Welcome to Gaia! ::

There is a knock at Neko's door and you open it to find three bright red boxes, all of which have accordingly addressed with their own corresponding note.

Raylan glanced over his shoulder for a moment, looking down at the feien's wrist he was holding, ignoring the fact that the much bigger feien was protesting greatly. It had amused him that Merrimack was so tall and he was so short compared to him, yet he could still drag him behind him almost like it were nothing. So, the obvious decision? Make him get over his fear of the shop, of course.

"It's okay, Merri," he smiled, looking back toward the shop door as he stopped for a moment. "Look, there's hardly anyone there... And they hardly look like the "mean" type."

"I don't care, you little punk!" Merrimack growled, his three orange eyes glaring down at the smaller feien, his arm still twisting and flicking in an attempt to free himself. "I hate this place, and I never wanted to come back here!"

"You're just scared," Raylan frowned. "Seriously, not ALL feien are bad. I haven't met any that seemed too terrible yet, for instance."

"I attract trouble, you idiot," he winced, giving up for a moment. He was too tired to fight much longer, anyway. "Bad luck follows me around, I swear."

The bi-colored feien thought for a moment, his green eyes watching the happenings inside. There had to be something... Oh!

"Just tonight, okay? Ya know, maybe Globin might be proud of you if you told him you went out and did something like this," he mentioned, looking up at the memory feien. "You DID say you were going to try things for him, didn't you?"

Merrimack blushed slightly and glared down at the child once more. He had a point... He DID say he would get over some fears. This wouldn't really count as an exception, especially when he knew Raylan had a point about not all feien being bad.

With a heavy sigh, he gave in, muttering quietly to himself, "I can't believe I'm doing this..."

Raylan smiled warmly and floated into the shop, still hanging onto Merrimack's wrist for the moment. Hopefully things would go well tonight, and the tall feien's point of view could possibly be changed.

Hearing yet another instance of sound coming from the other side of the shop, Arith tilted her head carefully to look into the shaded area of the entrance once more, curious as to what, or whom, would be making the racket that had been brought to her attention.

Although curious, she felt as if it were rude if she had left the two younger feien she had initiated conversation with, and watched the area once more, intentionally to find out who was arriving soon enough.

Beaming as Arith offered her acknowledgement, Berra approached and gave her a small wave. "Hello there!" she said brightly, at the same time looking the white feien over with curiousity. She reminded her of her father and Aileron all at once in coloration...and in the fact she had green eyes.

She was about to introduce herself when she heard the commotion at the window and cringed, looking up. Upon hearing the snapping, she'd been certain for a moment Talon had decided to come to the shop after all. However, seeing Raylan, she immediately perked up.

She nearly flew up to meet her brother, but stopped, seeing that he was in the process of towing a very large someone into the shop with him...and that someone didn't look particularly agreeable.

Oh dear...perhaps she'd wait to say hello.

He spun in a circle as the shop seemed to spring to life. "Miss Berra! And?Others" he faltered as he remembered he was still a stranger to his own people. "This is a pleasant surprise. I really wasn't expecting to see anyone, and certainly not a familiar face. I suppose you actually come with a purpose, yes? Not an idle wanderer like me?" He widened his stance "I was just speaking with Ms. Arith here. Have you met?"

Turning her attention gratefully back to Indra and...Arith, had he said her name was?

"Its nice to meet you, Miss Arith!" she said, offering a polite mimic of a curtsy with her wings. Her eyes looking back to the steam feien she nodded. "I'm supposed to be here just getting paints, because daddy said he doesn't want me out in the dark, but I didn't know anybody would be here this late. I don't think he'd mind me staying a little later." she paused, wondering if she was really sure of that. "....yeah!" she added, as though convincing herself. "He won't mind!"

Raylan blinked a few times as he noticed his sister stop, wondering if something was the matter. He felt a bit of a struggle against his hand for a moment, his ears twitching slightly as he finally let Merrimack go.

"Don't run off, okay? Mama Ares might be upset if you don't come home with me," he said over his shoulder, floating off to meet with his sister.

Merrimack mocked Raylan a little bit as he floated off, folding his arms over his chest as his mood just seemed to dip even lower. What gave that brat the right to act like his guardian? Flapping his wings a little bit, he glided over to the table nearby, crudely landing due to exhaustion. A much needed rest was in order... Sitting down with a huff, the tall feien proceeded to pout as he already started to wish he was back at home.

"Berra! How've you been?" Raylan smiled and quickly hugged his sibling. "I didn't expect to see you here today."

