Umbral ⊱ Kingdom of Shadows [ O/A ]

[Witch_of_the_Web]

Vtehn Tia

Heras Box

Reader of Omens

Lacrimosa flapped after Elise with all the speed she could muster, tongue lolling out to taste the griffon's airborne odor. She would have given anything for a chance to get up close and give that fur a good once over, or maybe a twice over followed by a nice wet lather and a roll, hedgehog style, but that would obviously have to wait until her prey had calmed down a bit. Besides, she was diving too fast now. Instead the vargouille gave the column of steam a wide berth, instinctively knowing what the updraft would do to her flight pattern, and drifted around the lake from the opposite direction that Elise was taking.

It was then that Lacrimosa detected a new scent, something faintly singed, probably reptilian and definitely masculine, and forgot about Elise entirely. She slowed to a casual glide, circling above the source of this sweet barbecued manliness like some vulture out of a taxidermist's nightmare. This was an awe-inspiring smell, no, it was better than that! It was a forbidden smell, a draconic smell, the kind of smell that her mistress hated passionately, which just made it twice as sexy. She could live in this smell, live with this smell, close her eyes and get lost in it until she ...

... ran headfirst into a tree. This was why flying with her eyes closed was a bad idea. Talk about embarrassing. The offending branch snapped her back to reality, and she slowly disentangled herself with a rustle of leaves and a snap of twigs before flipping over to hang upside down by her tendrils. It was in this position that she finally got her first good glimpse of Ryuuku.

The glimpse slowly stretched into a long, rapturous stare.

* * * * * * * *

Lillian brushed at her bangs in irritation, the fingers of her other hand drumming on the window sill impatiently. Surely her familiar had made contact by now? She could feel the usual collection of odd emotional fluxes coming through their link, but she generally tried to ignore some of the more lewd ones (which more often than not amounted to all of them). Hence her frustration; if Lacrimosa was there, she should have at least established a direct sensory connection. What was the point of teaching her those spells if she would just forget about them the minute she reached the objective?

After another minute of seemingly interminable waiting, during which the Kindred ran through her full repertoire of tics, taps, clicks, and stretches, Lillian finally gave up the wait and summoned her staff with a sharp click of her fingers. Fortunately she kept the spell stored up for occasions exactly like this one, when that fool-headed fiend saw fit to forget the basics of their contract. She raised the staff straight up in front of her, a crimson jewel pointing like a great eye in the direction Lacrimosa had gone, her fingers working away at several interlocking rings on the shaft. The clicking of the rings sliding into position was the only sound for a moment, and then the sensory link was triggered with a faint rush.

Lillian's gaze seemed to fly out from her body, following the exact trail her familiar had taken, racing around the lake to rest within the boughs of a tall oak. Her inner eye adjusted for a moment, before finally focusing on the object of her familiar's attention with a faint smile from its owner.

The smile promptly curdled, and she could not hold back the horrified scream that accompanied it. "OH, FOR GODS' SAKE, WHY?!"

[Heras Box]

Vtehn Tia

Reader of Omens

The_Scarlet_Widow

Gina's hair color had changed from it's signature silver to a platinum blonde. And as they passed another servant that thought she should be cute all the time she slowly began to smile a bit more and look as she always did when she was near Nox. When asked how she was feeling she lifted one shoulder slightly. "Fine, I guess." What else could she say? He wanted her to leave the babies and she could exactly argue since he wanted her to listen more.

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Elise noted the way Ryuu was standing and the large griffon simply rolled her eyes. Moving closer to him she seemed to be looking him over, making sure there was nothing off about him. Though she could smell burnt flesh still even though he'd washed off slightly. Another thing the griffon noticed was that something had followed her. The very same something that had been with the vampire from the castle. She supposed it was there to see what was going on and paid little mind to it other wise. Opening her beak she gave a small chip, inquisitive of her dragon's condition. When she was close enough she lowered herself to the ground and tilted her head this way and that. Elise was determined to make sure he was alright.

[Greedy Chromatic Red]

Heras Box

Reader of Omens

The_Scarlet_Widow

Instinctively Ryuuku's left arm raised up and covered the patch of burnt flesh as best as it could. Turning his head slightly to get a full glimpse of the creature that came closer, Ryuuku's shoulders stiffened. A griffon moved closer to him with an inquisitive look about them. There was the possibility that it could be a wild beast from this word or Elise. Not wanting to take a chance Ryuuku kept up his defensive stance and called out to the beast. "Elise? Is that you?" The dragon called out hoping the avian beast was in fact Elise since that would make things easier. It was hard to keep his vision focused, his body felt heavy, and Ryuuku felt strangely cold. This cold feeling of course had nothing to do with the fact he was naked, but rather he felt the chill deep within like one feels during a high fever.

