[ open ] let the ultraviolet cover me up

[vixening]

WHO: yennefer and various.
WHAT: various prompts, some closed, some open!
WHEN: End of October/through November
WHERE: castle thorne, the horizon, etc.
WARNINGS: n/a atm but will update

Comments

closed { ciri.

[vixening]

[ there is something to say about how ciri says 'tomorrow', and in doing so, yennefer thinks of nothing else. she supposes she must sleep, supposes she has to get up the next morning and find her way to dress, to her meals. she makes her appearance and checks in with the courtesans and the other mages and does what she would normally do, keeps to her regular schedule. there is nothing about her day that differs, not really, other than the fact that yennefer finds herself distracted. her mind wandering down paths, ideas, reasons.

part of her wonders if this is a good idea - with her meeting with the queen upcoming, with the eyes that will most likely be on her, around every corner and in every hall. she considers the options, considers the worst case scenario and the best. what would happen, if anyone did know where she was headed, what meeting she was about to find herself. it's easier, if she focuses on the possible outcomes, if she keeps her mind only on the reactions, on the court that she's made herself a part of so meticulously over the last few weeks, then her mind won't stray to last time. won't wrap itself up around what she did, without knowing. what she said. who she was.

no matter where those paths lead her, yennefer ends up back in her room. it's not any earlier, or later, than she would have normally turned it. nothing about it seems out of place. but whereas normally she would be preparing for bed, yennefer paces her room. considers, again, what could happen. what this could mean. what she could be doing, in agreeing to this - and then yennefer settles onto her bed. closes her eyes. remembers what kylo told her, that first time, about focuses. about centering. and then, suddenly, she is there. back in the horizon, once more.

yennefer breathes, feels the difference in the air, the way that even this place that is not physically present, an illusion to the greatest degree, and yet even she could lose sight in it. she begins to walk, not quite recognizing where within the horizon she's ended up, but knowing she will find her way as it happens. knows she will find ciri. ]

[wiedzminka]

[ All things considered, the Horizon isn't that large. She might remember, from her last time here, where the wolf led her. Where Ciri showed her to, after her long wandering. She might remember the mountains, the cold winter air, the scent of evergreens. The Keep.

Ciri is there. She had accepted their meeting would probably be at night, considering Yennefer's in the castle and not free to simply take a few hours to meditate whenever she wishes. They'd briefly agreed on a time, but talked no more after that. It hadn't occurred to Ciri to give Yennefer a location; Yennefer has no Domain of her own, and so Kaer Morhen is the obvious assumption.

Impatient with waiting, unable to simply let herself relax (it had been difficult enough to meditate successfully to even get here), Ciri has materialized her sword and is on the training grounds in the courtyard when Yennefer approaches. The sword itself now matches the one she has in the physical realm; it's for the best to practice with the weapon she'll actually be using most.

Although Ciri senses Yennefer's presence immediately, she finishes the motions of her practice against one of the dummies on sticks. It had been more to distract herself than anything, but she's fairly sure she's managed to recreate her new sword's exact feel and balance now. For a few more moments, she simply allows Yennefer to watch her, not wanting to appear too excited, too invested. She's still a little cross.

But finally, she turns. She sheathes her sword, but does not allow it to dematerialize. ]

...Yennefer.

[vixening]

[ somehow, she had known the moment she materialized in this plane that this meeting would need to take place at the keep. she knew, despite the way everything in her wanted to stay as far from it as possible. if she were already stepping directly in the path that she'd been avoiding since her last visit, it would be a kind of twisted feat of fate that this meeting, the one thing that could successfully pull her back, would be to the place that she had the most complicated feelings towards.

it was not easy - none of this was ever going to be easy and yennefer has lived her life knowing as much - but the feeling that tugs at her as she approached the mountainside, the keep hidden up in the rocks. it nearly causes her pause. nearly. but she's able to keep moving, if only for her recognition of the figure in the courtyard, the echo of someone yennefer knows but doesn't want to see, in each swing.

