Dark Reign - RF - Walking in the snow

[Resonance]

Reson bobbed her head approvingly to the current song the DJ was playing.  The city had no idea (or maybe they did) how much they all needed this.  A chance to relax, a chance to celebrate, a chance to be a community, a chance to just... breathe.  There was so much work to do, so many people to mourn, so many lives to rebuild.  But for an afternoon, they could just unwind and let all the tension go.

There were moments during this unwinding process that emotions threatened to overwhelm her, and Aidan would catch a few tears in her eyes at times.  Everything they'd been through recently had been pushed down as much as possible so they could move forward and reach the end.  And now that they no longer had to be held down, they were bubbling up to the surface at unexpected times.  It was okay though, they both knew this was just part of the process.

She'd grabbed herself a hot cider (with a shot of bourbon) as they walked along the block.  She breathed in the spiced aroma with a smile, then shivered as a snowflake promptly landed on her nose.

[Aidan]

Aida's feelings were a mirror to Resonance's own. It felt like the first time he had been able to truly relax in months. There were so many reasons to celebrate - one of which was was currently sharing drinks with Elyas under a streetlamp, as Hardrive and Katt spent the night together close in one another's company. Aidan smiled at the sight, then turned his attention to Reson, sipping at his own hot cider (he had opted for a shot of rum in his).

Feeling her own relief move through him, see her lift he nose to the snow, and the smile play around her lips...

<I love you,> he seemed to say in her mind.

"You look beautiful tonight," he said out loud.

[Resonance]

The feeling was returned <I love you, too>. Reson smirked playfully, "sweet talker." She reached out and took his hand in hers, giving it a squeeze. "When was the last time we got to just go for a walk in the snow together?" Before he could answer, she followed quickly up with "we should go on more dates..." in a whistful, day dreamy kind of way, "...when we have time."

[Aidan]

Aidan grinned and returned the squeeze, then sipped at his drink. "I agree. I don't think we've gone on a proper date in ages. Gods, what even is time these days? I still feel kind of displaced, you know?"

He looked around at all of the Raiders, the food trucks, and their friends scattered amongst the crowd. Then he looked back at Resonance, forcing himself to be in the moment - they had spent far too long needing to keep their heads on a swivel. "Where would you like to go?"

[Resonance]

Reson sniffed the air, taking stock of whatever delicious aromas came her way.
"Oh, I smell something hot and cheesey... want to investigate? Then maybe I can steal you for a dance." Not that either of them really danced, but Aidan could tell she was feeling energetic. Though if she ate enough cheesey goodness and maybe another cider, she might be more inclined to just listen to the music.

[Aidan]

"Oh, definitely. I could go for something fried and greasy." Her sense of smell was definitely better than his, so he let her lead. The idea of a dance... that'd be nice, actually. It was weird to think of all the things that they were free to do, now that there wasn't some kind of crisis hanging over their head.

Well... no major crisis, at least. There was still the matter of a certain giant gemstone currently under Raider guard that would need some attention, at some point.

For now though, there was drinking and dancing, music and laughter - and time spent with the woman he loved. It was an hard-fought victory.

"I think I saw a cinnamon bun truck earlier too - we definitely need to hit that place up."

[Resonance]

"Heck yeah we do!" She lead him forward, pausing to sniff the air occasionally to zero in on the cheesey goodness. They passed a few food trucks before they arrived at a loaded fries truck. A heap of potatoes, drenched in hot cheese and your choice of toppings. They even had three different cheeses to choose from. "Oh gods, yes, I want this. Cheese and potatoes, please!"
She would very happily go into a food coma later. Once they were in the queue she asked, "does this look good to you, too? Or would you like something else?"

[Aidan]

"You think I'm going to give up on loaded fries for a salad?" Aidan asked incredulously, gently checking hi hip into her's. "This is great." He looked to the food truck, to the other people in line, the Raiders all casually moving about, relaxed... "...This is great," he repeated, feeling a warm glow of pride.

It was wild, going from fighting street crime when they weren't studying, flouting the laws of a corrupt system, to being actual Raiders who had saved the world. It reminded him of the final battle with Nicodemus, when Metropolis saw them for who they were. And now the entire world had seen what they could do.

They weren't just their parents' kids anymore. They were heroes in their own right.

[Resonance]

Reson chucked. She felt the swelling pride and comradery and reflected it back. This really was a well earned, much needed celebration. And there were so many Raiders and allies who deserved to be recognized. Sure, they didn't know everyone here, but that didn't matter! They always had each others' backs.

When they made it up to the truck, she bounced with excitement. "Ooo, yes, the cheese medly, please.
With bacon! And... some hotsauce on the top." She was practically drooling.

[Aidan]

"Wow," Aidan said with a chuckle. "I severely underestimated how hungry you were." He placed his own order - something a bit less of a gooey pile, but definitely with bacon. And some ranch dressing.

"How've you and Mei been feeling post-battle?" Aidan asked as they stepped aside to wait for their food. "I know Argus pushed us to our limits, and Mei was already feeling the pressure of Demandred's rule over the city."

[Resonance]

Reson grinned before diving into her fries - with a fork, because there was WAY too much cheese and toppings to eat with her fingers. When the conversation turned to Mei, she turned thoughtful. "I think she's actually handling it all pretty well. You know, there's still some distance between us... But weirdly, I think it's gotten better in this last push. I think if we can find the time, Mei and I should go on a holiday together. I think we could really use some sister time."

[Aidan]

"I think that'd be a good idea," Aidan said as he received his own order. "Get a chance to reconnect without Raiders business hanging over you. I... I have no idea how to handle what's going on with my family."

Aidan also grabbed a fork, if only for the sake of neatness. "With the Twins on the right side of the law now, and my dad being back, Hope and Eden able to be out and about around mom without any more hiding... It kind feels like there's been all this family drama just waiting to be unpacked."

[Resonance]

"Yeah... you all have a LOT to unpack, and lots of relationships to iron out. Maybe you all could use a family vacation, too? I just recommend staying in separate places, so there's quiet spaces to retreat to if things get too heavy."

Res frowned some then, "speaking of family... I wonder when mine is coming back. We haven't heard anything from them. Not like that's an easy thing, of course, just not knowing what's going on is difficult."

[Aidan]

Aidan nodded his agreement and glanced over at her as Resonance mentioned her family. "My dad knows a lot about planar physics, and we did see your mom and dad while we were on the Legacy. We might be able to take a trip to see how they're doing.

"Speaking of that, though... have you had any more weird dreams lately?"

[Resonance]

"Not recently... I'm thinking I should try to reach out to Asvalr again, though.
Now that I have time to focus on that connection." Reson gave an amused little snort/laugh, "I wonder if they were trying to 'give me space,' you know, what with everything here intensifying so much so fast, and them not wanting to follow Sohlehnn's bad example of 'come with me or die'." Ah, memories. "But I also haven't seen Biff in a while... which has me a bit concerned. But then again... him popping in and out randomly is pretty normal."

"Have you been able to communicate much with Tolaria since we got back?"