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 Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2010 10:26 pm
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Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2010 10:31 pm
Taken from Oliver's Journal Oliver had recently decided that he hated summer. He hated it with a passion. It was too hot, too bright, and altogether uncomfortable. Those weren't the reasons he disliked the season, however. Lately his host had been acting decidedly strange. She was moody and despite Oliver's attempts to cheer her up, despite the forced smiles she directed at him whenever he was near, the shadow knew something was wrong with his host. What was it? His host's mate was at her beck and call, acting as her slave for the most part. Oliver had never seen him act like this, sure the man was usually quite affectionate towards his host; they were always touching. Holding hands, hugging, and even doing stuff Oliver thought would have been quite painful to one's face. What was the point in smashing their faces together? And why was his host's mate treating her like some fragile piece of china? Why was he making her stay in bed half the day while he made her breakfasts of pancakes and french toast? Why was he suddenly being so nice? Why was he suddenly agreeing with whatever she said, even if his host wanted an argument? Why was he trying to keep her calm all the time? What did he know that Oliver's host didn't? Oli decided to confront him; well, confront him as well as a shadow could. When the man was reading on the couch, the shadow climbed onto his lap. He turned to face him, yellow eyes boring into brown. "Oli?" he asked. Ben stared. Clearly he wasn't used to the shadow addressing him this way. "What is it, Oli?" he asked. Something was troubling the shadow, that much was certain. Oliver pointed in the direction of his host’s room. “Ver…” he said, using his favorite concerned phrase. “Ver-ver-ver!” Ben glanced around the room. Making sure there were no spying eyes or ears, he leaned closer to Oliver and whispered, “Oli, do you think I can tell you a secret? You won’t tell?” “Oli?” “Thali’s going to have a baby.” “Ooooh… Oli?” Ben hesitated. How did one explain what a baby was to a shadow? He pulled out his wallet and showed a picture of the twins as newborns. “See? Babies. Thali’s going to have one. A girl, I hope.” Oliver took the wallet. “Mine,” he decided, pointing at the picture. “Mine!” Ben shook his head. “No, silly. Sammi and Reiya. You can claim the baby, if you want.” Oliver’s eyes glinted with mischief. “Oli?” he asked. “Sure can.”
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Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2010 10:33 pm
Taken from Oliver's Journal "You're impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Thali was arguing with her husband as was the usual. It had been happening less often as of late, but now, with Ben insisting that she rest and take it easy, things were in an uproar. Meaning a certain elf didn't want to listen to him, having the predictable stubborn tendencies of a pregnant woman who wanted to remain active when bedrest was prescribed."I don't need to," the elf insisted. "I'm fine. I slept twelve hours last night. If you make me sleep any more, I'll be sleeping my life away." Of course she didn't need to. Couldn't Ben see that she was fine? Couldn't he see that she needed to be kept busy? Couldn't he see that she was bored after doing puzzles with him every afternoon for a week? But as Ben looked at his wife, he could only see the fragile form that was so much in contrast with her personality. Her spirit was fiery, but her physical form--it looked like it could be broken quite easily; even though the man knew his wife was physically strong--when it came to hitting people. Maybe it was average elven stature, or maybe she was delicate, he didn't know. "Rest," he said firmly. "For me. For the baby." Thali paused in her protests, as her husband had known she would. He felt a small jab of guilt at having to use the baby in order to keep her healthy--but it would be worth it if the baby made it to term, right? They had already lost one already. Ben knew his wife expected to lose this one too; he knew she believed she was unable to bear children without assistance--but as long as he made sure she rested, ate well, and kept calm, they were sure to be fine. He hoped, anyway. "Fine," Thali relented with a sigh. Men. They thought they knew everything. "Not because you're telling me to rest, though," she added, so her husband wouldn't make the mistake of thinking she was being obedient. She settled down on the living room couch, pulling a pillow to her chest. "Of course not," Ben muttered. When did she ever do something for the sake of listening to him? All at once, he cringed. He glanced around the room, groaning. "Not now..." Thali really needed to teach her shadow to knock. Or at least know when he wasn't welcome. Pop! Oliver was sitting on the couch next to his host. He studied her with his beady yellow eyes, before making a decidedly concerned sound. "Ver?" he asked, scooting closer to her. "Li-ver?" "I'm alright Oli," Thali assured her shadow with a smile. "Come to rescue me? Ben's about to bore me with another one of his activities. We'll probably end up watching some car race by the end of the evening." "Olilili," Oliver said, shaking his head to show he wasn't understanding. Car races? What were those? What were cars, for that matter? And why did his host's mate want to watch them anyway? "Oli?" he pointed to the television. Maybe they could watch Spongebob instead! Or maybe Looney Tunes! "I'd like that," Thali agreed. Anything was better than what Ben wanted to do; even if she had no idea what the shadow meant. Putting the pillow aside, she pulled Oliver into her lap. "Go on, Ben. Entertain us."
