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 Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 5:58 pm
"I have to say, I quite agree! Violence is the most stupid, senseless thing ever to have existed, and those that engage in it are buffoons with more muscles than brains."
She was smirking at Jessie as she verbally poked him. He was smirking back. "Quit insulting yourself, Cressa. I think introductions are in order," he said, turning back to Forte, "My name is Jessie. I'm the captain of the Order's combat division."
"Ooh, awkward!~" Cressa cackled in the background. Jessie, meanwhile, had extended his hand with a smile, to reassure her that they were only joking around. "No hard feelings," is the phrase humans use. In their language, a similarly-intended idiom - Lus xuat l'euol'gui wund resk'afar - could be translated fairly literally as "Don't throw the ruby into the pit." Which is... interesting, as all of their sayings tend to be.
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 6:13 pm
Captain of the Order's combat division! No wonder he seems incredibly strong, the girl thought. Not to mention handsome.
The man, called Jessie, extended his hand. The composer paused a moment. This was the part she was always afraid of, though she'd never let it show on the outside. She was a bizarre girl; always had been, always will be. Most people didn't like that. Then again, freaking people out did give her some amusement. It meant that the person who had wandered into her presence wouldn't bother her again, thus lessening the amount of intolerance she would have to deal with. This, however, was not one of those times.
When she introduced herself...would these two seemingly friendly people accept her?
The girl returned the gesture, extending her fingerless-gloved hand to shake his.
"Nice to meet you Jessie," she said. "As for me...I am Forte Nocturne, musician and composer. It's a pleasure to make both of your acquaintances."
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 6:55 pm
"It's a pleasure to meet you, too... Forte," he said, with a soft inflection, "Your name is very appropriate, isn't it? It fits you like a glove."
"Ohoho, be careful, my love, or you'll end up with yet another young female admirer," Cressa teased, flinging her arms around his neck from behind. "We can't have that, can we? Not seeing as you're going to be mawwying meeeee!~"
"I'm convinced that marrying you would do nothing to stem the tide of female admirers," he answered drily, "In fact, it might just spur the most tenacious of them on. I can definitely see Gloria taking up the challenge."
"I SHALL CHALLENGE THEM ALL TO A DUEL TO THE DEATH!" Cressa valiantly proclaimed, striking a warlike pose fit for any Amazonian warrior-queen, "And what's more, I shall WIN! What say you, Forte? He's just making excuses, isn't he? Typical man, terrified of commitment!"
"Oh please, Cressa, don't drag the girl into your fatuous joke. This really has gone too far now," the captain chastised, stern once more.
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 7:19 pm
Forte blushed quite a bit when Jessie said her name. Nobody had really said her name to her before...it was always comments like "Eew it's that creepy organ girl!" or, "Oh my God it's her!" followed by the sound of running feet, gasps, or screams. Funny how rumors got around her old school.
"Thanks," the girl said. "Well I guess that's what...my parents intended..." She shuffled her feet nervously.
But the composer's nervousness was washed away when Cressa, the woman, started acting silly. For some reason, the banter back and forth between the two elves put her at ease. She felt like she could trust these two.
Softly, a smile spread across her face and she started to laugh, so much so that she felt the need to cover her mouth to stifle it slightly.
"Haha, worry not," Forte assured Cressa with a smile, "as handsome as Jessie is, my heart isn't so easily swayed. The minute I saw him I could tell automatically that he has quite an entourage of female admirers. And trust me, past experiences have taught me not to even attempt to intervene in such a situation. And by past experiences I mean the violent catfights that used to take place at my old high school. Hair pulling, punch throwing, name calling; they were quite ugly."
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 7:37 pm
"You see?" said Jessie, with a note of triumph, "This young lady knows better than to take part in your silly game."
"Oh, she just said she wouldn't be pursuing you, not that she won't take part in my game," Cressa corrected him. She crouched down close to Forte, until their faces were the same height. "Tell me - what kind of diamond ring do you think he should buy me? Are we thinking traditional solitaire, or... something a bit more flashy?"
"Oh, of course, because the fine details of this imaginary wedding are ever so important."
