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Nanashi cringed every time it thundered and whimpered softly. There were some times that Nanashi could act like a man and other times that he could act like a child, this, obviously, was not one of his manly moments. After a bit when he was quiet he cracked open his eyes and looked up from LaRae's shoulder. The first thing he noticed was that it was brighter in the cave. It took him a moment to notice the fire toward the back of the cave where Celestine was sitting. He started to loosen his grip on LaRae a little, wanting to go sit by the fire so he could try to get warmer. Another roll of thunder startled him before he said anything and he cringed again as if it hurt him.
Hikari raised her head slightly when Kyran nudged her and looked up at him oddly. "What fi--oh." she said, sounding a bit surprised when she saw the flames. "...Where in the world did he find dry wood?" she wondered out loud as she started to get up slowly. She looked down to Kyran and smiled slightly. "You should come too...when you can stand up." she said with a soft smile as she placed her hand on his head for a moment before starting back toward the flames. She smiled slightly to Celestine as she sat down near him. "Hey..." she said softly before glancing around the area. She blinked when she saw the makeshift bed and tilted her head. "You come here often?" She asked. He must considering the things that were here. Celestine blinked and looked over to Hikari when she came over to him. "...Yeah...I live here." he said simply as he looked back to the fire again. He yawned slightly and then glanced back to his half dry wings, spreading them out a little to try to give them more room to dry. He reached behind him to try to run his hands over the feathers to try to push the water out of them. |
LaRae moved her head slightly to look at Nanashi when he started to lift his head. Though she looked at him with a curious expression when he cringed at that last roll of thunder. His reaction to it was definitely not what she'd expected; Then again she hadn't really expected all the whimpers either. She'd sighed softly and just tried to be as comforting about it as possible. It didn't really bother her that he was afraid of the thunder, hell, everyone was afraid of something. It took her a moment longer to notice that it was indeed a little brighter in the cave. She finally pulled herself away from Nanashi briefly to look back and see the fire. Her eyes came back and rested on him and she smiled softly. "Go ahead and go sit by the fire."
Kyran watched as Hikari got up. He smiled slightly when she placed her hand on top of his head and nodded softly when she said that he should come too. Of course he'd thought about getting up and going over to sit by the fire; His leg was alright he'd probably have a very faint limp but he could walk fine. He was just too tired to pull himself up off the ground, let alone move all the way over to the fire. He leaned his head back against the wall again and gave a soft sigh as he tried to relax again. He happened to glance back over at Hikari and Celestine when he heard that Celestine said he lived here. He shook his head lightly and just leaned his head back again. |
Nanashi looked back to LaRae when she told him to go to the fire. He smiled weakly and then nodded slightly. He cringed again when it thundered again, closing his eyes for a moment. When he opened them again they held that same haunted look that he'd had in his eyes when he was trying to tell her about his mother and couldn't bring himself to talk about it. He sighed softly and then got up, wrapping his arms around his chest again and turning to start toward the fire himself. He didn't say a word to anyone once he got there and just sat down against the cave wall closer to the fire, though still barely close enough to feel the heat from it. He drew his knees up to his chest and rested his chin on his knees, staring down at his feet as he continued to shiver slightly. He wanted to get closer to the fire, but he didn't want to be close to the others...mainly because he didn't know what to tell them was wrong if someone asked.
Hikari blinked when Celestine said that he lived here. "You live here?" she asked softly, glancing around. "...How long have you lived here?" she asked softly, "...And why do you live here?" Celestine sighed softly and glanced over to Hikari again. "...I just do." he said simply, obviously not wanting to go into detail. "Have for the past...five or six years, I guess. I'm not really sure." He'd kind of lost count after a while. Over time time starts to kind of blend together and it starts to get hard to tell what happened this morning from what happened yesterday, at least for him. "Why does it matter?" "Well...I just wondered...you seem pretty young to be living in a place like this all alone..." |
LaRae just looked at him for a moment with a half blank expression. Of course she'd seen that look before in his eyes, but she didn't want to ask any questions. At least not with so many of the others in ear shot. She gave a soft sigh as she watched him head back to where the fire was. She didn't turn all the way around to see where he'd sat, she only looked over her shoulder as much as she could without straining herself. Once he was out of sight she turned her head back around and kept her back towards the fire and where everyone else was. She ordinarily might have followed him, just to sit with him but she was a little uncomfortable around any type of fires; With good reason, or so she thought. She gave a heavy sigh and crossed her legs before hunching over slightly. She shivered slightly now that she was sharing body heat with Nanashi. She wasn't all that cold, but a shiver still escaped her occasionally.
