a large mass of plastic bags and wrapped paper. Hands too full to slide open the door, Zeno just teleported straight into the first-level sitting room, and is seriously debating the pros and cons of just dropping everything straight to the floor on purpose. The other option is on accident, as he wobbles a little under the weight.

On the other hand, it might be less wobbling and more that he's practically dancing, he feels so light-hearted. The time they were married was so long ago that, desperately as he's treasured them, some of the memories have faded around the edges. But he does remember that choosing gifts for Kaya was mostly restricted to wildflowers or something for dinner they didn't grow themselves.

Having the ability to really spoil her, he... may have gone a little overboard. And enjoyed every minute of it. Zeno was the kid who, when his hand got stuck in the cookie jar, promptly smashed it and ran off with all he could carry.

And then checked back again every day afterward.

Still, his dragon crest gleams and jingles with him bouncing from one foot to the other, trying not to call for Kaya again. He doesn't want to sound impatient, or worse-- make her think she's too slow. He's sure she heard, but he just loves being able to say her name again where she can hear him, and once he gets started it's so hard to stop.

Comments

[fadingsunshine]

Her smile slowly slips off. She wasn't expecting such a honest reply to her teasing. She wasn't expecting a responsibility thrown at her, either. She wants to take it as a joke, but he mentions prayers and asks a serious question.

Suddenly the warmth she was feeling from all those presents is less lukewarm.

"...That's something shinki also have to do? I had no idea."

She knows nothing about gods. To her they're just like everyone else except that they remember their life. How is she supposed to know how to guide him? He never even gave her a full explanation about most things, and she doesn't blame him for that, but Kaya doesn't think she's qualified with so little information. What does "exemplar" even mean?

And then there's the prayers business. She had been waiting for him to say anything. Is he meaning to tell her that he had been waiting for her at the same time?

What a mess!

"I... I haven't mastered Borderline yet and I don't know how to fight so... I'm okay with prayers without monsters."

Does Zeno even know how to fight? She's under the impression he doesn't. He looks like the type who would squish a mosquito, strength aside.

[eternalshield]

"Mm, don't look so serious."

He'd rather she smiled again.

"How long have you been trying to master Borderline? It'd be so mean of me to be upset with you for not mastering it just yet, not when you've not gotten any support from me. If Zeno had to judge by past experience, it would take me decades to figure out how to use a power like that!"

Borderline, unbreakable body, same thing, right?

And if Zeno was being perfectly honest with himself -- something you sort of have to be, when you're so rarely honest with others, just to avoid losing perspective -- her not mastering Borderline and his not mastering his dragon powers probably stemmed from similar sources. Zeno might not have expressly forbade Kaya from fighting, but he never planned to encourage it, either. He didn't say anything when she went to the training class, neither to encourage nor discourage, but should he have?

"If you want more practice at Borderline we'll get you some, but prayers without monsters sound better than prayers with monsters right now," he said. "My domain is youth, and that means teenagers, so that's monstrous enough, maybe."

[fadingsunshine]

"I was told it's hard to master and it takes a lot of practice. And even then, doing it in the middle of an important moment is harder. There's an open training session tomorrow in Bishamon's temple so I wanted to go and get taught how it's done by the shinki there."

It's the least she can do. In any case, his preference does give her a little relief.

"That sounds good! And if we ever stumble into an ayakashi we can't handle yet, we can always call friends to help us with that! Some of mine have offered! Including the girl who told me... well, that we're weapons and all that. People here are so nice!"

this can probably wrap soon...?

[eternalshield]

"No reason not to," he said easily. "Her Ladyship is good to the newcomers."

He liked Bishamon. He trusted Kaya would be safe at her temple, but... maybe he ought to drop by...

Zeno tries not to frown at the word 'weapon,' but it's a hard thing. Best he can manage is forcing a smile after a couple seconds. A few different words come to mind about 'nice' in conjunction to calling his wife a weapon, an object to be put between him and danger, but they pass by as quickly as they formed. Kaya's friend wouldn't have meant the word to be so dehumanizing. And just because Zeno considered himself her husband didn't really mean much without her reciprocation...

If he could live without using Kaya as a weapon, absolutely, he would. And living was, for better or worse, what he did best.

Still, the idea of reducing Kaya to what Ouryuu reduced him to be... but he'd hated it so much when Hiryuu tried to protect him from that fate.

"Zeno is just glad you're having fun with them," he says honestly. "And they are. You should hear about the kid's turtle that went and hid with your Ryuuryuu..."

[fadingsunshine]

"I... don't like the idea of fighting or being a weapon, but monsters can appear anywhere at any time. I have to know how to protect myself, and you, and anyone who needs it. It would be scarier if something happens to either of us. So... at least Borderline..."

She notices the frown. She notices he's trying to change the subject. He lets him, not wanting to upset him after giving her all those presents.

"Ryuuryuu is your statue, silly! But I don't think I've seen a turtle anywhere here, inside the temple or outside. It must be small if it could hide with the dragon!"

[eternalshield]

Zeno shakes his head.

"Don't think 'have to,' if you don't want to," he says, and brings his hands together in front of him, one palm in front of the other. They start to glow gold and he pushes it toward Kaya, causing the same gold glow to form a shield around her.

One hands stays out to maintain it, but the other scoops a stray coin out of his pocket. When he tosses the coin toward her, it bounces off-- but the shield fades anyway, despite not being penetrated.

