Riven Wight

My swimming instructors a dragon. [Mortim / Siaya Dragalorn]

Anora’s fidgeting gave the piece of energy bar a reprieve at Dan’s mention of a ‘super weapon.’ She paled slightly as the day just kept getting better and better. She took a deep breath, making herself refocus on Dan as he continued speaking. Picking out the information in his words was a chore all of its own.
Absently, she ate the deformed bit of bar she had been holding. She sighed heavily and rubbed her temples with her free hand. She was positive she felt a headache coming on.
So, ‘The Council’ from some unknown organization had sent him. An organization who wanted to stop a threat, but also invade Earth.
Great. She let out a slow, steadying breath. Dan’s coughing fit made her jump. She turned in her seat, trying to see him.
“Are you—hey!” She interrupted herself when Darsby reached forward and tapped the bandage. She blinked in confusion, glancing between it and the bead of blood now on Darsby’s fingertip.
She sat the remainder of the half-wrapped energy bar on her lap, then reached to gently touch the bandage. It hadn’t bled enough to more than slightly discolor the bandage. Her own tap made it sting slightly, where she could have completely missed Darsby’s.
She tried, but failed, to hide her excited awe at yet another show of power as the box he had created—or summoned—formed into a miniature version of Earth. Despite her situation, she couldn’t help but still admire the show.
“The Galaxy’s not on Orion’s Belt, after all,” she muttered.
Eyes still on Darsby and his magic trick, her head cocked as Dan continued. But she turned fully to him as he finished his uncertain statement, gawking at him.
Her stomach fluttered at the prospect of an ancestor of hers being created by Pahn. Though Dan had changed his wording, like before, he had still thought to use the word.
“Not a huge difference there, or anything!” She struggled to tame her irritated exasperation.
A part of her wanted to reach back and strangle the infuriating, pathetic-looking man and shake him to try getting a straight answer. Instead, she forced herself to take a breath. If having siblings had taught her anything, it was that losing your cool never helped. Even when they did deserve to have their head dunked in a toilet.
“Which is it, then?” she continued, her voice stiff with an effort to keep it even. “A creation, or just someone he worked…” She looked to the Earth necklace when Darsby handed it to her. “…With?” she finished, the last word coming out quietly as she looked at the now pendant-sized sphere.
Despite its size, it had lost none of its detail. She instinctively reached for it, wanting to get an even better look at the impossible, moving pendant, but she stopped herself. Her eyes narrowed as she looked Darsby over, avoiding direct eye contact.
She curled her fingers away from the necklace. The itch to take it made the action slow, hesitant.
“Why? What’s it do?” A sense of pride at remembering to actually think before just grabbing a strange, box-turned-planet-via-blood flashed through her.
It was Dan who answered her. Great. Now they’re tag-teaming the weirdness.
“Oh.” That answered one question, at least; they weren’t really going anywhere. Just driving. For the time being, anyway.
Gaze locked back on the swirling surface of the small Earth, she let her fingers wrap over the silver cord near the pendant. She kept her grip loose, fearing to disrupt the movements of the clouds—or sink one of the continents with her pinky, for all she knew.
At first, she thought someone had opened a window, but a quick glance about the car told her that wasn’t the case. She inhaled sharply through her nose as sights, scents, and sounds whispered in the back of her mind. The sweetness of fruit and the outdoors made her long to be outside the car, to be in a place that could produce such an atmosphere. Then it changed to an oriental city.
She groaned inwardly. If the mini-Earth was trying to tell her they needed to go to East Asia, this could end up being one long, tense trip. Unless, of course, Monster Mash could do his Scotty teleport trick en masse.
She shook her head lightly, trying to push the sensations aside to focus on the here and now.
“Keep… keep going straight,” she said softly with a glance to Ahllasta. “But we’ll turn right… somewhere.” Anora scowled at the vagueness of the directions. Vague answers. Vague directions. Vague future. The Trinity of Vague.
She looked back to the men in the backseat, then quickly told them what she had seen. “Does… that mean we’re supposed to go to Asia? Because that’s overseas. Bit difficult to get to with just a car… Well. Normally,” she added with a nod to the side.