Aamori had continued to sit under the sheet of pouring cold water for awhile, relaxing. Sure enough, the temperature of the water wasn't bothering her anymore though she was almost positive that was because her body was frozen. She finally opened her eyes and started to shift a little. She finally just let herself roll backwards into the cave, then stretched her legs out before rolling over onto her stomach and getting to her feet. She'd sat under the water so long that her body clearly looked pale blue. She stood for a moment and gathered her hair and started to wring it out before heading into the cave a little. She paused near LaRae and just looked down at her for a moment before continuing past her and the others until she was closer to the fire. For the sake of freezing her body, she was at least completely relaxed. She sighed softly when she got closer to Hikari and Celestine, but she stopped and sat down on the ground a few feet away from them. |
Nanashi finally just closed his eyes and burrowed his head into his knees as he wrapped his arms around his legs. He half wished that LaRae had come over to sit with him, but he wasn't going to ask her to come. He was pretty sure that he was sitting far enough away from the fire for her sake.
Celestine sighed quietly when Hikari said that he was young. "...I guess to you." he said simply. He looked up when he noticed Aamori come in and tilted his head slightly when she sat down a little ways away from them. "...Feel better?" he asked simply when she say down. He noted the blue color of her skin and shook his head slightly. Hikari sighed and looked away from Celestine. He was kind of hard to talk to. He didn't seem to want anyone to know much of anything about him at all. Her eyes turned to Aamori when she came over and she blinked when she noticed the tone of her skin. "Geez, Aamori, are you that cold?" she asked, starting to get up again. She didn't really like the way that her skin looked. "What were you doing?" "Sitting in the water obviously." Celestine answered for her with a half smile. "I was just joking, you know, Aamori." |
LaRae had looked up briefly when Aamori stopped near her. She let her eyes follow Aamori back the same way they had when Nanashi headed back to the fire. She sighed softly, having not even registered the color of her friends skin. She continued to sit for a little while longer before she started to be bothered by sitting by herself. She'd spent so much time with Nanashi in the past week or so that not being near him even when he was so close just felt strange. She gave a heavy sigh and turned slightly so that she could see better. She looked back to see where he was compared to the fire. She was relived to see that he wasn't sitting directly by the fire, so she might be able to put up with where he was at. She started to climb to her feet and wander back towards the others, though once she got a little closer to the fire she was practically glued to the wall of the cave as she walked past Kyran and then past Nero. She continued keeping close to the wall until she reached Nanashi. The entire way over she'd kept her eyes averted from the fire; Mostly because every time she looked at it she'd immediately be forced to think about the mark on her back, which never brought pleasant thoughts. She started to sit down next to Nanashi and gave a soft sigh once she was on the ground again. She wasted very little time bringing her knees up to her chest and then wrapping her arms around the top of her knees to make a safe place to bury her head.
Aamori nodded slightly when she heard Celestine ask if she felt better. She did, it was probably obvious if one was paying enough attention. She then looked at Hikari when she started to ask about her being cold; Clearly the color of her skin was throwing up red flags. She smiled weakly at Hikari. "I'm alright, not really all that cold... Well, I'm cold but it doesn't bother me." She said lightly before glancing back at Celestine when he said she'd been sitting in the water. She couldn't help but nod again, rather pleasantly. She then looked back at Celestine and smirked lightly. "Oh... you were only joking?" She paused. "...You're always so serious... so I didn't know." She said in a very sarcastic tone. She was just pulling his leg for the fun of it. She took a moment and looked at her arms, seeing just how blue she looked and stifled a small chuckle before deciding that she needed to let her skin color regulate. She pushed herself onto her knees and crawled closer to the fire before sitting back down again. It'd probably take some time, but she'd be back to her normal tone soon enough. She hadn't noticed just how blue she actually looked until she got closer to the fire. She wasn't really alarmed by it because it'd happened before and nothing bad came from it. Kyran finally opened his eyes again when he heard Aamori's voice. He glanced over to look at the others by the fire. When his eyes rested on Aamori he had to look twice. Was that girls skin really blue? He quirked a brow and then ended up shaking his head. He had to be seeing things, had to be. He sighed lightly and let his head fall back against the wall again. |
Nanashi glanced up when LaRae finally came over to sit beside him and tried to offer her a slight smile, though it didn't come out very well. He sighed quietly and looked back to the ground ahead of him for a moment before scooting a little closer to her so that their sides were touching. He didn't look back over to her, or move his arms from around his legs to wrap around her or anything to that effect. He just remained silently, keeping his eyes on his own feet. Another very loud clap of thunder suddenly erupted through the cave a few moment later and he yelped as if he'd just been struck and laid his ears back before ducking his head and burrowing his face into his knees. He had a feeling that someone because LaRae heard that so he was just trying to hide his face to keep from meeting anyone's gaze.