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Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2010 10:33 pm
Taken from Oliver's Journal Sometimes not even shadows knew what was going on, and that was saying something. Sneaky little buggers that they were, tending to appear when you least expected it, or wanted it. Sometimes a shadow just didn't understand a host's behavior. That was Oliver's trouble. His host was behaving badly. He had tried scolding her, but the elf seemed to find it amusing. He had tried expressing how he felt by drawing on the walls, while Thali had expressed how she felt it was a shame to need to wash off such a "pretty" picture. Why did she find everything he did so funny? How had she changed so much in so little time? And why? At times he thought she'd finally give him the desired response, only for her to laugh at him. The shadow showed his frustration by stomping. To his surprise, that seemed to do the trick. Stomping was something Thali had experience with. She had gone through countless tantrums which involved stomping, due to each of her five children. "What is it, Oliver?" she asked. "Oli! Ver ver ver ver-li- ver!" the shadow lectured, shaking his finger at his host, in case his message wasn't clear. Thali appeared puzzled, a lopsided expression, neither smile nor frown, making its way across her face. "Are you mad at me?" Oliver nodded. Of course he was mad at her! She wasn't behaving properly! She deserved a time out. Why wasn't she obeying? She generally attempted to comply with his requests-- "Why?" The shadow blew a loud raspberry in response. He knew he shouldn't have, he knew he had been taught better manners. He also figured that it wasn't his host's fault that she hadn't been intelligent enough to--never mind. She was a good host, most of the time. She even attempted to understand him, it was a failed attempt, but Oliver admired her for trying. Thali frowned. "Well?" "Oli, ver! Ver!" Oli shook his head at his host. Surely she knew why he was upset. She had to. She knew everything. "Oli, if you don't tell me why you're upset, I won't be able to fix it." Oliver looked at her doubtfully. "Oli?" he asked. "Oli li?" Would she really fix it if he told her? If he did attempt to tell her, would she understand? Somehow he doubted it. "Really," Thali assured him. "What's wrong?" The shadow took his host's hand, and before Thali realized where her tiny companion was leading her, she found herself in her bedroom. Oliver pointed to the bed. "Oli-ver-ver-ver-li-ver," he said in his sternest tone. Now his host was cornered. She would have to do what he said. "...Ben's convinced you too, huh?" "Oli?" The shadow tilted his head. Didn't she understand that she was hurting and needed to get better? Didn't she know that resting and eating some kind of clear stuff out of round things made people better? "I'm fine. I don't need rest." "Ver!" Oliver jabbed his finger at the bed, moving in front of the door. He wasn't about to let her leave; he would make absolutely certain that his host got better from this unusual sickness. The sickness that made her eat strange things, things the shadow himself wouldn't touch. "Ver-li-ver-lioli-ver." Thali sighed. She thought, no she knew, her husband had put their shadow up to this. "Alright," she grumbled. "I'll go to bed. Under protest, mind you," she added, flashing the shadow a teasing glare as she sat on the edge of the bed. "Well, come on," she said, patting the comforter. "I need someone to keep the monsters of Snoresville away."
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Posted: Fri Sep 24, 2010 8:43 pm
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Meaning Benjamin Sadril could not make up his mind when it came to his temporarily bipolar and pregnant wife. At times she was sweet and affectionate (which Ben enjoyed thoroughly), but at others... The elf could be quite frightening. It was due to the mood swings caused by her ever fluctuating hormones which in turn were caused by the pregnancy, and Ben understood that. He understood that it wasn't her fault and that she wasn't entirely in her right mind, but honestly...
Did she have to blame him for every little thing that went wrong? Did she have to argue about everything? Did she have to eat everything in the house, including tuna and pickle sandwiches, claiming that if she did not eat them, she would die?
