Originally one couple a page, except Zanobi and Emma as they are RP whores, now a bit more concise.
So, for my own benefit, or yours I guess, if you have any sinister interest in the world I create myself, here's a contents page! ...post... >.>
Heart means ten logs or more.
Page One: Contents <- You are here (I hope) Used Rps Logs
Page Two RP logs to be used, but with no particular couple in mind
Page Three EMPTY
Page Four EMMA and ZANOBI Emma and Zanobi rp
Page Five EMPTY
Page Six EMPTY
Page Seven EMPTY
Page Eight GAMELL and SHENAVYE Gamell and Shenavye rp heart
Page Nine TILLIAN'S ASCENSION
Page Ten EMPTY
Page Eleven KANE AND AKANE PsychoGenshipping heart
Page Twelve VESUVIA AND THANATOS Vesuvia and Thanatos RP
Page Thirteen EMPTY
Page Fourteen EMPTY
Page Fifteen STAYNE AND PLEIA Blooded Heart Shipping
Page Sixteen EERINNA AND ZARED Ten Logs! heart
Page Seventeen HARADRIN AND FIUURIN RP Disaster RP (eight logs)
Posted: Sun Nov 22, 2009 4:37 pm
COMPLETED RPS- ARCHIVE
Emma and Zanobi
Log One
Emma walked contentedly into her secret cave. She was sure everyone had a secret cave but she really liked hers. It was very dirty, but she cleaned it a little each time she was there. There was a rock near the ceiling that, when taken out, revealed a skylight of sunlight into the pitch black cave. The light shimmered and refracted off the thousands of crystals and made the place so beautiful. It was by this light that Emma began to sweep more debris out the cave mouth, hidden by a cleft in the rock.
She swept her hair up to do this, but it was alright if she didn’t look her best- she was sure she was alone, and besides, she was using her talent of translucence. She hummed as she worked. Her voice sounded much prettier reverberating off crystals.
“I would think my mind was playing tricks,” came a slow, soft voice from the back of the cave where it opened onto a ledge leading off a cliff.
Emma stopped humming and tidying and turned to the voice.
“But I can’t imagine why it would trick me with an invisible female, cleaning my cave.”
Emma blinked and took a breath to argue with him when she realised that she didn’t know him and he was possibly violent. And besides, she was invisible! She crept backwards to the entrance of the cave, eager to escape. It was sad the cave was known by someone else. She’d find somewhere else.
“Don’t try and leave,” said the male and he stepped into the light of the refracted sun.
Emma blinked at the male. “Zanobi?” she said quietly.
“Ahhh,” he said softly. “You must be Thuraya’s girl, if you know my name and yet I cannot see you.”
“Emma.”
“Yes. That’s it. Would you be so good as to stop trying to run away and show yourself?”
Emma nodded and stopped retreating, shaking out her hair as she became visible. “I didn’t know this was your cave.”
“Ownership is implied,” said Zanobi. “I had noticed it getting cleaner lately. It’s a nice change.”
“Why don’t you clean it?”
“I have more pressing things to do. But it was nice to see it cleaner.”
“I see,” said Emma, narrowing her eyes. “Well I guess if you like it clean you’ll have to start cleaning yourself.” She started to edge towards the mouth of the cave, letting little puffs of dust kick up under her feet.
Log Two
“Say I haven’t scared you off,” said Zanobi.
“Well if you live here then I can’t.”
“I don’t live here. I visit.”
“So?”
“So I propose we do a share tenancy. It’s not very comfortable, so neither of us will sleep here. But it is a nice place to recluse, so if we stay out of each others’ way it should work.”
“I don’t know…” said Emma, thinking. She didn’t want to share. But having a nice cave half the time was better than finding an awful cave. “What’s in it for me?”
“I don’t eat you.”
Emma recoiled despite herself, but Zanobi only smirked.
“I joke. I would not eat you. In it for you… everyone knows I have a cave up here. You will not be bothered.”
“Oh. And in it for you?”
“Cave is a bit less cold when I come in.”
“Okay. Fine. Deal. Who gets it now?”
“As a show of good faith, I shall vacate.” Zanobi slowly walked towards Emma and passed her on his way out. “Adieu.”
Emma tried not to stare after him. By the time she got up the courage to look, he had gone. Zanobi. Zanobi, who used to be called Uncle Zanobi before he disappeared. He used to have double nursery shifts and he complained a lot. But he was so fun to be around. There was one time she’d fallen and scraped her knee and he let her ride him all day until it felt better. It had never impressed upon her how… scary he was. He was not intimidating at all when she had been a child. Maybe it was his voice and matter of speaking. Like he was hiding something or keeping a quiet secret from her. Or about to pounce.
Emma did her hair up and started to clean. Cleaning, while the whim only took her from time to time, did make her feel better.
So Zanobi has been where all this time? she thought. He looked a bit scruffier than he had before. It made him seem more dangerous. He seemed more masculine… As Emma mused she wondered if it was because she was an adult that she could see him as such an adult. When he’s passed her she caught a whiff of his scent and it had gone right to her head. She frowned and got back to work.
Ew. Uncle Zanobi? I need to stop reading Verdis’s romance novels…
Log Three
Emma wandered out the back of the cave a few weeks after the deal had been made. She had put some extra effort into cleaning and now the whole cave was devoid of dust and small bones and dirt and other nasty things. She had tried to order the small scattered crystals on the floor of the cave along the walls but somehow they ended up getting underfoot again. She had been taking a small amount out every now and again to give her brother to use with his creations.
The back way out left one shelter less against the biting wind that whistled up the cliff walls. There was a wide shelf that was quite pleasant to sit on when the wind went a certain way and was not cold. It was not one of those days today but Zanobi sat, staring out at the valleys, careless of the weather.
“Aren’t you cold?” Emma asked loudly.
Zanobi twitched and eye to look at her. “No,” he said quietly. “I don’t mind it.”
“You’re a freak.”
“You are here also.”
“I just wanted to see if it was nice out.”
“And is it?”
“No.”
“And you’re still here?”
“I saw you and spoke to you.”
“When all others would have run.”
“I’m not scared of you.”
“Really.” He said, and it was not a question.
“Yeah,” said Emma, frowning. “I mean, yeah that’s right, I’m not scared of you. You weren’t so scary when you looked after the kids.”
“Children have such innocent eyes.”
“Pssht,” snorted Emma. “That’s a fine excuse.”
“I like to think so.”
There was a finality in his tone that made Emma scowl. “Is that a dismissal?”
“Of course not.” Zanobi’s eye swivelled back to the view.
“Fine!” said Emma, determined not to be rejected so easily. She sat down perilously close to Zanobi and tried to steel herself to the wind. “I think it’s nice out if you do.”
Zanobi hid a small smile. How innocent.
Log Four
“So where’ve you been? These few months?” Emma asked curiously.
“Away. Wandering. I’m telling you so you don’t make up anything foolish.”
“Why would I do that?” asked Emma, frowning.
“You’re female and young.” As Emma opened her mouth to protest, he continued. “And you read those foppish books.”
Emma blushed. He had a point. “Well… why did you come back?”
“I did not find what I was looking for.”
“Where do you live when you’re not here?” asked Emma.
Zanobi turned his head to look at her. “Why?”
“I just want to know. So I don’t make anything up?” she asked hopefully.
Zanobi smirked and turned back to the rolling hills and dark forests. “I live in the Kaiba mansion with my brethren.”
“Oh… With Slavillia?” asked Emma reluctantly.
“Yes.” He noted the unhappiness in her voice. “Why?”
“Oh. Nothing.” Said Emma. Sensing that answer would not suffice, she sighed. “She’s just so pretty,” she snarled.
Zanobi fought a smile. “What about Grisamara? She is beautiful.”
“Yeah but she’s your sister.” Emma blinked and coughed. “And a teen- what’s with that?”
“We don’t know,” said Zanobi. “And avoiding the question, are you? Well I don’t see the difference between Slavillia and my sister in the aspect of feminine beauty.”
Emma nodded, feeling really stupid for asking about a girl that Zanobi might like. “But you do see a difference in mine and Slavillia’s beauty?”
“You did not offer yourself as a subject.” He smiled. “But I do not believe in beauty as a trait to be associated with a person worth knowing.”
Emma rolled her eyes. “You say that just to scare them off, right?”
“Believe me, I do not need scare tactics to get rid of women.”
“…” said Emma, wondering when he’d notice that he had said something he didn’t mean to.
“Get your head out of the gutter.”
Emma blushed. “That’s my line.”
“Actually it is not. A short time ago you were a little thing bolting around my legs, now you’re blushing at a loose reference to the same place.”
Emma blushed harder and could not speak.
Zanobi turned to her and smirked. “It’s an interesting development.” His teeth flashed like polished ivory.
“I… think I should go.”
“Not making you uncomfortable, am I?”
Emma shook her head. Too fast. Too hard. “No,” she said and her voice cracked “I just… see you… bye.” She stood up, wobbled in the wind, and took off into the cave.
Zanobi chuckled to himself and paused, surprised by his own cheeriness. “Little girls make great fun.” He looked out at the view.
“Now that sounded wrong.”
Log Five
Verdis lay on her belly, sunning herself while Emma sat in the shade, looking at the text in a book but not reading it.
“Emma, where have you been spending you time?” asked Verdis. “You haven’t been around the herd, and you’re always either covered in dust and worse or you have a bag for Epivan.”
Emma was jolted from her delicious nothingness. “Uh…”
Verdis rolled over on her back and propped her head up. “Seeing someone? You can tell me. Is it Kyo? No, he’s a bit too old for you… Kish?”
Emma was appalled. “Never!”
Verdis giggled. “Yeah he is a bit androgynous. How about Nashi?” She blinked. “Emma, it is a guy isn’t it? I mean you’re not into-”
“No!” cried Emma. “Stop fishing, Verdis, it’s not anything like that.”
“So you admit that you’re seeing someone and he’s a guy and he’s not Kyo or Kish, and it’s not Kaiba and… hey wait,” she gasped. “Is he from the Kaiba mansion? You can tell me! Don’t make me guess! Is it Berillio? Just nod! You don’t even have to say his name!”
“So?” asked Emma, frowning. She crossed her forelegs. “I can have some privacy.
The look on Verdis Bina’s face was exactly what Emma expected; shocked and slightly hurt. Then it broke like a crust and revealed a smirk. “Fine. Have your privacy. With whoever you want privacy with. But please,” she said and her eyes were earnest, “promise me one thing?”
“What?” asked Emma, curious as to what was so important.
“Tell me first if you get pregnant.”
Emma threw the book at Verdis’s head and stalked off.
“Is that a yes?” Verdis called after her.
Log Six
“Honestly,” snapped Emma, storming through the prickly forest. “What a nutcase! As if I’d go off and have an… with… I mean! Grrrrr.” She was deeply into the forest now, really lost and all turned around.
“That is the first sign of madness.”
Emma turned around at the sound of the familiar voice but saw no-one. “I thought invisibility was my trick, Zanobi.”
“It is.” He walked out from behind some stunted trees. “I just wanted to see if you would jump.”
“Now who’s childish?” asked Emma,” her annoyance and embarrassment leaking away.
“Me, for once,” said Zanobi.
“Have you been following me?”
“No.”
Emma breathed out with relief.
“I’ve been watching you from the cave.”
“What!?” she swung around and glared at him.
Zanobi chuckled. “You live a very interesting life. It’s like watching a program or reading a book. I can’t hear, though, so I make up my own dialogue.”
Emma was too angry to speak. A strangled sound emerged from her open mouth.
“Would that be considered stalking?”
Emma swallowed. “Yes, you freak!”
“I did wonder…”
“But… why? I mean, why be so creepy?”
Zanobi cocked his head back and forth playfully. “I was bored. And gripped by a sense of curiosity.”
Log Seven
Emma’s mouth gaped open. She was even more embarrassed now. A voice at the back of her mind told her he must like her to be so curious, but the affronted part of her, the much larger part, screamed at her to beat him up and run away. “Y… you…”
“Don’t be too mad, because of that I know that you like red stones.”
Emma blinked. “What? Red stones? What’s with red stones?”
Zanobi smiled. “Close your eyes.”
“With you around? You don’t answer my questions and you say you watch me and that’s really creepy and illegal and-” Emma’s rant was cut short when Zanobi leaned very close to her, so close she had to pull her face back to enlarge the distance. She smelt his warm breath on her cheek.
“Close your eyes,” he said softly.
Without really wanting to, she did, her eyelids fluttering shut over her topaz eyes. His breath became heavier as he moved closer and her hair shifted, moved by his hooves. Oh my gosh, is he going to kill me? she thought blearily. Then she felt him pull away and a weight fell from her neck. Her eyes opened involuntarily and she looked down at a heavy amulet in chased silver with a blood coloured stone in the centre that hung from a slender chain around her neck.
“It’s a…”
“An amulet,” said Zanobi. “You like red stones. I had it lying around.”
“But… why do you think I like red stones?” asked Emma, who was very confused. In truth, she liked purple stones, amethyst, and grey stones, hematite.
“You take all the red crystals from the cave,” said Zanobi, his brow creased.
“For my brother,” said Emma. “He makes things and he liked to put stones in them… his favourite is red…”
Zanobi blinked. “Ah. My apologies, then, Emma. I thought-”
Emma shook her head and cut him off. “It’s really nice, thanks so much, I like it anyways. It’s so pretty, the stone. Where’d you get it?”
“It was a gift. One I don’t fancy myself. I thought you would like it more.”
“I do!” said Emma, more forcefully than she intended. She cupped the amulet. “I really like it. Thankyou for thinking of me.” Her heart felt weirdly heavy. “It doesn’t seem like the thing a guy would wear…”
“It’s a badge of office,” he said reluctantly.
“Office?”
“It means I am a blood oracle.”
“B… blood?” asked Emma, stuttering a little.
Zanobi smiled wanly. “My powers are controlled by it. See this?” he asked, touching the stone. “It’s a blood ruby. It is quite common, but very durable. It is similar to true blood in that manner.” He stepped back.
Emma nodded dumbly. “Thankyou…” she said again. “Why don’t you want it?” she asked, despite herself.
“Because it takes too much away,” said Zanobi, but whether he meant his talent or the amulet, she did not know. “You don’t normally ask this many questions.”
“When someone gives me a present I guess I want to figure I’m not taking too much,” said Emma.
“When it is a gift does it matter?” asked Zanobi.
“Yeah, it does. It does to me. I don’t like feeling like I owe someone.”
“You do not owe me.”
Emma smiled. “Maybe not. Maybe I’ll take this as a loan. You might want it back one day.”
“It will be safer with you, any road.”
Emma smoothed the gem gently. “It’s so pretty…”
Zanobi looked away. “If you say so.”
Log Eight
Emma was strolling aimlessly through the hub of the Matchstick herd. Ponies ran around or ambled or sat and talked. It was quite cheerful. She wondered where exactly she was going when she saw Grisamara, Zanobi’s sister, coming towards her in flight. Automatically, Emma stepped aside to avoid a collision.
Grisamara seemed to pass, then her head snapped around and she landed as ungracefully as Emma had ever seen her, which was not very.
“What is that you’re wearing?” she asked in a dangerously sugary voice.
“Uh,” said Emma. She hadn’t had much to do with Grisamara since she had moved to the Kaiba Mansion and even then it had been brief. That didn’t mean she didn’t have a healthy fear of the demon.
“Around your neck,” hissed Grisamara.
With a feeling of enlightenment and then the chill of dawning horror, Emma realised that she was wearing Zanobi’s medallion. “Uh, it’s just a necklace…” Of course Grisamara would recognise it! Grisamara hates anyone getting near Zanobi! I’m dead!
“I don’t believe you,” Grisamara said in a low voice. “That is a Blood Oracle amulet. They are rare. And the one from my brother’s bedroom is missing!”
Emma blinked. “I didn’t steal it.”
Grisamara scoffed. “Of course not. I just want to know what you’re doing with it,” she said cheerfully.
That good-natured question put Emma on her guard. “I’m… wearing it. It was a present.”
Grisamara frowned. “I think you should give it to me.”
Emma gripped the amulet. “No. It’s mine.”
“It’s my brother’s!”
“Then let him take it!”
“You admit you stole it!” said Grisamara, moving forward with a sly grin.
“Never! Get away from me, you stunted little freak!” cried Emma, scared by Grisamara’s advance into retreating.
Grisamara jerked back like she had been burned. “How… dare you!” She leaned back for a strike to Emma’s face.
Log Nine
“Enough.”
Emma and Grisamara turned to see that the background noise of the passing ponies had faded into stunned silence and they were being watched. Behind them stood Seto Kaiba, careworn as ever, and glaring at them.
“Grisamara if you cannot behave yourself you will be cast out.”
“She has stolen something!”
Seto looked at Emma, who shook her head. “What has she stolen?”
“A prized possession of my brother’s.”
“Then let him come to me and request it from her. It is not your place. Leave, both of you, separately,” Seto looked at them both piercingly.
Grisamara snorted in fury and flew off towards the Kaiba mansion to torture some small animal and make-up her face. Emma nodded, muttered “Sorry” to everyone and hurried out to the cave.
Life and bustle in the hub proceeded as normal.
Emma didn’t realise she was crying until she tripped on a log and realised she could barely see. She sat down on the log and buried her face in her hands, turning translucent to hide her red eyes. She stayed there, her tears first stopping, then drying, until dusk. She felt so humiliated and scared. She was now hated by Grisamara. If Emma wasn’t careful, she might not wake up one day. She admitted to herself that she was scared.
Oh well, let them come! They can’t hurt me if they can’t see me! she thought rebelliously. She saw a white streak come toward her and she froze. Can’t see me, can’t see me…
“Grisamara said you’d had an altercation.” Zanobi’s shape was clear now. Emma was silent, trying to make him leave her alone.
“Please don’t try to trick me. I can tell where my amulet is.”
Log Ten
Emma fiddled with the amulet. Stupid thing! All it’s fault.. No, all Zanobi’s fault!
“Emma, if you will not show yourself, will you at least speak to me?”
“Why?” asked Emma, her voice dry.
“Because,” said Zanobi, sitting stiffly on the ground. “My sister is a scary woman when incensed. I understand your feelings. And… I apologise. It seems it was my fault.”
“Too right!” said Emma, then she frowned. She was supposed to not speak.
“Grisamara will get over it.”
“It’s not your life on the line, how can you say that?”
Zanobi nodded. “True. But I can help you. At least a little. I can take you somewhere where she cannot find you.”
Emma hugged herself. “You mean leave?”
“If you would feel safer. I will take you somewhere safe.”
“Why?”
Zanobi smirked. “Questions, questions, at least you have not changed. I don’t want Grisamara to hurt you. She can’t see others as anything but collateral damage.” He was quiet for a moment. “I don’t want to see you as her version of collateral damage.”
“Her version?” asked Emma.
Zanobi looked straight into her eyes. She felt odd, like he could actually see her. “You can imagine.”
It was true. Emma saw herself broken on the floor. She shuddered. She did not realise she had whimpered until Zanobi was suddenly sitting next to her and drew his arm cautiously around her.
“I won’t let that happen to you.”
“How can I trust you?” she asked fearfully. Yes, she feared death. She feared Grisamara, she feared being away from her brother and her family and her safety. She even feared Zanobi but he was going to make her safe… yes?
“I don’t know. I wouldn’t trust me. But I am not going to let her get you.” He put his head on her shoulder. “It would hurt me too.”
Emma gaped. Maybe it was a misplaced sense of repayment or a trust issue or, God forbid, love, that made her agree but somehow she nodded and stood up, shaking off her translucence.
Zanobi stood up, flicked a look at her and lead the way into the forest. Emma was glad he didn’t stare at her face. She was sure she looked terrible. She picked her way along the path behind Zanobi, trusting him with her existence as she had never trusted before.
Brittania and Seto Kaiba
Seto stumbled a little with Compassion on his back. He wondered if he would see anyone he knew here.
Seto turned to someone calling his name, to Compassion's disturbance. "Hello Nightshade." Compassion nudged him. "This is Compassion, my sister."
(outside pony- speaks to compassion)
Compassion turned her head away. "Go aways."
"Don't take offence, she's very tired," said Seto. "We're wandering around. Aparently there are dragons out here."
(outside pony- where is everyone?)
Seto hefted Compassion again and she moved in discomfort. "No idea."
"Want to look togever?" asked Compassion.
Seto shook his head. "Up here," he said and he started up a steep rise.
(outside pony- dragons?)
"They have powerful cloaking systems around this place. I think. No-one thought to come here. The ponies in the valleys are quiet, content with their lot. Not the type to explore. It's easy for a race to go unnoticed for centuries with that kind of ignorance. Just look at the Native People of Australia," said Seto as he huffed up the hill to the rocky outlet on the top. "We rest." said he simply.
(outside pony- *shouts)
Seto shook Compassion off and she regained her feet warily. "Step away from the perimeter or else," he said threateningly, standing forward to place block between his sister and Night and Soraya and the yelling, rude ponies.
"Oh, Onii-Sama. beat them up!" said Compassion. "Hey! My Onii-Samais gonna beat you up!"
Seto didn't reply to Compassion.
(outside ponies- discuss)
Seto didn't batt an eyelid. "I don't take kindly to ponies shouting rudely up at me and my friends. If you desist, maybe then we can communicate like sound of mind ponies as opposed to idiots."
"Why aren't you beating them uuuuup?" asked Compassion, whining.
(outside ponies- apologise)
Seto nodded appreciatively. "No harm taken, buyt next time you mayn't be so lucky."
"Yeah!" Cried Compassion and she kicked Crypt as hard as she could. Which, in her weakenedand tired state, wasn't much more than a poke. Then she skittered behind Seto.
Seto rolled his eyes. "This is Compassion. I am Seto Kaiba.”
(outside pony- I think I’ve seen you around)
Seto steppd back, allowing the Yahto pony to pass if he so wished. "No I have not seen you around, actually," said Seto. "I rarely see anyone. And Compassion plays only when I or her sisters are near her."
Compassion cocked her head. "Where are you fwom?" she asked.
(outside ponies- discuss)
"We reside only in Nightmare valley," said Seto. "It's better there."
"But not funner," complained Compassion
(outside ponies- presents plank)
Compassion looked at the plank, then at Seto, and hid behind him, shaking her head shyly.
Seto prodded her with his hoof. "Maybe if she saw how it was done," he ventured.
(outside pony- slide? Demonstrates)
Compassion glared. "You are so sdupid! I'm nod scawed! You're sdupid for saying that! Beat him up, Onii-Sama!" she cried.
"She is insulted," explained Seto. "Not knowing what a slide is does not make one scared of one."
(outside pony- leaves)
Seto nudged Compassion again. "You sure you don't want a go?"
"Yes!" said Compassion.
"Really sure?"
Compassion looked at the slide and then at Seto. "Can you push me pwease?"
Seto picked Conmpassion up and placed her on the top of the slide then gave her a push.
"Weeee!" she cried, closing her eyes. "Again again!"
Compassion got up from her fifth slide and wiggled her tail. "My bum hurts now. I'm going for a walk, Onii-Sama." and she did.
"Not too far," he said cautiously.
"Not too far." Agreed Compassion
-------------------------------
Zanobi flew ponderously over the surroundings below him, laughing to himself at the efforts of those... light ponies to save a derelict species.
Zanobi saw the leader of his herd and that little foal he was plaing with. He snorted. He didn't like that guy. Maybe it would be better if he never came back. Then I could maybe get some work done. He hissed.
Brittania watched as Zanobi drew close to the ground to rest. She followed, only showing him her good side. "You. You can help me."
Zanobi looked up at her. "Why must I help you?"
"Because he who will help me can ask of me anything," said Brittania eerily, flipping her lovely silver hair.
"Anything?"
"Anything." So Zanobi lowered his head and Brittania whispered in his ear and he became hers.
--------------------------
Seto heard a ruckus and cantered towards it. At the heart of it he saw a brown pony, Soraya and- he groaned. He was going so fast he could barely feel the grass beneath his feet. He didn't stop until he was right in front of Compassion. "What did I say?" he asked.
"But I-"
"What did I say?"
Compassion bowed her head. "Not faa," she mumbled.
"When I say not far I mean it. Don't ever go this far away from me again-uh- I don't want to hear it," he said as Compassion tried to excuse herself. "Who is this you're... protecting?"
"Are you guys sure you know what you'w doing?" asked Compassion. "I don't think mucking around with spells is helping him!"
(outside ponies- cure pooper with a large crack)
Compassion shrieked as the boom went off and Seto covered her. "Is he okay?" she asked. "Awe you okay now?"
Compassion poked Pooper. "Are you okay?"
Seto crowded her. "Don't get so close."
(outside ponies- pooper transforms)
Compassion was flabbergasted. "Whoah..."
(outside pony- greets seto)
"Hello," said Seto.
"Me too! Me too!" cried Daikin.
Compassion giggled. "This is our newest addition to the matchstick hewd, Onii-Sama."
Seto sighed. "I leave you alone for how long? And you find a new pony..."
(outside conversation)
Seto blinked. "Oh yes, I remember, you're the hyper one," he said.
Compassion giggled.
Compassion sat with Seto and Daikin. "Where do we go now?"
"Well I have every intention of taking you home, little miss," said Set sternly.
"Nu-uh Onii-Sama" cried Daikin, latching himself to Seto's leg. "Please can we stay? Pllllleeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaase?"
“No, that‘s it, home.” And Seto marched the two babies back home. “It‘s too big for you two.”
--------------------------------
Zanobi watched the unsuspecting light ponies as they milled around the mystical lake. He snorted. “These?” he asked Brittania. “These are those ponies that you want dead?”
Brittania smiled, her scars stretched, white across her beautiful skin. “Yes. Those ones. You know,” she breathed and he felt her presence by her cheek, “what to do…”
Zanobi closed his eyes and felt for the right time to strike. Too early and it could not work. Too late and they could fight against him. When? When? There was a sound around him, behind him. He snapped his eyes open in irritation.
---------------------------------------
Seto baulked as the mirror came into being. He was coming back from showing Compassion home. “What is this?” he wondered suspiciously
(prompt) "A face popped out of the middle of the mirror and looked at them delightedly. Ahh! Living creatures! I haven't seen life on this side of the mountain in ages! Perhaps you can entertain me! Would you care to solve some riddles?"
Here is my first question: Food can help me survive, but water will kill me. What am I?
Seto blinked. “Why not,” he said, “I‘m good at riddles.” ”A frog,” said Seto dryly.
Seto looked around. “Well I was kidding. Can‘t a person show a bit of… oh whatever. Onto the next one…” He was embarrassed. Frogs were the only animals not to drink water…
Seto frowned and stalked over to where Suzume and Kaze watched the mirror eagerly. “I don‘t know what you two are doing here without chaperones,” he said. “But I think I‘ll just stay here a while.” He didn‘t particularly want any of his sisters‘ friends to be hurt.
(outside pony- don’t need one)
Seto hid a smirk. Smart kid. “You might not need a chaperone, but wouldn‘t you like to enjoy yourself and not have this little one annoy you all the time?” He bent down to Kaze‘s ear. “If you sit down you can see better. If you keep quiet you can hear better. And if you waft the sound back here, Suzume could hear better to. You want Suzume to be happy, yes?” he asked, whispering so Suzume didn‘t hear.
Seto actually smirked at that. “So I can well see. He reminds me of someone though “Mae Mae“.”
(outside pony- corrects name)
”Of course it is,” said Seto indulgently.