[Reader of Omens]

Heras Box

Gina's hair color had changed from it's signature silver to a platinum blonde. And as they passed another servant that thought she should be cute all the time she slowly began to smile a bit more and look as she always did when she was near Nox. When asked how she was feeling she lifted one shoulder slightly. "Fine, I guess." What else could she say? He wanted her to leave the babies and she couldn't exactly argue since he wanted her to listen more.

Nox nodded at her, "I'm sorry that we had to leave the kids, but if Ryuu's on a rampage they're safer where they are." As they moved down the hall, a troop of guards passed them in full armor. They'd all heard the scream and were readying troops in case of a threat to the palace. When they saw the King and Queen, the captain removed his helmet and nodded to them, "My King, we heard the screams. Is everything alright?" He then turned to the man's wife, "Are you alright, My Queen? Should we send guards for the children?" They would be in for a surprise, as the queen was much different around her husband in private. Though now it would be her new personality all the time...

[None for me thanks]

( :T )

[Witch_of_the_Web]

Heras Box

Vtehn Tia

Reader of Omens

Lacrimosa flinched when her mistress' shriek came through their link, but remained still otherwise. She was enjoying the ongoing drama below too much to care whether it made her fellow viewer uncomfortable. Her long, coarse tongue slid out, arching backwards to lazily lick flecks of pollen from a single bulging yellow eye as her gaze remained fixed on the monstrous couple. When the dragon went on the defensive she tightened her grip on the branch in anticipation; this was getting good.

* * * * * * *

Lillian, meanwhile, was doing her best to examine Ryuuku's surroundings without focusing too much on the only object (or objects) that her familiar seemed interested in, but what she could see reassured her immensely. The sight of Bishopp near the shoreline, apparently enjoying himself immensely, was enough to make her pause, but she could discern no overt threats anywhere nearby. That armored fiend certainly never burned people. Puzzled by this, she forced herself to focus on the dragon's injuries. It was difficult to tell from a distance, but the sensory data from Lacrimosa indicated they had been inflicted by dragon fire, and Lillian concluded based on the obvious lack of another such beast or the accompanying collateral damage that the wounds must have been self-inflicted.

Well, that was something positive. Perhaps Ryuuku was just molting or digging out some piece of rot from between his scales. Either way, the situation now fell under the heading of "someone else's problem" in her mind. With a sigh of relief she almost terminated the link, content to let Lacrimosa have her fun without inflicting any more of the dragon on herself than necessary, then stopped. What if that red monstrosity was simply cauterizing a wound bestowed by some unseen but no less deadly enemy? What if Bishopp was more than a bystander? As much as the thought delighted her, Lillian's paranoid streak would not permit her to simply walk away. Gritting her teeth in frustration, she instead remained vigilant. "Ryuuku isn't in any immediate danger," she projected towards both Gina and Nox, who would certainly want an update. "He appears weak and disoriented, and his neck's been burned rather badly, but I'm not picking up any signs of foreign hostility." The royal couple would receive a series of images to accompany the words, relayed from the vargouille.

[Heras Box]

The_Scarlet_Widow

Reader of Omens

Vtehn Tia

When Ryuuku looked at her and asked her a question she lowered her head a bit more. Elise gave a small snort and a short nod of her head before she carefully lifted a front paw to approach. Her large wings gave a twitch and shudder as they hugged closer to her body to make her look less threatening. Seeing that there was nothing to suggest her dragon was under attack she continued toward him until she was close enough for him to lean on if he wanted.

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Gina tilted her head to the side and nodded a little at Nox's words. He was right. Of course he was. When guards passed them her eyes lingered on them for longer than usual and when met with the captain she smiled at him. "I am alright, I have two strong men to care for me now." Her voice was a bit sweeter than it normally was with others. "But please, do make sure you send others to protect the children."

