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 Posted: Tue Feb 11, 2014 1:24 am
When the chaos had ended and only the two heroes were left among the corpses and burnt husks of their attackers, Ryuu fell to his knees, grabbing his shoulder and bowing his head, the hell hounds faded away after pursuing the survivors for a while. Ryuu looked around and noted that their horses were thankfully there, a little spooked, but they were still there. It took Ryuu a few minutes of trying to blink the tears from his eyes, something that he refused to let Tobi see. When the hell did he get so soft? Normally he could have played it off as it were nothing, but this time the wound felt horrid. After a few breaths to calm down and get the feelings of pain under control he was able to relax and sit comfortably. It was about then that Tobi came over to him, his voice raspy, and told him that they should find a medic. The closest medic would be at least two days ride from here. Ryuu wasn’t a fool, he brought some healing draughts and other salves along with a healing kit, granted, he didn’t bring many as he thought that he would be traveling alone, but they could do some first aid here and then get something better when they got to Lady Isabelle’s place… if they needed it afterwards. Ryuu turned to look over at Tobi, his face a mixed expression of worry and puzzlement. It actually looked rather adorable and rather charming considering his present form.
”Okay, seriously… what’s up with you Tobi? I can’t just pretend there’s nothing going on with you after that, so spill it. Is there something… wrong with you when you go into battle or something?” It was hard to tell if Ryuu was just not feeling safe anymore, or if there was something that was worrying him about Tobi’s actions and his behavior, whatever it was, Ryuu wanted to get to the bottom of it right away and put his mind at ease. He trusted his friend, but during two battles his friend didn’t exactly act like himself, and Ryuu was starting to get a little edgy that this might be something that could come back and either hurt of kill him if he wasn’t careful. He had heard of those possessed in battle by spirits of Rage and anger, the Berserkers were something frightful to witness and there were many, many stories about them reaching a point where they could no longer distinguish friend from foe and ended up murdering those who they loved or trusted comrades by accident. Ryuu whistled for his horse who came very cautiously towards the two of them. He looked over at Tobi and continued to speak.
”I have some healing supplies in the front right saddle bag. We’ll bandage ourselves up and then continue on to Lady Isabelle’s and our best bet would be to get a medic at her place….. ”I’m going to need a new weapon as well… Dammit it all.”
After Tobi fetched the medical pack, Ryuu treated his friend’s wounds first as they didn’t appear as serious… and Ryuu was going to need Tobi to get his wounds. Ryuu didn’t let the topic of what was going on with Tobi drop either, seriously worried about what was going to happen to him and his friend along the journey, Ryuu had to get to the bottom of what was going on which was going to require some prying. He let it slid last time, but this time it seemed a whole lot harder on Tobi. After Ryuu bandaged Tobi up, he started to unbutton his top so that Tobi could get access to the wound on his shoulder. He paused for a moment as if he was deciding something before hesitantly finishing the job so that Tobi could get better access to his wounds. He took a healing draught, so that while Tobi patched up his outsides, the potion could start to heal what Tobi couldn’t get with the salves and first aid. His back would need to be patched up too, leaving Ryuu with a noted stated of upper undress in front of Tobi. He suddenly felt really self-conscious of himself and what he was starting to look like and it made him feel rather uncomfortable around his friend. All he could do was do his best to hold his blossoming bosom as tight to his core as possible so his friend couldn’t see. His body was starting to make him feel wretched, not because it was hideous –quite the contrary, really- but he was starting to realize the extent of what this curse was doing to him. His strength was waning and fast, he was getting shorter and he was starting to obviously attract some attention to himself without meaning to. He was androgynously beautiful and now that he was able to stop and think about it, those bandits seemed rather interested in him. Everything seemed like it was starting to spiral out of control in that brief moment, he felt so helpless and almost like such a burden to Tobi, if it wasn’t for him. Tobi would likely be exploring the sensualities of a woman’s touch, instead, they were patching each other up after what could have been a very, very grim end to their lives. Ryuu tensed up at that thought, he felt foolish for not asking someone else to come, or maybe a few of his Dread Knights to be a bodyguard for him while he traveled, but his country would need their protection more than him. Dammit all! Chaos curse his weakness and the Void damn the wretched souls who did this to him. He was pulled out of his thoughts and turmoil’s by a sudden and sharp discomfort as salve was put on the back of his shoulder, he inhaled a sharp hissing of air at its introduction.