Celestine gave Aamori a look when she got sarcastic with him and then half smiled when she crawled loser and playfully shoved her over sideways. Just then a loud crack of thunder made his grab his ears and wince. His hearing was a lot more sensitive than most so the noise really bothered him a lot. He was already starting to get a headache from this storm. After a moment he opened his eyes and lowered his hands, glancing around slightly. He blinked when his eyes came to rest on Nanashi. The guy looked like he was quivering though he couldn't tell if it was from cold or fear. He shook his head slightly. No one his age could be that afraid of thunder so he must be freezing. With a heavy sigh he stood up again and walked over to another small opening in the cave. He reached down and picked up a long soft leather cloak and unfolded it. Celestine didn't own a lot, but he still had a few things strewn around this cave. He unfolded the cloak and looked at it for a moment before turning to walk over to Nanashi. When tied around his neck the cloak was long enough to reach Celestine's ankles, so he hoped it was good enough for Nanashi. "...Here." He said simply when he got to him, holding the cloak out in front of him. "...You can get closer to the fire you know if you're that cold." Nanashi glanced up slowly when he felt something brush against his leg and then looked up to Celestine when he realized that he was talking to him. He hadn't even realized that he was shaking again, but apparently it was bad enough to be noticed. "...th...thanks..." he muttered quietly as he reached up to take the cloak. Celestine just nodded, though his eyes lingered on Nanashi's for a moment. He could recognize that haunted, frightful gaze easily enough. With another heavy sigh he placed his hand on his head lightly. "...It's just a storm." he said softly, "It will go away soon." Hikari nodded to Aamori when she said that the cold didn't bother her. "...If you say so..." she said softly. She giggled when Celestine tried to push her over and then startled at the sound of the thunder. She shook her head as she rubbed her ears and then watched Celestine get up again and wander off. She smiled slightly when she saw him go over to Nanashi with the...well whatever it was, and offer it to him. He is so strange... It was really odd to see how quickly his mood could change and the way that he treated everyone. He could be screaming at you one minute and trying to comfort you the next. |
LaRae just barely lifted her eyes to look over at Nanashi when she felt him get closer to her. She held a very faint smile until she heard him yelp. She sighed softly and started to rest her head back down on top of her arms. She wasn't exactly sure what she could do to help keep the thunder from bothering him. She sat there just watching him for a moment until she noticed Celestine headed over with something in his hands. She had lifted her head long enough to watch the exchange between the two then lowered her head again when there was mention of getting closer to the fire. She hated being so bothered by something so simple; But the cursed mark on her back gave more then physical pain unfortunately.
Aamori fell over when Celestine shoved her; Though she managed to catch herself easily enough. She just smiled a little and shook her head as she sat back up straight. She knew he was just messing with her so it didn't bother her. She looked over at him when the thunder's echo rolled through the cave again. Her ears had laid back from the sound, but it obviously didn't hurt her ears like it did his. She couldn't help thinking that sitting inside a cave during this bad of a storm probably wasn't good on any of their ears, but with no where else to go there was little that could be done about it. She watched when he got up and grabbed the thing he soon handed over to Nanashi. She smiled softly and turned her head back to the fire as she set her hands out to warm them. |
Nanashi shook his head slightly when Celestine offered to let him closer to the fire. "...I'm alright..." He said quietly. "...Thank you..." he said quietly before glancing away again. He looked at LaRae for a moment until Celestine touched his shoulder and then sighed quietly and looked away again. "...I know." He said quietly.