"Well, SOMEBODY has to take care of them. Men just don't have a clue, do they, Forte?" Cressa exasperated, shaking her head conspiratorially with the other lady. "I'll bet he can't even tell the difference between beige and ecru."
"I'll have you know, despite my ocular impairments, I'm perfectly capable of distinguishing the different subtleties of colours," he insisted, folding his arms across his chest, "That is an... artistic skill, and not one limited to a gender, either. I can also tell the difference between periwinkle, eggshell, forget-me-not, seafoam, cornflower and baby blue."
Cressa blinked up at him, her expression quirked like that of an interested puppy, as if she were digesting what he was saying. Then she turned back to Forte, and with a smile and a little nod, said: "This is exactly why I want to marry him. He's just so sexy when he's being nit-picky."
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 7:52 pm
"Well," Forte said, putting her hands in her lap, "diamonds are a girl's best friend after all, so it should be the prettiest one the man can find. The style itself doesn't really matter. It should capture his feelings about her too. But the ring itself shouldn't be the most important part after all."
She remembered her mother's wedding ring, a solitaire diamond with smaller diamonds in various colors all around the gallery. Words inscribed on the inside read, "To My Love, May We Always Be Together". The girl felt herself blushing; the romance was getting to her a little.
"As for men, I know very little about decent ones actually," she continued. "You see the school I attended back home was filled with men that were...um...let's just say unclean for all intensive purposes. And they were always incredibly stupid. So yes, most of them don't have a clue. That's not to say all of them are like that though. At least, that's what I think." She smiled, feeling slightly embarassed that she had told them all of that.
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 8:13 pm
"I apologise for your poor experiences. However, I'd like to assure you that those you describe are not men at all," Jessie said, "Definitely not in the sense that I was brought up to uphold."
Cressa got back up. "I agree, I don't know what anybody could possibly see in human boys, vile little monkeys that they are."
"...You're twisting my words a little bit."
"But only a little bit," she smirked, placing her finger for a moment against his lips. "I hope you can find a nice man one day yourself, Forte. Perhaps an elf. They tend to have their heads screwed on more tightly. Dark elves are even better. Our men know where their place is."
"And where would that be...?" Jessie asked, his voice low, anticipating her answer.
"On the bottom, of course," Cressa replied flirtily. "Underneath their women."
"I would've thought you'd know better than anyone how exciting other positions can be."
"Hehehe~ And you tell ME off for playing inappropriate games in front of the girl."
Jessie didn't miss a beat. "You started it."
"Ohoho, touché, my love, touché!"
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 8:24 pm
"Oh no, that's quite all right," Forte assured him. "Sadly, things like what I've described are common in schools where I grew up. But I will say this. The world in general could use more men like you." The composer smiled gently.
The conversation that followed immediately took on a more "After Dark" flair. Giggling softly, Forte found herself enjoying their company more and more.
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Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 9:31 am
Evelyn panicked, but only for a moment, before coolly responding, “Yes, Armin. I’m here. I’m okay.”“Did he…” Armin trailed off and shifted his weight back and forth between his feet—one stair then the other, first stair, then the second. “Did he hurt you?”Evelyn smiled at Armin’s thoughtfulness. “No, no. I’m fine, really. When will we be arriving?”At these words, Armin gave in and walked down the stairs and unlocked her door.“Armin—“ Evelyn said, standing.
Armin crossed the room and enfolded Evelyn in a hug. Evelyn quickly reciprocated the hug, and she couldn’t help but notice his smell. He smelled like home. Well, home, Hawthorne, as all the Altons did, and a scent that was completely unique to Armin—and was that it? She could just make out the tiniest hint of perfume. A perfume she recognized. One of her sisters’, no doubt.
