The Savant — Roleplayer Guild

After Pleiades and Taru had their fun they went to the hot springs by the Aelios temple. The wind was beginning to chill, which seemed to not bother either man. “So, why are you staring in Dawnhaven? Aren’t you supposed to be a nomadic individual? Constantly running about and moving,” The winged man asked while glancing over to Taru — they first met by the outskirts of the capital of Lunaris probably a handful of years ago. The best that they could describe each other was barely friends, though they got along quite alright. 

“Do you see any of my brothers or sisters around?” The man was somewhat dulled in tone when he asked this. Gesturing a hand to show that it was only the two of them and Amua. The furry beast was wrapped up around Taru’s neck and shoulders as they were making their way down the slick steps of the hot springs. 

Pleiades was following behind Taru as he huffed, “So… you gave up on the whole nomadic thing because you were lonely or because no one else is doing anymore because they are all dead?” The man was trying to figure out the ex-nomadic stance as he stopped in front of him. Glared over his shoulder with those dark eyes and got a grin out of the greenish-gray man. 

A huff came from Taru, “Has anyone ever told you that you ask too many questions or talk a little too much?” The tone from the baritone man was salty and sassy before he continued down the steps. 

“Well…” Pleiades began as he shrugged, “I enjoy knowing things about people. Unlike you. Being lonely is boring, so I get it. I understand. I would hate having singular beliefs that no one understands except my immediate family, and they are all dead…” His monotone expression and voice caused Taru to roll his eyes as they continued down the steps. 

Getting to the bottom, Taru began to strip, and so did Pleiades. “It is not that I don’t enjoy being nomadic… I’m not needed anymore. I used to travel around to the north, east, south, and west. There are no more tribes. The nomadic lifestyle is not viable anymore, and I am not going to live in those god-forsaken capitals like a few of my siblings decided to do,” The man spat those words out before getting into the steaming pool before him. Amua realized what was happening and jumped onto the smoothed stone shore so she wouldn’t join them in the heated water. She chittered and chattered as she began to search around her human companion's clothes before finding the goody bag with dried berries, nuts, and seeds. 

“It is from being lonely. I knew it,” The blight-born seemed satisfied that he guessed right or close to it. It was somewhat saddening that Taru’s lifestyle was not viable anymore, though he didn’t blame the man for not wanting to be in either capital. Each capital had its pros and cons, though Pleiades only cared for them because of the large population, which gave him access to food. “Hopefully, Dawnhaven doesn’t turn into the capitals. Did you see the royal guards that arrived early and the throne guard that appeared from Lunaris?” He inquired while stepping into the hot springs and diving right under the water. Taru looked around before getting to the edge and sitting down and relaxing. 

Pleiades came up not too far away and ruffled his feathers to clean all of the debris and everything else on the night-touched wings. “No, I didn’t notice that such high-ranking guards from Lunaris had arrived in Dawnhaven. What is that about?” Taru seemed uneasy when speaking about authority. It wasn’t that he was necessarily fearful, but he had done a few things in both capitals that caused his chest to tighten when hearing that they were roaming around Dawnhaven. 

His green-gray hands and shoulders motioned in a way that said he was unsure, “I have absolutely no idea why the fucking snake sent his rats,” Pleiades growled with those words. The man’s negative emotions towards the Lunarian King and his disciples were extremely fresh with the wounds of the letter that he had to give Octavia — he truly loved the Queen. She was caring, considerate, and someone who should be ruling the northern lands unlike her living widow  — Fucking bastard —  he thought to himself as he splashed water onto his hair to scramble his fingers through it and wash it. 

A brow perked up from the aggressive outburst that Pleiades showed upon talking about the royals. “You don’t seem to like them,” Taru started with a slight chuckle and a little bit of a curl to his lips. 

“You can see my distaste for the Lunarian disciples? How about the royal family?” Pleiades joked while moving over to Taru and sitting by him and relaxing on the same edge. However, the man adored Sylestar and Octavia. It might have been because he was infatuated with their mother, yet he didn’t see their father in either of them. Talking about their little brother was a different story… he hated that brat with a passion. 

Taru seemed interested in where this conversation was going, though he shrugged his shoulders. He found it odd that Pleiades openly admitted to not liking the royals, which he found himself agreeing with the winged man — he didn’t care for the Lunarian or Aurelian royals at all. “You dislike the royals that much? How about Octavia? She seems nice from what I have experienced,” The man barely had an interaction with her, though the princess of Lunaria did seem to have a good heart even if he disagreed with her religion and how things ran in this world because of her father. 

Pleiades sighed, “Octavia is fine,” He stated with indifference. “Her and her sister are fine. It’s mainly their abomination of a father that I dislike,” He hissed out while gesturing outwardly in front of them as if the king himself was right there. 

“Mhm… That makes more sense. I’ve never met the king, but from what I heard around the common folk of Lunaris… he isn’t the best,” Their conversation continued as both of them relaxed in the hot springs. Washing up. Simply talking and enjoying the energy between each other. It was nice to have someone around at times, and both of them were pretty social individuals, though Taru was way more isolated by self-practice than Pleiades would ever be. 

After a while, about forty-five minutes or so, Taru stood up, “I’ll see you around, Pleiades, don’t get in too much trouble now,” The man patted the other’s shoulder before making his way to where Amua was curled up on the pile of his clothing. He shooed her off before getting out and getting dressed. Pleiades had nothing in return to say as he watched the man disappear up the stone stairway, and the bird-like man sighed and let his head fall back. He hated being alone. Maybe he needed to find someone else to socialize with for a little bit. 

Taru was making his way back to the horse barn when he noticed Sunni leaning up against a tree with his eyes closed and facing up at the sky. He seemed exhausted and possibly like he was sleeping. The nomadic man wouldn’t be surprised if the redheaded individual exhausted himself so much that he was completely out of it. 

Moments before Taru arrived on the scene, Sunni was beginning to feel exhausted to the point of his joints wanting to give out. That was when the redheaded man decided to lean up against a tree in the immediate vicinity. His chest was rising and falling with struggle and heaviness. He came out here to wear himself out, and that was what he did; it helped him emotionally to a point as well. What was he supposed to do? Closing his eyes and enjoying the brisk air of the Northern regions, Sunni found himself feeling a bit better, but he wasn’t whole in a sense. 

