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 Posted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 1:31 am
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Posted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 1:34 am
LOG 1
Nameera hid beneath the trees as she looked around, a bit anxiously. The last thing she wanted was to be seen, she didn't want him to be hurt. He'd always been fond of her...but fondness wasn't enough. She couldn't bear another minute there where he was as just an associate. Pulling up her cloak, she made her way across the clearing.
Gamell was fleeing his father's bad will, even if he didn't say as much. As soon as Kaiba got back to his feet, he got there with a vengeance. A few days to calm down would do them both good. Gamell was walking the divide, twirling three crystals when he noticed a furtive but hurried step in the undergrowth which faltered every so often. Like a person limping or tangling their feet. His brow furrowed. Someone hurt? He followed the sound.
Nameera stumbled again, her feet felt so weird and wobbly. Feet...such an odd thing to have really, how did these people get along with them? They were rather unnatural. She pushed back a short lock of messily cut hair. She sighed for a moment for lost beauty, but she was almost across the clearing to get a drink of water. She felt so dry, even though she knew she didn't need as much water as before.
Gamell saw a figure going to the water. "Stop!" He cried, running up to them and blacking them from the stream. "That's tainted! You're in Nightmare Valley; the water this close to the sea is half brine," he explained. Probably a Dream Valley pony going to Medusa for some potion or other.
Nameera pulled the cloak tighter around her face, her hands fumbling at it trying to tuck in long strand of hair that weren't there. "Brine? That's not good, is it?" She tried to keep herself concealed beneath the cloak.
Gamell shook his head. Dream Valley, he assured himself. "Yes, brine, that's salt water and it's not good to drink. If you are thirsty you need to go to a well or go further inland." He shook his head. "You should get out of here. It's not a good place for someone like you."
"I'm trying," she couldn't help but smiling at the kind faced stranger. Well, at least he looked kind after the people she lived with daily. But did she really even know what kind looked like? "Salt water is bad." She tried to sound like she meant it, because it was a hard concept to think that salt water was something most would deem unlike-able.
"Trying?" asked Gamell. "You got lost in Nightmare Valley?" He sighed. "Of course you did. Come on, then. I guess I'll take you home and I'll show you the way to Dream Valley tomorrow."
"No," she looked a bit aghast at his offer. "I...uhm," she struggled for words for a moment. "I need to go." She moved as if to leave.
"And where are you going?" mocked Gamell. He couldn’t help it. "You're lost. And it's getting dark."
"That may be, but..." She backed away a bit, torn between help and running. "I need to get as far away from here as quickly as I can."
Gamell nodded sagely. "That is what everyone says. Fine, if I can't take you home, I'll show you the way anyway." If something happens to her, I think I'd feel guilty, he thought wryly. And she looks like she might be some fun.
Nameera was a little afraid she'd upset him, she was a bit too kind in her nature. "Okay, but maybe we could stop soon tonight. I've come a long way and I'm tired."
Gamell scoffed. "You had the choice to rest overnight and turned it down. I'm not sleeping overnight in this valley without being home. It's not safe, and I won't be around when you get eaten by a voodoo zombie." He said it jokingly enough, but... well... there was a voodoo zombie in the Kaiba Mansion...
Nameera looked alarmed, how could he possibly know about Fanta the mummy? Did he know about what she did or how she ran? Her mind ran wildly and frighteningly through all these scenarios. "Okay..." She looked at him a bit afraid.
Gamell frowned. "Okay we go to my place or okay we'll travel all night?" He didn't miss the horror that crossed her face. Interesting... Maybe some fun.
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Posted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 4:19 am
LOG 2
"We'll go to your place," her face flushed softly as she let the words trail off. He had to have noticed she was upset, she needed to hide things better. Maybe he didn’t know as much as she thought?
Gamell nodded, still frowning. "I live at the Matchstick Herd grounds. I'm Gamell. It's close by." He motioned her to follow him, not asking her name in case she didn't want to give it.
Nameera nodded, "Okay. I'm..." She paused delicately for a second. "I'm Mira." She lied smoothly, lying about who she was was one thing she was good at. Having hid her true talent for so long and pretending to be someone she wasn't... No wonder, she was so confused so lost out here.
Gamell heard the lie and how artfully it was covered up. he was not a trickster for nothing. He let it pass. He was starting to doubt if she was a Dream Valley pony at all. "All right. This way." He lead her through the dark.
Sticking close to him, she could feel her heart beating loudly as they approached his home. She didn't know what to expect from him, from this place...Was everyone like the ones she had left? But she said nothing and followed.