[The Lady Of Yggdrasil]

(This place looks interesting... razz )

[Greedy Chromatic Red]

Heras Box

The_Scarlet_Widow

Reader of Omens

Ryuuku tensed up when Elise first started to approach but relaxed right after. When she got close enough, Ryu wrapped his arms around her neck and collapsed unto his knees. In the quiet wilderness a soft murmur could be heard as Ryuuku buried his face into Elise's shoulders. His body shook from both the fever and the fact that he was crying. Elise would be able to tell being that she was closest and her feathers might feel the drops hit them. Upon getting closer, Elise could get a good look at the wound on Ryuuku's shoulder. His flesh was severely burned, even blistering in places while the outside took on a more charred appearance. She would also probably take note of the burn's location and could come up with theories as to what had happened. Ryuuku sat on his knees clinging onto Elise for comfort, wrapping his arms tighter around her neck and burying his face even deeper into her plumage.

[Reader of Omens]

The_Scarlet_Widow

Heras Box

Vtehn Tia

When Nox and his wife were approached by the guard, Nox was about to issue orders. He didn't get the chance, however, as wife beat him to it. Though, there was something...different about her tone when she spoke to the guards. It was sweet and a little bit sultry, like the way she spoke to him when they were alone. That was odd, not to mention her comment about 'two strong men to protect her.' What was going on with her? He was about to ask, when Lillian entered his mind with an update about Ryuu. Weak and disoriented, plus wounds to his neck? What could harm a dragon like him? Surely not another dragon, for they hadn't been seen in Umbral in the last two thousand years. He furrowed his brow curiously, "Appreciate the update, Lillian. I'm not sensing any hostile presences either, so you're free to leave if you wish." He smirked, "The crown appreciates your service."

Before getting back to the situation with his wife, he sought out the mind of Ryuu, "Lillian tells me you are injured. Shall I send you my healer? You weren't attacked, were you?" It didn't even cross his mind that the dragons wounds might be self inflicted, since he didn't think a dragon's noble spirit would allow it. Though, he didn't think it was an attack either. He would have felt something, and surely Ryuuku would have mentioned something, despite their apparent rivalry. With his other duties done, Nox nodded to the guard to follow his wife's orders and continued the path to their royal chambers. He turned to Gina and smiled, "Do you want to stop somewhere along the way, love? You haven't eaten in a while." He looked at her curiously, not mentioning her strange actions with the guard, though he'd be monitoring the situation. "Did you do something different with your hair? It looks...lighter."

[Heras Box]

]

The_Scarlet_Widow

Reader of Omens

Vtehn Tia

Gina was still smiling at the guard when she heard Nox speak. Turning her attention to him she got closer and put her hand on his chest. "Oh no, I'm fine." Truly she was ignoring her bodily functions. When they got to the royal quarters she batted her lashes up at him, waiting for him to open the door. Certainly he could do such a thing for a lady.

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Elise blinked a bit, surprised by Ryuuku's actions, but fluffed up enough to be comfortable. Flaring out one wing she brought it around possessively to shield her dragon from the view of others. When she saw his neck and the position of the charred skin she knew what had happened. For a moment the griffon wondered if he had done such because of her dislike of such creatures. As the male seemed to unleash his emotions into her fur and feathers she leaned down and licked at the wound. She couldn't heal it, but she could soothe it some. His body temperature concerned her slightly and she nudged her head against him questioningly.

[Greedy Chromatic Red]

Heras Box

]

The_Scarlet_Widow

Reader of Omens

Vtehn Tia

Gina was still smiling at the guard when she heard Nox speak. Turning her attention to him she got closer and put her hand on his chest. "Oh no, I'm fine." Truly she was ignoring her bodily functions. When they got to the royal quarters she batted her lashes up at him, waiting for him to open the door. Certainly he could do such a thing for a lady.

-----------------------------------

Elise blinked a bit, surprised by Ryuuku's actions, but fluffed up enough to be comfortable. Flaring out one wing she brought it around possessively to shield her dragon from the view of others. When she saw his neck and the position of the charred skin she knew what had happened. For a moment the griffon wondered if he had done such because of her dislike of such creatures. As the male seemed to unleash his emotions into her fur and feathers she leaned down and licked at the wound. She couldn't heal it, but she could soothe it some. His body temperature concerned her slightly and she nudged her head against him questioningly.

"I don't care anymore..." He'd proclaim through muffled and nasally breaths. The male resisted the urge to embrace Elise tighter afraid that he would hurt her. "I'm a worthless dragon..." The agony of all the past year and a half's emotions finally welling up inside him. Ryuuku's body shuddered as Elise's tongue touched his wound. It was the difference in temperature. "You won't leave me right?" He'd nuzzle his tear stained cheek into Elise's head for a moment letting his silvery white eyes meet hers. The normal emotionless eyes screamed out 'If you leave me...I'm better of dead.'. He might be being dramatic, but for Ryuuku the past years emotions all built up to this moment, exploding out in a fiery blaze. The loss of his loved one caused his thoughts to go dark, driving him to burn away the past.