He was able to finally talk to Elara and everything felt fine… he guessed. The man was so nervous in that little tidbit of time with the woman that he truly couldn’t look back to that point and know how he felt. The only emotion that he could remember was when Syraeia appeared and offered a table for two. That was too much. It overwhelmed him when she started offering such a thing so he had to escape before he started being an idiot in front of the silver-haired beauty. 

The man was startled out of his skin when he felt someone tap his shoulder and break the silence, “Are you alright there, Sunni?” he recognized the voice when he was able to process it for a few seconds. Taru was looking wide-eyed at Sunni. The redheaded man realized that he must have been as shocked or more than Taru because of the other man’s expression. He jumped so much out of his skin that he found himself on his arse. 

His hand was over his heart as his breathing began to calm, “I’m sorry. You startled me Taru,” Sunni began to chuckle out of nervousness as his body began to calm under the realization that it was only Taru. Someone else. No monster. No random wild animal. Amua seemed to be on guard from his reaction. Her hair was puffed up, and she looked disturbed by the whole scene. 

Taru began to pet her to calm her down as he gave her a small mixture of the contents in the snack bag. She quickly shoveled all of it into her mouth and seemed to be way happier. “You must have been focused. Let me help you up,” Taru extended his hand, which Sunni gladly took as the dark-haired man helped him up. 

“I might have been thinking a little too much or a little too hard on something,” Sunni rubbed the back of his neck on that confession. “Why is your hair so wet?” He asked while noticing that Taru had moisture all over him. Some parts of his clothes were damp. His hair was soaked. It was an odd appearance when it wasn’t raining. 

The dark-haired man looked at himself and chuckled slightly, “I was in the hot springs cleaning up. It was nice. They feel extra warm because of this weather,” He gestured to how the snow was gradually coming. 

When Taru brought up the hot spring, Sunni almost melted, “I forgot we had hot springs… that sounds so nice…” His tone was almost a whine while he spoke. The man needed to relax a bit. His joints and muscles felt like they were tearing at the seams with the lack of rest he was working with daily. Stroking a hand through his hair at the thought, though his mind went right to work on the roof, and a bit of it was occupied with Elara. Amber eyes moved over his shoulder to look at the half-built house. 

“You should go. You seem like you need it,” Taru broke the silence between them because he could sense the stress radiating off from the other man. It was somewhat awkward — he really hadn’t interacted with Sunni that much, though he seemed absolutely different tonight than his usual demeanor.

Sunni nodded in agreement, “You know what, I think I will take a break and go to the hot springs, thank you, Taru,” The redhead patted the other one’s shoulder before scratching Amua’s head and walking off. Taru smiled while making his way to the horse barn. 

Sunni was making his way to the hot springs before he stopped in between the hot springs, the Aelios temple, and the Eye of the Beholder Inn. That was when he began chewing on his cheek  — Do I want to risk going back there? Someone could tie me into doing something or distract me… 

A sigh left his lips while he looked back in the direction of the hot springs before looking at the inn again. “Screw it,” The man whispered while he made his way to the inn. He decided not to take the front door or the back entrance. Climbing up the woodpile and getting onto the roof that protected the wood and a few outside items. Sunni balanced himself on the roof before he began to climb up the side of the building and got to his window. Both windows were a little tricky to get in, but he knew one of them was unlocked. He tried the easier window, which was a failure. Jumping up there and hanging on the edge to push it to the side. He felt it hitch on the lock, and he felt defeated by the little racket of noise of the lock catching the wood. 

Letting himself fall back on the roof, his knees bent a little, and his eyes widened while he thought about what he did, “Shite… shite… shite… hopefully Syraeia didn’t hear that or anyone else…” The man whispered to himself, yet no one would be able to hear him at the location he was on the upper roof by his room, the office, and Syraeia’s quarters. 

Sunni tried jumping up to grab the other window that sat behind his desk. A few jumps and he couldn't catch the edge without slipping and getting a few splinters in the tips of his fingers. Putting the three fingers of his right hand into his mouth as he whined at the little pinching pain that it caused. He looked at his fingers, and one began to pool blood instantly while he carefully used his other hand to take out the splinters. “Dammit…” he huffed out while looking around. Then he got an idea and climbed back down to the wood pile. Putting a few logs onto the roof and making sure they wouldn’t roll off. Getting back onto the roof, the man carefully piled the three logs into his arm and made his way back up to the part of the roof that was on the side of the window that got him into his room. 

Making a little pile that was triangular, he stepped onto it and reached up to the window before pushing it open. As he made sure his grip was good, he pushed off the logs and began to lift himself into the window. That was when he heard the logs rolling off the roof and one making a ruckus of noise rolling down. That was when three mild thuds echoed out from them hitting the ground. His eyes looked over his shoulder to see if the logs hit anyone or not before he fell into his room. “Ow,” he covered his mouth as his chair fell over and knocked a few things over. A few papers scattered onto his bed and into another part of the room. 

Standing up and patting himself off, he breathed out in relief of being in his room, and he went over to the wine shelf that was resting on the dresser in a part of his room. Looking at the different types of wines he had. He wanted something nice. Something that would taste good and be relaxing. That was when he spotted a rose wine that looked absolutely beautiful. “This is the one,” Sunni was proud of himself as he took it. 

As he looked at the door of his room, he moved back to the window and looked out. Looking back to the door of his room. He was determining if he wanted to take the chance of running into people or jumping a handful of feet down onto a slippery roof. Moving with an uncomfortable body language, he nodded and began to carefully lower himself onto the roof, which was harder with the bottle of wine. That was when he felt his body catch air, smacking the roof and began sliding down. 

Gasping for the instant predicament he found himself in, Sunni cradled the bottle of wine close to his chest, as he tried to stop himself from sliding right off the roof with his feet. His leather boots ended up catching the edge of the roof, and he found himself at a startling halt that moved his body forward, though he was able to lean back onto the roof to counteract the motion. Lying there with wide eyes, he looked around to make sure no one saw that, and he began to get on his knees. “Hahu…” He left out the noise as he got to his feet and carefully moved to the lower roof of the wood roof before landing on the ground safely. 

