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 Posted: Fri Nov 01, 2013 11:28 am
Many wrote of Vince’s legendary exploits, but accounts of his origins and character varied. Scholars, poets, and bards agreed on one thing alone—he loved his wife, Juniper, above all else.
But of course, that was only the beginning of Vince’s story.
… Maybe a bit into the middle.
---
A pecan tree grows in a verdant field a short way off the road from Eyris to Fefga’s Manor. Under that tree grows a garden of glorious flowers, with snowy white petals blooming around rich pink centers. The tree marks the top of a small swell in the earth, too small to be called a hill, and the meadow spreads out around it, long tall grass dotted with colorful wildflowers in all directions.
Except for the black scar, where the earth was scorched so badly during the course of a fateful duel that no life has grown there since.
It was over this field that a figure stepped out of the air and promptly fell eight feet to the ground, landing fortunately in the cushion of the tall grass and losing consciousness only for a short time on impact.
The man’s eyes slowly flickered open, long green stalks rising around him on either side as the sun beat down warm on his face. The heavy black and violet robes he wore were a bit stifling in the noonday sun, and he shifted in them as he pushed the long blades of grass around him aside, climbing slowly to his feet.
Slowly, he roused himself from his dazed state, looking around. Rule one: analyze your surroundings. Take stock of your situation before you take action. He could see no one else between himself and the trees on all sides. One end of the meadow dipped down before the trees began to grow, and over them he could see a sprawling castle town in the distance, surrounded by a tall stone wall. The last he remembered, he had been walking out of his manse on the Ylissean royal estate with his wife and future-daughter, which did little to explain how he had managed to get into a field in the middle of nowhere, from which he could see an unfamiliar city and castle.
In summation: he was alone, apparently, in an empty field, with no idea where he was, how he’d got there, or what had happened in the interim since his last memory.
The words swelled up in his chest before he could even think to stop them, erupting from him in a frustrated shout as he stomped his foot just once, forcefully:
”OH COME ON!”
He rubbed his face slowly, heaving a long, heavy sigh as birds scattered from the pecan tree in response to his outburst, and wandered slowly toward the edge of the field. He knew his name this time, at least. Remembered the faces of his companions, their deeds. The defeat of Grima. All of it came back to him easily.
His last memory had, at least, included Juniper and Lina. Extrapolating from there, whatever course of events wiped his memory and left him in this field may have done the same-- or worse-- to them. He cupped his hands to his lips as he wandered toward the northern end of the field, toward the city in the distance, and called their names. He could only hope they would hear him.
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Posted: Fri Nov 01, 2013 1:14 pm
She recalled walking out of the manse with Vince. She remembered Lina being close by. Then... nothing. An inky blackness before suddenly awakening... somewhere. Couldn't be Ylisse. Not Regna Ferox, either. It was too warm for that.
Wait. It can't be too warm. Isn't it still spring? Juniper sat upright in the field, flowers and grass strewn through her hair, and glanced down at herself. She had been headed out into public, of course, and still wore the loose sand-brown tunic, belted at the waist, and her long, swirling white skirt. She reached up to her throat, trying to control her breathing. The clasp of her violet cloak was still there. She let out a long sigh, falling back against the field again.
No. No relaxing. She bolted upright again, long ears twitching. Last she remembered, they were leaving the manse, and... and then here. So this wasn't Ylisse. Already knew that. She slowly stood, focusing instead on her own physical condition. She rolled her ankles, bent her knees individually, rolled her shoulders, and popped her neck in the span of about a minute. No physical damage. Should be able to move about just fine. She reached for a pocket that wasn't there and felt her breath catch in her throat. Beaststone...
 Vince had been carrying it for her, of course. And now that he wasn't here... Juniper bit her lower lip, rubbing a hand against her jaw. Focus. You have to figure out where you are. Find something to orient yourself. Something, anything. She looked around the field, finally noticing a tree off in the distance. She sniffed the air. "...Pecans? Hm."
Well, food, at least, if worst came to worst.
She began to approach, shaking some of the grass out of her hair, when the sound of a familiar voice stopped her in her tracks. "Vince--!" Her eyes widened, and she set off at a sprint in the direction of the sound. She could smell him by now, now that she realized he was there to smell to begin with, and him calling out for her and her daughter only made it all the easier. "Vince!"
