Renn Elliot's Story

When the call went out , the sun had just begun its final descent for the evening, dipping partway under the horizon and splashing bands of red, orange and then finally violet across the sky. It had been a warm day, though not uncomfortably so, the first untouched by a series of careless thunderstorms that had darkened The Isle for days. To their chagrin, the charges who had largely been trapped indoors for days had been instructed that morning to remain close to The Compound that had become their home. There had been no lessons today, nothing formal, at least.

Arietta had secluded herself away in the library, taking over an entire table with a score of books. Anyone passing through wouldn’t even draw her attention as she flipped through pages, referencing and cross-referencing several tomes at once. She was making notes in a mixture of Greek and Hebrew, the characters so small that they were barely legible, and still she’d managed to fill three pages by midafternoon.

Simon was not his eminently approachable self. He’d apparently traded out his usual easy jocularity for surliness to rival Matthew’s, and spent most of the day hiding out in the small office where he held his confidential sessions. The Balaren Guardian was as solemn as ever, and shortly after dinner (which none of the Guardians had been present for), he enlisted Fleet and any charges willing to assist him in transporting quite a bit of firewood from the stores to the center of the courtyard, where he proceeded to build what looked to be the beginnings of a massive bonfire, neatly stacking the wood like Lincoln Logs until the resulting cube-like structure was nearly as tall as he was. He was characteristically laconic, only speaking to explain the need for proper draft if the fire was to burn all night, and other such survivalist tidbits.

Only Michaela was unaccounted for. Normally, she popped up periodically throughout the day, but she’d presumably consigned herself to the former officer’s quarters that the Guardians used for their more-and-more frequent, at least of late, meetings.

It had been a strange year by The Isle’s standards, though precious few of the current charges would understand that completely. In the past month alone, more than a half-dozen young men and women who had Awakened to their Bloodline had appeared. Most of them would have at least an idea of the fact that a half-dozen was a large number of charges for The Compound. All told, they numbered more than a score now, a fact which the Evincal would likely feel resonant with portent.

The instant that work on the tower of wood was complete, Fleet whipped his head about to regard Matthew with wide eyes. ”Is it time?!” he asked, his excitement even more vibrant than his usual insane baseline. Matthew merely nodded, and anyone in the immediate vicinity would be buffeted by a blast of breeze as the Wind-Born Navarene seemingly vanished. Most would be by now aware of his ability to become wind, rather than merely affect or create it, and in the form of a zephyr, Fleet raced throughout the grounds to give the call.

”Meeting in the courtyard!” He manifested physically for only just long enough to deliver his message before zipping off to find another young man or woman to inform. He scoured The Compound and the area surrounding it, stirring up leaves and dust in his wake as he flitted about, appearing before groups who had come together to talk, in dorm rooms, in the common area, even in the library and everywhere in between. ”Meeting in the courtyard! Meeting in the courtyard! Meeting in the courtyard!” He didn’t stop until every last soul on the island was aware of the convocation that would soon take place.

By the time the charges had begun filtering into the courtyard, the Guardians had all assembled save for Michaela. Arietta, looking as weary as ever, was seated in the lotus position with her eyes closed, not far from the pyre that Matthew had constructed. Fleet reappeared, frowning when he realized that he’d somehow lost his favored white fedora in his rapid fit of transformation and exclamation. Matthew was leaning to the left of The Compound’s main entrance, his arms crossed over his chest and his features blank. Simon had emerged from his office, and was currently pacing back and forth in front of the officer’s quarters, his agitation more than evident in the form of some low-toned self-muttering.

It was only after each and every one of the young men and women had gathered about the courtyard that Michaela emerged from the officers’ quarters. A simple white cotton dress draped her form, and her bright smile was a beacon of reassurance. She maintained it even when Simon bee-lined for her, and stopped to engage in a terse conversation with him. Their words would go unheard, but there was no mistaking that the exchange was anything but pleasant, if only for the fact that the air around them began to show ripples, reflecting the Omarain Guardian’s agitation in visual form. It was concluded quickly enough. Simon’s expression was even bleaker as he stalked off to lean beside Matthew, who was carefully avoiding making eye contact with the Mori.