Celestine tilted his head slightly and pulled his hand back. He sighed softly and knelt down again in front of him. "...You alright?" he asked finally. He knew something was eating at the guy from the look on his face. "...What's wrong?" "...Nothing....I'm fine..." he said quietly. Celestine looked at him for a moment and then nodded. "...Alright." he said simply in a surprisingly understanding tone. He wouldn't push him to talk if he didn't want to talk. Honestly, Celestine could understand him not wanting to tell everyone what was on his mind. He was the same way with that sort of thing, his business was no one's but his own as far as he was concerned. He stood up again and looked down to LaRae. He knew that he'd really ticked her off earlier and he really still didn't care too much for her, but there was one thing he was still wondering. "...And what about you? Are you still in pain?" Hikari looked over to Aamori and half smiled to her before glancing back to Celestine briefly. "So..." she said quietly, trying to keep her voice low enough that Celestine couldn't hear her over the rain outside. "...do you have him figured out yet?" she asked with a smile. "...You two seem to get along quite well...most of the time." |
LaRae had barely been paying attention to the verbal exchanges going on between Nanashi and Celestine. She'd even had her head lowered into her arms so that she couldn't see the fire. Though her ears perked up when she heard the last thing Celestine said; Clearly directed at her. She lifted her head, her eyes slightly wide; She hadn't thought anyone else had seen her in pain earlier since no one had mentioned it other then Aamori. Of course she panicked for a moment at a huge loss for words. She wasn't sure she wanted to deny being in pain or say that she felt better. She choked and averted her eyes, continuing to be quiet a bit longer. "...I don't know what you're talking about." She uttered defensively.
Aamori continued to hold her hands out to the fire. Her hands had already started to return to her natural skin tone. The color slowly started to change working up her arm; It was probably rather humorous to see the creamy color devour the pale blue. Her eyes rather quickly shot over to Hikari when she heard what she said. She couldn't help but smile nervously; She felt rather put on the spot suddenly. Her eyes trailed back to the fire for a moment. "...I don't think I'll ever have him completely figured out." She said simply and quietly before looking back over at Hikari. "And... I think I annoy him more then get along with him..." She paused. "...He's just putting up with me because I won't leave him alone." She turned her eyes back to the fire and gave a soft sigh before finally pulling her hands away and resting them in her lap. |
Celestine looked at LaRae for a moment and then huffed softly. "You certainly sound like you do." he said simply, but he shook his head and didn't push it. He looked over to Nanashi for a moment and then just turned around and started back toward the fire again.
Nanashi looked over to LaRae again when she said that she didn't know what he was talking about. He looked back to Celestine briefly when he started to walk away and then sighed. He somehow had a feeling that Celestine had noticed that she was in pain before Aamori did and that he may be the reason that she had come over. He sighed and finally draped the cloak over himself and then leaned lightly against LaRae's side again. Hikari smiled at Aamori and shook her head. "No...I don't think that's entirely true. I've seen him come to you just as many times as you've gone to him. If you annoyed him that badly I would think he would take any chance he could to avoid you." she said simply. She shook head slightly and then stopped talking when she noticed Celestine on his way back to the fire. She smiled slightly and glanced away again. |
LaRae rather timidly brought her eyes back to look at Celestine when he spoke, though she couldn't bring herself to make eye contact. She hated that he knew she'd been in pain, more so she hated blatantly lying to his face. She didn't really have any other choice though, she couldn't possibly go around announcing that she had a curse mark impeded into her skin that caused her incredible pain and could be used like a homing beacon. She gave a heavy sigh once Celestine started to move away, then buried her head in her arms. She continued to sit like that for a few minutes, even when Nanashi had leaned against her again. She didn't move right away, but she did finally scoot forward a little and then climb to her feet quietly. She didn't lift her eyes from the ground and didn't say a word to Nanashi or anyone else for the matter. She then started to walk back towards the entrance to the cave; However while walking this time she didn't glue herself to the wall. She was more in a hurry to put a little distance between herself and the others so she moved quickly past everyone and straight over to the sheet of water. She finally lifted her head once she reached the wall of water and moved off to the side where she didn't think she'd be seen easily. She gave a heavy sigh and pressed her back against the wall before letting herself drop down with her head turned to the side to look out through the sheet of water.
Aamori turned her eyes back to Hikari for a moment when she spoke. She did half believe Hikari, she didn't think she annoyed him too badly. But he had previously told her she was annoying. She also wasn't going to point out that there wasn't a whole lot Celestine could do to avoid her, at least while on this trip. "...Perhaps." She paused. "Either way, I don't think he likes me all that much." She merely smiled weakly and turned her eyes back to the fire. She hadn't even noticed that the reason Hikari stopped talking was because Celestine was on his way back over. |
Nanashi raised his head up again when LaRae started to move forward. He blinked when she got up and started to move back toward the entrance of the cave. He just sat there silently for a few moments, staring after her. He wanted to get up and go to her, but he really didn't want to bother her. she hadn't said anything to him, so he guessed that meant that she wanted to be alone.
