Michellin

Wanderers

Narda listened as Envy told her about what his sister did. Her eyes went back to where his other ear would have been. She had always wondered what it would be like to have a sibling; to not only have a twin, but a twin who wanted her dead? What a twisted, tortuous life. Narda was no stranger to violence, but to have that become the be all and end all of her existence sent a shiver down her spine.

The giantess looked sidelong at him. To have been born without that bloodlust and be forced to participate and pretend to survive, and then to escape it must have taken a great cunning and an iron will. "I've known many great warriors. You have their courage; theirs perhaps even pales in comparison to yours, given your odds." She placed a gentle hand on his chest. "More importantly, you have a good heart. One of a kind, considering your origins. I am glad that our paths have conspired to cross one another." She smiled fondly at him. "Would you mind terribly if I kissed you now?" she asked, grinning. "My turn to make a move."

Wanderers

Narda chuckled. "I know. I understand, believe me. I know someday when he is gone I will miss it immensely. Till then, our little spats will be part of our relationship. I am lucky to still have both of them, when my friends have lost their own parents already."

She listened to him that he didn't have much to tell, nodding.
“Mm. I suppose that is expected,” Narda said when he mentioned his parents, given what she knew of Kartaians from Envy. The twin sister though. “So. The sister is still alive?” She looked out at the meadows. “I suppose we’ve both spent more time with our chosen family.” She sighed. “But not as dramatic a turnaround from one way of life to another as you have. I do wonder how you have managed it.”

Wanderers

Narda smiled, enjoying the way he held her and caressed her arm as he spoke. “In this house, alone, yes. Though it is large, it is not quite as large as my father’s estate. Though my mother and father do not live too far from here. This house was rather recently finished, though the lands have belonged to our family for a long time. As you can imagine, my father does not approve of my, ah, adventuring. I left home years ago, met Kire, Myka, and the girls then, was estranged from the family for a little while. But now that I have been offering to take over as Countess, old as he is, he is also too stubborn to retire from his lordly duties.” Narda chuckled. “Quite unlike Kire, in that respect then.”

“But other than worrying about the life I lead, they live comfortably enough. I don’t have siblings, unless you count half-siblings that I don’t have much of a relationship with.” She snorted. “It gets easier to shut up my father’s criticisms by pointing out his own faults. Heh. That, and you can imagine at this point in time it would be hard to pick a fight with a daughter who towers over you.” She laughed then, looking at him. She brushed her fingers against his cheek, her eyes going over the scarred face, the mangled ear. “I would ask about your old life, but I know those tales would be filled with pain.”

Wanderers

Narda chuckled when he made his joke about the move, gladly leaning closer as he draped his arm around her. " Executed properly, I'd say," she said. "And look at that? I'm perfectly warm already." She grinned, enjoying the feel of him as they watched the sunset. She shifted gently so she could lean her head against him.

"Would you like to share a cup of tea with me later? Perhaps in your room?" she asked after a while.

---

Kire smiled as she climbed into bed. "She is," she murmured, wrapping a blanket around both of them before nestling against him, draping an arm over him. She sighed, sinking into the warmth of him and of their sheets. She closed her eyes. There was something she wanted to say, but even now she stopped herself. Not yet. "Good night, Ruli."

Wanderers

Narda nodded. "Then let's stay here and admire the view. With everything that's happened, moments of peace might be hard to come by for the next several days." She looked back out, watching as the sun retreated and the colors grew more vibrant, bright oranges, even pinks. She told him now and then what the flowers were called in Taakalon.

"You're not cold, are you?" she asked after a few moments of silence. "The seaside is cool, but you might not be used to Amrian nights. I could fetch you a cloak. Or have something warm for you to drink."

--

Kire brought a mug out to Ysaryn at camp. "No fires yet?" She asked with a grin. "Your room at the inn is ready, go rest if you need to."

She went back home to watch her cousins, catching Ed in the middle of a game with them. Amused, she watched them for a while before interrupting, exchanging updates with Ed before chatting with Etta, doing her best not to look worried. For her part, Etta did her best not to notice.

It was a while before Kire came to Ruli's door, knocking softly. "Hey," she greeted, stepping in before pressing her lips to his in a soft kiss.

Wanderers

“Heh. Well. If he’s going to be seeing Kire more often you might as well make him work for it,” Narda said, smirking. When he mentioned asking what she looked like, in turn joking about his own appearance, the giantess snorted. “I’m no beauty, myself. And I have been around warriors who have had various injuries. But, if you’d like, there is a mirror in my room. Hardly used, but most rooms have mirrors in my house.”

She sighed. “It is safe, for now. You are right about me being fortunate that it is. It hasn’t always been so. And its safety is, of course, a result of privilege. Though privilege hasn’t quite shielded the Wyverns from danger, I realize,” she commented, about to turn to him when she paused. “Have you seen your own face since…?” She paused again, glancing down at their intertwined hands and smiling fondly. “For what it’s worth, I always look forward to seeing you.”

--

Kire pouted playfully at his teasing, smirking afterwards before she listened to his reassurances. “Hm. Good point. That is possible. And the Ring hadn’t given me more than I could handle unless I forced it to when I first got it,” she murmured, picking up the Ring to look it over. “It would be rather appropriate to suddenly know how to generate fire. Only thing I’d be missing are wings and scales all over my body and I’d be a proper dragon,” she said with a chuckle. “And then I’d be run out of town.”