”I’m sorry… Tobi…”
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Posted: Tue Feb 18, 2014 5:38 pm
Tobi hesitated, not sure how to answer that question. He couldn't say the truth. No way in two hells could he just come out and say what he really was. "It's just….part of my nature." Tobi said slowly, deceptively. He saw that worry in Ryuu's eyes, and had a feeling what the worry was over. "Don't worry I'm in complete control. I would never hurt an ally." He added, though he wasn't quite sure he believed his own words. His kind were known for being fiercely loyal and yet...he knew better then most that they could sometimes turn against kin. That was what he was desperately going to try to avoid.
As Ryuu instructed, Tobi fetched the medical supplies and handed them to Ryuu. Honestly Tobias didn't know very much about healing like this. He wouldn't even let Ryuu use any of the salves or potions on him, because he knew it would all be healed in a couple days. He did let Ryuu wrap his wounds though, is nothing else but to avoid even more suspicion. When Tobias started to salve and wrap Ryuu's wounds, it was the one time this whole trip that Tobias acted like something of a gentleman. He didn't make any damsel jokes. Didn't pretend to ogle, even though he was scared to admit Ryuu was starting to become hauntingly beautiful. It was a thought he really didn't want to have right that second about his best friend. "Don't apologize." Tobias said. His voice was almost normal now. "I would rather be here tending wounds with you, then find out in a month that they found your corpse abandoned on the road."
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Posted: Tue Feb 18, 2014 9:22 pm
It was pretty obvious that Ryuu didn’t totally believe his best friend when he tried to comfort him into thinking that there was nothing wrong with him. After that battle Ryuu had more than a few red flags raised, but at the same time, he would give his best friend the benefit of the doubt and leave it at that for now. Though he would definitely be trying to get to the bottom of it later on during this journey, there was no way that he was just going to forget what he saw and pretend it didn’t happen. Ryuu’s gaze dropped to the ground there was some silence that had built up around them before Tobi broke it, with his last statement. Ryuu quickly turned his head over his shoulder to look at his friend. A little surprised to hear him say worlds like that, though his face visibly relaxed and a gentle smile graced his features before turning back to avoid straining his neck.
”Thanks Tobi… that really means a lot to me to hear you say that.” Despite the morbidity of it, the statement itself pulled at something deep within Ryuu, for some reason that sentiment meant a lot to him, he wasn’t alone right now and had someone whom he could rely on. His mom was probably turning herself inside out with worry right now and his sister was probably pacing the floor impatiently. When Tobi had finished with the salve Ryuu started to dress his own wounds with bandages. He allowed himself to sit for a few moments and looked up through the canopy of trees to the rays of sun that were shining through.
”Five more ingredients Tobs, five more and we can go home. It may take a while yet but we’re off to get the second one… after that, it should be fairly easy to find the others. We’ll get you home before you know it, and they’ll be a line up beautiful women to tickle whatever fancy you may have.”
Ryuu slowly worked his way up into a standing position, wincing a bit when it came to the pain but was more or less able to stand up. If he couldn’t get these ingredients, what sort of a King would he be? For whatever reason, Tobi’s kind words seemed to bring him a source of strength again. Though Ryuu was still a little shaky because of his wounded leg, he would give it a few more minutes to heal before he tried to get up on his horse. The salve would probably need some more time to completely work anyway, it was best not to rush things.
”I’d probably be in some big trouble if it wasn’t for you, man. I owe you big time for this.”
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Posted: Sun Feb 23, 2014 6:11 pm
While Ryuu finished dressing his wounds, Tobias face his friend his modesty and turned to get the horses ready. He knew, just by the look of apprehension on Ryuu's face when he had to reveal the wound, that the curse was making him feel beyond self conscious. Tobias grinned a little to himself. That he could understand, since he himself was trying with a slipping desperation to hide what he was as well.
The horses were spooked and fidgety. It took a great deal of calming and coaxing to get them to let him check the saddle straps and pack away the medical supplies. When he was done, Ryuu was standing, though what looked like to be in a considerable amount of pain. "Don't you be worrying about getting me home. You worry about not falling off your horse. We're still well aways from Lady Isabelle's." Tobias said, not liking the look of Ryuu's shaky stance.
Tobias made a small tisking sound at the idea of Ryuu owing him anything. "Perhaps you could introduce me to one of Lady Isabelle's lady acquaintances when we get there hm?" Tobias said, mostly teasing. He gave Ryuu a final cursory glance, before deciding what he was going to do next. With a gentleness and yet strength that Ryuu would have never personally experienced, Tobias picked up Ryuu and gingerly set him upon the horse. Despite having seen Ryuu's bare form while putting the salve on, Tobias couldn't help but be surprised at how tiny the waist was becoming, and at the soft curve of the hips. If he didn't know it was Ryuu, he would have been hard pressed to know it was a man at all.
