Calla listened quietly. She understood where Seth was coming from, but she really did miss the old times, back when he would laugh and smile more. He hadn't done very much of it at all since she had been brought back. Would things have been much different if he had been the one to bring her back human? Calla supposed she would never know, and...she didn't want to be the cause of him aging like mother had.

Mother was really young, though she had age in appearance from bringing all those dolls to life. Calla didn't want to think of Seth as an old man, graying hair and filmy looking eyes. She couldn't and wouldn't think of him that way. calla blinked in surprise for a moment. She honestly hadn't thought of herself that way, but she supposed Seth was right. She was about his age now.

Catching his slight smile, Calla smiled in return. She had missed that smile of his. Feeling him tug her hair, Calla grinned. He had used to do that a lot when she had been a doll, of course he had always been gentle since she had been so much tinier than he. The blush on her cheeks darkened when he mentioned her eyes. He thought they were pretty? "You know...there was always one thing I definitely wanted to do if I was big." she said, sitting up a little and pulling the pillow out from under her. She raised it and hit him with it just once, testing out her strength a little. A pillow fight between dolls was always fun, but it was hard to have one when your best friend was human.

-

Isis wondered what the gold colored liquid in the vial was. What was it and why was it that color? Did mother have to drink it? For some odd reason, Isis immediately thought of blood. Could it be some sort of mixture with blood in it. No, she was just thinking of things that were found only in stories. Fantasies really.

From her perch on Mother's shoulder, Isis watched as Mother took the stopped from the vial. An aroma wafted from the small crystal vial, a pleasant, lightly sweet smell. Isis wasn't expecting to see Mother's face change as soon as she finished drinking. The slightly saggy, wrinkled skin of the old woman Mother had once looked like disappeared. Instead, she looked so much younger. Isis couldn't remember seeing Mother looking so young. She had always looked like a grandmother more than a Mother.

With wide eyes, Isis reached out and lightly touched Mother's cheek. "Mother? Is this...the real you?" she asked softly. She had know Mother wasn't really as old as she had looked, but to think of just how beautiful she was now, it amazed Isis.

A smile was brought to Selma's face as the old woman drank down the drop of gold liquid. Her skin right away took hold of the shimmering complexion. It was something Selma very vaguely remembered. She moved off of Mother's lap in case the woman decided to stand up and walk. Honestly after being in that state for so long, Selma knew that was what she herself would do first.

Selma did not say a think as everyone in the room was in complete awe.

Seth's smile slowly grew as Calla blushed. It made her face light up, just like it used to when she was small. That hadn't changed at all. "What would that b-" His question was met by a pillow to the head. "Calla!" Completely surprised, the male then let his expression lighten. "You're asking for it."

His own pillow was up and flying at Calla's arm in the blink of an eye. They'd never done this before. Calla had been too small. They'd tried, too . . . but there was too much to worry about when your best friend was a doll. Now, though, she was big enough to sustain herself. Seth laughed, blowing hair from his face and swinging the pillow for a second time. This time it caught the ginger right in the back of the head.
-

Mother reached up to touch her own cheek, her eyes full of amazement. "Isis," she wasn't used to the sound of her own voice anymore. "This is how old I really am. So . . . I suppose so." Looking at the empty vial, she shook her head. It didn't seem possible.

As Selma left her lap, Mother stood. She carefully placed a hand on the nightstand as she stood up, feeling her legs bear her weight. She could do it . . . and felt like she could run a marathon. "Selma . . . thank you." Mother still seemed startled by the sound of her own voice.

"Seth! I should tell him before he goes to bed!" The younger woman stepped toward the door, looking almost dazed by how easy it was. "This is . . . so different." She'd been a strong elder, but . . . now Mother was more energetic and able to move. Carefully turning her head, she kissed Isis' arm. "I haven't felt this way in so long!"

Life stepped aside, watching Mother move toward the door. He sent a glance to Selma, his grin widening. This was something he'd never thought he would see.