Gamell continued to notice her stumble and at length he turned to her. "Are you hurt?" he asked.
"Uhm...No, just tired." Which was true but not the reason she stumbled. "With some rest, I'll be better." Not to mention another day's experience. It had gotten a bit easier than earlier already, but still quite difficult. She watched him as he walked in front of her, she'd like to think he was kind. At least kinder than most she knew, except for Inebar. Her cheeks brightened to crimson.
"Yeah..." Gamell said, not believing her. Can this girl even tell the truth? "Just beyond those hills you should see the lights."
For a few moments, she stumbled along with him in silence and then the lights shined for her like beacons of good will promising shelter and food. "That's it?" She gazed at it longingly; she'd never been in a house before. She'd always lived in caves.
"Yeah," said Gamell. "We used to live in a mansion, but our herd got so big... I'll take you in the back way, seeing as how you don't want to be seen."
"I appreciate that." She smiled at him, a little more relaxed but still afraid. Somehow just seeing the lights of the house, made her tired and she yawned loudly.
Gamell took her outside the circle of lights and took her into his little home. He opened the door for her and showed her into his room. "Sleep in here," he offered. "The bathroom is down the hall. Don't go outside. We will leave before dawn so nobody sees you."
Thank you." She smiled at him sleepily, the cloak falling back and revealing her shorn hair. "Where are you going to stay?"
Nice hack job... Thought Gamell. "Uh, in the lounge room," he said. "Be ready to leave." He went to the cupboard for sheets.
"Okay," she yawned. Stretching out on the bed, she thought about something else to say to him, but she was asleep before she could remember what it was.
Gamell frowned and closed his bedroom door. Such a strange girl. He couldn't hide that he was interested in her- such was his nature. Puzzles intrigued him. She was a puzzle. He made up a bed on the couch, turned on an alarm and read a book until he went to sleep.
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Posted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 4:21 am
LOG 3
Nameera stretched out in the bed, the sun wasn't even up yet but her feet were throbbing. She was very unused to this walking. She wondered if it would be best to have another day of hiding before moving on, you can't find the trail of something that's not moving.
Gamell knocked on his bedroom door. "Time to leave." He was already washed, shaved and dressed, with impeccable hair.
Nameera stumbled to the door, her feet were incredibly sore. Opening the door, she noticed how perfect he looked. Clapping her hooves to her hair, she tried to cover her hair. She had been so tired, she had forgotten to.
Gamell raise an eyebrow. "You look fine," he lied. "You have time to wash before we go."
Nameera shuffled her feet, "Can't I stay here with you? For a day?" She pleaded tears welling in her eyes as her feet throbbed.
Gamell's other eyebrow rose. "I can't be here," he explained. "But you can stay here. Just don't go outside. Or you can. Just don't say you're staying here. I don't need more titters at my back."
"Why would they care?" Her brow furrowed as she sat down, to get off her feet, her hair completely forgotten. "So you're going to go?"
Gamell laughed shortly. "They care because I'm expected to dally with young ladies and it is unseemly," he said this in a very genteel mocking voice. "I'll be out."
"Oh...okay then." She frowned a bit as she rubbed at her feet, "But what if someone comes here while you're gone?"
He looked at her as if she were simple. "Then don't answer the door."
"Oh." She flushed scarlet, that had been kind of stupid on her part, but they didn't really have much of doors where she had been. "Sorry that was stupid of me."
"I don't care," said Gamell easily. "Help yourself to the food." And with that, he slipped out the back door.
Nameera watched as he left, and sat there silently for a few minutes. Getting up, she rummaged through some drawers until she found scissors. Carefully, she clipped her hair trying to make it more uniform and less...jagged. Finishing up, she bathed before she found food. Taking out some cheese and crackers, she sat down with a glass of water. She took what she thought was a long refreshing sip, but spit it out everywhere. It was very plain and had no salt in it. She set the glass down and wrinkled her nose contemplating when Gamell would come back.
Nameera sat stretching her legs, it still seemed so odd to have them. By the time, she got use to them…they’d be gone again. She wiggled them about, enjoying the sensation. No matter how much she did it, she didn’t get tired of it.
Reaching into the small bag, she had with her she looked at the small glowing crystal. It still shimmered brightly, indicating that she had enough time to do what she needed to do before she went back to how she was before.