Tobias shook his head, as if to dislodge thoughts that were starting to settle there uncomfortably. He handed Ryuu the reins, before going to mount his own horse. "Start slow. As much as I would like for us to wait and heal a little more, I'd rather not be here if those bandits have any friends that decide to drop by."
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Posted: Mon Feb 24, 2014 10:44 pm
”T-Tobi! Wh-what are you doing!?! This is unslightly, put me down!” Ryuu would have kicked and flailed around as he felt his friend gingerly pick him off the group with an ungodly amount of grace and ease. However, Ryuu knew that if he kicked and flailed around enough then he would probably open his wounds and then they would be set back even more than they were before. They may still have been a head of schedule, but Ryuu was more than a little paranoid about bumping into more bloody obstacles to push them back even further. The sooner he got those ingredients, the sooner he could stop this humiliating transformation.
Ryuu, flustered and more than a little embarrassed that he was plucked up by Tobi so easy and then set on his horse, squirmed a little bit with a blush on his face when he had realized that Tobi had got a pretty good feel of the curve of his widening hips. Man… why did things have to get so awkward so quickly? His face soured slightly and he had to lightly bit his lip to calm himself down, he knew that Tobi was right and that they needed going, and he also knew that he would have a lot of trouble getting up on his saddle alone with his leg still throbbing from the injury. Granted, the potions were starting to take effect so hopefully it wouldn’t be too much longer before they were fully healed and he could get back to full strength. The ride started slow, it seemed even worse when there was an awkward silence between the pair as they moved on, each for their own reasons… Ryuu with the being placed in the saddle and the fact that Tobi had probably gotten a pretty good look at the changes that had occurred to his body when they were dressing the wounds and Tobi who was clearly a little sore at himself for letting some of his nature show through more than what he was hoping. Thankfully the ride started to pick up and the pair started to once more poke fun and tease each other in between talking about everything and yet nothing at all. What was once a long, and boring stretch of road became animated by laughter and amusements. Ryuu was getting more and more thankful that his friend was here with him and decided to invite himself along for this miserable adventure. Time always passes more quickly when you have enjoyable company. Though Tobi was only half joking about being introduced to one of Lady Isabelle’s friends, he did have someone in mind that might be a good match for Tobi, she shared a number of interests with him, in any event, maybe those two might be able to make something work? If anything, he heard that her… appetites, were similar to Tobi’s, though in reverse. Perhaps they could tame each other down a bit. Though Ryuu had the feeling that Isabelle’s friend was probably a lot more tame than Tobi was when it came to indulging in her desires. Still, maybe he could at least introduce her to him, she was usually hanging around Isabella, so who knew?
Finally, after a rough night of camping in the woods, the pair finally got to the small, but vibrant and bustling city of Oberus, where Lady Isabelle and hopefully the next ingredients were. Lady Isabella’s palace had an impressive white tower in the center of her courtyard, it was the towns clock tower but the family’s forefathers had built it in order to honor some sort of sacrifice from a great hero. As they made their way into the city, Ryuu couldn’t help but be a little self-conscious again as people were starting to stare at him. He pulled the hood over his head, pretending to use the hood to block out the sun, though Tobi could probably venture the real guess as to why he did so. Before they approached Lady Isabelle’s, Ryuu stopped at a weapon smith and placed an order. With the exchange of his b*****d sword and the large handful of gold that was placed on the counter, the Weapon smith vowed to make a weapon fit for a Queen. The smith helped Ryuu pick out a weapon that would suit him better. The weapon smith had clearly though that Ryuu was a girl –and that Tobi was his fiancé or something similar- and had something special in mind for Ryuu’s new sword, apparently. It would take a couple of days to finish, but Ryuu didn’t complain, he had the time and if he could use something other than his shadows all the time, it was an effective offensive measure to be sure, but it was tiring at the same time. After the order had been placed, the pair left for Lady Isabelle’s. Ryuu wrapped himself as best he could within the cloak so people could see as little of him as possible. He was nervous about seeing Lady Isabelle like this, and was constantly looking over to Tobi for some means of assurance, even if it was non-verbal. Ryuu took a deep breath and swallowed hard before reaching up and ringing the bell. He pulled his Family crest out of his pocket and prepared it for the doorman, who opened it up and seemed to glare down at the pair.
”We’re here to see Lady Isabelle for some important business on behalf of his Majesty, Crown Prince Ryuu.” He then showed the man the emblem as proof. The man’s expression softened a touch and he gestured them to come in, saying that they were expecting him, though they were earlier than anticipated. A maid showed them to the sitting room where they would wait for Lady Isabelle.