she approaches all the same, a kind of tension in each of her steps as she grows closer, though there is effort to hide as much. she comes to a stop to watch as ciri finishes the movements, the swings, and she can tell ciri carries with her some of that anger from her messages before. good, yennefer thinks. because if nothing else, she can understand anger. ]

Ciri. [ because while part of her wants to say cirilla, or perhaps even princess, yennefer remembers ciri's request from their first meeting. whether or not she keeps up with it in every other conversation they have, yennefer uses it here - a sort of offering, in a way. after a moment's pause, yennefer's eyes turn to the courtyard around them, familiar and yet not - like a dream, or distant memory. ] Do you share this domain? [ with geralt, she doesn't say. ]

[wiedzminka]

[ Ciri's neither stupid nor blind; she's recognized the tension between Yennefer and Geralt, even kind of recognized it. It's almost familiar, but only in a way she doesn't really like. Their disagreements have always been unpleasant to her, though she rarely witnessed them. Namely, because she spent most of her time with each of them apart from the other. The Horizon seems to have thrown that understanding off balance, even if technically they are still apart.

So Ciri isn't sure if Yennefer will be upset when she responds. She doesn't necessarily care about Yennefer's annoyance toward her relationship with Geralt, if that's what it is. She refuses to sound defensive. ]

Kaer Morhen was my home too.

[ And so was Ellander. Yennefer simply does not know it. ]

...I have a cabin around this way, though. We can talk there. It's warmer.

[ She leads Yenner around one side of the courtyard, which she's expanded with another training area and a private stable for Kelpie (which she can wander in and out of, depending on whether she wishes to be with Roach or not). Nestled against the mountain's slope, surrounded by evergreens, is a cottage, sturdy but unremarkable, as snow-covered as the rest of the keep.

This is where Ciri leads Yennefer, and when they approach, Kelpie trots out to greet her. Ciri gives her mare's nose an affectionate rub, materializing a small apple in her other palm and offering it for her to lip at and ultimately accept. She does not look at Yennefer while she talks. ]

How are they treating you in Thorne, really? What is your life there like?

[vixening]

[ it's another disconnect between them that yennefer catches before she can allow herself to really get caught in it. the distinct way ciri does not argue with her question, does not sound defensive, despite the place for it. it's the same feeling yennefer had back in the cells, like she's three steps behind, and it curls uncomfortably in her chest.

so she hums, nods once - because she knew that. knew that ciri had spent time with geralt, here. that she had spent years growing up, here. yennefer has a strange feeling of both knowing this place, and not - the only path she's really familiar with the one to a specific room, up a set of stairs, tucked away from the rest of the keep. it's the only place she knows how to go to, and yet the one place she wants to stay as far from as possible. it reads in her figure as that same sort of tension, of a discomfort that yennefer does not quite turn away from, but hesitates to move towards.

ciri mentions a cabin, though, and yennefer just nearly perks up at the sound of it, following ciri as she starts off around one side. the horse that yennefer remembers from their meeting trots out to meet them both, and yennefer watches the affectionate way ciri nuzzles at the horse. is caught, unwanted, by an image of geralt. she takes a breath, turning her eyes instead to the image of the cottage. the question does not quite draw her attention - ciri not looking at yennefer, and yennefer not looking back, either. not yet, though there is a feeling they don't quite need to, either. ]

It is boring, more often than not. [ is the easy, initial answer. yennefer exhales, not quite a sigh, as she tucks her hands into the muff she materializes for herself, the biting cold of the air not uncomfortable, but cold enough. ] After the escape, I joined a group who were protecting Ambrose from someone attempting to attack him while he'd been frozen. My actions earned me an official apology from the mages, and a seat at court. The native Thorneans aren't any more complicated than any other royal kingdom, so it has been mostly politics. Confirming my use. [ there's a nonchalance to her words, a kind of disinterest as she shrugs. yennefer clearly does not find anything in thorne a threat to her. but then again, that is partially why she remained, isn't it? because it won't be a threat to her.

she hates all of this, of course. there'd been a reason she'd run from aidern when she had. but there's a reason for her to remain there, now, and she looks at ciri with a bit more interest now. ]

And how are the Free Cities?