Arith gave a small chuckle, and went to give a little bow, but was reminded by the shuffling of her itched, uncomfortable wings, and the falling of a few molted feathers gathering at her feet. Blushing a bit, she shook her head and nodded her head once again to the younger before her - Berra, her name was she believed and gave a genuine smile.

"Hello Miss Berra - the pleasure is all mine" she stated curtiously as she chuckled, overhearing the small conversation that she and the neutral toned Indra had conjured together, still curious of the rustling previously.

As she was hugged, quite saving her the bother of debating leaving the conversation, Berra grinned and hugged her brother back. "I've been okay, Raylan!" she told him. "And you?" Even as she asked, she looked past him at Merri pouting on the table nearby.

Lowering her voice to a whisper, she inquired "...is that---is that Merrimack?" He certainly matched the description of what Globin had told her...but his moodiness was bewildering. It was hard to believe, knowing Globin was deathly afraid of Talon, that he would fall in love with someone who seemed almost exactly like him.

"Well… It's been dark for some time. And the more I think about it, the more I think that it's actually going to get lighter rather than darker at this point in the night. So. If you stay long enough here, then you will not be heading out in the dark at all and your father will have no cause for complaint." His logic was perfectly sound in his eyes. "So stay awhile."

He tripped over his thoughts as Raylan approached and wrapped his arms around Berra. "Stay and… introduce me to your friend." He then paused yet again at the gathering of down at Arith's feet. "Ma'am?"

Unaware momentarily at the young Indra, she had been breifly spooked by his light inquiry, twitching slightly and allowing more feathers to fall to her feet. Shifting her green hued gaze to him once more, she smiled softly as she tilted her head - a common action - and stated "Yes, Indra? What would you like?" calmly.

"Oh, I've been all right. A little restless at home, but much better now that Miss Neko's finally come back home." Raylan nodded a little bit at Kookaberra's question, smiling slightly.

"Yep, that's Merri. He...doesn't really like the shop, but I made him come today. I think he needs to get out more, honestly," he replied in a bit of a whisper.

Looking to the silver and white feien with his sister, his smile broadened and his green eyes just seemed to shine. He loved meeting new people!

"Hello! My name's Raylan," he introduced himself to them, holding his hand out toward the silver feien first for a handshake. "Who might you two be?"

"I hope you don't mind me asking," he gestured with a nod over his shoulder "Miss Berra knows I sometimes ask silly questions, but I am still new to the world. I read that some birds lose their feathers as the seasons change… is it the same for the feathered winged ones?"

Berra stepped aside a bit so Raylan could meet Arith and Indra properly without her being in the way. Looking to Indra, she gestured at Raylan. "This is my brother, Indra!" she informed him, looking a little embarrassed that it had seemed she was ignoring him. She didn't bother offering Indra Raylan's name since he seemed to have already done that without her.

She was still getting used to this whole multiple-conversation thing after so long of talking one-on-one with Talon and Globin in separate rooms.

Arith chuckled softly and shook her head abit, looking down gravely at the white feathers falling from her long wings "Aye.. that's about right my dear.. It's a hassle.." she started. Looking down at them, her mouth crooked in a weird grin/frown and shrugged a bit "They itch and bother me, but I figure it's for the best." she finished with a sigh, and then turned her attention to the new addition to the group.

Giving a bit of an awkward smile, she looked at raylan before nodding to him curtiously "Pleasure to meet you dear, I'm Arith."

Looking to his hand for a moment, he decided he'd go back to the handshake if necessary. Turning to Arith, Raylan smiled and bowed a little bit, saying politely, "The pleasure is mine, Miss Arith."

As he was bowing, he noticed the white feathers on the ground by her feet. Taking a careful step forward, he plucked one off the ground, holding it gently between his fingers.

"Would it be all right if I bring this home to Mama?" he asked. "I know it may sound silly, but she likes feathers, and these are quite beautiful."

Satisfied with her explanation he no longer felt rude splitting his attention with the new arrivals. He held offered his hand back to Kookaberra's sibling. "Raylan was it? I can see the strong family resemblance? and efficient hair styling." He ran his fingers through his incredibly fine hair again only to meet a large mat of hair. "I better get this under control before I have to chop the whole mass off." He shook his hand free. "So? A social visit? Or are you here to shop like Miss Berra?"

Realizing the hand had been put out, Raylan took hold and gave one firm shake with a smile. "I like your hair, actually. It's all shiney and long... it would be a shame to cut it!" he blinked, tilting his head slightly. "And actually, a social visit. With everyone that lives with me, I don't have a need to do my own shopping quite yet."