My swimming instructors a dragon. [Mortim / Siaya Dragalorn]

Oh, dang. Hey, at least you made it through that. And have enough moving experience to last a lifetime. A bit, yeah. Here's to hoping something will pop up when its needed!

Ooh, you draw, right? Or was there something else you do on the crafting front? And what system and games do you like to play? I actually just switched my profile to a PlayStation theme. Then, my crafting fit ended up consisting greatly of a plushy-making binge. That isn't quite over yet, just on break. And I also now have a mostly finished Marluxia (from Kingdom Hearts) scythe for a gender-bent cosplay.

I'm certainly enjoying his presence! Poor Dan, though. He just keeps digging his hole deeper and deeper. xD

I actually have on her profile that she's both a bit gullible, but also paranoid. So, quick to believe, but not necessarily to trust. So much at once, though, is certainly overwhelming. She's trying to keep her cool, but will probably end up having a full mental breakdown later once everything's gotten the chance to fully set in. Well, I'm glad you think so! Fingers crossed I can keep it up. Heh. Yeah, it can definitely be difficult to keep a character consistent, especially if you haven't quite established who they are to yourself quite yet. Like I've said, though, I like your characters so far. I love their distinctive qualities, and could see each of their personalities getting on each other's nerves at some point, but also working together. Awesome! I can't wait to see where things go, and how much trouble our little group gets themselves into!

I'd have to also say that it's a bit of both, there! That's great you'be been taking care of your own health lately! Mmm. That's always a hard thing to do, admitting limitations. I'll admit I have them, I still tend to pretend I don't have some of mine until I'm forced to. Doesn't always exactly end well, but hey. And congrats on accomplishing a lot of your goals!

My swimming instructors a dragon. [Mortim / Siaya Dragalorn]

Anora couldn’t hide a smirk at Dan’s reaction to her nickname for him. Something about none of them understanding her references was somehow both irritating and satisfying: with all the confusion they’d caused her, the least she could do was return it, even if in a way that didn’t much matter.
She almost snorted when Dan tried to amend his choice of wording. Because that’d go over so much better.
Fully facing front again, she slowly broke off a piece of the open energy bar. She listened to him carefully. Her head turned slightly toward him to interrupt him with a quick, surprised, “‘At present?’”
She shook her head, refocusing on Dan’s explanations. She popped the bit of almond-dotted, chocolate-laced granola into her mouth. She hardly tasted it as she chewed.
Dan’s words did nothing to help his cause of convincing Anora their intentions were solely good. She’d seen one too many movies where people sugar-coated their missions, and knew all to well from experience that words often prove sweeter than practice. As her dad always said, ‘If your gut says there’s something off, listen to it. It’s probably right.’ And hers was telling her just that. It all sounded too… cultish. Too vague, with too many ways their true intentions could be interpreted. Too close to sounding more like they wanted to use the planet to kidnap these ‘regal wizards’ for their own personal use.
She prickled at his statement about their numbers vs. Earth's in the event of an uprising. So Pahn, it seemed, was really the only thing standing in their way, the only thing whoever Dan, Darsby, and Ahllasta worked for feared. She inhaled slowly, struggling to maintain an outward calm.
She glanced back at Dan when he switched to mumbling to himself, his words too low for her to make out.
Dan, it seemed, was observant, but not explicitly familiar with how humanity worked. Whether he picked up on her thoughts because of mind reading, some sort of empathic ability, or good ol’ intuition, she couldn’t say. Regardless of the how, he was quicker at it than Darsby. And the high possibility of the former two was unnerving.
An incredulous look crossed her face at how nonchalantly the man mentioned the potential outcome of Pahn killing off everyone she knew. Her grip on the energy bar tightened slightly. For someone who claimed he and his organization didn't want to see anyone hurt, he didn't exactly show any emotion over the prospect of lost lives.
So, basically, they could die either at the hands of Pahn, or in the ensuing mass chaos of beings from outer space popping up around the world and trying to force their ways on everyone. Not to mention the world having whatever these ‘wide-range magics’ were put over it. Whatever he meant, she didn’t like the sound of it. And it wouldn't be just her loved ones who suffered.
That Pahn hadn’t already vaporized the planet was a good sign, though. At least enough to possibly mean he—they—whichever didn’t necessarily want Earth destroyed. Just that the power was there.
When Dan stopped speaking, her gaze stayed on the energy bar. She spared Darsby’s actions scarcely half a glance in acknowledgement. Yet, Ahllasta’s reactions beside her caught her attention. Rather, the exact topics that warranted them.
If Anora didn’t know any better, she’d say Ahllasta didn’t much care for the way Dan and his superiors did things. Curiosity about what, exactly, Ahllasta had done to warrant being sent to Earth as a punishment itched on her tongue.
“What ‘new information’ came up to get you involved, then?” She picked off another piece of the energy bar. “And how is it I have a ‘contract’ with Pahn, anyway? I’ve never even met him... er, them.” She mushed the bit of granola into a roundish shape. “And you didn’t actually answer my other questions,” she added irately. “Who is it, exactly, you're working for,” she looked up through the windshield at the street rushing by, ”and where are we going?”