It was sad, she had left everything she had ever known. The ocean--she had left it for Inebar. She had only been a child, but she had been fascinated with him. He was mysterious and wonderous, all the things she’d ever dreamt of. When she saw him, her childish little heart had been fascinated. And as she had grown, she’d watch him leave…
She’d cried for weeks while he was gone, she’d missed him so much. She’d hoped he would notice how she had grown, that he might compliment her in some way when he returned….but he hadn’t. He returned with children.
At first she was aghast, and sat in stony silence. She’d been forbidden to be near the children at all. So she’d been denied the sight of the mer she adored, but she was denied the presence of anyone her age. She watched as they grew, and Inebar adored his daughter.
It wasn’t fair that she wasn’t pretty enough to be adored. She remembered those hours of agony, until he would come visit her and then they would talk. Everything would be alright again for a short time…and then he was gone as if it was some fantastic dream turned nightmare.
Then, one day, when she was grown. She realized she couldn’t stay with him anymore, the pain was just too great to be around him all day and know that whatever he was feeling it wasn’t the same as her. She’d waited until she was alone, and left him a solitary lock of hair.
Packing her things, she sought out Fanta, an enemy of her herd. Before long the deal had been done, her hair was shorn, and she had legs instead of fins.
She came out of the memories and she regretted leaving. Maybe if she had stayed Inebar would have seen what she could be to him? After all he had lied for her for so long, didn’t that mean something? There had to be something there! But she couldn’t see it…He didn’t feel for her anything. She was just some sordid puppet for him to play with.
The tears began to fall, as she tried to push him far from her mind.
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Posted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 4:22 am
LOG 4
Gamell rubbed the back of his head wearily when he slunk home at twilight, locking the door securely behind him. "Hello?" he called. "You still here?"
Nameera was crying as she sat on the bed. The full impact of it had hit her. She had left the only person she'd ever loved, the one she had hoped would love her too. She had left him, shorn off her beauty to be alone in a world she no longer remembered. She heard Gamell's voice, "Ye-ye-yes," she sniffled. "I'm stt-till here."
Gamell sighed. Oh fantastic , he thought wryly. Tears. "Well I'm home. We can go whenever you like." He went to the bathroom and spotted bits of green hair on the floor. "Aaaargh..." he grumbled.
Nameera tried to wipe away the tears, and tried to calm herself but the largeness of it all kept hitting her over and over again. She tried to answer Gamell, but she just couldn't stop crying. She felt so desperate, so alone...And the tears fell even more thickly.
Gamell finished checking himself over and wiped up the offending mess. He went into the kitchen to toss it out and picked up his half empty box of tissues. He leant around his ajar door and tossed the box at the girl weeping on his bed. "Whenever you want to leave," he said again, going into the lounge room to wait until she composed herself.
Nameera picked up the tissues and wiped at her eyes. It took her a few minutes to compose herself before she went into the lounge room. She saw him sitting there, an almost bored look on his face. That look brought on the tears again since it reminded her so much of Inebar. She sat down beside Gamell and without thought through her arms around him as she began to sob again.
Gamell grumbled and gingerly patted her on the back. "There there," he said. "I'm not good at crying girls. I don't know what to say." He made a noise in the back of his throat. "Hum. I guess we're not going anywhere tonight, are we?"
Nameera shook her head as she buried herself into his neck and cried. After a while, she calmed down and leaned back from him to wipe her eyes. "I’m sorry. It's just..." She let the words trail off, as she looked back up at him. She leaned forward and kissed him gently, "Thank you." The soft blush lit up her face, as she looked at him a bit differently.
Gamell nodded quickly and inhaled. "Apology accepted and you're welcome." He brushed at the collar of his coat. "Are you okay now?"
Nameera smiled, "Yeah, it's just. You've been kinder to me than most have ever been in my life." Her brown eyes stared into his. She'd never been in a situation like this before and the sheer intoxication of it cleared her mind of tears. This, after all, was what she wanted-experience, to live life and move on from Inebar. She needed to obliterate him from her mind.
Gamell exhaled heavily. "I knew you weren't from Dream Valley. You're running away, aren't you?"
"Yes," she said it simply. "It was...the only way." She kept looking at him intensely, her heart racing.
Gamell gently pushed he away from him, extricating himself. "Where are you from?" he asked. Seeing the look on her face, he added, "I need to know what you've dragged me into."
Nameera breathed deeply, deciding for the most part to come clean. "I live in the mountains. The Doom Faction took me in as a child. And... I decided I was tired of playing games. So I left and went to Fanta, the witch. She helped me to escape but took my hair as part of the bargain. And then...I got lost on the way, and you found me." She kept her steady gaze on him, "Is that what you wanted to know?"