Celestine had just gotten behind Aamori about the time that she said that she didn't think he liked her very much. He stood behind her silently for a moment, he was so quiet that it would be pretty hard to detect him. He knew there weren't many people watching him, he he just grinned slightly and knelt down behind her, placing both hands on her shoulders lightly. He leaned forward so that his lips were almost brushing against her ear and then spoke so quietly that only she could hear, even with Hikari just right there. "...There you go...making assumptions again." he told her before he nuzzled against her head lightly and then backed away. "...At any rate... I am going to rest for a while." he told them as he moved over to the little makeshift bed and laid down, facing the back wall. Hikari blinked, quite surprised at Celestine's response to what Aamori said. She smiled after a moment and then nodded to him when he said that he was going to rest. "Yes...that sounds like the best thing for all of us to do." she said softly. |
Aamori still hadn't noticed Celestine even when he'd been standing right behind her. When she felt his hands touch her shoulders she couldn't contain her startled 'meep'. She settled down for a brief moment, until she heard what he said into her ear. Luckily for her you probably wouldn't be able to notice the blush tint in her cheeks thanks to a decent amount of her skin still being pale blue. Her eyes went wide in surprise when he lightly nuzzled against her head; That was quite a bit more then she'd expected. Once he backed away her eyes fell to her lap where she'd started to fidget with her hands. That was probably the first time anyone had ever been able to make her speechless; And in such a short amount of time. She'd practically spaced out by now and hadn't even noticed that Celestine had moved away from her and laid down on his bed.
LaRae absently stared though the sheet of water even though the view was completely distorted. She sat like that for a short while before she suddenly remembered a letter that she'd been given a while ago. She shook her head lightly and leaned forward so that she could reach into her back pocket and remove the letter. She sat back once she had the letter in front of her and stared at it with her eyes nearly full of hatred. She was half tempted to just throw the letter out since the seal on it clearly told her that it was from her foster parents. She heaved a heavy sigh and turned the folded letter on it's side and took her clawed finger to the seal slicing through it easy enough. She turned the letter right side up and hesitated for a moment to even open it. There was still time to throw it out. Although if there was something important inside, if she returned home without any knowledge of the letter it could spell trouble. She sighed again and moved her hands to open the tri-folded letter. After fighting with herself for a few minutes she finally let her eyes skim over the words on the paper. LaRae, I'm sure that you have already become aware of this, but Renzo has been assigned to look after your every move while you are away. Let me also inform you that NO ONE wanted to take this job set forth by the Elders. And as a way of talking Renzo into doing this task we, as your foster parents have offered you to him upon your return home... Should you live that long. Renzo of course was given the option of your younger sister first, but for some strange reason he insisted to have you regardless of your cruse mark. Also, to be noted. Renzo has been given some authority over you while on this trip. Should he see fit to step in at any point in time our Elders have given him the permission to deal with you in the manor of his choice. You are forbidden to retaliate. Furthermore, you are currently a representative of our Clan and family, we expect you to conduct yourself properly. Natsumi and Rokuro. It didn't take long for her finish reading the letter and upon completion she tossed the letter off to the side away from the water and crossed her arms over her chest as she lowered her head. She was angry and hurt along with just plain upset all rolled into one. That stupid letter had managed to pull a few tears from her eyes. She glanced back down at the letter for a few moments and then scoffed as she turned her eyes away again. She already wished that she hadn't read it, that she hadn't remembered it, hell she hated that she'd even taken it from Renzo. |
Celestine just closed his eyes once he laid down and sighed softly, snuggling into the blanket on top of the thin layer of grass. The bed was hard and not all that comfortable, but it sufficed well enough. Considering how poorly he'd sept the night before, it really didn't take him that long to doze off.
Hikari looked over to Celestine for a few moments and then looked over to Aamori again. She laughed softly and shook her head. "See?" she said with a soft laugh. "He must not hate dislike you." Nanashi sat there for a few moments more before he finally got up and walked quietly over to where LaRae had gone, only managing to muster the courage because he remembered that she said that she liked spending time with him no matter the circumstances...he just hoped that she still thought that. He could tell as soon as he got there that she was upset and he immediately went to sit beside her again. "LaRae...?" he asked quietly as he reached over to put his arm around her. "...What is it? ...What's wrong?" he asked softly. His eyes then wandered away from her briefly and landed on the crumpled piece of paper. He blinked and reached over to pick it up looking at it for a moment before just laying it back down as if it was impossible for him to understand no matter how long he stared at it. |
Aamori didn't respond right away, though what Hikari had said did register. She eventually smiled softly and looked over at Hikari once the tint had faded from her cheeks. She had started to open her mouth to say something but quickly found herself at a loss for words. She actually couldn't think of anything to say about it, not even a wise crack. She merely smiled again and shook her head softly. She then glanced around spotting Celestine over on the makeshift bed; She really wished she'd had something smart to come back at him with but she hadn't expected him to leave her speechless. She chuckled very softly and shook her head again as if she couldn't believe any of that had just happened. She then looked back over to Hikari with a slightly defeated look on her face. "...I don't know what to say..." She paused. "...For once."