[wiedzminka]

[ Ciri's palm moves over the horse's long, graceful neck and the side of her jaw as she listens, petting her fondly. The mare snuffles at her other hand, looking for more apple; finding none, she lifts her head in Yennefer's direction.

Ciri finally turns to follow her gaze. ]

She remembers you.

[ Or she's just looking for treats. But Ciri's posture is more open now, inviting without words, if Yennefer wishes to come closer. The offer is there, even if the horse is the pretense for it. ]

I see. Ambrose. He's the highest mage in the court, right? The one who pulled us out of our times and places. Being in his good graces may accomplish much in the future.

[ She understands why Yennefer set herself up like this, defending the man responsible for their summonings. Though Ciri may not be too clear on the political intricacies of Thorne's court, she doesn't need to know the details to understand how Yennefer's positioned herself. Or to understand that it means Yennefer's publicly siding with Thorne's goals and methods, perhaps even as an enemy to the prisoners who fled and allied themselves (truly or not) with opposing forces. She understands, and she does not care. Despite her bitter words over the mental link last night, Ciri's not upset at anything Yennefer has done and not the least bit worried about her true intentions. She was simply angry that Yennefer hadn't reached out herself, after forming the connection to the Horizon, the one place they can actually meet right now.

That anger, at least, is fading quickly now that Yennefer is here. She kept her word. If it still hurts a little that the circumstances forced their meeting to be like this, then Ciri simply swallows that hurt and focuses on the outcome. They're here now.

She reaches out, and in her hand is another little crabapple. She offers it to Yennefer. ]

Enormous.

We're in Cadens. So far, we have spent most of our time saving up for necessities. Weapons, gear. For Geralt and myself. Jaskier has established himself in a few of the local taverns, and his reputation is growing as expected. I've been doing deliveries and guarding goods, taking small hunting contracts.

I'd like to visit some of the other nearby cities soon. Haven't had the chance yet.

[ She's avoiding the topic. The one she brought Yennefer here for in the first place. For just a few minutes, the conversation can be about something more pleasant. Simply catching up. ]

All in all, Cadens is hot and crowded. Many times bigger than Novigrad, even. But I don't hate it there. There are plenty of things to see and do, at least.

closed { jaskier.

[vixening]

[ the text appears in the middle of the night - an hour that no one in their right mind would be awake. but that is the risk, isn't it? the risk that she always is willing to take.

the truth of it is that yennefer doesn't think all that much about it. she knows he will be awake, she knows he will get the message. the only real risk she feels she is taking in this moment is whether or not her message will be answered. not necessarily with words, but in action. if he'll actually do it.

were it any other situation, any other time, yennefer would rather be caught dead than reaching out to him. coupled with the memories she has of their last time in the horizon, she'd honestly have rathered she never see him again. but the truth is - what ciri had described as her powers exploding, as how she'd almost killed jaskier. it's a longshot, but for yennefer to really understand what happened, she'd need to see the damage, too. or whatever was left of it, if jaskier was still breathing. ]

Meet me in the Horizon.

-- Yennefer of Vengerberg

[cointosser]

[Jaskier is, unsurprisingly, awake. He is an artist and he keeps a poet's hours -- and who among them does not find the night of the city the most romantic time? It is actually as his quill is scribbling across the word autumn that words in a script unfamiliar to him roll out against his eyes.

It's very lucky he's gotten used to this now, because this would be entirely startling --

He nearly yells. Yennefer? What the fuck?

If any adage comes to mind, it was out of sight, out of mind, though the spectre of Yennefer's presence certainly haunts him between Geralt and Ciri and their... emotions about her.

For a long enough time, he doesn't respond. He waves the words impatiently away and begins scratching along the paper again.

He's damned, though. Jaskier is damned -- cursed! -- with curiousity. One might say an invasive sort of nosiness. He cannot ignore the intrigue that comes with the idea that Yennefer would call on him. Especially considering... things between them. In the Horizon. He is actually quite sure, in some ways, she had been avoiding him after it.