Going over and grabbing the logs, he put them back onto the pile before quickly going towards the hot springs. The man glanced over his shoulder at the inn to make sure no one was around it or coming out of it. Then he found himself at the steps of the hot springs. Making his way down, he noticed a familiar face and smiled. “I didn’t realize he enjoyed being warm. I thought that heart was made of ice,” he called out to the other, which got the man’s moonlit eyes to glance up. They rolled with annoyance. 

“Surprise… surprise, Cyrus, I am a bit warmer than you are even,” Pleiades chuckled as he relaxed in the hot springs. The blight-born was comfortable in the heat, and he honestly felt better from sitting in there. Sunni made his way down the steps carefully so he didn’t fall. 

The man got to the base of the area, “Do you want to share a bottle of wine?” Sunni offered while raising it, to emphasize the bottle before putting it down and beginning to strip his clothes off. 

Pleiades waved a hand to dismiss the idea completely, “No, I am leaving soon. I have something important to tend to,” The blight-born smiled while watching the redhead strip down to nothing. It was disappointing that he had fun with Taru and couldn’t stay to entertain Sunni at all, though he knew the man wouldn’t willingly have fun with him. Not in a sober state. A sigh left his lips  — how disappointing. 

Sunni shrugged his shoulders, “Suit yourself,” The man stated while snatching up the rose bottle of wine and entering the hot springs without issue. A gasp was let out while the steam and heat stung his body. He had no idea how cold he was until stepping into the hot water, and he hissed a sucking breath into his teeth. “It’s toasty…” He groaned slightly while lowering himself deeper but keeping the bottle of wine above the water so it would stay somewhat cool. 

Finding a spot on a nice ledge, he leaned up against it, and his elbows rested on the foundation of rocks, and he looked over the steam. Putting the wine bottle to the side of him and letting his head fall back before he slid into the warmth when his head met the rock he was leading on, and he relaxed there. The water was up to his collarbone, so the majority of his body was covered. A satisfied groan left his lips that sounded like relief itself. “This is so nice…” He murmured to himself while his eyes shut. The dripping echoes and light splashes told him that Pleiades was most likely leaving. 

“I’ll see you around, Emberani,” Pleiades stated while he was getting dressed. The blight-born gathered all of his things before he walked up the stone steps of the hot springs. Leaving Sunni Emberani to be by himself. 

Sunni waved his hand up and let it flop back into the water, “Good luck on whatever important matters you have,” He thought it was odd that the bright-born had important matters, yet he didn’t find it odd enough to question it. The winged man was Dawnhaven's main postal guy. It was probably something to do with that, and he honestly didn’t care enough to keep anyone around. The man was enjoying the heat that soaked into his body to lessen his aching joints and muscles. 

That was when the amber-eyed man glanced over to the bottle of wine and sat up a little more. He popped off the cork and placed it on the edge of the hot springs. Taking a sip of the rose wine and groaning into the delightful taste of the alcoholic beverage. “This is nice…” He whispered to himself as he looked around. It was ironic that he found himself a little lonely, but he didn’t want to be bothered by anyone. Maybe Flynn. There was no one else on his mind that he would want around at the moment except his friend. 

Pleiades did not want to drag his wings across the muddying ground as he got to the top of the stone stairs. Looking down at the dirt in front of him, he sighed, and gracefully took off. The man was making his way to Octavia’s bedroom window where he usually landed to deliver or take letters from her. Sadly, he realized he was never going to have incoming or outgoing mail for the Lunaris Queen, which pained his chest. He was dead… it was all in his head. That was what he told himself for the most part. Continuously reminding himself that he shouldn’t feel anything for anyone. Except, he found himself upset nonetheless and emotionally bothered in some way. 

Hooking himself onto the frame of the window like he had done dozens of times before, he tapped on the glass, and he could hear the jumpscare that he was scared. A chuckle left his lips while he heard bare feet making their way to the window before opening it with a somewhat surprised expression, “Pleiades, what are you doing here?” She looked to see if he had a letter or anything. She hadn’t sent one out. He had been gone enough from her sight to go to one of the cities and get back around this time though she felt like that wasn’t the reason he was here. He wasn’t giving her another letter, was he? 

“I felt the need to check in on you, my princess,” Pleiades stayed there since he wasn’t going to barge into her room, and when she realized why he was there, her face soured, and she frowned. There had been a few hours between her reading the whole letter and now, though it felt like fresh wounds. Painful. 

She shook her head, “I really don’t know how I feel…” Octavia spoke honestly to the messenger as she stepped a few feet back. “You can come in. I am making chai tea right now. If you want some,” She offered, forgetting that the blight-born didn’t need to really drink anything or consume food. 

Pleiades smiled while entering through the window and closing it behind him so the coolness from outside wouldn’t taint the heat inside of the building any more than it had. “I would love some,” The man didn’t mind taking a drink every now and again — the blight born did need water to survive. The tea had a bit of that in it, right? It should be fine. 

The winged man followed the princess through her room before going out into the larger parts of the house and to the kitchen. “I am sorry about your mother,” He wanted Octavia to have his condolences. 

She turned around with widened eyes and a spark of another emotion, “You knew! I knew you knew,” She pointed at him while approaching him. “Did you read that letter before I did? Are you snooping into other’s mail? Pleiades,” Octavia seemed unhappy with the idea of the man reading her mail or anyone else’s for a matter of fact. 

Pleiades seemed to tense under the pointing princess as he stood tall and looked at her with serious eyes, “I…” He growled out that first word since he didn’t know what he should say. Why was she being so accusing? “Your little sister Sylestar told me to open it because I was close with your mother,” he grumbled out those words as he stared at her. 

Octavia let her hand lower into her other as she looked up at the winged man. She was somewhat surprised to hear that her mother and he were close then again… no one else was delivering the mail to and from the both of them. Pleiades was in constant contact with both of the royals. “Oh…” She let out upon hearing that her little sister gave the man permission to read the letter because of the circumstances. It still didn’t help the flood of emotions she felt, though her face turned to one of shame. Something that she didn’t show often or to many people. She didn’t mean to accuse Pleiades of doing such a thing, but her emotions were high, and her nerves were shot. She began to rub her temples to calm down, “I am sorry, Pleiades… I… I didn’t mean to accuse you of snooping,” She muttered that out as she went into the kitchen and began to make more chai tea. A whole metal pitcher of it so she could keep filling her cup for a little while knitting the villager's warm scarves, gloves, hats, and socks. Something to help with the impending cold. 