[Heras Box]

Vtehn Tia

"I don't care anymore..." He'd proclaim through muffled and nasally breaths. The male resisted the urge to embrace Elise tighter afraid that he would hurt her. "I'm a worthless dragon..." The agony of all the past year and a half's emotions finally welling up inside him. Ryuuku's body shuddered as Elise's tongue touched his wound. It was the difference in temperature. "You won't leave me right?" He'd nuzzle his tear stained cheek into Elise's head for a moment letting his silvery white eyes meet hers. The normal emotionless eyes screamed out 'If you leave me...I'm better of dead.'. He might be being dramatic, but for Ryuuku the past years emotions all built up to this moment, exploding out in a fiery blaze. The loss of his loved one caused his thoughts to go dark, driving him to burn away the past.

The griffon kept him shielded as he declared his loss of care. Whatever it was he had cared about before. However, when she heard him say he was a worthless dragon she snorted. His farther actions and words made her force her large body back into the human shell that she had been cursed to. Even though she was free of it she found it had uses. The wing that had been around Ryu was now an arm and she was laying her head against his. "You are not a worthless dragon, I would not have claimed something worthless." It was the best thing she could come up with without knowing the source of his pain and anguish. Furthermore, she pulled pack slightly to look at him. "I won't leave. Didn't I say as much before?" Her eyes went to his neck once more and she sighed. It must have something to do with the vampire he had been involved with. She shook her head then placed a hand over the wound. Her skin was considerably cooler than his and she hoped it would help.

[Greedy Chromatic Red]

Heras Box

The griffon kept him shielded as he declared his loss of care. Whatever it was he had cared about before. However, when she heard him say he was a worthless dragon she snorted. His farther actions and words made her force her large body back into the human shell that she had been cursed to. Even though she was free of it she found it had uses. The wing that had been around Ryu was now an arm and she was laying her head against his. "You are not a worthless dragon, I would not have claimed something worthless." It was the best thing she could come up with without knowing the source of his pain and anguish. Furthermore, she pulled pack slightly to look at him. "I won't leave. Didn't I say as much before?" Her eyes went to his neck once more and she sighed. It must have something to do with the vampire he had been involved with. She shook her head then placed a hand over the wound. Her skin was considerably cooler than his and she hoped it would help.

Ryuuku's arms slipped as Elise's shape changed, though when she was human again he'd cling right back to her. Burying his face into Elise's chest Ryuuku would turn his head side to side. He was trying to force Elise's scent into his nose, help affirm that she was actually there. Finding the first bit of exposed flesh he'd shove his nose into it and breath deep. "You wouldn't?" He'd come out muffled though his voice would have a new sense of hope inside it. Was he needed? Did he have worth? "You won't leave me Kitten?" He'd look up trying to lock gazes with Elise making sure she was telling the truth. At this point he didn't even notice the difference in temperatures between himself and Elise. Outside of his burn area the rest of Ryuuku's body felt warm, as if he had a fever.

[Heras Box]

Vtehn Tia

Ryuuku's arms slipped as Elise's shape changed, though when she was human again he'd cling right back to her. Burying his face into Elise's chest Ryuuku would turn his head side to side. He was trying to force Elise's scent into his nose, help affirm that she was actually there. Finding the first bit of exposed flesh he'd shove his nose into it and breath deep. "You wouldn't?" He'd come out muffled though his voice would have a new sense of hope inside it. Was he needed? Did he have worth? "You won't leave me Kitten?" He'd look up trying to lock gazes with Elise making sure she was telling the truth. At this point he didn't even notice the difference in temperatures between himself and Elise. Outside of his burn area the rest of Ryuuku's body felt warm, as if he had a fever.

Despite the oddity of Ryu burying his head against her chest, Elise found nothing wrong. She understood when he took in her scent. Since he was looking up at her she moved her hand from his neck to the marking under his eye. "You are my dragon and I need you." Truly she did. Elise needed to learn more about being human and the world she was in now. Her knowledge of such things was limited. She only knew the stars. "What if another dragon tries to rip my head off?" She made the reference to when they had first met and he'd chased her through the damned swamp full of spiders. When she noticed that it felt as though he had a fever she gained a concerned look. "Are you sick?" Her body wasn't cold enough to bring down his core temperature, so her eyes went to the water. "Do you want to go for a swim with me?"