Welcome to Rosavelle!

[royaldecreemods]

INVITATION

You're going about your day when you notice an envelope that most certainly wasn't there before. It's beautiful, if a little old-fashioned: pale pink paper, sealed with a pressed flower instead of wax and your name written in looping cursive that shimmers faintly in the light.
Inside, the letter begins;

Dearest friend—
Goodness, I hope that isn't too forward. We've not met, after all. But I have been told that when one writes an invitation, it's important to sound sincere.

My name is Calanthe Rosabella Petalia de Amoré. I am the Crown Princess of Rosavelle. It's a little island kingdom far, far away - so far that it may not exist quite in the same world as yours.

I know this must sound terribly strange, but I'm writing because I need your help. You see, my coronation is approaching soon, and Rosavelle's magic - the Everbloom - responds to the strength of one's heart. It's said that a ruler must understand love to truly awaken it. Not just romance, mind you, but all kinds of love: friendship, kindness, care.

The trouble is… I'm not very good at it. I've read so many books about love, but real people don't seem to follow the same rules the novels do.

That is why I'm writing to you. The Everbloom - our most ancient and wondrous magic - has granted me the means to reach across worlds. I'm inviting a handful of remarkable individuals, like you, to Rosavelle to help me learn. Not only to teach me what love means to you, but to help me see how it can bloom between friends, companions, and strangers alike.

I promise you'll be treated as an honored guest.

... It goes on like that for a while, whole paragraphs assuring you that you can leave whenever you want, no time will pass back in your world, the Everbloom's magic will keep you safe, etc etc… honestly it gets to the point that it starts to sound less like an invitation and more like a contract. But then, mercifully, the writer finds their footing again:

If you'll come, I'd be so very grateful. I know this is a strange request, and you owe me nothing - but still, I hope you'll consider it. Rosavelle is beautiful this time of year, and it is my hope that seeing it alongside fresh eyes will allow me to see it more clearly as well.

With all my thanks (and my hopes!)—
Princess Calanthe Rosabella Petalia de Amoré

Maybe you accept right away or maybe you dismiss it as a prank or something equally unimportant. No matter what you think when you first read it, your mind eventually turns back to that invite and your find yourself thinking that it might not be a bad idea…

And once you do, you feel the world going soft and sweet around you, the scent of blooming flowers filling your nose - and before you can quite process what's happening, you realize you've accepted.

ARRIVAL

You arrive in a haze of soft, rosy light. For a moment, everything is weightless - the air around you hums faintly, thick with warmth and the heady scent of flowers. When the haze fades, you find yourself standing beneath a vast glass dome that stretches impossibly high overhead. The light filtering through its pink-tinted panes paints everything in gentle rose and gold and petals drift through the air like drifting snow.

You are standing in the Everbloom's Greenhouse. The walls curve upward in graceful arches, every pane glimmering faintly and the air is warm, fragrant, and shimmering with faint motes of magic. Flowering vines climb the supports, colorful blossoms of all kinds spill from hanging baskets, and everywhere you look there's flowers, flowers, flowers.

At its heart stands the Everbloom, a colossal tree the likes of which you've never seen before. Its smooth trunk is faintly luminous and the canopy stretches so high that you can't see where it ends, vanishing into a haze of golden light and drifting petals. The air around it hums softly with power and for a moment, all you can do is stare up at it in awe.

A moment later, movement stirs: castle attendants glide forward in elegant uniforms, carrying towels, refreshments, and generally doing their best to make sure everyone's arrived safely. After all, you're not alone. Around you, other figures begin to appear - some blinking in wonder, some already steady on their feet. Each seems as out of place as you, drawn from distant worlds and disparate lives but under the rosy light they all seem to come together like flowers gathered into the same bouquet.

Those who stumble are gently guided toward a bench cushioned with flowering moss. Cool towels and drinks infused with rose and mint are offered freely. Eventually, once it seems like everyone's arrived and mostly gotten their bearings, one of the attendants - a lady-in-waiting as you'll eventually find out - speaks up.

"You are most welcome to Rosavelle," she says, dipping into a polite bow. "Their Princess will be hosting a banquet this evening to greet you all properly. Until then, please take your time to get settled and familiar with your surroundings. If you need anything at all, do not hesitate to ask."

