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 Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 7:44 pm
Busy Busy Busy. It seemed things were picking up again for Ianna and that was a good thing. The faster the wands found their guardians the faster she got to close down shop for a while and simply relax. Matilda had returned - and that meant wands resurfacing at some point. And where Matilda had gone to...It wasn't known to her. Whatever happened, Ianna didn't ask. She didn't want to know.
Currently she was writing notes on Coailiann in her own journal - and the subject of said writings was practicing her English diligently across the desk from her mother.
While Ianna wanted the findings to be done, she couldn't help liking the peacefulness of spending time with her daughter. They grew up too fast.
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Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 7:53 pm
She wasn't sure what it was about the shop that caught her eye, but she insisted to at least poke her head in.
"Lady, we really shouldn't be looking in shops, and illkept ones at that," came a sweet, flowing voice from outside.
"I can't help it, El," came another voice, this one harboring a slight Japanese accent. "You know about me and my feelings."
"But we're to be looking for a place to move. It's very important, you know. Celina can't sleep in your bed forever."
Soon, the two figures were in the doorway. A smaller statured woman with sandy blonde hair and cat ears and tail peered around with doe brown eyes, hipping a small child with silver hair.
The other was a semi-angelic being that looked more or less like a walking candycane, with large red wings that she did her best to press against her back and keep them out of the way.
The golden eyed girl sneezed, rubbing her face against her "mother's" chest.
"Bless you, baby." She smoothed down the girl's hair and tapped her finger against the crescent moon mark on her head.
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Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 7:58 pm
Coailiann was the first to jump up, waving her hand wildly. New people! And Guardians! She could tell. She didn't know quite how she had the ability that her elder sister did...Perhaps it was because Matilda was the one who had found her, rather than her mother? Nonetheless, Coailiann knew. Not giving her mother a chance to say anything, the Sidhe gave a bounce.
"Welcome to Ghosts of the Past! You're a G--"
Abruptly, a hand clamped over her mouth, "Hello. Forgive my daughter..." and in a quieter whisper, "Tact, darling."
The Sidhe nodded her head until the hand was removed and she smiled charmingly, giving a small curtsey, "May we help you?" A flush was on her cheeks from being scolded, but that was all right - she needed color anyway. The pale haired girl with the green eyes and a pretty white dress.
Her coloreds were dirty.
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Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 8:06 pm
The silvery haired girl jumped up in startlement and blinked down at the girl.
"Hi-lo," she answered, returning the wave.
Bowing slightly (as well as she could with a small girl on her hip), the neko hanyou smiled.
"Oh, it's no problem. I have plenty in my own rabble; I understand how children can be." She hefted her own small one higher on her hip and smiled very warmly. It was obvious she was a very motherly woman. Hell, she almost literally had the word 'sucker' painted on her forehead. "Regardless, I'm just here to look..."
Elysia, however, was already looking around, a very confused look on her face. She'd never been in a shop that sold wands. Very curious...
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Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 8:20 pm
"Ah, so you won't care that yo--" once more a hand came over Coailiann's mouth and she gave an angry look up at her mother. Obviously the sidhe was lacking patience today, or rather, she wanted to go back to spending time alone with her mother. For once, she wasn't nagging her. She liked it.
Ianna shook her head a bit, "Well, I have this lovely book over here..." Obviously Coailiann knew that a guardian had arrived - and therefore...She had to bring out the Book.
The dark leather book was brought out from behind the desk and placed carefully atop it, "Do you like books?"
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Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 8:29 pm
Elysia frowned as she stood in front of a shelf of wands. Something... was off about all this.
The woman blushed a little bit. She wasn't the best reader. While she spoke fluent English, her reading skills weren't exactly up to par. She approched the desk and tilted her head to one side.
"Books are alright, yes." She shook her head with a sigh, then looked at the cover of it. At least those words were simple enough. It said The Book of Life and Death. Her blush remained on her cheeks, however. This was a bit embarassing.
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Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 8:34 pm
Coailiann harumphed again and went to stand beside her mother, peering out at the two with amused green eyes. That older woman spoke strangely...Then again, so did she. In fact, the woman sounded more like her best friend than anything else. That made her okay in her book. She remained quiet for her mother.
"Could you take a look inside, please? It's very important..." Okay, she couldn't be straight up and honest. If she had told people they were parents before the touched the book, do you think they'd stick around? The wands couldn't acknowledge without the book doing so first. Then the souls would die.
The minute that the woman touched the book, an invisible wind picked up in the shop, blowing the cover open, pages rustling and blowing about until it landed on a well worn page. On the page was a very beautifully detailed sketch of a wooden wand, a pearl-like egg wrapped in wood at the tip. Below it read:
"Harpy. Wand ID 00031. A Soul has been trapped within the confines of the wand. Congratulations, you have become the next guardian to take on the task of raising it from infancy to greatness. We, Ianna and I, have the upmost faith in you to complete your task dutifully. Best of luck,
Matilda."
"Harpies are females, right?"
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Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 8:43 pm
Aiko wasn't sure what to make of this book, but she reached for it and set her hand on the cover, pulling her hand back quickly as the breeze played with her hair.
Celina shivered and burried her face into her mother's chest, almost crawling about to hide within the confines of her out-of-season-jacket.
Elysia rushed over to the desk and, before Aiko could ask, read the note aloud for her, as she was sure she'd ask in just a moment.