Briella smiled as she shifted her hold on the sheets as the hugged them close to her self, she looked over his back as she took in how he looked, realizing that he was a very handsome man, made her blush furiously. "Ah....you are the first doll i ever met so ummm i don't know. I mean i have mother and father that i always talk with and my room is in Mother's closet" she said to him, getting lost in what she was saying and thus forgetting that she wasn't suppose to call Seth, Father, because he didn't like it. "Father, told me that i have to take care of mother and that i had to stay out of sight....though i guess that is out the window now considering you know about me. I wonder what father will do and say when he finds out about this and stuff." she mumbled worriedly as she stopped and took in the room, gasping slightly in surprise considering the fact that, well she never seen anything like it before. She slowly followed him into the room as she set the sheets down on the table with the other ones, she looked around some more, touching everything once in a while as she looked everything over. "Oh, your welcome. Though you already dropped them once." she said to him before she took a sit on the bed that he had motioned towards, getting a bit worried about what he was telling her. "Oh it will be fine, no worries about my leg. You should check your self to make sure that nothing got injured." she said to him, instinctively deflecting the attention from her to the other person as she often did.

Calla's blue-green eyes lit up with excitement when Seth retaliated by hitting her arm. She head turned her head away and was surprised to feel a second blow at the back of her head. Mouth hanging open in surprise for a moment, Calla was soon grinning. "Yeah?" She hit him back, getting him on the side of his hair, ruffling his hair. It didn't take long for Calla to start laughing. It was nice to be able to play around like this. There had been so much that she couldn't do before, but now it was so much easier.

-

Isis smiled when Mother confirmed her question. "You're beautiful Mother." She told the woman and smiled a little more when Mother kissed her arm. She wondered what Seth would do or say when he saw Mother looking like this. "I'm sure he would love to see you looking so well Mother."

Isis settled herself back down on Mother's shoulder and nestled herself there. She had always loved being with Mother like this. Turning back to Lost, she motioned for him to follow as Mother went to leave the room. She didn't want to walk back on her own, just in case something happened and he wasn't there with her.

A shadow watched Mother's transformations from afar... no, not even a shadow... a shadow of a shadow... and he was pleased by the sight, "Welcome back... Sister" a soft whisper called to just the edge of Mother's perceptions and with it, the feeling of Light, like the anticipation of a new dawn after a dark storm seemed to fill the room. As the shadow's shadow drifted away.

Within the garden where a dark army of dark creatures gathered and upon the fountain's edge, Ink Stain stood next to Villain, something akin to a heavy drum echoed throughout the room as Stain collapsed to one knee with a pained cry, a hand clutching the space over his dead heart... a heart that had just given a mighty beat.

Villain rushed to Stain's side, his emotionless voice asking, "My lord, are you okay?"

With a savage cry, Stain lashed out at his knight, sending him crashing into one of the garden's trees, screaming, "OF COURSE I'M OKAY!!!" Taking pained breaths, Stain knelt and plunged his hands into the dark waters, manically whispering to himself, "I will not feel the pain again, never again, I will wash. It. AWAY!" The fountain's black waters began to churn and froth before flowing towards Stain's submerged hands, the black waters pouring over and into him as he let out a savage howl, joined by his massed hordes, a cry carrying to the edges of the entire estate. Rising up from the edges of the now bone dry fountain, Ink Stain turned to behold his hordes, looking every bit as monstrous as his creations.

Villain rose to his feet, shaking his head as he looked up, his eyes widening slightly, the only hint of emotion on his face as he knelt before Stain, the assembled horde following suit, bowing or kneeling however they could with their bodies.

Ink Stain gave a dark laugh, whispering, but sending his voice to carry through every shadow and dark space in the house to be heard by all, "Prepare for the darkness, my friends, for it comes with the dawn!"

((You guys ready? Cuz...))

"I wasn't hurt," Kira said with a chuckle. "Not by a girl running into me." His smile grew, and he carefully reached out to touch Briella's leg. "If you don't want me to, I don't have to. I'm just curious to see if there's anything that can be done to help." It was a burning desire of his to see what had caused the limp, anyway. He was a doctor, and sometimes he was awfully single-minded.

His blue eyes looked over her features, and before he even realized what he was doing his fingers trailed over the scar on her left cheek. "It looks clean-cut," he muttered. Shoen then blinked and pulled his hand away. "I'm sorry. Being a doctor, I can't help but be curious."
-

Seth burst into laughter as he felt a pillow whop him over the head. The next hit he made was a little rougher, but that didn't seem to matter. It threw him off balance, which allowed Calla's next strike to knock him . . . well, off the bed. There was a thump, and for a moment there was silence. It was only because Seth was laughing so hard he couldn't breathe.

