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 Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 2:20 pm
Amelia didn't like the concerned expression on Isadora's face. The Paladin didn't usually look concerned unless there was a damn good reason to be so, but she seemed to be trying to push aside such thoughts as she spoke up. Amelia didn't have the effort in her to drag out her real feelings, deciding that Isadora just wanted her to feel better. If she wanted to tell me, she would have told me.
Amelia smiled at the mention of Tibarn and Ayra's wedding, though the smile soon shifted to a surprised look of embarrassment at the idea of a bachelorette party. "Uh... yeah, I don't even know what you do at those," she commented. Joshua had had a bachelor's party back on Magvel when he became betrothed (and subsequently wed) to Natasha, and judging by comments on it she'd heard from Ephraim and Innes and some of the other men from their army that she had still been in contact with, it wasn't something Amelia would be too hasty to attend.
Her thoughts broke when Isadora addressed her directly. "Amelia, what are you doing training? Today is such a wonderful day. Why aren't you spending your time with Rhys and the others?"
Amelia put down her training staff lightly, then rubbed her hands together. She suddenly became distinctly aware of sweat beading at the small of her back and under her chest, dirt sticking to her clothes and getting under the hem of her shirt against her stomach, her dirty fingernails and mussed, tangled hair. She felt suddenly inadequate next to Isadora, easily cleaner than her. Amelia felt a thought concerning how Rhys would think to see her looking so unkempt as she shrugged one shoulder, attempting to keep the curiosity out of her voice. "I'm not sure... he said he had plans in town. Left for the heart of Eyris barely before I could finish saying good morning." Amelia ran a hand through her hair, and it fell right back to her eyes. Bangs need a trim. "And I just... after the fighting at Easter, I feel like... like I need to do more. I can't let people get hurt like that again, especially if it's because I'm not strong enough." Amelia flexed her fingers, her stance rigid for a split second, only to relax again. "I'm going to try to join the Watch. So I can't be weak. Gotta practice up so I don't fail the recruitment test, right?" Amelia laughed sheepishly.
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Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 6:42 pm
"Oh.... Well, whatever plans Rhys has, I'm sure he must have a good reason to be in such a hurry." Isadora replied. She then heard listened to Amelia's explanation about her training. By the tone of her voice, Isadora couldn't help but noticed there was a sense of doubt and a bit of shame in it. Based by what happened from the Easter event and her tone, it almost sounded like Amelia thought of herself as being weak.
Isadora later heard a change of tone from Amelia about trying to join the Watch. Isadora let out a small smile from seeing Amelia's sheepish laugh. "Well, I'm sure you will be able to pass the recruitment test. You have fought many battles than any new recruits can ever had. I'm positive that you will ace that test in your sleep. Well, good luck on your training."
Before the paladin was about to leave, she stopped for a moment and looked down at her ring. This ring had hold many memories to her. Both the good and the bad. It had also made her think of about her duty as a Pharaen Knight and her emotion as a woman. Although she admitted that she had been a great service to her country, she had wondered what would happened on the day Harken and Lord Elbert left. Would she follow her duty as a knight as stay to protect her country or would she follow her heart as a woman just to be with the man she loved? Thinking it over, she gingerly played her ring.
Would she continue to wait and hope for Harken to reunite with her again even though she had not heard news of him or not? Curiously, she turned her head around to see Amelia continued her training. Wondering if the small knight of Grado would be following the same footsteps as hers, Isadora let out a question. "Amelia, I don't mean to be bold, but..... do you have someone specially dear to you?"
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Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 7:15 pm
Amelia lifted her training weapon again. She couldn't lose focus, right? Even as Isadora spoke and vouched for Rhys' intentions, proceeding to assure her that she would ace the recruitment test, Amelia was turning her training 'spear' in her hands, once again familiarizing herself to the weight. By now, it only took a split second, but she liked the feel of the staff in her hands, and as she struck the dummy, a resounding thud sounded for a few moments before giving way again to silence. Enough strikes on a stationary target would build up anyone's strength.
Amelia struck the dummy a second time, a third. Her hair flew around her head. She had to focus. If she was going to be at the top of her game for that recruitment, then she would--
"Amelia, I don't mean to be bold, but.... do you have someone specially dear to you?"
Amelia dropped her weapon in surprise. Growing a little suspicious, she turned. There was no point in hiding it, really, so she just sighed and sat. Feck, if she sat for a few minutes, it wouldn't kill her training. "I... yes. I mean, that's... kind of the point. I mean, Rhys and I kind of... um, spoke, at the end of Easter," she said, rubbing the back of her neck. She thought to his comment, the quiet words that she still wasn't sure if he meant for them to be heard. "I want Amelia to be my wife."
