[PP-F11] Do You Remember? <<Making Vows>>

[Telrenya 0]

Telrenya rolled over in bed. Artificial sunlight spilled through the curtains of hers and Jomei's bedroom and reminded them that it was time to wake up, to which she lazily pushed herself away from their brightness and instead pressed her forehead against the back of her fiance's neck. She had roused just enough to bring her mind to consciousness, though, and the inevitability of starting the day caused her to stir further, rubbing her eyes and inhaling deeply to let out a breathy yawn.

"Good morning..." She mumbled, curiously peeking her eyes open to see if Jomei showed any signs of waking as well. Sleeping in together sometimes felt like a luxury, so she usually savored the moments she was awake to enjoy it. Still, the upcoming plans that they shared tugged at her mind and caused an excitement to gently bubble inside of her. The couple had already postponed the details, not to mention the discussion of the details, for their wedding a handful of times already. Not for lack of wanting. Today, though, seemed like a nice day to fall in love again.

Telrenya would gently nuzzle against the back of Jomei's neck, gently nudging him awake if he was not already.

@Jomei

[Jomei 0]

The soft, gentle cadence of Telrenya's voice prodded through the still silence of the morning. Though his eyes remained closed, his lips curled into a smile, the feeling of his lover's forehead gently nestling into the nape of his neck brought joy to his heart. "Good morning to you too," he mumbled back, his voice still groggy from just waking up. The ginger's shoulders rose and fell with another deep breath through his nostrils before turning over onto his opposite side so he was face to face with Tel. As he finally opened his eyes, his smile widened. 

There was nothing on his agenda for the day, no preparations or questing that needed to be done. It almost felt like a lazy Sunday morning, with no work to be done and sleeping in was a luxury they could afford for once. However, even though the thought of doing absolutely nothing for the day seemed nice, Jomei had had enough days like that for a lifetime. 

His eyes dove into the deep, brown pools before him as they gazed back at him. Two fingers gently traced Tel's jawline until they rested just under her ear, and with a small bit of pressure applied, he motioned her face forward so he could place his lips upon her forehead. Returning the smile one last time, he shifted onto his back and swung his legs out from under the blanket. As his feet touched the floor, he reached his arms upward, bent at the elbows. With stretch to loosen his body after a good nights rest, he turned to look over his shoulder at the blonde behind him, "So, what do you want to do today?"

[Telrenya 0]

After his lips pressed against her forehead, Telrenya's smile widened and she wore a relaxed, loving expression for a long while. Even when Jomei pulled himself out of bed and presented her with such an important question, the thoughtfulness that crossed her features only interrupted her contentedness for but a moment. "Hmm..." She hummed and laid on her back, reaching her arms up past her head for a stretch of her own. She lingered in bed just a bit longer than Jomei, twisting a bit and propping herself up with an elbow.

"Well, I've been thinking..." She began, a textbook ominous line. The smile she still wore likely gave away her intentions, though, before she'd even fully explained. "We've talked about setting a date for the wedding... Why don't we just do it? Let's do all the planning today, together." There was an ambitious twinkle in her eye and a light dusting of pink on her cheeks.

Telrenya would finally crawl out of bed herself and walk to the dresser to pick out a change of clothes. A couple of newer pictures sat up in frames on top of the shelf among the earlier memory of Jomei, Lowenthal, and Piera. A 'photo' of several more faces caught her eye: a lively snapshot of their living room with decorative lights and a festive tree in the background, some of their friends and guildmates gathered around close and others visible in the background.

[Jomei 0]

Telrenya's words hung in the air for a few moments, the anticipation stirring up inside of Jomei as if he was waiting long minutes for her to continue her sentence. Her expression did not drop, however, so whatever it was that was on her mind was something that excited her, and most likely would leave Jomei feeling the same way. She expressed that she felt the two should take the day to plan their wedding and finally set a date. Of course, why hadn't he thought of that? They had been engaged for awhile now and mentioned finally tying the knot here and there. Of course, his responsibility as a frontliner always seemed to get in the way, but on a day like this with nothing to accomplish..

