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It was far enough from the rest of the world that no one ever heard it. Every once in a while, the sound of a hammer hitting rock clamored from a big bush. A softer sound, the sound of scraping and chipping, usually followed. But in the end, it always ended in a hammer slamming against rock - or maybe it began that way. There was no way to tell. After all, it was simply loud noises coming from a shrub. It was nonsensical and whimsical at best, and there was never any way to tell why it happened.

Unless you were near the shrub, at just the right moment, on just the right hour, and you saw it rustle before a dark skinned man crawled out of it. Nearby, there was a small outcropping of woods, where he usually wandered out to fend for himself. He'd gotten quite good at hunting! The odd squirrel or raccoon was usually enough for him, mixed with some vegetation and the water from a tiny brook. Really, it was everything he needed in one tiny area, with no one there to tell him otherwise. The only thing missing was..

...

Bastion escaped his shrub for a moment, intending to do the only other thing that his shrub did not provide - a bath. The little brook was always enough, and he looked intent on it, wearing his lower garments and leaving his shoes inside of the shrub.

It had been his home every since the Isles had been ripped away from him. And he'd coped with his loss by holing himself up, away from every living thing, and doing the only thing he knew how to do well.

Making diamonds.

Voices were nothing new to the Horseman. Ever since that day, he'd heard them. This was probably why he felt so much more comfortable in hiding, away from all the other voices. The ones in his head were enough for him. They kept reminding him that he wanted to go home, and there was no home left to go to. So the voices in his head were kind of jerks.. and they'd given him a bit of a temper.

He was definitely better off out here, alone.

He heard his name being called, and ignored it as he ignored most things. When this new voice called him cousin, however, the grumbly, hunched over horseman straightened up and turned around. No voice had ever said anything like that - and if it started to, then those voices truly were cruel. To remind him of all his family lost, all those ties, all those bonds..

Like Nergui.

She stood there like a dream, her face covered in a veil, but he knew her instantly. She had the figure of a goddess, which was always awkward for him to realize when he thought about his cousin. And she had a way about her, a classy demeanor that she just carried with ease. It made other women look downright boring in comparison - well, most women. Not one. Not to him.

Still, he blinked disbelieving eyes at his cousin. Was his mind playing tricks with his vision now, too? Or, had she really survived the catastrophe? And if so, was she as scarred as he'd been? He was too busy gaping in awe to hide it, the stripes that ran right across his face as if a wild animal struck grey talons across it. His dark skin was no match for the streaks the Insanity had left behind.

"Noni?!" The first time he'd met his little cousin, they were babies, set together to be playmates. Bastion's mother had been trying to teach him her name for so long, but his tongue wasn't ready for such an eloquent sound. So the first thing he said to the babe when they crawled together was the nickname for her that had stuck with him all the way to adulthood. "Is that really you now?" He wanted to go poke her. In fact, it was exactly what he did.

He walked right up to his cousin and poked her chin. Then a dazzling grin lit up his face.

"NONI!"

She'd survived!!

Bastion's face fell, from excitement to pure dismay. "Ahh, no, Noni.." He whined, moving his fingers back up to pick her chin up and turn her head. "Not you too." Nergui's face, her beautiful perfection transformed into something new and alien through the powers of the infection. Bastion felt a swell of anger towards the Insanity itself. It was one thing to marr his body, and drive his mind mad. It was entirely another to take something so perfect, and change it.

A stab of cold, dark fear ran through him. He hadn't even bothered to check - the idea simply hadn't occurred to him. If Nergui had been affected just as he had, what about.. Mjoll?

He had to focus on Nergui right now. She was here, and she was alive, and she was worried about him - she mattered most in that moment. "I didn't mean to worry you! I didn't even know anyone else from our family lived! Surely you don't think I'd be sitting in this bush if I thought anybody else made it.."

He would have.

In a heartbeat.

"But ah, I'm so glad to see you! You've been eating well. And so nicely dressed! How have you been taking such good care of yourself?" His eyes widened just slightly, and he gasped. "Noni, have you taken a husband? Not one of those nasty little Halloween creatures?" Had she bartered her beauty and charm for a place to rest her head? He certainly hoped not. He rubbed his hands up and down her arms, clearly pleased as punch to feel her, warm and real and alive, in front of him. He couldn't keep the grin off his face. It only faltered, for just a moment, when she reached out to hug him. She wasn't naturally a huggy person, but he was. His arms wrapped around her waist and his grin returned, picking her up in his arms and swinging her around happily.

"Noni Noni Noni!"

