Jasmedai was silent. The tips of her lips quirked upwards. She gave a quiet "Jas will follow." Yet she found her eyes and ears drifting away. Drifting to the mantis. The conversation itself had lost its allure, once she realized the deer had an owner. Young as she was, she had tried to pay attention. Yes, but the speech was the least of her wants. Not as much as the sheer amount of objects of interesting shapes around. And of her wants, Jasmedai found herself wanting the mantis' deer most.

Not its meat, for she hadn't begun to crave it yet, but the pale hide. It looked soft. Something she could own. Something she could bargain for later. Or take, perhaps. She writhed in coils of thorns and vines. Yes. She would have that hide someday. Someday, the hunt would begin.

Oh, or it would begin today. Rain called for assistance. "I can help," Jasmedai said. Her grin widened by an inch. And then her jaws split. Her lure snaked out, a child's smile plastered upon it. There was a hint of maliciousness to it. But there was a chance Rain would not notice. "Jas' thorns can cut through." She lifted a vine from beneath her ruff of leaves. Her thorns were good for puncturing, not slicing. But Jasmedai was there for the deer itself, and not to help. She slid closer to Rain.

@Rain specifically

Not

The white bird flutters over towards the Queen, wings barely capable of flight, forcing him to move from branch to branch before he alights on her offered arm, feathers fluffing out in interest as he leans down, eyes the bright white beast at Her feet.

"I follow, I am your... Eyes. I will help you see what others can, or will not." Not lets his magic surge, an odd whispering stirring from what seems like right behind him, clearly his raspy voice but so distorted the words are indistinguishable, and he almost winces at the lackluster performance in repeating his statement.

A disgruntled not-quite-squawk when Rain places themselves between the Queen, Not, and the fluffy bat, and he tilts his head back and forth as if he's a temperamental toddler trying to lean around an adult. The talk about costumes, and the suggestion of wearing the skin of the Lesser makes his feathers ruffle in excitement, bright red beak flashing as a shiver laces up his spine.

"I would help, but I am not the strongest. I can only offer to clean the inside of the fur with my beak." He speaks to Rain, shifting and fluffing up some more, before looking at Jas from one eye and tucking his beak low, looking all the more like he's bleeding with his stone laid against his chest and jaw hidden in his feathers. "My stone is sharp." The whispering is barely there, but follows his second statement like an echo before fading completely.

Blue watched the display with eyes of interest as arwen pulled away from their greeting. yes, this was a truly momentous occasion, but should anyone know blue well enough, the soft smile across their face is enough to show, at the very least, warmth.

they listened to arwen's words, and although they had been told prior, been offered the chance to say no, though they didn't want to say no, the idea of leading... anybody, was intimidating, though they wouldn't show it. it was a wonderful honor, truly, but to calm their nerves they told themselves any position by arwen's side was a good one. be it working with king bumble butt or not. they held back a snicker to themselves. oh, they couldn't be mad forever, and truly they weren't. but all be damned if blue was going to actually say that.

they glanced at Six stripes, blocking out the remnants of whispers that could be carried by the wind as they made their exchange. they knew arwen's name of course, as she did theirs, but they are not yet spiteful enough to deny the courts wordless code. you are told a name with trust, you don't steal it. hell, even if six stripes did not care, blue flashed the briefest, if only for a moment, smallest smile they could. it was though only one of peace, not of friendship. not yet, atleast. Blue pushed the thought away for now.

they thought, as six stripes announced their half of the courts factions, and blue had to think. yes, they were a protective soldier to fight by arwen's side, but truly, they spent their time doing so much more, their talents ranged so much further than blood and guts. the whispers of song and dance, even of painted art, lie within their arsenal. every faerie here had talents, some lied in the bloody and some lied in the scheming and craft. they waited for six stripes to finish, before calling out themselves.

"And I shall lead those of skill," they began, voices trying to harmonize. "ones of talent, craft and scheme, the collectors and the traders, of the soft whispers of trust to the loudest songs of passion. We will be The Court of Light." they twittered, voice stronger than they expected it to be, their confidence wavering but not yet breaking. every faerie had a purpose. even the ones as low as Not or Marshmallow, who Blue had the softest of spots for, the funny things.

There were so many gembounds who had arrived at Arwen's call! Marshmallow was a very happy little bat, and continued to clap her wings at the sight of so many showing up. Then a bird came onto her caretaker's arm, and she surveys Not with interest. White. Like her! She lets out a welcoming squeak, and floofs herself out on Arwen's shoulder. There was obviously something going on, but it was her job to be a good little bat on the shoulder of the Queen.

The Queen stared at Matthieu (a name a name-) and chittered under her mask, overjoyed, "Thank you."

She turned to face Rain again and saw the passion, the intensity. The beauty.