Michaela drew a single breath, and in that span regained her composure utterly. The distortions surrounding her ironed themselves out, replaced by a warm aura of soft white light. As she walked directly toward the pyre, illusory flowers, poppies in white and crème and egg-shell sprung up in her wake, creating a path behind her. The trail of flowers followed her, then pooled out around her when she came to a stop, as if she had simply come to stand in the center of a thick patch of them.

”Everyone, gather ‘round please.” She was too dignified to shout, but her voice carried remarkably, reaching every ear and tugging at every mind. It was little more than a simple request, but it was difficult to deny. Arietta tried to catch her eye, and when she did, Michaela shook her head succinctly. The Evincal Guardian just nodded a tired nod and closed her eyes, remaining completely still upon the ground.

”This won’t take very long at all,” she explained, panning her gaze to draw in each of them, address each of them. ”I know you’re all probably wondering why you’re here, in this courtyard, but more than that, why you’re here. On The Isle. With everyone finally settled in, it’s high time that you learn the purpose of this place, one of the world’s last bastions of magic, and your purpose in this place.” She was a perfect admixture of solemnity and wisdom as she began her speech, but she dazzled them with a vibrant grin. ”I also have a surprise for all of you, but that will have to wait till after the end of the story.”








The faerie prince was uncharacteristically alone when the messenger arrived.

Aaron did not normally seek out solitude. Generally, he fled it. He was seldom in his room, save to sleep, change his clothes, and shower, but when he was simply there, he tended to leave his door open, a standing invitation to all the courtiers who had reason to petition him (there had never been an actual petition, of course, but he eagerly awaited the day that the first of many came). Tonight, though, the door stood closed and even locked. His endeavor was a private one, and distractions were the mortal foes of such work- foes that the faerie prince had no defense against save for seclusion.

He’d been at it since just after dinner, though not to great success. The idea, like most of his, had sprung fully formed but elusive from his mind, and he was having difficulty getting his mental hands upon it now that it was free. He already had pen and paper, used for sending missives to his family, which was all he truly needed for the task at hand: to begin to commit to ink on paper the story of the faerie prince. His story.

It was proving a challenge that might ironically be termed princely. Words came easily to him, when speaking, but catching them with the nib of a pen and then sticking them fast to paper was proving an entirely different matter. Thus far, he’d managed after three attempts to arrive at a working title (the appropriate but not particularly inspired Tales of The Faerie Prince), and nothing else worth keeping. He’d tried speaking aloud, saying words and then writing them down afterwards in effort hopes of fooling the fickle Muses into helping him. They were apparently cannier than he’d suspected. He’d tried making lists with bullet points to organize his thoughts, but his thoughts were not made for such a static, rigid template. From the small graveyard of balled up sheets that were now scattered about the floor around and beneath his desk, an observer might have thought him in the midst of penning a novel full, but fortunately, there were no observers to bear witness to the fitful process.

At least, there weren’t until Fleet arrived. His gusty entrance sent the crumpled pages skittering, and Aaron had to lunge, using his forearm to trap the almost-empty expanse of white paper that he’d been staring at intently for the past ten minutes while thinking instead of what Graham might be up to, or if Renn was busy with Erin, or if Milo would like the title he’d come up with, or… well, of anything but the task at hand, really, in order to keep it from flying away from him. Startled and embarrassed (though he’d never admit the latter), he wheeled around in his seat (literally, it had wheels) to face the intruder.

”Meeting in the courtyard!” He heard the call before he saw the speaker.

His wroth fled when he noted it was Fleet. The Navarene Guardian never failed to bring a bright grin to Aaron’s full lips. Lifting a hand to brush down a bit of fitfulness that his spun-gold hair seemed to have engaged in thanks to the miniature localized windstorm that was Fleet, he relaxed in his seat and regarded the man. ”How now, spirit? Whither wander you?” His voice rang out like music, the first part of an exchange that he never failed to encourage. The words had come to mind immediately when he’d first met Fleet, and like most of the words that came into his mind, they had exited soon thereafter through his mouth. Fleet had been confused, but after a few encounters, had begun to respond, creating something of an inside joke between the two that the elemental didn’t quite comprehend but enjoyed nevertheless.