Juniper crashed bodily into him, knocking them both into the grass again. She wrapped both arms tightly around his chest and laughed in relief, nuzzling against his throat. "Oh thank goodness...! You're here! You're here, I'm not-- Can you see Lina?" She sat up a little bit, arms still around her husband, and looked around at the field. With so many unfamiliar scents and sounds, it was difficult to pick out any specific one without a prompt that it could be found. "What happened? Are you okay?"
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Posted: Sat Nov 02, 2013 3:01 pm
Vince found himself very suddenly on his back in the grass again, with a distressed, but happy bunny girl straddling his lap, nuzzling his neck ferociously and effectively slapping him about the temples with her ears a few times. Still, he found himself laughing-- relief bubbling up in his chest as he realized that he wasn't alone, that wherever they were, his wife was with him. He kissed her crown, right between her ears, and stroked one hand down her back as she pushed herself up a bit.
"I-I don't know!" he blurted out in reply, and then paused, measuring himself. "Er, that is to say, I'm not sure. I haven't seen Lina, but if you're here, and... also, presumably, can't remember how we arrived in this place, then it is safe to say that something magical happened. It could just be Miriel or Laurent and some experiment-- either gone wrong, or on us, I'm not sure, I wouldn't put it past her-- but we... should find Lina quickly. If you and I are both here, I can at least hope she's nearby."
The tactician squirmed out from under the taguel, picking himself up and brushing off. He still had his blade and tomes, at least, and quickly dug into his pocket to retrieve one of the two beaststones he carried with him. "Here," he murmured, passing it to Juniper. "Just in case." He nodded, then slowly began to wade through the grass again, cupping his hands to his lips and calling out his daughter's name, stopping only to indicate that his wife should try in the opposite direction, to better cover the area.
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Posted: Sat Nov 02, 2013 3:23 pm
Juniper let out a soft purr-like sound as Vince kissed her head and ran his hand along her back, warm and insistent. It was more than enough to soothe her immediate fears, and she sat up and away from as he began to speak. "I-I don't know! Er, that is to say, I'm not sure. I haven't seen Lina, but if you're here, and... also, presumably, can't remember how we arrived in this place, then it is safe to say that something magical happened. It could just be Miriel or Laurent and some experiment-- either gone wrong, or on us, I'm not sure, I wouldn't put it past her-- but we... should find Lina quickly. If you and I are both here, I can at least hope she's nearby."
Juniper nodded and stood up as well, brushing the extra blades of grass off of her skirt before shaking her head free of the remaining wildflowers strewn throughout. She accepted the Beaststone from him with a grateful nod, clutching it in one hand while the other rested against Vince's arm. She didn't stray far from him, choosing instead to keep her free hand against the sleeve of his heavy robe while turning away to shout for her daughter. "Lina!" She clutched onto his robe a little tighter, her other hand keeping a secure hold on the Beaststone. "Lina! Are you there? Say something if you can hear me!"
She turned to face Vince after a few moments, tugging lightly on his robe to get his attention. "She could be hiding somewhere to keep from being seen. If... if this place is anything like Ylisse, then she could-- she could be in trouble." Juniper released her grip on his robe only long enough to draw the hood up and over her head, adjusting it until her ears were hidden from view and her facial markings hidden by both shadow and her own hair. She then grabbed onto his robe again. "Do you think she's somewhere else? Not in the field...?" She sniffed the air, trying to search for Lina's scent. It was a little like her own, but still unique to the young girl, like everyone else. Please be safe...
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Posted: Sun Nov 03, 2013 12:38 pm
Happily skipping around, Lina followed behind her parents as they left their abode. The youthful girl hummed a carefree tune as she looked around. Getting use to living in such a fancy house in Ylisstol when she grew up living in tents hidden in the wilderness was a challenge at first but she quickly adapted to the new peaceful way of life.
“What’s going to be our first stop, Daddy,” she asked while watching the clouds overhead. No response. She asked again, but still not a sound from the man she thought was slowly walking ahead of her. “Daddy?”
When the girl brought her attention forward, her parents were nowhere to be seen. “Father,” she yelled out looking around puzzled. “Mother?”
Did they turn a corner somewhere while she wasn’t paying attention? No, it was a straight line from here to the gate. They weren’t the type to play pranks on her. Starting to panic slightly Lina ran hoping to run into someone who could tell her where Vince and Juniper went.
As she was sprinting blindly, the young taguel suddenly felt the stone walkway turn to very long grass beneath her bare feet. The air became warmer and carried a completely different scent. What in Naga’s name… Lina found herself in a wide open field of wildflowers. Something about this seemed familiar.