The man couldn’t help the frown that tugged at his lips as he saw the disarray and stress that the princess found herself in. Was there any way that he could help? There wasn’t much he could think of. “It is alright,” He offered soft words instead of getting defensive with her. “I can see that you are troubled. I probably shouldn’t have brought that up,” He mentioned while walking into the kitchen to see her better as she worked. A light smile formed on his face as he watched the princess make chai tea. 

Octavia was working before her mind processed his words, I can see that you are troubled, the man didn’t hesitate to notice her. Her eyes widened as if she was surprised to hear such a thing. To be noticed by someone, she offered a light but warming smile. “Thank you,” her voice was soft in return. Pleiades has a way about him to keep things calm at times. He had seen the Queen distraught enough to know that if Octavia was truly her daughter to not engage in the chaos brewing inside. Not in the way that a normal person would react. The Queen could become a nuclear mess of emotions and tears. Octavia was no different in his eyes, and a quieter voice with a tone of foundation seemed to work. 

“So… where is your husband in such a moment?” Pleiades was surprised that he didn’t come into their house to find Flynn comforting Octavia in any way or attempting to — the princesses and their mother had fiery personalities though he didn’t expect it to be so hot that an Aurelian prince couldn’t handle it. 

Octavia glanced at the man with wings as she thought of how she should put her words, “He did earlier… He has things to attend to and I wasn’t being very open with him,” She confessed while at the thought. The young woman knew she had a horrible time letting Flynn in but she couldn’t help it. It was so hard to stay calm with him in most situations though she felt like they did a good job earlier. 

A curious brow rose when she brought up that she wouldn’t let him in, “Is there a particular reason?” Pleiades asked with a slight concern. He knew how much Antoinette wanted her daughter to be happier and she felt like Octavia would be happier with someone her age. It wasn’t an easy decision though the Lunarian king was going to force a marriage one way or another.  “Your mother had a lot of hope for you two, you know that right?” 

She seemed confused about why he was the one saying those words. “I…” Octavia began as her face twisted while she filled the pitcher up before making two cups of tea. “What do you mean by that?” These words were kind and reassuring to a point but there was a lingering confusion from them. It didn’t make sense. “Why are you saying that?” 

Pleiades sighed at those questions, “I was very close to your mother, Octavia, and I feel like I need to confess to someone,” He took the cup of warm liquid as he looked at the woman with an almost regrettable energy in his eyes. “I am pretty sure that child inside of your mother’s was mine…” Within only a few seconds of her picking up her own mug. It dropped out of her hands and crashed onto the ground. A hissing sound could be heard from her as she stepped back from the shattering clay and hot liquid going everywhere. 

Her hands were shaking uncontrollably with the emotion that struck her like lightning striking a tree. A chattering sound of trying to speak could be heard from her as she was trying to form words, “Y..y-uh…” That information was not something she would ever think to hear about her late mother. Her mother was in a romantic relationship with a blight-born. Out of everything, she chooses a blight born!? After years of telling her to not be curious about them… her own mother was being intimate with one. For how long? Why? “I don’t believe you,” Octavia was in denial. She didn’t want to believe Pleiades. 

The man stood there and stared since he didn’t know how to go about this. She clearly didn’t believe him and possibly wasn’t willing to believe him. A tension formed in the air between them, and his tongue continuously ran across the back of his teeth with thought. “I have no reason to lie to you princess, and…” Pleiades found himself trailing off into thought more than anything. This was harder than he thought it would be. Confessing to Octavia was not an easy person to communicate with on plenty of levels. For many reasons. 

A crash sounded out beside him and Pleiades attention went to a small dessert plate that shattered right by him. Then his eyes widened when another piece of porcelain was getting thrown his way. A cup which he caught and placed on the counter with his cup of chai tea. “Princess, please!” Pleiades put up his hands while stepping backward, catching each dish she was throwing his way, and trying to place them down so they wouldn’t break. 

“You are an absolute pompous, prick, an asshole! A rat! Someone who goes behind others' backs and causes issues! If you could keep your —” Octavia gestured to his crotch area before throwing another dish at him. “ — if you could keep your toy away, this wouldn’t have happened! You perverse monstrous creature of assholes!” Octavia didn’t even know how to offend him or what to say but she was fuming. Her face was bright red with anger and frustration. 

She grabbed the bread box and with all her strength she hurled it at him. Pleiades caught it with a sound that was a mixture of pain and discomfort before he set it onto the ground smacking a teacup plate away and it shattering onto the ground. “Octavia you need —” The man was cut off by her roaring voice. 

“ — I need to do nothing by your command, you wretched piece of half-living disappointment!” She kept slowly stepping closer to him. Grabbing different things and tossing, throwing, and hurling them at him out of anger. Tears were forming in her eyes as she continued her small rampage towards the winged man. “How could you!? How could you do this to my family!? My mother died because of you!!! If you nev —” That was when she froze in fear feeling the sharp nails of the bright-born curl around her shoulders and his palms cup her tightly. Slightly lifting her, she found herself on her tippy toes… barely touching the ground, and she held her breath. “Pleiades…” She whispered with fear in her tone. The woman wasn’t expecting him to snatch her up like he did. It caused her nerves to feel like they were burned out. 

Pleiades stared into her eyes while tears began to leave both of them. “Octavia,” The man’s sternness caused her to feel rattled. His voice was soft, “I do not believe my actions got your mother killed, and if they did, I have nowhere to begin on how sorry I am,” He inhaled deeply before hugging her tightly and holding her to his chest. Octavia seemed frozen not knowing what to do. She wanted to beat on his chest and scream at him though she couldn't do it to continue her small rampage of anger and confusion. 

One of his arms stayed wrapped around her tightly and a hand cautiously came up to her head and guided her head onto his chest. He began to gently pet through her hair as he glanced down to see if she was going to shank him by surprise or anything. Preparing himself mentally for the woman to continue her meltdown. “You are awful…” She whined out those words as she began to cry into his bare chest. His wings extended to form a barrier around them. Octavia was exhausted from crying most of the day. 

