monolike | IC CONTACT

I'm pretty sure most food isn't supposed to do that.

Do you have any backup blood supply you can use, and see if you feel any different? We don't exactly have any locals to question this time around, so we should be careful.

Thankfully, yeah. I've got some raptor blood left, so I'll switch for the time being.

I'm not sure if any hypothetical locals would know. In my experience, "vampire" isn't a universal species.

Maybe not, but whether you're eating the meat or drinking the blood, you're still consuming the same animal as I am, aren't you? You're not all that different.

[Akhi....

Stefan's so glad this isn't video. He's sorta-kinda tearing up right now.]

I never thought about it like that.
Thanks, Sorey. :)

I'll get some bloodwork down RN and let you know what I find. In the meantime, try not to eat anything raw or rare.

You got it! ( ᐛ )و

Oh also, Stefan, if you have a minute could we meet up? There's something I'd like to discuss.

Sure thing. Where would you like me to meet you?

Would the Interfaith Center be okay?

More than okay. I'll have your usual cup of tea ready. :)

[ah geez] Thanks, Stefan.

[It takes Sorey some time to get over there, but he doesn't keep Stefan waiting long. He jogs up the hallway before stopping just at the entrance, unbuckling his boots and leaving them at the door and heading over to the cushions to greet him.] Hey, morning.

[Stefan glances up from his journal (he'd been writing, as usual), gesturing for Sorey to join him.]

Morning, Sorey. [He grins, curling his legs up under him and setting his work aside so that he can bring a tray of tea forward. At this point, preparing tea might as well be one of Stefan's superpowers - and he even has biscotti to go with them.] How's it going?

[Sorey doesn't even know where Stefan found honey, but he's always got it there when Sorey takes his tea with him.] Honestly? Really great. Mikleo is feeling much better, and I even slept through the whole night a couple days ago! [He adds honey to what's probably already fairly sweet tea.] You okay? Aside from the weird poet spells.

[He stockpiles honey!! Or, more realistically, the vast majority of his credits go towards food whenever they're planet-side (thanks Spirit faction).]

I'm glad to hear it. [He reaches for his own cup - black tea with some powdered milk - and takes a sip.] Yeah, I think so. I'll check on the bloodwork tonight, see if it's the planet or the animals or maybe even me. It's too soon to tell.

It's not you, [Sorey tells him with all the confidence in the world. Not that he has grounds for that confidence, but because he doesn't want it to be true so it isn't.

Wow dang this tea is good. Sorey's only been an on-and-off tea drinker since he's usually too preoccupied to brew any for himself, but Stefan makes this stuff dang good.]

[Stefan stifles a laugh. God, he wishes he had half the faith in himself that Sorey does.]

We'll see by the end of the day. [He holds his cup in both hands,] So uh, what'd you wanna talk to me about?

[And this is where Sorey turns red, something that doesn't happen very often at all. He sets down his tea and shifts to kneel on the cushion properly, hands clenched in his lap.]

Well, I've just...I've been thinking. Do you remember, akhi, in the clinic, when I said I had nothing to call you in return?

Of course.

["I wouldn't want to forget that day." Stefan sits up a little straighter, his shoulders tensing as if he's bracing himself for the worst. He can't imagine that Sorey would rescind the nickname so soon, but he's not sure where this is going either.]

Did you find something you wanted to call me?

It's- well, I've- [He takes a deep breath, scrubbing his hands through his hair and fidgeting.] Um, so, back home, when a Shepherd takes on a Squire, they give them a True Name in the ancient tongue. -ah, I'm not asking you to be my Squire! That would be- it wouldn't work out, I don't think, for either of us.

But. I was thinking, a True Name is like...for seraphim and Squires, it's something a Shepherd can call them to- to show a certain level of trust, and familiarity and intimacy. [Ducks his head. Oh Lords his face is going to burn right off.] So I could come up with a name for you if that's okay...

[Y'Allah.]

More than okay.

[He sets his tea aside, just so he can reach out for Sorey's hand, or barring that, place his hand on the kid's shoulders. This is by far the kindest, sweetest thing anyone's ever offered him, and he's been around a while.]

Is there uh, is there a special process or anything I have to do?

[Absolutely holding hands. This is nice and anchoring. That look on Stefan's face helps a lot too; Sorey had worried it would seem presumptuous.]

Ah, no no. -well, actually it might help me find a translation for your given name if I knew its meaning.

Oh, um... [He has to think about it for a moment.]

Stefan means "crown or garland," and Alesci means "defender." My other last name, Salvatore, means "savior." As for my middle name... Yunus means "dove." Or well, it technically means dove, it's also the name of a prophet from the Qur'an.

[wtf that is so many names]

Stefan, are you royalty?

Not even close. My parents were wealthy, but most people traditionally have three names.

[so many...what......even alisha only has two and she's a princess...............]

Hmmm...well. I think for a good translation for your name- probably something like Seirend, or Hauveth. For the other part... [Peers curiously at Stefan before blushing and looking away again.] To be honest, I'd had this part picked out a long time ago. Nathyurec. Seirend works better for the grammar, so...

So how about Seirend Nathyurec? It means, uh, 'Stefan of the Gentle Heart.' Or, uh, since 'Seirend' isn't a direct translation of your name it'd be more like, "Victorious is the Gentle Heart."

Edited 2016-11-20 07:34 (UTC)

[Stefan's quiet for a couple of seconds, pulling his legs closer to his chest.] Sounds perfect.

[It also sounds too good to be true, because him? Gentle-hearted? Sorey hasn't seen his true face, or his true powers or - or the part of him he likes to keep under lock and key. He just hopes that if that day ever comes, he still deserves the name.]

Thank you. You put a lot of thought into this, didn't you?

[Stefan's face definitely doesn't say that he thinks it's perfect but Sorey just smiles to himself, not offended, and mirrors Stefan's posture.]

I tried to. I'm not a seraph so I can't speak from experience, but from what I've heard, True Names don't always seem like they fit. My Gramps told me, sometimes a True Name is a goal, or what the heart cries out for, or even how other people see someone. Nobody really knows how it's decided what it'll be.

[He remembers what you told him in the clinic, dude. That definitely weighed heavily in his decision.]

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