"I was wrong," she said softly, and reached down, finger tearing into skin to rub blood on her hands, "You are more beautiful than I first saw. Your beauty is beyond the skin and shell, Walks Like Rain."

If she allowed, the Queen of Lies would tilt her chin up, her fingers running down her cheeks and nose to make three lines in total, then her fingers would draw down her arms. And finally, her scythes, which she would hold in her hands, clutching tightly, blood spilling down from between their contact, dripping on the ground.

"United we stand," she said, pulling away, her handprints left on Rain's scythes, the representation of 'together'.

A smile crossed her face and she peered at the blue being kindly before backing away again, letting her feathers companion speak to her as well as Jasmedai, who needed a name still. She wiped her hand on a leaf and reached up to gently stroke Marshmallow's head, mulling over everything that was happening. The smile from her Blue, the name from Matthieu, the acceptance of her gift from not only the recipient, but from others too...

"My eyes," she mumbled, reaching up to scratch under Not's chin as she stroked Marshmallow, "... The Queen's Eyes. Yes, that's a suitable title I think."

Pulling away, Queen of Lies looked over the others, happy with how everything had gone. She turned to Trot of Sorrowed Fox, then to Six Stripes, peering at the two of them.

"I think this went well," she hummed, hands clasped at her front, "Is there anymore that should be said?"

At a second thought, she pulled a charm off her necklace, one she'd made not long ago. A leaf. Jasmedai's charm. She undid her hair and made a necklace, walking forward towards the plant.

"I have something for you," she said, holding the necklace out, her hair falling around her jaw, straight and pristine, "For you, my friend."

tl;dr
Arwen paints Rain (should she not pull away) and admits Rain is, indeed, beautiful, but even more so because it isn't skin deep.
Arwen gives Marshmallow and Not a new title to remember, 'The Queen's Eyes'.
Arwen gives Jasmedai a necklace made from twine and the charm she'd made for her own to represent her.
@Jasmedai @Redwood @Rain @Marshmallow @Matthieu @Not

It didn't matter a lick how sincere Jasmedai was or appeared to be -- Walks Like Rain was a selfish, jealous, and independent creature who would have refused help anyway. They shook their head at Jas and put their body between the deer and Jas. "I didn't ask for help with my gift. Just with my costume." They eyed the thorns. "Besides. Those are for tearing, not cutting. The pelt must be preserved..." Rain needed a precision instrument, which they'd definitely have once they got their scythes, but for now their teeth were effective enough, even if the edges were a little bit jagged.

Rain went stiff when Arwen touched them, hesitant. They had the same magic -- Rain knew that this could be a danger. That the Queen could be turning on them, perhaps? Or wanting them to share? But then she started speaking, and while that didn't quite soothe the wrinkle (they were gorgeous on the outside as well, even if they were a lot more bug and a lot less human). Dark red was smeared onto their mask and arms before the backs of their wrists were gripped tightly, and Rain understood.

"Together," she said, echoing the unspoken sentiment, a little bit awed. Rain stood still (albeit still over the deer) to wait patiently for the blood to dry. But then Rain looked back at Blue and Matthieu -- oh, was this just a party of names today--? (In fact, they nearly considered revealing their own, but then decided that they didn't trust Jasmedai like that just yet.)

Tucking their mandibles neatly back into their mouth to lick the blood clean, they glanced back over at the rest of the group, and then to Arwen. "Do we have to choose?" and there was confusion in their voice. "I am made of both those things. I've been learning, too -- making and seeing and twisting. Learning about bodies and how they should work and what makes them break." Rain's antennae twitched. "If a puzzle can be broken apart, it can be put back together again."

--

(specifically @/arwen and @jasmedai )

Won't you play a game with me?

Still. Still. Still as the broken ruins, still as the mourning mother, still as the untouched crystal. Matthieu stood still.

And it immediately struct Matthieu that they did not like standing still for so long, so they opted to pace in a small circle instead.

The-Blue-One was still melting over Arwen-- how strange, the way they acted near each other-- Walks Like Rain was hunched over the deer, the plant and bird were trying to help, and the little fuzzball still chirped on the Queen's shoulder. The lady herself was giving gifts of blood to the mantis and plant respectively. But then the mantis jutted at the other, and it was apparent that there was already some tension between the faeries.

Well. That couldn't stand, could it?

Their anthophilic head looked up at Arwen, a thousand rosy eyes glistening. "One thing."

So the fusion ambled over to Rain, each step gentle, the upper head swiveling over to face her. "Of course not," his childish voice purred. Her lower mandibles rubbed together. "No rigidity. You are the puzzle-worker, and that is something that benefits us all." They walked an arc around them and the "Jas", their wings buzzing slightly like laughter. "We can help, if you wish! We have hands, and teeth, and claws." Boy's smile focused on Jasmedai next. "Your thorns may not be good for cutting, but they do look sharp and impressive. A hunter, formed from the prey's food. How would you like to fight?"