”Sorry Aaron, very busy. Something about a girdle! Gotta go!” With that he was gone, and this time, a somewhat dejected Aaron was unable to stop the first page of his great work from sailing from his desk to under his bed. A meeting, in the courtyard? Only in the messenger’s absence did he process the message. Such an event wasn’t unprecedented, but neither then was it ordinary. Aaron’s affinity for all things out of ordinary abolished his frustrations with the Muses from his mind. He hopped to his feet, arching his back in feline fashion to stretch. He glimpsed himself in the glass (he’d read a story that had referred to mirrors as glasses, which had initially confused him, but now he’d adopted the terminology into his increasingly archaic vocabulary) to ascertain that he was ready for a public appearance.

He was already wearing his favorite shirt, one that he’d found in the cache of spare clothing (a simple white linen peasant’s shirt with billowing sleeves and a plunging neckline that showed off a great deal of his pale chest), along with a pair of breeches (really, they were simple dark khakis, but he rolled the legs up to his mid-calves and insisted they were breeches). He waxed and waned on wearing shoes and decided that he’d prefer his feet bare. The sound of them slapping the concrete floor of the hallway that led out of the dorm area in a rapid rhythm would announce the faerie prince’s timely departure. It wasn’t quite a run, or a skip, or a dance, but something that sat fixed squarely between the three, as playful, impatient, and amusing to watch as Aaron himself.

He was among the last to arrive, which only meant that he didn’t have time to sort out who he meant to stand with around the bonfire. His violet eyes flitted about, evaluating the prospects, and he started towards Renn, eager to see if the Earth-Born might know what was going on.

”Everyone, gather ‘round, please.”

Michaela’s voice drew his attention to her immediately, in a way that her mastery of illusion never could. The boy was as susceptible to Glamour as anyone, maybe even moreso, and a smile scrawled itself across his features as he simply stopped moving, standing in place to listen. His eyes lit up and did a rather remarkable saucer impression at the revelation that followed her introduction: a story AND a surprise. There were few things that Aaron enjoyed more than either, and he was hard-pressed to decide which he preferred (never mind that he had no idea what the surprise was). Fortunately, he needn’t decide at all; he was getting both!

With story-time looming, he assumed his favorite position for tale-telling; he lowered himself with aplomb into an “Indian” style of sitting, his legs folded up above and beneath one another, and then balanced his elbows on his knees and his chin in his palms, leaning forward in a show of eagerness for what was to come.

At this point in the afternoon, Renn has brought Darcy out to the beach of the Isle in a whim of frustration and desire. Since it's very unusual for him to act out from his routine, he's very frustrated with the whole idea, and second-guessing himself the whole time. Darcy, who's just as confused as he is for bringing her out here, then not talking, then when he does speak, being blunt, unfiltered, and socially awkward, has pulled down a few walls of her own, letting him in. They're both in a very dangerous point, because her walls of defense are down, and his words seem to ring with nothing but blunt, unemotional desires due to his Bloodline tendencies. Yet, somehow, things seem to be going very well. At least for now.

---

"Thank you."

He was sure that at some point she'd said it, but once again, his mind was too wrapped around the physical touch he'd just received to hear her words at first. The way she reached for his arm, pulling him closer - it sent up shocks through his system, and he could feel the slightest tremor beneath his weight on the rock. Was it the ground? Was it happening again? Or was it, in fact, him. Just as his mind began to wonder about training more with her around to better prepare himself for these kind of circumstances, she interrupted his whole psyche once more. Stop that! I have a routine. A system. It works. I'm talking more. What am I doing wrong? She keeps ruining it. -- No.. No, she's not. This is fine. This is progress. It's only frustrating because you're inadept. It's jus---

She kissed him. Granted, the kiss was planted on his cheek, but that was more than enough for him. In four years of celibacy and complete and total isolation from human contact, let alone from a person of the opposite sex, Darcy Lilith Ratri just kissed him. The rock beneath him appeared to shudder again, but it was so subtle that he assumed he was just falling off of it from weak knees.