"Thats a great idea" the ginger responded, his smile widening into a grin. "We really have been putting it off a lot," a nervous chuckle escaped his lips as he pushed himself up off of the bed to a standing position. As Telrenya herself finally emerged from under the sheets, Jomei had begun changing his clothes for the day. A mundane task, thanks to the Cardinal system, Jomei's clothes changed from pajamas to his collared, sleeveless, green shirt. 

As he finished fixing the edges of his collar by pinching them with his thumbs and forefingers, he turned to look at Telrenya on the opposite side of the room. She seemed distracted from getting dressed by the array of pictures set up on the dresser. With a few short steps, Jomei walked up behind her and looked upon the printed photographs with his own eyes. Eying over the photo of the Holy Dragon Alliance as a whole, his smile faded. He had the thoughts of disbanding the guild on his own.. but he had not talked it over with Tel yet. 

With a deep breath in through his nostrils, he finally broke the silence, "I've been thinking about closing up the guild lately.." He took a few steps away from Tel, and leaned on his desk, looking towards the floor as he spoke. "Everyone's been distant.. we all kind of stopped talking after returning to that mansion. Teion said it best, everyone was shaken up a bit too much after it. Plus with Ruby gone I just... I just feel the guild has run its course." 

[Telrenya 0]

"Oh..." Telrenya was rarely the type to mask her emotions, and so the disappointment in her voice was clear, as was the sadness that followed. "Right... I understand." She turned slightly to look at Jomei. Her little smile was weak, but she tried using it to convey that the words were genuine. She opened her mouth, thinking to say a few words about their friend, but as she hesitated the thought was let out as simply a small sigh and she turned back to the dresser. She reached out and touched a smaller frame that held a picture of Ruby, holding the wooden edge gently between her fingers. "It was fun, I hope everyone else had a good time. Maybe we can still invite our friends over for the holiday again? It would be nice to check up on everyone." She thought aloud.

Taking her hand away from the photo frame, she tapped the top of the dresser with her index finger and pulled up the inventory menu where the couple kept their extra outfits. It was just starting to get colder in Taft lately, so she opted for a pair of dark-blue jeans and a plain white sweater. Telrenya instinctively checked herself in the mirror after the clothes were equipped to her, and smiled to Jomei through it with a little bit more gusto than her earlier melancholy expression. "So, should we head out soon?"

[Jomei 0]

Jomei was a bit relieved to see that Tel was doing somewhat better after learning of the passing of their oldest mutual friend. It still hurt both of them internally, and it always would, but the woman Ruby was.. she wouldn't want us to sit there and cry over her. Jomei closed the distance between himself and Telrenya again, placing a hand on her shoulder as he looked at the picture again as well. The frown faded to a weak smile again, reminiscing on the fun time they all had that night. "Yeah, I think that would be nice." Jomei just hoped they would be able to get in contact with all of their old friends, "And who knows. Maybe we will make some new friends to invite this year." he said with a small, but genuine chuckle. 

Once the blonde placed down the picture and began going through her extra outfits for something to wear, Jomei stood off to the side to allow her to do so. She had chosen to wear something a bit more casual, and fit for the crisp fall air. Jomei smirked, looking down at his own clothes that he always wore. "Maybe I should give something different a shot too." he remarked as he turned and began going through his own extra outfits. He chose instead to go out with a pair of brown pants, a long sleeved black shirt, and an olive green scarf- rather than the long cloak or coat he usually opted for. 

"Thats better." he said, turning back with a smile as he instinctually pushed his sleeved up to below his elbow. "I'm ready to go whenever you are... I think I've heard somewhere that we need to the cathedral on the first floor and speak to the pastor there." The ginger began to walk across the room towards the stairwell that lead to the first floor of their home. As he began to descend the stairs, he felt a grumble in his stomach. He turned to look at Telrenya, a bit of a sheepish look on his face, "Maybe afterwards we should grab something to eat." 

[Telrenya 0]

"Oh, good call." Telrenya chuckled. She reached her arms up over her head and gave one last stretch to wake up for the day before following after Jomei downstairs. The sound of their footsteps seemed to wake Adere, whose feathers ruffled as she began to stir. Telrenya stopped by her perch and offered the back of her forefinger to give the owl a couple of small strokes on her chest. "Good morning," She cooed to the familiar. "I wonder where Willow's been hiding, hmm?"