”Don’t worry M’lady, the stone will be here in a day or so, it just requires some alchemy to harvest it for the purposes of a potion. Try and relax a little.” Alexandra tried to calm the nervousness of her friend as they waited around anxiously. The lithe woman fanned herself softly, letting her softly curled, dark brown hair gently dance around in the process. Her deep brown eyes, though usually full of mischief, held a little pity for her friend. She wondered how she was going to break her news to the Prince? Hell of a position she got herself into, if she had to be honest. The game of love was never an easy one though, and her fiancé was a really good man and a sweetheart. She hadn’t met Ryuu often, but from what she gathered from him, she would honestly think that her friend’s fiancé and the Prince would get along swimmingly. Still, things probably could have picked some better timing on all fronts. Alexandra sighed a bit and walked over, her deep violet gown flowing around her as she moved. Alexandra placed her hand on her friends shoulder, the golden tan of her skin seemed to glow warmly in the sun as she offered her a reassuring smile. ”Things will turn out fine, they always come out for the better, right?”
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Posted: Thu Feb 27, 2014 6:38 pm
The Lady Isabelle was a tight bundle of nerves, to say the very least. She expected that Ryuu or some representative of him would arrive any day now. Any moment even. The last time he had visited it was so sweet. She thought back on it fondly. At the time, she had hoped that maybe that visit he would make an offer for her hand, but none such came. In the months he was gone however, Isabelle's heart had found another, and she fell all but head first in love with her new fiancé. Still, she was nervous. "I...just wish the stone was already here. The Prince sounded so very urgent in his letter and…" Isabelle trailed off.
She was standing by the window, with the beauty of the sun itself. A sweet, round face of alabaster skin and rosy red cheeks and lips. Deep brown eyes fringed in dark full lashes. And hair like gold spun silk, cascading down her back in soft ringlets, with a silver circlet upon her head. She wore a sky blue silk gown that seemed to flow like water as she paced the tiny tower room. She knew that should Ryuu come himself, he would find out. To be fair he would find out eventually. She despised the idea of what it would do to him. "Perhaps so Alexandra. Though it's the middle we must suffer through yet." Lady Isabelle answered,
Just then, a butler came in, saying that two strangers had appeared on behalf of Prince Ryuu. Isabelle let out a sharp sigh of relief. She would not need to find the words today then. "Shall we go then Alexandra?" Isabelle asked, a smile lighting those worried eyes. She looped arms with her friend and made her way towards the sitting room.
Walking in, Lady Isabelle walked just inside the doorway before making a polite curtsy to the two guests. "Hello. I am Lady Isabelle. I was told that you have news from Prince Ryuu?" Isabelle asked. The two looked very travel warn. A man and a woman, in dire need of food, clothes, a bath, and a medic by the look of them. But suspecting they traveled far, this did not surprise her very much. "Please, sit down." She said, gesturing towards two of the chairs by the fire. While the guests made themselves comfortable, Isabelle looked towards a servent standing by the far wall. "Could you please have some food sent up? And afterwards prepare two rooms for our guests."
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Posted: Fri Feb 28, 2014 5:10 am
Lady Alexandra smiled cheerfully at her friend as she walked down to the sitting room with her, arm in arm. She honestly never had that much of a feeling towards Ryuu, he seemed to keep to himself but she had heard rumours that he had quite the temper to him and that he was the cause of more than a few deaths in the palace ranks for stepping beyond their stations. She didn’t know how much of it was real and how much of it was just gossip and hear-say from other people who only knew that he was Dark bearer. Still, she was worried for her friend when she had heard that he was trying to court her, luckily for Isabelle, her father and mother had asked Ryuu to wait a year till his sixteenth birthday to propose to her… which was actually the custom here and she heard that The King had agreed to that as well. Perhaps Isabelle’s father had heard the rumors to and was worried for his daughter, or maybe he just had someone else he wanted his daughter to meet before she made up her mind… perhaps both. Alexandra continued to fan herself as they walked down the hallway to the Sitting Room where the guests were. She really didn’t feel like entertaining guests today, but she would at least keep her friend company. When she opened the door though, there was certainly a reward waiting for her eyes when the door opened. A rather handsome, and roguish looking young man was standing beside a cloaked, though feminine looking figure. She pretty well ignored the girl that was next to this delicious piece of eye candy and took him slowly. She smiled coyly behind her fan as she continued to fan herself with it, and offered him a seductive little smile a suggestive raise of her eyebrow. Now he was worth the trouble of entertaining, Lady Isabelle had made her requests for the servants, as she sat down on one of the chairs by the fireplace, making sure that she was sitting across from Tobi. She couldn’t stop herself from drinking him in with her eyes once more. Oh yes… he was quite the attractive one. She made a mental note to get to know him better while he stayed over tonight.