For now, you're free to mingle. This is your chance to get your bearings, meet your fellow arrivals, and explore your surroundings. Beyond the main atrium, you can glimpse winding paths lined with blooming hedges and fat, colorful blossoms. Somewhere in the distance, you can faintly hear birdsong. You feel a little tug somewhere in your chest and if you follow it, you might just come across a flowerbed somewhere in the Greenhouse that you somehow know as your own.

After some time to mingle and acclimate, the attendants return, clapping their hands gently to draw attention.

"It's nearly time to prepare for the evening banquet! If you'll come with us, we'll see to your attire."

DRESS UP

You're led from the warmth of the greenhouse through a series of winding marble corridors until you're ushered through a set of grand double doors into a suite of guest rooms bustling with motion. Tailors, stylists, and attendants hurry between privacy screens, racks of lavish garments and trays piled high with glittering jewelry. Silks and satins gleam and lace and velvet catch the light in soft waves of color.

Tailors and stylists bustle about, armed with measuring tapes, pins, and brushes. The staff are cheerfully firm about making sure everyone looks their best for the banquet but nobody's forced into anything they don't want; the attendants listen to everyone's preferences and somehow find something flattering for even the most reluctant participant. Whether you comply with good humor or grumble through the process, it's impossible not to get swept up in the flurry of preparation. … of course, if you're determined to be a grump about the whole thing, you're welcome to wait outside until everyone's dressed up nicely.

The attendants encourage everyone to chatter as they work or even to lend a hand to another guest struggling with their ensemble. Maybe it's out of curiosity - the staff are polite, professional, but it's clear that dressing guests from other worlds is a novelty they want to enjoy.

As final adjustments are made and mirrors fill with transformed reflections, the bustle slowly quiets. Attendants exchange satisfied looks, then guide the group once more through the corridors. The faint strains of music drift down the corridors until at last, you find yourself before the towering double doors of the Azurite Banquet Hall, carved from the stone it takes its name from. The lady in waiting pauses just long enough to smooth a wrinkle here, adjust a collar there, and make sure everyone is present before pushing the doors open.

BANQUET

The Azurite Banquet Hall glows with warm candlelight reflected in polished marble floors and the air inside smells of wine and roses. Long tables stretch the length of the hall, each one dressed in embroidered runners and heaped with platters of food that look almost too beautiful to eat and in the corner, a string quartet plays a soft, lilting melody.

At the head of the room stands your host, Princess Calanthe Rosabella Petalia de Amoré. Draped in pale gold, they look every bit the part of a royal... though the slightly nervous way they adjust their posture speaks of someone not entirely at ease in the spotlight. When they catch sight of the assembled guests, though, they brighten a bit. Their hands are clasped too tightly around their wine glass, but their voice is bright and earnest.

"Ah - good evening, everyone! I - well, goodness, where does one even begin?

First of all, thank you. Truly, thank you all for coming here - to Rosavelle, and to me. I know this must all seem terribly strange - one moment you were in your own world, and the next you're here. It's strange to me too, you know. I've been imagining this for weeks, and yet somehow it still doesn't feel quite real.
Ah - oh! I suppose I should introduce myself properly. My name is Calanthe Rosabella Petalia de Amoré. I am the Crown Princess of Rosavelle, soon to be its sovereign, though I admit that still feels a little surreal to say aloud.

I invited you here because - well, I imagine all of you read your invitations. The Everbloom, our kingdom's oldest and most sacred magic, is bound to the heart and mine is… embarrassingly, quite uneducated in such matters. I couldn't imagine anyone in this world I could burden with such a problem and so I thought - perhaps - those who come from other worlds might help me."

... suddenly, they look sheepish.

"That said, ah - there is a small complication. It is. Um. Frowned upon by most scholars to interfere with the affairs of other worlds, even with the best of intentions and I fear it would cause quite a stir if word got out. So for the time being, we'll need to keep your origins a secret. Please don't worry, though - we've arranged everything you'll need. Over the next month, we'll be teaching you about Rosavelle and all its customs so that when you venture out for the Wilting festival, you'll feel quite at home.

I realize that's rather a lot to ask, and I'm - well, I'm deeply grateful for your patience. I promise to do my best to make this worth your while.

So, once again, thank you. For answering my invitation. For being here, together, tonight.

Now then-"

They raise their glass, cheeks pink but eyes bright.

"To new beginnings, and to the bonds we have yet to form. May they bloom as beautifully as the flowers of Rosavelle... oh, that sounded quite good, didn't it? A toast - to all of you!"