His pillow was still up on the bed, and half of the blankets had tangled with him as he fell. Seth wiped a tear from his eye, his smile wider than it had been in months. "I think you're made for this!"

Then he heard Ink Stain. The smile slipped from his features, just as his face paled. In the morning, it would begin.
-

Mother stopped in the hallway, hearing a voice she knew to be Ink Stain's. The war would begin in full when morning came. "Dawn," she repeated quietly. Mother carefully reached down to let Lost grab her hand. She let him climb to her shoulder as she walked, her pace slower now, to her son's room.

Knocking, she tried to dismiss the words she'd heard. Only one night.
-

Life's eyes widened when he heard Ink Stain. "You came just in time, Selma." His words were tense, but full of forced laughter. Who knew who would survive the next morning?

((:insane: This is gonna be creepy!!!! :lol: As for Sakura and Snow: if everything hits the fan before she can reply, we can just say something happened and the door held them in. :sarcasm:))

Selma heard a voice that sent chills threw her core. It rolled down her body faster than anything she had ever felt in the past. Another war? She. would. be. going. threw another. War. It really started to sink in just then. Planes bombing filled her mind, along with screams, fires, smoke, gunshots, everything. But on the outside, she appeared calm. Maybe a bit confused by the voice, but calm. She rolled down the bed. Landing on the ground and putting her shoes back on before taking another step.

Life was there quickly to greet her. "Tomorrow's daybreak, it will begin." Selma said, making it into a statement more than a question. "At the very least, I will know I helped to restore mother's beauty. I will know how my mother felt, and I will know you and your brother both have a good wife to be at your side. Even with the dread coming tomorrow... it is still tomorrow." Selma said cheerfully. "Maybe you can show me to my room, then return to her?" Selma suggested with a smile. Hoping Life was not thrown too much off track by Ink Stain's threat. Selma was in fact taking it seriously, just hoping to lighten the mood just that much...

"Are you sure?" Briella said to him as she bite her lip, squeaking a bit in surprise at the feel of his hand on her leg, she had a worried look at he felt her leg, there was clearly a deformity in it, as if she had fallen while being made and the problem had been fixed but clearly there was always going to be a problem with it. "Your a doctor, it is in your nature. So don't be sorry for something that helps you do your job." she said to him as she blushed furiously at feeling him trace the scar on her face, she sat as patiently as she could as she watched him examine her leg and her scar, wondering what he was going to decide. "What do you mean by clean cut?"

Calla couldn't remember the last time either of them had laughed this much, or if they had ever had this much fun before. The red head couldn't help grinning when she heard Seth say he thought she was made for this. It was sweetest thing he had ever said to her so far since her return as a human. She leaned over the edge of his bed to look down at him after he had fallen off the bed. Opening her mouth to say something, the words died on her lips when she heard Ink Stain's voice.

Chills ran down her spine and goose bumps broke out over her skin. Hearing that the end was so near, had her slipping off the bed and huddling next Seth in his tangled up blanket and sheet. The good mood was over now, as things had turned deadly serious in just a few seconds. A knock at the door sounded, making the girl jump in surprise and fear for a moment. Ink Stain and his creatures would never have knocked, so it had to be a doll or Mother. "C-Come in!" she called out, shaking lightly as she reached for Seth's hand.

-

Isis shuddered, immediately gluing herself to Lost's side as Mother let him climb up onto her shoulder. Mother repeated the time it would all begin and it made Isis pale a bit. She was a pale doll to begin with, but her complexion had taken on the same pale hue that Zarrah had been when they had first met back at the village.

"O-Oh my God...there's so little time left." she whispered, hiding her face in the crook of Lost's neck, doing her best not to lose it and cry. She was tired of crying and she knew that she would feel exhausted if she started to cry, and she couldn't be tired for what would happen in the morning. She couldn't afford to let Mother and Namine down. They were counting on her and Lost to keep Mother safe.