You couldn't help but make yourself seem so terribly mysterious, could you?

He offers nothing else but the sarcastic quip, but he imagines it's plenty answer it itself, when he could have so impudently ignored the message at all.

Of course she has offered no further aid in finding her, but the Horizon is not that large and he has a secret weapon. Already he's been adamant that his writing space be quiet -- not that it's much of an ask from Geralt or Ciri -- so it is not difficult to close his eyes and concentrate, slipping into the place that opens its arms to welcome him.

The Horizon is always bright in his domain, with the grapevines stretching away from him. There is half a constructed bit of Oxenfurt he's played with, but mostly left to be... a rather nice corner of brick.

His weapon is there, however, waiting for him as he'd hoped: the white wolf that stalks Geralt's domain, the scars showing in the sun where its fur does not grow.] Hello, old friend. [Jaskier gives him a bow.] I need your help finding Yennefer.

[Somehow he imagines that even a wolf's face can show surprise.]

[vixening]

[ there are a few moments following the message that yennefer has to go as far as pacing her room, filtering through questions. of if it was worth bothering, if there is anything of note to gain from this. she does not want to see him, not really, but in ways she herself isn't even fully away - she and jaskier are similar in their curses. curiosity, it seems, haunts her just as heavily.

jaskier would understand better what happened, that day with ciri. because whether or not he knows actual magic (she's stubbornly refusing to admit that he can, even now), he would have a different set of eyes on what happened. on how ciri reacted. yennefer does not want to talk to him, especially when she knows it will likely be long-winded and unnecessary more than anything, but she needs more information. and she can come to a place of resigned acceptance, that this is the best way to find that.

does that stop her from feeling infuriated by his simple scrawl, appearing before her eyes? no. but the anger is a centering piece for her, if nothing else.

she does not answer - she doesn't have time to bicker with the bard, and she doesn't want this to take any more time than she needs it to, so before she can change her mind yennefer settles on her bed and closes her eyes, concentrating in the same way kylo had instructed her, that first time. waiting for the feeling of peace, the rush of air.

when she opens her eyes, it is to an open plain. yennefer recognizes that she did not give jaskier a place to meet her, a centering location for them both to head to, but it doesn't change much. she hasn't begun to work on her own domain, the only times she's been present she'd spent drifting between other's, so she instead heads off into the hills and grasslands that have appeared before her. there's a kind of confidence (there always is) in her steps, knowing she will find what it is she's looking for, one way or another. ]

[cointosser]

[It is not too much time before the wolf is huffing at him.

Because it is the only creature with ears within earshot, it takes the brunt of Jaskier's complaints. That she would call on him so late (even if he was already awake), interrupting his writing. And it was good writing, too! Calling upon him like he was a manservant, without explanation. It was just like her. (The wolf rolls its eyes.) Acting as if everyone around her was simply there to please her whims whenever she had them. It was disrespectful! And he was quite sure whatever she called him for was... well, it was probably going to be stupid and a waste of time. She would probably end up insulting him. For nothing.

The wolf sighs. It snuffles about in the grass, trying to pick up a scent -- then lifts its head, straight as an arrow.

Oh. Fuck it. He's not walking to her like a peasant. Though Jaskier's caravan is no longer with him, one of the large, decorated horses appears. He rounds onto her saddle, the horse following the wolf as they lead him out of his own domain into the wild. The Singularity rises in the distance, dotted with a forest at its base now.

In the distance, he can spy her. The black hair is unmistakable. Despite himself -- and how frustrating it is to feel it for even a moment -- there's a sense of longing.] This had better be bloody worth it.

