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Post by Ikkin on Jun 4, 2007 15:57:19 GMT -5
((Trying to revive... feel free to have Ikkin continue to walk towards the library in your posts))
"Well, if no one else is going to speak up," Ikkin said after giving the others ample time to respond, "I think we can go to the library now." She stood up, then noticed that Crystal had just joined them. "Feel free to come along too, Crystal," she said to the Sepia Knight.
And then, she pushed her chair back towards the table, motioned to Sev (who finished his meal quickly with a sound of annoyance, then left the table himself), and walked towards the exit of the Great Hall, pausing a moment to let the others follow.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 4, 2007 19:35:59 GMT -5
Ro really wasn't the type to read books much, but then again, she'd jump off a cliff if she could prove herself a worthy knight. Not, of course, that she was about to do anything as loco as that. Not while she still had her sanity.
Stepping into the library, her fire-red tunic standing out among the duller, calmer tones of the books, she slowly walked among the numerous shelves of books, running her finger along the spines. Amazingly, there wasn't a lot of dust on the books. Either this was used a lot, or someone knew how to do a little cleaning magic. Or, she thought, someone could have just dusted it by hand. She'd gotten a little too used to the magistillas--little mages--that performed the basic chores around the Fief. At least they had that much left.
Curse Cal, that ijo de la...
The idioto had frittered away over half Fief Julan's gold on little luxeries and gambling before Ro and her brother's wife had found out and stopped him. That was just before Ro had gotten her shield and spent more gold on a horse, sword, and new staff. They had just enough money to run the Fief now, and the only reason Ro wasn’t maintaining the house herself was that the people there had voluntarily stayed anyway. And the Fief was now in the capable hands of Cal’s wife.
De gracias al rey, I can be a knight instead of a housemaid, the Amaranth knight thought, finally turning her mind back to finding a book on Castle Kestrel’s history. “Now, where is that libro…”
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Post by Kat on Jun 4, 2007 21:17:53 GMT -5
"Where are you guys going?" asked Kat, passing by Ikkin as she headed for the hall. "Is there anything we have to do? 'Cause...well, I have something else to take care of." Make that someone, she thought.
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Post by Ikkin on Jun 4, 2007 21:44:22 GMT -5
"Where are you guys going?" Kat asked as she passed by Ikkin. "Is there anything we have to do? 'Cause...well, I have something else to take care of."
"No, it's nothing urgent," Ikkin said. "We were just going to the library to see if we could find something about memory magic. I was hoping we might find something that could help us regain our memories. I couldn't perform the magic myself, of course, but knowing what to do would still be useful. Perhaps you could help us with the casting later if we did find out about something?"
Ikkin stopped, then thought about what Kat said about having something else to take care of. "Of course, it could wait until you were done with whatever you needed to do."
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Post by Tam on Jun 4, 2007 21:54:23 GMT -5
"Thanks. That was rather nice actually."
She grinned feebly despite herself. After enduring the other events of the day, she was quite pleased that something had gone right.
However, the amount of attention Kit had given Oran, and especially the amount of attention he had given the spot where Oran had disappeared from, was enough to make Tamia shudder, and she didn't know why. Maybe, she thought, Oran did know what he was talking about.... She chose not to walk down that road at present. I need evidence, she decided. Before she had any proof one way or another, who was she to tell whether or not demons and demonologists were...
Her thought was cut off abruptly. One of the things Tamia admired the most about her room was the large window looking out onto the courtyard, with its picturesque view of the lawns, gardens, and neatly planted trees. It also happened to frame a decent view of the castle gates, far away on the other side of the courtyard, through which all manner of interesting people passed through daily. On this particular occasion, however, there was something more than interesting about the group who strode unescorted onto the castle grounds. She sheilded her eyes from the sun and peered through the window. Before her twirled a golden-skinned maid whose braided dark hair shone in its beaded hair ribbon. She was followed by three companions just as strange in appearance: a silver and black-haired girl who moved so lightly as to drift on the air itself, a tall man with shocking blue hair, and a somewhat darker-looking young man who stuck to the shadows, his hair the same colour as the first girl's. Although it might have been a trick of the glaring sun, she thought she saw a crackle of magic leave at least one of the arrivals' hand.
"Sir Kit..." she tried slowly, watching them from beneath her hand. It was true that the kingdom had gained the aid of a few new swords recently, but there was something decidedly... different about these four. "How many new knights did we receive yesterday?"
