[PRP] Stories of the Night (Devicius, Charlotte) FIN!

[Aniira]

Private RP between Aniira's Devicius and Insane Butterfly's Charlotte--

 

[Aniira]

Devicius let out a small sigh as he nestled down in the grass beside a small stream. It had been a while since he'd slept in an open area, even longer since he'd left his forest home behind. But now he didn't feel like sleeping under the constraint of the trees, and instead wanted to gaze upon the stars. He had never given them much thought before, in his old life.

He glanced over to the mare that was nearby--he wouldn't lay right next to her, at least not yet, for he was still wary of the presence of females, or what he'd do if he was near another female. He still didn't trust himself or the world around him, not after his past ordeals. For a while he thought he'd just disappear, or even return to the heavens to purify his broken soul. But something in this mare had told him to stay grounded, and thus he found himself traveling with her.

He winced at the still dull pain at the base of his wing--there was a scar there, the place that his previous love interest had attacked him. The feathers still looked bent and unwholesome, as if the wound had inhibited their growth. A pity, he once thought himself to be so beautiful. Now he must look like a wretch.

He looked over to Charlotte, letting her presence be of comfort to him. She was different from other mares, and even though she didn't have the beauty that he once pursued, there was something about her attitude that spoke volumes of peace and perfection. She was the first female that he'd let himself trust since his... incident.  

[Insane Butterfly]

Charlotte lay in the cool grass, a few of the blades tickling her as they swayed in the almost unnoticeable night breeze. It was quiet out, not much going on, few insects chirped and no leaves rustled, or if they did, it wasn't loudly. She peered into the rippling stream, her reflection blurred by the gentle current. Her thoughts though were not focused on the stream at all, her mind was else where.

Devicius was a mystery to her, and as she was curious, he intrigued her. They had only just met and she'd blubbered out her whole unfair ordeal to him. The more she thought about it, the more she was embarrassed by it, and wondered if he thought her silly for it. She certainly did. Closing her purple eyes slowly she inhaled and sighed. Then, feeling a pair of eyes on her, she turned her head and opened her eyes to see Devicius looking at her. They were at a comfortable distance, not too far away and not too close to call "compromising".

Charlotte smiled at her new found companion, but her face soon flashed to concern and slight confusion when he winced and her reaction was to see why. She stood up and moved a little closer, her face still concerned, her voice braking the silence. "What's wrong? Are you alright?" Her ears were completely forward as she tilted her head slightly with her questions and brought her face down a bit to see if something may have bitten him. That could never be a pleasant feeling.

 

[Aniira]

Devicius immediately dropped his eyes at her question, shifting his wings so that they tilted forward and attempted to cover the scar. He could imagine the questions that would arise if he started talking about where the scar came from, or who had given it to him. He just didn't know if he'd be able to answer them just yet.

"I... I'm fine. Just have a bit of a muscle ache, that's all," he murmured, stretching his neck to give emphasis. He wasn't sure if she'd believe him though--despite her aloofness, she was quite an attentive mare and was not afraid to ask questions. If she had seen the scar, she would definitely want to know where it came from. He was sure of it.

Thus he looked back up at her, his eyes tired. "Just the ache from an old wound. I guess I don't heal as quickly now that I'm older." He gave a little laugh, but didn't feel very merry.  

[Insane Butterfly]

Charlottes features softened and her smile returned. "Perhaps if you move it more often but softly, so you don't strain it to loosen it up a bit so when you do move it like you normaly would it may not hurt as bad or even at all." Grinning she stepped away to lay back down in the spot she had vacated. "Not to be taken rudely, but you don't look like you would do anything dangerous. If you don't mind my prying what did you do to have an old wound that still hurts?" Her voice was teasing and light before she realized it was probably not a good question to ask.

A pink blush bloomed across her cheeks as she looked down and away from Devicius. "I apologize, if you don't want to talk about it I don't mind. I didn't mean to offend you or anything..." She sighed and then laughed. "I seem to always seem to be blubbering out something when arround you. Though this time I'll do my best not to cry." She let out a small giggle, remembering the previous time she'd let too much tumble out of her mouth.