LaRae immediately lifted her hands to her face to wipe away the tears when she noticed Nanashi coming to sit by her; In hopes that he hadn't noticed them. She sat quietly for a moment once he was next to her trying to gather her thoughts. She wasn't exactly sure where to even start let alone if she wanted to tell him everything. Her eyes went wide when she glanced over at him and noticed that he'd picked up the letter. Her first thought of course was why didn't she throw the letter out into the rain. She sighed softly watching him set it back down, clearly he hadn't held it long enough to read everything. Did he even read anything? She then moved a little so that she could reach over and take the letter back. She then started to fold it back up once it was in her possession again. "...It's nothing..." She said quietly at first. "...This letter, it upset me." She paused. "But... I'll be alright." She added quickly as she started fidgeting with the letter in her hands. She couldn't seem to bring her eyes off the letter, she continued to play with it in her hands and focus solely on the seal she'd sliced through. She finally just pressed the letter against her leg under her hand and sighed heavily. "...How much of it did you read?" She asked quietly, the fact that he'd looked at it starting to bother her. |
Hikari smiled again and giggled softly. "...I'm not sure I would either." she admitted before glancing over to Celestine again. She looked at him for a moment and then shook her head slightly. "You'd never know he was such a pain when he was awake." she commented. He looked like such a sweet little child when he was sleeping. She noticed as she looked at him that he still hadn't taken his weapon off of his back. Finally she got up and crept over to him, carefully unhooking the top of the strap from the little ring that it was attached to before taking a hold of the center of the weapon and pulling it back slowly, sliding the other side of the strap out form under him. She then hooked the strap back where it belonged and leaned the weapon against the cave wall, staring at it for a few moments. "...Another strange weapon." she muttered to herself.
Nanashi looked at LaRae silently as she told him part of what was wrong. He kept his arm around her, watching her fold the letter again and then sighed quietly when she asked how much he'd read. "...Nothing..." he said quietly. He hadn't had time to decipher any of it really, even though he'd held it long enough that had he been anyone else he could have read nearly half of it whether he was deliberately trying to or not since commonly words registered to you at a glance. Unfortunately, he had to concentrate when he read since no one really ever bothered to teach him. Apparently they didn't think he was capable of learning to read. "...Why are you so upset? ...What does it say?" He pulled her a little closer and raised his other hand to her hair, gently running his fingers over it. He would have combed them through it if her hair wasn't still wet. His hands were still pretty cold, but sine Celestine started the fire it was a little warmer in here...not to mention the wind wasn't touching them in here, so he was starting to warm up a little. He still had Celestine's cloak draped over him as well, so that was also helping a bit. He nuzzled against her gently with his head again, hoping he could make her feel a little better. "...You can tell me...if you want." |
Aamori watched when Hikari got up and went over to Celestine and then began removing the weapon from his back. She gave a soft sigh and turned her eyes back to the fire for a moment. She'd started thinking about something else she'd noticed once they all got into the cave. She glanced back at Hikari for a moment with a curious look on her face. "...Since you asked me a question, I'm going to ask you one." She said simply, and rather quietly as to avoid waking any of the others who'd already gone to sleep. "...If my memory serves me correctly, only royals have gems like those on their foreheads." She paused. "Am I correct?" She asked turning her head back to stare at the fire. She'd noticed the gem earlier when they entered the cave from the pouring rain but avoided bringing it up right away.