As the toast echoes through the hall, the music swells again - a graceful waltz this time - and attendants sweep forward to usher guests toward the buffet tables.

There's something for every palate: platters of lemon-butter shrimp and rosemary-crusted fish, seared scallops on saffron rice and fillets of calendula-cured salmon alongside oysters resting in crushed ice and lobsters cracked open beside dishes of herb butter. It's not all seafood, either - whole roasted ducks glazed in something fruity dot the table, alongside lamb, chicken and a mouthwatering roast beef.

Between the platters, bowls of vegetables offer roasted root vegetables glistening with sweet glaze, delicate salads strewn with edible petals, caramelized carrots, blistered cherry tomatoes and crisp greens grown. And, of course, baskets of warm, golden bread wait beside whipped butter and creamy sauces.

If you're in the mood for sweets, there's desserts in dizzying abundance: sugared fruit tarts, meringues shaped like blossoms, chocolate soufflés dusted with candied violet, and pastries of all kinds filled with custard, chocolate and all manner of fruity, flowery fillings.

A side table gleams with crystal decanters and goblets: bottles of wine, deeply colored mead and delicate floral liqueurs seem to be the alcoholic offerings but there's carafes of chilled fruit water steeped with mint for anyone who's not inclined towards spirits.

If you're feeling bold, the cleared space near the musicians makes a perfect dance floor. Perhaps you find yourself drawn into a dance, or perhaps you linger at the buffet, trading stories with a stranger over a shared plate of sugared pastries. Or maybe you'll take the opportunity to introduce yourself to your host now they've made an appearance.

Eventually, as the night wears thin, the quartet's melody softens to a gentle hum. Candlelight flickers low. The attendants appear once more, smiling as they begin to guide everyone toward the final stop of the evening.

HOUSEWARMING

The banquet winds to a gentle close and ne by one, the guests are gathered once more by the castle attendants who lead the way through dimly glowing corridors. The halls are quieter now, the rosy light of evening filtering through stained glass in sleepy shades of pink and gold. Everyone is lead through the castles and out into the grounds, their splendor only a little dulled by the darkness starting to settle over the castle.

"Your lodgings are just ahead," the lady in waiting says, her voice hushed out of respect for the hour. "You've each been assigned to a house - named for the flowers that chose you."

Slowly but surely, everyone's names are called and each person is supplied a heavy brass key to a house named for a flower you may have seen blooming somewhere today. When they speak the name of your house, something in you stirs with faint, inexplicable recognition, like you know it already - or maybe it knows you.

In any case, the barracks themselves are nothing like the name implies: warm, inviting, and softly lit by enchanted lanterns. Each house has its own cozy common area where low couches and plush chairs are gathered around softly glowing hearths. A long table in the center has been set with some late-night comforts, in case you somehow have any room left in your belly - plates of fruit and pastries, steaming pots of tea, and rich cocoa dusted with rose sugar.

The attendants leave you to settle in for the night, with a promise that the barracks staff will prepare meals from tomorrow onwards but mostly, you'll be left to your own devices. You could just track down your room and crash for the night but now seems as good a time as any to get to know your new housemates.

(CODE)

Comments

Housewarming

[goldship]

Sometime after her timeout from the “incident” during the party Golshi ends up joining Corrin. She doesn’t so much sit as she does fling herself into an unoccupied couch face first. She’s still in full formal garb, down to the hat her ears poke up from under and the boots on her feet.

“I think that Dye Job bastard’s made an enemy for life.”

Being face down in the couch muffles her whining a bit. She’s still kinda cold from being turned into an ice cube earlier, so her current plan is to lay like this until the couch accepts her and the cushions swallow her into plush, warm comfort.

“Guess it was pretty alright besides that though. S’not every day ya get to brawl in the middle of a royal party”

[bladeofconquest]

Oh, it's the woman Darin was brawling with during the party. Of course Corrin had seen it happening, but it had already turned into such a mess that more people getting involved seemed like a bad idea. Poor Callie, a fight breaking out was probably the last thing they expected would happen.

"Do you mean Master Darin? What exactly happened, if you don't mind me asking?" The smith had wanted to have it out with the attendants when they all arrived, but Corrin had been able to talk him down from that.

She puts the tea down, and rises. Maybe it's just that Gold Ship is shivering a bit or Corrin just remembers her being put on ice, but there are some blankets left around the common room, so she takes one, unfolds it and then gently drapes it over the horsegirl. Hopefully that helps her feel a bit better.