"It's limited, but it'll protect you a little bit," he tells her. He's used his god powers very, very rarely. Throwing himself in front of the target is still the more reflexive act. "So it's all your choice. I really hate weapons, if Zeno may be honest!"

But he very reluctantly agrees with her logic. "Zeno will join forces with you, but won't use you as a weapon." The words I'd genuinely rather die do float through his head, but he doesn't want to upset her, and also, those words are meaningless when he'd also genuinely rather die than, say, get out of bed when the temperature gets cold enough.

But that's enough serious talk. He isn't even sure how they wound up in this place, not when he'd really meant things to be light-hearted. He shakes his head.

"If you name it, it's yours. Like a shinki."

[fadingsunshine]

She's about to respond to that, that it's what's expected of her not only by the Heavens but also the other shinki. But then he raises his hands, and she gasps at the unexpected golden glow. It's so beautiful and it makes not only herself, now surrounded by the light, but the rest of the temple shine along. Which is curious since it's the floor with no gold in it!

She jumps one step back after the coin bounces. It was surprising.

"That's like... becoming a sunflower made of light. A sun shield."

She should feel protected but instead she's overwhelmed. It's too much responsibility to make her choose, to decide when to do prayers. She was just supposed to help, even if she didn't know how. She's more convinced, more than ever, that Zeno must be a kind soul if he dislikes weapons or using someone as one.

"Let's stay away from monsters for now, then. None of us is cut for that. Just... as self-defense."

She shakes her head. "It's not the same, silly. Can't it be ours?"

[eternalshield]

"Aaah, that would be easier, wouldn't it? Does that mean you want half the treasure upstairs, too?"

And he quickly pulls a new subject out of his metaphorical hat. Maybe teasing her a little bit, maybe just letting himself luxuriate in the fantasy of ours. Nothing would have made him happier than for everything to be ours.

"It only flashes like that for a bit, the shield. If it hadn't gotten hit right then, it'd turn invisible. Never tried to see how long it holds without being hit, but any hit knocks it down."

[fadingsunshine]

"A-ah, no! I didn't mean that!" She shakes her hands in the air, awkward stance against it. What use could she give to a bunch of gold? She has no need for it. All the material possessions she wants are cheap.

"Is that so... That's still pretty dangerous, even if it goes invisible. Maybe you should go to Bishamon's and learn self defense too, Zeno. Even if you don't like it, the shield can only do so much."

[eternalshield]

"Another day, maybe. It's done everything asked of it so far."

He shakes his head slightly. Training with other people... he's not ready for that yet. Someone like Urashima, someone he knows, getting a glimpse of his powers in a situation where they must be used -- destroying Abi's corpse -- was one thing. Casually revealing them across a whole group of potential strangers... no. Not yet.

[fadingsunshine]

"I'll go, though. Just to see how that Borderline thing works. We're not together all the time after all, so I should have my own shield thing for self-defense..." For when he's not there. She doesn't want to be attacked when going to the supermarket or the school.

She would've liked to go with him to the training grounds since going alone might be weird. But if Zeno doesn't feel comfortable, she doesn't want to push him. Or maybe she should, as his exemplar? Another day, if any. He's done so much for her today, with all these presents. She'll cut him some slack.

Kaya grabs the sunflower and inspects it with a smile.

"Hmmmm, I should investigate about these flowers! I want to take care of Sunny here properly! And his siblings maybe, once they're planted and they've sprout."

[eternalshield]

"They're supposed to get pretty tall! We could make everything all shady... It's summertime, it's perfect for lazy naps in the shade."

A smile is slowly working its way across his face as he envisions it. The whole temple surrounded by sunflowers. Not the just Sunny and the ones in the seed packets, but surely if they give the flowers a good start, they'll spread themselves.

"Forever" is just a dream, of course. Even if she can't die again, shinki come and go like Shin-ah did. He might be the one to go, even though the idea of leaving her behind instead is too painful to even contemplate.

But sometimes he likes to dream. He likes the idea of this quiet little corner of heaven, overgrown with sunflowers, more and more every year, for as many years as they can spend together. Of course, they might not even get enough time for one to sprout... but he supposes that's why he got the one in the pot. A bit of cheat, a hopeful prophecy.

Aah. Maybe it was a love gift after all? More romantic than he intended? Why were cut flowers romantic gifts, anyway? As pretty as they were, they were short-lived things, known to be dying, and all of the stopgaps like vases of water were just that-- stopgaps sure to fail. Why didn't people give their sweethearts seeds, meant to be nurtured until bloomed, or potted flowers, starting a new life in new soil?

Well. He supposes he can't fault himself too much. Her memory and her love were far and away the highlights of his life between dragon warrior gatherings. If you spend two thousand years remembering someone as your wife, it's a hell of an adjustment to not treat her that way.

It can't hurt anyone too much, if it's just gifts...

[fadingsunshine]

"Really tall?" She starts giggling at the mental image of sunflowers with stems of the length of tree trunks. "Oh, but if we take a nap among them I might lose you! Your blond hair would blend in right away with their petals!"

She keeps laughing. Thankfully the thick, serious fog that had burdened her heart during the conversation has lifted a little bit thanks to a bunch of flowers that weren't even planted yet.

She still couldn't understand Zeno that well, and Kaya didn't know how to help him yet, but she was glad to have him in her life.