Did she have to make him worry? At times, Ben almost believed she was doing it intentionally. No, that was nonsense. It was perfectly normal for a man to worry over his wife when she was in such a condition.
Did she really have to do so much? The doctor had told her that bed rest was a must, but the elf seemed to being everything but. No, she insisted on performing her usual tasks, as well as designing a nursery for their upcoming child (who as Thali had so stubbornly stated throughout her pregnancy, appeared to be female).
Ben’s attempts to keep his wife from over excreting herself had become noticeable. So noticeable that even their resident shadow had taken interest. In fact, said shadow was better at keeping Thali from doing much than Ben himself was. The children seemed to be as well. They would do little things, subtle things, like ask her to play a video game with them, to color with them, to read them books though each of them were old enough to read on their own.
Benjamin recognized the signs of concern, though his wife didn’t seem able to. She was delighted to read to the twins, more than happy to play video games with Josh and Vinny; she even had taught Kaleb how to make a daisy chain, at his request.
It wasn’t at all fair that the children didn’t need to jump through the hoops he had to. It wasn’t at all fair that she’d listen to them when they asked her to rest, and when he did, she was stubborn. Perhaps he needed to go about it another way. Perhaps he had to be subtle. Perhaps he had to do more than insist she stay in bed and watch movies.
But what? Thali wasn’t exactly the easiest person on Gaia to please; when she wanted chocolate, it had to be a certain brand. When she wanted to watch a movie, it was always a certain one, and usually one Ben couldn’t find. He was beginning to think she hid them before asking for them. Ah, an idea!
“Hey, Thali,” Ben hesitated, “Let’s write something together.”
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Posted: Sat Oct 09, 2010 2:42 am
Pastels, castles, fairytale endings, toys, tiny clothes, and chocolate seemed to be Ben's life. Waiting on his wife too; ever since she had returned from the autumn festival in Lynwood, the elf seemed weaker than ever. She was even willing to stay in bed, and after her most recent trip to the doctor's, she seemed resigned.
Something was up. Ben was determined to find out what it was. Could something be wrong with the baby? Was Thali sick? He decided to confront her that afternoon. Zee had graciously taken the children for the day, though the dark elf had refused to watch Oliver, stating only that he had enough trouble controlling Howl's shadow. When Ben entered the master bedroom, he noticed something strange. Thali was silent. Normally she greeted him when she wasn't sleeping; which lately, was more often than one might have expected.
He cleared his throat, thinking she might not have noticed he'd come in.
"Are you drunk?" Thali asked, turning to look at him. Her eyes were dark and murky, like an ocean after a storm.
Ben stared at her. "No. It's the middle of the afternoon," he said. Thali knew he didn't drink, and who in their right mind would be drunk so early in the day anyway? He sat down on the edge of their bed. "What's wrong?" he asked.
"...I'll tell you when you're drunk."
"Is something wrong with the baby?" Thali shook her head. "With you?" Again, the elf shook her head. "...How many are there?"
That made Thali smile faintly. "Just one," she said.
"Then what's wrong?" Ben asked, studying his wife. He was concerned; what on earth could have upset her this much? He feared this pregnancy had been too much for her. She seemed stretched, and not just in the literal sense. Dark circles hung around her eyes due to lack of sleep.
Thali mumbled something; something her husband apparently caught. His face rapidly went from pale to red. "WHAT?!" Thali flinched, and the man lowered his voice. "What do you mean she's not my baby?" he whispered fiercely. "Who've you been with?" His conscience was gone. He didn't care that he was yelling at a pregnant woman; much less his wife. How could she? How could she have done this to him?
"Ben, listen--" Thali started, trying and failing to sit up.
Her husband stood, jerking away from her. "No, you listen. As soon as that baby's born, I want the both of you out. I want no part in this. None!" As angry as he was, he couldn't help noticing that Thali was feebly pushing a piece of paper towards him. It seemed she had no strength to argue. He snatched it off the bed and read.
He paled, and looked to his wife and then to the note. "Thali, I--"
"As soon as she's born, the both of us will leave," Thali said, sounding calm while her expression said otherwise. "You shouldn't be expected to raise a child who isn't your own--" She was interrupted by her husband resuming his seat on the bed.
"I didn't know. I--I don't want you to leave. You... You didn't do anything wrong," he sighed, moving to wipe the tears from her cheek with his thumb. "You should have told me what Darcy had done first. I wouldn't have blown up like that."