Seto blinked at Suzume. “Where have you been living?“ He straightned. “I am Seto Kaiba of Nightmare Valley.”
(outside pony- man weird stuff comes out of nightmare valley)
Seto cleared his throat in Meridian‘s general direction. “Er hem!” He raised an eyebrow.
Seto was glad his sisters weren’t here. It was like a parade of strange male ponies. Note to Self. No Ramla or Compassion around here. Ever.
(prompt) Quite suddenly, there was a roar from above, and out of the sunlight, Kaenyn flew with wings spread - the sun behind him turning their membranes even more crimson than usual, with an edging of gold. He had been watching ... and had decided that now was a good time to reveal himself to the ponies below. And hopefully this would dissuade them from going any farther.
"Turn back!" he roared at the group, hovering up above, fangs bared with flames licking at them from somewhere deep within his throat.
Kaenyn simply smirked at the little group below and sent out a silent call to his allies who were hopefully hiding nearby. "You should turn back because if you don't... you're all going to die," he answered, in a low tone. Let them chew on that...
Kaenyn shook his head slightly, tendrils of his short mane flying about. "You say that now ... but what will you do when someone ... DIES?!" And with that shout, he dove down straight at the annoying little fairly pony, fire blasting toward her from between his fangs.
Brittania nodded unseen.
Zanobi took off from his lofty perch and dived towards the ponies of light, making a bee-line towards Kaze. He landed, churning lawn to dirt beneath his hooves.
(prompt) Just before the flames would have hit the pony, Kaenyn swerved so that they avoided her but came very close, probably singeing a few hairs. His wings spread wide, he swept around and surveyed the group, thinking on his next target...
Zanobi snorted. “I‘m afraid this party is over.”
Seto‘s mouth opened. He cantered up to Zanobi and nearly struck him. “What are you doing, you fool?” he shouted.
Zanobi smirked and lashed out at Seto with a violent kick that sent the Herd leader to his knees. “Never do battle with a force of darkness, Kaiba-boy,” he sneered. “Now, my little Firestarter,” he snarled. “Let‘s put you on ice, shall we?”
(prompt) Kaenyn laughed at Suzume's pitiful attack and dodged it easily by simply flicking wings in the other direction - backing up quickly to get out of range. So far, he was a lot more mobile and agile than any of them. Such little weaklings ... what right did they have to come and try to take the eggs?
Seto gasped with pain as the air was belted out of him. He regained his feet tiredly and shook his head. “You‘ll… pay… for that,” he wheezed. He wobbled over to Zanobi and drew in breath for a kick of his own when Zanobi twisted, spun and hit him with an upper cut right to the noggin’. His eyes rolled back in his head and he lay still.
… I can’t believe it… I just killed Seto!
(prompt) Kaenyn had also spotted the little one running off and smirked. Well, well ... opportunity! With a quick little loop, he soared up higher and then twisted again - diving down straight at the young one. He had a much better vantage point and could see exactly where Kaze was going...
Zanobi laughed. “He isn‘t doing well with protecting you, is he, Firestarter? Now,” he looked around intensely, “Where is your little munchkin, hmm?”
Seto blinked again. few seconds… Obviously if he‘d been out for longer then he would have a serious- oh… blood dripped out of the exposed flesh beside his right temple. He stood, shook off that crazy pony who had had the nerve to shake him and went to Suzume. “Where is he?” he asked urgently, his vision swimming terribly.
(prompt) Kaenyn ignored the other dragon now in the air, hissing in frustration as the small pony spun on the ice and away from him, making him miss. "What you are after does not belong to you!" he called out to the group in general, turning to face Meridian then. "And who do you think that you are to bring them here?"
The spell the other pony cast at him flew by harmlessly as he turned.
Zanobi took flight and grinned. “’Let all the children come to me, for the kingdom belongs to such as… thee!’” He spotted Kaze spnning and dived, barrelling his way through the open air.
Zanobi saw the red pony and collapsed his wings tight to his body. Who would reach the child first?
(prompt) Kaenyn gave a derisive snort at that and backwinged slightly to one side to avoid the flame. "Then you will pay with your lives!" he shot back, taking a deep breath and swerving even as he returned the favor, a slightly longer stream of flame shooting back toward Meridian. Zanobi grinned and grabbed Kaze with his front hooves. He lifted the foal into the air, let him go, and then picked him up in a more serviceable position. His laughter vibrated to the ground below…
(prompt)
With a low growl, Kaenyn focused on what was obviously the weaker of the two in the air and beat his wings, heading toward Tsuki now.
Seto tried to grasp the meaning of this. Zanobi has… has a baby… in the air… oh. Oh CRAP! “I don‘t think that will help,” he said thickly to Suzume. “Try this; “ZANOBI!” he shouted, the sound of his own voice splitting his head. “IF YOU DON‘T COME DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW YOUR SISTER IS OUT OF THE HERD!”
Zanobi glared. He didn‘t need to shout to get his voice heard. “Don‘t threaten me, Kaiba-Boy. You forget, I‘m in a higher place than you.” And with that he dropped Kaze. He let the child scream for a moment then caught his again.
(outside pony- you’re not helping! What do you want?)
Seto sighed. “I do have a cracked skull you know,” he said faintly.
”Your co-operation, that‘s all,” said Zanobi. “Just your co-operation.”
(prompt) Kaenyn glanced down at Suzume and snapped, "I've already told you. Go home. Don't come any closer, and leave the eggs alone!" He swooped around and shot some fire at her for emphasis and then flew up high.
"Otherwise, don't expect to live very long!" he called. Then he sped away, flying fast so that no one would follow him. And if Zanobi managed to get away with the baby, all the better. Then they would see how it felt to have a young one stolen...
Zanobi cackled and, flying a lot lower to the ground then usual (what‘ve you been feedin‘ that kid?), followed Kaeyn.
Seto fell to the ground after that shove. He was having a lot of trouble with everything. His vision was blurred and his head felt like a half-cracked egg. “Owch,” he said self-depreciatively.
Seto was in a bad way- still bleeding from his head. The red was trickling from his hairline down to his chin. He was afraid that if he tried to wipe it off he‘d it himself in the head and make it worse. He felt like a complete fool.
(outside pony- helps Seto)
Seto looked up at her. He was in no condition to make any decisions about himself at the time. The pain ran through his head and he felt like he was about to pass out. His head dipped onto his chest.
Seto felt the stinging stop and felt the thudding pain more keenly. The smell of his own blood was nauseating. He couldn‘t stand it. He wasn‘t lucid in thought. He merely blinked as red stained his vision and black crept at the corners of his mind.
(outside pony- heals Seto)
Grisamara grumbled to herself as she flowed beautifully out of the Nightmare Valley. She made her slow way towards the ponies at the lake, hiding how that much exertion had tired her. She sat elegantly by Seto. “What have you done to my Onii-San,” she said with a voice like dread.
(outside pony- questions)
Grisamara smiled at the green pony. “I am Grisamara of the house of Mortatus. Who are you?”
Grisamara noticed Eternia‘s look. She didn‘t like girls. Girls weren‘t susceptible to her power. But she had to be nice to them anyway. “And you two ladies are?” she asked sweetly.
Grisamara scowled. She was not used to being ignored and did not like it. Especially when she was being nice. She instead turned to the somewhat dullard baby pony in front of her. “That‘s lovely,” she said. “What happened to your memories?”
Grisamara curled her lip and brushed her side irritably. No touch, no touch… “I am Grisamara. How are you?” She turned to Seto and jabbed him in the face. He awoke. “There‘s an opening, wake up!”
Seto was still drowsy and he blinked slowly. “You know what they say… take the hiking roads not the looow…”
Grisamara smacked him with her tail. “Be silent if you can say nothing of use! Now get up, we‘re going the high road.” And they did.
Grisamara Rolled her eyes. When did I become a magnet for urchins? Seto, if he‘d been in his right mind, would have thought the same. “That‘s lovely,” said Grisamara.
Grisamara heard the sounds of little hooves clopping. She was too tired to turn around. She sighed and hovered instead of walking to give her legs a rest.
(prompt)
Once everyone wriggles through the first narrow part of the path, it opens up a little more and gets a bit easier to travel. But there are still obstacles. Just ahead, there's a small tumble of rocks that looks a little unstable. It might be safe to cross, though ... Up above, there's a small ledge that also looks kind of dangerous and narrow, but it goes around the rocks.
Grisamara snorted at the rocks. “A lady never wavers in her path, did you know?” she said and she hovered over. Seto followed, too out of it to care where he trod.
(prompt) The pile of rocks is a bit shaky, but it does appear stable enough to cross. It doesn't collapse on anyone, though a few ponies might lose their footing and stumble.
After that, things go all right for a little while longer, until it starts to snow. Slowly, that snow turns into a storm, then a blizzard. Squinting through the driving snow, it seems that the way is clear up ahead, just a few feet away. But then again, it's really cold and that could just be an illusion conjured by fogged minds. Closer, there is what looks like a small cave under a rocky overhang.
Grisamara hovered over the rocks, watching as Seto stumbled. She sighed, and felt a little glow as she gently nudged him to safety. He was waking up properly now, but he needed rest. “My Onii-San did a number on you, didn‘t he Onii-Sama?” She sighed and walked beside him. She came across the snow and shivered. Seto did also. Her brow furrowed. Seto cannot stand the cold, we should shelter in this cave until it is better. So they huddled in the cave and Seto fell into a restful sleep.
(prompt) Miraculously, the storm stops after going only a few more yards forward. Blinking, you glance back at what seems like a wall of snow and hear a disappointed sort of sighing sound on the wind. You got past the storm sprite's domain, good job!
It seems that your troubles aren't over yet, though. Just up ahead, there's a wide gap in the path, with nothing but empty air below. It seems like there's no other way to go forward ...
Grisamara shook Seto awake. “You baka! You led us here to loose time! Get up!” Seto scowled and pushed on with Grisamara sniping at his heels like an angry chiuoua.
Seto looked at the chasm. “I think I can jump across, do you-” he broke off as he saw that. In that brief respite, Grisamara had slumped against his leg. He bent down and heaved her onto his back. It pained him deeply. He gathered his breath and jumped. Seto gained the other side shakily and let Grisamara down gently. “Grisamara, wake up now, we must go.”
Seto looked to see Suzume not quite reach the gap. He lunged forward and caught her hoof in both of his. “Got you,” he puffed. He pulled her onto the shelf.
Seto sat heavily. He called Grisamara over to him. No use in being separated now.
(prompt) Finally, you're all over the jump and you move forward again, very glad to be past that. Coming around a curve, the path finally starts to slope downhill. But then, a wall formed of what seems like solid ice blocks the way. Nothing you do seems to effect it...
But soon enough, a face appears in the ice, amidst swirling eddies of phantom clouds. "Who wishes to go forward?" the mountain spirit asks.
Grisamara strode up to the face. “Would we be here if we didn‘t?”
Seto curled his forleg around her and brought her back. “Grisamara and Seto Kaiba wish to progress.”
(prompt) "Those who wish to continue must answer some questions for me," the spirit says then, and fades away to be replaced by a series of questions ....
Grisamara frowned. “You better have them right, Onii-Sama.” She shivered.
Seto blinked, He sat beside her and flipped his coat around her. “I think I got some right. At least. I didn‘t may attention in chemistry.”
Grisamara jumped. “Ahh!” she clung to Seto then pushed him away. “I was startled… you can go away now.”
Seto rolled his eyes. She was a bit of a brat, but Grisamara seemed to be warming to him.
(outside pony- greets)
"Hello, Lillian,"said Seto in a friendly way. He was obviously still under the weather if he was being friendly.
Grisamara looked at the fairy pony. "Hello," she said, following Seto's example.
(outside pony- inquires)
Seto blinked widely. "I don't know... I was out for a bit." He scratched a line of dried blood off his chin.
(outside pony- cocussed?)
Seto winced. "I am sure that ponies who get knocked out don't really have the credit to know if they have a concussion," he said wryly.
(outside pony- attitude)
Seto screwed his eyes closed. "If I have my own attitude I obviously don't need yours..."
Seto blinked. "If everything is as it should be there is no use. But I am not an expert in these things. I must trust you."
(outside pony- heals)
Seto felt fine again. He shook his head experimentally. No dizziness. “Thankyou, Lillian,” he said, never shirking thanks where it was due.
(prompt) About a day or so has passed since your last adventure, and everything seems to be going as well as can be expected. Up ahead, there's a rather large mountain that has a sort of peculiar shape to it. Something about it is familiar ... but you can't quite put a hoof on it. Oh well. You have to go that way anyways, since there's really no other path that's apparent at the moment.
The closer you get to the large mountain, though, the more nervous you become. You have a bad feeling about this ....
”That looks like…” said Seto. “An Egg?”
”No, stupid, it‘s a wing!” said Grisamara.
(prompt) Well, it seems that someone figured it out. The mountain is a volcano! This could be dangerous ... but everything seems safe enough at the moment, so you all decide to keep going.
Up ahead, there's a place where it seems like there's some sort of cracks in the ground. It doesn't look dangerous, really ... just strange. For the more sensitive of the group, it almost seems like the earth is shaking, just a little.
Grisamara gulped. “Onii-Sama, go over the ground, I‘ll follow you.”
Seto rolled his eyes. “Sure.”
(prompt) The shaking is worse even on the more stable path that you have found and you're getting really nervous about the source of it. Suddenly, there's a giant roar from somewhere up above you. You flinch and look up. To your horror, the volcano is starting to erupt!!
You'd better run, and fast!
Grisamara smacked Seto with her wing. “Run you idiot! You lead us the wrong way! Run!”
(prompt) As you all start running, hoping to get past the worst of it, the ground shakes again, making several of you stumble. Rocks start to fly through the air, small at first - but getting bigger by the moment.
Up ahead, there's a small overhang that it looks like might shelter you. You won't be able to stay long, unless you want to get trapped by lava ... but you should be able to escape the worst of the rocks for a few minutes.
Grisamara was hysterical, her flapping crazed. “Which way? Which way?” she shrieked.
Seto grabbed her, plopped her on his back and ran as hard as he could, as fast as he could. Lava was fast but he was Seto Kaiba and he has something to prove.
(prompt) Once the avanlanche has stopped, you venture out slowly, looking around. Is it over...? All is quiet for a few moments ...
But this is only the beginning. The rumbling starts up again and you jump, thinking it's probably a good idea to start running now. Up above, the eruption is now going full-force, lava spewing out the top of the volcano into the air, hissing and roaring with abandon.
Suddenly, a crack opens up in front of you and widens in moments to a large chasm. Before anyone can do anything, lava spills down the volcano and flows into the chasm, blocking your way. But there are still a few places that look safe in the middle of all that ... pillars of rock that are spaced out from one another. It looks like it's possible to get across, if you're very very careful....
Grisamara was now crying. Seto shushed her soothingly but she couldn‘t stop. “It won‘t be okay! It won‘t be okay!”
Seto leapt and scrabbled and Grisamara lost her grip on his slippery jacket. Seto lunged and caught her skirt in his teeth. He slowly wrenched her up onto the pillar. Then he proceeded to throw her over before he jumped himself.
(prompt) Finally, everyone makes it across and you all stop to rest for a moment, exhausted from all that you've been through. Behind you, the volcano is still spewing out lava, but the chasm you just corssed is blocking any of it from getting to you. Seems like you're safe ...
Suddenly, the baby that was found the day before bounds away from Ryu and heads over toward a tumble of rocks. Upon calling his name, he yells back, "My sister, someone please help her!!"
Mystified, you all follow him until you see a small female pony trapped under a couple of the rocks there. Looking at the two of them, it's pretty clear they are related.
Concerned, you all start to move the rocks, but one of them is way too heavy for any of you to shift. Now what...?
"Who's moving my rocks around?" a voice suddenly cuts through the air, gravelly and low. Startled, you all look up to see another of those pesky spirits. This one is attached to the volcano and he's in a bad mood since all of that erupting is sort of tiring. Looks like you'd all better explain the situation and beg him to let you move that last rock....
Grisamara stopped crying and strode up. “Look, what right have you to pester us! We‘ve been running for our lives and it‘s not fair!”
(prompt)
(questions)
Grisamara sniffled and pulled herself closer to Seto.
Seto let her. “Tired, Grisamara?” He dusted her off and let her curl up around his feet.
Grisamara snuggled into the crook of Seto‘s leg. She was half asleep, but she didn‘t look much for the worse of her trip. Actually the way her fringe fell unevenly across her eyebrows made her look forlorn and needing of cuddling rather than sloppy. She sat with Seto in the cavern of the rock spirit where everyone else had stopped.
Seto nodded to Soraya. “Grisamara‘s sleeping, did you want me to wake her up?” he said to Yoshi. “She‘d probably be disappointed to miss you.”
Seto nudged Grisamara awake and she smacked him in the jaw while still half asleep. He rubbed his mouth gingerly. “We had a volcano erupt on us in a mad dash to get here. How have you been,” he said slightly sarcastically.
Grisamara shook herself from nose to tail. “Oh hello… Y…oshi,” she said, remembering his name.
Grisamara shook her head. “That‘s Seto Kaiba… my herd‘s elder I suppose…
Seto nodded. “Well that‘s good.”
Grisamara shrugged elegantly. “Suit yourself. Did your sister make you walk all the way here?” she asked.
”Oh.” said Grisamara. “I don‘t have any aunts or uncles. Just big sisters and big brothers. Onii-sama let me ride on him for a while.”
Grisamara smiled. Cute kid. Knows his manners, I suppose.“I don‘t mind, especially since you asked so gentlemanly,” she said and winked.
Grisamara blanched and looked at Seto.
Seto smirked at her expression. “I hear no flirting, I see no flirting.”
Seto detangled himself from the sleeping forms of Grisamara and Yoshi and walked over to Suzume. “That is true, I suppose. But some don‘t particularly have a choice,” he said tiredly.
He nodded. “Valid point. All of these foals could be kidnapped. They could run off and be eaten or fall into a cavern. But it‘s too late to send them back.” I‘m just glad I got Compassion and Daikin out of here…
"What about the foals we have discovered? Would you prefer to leave them with spirits who eat their memories?" It's probably only psyche trauma, but whatever…
"I suppose it is that. But with enough ponies protecting them, they should be safe, Suzume." He frowned. "I know Zanobi. Better than I wish I did. He won't harm Kaze. Not while I have his sister."
Seto shook his head. "Not really. But you don't know him like I do. Family and blood is all that he knows. He will not allow them to harm Kaze, knowing that we have Grisamara."
Seto smirked. Reminds me of someone... "I would think you'd prefer to keep positive. Isn't that what Dream Valley ponies do best?"
Seto nodded. Now I remember... "I don't think you'll really find solace until you see him yourself. He's a smart kid. Maybe not so aware of everything, but he's smart enough. You ought to exercise some of that trust Dream ponies preach about." ...me
Seto actually smiled, but hid it well. "Then all you can do for now is wait. You have to believe you taught him well enough that a few blood thirsty villians won't get the better of him." He paused. "Practising your aim wouldn't hurt either. It takes keen eye to hit an airborne target. And you do say the only thing you rely on is your talent."
Seto nearly laughed. "I cannot fly, as you can see. If I were to help, it would be more like," he picked up a stone and chucked it into the air, "that. See if you can hit it before it grounds."
Seto nodded, impressed. "Ever used a target that was intelligent?" he asked."
"Right. I just ask because you didn't seem to hit that red dragon. Or Zanobi." said Seto.
Seto poked her in the side. "Kid, it's not about not being good enough, it's about improving where improvment is due. Now, let's see here..." He prodded Grisamara awake and whispered to her. She nodded and walked up to Suzume, still half asleep.
"At your service," said Grisamara. She flapped her wings experimentally. Seto passed her as many volcanic stones as she could carry- volcanic so they wouldn't hurt if one accidentally impacted.
Grisamara nodded, shouldered her load and was airborne in a flip of her tail. She began pelting Suzme with the rocks as hard as she could.
"Now the point here," said Seto, ducking a rock sent awry, "is to dodge the missiles and try and hit the target. See if you can hit her tail- that is predicting movement and it is non-life threatening to my sister."
(prompt)
Once past the danger of the volcano, everyone is very very glad to be away from that entire area in general. The only question now is .... which way? You've all been more or less wandering for a day or two and no one really has a clue where the lair of the dragons might be. Even the dragons among you are confused for some reason - not remembering the way.
Is this a spell of some kind, or are their memories just really bad? What is going ON here?
One night after you have all stopped to rest, you're discussing that very thing, wondering why this is happening and what the cause of it is. Suddenly a small note floats down from somewhere above. When you look at it, you see that it appears to be written in some kind of code!
After silence for a while (okay yeah she was asleep on Seto ><; ) Grisamara blinked. "South," she said drowsily. "Go South you great dork."
(prompt) Looks like North is the way to go for now! This seems to be even more true as the path underneath you gets brighter and brighter. Soon, it's almost blindingly white and looking away from it means looking into total darkness.
A voice calls out from that darkness suddenly. "You're going the wrong waaaay ... turn back, turn back ...." It echoes and warbles strangely, frightening since you can't see who's speaking. Something about the voice is vaguely familiar though ...
"Says you!" cries Grisamara. "Show yourself! I have a bad headache! I will whoop you!" Seto covered her mouth. "I don't think I believe you," he said calmly. He kept going
(prompt) Soon, you leave the mysterious voice behind, but now there's a new obstacle. In front of you is a wall ... a wall made up of bright, white light. Looks like this could be the work of another of those spirits...
Sure enough, as soon as you're close enough, a soft voice calls, "Who would pass me by?"
Seto strode forward. No point in ignoring it when every other voice has gotten an answer. "Seto Kaiba wishes to pass with Grisamara who won't dignify you with an answer."
(questions) (gifty)
Grisamara stared at the new baby. Her heart did a weird flippy thing. "He reminds me of... something," she said quietly.
----------------------------
Zanobi flew lazily and unburdened to the battlefield. "Oh, Kaiba," he called sweetly.
Seto stood protectively over Grisamara. "Don't move, no matter what happens," he told her gently.
"Remember what I said?" asked Seto. Grisamara nodded. She's not going anywhere.
"You think? There's a new one," said Zanobi. "I have business with that one, thankyou."
Brittania laughed. “Did you think you could save them? They will all die! And it is YOUR FAULT!”
Zanobi flapped his leathery wings and was airborne.
Seto glared at the green dragon. “Get away,” he said with his voice like the sharpening of daggers.
Zanobi circled and dodged the fire. He laughed. “Why shouldn‘t I, child? Shouldn‘t you be over with the other foals, sucking your thumb? What business could you have with me?”
Zanobi swirled the air around his ground-ridden opponents. “I‘m in this for him,” he said bitterly.
Brittania dodged Seto‘s kick easily. “Fool.”
Seto glared and threw another kick. “You don‘t seem the type to hit the broad side of a beauty parlour. Oh, sorry, I figured you for a beauty queen. Not with THOSE scars…”
Seto‘s kick connected with a horrible crunching sound. Brittania screamed.
Zanobi laughed again. This youth was too funny. “Hate? You don‘t even know what hate is. You see that little girl over there? That‘s my sister. And he is using her to get to me because he wants to stop me from doing what I do best.”
Brittania gaped and glared. She put her broad forehead down to strike at Seto from above.
Seto grinned. “Upset? Of course. That‘s what you get for challenging Seto Kaiba.”
Yes! thought Seto as his second attack hit- a rolling double hit after standing obn his hind legs and bringing both front hooves down at once.
Zanobi raised an eyebrow. “That isn’t the point, child,” he said with a long sigh. “The point is he is using her to buy his own safety. And stopping me from keeping her safe. Got it?”
Brittania screeched. “Now you die!” She cried and planted her hooves on the ground. Steel barbs rose from the ground all around Seto. He bit back a yell of agony as one sliced his hindquarters.
Seto staggered. He was in too much pain. He saw Grisamara step closer and shook his head at her. He turned to the Dragon pony. “You could never defeat me. So don‘t try.”
My last… attack… my last… Seto thought. I better make it count. And he rammed Brittania with all his strength. He heard a gratifying pop as her wing was taken out of place as it was crushed beneath her.
Zanobi paused, caught off guard. “Are you serious? Are you actually that dense? It‘s all her fault! Her fault! She made me this! And she won‘t even let death come between us! She was reborn to hound me and never give me peace!” Zanobi lashed out again, tears glazing his eyes for one last attack, full of his malice that he had for one he loved.
Brittania got up and crooned over her mutilated wing. “You… you marred my… my beauty… you will. You will PAY!” She leapt on top of him and drove her hoof into his ribs.
”Grudge? Grudge!? Start over? You FOOL! I wish I never laid eyes on her in her incarnation! I didn‘t have to incarnate! I am still as I ever was, but she needs me! I must stay with her forever and she won‘t let me go!” Zanobi was so angry and sad at the same time. He hated himself, but he hated and loved Grisamara. The only thing he ever loved enough to die for… and she… she… “I don‘t need anyone,” he hissed. The look in his eyes was terrible, like a swirling maelstrom of storm clouds.
Adiemus swished his hoof around in the water for sheer amusement. He hated how his family had become. He wasn't even an important part. The drow pony would rather have been not born if all they were going to do was to shove him off and abandon him. He had done pranks in the past, but it didn't seem to amaze him as much as it did now. Not that no one accepted him besides his coloring.
Compassion strolled down the bank of a river that ran sluggishly through Nightmare Valley. She saw a teen putting his hoof into the foetid waters."You know," she said, "that water is filthy. You'll get your gold leaf dirty."
Adiemus slowly looked up at the pony approaching him. "I guess." He pulled his hoof out of it before looking at the pony before him. He had never seen her before, but she didn't look like the drows so he was content at that sort of smiling. "I'm Adiemus, supposedly one of the gold dragon's children mixed with drow." He shrugged before looking down. "Although it's quite empty." He then looked back up.
"What's empty?" asked Compassion. "The stream? She walked closer. "I'm Compassion," she said with effort. "I live with Kaiba down the way a bit."
Adiemus perked up a bit. She definitely didn't sound like an enemy, but yet he wanted to see what she was talking about. "Empty? Oh...no...the river isn't empty." He looked at it. "It's pretty full." He then looked back up. "I was just rambling about my family lineage. I tend to do that often. It is nice to meet you Compassion." He cocked his head to the side. "Kaiba? Who's he?"
"Kaiba's our big brother, said Compassion. "He takes care of us. He's super smart. He's taught me lots and lots. He doesn't have to take care of us, but he does." She smiled. "I was his favourite once..."
Adiemus smiled a bit. "That must be nice. Having someone who cares for you even if they never had to." He looked down a bit. "I sort of wish I would of had the same fortune, but oh well." He then looked back up. "I can't change my past anyway."
Compassion smiled crookedly and cocked her head. "We didn't always. Usually we came to the herd because we weren't wanted any place else. We all look out for each other like we'd like to be looked out for." She sat down with him. "And you past is what makes you who you are; you shouldn't change it even if you could. Because then if you do you'll never fight to change the past, you get it? You won't have something to overcome, if you take the easy way out and make it so you already overcame it."
Adiemus cocked his head to the side. "Really? I don't understand how some could just abandon a pony. Most of them are if not all have their own unique traits in their own way." He returned his head back to normal. "I think I know what you're getting at." He managed another smile. For some reason this pony seemed to be very nice to him. It definitely was nice to have someone talk to him without constantly scolding him over and over just because he had to live up to certain expectations. "Perhaps it is better then. I could be living with the drows where they torture male ponies into worshipping them and doing their bidding."
