open 🪶 the world owes me a debt, and i've come to collect.

[garudas]

Who: Benedikta Harman & you.
Status: Open.
Where: All around.
What: Oops, all MANTA stuff. And a not-date with Cid.
Warnings: FFXVI spoilers, foul language, suggestive content. The usual.



🗡️ i. bite-sized blessings

[Apparently, Benedikta's ears are looking quite delectable to one small, pink dragon today. This is why she hates Eltrut—half the time she comes here, no, a majority of the times she comes here, there is always something. A goose, a conning healer who sends her out to do his grocery shopping... Today, it is a small pink dragon that has bitten her ear and tries to do it again. She's attempted to swat it away, walk it off, but no matter how fast she moves, it follows her and nips at her, or finds joy in playing with her hair.

Fool her once, shame on her. Fool her twice—]

You little brat!

[—it's managed to grab at her hair, and it pulls, before swooping away from her grappling hands with a chirp, as if it thinks this is some sort of game!?

Someone please help this woman. Or this dragon. She has yet to hear all about how this thing is meant to be returned to Elah, so if you are looking for said pink dragon, here it is.]

🗡️ ii. a steamy winter heist

[It was the exorbitant prices that drew Benedikta to the job first. The black market was always open, and she was always willing. Call it doing someone else's dirty work, if it put a good sack of coin into her pocket, then who is she to complain? Besides, it's not as if stealing something off a ship in the dead of night was difficult—she's done it dozens of times before.

The fact that it was a special sort of tea was only a bonus, so of course she would pocket some for herself... Maybe a handful. Or maybe a whole crate if she could get away with it.

Now, that is the question, isn't it?]

༄ a. getting to the ship. [Perhaps it is your lucky night and Benedikta is feeling somewhat charitable. Charitable enough that she is willing to use anyone she finds as a decoy while she sneaks in to steal the goods. Of course, she isn't about to say as much, as she stands on the docks and stares out to the merchant ship coming into the shore, its lights blinking against the darkening sky.

She has her pipe between her teeth as she almost always does before a job like this, letting the smoke swirl on her tongue before letting it billow outward.]

So, that there is the ship? [She scoffs.] She is certainly impressive.

[As large as a rich, black-market-selling merchant's ship should be. Which is why she's agreed to a "two-person" job.]

༄ b. caught red-handed. [Or, maybe she wasn't feeling so charitable.

As if being caught matters all that much to her. She's in the middle of making off with a whole crate—and the last one, too; people have been busy—of these tea bags (there must be hundreds of them in here) when she hears footsteps coming. She hardly flinches, if at all, and stands there with it tucked haphazardly under her arm while she stares the other person down with a smile before she tosses her head back.

Yep. You saw right. A whole box.]

Sorry. As they say, the early bird and all. A shame you came all this way only to come out empty-handed, but try again another night.

[There may have been a threat underlining her voice somewhere.]

🗡️ iii. poke 'n prance

[Well, at the very least, being paired up with Benedikta for a challenge like this cannot get any better... or worse than this, depending on who you ask. Having a history of torturing others means that she knows exactly where to put the sword and how much pain it will inflict. After all, when fishing for information, it is best to poke and prod it out of someone, and you can't very well gain much from a dead person, now can you?

Which is why she walks up with her own sword in her hand with all the confidence and arrogance of a pretty peacock, her fingers caressing the sharp edge of her blade, from hilt all the way to its jagged tip.]

Now, pay close attention to where I stick you because we can only do this once. Perhaps twice, if you can withstand it.

[She smiles, so sweet and saccharine and sarcastic.]

So, consider this a valuable lesson.

🗡️ iv. coins of the crescent

[Well. What she thought would be a nice, peaceful ride out to this island to fetch some coins turned out to be... well, everything but. It had been fine for the most part, but as the island came into view through the fog, things had started to tip and tip and tip until everything went fucking tits up.

Not only did the crew start to howl and turn rabid, much like those stupid wolves she can hear in the distance, but so did the captain, and now the ship is wayward on the seas at the behest of the waves. Fortunately, she can use the winds to guide them true, but it will take a little more concentration than what she can afford as she drives her sword into the shoulder of one infected crew that lunges at her with what could only be thought of as a kitten's claws.

Don't worry, that won't kill him, but it will send him reeling to the ground wailing in pain, and she kicks him in the gut to quiet him.

Whoever might be standing near her, she will shout at them with no shortage of rage in her voice as she gives her sword a brandish, the blood spraying from her blade.]

Might anyone spare a moment to take care of them while I attempt to not crash this fucking ship!?

[Must she do everything!?]