From under the hood of the cloak, Ryuu’s eyes softened and his lips pulled into a small, gentle smile seeing his love interest, she looked well and that strengthened his spirit. Ryuu bowed slightly as the Lady curtsied, his mind was starting to tumble around a bit… a part of him was cursing himself for being here right now, looking like this, and the other part of him was just happy to see Lady Isabelle once more. He watched with soft eyes as she moved with a fluid grace as she gestured them to go and have a seat by the fire, Ryuu hesitated for a moment but ended up following Tobi’s lead. God he was nervous, he didn’t know what Lady Isabelle may think of him looking like this, Tobi had noted earlier that he still looked very much like himself so he didn’t think that he could pass himself off as someone else and that thought made him hesitate to lower his deep hood, at least for the moment. Ryuu at first, stood beside the chair and waited for Lady Isabelle and Lady Alexandra to take their seats first. His mom had manners deeply ingrained into his being at this point in time, so even though he was probably presenting far more woman than man, he kept a lot of his gentile mannerisms. When everyone had a seat and the question came back to the news of the Prince, Ryuu worried his lip a little. He opened his mouth to answer her, but couldn’t quite find the words to go with it. He looked over at Tobi before trying again only to close his mouth once more. Ryuu started to think fast as he was under the impression that Lady Isabelle was assuming the worst with this hesitation. Ryuu took a deep breath and looked over once more at Tobi… well, here goes nothing. After a few pauses in hesitation Ryuu eventually lowered the hood from his head, exposing the curse and the changes that had occurred. He couldn’t meet her eyes though, afraid that she would find mockery in his situation, or at least some level of disgust.
”I’m afraid, the Prince fairs poorly in these dark times.” Was his only reply to the situation. What more could he say at this point. He regretting lowering his hood already, but he also hated hiding himself from Lady Isabelle more.
Lady Alexandra had to bite her lip to keep herself from cracking up at the sight of the Prince, it took her a few moments to recognize him but… it was the Prince alright. Her fan blocked the lower part of her face to make sure that she didn’t give the hint that she found Ryuu’s situation awfully amusing. She did feel bad for him, but at the same time, the situation was just too damn funny to her. She may have burst out laughing if it wasn’t for the fact that she was scared to set Ryuu off… if those rumours were true, she certainly didn’t want to be ripped apart by shadows in a totally provoked attack.
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Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 3:51 pm
As the two girls came in, Tobias took no time to look straight past the fair Lady Isabelle, and right to her friend that came in behind. Quite honestly Tobias never had much interest in Lady Isabelle. Her beauty was almost legendary, but she seemed so delicate. Like if he touched her she would just crumble. Tobias liked his women with a little more fire in their being. And fire was exactly what Isabelle's friend seemed to have. Well, Tobi was going to have to take back that condition to be introduced to one of Isabelle's friends, as he already found one for himself. He watched the little vixen, drinking him in with those eyes. Damn he was looking forward to seething those eyes looking up at him with her hair spread out over the sheets. However, there were several hours until that happened and they had to get through this meeting first.
Once the guests were seated, Isabelle sat down in one of the small couches in the room. She sat at the edge, sitting straight, while waiting to hear some news. She watched at the young man, turned to look at the cloaked young woman. Seems she was hesitant to deliver any message they were instructed to bring. She watched as the hood was lowered, and her breath stilled in her lungs. That face. The body was all wrong but that face...she knew that face…"Ryuu…?" Isabelle gasped in a small breathless whisper. And then all of a sudden her eyes rolled her limp body tumbled to the floor.
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Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 11:40 pm
The minute that Lady Isabelle’s eyes started to roll to the back of her head, Ryuu raised his hand, the shadows came rushing over to protect the Glass lady from a potentially painful fall. The shadows cradled her protectively, slowly guiding her to the floor where Ryuu had dashed over to gently hold her in his arms.
”…Well… that went well…” Ryuu mused sarcastically. His right arm wrapped around her shoulder as he pulled her closer to his chest, letting her head rest rather painfully against his chest while his left hand graced hers in a comforting manner. What he felt on her left hand though, made his heart clench in his chest. Slowly, he brought her limp hand up so that he could see what was gracing her ring finger, scared to see what he was going to find at the bottom of her digit. His heartache was confirmed when he saw the engagement ring wrapped comfortably there, lovingly placed by some other man while he was desperately trying to find a way to reverse what was happening to him. Ryuu’s pain was clear on his face, despite how much he desperately tried to hide it. His eyes dropped and he took a sharp inhale of hissing air before he clenched his eyes shut. He was too late, not only was his kingdom threatening to be torn from him, his life being torn to sunder… now… he had lost the woman that he loved because of all of this. If Ryuu was a lesser being, he would have probably started to weep right there and then. But there was something more pressing that he needed to take care of. He swallowed the lump in his throat and held out his hand towards Lady Alexandra.