She slipped the Ring back onto her finger and continued to sip from her mug, quiet as she mulled over the events of the day. “And I was already looking forward to the waterfalls and the cheese wheels,” she said with a wry laugh after finishing it. “I’m bringing Ysaryn a drink, then will check up on Etta one more time. I’ll be up a while, you go ahead and rest.” She stood, touching his shoulder before going to speak to the innkeeper.

Wanderers

Narda smiled fondly as she felt the pleasant warmth wash over her as he squeezed her hand. She breathed in the scents in the air that she loved so much as she drank in the sight. One day, she knew, she would hang up her travelling cloak, set down her weapons, let go of her wanderlust and be at peace here. It may be a ways off, but she didn't mind spending the remainder of her years someday like this.

"I will never tire of it, " she said, glad to hear his praise of the view. "And if you are serious about that, well, perhaps you should come by here more often." She grinned, caressing his hand with her free one.

--

Kire noted the way he quickly avoided elaborating on it and made no further comment, deciding to leave it be unless it bothered him again. His next question made her frown down at her Ring. She took another sip, set it down, then placed her hand flat on the table. "I've thought about it. That seems the most likely answer." She glanced about, then twisted the Ring off her finger, peering at it as she placed it on her palm.

"They said Their decisions are based on the threads of possibility in the future. A little prod here, a push there, without them directly interfering. Maybe because it needs to be mortals who have to move and make things happen. If that's the case, my theory is that they have seen something of me and my actions that would affect many of these threads. Without knowing what They know about these possible futures, though, this is just more guesswork."

She set the Ring down between them, folding her arms, her thumb rubbing the place where the Ring had been on her finger. "So far, I feel no different. But if I do manifest other powers, the Ring will amplify that. Hopefully it isn't too destructive, or else..." Kire frowned again.

Wanderers

Narda listened, thoughtful, as he explained what effect, if any, this connection through their minds would have on her. He offered to give some sign that the connection had begun and reassured her again that it was safe. “I know I am not obligated, but I am nevertheless comforted that it would be you doing it.” She brushed his hand with her thumb. “I do feel flattered that my clumsy attempts at description are enough for you. But if you would like to see through my eyes, I will oblige.” Narda grinned. “If all I need to do is look and relax, I can manage that well enough.”

She turned towards the afternoon sun, already well on its way down from its zenith. “I may travel a lot, but I do love my home. The flowers are lovely, even in this time of year. I like how the afternoon sun glows warmly over everything, and the meadows for which my family’s lands are known look like they’re blushing with all the color. A different kind of sea. If we have the leisure of walking down among the flowers, you can smell them, too.”

--

The innkeeper set the two pints of ale in front of them. Kire murmured her thanks in Taakalon, then sipped from her mug. “I should. I don’t know why I always start off worrying about things as if I’m the sole bearer of these burdens when Ed and Jan have always shared it with me. Though this would be the first time they’d be asked to be more involved in something magic-related. Now that Etta’s got magic blossoming inside her, we really should make it a family effort.”

She absentmindedly tapped the sides of the mug, mulling something over. “Earlier, in the tent. You answered Daryll’s question about elves and when magic manifests in them.” She glanced at him, gauging his reaction to the topic. “I take it you didn’t fully intend to volunteer that information in front of the others?”

Wanderers

Narda smiled and took his hand. "You shall have your sunset then," she said, leading him back out. She told him stories about the castle, about her family crest. "They say the first of us was a titan who walked among the first of the great beings of Amria. The dragons that would later sire the Wyverns, the element spirits who would make pacts with the first of mages, that sort of thing. Or perhaps we are just freaks of nature, given how the wards don't find magic in me. Which I find I like." She shrugged.

She walked with him outside, towards the gardens, where a pavillion stood, overlooking the meadows while providing shade. She described the sight to him until they reached the pavilion. Once they were comfortable on the seats, she held his hand in both of hers. "I haven't brought such pleasant company here in a while. Not that my good friends aren't wonderful company, but they are a rather excitable bunch, as you have seen." She chuckled.
"Now, how does the magic work? Will I feel it?"

--

Kire laughed at his remark about the royal stores. "If I knew you liked that better I should have probably paid in silver," she teased back. She sat at a table while they waited for their drink, pondering his question.

She shrugged. "All of it. The forest. The fire. Etta. And how long this will all play out." She frowned, crossimg her arms over the table, then slumping over it, resting her chin in her arms. "If I don't figure it out and get things in order in less than a decade, I'd just feel like a selfish shithead for choosing to abdicate then. And I already feel like a selfish shithead for even thinking about that while my people are suffering in uncertainty." She huffed. "Alternatively, I can abdicate sooner, leave Jan with the administration stuff while I focus all my energy on this."

Wanderers

Narda laughed. "I don't have to imagine it. I hear her growl often enough, especially since I am an early riser, myself. Unless something convinces me to stay in bed longer," she added with a chuckle. She watched him get comfortable on the bed and smiled softly, glad he seemed to be calmer now.
"What Ruli said earlier," she said after a silence. "I wouldn't mind giving that a try when we watch the sunset. Seems harmless enough."

--

Kire nodded at his answer, then smirked at the question of drinking. "Doesn't have to be pints. But I do drink a glass, mug, tankard, depending on how hard the day had been." She sighed, leaning against the doorframe, silent for a few moments, arms crossed. She was tired, but her frustration at what was happening was likely going to keep her up. "Can I stay with you later?" she asked. "I'll probably just toss and turn and stew in my own thoughts by myself."