"I'm not familiar with them," said Gamell sternly. "But getting involved in magic is never the answer. You would be wise, now that that witch has your hair, to run as fast as you can, as far as you can." He shook his head. "You didn't mention if they would follow you."
"She won't." She shut her eyes for a moment, "Fanta is glad I'm gone. Far be it for her to bring me back, Inebar is the only one who would care." Her voice had said his name almost tenderly. "I'm not use to...walking and if I don't move about for a day. I think that will benefit us. It looked earlier like it might storm."
"It always looks like it will storm here," said Gamell suspiciously. "Sounds like you came from a heavy duty place. Fine. I'll take you where you want to go, tomorrow. And if I'm murdered protecting you, then you'll have to take it up with my sister and my father."
Nameera laughed a bit. "If he came for me, he'd want us alive." She touched his face gently, "I'm sorry for the trouble I've caused you." She kissed him again. She had liked how it felt the first time.
Gamell nodded. "Well if this mysterious he murders me, then you'll still have to deal with my sister and my father. The only killing in my family is done by family members."
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Posted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 4:24 am
LOG 5
Gamell thought for a moment. "You know, I'm hungry. Is there anything you feel like eating?" He stood up, patting her on the shoulder and headed to the kitchen.
Nameera smiled and followed after him. "I'd love a sandwich and some salt water." She watched him interestedly. This after all, was what she wanted and she would make the best of it.
”Salt water?” asked Gamell incredulously. He pulled out bread and butter and vegemite and strawberry jam.
"Yes," she smiled. "It's what I'm used to." She ran her hooves through her short, but neater hair.
"All right..." said Gamell. He ran a glass under the tap and passed it to her, along with a shaker of salt. "Strawberry jam okay with you?"
"Sounds great. Are you having that too?" She shook loads of salt into her glass and then drank it appreciatively not noticing any odd looks he gave. "Much better."
"No, I'll have vegemite," he said, his knife gliding across the bread, and then he slid a plate over to her. "Each to their own, you know, but too much salt is bad for you."
"Is it?" She looked up at him a bit concerned. "Even swimming in it?" She picked up her sandwich and took a bite out of it.
"Not swimming in it, but drinking or eating it." He finished assembling his sandwich and took a bite. "Then again, who am I to talk? There is so much salt in vegemite..."
"Oh, well good then." She took a few more bites of her sandwich. "I really like salt though." She laughed, guessing this was what it was like to make conversation for conversation's sake. She felt more at ease.
Gamell sighed. "So." He chewed and swallowed and began putting everything away. "What's your name?"
For a moment, she considered. "Nameera."
Gamell smirked. "I knew you were lying." He winked and put his plate in the sink. He stretched. "So sleep here tonight and go tomorrow? I don't want to worry you, but staying in one place for too long is kind of like shouting from a rooftop."
"Yeah, sounds good." She stretched her legs. "Are you still going to sleep in there?" She drank another drink of her water.
"Unless another bedroom materialises in my house," he replied absently.
"Well, we don't have to go yet." She finished off her glass, cleaned it and put it away. "I mean....we can talk, right? I've not gotten to talk much to others before."
"As you like," he answered. "I'm not really a talker."
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Posted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 7:41 am
LOG 6
"Okay, but it's still nice to have the ability to talk with someone." She touched her short cropped hair again as she watched him. She hadn't noticed him before as she did now. Maybe it's because she was finally trying to accept what she'd already tried to convince herself of--to move on and to live.
"Around here, we have lots of talkers," Said Gamell. "Ramla is a big talker. My sisters were all talkers. Emma was a talker and then she did that thing with that dead guy and now she's really quiet..."
Nameera's eyes widened, "What thing with what dead guy?"
Gamell leaned backwards on the countertop. "Well. Emma vanished after she had a disagreement with Grisamara- the scariest girl around, really. And her brother, Zanobi, took off at the same time. Emma and Zanobi both turned back up later and they're inseparable now." He ran his hoof through his hair. "And he's dead, by the way. Suicided back in the day."
Nameera made a disgusted face, "And so...what happened to Emma?" She looked awed at him, she'd never heard of stuff like this.
"She's around. They travel a bit together now. They don't stay around here very long, because of Grisamara, especially now she's grown up."
"Oh, well that's a relief. I thought...You know...something had happened." She leaned her elbows on the counter as she kept messing with her hair.