Thali rose an eyebrow.
"Alright, maybe I would have. Not at you, though."
The elf took his hand and gave a weak smile. "Maybe now you'll trust me."
Ben could only nod. "I'll make it up to you," he promised.
"As I will for you."
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Posted: Tue Nov 16, 2010 2:32 pm
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Posted: Tue Nov 23, 2010 5:37 pm
Copper curls and a lilting laugh, elven children were often enchanting, but none more so than the baby prince; except perhaps, the princess before him.
With eyes bluer than the sky and a quick smile, Davian was in Averi's opinion as close to perfect as was possible. He, like his sister, Thali, the king thought ruefully, had picked up a thrist for adventure. His eyes alight with an intelligence seldom seen, Averi wanted nothing more than to please him.
The king of Lynwood could see himself in the boy, in a way he hadn't with his daughter. He could see the mistakes he had made with Thali. Taking someone's freedom, whether it be for the good of the person or not, is going to prompt them to rebel. And in doing this, Averi had ruined lives.
He knew his daughter well enough to know when she was happy; and she was--around Vate. Thus his dislike for a certain Benjamin Sadril had been born. He also knew his daughter was loyal to a fault; for which she had so been named. She wouldn't leave her husband even if she realized she she wasn't as happy as she could have been. Perhaps she already knew it.
So Averi's insistance that she and Vate dance at the Autumn festival hadn't been completely unfounded. He knew he hadn't been the only one to notice both elves light up. Like they had when they were children.
Averi wanted his daughter to have that happiness. He wanted her to light up like that everyday. First he would have to get rid of the girl's pet human. He knew from Jacen that the human was cruel to Thali on a regular basis, though the rare times he was kind, he really did seem to love her.
How unfortunate that humans weren't born knowing who they were destined to be with; it would have made everything so much easier.
"What do you think, Davi?" Averi asked, looking to his son. "Shall we make sissy happy?"
"Sissy happy!" Davian agreed instantly. "Sissy gonna have a baby?"
"She is," Averi gave his son a nod. "I have an idea. We'll have to go see Grandmama."
"Grandmama!" Davian promptly bounced up onto his feet. "She make Sissy happy?"
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Posted: Mon Nov 29, 2010 2:29 pm
Dear Journal,
Thali just told me the strangest thing; strange and wonderful at the same time. I never thought I'd live to see the day when I was grateful to the Azoulais. You may have thought the same thing journal; but the most marvelous thing has happened. You wouldn't believe--
Thali's having my baby.
My baby!
She's having my baby! At last! It's like we never seperated. For once in my life I--nevermind. If Stasia ever got hold of this, she would never forgive me for saying any of this. I still love Thali. I still do. I don't think I ever stopped loving her; and I don't think I ever will. If she hadn't left Lynwood and gotten married to that--that--I struggle to find words that fit the man. Suffice it to say I know the man doesn't take very good care of Thali; she deserves better.
She deserves me. I know that sounds like something Howl would say; it's a vain statement, however true it may be. Don't get me wrong, journal, I love Stasia too. I just... I don't know what I should do. I love them both--and if Thali hadn't gone and gotten married to that horrible, neglectful man, I wouldn't have met and fallen for Stasia. I wish she hadn't, Thali, I mean. I wouldn't be in so much trouble with her father.
I would be with the love of my life. We were destined to be together, surely she knows that. I've seen the way she lights up when I'm around; I wouldn't make such an effort to spend so much time with her if I hadn't. Howl's no help when it comes to this. He insults both of them; he has said that Stasia reminds him of a certain human that is quite famous in golf.
...Whatever that is. He tried explaining it; apparently it's a game where people hit balls with metal sticks. Seems pointless and painful, if you ask me. I daren't repeat the insult he sent Thali's way; what if she read it? In her condition, who knows what she'd do? I wouldn't want to make her cry. Ben already does that on a regular basis; and I certainly do not want to be compared to that man. He's as heartless as Howl, threatening to throw a woman and a new baby out of her house. It doesn't matter if he apologized once he found out it wasn't Thali's doing. He was cruel enough to suggest it.
Thali deserves better than that.
She deserves me.