"And he's been distant the past few days, especially today, and... I just hope he's been busy with work. There were a lot of injured civilians, after all..." Amelia sighed.
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Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 7:47 pm
"I see..... " Isadora quietly said. It took her a moment or two to think about it before she made her decision. She turned around and placed her hand onto Amelia's shoulder.
"Amelia, it's good to hear that you want to help Learania by joining into the Watch. However, when drastic and concern comes to someone you hold dear..... Don't place your duty first before your heart." Isadora spoke. Her tone became deep and serious.
Looking down at her ring, Isadora placed her hands behind her neck and unclasped the chain. She then kneeled down beside Amelia. A bit of pain lingered in her heart. But at the same time, she somehow feel the burden was lifting off her shoulder.
"Amelia...... Earlier I lied about the ring." Isadora confessed as she looked at her ring. "This ring..... it does hold valuable memories to me. Both the good and bad memories."
As she looked at Amelia, a stream of tear felt from her cheeks. "This ring.... was given to me by my fiance....... And now....... I think it is time for me to give this to you."
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Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 8:27 pm
Amelia looked up as Isadora's hand went down to her shoulder. She looked up to the Paladin quietly, trying not to pant. She was tired, and now sitting, it was all rushing at her at once, but she compensated by pretending to sigh, sucking in a deep breath in the process.
She was surprised, to say the least, to see Isadora unlatch the chain from around her neck and hold out the simple, yet elegant band with its small, vibrant stone. Amelia stared at it like it was completely foreign, unable to understand what she was doing until she flat-out said her intentions.
Her green eyes went up to Isadora's face, shock clear in her expression. Her fiancee gave her this ring, and she wants me to have it? "Isadora, I... I-I'm touched, but are you... sure?" Amelia reached out without thinking and flicked one of the tears away from her cheek. She looked so sad, crying like that, but she couldn't help but notice that maybe she wasn't so sad after all. Tears didn't only come in sadness. "I... I'm honored. I'd feel privileged to take this, but... only if you're sure. I don't want to overstep anything." Amelia reached out and touched the ring gently. She could feel her own eyes watering in spite of herself. "...Thank you..."
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Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 9:48 pm
((Augh!! Sorry if it's too long for you. But I tried to bring the best of Izzy. LOL XD ))
Isadora wiped the tear from her eyes. Even though she cried, she couldn't help but smiled. "Yes, I'm sure. After all, a ring is not only a token of love and commitment. It also symbolizes a new life with someone you hold dear."
Wiping the tear from her eyes, Isadora looked up in the sky. The sky was clear blue with little narrow strips of clouds passing by. Isadora lightly sighed. "You see.... Back in Pharae, I met my fiance. Like me, he was one of the Pharae knights. He was brave, loyal, and honorable. We both felt in love and he proposed to me. I was so happy to be his bride.
"Then, he received a mission. His mission was to escort with Lord Elbert. Harken.... My fiance had promised me that he will returned unharmed. On the day where he and Lord Elbert were to leave, I was left behind to protect Pharae. Even though it was my duty to protect my country as a knight, deep down... I wanted to be by his side. Just seeing him leave made my heart ache. It was as if a part of me had died.
"It had been a month since my fiance left. But during that absent, all I could ever thought of was him despite my great performance as a knight. It frightened me of what happened to him. I sometimes had great concern of whether he was alive or not. Just thinking about it made me feel lonely and abandoned.
"And when I was in war with Lord Eliwood, I was reunited with Harken again. I was happy to see him safe and alive. But at the same time, I was so upset that he didn't return to me that I didn't forgive him. It took some times to made up afterward, but I was grateful that I was at his side again. He even promised that after the war, we were to be wedded immediately. I was so happy to hear it that I thought that it would never come true.
"However.... I was wrong. Because after the war and returned to Pharae, my fiance left me a letter the next day that he went on a journey alone. In the letter was an apology that he could not wed me as he was planned. It was not that he didn't want to be committed to me. He explained that he needed some time alone. That he wasn't himself well. That he needed to lift the burden off his shoulder after what had happened to Lord Elbert and afterward. I.... I refused to this idea and thought he had abandoned me like he did before. I felt that he should not have do this alone to carry the burden. However..... I knew that he was not himself as he was before.
"Whatever happened on his mission before we were reunited, I don't know but I know it had shook him hard enough to make him reckless. Although my heart was aching with loneliness and pain, I had hope that one day he would return to me.