Compassion froze, sensing a sensitive subject, the she grinned. "Oh, we torture male pones too, but not to the point of worship." She nodded knowingly. "And only the ones who can't keep their hooves to themselves," she giggled.
Adiemus shrugged. "Well I don't normally get into things nowadays. I mean when I was younger I played mean pranks to get back at others, but really it does nothing except make me feel more bitter and empty." He smiled a bit.
Comassion laughed. "you'd do well in our herd! The Kaiba kids are always playing pranks. Gamell once held his father's cards for ransom over the loo in return for a new computer and a robot."She shrugged. "But we don't play pranks to get back at others... we usually don't have that many ponies being mean to anyone else; our demons keep themselves to themselves. And anything else, Kaiba usually takes care of. Like Solomon," she smiled at the similarity.
Adiemus blinked a bit sounding interested in what was going on. "Solomon?" He sort of smiled. "Yeah, although I might do it sometimes, however not much has been happening. That's when you lead a boring life." He looked over at Compassion. "Kaiba seems to be a really good pony to take you all in."
Log Two
"Yup," said Compassion. "He's rich and handsome, so he could be off with pretty women doing lots of rich things but he stays at the herd and takes care of us. We mostly take care of ourselves now, but it's good to know there's someone to lay down the law." She cocked her head. "Sometimes it is boring at the herd, but we can make our own fun. Quests and dances and stuff. And sometimes the ponies in the herd have feuds or fall in love, like Emma! Wow, she was missing for ages then she came back and left again and now she's looking a bit pudgy," she nodded knowingly. "Emma's younger than me, and no-one believes who she says is the father.
"I guess it is interesting sometimes."
Adiemus smiled a bit. "Wow...sounds like an exciting herd. Emma huh? That sounds like a pretty name. I can't help but wonder about that stuff sometimes, although I'm still stuck in my teen stage." He shrugged. "Oh well. I'm sure I'll grow down the line eventually. That way I can be looked at as an adult."
"You haven't grown in a while then? Oh that's bad luck. A girl in our herd has not reached her adult stage in over a year and a half. Grisamara. She's very pretty but really nuts." Compassion shrugged. "There's nothing wrong with being a teen."
Adiemus nodded his head. "Yeah...you could say that." He raised an eyebrow in interest. "Really? Well it makes me feel better that I'm not the only one like this." He looked back at the dirty lake before looking back to Compassion. "I don't know. I think I have just been trying to conform to certain things, but I can't do it. It's stupid since that will never happen."
"Oh it will happen," said Compassion. "You'll grow in time."
Adiemus smiled. "Yeah..." He then looked around. "Um...I don't mean to be random, but what do you tend to eat?" It was getting about his lunch time and he normally got food around this hour.
"I guess I eat whatever Heketoro serves. I'm not one for cooking. I even burn pancakes... And you get sick of toast after a while. You hungry?" she asked.
Adiemus nodded his head. "Yeah a bit." He cocked his head while laughing a bit. "I see. I was just wondering since I noticed some ponies tend to eat a variety of things. Some only eat meat, some gorge on blood, some eat nothing at all, some eat only vegetation, and some don't eat at all."
"Oh, we eat whatever. Brittania up the mountain eats raw flesh but Jin tries to stop her. You want to come to Heketoro's with me? He loves seeing new faces."
Adiemus was a bit interested in what their family was like. "Alright. It would be nice to see how another herd operates since I've been on my own for the most part."
Compassion stood up and began to lead the way. "Our herd is very different to others. We mostly have little familial groups all loyal to Onii-Sama- by love of something else," she grinned. "He can be quite threatening when he wants to be! Anyways, everyone keeps to themselves or mingles like anything depending on what they feel like. Heketoro doesn't get out much, but that's coz everyone goes to him." She laughed then. "You know I don't normally talk like this." She paused and took a good look at Adiemus. "Something about you makes me feel like my tongue's on a two way hinge."
Adiemus was actually beginning to feel more comfortable since Compassion seemed to be one of the friendlier ponies he had run into. "Well you sound like you have an interesting bunch of ponies." He paused a second at her second remark. "Really? I've never been told that before." He was wondering how he could actually be something like that, but he decided not to mention it unless if she wanted to bring it up more.
"Maybe because you haven't said anything rude or mean yet," Compassion mused. "That's probably it."
Log Three
"Anway we're here now. Heketoro's culinary delights await!" She walked into a clearing. "Hey, Tor, what's for lunch?"
"Ahh, just mash and fry," Heketoro said,bent over a simmering pot. "Bit tired; didn't feel like making anything fancy."
Compasson shrugged to Adiemus. "Sounds good."
Adiemus smirked a bit. "Alright, but if I do please correct me. I wasn't exactly raised by anyone and lived on my own all the time." He then smelled the cooking. The red demon had his fangs showing since he was hungry, but immediately withdrew them after realising he was a guest.
"I'll correct you with a brick through your teeth," said Compassion cheerfully. She pulled a plate of ready-served food toward her and went to sit at the low serving bench. "This is a lot how we usually eat. Tory likes to cook so there's usually a fair bit around. Of course other ponies cook for themselves."
Adiemus went wide eyed for a moment, before nervously chuckling. "Heh heh...right. I better not screw up then." He looked at the bench before sitting on it himself. "Alright...I think I can cook a bit, but it's more like simple things such as heating up meat and soups at the best."
"I can't even make soup!" said Compassion jovially. "Though it seems a waste, seeing as Heketoro likes to cook so much." She took a bite and, while chewing, formed a thoughtful look. "Hey, Adiemus, where are you from?"
Adiemus continued to eat his food before looking back up at Compassion a bit wondering if he should spit out the truth or not. He swallowed before sighing. "Well...you could say I come from a very awkward family. I was all alone my whole life. I was told that my mom was one of the high drow priestesses and my dad was a great golden dragon." He shook his head. "Although truth be told I don't associate myself with either since neither loved me enough. All I am to them is breeding cattle."
Compassion chewwed slowly. "Oh. That... sucks. Anyways, you should hear Brittania rave about the golden dragon. 'Betrayer of their own kind' is one, 'Lying with scum', 'elevating worthlessness to their exalted station' yadda yadda. So if you ever want to keep your skin, you ought to run if you ever see a green dragon. You're not missing much from your dad.
"Some of us are like that. We're the matchstick herd. That's what it means. The conbined stories of the most miserable of our kind, making a kind of refuge."
Adiemus nodded his head. "I can understand that although I would have to agree with Brittania on what she said. I don't like either sides that much." He paused for a second to listen to her some more. "Refuge? So everyone here has a story I'm guessing?" He caught himself. "Duh...my fault. You probably all do. Everyone probably has some story no matter what."
Compassion slurped from her drink. "Well some ponies came here of their own free will- like without being miserable. I wasn't mistreated or anything. But there were some who were. Like Brittania." She cocked her head. "Well if you think she's right, maybe you should meet her," she laughed. "Dude, eat, you'll upset Tory," she admonished but she smiled.
Adiemus looked at his food. "Oh...my apologies." He ate some of the soup before wiping his face. "Really? Maybe...I hope she wouldn't hate me that much from being born from him." He sort of glared at his soup thinking of his dad. "He's no dad of mine...that's for sure. What type would leave his child on his own to be picked at by drow."
"Drow?" asked Compassion. "Aren't the Drow... like that female cult thing? We don't have any Drow. I only know of them because our demons and things communicate with other demons in other herds... Hey... unless there's something you're not telling me, you're a guy. How come you're in a female cult?" asked Compassion. She touched her forehead. "Confusion," she moaned.
Adiemus sighed. "Well males can be a part of it. They are just treated like an object they own. That's all." He shook his head. "Although some males probably have been killed when they were born. I know another male who got taken in by another pony in my herd and is now grown up." He paused. "Although I wish the female drow in our herd would learn her lesson from having too many kids. She had another batch and got a female to keep since the first one she gave to the main herd." He paused and ate some more of his soup.
Log Four
"That's really sad," said Compassion quietly. "Do they do a lot of... acting like you're a possession in your herd?" she asked.
Adiemus nodded his head. "Yeah although it's just of my lineage." He sort of smiled. "Although I like you since you're not treating me that way." He laughed a bit in contentment.
Compassion smiled. "I like you too because you're not making fun of me."
Adiemus cocked his head to the side. "of course I wouldn't. Why would I make fun of you?" He shook his head. "Well some who pick on others do it just so they can build their own superiority complex."
"Oh," said Compassion slowly. "I just don't talk like normal ponies. Well I can now. My jaw was broken when I was a foal so I had a lisp," she looked at Adiemus from under her lashes, daring him to start on her.
Adiemus raised an eyebrow. "Really now? I wouldn't find that something you should tease others for. I actually feel more sorry for you." He sighed. "At least you could talk, although if you don't mind me asking, was it painful?"
"Not really, just embarrassing," she said sadly. "I don't even remember breaking it."
Adiemus finished his meal before sighing once more. "Well really there is no reason why you should be made fun of for that. It's childish and very immature."
"That's very nice of you to say," said Compassion gratefully. "Oh well. They don't know any better."
Adiemus nodded his head. "Yes although I will say there are others who get teased for other reasons that sometimes I think they deserve." He smirked a bit. "Like when someone acts foolishly when they could of helped the situation, but chose to ignore it. Now that they deserve."
"I think that's like that old proverb 'Let he who is innocent cast the first stone," said Compassion musingly. "Are you done?" she asked, indicating his finished utensils.
Adiemus thought of the proverb. He knew he wasn't innocent so he stopped with his rambling. "Yeah...I'm done." He looked at the empty plate wondering what he ate, but all he knew was that it taste delicious.
Compassion smiled and took his plate and hers to the bench. "It's getting a bit late," she said reluctantly. "Should you be going home?"
Adiemus shrugged. "I guess I could. I don't really have a home, but the dark forest always provides a good setting even if my old heritage lives close by." He got up before heading out. "I wonder if I'll see her again," he thought to himself.
Compassion looked up as he walked out the door. "You should come by another time. I had fun," she said.
Adiemus nodded his head. "I sure will."
Log Five
It had been a while since he had seen Compassion. He looked at himself in the water where he first met her. He definitely looked different although he was a bit confused why his bushy tail had been shed and turned into a sharp barb. Nonetheless he wasn't too upset. He whacked it into the ground just to test it out. "Ugh" He had it stuck and he couldn't pull it out. "Just what I need," he thought to himself.
Compassion giggled and emerged from the trees. "I don't think you're supposed to do that with it." She cocked her head. "You know, I think you got a bit taller, Adiemus."
Adiemus was trying to yank out his tail before he heard a familiar voice. "Compassion?" He blushed in embarassment of his behaviors before uplifting a piece of earth with his tail. The earthworms were crawling in it. "Yeah...I have although I am a bit confused as to why I look a bit different in physical characteristics. My wings are larger and my tail is no longer hair, but a barbed devil tail."
He then went over to the water to get the earth off his tail. He watched it as it went downstream. "Thank goodness for that." He then looked towards her. "How's it been?"
Compassion sighed. "Boring. But I suppose your tail is more functional now, isn't it? Can you pick things up with it?"
Adiemus pondered for a moment. "I guess." He yanked it out of the river. "Although I don't really care that much now. I think all demons are starting to get this trait. They all used to have tails like yours, but recently they have been losing them, gaining bigger wings, and having more slit like eyes." He sighed. "Pick things up? I could give it a try." He quickly tried to wrap it around a rock before trying to skip it across the water. He looked back at her. "Most likely yes for some items."
Compassion grinned and pointed. "See, that's cool. I bet it's a lot less upkeep, too. But I'd rather have mine- gives me something to do if I get bored."
Adiemus cocked his head. "Really." He sort of smiled. "Although I bet it looks a lot nicer to have a normal tail." He looked downward a bit. "You can brush it plus use it as a whip." He paused for a moment before sighing. "Although I can do that too, except it poisons others when I do that."
Compassion's face froze. "Poison? That sounds... great," she sai weakly.
Adiemus shook his head. "I'm...a monster...aren't I?" He sat down sadly. "Most demons with barbed tails end up with that trait. Either that or their bite is poisonous."
"Oh, I don't think you're a monster," insisted Compassion. "It's just... a little overwhelming, a little odd that now you're poisonous. And I'm the same as ever," she said, laughing nervously. "And I'm as plain as can be. You know, someone said that I wasn't as good as a flying pony just a few months ago," she said sadly. "We, that is, Onii-Sama and my herd, don't speak to that person now."
Adiemus sort of smiled. "I guess that's the truth." He paused for a moment. "Although most drow ponies do end up with that ability also." He looked towards her a bit confused. "Not that good? Plain? What difference should it make? As long as a pony has the right attitude then they're fine by me." He snorted at the thought of another pony saying that. "I mean...I can sympathise with that since my sister is a dragon. Although I guess I should be thankful that I even have wings." He shook his head at himself for thinking so foolishly for a second that he was unworthy.
Log Six
"So, you think having wings is better than not having wings?" she asked softly. "Then does that mean you think like that girl did?" Compassion's eyes sparkled dangerously.
Adiemus shook his head. "Not at all. I'm just saying I shouldn't be comparing things even though I still have a semi inferiority complex about how I should be. My parents abandoned me since I wasn't good enough for either of them."
Compassion frowned. "Still... it really hurts when you point it out." She sniffled. "I'm okay."
Adiemus sighed while lowering his head in disbelief at himself. "Well I'm sorry I even said that. I was thinking that I shouldn't be complaining too much since that's what adults always seem to tell me, but it came out that way." He paused. "I should of known that could be an insult."
"I know you didn't mean it to be nasty," she said quietly, patting his shoulder. "But if anyone else said that, I'd have hurt them." She sighed. "I mean, I just see all the pretty, rare girls with their mates and their babies..." She sighed again. "I'm not even Onii-Sama's faveourite anymore."
Adiemus shook his head. "Well I'm not rare at all." He looked a bit confused. "You aren't? I'm surprised he doesn't like you. The personality should be more important, don't you think?"
"I used to be his favourite, before he had kids. Now he's.... not like himself. He's all mopey and sad. No-one can get close." She cocked her head. "You said you have a sister who's a dragon. That means dragon is in your genes. That means dragon babies. You should have girls killing each other for the chance to carry your spawn," she giggled. "Spawn. What a funny word."
Adiemus chuckled a bit. "You'd think? Well no girl really has noticed me, but maybe it's because I've been so mopey as well." He sort of frowned at himself then smiled. "I think I've really been a fool this whole time. I tried to make my dad proud, but he didn't care. He just wanted to flirt with more women and make the dragon lineage spread. So I tried going to drow, but my family didn't want me there either."
Compassion's smile faded into a frown. "That's sad." She hugged him. "I didn't have a family to reject me."
Adiemus sighed. "Well...I don't know what to say to that. Whether that's good or bad." He shook his head. "It doesn't matter now anyway. I've been like this for years and I'm sure I can keep like this."
"I bet you thought that about your tail now, didn't you?" She poked him. "Uhm, usually it's nice to hug someone back."
Adiemus blinked for a second. "My tail...um...I think that just changed when I hit adult. I don't quite get that at all." He was still a bit lost, but hugged her back since he wasn't used to love.
"Yeah, but I bet you expected to stay normal in the tail area, didn't you? Change isn't that bad." Compassion sat back and flicked a bit of hair back across her shoulder.
Adiemus nodded his head. "Yeah...I was thinking that." He looked back at her. "Really? I know I sound pathetic like this, but I'm confused on what makes a barbed tail better then a normal pony tail."
Compassion shrugged. "They're both nice, I guess, ut in different ways. I mean," she was watching his tail carefully. "I guess I just need to get used to the new... poisonous... you."
Log Seven
Adiemus looked towards Compassion then towards his tail again a bit sad. "So...are you upset I'm like this?" He looked down. "I mean..." He looked up and smiled. "Never mind...this happens to all demons now so it's no different."
"Oh, no, not really," said Compassion quickly. "It's just like... uhm, if you had a fluffy bunny and it grew fangs. It's still a fluffy bunny, but it takes some getting used to."
She poked him. "Fuffy."
Adiemus nodded his head. "Yeah...that makes more sense." He laughed a bit. "Although it is really hard to find demons being born that aren't like this." He closed his eyes. "Although there are some who remain with regular tails and not slit eyes."
"I don't have anything against slit eyes," said Compassion quietly.
Adiemus blinked a bit. "Really? Ok! Well it's not too much of a problem then." He walked over to get some fruit from a tree. He head butted it before making some fruit fall to the ground. "You hungry?"
Compassion took a peach. "Thanks." She laughed. "I'm glad you don't eat meat."
Adiemus smiled. "No problem." He took a bite of the fruit. "Actually...I do eat meat, but I do not hunt like a savage beast if that's what you're thinking."
Compassion choked on some peach juice. "Well," she said, gasping, "at least you're not gonna eat me."
Adiemus blinked for a bit. "I mean I don't eat horses. I just eat cooked things. Did you ever try fish or beef?" He sighed a bit noticing it wasn't the best topic. "Sorry about that...I wouldn't eat you. There are far worse ponies out there then me that would eat meat."
Compassion suddeny felt very ill. She chucked her pit away and dusted off her hooves. "Can I count on you to save me from those who would eat me?" she asked hopefully.
Adiemus was a bit worried as he noticed Compassion failing in health. "Are you alright?" He went over to check on her. "Save you? Well I definitely can do all in my power to prevent it. Although if you live with me in the dark forest or the Kaiba mansion then you might not have so much of that to deal with." He sighed. "The dark forest plays tons of tricks and illusions on others who don't know it well. Not many live there except for Drow like me. Drows don't eat meat, but they can be violent sometimes at worse case. Although they respect females more than males."
"C-cannibals tend to... wierd me out," she laughed weakly. "I used to live in the Kaiba mansion. I kind of miss my room. And I kind of hope you don't mind me saying, but I really hope I don't meet any of your family. I'm not sure I wouldn't give them a few swift kicks up the backside. From what you've said, they're right old ... well they don't sound real nice," finished Compassion lamely.
Adiemus stretched out. "Well I definitely don't have any cannibals in Seiph's group." He paused for a moment. "Although Lucifer the Vampire might consider eating another pony. He's too twisted to feel anything except psychotic behaviour." He cocked his head to the side. "Really? Well you probably won't be seeing them. They don't come out of their area and I barely go there. I just like to spy on them to see what they do and what could of happened to me."
"Well that's a relief," said Compassion. "All of that."
Log Eight
Adiemus smiled. "I'm glad." He stretched out. "So do you have any cannibals in your herd or ones you should stay away from at all costs?"
"No cannibals," said Compassion. "But... there are some. Like Shayde." She shuddered. "There's something so wrong with him. Even the demons in Kaiba Mansion avoid him. But there's Grisamara, she's dangerous. And Zanobi's talent is... terrible. I overheard about it once... Basically, most of the Kaiba Mansion is dangerous, so is the mountain range..."
Adiemus sighed a bit. "Well I guess no matter what there will always be dangerous ponies around." He shook his head. "Although I do know of some who could be dangerous, but are nice."
Compassion nodded earnestly. "Zanobi's like that. I mean, he used to take care of me when I was a kid, but when I heard what he could do..." She shook herself. "It must be such a burden to have a fearful talent."
Adiemus nodded his head. "Yes, although I do feel for some since they get hunted because of it." He shook his head. "Although my talent isn't anything special. All drow males normally tend to get the ability of master swordsmanship."
"Swords are awesome, though," said Compassion earnestly.
Adiemus pondered it over for a moment. "I guess, but there normally is a sword for one person that tends to fit them. Or at least that's how I see it. I tend to go for the long swords or rapiers."
Compassion nodded slowly. "There's a massive difference between a long sword and a rapier, though. A long sword is so much heavier than a rapier..." She shrugged. "Kaiba has a collection..."
Adiemus yawned a bit tired from his long day. "Yeah..." He closed his eyes for a while. "It's just I find it a bit better to try both sides as well if it's possible." He laid down. "He does? What types?"
Compassion edged a bit closer to him. "Old kinds," she said softly. "Like... samurai swords... and crusade swords. The knives and stars of famous ninjas. Do you think being a famous ninja defeats the purpose of being a ninja?" she asked, brushing Adiemus' forelock out of his eyes.
Adiemus thought for a bit. "Well...no...I don't think so. Just so long as he doesn't get caught doing what he does." He pondered for a moment. "Although those type of weapons sound really awesome."
"He doesn't let anyone touch them- but I guess, considering the kids around here, that's necessary."
Adiemus nodded his head. "I wouldn't blame him. Although could you imagine if it got into some psycho's hands? That would be scary."
Compassion's mouth thinned. "I'd be less scared of him knowing he needed such weapons to be dangerous."
Adiemus closed his eyes. "Yeah...I guess that would work." He looked down to the ground. "I don't know about you, but I sort of think those who can battle without weapons or powers are truly strong."
"It also means you can't disarm them- the only way to stop them is to kill them."
Adiemus nodded his head. "I see...if you don't mind me asking. Would you actually kill them?"
Compassion swallowed. "I thought we were speaking in general," she said quietly. "But... I don't think having the ability to harm people is a cause for killing someone. It would depend on what they did with their ability. If they tried to hurt people, I think I'd try to kill them. I would not succeed. But I would try."
Adiemus sighed a bit sad he upset her. "I'm sorry...matters like that probably should be left in the dark. I shouldn't be so nosy." He looked up wanting to change the subject since he knew it felt awkward. "There are sometimes I wonder if a family is worth it. I mean look at mine...they would either enslave me or desert me."
Log Nine
Compassion's mouth turned down in concern. "They say-" she said and cleared her throat. "They say family is not where you come from- but where they understand you." She patted his shoulder. "Maybe you should seek your family outside your blood."
Adiemus looked up for a moment at Compassion. He smiled a bit. "That actually does make sense." He pawed the ground a bit while thinking. "You seem to know just what to say at the right moment. Have you experienced a lot?"
Compassion blushed. "Not really... I mean yeah but when I say things I just say what I'd like someone to tell me. It works a lot."
Adiemus smiled for a bit but looked a tad sad. "I'm sorry...I should probably be saying those things as well and quit being so socially awkward."
"I don't think everyone is born with social... grace," said Compassion. "I wasn't. I just... learned I guess."
Adiemus nodded his head. "I know how that is. I wasn't either." He shrugged. "But I wish I would learn sometimes so I could interact better."
Compassion smiled warmly and rested her head on his shoulder. "I think your skills are fine," she said sweetly.
Adiemus sort of smiled since it felt nice to have someone accept him for the way he was. "Thanks..." He went silent for a while just soaking up the moment. "I don't think...I need my biological family...no...that's not it...I know I don't need them any more. If they abandoned me then I should just learn that there can be others who can become part of your family...you know what I mean?"
Compassion nodded. "Yeah I get that," she said softly. "Like. You have to re-evaluate how you hold people, how you judge them, to see if you can trust them enough to love them. Is that it?"
Adiemus nodded his head. "Right...That's actually what I was trying to say." He looked down at the ground a tad blushing although it was hard to see since he was already red.
Compassion smiled. "That's okay- I think that's part of it too. Having someone who can decode whatever gobbledegook you say and know what it means. Not that you were speaking gobbledegook. You know. What I mean, I mean?" She frowned, a bit confused herself by what she had said.
Adiemus eyed her a bit surprised. "Really? It's ok...that's actually what I mean as well." He tried to smile to put her more at ease. "Well I admit I talk like that. It's mainly because I never know what to say or what to feel sometimes. I just get so confused. Then...I think there's the word love...it's..." He didn't know what to say. He smacked himself on the head with a hoof.
Compassion grabbed his hoof gently. "Don't do that," she said. "You look prettier without marks on your face," she smiled. "Well. I'm not good at that either."
Adiemus looked up at Compassion as he grabbed his hoof. "Really?" He looked down at himself. "Well...ok....thank you." He bit his lip a bit nervous. "You know...you're pretty yourself." Adiemus had some blushing, but it could only be seen with red on his gold swirls.
Compassion smiled. "That's nice of you to say, but I'm not pretty. I'm very normal. But I like me like that. If I was beautiful I wouldn't be me."
Adiemus blinked a bit surprised. "Oh...I see..." He paused for a moment. "Although if you think of it outer beauty can eventually disappear as some age...unless you are immortal of course." He sort of laughed, but stopped realizing that was off the point. "Anyways...shouldn't it be the personality that counts?" He looked at her. "Well you're good enough for me inside and out just because of who you are..." He leaned close to her and whispered. "Don't change."
Compassion blushed and ducked her head, letting her hair fall across her face and hide the tears pooling in her eyes. "I won't change," she said softly. "If you won't."
Adiemus stepped back and shook his head. "No...I won't...as long as that's what you wish."
Compassion sniffed and smiled. "You're awesome. Adiemus."
Adiemus smiled. "Thanks...you are too and don't you forget it." He winked before looking up to the sky. "Hmm...it's going to rain soon."
"Yeah," said Compassion uneasily. "If I'm out here in the rain... someone might worry." She glanced around. "I don't want to leave, but I should. A kiss before I go?" she asked.
"I will," agreed Compassion. Rain was spattering her hair and she shivered. "Come see me soon!" She dashes away, keeping under the cover of trees.
Log Ten
Jin came to visit Compassion late one afternoon. He rapped on the door smartly with his claws.
Compassion came to the door, belching quietly, with a biscuit in one hand. "Rock?" she asked uncertainly.
"Compassion," he nodded, smilng sincerely. "You're glowing."
She blushed. "Yeah. I heard you get like that when kids take root. It's why I took the plunge."
"It's a good look for you," said Jin. "That's also why I'm here."
"You're here because I slept with someone and he knocked me up?" asked Compassion crudely, on purpose to try and freak him out.
"No. Well yes. But specifically, I'm here because you slept with someone with dragon genes. Can we go inside? I want you to finish that biscuit."
Compassion was shocked enough that she finished her treat before realising what he'd talked her into and scowled. SHe shrugged and opened the door wider for him. "You got fat."
"I grew, actually," said Jin, walking by her and ducking his wings over the lintel. He sat down in Compassion's second most comfortable chair. "And that's muscle." He looked up at her expectantly.
Compassion sighed and sat down in her favourite squishy chair. "Considering you don't live here anymore; this visit must be more important than telling me to eat something."
"Yeah," said Jin. "We're going to take you into protection for a few weeks."
Compassion blinked. "That was not what I was expecting. Yu;re taking me into protective custody? Why?"
"Because the babies you carry are valuable."
"You're going to steal my babies?" she asked incredulously.
"No, we're going to protect you against others trying to steal your babies," he explained patiently.
"Because people are going to be stealing my babies."
"They could. And if it happens it will be too late to wish you were in a well-fortified cave with big scary dragons protecting you." He smiled and his fangs flashed.
"Because it happens so often," said Compassion sarcastically.
"It used to," said Jin seriously. "In the infighting."
"Sure," Compassion sighed.
"Compassion. I want you to go with me. What will it hurt?"
"You could possibly never let me down."
"I would never. You would kick up a fuss and Brittania would be annoyed."
"Hmmm. I could miss some awesome parties."
"You wouldn't go anyway- it's bad for your condition."
Compassion lowered her death glare rays. "Then what good will it do?"
"You're protected against almost everything, you have a safe and experienced birthing team..." he trailed off. "What's keeping you here?"