The girl wrapped her arms around herself trying to get a grip. What would her father do in this situation? Calm down and don’t assume things. Assess the situation before coming to a decision. What happened? Where is this place? When is it? So many questions raised up in her mind.
In the distance Lina could hear voices. At first she couldn’t recognize them so she dropped as close as could to the ground to hide in the tall greenery. But as they got closer the girl instantly knew who they were.
“Mom! Dad!” she shouted immensely relieved to see them again.
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Posted: Sun Nov 03, 2013 7:29 pm
Juniper was getting more and more concerned as time wore on, not seeing Lina's face on the horizon anywhere. "Vince, I'm worried, do you think she really might have appeared somewhere else...?" She sniffed the air again, ears drooping a little further in her fear. "She-- She doesn't have my ears, but she's got the facial markings, do you think maybe someone--"
She froze, eyes widening. She could smell-- It was faint, but it was clearly there, clearer than it would be to any human's nose. "Lina--!""Mom! Dad!"Juniper let out a laugh of relief, eyes widening as she finally released Vince's robe. "Lina!" She sprinted towards the young girl, finding her among the tall grasses and brightly-colored flowers. "Lina! Oh goddess, sweetheart, you're all right!" Juniper nearly tackled her right back to the ground as she rushed into her, sweeping her right up off the ground in order to hug her tight to her chest. "Ohhhh goddess... I was so scared!" Juniper nuzzled her face against Lina's hair, letting out a relieved laugh before kissing her forehead, her nose, and both cheeks. "Are you all right, kit? Not hurt, right? I don't think anyone's seen us yet..." Juniper hugged Lina for a moment longer, then hurried back to Vince with the young girl in tow-- of course, while taking care not to move faster than Lina could manage. "Vince! She's here! We're-- we're all here!" Juniper smiled broadly, tears gathering in her eyes. "We're all here, it's going to be okay...!"
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Posted: Thu Nov 07, 2013 7:30 am
Vince didn't want to entertain the idea that Lina might have been... taken. He didn't have the kind of backup here-- well, he couldn't be sure he did-- that he had when Juniper was kidnapped. He rubbed his arm, then his back gently. It hurt, and he wasn't sure why. He was unaware, of course, the he'd fallen eight feet and blacked out from the shock of impact.
"Sssh, I'm sure she'll be fine. Lina's sharp, she can take--"
"Mom! Dad!"
Vince looked up sharply as he heard the familiar voice, and immediately ran toward her-- only to watch as Juniper bolted over and grabbed the poor girl, sweeping her right into the air. He laughed as he jogged up behind them, only for Juniper to turn and drag Lina bodily back to him, and caught the little girl in a tight hug himself, which was quickly eclipsed by Juniper squeezing both of them.
It could be easy to forget, with her sunny outlook, what a horrible life Juniper had come to him from. The mere idea of losing someone could send the taguel into fits of nervousness, and he reached up to stroke her ear comfortingly, shushing her softly. "Yes," he said, nuzzling Lina's hair and stroking one hand down her back. "We're all okay. We're here."
He took a deep breath, stepping back, and got a good look at Lina, holding her at arms' length. "Lina... you look okay," he murmured, then pulled her into another quick hug. "Do you remember anything? How you got here?" He looked around thoughtfully, frowning. "Our best bet is to head into town. Just remember we're in unknown territory. Keep your hoods up, Juniper, keep your ears hidden, alright?"
It wasn't too long before Vince found a proper road-- with the help of two taguel who could smell their way to the packed dirt and smell of humans, and he led the way down toward the walled city in the valley. It was after a mile or so that he finally took note: "We haven't passed a single person on this road yet. I wonder if we're on a private estate on some sort?" He paused, then shook his head. "All the better reason to get off of it quickly, let's pick up the pace."
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Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 2:33 am
 While being swept off her feet and snuggled by her mother, Lina began to cry happy tears. This Juniper remembered her and even worried about her. She could be one of the parents who disappeared moments ago. The young taguel wiped away some of the tears when she was given the chance.
After being dragged around, Lina managed to calm down a bit. The family hug definitely helped ease the anxiety. As she was addressed by her father, the girl frowned and shook her head. “I remember following behind you when suddenly you disappeared into thin air.” She visibly tensed up. “I ran around looking everywhere. It... It was like a really, really bad dream I had once...” Her tears started to swell up again as she recalled the past. Lina clung to Vince's robe out of fear of losing him again.