“I know…” He agreed with her words as he continued to try and soothe her while clouding her in darkness. “I’m quite a heinous individual,” Which were words he truly believed. He didn’t believe he wasn’t. How could he not be horrible? A blight-born, a sexual one at that, and he seemed to be good at ruining things. Hurting people. Pleiades never meant to hurt people with how he was but he couldn’t change who he is. However, he could regret Antoinette’s death for the rest of his life. Regret not saving her or being there more. Something… he was unsure what he exactly felt but he hated himself for it. 

A defeated sigh could be heard from the young woman when she thought about it, “You are not awful,” She took her words back after the realization of her mother’s happiness. Her mother was never that happy with her father. In over two decades of life, Octavia had never heard her mother speak about how happy she was, and she was made aware of why — Pleiades. “She was never that happy with my father… I should have thought about it more. That someone else was making her happy, so you are not that awful. You made her happy. She always told me how happy she was for the handful or more of letters between us. My mother never told me exactly why or who, but I thought it was because she gave me away. That I was out of the house. No… she wasn’t happy to get rid of me. She was just happy that you were there, wasn’t she?” Octavia’s face nuzzled into his chest a little. A few sniffles could be heard from her as she began to calm down. 

Pleiades nodded when she asked that question after her statement, “I think she was happier that you were away from your father more than anything,” He offered his two cents into the topic. “I don’t think I was the only thing that made your mother happy. She always talked about you and the other children. She was always worried for you, especially after Flynn took you as his. Your mother was constantly excited to receive letters from you, so much so that she sometimes made me stay in the room until she was done writing to get her letter back to you as fast as possible,” He chuckled at the thought. The older woman, the queen, was always excited to hear from her daughter for a multitude of reasons. Anyone would have been able to see that. 

“How long were you two exactly together?” Octavia asked while pulling away and looking up at the man. She was honestly curious about that. The man was talking like he and the Queen were not a simple fling or a few nightstands. It felt like there was something more with how his voice stayed soft and almost endearing. 

Shrugging his shoulders as his face fell to a neutral expression, “Does it matter?” With the look that Octavia gave him at that moment… It did matter. It must have mattered a lot. Dry swallowing at that reaction, he sighed while looking around, “Maybe five or six years ago? It wasn’t anything serious until last summer or maybe a little before. It kind of happened… I do not have dates for you, princess,” his answer was honest. There were not any dates tied to Pleiades or the Queen's start — only their end and that wasn’t even clear. 

Hearing all of this still did not make sense to the princess since she didn’t believe her mother to be unloyal. She was undyingly loyal in her eyes. Her mother was the epitome of perfection. Someone who stayed in the lines and was the exact shade of color everyone needed in their day. She shook her head. “Why would my mother betray my father in such a way?” Octavia did not care for her father. He kept his royal brothel of women a secret and her mother was the Queen for only one reason. She had children while the rest miscarried or never showed any signs of pregnancy at all. 

Pleiades' moonlit eyes stared into Octavia’s blues while he thought about that question. Why would my mother betray my father in such a way? Was it truly a betrayal when she was forced to be married to the man and never had a relationship with each other? “Was there really anything to betray in their situation, Octavia?” His tone was colder than it had been this whole conversation. He was serious about this question. The man truly did not see it as an issue. 

Her face twisted and turned to those words, “A wife should not betray a —” She got shut down by a serious tone. One that was not willingly going to argue with her and one that sounded of authority which rattled her bones and widened her eyes. 

“Your mother was only married to that authoritarian creepy bastard that you call father. There was no love or anything else between them. He saw her as a pretty face and used her for morale amongst the people. She was a puppet to use and abuse in his eyes,” Pleiades did not realize that he was letting out more emotion than he thought he was. A few of the tips of his nails were digging into Octavia’s clothing and into her flesh. 

Octavia squeaked as she bit her lip not knowing if the noise would cause him to freak out or not. The pain that was plastered on her face made him realize that he was hurting her. Then he let go of her completely. Her feet hit the ground as her body startled at feeling her weight again. “I’m sorry. I… my nails. I…” Pleiades was usually so good at not hurting people with his nails. He didn’t mean to cause her harm though he didn’t realize how angry he was in those seconds while discussing her father and mother's relationship. The realization that his cheeks felt heated was odd because he knew that he wasn’t living and shouldn’t be warm, though there was the psychological memory of being flustered with frustration or anger in the past. 

Octavia was waving him off instantly, “No. No. Pleiades you are fine. I know you didn’t mean to,” Her hands were shaking from all the different emotions as she took a step or two back to feel herself in the comforting warmth and silk soft feathers of the man’s wings. She was trapped. Glancing behind her at the wall of black, she didn’t realize that his wings were around her, and she felt so small. 

“Uhm… can you?” She gestured lightly at his wings since she didn’t know how to ask him to just move… 

“Oh, yes. Yes, I am sorry,” His wings fluttered out before fluttering into a formation to lie nicely against his back. “D-do you need me to help you with those puncture marks?” That was the only thing he could think to offer her at the moment since he just caused little punctures into the flesh of her shoulder blades. 

The princess shook her head more in thought than telling him no, “How about you come with me Pleiades? I think I can do something to help you,” She grabbed into his hand before leading him back into the kitchen. “Let me clean this mess up quickly and we can go to my room,” Letting go of his hand, she moved over, and she began to clean up her mess. Pleiades stared at her for a few seconds before going over and cleaning up the dry dishes that were shattered. Placing them in a disposable bucket that Octavia placed her own broken cup into. 

Glancing at her she began to gather the pitcher of chai tea and a new cup in one hand. She walked over and grabbed onto his hand again, “What are you planning?” He inquired while grabbing his mug as he was pulled along to follow her. 

He allowed the princess to lead him back to her room and to sit on the edge of her bed. Pleiades wasn’t sure what she had planned but he watched the woman set down her items before looking through her nightstand. “Have you ever thought about flying your nails down? I can do that for you. They’ll grow back too. I just think it’s safer for everyone if you do,” She spoke out optimistically and hoped she wasn’t offending him in any way. 