"I like to pretend like my 'gift' is the ability to be calm, but it frustrates me a lot. I want to be able to develope with people as easily as it seems others can do." That's right. Talk. Keep the conversation. You're better at that. Maybe she won't touch you again. - But I want her to.

He looked over at her nervously, arching a brow as her whole demeanor changed a little more serious in tone.

"I think your gift offers more than you think." She grabbed the Beach Pea, twirling it in her fingers. "It brought me happiness because of you," giving the slightest shrug. "Which means you brought me happiness with it. You made me happy, not the beach. You did."

For Renn, it was beginning to be a little too much, a little too fast; however, it was intoxicating, and he was drawn in. His defenses? His bloodline ability to remain calm, sedated, and at all times at peace? He'd never once found a weakness until now. Darcy. He knew he cared, but for her to reciprocate it like this... Well, that was what I had expected, right? When I brought her out here? What was I thinking!

He jumped up from the rock, taking his distance carefully in to consideration. He didn't walk off, he didn't flee to the water line and blow it off like he was playful. Instead, he just simply stood and remained near her. He was close enough that with her legs dangling off of the rock, her knees met his elbows. His body shuddered at the slightest breeze of her leg hitting him. An earthquake was erupting. Somewhere. Maybe it was him. He looked down, checking his hands, his skin. He mentally checked his pulse - fast beats. He was getting worked up. There was something inside of him that was making it's way to the surface. He wouldn't hurt her, would he? He certainly didn't want to, but he'd never experienced such a work up since his awakening.

He turned around and looked at her. She'd said something. Remember it. She'd said, specifically, that he was the cause of her current happiness. He'd succeeded. There was no more trial. He'd already won. Get a hold of yourself before you knock off all this progress. But what if he startled her? What if it was too much, too fast for her?

This was going to get real awkward, real fast, but he had a plan. He ran his fingers through his hair, letting out a breath.

"I made you happy." He repeated, though rather than his tone sounding reassuring to himself, it was a statement, a reminder spoken to her. He drew closer, turning to face her and stare in to her eyes intently. "I wanted to." He nodded. Keep going. You've got this. She isn't going to run. She won't run. He drew even closer, leaning against his palms on either side of her legs, the rock as his support so that he didn't quite touch her yet. "I want to." He spoke more clearly, this time definite and strong. His breath was still shaking, but determination and sincerity mixed to create the colors in his eyes before he shut them, bringing up a hand to gently cup the back of her head and pull her to him. At first, his lips found her cheek, then her jawline. You can do this. You won't hurt her.

He finally found her lips, and if she didn't resist him, he would have found desperation there, but it would only last a matter of seconds. His courage would be short-lived. When all was said and done, he would have stopped himself abruptly, staggered backwards as if in a drunken state, and turned around, facing the waves. He brought up a hand to wipe his brow and sit down. He didn't care now, if she was going to run or stay. He found his ground, he felt it beneath his fingers as they caressed the sand before reaching up and running his hands through his hair, as if trying to push out the frustration and stress caused by the whole encounter.

Flashes of the earthquake, the car's weight falling with them inside of it, the crushing of the metal and frame.. The piercing of the girl's chest with the twists and turns that the split ground had created. No. We're not going there. Don't even think about it. He shut his eyes tight and laid back on the sand, letting out a sigh and a laugh - something often found together when one just relieved them self with sex. As if I will let it even get that close.

She was going to be the end of him, but the part of him that just showed himself welcomed it with open arms.

---

The reaction Darcy had gotten from Renn was unexpected, but she couldn't judge him for backing away. Everyone had always done that to her, so now was unlike any other time. This was the moment for her to excuse herself and go find something better to do. The thought of something better didn't exist though because this was the better of the Isle; Renn. Looking down at him, she knew that him staying close to her meant something. If he didn't like her, he wouldn't have even brought her here. She wanted to reach down to him and let him know that she was still here because the silence was beginning to get to her.

The beach offered the most welcoming breeze that seemed to take over Darcy's hair as she leaned back letting the silence appear more peaceful than anything. When she finally leaned forward, she managed to push her hair out of her eyes just in time for Renn to turn back around. "I made you happy." She nodded once more to confirm what he said. "I wanted to." Everything on the beach seemed to be at a stand still as his arms seemed to trap her between him and the rock. Her breathing had slowed as she watched him speak, "I want to."