"It's been months since I last heard of him. I don't know whether Harken is still in Pharae or in Learania. Whether his journey is finished or not. Even the thought of whether he is alive or dead sometimes flicker across my mind."
Isadora could feel the tears swelled up in her as she stood up and looked at the rays of sun. "It's hard for me to keep hope when not knowing what had happened to my Harken... However, like I told you about the ring. The ring is not only the symbol of love and commitment, but also the symbol of new life. And I think it is time for me to move on with my life and stop dwelling in the past. I'm sure Harken would want me to move on, even if I find new love or not. I know that he does not want me to live in misery and lonely."
The paladin turned her attention to Amelia. Her tears continued to fall from her eyes as she let out a smile. "I just want you to know that you should not let your duty as a knight comes first before your duty as a loved one to someone you hold dear. I.... I don't want you to end up the same way as I did. Even though it is your duty to protect the people and the country of Learania as a knight, do not let your heart be burdened with sadness and loneliness. And if you see Rhys upset, ask him to share his burden with you for it helps ease the shoulders. So please..... Live your life to the fullest, as happy as you can. Even though the ring means so much to me, I'm positive of giving it to you. I... cannot be hold back onto the past while I have so much life to live. After all, you're young and beautiful, so you should not live your life alone. So.... think of it as a present and a backup ring in case Rhys could not find the ring to you."
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Posted: Wed May 13, 2009 2:13 pm
[[It's all right. xD]]
Amelia thought about Isadora's explanation, the history of her ring, everything. To be engaged to be married, to be so deeply in love, and then to have all of that swept out from under you, dangled overhead and kept out of reach... Amelia's heart ached at the idea. She gripped her hands into fists, fingernails digging into her gloves. He didn't stay with her... he left her...!
Amelia closed her eyes. She knew Tibarn wouldn't do that to Ayra. They would be different. He's too madly in love with her... and besides, she would kick his a** to Brass Mountain and back if he even thought of it. Amelia held down the laugh, not wanting Isadora to misinterpret it as laughter towards her pain. When her voice lost its reminiscent tone, directed now to her, Amelia looked up to the elder Paladin's face.
Her words were true enough, and Amelia looked down the ring as she continued to speak, fingers tracing the silver band and tapping against the gem. It truly was beautiful, elegant in simplicity, though Amelia's thoughts wandered a little as she neared the end of her speech. Beautiful... no. You and Ayra, or Ninian, yes, but... not me. But I'll take the compliment nevertheless.
Amelia smiled up to Isadora, nodding slowly. She clasped the ring tightly in her hand. "...Thank you. I'll treasure it," she reassured her before rising to her feet. "It's near midday and I've been training for a long time, I should probably get out of the sun soon... I think you ought to do the same."
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Posted: Thu May 14, 2009 8:48 am
"Yes..... I think we should." Isadora nodded. She looked at the sky to see it was midday. Despite that she had feel the pain in her heart, she could feel her shoulders being lightened from the burden she carried.
Even though she knew that Harken wouldn't dare to abandon her when they were in love, she knew that Harken didn't want her to be miserable at all times.
Wanting to enjoy the day from being burden, she asked Amelia if she wanted to join with her for lunch in the town. Just when the paladin was about to walk, she noticed something odd from the pillar. Wondering what or who it might be, Isadora approached. When she looked around, she saw Renault. Her eyebrow raised. "Bishop Renault, what are you doing behind the pillar?"
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Posted: Fri May 15, 2009 7:39 pm
Amelia nodded once; good, Isadora agreed with her. She started to go towards the castle, intending to wash off before getting something to drink when the paladin addressed someone she knew, someone she hadn't even realized was right there. "Bishop Renault, what are you doing behind the pillar?"
Amelia didn't correct her in that Renault had attained Saint status, just fumbled her training weapon in surprise. "F-Father...! What brings you out here?" she asked, trying not to be rude. She was just surprised, after all. "I thought you were busy with your research... the Door and all..." She trailed off, suppressing a shiver. If Loki never came back, it'd be too soon, she thought, pushing down icy threads of panic.
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Posted: Fri May 15, 2009 7:42 pm
Rhys held on around Sue's waist as the group trod up the road. Being the only man who wasn't mounted meant he had to be picked up by Sue. He didn't feel particularly comfortable--Andre was moving pretty fast in an effort to get the hell out of here--but at least he wasn't falling behind. He wasn't sure he wanted to do THAT...