"No, just the scandal. And that she's quiet now. She used to hang around with a really chatty girl called Verdis Bina..." He smiled with self-indulgent memories of her. He blinked. "I'm back," he chuckled.
"Who was this Verdis Bina?" There was a slight jealous note to her voice, she didn't realise it when she said it--only that she had a distinct feeling of dislike for the girl.
Gamell smirked. "Oh just this girl. No-one very special."
"Oh..." Nameera felt herself colour up a little. "I never had many people my own age around."
"Not many adults around?" asked Gamell.
"Well...I mean, when I was younger I was the only one. Then as I grew, some kids showed up. But they were kept away from me, and I was secluded from the adults for the most part too. It got rather lonely." She blinked as she looked past him, lost in thought for a moment.
Gamell looked at her. "No fear of misunderstanding here. My siblings were almost all adults by the time I made it to teen," he nodded knowingly.
"Oh, I'm sorry." She thought for a moment, "I think I had a sister and a brother, a long time ago....before I came to the mountains. But I was so young, I don't really remember."
"I have another two brothers and a sister that I never see," said Gamell companionably. "I never see my mother, either."
"I don't remember my mother, I think...she had black hair." She scrunched up her face trying to remember.
"My mother had black hair," said Gamell easily. "She had skin like a porcelain doll and fire and crystals and blue eyes." He stopped and stared at the wall. "I don't see her anymore... Apparently I take after her father. A lot." He ran his hoof through his hair again. "I think that's why my father and I fight so much." He smiled sadly. "I'm just glad neither of my sisters really take after our mother. I don't think Dad could deal with that."
She placed her hoof on his, in a consoling sort of way. It seemed perfectly natural though she wasn't experienced in comforting.
Gamell looked at her in surprise. "Thanks. But I'm not upset. That's just how it is."
"Oh," she blushed. She didn't realise how difficult this whole interacting thing could be. Maybe she looked kind of dumb? Or maybe just pathetic?
Gamell shrugged. "Time is a wasting... Time for bed?"
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Posted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 6:23 pm
LOG 7
Nameera walked along beside Gamell. Her feet were working much more properly, which was good considering she only had a few more days after this. As they walked, she kept looking at Gamell in side long glances remembering earlier that morning. She had woken up before him and his perfect blonde hair was tousled and his face was peaceful. There was no mocking or smarmy look, just peacefulness. It was not a look she'd seen him wear while conscious. There was something so boyish and cute about it that made you want to reach out and touch him or hold him...or...She flushed crimson again.
"If you're too warm, we should rest in the shade," said Gamell, noticing the blush on his intrepid explorer's face.
"A rest would be nice." The colour had not died down in her face. Sitting down, she stretched out as best she could. "Sorry, I'm such a bother." She wiggled her feet about amusedly.
"You're not. I mean, it's your deadline," Gamell said, leaning back on his elbows.
Nameera leaned back against the tree, and felt her hoof brush against his and blushed redder. She was feeling all hot and flushed for some reason, kind of like when she use to talk to Inebar. She looked up at Gamell suddenly as it struck her with full impact.
Gamell frowned. "You look sick."
"I'm...not." She turned her face away from him so that he couldn’t' see the colouring of her face so well. "I'm fine," she lied.
"Okay then," he said. "We'll be in Dream Valley soon. We'll be at the coast in a few days."
She figured in her mind, she should have just enough time to get there, but that wasn't the thing that was pressing on her mind more and more until she felt like she was suffocating with it. Her voice held a tremor of sadness, "And then you'll go home." Her cheeks paled.
"Yeah. That's kind of where I live," he joked.
"Yeah, I know..." Her voice was kind of dull as she looked straight ahead.
"You sound sick."
"Maybe I am a little," she smiled weakly and looked him in the eyes.
"Maybe we should travel slower from now on..." he murmured.
She smiled at him again, "No..." She touched his face gently and kissed him lightly. "I'm heartsick.”
Gamell gently removed her hoof. "I don't think this is a good idea. You don't even know me."
"I've known more about you than I've ever known anyone..." she let her voice trail."If you're not interested, I understand." Absent-mindedly, she touched at her cropped hair. "But...I've, I've never felt this close to anyone before. And I think this could be a good idea." Her eyes remained steady on his.
Gamell smirked. "I am interested, Nameera. But a good idea and your best interests might be different." He ruffled her fluffy hair.
She giggled at him, "Well, maybe this time they coincide? And if not, I'm willing to take that risk."
"Are you?" he asked softly. "You know so little."