[goldship]

The immediate reaction is for her ears to twitch and Gold Ship to scoff. 'Master' Darin? That jerk!? The only thing he's a master for is pissing Gold Ship off and making her look bad in the process, next time she sees him she hopes she has her cleats o-

You can only stay so angry when there's suddenly a really nice blanket suddenly on top of you. Gold Ship proceeds to shift, or rather, roll in place. What could easily be mistaken for belligerent flailing is actually a calculated maneuver to self burrito herself in the warm fluffiness.

It also has her looking up at Corrin, as she comes to a rest on her back, Gold Ship's ears giving another little flick.

"Thanks..."

She actually has a rare moment of humility here! Maybe it's that Corrin just kinda radiates class, like a lot of the people here do actually. Whatever the case it gives Golshi pause before going on what she was sure was a fully justified rant.

"He was a jerk." She says with a huff of a sigh. "Kinda got into it over a slice of meat. Honestly, I was kinda playin', but then he went and got me banned from the food... so I kicked him."

[bladeofconquest]

Corrin returns the thanks with another smile. "My pleasure. Ice magic really is the worst isn't it; the chill really stays with you." At least it does when you're on the wrong end of a Fimbulvetr spell or Ice Tribesman's weapon.

She settles back into her chair while Golshi snuggles up. Ah, so that's what it was...a fight over food. "I think Master Darin isn't quite happy about being here just yet." She says. That was definitely the impression she got from talking to him in the greenhouse. "So he was probably on edge and might not have realized you weren't being serious at first."

She takes a sip of her tea. "It might be worth it to go find him later and just clear the air a little. You're bound to bump into each other again, and you might just keep fighting otherwise."

Actually given how ready Darin was to get into it with the attendants, he and Gold Ship might not be all that different in some respects.

[goldship]

If Gold Ship had a five yen coin for every red eyed tapered eared gal who told her she probably took things with this 'Darin' guy too far she'd have ten yen. Which isn't a lot but it's weird that this hyper specific criteria has happened twice.

"Ugh, but he suuuuuuuuucks!" Not doing much to help her case is the fact she's straight up whining and squirming belligerently in her comfy little burrito. This is extremely immature behavior and Gold Ship's very aware of it, but she just doesn't. Care. She's entitled to a little whining, she got thrown into a soup table! And frozen!

She finishes though, letting out a huff and a muttered "Guess I'd suck more if I didn't try though. Damn it..." GRUMP, her ears pin back at the thought and she decides to rapidly change the subject. "So you're used to the whole magic thing, Roomie?"

[bladeofconquest]

Sorry Golshi, Corrin can't help but raise her hand to her mouth as she mopes and whines all wrapped up cozy in that blanket, and suppresses a small laugh. "Well, maybe sleep on it first and see how you feel in the morning once you've had a good night's sleep." Ooooh and sleep is starting to sound real good. There's a bed in these barracks starting to call to her.

But not just yet. "That's right. My kingdom has many sorcerers. Most of my family can use magic of some kind, but it's really my little brother and sister who are the magical prodigies." She smiles fondly and takes another sip.

"My name's Corrin. It's lovely to meet you. Actually, can I ask you a question?" The horse ears have not escaped Corrin's notice and they remind her of the Wolfskin from back home, and their unique abilities. She leans forward towards Gold Ship with interest.

"Can you transform?"

[goldship]

Getting other people to laugh is one of Gold Ship's greatest joys, really. Even in a circumstance that has her in an otherwise grumpy mood, that sound suppressed as it may be gets her ears perking up happily. Ears that listen keenly as Corrin offers her explanation.

Ah, another big sister type huh? Seems like there's a lot of older siblings around here. And this one's from some sorta magic kingdom of her own huh? Means she's got a leg up on everyone else as far as adjusting goes, probably. Lucky and interesting! That's the kind of thing she'd like to compare notes on later, when she's not still vaguely cold and wanting to kick some blue haired jerk in the head a few more times.

"Gold Ship, nice to meet ya too."

She pauses to shift around some more, basically inchworming herself up into a sitting position without unraveling her blanket cocoon.

"M'pretty good at switching outfits quick for concerts, but that's not what ya mean I bet." She laughs lightly at her own humor, then goes on. "Shapeshifting, transforming, magic, that's all fictional stuff where I'm from. Umas like me are just a different sorta person from humans. We're faster and tougher, but nothing super fancy."