My swimming instructors a dragon. [Mortim / Siaya Dragalorn]

Dang, eight times in a month? That’s insane! Different or not, means you know the pains of moving and probably living out of totes/boxes quite well. Thankfully, I've never had to actually move a house's worth of stuff that many times. Was that courtesy of the military for you, or something unrelated? Oh, yeah, I’m surviving. Heh. Just been stressful. Current house is under contract to sell, though, which is good, and there are other rentals available right now to check out once closing gets closer. If the buyers don’t back out in their allotted time. Hmm. Well, I’ve been doing more crafting and video gaming in my free time since inspiration for writing has been stupid-low, so there’s that. Which did lead to me making a new friend. It’s great to be writing again, though. ^.^

Ha! Well, thanks for letting me know. I appreciate it.


Well, I look forward to experiencing that said idea through Dan as an outlet! It’s always neat when a character takes on a life of their own. Frustrating at times, but still neat. xD Well, I meant more of an “off” than what you’d expect for the situation. Heh. But thanks, I’m glad it wasn’t as bad as I felt it was!

How’ve things been on your end in my absence? It’s kind of funny how we keep taking turns with things pulling us away from RPG IRL.

My swimming instructors a dragon. [Mortim / Siaya Dragalorn]

Anora’s head cocked at Dan’s reaction to her questions, trying to figure out if he was embarrassed or flustered. She flinched when he raised a hand toward her, her powers again sparking to life around her arms of their own accord. Ever conscious of its draw on her, she focused on it just long enough to tame them and sever the temporary link between them and her emotions.
She suppressed a sigh at Dan’s many fillers and jumbled way of speaking. All the same, her eyes lit up with the prospect of other magic-based groups residing just under her nose. Part of her wanted to know more about them, but Dan continued on. She glanced to Darsby with Dan’s gesture, for the first time thankful for the smaller space. If nothing else, it made it easier to keep an eye on multiple people at once.
When Dan paused in thought, Anora could only stare at him, mouth slightly agape in a mix of shock and horror. He and his organization planned on conquering Earth. Her home.
Before Dan could refocus on her, Anora faced forward, hoping to hide her expression. She leaned her back against the seat. Her head cocked toward the back seat when Dan remembered her other questions about Pahn. She inhaled sharply through her knows at Dan's admission: he was indeed some sort of powerful monster. She’d guessed it, sure, but hearing it from him was different from speculating. She swallowed and bit her bottom lip, Ahllasta’s shudder only feeding her growing apprehension.
When he finished, she remained silent for a long moment. Reminding herself that everything felt too real to be a dream, she took a deep breath and held it for as long as she could. She couldn’t afford to lose her head right now. She had to stay calm—or at least pretend. She exhaled, trying to tame the bundle of nerves knotted in her stomach and making her hands shake. Alas, it made little difference.
“Okay. Let…” She took another deep breath and swallowed.
“Let me make sure I’ve got this right,” she started again, stronger this time, hoping Dan would prove as obvious to human nature and emotions as Darsby had. “You three are a part of some sort if intergalactic organization determined to rule over the entirety of our sector or whatever you guys call my planet’s placement.” The words sounded strange coming from her mouth, more like she was trying to explain the plot of a movie to someone than understand what was happening in real life.
