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 Posted: Tue Nov 11, 2008 10:52 am
There it was! Toulouse had ears for nothing else other than his faithful companion’s raucous bark. The Ashe didn’t hear his name nor Pasayo’s being called, he didn’t hear the rain dying down or the wind beginning to howl. His focus was so great on just listening for his dog, that all he could seem to hear were the sweet melodious noises of Atticus. It didn’t matter who the Dane had brought. It only mattered that there was now someone to help him, someone to keep Pasayo from further pain!
Toulouse gave a half strangled cry of relief, as he quickened his burning muscles into a hard run, bundling Pasayo closer still. The teen gave a shrill, high pitched whistle. Calling to his companion.
Atticus’ ear perked up and, giving a great woof of obvious relied like his Master had done not a moment before, the Dane tore off in the direction of the whistle, knowing Houkan would still follow him.
Master and dog were soon reunited in joy and grief. “You’re safe now Pasayo.” The teen murmured hoarsely when he saw the Dane. He kissed the girl’s dark forehead in comfort, the only place that didn’t seem to be covered in some sort of hideous wound “You’re safe now. Someone is coming. You‘ll be okay.”
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Posted: Tue Nov 11, 2008 11:28 am
There was a sharp whistle that hit the air, carried fast and far by the wind, and as the dog before him started to run even faster Houkan picked up speed as well. There was no way a dog was going to outrun him, no one a dog could outrun him thanks a certain gift, and he kept up with the beast moving over stumps and ruts with effortless ease. His lung did ache from all the running though, a sign more of continued exhaustion more than fitness, and as he wheezed slightly at the increased pace he hoped this was all worth it.
"Pasayo! Toulouse!"
His voice grew louder as he yelled against his own breathing, the wind in turn howling above and taking his words to where they needed to go - to where the pair he was searching for so desperately had been coming from. He was going to find them, he had to find them, and then -
Pasayo would have blushed deeply at the feeling of lips against her forehead, her mind and body hardly able to register the strange and somehow very welcome sensation that Toulouse had caused. Instead she only could manage to flatten her hand over Toulouse's heart and feel the pounding from within, her small mind wondering if it was beating so hard from all the exercise or from something else.
Her mind didn't wonder much longer when she heard her name being called in a voice that haunted her dreams as well, a voice that had been the last one she had heard before she ran off earlier in her childish fit, and once again tears sprang to Pasayo's fuchsia eyes.
Houkan. Houkan. Houkan.
"Jesus Chr- Pasayo!! Toulouse!!"
Houkan's feet skidded to a stop in front of the muddy pair, his own body a ball of dirt from the knees down thanks to splashing in puddles, and as he bent over to put his hands on his knees from exasperation the boy managed to cough a few times to ease the ache in his chest. Here they were, both of them, but more or less his eyes drifted tot he black ball of mud and purple that was in the older teen's arms.
"Oh God, Pasayo-!"
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Posted: Tue Nov 11, 2008 2:22 pm
When Houkan burst from the clot of trees from behind Atticus, Toulouse was wrought with a tumultuousness of emotion. He was extremely glad to see the proper boy in shambles and covered in dirt, which meant that he had been searching for Pasayo. However, even as he saw the boy’s tears of blood, he couldn’t help but feel a flash of anger. Had Houkan been the one to drive Pasayo to harm? It would be so much like a human to do so.
Toulouse acted on neither of these emotions and instead stood facing Houkan, blue eyes staring steadily out of a pale and drawn face, not accusingly but merely solemn. The blond gazed mutely on, shivering in the wind and twitching like a wary deer. He held Pasayo closer to his chest, acting as bulwark against the merciless wind.
When the Ashe heard Houkan’s cry of worry, Toulouse held the bundle that was Pasayo out to the other. He wanted Houkan to hold her, to have to imagine what it would feel like if the body he held was merely a lifeless shell. Toulouse had been tortured with that thought all the while he had been running.