"Er," said Compassion. "Well... maybe it'll be good to have... experienced people there."
"Are you worried about that?" asked Jin.
"No!"
"Brittania was worried."
Compassion frowned. "She was?"
"Yeah. But we fixed her up well enough."
"Oh. Was it scary?" asked Compassion.
"I was scared," Jin admitted. "She was brave. But it all came out okay."
"How do you like being a father?"
Jin smiled. The word father in reference to Brittania's kids no longer held the sting it once had. "I like it. It's strange to wake up to someone jumping up and down on your stomach and screaming for breakfast and yet feel good about it."
Compassion's expression melted like chocolate. "That's so sweet. Looks like you didn't lose that when you got all old."
"How could I ose it?' he asked her, quite seriously. "It's what made Brittania fall in love with me. Or at least not kill me right away."
Compassion chuckled. "Yeah."
Posted: Sun Nov 22, 2009 9:32 pm
COMPLETED RPS- ARCHIVE
Yarrow and Brand
one Too far… she’d gone too far and she couldn’t get home… oh it hurt. She was so tired and her back ached and her neck ached from holding up her own head and her eyes drooped and her wings felt like they would snap off if she beat them one more time…
But she had to beat them, she had to get home, she had to fly, just further, just a little bit further.
Suddenly, with a sick feeling in her stomach, her wings shuddered, stiffened and she began to fall to earth.
Yarrow squealed and tried to claw at the air and sweep her wings up but the velocity at which she fell bent her wings the wrong way and held them there with painful force. She could do nothing but slowly, achingly, close them against her and brace for impact.
---------------------------
Brand flew leisurely along. He was annoyed at being pressed into service as some kind of Saint Bernard for lost dragons. The young dragon girl, Yarrow, the sickly one, had taken it into her possibly damaged brain to go on a flight alone in unfamiliar territory and hadn’t come back home. Time was ticking away and her mother was becoming worried.
Brand shuddered. A worried Brittania was a furious Brittania.
But his buddy Thanatos asked around for some help finding the poor little darling, as his mate is was related to it in some fashion. Brand snorted. Can’t upset the mates. Good thing I had the sense never to let that happen to me.
Brand flew on, if not quite as energetically as he could; at least he was looking around in a desultory kind of way. He firmly believed she was off somewhere near some stream staring at her own reflection, or being distracted by some shiny dross, or flirting with some backwards hick. Little girls were so frivolous, and this one was obviously no exception. Give a girl a few flowers In her hair and she was goo goo for her own self.
If Thanatos wasn’t such a good friend, he wouldn’t even bother. But he liked to think of himself as a fairly loyal, if not nice, guy. Maybe Thanatos would pay him back one day, it was all the same.
He only had the most cursory description of this dragon. Spring green with flowers around her, thin and sickly. Sounds like a heroine from some soppy romance book- hey what’s that?
Brand zeroed in on a big hole in the almost continuous canopy of trees. He flew close to peer down into it and saw, in the shadows of the huge trees, a huddled green mass. Brand was too big to fit down the hole, so he flew up and away to find a break in the trees and head back towards the hole by foot.
He found the huddled figure and waved his hand in front of her closed eyes. He supposed this was the girl he had looked for. It seems she hadn’t been idling the time away, but had fallen straight out of the sky.
Two
The girl opened her eyes as his hand travelled across her face.
”Please don’t eat me,” she said piteously. “I’m hurt; I won’t make a good meal.”
”Do I look like I’ll eat you?” snapped Brand. Yarrow didn’t flinch, but her eyes grew watery and very round. He sighed. “I was sent to find you. Are you Yarrow?”
”Sent by whom?” asked Yarrow.
Brand scowled, he didn’t like being ignored. Then again, kids shouldn’t talk to strangers, so he answered; “Thanatos, you know, Vesuvia’s boyfriend. He’s my friend. Known him since before I was your age. I’m his friend, Brand, has he mentioned me?”
Yarrow relaxed a little and shook her head. “He hasn’t mentioned you, but I believe you.” She tried to shift her place with difficulty and stopped with a small wheeze of discomfort. “Yes, I’m Yarrow. I’m sorry you were sent here to find me but I…” she struggled limply. “My wings stopped working,” she whimpered. “It hurts when I move.”
”Don’t move, then,” snapped Brand. This was []i]so out of his job description. He had been meant to go and find a girl and send her home, not pick her up and drag her there! He regretted his sharpness immediately. It wasn’t the girl’s fault she had become tired while turning for home. If that’s what she had been doing…
“Stop trying to move your wings and let’s get your feet under you,” he advised. “I will lift you up, and you try and move your legs down.” He wrapped his arm underneath Yarrow and lifted her up slowly.
Yarrow waited until she had enough room to straighten her legs and then moved them into place. Brand took back his arm and Yarrow stood by herself, shaky but straight. She was so relieved to find she had not taken any real damage after her fall and only her wings really ached. “My wings hurt,” she said to Brand.
”We’ll find someone to look at them at home,” said Brand hurriedly. “Don’t take them out, you might hurt them more. Keep them shut.”
Yarrow nodded. “Yes, okay.” He knew more about flying than she did; being older, with... really pretty wings.
”So,” began Brand. “Can you walk?”
”Yes,” said Yarrow with some confusion. “But we aren’t going to walk home, are we?”
”Do you have a better plan?” asked Brand. “You can’t fly, I can’t carry you. Unless, do you want me to leave you here and go back for help?”
”No!” cried Yarrow, pulling at his hand and he regretted his joke at her expense. She was only little, and had been through enough that day.. “Don’t leave me here alone,” she pleaded quietly.
Brand wobbled her hand in his and then gave it back. “So we are walking,” he said finally. They followed a straight route in the direction of home; or, they tried to. The trees were so thick that sometimes they had to go out a certain way and come back to the proper direction. This made things harder for Yarrow, who was smaller than Brand, tired already, and a bit sore. She didn’t complain, though, and Brand appreciated that. He was not sure he would not have complained at her age if he were tired, sore and quite possibly hungry and scared. Three
Most of the time, Yarrow walked under her own power, but as the day went on and she stepped over more and more trees and exposed roots and they faced detour after detour, she began to have frequent periods where she would hold on to Brand for support. She would lean on him for a few minutes, and then walk unsupported when she felt better. He had been very surprised when she had done this the first time, holding his arm and leaning her head against his upper arm quite without asking. He worried she was getting the wrong idea, thinking of some terrible romance story (not that he could talk, he used to read them a lot when he could find them, especially the small stack or REALLY interesting ones Verdis Bina kept under her bed), but after a while she went her own way again.
It was during one of these times when Yarrow held on to his arm that she turned to him and asked, in a very quiet voice, ‘You wouldn’t really have left me here, would you?”
Brand thought for a moment. “I would have, if you were bigger and could look after yourself,” he said. “It would be faster to have some help and then we could carry you home. Walking takes much longer than flying does.”
Yarrow smiled weakly. “I suppose so.” She felt awkward. He didn’t really want to be here, spending his day with a girl he didn’t even know, rescuing her and having to wait while she walked because she couldn’t fly like him, with his healthy wings. What wings… Yarrow stared at them for a long moment. So beautiful… like sunlight through a kelp-stained creek. She looked away and let go of Brand’s arm, embarrassed.
Brand noticed her take a step back from him and hoped he hadn’t offended her. It was never nice to think someone could abandon you. He didn’t mean anything by it, of course, but maybe she thought otherwise.
He cleared his throat. “Walking is a bit boring, all by itself,” he said, “so how about… a story?” He hated himself for saying it as soon as the words passed his lips. He had no idea how to conversationally stimulate a teenage dragon, and a story had sounded better in his head than asking ‘which boy band is your favourite?’
Yarrow’s eyebrows rose in surprise. “That sounds nice,” she said haltingly.
There was a pause and Brand realised that he was expected and should start the story. He cleared his throat again and thought for a few seconds before beginning.
“Uh, once upon a time, in a pretty land far away filled with… uh… different kingdoms… there was a beautiful flower,” he began somewhat lamely, his eyes having settled on the flowers in Yarrow’s hair for inspiration.
“This flower grew in a place in the land which was not owned by any particular kingdom as it was wild and scary and filled with curses and animals that ate meat. The flower was very special because once every fifty years,” he improvised, imagining a period of time long enough to impress Yarrow, “it closed up for one day each month, and the next day it opened up in the morning with a different kind of jewel.”
Four
Yarrow was staring at him in fascination, waiting for him to continue.
”So, yeah,” said Brand to his captivated audience, “the flower can only do this when it’s in its own safe environment, which is why it didn’t grow everywhere. But legend told of it and one day, a brave young man fought his way through the… sacred land,” he named the area, wincing at how silly it sounded, “and found the flower, and while it was not the year that the flower closes and gives jewels, no-one had been there for a very long time, and many jewels had fallen around the flower from earlier times.”
Yarrow nodded. “It would have been too convenient if it had been just at the right time,” she said approvingly.
”Yes, and it would have taken him months to get all the jewels,” agreed Brand, not mentioning that that had been his first thought. “Anyway, this man carried away all the jewels, which were more than he could cup in his hands, and went home with them, swearing never to tell a soul of the flower and its special powers.
“It was strange to him that the jewels were in different sizes. In fact, the larger the flower grew, the bigger the jewels were.
“The man sold the smaller jewels and started a business with the gold from them and then made more money and married and had children and he gave them each a jewel to start their own fortunes with. He never told his wife or his children about the jewel flower, to keep it safe and hidden. Most men would have gone back for more, and exploited the flower, but the man had enough respect, or superstition, that he should not slight his luck, because surely it was luck which lead him to the jewel flower in the first place.”
”He sounds a bit odd,” commented Yarrow.
”If you stumbled on a small fortune and it changed your life, you might be a little superstitious, too,” said Brand in a prickly way.
“But, one day, one of the man sent one of the last jewels to a jeweller to be made into a pendant for his daughter. The jeweller had never seen a stone like it and asked where it had come from. The man said he had it as inheritance from a dead aunt and took the jewel away and didn’t come back.
“The jeweller was annoyed and wanted to have more of the jewel. He wanted to make a whole line of jewellery out of it and become rich because no-one else would have that jewel. He felt that the man had a secret vein of the jewel, or had stolen it. He had some hired men kidnap the man and take him to a secret place where they could interrogate him about where the jewel had come from.”
Yarrow gasped and her eyes widened in horror and enthrallment.
Brand grinned as he went into the sordid details of the interrogations.
Five
“For a long time the man held out, but then he told them about the jewel flower. At first they didn’t believe him, but he would tell no other story but that one and they rolled their eyes at each other and said ‘Fine, we will go out and test your story, but if we come back and find out you lied, we’ll kill you and your family.’
“The man was terrified, and he scuttled home bewildered and hurt. He wouldn’t say what happened to him, though, as it would betray the secret twice.
“The jeweller and his men went into the sacred land after asking everyone about the jewel flower and found it, though the garden had been picked clean of jewels. They noticed it looked odd and wondered in fervent hope if it were not the fiftieth year and the flower was readying itself to close and open with jewels.
“The jeweller and his men went back home to gather the supplies they would need to spend a while in the sacred land and wait for the jewels to drop. Before they could start the journey back, they were arrested for the attack of the first man. His wife had reported his injuries to the police and witnesses had seen the jeweller’s men attack him.
”Oooh,” said Yarrow with interest. “That’s a twist!”
”I know!” said Brand proudly. “So, they were taken to prison, and because the crime was committed by such a rich person, the jeweller was taken in chains to the king’s palace. The king might have been obliged to take a bribe from the jeweller to keep him out of prison.”
”That’s not very justice-y,” frowned Yarrow.
”That’s the way the world works,” said Brand with a sigh. “Once the jeweller was before the king, he fell to his knees and said it hadn’t been him. The king disagreed and told him that witnesses were sure he had been asking the man something. The jeweller saw his chance; if he went to prison, he would never get the jewels from the jewel flower, even if he bought himself out, many people would watch him for many years and he would not have a chance to travel into the sacred lands. So he decided to tell the king about the jewel flower in trade for his freedom.
“The king listened with doubt to the jeweller’s story, just as the jeweller had listened to it with doubt when the man had first told him.
“You will take my men there,” said the king. “If they come back with no sight of it, they will kill you and you will wish you had spent your life in prison!”
“The jeweller sobbed his thanks to the king and was taken by a troop of palace guards to the sacred lands. Still in chains, he lead them to the flower, now much darker than it had been, almost the blue of a bright sapphire… it was about to close.”
”So they were there just in time!” exclaimed Yarrow, stepping over a large log. “Did they bring the king back the jewel as proof?”
Six
”No,” said Brand crossly. “Let me tell the story.
“The king’s men took the jeweller back to his home and told him to keep himself out of trouble. The jeweller said to all his clients that he had in fact helped the king in a sting operation against the men he had hired. Those men were convicted and sent to prison.
“The soldiers returned to the king with news of a magical flower. They didn’t know, because the jeweller didn’t tell them because he didn’t know, that the flower could not be moved without destroying it and so the king decided he would find the flower and take it.”
”What a selfish guy!” said Yarrow.
”He’s a king, they’re all a bit selfish,” said Brand drily. “This king, though, was trying to woo a princess of a nearby kingdom-“
”To woo?” asked Yarrow critically. “Like an owl? To wit to woo!” she said, imitating an owl.
”Fine! The king was trying to court a princess from a nearby kingdom! Happy?” asked Brand snappishly. “A very rude princess who liked to interrupt people!”
Yarrow said nothing, but she looked like she would not stop him again, so he went on.
”The princess was being courted by lots of kings and princes and dukes from all around because she was very beautiful and she was rich and had a very good lineage.”
”Does that really matter?” Yarrow asked, hoping the answer would surprise her.
Brand frowned, not at her asking, but at the question itself. “Yes, it does matter,” he said finally. She looked a little crestfallen, so he continued. “The princess was courted by many admirers but the king wanted her for himself. He was a proud man and he hated to be rejected, but he feared that another suitor might swoop away with her and he wouldn’t have that. He thought he might have a good chance already, but a good gift would not go amiss, and that good gift would be a jewel dispensing flower.”
”Why did she have so many suitors?” asked Yarrow. “Why didn’t she tell them all to go away if she didn’t like them?”
”Oh because…” said Brand, before hitting on an idea. “Because they couldn’t officially ask her to marry them because she was too young. She was just a teen, like you, about your age, and they couldn’t marry her or even ask her to marry them until she was an adult and could choose properly.”
”Oh,” said Yarrow, looking down at herself. “That sounds like a good rule.”
”Good,” said Brand. “So the king set off to meet the princess and to check if his interest was good and it was worth going and getting this flower. He greeted her with beautiful words and praise and she sighed deeply because it was all things she had heard before. Seven
The king promised to get the jewel flower for her and set it at her feet as a gift to honour her loveliness.
“The princess was interested in the flower, but didn’t really believe it would drop out jewels. She told her handmaiden about it as soon as the king had gone. Expecting to make her laugh, but instead the handmaiden threw her hands up to her face in horror.
“‘What is it?’ asked the princess.
“‘I know the story of that flower, your ladyship!’ said the handmaiden with a quaver to her voice. ‘But the king has it wrong, oh so wrong! The flower cannot be taken from its ground or it will die and the miracle will be lost forever!’
“The princess was aghast at this terrible news. She was resolved to stop the king, and run after him and tell him not to, but she realised the king would not believe her, or might think he knew better, and, anyway, the flower was no-one’s property; it could be destroyed by anyone who wanted to.
“The handmaiden, who, it appeared, loved stories, had once heard of a princess changing places with a maid and so proposed that the king, who had never seen the flower before, be tricked with a false flower and this flower should be given to the princess, who could keep up the ruse. That way, the true flower would be safe.
“’But how would be trick him?’ asked the princess. ‘We don’t know where the flower is, or have a way to get there before him!’
“The handmaiden caught the eye of a young man. He was the younger brother of one of the princess’s suitors. She beckoned him over and suggested that this man be sent ahead to conduct the ruse. After all, the king did not know exactly where to find the flower, either.
“The young man spluttered. He felt he could not do such a thing as he was here to help his brother. The princess said, with annoyance, that certainly proving to her that his brother’s family was not full of cowards was certainly to his brother’s favour. With that, he accepted the quest and made ready to leave.
“This young man was only recently made a knight under his brother and was ready to do his duty in his first solo quest, though he wished he were doing it with his brother, or at least his blessing; he had been sworn to secrecy by the princess.”
”He seems soppy,” said Yarrow, unimpressed.
”He gets better,” assured Brand. “The knight went ahead of the king and his men, as one person can travel faster than a whole group. He had in his grasp the most beautiful flower from the princess’s garden, willingly sacrificed for the cause. He planted it and tried to make the surrounding glen look as secret and mysterious as he could, and then he hid and listened.
“He heard footsteps and cries of triumph: the king’s men had found the flower.
Eight
Then he heard the king say that he had expected the flower to be blue, not pink. The knight felt his stomach fall to his feet. If the king were to find out he was being tricked…
“But all was well. The king decided that perhaps his men had meant a pink[/i[ sapphire and dismissed the thought. He had his men dig it out gently and put it in a golden pot. He was feeling very smug at this point; he had a gift none other could give or surpass.
“The knight was disposed to return to the princess with the news of his success, but the second part of his quest now awaited.
“If the king could not be shown the jewels said to come forth from the flower, he might think it a joke and come back for the real one, so the knight had to find the true flower, collect the jewels it dropped each month, take them back to the princess each time, and then come back for the next month.”
”That’s a lot of work,” said Yarrow admiringly.
”I told you he gets better,” said Brand. “So the knight searched for the flower and found it. It was beautiful, and the deep blue of a sapphire. He did not have long to wait until it closed completely and then, the next morning, a small tumble of beautiful, perfect sapphires fell to the ground around the flower.
“The knight gathered the sapphires up and travelled with all haste to the princess’s castle, where she was keeping the king at bay. He was becoming annoyed that the flower would not release jewels and the princess by now could not show him the flower as it was wilting. Another flower was fetched from the garden but all of them would die; they were not everlasting as the jewel flower was.
“The knight gave the princess the jewels in secret, in the dead of night. She was so relieved to have them and bid him good luck to travel and return next month.
“Now, with a date on which the flower apparently released jewels confirmed, the king was more relaxed and praised the sapphires the princess showed him. He exclaimed that they were just like the princess’s eyes in beauty. The princess nearly rolled those eyes at this comment,” said Brand, his tongue tripping over itself as he glanced at Yarrow and picked out where his feet were going. “Because her eyes were… yellow.” He glanced at Yarrow’s yellow eyes and shook himself. What a sop he was being!
Brand coughed a bit and wished he had some water. “The king came again at the next month and asked to see the jewels from the flower. The knight had delivered them again two days before and had told the princess that the jewel flower turned clear like ice before dropping a handful of diamonds.
The king was well satisfied with this. The other suitors were very angry and imagined that the princess would marry the king.
Nine
The lordly brother of the knight was worried as well for the sake of his brother and hoped he had not been mixed up in anything too dangerous.”
”It doesn’t seem very dangerous,” said Yarrow.
”Oh yeah?” challenged Brand. “The danger came when the next month brought horrible storms which made travel hard. The knight was very late with the delivery of stones and the princess had to pretend to be ill to avoid seeing the king and showing him jewels she didn’t have.
“Luckily, the knight showed himself, sodden and dirty and exhausted, with a bag of rubies in his hand. The princess kissed his grimy cheek in gratitude and hurried inside to show the king.
“And so it went on for more months, with the king arriving every month to see the new jewels for the princess and the knight going away and collecting the jewels from the jewel flower in the sacred lands and delivering them to the princess.
“Over the months, the princess grew up into a young adult and she was even more beautiful…” Brand tailed off awkwardly.
”Yes?” asked Yarrow. “What happened next?”
”Uh, yeah okay,’ said Brand awkwardly. “The princess came of age and the suitors began to court her much more ardently. She was hard-pressed to know how to discourage them all. He father advised her to simply make a choice and be done with it, but none of the princes or lords or kings suited her, certainly not the king who had brought her the flower.
“She wondered if she thought any of them handsome. Yes, some of them were handsome, and some were smart, and some appeared to really love her, but there was one man who had proven himself to be devout. She wondered if the knight had ever thought of her in a different way than as a princess to be served. Perhaps as a princess to be married…” Brand looked at Yarrow, half flinching that she would be annoyed by his cloying romantics, even if they were necessary for the story.
”Oh, I bet he did,” said Yarrow knowingly. “I bet he really liked her and never got the chance to say because his brother was the one trying to get her. I hope they get married. Don’t stop now, Brand!”
Brand held back a grin. “If you insist,” he sighed. “When the very last jewels were brought by the knight and passed into the princess’s hands, the knight held one of the emeralds out to her and said:
“’It is beneath myself to ask for payment for this task you have set me, which I have done. But I ask a boon of you, my lady; please allow this wretched knight to have the pleasure of this one stone, to remember you by.’
”A boon?’ asked Yarrow, despite herself.
Brand scowled at her, but continued. “The princess was shocked; he didn’t mean to see her anymore? She agreed to his request and he went off with a single emerald for all of his hard work. She watched him go with a sad heart.
Ten
“When she showed the emeralds to the king, she told him that she had given an emerald to a long-serving knight, and that was why there had been fewer this time, which was nothing but the truth. The king accepted this and at once he bowed to her and asked her to marry him.
“The princess looked at him in the face and saw no love for her. She saw only greed. He was so much unlike her knight, her brave, noble knight, who looked at her as though she were the only reason in the world to live. She refused the king’s proposal.
“The king did not like this answer and took the princess hard by the arm, ready to make her accept him, by any means necessary. The handmaiden ran out with a scream, dodged the king’s guard and ran down the corridor to find some help. She passed the knight on her way and told him the princess was in terrible danger. He told her to tell everyone she could and ran into the princess’s greeting chamber, showing something deep into his pocket as he went.”
”What was it?” gasped Yarrow.
”You’ll see,” said Brand. The king looked up when the knight came in and laughed. What would a knight do against a king? The knight loosed his blade from its scabbard and told the king to get away from the sobbing princess or face his blade. The king laughed again and refused. The knight was then set upon by the king’s guards and he fought them off until he had all their swords and they had no weapons; his time alone in the wild had hardened him and improved his strength.
“The knight came upon the king now and ordered him away from the princess. The king let her go but would not surrender. He said he intended to have her for his bride no matter what and nothing could stop him.
“The knight turned to the princess, cringing away from the king and approached her slowly.
“’My lady,’ he said, ‘I had hoped to do this at a more auspicious time. When you granted me the favour I asked of you, I had hoped for your approval from this vast enterprise.’ He pulled out a box from his pocket. ‘My lady, though it be bought with your own jewel, please accept my offer of marriage.’ He opened the box and in it sat a small ring set with an emerald. ‘Will you marry me?’”
Brand heard Yarrow gasp and grinned. “The princess stared at the knight and accepted; she cared for him very much and he for her. The king was thrown out of the palace, as well as all the other suitors who were not happy about the match. The knight’s brother was his best man, for he had not loved the princess and could now marry the lady he wished to without fear of disinheritance. The knight may not have been a king, but he was kind and loyal and brave, and the princess had enough money and titles. They married on a spring day the next year and lived happily ever after. The end.
”What about the jewel flower?” asked Yarrow.
”It was safe and was rediscovered and hidden again for many many generations,” said Brand, smugly happy to have finished his story.
”That was a good story,” said Yarrow.
”Thank you,” said Brand. “Look, you’re almost home.” It was true, they were heading towards the mountain now, out of the forest. Immediately upon their arrival at the base of the mountain, Yarrow was set upon by her brother and sisters who checked her over and asked every question under the sun. When they were confirmed that she was only sore and not harmed, they made to carry her up the mountain.
”Can Brand come too?” asked Yarrow. She was told that maybe he could visit the next day, when she was better. She nodded and said farewell to him and he to her.
When Brand arrived to see her the next day, he was surprised to note she had started a growth spurt. He visited her many times and noticed from one day to the next that she was becoming healthier and taller until finally she was fully grown, not a teenager any longer.
She smiled at him when he noticed this to her. “Yes, I’m all grown now,” she said. “I was waiting until now.” She leaned up and kissed him.
Brand kissed her back, but when they broke away he was unhappy. “What about your family? Don’t they want a better man for you?”
Yarrow looked at him endearingly. “Maybe you aren’t a king, but you’re brave and loyal and kind and I have enough titles for both of us.”
Brand laughed and laughed and kissed her again. He wasn’t sure that was a real answer, but it would do.
Yellow Calla Lily
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Yellow Calla Lily
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Posted: Sun Nov 22, 2009 9:33 pm
Completed Rps- Archive
Rahar and Valmoriel
ONE
”Again, I would like to impress my appreciation of your accepting of my invitation, Mr Rahar,” said Valmoriel with ceremony bordering on pompousness. “It is very difficult to balance numbers with the state of things.”
”I understand completely, Miss Valmoriel,” said Rahar with a practised air. He sat across an oval table from Valmoriel which was girt by six chairs, two of which they occupied. The other four chairs were claimed by an assortment of toys. A teddy bear slumped at Valmoriel’s right hand side, while a doll with a dress so voluminous it dripped from her seat separated Rahar from a stuffed owl, who, in turn, sat on Valmoriel’s left hand side. The remaining chair was taken up by a plushie of a horse with a red and orange mane and tail which, upon closer inspection, was actually living flame.
The tea set arranged on the table was not the type you would typically find on a table being set for dolls. The entire set was made of emerald and carved with feathers and owls. The great tea pot bore owls in flight and round owl faces peered from the cups. This set had been made for Valmoriel when she was a very young child by Mortedom and it usually sat on a sideboard. Valmoriel had decided to use it in honour of Rahar's visit.
"How have you been keeping, sir?" Valmoriel asked, sipping from her green stone cup. It held the warmth from the tea well, but was definitely more solid than a porcelain teacup.
"Quite well, Miss Valmoriel," said Rahar. He drank off his tea. He didn't really know much about tea to say whether it was good or bad. It was drinkable, so that made him think he liked it. He liked Valmoriel. This usually meant he was convinced to do things like have a tea party with toys. At least he could look at her while he did it. She was so beautiful. "I must say, lovely tea."
"Thank you, sir," said Valmoriel. She poured him some more out of the little tea pot. "Flagchaser, may I freshen your cup?" she asked the flame-maned plush.
"How have you been, Valmoriel?" asked Rahar.
"Perfectly fine," said Valmoriel primly. Then she looked at Rahar and her lips pursed. "It's rather boring here at the moment," she confessed.
"I think so as well," admitted Rahar. "I know there used to be huge happenings before I was born and now... nothing."
"It was very interesting years ago," said Valmoriel. "But, years ago, you could never have been found in my room with tea and teddies."
"Really?" asked Rahar curiously. "Why? Was it strict? Would we have needed a chaperone?"
"No," said Valmoriel sadly. "As a male, you would have been sent away from the mountain to impregnate as many females as you could while I stayed here and trained to defend the mountain and eventually participate in skirmishes against the other dragon clans."
Rahar's mouth fell open. He was not sure what part of her speech shocked him more- fighting other dragon clans, defending the mountain, or going away to gratuitously have affairs with many women on orders.
TWO
"Yes," said Valmoriel idly. "It's much better now. Hmm..." she finished her tea and poured herself another.
"Wh-" Rahar began and cleared his throat as his voice came out wheezy and odd. "Why would you have had to stay here? Wouldn't you have had children?"