”Fan.” Ryuu ordered simply
”Beg pardon?” Lady Alexandra asked with a confused look on her face, she wasn’t paying attention to this, it was a pretty common sight and instead her focus was far more drawn to the handsome man that the feminizing prince brought with him.”
”You’re fan, Lady Alexandra… for Lady Isabelle…” Ryuu held no humor in his voice as his mouth down turned into a slight frown having had to explain what he need the fan for.
”Oh! Yes, of course, here you go.” Alexandra replied a little flustered while she handed the fan over to the prince who started to slowly fan his beloved who was still unconscious in his arms. She was hoping that she got over the humour of the situation, without her fan Ryuu may notice and he hardly looked in the mood to be laughed at.
Good grief… Ryuu wondered about some people. While Ryuu started to bring a soft breeze to the Lady in his arms, the shadows started to lovingly try and bring some comfort to Isabelle as tendrils softly caressed her cheek and bear arms. He continued to hold her left hand in his own, his fingers wrapped around hers in a vain attempt to hide what was tearing at his heart bit by bit with each second that went by.
Alexandra lost all humour of the situation when she noted that Ryuu had noticed that ring that was decorating her best friend’s finger. The pain on his face made her heart go out to him, despite not really being anything more than an acquaintance to him. She crossed her arms under her bosom and gave a worried look to her friend despite that face that she would never see it. It looked like her friend was right… she would have to find the worlds to tell Ryuu that she fell in love with someone else, though she imagined that there would still be a painful conversation afterwards. She looked back over to the handsome man that was with Ryuu.
”Well, seeing as our meeting has found an… intromission… I may as well introduce myself. My name is Alexandra, I’m the daughter of a Marquess not far from this city. May I ask your name, M’lord?”
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Posted: Thu Mar 06, 2014 7:55 pm
Tobias resisted the urge to facepalm when the Lady Isabelle tumbled her pretty self to the pretty floor. He only resisted because of Ryuu. Ryuu was on the floor now with his beloved, looking absolutely distraught to say the least. The brothers code alone was keeping Tobias from mocking the Lady. "Hmm….Indeed. Though to be fair, I doubt she would have reacted much better even if you did break it to her a little softer." Tobias said, trying to be kind.
He watched as Ryuu tended to the sleeping maiden when he noticed the left hand. Tobias' heart sunk a little at seeing the gleaming ring. He swore he just heard Ryuu's heart shattering. Ryuu would have proposed ages ago if her parents had allowed it. But it seems in that time some other suitor swept in. Tobias could have said something akin to 'there are more fish in the sea' but instead opted to let Ryuu have some time to grieve. It seemed like the kindest thing to do.
At they were waiting for the fair maiden to wake, Tobias looked up at the pretty little thing that Isabelle had brought with her. He grinned devilishly when she introduced herself. "Not my daughter I hope. My name is Tobias Dracon, Marquis of Kensington. A pleasure to make you're acquaintance, Lady Alexandra." And acting every bit the gentleman, Tobias rose and took Alexandra's hand in his own, and brushed his lips against the back ever so lightly.
It was just at that moment that a small cough was heard from the floor. Lady Isabelle's eyes fluttered softly, and she found herself looking up to Ryuu. "Your face….it has changed so…" Isabelle murmured in a soft, wispy voice. Slowly she started to sit up, holding her head lightly. With the lack of questions, it was clear that fainting was a fairly common occurrence. With little difficulty, Isabelle slid from Ryuu's arms, and back onto the couch. " I'm so sorry by my reaction. I….just had no idea…" Isabelle breathed. "Do you have any idea who caused this?" She asked, tone worried.
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Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 5:34 am
Alexandra threw her head back and laughed at Tobi’s comment on hoping that she wasn’t his child. ”My father is young, but not that young I assure you. It’s a pleasure, my lord.” Alexandra had a hard time keeping that seductive little smile off her face as he graced her knuckles with a gentle kiss. Her body language was showing her interest in the young man who held the same rank as her father. Despite the fact that her best friend was sprawled in her poor, broken hearted ex-lovers arms, the temptress continued to captivate the Princes best friend with her glamor. She bit her bottom lip ever so gently, turning her head a hair’s breathe while keeping those dark, chocolate eyes on him.
”If it would please my lord, perhaps I could show you around the grounds while the Prince gets his wounds treated? It would be my pleasure of course.”