"Clean-cut," Shoen said, his gaze moving back down to her leg, "means that it wasn't . . . serrated. Or jagged. Whatever caused that didn't tear into you, but cut." He adjusted his glasses before lifting the girl's ankle, looking to her face. "Does it ever hurt when you use your leg?" Carefully, he pushed against her foot as though to simulate the sensation of walking.
-

"What you did for Mother is incredible," Life said, his mood forcibly lighter than he truly felt. "I . . . agree. I should find Zarrah." With a slight smile, he reached out and took Selma's hand. Giving it a friendly squeeze, he pulled her into a quick hug. "It's good to have you back, Selma. I just wish it wasn't now."

He turned for the door, sending a glance back at the woman before disappearing completely.
-

Seth was smiling brightly. Reaching up, he was about to touch Calla's cheek . . . when he'd heard the words. His hand dropped, and he carefully sat up. He could see the fear on Calla's face, and he was sure that his own briefly mirrored it. He accepted the redhead's fingers between his as the knock sounded. "We'll be alright," he breathed, his hold on Calla's hand tightening.

His grip tightened drastically when he saw who entered the room. At first, she was a complete stranger. Then, Seth stood, gaping at the woman. "Mother?" When he stepped forward, Seth released his friend's hand.

The woman's warm brown eyes and fluid movements were so . . . different. "Seth. Calla," she said, reaching for them. She caught Seth's arms around her before she could react. He seemed so happy . . . if only this was how it would stay. "One of the dolls returned to the house. She found a way to bring my life back to me."

Seth's fingers traced over Mother's features, and he grabbed her face to stare into her eyes. "It's been years," he said shakily, pressing his forehead against hers. "Mom, you're back."

Mother said nothing, but gently pushed Seth away. "I just wish it had been sooner," she said, and then carefully took both Lost and Isis from her shoulder. Setting them on the unmade bed, the woman looked at her son, and then Calla. "You heard, then?"
-

Lost cradled Isis against him, his expression completely blank. He did that: Lost would withdraw behind that emotionless mask when things got messy. Still, he held his wife close.

As Mother lowered them to sit on the bed, Lost carefully tucked the blonde's head under his chin. "We spend that time together," he whispered, wishing more than anything that they didn't have to risk their lives. This war was going to take so much from them.

Calla squeezed Seth's hand gently for a moment, looking up when the door opened. Calla wanted nothing more that to believe that he was right. Calla's thoughts stopped, her mind going blank when she caught a glimpse of the woman who had just walked into the room.

The young face looking in at them was one she recognized from so long ago. Calla hardly registered that Seth had let go of her hand, and for a split second, she felt empty without him so close by. The feeling disappeared quickly as the red head stood up as well, swaying slightly as she regained her balance. Her ankle throbbed in protest as she put a little more pressure on her foot in order to stand better.

Calla stood still for a moment, watching as the Mother she remembered from long ago gently pushed Seth away and set her sister and brother-in-law down onto the bed. Once the way was clear, Calla hugged the woman as well. She didn't linger, pulling back after a few moments. "Yes, we heard too. We don't have much time left."

-

Isis knew only one thing. She would never be able to survive without Lost. These last few hours could very well be the last one's they ever spent together. Tears burned her eyes, blurring her vision, but she refused to let them fall.

Once they were set down on the bed, Isis snuggled closer for a moment, closing her eyes as Lost tucked her head under his chin. Being like this only made her want to cry even more. She had almost lost him once before, and he had almost lost her as well. At least she could say that she would be dying a very happy doll, to have married a wonderful man.
"Lost, let's go to our room. I would...I would like to hear you play your violin one last time."

Briella was about to say something to Shoen but she froze when she heard the voice speak to them, she pulled her leg from his hands as she curled up a bit, as if she was trying to hide. "Oh mother........why must your children be so cruel to each other." she whispered, before sniffling a bit, she then looked up at Shoen before smiling, uncurling as she gave him her leg back. "Oh....maybe it was just a flaw from when i was made." she said to him, watching him make it seem like she was walking, after a few minutes she jerked, putting her hands on the back of her thigh. "Ah.....please stop........it just hurts when i walk on it to much." she flashed him a smile. "I am fine, honestly as long as i don't over stress my leg then i won't be hurting." she said to him as she touched his hands to get him to stop what he was doing, it had really taken a toll on her since she had walked more then she normally does any other time.