[vixening]

[ yennefer walks for some time - she doesn't pay attention to how long, and ciri's voice from that first meeting - it just depends on how fast you want to go. she supposes that if she really wanted this interaction, if she really wanted to see him, perhaps this would take less time. as it happens, yennefer walks, and then continues to walk, her attention tugging more and more towards the singularity itself.

she supposes, if she wanted to, she could simply turn and stop looking. that there is always the possibility that she could call this off and deal with whatever frustrations jaskier will bother her with for the next however long he wants to spend his effort doing it. and honestly, maybe that is what keeps her moving forward - one part because she knows she is the one who reached out, and the larger part that jaskier will simply be insufferable if she didn't show.

it is around that thought that she sees the figures ahead - the horse, and the figure on its back who she could assume was jaskier, and gwiazda, the wolf, at his side. at first, it's jaskier who takes her back - to the front seat of a caravan, to something younger, brighter. laughter, and a gentle tightening in her chest. her hand, on his knee, and the warmth of that being okay. (it's almost unbearable, in a way. to think of that interaction, of the conversation, of him.) but then, where that warmth had been, is replaced by a sudden chill. it's the sight of the wolf that catches yennefer, freezes her to the spot. because yes, that wolf had been her companion, had taken her step by step through the horizon itself. but the sight of him, in that moment, brings her to a quiet room, a warm room, a single bed. it sends a shock down her spine, a tension that sets her back on edge again. the feeling of being back to this horizon, of being out of control, torn open, left bare. it brings her to a stop, right on the edge of the forest.

( the urge to run is back, suddenly, aggressively. but yennefer, as if in reaction to her own internal whispers, settles to the spot. she is here for a reason, an important reason, and she thinks back to ciri. to the fear in that initial message. )

and so, as if to cover that hesitation, yennefer lifts a hand (unnecessary within the horizon, perhaps, but habits die hard) and a large tent appears - flaps pulled back, a large, comfortable living space set inside. yennefer waits for a few more minutes more as jaskier continues to approach her, before sighing and ducking inside - giving the impression that she's almost tired of waiting for him. hurry up, it seemed to say. ]

[cointosser]

[Perhaps Yennefer has just enough time to see Jaskier throw his hands up in the air in complete exasperation just as the tent appears.] Oh, yes! Of course! You've been waiting here, in the middle of fucking nowhere, this whole time!

[His horse stamps its hooves to rival his own annoyance, kneeling down so he can slide off the overly decorated saddle. Jaskier brushes his mane, deftly braided with flowers, kissing his nose.] I'm not mad at you, of course, old boy. You did a very good job.

[He looks at the wolf.] And you. Worry not, my friend. You needn't go in if you'd rather not.

[The wolf does follow him to the tent, but it sits firmly outside the entrance and stretches out with an arch in its back, a roll of its shoulders that is far too familiar.

He steps inside. It is, of course, magic, in the way that everything she does seems to be. Magic and annoying. Something about this fully-furnished tent, as if he's stepped directly into a bedroom of a manor, grates on his nerves.

His fingers curl up.] Yes? So? Please, do stop leaving me in utter anticipation of what you've invited me here for. I must insist that, despite your thoughts otherwise, my time is valuable.

open { to all.

[vixening]

TBA

closed { the queen.

[vixening]

[ yennefer has played this game before.

her place in court, her seat to the side of the throne. she has watched monarchies grow and die and replaced over and over again, and she knows what it means to find power within it. it is a subtle art, positioning yourself among the right people, in the right places, making the right opinions known. it almost doesn't seem fair, in some ways, that the court of thorne is so similar to aidern, or others, that she's come across in her many years of life. but then again, much of what has happened hasn't exactly been fair. most of life, as it turns out, isn't fair.

and so yennefer makes herself known - she frequents the mages study halls, she introduces herself and makes light conversation with the courtesans. she keeps her distance from ambrose, specifically, though that isn't difficult and makes it known her curiosity and interest in the crown, in the queen, in the people who ran this kingdom that had welcomed them here.

because that had been something of a priority for her - just as she'd learned all her years in court. your place meant nothing, without the backing of the royal family themselves. and while there had always been distance, yennefer was not afraid to take the steps she needed to. to make her requests.

and it just so happened that - after what felt like no time at all - her requests have been met. and agreement, for a private meeting with the queen. which is where yennefer is now - making her way down to the throne room, towards a meeting that had finally been called. she had some ideas of what this meeting could entail, some potential directions it could take her, but yennefer easily slips into the role she's played before. adept, experienced, with hopes of gaining favor and maybe a bit more. but that, she knows, depends on the queen herself. ]

[abraxasnpcs]

[It isn't usual for the queen to grant personal audiences like this, but these are unprecedented times. She has her reasons.