LaRae sighed softly, nearly in relief when he said he hadn't read any of the letter. She'd focused so much on what was in the letter and the fact that she couldn't believe it that she barely noticed Nanashi had touched her hair, or nuzzled against her. She moved her hand slightly off of the letter and then picked it up again and looked at it. She wasn't so sure that she wanted to share what the letter said with anyone. It was personal, and between her and her foster parents, and apparently Renzo now too; But maybe she could share it with Nanashi. She stared at the letter for a few moments longer before lifting her other hand so that she could open the letter again. "...I got this from Renzo..." She paused. "Last time I saw him... It's from my foster parents..." She mumbled. "...I kind of wish I hadn't read it." She added before letting her eyes fall back to the words on the paper. She hesitated for a moment but reluctantly proceeded to re-read the letter aloud, quietly from beginning to end leaving nothing out. Once she finished reading the letter again she quickly folded it back up and set it down on the ground. |
Hikari's ears twitched slightly when she heard Aamori say that she was going to ask her a question. She sighed softly before turning back to face her, already knowing what she was about to ask. She just smiled weakly when the question came. "...Yes...you're correct. Well partially. Our elders have them as well, but theirs are not blue." she said in the same quiet tone, "Just as only your elders have that strange echo to their voices." She walked back over to Aamori and say down again with a soft chuckle, "It seems like we're both trying to hide our true identities." She glanced over to Aamori again and winked. "I won't tell if you wont.. of course Kyran, LaRae, and Nanashi already figured it out before at the festival..." she said with a slight smile.
Nanashi listened silently as she read the words, looking down at the letter as she read. By the time she'd finished he'd raised her head off of hers and his hand had fallen away from her hair. He felt like something cracked. How could they just give her to that guy like she was some kind of property? His eyes finally turned back to LaRae again and he stared at her, his mouth open as if he wished to speak, though he didn't say a word. He couldn't think of anything to say, really. He didn't want to really think of her with someone who would hurt her the way that he had before. Honestly he didn't really want to think of her with someone else at all. He wanted to kick himself for thinking for even five seconds that she could be with him. It would never be allowed by either of their clans. "...I...I see..." he whispered quietly. "...You two...were friends once...weren't you?" He asked quietly. "...Maybe......he wants to go back to that..." he tried to be upliting even though the thought of this was making him sick. |
Aamori sighed softly hearing that Hikari already knew about her secret. She wasn't all that surprised really, she had spoken in that echoed voice several times already. "I've no intention of sharing that information with anyone, regardless of the fact that all but two people know about you now." She said quietly. "Myself on the other hand. It's only you and Celestine. I'd prefer to keep it that way." She added with a pause. "Those of my clan like me are supposed to be kept in hiding until we're needed. So no one ever knows about us, other then the higher ranked clan members." She paused. "Normally I might say, consider yourself lucky. Because you're one of the few to met a young elder in training..." She sighed again and looked back to the fire. "So... It seems like you're doing a poor job of keeping your identity hidden..." She said quietly as she glanced back to Hikari briefly.
LaRae tensed up slightly when she heard him say that they were friends once, and that maybe that's all Renzo wanted. She shook her head slightly, angered really by the whole topic. She took a moment taking a deep breath to relax a little. "...We were friends when we were little." She paused. "That was a long time ago... and we'll never be friends again." She muttered. "As for the other thought, that's nothing more then wishful thinking..." She said with a heavy sigh. She wished that was really all Renzo wanted but she knew better. He'd always been infatuated with her and now he'd managed to get what he really wanted. She crossed her arms across her chest and lowered her head slightly. None of this would've happened if she hadn't had that damn cursed mark on her back. If she'd been 'normal' then anyone would've jumped at the job set forth by the Elders; But no. She had to be a reject. |
Hikari smiled weakly. She thought of telling her that Kyran knew as well, but she decided not to mention it. She may or may not find out later. "Yes, well...it's a little difficult to hide this thing. My hair likes to part right over it, not to mention...well now all of my hair's just clumped together." She shook her head slightly. "It's not required for me to hide my identity...I just prefer to not be treated like a princess or called princess or all of that. I like being Hikari." she said with a smile. "I'm sure you know what I mean." she said softly as she started fiddling with her bangs again, trying to cover the gem again. Unfortunately, fight now they were just not being cooperative at all. "Heh...maybe I need to try out Nanashi's style and get myself a bandanna."
