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Fractured Moonlight Captain
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 Posted: Sun Feb 01, 2009 9:48 pm
Apparently, Zykariel was listening and didn't want to be finished or exposed to the rest of the world yet. "It doesn't matter if it's common knowledge, because you will always have more detail to that common knowledge that you don't even know you're giving away because you don't know what they ask of others." He raised a hand out to the boy at his rambling, but stopped himself and pulled his hand back. He was afraid to touch his son, honestly...too afraid the boy was going to flinch away. "I know you didn't mean for it to get out of hand...but when it starts slipping or you think it's too much you have to know when to ask for help. Just learn from this, and you'll not repeat your mistakes."
"Sevilin?" Out of all the people she knew, she never expected Sevilin to be one to raise a hand to his own children. The man was so set against anything like it from his own rearing that it seemed he could barely fathom it. But Zahara was telling her the truth, she knew that much. "And I suppose Sevilin has been avoiding you as well, despite checking on your condition from time to time, fearing what retribution could come from you." Shaking her head, they were drow trying to escape old lives and this had to be hard for them. "You know, if you need a big elaborate plan to help you solve it all out, I'm up for one if you need me to be." Trying to brighten her friend's mood some.
"Flutterby!" he exclaimed happily as he continued making his proclaimed tree rat...which as his age looked like a a long lump of clay topped by a smaller one with five squishes for ears, nose and eyes, and smaller blobs for paws. A grin at her talk of the tail and he showed her a larger thant the rest piece that he duly stuck to the back of the thing. "Tree Rat! Lookit!"
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Posted: Sun Feb 01, 2009 10:08 pm
Well, that was a new way of looking at things, now wasn't it? He hadn't thought about using the information as a key in order to find even more information. That thought had never occurred to him at all. He saw his dad hold out his hand and then pull it away and shook his head. He needed to be touched right now. "I just wanted you to be proud of me..."
"I know." Yes, it was crazy to consider that her husband was capable of doing something he swore he'd never do. And that was exactly why he was so upset now. "Of course. He thinks I'm mad at him for the baby and for Zykariel when I'm the one who told him he needed to handle it." Giving Piper a grin, she nodded. "I might just need you to help me puzzle it out. There's got to be a way to make all of this better."
She gave him an encouraging smile and nodded. "Thats the best one I've ever seen, Dhairiss. Are you going to make your Tree Rat a tree to climb in?" Putting the finishing touches on a flutterby that was actual size, she held it out to him. "Do you want to keep it? Since you couldn't bring one home with you?"
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Picking Up Stars Vice Captain
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Fractured Moonlight Captain
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Posted: Sun Feb 01, 2009 10:32 pm
He sighed, shaking his head at his son's words. "I am, despite how things didn't turn out. Despite how everything else went wrong. Even when you find it necessary to be obstinate just to be so." He was honestly, his son just had a bad habit of taking a good gesture and turning it out all the wrong way to make it worse. But there they were in silence with his son holding that pleading look that he did when he was little, sans the pick me up gesture. Reaching out again he rested his hand on his son's shoulder hesitantly before pulling the boy closer. It didn't solve his own pain that he felt, but someone deserved to feel better and sacrifice for his wife and children would always be his way. Even if they never forgave him for things he had done. "You just need to be less hasty and think before you do anything."
"I can imagine that he'd take it hard." Shaking her head lightly...these people really really did need a vacation to all get their heads back on straight. "Well then, I'm back refreshed with plans in my head. You better suck off the sunshine induced playful planning before it's gone. No worries, I promise it will work out. If not then I'll just yell until I get my way."
"Daddy doesn't like tress." Or the tree rats really but hey. He however was more entranced by her flutterby and reached a hand out, touching the clay with the same gentleness that he did a real one...because once you squished one and cried for an hour about it, you learned to be gentle. Big eyes lit up though. "Can I?!"
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Posted: Sun Feb 01, 2009 10:33 pm
Malik was quiet for a moment.
"No. At least...not like what worried me."
But hurt flashed on his face at his son's dismissal. he knew his oldest wanted to, but was dismissing it because of this issue. so he took his son's hand, and took hold of his other one.
"You're not going to have to ask again."
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Picking Up Stars Vice Captain
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Posted: Sun Feb 01, 2009 10:45 pm
Relief filled him at knowing that his father didn't hate him and was still proud of him even though he'd royally ******** up. When he was younger, his father had told him that he'd always love him no matter what. As he'd gotten a bit older, his mother had added hers to that. Now, he knew they were both true because he'd messed up worse this time than any of the others combined. That simple touch sparked his own resolve and he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around his father tightly. "I love you, Dad. Even if I don't always show it. And...I forgive you. I know why you did it and how hard it was for you. I also know you need to forgive yourself."