Arith smiled softly and nodded a bit, figuring she didn't need it anyways - and if it meant another feien's content, then all the merrier. Chuckling softly she looked to Raylan again and wheeled her arm around behind her back to preen a few more feathers for him and Indra carefully "I wouldn't mind honestly.. they aren't worth much to me anymore - which is saddening, but if you know it'd make someone close to you happy, I on offer the best feathers from my wings" She stated, offering the cleaner, whiter ones with a honest, but saddened smile.

Raylan looked away from Indra for a moment back to Arith, glancing at the freshly plucked feathers. "Oh, Miss Arith... You really didn't need to do that," he said with sincerity. "I've heard from Mama that taking feathers directly from one's wings can be painful sometimes, and I'd hate to take something that may have hurt you..."

Though, he felt rude for not accepting the gift, either. Oh dear... so torn!

Arith gave a shake of her head, offering the feathers once again, with a genuine soft smile "It should be allright, they were pretty much fallen out anyways, destined only to meet the floor - so I think being a awarding sight for another feien is more of a fate then a dirted floor." she stated, handing them to him, with another smile, before yawning and stretching, looking away "I should be off for the night... I'm drained.."

"Well. If you do not mind me I'm going to deal with this hair." Indra slipped to the side of the wall and began feeling around for a loose splinter. He certainly didn't have any money for a fancy wire or string but a sturdy sliver of pine or oak would make a handy hair stick. Of course, drawing close to the wall meant dragging his feet through even thicker gatherings of dust. He coughed lightly and wondered if he'd be able to spot anything in lint and grime. Perhaps he would have better luck by the counters where the cover offered some protection. He made his way over to the cabinets and shelves, searching until something else caught his eye.

On the top shelf sat a stone, thrumming softly with a warm light. The colors were hot reflected in his eyes. There was red, orange, and crackling veins of black spread over its entirety. After a few moments he realized he had been staring. "What is that?" He asked to anybody with an ear open to him.

(OOC: Added this last part.)
Raylan nodded with a smile, taking the new feathers from Arith carefully. His mother would certainly enjoy these, mussed or not, and he would be sure to try and do something for the older feien in return.

Holding his free hand over his mouth to cover a yawn, the young feien began to realize just how tired he was. Stepping away from the group, not wanting to be rude (and feeling the others weren't exactly paying much attention to him anyway), Raylan simply curled up on the table, hoping Merrimack would wake him before he decided to leave.

Raylan yawned quietly for a moment, floating closer to Karma's house as his green eyes peered at the windows. It was late, and there seemed to be lights on, however he wondered if anyone was actually asleep quite yet. As he neared the door, the bi-colored feien looked to the doorbell in wonder. The guest room window was always open...wasn't it? Or what was it his father had told him...? Not wanting to bother Karma will the simple task of opening the door, the young feien flitted out to the back of the house, looking in through the windows until he found one that was familiar.

Floating up to the window, Raylan's green eyes scanned the inside for life before gently knocking on the glass, hoping he wouldn't startle anyone nearby.

There was a faint rustle of activity from within and, a moment later, there was movement from the bonzai pot as Berra emerged, brushing soil from her backside and knees, looking a little tired. Ever since getting home from Yeande and Shalafi's earlier that evening, she'd been concentrating full-force on trying to find her center of magic.

She felt she almost had it. What had once taken her nearly twenty minutes to accomplish had been whittled down to five...but it was still not quite good enough. She needed it at the ready and immediately available if she planned to learn any spells.

She brightened instantly at the sight of her brother, Berra grinned and trotted up to the already-open window. "Hi Raylan!" she greeted him.

Raylan smiled, a little relieved to see Kookaberra at the window. While he enjoyed seeing his father, there was something about Berra that made her presence a little more enjoyable. Perhaps it was because he felt a little closer to her than the rest of his family.

"Hey Berra! I thought I'd drop by for a visit," he greeted her, nodding a little bit. "Mind if I come in?"

"Not at all!" she said, motioning him inside. "Its a little late, though, on your way home from somewhere?" she inquired, looking past him for a moment as though checking to see if anyone was with him. Last time he'd come he'd brought their mother, and at the shop last night, he'd been with Merri.

He floated inside and carefully landed on the windowsill, folding his wings over his shoulders to give them a rest. "Actually, kind of. I was at the shop before I though I'd stop by here," he smiled, looking a little embarressed. "Apparently, I feel asleep there last night."

"I didn't wake you or anything, did I?" Raylan asked a bit worriedly, noticing how Berra had looked when she'd first gotten to the window.

