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 Posted: Mon Jul 22, 2013 3:55 pm
There had been a strange amount of liveliness in the house in days past; news had come that Long Wei had returned from his trip and requested for Min Ho to come home, and Jin Ho had been formally invited to a tea party by the Lord Yizhaq bin Saleh – and by extension, so had Blaithe – but she had politely refused in order to finish her work. While he had considered, Jin Ho had decided to decline the invitation on behalf of some work he needed to get out of the way, requiring him to be out of the house either way. Min Ho had agreed to go home, however she had promised their father a last trip out to the markets together. Blaithe didn’t mind this, it would mean that the house was quiet with far fewer distractions. Hero was to stay behind and help.
Straightening his collar the best that he could, Jin Ho cleared his throat as he stood at the door. ”You’re almost finished, Blaithe. Promise me that when you’re done you’ll rest.”
”…”
The man let out a shallow sigh, instead turning to Hero, watching while he climbed up the drawers to take his place near Blaithe in case his hand was needed. ”Hero, would you please make sure that she rests? If it comes down to it, she can reexamine the pages later.”
”Yes, sir.” the cat said, kneeling down to sit.
”Min Ho and father should be out for most of the day – I’ll be back late tonight, though I expect to be home before morning.”
Another nod from the cat Excito, his attention now on Blaithe despite listening to his foster Grimm.
Rather than saying another word, the man backed away from the door and out of the house, leaving the two alone. As per usual, it was eerily quiet as Blaithe refused to even make a peep, immersed in her work. Hero instinctively watched the brush’s quick hands as she worked, his back hunched – however he remained seated, legs crossed with his hands resting in the gap against the floor. He wasn’t as interested in Blaithe’s work so much as he was in her, unable to look away from her light.
Indeed there was very little of the book left, its last few pages bare other than the neatly scribbled retelling of past events. In order to keep herself from forgetting, she would read along again so as to not miss a single detail – sometimes ceasing her work altogether to reread once or twice just so she could get the right idea. At times it was hard to focus, Hopkin’s scent rising from each page as she turned to a fresh one. Would they meet again?
Two pages left.
Often times she would take rest from illustrating, instead decorating what words Hopkin had left for whoever was to continue his work. It was easy to lose oneself in the ornate and intricate designs, time flying before she could even realize just how much was done. Each page had a unique border correlating to what had been written, sometimes retelling what had been told by picture – though for most it would be difficult to tell. For Blaithe, it was perfectly sized but for those of larger stature they merely appeared as ornate frames for each piece. Despite this, she was determined to continue like this, even if no one could appreciate the fine details of her work. She knew it was there.
One page left.
Exhaustion creeping in with the final minutes flowing onward, the sun having set long prior, it was almost as if her body knew it was coming to an end. It was almost disappointing, really. She had no idea how much time had passed, how many times Hero had left her side to find more entertaining things to do. She had little idea of how much energy she had spent, how long it had been since she had properly rested. It didn’t matter – not yet. She made a promise to Ysmay; she was going to put a good name out there for all Plagues. She and Hopkin would. The darker thoughts had crept during her work – what if, very much like other human illuminators; no one would dare touch the book upon completion? What if they feared catching the very disease that created this work? Was all of their work for naught? Blaithe could feel a pit growing in her stomach but she swallowed, keeping these feelings at bay for as long as possible. It didn’t matter if no one would read it, they had created something! They had completed something that no human would have put faith in Plagues in, they had done it! They had their role and they fulfilled it.
And that was it.
With no more pages, Blaithe frantically sifted through the pile of completed works, searching in vain for anything she could add; any small detail, any small mistake that she could fix. It had to be perfect, she had promised.
Hero, clawing his way back up to the desk’s flat surface, watched over the tiny, glowing form as she examined each bit of her work. He wanted to let her continue, happy to just see her so engaged in something for the first time. Even though he had been around for a while, she had always seemed so down and listless – and now that she finally found meaning, it was over. With a reluctant sigh he began gathering each loose page, making sure to keep them in order – even if he couldn’t read or write as well as Blaithe or Jin Ho, he was confident enough in his counting skills.