"I know that if I don't risk this...with you." She leaned against him gently, "Then I'll regret it. I'm tired of being on the other side of knowing. And the way I feel about you...even if you don’t' feel that way. I want this. I want you." She looked at him, her eyes desperately searching his.
"I don't think you should make such a hasty decision when you look and sound so heartsick," he advised her lightly. "In any case," he whispered in her ear, "now, and here, is probably not the best place."
"Maybe not," she smiled. "But, now you know and I won't change my mind." She stretched her long limbs, "I'm ready to go now if you are."
"I am," Gamell agreed and stood up, dusting off his coat.
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Posted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 7:37 pm
LOG 8
Nameera sat down by the small lake where they were resting for the mid-afternoon. She'd been travelling with Gamell since yesterday and she'd immensely enjoyed his company. Stretching her hooves into the water, she smiled at him. She'd never felt so... alive, so normal before. Until now, she had never realized what it felt like to be talked to and teased with. It was normal, and she felt more confident than ever before.
Gamell sniffed himself surreptitiously. Hmm. Okay. Let's see. Terrible drippy, un-styled hair versus continual... slight body smell... Also fun swimming... Okay. He stripped off his coat, hung it on a protruding branch and slid into the water. When he got far enough he dived in, trying to wash out his hair. He surfaced for air and flipped his hair back against his neck. "Ahhh..."
Nameera watched as Gamell dived in blushed, partially looking away. When he surfaced, she laughed. "Looks, like you're being refreshed." She pushed back her cloak a bit, as she unfastened it. "Would you mind if I joined you?"
"It's a free lake," Gamell replied. He quickly grabbed some bulrushes and tried to make use of them before she got too close.
Nameera stripped off her cloak and anything beneath and dove into the water. She'd never been shy about her body, as a merpony that was kind of...well, pointless. She dove beneath the water, and resurfaced pushing back the short strands of hair that had landed on her face. Swimming closer, she smiled. "Yeah, I guess it is."
Gamell started treading water, trying to fix his make-up and hair. He wasn't going to give it up as a bad job. He was incapable of that. "At least it isn't salty," he told her.
"Unfortunately, it isn't." She frowned a bit, then turned her sight back to him as she messed with her hair absentmindedly. "I've always loved swimming in salty water, the way it tastes...the way it feels on your skin."
"It's terrible for your hair though," mused Gamell, twisting some of his in his hooves. "It dries it out."
"Oh really?" She touched her hair a bit concerned, "I never noticed." Did her hair look bad? Was he trying to say something about it? She sighed, "Regardless, your hair is always fantastic."
"Thank you," Gamell inclined his head and dripping hair to receive her compliment. "But I think for the rest of the day... it might be a little beyond help. I'm not the kind of wuss who carries a comb around," he said bitterly.
"I like it," she reached up and touched his hair gently. "It's beautiful." Her eyes glimmered at him.
Gamell smirked. "I'm glad someone thinks so..." His eyes were hard again for a moment before looking back at her. "You're much better at swimming then you are at walking."
Nameera laughed, "Yeah, I am." She moved her hoof gently dow to his face. "I've always been rather good at it."
"That's why you're going to the border sea?" asked Gamell.
"Partially. My people use to live there. I remember it vaguely. It was...so beautiful." She kissed his cheek lightly.
Gamell wound his arm around her waist. "It is nice to have a place to escape to."
Nameera nestled against him, and wound her arms around his neck. "Yes..." She kissed his cheek again, "I like this."
"But it is Dream Valley," he cautioned. "A nice place to visit, but a place I would not want to live." He paused. "I make my own dreams come true," he whispered.
"Hmmm..." She leaned into him as he whispered, "Maybe you'd like to help me with my dreams?" She flushed brightly.
"Dreams," he said, "are the speciality of my family." He ran his lips along her jaw.
"Hmm..." She murmured as she leaned closer. "I like the way that sounds." She let her lips touch his neck.
Gamell leant down to her, and then belatedly checked the area to see if they were alone. It would be just his luck if his grandfather, or worse, his brothers or sister, walked in on him to humiliate him. "You would think that you've never had a dream come true."
"I haven't." She looked up at him seriously, "Never." She touched his face gently. "But I'm hoping this one will...." She pressed her lips gently to his again.
Gamell cupped her face and held her to him. A small thought in his head was relieved he didn't have his coat on- girls were very free with their nails when it came to ripping buttons off. Another joined it; check this off my list of things to do before I die.
Nameera clung to him as he held her in the water. Being loved...it was everything she dreamed of.