"Hm? Oh! No, not at all!" she chuckled, hugging him briefly before stepping back again. "Actually I've been trying to figure out my magic." Saying so, she padded back toward the bonzai pot where, noticeably, the soil had been tramped down in a bit in the middle where she'd taken to sitting. "I figure once I get used to finding it while I'm actually near my element, I can work on it out of the pot and on the sill..."

Realizing she was getting a little one-tracked as far as the magic-seeking went, she shoved it out-of-hand and turned her attention back to her brother. He was visiting, she should focus her attention there. She had all night she could work on her magic.

"Aside from falling asleep in the shop, how are you?"

Raylan hugged her back, feeling more relief that he hadn't disturbed her too much. His ears twitched slightly as she spoke of her mediation process, glancing to the bonsai for a moment as he remembered Irisa mentioning working on magic earlier. Maybe it just came a little more naturally to some people? Then again, he DID seem to get a little bit of a headstart, meditating with Ares every morning since his arrival.

"I wish you luck with your magic, Berra," he smiled, folding his arms behind his back. "Once you find your source, it should get a little easier."

"I'm all right, actually. Still a little tired, but I'm sure I could sleep again once I go back home. And yourself?"

"I'm okay!" Berra readily said, nodding a bit. "We went to visit Shalafi and Miss Yeande today. It was good to get out of the house. Daddy wanted to ask Miss Yeande some questions about merging with a gemstone."

She chewed her lip thoughtfully. "I'm not sure I like the idea, but if he wants to, I'm not going to stop him."

Raylan was quiet for a moment. Merge...with a gemstone? A gemstone like the one in the shop...? He shook his head a little bit, not really wanting to think about that right now.

"Hey, I was wondering something... We've never been all together as a family, you know? I mean like...you, me, Ava, Irisa, Mama and Papa all together. What if we tried to get everyone together soon?" he suggested, changing the subject to something a bit happier.

Berra's eyes lit up at this out of the slight cloud of trouble that had fallen over them. "That--that would be great!" she said, obviously elated by the idea. Her face fell as she realized that she'd never ever seen all of her siblings and parents in the same place before.

"....but how would we do that? Everybody lives in different places with different schedules..."

Raylan had to think about this for a moment, turning his eyes toward his toes. Hmm... How could they all meet together...?

"Well, what if we set up a day like...a few days from now, and see if they can make it?" he suggested, wondering if that might have been a good idea. They couldn't force their family to visit, of course, but it was the thought that counted.

"That might work!" she nodded eagerly. "...well, if the other bonds agree to it anyway." she added with a small shrug. "I think it'll really be their say when it all comes down to it."

It was true, too. Karma was just as much a factor in her decisions as Talon was...but maybe, HOPEFULLY, they would all agree.

"True..." he agreed. If there were only a way to inform them...

"What if we made a little note? Saying where it would be and what time to meet there?" He knew Neko wouldn't mind terribly if he asked her, especially if it was dealing with his family.

"A note...?" She cocked her head a bit. "Maybe...at least then we'd all know where we were going." The little pigtailed feien drew in a wistful sigh at the idea, suddenly fiercely hopeful it might work.

"How would we deliver them?" she no longer seemed worried about the idea, and it melded back into her usual happy and curious demeanor. "Just wait for Irisa and Ava to show up in the shop and give them the note to give to their bond?"

Raylan shook his head a little bit. "No...that would take too long," he said, recalling how randomly he got to see his two other sisters. "If anything, we could deliver them together? Or maybe I could?"

Berra wondered if their father would agree to that. She supposed he might. Raylan was her big brother and he wouldn't let anything happen to her, right? He'd agreed to letting her go out as long as Shalafi was with her, after all.

"I'd be happy to!" she nodded. "I'll even help you make them!"

"That would be wonderful!" he agreed, moving his arms from behind his his back to entwine his fingers together close to his face. "We could make it all colorful and pretty!"

"And glitter!" Berra offered helpfully. "That'll make them hard to miss! Do you think mommy has any?" She assumed someone like Tahki would, most definitely, keep sparklies around. She seemed almost more fond of them than Talon, in all actuality.

Raylan nodded with a smile. "Mama has LOTS of glitter!" he admitted, chuckling a little bit. "We have lots of paint, paper, and glitter at home. And string and little gems galore!"

"Its perfect!" she agreed, bouncing on her heels a bit. She could see no way that anyone could honestly reject an invitation if it was colorful, pretty, AND sparkly to boot. "When did you want to start?"

"Well, it's really late right now..." Raylan said, looking out toward the window for a moment. "Maybe tomorrow morning? Then if we get them done, we could spend the afternoon delivering them?"

Berra thought for a moment about whether she had any plans for the next day and, unable to call any to mind, beamed a smile at her brother. "Sure! Are you going to come back here or should I meet you someplace?"