She took another breath, then continued. “You and, I assume, others on a need-to-know basis sent Darsby here on a secret mission to find a connection to this Pahn—who’s multiple people wrapped into one?” she added uncertainly with a shake of her head. “And all in order to, what? Take him down? So you can strip Earth’s magic organizations of their leverage against yours and invade Earth? And I’m somehow the connection you need hunt down this almighty being.” She tried but failed to keep her repugnance at the situation from her voice.
Forget the Crazy Train. she thought, leaning her elbow against the armrest between the front seats, head in her hand. We abandoned that in Crazy Town and burned both to the ground on our way out.
Worse, she had so willingly and unwittingly agreed to help them in their takeover. With each of her traveling ‘companions’ as powerful as they were, though she had made only a verbal agreement, there was no telling what they would do if she tried to back down.
Great job, Anora, she scowled, both at herself and the situation she had managed to get herself into this time. If she couldn’t run and couldn’t fight, she’d have to think her way out of this one. Yep. I’m doomed.
She glanced to Darsby from behind part of her hair, wondering if he had known all this, known she would essentially be betraying her own planet. His apparent disinterest in what Dan had to say gave her her answer.
He knew. Of course he knew. And neither of them cared what an invasion would mean for the common folk—for her friends and family, talking about it like it was just another day on the job. Which, for them, it may very well be.
She suddenly felt like a fox who hopped into the wagon with a bunch of foxhounds at the promise of a juicy steak. She swallowed, hard, the car feeling more like a mobile prison and making her heart quicken and stomach churn.
Maybe, just maybe, she could find Pahn on her own, or even warn the magic groups here. But then, she didn’t even know who she needed to warn them against, let alone who she would need to warn in the first place.
She needed to know more. Which meant she’d have to go along with them, be their little obedient guide, until she learned enough to save her planet. And all the while hope Darsby wasn’t still listening in on her thoughts. And, of course, avoid getting killed. Or worse.
Anora took yet another breath and straightened in her seat. Confidence returning from having at least some sort of plan to fix things, she leaned forward and pulled her backpack onto her lap.
“Alright, Monster Mash,” she began, addressing Dan, her voice holding only the slight hint of a tremor amidst its otherwise brashness. “If I’m going to be helping you, I want to know who I’m helping.”
As she spoke, she took out one of the energy bars from her backpack and opened it. Though she didn’t feel like she could eat anything, she’d need as much strength as she could get.
“Agent K’s,” she jerked her head toward Darsby, “knocked out the possibility of the MIB having anything to do with this, and I don’t think Dalaks can take on a human form, so I’m at a loss here. So.” She turned slightly in her seat to put Dan in her peripheral vision. “To start, who're you working for,” she raised a finger, counting off her questions, “what’s so bad about leaving Earth alone, and where in the worlds are we going?”

My swimming instructors a dragon. [Mortim / Siaya Dragalorn]