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Posted: Fri May 15, 2009 7:45 pm
Sue made her horse dash faster, and she stopped briefly to find Arashe with two children... and many dead around him. Wrinkling her nose from the smell, she called out to him. "Sniper... I heard whispers of the other members of FEF your name was Arashe! Quick, follow me, we must escape!"
The thought of Rhys's arms around her didn't bug Sue at all, surprisingly. She was quite use to anyone doing that while she was on Andre's back.. but when she was off.. that was a different story.
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Posted: Fri May 15, 2009 8:43 pm
Ganon scratched his neck as those few men who had not already backed off began to hightail it out of there. After seeing one comrade's arm bisected lengthwise, one gutted, and one hit with an explosive, nobody was interested in hanging around to try their luck. Ganon smirked, pushing over the groaning, bleeding gutted man, and ruffled Blossom's hair. "Well!" he said. "Look at us. We make a damn good team. We could be the Team of... Teamwork Team! I can do the music thing, and Lance here can... do that coin, and Blossom can swing her sword around, and we'll be unstoppable!"
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Overlord of Night- Shadow
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Posted: Fri May 15, 2009 8:48 pm
Renault blinked at Isadora; he hadn't really been BEHIND the pillar, per se, more like next to it. He'd kind of thought that they'd realized he was there already, he'd just thought they were going to finish talking and then address him. But, apparently not, they had been going to just head inside without even talking to him. How annoying. And what he was going to do had been kind of rendered less nice by what Isadora had done. But, he was going to do it anyway. Of course, he did kind of have to, or else a certain ceremony would stop about halfway through.
Instead of directly answering Isadora, the Saint turned instead to his daughter and smiled at her. "So. . . it's getting close to that time, isn't it? You and Rhys love each other; I understand this, and I support it." He smiled down at the girl gently, then reached out and gently ruffled her hair. "Sometimes, there are things that are more important than research. Like my daughter, whom I love more than anything. I want you to be happy, Amelia. But, I suspect that there is to be a ceremony soon, and. . . you're going to need something to give to Rhys, in return for his. So. . ." The man paused for a moment, then took Amelia's hand and pressed his own into hers. "This is a treasure; were I a normal person it would likely be an heirloom. It's now over five hundred years old. . . and I want you to give it to Rhys. It's given to you, as the next female in my family. . ." He opened his hand, then brought his other up and closed Amelia's hand over the wedding band. "I want the two of you to have all the happiness in the world. . ." He paused for a moment, considering. ". . . And, if you need any help paying for the ceremonies, I suppose I can assist you with that too."
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Posted: Fri May 15, 2009 8:50 pm
Blossom watched as the bandits all fled. She giggled and leaned down to the man who had collapsed after being attacked by one of Lance's funny exploding coins, using a scrap of his shirt to wipe all the blood off of her blade. "Heh. Sissies," she murmured, grinning. A single attack was enough to make them afraid of her? Well, fine. That was good with her. Maybe those bandits would leave her alone, then. She looked up to Ganon after she had finished getting her sword on her back once more, giggling again at his hand against her head. "We do make a good team!" she responded. Blossom looked over to Lance, then back to Ganon. "Should we go find the others?" she questioned. "I bet they're wondering where we are right now."
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Posted: Fri May 15, 2009 9:10 pm
Amelia just hadn't been paying attention... goodness, her thoughts really were going all over the place lately. She rested her training weapon against the pillar to speak to her father, feeling even more grungy now that she was facing a man whose normal attire now consisted of pure white robes, kept perfectly clean at almost all times (Amelia suspected that a wizard had done it). She rubbed her hand against her forehead, only succeeding in smearing some dirt there.
Her face turned pink as he started to speak. So both Isadora and Renault had seen it. Was everyone else just waiting for him to get down on one knee or something? His hand on her head, though, made her relax, not to mention his words. "Sometimes, there are things more important than research. Like my daughter, whom I love more than anything."
Amelia's eyes widened a little, and she nodded very slowly. She knew he had to have loved her (I mean, would he have gone through the adoption process otherwise...?) but hearing him say that... it meant something to her. She watched as if dazed as Renault took her hand and pressed his palm against hers, continuing to speak. Her fingers were lax and easily curled over the band, and Amelia let it press into her palm, to leave an indentation. She looked up at her father, eyes watering a little.
Everyone's so determined to make me cry today.
She nodded, and a split second later, Amelia leaped up to reach Renault's shoulders (he was taller than her, at least half a foot, it seemed) and hugged him tightly, pressing her face against his robes. She let herself cry there, just too... damn emotional to allow a smile or word express all of it. "Thank you," she said into his shoulder. "Thank you, Dad..."
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