”That is enough, Blaithe. Your job is finished,” he said, a gentle smile forming on his face. The brush, unconvinced, continued to scavenge for any tiny thing she could find. The cat’s smile faltered only a little before he put a paw on her back. ”You’ve done well.”
She looked up at him, her mouth a tight line, staring for a moment before giving a firm nod. After looking them all over there really was nothing; she was finished. Everything was in shape – every border, illustration and embellishment spot on. Blaithe could now only agree as she offered her hand up so that she could stand, only first placing a hand print on the blank side of the final page.
While far from satisfied, the brush accepted Hero's hand and he immediately scooped her up into his arms. With a few hops they were off from the top of the desk to the chair, then down to the floor. While normally it would have been a short, quick trip, Hero was careful with the girl in his arms upon noticing her soft flickers. The climb up the bed sheets took longer than usual, but within minutes they had made it to the top and Blaithe was gently set onto the soft bed. The cat was silent, worried for his seemingly unconscious companion as she continued flickering, keeping a close eye on her as the night continued by.
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Posted: Wed Nov 06, 2013 5:09 pm
The flickers that emanated from the small Phasmas was indeed worrying. Though the journey to Blaithe's resting place was more arduous than the other times, Blaithe felt oddly lighter with every step, every quiet moment. Were it not for the shadows that surrounded the room, it would have been plainly visible that her once radiant skin-glow was no longer what it was, even in comparison to the state when she first accepted the work.
Blaithe was slid carefully onto her bed. For the Phasmas, it was difficult to assuage the feelings of overwhelming fatigue and the throbbing sensation ringing in her head. Her work was done, and the physical tolls it took on her small frame were merely at bay.
As soon as her head hit the soft surface, though, an unexpected pang of pain surge into her arms, through her neck, through her torso and head. A hot, stark flash of light raged through her body, and melted from her skin and clothes like white-hot driblets of paint. Blaithe was brighter, now, brighter than she ever was before-- a shocking transition from her condition just moments ago.
Like a ghost, she floated briefly from her bed, her entire body tempered, seething to the core with the frustrations and weariness Blaithe once kept only to herself. There was no way to stop her from disappearing, now, chunks of her body melting onto her bed exponentially faster, until Blaithe looked like nothing but a sentient star of dim purple light--
A surge of brilliant white flooded the room. Like an explosion, it exposed everything it touched to blindness, then instantly faded, every inkling of color briefly saturated and dancing with sparks of energy and magic.
And lying on the floor in pain still was a small girl, though she was no longer as small as she once was.
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Posted: Wed Nov 06, 2013 6:16 pm
As if the bright light wasn’t startling enough, Hero was met with a shriek of pain.
Once it was possible to see again he was quick to make it to Blaithe’s side – or at least he would have if the shock had worn off. Much, much larger, she laid on her side writhing, practically unable to breathe through the pain that had no obvious center. Everything hurt, even the smallest of her newly formed toes. She could have even sworn that her hair hurt as she clutched at her head and side for dear life, unable to stop the loud screams escaping from her quickly raw throat.
”BLAITHE?!” the now single Phasmas called out, finally breaking from his stupor to press his hands against her elbow. At a loss, Hero quickly clawed his way up to the windowsill to peek out, hoping that by some miracle that one of the humans, preferably Jin Ho himself, were near but they weren’t so lucky. Panic ridden and helpless, he leapt back down onto the floor to remain by Blaithe’s side, even if she wasn’t coherent. Her screaming had devolved into sobs, pained groans and whimpers escaping her chest each time she attempted to move. Her eyes hadn’t opened and her lips were held tight between her teeth in an unconscious effort to distract herself from the pain.