She shrugs, that's really all there is to it from her perspective. Which is kind of wild, when she thinks about it, umamusume like her are incredibly mundane where as this entire magic thing is mind blowing. But for someone like Corrin here the opposite could be true!

"I'm guessing you're used to people that can do the whole shapeshifting bit yourself though, ain'tcha?"

[bladeofconquest]

Gold Ship...what a delightfully unique name. It seems to suit this young woman, this "umamusume" quite well, actually. "Ah, I see, I see." It's just like Akane telling her wyverns don't exist on her world. Her eyebrows do raise slightly though. "Concerts? You're...a Songstress?" Then she shakes her head. Right, she should explain why she asked.

"There are people sort of like you back home, who have animal features. The tribe I know call themselves the Wolfskin, and they live on a mountain near Nohr's borders. But if they use a special kind of gem called a Beaststone, they can take on a much more animalistic form. Bigger, stronger." Though it kind of sounds like like the umamusume don't need Beaststones, they just are faster and stronger than humans. "I just wondered if it was similar for you."

"So yeah, just a little." Corrin adds, taking a sip of her tea. As she does so, she lets her dragon tail slip out, letting it run across the couch and dangle over the armrest. She doesn't need her Dragonstone for something small like that.

[goldship]

Songstress? That's... incredibly fancy, actually, she kinda likes the sound of it. Maybe she should be introducing herself as 'champion racer and songstress' instead of idol? But that's not NEARLY as interesting as everything else Corrin says. Gold Ship finds herself leaning forward the more the other girl talks, ears at full attention.

That. Sounds like honest to goddesses werewolves. Mountain werewolves! THAT'S SO COOL...? Kind of a bummer needing a magic rock to turn on your full physical potential though, she can't imagin- that's a tail.

That's a tail with scales. Scale tail, tail scaled. Gold Ship's Staring, she can't help herself.

"Y-yeah... a little I guess? Cept for the whole magic thing, and the gem thing, and the 'animalistic' thing. Umamusume just look like this, heck, we barely age."

STARING. TAIL. TAIL. She has to ask. Corrin wouldn't have been so obvious if she wasn't expecting her to ask, right?

"So uh... cute tail ya got there." NO. WRONG. "What's the story there?"

[bladeofconquest]

"Really?" Okay, longevity was not something she was expecting to hear. "So...would it be rude to ask how old you can get?" Is Golshi actually secretly over a thousand years old, thus making it okay to S-Support her? Wolfskin and Kitsune age like humans do, at least as far as Corrin knows.

"Hmm?" Corrin coyly pretends not to notice how entranced Gold Ship actually is by the appearance of her tail. "Oh, you mean this? Thank you." The tail flicks slightly at the compliment.

"I'm a dragon." Sip.

[goldship]

"You're a dragon."

Dragons, dragons and umas. There's something clever you can say here Gold Ship, think. There's the story of St. George and his uma companion who slew the dra- no. Okay what about that statue at the race track in America? Of the winged umamusume stomping on the drago- nope. Was there a uma on the crew of the Argo when they found the Golden Fleece? There was a dragon there-- they killed that dragon too.

"Cool." Yup that's about all she's got for now (Do dragons like spicy food? can they bond over spice...)

ENTIRELY AWARE OF HOW LAME THAT WAS Gold Ship coughs awkwardly, her ears turning in opposite directions more like a donkey than a horse.

"Well uh, upper limit? M'not sure, really? My old man's pretty up there but looks younger than me. Then there's the Prez..."

The answer appears to just be Yes (The three goddesses are still running around somewhere, apparently, but Golshi doesn't know that.)

"We stick around for awhile, I guess. Probably doesn't seem like much to a dragon though."

[bladeofconquest]

"Well. I can turn into one." Corrin offers. "To go the whole way I'd need my special stone, though. And it's already in my room." Trying to go full dragon without her Dragonstone would be a very bad idea. Lots of collateral damage. Her tail swishes again, hanging off the edge of the couch.

"Little things like this are fine, though." She smiles. "Thank you. You're the first person I've actually shown this off to here, you know." Feel lucky, Golshi. You have been shown great favour. "All my family has dragon blood, but I'm the only one who can do this." And she has no idea why, and at this point, probably never will. It's a mystery she's more or less resigned herself to never solving, since Azura...went away.