For a moment, Anora almost felt bad for the tone she used with Dan. But her day had been too weird for it to go beyond ‘almost.’
Her brows rose when the man began to answer with painful vagueness. Her gaze followed his movements as he placed his hands in his lap, part of her expecting him to go for some sort of weapon. No matter how non-threatening this guy seemed, Ahllasta’s reaction to him had left its mark. Anora’s self-preservation side kept her on edge despite her exasperation and the exhaustion lurking at the edges of her body.
Maybe the hounds were a bad idea…
Anora glanced to Ahllasta when Dan mentioned the woman, her brows somehow managing to rise further beneath her bangs. That at least explained the monster-of-a-woman’s reaction. She really was like a student caught skipping class by a teacher.
Is he who her partner was on the phone with? Holding her breath at the thought, her attention quickly snapped back to Dan with a new uneasiness. She returned his seemingly empathetic action with eyes narrowed in suspicion.
Her mind wandered to the blouth at the mention of Earth having ‘a lot going on.’ She opened her mouth to ask what, exactly, he meant, but the snap of Darsby’s fingers made her jump in surprise. She held her breath at Dan’s reaction to the odd piece of paper Darsby presented. She glanced questioningly between the two men. Small puffs of purple mist licked at her fingers with her tension, fearing what Dan searched for in his pockets.
She watched the rest of the men’s exchange, blinking in surprise at how Darsby addressed Dan. Though “senior embassy representative” went over her head, it certainly sounded impressive. That mixed with Darsby’s reaction was proof enough he held a high rank. One of the ‘superiors’ Darsby had mentioned back on the rooftop, perhaps. But the way Dan acted made it seem like he was new to the whole thing, to put it lightly.
“‘Celestial wizard?’” she repeated at the same time Dan interrupted Darsby’s introduction.
Anora took a deep breath, settling more against the back of the seat. Until Dan’s use of ‘us,’ she hadn’t fully thought about who she had made an agreement with. Sure, she had made the deal with Darsby, but it finally hit her that he was a part of some type of organization she knew nothing about.
“Yeah,” she answered Dan’s question, the word slow. She glanced sideways at Ahllasta. Leashed or not by Dan, she’d already proven she would gladly betray the people she worked with. “Darsby agreed to teach me how to better use my powers. In return, I help him find some guy named Pahn. Something about a blood contract or something.”
Just another thing to add to the list of things I know nothing about, she thought, scowling. She exhaled through her nose quickly. She could scold herself for that later. Right now, she had a car filled with people from who-knew-where to deal with. With an even more mysterious destination ahead of them.
She glanced quickly between the three otherworldly passengers. Her gaze settled on Dan, her eyes narrowing slightly. His easygoing demeanor made him a much easier target for her plethora of ever-growing questions.
“If… she,” she stuck a thumb toward Ahllasta, “and her partner work under you, why the frick were they hunting us—Darsby—whatever? Someone forget to cross a T or something? And who is this ‘Pahn,’ and what’s he mean to you, anyway? To… to whoever you work for?” she added, fishing for some hint as to who she was ultimately helping.
Suddenly remembering the phone in her hand, she glanced to it. “Oh. And I think this is yours.” She reached forward, holding the flip-phone out to him.

My swimming instructors a dragon. [Mortim / Siaya Dragalorn]

*Laughs manically at the question.* That's a can of worms you might not want to open. The short version? Things are still stupid crazy, both with moving aspects and the weather. Moving fell through. And where I'm at, we can literally get summer weather one day and winter the next right now. Really. A couple weeks ago (I think...) it was in the upper 70s to lower 80s, then it snowed maybe 24 hours later. Which doesn't help anything.

You have indeed! That's awesome you used him as character inspiration. I like when that happens! Oh, sorry if Anora's a bit (or a lot) off in my next post. It's been a long... [insert amount of months/years here]. I'll reread posts and stuff again once I have more time to get a better feel for writing for her again. I'd say things should settle down a bit on my side by the end of the month, but then I think life would take that as a challenge and prove me wrong.