"No," said Valmoriel. "As a female dragon, the complications and time required by pregnancy would have been beneath my dignity. A female dragon is more valuable strong and battle-ready. Carmine would have gone out to have babies, and Tundra. And, of course, Tasma would never have been allowed to leave, in case she got taken prisoner, or decided to start a rival clan."
"Why... why all this?" asked Rahar weakly.
"To protect the family," said Valmoriel. "That is how things were when Brittania was among the dragons of the north, before the decline. I think it must have happened from infighting and refusal to allow other species in, I think that's why dragons are so much rarer now. I suppose, back when the dragons were in power, they had their genetics so finely put that they could be assured that every baby would have been a dragon, so they could have safely allowed their females to become pregnant as the payoff would have been greater." She sighed. "Once, I would have liked to have had an exciting life back then, but... I'm too different."
"I like you the way you are," said Rahar insistently. "If you don't want to fight, if the time comes, I can fight. I'm good at it."
Valmoriel smiled at him. "I think you must be a throwback to those times. These days, we have magic, but brute force was what dragons were mostly known for."
"'Brute' force?" asked Rahar. The conversation was interesting, if a little shocking. He found himself very close to confessing his love but now he wondered if Valmoriel only thought he was a creepy little thug. He wished there was someone out there to fight for her, to win her honour, to do some large grand gesture of his love. Maybe he was a throwback of a different time. But Valmoriel just said she sometimes wished to have lived then...
"I don't mean you're a brute," said Valmoriel kindly. "You're just more about physical strength than magic. That's not a bad thing," she insisted. "I could use to get a bit stronger..."
"You're fine," said Rahar quickly. "Completely perfect."
Valmoriel blushed. "So are you."
Rahar's face slackened with shock. "Oh."
Valmoriel laughed. "More tea?"
"I'll have as much tea as you can give me," said Rahar.
Valmoriel switched her teacup with one of the untouched cups of the toys. "You don't miss the old days now?"
"I wouldn't want to be sent away from here," said Rahar. "I would like to see the world, though."
"Really?" asked Valmoriel in surprise. "I would miss it here."
"We could always visit."
"But what about the kids? Wouldn't running off leave the others short handed with them?"
"If they can make them, they can look after them!" said Rahat. I thought she meant our kids!, he thought.
"True..." said Valmoriel. "But wouldn't you miss them being around?"
"Would you have missed me hanging around after you?" asked Rahar drily.
Valmoriel paused with a smile. "Perhaps not and then perhaps."
Rahar took that as a victory.
THREE
Rahar stared at the thing in front of him. It was a misshapen piece of cloth with too many arms, not enough legs and string coming out everywhere. He couldn't get it to look right no matter how hard he tried.
Haradrin ambled in to Rahar's room, trailing roses as he always did. Haradrin never seemed to fear that he was overstepping boundaries or that people would get annoyed at him for hovering around. Perhaps he did, but he did not let on. He sat near Rahar and set his heavy chin on the table, looking at the thing Rahar had made.
Rahar looked defensively at Haradrin, in case the child made some kind of crack about his artwork. He shouldn't have worried. Haradrin would never be unkind. Instead, Rahar asked; 'What do you think would make it look... like a toy?"
Haradrin looked at the monstrosity in front of him and then took it into his claws. He turned it over and over, looking at it from all sides. Then, he took hold of a thread and pulled. The entire thing fell apart.
Rahar caught some pieces as they fell to the floor. "Ah!" he cried. "This is a gift for Valmoriel!"
Haradrin ignored him. He still had the main part of the toy in his claws. He bunched up a certain amount of it with the stuffing and tied a string around it.
"Ohh," said Rahar. "That's the head... Good job, kiddo!" He took the cloth back from Haradrin and started working. "Here," he said, pushing some fabric scraps towards Haradrin. "Try and make some ears or something."
They worked in silence for some time expect for Rahar's occasional complaint. Finally, Rahar held up an upside down sack filled with stuffing which might have looked like a head of some kind.
"What have you got?" he asked Haradrin.
Haradrin took the head and some thread and began sewing. He handed Rahar back a head with two large ears, a firm nose and a short spray of woolen hair on its topmost seam.
"How did you do that?" asked Rahar, taking the head back and admiring it. "This is good work," he said, ruffling Haradrin's hair and accidentally crushing a few of the roses which were permanently woven into it. "Hey," he said, passing back the head. "Do you think you can make some eyes? I'll make the body."
Haradrin pulled all the little pieces toward him and began working. Haradrin eventually presented a head with charmingly large eyes sewn in with thread, ears with little bows above them and much more hair fringing the top seam. By the time he had finished these details, Rahar had all but given up making the body.
With a great sigh, Rahar resigned himself to failing in his attempt to make a gift for Valmoriel. He was sure the pieces would never fit. "Thanks for helping me," he said heavily to Haradrin. "Sorry I can't really do this."
Haradrin took up the rejected body and held it close.
"Yeah, you can have it, you can probably make something out of it." Rahar slid all his materials over to Haradrin. "I might read something..." He flung himself on his bed with a book. "You're pretty good company, Haradrin." Haradrin didn't reply, but Rahar hadn't expected him to.
FOUR
Haradrin came by Rahar's room the next day. Rahar was out, but Haradrin left the bear they had both worked on on the table for when Rahar got back.
Rahar found the bear. It looked very good. It had a cheerful face and was all in proportion. Haradrin had even stuffed a little stumpy tail for it.
Rahar went out to find Valmoriel. Thankfully, he didn't need to look far as she was sunbaking in the main landing. "I was wondering what the chances are for a tea party this afternoon."
Valmoriel sat up and rubbed her eyes. "Fairly good, if you would like to come," she said in surprise. "Just come down in a while, I'll go get some tea."
Rahar quickly went to his bathroom and brushed his hair and cleaned his teeth. He tried to rub a stubborn mark out his his scales, but he decided to give it a rest. She wouldn't be looking that closely at him.
When he arrived at Valmoriel's room, he knocked. "It's just me," he said.
Valmoriel opened the door and let him in. "Did you get lost on your way here? I expected you ten minutes ago. It's not like you to keep me waiting." She did not seem annoyed, only surprised.
"I had to go and collect my guest," said Rahar. "I hope you don't mind that I invited someone else to our tea party."
"No," said Valmoriel slowly. Someone else? WHo could that be? One of the children? No, she couldn't see anyone standing with him... Then Rahar brought his hands from behind his back and showed her the teddy and she gasped in delight.
"This is my guest," said Rahar, giving her the bear. "May I present... er... the... Honourable Miss..." his eyes fell on the teapot. "The Honourable Miss Cossity," he said, inventing a name from swapping the order of the words in 'tea cosy'.
"Wonderful!" said Valmoriel. "Did you make her?" She beckoned Rahar into her room and closed the door.
"Well," said Rahar, taking his usual seat. "I tried. But then Haradrin helped me, I think he's good at that sort of stuff. Blows me away."
Valmoriel brought out an odd stood and sat Cossity down between herself and Flagchaser. She started pouring the tea into cups, first for Rahar, then the toys and finally, herself. "It's so nice of you to introduce us to your friend," she said.
"I hope you accept her as a gift," said Rahar. "I couldn't have a toy like that in my room... I think my sisters would never let me hear the end of it."
"Do they know you come here and drink tea with my toys and I?" asked Valmoriel.
"Yes," said Rahar slowly. "But I think they're sick of teasing me about how much I love you." He suddenly realised what he had said and froze. Should he deny it? Would that make it worse? Would it be unmanly to take it back? He decided it would and sat, blushing furiously, while Valmoriel digested what he had said.
FIVE
Valmoriel began smiling and then giggled and then she laughed. It wasn't cruel laughter, or even laughter at Rahar, she was laughing with pleasure at such a kind compliment.
Rahar had had just about enough and was ready to leave in embarrassment when Valmoriel stood up, crossed the table and flung her arms around him.
Valmoriel pressed her cheek against Rahar's. "You're so lovely," she said. "I'm so glad to have a friend like you."
Rahar hugged her back. He wasn't disappointed that she said 'friend' because it was better than nothing. "Me too," he said.
The rest of the tea party progressed as usual, if everyone was blushing. They chatted more honestly, perhaps. Valmoriel had come to realise that Rahar was, in fact, her very best friend. Her sister would never have sat with her at a tea party, and she had so much fun with Rahar, who always seemed to have time for her. She would have been very unhappy if she lost his friendship.
After he left her room, she tidied up the tea set and the toys. She held Cossity in her claws. It was very simply made. She admired the hard work he had put into it, even if Haradrin had, as Rahar had said, finished it and made it look normal. She appreciated the effort. She also appreciated the gift. She made a mental note to thank Haradrin the next time she saw him.
When Valmoriel went to bed that night, Cossity sat on her bedside table.
Rahar, on the other hand, had a very bad night. he was so consumed with embarrassment. He wondered if it was worth it to keep on with Valmoriel if she didn't feel the same way. Would she really string him along? Would she make fun of him for saying he loved her? He didn't think so, no, she wasn't that kind of person.
Rahar had bad dreams that night and was relieved when he woke up in the morning. His first thought, as usual, was Valmoriel and he knew he couldn't stop seeing her just because he had a moment of over share. If she still wanted to be his friend, he still wanted to be with her.
That morning, Valmoriel had gotten up early as well. She had stolen into Carmine's baking studio (really just a small kitchen Carmine had banned anyone else from entering) and attempted to make a cake for Rahar. It didn't turn out very poorly; she cut off the burned bits and covered it with thick icing.
She cleaned up after herself and turned to leave.
Only to find her sister, Carmine, in the way.
"I thought I heard someone in my studio," said Carmine accusingly.
"I left everything the way I found it!" protested Valmoriel.
"Who's the cake for?" asked Carmine.
"Rahar," answered Valmoriel.
Carmine stared intently at her sister. "Are you falling for him?" she asked sternly.
"I don't know, but he was embarrassed yesterday, so I wanted to make him something"
SIX
Carmine blinked slowly. She looked like she didn't believe Valmoriel. "What did you think about first thing this morning?"
"How upset he might be," said Valmoriel sadly. "He made me this teddy thing- what?" Valmoriel noticed Carmine shaking her head.
"I think you're in love with him," said Carmine flatly. "If you didn't, you wouldn't care."
"He's my friend, that's why I care," said Valmoriel.
"Sure. That's why you haven't met a man you like. Because you have a friend who supplies all your male support needs. If you're not in love with him, you're very close to it." She walked Valmoriel up the mountain.
They walked for a long time without saying anything. "What if I am in love with him and I don't know it?"
"Well, lots of people say you know exactly when you're in love," said Carmine. "Those people are liars. There are loads of different kinds of love. You could be in love, But you know what I like about Rahar?"
"What?" asked Valmoriel.
"He's not whining about you not coming out all gushy over him. Whenever men experience a feeling, they usually get all proud and expect everyone to bend over backwards so they can experience their love, whether or not someone wants them to."
"You seem to know a lot about this,' said Valmoriel suspiciously.
"I'm hanging out with Virdis Bina a lot," said Carmine. "She has great knowledge. Also a great movie collection."
"How does this movie end?" asked Valmoriel.
"You either realise you love him and you end up happily ever after, or you realise you don't love him and he becomes your best friend for ever, or he gets bitter and leaves and marries a woman who looks exactly like you, or the polar opposite of you, and she makes his life an utter misery on purpose because they're punishing each other. You then find a good man who makes you happy, but it's not him," said Carmine, listing off possible endings.
"That's terrible..." said Valmoriel quietly. "Is there an ending where he's happy if it turns out I don't love him?"
"Hmmm," said Carmine. "He could discover he's actually gay. That would end up with everyone happy."
"I don't think he's gay," said Valmoriel."
"He has tea parties with you."
"I made him do that!" protested Valmoriel, nearly dropping the cake.
Carmine shrugged. "Suit yourself." She turned to leave back the way they had come. "I still can't believe he actually started coming to those tea parties," she muttered. Perhaps she was a little jealous of her beautiful sister and her ardent suitor? To be pursued... well, it's flattering... Ahh, hell, she would just go set some stuff on fire to make herself feel better. "Bye, Valmoriel."
"Have a nice day, Carmine,' replied Valmoriel. She continued down the corridor until she came to Rahar's room. She knocked and received no reply. The door was unlocked when she tried the handle, so she opened the door, in case he was sleeping. The room was empty. Valmoriel had spent more time in the kitchen baking than she had imagined. He was already up and out. She stepped back and swung the door closed.
"Don't stop snooping on my account," said Rahar from behind her. He had seen his door open and wondered who had gone into his room while he was out. When she had closed the door, he could see Valmoriel.
"Gah!" cried Valmoriel, throwing her hands up and losing her grip on the cake in shock.
"Hold up!" exclaimed Rahar, diving forward to catch the cake in his hands to stop it smashing all over Valmoriel, who caught the empty plate. He ruefully set the partly clawed cake back on its plate.
"I made it for you," said Valmoriel dejectedly. "It's ruined..."
Rahar licked the icing off one of his claws. "Doesn't taste ruined. Tastes good. Thank you," he said sincerely. He bent down and kissed her cheek. It wasn't a peck, it was a long kiss. he didn't pull away until he felt her cheek warm up with a hot blush. If she hadn't wanted to be kissed, she could have stepped away.
Valmoriel was blushing. She was blushing and she didn't understand why. It was just Rahar, he'd just given her a kiss, that was all. He was her best friend, of course he could kiss her. She watched his tongue flick out of his mouth as he cleaned off his talons. "You're welcome," she said and she handed the plate to him with as much dignity as she could muster.
SEVEN
Valmoriel banked in the air and wondered what on earth it was that her mother wished to speak to her about. Not Vesuvia, Vesuvia would never wish to speak to her about anything. Not Hasselti, either; Hasselti would come to her.
Mirage had had very little to do with Valmoriel. Everyone gets busy, Valmoriel knew and so she never questioned it. You don't need so many mothers, and she had a father. She had never really missed having another mother.
When a letter had arrived by messenger that morning asking her to visit for the day, Valmoriel and Carmine had been utterly flummoxed. So had Vesuvia, when she saw it. The only thing to do would be to go and see what the problem was. Carmine was of the opinion that they were going to come into a massive inheritance and had been all for Valmoriel going without delay. Valmoriel wondered if she had been selected for an arranged marriage, which caused Rahar to insist she took him with her. Valmoriel had not even dignified this request with an answer.
She also wondered why she had been asked and not Carmine. The obvious answer was that Valmoriel had wings and Carmine took so much longer to get places. Valmoriel saw her destination in sight and was relieved to think she would have answers soon enough.
*****
A few hours later, Valmoriel was on her way home with a great deal more to think about than when she had arrived. It was also slower going; she was tired and she was weighted down. She was carrying a large box. It was a nice box, fairly pretty, with crazy designs carved into it. It was about as long as her leg, so she carried it under herself the way she would carry a passenger.
It had airholes.
****
She was exhausted when she got home. She put the box down and then fell upon it. Rahar and Carmine had been waiting for her return and they helped her up off the box.
Valmoriel gripped Rahar's arm to keep herself steady and sat down against the wall. Rahar sat with her.
"You were gone so long," he said. "We were a little worried."
"What is that?" asked Carmine, staring at the box. Trust Carmine not to fuss. Valmoriel was too tired to speak and simply rested her head on Rahar's shoulder.
Carmine didn't hear her sister say not to, so she inspected the box closely. She found the hinge for the lid. "Gosh, it almost looks like a coffin! But it's a bit too small to be a coffin..." Rahar was interested now. "Open it up," he said.
Carmine heaved the lid up and froze. She stood in position, with her arms up, gazing at whatever was in the box. "What is it?" asked Rahar. He supported Valmoriel as she limped over to the box, her claws skittering across the stone floor. He glanced inside and saw a peach coloured pony with two toned magenta and silver hair. A baby pony, he was draped in a net of silver hung over with jet beads. Despite the long journey, he appeared to be fast asleep, or dead.
'What is this, Valmoriel?" asked Carmine quietly.
"He's our brother," replied Valmoriel.
EIGHT
The night wore on. They sat around the box. Occasionally someone went for a pitcher of water or a snack for them to pass around, but none of them mentioned going to bed.
Rahar had voiced the thought that perhaps Brittania ought to be told, but Carmine said, flatly, that she would know soon enough. besides, weren't they a pathetic enough group of people staring at each other waiting for a baby to wake up without adding his mother, and possibly his father and the rest of the mountain, to the party?
There wasn't really an argument to level at that and so the three of them sat through the night keeping company with a box.
Around dawn, when Carmine's head had descended onto her shoulder and Valmoriel had long since fallen into a doze, the baby began to stir. Rahar stroked Valmoriel's hair until she awoke and prodded Carmine for the same effect. They leaned over the box and watched as the baby woke himself up, shook himself roughly enough that his jewellery rattled and then noticed he had an audience. He stared up at the two dragons and earth pony and looked from one to the other with a narrow expression odd to see on his young face.
"Where am I? he asked shortly.
"You're at the top of Green Lady Mountain," said Rahar, easily the most alert of them.
"Why?"
"Because..." began Rahar before he realised that he had no clue why this baby had been brought here. "Uh, Valmoriel?" he turned to her for help.
"You're going to live with us," explained Valmoriel.
"Why?" asked the foal with deep suspicion.
"Because we're your sisters," added Carmine.
The foal snorted. "No, you're not," he said flatly.
"Yes, we are!" insisted Carmine angrily. "We're older than you and bigger than you and you have to listen to us and do as we say!"
"If that's what having sisters is like, I don't want any sisters, especially pretend sisters like you. I have two sisters, and neither of them are you," he replied. Valmoriel could almost hear his sarcastic 'thank you very much' in his tone.
"You have more sisters than you were born with," said Valmoriel, keeping a lid on her tired and strung out feelings. "We were born when Mirage, your mother, was with Vesuvia, our mother. I am Valmoriel, this is Carmine Masque, and this not-a-sister person is Rahar."
"I was going to say you didn't look like a sister," said the foal with a malicious smirk to Rahar.
Rahar growled.
"What is your name?" asked Valmoriel in a tight voice.
"Jet," said Jet proudly. "Jet Delusion."
"Of course it is," groaned Carmine. "Well, now we know he isn't dead, we should probably tell everyone he's staying for a while. Like we don't have enough kids already," she groaned and sat up, stretching her sore muscles.
"I'll do it," volunteered Rahar. He stood and shook out his tail. "Mum would probably kill you if you woke her at this hour. She's been tag teaming with Yarrow and Brand for nightmare duties with Blake."
"He's still not sleeping?" asked Valmoriel sympathetically.
"No," Rahar rubbed his face roughly. "Poor kid. I hope mum wasn't up with him tonight," he groaned and left them.
"Why did I get sent here?" asked Jet quietly. "Is this where bad kids go?"
"No," said Valmoriel. "Why would you think that?"
"Having nightmares sounds like a punishment," explained Jet.
Carmine glanced at Valmoriel. "No, Blake just has difficulty sleeping. Lots of kids do. You were sent here... to get to know our side of the family. Your other sister is staying with Vallas Caldera, they didn't send her away because she's bad."
"Who is Vallas Cauldron?"
"Vallas is our sister. She's very very pretty," answered Carmine. "I'm sure we'll see her before long."
NINE
Jet settled in well in the mountain. He got along the best with Blake, which was a great relief as Jet helped Blake through his night terrors. However, now that Blake was able to dream walk at will without fear, he became a danger to others. Most of the time he did not intend to cause others distress but boys will be little boys.
Valmoriel took it upon herself to watch Jet closely while Carmine watched him more obviously. Rahar had never warmed to Jet and remained suspicious of him. He was aware of the great powers Valmoriel possessed and did not like to think of a child with such capabilities, especially not an angry, annoying, arrogant child. He was careful to keep his thoughts on this count to himself.
Valmoriel took her turn teaching Caster magic. She was not as adept at Eerinna, but her magic was more akin to his and she could impart on him the finer aspects of the art.
The lessons still happened in Eerinna and Zared's ice castle under Eerinna's eye, just in case something was set on fire or electrocuted or turned to rubble. Rahar stopped by afterwards to collect Valmoriel. He found her and Caster quite well, even if the room was slightly singed.
"How did it go?" he asked.
"I set the roses on fire," said Caster with a hint of pride as well as embarrassment.
"Actually," said Valmoriel, rubbing a char mark out of the floor, "the roses were made of fire. It's different, and possibly even progress." She looked into Caster's face with a firm expression. "Progress is good."
Caster nodded. He was so inclined to be embarrassed at his slow rate of learning. It wasn't that he didn't listen, or didn't understand, but the things he was being taught were hard.
Rahar scooped up an Haradrin from where he sat, idly twitching his tail to some music only he could hear, and carried him around the room above his head. "How is the little dragon doing?"
Haradrin chortled happily in answer.
"I will see you tomorrow?" queried Eerinna, supervising a piece of cloth sew itself.
"Yes?" answered Caster glancing questioningly at Valmoriel.
"Yes," confirmed Valmoriel. "Now you have some of the skills, you need them all if you don't want to reverse time or invert sky and land..." she noticed everyone looking at her and shook her shoulders back. "I'm not speaking from experience, not from my experience at all..."
Rahar was not convinced and the look he gave Caster was plain incredulity. Caster smiled.
Haradrin slid down Rahar's arms and onto his back. His teeth parted in vacant cheer and he reached his claws out to swing at the feathers in Valmoriel's hair. She picked him up in her arms and cradled him like a baby. Though he was the largest of his siblings, he was the kindest and warmest and he made one feel like protecting him.
Rahar smiled at Valmoriel. "We should get these little people back to the people who own them," he said.
Eerinna had an odd look on her face, but she turned away before anyone saw it. She would have kept all the children in her palace if she could have. She truly felt like her grandfather's heir; living in a great big, beautiful castle, possessing incredible magic, but with no children to share it with.
"Can I stay, Eerinna?" asked Caster. "I wish I could practice some more."
"Of course," said Eerinna cheerfully.
TEN
Valmoriel sat in Rahar's arms. He held out his green hand with her pale white hand in it and admired the difference in them. They were watching Nightmare Valley below them on the side of the mountain furthest from the Sea Palace. It was a bright day with cool breeze and they were very calm and relaxed.
Valmoriel sighed contentedly and put her head against Rahar's shoulder. "This is nice," she said softly.
"Mmm," agreed Rahar. He turned his head and kissed Valmoriel. It had seemed so natural, the right thing to do, but it was their first kiss. He was encouraged that Valmoriel didn't push him away or fling herself out of his arms. He hoped this was good news for him.
When Rahar broke the kiss, Valmoriel said quietly, "I think we could do this."
"Do what?" asked Rahar in surprise. That wasn't the reaction he had expected.
"I think we could be more than friends," said Valmoriel.
"Best friends?" teased Rahar.
"You're already my best friend," replied Valmoriel honestly.
"Super best friends?"
"Shut up," said Valmoriel with a smile. "Don't make fun of me; I didn't make fun of you."
Rahar looked serious for a moment. "No, you never made fun of me." He rubbed his head against hers. "Thanks."
"A lot of girls would have," said Valmoriel.
Rahar grimaced. "A lot of girls did."
Valmoriel laughed. "Your sisters?"
"Yes," said Rahar heavily. "They never let me forget I sat down with teddies at tea parties."
"They are the best guests, though," said Valmoriel seriously.
"What about me?" protested Rahar. "I was a pretty good guest."
"Teddies don't want you to falll in love with them," replied Valmoriel.
"Did you?" asked Rahar curiously.
Valmoriel thought for a moment. "Hmmm. No, I don't think fall is the best word... I think it kind of welled up and I was soaking in it before I realised."
"You make it sound like I'm incontinent," said Rahar sourly.
"You are when it comes to love," said Valmoriel, giggling. "Everyone can tell, it oozes out of you."
"Now I'm oozing!" exclaimed Rahar. "You better get away from me, i might infect you! I might get you sick!"
Valmoriel flung her arms around Rahar tightly. "You already infected me! We had better get used to each other, since we don't want to go infect anyone else."
"No, wouldn't want that," said Rahar softly. "I want alll your germs all to myself."
"I don't want you to go off and romance anyone else," confessed Valmoriel. "I would have to kill whoever she was. And then myself." She touched Rahar's nose. "You wouldn't make me do that, would you?"
Rahar moved so her claw rested against his lips instead of his nose and kissed it. "No, I won't ever make you do that." He paused and looked around conspiratorially. "I didn't know you were that kind of girl."
"What kind is that?"
"Jealous," muttered Rahar.
"I am jealous," insisted Valmoriel. "I won't have anyone say I'm not jealous. Only when it come to things that are mine." She kissed Rahar gently. "I am a dragon, after all. Like you."
Rahar wasn't sure if she was describing him as a dragon or something which was hers, but he didn't care which. It was very nice to hold her in his arms and listen to her come on to him, even if she described falling in love with him in a way he wouldn't want her to describe to anyone else.
Hopefully, their story would have a happy ending.
Posted: Sun Nov 22, 2009 9:43 pm
Completed rps- archive
Haradrin and Fiuurin
ONE
Brittania watched Haradrin, hard at work making something, completely enraptured. She couldn't have cared less what he was making; she would have cooed over anything he showed her. He had brought his work into one of her rooms, presumably so she could see it as it came together.
My boy, she thought contentedly. Just imagine what he would have been to me way back then... She resisted the urge to flick his forelock back from his eyes. He would have been my champion. He might have lead my clan, at least in action when we sent him out to instill fear of us in others' hearts... Even if he was still so quiet, he could have been my mouthpiece. He could have been a kingmaker.
The kingmaker was hardgluing something which looked like rods together with a very serious expression on his face. Brittania could see glitter in his scales from an earlier project.
It was not hard for Brittania to say she was glad she had never come to have him in earlier times. His gentle soul might have been tortured like a pair of denim jeans, the way Tasma had been... unintentionally harmed or intentionally , he would not have done well.
Haradrin had spent his entire life being treated as a baby, and, oddly, had not come out any the worse. If it meant no-one demand him speak, perhaps that was good for him. He was speaking more often, now, but not to everyone, and no-one knew what exactly had made him so silent in his younger stages. Perhaps shyness? Brittania did not know, but she knew that the attention he had received since birth had given him confidence, though not of the kind expected.
Coddled children often grew up thinking the world would be handed to them. Haradrin simply expected that every person would be kind. Brittania hoped the day would never come when he learned differently.
Haradrin glanced up at Brittania, his face a familiar blank expression. He had felt Brittania watching him.
Brittania felt her self control slip. She flicked the hair away from his eyes with her long foreclaws and rubbed his black scaly cheek briefly.
"You remind me so much of your grandfather," she said with a sigh of pride. "Though, I'm glad to say, you do not have his talent for getting into fistfights."
Haradrin smiled broadly. He had not heard of Grampa Jin getting into fistfights. It seemed odd that Grampa would have had a fight at all, let alone more than one. He was so nice and happy and he didn't make you do anything, like talk. He made you sit up straight and say thank you, or, when Haradrin wouldn't say thank you, kiss for a thank you on the cheek. Haradrin said thank you now, but he was still grateful he had not been made to say it before.
Maybe Haradrin would ask Fiuurin about the fistfights. Maybe he would ask Rage. They might know. He always liked a story.
But right now, he didn't care.
Two
He was finished. He carefully removed his claws one by one from the frame to make sure he had not accidentally glued himself to it and turned it around to see it from the front. It wasn't bad looking if he did think so himself. Edges were clean and tidy. Frame matched the design.