The king is absent from the throne room, and there are only a handful of guards standing against the walls. The rest of the court has been cleared out and the queen herself sits in her throne on the raised platform at the end of the room. Her manner is calm and aloof as she waits, back straight and head up. Power seems to radiate off of her.

The pair of guards at the chamber's doors stand aside and open them when Yennefer approaches.]

[vixening]

[ it isn't usual, and yennefer is made more aware of that fact as soon as her audience had been granted. an usual circumstance for unusual times, indeed - yennefer is fully aware that the queen either has an ask of her, or that there will be some ulterior motive to this meeting - royalty never sought out mages unless it was for their magic, or some other purpose for their gain.

and so - as the guards at the chamber doors step aside to open them to the grand room, yennefer makes a very slight nod to them. polite, but also self-assured, as she steps through and into the room, with the queen at the furthest end, raised high upon the platform. yennefer makes her way across the room, stopping at a respectable distance to curtsey, bowing her head.

the tension of the room is palpable, but yennefer makes no moves to acknowledge it, playing wholly and entirely the part of another member of the court. ]

Your highness.

[abraxasnpcs]

[The queen nods her head in acknowledgement, a small polite smile gracing her lips. Her eyes fix on Yennefer as she looks at the woman for a few moments as though taking the measure of her.]

I understand you've been very eager to meet with me.

[It isn't a question.]

I don't often have time to meet with petitioners. It's lucky I'm able to offer this bit of my day to you. I hope it won't be wasted.

[vixening]

[ yennefer knows when she's being sized up, and if anything, she leans into it. presents herself for the queen to take measure. she's more than welcome to see who yennefer is, what she can do. ]

I have. [ she knows it wasn't a question, but the smile she gives back matches the queen's. polite, small, unintimidated. ] And I hardly have plans to waste anyone's time, especially your own. [ wasted. ah. so that is the course of the conversation. yennefer nods, once, as if to show that she is agreeing with the queen's sentiments. ]

Where I am from, I worked at the right hand of the royal lines. Much like you've done here in Thorne, where mages act as counsel, even at times confidants, to Queens or Kings. [ yennefer is aware that the longer she talks, the more complicated this might become. the truth was, she did not have much to bring to this meeting, other than an intention. to prove herself directly to the queen, rather than through whispers, second hand accounts. she has no interest in being controlled or even mediated by another mage - no matter which one.

yennefer's eyes very subtly rolled over the other guards in the room, checking to see if she recognized any of them. of who the queen surrounded herself with. ]

And while I have been told, in general terms, what it is Thorne is looking to accomplish with our presence - myself and the others summoneds - I wished to extend myself to you, directly, if you so needed it.

[abraxasnpcs]

Is that so?

[It's difficult to tell just what Queen Ellya is commenting on but there's nothing condescending in her voice. She's watching Yennefer intently, her face the same calm mask it's been since the meeting began, but her tone seems almost curious.]

As I'm sure you've seen for yourself, we hold mages in high esteem in this kingdom. I have many loyal mages at my disposal. What, exactly, can you offer to me that they can't?

[Still there's no condescension and nothing combative in the words.]

closed { ronan.

[vixening]

Yennefer had not been blind, during that conversation with Kylo, and Ronan once he had woken - she was more than aware of the tension that had built, and where it probably had stemmed from. But the truth of it had been that Yennefer's curiosity, and what had drawn that curiosity, had been primarily focused on Ronan, more than Kylo. On what she had heard, and then seen, about his dreaming.

Pure creation. Without any obvious balances. Sources. She had been told that there were no limits, that Ronan could dream up anything at all. Yennefer believes him, believes Kylo, but her curiosity continues to pick at her. To wonder.