A Land of Wonder and Nightmare

“Corrupt one vital pillar, and the entire structure will crumble after it,” Smaya answered Ghent’s nearly inaudible question. Her soft voice bounced off the waters of the mysterious pool with a pleasant melancholy. “Though we reside in different planes, we are all still connected, two parts of one whole.”
The Guardian waited patiently for Ghent’s answer to her request. If not for the gentle billow of her hair caught in the occasional phantom breeze, the woman looked for all the world a statue.
Though barely a twitch of her lips, a knowing smile tugged at their corners at Ghent’s apology for his reaction to her request. With a slow blink, she gave a slight, unhurried shake of her head in dismissal.
“Laughter unfueled by death's mania is hardly in need of apology. These woods have been devoid of such a sound for far too long,” she finished through another sigh filled with longing and regret.
She fell silent, watching him as he stared into the rippling waters. Only the gentle rush of the impossible waterfall broke the silence. Even the dance of the stars above grew subdued, as if they had decided to pause to listen in on their conversation.
Smaya met his gaze when he looked back to her. His words drew another soft, sorrowful smile from the woman. “That’s all I ask, young vinifcium.”
A lost soul keened somewhere in the distance, the woeful sound little more than a whisper. Smaya glanced toward it, her downtrodden expression unwavering.
“My duties call.” She looked back to Ghent, her voice ever mournful. “You are welcome to stay a while, but it is best you don’t linger too long in my absence. The Betwixt can be a dangerous place for the living without a Spiritayian escort. Especially for a vinifcium. Stay too long, and it will claim your spirit.”
She nodded respectfully to Ghent, then turned with a gentle swish of her dress. Before the folds at her bare feet could fully settle, her form burst into green mist. It swirled about, glittering in the moonlight.
“Farewell, young Madrail.” Her voice echoed in the air as the mist wrapped in a loose spiral around him. “And good luck.”
The glittering mist dissipated in a twinkling burst. It settled toward the ground and vanished as quickly as it had come.
With Smaya gone, the moonlight once more silvered the world. The orb’s undulating form reflected brokenly in the pool, the gentle rush of the waterfall quick to replace the silence.

For a long moment, only the warm voice of the fire filled the clearing. The enchantment around the area turned a distant wail into little more than the moaning whisper of a nonexistent wind. Elayra glanced toward Ghent, curiosity getting the better of her.
In the darkness resting outside the fire’s small, comforting ring of golden light, Ghent’s form was nearly impossible to make out. She blinked, squinting, until her eyes adjusted to the difference in lighting just enough to tell Ghent had again become translucent.
She released a breath she hadn’t realized she held. Hoping the dunderhead wouldn’t offend the Guardian and make her send her wrath raining down on them, Elayra glanced to Drust.
The White Knight still had his eyes closed. His chest rose and fell in a forced steady rhythm. A rhythm she knew well.
The heat and crackling lullaby of the fire made her eyelids weigh heavily. With another glance to make sure Ghent hadn’t turned solid, she let her own eyes droop closed. Without her consent, she began to doze sitting up. Her chin dropped to her chest, and she jerked awake.
“Rest, girl,” Drust intoned, one eye open and on her. It met her gaze before closing. “The curative works best in slumber.”
“I know,” she said through a sigh, struggling to keep an irritated edge from her voice. She glanced uneasily between him and Ghent. With her luck, as soon as she fell asleep, she’d wake up to the sounds of Ghent screaming bloody murder from the sharp end of Drust’s katana. “But—”
Drust interrupted with a heaving, growling sigh. Something a strange mix between a toothy grin and a scowl pulled at his face. “Then you should also know you’re no use to us in your condition.” He opened his eyes and met her stare, hard. His gaze had returned to their normal, eerie black-veined red. The lines snaking from the corners of his eyes remained stationary, the Curse subdued for the moment.
She nodded stiffly. “Fine.”
Reluctantly, she got into her pack. After a moment, she pulled out her cloak. With a groan, she draped it over herself like a blanket, careful to keep its tattered, worn fabric far enough from the fire.
She glanced toward Drust when the Knight moved to grab his katana. She stiffened, but he kept his actions slow, deliberate. Reassuring. He gripped the sheath in one hand, then drew the long sword. The satisfying shing of it pulling from its scabbard rang in the air. Its long, silver blade glinted in the firelight as he examined it. A hint of pride tinged with regretful sorrow sparkled in his eyes for a fraction of a second before he carefully twirled the weapon and stuck its sharp tip in the ground beside him.
“But if anything—”
“It’ll be fine, girl,” he growled, an eye twitching. “Sleep.” He smirked down at her. “If you can’t, I’m sure I can find a remedy for that.”
Elayra scowled. “I can manage, thanks,” she grumbled, reaching to adjust her pack roughly where her head would land.
Drust gave a snorting “Hmm.” Legs crossed under him, he took a deep breath and closed his eyes again.
Taking a breath of her own, she laid down, using the lumpy pack as a familiar makeshift pillow. She drew the cloak tighter around her, warding off the chill of the night at her back.
Quicker than she thought possible, her aching body fell into a sleep deeper than she could have hoped for.
Drust watched her for a moment until her breathing evened out into that of slumber. Satisfied she had at last done as ordered, he gave a short sigh then resumed his meditative position, his back straight.
Hands resting on his knees, ready to grasp his katana at a moment’s notice, he slowed his own breaths. Each one drew in quieter than the last as he shifted focus to the sounds of the forest, listening to muffled rustlings and warped voices even Elayra couldn’t have picked out. If Ghent so much as twitched upon his return, chances were, he’d hear it.

