Coffee or Tea (Artskaf)

[Nora Saint-Clair]

The moment Claude reminded her of her own words, something shifted in her expression. The anger faded first, chased quickly by shame, and then—reluctantly—by something softer. Concession. He was right. She knew it. But that didn’t settle the nerves coiling in her gut like smoke that refused to clear.

Claude might understand. He always tried to understand. But their family? That was a different story.

Everyone had heard the whispers—Atharim bloodlines tainted by gods. Some families disowned their own. Some chose silence that turned inward, cutting themselves off in every sense of the word. Others fled entirely, vanishing into exile rather than face the fallout. Nora couldn’t imagine forcing that kind of choice on their parents. It would destroy them. It might destroy her.

The tremor from earlier had already faded by the time they left Artskaf, but it still lingered in her thoughts. A shadow that wouldn’t quite dissolve.

“I don’t know if it was me or not,” she muttered, shaking her head. “Maybe? I’m not... very good at it.”

She hated admitting that. Hated how small it sounded.

“Just—swear you won’t tell anyone,” she added quickly, tugging on his arm like she used to when they were kids and her little brother had somehow grown taller than her overnight. It was instinctual, a gesture rooted in a thousand memories and unspoken pleas.

[Claude Saint-Clair]

The tug on his arm elicited a slight chuckle and brought a grin to his lips. So many times had he felt that pull from Nora. Times from catching her coming in late after curfew or times when she had been out going on her adventures around the estate. It was always a silent plea for him to not speak of it. Of course when they were even younger, it had been him making that pull. It was a simple thing that reminded him of simpler times.

”No one will hear it from me,” he said in response. His word was gold, and he hoped that Nora trusted it. There was no ask of a favor in it for him. As long as it was her secret, he would keep it.

He could see though that his sister was still greatly troubled by it. That he could understand. It was hard to accept yourself when you had been told that what you are is something that shouldn’t exist. In some ways, Claude had come to terms with what he was. He had no doubt Nora would come to the same conclusion.

Claude let some silence linger between them for a moment before speaking further. ”What do you need now. Space from your dorky kid brother to contemplate. A shopping trip to distract. An actual meal. A drink a little stronger than coffee?” the suggestions were said with a lighthearted smile. It gave her a chance to say what she needed now. They would have to talk about their parents eventually. They would have to be told something to get them off of Nora’s back, but Claude sensed now wasn’t the time to push it.

[Calliope]

She was distracted by the notion, expression full of contemplation and wonder. Liam asked the obvious question as more or less the same thing occurred to Cali, but she hadn’t sensed anything – or she didn’t think so. Inwardly she searched for the light as Seraphis had showed her after the ritual, but it wouldn’t come, probably because Cali was currently flushed with curiosity and in a cafe full of people. When she coaxed plants it was never so difficult as this was; but that gift came instinctively, where this one took effort.

“I don’t know,” she admitted after a moment. “I was excited to tell you, but I barely even know what I’m doing yet. Veilwardern Seraphis says there is a glow when women use it, but I’ve never seen it.” She glanced once more at the door, wondering about dragging Liam after her to see if they could find them, but time with her brother was scarce and she didn’t want to spend it that way. If Nora was meant to return to the Sanctuary, she would.

“It feels like sunshine. Like the warmest summer day, when everything falls just perfect,” she added as she turned her full attention back to her brother. It wasn’t the same feeling that led her during the sound bath, but she didn’t know how to explain that, and she had no desire to mention Samiel to Liam. “If I can do it, do you think you could too?”

[Liam H]

Liam had no idea about the power, he knew the girls at the club saw things, he knew Nox felt things, but beyond that he didn't know. "I know I'm new around Kallisti but they see things too, the girls do. The men, they say it's like someone's about to start a pissing contest, and women channeling is like someone walked over your grave." Liam shrugged. "You should stop by the club one day. Dad would hate it." He giggled.

But there was a thought then that what if he could do it. "Nox has a twin sister and she could touch the power, and Sterling is his cousin. So maybe I could." Liam wasn't sure if that excited him or not. But it would give him and Cali something more to bond with. Not that they needed more, but he loved his sister and he missed her. "How did you find out again. Some room at the Sanctuary? Maybe we both should make a visit to each other's hang out." He grinned with such eagerness and mischief he was sure Cali would say no way. But he knew she had that streak too -- they both rebeled against their father. They loved him, but he was Ephriam Haart and such a hard man to love.