"Good. I was operating on the idea of sending them both a note and locking them in a room until they worked it out and were back to being father and son again, instead of two strangers wandering the manor." A shake of her head and she entwined her fingers and rested them on her stomach. "Ridiculous men." Pausing for a moment before she reached over and grasped Piper's wrist. "Can you get me in to see the b*****d who did this to me?"
"Your daddy doesn't like a lot of things, does he?" She watched him handle the butterfly and then couldn't help but smile at his reaction. "Yes, you can. If I take it home it might get broken. You'll keep it safe for me, right?"
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Posted: Sun Feb 01, 2009 11:08 pm
He was waiting for his father to deliver some words of wisom and then be on his way and leave his son so Malikhai could find the nearest toughest guy down here and try to kick the crap out of him, most likely getting his own a** kicked in the process. Which would take his mind off of things. Probably not the best way but it would work for a few hours. His father seemed to have other plans however and his son looked to him confused a few seconds before the boy went still and his eyes widened as if the lights were on but no one was home.
Since he was a child, still not able to even really control his reveries it was no surprise that he had no control in this either. His mind took it upon itself to recognize the initiative of another wanting the little ceremony. When he was younger with his mother he wasn't so accutely aware but this time he was and it was a tad unsettling to feel as if the world was falling away where you stood as the physical world shut down and the mental one took its place, and opened new channels even. Whoa.
He was indeed a little surprised at his son's actions but accepted them all the same, taking what relief he would allow from simple gestures and words of reassurance. Resting his arm around the boy's shoulders and squeezing lightly was all he would allow himself as well. "I love you too Kariel." Though he was not yet willing to forgive himself yet, however it did soothe him to know his son did. "I don't want you being afraid of me. I've never wanted to hit you. Or your siblings."
"That works, I like to do it with my men when they're all in a tiff. Very doable." Though she nodded lightly...she could understand the pain that could only be relieved by seeing the one person that tormented them so. She had needed it with Kaden and Zahara deserved to have it with the one who wronged her as well. "Of course I can, with no opposition whatsoever mind you."
"If they hurt mommy, or us, or things we like, or make us all sick, no." It was that simple for the child. Bad things daddy did not like. But he nodded happily to her question. "Really really good care of it. You gonna color it? Flutterbys are bright!" To which he ran off and grabbed his fingerpaints, coming back to start slathering his tree rat in a layer of red.
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Fractured Moonlight Captain
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Picking Up Stars Vice Captain
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Posted: Sun Feb 01, 2009 11:18 pm
That simple squeeze wasn't enough and Zykariel reached back and grasped his father's other arm, looping it around him. "Hug me like you mean it, Dad. You love me as deep as the Underdark, right? Then prove it to me." Hugging him tighter and then shaking his head. "I'm not afraid of you. I wasn't even when you were hitting me because I knew you didn't want to. But we both know I needed it."
"I knew it. Sevilin put me off with talk of later and once I was feeling better but I know he never intended for me to actually get down there to see him. He'd just keep making up excuses in some silly attempt to keep me safe or spare me additional pain." That man...he'd do anything to stop any of them from getting hurt. "I just want to look into his eyes. I don't know what I think I'll find...but I have to see."
Well, that made sense though she wasn't entirely sure if Malik added himself in there when he intended to hurt Malikhai. He'd looked so angry and then eavesdropping hadn't completely soothed her fears either. Zahara seemed genuinely worried. Her attention was drawn back to the clay statue and she nodded. "Sure, I am. But you have to help me pick colors since it's yours. I think blue to start. Matches your fingers."
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Posted: Sun Feb 01, 2009 11:38 pm
He nodded lightly to the air, giving his son a proper hug only then when it seemed he had been given permission to do so. "And beyond." Echoing out the old bedtime ritual that had been custom in his house until Zykariel decided that he was too old for such things. It still stung however when his son mentioned being struck. Sevilin had always associated such things with his brothers and now his eldest son was in the bunch. And Sevilin was a slow mental healer. "I don't plan on a repeat performance." Though at least the war going on in his head was quieting down. He still had no clue what to do with Zahara. Beat one son, kill the other...he was afraid of developing a pattern that harkened back to old days. "Your mother will be fine, if you want to see her."
"That's what the men do. Okay not all the time, Malik rather encouraged me to face my demon rather. But Sevilin has never been one for demons so, let us up and away while the men are still occupied in tension land." Getting up and helping her friend up, letting Zahara lean against her as needed. "Maybe you'll find more than I did."
"Blue!" Echoing her and showing her pain smeared hands, which the tips of his fingers were hued more purple than blue from the red layer of paint over blue skin, but he was excited by the blue all the same. Of course fingerpaint - edible and washable at that - wasn't the best for such projects but that was beyond him and he pushed over the blue pot of paint to her. "With the eyes on the wings. Green ones!"