When Elysia was done, Aiko blinked and shook her head as she tried to make sense.
"Does this mean what I think it means?"
Elysia sunk a little bit. Unbelievable. Whenever her Lady got "a feeling", she almost always ended up coming home with an new addition to their large, quickly growing family.
"If you're thinking you're about to become the mother of another child, then I think so, m'Lady." She turned to the other and slowly nodded. "Yes, Harpies are female. They're winged women from Greek lore, said to have served the gods in dealing punishments."
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Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 8:49 pm
"YEP!" Coailiann said, skittering around the desk and away from her mother before the woman could clamp her mouth again, "You got one of me! Well...Sort of..." she paused a moment to look back at her mother, who nodded. Apparently she could explain if she wanted to.
"We're...We have a second life. We died, but we were brought back. We don't know how or why, though. I mean..I saw pictures and memories and..." she trailed off, fighting back a shudder, "Yeah. We're magic."
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Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 9:00 pm
Magic. It was one of the things that caused her a great deal of harm during the War. Little did they know that this woman had several scars hidden by clothing that were caused by magic imbuned claws and fangs, or even blasts of demon magic itself. It was the reason why she was dressed so unseasonably.
But she couldn't help but look down at the girl and smile a bit. She thought she started to understand a little quicker than others perhaps would. The girl she held in her arms had come out of a gemstone, the gemstone of which was still embedded in the middle of the girl's chest.
"You... your spirits were put inside of these wands after you died?" she asked, setting her pointer finger on the elaborate sketch, making sure she'd added two and two correctly.
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Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 9:07 pm
This was the part Coailiann was unsure of and Ianna took over, stroking her daughter's hair lightly as she came around the desk.
"Sort of. Some of them were, some of them weren't. After The War...Between the People of Thought and People of Dreams.." she wondered how many truly had heard of the war? Had they done that good a job of keeping the happening concealed? "Matilda, my daughter, was betrayed. She was called a witch and burned at the stake. But before that, she cast a spell to bring her back to life to make changes. She trapped herself in her wand and I was the one who woke her. She cast the spell, a more general one, to capture net the souls of magic folk who had died before and during the war in a wrong or painful death. They were trapped in wands after the spell, since they had been trapped in Limbo...unable to move on."
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Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 9:18 pm
"And then are given a second chance." Aiko breathed slowly and deeply, staring down at the page that Elysia had read aloud. "So, there's a wand somewhere that looks like this, with a Harpy trapped inside...?"
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Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 9:27 pm
Ianna nodded and reached behind the desk, picking up the rough wooden wand and handing it over to her. The moment the wood made contact with flesh, it flashed a bright white light and pulsated like a warm beating heart before it faded into nothingness once more.
"You're acknowledged. You're tied to her, now."
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Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 9:32 pm
As she held the wand, she gazed down on it. It felt... alive. She didn't have a choice in the matter, but then again, she would never turn down another living creature when it needed her help. Aiko's heart was simply too big for her to do something like that.
Celina, unable to help herself, poked at the feathers that dangled from it and ran her hand along the wood.
"Careful," Aiko warned, bouncing the girl to get her hand away from the wand. "I don't want you getting a splinter." She looked up at the woman in front of her, thinking of what to ask next. So many questions, so little time. "How would I take care of her?"
Elysia was a little antsy, and shifted her weight. They needed to go and continue looking for a new house, especially since Aiko seemed to be picking up strays left and right.
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Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 9:49 pm
"Right now, you just stay with her. Try not to leave the wand alone for too long, if you can. Show her that you accept her. She'll wisp then slowly solidify. Don't let her get blown away, or she'll die a final death. After she solidifies, she'll become a baby. Once she feels safe."
It was all the advice that Ianna could give, in all honesty, and she was already starting towards the headquarters door.
"Here, follow me. I'll show you where the other guardians come and where Coailiann and I live."
her head, "No, the wand was just acknowledging you. There will be two more stages after the wand before the child emerges completely. A wisp and a baby ghost. These are the most fragile times for the child so make sure you don't let them get sucked up by something..."
She paused a moment, "It's time to show you the headquarters. Follow me."
The woman stood from her seat and moved to the door to the right of the desk. When opened, it looked completely dark as if it lead to nowhere. She stepped through, obviously expecting the woman to follow.
As they entered the main lobby Via the portal connecting the shoppe and the headquarters, the first thing noticable was the vast...largeness...of it. The high ceilings, edged with gold, the large chandeliers dripping with crystals, the smooth white tile-floors, colorful rugs, and beautiful paintings.
To the left was a large recreational area complete with a large flat-screen television, several rows of various games, movies, video game systems and books. There was a basket of toys in the corner, full of plushies, dolls, cards and various other objects which would appeal to most ages. Included in the area were several comfy looking couches and plush chairs just made for sitting, lounging or bouncing in. It seemed to be heaven on a fluffy carpet. It even had a foos-ball table and an air-hockey table....and for the slightly more food-minded GoTP, a mini fridge always full.
To the right was a large elaborate counter, which seemed to have a force-field of some sort around it, keeping anyone who was not Ianna or Matilda from going behind it. On the counter lay a roster with the names of all the Ghostly children and their guardians, and an appointment book.
From there, it branched off into halls with rows and rows of rooms. Some were storage, some were guest rooms, some were bathrooms, and one very large and ornate door to the end of the hall led to the gardens.
"Well, this is it."
Coailiann followed in after her, quietly.
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