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[usedhuntersmark]

That's always a good sign, him being willing to work things through. Stop thinking about things failing before they've started. You'll only created a self-fulfilling prophecy.

If you showed up in something bespoke, he'd probably think you were hoping to get married. It's a bit early for that.

[pursuitofcappiness]

Oh god, that's way too early. I'm just hoping to make it through a first date.

And we used to fight, all the time. It's like we were having two different conversations, sometimes. But I wanna make this work.

Anyway, thanks.

[usedhuntersmark]

Steve, do me a favor tonight and remember to breathe and then think before you speak. I don't know much about Tony, but if you're calm, it'll help a great deal.

And you're welcome. 😘

[pursuitofcappiness]

Right. Okay, yeah. It'll be fine. We're just gonna get lunch, and I'm gonna see the lab.

What do you think. Poppies? Or carnations?

[usedhuntersmark]

Neither. Unless you're hoping for a funeral.

Azaleas are your best bet. A subtle hint at patience for the both of you.

[pursuitofcappiness]

I'll have to find them in red. Thanks!

text; un: scifo; later in october

[thinkfirst]

Hello, Vex!

Please open this only when Yuri isn't nearby!

[ And then a LOT of dots, just to make sure ]

Hopefully he can't see this. Sometimes he looks at my device when I'm typing, so I had to be sure. Have you made birthday cakes?

text | un: Lady Ranger

[usedhuntersmark]

[Vex is at the bakery when she receives Flynn's message, but lucky for him, she's in her small office going over a few orders and an invoice for goods they'll need for next weeks business.]

I'm in my office, Flynn, and Yuri's on his break, I think.

And yes, we've made birthday cakes before. Considering you don't want Yuri to see this, I have to assume that it's for him.

[thinkfirst]

Perfect. I knew you would understand! It is for him. His birthday is next month. Yuri wouldn't want something like a party, but I don't want it to go entirely unacknowledged, and he loves sweets. Is there such a thing as a cake with mousse or custard as part of it?

[usedhuntersmark]

Well, it's not terribly difficult to break down your purpose, Flynn.

Percy is the same way. He doesn't really like to celebrate his birthday either, but that doesn't mean we don't do *something* for him.

And, yes, there are plenty of custard cakes that can be made. He likes chocolate, yes?

[thinkfirst]

He likes chocolate and fruit best of all, I think. Combined in one. And he loves soft, squishy desserts. He's like a child, sometimes.

I understand, anyway. It's a little uncomfortable to be the center of attention that way. I don't like it, either.

[usedhuntersmark]

Hm, that might be something we can do. Do either of you know what a cheesecake is? I can make it chocolate and we can make a sauce out of fruit for him. It can be any size and it's soft and sweet.

I don't understand that at all. I like to be recognized for what I've done and on my birthday. Of course, on that day, I have to share all celebrations with Vax, so...

[thinkfirst]

I never even considered a cheesecake! Aren't they quite expensive?

It seems different, if you have a twin. I imagine that you'd be looking for some sort of separate recognition, right? Even just a little?

[usedhuntersmark]

Flynn, I own a bakery. I buy everything in bulk.

Vax and I are very different, even as we're very alike. I suppose that's normal for twins, but we've never met another set, so I couldn't tell you. And, well, we've always excelled differently, but our past is... complicated. Let's just say that we never got any recognition until we were nearly adults for anything we did.

[thinkfirst]

I can understand that. No one was really looking to give Yuri and I anything for our work, either. Mostly we were shot down or told to go home. It's frustrating, isn't it? I don't want accolades, but we at least deserved to be listened to about our own people. You and your brother deserve better, too.

[usedhuntersmark]

It's not quite the same with Vax and I. No one showed us even basic kindness, lest it reach others and they be treated badly as well. The elves of Syngorn are incredibly xenophobic and consider half-elves as filthy, dirty things.

I've seen other races treated better.

1 / 2

[thinkfirst]

Vex, that's awful!

2 / 2

[thinkfirst]

How long were the two of you living that way?

[ Before, maybe, he would have asked, didn't anyone think it was wrong? Why did no one stand up?

Flynn gets it, now. A lot of people are very scared, or too involved in their own lives, their own worries. It takes a lot of courage and a lot of smarts to stand up against what everyone else is doing, especially if it puts a target on you. ]

[usedhuntersmark]

[For a while, Vex considers to not answer that. However, a few people have already seen her memories, witnessed the abuse that she and Vax endured at the hands of their father.

And, eventually, she does respond.]

Six years. He took us from our mother's home at the age of ten and we left his home on our own at sixteen.

[thinkfirst]

Who? Who was allowed to do this to you?

[usedhuntersmark]

Our father, Syldor Vessar, Ambassador of Syngorn. The High Warden Tyrelda of Syngorn. Every full-blooded guard, noble and citizen of Syngorn, including the children.

We were stains upon his house. Stains that he hoped his blood would will out in and improve us to his stupidly high standards.

[thinkfirst]

[ In a way, perhaps Flynn should have known. People will be people, no matter where they are: they will find scapegoats, and those beneath them, and decide that those people aren't worth lifting up.

Still. That's so many people. He grits his teeth against the truth of it. ]

To say that I am sorry does nothing against what you have been through, but I'll say it all the same. I'm sorry. Someone should have been brave enough to stand up for you and your brother.

[usedhuntersmark]

[She now knows that most parents give a shit about their kids, but that was nearly never a thought that occurred to her when it came to Syldor and his treatment of her and Vax.

And it was an entire city against two half-elves who never asked to come to the city in the first damn place.]

Flynn, I appreciate your anger on my behalf, but I've come to a place where Syldor and Syngorn as a whole matter very little to my self-confidence. They exist and I wish them well. Our sister and stepmother are absolutely lovely and treat us well. So, there's hope that someday the Wood Elves will get their heads out of their collective asses.

Besides, we left and made our lives matter to ourselves and made a family with our friends.

[thinkfirst]

It seems that you're a better and more forgiving person than I am, in that case. I'm not sure I could simply wish them well, even after time had passed.

[usedhuntersmark]

That's because we left at sixteen and are nearly twenty-eight. And, honestly, I've learned to love myself without the need of anyone else. And, well, there are more people who love and accept me now that I don't need them.

Plus, they all owe me and my brother and Keyleth their lives and happiness. And there's a sort of petty pleasure I take in them owing three "dirty blooded half-elves". It's easy to be magnanimous with that in the back of my head.