"I was about to suggest maybe I stay here for the night, but now that I think about it, that wouldn't be a good idea," Raylan said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'd worry the others... I could meet you at the shop, perhaps?"

"You -are- welcome to stay if you ever need to." she offered. Honestly, she wouldn't have minded the company, but he was right. There was no point in worrying people and getting in trouble...especially not if they were going to try and get fate to work in their favor in getting everyone together.

"The shop would work." she said with a decisive nod of her head. "I might need to come with daddy, but I'll see you there one way or another."

Raylan smiled a little bit. "Maybe another day when it's more planned out I can stay here for the night," he assured her. "I'm sure I'd worried them last night by not coming home, however, so I think it would be best I return there."

"All right, I'll do my best to get there as soon as I can tomorrow," he said, unfolding his wings. "I guess if I'm not there by around noonish and you'd gone with Papa, he could bring you to the house?"

"Sure!" Berra replied agreeably. And it would also give her a chance to see more of her family again. Maybe this time she would actually get a chance to say hello to Merri or finally meet Ares. "I don't think he'd have a problem doing that. He doesn't like staying out very long at the shop or in the colder weather anyway." she chuckled.

"So...I suppose I'll see you then?" she hurried forward as he spread his wings to inflict another hug on him before he could go.

Raylan chuckled a little bit and hugged his sister happily. "Yep! Have a good night, Berra," he told her as he took a few steps toward the open window. "Sleep well!"

With that, the young feien took off to head toward home.

"Bye Raylan!!" she called after him cheerily, waving until he was out of sight before turning to look at the nearly-closed guest room door where, on the other side, Karma, Meka, and Talon were all watching a scary movie she'd rented and Berra had wanted no part of. She could her father to agree to taking her to the shop, right? Sure...she'd been good about asking lately, and this WAS for family.

Smiling, hoping their plan would work, Berra headed back to the bonzai pot, floating over the edge and plumping back down on her backside to resume her seeking.

"Raylan, please calm down..."

"Wow!! Mama Ares, that was SO cool! What was that thing?? Some sort of transporting device...? A portal? Yes! A portal!! How did it get there, Mama Ares? I wish I could make something like that!" Raylan rambled on as he and Ares glided out of the portal from behind the shop, now flitting closer to Em's porch. His green eyes were wide with interest and wonder, curious as to how the portal actually worked.

Ares sighed lightly, her tail flicking a little bit as she dove down slowly to land on the porch.

"I'm assuming Em made it, Raylan," she explained, hoping to calm the young feien a little bit, or at least enough to get through the hopefully short visit. "I don't exactly understand human magic, so I can't tell you how it works... Maybe if you ask Neko later, she'll tell you?"

Raylan thought about that for a moment, then nodded with a smile on his lips. "Yeah! I'll do that later, then. Maybe after Berra's visit!" he said, more to himself than anything.

"Berra...?" the time feien questioned for a moment, folding her wings down over her shoulders as she stepped a little closer to the edge of the porch stairs. "Is that one of your sisters?"

"Yep! She's going to help me make invitations!" he informed her, flitting up to the doorbell and looking at it curiously. Hopefully, they wouldn't be bothering anyone inside.

"I'll help! Maybe this will call him!" Raylan explained, deciding it was worth a try. Placing his hands on the button, he pressed it inwards, allowing the doorbell to ring.

Ares opened her mouth to protest, but it was too late. They didn't need to disturb the residents inside if they were only calling Julius at the moment, but unfortunately, she'd forgotten to explain that to the young feien now waiting patiently by the door. Shaking her head a little bit, she gave a light sigh and waited, knowing nothing could be helped at this point.

After a moment, a rough and unfamiliar voice demanded, "Who is it?" Someone heavy leaned against the door, peering through the peephole.

Raylan blinked a few times, tilting his head at the door. Was...the door talking to him?

"Hello! I'm really sorry to bother you, but I was hoping you'd know where we could find Mr. Julius?" he called out, scanning the door for any sign of life. Maybe he should have waited for Ares to instruct him before he'd acted.

Ares searched the porch for a moment, deciding it best not to leave Raylan unattended. After all, she didn't exactly know what was behind that door, as it didn't exactly sound like Em, much less a female's voice.

There was a pause. "Show yourselves!" the voice demanded. A moment later, a more familiar voice came from the nearby window as Emperial pushed aside the curtains and peered out.