"Lovely," said Brittania. She was looking at what sat inside the frame. It was a family tree depicting her immediate family. Herself, her mate, their children. It was very nice and she was proud of them all as she looked at the little miniature portraits woven into the material. "Is this Hasselti's work?" she asked, surprised. She had not heard much from Hasselti lately. Obviously, Hasselti still kept tabs on them. Brittania would have to send Hasselti something to show her appreciation.
Haradrin nodded shallowly; if Brittania had not expected it, she would not have noticed. He handed her the frame.
"For me?" asked Brittania, surprised. her heart seemed to swell. Such a gentle, kind boy. What had she done to deserve such a boy? "Thank you, dear. Where should I hang it?"
Haradrin looked around the room they sat in and pointed to a wall. He got up and ran his claws over a spot and then, with strength belying his gentle nature, twisted a hook into the wall.
Brittania hung the picture on the wall and Haradrin arranged it so it was straight. "It looks darling," said Brittania, feeling very much like a grandmother. "We'll need a new one, a bigger one, with you on it and Mummy and all your brothers and sister. What do you think?"
Haradrin made no reply, but Brittania had expected none.
"Can't have something with old Harry's face on it uglying up your wall, Lady Brittania," said a sarcastic and jovial voice from the doorway. The voice belonged to Haradrin's best friend Tillian, a kirin.
Brittania laughed in the forced way that people laugh when they are not in on a joke between two very close people. She saw it was okay to do so when Haradrin rolled his eyes and smiled as if to say 'Yeah, my friend is an idiot, Gramma.'
"Thank you," said Brittania, admiring the family portrait-tree again. She wasn't sure she liked Tillian much, but he was young, and Haradrin might have some good effect on him. Haradrin took no harm from Tillian, and she was grateful.
Haradrin looked so proud of himself and kissed Brittania's cheek. Then he went out into the corridor, beckoning Tillian to come away.
Tillian touched his metaphorical forelock, bowed, and said "Good day!" Then he followed Haradrin.
Brittania's rooms were in the very top of the mountain and one had to travel far to get anywhere else. It was obvious that Tillian had gone out of his way to find Haradrin. While they walked down the mountain, Haradrin glanced at Tillian. He was relieved that they had not lingered with Brittania; Tillian came off cocky and unlikable before you really got to know him the way Haradrin did, and Haradrin did not want Brittania taking a disliking to Tillian and banning him from the mountain. He preferred peace.
THREE
Tillian looked to Haradrin as though he was supremely unconcerned with his image today. He looked like he was set to burst with holding in something that he wanted desperately to say. "What?" asked Haradrin to help along the process.
"I have it!" exclaimed Tillian excitedly. "I have the perfect gift for Fiuurin. She'll love it." He did not wait for Haradrin to ask to see it but pulled out something gleaming with jewels, clinking with chains and shiny with a golden glow.
Haradrin looked at the puddle of gold in Tillian's hand, trying to make out what exactly it was. It had chains, but it was not a necklace. It had bands,but it was too small for a choker. he knew it must be a masterpiece; the pieces Tillian made were always masterpieces and only the most beautiful of them would be offered to Fiuurin. Haradrin was well aware of Tillian's love for her, since they were teenagers. Like many things which had nothing directly to do with him, Haradrin had no opinion on the matter. Tillian didn't mind that his friend did not encourage him; Haradrin was still a good sounding board for his ideas.
Far from becoming self conscious that his fried could made head nor tail of his latest work, Tillian took it up and untangled the chains enough to free three rings, which he slid on to Haradrin's thumb, middle and ring fingers. Then, Tillian snapped the main band around Haradrin's smooth, black wrist.
As his friend lifted his hand to admire the jewellery on it, Tillian watched with pride. "My best yet!" he crowed. "Gold and aquamarines, jade and tiger's eye. Everything looks better against black, so you can wear it when we show Fiuurin, but don't you get attached to it," he warned, only half joking."It's for Fiuurin's dragon horde, not yours."
Haradrin looked away from the bracelet to his friend. "Why do you think all dragons have stashes of treasure hidden around?"
"Because you do," said Tillian. "You have a horde, you just use it to make things. I'm sure the Green Lady has a horde, I'm sure your mother has one. Fiuurin for sure has a horde; I know because I've been supplying it for ages. What other kind of present do you give a dragon?"
"I just gave a dragon a framed family tree," said Haradrin flatly.
"Yes..." said Tillian, stalling for time. "But you make things. That's what you do. Eventually, you have to give them away or you'd run out of room for them."
Haradrin supposed he couldn't argue with that, but he didn't think all dragons had hordes.
"So!" said Tillian, clapping his hands together theatrically. "Where is your hot sister?"
"Probably in her bedroom," said Haradrin.
"All right." Tillian suddenly turned to Haradrin, looking uncomfortable. "But you're not really related to her, Harry? So that wasn't too weird?"
Haradrin blinked. "No, we're not blood related. Or even by marriage. We're just... all really close here. But it's not weird to call her hot. She is."
FOUR
Haradrin could say things to Tillian that he couldn't say to most other people.
"Good," said Tillian, relief plain in his voice. "Let's get going. I want to give this to her before we get old and die."
They walked in silence for a while. Then, "You can't buy her love with silver and gold," said Haradrin quietly.
Tillian looked at Haradrin with a shocked expression. "I don't want to buy love," he said. "Eventually, I will make my move... when we're older, of course. And by then, I'll have given her lots of gold, to prove my love, not buy hers. There's a difference."
Haradrin nodded his head. "Yeah. Okay."
Satisfied his point had been made, Tillian continued. "I'm glad we live now, not in years past, Harry. Even a few years ago, I'd never have a shot with Fiuurin!" He laughed. "The Green Lady wouldn't have let a kirin into the family!"
"Why not a kirin?" asked Haradrin.
"Something about genetics," replied Tillian. "Apparently if kirin and dragon, or dragon and mer, for that matter, lines mix, they combine and the likelihood of dragon genes being passed on is diminished... or something. I never heard that before."
"Who told you?" asked Haradrin.
"Hasselti did. I visited her when she was making that family tree for you and she talked and talked... she does a lot of genealogy nowadays. She said the Green Lady is less... I don't know."
"I know what you mean," said Haradrin quietly. "It's better now." He jangled the bracelet on his wrist and smiled.
Tillian grinned. "I know! It's so cool! I'm in for sure!"
They continued down the mountain, quietly now. Haradrin lead, but Tillian had spent enough time on the mountain to know its interior and find his own way, though he followed Haradrin for certainty's sake. Tillian would not have liked to have knocked on the wrong door. Not Rahar's door, or Rage's. Tillian wondered briefly if he knew everyone who lived in the mountain. Were there people here he had not met? His thoughts distracted him from being nervous about seeing Fiuurin. He was usually calm until he actually got close to seeing her and he felt so little.
"It's this one,' said Haradrin, pointing to a door.
For a moment, Tillian thought the door was unadorned, but the doorknob was wound around with a string of interesting beads. He knocked on the door before his nerve could fail.
Fiuurin opened her door. For a moment, she thought it was Haradrin who had knocked and smiled at him warmly in greeting. Haradrin still did not speak to her very much, but she enjoyed spending time with him. She found someone who did not speak was more honest. When she pulled the door back further and stepped forward to invite Haradrin inside, she saw Tillian. Tillian and Haradrin were very close friends, and Fiuurin thought she knew why; Tillian was boisterous and vain enough to enjoy having a very quiet, calm and suggestible friend.
FIVE
Though, Fiuurin conceded, Haradrin had come out of his shell more with Tillian as a friend and Tillian never used Haradrin as someone else might use a subservient and devoted friend.
"Hello Tillian, hello Haradrin. What brings you both here?" she asked. If Haradrin had been there alone, she would have expected him to have wanted to while away the afternoon. Since Tillian had come also, she was unsure of their purpose.
Tillian bowed to Fiuurin. "I just dropped by to give you a gift. It was so lovely, only you could appreciate it, being the only thing lovelier."
Fiuurin glanced around for this present, but he was holding nothing in his hands.
Tillian grabbed the hand on which Haradrin wore his masterpiece and presented it to Fiuurin. "Haradrin was kind enough to model for you."
Fiuurin took Haradrin's hand in hers with gentle fingers. Her head bent while she admires the bracelet.
Haradrin tried to breathe normally, but it was hard not to enjoy being so close to Fiuurin.
Tillian grew tired of waiting. "What do you think?" he asked Fiuurin. "Do you like it?"
"It is quite wonderful," admitted Fiuurin, releasing Haradrin. "Please come in, both of you."
Haradrin followed Fiuurin inside her room and took his usual place near the curtain. This curtain covered the entire wall on one side. When it was pushed aside, it revealed a large metal sheet. The metal sheet could be collapsed to reveal a panel of glass fitted to the wall. The glass was a window which looked out of the mountain and across both Nightmare Valley and Dream Valley. Haradrin and Fiuurin had spent many afternoons looking out the window together.
Tillian entered the room more slowly. He had not often been allowed in Fiuurin's room and it had changed over time. The curtain was still on the wall, as it always had, but now it was adorned with beads and embroidery in different patters in different sections, almost like a collage, or a scrapbook. There were many more embroidered or beaded things amongst Fiuurin's possessions. He did not see any of the jewellery he had made Fiuurin, and only a few of the smaller pieces he had given her arrayed across her shelves.He noticed a small chest on a desk against a wall. It looked like a miniature of a treasure chest. Tillian wondered what was inside.
He was soon to get his answer. Fiuurin unclipped the bracelet from Haradrin's wrist when she saw he was having trouble undoing it with his left hand and carried it over to the miniature chest. She swung open the lid and revealed its contents to be a small heap of gold and silver and gems. It looked like all the jewellery Tillian had made her was stored safely in the chest.
Fiuurin laid the bracelet gentle in the chest and admired it for a moment. Then she shut the chest over the glitter of her jewellery and turned to her guests. "How have you all been?" she asked.
SIX
Haradrin spread out on the floor, showing off his considerable length and bulk. He laid his chin down on the stone floor and his eyes gently closed. He completely ignored the question and would ignore the entire conversation; Tillian would want Fiuurin all to himself. Haradrin had no intention of stealing even the smallest moment.
Tillian edged around Haradrin, who took up a good portion of the floor space. "I have been wonderful," he replied. "I have many new designs in store for my next projects. You will b the first to see them, I promise." He smirked at her, as though knowing she wanted to see his collection, then he laughed mockingly at himself. "I mean, I'll bring some by to show you."
"that sounds wonderful," said Fiuurin. It was the warmest and most sincere thing she had said so far. "I wish I could make things."
"You get to enjoy what people make," said Tillian uncertainly. "People who make things... don't rest. There's something new to do and sometimes it's not as good as you did before..." he trailed off. "You can look at art it's just art. You look at it as it's supposed to be looked at," he said quietly.
Fiuurin looked around her bedroom. She saw all the things that were made for her. "You're right," she replied. "All of these marvelous things are mine to treasure." She smiled at him. "You can always put things so clearly," she said admiringly.
Tillian smiled smugly. He counted that as a win. "Thank you," he said graciously. He reflected for a few moments, before the quiet could become overlong or awkward and kicked Haradrin's foot gently. "Wake up, Harry, we should leave Fiuurin alone! This isn't your bedroom, you can't sleep here!"
Fiuurin stepped forward jerkily, her face shocked. "Don't hurt him," she said. "He sleeps in here all the time, he's comfortable..."
Haradrin's eyes cracked a slit and then all the way. He climbed laboriously to his feet like an old dog, but he was so large that getting up fast might have injured his surroundings. He acted like he had not heard Fiuurin and turned his serene face to her.
"I wouldn't hurt him," said Tillian, putting his arm around Haradrin's shoulders. "Who else would hang out with a fathead like me? Unless you want to?" He winked.
Fiuurin didn't know what to say. "Just... no violence in my room," she said eventually,
Haradrin touched Fiuurin's hand lightly.
"No problem," said Tillian brightly. "We're going. Have a nice afternoon!" He walked out with Haradrin still under his arm.
"Why did we leave?" asked Haradrin. "I thought you liked Fiuurin."
"Of course!" said Tillian with a laugh. "But you should always leave a girl wanting more of you. Far better to leave early then make them sick of the sight of your face."
"She wouldn't get sick of your face," said Haradrin in the most indignant tone he had, which was not very indignant at all.
SEVEN
"Maybe not," said Tillian wisely as they turned a corner. "But, she might enjoy my gift more when she can look in privacy. She might like to gloat over it... or something."
"She seemed to like it while we were there," said Haradrin in his normal voice.
Tillian's face twisted into a wry expression. He began to say something, and then he stopped. He changed his mind. "You're a pretty great mate, Harry."
Haradrin blinked. A slow smile spread across his face, almost disturbingly wide. He was grateful someone like Tillian was his friend.
Fiuurin watched the world pass beyond her window. She sat on a heap of cushions, more cushions than she might ever need. The curtain on the side of her bedroom had been drawn and the metal sheet had been folded back to reveal her enviable view of the land around her. She enjoyed watching. She felt so calm and beyond small things when she watched out the window, and it was even better than sitting on the mountain outside because it had no droughts or chills.
She turned to the right. Beside her, on a smaller pile of cushions, sat Haradrin. He couldn't even fit his bulk on the cushions he had, but he had refused to take any of Fiuurin's cushions from her. He was so comforting. He was always so calm, it made her feel calm. She had never thought she was an anxious person until she felt Haradrin's utter calm. He sat as he often sat with her. They said very little to each other during these times. Sometimes they would point out things that they noticed, but mostly they simply watched.
Fiuurin felt like stroking Haradrin's hair. It was odd that people who saw him wanted to touch him. She wondered why. Was he a pet to them? A small child, still? Why did she want to touch him?
I'm lonely, Fiuurin thought. He won't judge me for wanting to be near someone.
Fiuurin, instead of patting Haradrin's head alone, took him by the underarms and pulled the top half of him into her lap. His head and arms were cradled by her legs and his back, legs and tail curled around his vacated and now scattered cushions.
Haradrin was startled when Fiuurin took hold of him, but he helped her raise him up and move into her lap. He settled himself down comfortably by putting a cushion between his head and Fiuurin's legs and arranging himself in a more natural and less contorted position. He didn't ask why she wanted to hold him. He would not question a fortunate event.
When Fiuurin began running her hand across his head, he sighed softly and his eyes drifted shut. He knew he would sleep before long. He wondered if he ought to stay awake to remember more of this sensation, but even more than Fiuurin, he loved sleep. It came from his father. His brother, Blake, had it much worse than he did. Blake was nearly catatonic half the time...
EIGHT
Haradrin hadn't realised he had fallen alseep until Fiuurin spoke and broken the silence.
"Do you know what your name means, Haradrin?" asked Fiuurin, still patting Haradrin's hair. She was not looking at him, but past him, though her eyes were out of focus and she was not seeing the window or anything beyond it.
"Make things," Haradrin mumbled.
"Close," said Fiuurin in a faraway voice. "It means creation after destruction. I think that is why you like making things so much. It comes so naturally to you."
Haradrin thought she had stopped talking, so long did she pause before she spoke again.
"My name means great force of destruction. Our names are related. I think that's why I get along with you." Her voice was thick now, like she was trying not to cry.
Haradrin stirred. "I'd like you no matter what your name was," he said, perhaps his longest sentence that day. "You are Fiuurin. Special."
Fiuurin laughed and Haradrin felt something drip on the back of his head. Fiuurin wiped it away quickly. "You have a way of saying things," she said. "I wonder if you picked it up from Tillian or if he picked it up from you?"
"I think he picked it up," said Haradrin seriously. "When I met him, he was not so nice."
Fiuurin began to stroke him again. "You bring out the best in people, do you know that?"
"Not hard with you," said Haradrin drowsily.
Fiuurin was silent for a time. Then,
"Sometimes I feel like I can only destroy things. I can't make anything."
Haradrin sat up. He looked at Fiuurin straight in the face and wrapped his arms, legs and tail around her so that they looked like one black and green striped creature. "Did you ever try?"
Fiuurin cast her mind back to one of the many visits Haradrin had paid her. She remembered watching a much younger and chubbier Haradrin sitting on the floor, diligently sewing her curtain with embroidered patterns and beads. She remembered trying it herself when he had gone. The needle struck her scales and bent. She could not get the hang of sewing things. Her claws were too clumsy.
"Yes," said Fiuurin.
"There's all kinds of ways to make things. Maybe try something else."
Fiuurin leaned her head back on his shoulder. When had he gotten so tall and large? He was far larger than her now. How odd to think he once fitted on her lap.
The silence stretched between them. Haradrin wanted to know something, though. He rarely wanted to know anything. He didn't usually ask questions. But this time, he asked. "Why?"
Fiuurin thought she knew what he meant. "I don't want to be someone who destroys things. I want to make the world better. I want to make."
Haradrin had never felt like that. He simply made. Things fitted under his hands and formed new things. Tillian made things for specific people, and Haradrin did as well, but sometimes things just wanted to be made.
NINE
"You do make the world better. You inspire."
"What?" asked Fiuurin. She had never thought of that.
"Nothing is made without ... Inspiration... is it the destruction of the way things are to make way for new things?"
Fiuurin suddenly felt validated. Haradrin was such a tonic for her. He made her feel better, usually simply by his presence, but now he had helped her see that she did make a positive difference. She smiled.
Haradrin felt her relax and he adjusted the cushions under them for a more comfortable seat. He almost thought he didn't hear what the next thing she said correctly.
"I love you," Fiuurin muttered into his chest, her heart welling with warmth and wellness.
"I love you. So much," said Haradrin ardently. It was nothing but the truth. He loved Fiuurin. It was not that anyone else had treated him better or worse than Fiuurin had, she had always been a source of fascination for him. He loved watching the world go by in her presence, in her room, where it was warm. She asked him to make her things, like the chest for Tillian's treasures so they did not spill untidily over. She was so beautiful. Her voice was dark and mysterious. Her arms were warm. She smelled so nice. If he could spend his entire life looking out the window with her, he would consider it a very fortunate life.
Fiuurin was at first surprised by his answer, and then she realised she was not really surprised at all. "I know," she said.
When Haradrin woke up the next morning, he felt a wonderful contentedness and optimism. He usually felt content when he knew he would spend time with Fiuurin, but the optimism he felt was new. He thought it might be because he thought he might be able to see Fiuurin more often.
He and Fiuurin had not said much more after his confession, but they had watched the window for hours. They had not kissed, which he thought was a little disappointing, but there was always next time.
Next time... Haradrin suddenly thought of Tillian and sat upright in bed. If he was in love with Fiuurin, and so was Tillian... that would not work out well. He wondered if Tillian really loved Fiuurin, but he had no way to judge except against his own feelings. He had not even really considered the feelings he had for Fiuurin to be romantic love before yesterday. He loved her like he did all his family, but she was his favourite person to be around and she made him feel happy... yes, he did love her.
Feeling stressed, Haradrin kicked the covers off and sat down in front of a pile of craft supplies. Making something would busy his hands and perhaps lead so some kind of glorious epiphany. He chose some coloured threads and his very favourite moonstone beads. He then ferreted around in his little box of left overs and single pieces. Something shining caught his attention.
TEN
It was a Ruby bead Tillian had given him. Tillian had chosen it for something he had been going to make, but he los the twin to it and so couldn't make a symmetrical piece. So he had given it to Haradrin, who had saved it for a special occasion.
Working without conscious thought, Haradrin let his mind drift. Maybe he could talk to Tillian... would that work? What would he say? "Tillian, I am in love with Fiuurin as well." What would Tillian say to that? Would Tillian see Haradrin as a rival? Would he no longer want to be friends?
Haradrin let that last thought simmer in his mind. If he had to choose between Tillian's friendship and Fiuurin... he would have to choose Fiuurin. Who know, maybe Fiuurin and he wouldn't work out forever... but if he chose his friend over his family, then there would be no-one out there to love him. His family did love him very much. If one person was sick of hanging out with him, he could talk to another person.
He threaded the moonstones and ruby onto the strands. Now that he understood which was more important, he was sad that he might hurt Tillian, but he could not put Tillian's happiness over Fiuurin. Besides, if Fiuurin loved him, she did not love Tillian. Whatever Tillian had said about proving himself to Fiuurin and making her fall in love with him was just... impossible.
Haradrin felt sad at Tillian's impending disappointment. Maybe he should talk to Fiuurin about what to do. Fiuurin was so smart.
He looked down at what he had made. It was a strip of woven threads in black, red, and gray with moonstones clustered around the ruby. He wondered what it was supposed to be. Perhaps a bracelet? It seemed to short to fit comfortably around his wrist. He would give it to Fiuurin, she had thinner wrists than he did.
So Haradrin swept a comb through his hair and went, bypassing breakfast, to Fiuurin's room.
Fiuurin was still asleep when she heard a tapping on her door. "C'min," she muttered.
Haradrin entered and closed the door after him.
Fiuurin focused on Haradrin. "Haradrin..." she mumbled.
Haradrin, as though he was still a baby, crawled onto the bed with Fiuurin and put his head on the opposite pillow.
Fiuurin smiled at him sleepily. "Morning."
Haradin decided that this was his moment. He kissed Fiuurin on he cheek and showed her the bracelet he had made.
"Ooh," said Fiuurin, looking at the bracelet. "For me?" Seeing Haradrin's nod, she took the bracelet from him. "Very pretty." She wrapped the bracelet around his wrist, but it was too short. Then she wrapped it around her finger and admired the effect.
"It's a ring," said Haradrin in surprise. He too the ring back from Fiuurin and began unraveling the pattern to make it fit better before knotting both ends together neatly so there was almost no seam. He bit off the ends and slid the ring back on Fiuurin's finger.
Caster solo logs
Caster solo log one
Caster woke up in the morning and, as usual, checked to see if he had trapped himself in bed with rose plants. To his surprise, he had not grown any flowers during the night, but he had changed the colour of his blanket from silver and blue to many different shades of purple.
"That's strange," he said out loud, then shrugged it off. If it wasn't uncontrollable flower growing, he wasn't fussed about his powers running away with him. The colour reminded him of something... but he couldn't remember what and he decided it didn't matter.
He got up, shook out his newly coloured blanket out, and went to look for some breakfast. He met Eerinna on the way to the kitchen.
"Hello, dear," she said with a warm, motherly smile. She had always thought of Caster as her son since he apprenticed with her and she really did love him. "Did you sleep well?"
"Yeah," said Caster with a tone of surprise. "Though I turned my blanket purple. I hope you don't mind."
Eerinna touched her purple choker. "I don't mind at all. I like purple. But that's a strange thing for you to have done. Have you got something purple on your mind?" she smirked at Caster in a way that would have made her grandfather proud.
"Only you," said Caster warmly.
Eerinna snorted with delighted laughter. "You cheeky little goblin!" She kissed his cheek and went on down the hall, chuckling.
Caster smiled and breathed in deeply. Eerinna always smelled so nice. It was a comforting, mothering smell. Not that he didn't love his mother, she just didn't understand him like Eerinna did. Yarrow was a practical, strong dragon. Caster was a physically weak... fairy with argumentative magic. Eerinna tirelessly tried on his behalf to improve his skills and never got annoyed at him. He looked ahead wryly and went to make himself some toast. If only Eerinna was single...
It was something he thought about occasionally; how much he loved his teacher. He sometimes dreamed about scooping her up in his (immensely exaggerated) arms and flying her away to the most beautiful place he could imagine, which changed day-to-day. Sometimes he took her to a set of dropping waterfalls, sometimes to a desert oasis at night with the moon shining all around them, sometimes to a creepy castle filled with jewels he swept aside so she could pass the halls.
But he liked Zared. Zared was a pretty cool guy. he deserved a beautiful lady like Eerinna. Caster just couldn't help falling in love with that lovely purple, and the blue, and the black-
Wait.
Black?
Eerinna isn't black! The person who is black is...
Ugh. The toast was dry in his mouth. He was thinking about Bree. He wondered if that was why he had turned his blanket purple. She was so very pretty. Eerinna was beautiful, but Bree was pretty and shy and humble and caring. He liked her and he wanted to see her. He decided that that was what he would do that day. Find Bree and hang out. He hoped she would be okay about it.
Caster solo log two
Caster watched Haradrin twist and stick and make with the kind of wonder which came from someone watching something they could never do.
"Thanks, Haradrin," said Caster.
Haradrin didn't look up. This was being tricky. It had gleaming rose quartz and green malachite arranged in the shape of an opening rose all to be (when he got it sitting right) stuck on a hair comb with a scent diffuser which slowly, over the course of time, spread perfume through the hair it arranged.
He fiddled and twitched the stones around until he was happy with it and then, before it could rearrange itself, he quickly stuck it to the waiting comb. He held it tightly in his claws.
"Is it finished?" asked Caster anxiously. He wasn't used to things taking effort to make. Usually, he just thought of something, figured out how to make it, and used magic. Here, Haradrin had to actually... use a real skill to make things. caster felt a little unimpressive next to his large dragon brother.
"Yes, it just needs to set," replied Haradrin in his gravelly, low voice. Everything he said seemed to echo out of his thrumming chest, as though he spoke into a pit and the words came back. He had started speaking a lot more, thought Caster, since he had started really seeing Fiuurin. Maybe Fiuurin gave Haradrin the confidence that what he said had meaning. Still, Haradrin wasn't one to waste words.
"I will be able to give it to her soon, though?" asked Caster.
"Yes." Haradrin suppressed a tweaking up of his scaled lip. Caster was in love, he thought. Why else would he want a gift for a girl? Rahar had had help from Haradrin to win Valmoriel, but Haradrin thought that Rahar would have been fine without it. He believed that people were meant to be together and the 'how' wasn't really important. Haradrin himself had a lot of thoughts and feelings, not that he would let on.
But Haradrin had seen one other man pursue a woman with jewels and it had not worked well. He hoped Caster was not coming on too strong for this lady.
"I think she will like it," said Caster hesitantly. "Don't you?"
Haradrin looked sideways at caster. Like his usual taciturnity, Haradrin would rarely look someone in the eye. "Dunno. Fiuurin would hate it."
Caster frowned and shoved Haradrin's shoulder, barely even shaking Haradrin's solid form. "Fiuurin would love anything you made for her. Of course she would. Haradrin, everything you make is great."
"If this girl wears it," rumbled Haradrin, "then she likes it or you or both."
"If she doesn't like it, I like it," said Caster stubbornly.
"I'm sure it will look good on you," joked Haradrin with a face carved in stone.
Caster grimaced at Haradrin and then laughed wanly. "You're making Dad jokes..." he muttered.
Haradrin looked like he wanted to say something, but he shook his head. Instead, he said, "Here. It's finished. Let it set and then give it to your lady friend." He passed the comb to Caster. "I would have thought you were sick of roses."
"I am, but she isn't. She likes roses."
Caster solo rp log three
Sleep to Caster was less of a release, as it was to everyone else, but a hurdle. The incredible events in his dreams were gateways into his subconscious; the creatures he battled in his sleep were all too like the real life struggles he faced with trying to control his irascible magic.
Tonight was especially vivid and frightening.
He had rose vines wrapped around his feet, making it hard to move at all, harder to move quickly. He was consumed by a need to do something, but he was not sure what it was. Disembodied teeth moved around him and the vines, occasionally joining up together to laugh at him or snarl and lunge at him by turns.