"Oh, you never know." Corrin looks down at her tea idly. "I don't really what to expect on that front." Old stories said dragons were long-lived; their lives were measured in thousands of years. And clearly, the dragon blood in Corrin is stronger than that of her siblings. "So much of this is unknown to me." And it's not a thought she enjoys entertaining, the idea that she will have that span of time...and her family will not.

"...Is it hard?" She asks, hesitatingly, after a moment. "To live so long among people who don't?"

Well, that certainly brought the mood down, but Gold Ship might actually be someone who understands this fear and can help Corrin with it. Help her...prepare for it, if that's something she needs to do.

[goldship]

An entire family of dragons and only one of them who can actually do the whole, dragony thing, a regular prodigy kinda situation. Gold Ship's trying to put together all of the information Corrin's given her to form a clear picture of the situation she comes from when she goes and throws a curve ball at her.

That... is not something she likes to think about. Most of her life up to this point Golshi's just focused on doing what she wants and having fun, damn the consequences and certainly damn thinking too far into the future. She's never really stopped to consider the fact that she'll likely outlive... all the human staff at Tracen. Trainer will probably be the first person she knows to go, besides his age the man's not exactly good at self preservation.

"Heh, you uh... don't ask the easy questions, do ya?"

She tries to find a joke in here but there's just nothing. With a sigh Golshi extracts herself from the blanket and adopts a more serious seating position, her hands resting on her knees. She'd rather hide behind her grin and be ridiculous but honestly? This isn't the time or the place anymore.

"I don't know. The Prez was wrappin' up her career when I was a kid, she's probably the oldest at the academy, and she seems... fine, I guess? She's always focused on her work though, so maybe not the best example."

A pause as she rubs the back of her neck and sits up straighter, sighing.

"M'not gonna lie to ya, I haven't lost anyone, heck I'm not even in my twenties yet. I have no idea how other umas manage it, but me? I just try not to think 'bout it."

[bladeofconquest]

Corrin smiles at her apologetically. "Sorry, no. I didn't mean to get into it, it's just..." It's just that ever since learning about her dragon abilities, she's been low-key terrified that she'll outlive everyone she loves and she doesn't know how to deal with that, and her powers only manifested so recently it's impossible to know how they'll affect her aging. In another decade, maybe she'll have enough proof, if she continues to get visibly older, continues to age. Dragons were said to be ageless, after all. But if she still looks as she does now when she's thirty, then that will be cause for concern.

Uma apparently have to deal with this to, so Corrin went and put her foot into it. But it seems Gold Ship deals with it the same way Corrin does; by actively not thinking about it. Older uma, if this "Prez" she mentions is any indication, focus on their work.

"I understand. And thank you for telling me that, Gold Ship. I know I was asking something personal." And they did like, just meet.

After a moment, she looks up and she's smiling again. "Well! No sense dwelling on it or I'll just bring down what is turning out to be a lovely evening getting to know someone. I'm glad the blanket is helping." Gold Ship really wrapped herself up nice and tight in there. Looks cozy.

[goldship]

"H-hey, hey, no need to apologize!"

Gold Ship raises her hands and waves that off. A normal person probably shouldn't be the one feeling bad in to be apologized to for such a thing but this is Gold Ship and she is nothing if not dedicated to sacrificing her own physical, mental, and emotional health for that of those around her.

"I get it. I'd ask too if I was.." Realization. Dragon blood runs in her family she says, but she's the only one that can transform like that. She's... Goddesses, she's going to have to watch her family grow old and die around her isn't she? That's just cruel, cruel and cold. Gold Ship hates that.

No good, mood plummeting to ⬇AWFUL, gotta fix this. Back on goes the mask of the happy-go-lucky Golshi, whirlwind of chaos who keeps everyone laughing and off balance with her antics.

No warning, no asking for permission. Gold Ship gets to her feet and moves to join Corrin on her couch, flipping the blanket up and over so by the time she plops down on the cushion next to Corrin (Minding the tail, off course), the blanket is over both their shoulders.

"SO! M'a 'Songstress', apparently, we figured that out. What do you do? Or is dragon girl a full time career?"

Never take anything too seriously for too long, that's the true healthy way to cope. it's not.

[bladeofconquest]

It's nice to hear Gold Ship be sympathetic. At least she understands where Corrin is coming from, the fear that's been living inside her that right now Corrin can mostly ignore, but wonders how long that will be possible for.