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Fractured Moonlight Captain
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Posted: Sun Feb 01, 2009 11:50 pm
Malik decided to let his son see everything his wife saw. the boy wanted to know everything about his father, no holding back...not from his mauling at Cymarron's claws to Bloody Kithicor to meeting his mother...nothing held back. His son wanted to see the best....and probably the worst of him, then he was there to see it. And lord help him if this came about badly. It was not something he wanted to see happen. If it did, he certainly wasn't doing this with Dhairiss until he was in his late five hundreds.
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Posted: Sun Feb 01, 2009 11:52 pm
Oh good, all was well once again. At least that's the way Zykariel was taking it. His dad seemed to be happy with him again and certain things were out of the way as well. "Me either. Once was quite enough." When he thought back over what a selfish, annoying b*****d he'd been...it made his stomach cramp up. "I think I will. She's probably anxious with everything that's happened..." And he needed to see her, too. Tell himself once and for all everything was going to be fine.
"No, he has to be forced." She took the hand and stood up, ignoring the fact that she was in bedclothes and let Piper help her downstairs. No sign of the menfolk which was a very grand thing, indeed. She couldn't handle a fight with Sevilin over why she shouldn't be doing this. "All I know is that he's downstairs in the basement somewhere. I assume you have insider information?"
She laughed at his excitement and took the pot of blue, scrutinizing it for a long moment. The child freely dipped his fingers in and went at it, didn't he? Could she do that? She'd only ever painted with a brush. But dipping her smallest finger in, she lightly stroked the paint onto one corner of the wing. Blissfully unaware of the difference between this paint and the ones in her case, she let out a laugh and began carefully painting the butterfly the way the little boy wanted. "I think your Tree Rat needs some blue, too. Don't you?"
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Picking Up Stars Vice Captain
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Fractured Moonlight Captain
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Posted: Mon Feb 02, 2009 10:16 am
Of course for everything Malik gave, he got the child equiviant back...which ranged from as simple as stealing cookies as a toddler to those moments where he had throw a fit and told them he hated them, to the more recent happenings of late which included fights at school with him using underhanded tactics to win. It nowhere compared in intensity to Malik's own, but that was the way with children. When the boy came back into his own head, blinking as if he was lost to where he was a moment, he was leaning against his father's chest, breathing hard.
It had never been about what he would see, or really who his father was. He was raised with a surface elf as his mother and as such he naturally craved the deeper connections they formed. His younger self hadn't been able to understand what he was missing from his father, but he had figured out in time it was indeed this. And yes, Malik's past was nightmare fuel for anyone. It's wasn't something of glory and the like. "Mom's right...you need less stress in your life." And he felt like he'd been run over by nightmare. Uncool.
Long as the boy was okay, Sevilin would take as long as he personally needed to heal and no one had to know about that but him. "Try not to get her excited, she needs her rest right now." Avoiding the subject of why of course because that hurt still too. His brain pat him of the back some, but no doubt he still wanted to slam this particular time behind a mental door and chain it so tight not even he could figure it out if he wanted to years later. The blessing of being expertly crazy was that you could control it. "No more of this. Stop trying to act like you can handle everything. It tends to backfire." And he supposed that long past due talk about women was going to come up sooner or later.
"I always do. It just takes the right combination of angry looks and words to be told what I want to know." Which is what she set about doing, finding out quickly what she wanted and leading Zahara there. Opening the door she shook her head. "Broog, out. It's Zahara's turn."
He scrutinized his tree rat in child like fashion, turning it end over end and dripping paint before setting it down. "Yes, needs blue." Because he was being agreeable and thusly he reached over, fingering out a glob of blue and unfortunately tainting the pot purple from the red that was already on his fingers.
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Posted: Mon Feb 02, 2009 4:24 pm
He put his arm around his son, patting him on the back lightly.
"So she keeps telling me. How are you feeling?"
Yes he was concerned. he knew his past was no pleasent thing, and was quite concerned on it's effect on his son. both in the way he viewed his father and on a physical, emotional level as well.
Broog grunted...before giving Piper a smile that was entirely out of place for his current look.
"Da miztress is back! Gud gud! I's be here watchin yous."
before plodding back into the hallway, and waiting as he had before.
Gizdean Kix was a mess, bloody, torn and narely able to pick himself up off the ground. but he did. maybe simply in defiance, or because he was just trying to get out of the pool of blood he'd been laying in.
"If it isn't....the little slave...turned wife. And look...the cocky...b***h too. How's the....baby?"