The thought made her smile. Her sisters…her siblings…she would see them soon. She’d hadn’t seen any of them since she left the Temple after Panda’s death…and then she was so marred by tears over death and destruction that it didn’t really matter to her that they were there. Oh, Overseer, she was going to see her daddy again. And her mommy. And Grandmama. And Grandpapa. The thought made her shed a few tears, that poor Armin must have sensed, because he hugged her tighter for a moment then held her at arm’s length. “Are you okay, Evie?”Evelyn nodded, glad that he had stopped with the overly formal “Miss Evelyn.” “Yes, Armin. I’m okay. It’s just…I can’t believe that I’m actually going home. It’s been so long…And I have a niece now as well as a nephew, right? I just…I can’t believe it. I’m so happy. Even if I was brought by someone as brutish as your brother.” She laughed, nonchalantly, and lightly shoved Armin.“I am sorry about that. He...Andreas is…” Armin apparently couldn’t find the words to describe his brother and Evelyn pushed him no further, but stood on her tip-toes so she could look him in the eye and pat his shoulder.“Armin. It’s okay. Really.” Other than some light bruising on my arm and ego. Evelyn coughed and sat down on the bed. “So when are we getting there?”Armin seemed to suddenly remember that he had a job to do—otherwise Andreas would almost crash the boat again—and bowed to Evelyn. “It shouldn’t be too long. Your grandmother cast a spell on this boat that makes it go faster than it appears to. And seeing as Andreas can’t drive a boat to save his life and Aloisius is too busy mooning over the blond elf at the Temple, it’s left to me to drive. I better go.”
Evelyn nodded her head to him, acknowledging him before he turned and left, closing the door behind him. Mindlessly and wordlessly, she threw an open palm at the door, locking it. Before getting down on the floor and looking under the bed at the beautiful blue bird. “They shouldn’t bother us anymore. And don’t worry—no matter what, they’re still servants of my family. They’ve nearly completed their mission, and soon any direct order I give them will have to be heeded. Some weird thing in the oath they delivered to my family.” Unless my father undermines me.
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Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 10:24 am
Adeline peeked out from under the bed as Evie spoke to her, then, with a little cooing noise, crawled out of the tiny space. With a flutter of her wings, she hopped up onto the bed and sat down, long tailfeathers lying out behind her. If what the boy had said was true, they were going to be back at the mainland very soon. There was no point in transforming back. They might as well just settle down and wait.
As if to say this, she shifted around a little in place, getting herself comfortable on top of the soft quilt and tucking in her wings.
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Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 3:19 pm
Cressa wandered over to the piano and gently stroked its keys. "Mmm~ I can never be around instruments too long without needing to play something myself.""Go on," Jessie urged. Cressa hovered by the piano a couple of moments longer. She pressed the keys down with her left hand, coaxing out a soft, sweet arpeggio. Only then did she sit down. The arpeggios continued, and then became recognisable. She was playing Bach's arrangement of Ave Maria - but somehow, she didn't seem satisfied. After barely a minute, she pressed down the keys in a perfect cadence. "No - I've played the keyboard too much in the past day. Jessie, can you get down the harp?"Obediently, he crossed the room to the northern wall, where a variety of valuable instruments were displayed under enchanted glass. They included an old, beautiful full-sized harp, carefully mounted on a podium, with its pillar carved into the shape of a winged woman. He reached through the glass as if it wasn't even there - which for him, it technically wasn't. The glass acted as a magical barrier, which only allowed certain people to reach through it. This was put in place to prevent those who might not respect the instruments under its protection from causing them any damage. He gently placed the harp down near to the two ladies. Cressa pulled the piano stool forward and took the stringed instrument in her hands. She moved her hands across the strings, looking like the epitomy of grace, and an equally enchanted melody flowed out of the strings. It was immediately recognisable, and not only because they'd all only heard it a few moments before, but because it was recognisable the world over. The two listeners were treated once again to an arrangement of Canon in D, which, while rich, was unusually devoid of flourishes for Cressa's playing. Jessie liked it when she played without so much ornamentation. She didn't need to show off. Almost without realising it, he'd sat down on the floor to listen to her. With the light from the windows behind her, illuminating her softly curled hair; her demure, pale choice of dress for that day; and her face absorbed in the music, she looked to him for a few, oddly light moments like his vision of an angel of Eilistraee. Then he looked again, and she was just Cressa once more, playing the harp, as she often did.