“Trim my nails?” Pleiades sounded almost concerned as if that would hurt when he took one of his hands into the other. He was unsure if he wanted to let the princess cut his nails. He has used them to protect himself before. They were great tools at times. “What if it hurts or what if they never grow back?” Those were his main worries, especially the one about them never growing back. 

Bringing his hands against his chest, he seemed so nervous, “I’m pretty sure I have a blood supply to my nails with how they are… I don’t know if I want to…” The man wasn’t sure but he didn’t want to bleed out and die. It was not something that he had on his list of things to do… ever. 

Octavia sighed at the man’s anxieties, “I won’t trim them if you don’t want me to but can I at least file them down? So they are not as sharp so you don’t accidentally stab people by grabbing them? Like you did to me a few minutes ago,” The woman gestured out towards the door where they were in the house. Where he accidentally grabbed her too hard and caused superficial wounds on her shoulders and shoulder blades. 

Pleiades sighed at the comments and he nodded, “Fine, do what you want with them,” He offered one of his hands out to the woman. She smiled when he willingly gave him her hand and looked away. She sat on the bed with his hand in her lap as she began to file his nails down. They were roughly three inches naturally and she was filing them down a little less than that length. 

There were times when Octavia was pressing a little too hard on his talon-like nails and it groaned uncomfortable groans and shifts to come from him. She had the first hand done quickly as she took the second hand to match all the filing she did on the other hand. “Do you want your nails decorated? Since we are already filing them,” She offered as his face turned from out of his other hand and looked at her with a face that could only be taken as — are you serious right now? “I will take that as a no?” She vocalized with a slightly furrowed brow. 

“I told you to do whatever you wanted, you are the princess,” Pleiades repeated himself with a discontent groan as she began to finish up his nails. He watched the last nail get filed down before he took his hand away and grabbed at his palms. The filing of his nails caused his hands to feel overly sensitive and bothered. It was uncomfortable. More than anyone would ever know. They were filed down to an almond shape so they were not as pointy or sharp. Not as big of a nuisance. 

Octavia let out a laugh of disbelief more than anything, “Pleiades, I am not going to force you to do something that you do not want. Now do you or do you not want your nails decorated?” She repeated herself with more confidence this time because she wanted a clear answer. 

Pleiades shook his head in answer, “No, I rather have nothing on my nails,” The man honestly spoke as he glanced over at the princess. He was disappointed that he agreed to let her file his nails at all. It could be worse. At least he would be able to stab people so easily. 

“That wasn’t that hard of an answer, now was it?” She teased him because he made it a bigger deal than what it should have been. A simple yes or no answer would have sufficed. The woman noticed how protective he was of his hands when he got them back. It made her feel a little bad for filing them in the first place but they were far from looking human-like at all. Just duller than what they were originally. 

There was a discomfort in the air and it was practically radiating from the winged man as he rubbed at his hands. A gentle tingling was around each fingertip and he wasn’t sure if it was because of how sensitive he was or how rough Octavia was being — In truth, she wasn’t being that rough. “My fingers feel weird…” He mumbled those words as he stared at his hands while flexing them. “Also…” The man glanced over to her. “You are reacting very well to being hurt,” Those words came out so accusingly in tone. It was odd to him. He wanted some kind of answer to why she was so okay with being hurt even if it was shallow and not long lasting. 

Her face twisted and turned at his words while she cleaned off the file and put it back into her nightstand drawer. “I… It wasn’t a big deal,” She commented almost half-mindedly as if she was pushing everything off the table. She didn’t want to talk about any of it or have it brought up again. There were little things he had heard from the Queen about how the King treated his children, especially Octavia. 

A nod of his head responded to her as a silence fell between them. It was about ten minutes before Pleiades cleared his throat, “Before I interrupted you, what were you going to do?” He asked since she seemed to have a plan before he disrupted her schedule. 

Octavia let her eyes look at him for a second before looking over to the wicker basket that had a variety of yarns in it with a variety of tools that complemented the tasks at hand. She had many things to help her prepare the people of Dawnhaven for the winter and a faint smile appeared on her face, “I was knitting mittens and socks. Warmer ones for the upcoming winter,” She offered an explanation as she stood up to move the wicker basket to the edge of the bed. Half-done undyed wool mittens were picked up as she began to work on them again, “I have been trying to make more and extra because it is supposed to be a harsh winter. So harsh that shipments will not come in as easily,” This was something that had been constantly bothering her. A sinking feeling in her gut began as she vocalized it out loud. Something she was barely able to do with her husband. It was so difficult talking to him and she didn’t have a real reason why. 

The man was slightly distracted by the little stains of blood where he punctured her, “I wish I had skills to help you though I am not that good with my hands,” A chuckle escaped his lips while Octavia seemed to shudder from how delicate his fingers touched around the wounds. “Can I help you with this now? Bandage them up or something?” 

She shook her head, “Mister Emberani has been helping me. I need to find more help though it doesn’t seem to be a popular skill to have in Dawnhaven,” Those words were followed by a sigh because it was true. If they were in the capital… she would have all the help she needed though they were a month or so out from it. “And no, you do not need to tend to my wounds. I’ll have Elara or another healer take care of them later,” He honestly forgot that people had abilities. In his human state, he didn’t have any or any that he knew of. Never trained in magic. There could be hidden potential though he never dared try. After becoming a blight-born it was a bit more difficult to find someone willing to be around you long enough to train you in such an intense subject or trust you to have the abilities of magic like non-blight-born. 

“I sometimes forget that healing magic is a thing,” The man decided instead of getting up that he would get comfortable. Lying on the side of the bed that clearly was never used. He wanted to ask why it wasn’t. Why does she not sleep with her husband and share a bed each night? It was none of his business, yet he felt like he was nosy while trying to bite his tongue on the matter. “It might not be my place to ask such a question, but why do you not share a bed with your husband or a room at all?” The cursed man shifted his body a little more as he laid on his side while looking at the woman as she continued to knit and have her back face him. 

Her shoulders tensed when the question hit her, and she began to chew on her lip, “You don’t have to be in my room. You know that? You don’t have to be in the house actually. You can leave,” Was her first and final answer. She was not going to discuss this with anyone, let alone Pleiades, so she was hoping that he could drop it. 