“Take her from me Houkan. Please.” The teen’s voice was as dry and emotionless as the wind. If he stopped to long to think of any one thing, he would surely break down in a sobbing mess again. How he hated seeing Pasayo like this!
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Posted: Tue Nov 11, 2008 10:40 pm
He took a few steps towards the ragged pair, his own legs so weary and hardly holding him up that each step was more like a sway that carried him forward thanks to the motion of his upper body. As he finally reached them and Pasayo was presented to him, he merely bit his lip as actual tears trailed down his cheeks, mingling with the blood that trickled slightly.
"You...."
He did not say any more, merely wrapping his arms around the pair and pulling them both into an embrace. He was beyond relived that Pasayo was okay, to the point of tears quite obviously, but for someone reason he heart felt a sense of calm at knowing it was Toulouse who had found and rescued her. It was almost like fate would always allow the two to be together as the knight and his princess.
"Thank God both of you are okay. I...I..."
His embrace around the pair tightened, his head resting against Toulouse's shoulder and his chest touching Pasayo's broken frame ever so slightly. The hold was not intense enough for the small girl to be crushed in between, his care still so present.
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Posted: Tue Nov 11, 2008 11:07 pm
The golden Ashe stood in the embrace of Houkan, rigid for a moment before softening. Toulouse nuzzled the side of the boy’s bent head, concerned, his anger melting away. Toulouse would have embraced him but his hands were currently full of Pasayo. As Houkan cried, Toulouse clamped down on his own tears. He would not cry. He would do so later but not here, not now. He had already indulged once in his tears at the beginning. It was time to get Pasayo home to real safety.
“Come Houkan. Calm yourself.” Toulouse said seriously with no trace of his usual teasing mirth. “Let us go. Atticus will lead us out.” The last was said with a weariness that spoke of old age that didn’t match the blond’s youthful face. "All will be well."
Toulouse stepped back, readying to leave the woods.
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Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 3:07 pm
"I know we should move, I know we need to go but...I..."
Houkan could not bring himself to move, his body simply holding onto Toulouse as both a support and for support. Beneath him he could feel Pasayo's slight movements as her own body began to protest despite her being unable to act, and he finally leaned away enough that they could move.
He took Pasayo from Toulouse's arms and cradled her close, all the care in the world to prevent her injured limbs from moving any further. He was not sure how well an Ashe healed, if they could heal at all, and he prayed it was at least similar to a human in the fact her bones could be set properly and time would take the lead.
"Are you able to walk? Do you need any assistance as well?"
Houkan was not sure of the state of Toulouse's body since the boy was covered in blood (he assumed to be Pasayo's) as well as a thick coat of mud and grime. He figured he could probably carry the youth on his back since they were of the same height should he need to.
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Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 3:57 pm
Toulouse relinquished Pasayo to Houkan, not envying the boy’s burden. The teen blanched more still when he finally got a good look at the state of Pasayo. The girl looked like a tiny bag of bones and blood. The macabre image of her lying in that in that pit flashed before his eyes once again. The blond wobbled, struck by an overwhelming feeling of unexaggerated relief.
“No.” Toulouse shook his head slowly in response to Houkan. “Don’t worry about me, I’m fine. Let’s just get Pasayo home.” The teen motioned to Atticus, bounding ahead of the trio, seemingly, for the moment, unaware of his Master’s anxiety. “Please. Let’s hurry.”
Toulouse stood beside Houkan with his hand resting lightly in the bend of the boy’s back ready to steady him in case he stumbled and was thrown off balance by Pasayo.
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Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 4:17 pm
Houkan did not say anything more but only nodded, quickly turning to run after the dog with his precious cargo in his arms. He moved as easily with her in his embrace as he would have he been not carrying anything at all, his legs steady and the pace easy enough to follow. For some reason he was having no difficulty with this task, his brain telling his body he could go on forever if he needed too, and since he could not see what was going on he did not notice the slight change in the color of the skin around his eyes to a pale silver . . .