As he slogged on, he thought that, if he could use his powers, he could get rid of the vines and fly wherever it was he needed to go. But he couldn't control his powers.
He saw something gleaming nearby under the ranks of rose vones and picked it up. It was a familiar rose quartz, polished to sheen. It was one of the stones from the comb he had designed for Bree.
Was this what he needed to look for? All the pieces and put them back together? He began looking for stones, but all he found were dead sparks and stones he dared not touch; the ones that sealed magic.
It took some time, or none at all, for him to realise that his magic was what was drawing him back- his inability to control it- and he was also unwilling to give it up- his unwillingness to risk sealing it off. It came to him that perhaps he ought to make a choice; give up his magic and have his mobility and freedom, or continue to drag himself around, essentially trying to escape his poor control of his magic and give up everything else. It was a hard decidion to make and he wondered what he should do. What would he like to do?
Would he like to run around doing interesting things, or continue to train fruitlessly to control his annoying magic. He stopped looking around for dropped stones and studied the rose vines instead. He wondered, if he pushed... if he stretched, instead of pulled away...
The vines didn't budge, but it gave Caster an idea. So he could not search around for the lost stones physically, but maybe he could... use magic to do the same thing?
He could hear the teeth clacking and the rose vines snaking around, but he tried to think of the comb instead. he turned around and found the comb all complete but fof the stone in his hand, which he touched into place. The comb shone all over and was intact at once.
The teeth suddenly became pebbles on the path, the vines swirled up into orderly arches and the way became clear for him. He still felt like he needed to do something, so he followed the path the vines had presented for him. He suddenly saw flashes of colours and came forward. It was a great shimmering stone rising before him and he touched the comb to it and it shattered.
He woke up feeling like he had dragged those vines in truth, but he just had to battle through the new thicket of growth, like every other morning. He wondered if he would miss that, if he ever managed to control his magic.
Yellow Calla Lily
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Yellow Calla Lily
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Posted: Sun Nov 22, 2009 9:46 pm
Completed rps- archive
Rage and Alpheus
ONE
This whole thing had become utterly ridiculous. Rage flew through the sky like a comet, eschewing the grace of her dragon brethren. She preferred to get where she was going as quickly as possible, and terrify those who needed a good scare.
She was descending from her mountain abode, of which she was the future ruler, in order to find a pony who could cure Imouto. Imouto was the interim name given to a small dragon, green in colour, abducted by Rage’s stepfather, Jin Kyoshi, from a clan of odd blue ponies. He had stolen her as she looked to be very unwell; in fact, he thought she was dead at first sight, but the infant’s chest moved subtly so he brought her home to his broody mate.
The idea to distract Rage’s mother, Brittania, with a child worked very well. In Rage’s opinion, it had worked far too well; Brittania had abandoned her responsibilities as Lady of the Mountain to sit in the nursery and stare at a half-dead baby who had never looked at her in its life. Healers had been visited; Heketoro had apologised profusely that he could not help due to his power limits. Belladonna, the blind unicorn, had tried as well, and been none-too thrilled when she had elicited no response with her potions. Lilina, the mate of Rage’s brother, Soren, had also tried, but her magic was defeated when she visited the mountain herself.
If healing magic won’t work, Rage had thought, then I will find some other kind of magic! Rage would do whatever it took to fix her family. It had been forced into her for ever; do it for the good of the family, you will lead it one day, you are your mother’s chosen heir. She did not mind the burden of leadership; she needed no incentive to be strong, unmoving, careless of the effects her actions had on others. Her personality was improved by her status; nobody could complain about her snarling or sudden bouts of rage if they didn’t want to anger their next leader.
So here she was, slumming it in airspace shared with hippogryphs, pegasi, and seryphs, descending from her mountain citadel to the ground level Tinderton. She wondered where to start looking for… whatever she was looking for. The great magic in the land was to be found in… in the mansion once owned by her father, now abandoned to the darker powers of the land. She did not want to go there.
It doesn’t make sense that I would find someone there who could help, she thought, thinking up an excuse to avoid the Kaiba mansion. If someone there had powers to fix Imouto, then they would have volunteered when they went to Belladonna. Someone else, then… She would have to ask someone. Who would know?
A moving white blot on the ground caught her attention. Virdis Bina! Verdis Bina was a gregarious pony who knew everyone in town. Rage remembered her from her early childhood. A pony who like books.
TWO
Rage dove in front of Verdis Bina, who immediately pulled up and shrieked. Rage kicked clods of dirt out of her claws and turned her face, permanently set to glower, at Verdis.
“I need to talk to you,” she growled.
Verdis Bina blinked at Rage. “Okay. What do you need to know?”
”I need to know about any sorcerers or anyone with powerful magic to break a sleeping curse,” said Rage.
”Like in Sleeping Beauty?” asked Verdis Bina wistfully. “Have you tried true love’s kiss yet?”
Rage looked at her stonily. “The victim is an infant.”
”Oh,” said Verdis Bina, deflating. “That would be creepy.” It was a mark of Verdis Bina’s romanticism that she just accepted the odd reality in which the princess of the mountain appeared before her and asked for help. “Hmm… You probably don’t want someone from the mansion. White magic. We don’t really have a lot of white magic users here.”
Rage was beginning to lose patience with Verdis Bina’s stream of consciousness babble, but she swallowed her annoyance and forced herself to patience.
”I did hear about this shaman guy,” Verdis Bina said slowly. “Auby’s brother Alpheus. He’s pretty noble, and seems powerful. Try him. He lives in that two-storey off the main street with the tower room. It looks a little like a castle, you can’t miss it.”
Rage rolled her eyes, utterly bankrupt of patience. She took off immediately, without saying thank you or goodbye.
She flew over the main street of Tinderton and began looking for the house with the turret tower. The main street of Tinderton was so long that when she finally found the house, she had moved far past the main thoroughfare of the town proper. The house was bordered by hills and the occasional tree.
Rage landed on the green slope and marched erectly to the door, her claws scraping up the path heedlessly. She rattled the doorknocker, which was oddly shaped. It almost looked like a dream catcher with an eye. It was very strange to say the least and it made Rage feel uncomfortable, like she was missing some vital point in a conversation. This put her in a bad mood. Since her normal mood was a little angry, a bad mood for her made her livid.
When the door remained firmly closed, she was incensed. She knocked again, rattling the doorknocker. Still nobody answered. She went around the other side of the house to look for signs of habitation.
Being so far from the main drag of Tinderton, the houses in this area had large yards backing onto unincorporated land, all apparently owned and ignored by her father, and Rage was able to easily find the back door of the house. It was also locked and though she knocked, she elicited no response.
Rage glowered. “How can I find a stupid shaman if they’re never at home?”
”I suppose that would depend on why you were looking for a stupid shaman in particular,” came a voice from behind her.
THREE
Rage spun around to look at the person who addressed her. It was a very ordinary looking pony whose marking was the same odd one-eyed dream catcher as the front door knocker. He had peach skin and blonde hair and quite striking cornflower blue eyes. She supposed every pony was entitled to one attractive feature or redeeming quality, even if they looked as workaday as he did.
”I followed this set of clawprints from my front yard,” the pony continued. “I don’t suppose you can help scruffing up the turf?”
”Your turf is no matter of interest to me,” spat Rage.
”I see,” said the pony. “So what are you doing here?”
”I am looking for a shaman,” Rage began.
”A stupid shaman?” needled the pony.
”IF YOU ARE HE THEN YES THE SHAMAN IS STUPID!” roared Rage “I AM LOOKING FOR ALPHEUS THE WHITE MAGE!”
”You found him,” said the pony, unperturbed by her sudden shouting. “Or I found you in my back garden. What do you want from Alpheus the white mage?” He would have asked her inside to talk, but as she was Rage from the mountains, a pony he knew by her infamy, who had not even deigned to introduce herself, he decided that nicety could be spared. He had the idea that she would probably not appreciate a hold up in proceedings even to go inside and take a seat. She was basically like… he couldn’t quite describe it. She was mission oriented and prone to sudden fits of distemper like a toddler, but she was also smart and conniving. Ah. Yes, he thought. That’s what it is. She acts like a predator.
Rage mastered herself quickly. It would not do to crisp this mage into cinders just to make things go her way, though it was an option. “There is a child in the mountain who is very sick, struck down with some kind of sleeping sickness. She hasn’t woken in weeks, maybe longer. Nobody we’ve seen so far has been able to wake her.”
”You want me to wake up a child?” asked Alpheus. That was not what he had expected.
”Yes,” said Rage, hissing the ‘s’.
”You want my help?”
”Yes,” answered Rage, hissing the entire word this time.
”Then I want something.”
”What?” Rage growled.
Alpheus took her claw. Rage was so shocked that any person would be so bold as to touch her that she made no resistance. “I want to heal you, as well.”
Rage snatched her claw back. “There is nothing wrong with me!” she snarled.
Alpheus shook his head. “That is not true and you know it. It is not normal to always be angry. Have you ever been happy?”
”What? Of course. Why wouldn’t I be happy?”
”Because you are not.” Alpheus looked unerringly into her eyes.
Rage was becoming even more uncomfortable. His marking made her feel like she was missing something and the way he looked at her made her feel like she was not looking at her white scales or hair or blue eyes, but inside her.
FOUR
She felt like he saw how she was put together, the cogs and wheels of her mechanism, the warped parts she told herself worked fine. She hated this feeling. She would have scratched at him, torn his flesh, electrocuted him, even, to get him away, but she was feeling as though someone was seeing her for the first time and she did not know if she liked it or not. It made her feel vulnerable, a state she deplored, but perhaps it was not necessarily a bad thing to not have to be on the defensive all the time. The best defense is a good offense, she had always believed. Could it be that he could tell?
Alpheus watched her, waiting for her answer. So this was the blue eyes white dragon creature he had heard about. She looked to him like she was suffering. She was absolutely stunning, but her face was always set in an expression of hatred. She was aptly named, but he wanted so much for her to see worth in herself outside her anger and her power.
”Fine,” said Rage in a slightly wobbly voice.
”Good,” said Alpheus. “Let’s go.”
Rage lead the way down the main street of Tinderton. She was stared at by many who had heard of her, and many others who had not seen a dragon in their lives. “It is such a pain to have to walk,” she snapped at Alpheus. “We could have gone around the town.”
Alpheus looked at her calmly. “We could have. Why does it bother you?”
”It takes so much longer,” she replied shortly.
”You have an entire life to live and spend,” replied Alpheus. “A little while longer to walk instead of fly is nothing to an entire lifespan.”
”I hate all these people staring at me!” she barked loudly, sending people scuttling away from her and averting their eyes.
”Why does that bother you?” he asked again.
”People should not stare!”
”That’s true,” said Alpheus. “But it doesn’t hurt you. If you didn’t hide from people, they would not stare.”
”I don’t hide!” Rage blew up. “Your questions are infuriating!”
”They are,” agreed Alpheus solemnly. “It’s hard to have a conversation with a person who doesn’t know how to converse.”
Rage was taken aback by that. “I… I know how to talk.”
”You know how to order people around,” corrected Alpheus. “When did you last talk to a person to get to know them?”
”I-uh…” Rage thought. “Never.”
This conversation had distracted Rage to the point where she was no longer paying attention to people or the longer time it took her to walk down the street instead of flying over it. Alpheus felt sorrier every second he spoke to her. This poor girl had been given everything she wanted except a friend. “Why don’t you try it?” he asked.
Rage glared at him angrily for asking yet another question.
Alpheus smiled and laughed shortly. “Too many questions, I know, but try it. Ask me something to get to know me.”
FIVE
Rage frowned. What kind of question should she ask? “Do you…” she began hesitantly. “Do you… help people with magic often?”
”No,” answered Alpheus. “People don’t really need my help. I mostly study and do shaman-type things. Now I will ask you a question. Do you like to eat breakfast?”
”Yes of course I do!” cried Rage. “Everyone does!”
”Not everyone,” Alpheus replied evenly. “What do you like to eat?”
”For breakfast?” Rage asked. “Well, Jin makes nice pancakes. Yes, with syrup.” She was beginning to salivate.
”Those sound good.”
”Is this what normal people talk about?” asked Rage sceptically.
”Yes,” answered Alpheus. “Would you like to ask me some more pointless questions?”
Rage pursed her lips. “Do… do you like to read?”
”I do,” said Alpheus. “Not as much as some people, but I enjoy a good book on occasion. Do you like reading?”
”Not very much,” admitted Rage. “Do you have a girlfriend?” She flinched. Why had she asked such a stupid question? It had just burst into her mind.
”No, I don’t,” said Alpheus. “My sisters have successfully demystified the female gender for me. Do you have a boyfriend? Oh,” he looked at her in surprise, “or do you have an arranged marriage?”
”No,” answered rage. “They couldn’t make me marry a person I didn’t choose, but I have brothers and sisters to send out and have children. I will get to raise their dragon children if I so choose, like my mother does. I have no need to marry because I’ll choose one of those children as my heir.”
”Did anyone ever ask you if you wanted to be the heir?” asked Alpheus.
”No,” said Rage in surprise. “Why would they ask me? Why would anyone not want to be the next to take over a powerful clan?”
”I don’t know,” said Alpheus quietly. “Nobody ever offered me anything like it, but I don’t think I would take them up on it if they did.”
”Why?”
”It seems lonely,” said Alpheus. “It would be hard to have to look after so many people.”
”They look after themselves,” said rage dismissively.
”Then what made you come out to get me?” asked Alpheus.
”I… maybe I was looking out for them,” she admitted.
”Are they grateful?”
”Yes, I think so.”
”Do you like it?” asked Alpheus.
”Ah… I don’t know,” said Rage. She walked along in silence after that, thinking about whether or not she was happy. She didn’t feel happy, but had she ever felt happy? Was happiness important to her? Why wasn’t it as important to her as other things?
They were making quite good time, distracted by their talking. She found that she liked Alpheus, a little, and enjoyed talking to him more than she enjoyed his presence, which still made her feel awkward.
The southern opening to the stronghold became apparent as they approached a fold in the stone of the mountain. “It’s through here,” she said, entering the cave before him.
”Nice to know,” he said with a little trepidation. Walking into a dark cave with an extremely angry dragon was not the safest thing in the world. He followed her in anyway.
SIX
The nursery smelled to him. It smelled like misery. It was lit with only a few lamps and was covered in thick, muffling cloth, like a room-sized bassinet. Rage had lead Alpheus through the paths of the mountain and they had not met a single soul passing in either direction. Alpheus supposed it was because Rage scared all the others away, or made them want to avoid her.
She was standing by the door, her eyes roving around the room. It would not do for her mother to remember herself and slay Rage’s mage before he could heal Imouto.
”What are you?” growled a soft voice.
A pile of what Alpheus had thought was cushions or furniture shifted and formed into Brittania, the leader of the mountain citadel. “I am a sorcerer. Rage brought me here.”
Brittania’s eyes gleamed in the dimness. “As a snack?’ she asked huskily. She sat up and curled herself up next to a child’s bassinet. “Come closer.”
Alpheus walked up to her and dipped his head respectfully. “I understand a child is ill.”
”Rage brought you?” asked Brittania, her voice still low and husky. Alpheus thought she sounded shocked. “She brought you here for this?”
”Yes,” replied Alpheus gently. This conversation was an odd one; it seemed to take Brittania a few iterations to understand what he was saying. He thought she was exhausted and overwrought from the struggle of having a sick child, and was trying to be her normal, imperious self.
”What’s going on, love?” Jin asked Rage, still standing at the nursery door. Jin spoke softly and he looked drawn and very tired. He had a tray set with two mugs and a coffee pot. He looked into the nursery and his huge bulk tensed immediately on seeing a stranger, then he relaxed, knowing Rage would not let anyone bad into the mountain.
”I brought home a shaman”, replied Rage, moving out of her stepfather’s way so he didn’t knock hot coffee into her. It embarrassed her that her own father had to serve himself and take a tray when they were in their own castle.
”New boyfriend?” asked Jin. He was not as jovial as he may once have been; his voice quiet to the point where the joke was only implied. He put the tray down on a table. “Well, he’s better than what I was worried about. At least he isn’t dead.”
Brittania looked up at her mate and though she did not smile, her eyes were glad to see him.
”Can I see the baby?” asked Alpheus. Jin nodded and drew back the bassinet drape for him to see what lay inside. A thin, tiny dragon baby, smaller even than an earth baby, lay in a sleep like death. He touched her and sensed Brittania flinch. Jin put his claw on her shoulder.
Rage watched this all happen from the doorway. She did not want to enter. She felt like an intruder. It was her business, of course, but she didn’t want it to be. She didn’t want to be afraid that Imouto would never wake up; she didn’t want to see her father lower his voice and not make his jokes; she did not want to see her mother become more and more of a husk of herself, not even energetic enough to intimidate an earth pony!
SEVEN
Alpheus picked Imouto up. She was very light. He felt the air move out of her nose, her chest rise shallowly. “Her spirit is asleep,” said Alpheus. He held her closer to him and drew in a long breath. Nothing seemed to happen, until his marking glowed. Two of the dangling parts of his marking lit up white, then the entire marking glowed.
Imouto coughed. She squirmed into a more comfortable position, opening her frail wings and closing them, writhing her tail.
Alpheus turned her in his arms to contain her movement and placed her in the arms of Brittania, who was standing extremely close to him, her eyes enormous and her nostrils wide. She was huffing air and looked as though it took a lot of self-control not to attack Alpheus and take Imouto from him. Alpheus glanced at Jin, who also seemed to have become more bestial, his entire body rigid, muscles standing out and he was incredibly still. Then Jin looked up at Alpheus and he smiled good naturedly. Alpheus was glad never to be on Jin Kyoshi’s bad side.
They say to beware the wrath of a gentle man, Alpheus thought. His is a wrath I would stay away from.
Rage watched her parents stare at Imouto like they had never seen a baby before, almost like she was something the needed more than food or air. She wondered if anyone had ever looked at her like that.
Alpheus went back to the doorway with Rage to give Jin and Brittania some room with Imouto. While rage looked at them, he looked at her.
Imouto opened her yellow eyes and coughed again. She looked up at Brittania and at Jin.
”Hello,” said Jin quietly. “What is your name?”
”Yarrow,” said Imouto, now Yarrow.
”You did it,” said Rage to Alpheus in a surprised tone.
”I had the right skills,” said Alpheus. “We should give them some space.”
”Yes,” agreed Rage. They walked down the corridor, Rage moving unconsciously, Alpheus following her. They stopped in a large room which was open on one side, showing a vista of Nightmare Valley.
The open wall made Alpheus feel uncomfortable. There was no railing and he could have fallen to a very unpleasant death with a lot of time to think about his life choices.
”Mother changed so much when she got Imouto… Yarrow,” said Rage. “She was strong and now she is like a starved animal being given food.”
”Sometimes we all get starved of love,” replied Alpheus.
”I don’t ever want to be like that.” Rage looked out of the open wall. “I don’t know how to stop it. It happened to mother so fast, so suddenly. I feel like I am being sucked dry slowly.”
”You sound like you have the same problem, only more drawn out,” said Alpheus. “Do you love anyone?”
Rage turned on him suddenly. “Love anyone? I love my mother and my father and I have my duty to everyone else, even if they don’t like it!”
”Did you ever choose someone to love?”
Rage looked at him, utterly lost. She did not understand what he meant. “Choose someone?”
”Like a good friend whom you love. A special friend.”
”I have never had a friend.”
EIGHT
Be normal, be normal. Rage snarled to herself. What was the point of being normal when it was denying her true magnificence? Why should she pretend she could not fly and wreak terror from above? Why pretend she could not summon the great, godlike powers of lightning at her own will? Why pretend that she was not about the closest thing one would get to royalty in this tiny town?
But Alpheus had made a deal with her. As much as Rage would have liked to just burn him to cinders and get it over with, he had held up his end of the deal, therefore, so would she. She would let him 'cure' her or 'help' her or whatever it was he wanted.
Which was why she was here, walking around like some earth pony, going to a meeting place in some park area to see Alpheus. She hoped they would go somewhere else after that; parks did not really interest her.
Alpheus watched Rage approach, looking very much like her namesake. If there had ever been an embodiment of pure rage, it would be the dragon before him. She looked furious and when she finally saw him she made a line straight for him. Perhaps another man may have run away, and there was an instinct in him to do that; Rage had always reminded him of an amoral predator, but he sat where he was, under a tree on a blanket with a few boxes near him.
"What are we doing here?" she asked snappishly.
"Hello," said Alpheus pleasantly, ignoring her. "Did you enjoy the walk?"
"No!" replied Rage angrily. "I can't believe you made me walk the whole way like someone like you!"
Alpheus stared at her calmly, waiting to see if she would notice how offensive she had been. When she did not, simply glowering at him, Alpheus asked, "What is so bad about being like someone like me?"
"You're not a dragon," said Rage, as though that solved everything.
"Would a dragon sit on a blanket with a not-a-dragon like me?"
"Of course not!" Rage flicked her hair back proudly.
"Then, I think you'd better take a seat and we can get to what we have to do today."
Rage frowned, but she sat, as he had asked her to do so and she was bound by duty to her word.
"Perhaps there is some hope for me, some absolution for my crime of being a not-dragon," said Alpheus, calmly setting out the boxes.
"You can't help that," said Rage dismissively. "What is this?"
"These are games," Alpheus answered. "We are going to play some games. It will not matter who wins-"
"I will win," assured Rage.
"What if you don'win?" asked Alpheus. "Will you be less of a dragon?"
"I couldn't lose to someone like you."
"Why not?"
"Because dragons are a superior breed."
Alpheus looked at her for a long time. He could say something about her own sister and brothers who were earth ponies, how her stepbrothers had married earth ponies, how her own father was a cosplay earth pony, but he refrained. It would not help her if she didn't truly see how wrong she was about superiority.
Instead, he opened a box at his side. "We are playing monopoly." He began setting the game out ready for play.
"I will beat you," promised Rage.
"I'm sure you'll try," said Alpheus evenly. "Which game piece do you want?"
Rage considered the silver models. "The hat," she said, setting it down on the starting tile.
"Then I will be the car." Alpheus set his car figure up on the starting tile.
"Alpheus, how do you play this game?" asked Rage.
Alpheus was taken aback. "You never played this?"
"I have never played any games."
"But you're certain you will win?"
"Of course."
Alpheus shook his head. Then he asked, "Why have you never played any games?"
"Because no-one ever wanted to play a game with me." She said it as though she was discussing never having eaten mangosteen or never visiting a national landmark, as though she was saying something completely normal.
Alpheus paused, not really surprised by her answer, but a little saddened. "That changes today."
In the end, Alpheus and Rage played the game of monopoly twice and a game of Cluedo and also some silly adventure game based in the jungle. Rage did not win every game, but they did not pay much attention to who won each game. Rage found that she enjoyed playing games and she and Alpheus played games many times, but always in Nightmare Valley, never at the mountain. Alpheus wanted to make her spend time away from the mountain so that her personality could grow out of the mould of 'future leader of dragons'.
He felt, after a while, that she was making improvement enough, in that she was a insulting his species a little less often than every day, to be able to meet someone non-judgmental to expand her knowledge of earth ponies. He was still a little concerned when he set up a play date for a tyrannical dragon, though.
NINE
"I do not understand why we are here in the halls of my father," growled Rage, glaring at everything in sight.
"Your father owns almost everything there is in Tinderton," replied Alpheus calmly. "Just about anywhere we go is going to have some connection to him."
"Why did we have to meet this person here?"
"Because Yuzuki lives here," said Alpheus. "All the darker ponies have gone to the magic guild, but since she's... not really like the others, she stayed. It will be good for you to meet her, her brother is mated to your sister, Kane, so she's like your sister also."
Rage glared at him even more. Oddly, Alpheus did not seem to be annoyed or affected in any way by her glare.
How little she knew. Alpheus was very frightened by her glare. It was like the outer coating of pony thinned to transparency to reveal the dragon predator beneath. He feared her on a primal level, but in his conscious mind, her glares made him want to make whatever bad thing she was angry about go away. If she would only stop frightening people away, then she might have a good life. He knocked on a door down the hall. "Yuzuki, we're here."
"Coming!" cried Yuzuki. She opened the door and ushered them both inside. "Careful, I am still setting up!"
Rage looked around. She had expected to be taken to a bedroom, but this was some kind of... puppet show, if she had to guess. Or some kind of miniature set in the making. There was a very detailed scaled down diorama of nightmare valley and a little of the surrounding area as well as some very cunning figures of ponies.
"This is Rage, Yuzuki," said Alpheus, formally introducing them.
"Hello, sister!" said Yuzuki cheerfully.
The term 'sister' rankled Rage, until she realised that it was technically true and if Yuzuki wanted to think of her that way, it would not hurt anything. "Hello," she said quietly. "This is... what is this?"
"It's supposed to be a tabletop game based on Nightmare Valley!" explained Yuzuki. "I surveyed the valley from your mountain; Haradrin let me in! Haradrin's fantastic. He's such a hard worker; he helped me put together the base!"
"Oh," said Rage. It was strange to have someone speak to her in a friendly way even though they had just met. Then again, nobody who got to know Rage would ever be friendly towards her. She looked closer at the base of the diorama. "It looks like it was a lot of work."
ALpheus grinned before he could stop himself. It was a tiny concession, but Rage really had given the kindest and most generous compliment her had ever heard from her. It was a start. He had chosen Yuzuki to meet Rage because she was such a kindhearted pony who would not be offended by Rage's... offensiveness.
Yuzuki approached Rage and smiled widely. "Do you like it?"
Rage looked as though she was trying to smile but couldn't manage more than a wincing look from a mouth more used to snarling. "Yes," she said slowly. "It is very accurate."
Yuzuki looked pleased to hear this. "Have a closer look!" she encouraged. "Look here at the mountain." She picked the top of the mountain up and revealed that inside the miniature were carefully styled rooms which mimicked the most important rooms in the mountain.
"Oh!" said Rage, impressed. "That is the flight room! It looks so good. Are all the buildings on this board like this?"
"Yes, they're all proper models," answered Yuzuki.
"Have you played a game on it yet, Yuzuki?" asked Alpheus.
"Not yet, I don't have enough people interested," Yuzuki admitted. "I would need sculptures for them. But I did make this for today!" She opened a box and showed them a small white figurine.
Rage started. "It's... that's me," she said. The figure was a perfect miniature of her. She picked it up in her claws. "This is very nice."
"This one is Alpheus," said Yuzuki, showing Rage another miniature.
Alpheus grinned. "You seem to have put more effort into Rage's figure!"
Yuzuki giggled. "Of course I didn't!"
"But why does his look different?" asked Rage. Her own miniature was a scale model of herself, but Alpheus's wore clothes and carried the dream catcher of his flank marking in his hand.
"They're the moving pieces for a board game," explained Yuzuki. "Yours is very realistic because I didn't think you would want to be anyone else but you. Alpheus's character that he plays as in the game is a mage and his figurine's clothes are a lot more mage-like than what he normally wears."
"Which is nothing," Alpheus replied.
"A game," said Rage quietly. "Is it a fun game?"
"It is when I play," said Alpheus.
"I think it's fun, too," said Yuzuki. "I always used to make little models. My brother used to animate them and put on shows! Games are fun as well, though, because you can play with lots of people."
"Can we play a game?" asked Rage.
Yuzuki's bright face fell, like a sudden, swift sunset. "You have to play with a certain number of people or else it is not quite so fun, but I haven't finished all the models."