Glancing away at the tone of her voice, he puffed out a bit of air to try and clear it, “I’m sorry that I asked,” he stayed quiet while allowing her to work her magic with yarn and bone needles. His eyes had a hard time not pinpointing the little wounds that he left on her upper body. There were quite a few fears that boiled in his chest. How would Flynn react if he noticed those? Was Elara going to judge? Were people going to want him burned at the stake for hurting their princess? Then his eyes blinked, and he was looking down at the bed in compilation. 

“I can feel you staring…” she whispered out with concentration. 

A sigh left his lips, “I’m sorry princess but you are bleeding…” 

A grumbling left her, “I told you to leave it alone. It’s fine. I’m fine,” Her words might have been to reassure him, though they did the exact opposite. That last part told him that she was not fine by how her voice cracked. He could hear her becoming frustrated before the soft thud of needles and yarn hit her lap. She put them back into the basket and put her face into her hands. Her mother always said that when you feel like you are at rock bottom, the only way is going up, yet she felt like she kept sinking lower. 

“I’m fine,” She repeated. 

Pleiades stayed on his side with his one hand propping up his head as he stared at the princess. “What if… theoretically speaking… you are not fine?” The man asked the question to see how she would respond. 

Her shoulders seemed to lessen in tenseness, “Theoretically?” She whispered out as if she needed reassurance. 

“Theoretically.” 

Her lips parted to say something yet nothing came out before tears began to stream down her face. “T-theoretically, I-I w-would say I am doing hor-r-rrible. That my wh-hole life is r-r-r-uined and I have no c-c-cont-r-rol ove-rrr it,” Octavia began to sob the more each word came out. She was struggling to speak but she was honestly in such a difficult position. Today, she found out her mother had passed most likely by her father’s hands, a blight-born, and her mother was having an affair, and her husband whom she had been out here for months with wasn’t as terrible as she thought he was yet she felt like it was even more of a hill to communicate with him. 

Pleiades seemed taken aback by her reaction, he stared while she began to break down, and he blinked once during that time. How was he supposed to respond to such a sudden shift in emotions? Reaching a hand out cautiously, his fingers stopped before they touched her shoulder, and he hovered there. Staring. Thinking. The last time she got emotional, she began throwing dishes at him, and he was somewhat scared she was going to freak out and possibly stab him with one of the bone-knitting needles. “Octavia,” His voice was soft while his hand was placed on her shoulder. 

There was no immediate answer for him as she continued to sob out her emotions. Something that appeared to be needed. Much needed. “What?” Her distraught tone rang out in the room. 

Pleiades sighed before he decided to use his strength, pulling her towards him, and not giving her time to respond before hugging her. Forcing her head to be against his chest as he held her there, “Stop crying. I don’t know what to do when people cry. I don’t know what to say and the last time you started throwing dishes at me,” He kept her there. Making sure she couldn’t escape or hurt him. His one hand began to pet her hair as he spoke to her. 

A mixture of a laugh and a scoff came out of her at those words, “I just need to cry, Pleiades. You don’t have to stay here,” She began to laugh a little more at the thought of the man feeling obligated to stay around her when she was like this. It made no sense in her mind. Octavia began to laugh a little bit with a smile though tears continued down her face. 

“You shouldn’t be in my room anyways. I bet my husband would hate that you are,” Octavia was honestly scared of what Flynn would say or do if she knew that anyone but his trusted friend or Elara was in her room. She was uncertain if he was like her father or not. There were no good kings… was there? The woman barely heard anything about the Aurelian king but she had heard more negatives than positives. Experiencing her own father was an overall negative as well. 

The man could not help rolling his eyes when she brought up Flynn and what he would think about him being in the princess's room. “If he really cares, where is he?” He huffed out. Then he sighed, “I don’t mean that… Flynn seems like a good guy for you but I can handle whatever mood he gets put in. You don’t need to be alone when you cannot control your emotions,” He stated since he didn’t know what goes on in other people’s heads. There have been plenty of times someone had hurt themselves or worse when emotions were high and they were left alone. Did he think Octavia would hurt herself? Not necessarily yet she was her mother’s daughter. He remembered one time being in Antoinette’s room after she and her husband had a severe argument. She picked up a glass and smashed it on her desk. It shattered in her hand and he spent hours picking the shards out of her flesh while scolding her. Pleiades knew that she wouldn’t have done that when she wasn’t put into such a state yet out of that state. He was honestly surprised the woman didn’t take her own life with how the king treated her and her daughters. 

Octavia’s brows furrowed when she listened to Pleiades and she pulled away from him. Looking into his eyes, “Flynn isn’t horrible… it’s just… being married to someone you don’t know is rough. It’s strange. None of it makes sense because you don’t have any ties or memories with that person,” She wanted to correct Pleiades because she felt like she gave him the wrong idea. Flynn was only trying to do his best. She understood if he was angry at her for having people in her room especially ones of the opposite gender when she barely would let him touch her — it was different with him. He was her husband and an authoritarian figure in her eyes. She didn’t know where she stood with him or how low on the pedestal she was under him. Not knowing her place was the core issue of most things she had with Flynn but she couldn’t find the words to even communicate that with Pleiades. 

“I didn’t mean to suggest he was a bad guy… I know he isn’t. Excuse my words, princess,” Pleiades stated. “And for being married to a total stranger, I have never had the opportunity, and don’t care to,” The man chuckled at his words since he would hate being married to anyone. At least he thought he would hate being married to anyone. 

She looked at the man seriously, “Well, royals don’t have the opportunity to marry who they won't like you or other people do, Mister Porter,” Octavia pointed out that there was a big difference between him and her on the social rankings. Royals were not as lucky to just live freely from her experience. They were constantly pestered for one thing or another. Education. Social skills. Behaviors. Attitude. Appearance. Even down to what utensils they use at the table or how they walk down a path. It had to be perfect and it was honestly an exhausting life. “Plus, who would want to marry a blight born?” Those words came out before she could think about what she was saying. 

Pleiades' eyes sharpened at that last sentence while he chewed on his inner cheek, “You are a very sassy ill-mannered princess from my experiences,” Octavia’s expression widened and her jaw fell open. “You clearly can do whatever you want except marry the person you want to,” He teased her with these words with a grin on his lips. 