Sorry for anything that's weird, I replied on my phone)
(  

[Aniira]

Devicius gave a small nod, once again moving his wings in a stretching motion. He winced again, though the pain seemed to lessen and the itching sensation of the still-growing feathers bothered him more than anything. "I suppose I should start exercising it--I haven't flown in ages. Perhaps you're right, and it's simply sore from immobility." He let his wings settle then, wrapping them about his sides like a blanket. They always kept him warm in colder weather; he wandered how Charlotte dealt without wings and any adornments. Did she ever feel frozen?

His own cheeks reddened slightly at her statement, though more out of shame than embarrassment. Yes, he wasn't the sort of Soquili to do anything dangerous. Anything more dangerous than falling in love, that was.

"It's alright... I enjoy your stories. And your voice," he said softly, looking away at the stars above him. His bright green eyes reflected their light like a cat's eyes. He let out another sigh. "I suppose you'll want to know eventually, and though I can't tell you everything now, I will tell you a small bit. I just... hope that it will not... hurt our friendship." Yes, he considered her a friend. And though he was afraid to admit it, he didn't think he'd be able to function without her bright, forgiving attitude.

"That scar, it is a wound from a past mistake of mine. A fault that was mine and yet not mine. My... past lover gave it to me as a parting gift." He grimaced again from the remembrance, and hung his head down, squeezing his eyes shut. He didn't want to remember her, it was too painful. And... had she given birth already? Was he, in truth, a father?

No. Not to those children. Never.  

[Insane Butterfly]

Charlotte grinned as she too positioned herself to be more comfortable, watching Devicius as he spoke and flexed his wing before settling down. "That's probably all that it is, nothing you should let hinder you."

Charlotte blushed when he said he liked her voice and she too glanced away, though perhaps for a different reason. When his tone seemed to change though her attention was once again drawn to him, and she smiled for a second, realizing how her thoughts didn't seem to wonder as often when she was around him. "Oh, I don't think it will. I don't think anger is built into my personality. I can get upset, but I could never stay that way."

She listened closely to the information he revealed. He had had a lover, well it couldn't be completely surprising to her, if she was any other mare but her she'd throw herself at him, but she wasn't that mare, she was Charlotte, and plain, and if it was to be only friendship, she wouldn't have a problem with that. Her eyebrows drew together and she snorted. "How could any one ever...ever want to hurt you?" This was a soft spoken, confused question with underlying displeasure. This lover had done something to hurt him? Hurt him so horribly he was still in pain? Concerned eyes watched him and she felt like crying, but he was probably tired of her crying. "Devicius..." She blinked back tears rapidly. "I'm sorry...I'm so sorry they did that to you."  

[Aniira]

Devicius shook his head slightly, ridding the image of the white mare from his mind. "It may not seem like it, but I probably deserved it. Despite my appearance, I'm anything but perfect. We kept too many secrets... and it just wasn't going to work out. I should have seen it from the start, but I was blinded by beauty, as I have been my whole life. I've learned from my mistakes."

His head perked then, and he tried to lift his voice. "But let us focus on other things. There will be time in the future to talk about the past, but I'd rather enjoy the present. The stars are so bright out in the open--I've never had a home anywhere but the forest. I never paid attention to the beauty of the world around me, so blinded was I by lust." He snapped his mouth shut then, not wanting to have spoken so much so soon. But the words were already said, and he would have to answer her questions, if she had any. But she seemed to understand his predicament so far, and he highly respected her for that.
 

[Insane Butterfly]

Charlotte let a more open smile light up her face. "No one is perfect Devicius. But to some one else you could come pretty close."

A small giggle made its way past her lips at his sudden change of tone and subject. That was more of her thing but it was probably a difficult subject to discuss so she'd let it pass...for the time being."Really? You've never seen the stars?" She smiled widely and gazed up at the brightly shining stars and sighed. "Everything is beautiful to the right eyes and perspective." She continued to look at the glittering night sky, the smile still on her face. "They're so far away but it looks like you could just pluck them from the sky." Sighing contently she dropped her gaze from the stars above her.  

[Aniira]

A small blush spread on his cheeks at her comment, and a small thought bubbled in his mind. No, he was not perfect. But this mare was, at least in his eyes, and he wanted to become the best he could be, just to show her that he truly wasn't a monster. She deserved as much... all of the mares he had hurt in the past deserved it. But only she was here to receive his apology, and he could see the spirit of all those before inside of her. She was, in every way, perfect.

