Glaw

St. John Ambulance [PlayItPerfect & Glaw]

"Not blind, just busy." While Sorcha had been talking, he'd been fidgeting and clinging to the table and making all sorts of odd energetic expressions as ideas burst in his head and fitted themselves neatly into the puzzle. He talked faster, half-standing in the booth, his eyes intense and intent on the establishment of understanding in Sorcha Cooper, who was right now -- he was sure of it -- the most important girl in this little universe. "And you're absolutely right, the punishment for humanity's sins theory is complete rubbish. The reason giant lizard-monsters are falling out of the sky and terrorizing the ignorant population of London is that something happened that wasn't supposed to happen -- or something didn't happen that wasn't not supposed to happen -- and the timeline fractured," he pressed his palms together and cracked them apart, then curled his fingers like he was holding a water balloon, "and created this bubble, this pocket universe that doesn't belong in the normal time stream, that's collapsing in on itself as we speak," his hands grew closer and he clapped them together, "that's why we're all trapped in London, it's why the barrier is getting smaller and smaller, it's why the Reapers are getting in through the folds, because this timeline, this city as you know it now isn't supposed to exist, your lives are supposed to be different, so much better than this. And the reason that thing that happened that shouldn't've or didn't happen but should've is you."

It hadn't clicked before he'd said it, but now he knew. Suddenly he was out of his seat, his voice raised to a near-shout in his eagerness to make her understand what he understood. "The world's gone wrong and it's all because of you, Sorcha Cooper, and it's mostly impossible but it's not completely impossible because it is, it's happening here and now. But don't worry," he walked around behind her and spun toward her with a smile, his back to the door, "we can fix it. All we have to do is go back to 11.17 on February Second at Waterloo Station, figure out what you didn't do that you should've done, and all this will be like it never happened. 'Cause it never will have happened, but you're the one who's got to make it un-happen." His face was suddenly serious, and he meant every word. "So whaddaya say?" He stretched out his hand to her with a flash of a grin. "Forget the milkshake, leave the nametag. Come with me and let's save the world."

He waited a few beats, just waiting for her to call him crazy.

The EarthGiver [Nem & Glaw]

No worries, as always! :) Oh, and I'm tickled that you liked my post. x3 I've been dying to use Pinafore as a name for the longest time.

Just a Fairy Tale | Glaw & carsgovroom

August shook his head slightly, returning his attention to Liam and Dorothy far ahead. "No. The queen might be curious about you and your ridiculous costume, but I'll bet she'll assume you're just some Verinian misfit caught up with the bandits. She might ream me out for letting you tag along, but I don't think she'll care much in the end." And then Sam pointed out the gravity of his own situation, and August stiffened, his mouth set grimly.

"I'm not going to tell you I don't care about dying," he admitted after awhile. "Idiots throw their lives away for the sake of being a hero. Besides, I've got those two to look after." He nodded slightly toward Liam and Dorothea, who was happily tapping her tail against the prince's back. "But you don't know what the queen is capable of. I've only seen the tip of the iceberg -- it's obvious she has more power than she's letting on. For all I know, at the first sign of trouble she'll tear the castle apart -- kill the king at the very least, take the kingdom by force. She's being subtle now because she wants the continent to fall into her lap." He took a breath, and paused to force himself to calm down. "If there's a quiet way to destroy her, with as few lives lost as possible, I'll find it. But if this does come to war with Verinia, I'll have failed." He smirked a little. "I'm telling you I have no idea what to do. If I betray the queen to Liam she'll kill me on the spot -- and probably the king too, or take the kingdom hostage. If I follow her orders, we go to war -- but war takes time." Time was precious when the queen was a powder keg ready to blow.

Raquelle was, of course, just behind and beside Liam, where she had brought up her horse as soon as he was back with the company. She had smiled appreciatively to the Marshal, but he'd seemed too busy paying attention to that strange girl with the red hair and trousers. She wasn't a part of her mother's plan, that was clear. Raquelle spent a few minutes hanging back and listening with all her might, but the clank of armor and the clop of hooves all around made it impossible to hear anything at all of what the Marshal and that Samantha girl were saying.

She heard her name, however, being spoken by Will just ahead, and she smiled sweetly and came up closer to Liam. She caught the cat glaring at her hatefully -- Dorothea rumbled a growl in her throat -- but Raquelle only tossed her golden curls. "Liam," she chirped, "are you certain that cat isn't diseased? It's a stray out of Verinia, and you know everything out of those woods is poisoned or enchanted." At this Dorothea belted out a terrific yowl of agreement, that made Raquelle jump in surprise at the noise. "Oh my goodness, my dear Liam, please get rid of it -- look at its fangs!" Dorothea was indeed baring her teeth like a vampire, braced over Liam protectively, coiled as if any moment she might leap upon Raquelle and tear her ears off.

Just a Fairy Tale | Glaw & carsgovroom

Erk, well that's weird. My subscription page says the last IC post was made by you. o.O

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Nevermind, apparently me replying here fixed it. XD

Just a Fairy Tale | Glaw & carsgovroom

Dorothea had been expecting this, though she had hoped against hope that the queen's words hadn't been true. She whined in despair, staring up at Liam who didn't recognize her at all -- who couldn't understand her, didn't realize she was anything more than an animal. He was laughing and smiling at her, but not with the sort of eyes he had always looked at her with -- not with the love and adoration she was accustomed to. He would never know how he broke her heart, and it wasn't at all his fault. Her whiskers drooped and she made a terribly unhappy noise -- but when Liam announced that she could stay at his side her ears perked again. At least she had him, at least they were together, even if he didn't know it.

