Welcome to Gaia! ::

Karloff smiled. "She knows, she understands, and forgives. I faced my demons long ago. And when you do, you shall find peace too." He purred gently, the sound thrumming in his throat.

His voice was soft, full of emotion as he quoted the story he had committed to memory so long ago. The story that Solieanna had told him:

" "Did you know... the moon and the sun are the mother and father of the sky?"

"Father Sun and Mother Moon were the first. Who created them, we do not know, but we do know that they created all of us. They desperately wanted children, but were never quite successful. Instead, they created."

"Father Sun thought of warm and strength, and from his fire he pulled melted rock, which settled and became our earth. But it was little more than a rock- no life would grow on it. Mother Moon thought of gentleness and compassion, and she pulled water from the inky sky and her own glimmering face, covering the rocky earth with this bringer of life. Then, together, Mother Moon and Father Sun worked to create a seed. A single seed which they planted in the middle of a grand valley."

"There was little more they could do but wait, as all parents must, to see if their children would prosper. Months passed, and the rainy season came and went, and yet this single seed did not grow amidst the barren wasteland. Father Sun began to grow impatient, and thought that perhaps they had failed yet again, when Mother Moon lay a steadying hand on his shoulder and pointed at the earth. There, far beneath them, a small speck of green sprung from the ground. It was an oak seedling, the first oak, the Great Oak that can be found in the Hidden Glen deep within the forest. Years passed, and Great Oak grew large and strong, and from it sprung a daughter, the Green Goddess, who is in turn our mother for she is the earth below us and trees around us. Mother Moon and Father Sun watched as she sat upon the ground beneath the Great Oak."

" 'What is wrong my child?' Mother Moon asked, wondering why her daughter would not move from under the tree. 'I am stuck Mother, I need a traveling companion, for I am lonely and afraid to travel the world alone.' At this, Mother Moon thought long and hard. Finally, she let out a long sigh, and from her swirling breath she created a son, Zephyr, the Wind God. On his shoulders he bore his sister, the Green Goddess, and together the traveled the world, spreading life and breath. Soon the earth and sea were filled with green growth, and it seemed that Mother Moon and Father Sun had created a lush paradise. However, the Green Goddess, or as some call her "Mother Gaia", grew lonely..."

"Walking along the beach one day, she came upon what we know today as clay. Sitting done, she became fascinated with the shapes she could create with this clay. Soon she created many fantastic creatures, from dolphins to birds, horses and even man. She filled each of them with a seed of life, and her brother filled them with breath. In a great surge of magic, Mother Gaia's creations sprang into being, and she was never lonely again, for her children grew and prospered, and now inhabit every corner of the world. And this Karl, is how the daughter of Mother Moon and Father Sun created us all... with love, dedication, creativity, and a little bit of magic." "

He closed his eyes, remembering when she had told him that story. And one day he had planned on telling that story to his child, or to someone as lost as he was.

He smiled at her, "Love comes when you can accept yourself. I can love Ailbhe, because I do not hate myself. Once you face your demons, you to can accept and love. And one day create a family as a testament to that love."

Karloff sighed as he breathed, "Peace comes in many ways." How true that had been. He had accepted peace in love, in death, and even in fighting. It was complicated and understanding wasn't always so understanding at first.

"Not yet. No kittens yet. It is our hope though, we have a basket we've adopted. His mother, very much a tortured soul." He paused delicately, "I hope things are easier for the one within the basket, easier than it has been for us." He purred lightly.

Karloff blushed, "Thank you. I hope you're right. Can't help but doubt myself, but it only ends once. Everything else is just progress." He smiled as he watched the stars again. "You'll make a great mother one day when it's time. You'll be okay, don't worry." He said before she could respond. "You'll love them, you've seen the mistakes made and you won't make those. You'll make different mistakes but you'll understand better than your parents did."

He looked at her, "The future is always bright, even if it seems distant. Because we can always hope for it." He laughed, "Sorry, I've gotten a little...melodramatic."

"Isn't that the beauty of it though? Not knowing what the world has in store for you. One moment, you're the saddest you've ever been--questioning your humanity and the next moment you've found forever in the eyes of someone else." Karloff smiles wistfully thinking of Ailbhe.

"It's how it happens sometimes, when you're not looking for something you find it. But at some point, you come to terms with yourself and realize you don't have to be anything that what you want." He stands quietly, listening to the night wind blowing.