The ghostly familiar in question peered at them from the kitchen. The tall ovals of their pale yellow eyes contrasted with the soft-glowing blue of their head, the upper half of which poked through the counter where a couple of barstools sat in front of. Telrenya hadn't noticed just yet, but the wisp was infamously patient when it came to games of hide-and-seek.

"If Willow doesn't show up soon, we'll have to go on ahead." Telrenya said in a loud, exaggerated voice.

No fair. Though it was typically hard to read much expression on Willow's little face, the way their eyes squinted made for an unmistakable pout.

[Jomei 0]

The couple descended the staircase and emerged into their living room, the morning sunlight pouring through the windows and creating a warm, comfortable interior. Sitting atop a perch built into the corner of the apartment slept Adere, Jomei's companion owl. As they entered the room, Adere slowly came to, her large eyes slowly opening and scanning the room. Seeing her two roommates enter, she happily hopped down from her perch to the rear of the couch. Jomei smiled warmly as Telrenya greeted the owl, who nestled her head into her own shoulders and puffed out her feathers. 

Then came the usual morning game of hide and seek with Tel's mischievous familiar, Willow. The ginger laughed lightly, "You know, being able to pass through walls and furniture is an unfair advantage" said to Willow, despite not knowing where they currently hid. Taking a quick look around the room, Jomei noticed the small, blue ball that seemed to rest on the counter between a fruit bowl and a vase of flowers. If it weren't for the two, yellow, dinner plate eyes, he would have thought it to be a new piece of decor. Making quick eye contact with Willow, his eyes shifted to Telrenya, and then back to Willow. With a sly wink, he tapped his forefinger to his lips before turning his back to the kitchen and walking over to Adere. Offering a finger to gently stroke the side of her head, he allowed the owl to hop onto his shoulder, waiting for either Telrenya to find Willow, or Willow to give up to avoid being left along. 

Jomei looked at the blonde with a smirk, "Oh come on, you're just going to give up and make Willow show themselves? I don't think thats how hide and seek is supposed to be played." He rose a hand to his forehead, extending a thumb and his forefinger creating the shape of an L. "Don't be a sore loser" he taunted with a slightly extended tongue and playful wink. 

[Telrenya 0]

Telrenya scrunched her nose and furrowed her brow in a playful pout right back at Jomei. "A sore loser, huh? I won't take this slander!" She shot back, unable to suppress a grin. Dropping her shoulders, Telrenya set about scanning the living room first. She lifted up couch cushions, opened a couple of drawers on the side table and TV stand, peeked under the coffee table, and even poked around inside of a small coat closet beside the hall leading to the foyer.

She stood in the middle of the slightly-disturbed living room and placed her hands on her hips. She hummed thoughtfully and pursed her lips. Willow, growing both bored and prideful of their superb hiding ability, the little wisp rocked back and forth while hovering part-way through the kitchen counter. Telrenya turned slowly, surveying the open floorplan. Finally, the bit of movement caught her eye and she perked up with a bright smile that quickly turned into a mischievous grin. "There you are!" She exclaimed and made straight for the counter. Willow blinked in surprise and froze up before retreating into the solid surface right as she approached.

"Hey now! I got you fair and square." Telrenya folded her arms and waited expectantly until the familiar peeked back up. Willow floated upwards and hovered in front of her a moment until her frown turned back to a soft smile. Willow circled around her shoulders a couple of times and then sunk down between her shoulderblades. Telrenya chuckled softly and glanced to Jomei with a crooked smile and a shrug.

[Jomei 0]

It seemed Jomei's playful taunt put Telrenya back on the hunt for her familiar. Crossing his arms, the ginger took a couple of steps backwards, away from where Tel began her search "Go get 'em." The short, but entertaining show was about the begin. The search was on, and Telrenya began turning the entire living room upside down while trying to find her illusive companion. Every once in awhile, while Tel's focus was on upturning a couch cushion or pulling open a side table drawer, Jomei would shoot a glance over to Willow, who remained in the same spot simply watching its master look in all the wrong places. 