Bastion looked wary at the mention of a guardian. "Hrm... this guardian had better be worthy, especially if I ever meet them." Bastion was highly protective of his cousin, and whoever was taking care of her would eventually have a very critical eye making sure he or she was treating her properly. Of course, even his rampant over-protectiveness took a back-seat to the stunned shock of hearing how much changed. "The Halloweeners? They bear our sigil now?" His face pinched up. "Yeugh. Say what you will about our beloved Medea, but that choice sounds just.. yeugh." He chuckled weakly, shaking his head. "I just hope someone is cleaning up after the little ones. I've heard they don't know how to keep from wetting themselves at a whim. We don't need the stench of urine in our lands."

Their lands. He paused, reminded that their lands were gone, and a moment of melancholy passed over him. It dampened subtly at the rest of her description, as his cousin relayed all of the steps their clans had taken forward.

"I admit I have not heard of any of these. There was a point, not long after we were lost, that I simply, ah.." His expression twisted for a moment as he tried to find the words. "I shut myself off. I suppose, it's easier to remain unhurt when you are alone in the world. It's.. it's nice to hear that things are moving positively for our people, though." He pulled away, keeping her hand in his. "Would you like to see my workplace? I've really got everything I need."

There was no way for Nergui to read the thoughts that traveled in his mind when she spoke of never being alone, but he nodded in sage agreement nonetheless. "Aye, never alone. Too true! All right then, come along. Mind where you step. I keep this place clean, but we are outside. Animals tend to be attracted to the warmth of my hearth, haha!"

Wat.

He led her towards the line of shrubbery he called home, which densely hid whatever lay inside. He let go of her hand, and then pushed open a section, revealing a dark little nook. "Enter here, and then walk two steps to your left. You'll still be in the dark, but I'll fix that as soon as I get in with you, all right?"

He sounded quite proud of whatever he was about to show her. And in fact, he was. For what man could boast that he'd taken a bush, a simple, tall shrubbery, and hollowed it out so effectively that it was livable?

Only Bastion.

When he entered with her, he reached out to the side, and the sound of a match being lit was heard. He used it to light a covered lamp, which filled the tiny nook of space with light. Inside, there was a mat on the floor. Beside it, a small, cold hearth was set, with all manner of jewels and metals strewn around and hanging from little branches beside it.

The entire area was no more than 6 x 4 feet in size. But it was still a small wonder.

Bastion liked the note of surprise in his cousins voice. It made him swell with a silly sort of pride that puffed his chest up, until she asked a question he thought silly. "Why there, on the floor, of course." He gestured loosely to the little mat on the side, shorter than he was - sleeping curled up wasn't terribly difficult to get used to. "There's a lovely little meadow several steps from here, too, with a brook that babbles like a child - sometimes I take naps there. But otherwise, there it is. All I need, right here." He slid past her carefully, and dropped down to sit on his mat, folding his legs underneath him. He waited, all of ten seconds, before patting the spot beside him.

"So? See anything you like?" Every moment of time he'd spent since their world had been shattered was poured headfirst into his work, and each piece of intricate jewelry that hung from branches, or scattered around the hearth and floor, cluttered the room with proof of his work. "Several of them are imbued with protection charms. If you want anything - anything at ALL, it's yours. Always." He smiled up at her, before his mouth opened in a gasp. "Aha, what about this one? A nice necklace to go on that lovely neck of yours?" He reached behind her, plucking a moonstone necklace off of the branch it was hanging on.

"Aha, don't be ridiculous." He shoo'd her hands away gently, unclasping the necklace and wrapping it around her neck. His hands, deft and skilled, managed to lock the clasp in place without seeing it, and he let it hang. His fingers brushed the jewelry down flat, then adjusted it just a smidge to the left.. a touch down.. "Ah. There! Perfect. I knew it was your color. That will certainly keep you safe until the magic is used up." He grinned proudly, and then started humming, whispering quiet responses to the voices in his head as he searched for something else. "It's in here.. no I put it here just last night. I took it out to look at it again, it makes me feel.. here it is!" He pulled out a long chain of links, each one studded with tiny diamonds. There were two layers of the golden links, that rested against one another and chimed gently when they touched.

"I've been working on this piece for a month. Each link was charmed differently, you see. It's my masterpiece. Not done yet, of course! Needs more flair. But it's going to be my crown jewel, my finest work. Her name will be Mjoll, and she will never sit on any other woman's neck."

He'd been in love with the woman since he was a foal, following her in the marketplace. No one - except Mjoll - had been blind to Bastion's obsessive adoration for the mare that never noticed. And even now, locked away in his own hideaway, he still thought of her.

"She'll never see it, of course. But that doesn't matter. It will be the most beautiful thing I have ever created. Just you wait, Noni!" He held it up, and rubbed it against his cheek proudly.