I can't blame Howl for being upset with Stasia; I'm starting to get worried, myself. She hasn't visited me since right after Leyla was born. I wonder what could be keeping her so busy. She always used to make time to visit me. Perhaps Matthias keeps visiting her and keeping her away from me, or perhaps her children keep getting sick. Or perhaps she's gotten sick again? I suppose I could call her, but it having been so long since I've seen her, using the phone doesn't strike my fancy. Maybe I'll go over and visit. Leyla would like that.
I'd like that.
So journal, if you have any suggestions on how to solve this romantic situation, tell me. What should I do? I know I should visit her...
Should I tell her the truth, or continue this? She may never forgive me, and I do care for her. If I can't have Thali... I might as well marry the second one I've fallen for.
Yours,
Vate
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Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2011 12:41 pm
Dear Journal,
Someone has to be the man in this child's life, and I've heard Ben refuse to do so. Quite frankly, I'm glad. I mean, I'm not glad that he shouted at Thali (again) and made her cry (for the third time today, honestly that man... He has absolutely no manners. If he had the first idea how to care for Thali, I might be more forgiving towards him). I am glad that he won't be taking an important part of my daughter's life.
Thali and I will guide our Allira well. She doesn't need an unintelligent man like Benjamin Sadril raising her. She'll be beautiful, kind, and intelligent, like her mother, naturally, with my skills with a blade. Hopefully she won't end up anything like Thali personality wise--I always seem to remember how she was as a child.
Loud. Obnoxious. Stubborn. Determined. Thrill seeking. Bossy. All together dangerous. ...And perfectly lovable.
I suppose a mixture of the two of us wouldn't be so bad. Well; perhaps it'd be worse. Thali and I were always the worst trouble makers Lynwood had ever had; we were constantly reminded of this by her father. I hope our Allira isn't that bad, really. Between the two of us, we'll teach her how to behave.
I mean, Thali's children are perfectly lovely. ...Most of the time. I've seen Samantha when she gets upset, and that's quite frightening. Devin and Howl are pretty well behaved--so I have some experience. Howl's pretty much always done his own thing, and Devin...
Well Devin's me, I suppose. I expect him to be more of a trouble maker once he grows, actually. I know I was.
I can just hope Devin doesn't fall in love with Allira or something. I don't know if my feelings for Thali were passed down to him or not--and if he does fall for his sister... We'd have to keep them apart. We won't allow that kind of thing; and I will direct him to other girls, of course.
I'll continue this later. I'm exhausted.
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Posted: Sat Mar 19, 2011 11:29 am
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Posted: Mon Mar 21, 2011 5:50 pm
Dear Journal,
I'm afraid what Vate's said is true. Ben doesn't seem to have any interest in the baby; though Vate and I decided to allow him to name her. He's decided on Trinity; a surprisingly nice name, for all his anger. I can't really blame him, journal. He was so happy when Sammi and Reiya were born...and then this happened. I don't know whether to hug Darcy next time I see her, or kill her. She caused this strife between us... And yet... I think it would have happened another way if she hadn't interfered.
Ben and I have been married for five years come this May, happily so; most of the time. There have been some squabbles, yes, but that's normal for all couples. Vate doesn't seem to understand that, naturally. He doesn't understand why someone would hurt someone emotionally; though, he being a former assassin, sounds rather contradictory. He is definitely a product of love, journal. I don’t know how I didn’t see that before I left Lynwood. I should have been able to, so we could have avoided this pain. If I hadn’t left Lynwood, I never would have met Ben.
I never would have had to deal with the guilt of putting him through this. I care for him, I really do, journal. Enough that I settled down with him, and bore children. I’ve put up with his silly paranoiac behavior. Honestly, if I was going to leave him, I would have done it the first time he threw me out of the house. I know my father says I am too loyal--but that is the reason he named me what he did, isn’t it? He knew something about my personality even then. I can’t change it.
Vate is urging me to make a certain confession. He’s sitting beside me. I won’t, however. Ben might still be reading this journal, and I do not wish to hurt him further. Allira (Vate’s insisted that it’s at least her middle name, since Ben insists on naming her Trinity) being Vate’s daughter rather than Ben’s has really upset--well, the entire balance of our family.
Ben thinks I don’t care for him. I love him, journal. I do. Just… Not in the way I thought I did. Not in the way I wanted to. I wanted him to be happy, from the moment I met him. He’s made me happy, for the most part…and I do this to him.
Thali
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