Octavia looked like she had been struck by the man physically, “You take those words back right now, Pleiades Porter,” She demanded. “I am nothing of the sort. I did my best for Dawnhaven and did —” She was speaking as she began to sit on her knees and a greenish-gray finger was placed on her lips to stop her from talking. She looked almost offended by the gesture. 

“Shhh…” He let that sound snake out of his lips while looking into her eyes. “Stop before you start crying again. It’s childish really. Almost pathetic,” Pleiades licked his teeth while he spoke these sassy and undermining words out to the princess. 

A gasp of utter disbelief left Octavia. Smacking his hand away. “You sir, are a whore, and barely good for anything else but delivering letters to people on time,” She realized they were playing. Crudely and rudely though it caused her to feel almost lively. Not being treated like a princess or someone that was higher up like other people treated her. It was how Elara treated her in a sense except she was never rude and almost always kind and loyal to a fault. Maybe it was more similar to how Mister Emberani interacted with her except he was kinder than the man in front of her. “I will kick you out of this bed and this house and this town if you continue,” She stated. 

Pleiades sat up in the bed to be on a similar level as Octavia, their eyes almost level with each other, “Oh, I didn’t realize that you were like your father. Authoritarian. What had he said before? If you cannot stand rules changing. Then get out? He always seemed to love to change rules every time it benefited him. Do I sense a princess who is going to have an iron fist?” That was when his weight shifted and a thud echoed out from Octavia pushing him onto the floor. The man looked surprised that she actually did it. 

“You are awful,” She put her hand over her mouth as she tried to stifle a laugh at him falling off the bed from her push. “I am my mother’s daughter. Barely my father’s so take those words back too,” She continued to giggle and attempt to hide the smile behind her hand. The reddening of her cheeks that mixed with the staining of her salty tear stains from earlier. “You will not talk to me like that,” She tried to take a deep breath to calm down before she began to laugh harder. She barely knew why she was laughing though all the crying must have helped lighten her mood. 

Standing up from where he was, he put his hands on his hips, “Maybe if a certain princess learned how to put please in her vocabulary. I might consider it,” He continued to smile with the lightning of the mood. This was better than her sobbing and crying for sure. 

Putting her hands into her lap, she smiled, “Please, Mister Porter, can you be kinder and not talk to me like that?” 

“I do hear you, princess, but I doubt I can stop being myself so no. I will not stop,” That was when she threw a pillow at him in response. He caught it. Looked from behind it to throw it back to her. “And stop throwing things. Isn’t a princess supposed to be proper? I think you would have broken half of your husband’s dishes if I didn’t catch them,” He stated with a smirk. The man began to step backward to prepare if she was going to throw something else at him. 

She scoffed at him, “I’m sorry. I had a horrible day with that letter you gave me then you came and told me that my mom and you were having an affair. That I could have possibly had a half-sibling that was related to you. What did you expect? Me jumping for joy?” If he was expecting a more joyful reaction to such news. She was going to give him a cold reality. 

A shrug of his shoulders with his hands being thrown up in the air was his response, “I didn’t expect a princess to get so physically aggressive. Such ill manners even if the occasion calls for it,” He found it amusing that she was able to relax and get playful. It seemed like she needed it. 

The man walked around the bed while putting his hand up and taking a drink of the chai tea that was poured for him a while ago. “I do want to taste this drink before you break this cup too,” He took another sip of the drink with a smile on his lips. 

Putting her pillow back onto the others, she watched him drink his, and she sighed while moving over to the side of the bed. Her side. Where she put the pitcher of chai tea and poured herself a cup. “It’s weird to say but you are comfortable…” She sighed out while taking a drink of her tea. 

“Maybe it’s because I have no expectations for you or something like that,” Pleiades shrugged while enjoying the tea. “You make good chai tea, princess,” The man complimented her while sitting back on the bed. 

A smile formed on her lips, “Thank you,” Octavia felt like she could actually relax at the moment. It was nice. She needed to find more outlets like this. Something to blow off steam and lighten the mood. That couldn’t be Pleiades since that was not fair to Flynn. 

Pleiades smiled in return as he continued to enjoy the drink. Octavia seemed to get a little serious, “Pleiades… Can you stay with me? I know it might be too much to ask but I don’t want to be alone. I thought I did. I really did but I don’t,” She looked over to him to read his expression. 

He faintly smiled and nodded his head, “I can. I won’t leave until Flynn comes back so you aren’t alone,” He offered reassurance with his words. 

“Thank you. I appreciate it more than you know,” And he understood that the woman was not used to asking for things. She was reaching out at this moment. His mind was curious about where Elara, her handmaiden, was, and if she would show up sooner than Flynn or not. 

The room door was left halfway open and Pleiades found himself under the covers, lying in her bed, and Octavia asleep on his chest. Cuddled up to him and completely out from emotional and mental exhaustion. He gently brushed his nails and fingers through her hair as he lay there in his own thoughts. His moonlit eyes were more focused on Octavia’s sleeping face than anything else. 

…

…

…

Steam continuously rose and it was almost boring to stare at. It was disheartening that he felt the way that he did. That he didn’t want anyone except Flynn around and possibly one or two other individuals. It was a lack of ambition and an increase in pure exhaustion. An exaggerated sigh came out of him as he wondered who else he would see at the hot springs tonight. How long was he going to be here? “Maybe I should have found Flynn before entering the hot springs… this is honestly boring,” The man spoke to himself while glancing at the rose wine that he opened a little bit ago. It was barely touched. A few sips here and there. At this rate, he was going to have the whole bottle for himself, and that was honestly disappointing. 

Putting the bottle to his lips, he tipped it and took another sip. “At least you are keeping me company and you taste pretty good,” He held the bottle out to read the title of the wine. Then he turned to see what it was made out of. What fruits and so on. It tasted sweet and light compared to other wines that he had. Sunni wondered where it was from as well because he wanted to get more of it. Usually, there was a print of location, name, and so on. It wasn’t from his family's vineyards. 

Collaboration Self [multi-characters]
The Savant Member

You calm the echoes inside of me. How? Teach me.

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