"They're right in front of the door, Doug. Remember I told you about the fairies that come around? Hi, Ares! You guys are looking for Julius? We just installed a bell." She pointed to one of the nearby door posts. A brass bell was affixed there, shiny and new, with a little metal chain dangling down. "Sorry we haven't got around to putting up the sign yet. We only just got the bell and installed it today."

Peering up toward the bell in question, Ares nodded, smiling slightly. "Thank you, Em," she said politely, hopefully loud enough for her to hear. "Forgive us if we bothered you."

Raylan grinned widely, bowing slightly where he was. "Thank you, ma'am!!" he cried to make sure she would hear him, flitting a little closer to the small chain that was hanging down near the door post.

Ares moved quickly to beat him to the spot, unfolding her wings along the way and taking a light hold of his wrist to keep him from ringing the bell. Looking to the door again, she thought to ask before Em left.

"I'll ask this now just to be safe. Is there another way to reverse the portal, or should we ask you when the time comes to go home instead?"

"Oh, that's--"

The front door suddenly opened to reveal Doug, whose curiosity had got the better of him. He was a dark-clad human with icy eyes and dark, slicked-back hair. He gaped the little floating figures and quickly slammed the door shut. "I'm not answering the door again!" he could be heard to exclaim as he tromped off into the depths of the house.

Emperial just giggled. "The portal's open now. Totally free passage. I'll head in and update the shop notes later, and add the bit about the bell, too."

Raylan stared a bit wide-eyed at the sudden event, almost frightened by the man that had suddenly burst through the door. However, the man was the one surprised? Then the slamming of the door and the stomping off and the yelling... Had THEY been the ones to frighten HIM?

Ares nodded in understanding, not really phased much by the man's coming and going. She smiled again a little bit, grasping the metal chain lightly with her fingers.

"Again, thank you for your help."

Feeling a little bad now, the black and white feien floated a little closer to the door, looking a little sheepish. "Ma'am? Could you please tell him that I'm sorry if we startled him? We didn't really mean to," he asked politely, lifting a hand to rub at the back of his neck.

While Raylan was distracted with wanting to appologize, Ares found it to be a good time to summon Julius. Looking to the chain now in her hand, she silently hoped this visit wouldn't be as bad as the last time. With a few flicks of her wrist, she rang the brass bell and waited patiently to see if it would be answered.

"Oh, don't mind Doug," laughed Emperial. "He just comes from a hard-science realm, or at least he likes to believe as much, and doesn't enjoy being confronted by magic. I don't think we've met before? I'm Emperial, I own the feien shop." Thank goodness Corvus was not present to contest this claim.

The bell rang out loud and clear. Unfortunately, there seemed to be no response from the Ancient. The air was strangely quiet.

Raylan smiled, feeling a little better after hearing the explination. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Emperial!" he exclaimed, taking his hand away from his neck to wave. "My name is Raylan! You own the feien shop?? Would that make you like... hmmm... Oh! A leader? I guess you could call it that. Do you help decide where feien go?"

Realizing his own behavior, the young feien blushed slightly. "Oh, I'm sorry," he tried to pardon himself. "I tend to ask a lot of questions sometimes without realizing. Mama Ares thinks I picked that up from Mama."

Ares' eyes scanned the area for a moment before her three eyes narrowed slightly, looking up toward the bell. It had rung loud enough, had it not? Or was Julius simply not coming? Before even thinking about ringing the bell again, she decided to try calling out instead.

"Julius?" she called, her eyes searching the porch for anything possibly different. With a little concentration, she tried to see if she could detect magic from nearby.

Detect Magic detected nothing in the area. The portal, whatever it was, apparently did not have a magical origin. The only thing Ares sensed was a faint magical signature coming from inside the house, but that was probably one of the resident feien. Definitely no sign of Julius.

Behind Ares, the conversation continued. "I don't mind," said Em. "I like meeting feien and answering questions! I'm not much of a leader, though, since I mostly stay here at home. I do handle the logistics of deciding where blooms go. But I have a delivery boy to do the actual physical transactions. But a mother? Ha! Corvus is probably as close to a biological mother as you'll get. He even has the birthing pains to show it." She seemed to find that exceptionally funny and dissolved into laughter.

Corvus? Who was this...Corvus? And HE was a MOTHER??? That thought also made Raylan laugh, not really knowing the process of creating the feien and their blooms.

"Mr. Corvus is...technically a feien mother?" he had to question, just to be sure he heard correctly. "I've heard a little bit about feien not truly having actual parents, however I don't know how we were made at all. For me, it makes me feel a little special, I guess, to say that I have a mama and papa. Two feien helped to create me, so it feels natural for me to call them such, and the other feien that came with me my sisters. That, and it makes them happy to hear such, and seeing them happy certainly makes me happy."