Nanashi sighed softly and let his ears fall back. Another quiet roll of thunder startled him a little, but he tried not to think of it much. He shook his head and then wrapped both arms around her tightly, closing his eyes as he rested his head against hers. "...LaRae...I'm sorry..." he whispered softly. "...I'm so sorry..." He really wished he could think of something more to say or do, but right now he was doing all he could. |
Aamori nodded lightly. She did know what she meant, when you were born different from everyone else you just kind of wanted to blend in; Not stick out. She gave a soft hearted sigh and shut her eyes for a few moments, pausing as if counting to herself in her head. When she opened her eyes again they'd shifted color; They were back to their natural dark blue color and her voice had regained it's echo. "I suppose it is a little easier to hide my oddities." She said quietly. "It's not hard to change the shade of one's eyes and the tone of a voice, the only downfall is when I'm out of energy and can't hide it any longer." She glanced over at Hikari for a moment and focused on the gem on her forehead. She chuckled lightly at her comment about a bandanna. "You could, or wear a hat or something. Though most of the group already know and they don't seem to treat you any different... So what does it matter?"
LaRae sighed heavily when she heard Nanashi saying he was sorry. She just sat quietly and leaned her head slightly into his. She couldn't help it but she'd really started to hope that she'd end up dead before going home for good. The last thing she wanted was to have to be stuck with Renzo. Since it was coming from her foster parents and agreed upon by the Elder there was no way of getting out of it either, at least not alive. She shut her eyes and started to lower her head even more. Hell, maybe she could talk Celestine into doing the dirty work before she went home; Since he obviously had a hatred for her clan it shouldn't be that hard for him. Or maybe Nero, she had pissed him off previously; Maybe he'd do it. If neither of them, the only other way would be to make the curse mark grow to it's fullest and let it kill her. She heaved a heavy sigh and shook her head. She couldn't believe she was actually thinking about this. |
Hikari smiled slightly as she listened to Aamori. "You've been exhausting yourself a lot lately." she said softly before shaking her head. "Well...not I guess it doesn't matter much, I just don't really like it being visible..it seems someone else always seems to notice when it is." she said simply. She shook her head slightly and yawned. "Well...maybe we should try to rest for a little while. Maybe the storm will have died down by the time we wake up." She said simply.
Nanashi held LaRae a little closer when she leaned against him and closed his eyes for a moment. He nuzzled against her again and turned his head to kiss her cheek. "...It will be alright..." he whispered softly. He gently started to stroke her hair again, trying to cheer her up a little...or at least make her feel better, though he really didn't know what else he could do. |
Aamori sat quietly while Hikari spoke then took a moment shutting her eyes again. By the time she reopened them they have reverted back to the light blue and her echo was gone. She smiled slightly. "I can understand not wanting it to be visible. After all I do try to keep my staff hidden from view." She sighed softly. "...It's probably the only physical evidence to link me to an Elder." She said lightly before shifting a little. She let her eyes fall back on the fire for a moment before she stood up and dusted herself off. She glanced over at Celestine for a moment, almost reluctant to try and sleep in the same confined area as him. Unfortunately with the storm outside there wasn't anywhere else to sleep. She sighed lightly and looked back at Hikari for a moment. "Well, I guess we should go to sleep." She paused. "We'll probably end up starting out early..." She added before turning and walking over to a wall of the cave and sitting down. She wasn't completely warm yet and her skin hadn't changed back completely but she knew falling asleep next to the fire would only dry her skin out completely. She rested against the wall for a few minutes before she laid down on the ground trying to get comfortable. She was rather tired so it wouldn't take her very long to fall asleep.
LaRae tried her best to push those thoughts to the back of her mind, at least for now. She didn't need to dwell on them when there was still stuff she and the others had to do. She sighed softly. When he kissed her cheek and told her it would be alright she smiled very faintly. It was kind of nice hearing someone say that, because she sure as hell didn't think it'd be alright. "...I hope so..." She mumbled before shutting her eyes and forcing herself to try and relax. She started to loosen up a little after a short while, though she opened her eyes again briefly and immediately tensed right back up when her eyes came to rest on the letter laying on the ground. She stared at it for a minute before sitting up and snatching it. She started to ball it up in a fit of frustration but stopped, flattened it out and slid it back into her pocket. She shook her head and leaned back against Nanashi with her arms crossed tightly across her chest. |
Hikari nodded in agreement. "Yes... Well, see you later then, Aamori." she said softy. She wondered why she moved so far away from the fire to sleep, but she didn't bother to ask. Finally she just stretched out by the fire, turning to that her back was facing the flames in hopes that her hair would be dry by later.
Nanashi kept his arms around LaRae until she snatched up the letter and started to wad it up. He backed off a bit and watched her crumple it up and then put it back inside her pocket again. "...Why are you keeping it?" he asked quietly. He leaned back over to her again and wrapped his arms back around her again, leaning his head over on hers once more as well. "...You don't need it anymore..." |
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