Telrenya eventually abandoned the full cavity search of their living room, and decided instead to slowly scan her surroundings. Finally, she set eyes on the blue, spectral figure  poking its large, yellow eyes out of the counter top. Jomei was finally able to let out a hearty laugh, as his fiancee proceeded to rush at the kitchen divider to where Willow retreated back into the furniture. 

With the two finally reunited again after a highly entertaining game of hide and seek, Jomei stepped forward to meet with the blonde. He clapped his hands together in front of his person, "Well, that definitely made my morning." With a step to the side, he extended an arm outwards towards the open doorway, allowing Telrenya to exit first. "Shall we?" 

A chilled, fall breeze passed over the cobblestone streets of Taft, a small pile of orange and yellow leaves from a nearby fallen tree followed its path across the way. The NPC cleaning the front of his store front grunted a curse before recreating the neat pile yet again. From what it seemed, many of the other players wandering the streets seemed to have the same thought in mind as Jomei and Telrenya, for most of them wore more casual attire meant for the season, rather than decked out head to toe in armor and armaments. The couple followed a familiar path to the center of Taft, where the square platform, flanked by four, semi-tall obelisks idly sat. Players appearing and disappearing in bluish-white light as they made use of the floor warping feature. 

With a look to his side at the blonde beside him, Jomei locked his fingers with hers before stepping up onto the stonework. "Warp, Town of Beginnings." he spoke out, causing the two to vanish in a flash of light as the others they saw before them did. 

[Telrenya 0]

"So you two wish to be married? That is wonderful to hear!"

The couple had made their way from the warp gate at the Town of Beginnings to the large cathedral that stood tall on the north side of the city. The sun's rays shone through the beautiful stained glass windows and bounced off the detailed stonework. Fingers still interlaced, Jomei and Telrenya had approached one of the priestly NPCs with tousled blonde hair. Telrenya smiled pleasantly. It seemed that the first step of their task was an easy one, and they'd managed to find the right person to talk to straight away.

"We'll need to discuss the details of your wedding, then." James eagerly continued into the nuances of in-game marriage, "The location of course, and the size of the wedding you choose determines the limitations for your guest list. There's also the type of food you'd like to have served, and the wedding rings, naturally. Oh, and if you need assistance finding someone to wed you, I'd be more than happy to help. I could even offer to do it personally...if you'd like?"

The priest had finally exhausted his opening speech and was looking at the both of them expectantly. "O-oh, umm... Well, that's all a lot to take in," Telrenya immediately began to flounder amid the flood of facets presented, but cleared her throat to regain some of her composure. "Well, dear, where do you think we should start?"

Edited November 30, 2020 by Telrenya

[Jomei 0]

Not many other bodies occupied the inside of the cathedral at the moment the couple had arrived. A couple of NPCs scattered the rows of pews, some deep in prayer. Off to the side within the back of the church, stood a younger looking man in a long, dark cassock and a white scarf draped over his shoulders. The innocent blue eyes that sat beneath his mess of blonde hair looked between the two approaching players, a smile growing on his face. The clergyman bowed his head respectfully, as Telrenya and Jomei expressed their reason for seeking him out. The man reacted excitedly to their interest in being married, and began to list off the various points the couple would need to address in terms of planning. 

Jomei struggled a bit to make a bullet point list of all of the things they needed to discuss with the priest in his mind, but thoughts continued to overlap each other. As Telrenya had said.. it was a lot to take in. A lot to decide all on the spot pretty much immediately. "I guess we could start with who we would like to marry us." His attention turned back to the priest, "If I may, Father.. uhm-" Jomei fumbled for a name, becoming engrossed in the conversation and not taking a moment to simply shift his eyes upwards to the NPC's designation that hovered above his blonde head. Though before he could look, the priest finished his sentence for him, "Oh, please. Just James. I may be ordained and able to wed the two of you, but I am still going through the process of becoming a certified priest." 

"Right. James," Jomei said with a smile, scratching at his neck just below his ear, "I guess we should figure out who to marry us then, yeah?" he looked to Telrenya again, "Do you have any of our friends in mind who may want to do it? I know a few that would be interested... but I haven't really heard from any of our closest friends in awhile."