And so one afternoon, Yennefer decides that her curiosity is enough to decide her schedule for the day, and she goes in search of Ronan.

[nightwash]

Ronan, perpetually restless and oft wandering, isn't easy to pin down when he's not stationed at Kylo's side. He has his own responsibilities and experiments to perform, which frequently take him far from the castle and into the fields, and when he isn't preoccupied with erasing the memories of his unfortunate volunteers, he's in the woods or taking to the skies.

But Yennefer is lucky, because today she finds him kneeling in the courtyard beside a maple sapling, conspicuous in his relentlessly black robes and mink cloak even when he isn't standing at full height. Though it's an overcast day, there's sunlight illuminating the maple leaves below his hand. Pinched between his fingers is a seed-sized sun, glowing brighter than it has any right to, and he appears to be trying to decide on an angle for its position. As he moves it from one spot to another, he asks the sapling its opinion in its native language, then apparently adjusts based on its feedback. It's a task that fully distracts him from noticing Yennefer's approach.

[vixening]

Truth be told, Yennefer did not actually expect her search of Ronan to be as quick as it ends up being. She knows about about the other Summoneds within the castle and the variety at which they keep their schedules, and she knows how often Ronan simply disappears from the castle grounds.

So when she sees him kneeling in the courtyard out of the corner of her eye, Yennefer almost doesn’t recognize him, taking a moment to see the cloaks and mink over his shoulders. One might call it a strike of luck, if they wanted to believe in that sort of thing - Yennefer, meanwhile, sees it as an opportunity - redirecting her steps out from the castle walls into the courtyard itself.

She doesn’t quite know what it is he’s doing until she’s much closer, her steps crunching over gravel and fallen leaves as she walks, the hemline of her full dress brushing against the ground. And even as she is closer, she’s still not entirely positive, her voice light and curious when she finally breaks his concentration.

“Is that a dream item, you’re testing? Or something Thornean you’ve picked up in the study rooms?”

[nightwash]

"Dream," Ronan answers curtly, without glancing back to her.

It's not a particularly new dream, either. Back home, he'd used these miniature suns to keep houseplants thriving as winter approached. The maple sapling can survive without it, of course, but it's been pleading with him for it like a child pleads for candy, so here he is, indulging it. Now that the two of them have settled on a good angle for his little sun, Ronan leaves the orb hovering where it is and climbs to his feet.

He's not exactly angry with Yennefer. First of all, he knows he has no right to be. She hasn't actually done anything. If lusting over Kylo were a crime against him, Ronan would have to hate half of Thorne. But she's also been kind to him, which means a lot, since so few are.

It's just hard to be near her. It's hard to exist in the proximity of the better option.

"What do you want?"

[vixening]

Dream. Yennefer's eyes flash a bit at the idea of it, as they have since she'd learned of his abilities. Something unknown and new, something she had never before seen, but wants to know. Ronan stands and leaves behind the small glowing sun, and Yennefer's eyes linger on it. The simplicity, the ease - it is magic, but it is the appreciation of magic, the use of it.

And perhaps he isn't angry with her, but Yennefer can tell there is enough of something there, something sharper and directed towards her, or who she represents. There is a part of her that wants to pick it apart, to see exactly what it is Ronan does or does not like about her (as she is quite experienced with being both liked, and very much disliked, and the different ways those can take form).

You're quite direct she almost says, but then chooses against it. There's no reason to state the obvious, here. "A request for your services." Her eyes move, now, from the orb to Ronan - making it very much obvious which services she is inquiring about.

[nightwash]

"I know."

Ronan guessed that much. It hasn't occurred to him that Yennefer might ever want to have a conversation with him purely for the sake of getting to know him. No one ever does. They do, however, want to get as much as they can get out of him once they learn what he's capable of. There was a time when Ronan resented that, but it's far preferable to the alternative: wishing him dead.

He clarifies with a hint of snide overenunciation, "I meant, what are you asking for? Specifically."