🗡️ v. untitled goose bounty 2

[Well, this is certainly not what she was expecting to see when she arrived on Eltrut, or tried to. She'd heard sounds from above across the ship's deck first—the worried shouts of the crew and riftfarers alike. Benedikta had been enjoying the peaceful ride in her cabin aboard the Stormbringer, and had half a mind to ignore the noise and go right back to sleep...

...

Until she hears something else.

The loud, low, rumbling sound of a... honk?

Something visceral shatters through Benedikta's whole body then, forcing her to sit up when the flashbacks of those eight-headed geese attacked her not even a month ago. She rushes to her feet and then out the door, shoving people out of her way as she storms up to the deck where she beholds—]

You've got to be fucking kidding me.

[—an eight-headed(?) goose large enough that it could peck out Eltrut's eye.

Much, much larger than she recalls it being.

And she is pulled out of her reverie only by the sounds of magitech cannons being blasted off.]

I see it's come back for another taste.

🗡️ vi. wildcard

[None of these prompts work for you? Want to do something that isn't from the MANTA board? Feel free to hit up my plotting comment, or via plurk @ crystariums! I'm also around on the game discord, and PM works, too! Also open to texts/bottled messages!]

Comments

[ramuhs]

[He just gives her his smug grin before picking her up in his arms and then lunges upward. It takes a few leaps given the height and distance, but to the very top where a decent sized crow's nest sits does he finally stop, the aether disappearing as he sets her down.

Already they can feel the cool wind, the scent of the sea carried with it.]

[garudas]

[Well, she didn't think they would go up, so there's another surprise added to the growing list of many tonight. The heat crackles all around her, the scent of his ozone filling her head and the feel of it clinging to her skin, and it lingers still even after he sets her down... on this crow's nest high above the rest of the ship. It had all happened so quickly—as it tends to with him—that she didn't realize where she was standing until he placed her feet upon it, and she could look out to see the vast ocean on one side, and the pier on the other.

And up above, the stars and the moon.

Her lips part in a quiet, subdued gasp, but no less surprised, and all of that mock pride and teasing have all but faded, as if swept away by the cool breeze.]

Well.

[She's a touch breathless after a few beats of silence.]

You've certainly outdone yourself with this one, Cidolfus.

[ramuhs]

Told you.

[He leans back against the railing, grinning as he watches her.]

And it can be all yours, free to do as you like.

[It's such a simple thing, really. No glam no glitter, nothing elaborate at all. But that's because he knows—when it comes to something like this, all she wants is a place to rest and be herself for a bit. A place to stretch her legs, look out on the horizon, feel the wind, and be above it all.]

[garudas]

[For once, she wouldn't need anything fancy or elaborate. Something simple would do just fine, and this is exactly that. A place high up, away from all the noise, where she could just be with the wind.

She huffs a soft laugh, fingers running over the polished wood rail before they curl around it. She lifts herself up, hoists her legs over it, and sits.]

Clever trick. Still trying to get me to join, are you?

[ramuhs]

Caught me.

[A cheeky click of his tongue and wink as he moves to lean against the railing next to her.]

Our arrangement... Is good for you, true. It would be good for you to strike out on your own, make a terrifying name of yourself.

But.

[He looks up at her, his expression a touch softer.]

You will always find a place here for you. Wherever we are, whenever you want it. It can be your home, too.

[He can be. But of course that's still too much too soon, so for now, he just wants her to know she has a place to rest her weary wings...and hope she knows the deeper sentiments behind it.]

[garudas]

[Home, he says... As if finding such a thing were so easy. It was never that simple. Not for her.

Home was never a place for her. Never a warm bed, nor four walls, or a roof over her head. It was never a city or a town. It was not even in the skies with her wings spread as wide as they could go.

Her home was always him, and that is something she's only just come to remember again here in this world, six years later. It was always in his arms wrapped as tight around her as they could go.

And he is getting just a touch too sentimental for her that not even the winds could cool her off. She can feel the way his gaze softens. Can feel how it burns through her. She doesn't dare look at him beyond that glance she ventures through the corner of her eye before she's focusing on the moon again.

But she takes his hand and pulls, gently, signaling for him to come closer, and whenever he obliges, she will bring it to her waist, setting it down and making him go the rest of the way around her.]

You drive a hard bargain, Cidolfus.

[Her own voice has gone softer.]

No wonder you've so many under your wings now.

[ramuhs]

[He follows her signal, moving to stand more behind her as his arm wraps around her waist and his chin is against her shoulder as he releases a quiet laugh that seems to linger in the wind.]

Maybe so.

[Yet there is one who still refuses to take shelter, or even want to hold his wing. And no matter how many he may take in...there is still only one he wants.]

[garudas]

[She raises a brow at his answer, those unspoken words of his hanging in the air, anything but quiet in that laugh he releases upon the winds.]