"Toulouse, how do Ashe heal? Are you capable of healing greater than normal humans, or do you require assistance in doing so?"
His words were shouted over his shoulder as he dare not turn his head back to look, lest he lose sight of the dog in front of him and thus lose the way out, and he made sure he spoke loud enough to be heard. If he could recall correctly Sol had been able to fix an injury of Toulouse's before, something not this major of course, and he wondered now if together Lune and Sol would be able to heal Pasayo or should they simply go to a hospital and let things happen there.
He did not think the twins could handle this much damage.
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Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 5:22 pm
Toulouse ghosted behind Houkan like a pale shadow, not moving as easily as Houkan seemed to be doing. For a human, the boy was strangely lithe. How very odd the Ashe mumbled in the back of his mind, storing the question away for a later time.
Crashing through the wood at a fast pace, Toulouse batted away a the low hanging branches that were trying to catch at Houkan and Pasayo. There were slippery puddles left from the rain everywhere trying to trip up the wary travelers. At least the wind was beginning to quiet. Perhaps it was now contend now, knowing that Pasayo had been saved…and maybe Toulouse was projecting his fraught emotions on the weather.
“I don’t…know.” Came Toulouse breathless reply. “I’m of royal blood so I heal very quickly. Those of higher status heal much quicker than those of lower. I don’t know what house Pasayo comes from nor her status among our kind.” There, he could see the end of the wood! Atticus’ form made the light flicker from the gap between the trees.
“Look there!” Toulouse cried in jubilation as he stumbled in his excitement. The trees were thinning and starting to recede like the waters of the ocean. The teen could feel his fatigue catching up with him, but it didn't matter. All that matter was that Pasayo would soon be well. Were there not healers in Piero's house who were fit for such a job?
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Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 6:14 pm
Houkan himself was wondering how he could move so easily with PAsayo in his arms, his body not growing weary despite how much he had been moving around before he had found the pair and after they had started to move. He chalked it all up to adrenaline for now that he was able to move far beyond normal limitations, and later on her would ask his brother if it were possible for such actions to occur. Knowing his family and its history the possibilities were not so far fetched . . .
"Rank? You mean in terms of Fae court ranking, correct? If that is the case then I do not know either. She talks about her past sometimes, though mostly it all comes out as nightmares about falling and people telling her she is not wanting, but she has never once mentioned a rank."
That was true, even in her moments where Pasayo seemed to be someone other than herself she never mentioned a name or a position of hierarchy. She merely spoke that she was too ugly to be looked at and would go hide in her room for a while until the little spell passed. It had not happened that recently so Piero and Houkan had dismissed all of it as a phase, but now that Toulouse was saying something he had to think.
"She does heal rather quickly if I think about it, since the time she scraped her knee before we could get a proper bandage on it the wound had already scabbed and was in the process of healing."
He did not talk to loud now that they were out of the woods and into a clearing in the park, the sky not so overcast. There were no people around, as to be expected after a storm, and the youth paused for a moment to catch his breath.
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Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 6:54 pm
“Yes…yes, that is correct.” Came Toulouse’s panting reply about the ranking. His lungs were burning for air as he doubled over, his hands on his knees in a similar fashion that Houkan had displayed earlier. The teen wiped a quivering hand across his sweat soaked brow. “At least…Pasayo heals…quickly whatever her rank. That will only make things much easier for her.”
Rather envious of the stamina that Houkan was displaying, Toulouse straightened with a shake of his head. In the dark of the night, the Ashe did not see the silver creeping from Houkan’s eyes to his skin. To him, it merely looked like a shadow of fatigue that was similar to his own.
Atticus bound to the entrance of the park then back to the trio with a bark and a slobbery kiss for Toulouse. The Dane chuffed happily at his finished work and collapsed on his Master’s feet, waiting for someone else to take the lead now.
“Thank you Atticus.” Toulouse bent to pat the great beast. “Houkan, please tell me that we are near your home? This place looks familiar but I can’t remember."