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Post by Kat on Jun 4, 2007 21:59:35 GMT -5
"We were just going to the library to see if we could find something about memory magic. I was hoping we might find something that could help us regain our memories. I couldn't perform the magic myself, of course, but knowing what to do would still be useful. Perhaps you could help us with the casting later if we did find out about something?"
"I would be glad to help," replied Kat.
"Of course, it could wait until you were done with whatever you needed to do."
The Purple Knight nodded. "Thanks. I'll follow you guys to the library." She waved to Ikkin and left for the kitchens. As she got there, she quickly requested a pot of tea and a cup, and decided to hang around the hall for a while as the cooks got to work. Kat, after all, had insisted that the tea be as hot and fresh as possible.
And if they tried to spike it with anything else, she would know, and there were few things worse than a very angry knight-mage.
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Post by Crystal on Jun 4, 2007 22:30:57 GMT -5
"Well, if no one else is going to speak up, I think we can go to the library now. Feel free to come along too, Crystal."
Nobody had noticed? That was odd.
But then again, Crystal supposed, other knights had been away for lengthy periods of time as well. A few months was hardly anything. Still, she and Ikkin had been close friends during training. This matter she talked about must have been more important than Crystal thought. So she took another bun, shoved her hands in the pockets of her long, mud-stained tunic, and followed along with the other knights as they made their way to the library.
Kat joined them on the way, and Crystal remained quiet, listening to the exchange between the new arrival and Ikkin. The Purple Knight seemed to be worried about something… or maybe, again, she’d just aquired those furrow lines while Crystal had been away. It really was hard to tell.
"We were just going to the library to see if we could find something about memory magic. I was hoping we might find something that could help us regain our memories. I couldn't perform the magic myself, of course, but knowing what to do would still be useful. Perhaps you could help us with the casting later if we did find out about something?"
Memory loss? What on earth was powerful enough to modify the memories of an entire castle?
The group stopped momentarily, and Crystal glanced out a nearby window, just to see the view again. The route to the library brought them around the inside of the castle, and then close to the side of the building, a few floors up. She’d always liked windows... big airy windows that let her know exactly where she was. It was tiresome to climb the flights of stairs, but the view from the top of the castle was nothing short of heady.
There was nothing interesting outside. Crystal turned back as Kat hurried away, breaking into a light jog for a bit to catch up with Ikkin’s longer strides.
“Ikkin?” she asked softly. “What’s been happening?”
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Post by zarikrahia on Jun 5, 2007 2:35:01 GMT -5
Zari groaned and slammed down her book. Again. Someone was trying to get past her barriers. She cracked them open and stuck a tendril of consciousness out. #Zari! Oh, Krahia, Rosa's getting unbearable. Where are you?#
#Swear on your earthblade you won't spill this to anyone#
#I swear.#
#Dunburrow, In the NTWF.#
#Really? As a servant? What's your occupation? I'll bet you've-#
#I've a knight. Crimson. My title's the blood Knight. No, that doesn't mean I'm bloodthirsty.#
#Interesting. I've heard things about Dunburrow. Should I come Visit you sometime? Maybe in a Month or so?#
#Fine. If anyone asks, you're my sister. Not a word about the whole Alshevea thing.# Zari shut off the contact. Holly was her younger sister, 983 years younger than her. She stood up, grabbed her now finished book, and wandered down to the library.
'I think you've got through every good fiction book in the library.'
'Tza. Iyr kae verron.'
((The last sentence translates as 'Yes. Now shut cakehole.'))
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Post by Ikkin on Jun 5, 2007 13:16:09 GMT -5
"Ikkin?" Crystal asked softly. "What's been happening?"
Ikkin sighed. "That's just the problem," she said, then realized that that was probably unhelpful. "No one can remember yesterday very well. Just flashes here and there, of demons, conflict, strange men, and other things that suggest that something big happened. But that's all we have. And we just want to know what happened..."
She paused. "I don't suppose that you would have been affected by it, having just arrived at the castle..." And then it hit her. "Oh, wow, Crystal... I completely forgot to welcome you back! This whole thing must have been getting to me more than I thought... Welcome back, by the way." She turned and caught Crystal in a hug. She shouldn't have forgotten about her like that... she'd been one of her close friends.
"So, how was it?" Ikkin asked, changing the subject. They'd have time enough to discuss the memory thing while searching through magic books in the library.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 5, 2007 14:50:08 GMT -5
Wolf dashed up to the large, oaken doors granting entry to the castle and stopped for a moment to speak with the guards there. "May I ask, who did I just see enter the castle?"