"Well... I've seen them. Just not really SEEN them. I'm sorry, I suppose I make no sense. I used to focus on other things, and never paid attention to what really mattered. I've missed so much in my life, now that I think about it." He gazed upwards once again, his eyes widening as a small streak flashed across the sky.

"A shooting star!" he murmured, amazed. Someone had once told him that he should make a wish when he saw a shooting star... but what did he want to wish for? He wasn't quite sure.

His eyes shifted to the mare beside him, and he inched a bit closer, finding her bubbly attitude uplifting. "I would love to have a star from the sky, but I think I already do. You have stars in your eyes, you know. Eyes like I've never seen." He grinned, finding that it was easy to compliment her. It just seemed... natural. The right thing to do.  

[Insane Butterfly]

Charlotte found looking away from Devicius to be harder than it was just moments ago.Being slightly flustered and animated suited him very well." "I'm sorry, I should have worded my words differently, though I do know what you mean." She smiled rather affectionately then before continuing. "Don't worry I'm sure you've got plenty of life left to see all of the things you have missed before. I promise, you won't miss out."

As the shooting star streaked across the night sky Charlotte saw it just in time before it disappeared. Excited, her eyes wide, she scrambled to her hooves, looked at Devicius for a split second then back to the sky. "Oh! Hurry! Make a wish!" And on her own command she shut her eyes real tight and scrunched up her face, she shouted her wish out with her heart and hoped that it would be granted. But her lips would be sealed. If you told a wish, it wouldn't come true.

Finished making her wish she slowly relaxed her face and blinked open her eyes. "I've never seen one before...that was so wonderful!" She looked over to Devicius, her grin growing smaller and a blush creeping along her face until her face had to of been glowing. Tingly little goose bumps rose up all over her flesh and though unseen, they made her shiver. She looked down at her hooves, she was a star to him...his star? Was that what he was saying? She was his? Could that be what he was saying? Or perhaps she was reading into this way too much. He couldn't possibly mean it that way. Who would think plain little her as special as a star? She smiled softly, her eyes still down cast. "You say such nice things Devicius," she laughed nervously, "You definitely know how to make a mare feel like one." She raised her eyes to look at him, her slight self confidence issues bubbling to the surface. "There isn't anything unique about me though, how could I be a star?" And now she was wishing there was another shooting star so she could wish she had something special to offer Devicius.  

[Aniira]

Devicius felt the oppressive shield of his heart lift even more at Charlotte's carefree manner. He wondered what she might have wished for, though he didn't dare ask. Apparently it was bad luck to tell another your wish... though he had never seen a shooting star either, nor had ever wanted to make a wish. What could he have wished for when he was younger and beautiful? He thought he hadn't a need of anything... but now he knew he was wrong. He had ignored the most important values of life.

Now was the time to see the true values.

He stood, his movements graceful albeit the small twitch caused by the sore wing. He saw her blush, and it was only another clue to her feelings for him. He wondered if she truly did admire him, thought him a good soul, enjoyed his friendship. For so long he had relied on his looks to make him seem amiable--but could she see through the looks? And if she did... was his soul changed enough to be true to her?

It was that moment that he decided. He would never leave her. If there was a soul more deserving of respect and love, it was her. He would stay, if only she would let him.

He walked to her side, slightly hesitating when he thought of what to do. He was still scared of acting towards mares, afraid that they would turn on him, or reject him, or perhaps fall too hard for him and not see though his skin. But he swallowed his anxiety and draped a wing about her back, shielding her from the night air. He lowered his head and looked her in the eyes, his skin tingling at the close proximity. It was as if he was starting all over again.

"How could you not, Charlotte? For years, I've only looked to the outside of things. Outward beauty was what I judged upon, and I have learned that it is only a mask. A shield for one's spirit. I was blind." He paused, taking a moment to compose himself.

"But when I look at you, I can see through you. Your very manner is the embodiment of strength and love, of honor and beauty. Perhaps your hair is not long, and your body is unadorned with trinkets. But you do not need them! Because your beauty is in your eyes, your words, your actions, and your spirit. Believe it or not, you have more beauty than even I. You always have, and may you never believe any different."

He took a long breath at the end, feeling as if he had just flown ten miles. Never had he emitted such wisdom and insight--he really did feel different. A changed stallion.  