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Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 3:59 pm
Some miles away, a peaceful forest was being disturbed. Running footsteps, occasional fireworks, strange screams and sounds like drumbeats could be seen and heard. Many townsfolk were curious about the noise, but no one actually went out to investigate it. Perhaps the most interesting thing was, had any of them actually done said investigation, they would have found that the racket was being caused by only two traveling people. These two had been through things the average person would've been crippled by. They'd encountered death, violence, love, and tragedy and even that was only the tip of the iceberg. Ordinarily you'd think that things of that nature would crush their spirits, but no, these two were just as crazy as ever. Perhaps even crazier. "Sveeeen can we stop for a minute? I'm awful tired," a girl with short, grayish-brown hair asked. She wore a beautiful robe dress adorned with a celestial pattern, shorts, and mismatched striped stockings. "My feet are killing me.""Relax Alexi, we'll be there soon," the boy, Sven, assured her. He had black hair and striking green eyes, with a white newboy cap tilted to his left atop his head. "What I want to know is what happens when we come out of this forest," the girl, Alexi, said as she sat down on a nearby log. "What happens if there's water? What do we do then? Even we can't cross water on foot. And I doubt there'll be any boats.""We'll worry about that when we come to it," Sven replied as he sat down next to her. "In the meantime, how about a kiss?"Alexi giggled. "You always want those.""I know.""And you're lucky I don't mind."The two leaned in and their lips met in a romantic kiss. It lasted for a few seconds before being disturbed by a strange sound. "What was that?" Alexi asked, slightly nervous. "I don't know," Sven said, looking around. There didn't appear to be anything nearby. "We should get going.""Yeah," Alexi agreed as she got up from her seat. The two continued their journey until they reached the end of the forest. They happened upon a beautiful beach filled with palm trees. This was the Port of Gambino, which would ultimately lead to their destination. There were bridges out to the sea, but none of them connected with the island on the other side. In addition, there were no boats. "Like I said earlier...how do we cross the water on foot again?" Alexi asked, putting her hands on her hips and looking at Sven. "Last time I checked we couldn't do that.""You're right; we can't," Sven said. "But! We can do something not many others can do.""Like what?""We can fly.""WHAT?! Since when?""Since I just came up with it now," the boy replied. He took a look at his surroundings. There were several palm trees sprinkled throughout the beach, three of which were closer together than the others. Walking over to them, Sven put his hand on one of them and closed his eyes. Just then a wind swept up and the tree Sven had his hand on started to bend backward. The other two followed suit but they didn't lean as far back as their companion. The leaves intertwined themselves until they made a sort of basket. Alexi watched all of this in amazement. "Wow! Sven, what did you do?!" she asked. "I made us a flying device," the boy said cheerfully, smiling as though he was proud of himself. "We get in here and when I say the word, we fly.""Okay," the girl said. "But I hope you know what you're doing.""Sorta," Sven replied. "Oh, in that case I trust you completely."The two travellers got inside the palm tree basket and made sure they were comfortable. Sven grabbed two small vines and handed one to Alexi. The two looped the vines around the tops of their heads and around their chins to secure their hats. After they did this Sven pulled Alexi close to him. "You ready?" he asked. "Yep," Alexi replied. "All right. In that case...FIRE!!!"The palm trees bent back even further, and then as fast as you could say "HOLY BANANAS THAT DON'T GROW ON PALM TREES BUT WHO CARES!" they shot forward, sending the two travellers flying through the air. "HOLY CRAAAAAAAAAP!" Alexi screamed. "HOLD ON TIGHT!" Sven yelled, although his comment was completely unnecessary because Alexi was already holding onto Sven so tight she thought she would kill him in mid-air. And then they really would've had problems. The two of them sailed through the air smoothly...or as smoothly as possible, considering the girl was freaking out. They began their descent as they reached the beach on the other side. "OHMYGOD WE'RE NOT GONNA MAKE IT!" Alexi screamed. "WE'RE GONNA LAND IN THE WATER! WE'RE GONNA LAND IN THE WATER! WE'RE GONNA LAND IN THE WATER!"The pair fell back down to earth and landed cleanly on their feet...about six feet away from the water. "Okay now?" Sven asked, looking at Alexi. He couldn't help but gloat slightly. Slowly, the girl turned her head to her right to face her partner. "Have I told you how much I love you?" she said, smiling at him despite the fact that she was still shaking like crazy. The boy laughed as he pulled the vine off his head. Alexi did the same and the two enjoyed a hug and a kiss on the shore. ~~~ The Temple stood majestically in front of the two travelers, one a little worse for the wear emotionally but still standing. The two didn't immediately recognize it because it had been rebuilt since their absence, and rebuilt it was. It was utterly beautiful. "Well, are you ready?" the black-haired boy asked. "The last time you asked me that you catapulted me across an ocean," Alexi replied. "But now the ocean's behind us, so I don't think you can pull that one again. So..." She thought a moment, teasingly. "Yes." She smiled at him, taking his hand. But Sven dropped his hand. Confused, Alexi looked at him, but what the boy did next surprised her more. He bent down, swept her off her feet and into his arms. He then pushed open the door with his foot and the two entered the Temple, laughing hysterically. "HELLO EVERYBODY!! WE'RE BACK, BAYBAY~!"