"Are you sure we can't play with just us?" asked Alpheus. He would have liked to play when Rage was enthusiastic about it.
"Could I help you make them so we can play?" asked Rage.
Alpheus stared at her. She had volunteered to help someone! All the kind things she had done today had been done to eventually serve herself, but she was being nice about it.
"Yes, of course you can help me!" cried Yuzuki.
She showed Rage how to paint the base colours of the figurines. Alpheus helped organise the paint and tried to keep himself busy building tiny model trees and building lines of minute grass. He and Rage left that evening covered in glue and paint, but having had a great day. They would play the tabletop game sometime next week, when all the pieces were dry and lacquered.
TEN
Rage walked down the main street in Nightmare Valley. It seemed strange to her to be amongst the bustling, cheerful, harried, distracted, excited crowd instead of flying over it, more strange that she could walk down a street and not be stared at, cursed at, or worse, cause everyone else to flee at the sight of her. Some people even waves to her, or nodded as she passed.
A small child was playing in the street. He had his eyes closed and was walking around, miraculously not bumping into anyone. He stopped in front of her and, without opening his eyes, said 'Hello, Rage.'
Rage was shocked into silence.
The boy frowned. "It is you, isn't it?" He opened his eyes. "There you are. Why didn't you say anything?"
"I..." began Rage. "I was suprised."
The boy smirked. "It's my premonitions power," he explained proudly. "I can see where I'm going even when I close my eyes."
"How nice," said Rage. It was only a little forced.
"Pointer," said the boy without any embarrassment.
Rage wished she wasn't embarrassed to have forgotten his name. "Sorry, yes, hello Pointer." She was terrible with names, she had just never realised before.
"Goodbye, then." Pointer closed his eyes again and walked off into the crowded street.
Rage watched for a moment but Pointer was managing well by himself, which is more than she could say for herself; she was standing in the way. She hurried on, not forgetting what she was there for. Her dark eyes scorched the crowd as she looked for someone. An unremarkable someone. Someone... was he here?
"Rage," he said and she was relieved. She spun around, tripping someone up on her long scaly tail.
"Alpheus," she said with relief. "I thought I'd never find you."
Alpheus Rex took her arm in his and walked with her down the street, oblivious to the people crowding them or trying to push past. "Don't you waste a thought on that, Rage," he said reassuringly. "If you can't find me, I promise I'll find you." He planted a chaste kiss on her cheek and Rage felt her knees turn to water. He was so respectful and it made her feel all... girly. In a good way, she supposed, but it was new to her and she didn't quite trust it.
They had tea in a cafe in full view of everyone. At first Rage was awkward about people watching her with Alpheus; what were they thinking, did they think there was something wrong in it? But half a cup of iced tea down, she was so relaxed with Alpheus she didn't care if her mother was standing outside staring at them with all her baby siblings in tow.
She was glad they weren't there. This girly stuff really wasn't suited to her looks. But she was having so much fun.
Posted: Sun Nov 22, 2009 9:49 pm
Completed rps- archive
Soren and Lilina
1
Soren downed another cup of coffee. When was the last time he had slept? Well, it is hard to sleep when your house is only half built and you have people working on it around the clock, always needing your opinion on something. He rubbed his eyes and sat down against a tree.
The night crew were working now. Mortedom was taking some time away from his new mate to help Soren out. Berilio was there to make sure Mortedom stayed out of trouble. Zanobi had flown down from his cave with the children to give Emma a girls night out with Verdis Bina, so he was doing a lot of lifting while the kids played in the backyard. Slavillia had journeyed down to watch the proceedings and had bribed Ombre and Sang into lending their support.
At least the frame was up now. The plans had been drawn up by someone from the Factions up the way. It helped that the day crew and the night crew worked complementary shifts, so that there was always someone working. The concrete was almost set for the flooring and Mortedom and Berilio were arguing in a friendly way as they carved the doors and lintels. Ombre was preparing the struts and supports and lining them up beside their slots in the cement and Sang was pretending to measure the lengths of the rooms but was actually trying to fal asleep. Zanobi was wafting air down onto the concrete to dry it.
Soren decided he should be helping but he couldn't seem to get up. He rested his half-drunk coffee on his knee and dozed. What a relief it would be to escae his mother's tyranny and his father's influence? How nice to be one's own man! To suport one's own woman...
Before he felt truly rested, he was shaken awake. He looked around blearily.
"Mister Soren," said Pleia. "You're dripping your drink all over you."
Soren started and brushed his cold coffee off himself. "Thanks," he said. "Shouldn't you and your brothers and sisters be in bed asleep?"
"Maybe," she said sweetly. "But Dadda's having a lot of fun. We'll tell him if we get hungry, but he should have some more time here."
"That's something he should be worrying about for you isn't it?" asked Soren with a smile. He stood up and stretched his aching back.
"I dunno," said Pleia. "Bye!" she ran across to sit down with her brother Pointer.
Soren groaned and went over to Mortedom and Berilio. "How is it going?"
"The door is going well," said Mortedom. "But we're kind of stumped until the cement sets."
Soren sighed. "I think we should wrap up for tonight and get going in the morning. How does that sound?"
"You're the Boss, Foreman," said Berilio.
"Yeah sure," said Soren. "I'm going to go to sleep. Good night."
2
Soren glared at Kaiba Mansion, the testament to his father's reach. Soren growled low in his throat. He hated this place, the mouldering ruin that was once a gleaming mansion. Soren shook his head and pushed open the sagging gates. He made his way up the path to the mansion, noticing with conern that the path had been re-done and had no cracks. It was just one improvement...
Soren reached the front door and rapped on it smartly. The door had been replaced- it was now a work of art with carvings and a lovely deep stain. Soren frowned. These improvements.. did they mean his father had reclaimed the mansion?
Soren steeled himself and turned the handle and let himself in. The door didn't squeak either. He didn't feel comfortable here, even less than normal. He made his way upstairs to the floor below the solarium and stopped outside a door which was carved with runes.
This was Lilina's room.
Soren hastily swept back his hair, making sure it was tidy, before knocking twice on the door quietly.
Lilina looked up from her book. She slid her bookmark, put Unhappy Histories of Slytherin Students down and answered her door. "Soren! Hi, what brings you here?"
Soren grinned at the sight of her. "Lilina," he said quietly. "So good to see you. I came to visit you to ask you something... May I?' he asked, gesturing into her room.
Lilina smiled widely and stood back to let him in. "Sit down anywhere," she said and she hurriedly packed up her books on her table. "I can get you something to drink if you like?"
Soren perked up considerably. "I would love some strong coffee, if you wouldn't mind."
Lilina stood up and brought the kettle to the boil with a tap of her wand. The coffee beans ground themselves in their tin and threw themselves into a mug, making the entire room smell delicious. "Black?" she asked.
"A dash of milk and lots of sugar," relied Soren.
Lilina added milk and sugar. "What have you been doing, that you need coffee this strong?" she asked curiously, giving him the mug.
Soren inhaled deeply and sipped his drink. "That is what I came to talk to you about."
"Were you after a restorative draught?" asked Lilina. "I could made one up for you in a day or so."
"No," said Soren. He paused. It seemed to take him much longer to say what he wanted than usual, and he had always thought about what he said. "Lilina I want to get away from the shadow of my parents', if you follow me. I want to get away from this place, and away from the mountain." He drank deeply of his mug and ran his tongue across his teeth. "I've built a home on the farthest side of our lands. It's not as expansive as this house, but not as crowded either."
"That sounds great," said Lilina happily. "It will be good for you to get away from all this hubbub."
"Yes," agreed Soren. "But what I came to ask is if you would like to stay with me. I know you don't like being so crowded here."
3
Lilina felt numb with shock. "That's... sudden," she said. "I wouldn't want to impose on your privacy, Soren," she said seriously.
Soren shook his head. "You're not imposing. I..." he shook his head. "I made you up a room. In case you said yes."
Lilina smiled warmly. "That is very nice of you, but it is a bit sudden."
"I understand," said Soren quickly. "Your room is down the other end of the house if... if you were worried." He drank the last of his coffee quickly. "You can come and have a look before you decide. In fact, don't decide until you see. Please."
Lilina opened her mouth to seak and then closed it again. "How could I say no to you, Soren?" she asked rhetorically. She glanced around. "I don't have anything to do today. Would you like to show me now?"
Soren grinned then fought it down to a smile. "I would be very pleased to show you," he said formally. He stood up and offered her his arm.
Lilina rolled her eyes and laughed at him, but she took his arm and let him lead her out of her room and through the mansion.
-------------------+---------------------
Before they reached the house, Soren stopped and told Lilina to close her eyes. "It's a surprise," he said earnestly.
Lilina gave him an odd look but she closed her eyes and let him lead her to the house by the hand.
Soren positioned Lilina facing the house. He let go of her hand and watched her for a moment. "We're here."
Lilina opened her eyes. "Oh wow, Soren. You built this?"
Pride bubbled in Soren's chest. "Yes I did. Do you like it?"
Lilina looked up at the two storey house. "I do," she said appreciatively.
Soren unlocked the door and hurried inside, putting on the lights. He motioned to Lilina to follow him. "The living room is in there, the study is over through that door, the first floor study, I mean. There is another one upstairs. And the kitchen is in here." He paused for long enough to give Lilina a good look, before he opened an adjoining door. "The dining room."
"This place is very nice," said Lilina. The carpet was thick and the wooden trims were lovely and carved. The doorknobs were all emerald, carved into twisted snakes and many of the accents were made of emerald as well.
"Want to see upstairs?" asked Soren, excited despite himself. He tried so sobre his expression but he couldn't help a foolish grin spreading across his face.
Lilina smiled at his goofy expression. "I'd love for you to show me the upstairs," she said. His excitement was infectious.
Soren lead her up the saircase. There was a green runner carper in the centre of the stairs. This is my room," Soren said and he opened a dark door. The room inside was dark and the shadowy shape of a draped bed could be seen in the gloom.
"It's nice."
Soren looked at her knowingly. "This is nothing." He turned and walked down the hall, pointing to different doors. "Second study, bathroom, guest room, and this," he gestured to a door at the end of the hall, "is your room." He stood back.
Lilina took the hint and opened the door. She gasped. "Soren, it's lovely..."
4
Soren entered the bedroom behind her. There were shelves for books all across the walls. An empty fireplace crouched in the wall. spiral stairs rose from the floor up past the ceiling. "Go upstairs," Soren said quietly.
Lilina let lose a giggle and hurried up the stairs. She emerged into a tower-like solarium with curtains all around the walls and a bed in the centre. The roof was held up by twisting columns. She pulled open the curtains to reveal walls made almost entirely out of glass, providing an incredible view of Nightmare Valley with Dream Valley in the distance. "This is amazing!"
Soren followed her up and collected up the curtains in the corner. "I thought you would like it," he said quietly.
Lilina turned to him. "I can't believe it, you built me the perfect room..." She hugged him. "I would like to try a trial stay here, just to see if we can live together, is that okay?"
Soren nodded. "That's fine with me." He hugged her back tightly and released her. "Shall we go back to the mansion and get your things?"
"Oh can we?" she asked, delighted.
Soren replaced the curtains and proceeded Lilina down the stairs. "I forgot to mention that you have a private bathroom."
"Can this house get any better?" asked Lilna in awe.
"An indoor pool in the basement?" offered Soren.
Lilina laughed and then stopped at the serious look on Soren's face. "You're not kidding?' she asked. "Wow! Goodee!"
Soren watched Lilina settle into his home over the next week, never daring to hope that she would stay. After two weeks, he cooked a very dry dinner and sat with her to ask her if she would be staying.
"Yes, if you would have me," said Lilina between swallows of water.
"I'm sorry," Soren apologised about the meal, but he really didn't care; she was staying. Staying with him, away from his father. He was finally striking out on his own and he had a chance at a new life.
"It's fine," said Lilina. "It was made with care. By you," she laughed, "for me."
"It's all for you," he said quietly.
Lilina met his eyes across the table. "Soren..."
Soren smiled and waved her off. "Don't worry, don't say anything. I know you don't feel the same, but maybe you will. And if you don't, I'll have your freidnship."
"That's such a lovely thing to say Soren," said Lilina, her eyes tearing up. "I think any girl would be lucky to have you. But I don't want to say if that girl is me, in case it isn't."
"I'm... " Soren stopped and then decided there was no need to say any more. He reached across the table for her hand.
Lilina held his hand in hers. Her heart felt like it was a water balloon full of hot liquid and it was hard to breathe. Maybe I'm falling in love with him? she thought.
5
Soren sat in the ground floor study, staring vacantly out the window.
"Your door was open," said Lilina behind him.
Soren swung around. "Was it?"
"Yes," chuckled Lilina. She was holding a rose. She gave it to Soren. "I found it growing in the garden. I've never seen a rose grow here before."
Soren sniffed the rose. "Not for lack of trying, it seems."
"What were you doing?" asked Lilina curiously.
"I can feel an odd signal from the East. Like a dragon, but not. It's a little surreal."
"Does it both you?"
"It's a bit like a gnat in my ear," said Soren.
"That must be annoying." She looked around for something smart to say. "Soren," she settled with.
"Mmm?" he said.
"I want to kiss you."
Soren got out of his chair at that. "Really?" he saw her about to speak and quickly cut her off. "Nevermind." He held her face between his hands and kissed her softly.
Lilina leaned back. "Hmmm," she said.
"What?" asked Soren. "Not good for you?"
"It was great," said Lilina. "Was it what you wanted?"
Soren smiled. "You're what I want, no matter what form you come in."
"Even if I get fat and ugly?"
"Even then."
"Even if my hair falls out and I get all old?"
"Even then, if you'll have me."
Lilina rested her head against his shoulder. "I never thought I'd feel this was about you. You were always just a kid to me."
Soren wore a pained expression. "I know," he said unhappily.
"You're so gloomy!" said Lilina delightedly. "You make me feel cheerful."
"As long as it's with me," he said quietly. He frowned, biting back his annoyance at the interrupting fizzle in his head.
Lilina pulled back. "What's wrong?"
Soren wished she had not. "My head is twitching a little, still..."
Lilina lead Soren down to a plush couch. She rubbed his temples. "Does it hurt?"
"It's just so odd. Like a toothache. But that's nice..." He closed his eyes.
Lilina moved her hands up and down his face and up to the crown of his head, messing up his lovely hair. She tried to put it back in place. She realised he's falen asleep. She wondered if she should wake him up and move him, but he wouldn't fall asleep again in bed, not with his... tingle. She puffed up his cushion and crept out of the room
6
Soren woke up to blinding sun across his face. "Ugh!" he got up and shut the curtains. He was in Lilina's tower room. He ran his fingers through his tousled hair and wandered down the stairs to her main room. He nearly bumped into Lilina coming out of her bathroom. "Morning."
"Good morning!" said Lilina. "I thought it was best to let you sleep."
"Thanks," said Soren. You're going somewhere?" She had fixed her hair in a neater way and worn perfume and jewellery.
"Yeah, I'm just going to visit the old house. I didn't think you'd want to come."
Soren rubbed his eyes. "You're right. Have fun. I'm going for breakfast." He kissed her cheek and went downstairs.
Lilina finished getting ready and set her hat straight on her head. She called "Goodbye" to Soren as she went out the door and walked out of sight before she took to the sky and flew to Kaiba Mansion.
Lilina landed and went to the front door. The door opened before she had knocked on it.
"Lily!" cried Hasselti. "Oh hi how are you?"
"I'm great!" she hugged her good friend. "So nice to see you! But actually I'm here to see you about the Mountain..."
"Ooooooh," said Hasselti reluctantly. "Come in, then." She closed the front door behind Lilina.
"This place looks great!" said Lilina while she followed Hasselti to her room. "So clean."
Hasselti grinned. "Yup, my man spends his nighttime cleaning and fixing. He doesn't sleep, so he thought he might be useful. And he wants me to have a nice clean house."
"That's romantic," said Lilina. "Who's this?'
"Mortedom," said Hasselti, opening her door and gesturing Lilina in.
"Really?' asked lilina, sitting in Hasselti's evening chair. "I never would have guessed. But no wonder he's tidying the place for you; he's such a sweetie."
Hasselti held up a cautioning finger. "Don't get an ideas, now!"
Lilina grinned. "I have someone of my own now. And I've come because of him. It's Soren."
Hasselti's eyes widened. "Soren? I never would have thought... he always seemed so unhappy." She stopped at the look on Lilina's face. "Sorry."
Lilina leaned forward. "He's having trouble with his talent. He's sensing something strange in the East. Do you know anything about that?"
"That sounds a bit like Imouto..." Hasselti frowned. "I don't know if I should be telling you. It's a bit of a secret."
"It's a bit late to say that now," said Lilina. "What will it hurt?"
"It's true. Well. Imouto is a dragon up in the Green Lady Mountain that Jin brought because she was in some sort of magic coma. She's still a baby. They can't wake her up."
"Oh how sad," said Lilina. "Maybe I can help. I could look some things up."
"I'm sure that would put Brittania's mind at ease."
7
Lilina heaved another stack of spellbooks to her desk to peruse. Her eyes felt swollen and dry and her hair was half in and half out of a hairband. She still researching spells and potions to save someone from sleeping indefinitely. Unfortunately, she couldn't find anything that would help Imouto and, by association, Soren.
Soren was half-asleep these days. He could not sleep properly, and not at all unless it was next to her. His head was a place he didn't want to be and he was so listless.
Soren tapped on her study door and came in. "Lily, can you come to bed?" he asked.
Lilina was taken by him at that moment. He looked like a little boy asking his mother for a bedtime story. "Yes. Just help me carry some of these books, will you?" She gathered up several books and passed them to him.
Soren took the books and headed upstairs to Lilina's bedchamber.
Lilina followed Soren and tucked him into her bed. She kissed his cheek and rubbed his temples, waiting for him to fall asleep.
When he was breathing evenly, Lilina propped herself up in bed and started to read through her spellbooks.
She once joked to Soren that maybe someone should just kiss Imouto like the princess in Sleeping Beauty. Soren had laughed and wished it was the case. But every day now, Lilina felt more and more disheartened. She couldn't save her lover from this discomfort.
She pulled out her bookmark. Inside this folded-up envelope was a small clip-bag with a violet coloured potion inside. She pursed her lips and inhaled deeply, holding her breath. Lilina breached the bag and tipped the potion into Soren's mouth.
Soren coughed and sputtered after the potion went down his throat, but he settled back down and fell unto a much deeper and more restful sleep.
Lilina stroked Soren's hair. Her sleeping potion had worked. Maybe he would get some rest. Lilina settled down to have a sleep, herself. Tomorrow she would visit Green Lady Mountain.
Lilina kissed Soren on the cheek when she woke up and before she left the house. She did not expect him to wake up until she returned, but she left him a note just in case.
She left the house and took wing just outside the front door for once. She usually walked for a bit before she flew, just in case it upset Soren. She was afraid she might compare him to his less-than-supportive family.
Lilina flew towards Green Lady Mountain and scowered the face for the landing bay. As the pouse of a member of the clan, she was entitled to be there, even if they didn't like it.
She finally found an anonymous-looking cleft in the stone which, upon her further scrutiny, reavealed itself to be instricately carved with precious metals. "Ahh," she said to herself and she dived into the cavernous opening.
She landed and settled herself out of the chilly air. She looked around. There were raised frescoes around the walls.
She heard someone in the shadows behind her. "Who's there?" she asked nervously.
8
"Who are you?" hissed Tundra. "Why are you here?"
"I'm Lilina," said Lilina. "I live with Soren. Are you... his sister? Tundra?"
Tundra narrowed her eyes. "I'm Tundra," she agreed. "You're with Soren?" She stepped forward. "That's why you're here?"
"Yes," said Lilina. "Because of his talent, the presence of Imouto here is hurting him. I wondered if I could help."
"If you're here to help Soren, you're welcome," said Tundra, actually smiling. "Come on." She lead the way into the heart of the mountain. "I'm only visiting here myself. I live down in the water palace with Eerinna and Zared. Between you and me, I'm very worried about how Mother is dealing with this 'Imouto'."
"So Imouto," began Lilina, "Jin brought here here from the Na'vi? And she's been asleep this whole time? No periods of wakefulness?"
"No. Why?"
"I think I might be able to help her, wake her up. I don't really understand how but the fact that Imouto is asleep means her 'blip' is coming up foggy on his radar. It's making him feel really strange."
"Are you a witch?" asked Tundra curiously.
"Yes," said Lilina. "How could you tell?"
Tundra giggled. "It's a nice hat."
Lilina smiled. "Yeah I suppose it's a giveaway. Should I take it off?"
"No, don't bother, we don't stand on ceremony here." She peeked her head into a room. "The sitting room is empty... Mum must be in Imouto's room."
"I don't want to intrude," said Lilina reluctantly.
"It's only through here," said Tundra. She took Lilina to a deeply and elaborately embellished doorway and door and knocked. "I'll leave you to yourself here," said Tundra. "It doesn't seem like the kind of scene I should be crashing. Good luck with it and give Soren my love." She patted Lilina's shoulder and went back the way she came.
Lilina took a deep breath and opened the door. The room inside was large and curved. It had obviously been carved by hand. There were stars and planets and dragons carved into the ceiling. There was a wicker bassinet draped with folds of green silk and crushed velvet set in the middle and cusions over most of the floor. Cabinets were dotted around the walls and a chest which looked like it had been copied from a fairy tale sat at the end of the bassinet.
Crouching near the bassinet on a pile of cushions was Brittania, glaring with gleaming yellow eyes at Lilina in a way that made her very uncomfortable.
Brittania partially rose up from her seat and folded back her upper lip to expose her long fangs. "Who are you?" she growled in a much more frightening echo of her daughter.
9
Lilina swallowed. It was one thing to hear about how terrifying Brittania was, but quite another to meet her when she was very... antisocial. She decided to try and take control of the situation. "My name is Lilina," said Lilina. "I'm seeing Soren at the moment. I was wondering if I could help Imouto."
Brittania's expression changed from aggressive to confused. "You are Lilina? The witch that used to live in the Kaiba Mansion?"
"Yes," said Lilina in suprise. "Do you know of me?"
"Belladonna suggested you," said Brittania breathlessly, standing up and stepping foward. "When she couldn't help us she told us to find you and see if you could help her, but we couldn't find you. But you've come to us." Brittania grabbed Lilina's hand and guided her to the bassinet.
Lilina pulled back the hangings to reveal the smallest baby she had ever seen. She did not seem to be breathing but she felt under the baby's mouth to be sure. No breath on her hand. "She's so..." She began.
"She was much worse when we got her," said Brittania softly. "She was so thin you could see her ribs," her voice choked. "We got Heketoro to heal her body, but he couldn't wake her." She stroked Imouto's green hair gently.
"It's sad," said Lilina sympathetically. "I'll just move these drapings..." Lilina gently pulled the hangings back. "Let me try some spells."
Brittania took her point and shuffled backwards to give Lilina room. She watched as Lilina muttered nonsense words and poked Imouto gently. Brittania waited for several minutes before asking, "Is it working?"
Lilina sighed and drooped her shoulders. She replaced the draped reverently. "No. I'm afraid I can't help you. It's not an outside magic that I can tamper with. It's something... natural to her." She stood up and swept off her hat. "I apologise. I only wanted to help."
Brittania swallowed her bitter dissapointment. "That's okay," she said quietly. "Thank you for trying. Please have something to eat before you leave... And tell Soren to visit. If he wants."
Lilina bowed and replaced her hat. "I'm sorry," she said and she left.
Lilina hurried through the corridors, hoping desperately that she would not get lost in this place.
"Are you lost?"
Lilina turned around. She saw a beautiful white dragon with black claws, orange eyes and gleaming priceless jewellery. "Hi. I am a little. Can you help me?"
"I can. I'm Valmoriel. What's your name?"
"Lilina. Brittania told me to get something to eat before I left."
"I can take you to the dining room," said Valmoriel. She lead Lilina up to the top of the mountain where there was a lot of natural light.
Lilina made herself a quick cup of tea and a sandwich before she went home. Valmoriel showed her the way back to the landing bay. "It is such a maze here. Do you get lost?"
"I used to, but I grew up here. My mother made me a map so I know where I'm going. I hope to see you again." Valmoriel waved to Lilina as she left.
Lilina waved back and made her way back home. She had failed. Soren was still in pain. Lilina tried not to cry at the high altitude. They would be okay.
10
Lilina was in a warm, soft, safe place when she heard Soren's voice. He was singing some silly-sounding song. It was kind of nice to be asleep and listen to him being so happy. Happy... wait...
Lilina opened her eyes in bed and sat up, her hair tousled and flat at the back. Soren was indeed singing. He had opened one of the windows and was sitting with his hair blowing in the wind. He looked well-rested, for a change, and cheerful.
"You're awake," said Soren unnecessarily. "It's about time. It's nearly one o'clock."
"I guess I was tired," explained Lilina. "You look... much better."
Soren grinned at her. "I feel better; there is no fuzziness in my head anymore, just another blip!"
Lilina frowned. "Really? I don't understand why..."
Soren sat on the edge of her bed. "Well here's something I don't understand. How is it that," he picked up her hand and put it near his lips, "I went to bed three days ago and only woke up this morning?"
Lilina blanched. "You were so unwell... I slipped you a sleeping potion... Sorry."
Soren kissed her hand. "You're forgiven. There are better ways to keep me occupied in bed, though. So what happened in my missing days?"
"I went to see your mum to check if I could help your condition," confessed Lilina. "But I couldn't. The poor thing, she looked so unhappy."
Soren made a dismissive noise out of his nose. "My mother has no need of sympathy."
"Well something must have happened to break the spell," said Lilina. "Because you're better."
Soren grinned wolfishly at her. "I certainly am." He kissed her deliberately and leaned her back into the pillows.
=============-=-------------------------------
Soren brought Lilina a glass of juice and some biscuits.
Lilina smiled and took the glass and plate from him and let him fluff her pillows.
"How do you feel?" he asked.
Lilina sipped the juice. "Still pretty sick. I'm sure I'll be better soon."
Soren sat down across from her in the downstairs study. "Do you know what... it might be?' he asked gently.
Lilina fixed him with a piercing stare. "What do you think it is?"
"Well," said Soren. "Could you be pregnant?"
Lilina sighed deeply. "Possibly. In fact, maybe."
"Could you, ah, take a test?"
"I'm taking one," said Lilina in a flat voice. "Wait ten minutes,"
"Ten?" asked Soren.
"It's more reliable than the three minute ones."
"When did you take it?"
Lilina picked up a book. "Dunno."
Soren picked up the odd-looking device. "I think it was a while ago."
"I'm procrastinating."
"Can I check?"
"Whatever."
Soren unscrewed the sensor strip and held it up. "Um." A big smile set in across his face.
"Are we pregnant?" asked Lilina.
Soren showed her the 'Positive' on the sensor strip. "Yes!"
Lilina beckoned Soren into her arms and they held each other until Lilina was struck by an overwhelming desire to eat lots of biscuits. "We should see a seer," said Lilina between bites. "So see what kind of babies we'll have."
"Why?" asked Soren. "Isn't a surprise better?"
"What if there are dragons? Will we let them be brought up by your mother? Or will we hide them away? Will any be dragons? We need to have answers for these."
"You're right," said Soren. "But I don't want to give any of my children to my mother."
Lilina nodded grimly. "Then we might have to hide.
Soren kissed Lilina's hand. "As long as I'm with you.
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