[Insane Butterfly]

Charlotte picked up her head and watched him move over to her, her eyes wide now when he lifted a wing and draped it over her. It was soft and warm, she hadn't noticed how chilled she was before the warmth of him reached her and he was very close. Her heart was thundering in her chest, she could feel it pounding in her rib cage and wondered briefly if it was going to flop right out onto the ground. She tried not to breathe, but it was difficult with his scent surrounding her now.

Very round purple eyes rose to meet his sharp green ones, her expression in awe and shock. Her ears were alert though, catching what he was saying, it was making her blush and smile shyly. Trying very hard not to duck her head so he couldn't see. His words were making her chest well up with too much feeling. No one had said such admirable things to her before this. She was Charlotte, clumsy, inattentive, naive, and plain. But here was Devicius, a stallion she knew needed more healing than she did, telling her she was beautiful, special, a star.

And could that possibly be true? She believed him, he had no reason to lie, but her time of thinking she wasn't special was pressing against it. She smiled and now, did duck her head slightly and came to look at the shiny beads around his neck. They did make him look lovely but with out them she thought he'd be just as gorgeous. And he thought she was perfectly fine the way she was with nothing but herself. She knew it would be a bit forward but she stepped closer to him and rested her head on his shoulder. "Thank you. Thank you for making me feel like so much more than I really am." She smiled and let out a nervous laugh. "I think you give me too much credit, but I'll take it." Glancing up at him she smiled. "It looks like you're seeing more already."  

[Aniira]

Devicius' shoulder twitched as she lay her head on it, but he held still. The soft feeling of her mane on his fur sent a warmth through him like he had never known before, and it felt pleasant to his conflicted mind. She was the cure he needed, he was sure of it.

"I'm not trying to make you feel special, Charlotte. I'm telling the truth. Perhaps you'll realize it someday." He leaned back and softly nudged her own shoulder, slowly becoming braver with his touches.

"You are special. If not to anyone else, then to me. I don't know what I'd be doing without you--perhaps wondering around with no path ahead of me, like when we met. I'd rather not return to those memories." He looked away, to the sky, the stars sparkling in his eyes. A soft smile touched his face, and his wing tightening about her body, pulling her closer to him.

"I've only seen these things because of you. You're my pathway to a better life. I've made my mistakes, but I won't ever again. I will be the one to prove myself."

He turned towards her and grinned, his heart warming. He had been blind till this moment, stubbornly refusing his feelings for this mare. He had been scared, he still was. And he was afraid of the future, of what it held. If he did stay with Charlotte, if he allowed himself to love her and give her his heart... what if they decided to raise a family? Could he raise her children? Become the father he was never supposed to be?

He closed his eyes, clearing the thoughts from his mind. He was thinking ahead of himself, and needed to enjoy this moment. The future could wait. What mattered was the present, and the kindest mare he had ever known beside him.

The one that he was falling in love with.  

[Insane Butterfly]

Charlotte blinked her eyes rapidly before Devicius could see that they were brimming with tears. "I'm not saying its not the truth Devicius, its just very hard to think that way of myself when I've always had negative thoughts about my appearance." She smiled up at him with slightly watery eyes, "I'll do my best to see me the way you do, hopefully I'll see the mare you do."

Feeling his wings tighten around her she was pulled closer to him. She sighed at the complete comfortable feeling of being this close to him. Was this cuddling? Were they..cuddling? The thought made her blush furiously and wondered if the thought had possibly crossed Devicius' mind as well or if this was all subconscious. Her eyes were back on his though when he spoke again.

Smiling, and speaking shyly now, "I'll be here for you to see everything then. I promise to not leave you unless you want me to go." She smiled, looking more hopeful now , "I'll show you everything you want to see Devicius. I promise." She sighed happily and her purple eyes were locked on his green ones, thinking he was going to say something, when he did not say anything for a while a blush started to creep across her cheeks, and when he still said nothing she had to look away. What would cause him to look at her so intensely? Could there be more feelings underneath it all? It seemed far fetched. His previous lover had hurt him horribly, surely he would gaurd his heart and avoid anything to do with it. But then again Charlotte saw a much braver stallion beside her, he had to be...and she did to. She had to attempt to see the mare he was seeing. Grinning she turned her gaze back to his. "Devicius..." and what ever she had been about to say was cut off. His eyes were closed and he was no longer looking at her so intently, which was only partially a relief. She'd began to think there was something on her face...