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Posted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 8:47 pm
LOG 9
Gamell tried to puff up his flat hair as he and Nameera walked through the sun towards the coast. A very nice night, and more exercise. He was definitely eating something bad when he got home. Maybe some nice caffeine... or a break into the old man's wine collection. Don't ask him why Seto had a wine collection when the man didn't drink. Probably another business venture. Gamell sighed.
Nameera walked beside him, her feet felt kind of heavy. She calculated the time in her mind, time would be up late tonight...This was it. She felt herself dragging along and she kept feeling really dry, but she tried to push on. "How far are we?"
"I'm not too familiar with Dream Valley," said Gamell reluctantly. "We could be close, we might not be... We're going in the right direction, I know, at least."
Nameera stumbled a bit, "Well, I hope we'll be there by tonight." A little bit of a sweat broke out on her forehead. Her skin felt so scaly and dry. What if she changed early?
"I think we should," Gamell reassured her. "If not, we can ask for directions. Dream ponies are so sickeningly helpful... Are you alright?"
"Yeah," she stumbled again and fell to the ground. Wiping the dust off herself she sighed, "I just...have to get there tonight. It's very important." She looked up at him a bit afraid.
Gamell quickly stooped to help her up and dusted her off. "I don't think you're okay. We could have a rest? I don't think a rest would hurt."
"Look..." She struggled to her feet, "I'm not tired. I just...I have to get there today or else." She let it hang ominously. "It's going to get worse the longer I wait."
"Ahh," said Gamell. "Okay then. We'll just keep on."
Nameera kept up with him, her body was so dry that she felt as if she would crumble to nothing. This was what it had felt like the first day. "I'm sorry again for bringing you into this." Soon she'd be free and in the sea, maybe she could find her people.
"It kept me out of... too much mischief for a few days," said Gamell. "And there's nothing like a good old quest when you're bored out of your skull. I was actually contemplating getting a tattoo."
"A tattoo?" She giggled, "I'm glad I distracted you then.”
"You don't even know what I was thinking of getting," he said sneakily. "Or where I was getting it."
She didn't say anything to his retort, but walked silently with him. It was twilight when she smelled something familiar. "Is that...salt?"
Gamell inhaled deeply. "Maybe? I can't smell it so well... Maybe we're getting close." Thank Fate he thought. I'm tired.
She stumbled again, and fell. Looking at her legs she noticed a scattered scale or two. "We should hurry, we're almost there."
"Oh, okay," said Gamell. He picked her up and began a weary trot to the end of the forest where it opened onto the beach.
Nameera smiled, "Thank you...so much." She kissed him lightly. "Put me down, I think...we should part here."
Gamell blinked and set her on her wobbly feet. "Part? Where do you think you're going?" he asked in an eery echo of the first time he saw her. He looked up and down the beach. "I thought someone was going to be here to meet you."
"No, I've got to find them. My family from long ago." She kissed him again, as she wobbled. "Please. Don't ask questions, just leave me here."
"Hey no, that's not good enough I think," said Gamell, frowning. "You can't just ask for my help and then ask me to abandon you, not me, I'm not the kind of guy you throw away."
"I'm not throwing you away. I just....need to do this alone. There's a part of me, I don't want you to know-" She fell to the ground, she could feel the transformation taking place.”
Gamell tried to help her up. "There is something wrong with you. Apart from heartsick. Come on, tell me what I can do to help you!"
"Just get me to the water, I'm really... dehydrated. Just, trust me. Please."
Gamell picked her up again and jogged over the shifting sand to the water and eased her in. "Look, it's salt water, okay? You can't drink it, it can't help you..."
Nameera smiled at him for a moment, before pulling herself into the water. "Forgive me for not...explaining." She dove beneath the waves as the transformation finally occurred.
"Nameera?" asked Gamell. He expected to see her rise to breathe and then he could ask her what she meant. But she didn't. "Nameera?" He called again. He thrashed forward into the waves, running his arms under the water. "Nameera!"
Nameera flipped her fins beneath the waves and swam, feeling the salt water felt like home again. She looked up at him from beneath the waves, she didn't want to hurt him more. It wasn't kind to do this to him, but the truth wasn't kind either. It took all her power to force herself to swim away.
Gamell ran around in the water. This isn't happening, this isn't happening... she could barely walk, where has she gone! "C'mon, c'mon," he muttered. "Oh no..." Where could she have gone? "NAMEERA!"