"It's good to be back.." Selma hugged Life back when he embraced her. Squeezing him. She did not say anything more right away. Instead smiled until life disappeared around the corner. She wondered what the meaning behind his words were. Just wish it wasn't now.. Did he mean because there was a war coming? Or because he had just been married... Maybe she was looking for a meaning that simply was not there.

She left Mother's room, heading for the room Life had magically shown her along the way earlier. It was in the same hallway he had told her that he and Zarrah were staying. Selma opened the door and smiled heading inside and kicking her shoes off. It was a simple room. Light wood furniture, white sheets and curtains. A couple of little nick-knacks were resting along the room. There was even a bookcase with a few books on it. She went over to the shelf, her eyes grazing over the titles. Finally making a selection, she went back over to the bed, taking a seat and laying back while she started to read.

((Just wondering if this is still alive!!))

((*smacks face* IT IS!!! Es is just being a bad person and forgetting that she needed to reply! :sweat:))

((Ah! Haha that's okay!))

((>.>" well you now have no excuse after today <.<" and you also have limited hun))

((I'm just waiting for it to become dawn then, oh snap, it's funnah be CRAZY up in here!))

"I'm sorry," Shoen retreated, leaving Briella's leg in peace. The words that finally faded made the doctor shudder. He had work he was supposed to be doing. "I . . . should finish preparing the medical supplies. Would you like to help, Bri?" The doctor slowly pushed a table closer to the girl, allowing her to reach it from her place as she sat. She could help without even standing or walking.

"I need to get these sheets torn into bandages." The coming battle would require them. They had until dawn.
((I think Shoen and Briella should stay there and work all night preparing medicines and trauma kits. :yes: And Bri falls asleep, or something. *purrs*))
-

The violin. Lost hadn't touched it in a few weeks, but that meant very little. His dark fingers would swiftly recall every action required to play sheer perfection in form of music. The male gently stroked the blonde's hair before standing. Lost met her gaze unblinkingly as he pulled her backward, heading toward their small upstairs room. They'd used it as a music room for the last few months.

It was there that he sat with his back against Isis' legs. He'd made sure the woman was sitting on the couch behind him before he started to play. For the next few hours he went through as many songs as he could recall, playing until his hands and arms were sore and his wife was asleep.

Looking over her pale features, Lost set his violin aside and gently kissed the fingers of the hand that hung beside him. Tomorrow I could lose you. Lost closed his eyes and grit his teeth, silently beginning to pray. Lord, don't take her smile away from me. Not when I've finally gotten her.
-

After hugging Calla, Mother smiled slightly. Her young features were full of sorrow. "I wanted to show you," she whispered. Swallowing, the woman stroked Calla's cheek and Seth's hand. "I also wanted to warn you. I'm glad you heard Stain. . . ." She paused. "I'm glad you heard Ink Stain's warning."

She watched Lost and Isis slip from the bed. Seth was still staring at her, looking shocked. Then, the woman turned for the door. "I want to visit the others before they sleep. Get some rest. We'll need you all ready tomorrow."

Seth finally blinked, his blue eyes flashing back to Calla as the door closed. "Did you see her?" His hands immediately reached for the redhead's features. He laughed, holding her gaze in excitement. "Surely we will win the battle with her strength!"

((*pets es* my sentiments exactly >w<))

Briella watched the doctor, blushing as her thoughts went a stray from the norm, she did have a crush on him but she pawned that off as him being the first male doll she has met. "Do you have some....scissors?" she asked him as she looked away, her black hair falling over her blue eyes as she tried to hide from his view. She blushed even more when she saw that he brought a table close to her with the sheets on them. She took one of the sheets in her hands as she traced the faded pattern on it. Once she was handed a pair she begin to cut them in nice and even strips, time passed slowly as she helped him by cutting the sheets into bandages, as she watched him make trauma kits, after a while she fell a sleep over her work, looking very peaceful as she did so.

((I'll post really soon I promise!!))

((:sweat: Okay! I almost forgot about this thread again. :sarcasm: Es seems to be doing that a lot recently. . . .))

((es you are not allowed to post here until limited gets some love from you >3>))

((:insane: Oh, gosh. Hmmm. *stares at Limited* I should try to work on that, then. . . .))