Now it was Ryuu’s turn not to face palm and uphold the Brother’s code. God those two were going to be good for each other… and yet so totally, totally toxic to each other. Ryuu supposed that he was glad that at least one them was having good luck with the women over here… Maybe Ryuu should ask Tobi for some tips when all this was over, though when Tobi offered them without being asked last time, Ryuu had to roll his eyes and shake his head. He never did think that any of Tobi’s techniques were going to work for him. Tobi just has this heir around him that Ryuu just didn’t. When he heard Isabelle’s soft, stirring groan, his eyes immediately looked down into her own. He did his best to put on a gentle smile, though he just couldn’t get the sadness out of it, nor could he force the light reach his eyes. He handed back the fan to Lady Alexandra at that point and pushed himself up into a standing position. Once Lady Isabelle was comfortably on her seat again, Ryuu retook his position next to Tobi and leaned forwards, his forearms resting on his knees. When he was asked if he knew who did this to him. His eyes closed.
”No… I have no idea who did this, though I have my suspicions… I was more focused on finding a cure then finding out who or why they did this. Speaking of which. Forgive my bluntness and my rude manners, but do you have the stone, M’lady?”
Alexandra looked over at her friend, she knew that Isabelle had already delivered a wave of disappointed to the Prince already today, whether she knew it or not. So she decided to spare her best friend one more disappointing blow to the Prince. She was really starting to feel bad for the guy. ”I’m sorry, your Majesty, but the stone is still being harvested, it takes Alchemy to do so, so there has been a bit of a delay, we are hoping for it to arrive within the next day or so…”
”It’s alright, I have to wait for a new sword anyway so this works out fairly well for me. We’ll try not to intrude upon you any more than we have, Lady Isabelle…” Ryuu then paused, turning his attention to his best friend. A small smirk crossed his lips and he closed his eyes once again. ”Well, I won’t be a bother… I can’t speak for my best friend, as he tends to have trouble follow him everywhere… but I will not intrude upon you.”
Alexandra giggled a bit, her eyes lighting up with a mixture of amusement and mischief. ”Oh rest assured, your Majesty, trouble will be furthest thing from your friends mind while we entertain you here.”
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Posted: Sun Mar 09, 2014 2:21 pm
Isabelle looked gratefully towards Alexandra as she answered about the stone for her."I am terribly sorry. We sent for it as soon as I received your letter. Our alchemists are working as quickly as possible. But they assure me that for the proper quality they must not rush it too much." Isabelle explained, her eyes pleading forgiveness.
At the mention of being an intrusion, Isabelle quickly shook her head, in effect tossing the platinum blond curls around her shoulders. "You could never be an intrusion here. Please, stay as long as you need."
Tobias first gave a small sly grin to Alexandra, then looked back to Lady Isabelle. "Thank you Lady Isabelle. I think for the time being I'll take Alexandra up on her offer to show me the grounds." Tobias said. He had a funny feeling that Ryuu and Isabelle had some things they needed to talk about.
So, turning back to Alexandra, Tobias offered his arm in a gentleman like manner, "After you my lady."
As the pair began to leave, Isabelle turned back to Ryuu. "Perhaps...you would like to have your wounds tended and a chance to get changed first. I'll have one of the maids bring you to your room. And I'll send a healer along." Isabelle offered. While Tobias seemed spritely enough, Ryuu looked rather like he had been through a ringer. "If...if you wouldn't mind….perhaps I could come to visit later. And we could talk a while? There are...some things I would like to tell you." She explained softly. Not even noticing it, she was twisting her ring around her finger nervously, as if it's presence was burning her.
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Posted: Mon Mar 10, 2014 7:21 am
Man, how did Tobi do it? Ryuu was beaten pretty soundly back at the bandits hands, but Tobi got a good thrashing too… and he was up and moving around like he wasn’t even injured. Credit where credit was due, Tobi was made of some tough stuff. Ryuu watched as Alexandra looped her arm around and through Tobi’s offered elbow and pulled herself as close as she could to him. God… they were just as bad as each other, seems like his friend found someone who interested him in the very least. Ryuu stood up as well, when his best friend and Lady Alexandra left the room, though he did so with far less finesse and far more stiffly. It was about that time when Isabelle turned to face him and asked if he needed a healer and his room. He gave a bit of a forced smile. ”Yes, please… that would be great.” The maid was summoned and Ryuu placed his hood back over his head before the maid arrived, they started off towards his room when Lady Isabelle spoke up again, asking if they could talk about something. He stopped, his eyes dropped to the ground and the smile died off his face. He had a pretty good idea what she wanted to talk to him about, and he wasn’t looking forwards to it.