Knowing the danger of treading in unknown territory all too well, she did as she was told and stayed close to her parents.
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Posted: Mon Nov 25, 2013 7:06 pm
 Juniper was definitely calmer than she was upon their arrival as they approached the city, but anxiety had settled over her shoulders like a blanket of snow as she lifted her hood, shielding her ears and shadowing her facial markings. She held onto Vince's arm with both of hers, keeping her grip tight on him as they walked.“I remember following behind you when suddenly you disappeared into thin air.” She visibly tensed up. “I ran around looking everywhere. It... It was like a really, really bad dream I had once...”Juniper frowned, nodding slowly. "I'm so sorry, sweetie. I don't... even remember what happened. I just remember walking with you two and then just... waking up in the fields here. The-- Whatever it is that sent you to us, it didn't work like that, did it, kit?" She looked over at Vince, then back to Lina. "I'm sure we can figure it out, though! I mean, we're all together, aren't we? We've got that, if nothin' else." Juniper smiled warmly for Lina, but she kept her grip tight on Vince's arm.
She smelled the air curiously, ears twitching underneath her hood. "I'm not sure if this is a private estate or not, Vince, so you know," she murmured, looking around worriedly. "The path is worn well enough, but... it's not like private grounds. The grasses and soil aren't kept up. All of the people are behind those walls, any other smells are too faint and too far behind us. There'd be more if it was a private estate, and there'd be more in the grasses."
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Posted: Sun Dec 08, 2013 9:16 am
Vince kept Lina close, hand resting comfortingly on her shoulder as they walked. He actually remained mostly silent, deep in thought, as Juniper peppered the poor girl with questions, staring ahead as they made their way down the winding dirt road. It wasn't, in fact, until Juniper addressed him directly that he spoke up, blinking a few times as her voice shook him from within the confines of his own mind.
"What?" He paused, then rubbed his face, looking around. Leave it to a taguel to spot what he had not-- if this was a private road, then the estate owners didn't particularly care to make any use of their land. "... You're right. I completely missed that, somehow. I can't think of a single noble who would own all this land and just leave it forested and growing wild." Still, the road seemed little-traveled for its age, and he rubbed his chin slowly, curling his little goatee around his finger as they walked, and then nodded. "Let's hurry on. The sooner we reach this city, the sooner we have answers." Fully aware that they could keep up and more, Vince picked up the pace, leading the two taguel girls down to the city far below-- no longer aware which way was north or south, he only worked out that it was morning when the sun began climbing steadily higher into the sky.
As such, it was approaching noon when Vince, Juniper, and Lina wandered through the gates into the city, keeping close together as they made their way through throngs of people. It wasn't hard to pick up on the city's name in idle conversation, and written on the names of shops-- Eyris, apparently-- but this did not help alleviate Vince's anxiety one bit, and it showed on his face: He had absolutely no idea where they were.
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Posted: Sun Dec 08, 2013 11:51 am
Gerome  "This is all so confusing," That was the current thought going through Gerome's mind at the moment. "I remembered getting some new axes and then I'm here. I don't even know where here is." Minerva let out a growl.
"I know Minerva," He petted her a little bit, "I'm really hoping we can find something soon." The rider lifted his head up and saw that they were getting close to a city. There was a sigh of relief as the wyvern picked up the pace to get to the city faster.
Minerva knew that they had been wandering around for a couple hours now and was beginning to suspect that her rider was getting hungry. While he did have some provisions with him, it wasn't a whole lot. Gerome was going to get more after he had gotten his axes, but this mess happened and he was left with not a whole lot left. He pulled out a piece of dried meat and started to chew on it. It would do to keep him going, but he was going to need an actual meal.
When they got closer to the city, Minerva let out another growl. This surprised him because of what he thought he heard. "Wait someone we know is close by?" He was thinking about if he should go there because they might be able to help him out, or not go near them because they do know him. The decision however ended up being taken out of Gerome's hands when Minerva changed directions.
"I guess you want to see if they know where we are huh?" He asked his mount. "It's probably the better idea. I just hope it isn't Inigo or Owain." It's not that he didn't like either of them it's just that it would take a while before they would actually tell him where he was especially with Owain.
When Minerva started to descend, he looked to see who it was. The first thing he saw was green hair and two hoods. He knew exactly who it was. Minerva flew by them low enough to get noticed before she landed about 10 feet away from them. There was a bit of a silence before Gerome spoke.
"Vince," He said, "Juniper, Lina."
