Welcome to Gaia! ::

Nic hesitantly rose with Aurora's offer, eyes occasionally darting to the elephants mere yards away from them. He had never been so close to these creatures before. He could so easily imagine being caught under one of their massive feet or strangled by that leathery trunk.. But they seemed tame enough. It didn't look like they were going to charge them any time soon, at least.

While fairy and king conversed, Nic took the time to look between Aurora and his father. He did, indeed, pick out those similarities between them, but he didn't believe there was any way he could be Aurora's father. In truth, he didn't look terribly older than Nicholas himself. If they were ordinary people in a crowd, he would have pegged them as brothers perhaps. But the relationship of father and son would have been much farther from his mind.

Jumping slightly at the sudden 'You', Nic realized he was being addressed. Oh dear, he thought.. Had he done something wrong? But the question settled him, almost to the point of laughing. "W-well, not exactly," he said, a shy grin coming to his face as he averted his eyes to the ground. "I mean, I was the one who brought your da-.. son down from the tower, but I'm not really.. I mean we're not.." He stammered over his words for a moment, trying to find how to exactly reply. Clearly he was slightly lost.

He gave a questioning glance to Aurora as if asking for help.

(( XD All of my love is for Celestine right now. <333 ))


Those hands had Nic immediatly tensing. His first reaction was to reach for the hilt of his sword, but the immense gentleness those hands told him there was no threat.. But that did little to stop the creepiness of it all. Except for a quick over-the-shoulder glance, he made no move turn around to face her nor pull away from the touch. At first glimpse, Nic was nearly convinced it was Aurora doing the 'examination', but upon a quit downward glance, he saw the subtle difference in the size of chest. Not to mention this person looked far too jolly to be the stubborn prince. She was the Queen. Royalty, on most occasions, could do whatever they want when they wanted. And seeing as how Nic was a knight, he was grown up with the teachings to protect and obey these very types of people.

Once in front of him, Nic dropped into a quick bow once more, mostly to hide his continuing surprise. Such strange, oddly youthful parents.

"It's actually Nicholas, my Lady," the knight was quick to correct in a mix of shock and confusion. "Nicholas Shylton." Correcting nobles was always such an awkward thing for Nic, but the mention of a marriage and children left that awkward feeling in the dust. "B-but, Your Majesty.. Aurora and I, we only just met! Surely you would ask Aurora of her feelings about this beforehand as well?" Not to point out the ever-present factor that they were both male. Besides, Aurora didn't seem overly joyed about the idea of quickly found love anyway. Nic felt to be in such a fix.

[[Bleaaah. Well! That certainly makes things a bit easier. Sorry for the absence. Missed you folk.]]

Having fed on the usual feast of fish that evening, the prince had found an underwater cave for rest through the night. He really didn't want any more... odd pursuers. But as the rays of first dawn pierced the water, Ryland's gills sealed themselves off and he awoke to the distressful sensation of well, drowning. Again.

Azure orbs flickered open and he propelled off the bottom of the lake, soon thrashing to the surface with lack of air, webbed fingers, or ... tail. Indeed, two human legs once again occupied his lower half and the youth gasped for the sweet oxygen from the forest air. He paddled over to the side of the lake and took a sharp look about. No need to bare himself fully if it was unavoidable. He pulled himself out of the lake, still coughing up a few remnants of the water from his lungs. Grabbing his pair of trousers, he pulled them over his freshly transformed half and laid down on the grassy edge of the water to shake excess water from his locks and allow the sun's heat to take the moisture from his gleaming back.

((Welcome back! :3

And.... ninja

Eisleeeeeeeeeeeeeey. ;____; <333 *went to that concert last night*))

William had been eating his breakfast. He had risen not too much before, intending to get a start in the early hours before it got too hot. His attention, however, was diverted from his breakfast by the explosion (well, compared to the silence, at least) of sound in the form of that red-head surfacing from the water and gulp down oxygen. From the looks of him, he seemed to have nearly drowned. William wasn't exactly in a conspicuous position -- he was situated more into the foresty part, away from the clearing, but he could see quite clearly, despite not being seen. As he examined the teen further, he realised that it must have been that redhead he had seen jumping into the water last night.... and... later with a tail.

Several moments of hesitation and then he stood slowly, the movement causing a small stirring sound from the bushes. And then he had stepped into the clearing, his countenance entirely visible. He didn't quite... know what to say. But he had to say... something. He paused several moments, biting his lip slightly as he thought.

"Are you... alright?" he asked at last, unable to bring up what he really wanted to know, though he was not without concern for the other's well being.

Indi winced at being called one of the servants yet again but he had indeed prepared the extra elephant that had been brought along. He hadn't quite understood why there was the extra one at first but he fully understood now. He drifted down to Nic and with a wave of his hand, a small vine sprouted beneath his feet and quickly grew up the elephants side and stopped at the perfect position for him to step of of it and onto the beasts back. He proceeded over to Aurora, where he did the exact same thing and then flew back over to Nic. "Don't mind them. They're just a bit excited, I think. They aren't normally this...abnormal..." he said tentatively. He wasn't used to dealing with the King and Queen very often and the few times he did, they were normally quite the tame pair. Although Indi could never get over the time that Queen Celestine had called him "Pinki" for some odd reason.

((Actually, they're not tame. Celestine is always crazy... though with good-intentions... sort of.... Hugh is less weird, but he agrees to practically everything he says and, since they are nearly always together, that makes him weird, too. Aurora just says they're not usually so weird because he missed them. Somehow. D: <333 ))

Aurora's eyes flickered from Indi and Nic, and then to his parents who had ascended atop their elephant without any obvious means of transportation -- one moment they were on the ground, and the next they were atop the massive creature. Aurora looked perfectly at ease ascending the vines and taking his seat so high above the ground.

He glanced back towards Nic and shrugged slightly. "You'll get used to it after a while. I did. I had to, though I still don't think it was good parenting to make a child who is afraid of heights ride a gigantic elephant at the age of five....." he grumbled to himself. Still, he gave the elephant a rather affectionate pat on its (really big) back. "Off we goooo...!" he said in a rather bored tone, and so it was. Despite having not been out of the tower in over a year, he seemed perfectly in place despite the height and the heavy footfalls. It was entirely evident that he had been doing this for much of his life.

Nic held on tightly for only the first few seconds of the elephant's start, but once realizing he was about to slip off, he relaxed. "Get used to it, will I?" he echoed in question, managing to throw over a teasing glance at Aurora. "Don't tell me you're joining your parents in the idea of me staying here and marrying you, are you?" He added a light peal of laughter to show the sensitive prince he was being serious. But even with that comment, Nic wondered to himself.. What was he going to do after all this settled down? He vowed to be Aurora's protector, so he could always stick around and continue to do such. Or would he go off on his own way once more, back to his life of knighthood?

The young knight just shook his head before glancing over at the King and Queen atop their own beast. "Speaking of your parents.. are they possessed of any sort of magic themselves?" He couldn't help but notice the couple ways they just seem to suddenly appear places.

What happens after? This statement caused Nic to wonder if was anything like after riding a horse for the first time. The stiffness of joints and the none-too-comfortable soreness between his legs. But he wasn't mounted atop the elephant anything like he would a horse. That was just an experience the knight would just have to wait to feel for himself. But he knew that wait wouldn't be much longer. The elephant's long strides were taking them within quick reach of the castle.

"Though I have only just met them, I truly don't see your parents becoming tyranical or anything of the sort," Nic said, unable to even imagine the two in such an overpowering state. "Now you on the other hand.." He left the words hanging teasingly in the air.