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 Posted: Tue Feb 14, 2012 5:48 pm
Epitaph wandered the halls of the Guild in her spare time. It was something she did as long as she didn't have anything she needed to do, but especially if that period of “spare time” seemed to extend for a while. She enjoyed the walks in a lot of ways; they were refreshing. The bright faces of the guild members who either found joy again after what had happened or ones too new to even know of it. It wasn't spoken about much. Most people didn't really know what had happened... very few knew in the entirety. The guild members knew the jist of it but Tolin had been very careful with his words, no doubt. Most likely the full truth would die with him since everyone else that was heavily involved either died or lost their memory in the time being.
It seemed... far away. Almost dreadfully so as if the memory lingered as a wisp of smoke. If one were to let go of it, it would simply disappear as it faded into the background, never to be seen again. Though, that was probably just optimism. There had been loss. Lots of it. Very few people escaped the battle unscathed and even fewer escaped with the friends they had arrived with. Everyone was hurt as friends, friends of friends and even lovers perished. But it was important... the building around them was standing because of it. It was a testament to what they had accomplished and, in turn, saved. The memory would probably carry on with them for a long, long time as it danced eternally on the edge of the mind, surfacing only when one stopped to mourn.
I think far too much during these walks. Well, it was fine to the alternative. The reason she took these walks, in truth, was because they made her very hard to find. Whenever she didn't have other responsibilities to tend to in good order, people had a way of finding her and getting her to do things. Epitaph had accepted a responsibility she didn't fully understand. Though technically all she was was the “Adviser to the Guild of the Sun”, she was also Solaris's leash and her nature made her well suited to deal with certain... difficult individuals. More specifically, if she had spare time she would be dragged out to deal with all the crap everyone else didn't want to. Did she mind? Perhaps not, but it was still nice to have some time to herself once in a whi--oh, dammit.
The crack in the air had long since become the Scyther's signature and before a word could escape Epitaph's mouth, Tolin was already speaking. “I need you to talk to Aire. She's refusing to help me find something and she's being... problematic with Alfred. Get her to calm the hell down and do her job.” And in another crack that prevented even a single word from Epitaph edgewise, the Scyther was gone.
“Oh joy.”
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Posted: Tue Feb 14, 2012 5:57 pm
Epitaph walked in the bar without hesitation, having long since grown familiar to the atmosphere as strange as it was. The waitresses had learned to recognize her by sight thanks to her distinctive size and it wasn't long before she was receiving halfhearted smiles and warnings that “Aire was pissed about something again”. Each comment was met quietly with a few words of the Flareon's choosing and each smile was met with a brief, polite nod as she walked through the bar and up the stairs and up towards the tiger's den.
She paused slightly in front of the door and listened carefully. No sounds... she was definitely in there, but at least she wasn't violent (at least not anymore) so it would be easier to talk to her. Though manners told Epitaph to knock, she suspected that that wasn't the safest choice and chose instead to simply push the door open.
“Hm.” Aire was upset to say the least. The room was a bit of a mess with a few books having hit the floor and the woman herself sitting quietly in her seat with her arms and legs crossed with a less-than-kind expression. Whatever Tolin had asked her had really pissed her off, or maybe it was just the fact that he asked her at all. “Tea?”
“Please.” A heavy edge rested on Aire's voice. She was upset, to say the least. A small lighter rested in her hand that she absentmindedly flicked open and then closed with a dull, metallic tap. She wanted to drink. Or smoke. Or something. But there wasn't anything she could bloody well do. That stupid Scyther had told her not to; it was bad for her health and she wasn't getting near Alfred at all if she was smoking or drunk. Normally she'd do it anyways just to spite him but he had ridiculed her “dependency” on them... it made her skin crawl to feel like she was proving him right. It pissed her off that she wasn't but it'd piss her off just as much if she did.
It wasn't long before a tea cup came to rest in front of Aire and the Gardevoir picked it up and sipped lightly on it to get a taste. The burn of the liquid splashed against her tongue, but not as she had expected. She held the tea cup lightly up to her nose and the foreign smell of alcohol came lightly from the tea. After a quick glance over at the cabinet to see an open bottle of lightly flavoured vodka before muttering, “******** it” under her breath and downing the whole cup in an instant. A silence took over the room as Aire resumed idly flicking the lighter open and closed and Epitaph quietly sipped on her own tea. Anues, for whatever reason, was absent and there was no way to broach conversation until Aire herself finally spoke. “I ******** hate that Scyther.”
“Mmm.” The silence took hold of the room once more as quickly as it had vanished, but eventually Epitaph broke it herself. “Either way, though, right now that Scyther is his father. Whether or not you hate Tolin, you have to find a way to get along with him to get what you want.”
Aire frowned. The comment didn't do much more than piss her off, but unlike everyone else in the Kingdom she actually had some measure of respect for Epitaph. What little rational thought that was kept in tact by that fact was enough to reason that Epitaph was correct even if she really, really, really ******** hated that Scyther. With a slight stagger as Aire got to her feet suddenly, she walked quickly and with purpose over to the cabinet before grabbing the bottle of vodka that would punctuate her sentence. “Tell him he owes me.”
“Of course.”