My swimming instructors a dragon. [Mortim / Siaya Dragalorn]

Seems it was my turn to make you wait! I'm sorry you've been sick. I know the feeling to some degree. Hope the life changes aren't bad ones, and if they are, I hope they get resolved soon! I'm glad, though, that you're feeling well enough to get back into writing! Oh, you're welcome, and of course I have patience with this kind of thing. Thanks for the thought, but there's no need to apologize. I understand how suddenly things can come up. Sometimes you just don't have the time or willpower necessary to write something up.

*Laughs hysterically.* To keep it short, stressed and sick. Thanks for asking! Currently working on getting back into posting replies myself.

Yay! Reference picture! Thanks for that. Looks about how I imagined, actually. :-)

My swimming instructors a dragon. [Mortim / Siaya Dragalorn]

If there was something beyond madness and insanity, Anora would have said she had stepped straight into that.
Though he couldn’t see her, she shook her head at Dan’s first comment, with an exasperated, interrupting, “Wasn’t important.”
Anora shouted and jumped in her seat when the end ofthe man’s sentence sounded both through the phone and from behind her. A couple purple sparks flickered to life with her surprise, but quickly died away. She pulled forward, turning to get a better look at the seat behind her. The seat belt pulled against her, and her backpack shifted at her feet.
“Of course you do,” she breathed, bracing herself with a hand against the back of her seat, the seatbelt pressing firmly into her back. She contemplated just unbuckling it, but decided against it. Last thing she needed was to go flying through the windshield if Ahllasta decided to slam on the breaks.
Sparing Ahllasta and Darsby scarcely a glance to see how they took to Dan’s sudden appearance, she focused on the newcomer. Heart pounding in her throat, she took in his shockingly normal, unthreatening appearance.
She blinked slowly at him, her brows rising. She had had no idea what she had expected from Dan, but something even remotely resembling ordinary was far from it. Someone with a few extra appendages or an aura that would put Ahllasta’s to shame, perhaps. But not someone who looked like they had just stepped out of an office on a Casual Friday.
The mixed reactions she noticed from both Darsby and Ahllasta made Anora shift uncomfortably in her seat.
Who is this guy? she wondered in the short seconds of quiet that followed, her eyes narrowing. Her gaze met his as he leaned over in the blood-stained seat so she could see him better.
Even his tone differed from what she had grown accustomed to hearing from her supernatural encounters; he spoke as casually as his appearance.
Anora gave a snorting laugh. “‘Really weird’ doesn’t even begin to cover it!” She flipped the phone closed, then opened her mouth again, a ranting recap of the day itching to bubble from her tongue.
But she hesitated. She eyed Dan again. As affable as this man seemed, there was no telling what kind of secrets he held. After all, he had found them, made a phone appear in her pocket, and transported himself into a moving car. A car which he knew the exact number of occupants in.
Darsby didn’t seem to mind him, and the affect he had on Ahllasta was somewhere between reassuring and unnerving. On one hand, she clearly didn’t like him. But on the other, whoever this was, he made someone as powerful as Ahllasta act like a child waiting for a beating for writing on the wall with permanent marker. A small voice of caution poked at the back of her mind, the dusty instinct determined to be heard.
“What’s it matter to you who ‘pulled’ me into all this?” she said instead, a slight overwhelmed tremor in her voice. “Who are you?” She tilted her head down, one corner of her lips pursing upward as she pointed at him with the hand holding the phone. “And don’t you dare say ‘Dan.’ That’s not what I mean, and you know it,” she added, just in case. She glanced again to Darsby, the silent question of, Should I trust this guy? written on her face.