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Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 5:01 pm
Forte watched as Jessie got the most beautiful harp she'd ever seen down. She couldn't help but gaze at it as he placed it between Cressa, sitting on the piano stool, and herself, sitting on the seat of the organ. Then Cressa began to play. The composer recognized the song immediately. The music flowed beautifully through the air, amazing the composer. She closed her eyes and became immersed in the music, swaying a bit with the melody. She kind of wanted to play along, but did not because she felt it would ruin the integrity of the music. So she sat there listening quietly in awe.
She plays so well, Forte thought. The music is so amazing...I'll bet they think my abilities are amateurish...
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Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 5:14 pm
Cressa's head suddenly flicked to the left, as if somebody had just slammed a door on the opposite side of the room. The steady stream of notes flowing from the harp stopped mid-pluck, though her fingers remained hovering over the strings. She looked as if she was paying attention to something only she could see or hear.
"What is it?" Jessie asked, recognising her 'I've just sensed something happening in the distance that greatly surprises me' look.
"Sven and Alexi are back," she said, getting to her feet. That was all the explanation needed.
"They're back...?" Jessie asked, though it wasn't really a question. He'd already gotten to his feet in one impossibly smooth and nimble movement. "We must go meet them."
"Of course. It was wonderful meeting you, Forte," Cressa nodded at the girl, with a small smile. She then turned and followed Jessie out through the doors. "They're at the main entrance."
"I gathered that much."
The elves glided into the main hall and were upon the couple within seconds of their return. "Sven! Alexi!" Cressa called to them, "Where have you been?!"
"We had you down as two of our war-dead."
"I couldn't sense either of you anywhere, until now. It was as if you fell off the face of the world!"
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Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 5:29 pm
The musician jumped out of her trance once Cressa stopped playing the harp.
"Sven and Alexi are back," Cressa said as she stood up.
Forte watched as her two companions bid her adieu and went to go see the pair. She responded to their goodbyes and turned back to the organ. She was about to play when something hit her.
Wait...Alexi and Sven? The former sounds familiar...
She got up from the organ and headed for the door, realizing she'd left her book behind.
"Oh, I'll come back for it later," she said to herself. "After all, my new composition has yet to be played."
The reclusive composer took a few more steps closer to the door and stopped at the threshold. She wasn't sure if she was ready for more social interaction today, but pushing herself, she stepped through the door and immediately found herself immersed in light. She turned to her left and headed toward the main entrance.
~~~
A familiar voice called to the two.
"Cressa!" Alexi said happily. "Sven, put me down, I want to hug Cressa."
"What if I say no?" Sven answered cheekily.
"I'll call you my certain favorite nickname," she warned.
Obviously wanting to avoid that neck of the woods, the boy placed her down on the ground. Alexi went over and gave Cressa a hug.
"Well, truthfully, we were involved in the whole Mirror World debacle," Sven explained. "It's a long story, but it ended with us getting spit out of the Mirror World and landing in a field outside Barton Town. That's where we've been, recuperating from our injuries."
"Yep," Alexi confirmed. "But right now we're both right as rain. And stronger too!" She flexed her muscles, laughing.
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