”…Of course, M’lady.” Ryuu said, though he couldn’t quite keep all of the pain out of his quietened voice. ”You are welcome to see me at your leisure, I won’t be straying far from my room…”
It was one talk that he was absolutely dreading, but he knew it was coming… and he knew that she was at least being courageous enough to tell him face to face and not coward out and have someone else do it for her… or let him learn it though rumours and gossip. No, she wasn’t that cruel. Ryuu knew that Tobi had though Isabelle fragile, but he saw a great amount of inner strength from her, sure she didn’t always react well to things, but… she was at least capable of seeing things through to the end, even if she didn’t like what she had to do.
Ryuu took a quick bath before the healers came to see him, he shielded his face with cloth so that they didn’t recognize him in his compromised position, there seemed to be a few questions thrown his way by both the maids and the healers, but Ryuu’s usual responses were stony silence or quick, few word answers. The maids snuck in a few times when the Healers were in between their work and then disappeared into the halls. Though he was fairly exposed as the Healers needed to get at his injuries, he made sure that his… problem… was concealed at all cost. Finally when the healers were done, they left the room, leaving him to change into his new clothes. Ryuu unfolded them and held up the top. ”Oh… you got to be kidding me…” Ryuu frowned, Tobi was going to have a field day with this one… but it was better than being in what was left of his clothes. He hoped his mom wouldn’t mind the missing pair of riding pants. He made sure not to take her favorite ones so hopefully it would go without being noticed. Ryuu sighed in defeat and got dressed, not at all happy that he was going to have to wear this till he got home… most likely…
What REALLY pissed him off the most though was how well they fit…
Geez, it wasn’t bad enough that he looked like a girl, he now had to dress like one, it was just one insult and injury after the others. He was going to have to take a vacation from this nightmare once he became a guy again… after he won back his beloved. At least, he hoped that he could. That thought made his heart sink a few more fathoms into his chest. Isabelle would be here soon, he figured. He did his best to prepare himself for what he knew was coming, though he wasn’t sure if he was going to be able to completely guard his heart.
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Posted: Mon Mar 10, 2014 5:10 pm
Lady Isabelle returned to her own chambers when Ryuu excused himself to change and see the healers. She spent all of ten minutes to freshen up her appearance, and spent the rest of the time nervously pacing the carpeted floor of her room. After what seemed like eons to Isabella, a little over an hour had passed and she thought that was ample time for Ryuu to have changed and been seen to by the healers.
In mixed paces of slow and fast, Isabelle walked along the stone corridors to the guest suite belonging to Ryuu. She knocked lightly at the door, "Hello, Ryuu it's Isabelle." she called out. Once she heard an invitation to enter, she quietly slipped inside. Isabelle's eyes caught Ryuu almost at once. Her breath caught, but this time she didn't faint at least. The sheer affect of the curse was mostly hidden in the sitting room. But now, in proper fitting clothes, Ryuu looked more like a woman then ever. "M-my Ryuu. You're practically a lady." Isabelle said, meaning it as a little light hearted teasing. "You look lovely." She added quickly at the end. She paused, nervously twisting her hands together again as she had in the sitting room earlier. "Shall we sit?"
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Posted: Mon Mar 10, 2014 7:08 pm
Ryuu immediately allowed Lady Isabelle into the room, when she got in there he was still inspecting himself in the mirror, he didn’t look too pleased about the state that he found himself in, though when his ex-love interest comment on him looking like a full, proper woman, Ryuu gave a forced, small laugh if anything to try and spare Isabelle from the awkwardness of realizing that this was probably the wrong thing to say to him at this point in time… the little, hasted comment about him looking lovely made his face twist into a slightly sour expression and a slightly frustrated sigh. ”I must say, as… lovely as I may look, I think I would rather be the handsome devil I used to be.” He looked over his shoulder and gave something of a smirk over at Lady Isabelle. ”Just don’t expect to see me in an evening gown anytime soon, okay? …speaking of clothes… Tobi’s going to have a field day looking down this top…” The last part was grumbled a little. He was going to be in for a long, frustrating trip of Tobi not listening when being talked to because he was going to be admiring the mountains in the view. Ryuu noticed that the tone in Isabelle was nervous and her body language was reflecting it. While she had a seat on his offered bed, he moved over to the window and rested his forearm against the window sill so that he could see the outside, and not allow Isabelle to see the pain that would come on his face while this conversation went on.
”So… who is he? Your fiancé I mean? I noticed your ring when I came to help you when you fainted… you have my… heartiest… congradulations…” His hearty congratulations didn’t exactly sound hearty… not very congratulatory. ”Are you… happy with him?”
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