A thought came to mind. "So, if Mr. Corvus is technically the feien mother-type-person, should we call HIM Mama?"

Ares couldn't help but look over her shoulder as she caught part of the conversation, a bit of a smirk appearing on her lips. Corvus...? Being called "mama"? That alone was rather amusing, even if he probably wouldn't think so.

Looking back to the surroundings, the time feien folded one arm across her chest and grasped her elbow, bringing her free hand to rest against her cheek as she thought. Not much magic emitted from any particular area, so Julius couldn't have been around. The bell was loud enough... She THOUGHT her call was loud enough...

Furrowing her brow a little bit, she turned slowly in the air to face the door, watching Raylan and Emperial for a moment. At least they seemed to be enjoying themselves while she puzzled over why the ancient wouldn't appear. Unless... Ares blinked a few times, thinking about it for a moment. Julius didn't seem to get along well with Emperial, so that could have been a factor, and Raylan probably didn't even realize what was going on. If the two were to be removed from the porch, would the situation change at all?

"OH no," Emperial was saying to Raylan, "you had better not do that! Corvy's not really the nice type. But technically, THREE feien were involved in your creation, Corvus being the third and pivotal member of the union. The reason feien don't have parents is becuse, well, they're all summoned on the feien plant by Corvy." She pushed aside her curtains, revealing the plant resting on a nearby table. "See, Corvus actually creates all the blooms himself. What happens during a 'breeding' is that he just uses parts from the other feien connected to the plant. Their blooms don't make yours. It's still all Corvus summoning a bloom. You see?"

At this rate, it seemed Emperial and Raylan could keep going for quite some time.

Raylan listened intently, flitting closer to the window and nearly smooshing his face right up against it. They came from a plant? Well, that would make sense, given that the feien themselves came from a flower of some sort. Although lately, he'd been hearing about a few vegetables.

"I think I understand," he admitted, smiling as he drew a little ways from the window again. "In actuality, Mr. Corvus is simply taking some genes from two other feien to create a new one, yet the feien inside is technically still different. While the new feien carry some traits from the parent -- or rather, I supposed you could call them "donators"? -- feien, they are still individuals like everyone else? Am I right?"

One more thought came to mind. "So, if there are three feien necessary for the breeding process, wouldn't that technically be considered what one would call a t--"

Ares cleared her throat a little bit, dropping her arms to rest at her sides.

"Raylan, you seem to be having a lot of fun talking to Emperial," she stated, smiling a little bit as she floated closer to the smaller feien.

"Oh, yes!" he had to agree with a nod. "Miss Emperial is very nice, Mama Ares! How come you don't come here more often?"

"If you noticed, I don't really go anywhere that often, child," she reminded him, resting a hand lightly on his head to straighten his hair a little bit. "I don't want to put a damper on your conversation, but perhaps you could see about talking inside, hm?"

An honest request, really. He seemed to be happy at the moment, and she didn't want to request for him to go wait in the shop while there was someone who seemed happy to be able to keep him company for a little bit.

The thought hadn't occurred to him at all until the suggestion was made. Looking to the window again, his green eyes looked a bit hopeful.

"Could I, Miss Emperial?" he asked politely, folding his hands together in front of himself.

Emperial beamed. "Oh, sure!" Standing, she gripped the bottom of the window and heaved with all her might. It gave a tiny squeak. Forwning, Emperial went at it again. "Nngh!"

Still nothing. Frowning, Emperial considered the situation, ignroing the fact there was a perfectly good door around the corner some eight feet away. A light bulb seemed to go off in her head. "Oh! Oops!" She sheepishly reached over and flipped the window lock. A moment later the window was open. "Come on in. I'll get Doug to fetch us something to eat since he's on food duty. You like cheese?"

Raylan beamed happily as he floated inside, his green eyes practically shining with delight. She wasn't sending him away; such joy!

"Cheese?" he asked with interest, blinking once. "I don't think I've had cheese before, actually. Does it taste good?"

Ares waited for a moment before floating back toward the bell, her three red eyes a little hopeful as she looked up at the brass bell again. Perhaps now, it may work...

Grasping the metal chain once more, she gave a few flicks of her wrist and allowed the bell to ring, scanning her surrounds for any changes. Hopefully, she wasn't annoying the ancient with the second call, but she wasn't exactly sure how else to go about it.

"Good day," came the deep voice from perilously close to her ear. Somehow, Julius had managed to approach within two inches of her before showing himself, with unsettling results. He was clad as immaculately as ever, fingers typically steepled, eyes predictably hidden behind that mysterious blindfold, his face in a position that gave the sense of him staring down his long nose at her. "Have you sorted yourself out?"