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Posted: Sun Dec 08, 2013 4:57 pm
Keeping close to her parents, Lina stayed attentive. She listened for any key words the townsfolk might be saying. "King James," "that guild," "Eyris," and "Learania" stood out the most to her. The tactician's daughter never recalled any of those words from her lessons. “Do you think we could be in the distant future,” she asked out loud wondering if Juniper or Vince thought the same thing. “I mean, Ylisse use to be called Akaneia back when the hero-king Marth lived. Could we be so far ahead that it had another name change?”
The theory didn't satisfy her, but it seemed like the only logical assumption at the time. Suddenly a sound of something large flying in the direction of the trio reached Lina's ears. No doubt her mother heard it first. She quickly reached into her bag for her beaststone, which was buried under a rabbit stuffed animal. The force of yanking the stone out caused the doll to fall out. For the time being, Lina didn't care. Her family was in suspicious territory and appeared to be targeted.
Green eyes narrowed on the wyvern rider as he landed. She recognized that mask anywhere. “Gerome?” Lina quietly gasped in surprised. “You're here too, Minerva?” While the young taguel girl was happy to see an old ally, the fated meeting could have come at a much better place and time. Lina became conscientious of the strange stares they must be getting and tried to hide her face.
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Posted: Mon Dec 16, 2013 10:39 pm
Juniper stuck close to Vince and Lina as they slipped through the crowds, reaching up periodically to adjust her hood before returning her hand to clutch onto Vince's arm. The crowds were thick-- it seemed to be nearing noon, so of course there would be more people out and about, it was nearing lunch and people needed to purchase food-- and the chatter was near-deafening, especially to one with her level of hearing. Like Lina, there were phrases she heard repeatedly-- something about a king named James, a guild that was completing repair work, something about a previous siege (a failed siege?), Eyris, Learania, and other names she couldn't associate to faces or to other people referenced in casual conversation.
Lina's question made her frown in uncertainty. "I'm not sure, honey. It's possible, but when you went through, you went into the past on purpose, it's... not like the Outrealm Gate can just snatch people up without permission, right?"
Her ears twitched as she heard wings approaching, her entire body tensing. Her hand moved inside her cloak, grasping onto her Beaststone. "Be careful, Lina," she whispered under her breath as her daughter reached into her own bag. She kept one hand tight on Vince's robes nonetheless. "If someone tries to attack us because of who you are, run away, no matter what happens to us, run away as fast as you c--"
She paused. She recognized that smell. She recognized that crest on the face of that wyvern. "G-- Gerome!" Juniper relaxed, putting her Beaststone back in her cloak. She knelt down and picked up Lina's doll, placing it carefully back into her bag before putting that hand on her daughter's shoulder. "How are you here, too? What happened?" She looked around them, then gestured to him before putting a hand on Lina's shoulder again. "Let's walk and talk, I think. People are staring. I don't like it."
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Posted: Tue Dec 31, 2013 7:45 am
Vince didn't even notice the falling doll; he was already drawing his blade when Minerva descended, but recognized the wyvern's barding before the masked rider became apparent, and quickly sheathed it.
"Gerome!" The tactician was beyond relieved; wherever they were, if Gerome was here, surely it meant they weren't the only ones who had somehow been taken. And he couldn't help doubting that anyone with ill intentions would let Gerome be kidnapped and keep Minerva with him. He breathed a heavy sigh of relief, walking up to stroke the lovable black wyvern's snout before drawing a piece of dried meat out of his cloak and tossing it up for Minerva to snatch with her tongue.
"I can't tell you how good it is to see you," he called up, stepping back to get a good look at Gerome, offering a hand to help him down. It would probably be better if Minerva didn't try to walk through busy streets with people who were already staring at them for bringing the enormous creature into the middle of their town. "We were on our way up to that castle to greet the local lord and get information," he explained. "But perhaps now that you are here, we're in better shape," he said, already starting to walk again. "Do you have any idea where we are?"
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Posted: Thu Feb 27, 2014 10:35 pm
Gerome Gerome frowned as he got off Minerva. Minerva caught the piece of meat and ate it. She gave Vince a friendly growl.
"I actually have no idea where we are." Gerome replied. "I was really hoping you knew where we were. Great." He then noticed that people were staring at him and Minerva. He was not a fan of that many people looking at him. He was feeling a little uneasy from the fact that they were probably staring at the mask more than the Minerva
"No one better try taking my mask off." He grumbled as he followed Vince.
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