Still, the horse girl standing up, abandoning her Cocoon of Cozy and then coming up and draping both of them in the blanket as she sits down, was not a gesture Corrin was expecting. As Gold Ship settles in next to her, Corrin giggles and tugs the blanket more tightly around her shoulder.

Goodness, those are some arm muscles. She's quite breathtaking, and not just because of the horse features.

"There's a song I could try teaching you sometime if you want." Corrin says when Gold Ship once again uses the term Corrin gave her with pride. "It's one of my favourites, actually." She takes a sip of her tea.

"No, no it's not, but...hmm." She was a soldier, but she's happy to leave that behind. She's currently helping Xander with a lot of diplomatic work, which is satisfying, but will probably not last once Nohr's new king settles into his reign. Some sort of administrative role for her to settle into?

"Truth be told, I'd really like to be an architect." Corrin tells her, staring up into Gold Ship's eyes with unabashed sincerity. "The idea of building things appeals to me very much."

[goldship]

"Heck if you're willin' to teach I'm willin' to learn! The more songs I know the fresher my Winning Concerts are."

A giggling dragon. Damn why is that so cute?! Even without the dragon part Corrin's got plenty going on, nice hair, a body she's clearly keeping in good condition. Those eyes too! It's not even the color (though that's striking), it's the genuineness there.

The blanket was a good indicator but those eyes? Corrin's the kind of person you can trust, Gold Ship's sure of it, which is... kind of a relief. With all the magic, multiple worlds, and what not flying around here it's nice to know she's sharing what amounts to a dorm with someone like that.

Gold Ship's been staring. It takes her a second to realize that, blinking rapidly and quickly glancing away.

"Architect', huh...?" She takes a breath to rally, return to eye contact, and plaster her smile back in place. Nothing amiss here, she was NOT getting distracted. "Dang, talk about building a legacy. Literally."

She laughs at her own joke. Clear, mirthful energy that puts the honesty back into her smile.

"If you ever wanna show off some designs I wouldn't mind lookin' over your shoulder sometime."

[bladeofconquest]

"Then consider it a date!" Corrin laughs again lightly. "I think I saw a piano in the Salon earlier, give me some time to try and write up some sheet music and make sure I remember the lyrics correctly and we can get started." Corrin doesn't really have to accompany Gold Ship on piano while she sings Azura's song, but wouldn't it be nicer if she did?

She also meant that it would be a date in the platonic sense of the word, but as soon as it comes out of her mouth, Corrin feels a weird sort of shivering run down her body about the idea of her and Gold Ship on a "date". Hopefully the Umasume didn't notice. But she's exuberant, friendly (incident with Darin notwithstanding and it kind of seems like that was an issue that just got a little out of hand) and...she does have nice arms.

Actually, all of Gold Ship is quite nice.

So, luckily, Corrin's attention is a little split and she doesn't fully clock that Gold Ship is staring at her while she contemplates the idea of the two of them on a date. It's the architect talk that snaps her back.

"Hmmm? Oh, yes, yes, it rather is, isn't it?" She laughs. "I just like the idea of building things people need and can use. Like a library. Or a school." Enough breaking down, Corrin would rather spend the rest of her life—however long that might be—building things up. Making things better.

That smile and energy really is infectious, though. "I'd be happy to. But I'm still mostly just reading theory and trying to get my bearings. I haven't actually tried producing any designs yet. But when I do, you'll be the first one I bring them to, Gold Ship."

[goldship]

"A piano, huh? Not my first rodeo with that, they use one in class. Winning Concerts tend to be more pop than classy, but the lounge singer vibe's always seemed pretty fun."

Not making a comment about the 'date' thing? Did she not catch it? Is Gold Ship entirely so laid back that she takes it for the casual harmless thing it is? These are the questions Corrin will be left with as the horse girl is seemingly deep in thought on music, entirely missing that Corrin is now doing the staring.

Her ears twitch as a sign she's coming back to reality. "Heh. The first one, huh? You must really like me."

She leans back into the sofa, crossing her legs, hands folding behind her head. The unfortunate side effect of this is the blanket falls off her shoulders, but she's keen enough to make sure it stays on Corrin's. She's a gentleman. Kinda.

"Shoulda expected it though, after makin' a date with a gal ya just met." Okay so scratch the gentleman thing. She flashes Corrin a playful smirk and even a wink to go along with it, her own confidence building as the Unsinkable mask of hers cements itself in place. "You've got guts. I like that."