Ares' hand that had grasped the chain was immediately held to her chest, her heart pounding hard from being startled. Goodness... He was really good at sneaking up on others, and here she thought she would rectify that by learning magic detection. However, one shouldn't expect any less from an ancient, now should they?

Taking in a breath to calm herself, she released it slowly before she looked to Julius, bringing her hands down to rest by her sides again. "Good day," she decided to begin with, giving him a slight bow. "I believe I have, which is why I've come here today. I seek knowledge, Julius. I would like to request a quest..."

"A quest." His voice was cold, uninviting. It was amazing how such a steady tone could convey such a range of emotion merely by careful choice of words. "Have you thought much about what it would entail? Quests are dangerous undertakings, requiring great amounts of effort and determination. There can be no doubt in your heart and no fears in your mind."

Ares was quiet while he spoke, her eyes unwavering as she thought about what he said. Her tail flicked lightly at the mention of danger, curious as to what may come of her accepting. She wouldn't back down, however, not after deciding that she'd do whatever it would take to learn the things she wanted to know.

"I am fully aware of the risk I might be taking by going on a quest," she admitted, closing her eyes for a moment. "I have thought about it, and I assure you... I haven't a doubt in my heart or fear in my mind."

She opened her eyes to look up at him, the only hint of emotion in them being hope. "If given a quest, I will do whatever it takes to finish it."

His fingertips parted as his hands slid open in beckoning. "Please remain still," he instructed as he reached towards her. His hands stopped just short of actual physical contact and hovered over her skin as if trying to sense something deep within her.

There was a hint of strain on his usually stony face and his blindfold began to glow. The long cords tied to the blindfold in the back rose into the air, displaying shiny golden baubles. Julius's hands began to glow as well, the same soft pale blue light as the blindfold. After a moment he ceased. "You..." He reclasped his hands and fell back into his standard position. "You bear the mark of the Empress."

Ares quirked a brow, not able to believe what she'd just heard him say at first. "Pardon?" she questioned, her tail flicking slightly.

This...would explain some things, but she'd hardly believed it to be true. No matter how many times someone else claimed to be her knight, or that she was a princess, most of her didn't want to believe it. It was a story... It was a childish point of view. And now, it was being told to her by an ancient.

"The... Empress?" she said softly, thinking it over again. It... It was all true, then? "May I ask for a bit of an explination on this?"

"In order to bear her mark, you must display a certain amount of her traits, and these are never to be found together without reason," he said.

Inwardly, Julius was cringing. He hated to admit such a thing to Ares; he had already marked her as a dangerously delusional feien. How the Mark of the Empress had landed on her was a great mystery. It were there, though, that much he could not deny. Even if none the mental traits were present, the physical traits were as plain as day. Damn that Corvus.

Ares looked down toward herself for a moment before looking to Julius again, wondering how it was she resembled the empress. There was a reason she carried the traits?

"All right then... What shall I do now?" she decided to ask.

"Perhaps you may be able to retrieve one of her artifacts," said Julius. "There exists in the Great Plains a spot where the sky meets the earth and gives passage within. It was once a lair of the empress, one of many. You will know this spot by the tree which guards its entrance. It is not accessible to normal feien, but only to one who possesses enough of the Empress?s being. Hidden within this place is one of the Empress?s great treasures: her mantle."

Ares thought over this for a moment, furrowing her brow a little bit. The Great Plains... That sounded familiar for one reason or another. A place where the sky meets the earth? Was he talking about a mountain?

"Her... mantle..." she finally echoed quietly, her expression softening once more. "May I ask where to find the Great Plains?"

"Try a map," the Ancient said.

Figures. It was worth a try asking, however.

"I have one more question," she said, looking toward the window to Em's house for a moment. "Just to be clear, if I were to bring someone with me, they'd only be able to go as far as the enterance, am I right? Or am I not allowed to have company on this quest?"

"They would not be able to enter the Empress's abode, no," said Julius. "Unless they themselves possessed the Empress's mark and passed the test."

Ares nodded in understanding, looking back to Julius. She wasn't sure if anyone she knew held the mark as well, but she didn't want to trouble them to test themselves solely for the purpose of accompanying her. So long as someone would tag along for most of the way, that was good enough for her.

"Thank you, Julius," she said politely with a small bow, turning her eyes up to him. "When I complete the quest, will I be needing to come back here to meet with you again? Or will it be just that: completed?"

"I have no interest in meeting with you again," said Julius. "But if you for some reason require my counsel again, you know where to find me." And with that, he faded out of sight. This interview was over.