So long as this place remains my own, I suppose... I could look over my options again.

[What options, she reminds herself. There are no other options. She's stuck in this world with no place to return to, no life to return to... Barnabas is gone, and she isn't so sure that she deserves a chance to strike out on her own, no matter how easily she could.

Slowly, her hands move from where they're curled over the railing to wrap over his instead, her fingers slotting lazily with his.]

... At least the view isn't shit from up here.

[ramuhs]

Be even better when on the open seas, hm?

[Just continues in a quiet, languid voice as he stares out beyond her, threading his fingers more firmly with hers.]

And once we're going at a full clip, even you might have trouble hanging on.

[Just a wry, joking grin. Of course she would be able to handle it.]

[garudas]

[She scoffs at him with a quiet laugh.]

You think so? How fast do you think your ship will move without the help of my winds?

[ramuhs]

[A quiet chuckle in return.]

Good question. We should try it sometime, see how it compares.

[garudas]

I very much doubt that it will compare. Very little can.

[With that, she leans all of her weight back against him so that she can slip her heels off and toss them over their shoulders carelessly onto the platform behind them.]

Well. I'll be the judge of it when we head back to Nogard in the morning. Your crew had best be ready to impress me just as much as you have tonight.

[And she doesn't just mean with the ship.]

[ramuhs]

[His hold on her tightens, and he can't help but smile in amusement at her careless toss of her heels. Honestly he's impressed they didn't go flying elsewhere.]

They're still getting the hang of things, so don't be too tough on them.

Can always just stay inside the cabin.

[His mouth teases her neck as he speaks.]

No need to come out.

[garudas]

You are too soft...

[She sighs, eyes closing and head tipping when his mouth grazes over her neck, but she forces him away moments later so that she can kick her legs back over, and in a single fluid motion, she's spinning back around to face him, thighs pinning him into place on either side of his hips.]

But you will stay with me then?

[ramuhs]

[Should he have seen this coming? He's not sure, but that momentary look of surprise fades I to a devious grin as his arms once more wrap around her, pulling her more up against him.]

Can't keep my "special treasure" lonely, now can I?

[garudas]

Your "special treasure"?

[How utterly cheesy that is, and while it makes her eyes roll a bit, it also makes her heart flutter in her chest, coming out in a lightly trembling sigh.]

No, I suppose not, lest she get bored and loses her lustre. [Her arms circle around his shoulders, so close now that their foreheads touch.] And may this treasure make a request?

[ramuhs]

[Yes it was very cheesy, but it also works to convey hidden meanings. So he just continues to grin as his voice lowers.]

And what would that be?

[garudas]

[She tips her head just so, their lips almost slotting together. Almost... but not quite.]

She could use a bit of a... polish.

[Not much better with the cheese.]

[ramuhs]

[There's a slight quirk of his brow before a low chuckle rumbles from his throat and his lips brush just barely against hers.]

Is there a certain kind she would prefer? Perhaps...

[And as his hands slide around her hips, slipping under his shirt so that she can directly feel that low, warm buzz of his levin at his fingertips.]

[garudas]

[Her body bends into that lightning, arching precariously over the edge of the platform, but that is just half the thrill of it all, as a cool wind blows past them, and her breathy laughter rides away on it.]

Mm, that... but why settle for one when she could have several different kinds?

[ramuhs]

And what other kinds would she like?

[Just slowly going to move his lips so that they are now more firmly brushing and pressing against her lower lip before descending a little more towards her jawline.]

[garudas]

[Before he can wander too far, she takes his chin between her fingers and drags him back, keeping him held firmly in place so that he can't roam or tease her anymore.]

I think you know, Cidolfus...

[And in that moment, there's something else that sparks within the hidden depths of her eyes. Not just a want or a desire, or even a need... It's something simpler than that. Or perhaps deeper, depending on who he asks. Words unspoken but words that she has been meaning to say all the same since they lay in his bed in his quarters together.

And while she doesn't dare utter them, perhaps she can tell him another way.]

[ramuhs]

[...Ah.

He sees that something, and his own gaze deepens for a moment.]

Then no reason to wait any longer.

[And now it's his turn to turn things around, grabbing her firmly by one arm and lifting her up just enough to turn her around.]

[garudas]

[She had been just about ready to kiss him, leaning in far enough that her lips touch his, but—]

What are you—!?

[She's so surprised when he lifts and spins her that she actually stares at him over her shoulder, confused.]

[ramuhs]

[Just a dangerous, rogueish smirk as he reaches up to grab a handle attached to an overhanging rope, steps up onto the railing to sit next to her—]

I may not have wings.

[—grabs her tightly around the waist—]

But this is the next best thing!

[—and just pulls her down with him as he pushes off for that zipline drop.

Hope she's holding on.]