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Posted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 10:56 pm
Log 10
Gamell followed his sister through the tunnels in the Green Lady Mountain. It was his first time in this creepy place. You could barely see anything. He refrained from criticising, though. Obviously Eerinna liked it, since she lived here now. Whatever. She had always been odd. And Gamell supposed that the whole mountain was a bit like a castle... Maybe she missed the Labyrinth?
Eerinna supplemented the light from the crystals in the walls and the mushrooms on the floor with a handful of violet flame. She didn’t speak to her brother. She didn’t know what this was about. He would tell her, eventually. Maybe? She would kill for a nice gossip.
”What is this about, Rina?” Gamell asked unhappily.
”I don’t know,” she replied. “This person spoke to Medusa about looking for someone. A someone,” she glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, “that was apparently seen with you. At your house. For two days.”
Gamell gritted his teeth. “What, is Dad spying on me?” he spat.”
”Actually it was Verdis Bina who told Emma who told Zanobi who was talking to Medusa,” said Eerinna primly. “And for all that they weren’t even sure if it was the right person.”
”Why, because the information was so second-hand?”
”Yes, that,” she said. “And the fact that this person was looking for a merpony,” she paused and looked at her brother, “and you were seen with an earth.”
Gamell blinked. “Then it’s the wrong girl and you’re just wasting my time!”
”No, we are not,” Eerinna said. “You are so like Dad. Take it easy and let me explain. The girl somehow got legs. It’s the same girl. So, back to my point, this guy was looking for information and asked Medusa to keep her ears open and she heard from Zanobi who heard from Emma who heard from Verdis Bina that you were with a girl. For two days,” she glared at him reprovingly. “So Medusa told the guy who wanted to meet with you and so Medusa told Brittania who told Jin who told me and I told you. I don’t know why he wants to see you. But I’ll wait outside.”
”Outside where?” asked Gamell, a bit awhirl with all the names she had repeated to him.
“We’re here,” explained Eerinna. “You just go in there, and see this person and then come out. If he tries anything funny, just call.”
”I can take care of myself,” Gamell retorted and strode into the dark cavern. Eerinna just smiled wanly and sighed sympathetically.
Gamell let his eyes adjust to the brighter light in the cavern, reflected back from the water. He sighed in a desultory way and sat down on a stone bench placed for that purpose.
So this was all about Nameera. Gamell shook his head. How long had he searched for her? She’d drowned... in front of him. Or had she? She was weak and could barely walk- how could she have swum away, merpony or no?
He had found her cloak at the next high tide, along with a blanched crystal on a piece of thread twisted into a seam. He stayed there for two days before going home. He couldn’t tell anyone about it, either, in case something bad happened to him or his family.
He pushed the thoughts aside. They weren’t helping. When is this guy getting here? he thought impatiently.
Inebar came up through the water. It had been a long while since he's seen Nameera. It hadn't taken long to discover that he did miss her. Tossing his hair back, he surfaced and looked around.
Gamell spotted the guy pop up from under the water. "Over here," he said without preamble. If this was the guy she was running from... he had no patience to be trifled with this man.
Inebar turned his head, and swam closer to the young man sitting. "I was told you've seen her?" His voice was worried, more worried than he'd been letting on.
Gamell frowned. "Let's start with who the hell are you, who is she, and why are you talking to me," he said. "I'm here, talking to you, as a favour to my sister; I'm not interested in anything you have to say."
"She's the one I let slip away." Inebar wasn't typically like this. He was a laid back, assertive, drink-in-hand type of guy. But her leaving...it'd made him realise, that he was missing something more. "Nameera stowed away on a cruise as a child. I couldn't find her family. So she came to stay with me and my group. But...she left. She went to Fanta and had her tail turned to legs and she ran." He paused delicately. "She thinks I didn't care."
Gamell scowled. "All right, you're deaf as well as stupid, who the hell are you and why are you talking to me? But points for answering one question out of three."
Inebar was getting rankled, but he was desperate to know anything about her at any price. "I'm Inebar." He tried to keep the anger and frustration out of his voice. "And I'm talking to you, because I need to find her."
"Great," said Gamell bitterly. "Did you know she was running away from you? Brings me t another question, why the hell should I help you if she was running away from you?"
"Yes. She thinks that I don't love her. And she's mistaken." He sighed, wishing he had a drink right at the moment. "I love her and realised it too late and I want you to help me find her, to let her know it was a mistake to run. That I want her home."
Gamell rolled his eyes. "I think it's too little, too late, Inebar," he said. "I don't think she's interested in being with anyone, that I know of. To the best of my knowledge, she's dead."
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Gamell
Nameera 
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