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Fractured Moonlight Captain
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Posted: Mon Feb 02, 2009 6:34 pm
His brain was honestly racing to catch up with what it had been shown, and trying to oh and ah over the new things forged as well. Which was a lot harder than it sounded and it kept himself quiet for a few moments as he processed. In childish fashion, he nuzzled against his father like he used to when he was little and seeking affection, comfort or both. Seeking those thing, or giving them as well. There had been much nuzzling when his mother was gone when he was still a toddler, it was his toddler quirk left over coming back into play for the time being.
He was quiet to the question asked though. After all, he did just see his father at the best of his worst and it was shocking indeed. It all had to settle. He knew that man was the same one that stood before him...and sometimes those old tendencies did rear into view but they never manifested too far back to what they used to be. The 'no touching the sword rule' had a whole new meaning as well. "What if you never ran into mom?" Was one chance encounter with one person really enough to change someone so much, and banish demons to nothing but old nightmares?
"Always have my back Broog, though you're not getting hugs or anything looking like that, I care not to ruin my clothes and you know how blood stains everything." It was comical in a way with how comfortable she had gotten with such things. "Aw you can stand, good job." Mockingly giving a clap and rolling her eyes. "If you're going to try to insult me, you might want to try to update your material. I've heard that one and worse way before now." Granted it irritated her, but hey. A gesture to Zahara then, "He's all yours and no worries, me and Broog are both here."
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Posted: Mon Feb 02, 2009 9:59 pm
She stepped into the room slowly, glancing down at the bloody body that was almost a corpse as it slowly rose. She was less than amused. Grabbing him by the throat, she slammed him back into the wall repeatedly. "Dead. But you knew that already, didn't you? Just like you knew that magical drain would kill one of us. You'd simply hoped it was going to be my husband." Her anger and his emaciation made him easy to toss around like so much dead weight and she just didn't care about her clothes. She dropped him back in the pool of blood and stepped back, crossing her arms. "I'd like to make you feel what my son did as his life was literally sucked from his body, but I can't do that. My husband, however, can."
"DADDY!" Yes, that would be the youngest throwing herself at his legs and hugging them tightly before stepping back and lifting her arms. "I missed you more than you missed me and Faate says that's not true but I think it is and she's wrong. Don't you think? Hmm? Daddy, Andal is so pretty. Did you know it SNOWS there? And sometimes it even RAINS! And the wind blows and there's flowers and butterflies and grass and the rats don't have giant FANGS!"
"Promise." To all of it. It made sense and he was just glad he and his father were back on speaking terms. Things were going to get better...now he knew it for sure. He made his way up the stairs to his mother's room slowly, rehearsing his apology speech on the way. But it was all for nothing. She was gone. "Dad! DAD! Mom's gone..."
Look at that, colors made different colors just as they did on Andal. Fascinating stuff. She continued to paint being far more precise than her much younger companion but Kaelin could see a childish beauty in Dhairiss' sculpture, too. "Very good. Now you've just got to give him a name."
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Picking Up Stars Vice Captain
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Posted: Tue Feb 03, 2009 12:36 am
That was a question, wasn't it. One that Malik often thought about..before taking his son to sit down out of the way a bit. he needed to sit down before he probably fell down anyhow.
"I think, if your mother and I had not met...that I would be what I was before she came into my life. perhaps even worse, as time went on. The life I had before your mother was filled, as you've just seen, with pain, and hate and anger. powerful tools, yes. fear and hate can do many things that make love and courage seem feeble and weak."
A light sigh.
"But it's not a pleasent life to live. to rule in fear, through it...has it's own burdens and prices to pay. which is why I have tried hard to keep you and your brother away from that part of my past. I did things that were amazing feats at the time, through sheer force of will...through my hatred, my anger, and by inspiring fear in others. the dictates of the Prince of Hate, the patron diety of the Tier'dal race, our creator."
clasping his hands in front of him.
"I am still a child of hate. that is a chain that won't be broken. but now I focus my hate. I focus my rage to those that deserve it, rather then at the world at large. It was your mother who broke the chains that could be broken, to calm storms that had been brewing and blowing since I was your age. She even helped me forge a truce with Cymarron, who's children have stayed with us. Your mother is an exceptional woman. I don't like to think what I may have become had we not met. I'd hate to think of myself following in my father's footsteps."
Gizdean grunted and hissed at being manhandled, something that wench could never do if he wasn't in the condition he was in. but he gathered himself up again, anyway.
"Your husband....hasn't the....will...to do it."
the corpse looking tier'dal gave a grotesque grin,
"No more then....Cerrilia....has the....fortitude....to properly....deal with your....older son."
steping forward, heavy, thudding steps. forcing muscles that were probably only barely even attached to teh bones anymore to move them.
"I wonder...if you....know....what else....he's...given up. Besides...his virginity. After all....his is....under contract."
Of course that made it sound a lot worse then it was, as he intended. if Cerrilia was going to leave him to this endless torment, he was going to put her through hell too.
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