The guard on the left remained silent. The guard on the right spoke. "A group of visitors, it seems. Quite nice if you asked me--tipped us two gold coins each simply for openin' the doors."
Wolf smiled. Yes, that did seem rather nice of them.
"My thanks," the Green Knight said as the guard opened the door and Wolf entered then as well. He paused upon reaching the hall's center. He saw no one nearby, but he could faintly hear footsteps echoing from the distance.
Bolting off towards the sound, Wolf rounded one corner, then a second, and he wasn't sure if he had counted a third or just imagined it, and then he stopped dead in tracks.
"Dame Ikkin!" he exclaimed, nearing the Blue Knight and her companion, the newly-knighted Sepia Knight--Crystal was her name? He nodded to them both before continuing, "Did you perchance see a group of travellers pass by here?" |
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Post by Kat on Jun 5, 2007 18:41:32 GMT -5
The smell that wafted up from the teapot was rather tempting - she made a mental note to thank the chefs later - but Kat knew better than to take a sip before Shino, who needed it more than she did. She wanted to cast a spell to make herself walk faster and not drop the tray, but she also knew that she could do it just fine without magic. The Purple Knight, as she entered knighthood, had made a vow to not use magic as a crutch, unless she really needed to.
Shino's quarters weren't too far, anyway, and she knew where they were. Lightning strike me if I don't.
Liarre was now washing the windows, and she watched Kat walk past, turning to a corridor on her right. The maid glanced at her from the corner of one greenish-brown eye before abandoning her rag and bucket, tailing the Purple Knight.
* * *
"I brought you some tea...hope you're feeling better," said Kat, walking into Shino's room and placing the tray on the table beside his bed. "Do you want me to stay with you?"
She blinked and sniffed, feeling her magical senses tingle. Was there someone...watching them?
Meanwhile, just beside the closed door, Liarre leaned against the wall, her ear pressed against the wall.
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Post by Shadaras on Jun 5, 2007 19:02:57 GMT -5
Shade followed Ikkin, trailing her at a slight distance. When Kat passed them, stopping to exchange a few words with Ikkin, Shade stopped, unconsciously hiding herself in a nearby shadow. Kat soon passed, but another knight - she thought it was the Sepia one - stopped Ikkin, asking about what was going on.
Shade rolled her eyes at that question. There was no way to answer it, with their memories as messed up as they were. But Ikkin did a fairly good job of explaining it, given the circumstances. She kept talking, but Shade was distracted by the sound of footsteps, coming from the path leading to the main gates, if she wasn't mistaken.
"Dame Ikkin!" Shade turned at Wolf's voice, in time to see him halt a short distance away from them. "Did you perchance see a group of travellers pass by here?"
Shade hesitated. Ikkin was the one he was asking, but she could answer the question just as well. "I haven't seen anyone pass by, other than people who live in the castle," she said. "But I haven't really been paying close attention to anyone. Why do you ask?"
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Post by Crystal on Jun 6, 2007 6:42:32 GMT -5
The other knight, Shade, slipped into the shadows, and Crystal tensed somewhat unconsciously, even as Ikkin spoke.
Demons, conflicts, and strange men. No, it seemed the Castle wasn’t any more a home than the one she’d just come from.
Then Ikkin paused and caught the ninja-knight in a sudden hug and an exclamation, and Crystal was taken aback for a little, a sudden smile appearing on her face. Well, maybe it was still somewhat of a home.
"So, how was it?" the kitsune asked, and Crystal paused to give her answer.
“Disappointing,” she laughed, and was about to elaborate when she heard the thud of running feet behind them.
It was another knight, whom she didn’t know. "Dame Ikkin! Did you perchance see a group of travellers pass by here?" And strangely enough, he nodded to her in greeting. He… knew her? Why didn’t she know him?
Then it hit her. Like a brick. Wolf. It was Wolf. And she did know him, albeit not very well. But he was so… different, now. His clothing was different; richer, grander. And his stance was off, too, slumped over a little like he was tired. He seemed almost to carry the weight of Castle Kestrel on his shoulders.
And there was a crown. He wore a crown.
Wolf is the King?
Shade spoke then, breaking her train of thought. She seemed to be speaking for Ikkin. "I haven't seen anyone pass by, other than people who live in the castle. But I haven't really been paying close attention to anyone. Why do you ask?"
Crystal turned back to the King, watching him quietly. Maybe it had to do with what Ikkin said about the night before. Or maybe not. She’d listen and see.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 6, 2007 16:20:51 GMT -5
"Oh, hello, Shade," Wolf said with a smile, "I hadn't seen you standing there." He paused, glancing his eyes at the Sepia Knight for a moment. She was watching him intently. Perhaps more intently than made him comfortable.