She leaped onto Liam's shoulder, purring like a lawnmower, and she rubbed her head in his neck and licked his cheek and kneaded his shoulder with her paws, and she thought about what agony he was in because of her loss. If only he knew! There must be something she could do. She was a princess, after all, and Liam knew her better than anyone. For now she remained quiet, snuggling close to her beloved, wary of making him uncomfortable or he might trade her off to Sam again.

August waited until he felt Sam's arms around him, then nudged the horse into a trot to keep up with the rest of the company. At her question he took a slow breath and let it out quietly. He turned his head to speak low. "The queen has poisoned them all," he explained. The Marshal's gruff was gone from his voice -- it was unnecessary to keep up appearances where only Sam was concerned. "Not harmful, but they're deaf to the voices of enchanted beings. Something like that, anyway. She wanted to make sure there was no chance Liam would hear Dorothea's story."

He glanced up at the sky between the trees. "We're being watched," he informed her, frowning. "The queen's spy watches my every move. She expects a report on Liam's intent to wage war on Verinia." He narrowed his eyes, still watching the sky. "She'll have seen you by now."

Just a Fairy Tale | Glaw & carsgovroom

"Very good, Your Highness." The Marshal bowed again to the prince, and without another word he walked over to Will and accepted the reins. So far, so good. Except --

"Oh, Liam!" Dorothea cried. She could no longer contain herself, for she'd been fidgeting on Sam's shoulder ever since they'd heard horses on the road. "Liam, it's me! It's Dorothea!" The princess gave a great leap, knocking Sam back, and she landed on the saddle in front of Liam, scuffling for balance on her little paws. "Liam, you've got to turn around, you've got to go back to the castle and arrest the Queen Narissa! Oh, you see what she's done to me -- Liam, say you understand me, say you believe me!"

But to Liam, of course, all that came out of her mouth was an incessant caterwauling and yowling. She pressed her paws to his stomach and yowled up at him desperately. "I'm Dorothea! I'm your Dorothea!"

The Marshal glanced in a moment of worry at the cat, and then at the prince -- but when it was clear that Liam did not understand a word of what she said, he ignored the scene and hefted himself up into the saddle of his own horse. Only then did he look down at Sam, with narrowed eyes in warning, and he reached down to help her into the saddle behind him.

Just a Fairy Tale | Glaw & carsgovroom

oohh ok! Well I guess I'll leave it as-is, if it works for you. x3

Just a Fairy Tale | Glaw & carsgovroom

Ok cool. I feel bad this post is so short, but I spent all day trying to think up something for August to say. XD If you won't be around til Sunday I might think a bit more and expand it later.

Just a Fairy Tale | Glaw & carsgovroom

It wasn't until he heard the clank of armor and the clop of hooves behind him -- the echo of Liam's caravan finally approaching from behind -- that it occurred to August that he had absolutely no good excuse for being alone in the woods halfway to Verinia. He'd been so preoccupied with joining up with the troop that he'd neglected to think how it would look to Liam. He'd have to think fast.

At the prince's call, the Marshal stopped and turned around promptly, his spine straight as an arrow. He bowed his head slightly in greeting -- and when he looked up, his eyes were flared with anger. "I had chased a witch into the woods," he said gruffly, "and was ambushed by three Verinian agents and a Jockal. I've been captive since last night, and only now gave them the slip. I'd heard through their conversation that there was an ambush on Princess Dorothea's caravan to Itelia, and that the princess was captured. I wouldn't have believed it except there was no way for them to know Dorothea was traveling yesterday unless they were involved. They had mentioned your caravan headed toward the Verinian capital on the King's Road -- they'd kept off the road to avoid you -- I escaped and hoped to meet you on your way. I hadn't wanted to believe that Dorothea has been abducted, but seeing you here must mean it's true."

He paused a moment, and he turned to the side and motioned to Sam. "This is Samantha Shea. She had also been a captive of the bandits, and requires escort home. With your leave I request that she join us to Verinia for the time being."

Just a Fairy Tale | Glaw & carsgovroom

Dorothea was quiet a moment. "So ... your parents, they fell out of love with each other, they divorced and moved apart, but they both still and always loved you so you shuffled between them like a rooly ball. And they both are married again to other people, and oh your world just sounds so complicated but so full of people and emotion and life and freedom. Why, if people could live in that way -- your life, so upside-down -- then they could live in any way they very well pleased." No one in the kingdoms would even consider the concept of doing anything but what was expected of them, usually (except perhaps in Verinia). What seemed normal to Sam was very strange to the princess.

The mention of Liam, however, made her shift a bit on Sam's shoulder, and she laughed. "Liam and I have been head-over-heels in love since we were nine years old. He'd fallen out of a tree and scraped his leg, and I -- being a very solemn and strict little girl, so unusual for me -- I kissed his wound to make it better. Naturally he stopped crying immediately, and that was that. Fate sealed. He might tell you a different story, though." She giggled again, just remembering all the ways Liam had twisted that tale around to make himself seem like the hero. "He is incredibly kind and incredibly noble, but he's not fake like all the pompous aristocrats that try to impress everyone they meet. Liam wears his heart on his sleeve, he wants to help people, and he doesn't mind if everyone knows the Prince of Itelia is human like anyone else. And I love him absolutely to the bottom of my soul." She paused, and shifted quietly. "I'm not sure I've ever really told him." She only hoped she would have the chance.

After a moment Dorothea stepped over to Sam's other shoulder and leaned her head down mischievously. "What about you? Is there a boyfriend back home worrying himself crazy for your safe return?"

August was mostly tuning them out, half-listening whenever Narissa or the Prince were mentioned, but mostly he watched the skies and the forest on either side for signs of potential danger. The Shades were an indication that the fairies were stirring, and that was never good news for travelers on this road. He set his jaw and walked a bit slower, hoping Liam would hurry the hell up and overtake them.