The golden teen looked plaintively at the other boy, praying that their destination was not too far off.
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Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 7:23 pm
"Yes, we are indeed very close. This park is only about a ten minute walk from our house - three minutes by car. We never would travel far from home with Pasayo simply because we did not wish for her to get lost like she did, but . . ."
He bit his lower lip, daring himself to continue with that line of conversation, but he did stop and merely pulled Pasayo closer to him.
The whole time the child had been staring up at his as they ran, her eyes not missing the change that was occurring to his skin, and inwardly the little girl felt...fearful. She had always had her doubts as to what was wrong with Master Piero and Master Houkan, what with their silver body parts and her direct Master's ability to do strange things around the house, but never before had she seen something like this come about.
"Ma..s..t..er...Ho...u..k.a..n"
Her words were garbled though they came out clearly, the pain in her jaw not as great when she tried to move it. It appeared that she was indeed slowly healing her injuries, thanks to her Fae nature, with her jaw taking the lead role and first place.
"To...oul...se..."
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Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 7:57 pm
“Thank goodness.” Toulouse sighed when he heard Pasayo utter his name he moved to touch the girl tentatively on the forehead, smoothing back her hair. “You’re getting better already Pasayo.” Toulouse noted with an air of satisfaction. Things really were going to be okay! It seemed that Pasayo wasn’t fatally hurt as he was beginning to think.
Toulouse moved then, grasping Houkan’s upper arm and pulling on him slightly. “Let’s go. It‘s not far now it seems” He urged encouragingly. After a moment, upon seeing Houkan’s expression, he added kindly, “It wasn’t your fault Houkan. It was just an accident.”
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Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 8:55 pm
Pasayo looked up at Toulouse after he touched her face and smoothed back her hair, the motion seeming all to familiar for her, and for a moment her brow creased as if she were thinking heavily over something. The teen before her with gold hair was called Toulouse, right? She had called him that before, yet for some reason a small voice in her head told her that is not what he was meant to be called. There was another name for him, one she had used before, though she could not recall what it was despite the fact it sat on the tip of her tongue.
"It is my fault that all of this happened. If we had no argued, if I had given in and followed her right after she started to run then this would have never occurred. I am to blame, and no facts nor anything you say can ever change that Toulouse."
Houkan peered down at the child in his arms and raised his eyebrows at her own expression, one full more of thought then pain, and he leaned closer to her as he saw her jaw was moving slightly with only a whisper of sound coming out. She may have been healing after all, but she was still quite weak.
" . . . Lin. He is not Toulouse, it is...Lin. . ."
Her voice managed to get loud enough to say those words, her eye turning to look at the golden youth.
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Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 9:47 pm
Toulouse heard Pasayo as if she had screamed his name. The teen stumbled back with a reply to Houkan caught in his throat and would he have toppled over had it not been for the bulk of Atticus keeping him upright. Toulouse grasped his beating chest in obvious anguish, his face going pale as he bit his lip drawing blood.
“W-Why would you say such a thing?” His voice cracked at ‘say.’ How did Pasayo know that long ago nickname? Why would she even be in possession of the name? The teen’s mind whirled blankly as his vision threatened to collapsed in a fuzzy haze around him. He couldn’t breath and felt the world swim before he realized he had been holding his breath. Toulouse took in a shuddering gulp, fresh perspiration breaking out on his forehead.
“Toulouse, my name is Toulouse.” The blond replied firmly as if saying his own name enough times it would become true. There had only been one person to call him ‘Lin.’ It couldn’t be her…couldn’t it? She had disappeared shortly after that ill fated meeting. Toulouse groped blindly for Atticus, petting the Dane as he tried to rid himself of the fine trembling racing through his body.
“W-we…should g-go.” Toulouse added visibly shaken. He couldn’t face what Pasayo had just said to him. His mind was reeling with the memories of a girl with muddy brown hair and dark eyes. How could this be?
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