The Quietus recognized some of this pain – hunger, exhaustion… the others she didn’t get to experience in her short lived time in that human body and now she was glad that she hadn’t then. Unfortunately she had to live it now with no escape and she wasn’t sure how much longer her voice would last or even how much more she could tolerate it.
”H-He-er-ro…!” she called out, still clutching her side, ”Wh-what’s-s…?!”
Blaithe could barely finish, her voice catching in her throat while attempting to cave in on herself. She was only vaguely aware that there was a change, a major one, but with her eyes shut tight and the pain so disorienting she couldn’t focus on a single thing. Her own screaming made flashes of light run through her vision, pink and almost blindingly bright against her eyelids. She couldn’t even notice the feeling of her new skin pulling with each expression.
Hero wheezed, sympathizing with her pain as his ears pulled back, her shrieking sending a sickeningly sharp pain through his body. ”Y-you’re okay, Miss Blaithe, do not worry…” he assured, not quite so convinced himself but what else was there for him to do? There was no telling how much longer her Grimm would be out and what if Han Ji were first greeted by screaming when he walked into the door? With their luck that would certainly be the case and he hoped beyond all belief that their luck could possibly turn, just for one night. For now, his hardly noticed weight shifted against her, crawling onto her side so that he could meet her fingers and offer the only comfort he could think of.
Had it not been for how strange the sensation of something… so small against her, she might have kept her eyes closed longer but she forced them open and was immediately met with a strange spectrum, colors melting and fusing while she couldn’t focus and she closed them once more. A harsh breath left her mouth in a huff, her voice carrying in a pathetic whine carrying beneath. How long was this going to last and why wouldn’t it stop? It was almost… nauseating when she would utter the smallest sound, the strange sensation of lights dancing across her eyes, unaccustomed and frankly disturbed by what was happening. With Hero against her hand she had proper grounds to force her eyes open again and as soon as she glanced down her eyes widened, noticing a brand new wooden leg. Claudia had broken her original one… And it wasn’t until then that she fought with every fiber of her being to uncurl herself and sit up, the sound of wood scraping against wood jarring.
The feline Phasmas was forced to move in that moment but he didn’t begrudge Blaithe for it – there was no way that she was used to such a large frame, even if she was still small by human standards. ”Blaithe, please, lie still…” he pleaded, his tiny paws bringing him up onto her shoulder.
His voice was dark and strange against her vision, shock written through her pained expression when her eyes finally landed on him, so tiny against her shoulder. Another odd huff escaped and Blaithe took the opportunity to look herself over. This was insanity, was she dreaming? Of course not, she’d never dreamt as far as she had been aware so that could only mean… A wave of excitement would have run through her if a flash of pain hadn’t first, another cry escaping her lips as she curled her legs in, squeezing tight.
Much to their luck for once, the former scribe’s frantic voice was heard just outside the main entrance, calling out for Blaithe in worry. Next came the sounds of hurried scrambling, doors being torn open and the rushed footsteps leading all the way to their personal room. ”Blaithe?!” Jin Ho called, freezing in a similar fashion to how Hero had – if he had been holding something it would have immediately been dropped.
”Blaithe…?”
Despite the pain, relief came over the poor girl as she was called out to, her eyes set heavily under furrowed brows immediately finding Jin Ho’s as another pained grunt sounded. ”O-Oji… It h-hurt-ts…”
”What hurts? Blaithe, where does it hurt?” he asked, his voice desperate as he quickly closed the distance and knelt by her side, his hand meeting the shoulder that didn’t have Hero perched. She was still so dainty, like a young child…
Blaithe grunted again, rearing her head back with a whine. ”E-everything…” she cried, allowing her head to rest against his shoulder. It had subsided a bit since first changing but it was still more than she was accustomed to. Her Grimm cursed under his breath, completely at a loss as he couldn’t lift her up, not with a single arm. Instead, he did what he could to make her comfortable where she was, gently running his hand over her face and hair, careful not to tangle in her braids or ribbons.
Hero never left her side.
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