"You haven't seen anyone, though? Hmm, that's curious. Only a minute before I entered the castle, I'd seen a group of travellers enter—they wore the strangest of clothing and had such an unusual appearance—but by the time I entered, they were out of sight. I'd heard all of your footsteps and had thought maybe you were them...."
Wolf took a deep breath, panting a bit from his exertions, and tried to stop slouching so much. Sure, a bit of slouching here and there would have been fine before, but he was king now and all, so he had expectations to live up to. |
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Post by zhunter on Jun 6, 2007 22:53:59 GMT -5
When Kat had left Shino tried his hardest to get some rest. He really did. But naught a wink of sleep came to his wide-awake eyes. Then he tried to concentrate on why they had lost the memories and why he had changed his manner. But nothing came up. "Drat it all to the Pit!" Shino cursed out loud. Of course no one was around to hear this and he was very thankful for that. "Perhaps...when I get my tea I'll be able to some answers..or at least some rest."
Rolling around on his bed, he tried to find a comfortable situation. But it was of no use. At least I have my consciousness back... Shino thought to himself. Laying flat on his back, Shino pondered again. And for the first time it wasn't about the missing memories, his personality, or even his new position as the regal Steward of Dunburrow. It was about Kat.
*FLASH*
I am overwhelmed with her magnificence...The aura around her astounds my senses and makes me dizzy to focus on what I am doing. Of course when fighting her, I must.
"Come on then!" she yelled at me
"En Guard!" Shino challenged back at her
*CLANG*
"Harder then Lady Kalianne!"
*WHOOSH*
"You've missed me."
Lady Kalianne had been coming along quite nicely in her efforts to use the regular sword. He was adept at the basics of swordsmanship so Sir Gangwhen paired him with her to "learn her well". She had probably been spending a little too much time with Gangwhen for she was besting him at the moment. He wasn't trying to especially injure or kill her. But to attack, retreat, and defend. He wasn't working this match. She was.
A parry, a thrust, and then a twist to deflect his move with her elegant center. She twisted the tip of his broadsword away and went for the opening he had left for her. Scrambling to strike her blade away, he did the unthinkable and raced forward into her body. She toppled backwards and Shino found himself falling flat on his back.
Her eyes fluttered above him now and he realized that she was laying on top of him. Her lovely face was enough to make him at least slightly uncomfortable. But the thin figure on his muscular body was enough to make him wish he hadn't even seen her today. Oh the humanity.
"Oh! I'm so sorry, Lord Shino-"
"I apologize, Lady Kalianne. I hadn't meant to-"
They both looked into each other's eyes he could have sworn by his sword that she was the most gorgeous being on the face of the planet. Her nose touched his and their lips were inches away from the other. The moment was perfect.
"Hay! Get up off yer bum already, m'lord! Unless ye plan on kissin' the girl!" The scraggly Sir Gangwhen called out to him from the other side of the field. Both young Knights blushed and proceeded to get up off the grass.
*FLASH*
Those times had been simpler. He had always wished that she loved him the same way he did her. Always he had longed to feel her skin, touch her lips, and breathe in her air. Today had been a breaking point in his hopeful romance with her. He had seen the affect he had had on Kat and the way her eyes seemed to sparkle at the mention of an outing. He had been ecstatic. But now he was lying in bed and was being treated by Lady Kalianne Triss Lunara for a minor inconvenience that had laid him unable to concentrate.
This hadn't been his plan when he wanted to spend time with her. She didn't need to wait on him. She shouldn't have to. He was a man and should have to tough it out. So when the door was open Shino was propping himself up and trying to manage to sit up. He came back down when he saw her concerned face and decided not to worry her anymore than she already was.
"I brought you some tea...hope you're feeling better. Do you want me to stay with you?" Kat had asked him. He had planned on saying 'no' to this as he wanted to get out of bed without her knowing, but he decided that the issue of the two was too important to put off. "No I, uh...Well, yes. I need to talk with you, Lady Kalianne. There are some things...some things I feel that we haven't been able to talk to each other about progressively throughout the time we've known each other."
Shino took the cup and sipped down some luscious liquid, which came flowing down his throat. It soothed him inside. But their seemed to be some strange effect to this. Was it some magic that had been added? He trusted Kat completely so of she had put in any magic it could only be good. Nevertheless...A weird sense arose in him. Shino shrugged it off and continued to drink.
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