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Posted: Tue Feb 14, 2012 6:20 pm
The ride back to the castle had been... peaceful. Teleportation had been involved to get there but it hadn't been on the way back and, as a result, the Flareon got a nice long period of time to herself that was uninterrupted as the sun slowly drifted across the open, blue sky. It was a nice day by all accounts and the weather was excellent... If she had realized that earlier she probably would've been walking around outside. It also would've helped her avoid... unwanted attention, though somehow she had the feeling that the day would somehow involve quite a bit of that. Perhaps it would be best if she stopped by a cafe or some such for lunch before heading the rest of the way back. Yes, that would be nice.
She stopped by at a small cafe on the corner of the street in the middle of the city. It was a nice little place. It was charming in it's small size yet bustling all the same and the moving crowds outside provided something to passively observe. More than anything, the general busy motions of the city during lunchtime were more than enough to, hopefully, keep her unobserved and her day uninterrupted. It wasn't moments after she ordered that she picked the figure out of the crowd that would prevent her from having a simple, quiet lunch.
The Pikachu, somehow or another, managed to pick Epitaph out of the crowd and with a grin on her face and a spring in her step, Tempest slipped into the cafe and sat down in front of the Flareon. With but a few simple words, Epitaph frowned invisibly.
“Would you do me a favour?”
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Posted: Tue Feb 14, 2012 7:10 pm
Once Epitaph finished her lunch, it was a short walk into the palace as she resumed her walk around the guild. She had free time, but, at this point it was beginning to come to and end. There was a meeting to be dealt with in a few hours and if she wandered outside the city by herself she was likely to miss it. The movements of the guild were peaceful, which made her an easy target for the Ivysaur who seemed to pop out of nowhere.
“Where is Solaris?” Epitaph blinked in surprise. The little Ivysaur was always a little jarring to talk to and it was especially so when he was actually angry. The voice never seemed to match the body, for some reason. “He owes Rebirth a week's worth of paperwork and he's been avoiding me all day long. I've found him two dozen times, but he teleports away every time I find him.”
“Ah.” Well, that explained that. Serrin couldn't very well track Solaris down with that kind of disadvantage, after all. It also explained why he was so frustrated. Ever since Solaris had gotten full (if carefully observed) control over the guild back, the amount of paperwork had increased and the Espeon had begun slacking in spite of her gentle prods to push onwards. He was a fine leader when he wasn't acting rashly but his work ethic left something to be desired. “I have a feeling I know where he is.”
Serrin practically snorted. “Good. Tell him if he doesn't have those papers in by tonight I'll find him.” The comment was left there without exactly what would happen if Serrin found Solaris, though there was no doubt in Epitaph's mind as to what it would be. Serrin had been given rights as an official ranking member of Rebirth while the guild's structure was restored which meant he could do basically whatever he wanted.
The pair parted ways and after a few turns and twists, Epitaph found herself in a nearly silent and nearly empty Library. She could hear some snickering in the back along with a comment that she could barely make out as “No one ever goes to the library!” She sighed quietly as she walked up behind Solaris and peered over his shoulder. She had barely gotten a glance before Solaris let out a squeal and disappeared in a sudden teleport, leaving behind only a few cut up books. The Flareon let out another sigh before she headed straight for his office, where she knew he would be.
She gently pushed the door open and walked in. Solaris was sitting just inside with his back to the door, but this time he heard her coming. Not that he escaped because of it. The Espeon's first reaction was to jump on top of... whatever it was so that he could hide it. “Go awaaaaay.”
Epitaph stared for a moment. “Go away”? In that whiny tone? What was he working on...? Now, instead of troubled, she was genuinely curious. “Solaris, what are you hiding?”
“It's not done yet. I haven't finished it.”
Epitaph walked around the Espeon who fidgeted as he constantly readjusted himself to stay turned. Every step was careful so as to avoid crushing the paper, as she had identified it. With a sudden swipe, Epitaph's paw struck out to hook the paper and she quickly pulled it out from under him in order to see just what it was. Solaris's breath was caught in his throat as he watched in horror, unsure of what to do.
Epitaph simply stared at it. The piece of paper had a bunch of various glued on letters to form a short, but simple... sentence? Two words. “Will” “You”. And then... a simple, cartoony picture of a Beedril? And then just two letters. “Mi”. Epitaph stared, unblinking, unsure of what exactly was resting before her. And then it finally clicked and the Flareon couldn't help but burst out laughing. The reaction was almost immediate as Solaris began to throw a little fit. “I knew this was a bad idea! I shouldn't have made it, it's terrible isn'--”
His words were cut off by the soft press of lips against his cheek as Epitaph's laughter was restrained. “Nonsense. It's perfect.” Solaris's expression turned to a smile and his tail began to wag lightly in elation. “But don't you have some files you need to get finished? Serrin is about ready to choke you.” The expression was shot down in an instant, but another soft kiss, this one much more forward, brought the Espeon's mood back around. “I'll help you finish. Then, we'll find somewhere nice and quiet to have dinner.”
Solaris's happiness was obvious as he headed towards his desk with Epitaph beside him. The springy, quick step. The wagging motion in his tail. The smile that threatened to split his face. He was a simple man, he really was. Yet there was love all the same.
“Happy Valentine's Day.”
“Happy Valentine's Day, Solaris.”
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