Darcy's breathing completely stopped when she felt herself being brought towards Renn. She wanted to run in this moment. She didn't want to get close to him. This wasn't how things were suppose to be here at all. She was suppose to be alone the rest of her life. She didn't deserve happiness, but the second his lips touched her cheek her whole world seemed to fade. As his lips found her jawline, she sunk deeper into the grasp of Renn until finally she felt his lips against her own. Feeling their lips part, she wanted to open her eyes to see that he felt what she did in that short amount of time, but instead all she saw was his back.

The moment seemed so perfect until she opened her eye's, so she quickly closed them again hoping that when they once again peered out in front of her he would have returned. Instead as her eyes were closed, she heard the laugh come from across the beach. Eyes shooting open, she saw Renn with his back to the ground. Did he regret this? He definitely regrets it. Leave. Go. Now. Her mind was going a million miles a minutes until she felt her feet on the ground. Her body found the path that led back to the Compound and all she had to do was start taking it.

Go. Don't look back. He's not worth it. Her mind was seeming to get the best of her until she did turn around. He still remained on the sandy beach in the same position seeming happier than ever. Don't even think about it. Her mind was now screaming at her as she seemed to be practically running across the beach. He was worth it. He was worth having to fight herself over. When she found herself hovering over his body, Darcy dropped to her knees. She brushed his hair from his eyes, looking deep within them. "I no longer want to run, especially from you."

Darcy remained on her knees, welcoming Renn's head into her lap as she began stroking his hair. Her gaze had remained on the water for a long time before she spoke up again. She had been gathering her words carefully because she felt the whole situation was still on edge. Stroking Renn's hair seemed to calm her more than anything, so she continued doing it for quiet some time before sliding away from him. "Let's go swimming." She whispered to him, making her way to the water. "To be honest, I've never actually been in the water." She said as she made her way to where the tide seemed to be coming up.

---

She was going to be the end of him, but the part of him that just showed himself welcomed it with open arms.

To sum up the most recent, note-worthy events of Renn's life would be to tell someone about the most boring person in the universe -- even for a Navarene. Try explaining to someone that there is a man who's socially in-adept to even a woman's curves, her body language, and carrying on a conversation with her about anything related to emotions and personality, desires and dreams, ... Add in the part where his moods seem to never change, regardless of what you try to pull out of him with her verbal abuse or flattery, and then finish off with that in the 4 years he'd been on the Isle, he'd managed not to touch a girl until the anniversary of his stay... and you would have Renn, the Earth manipulating Navarene.

Some would cheer him on, some would apply their palms to the face, and then there were others, like Renn himself, who saw it as simply... nothing. It wasn't that he wasn't attracted to her - the attraction was there. It's just that it had all seemed so monumentous, the moment he'd just shared with her on the beach, and despite that, he honestly couldn't have been happier to hear the calling, ”Meeting in the courtyard!” It was like someone handing him a "Get out of jail free!" card.

As the voice and breeze passed, Renn looked over at Darcy, who'd indulged in a bit of fun in the water while he stood with his pants rolled up to his shins, his sandals back behind him as his bare feet sunk in to the ground as the water washed him away. She was enjoying herself - or so she seemed to be. She had one of those grins on her face, and part of him was worried that the notion of a meeting would turn off the whole thing and she'd go back to... well, the way she normally was. Either way, Renn shrugged and waved her over, relaying the message.

"There's a meeting in the courtyard. Bye." Renn stated, flatly. His smile was present from before through the statement - despite that the tone and expression were as different as night and day - and turned on his heel, collecting his sandals and making his way up the sidewalk. He didn't bother offering her an arm, it didn't even cross his mind to think of asking her if she needed a lift over the sand so that she wouldn't get it stuck to her wet feet. Instead, his focus has completely shifted from Darcy to the meeting, and he was needed somewhere else. His routine returned like clockwork. Their moment had never happened. He'd never tapped on her window, frustrated with the social barrier that wedged itself between them, and he'd certainly never lead her down to the beach for a confession and kiss.

Not a single emotion carried with him from that moment in time to the place he stood now. His expression was neutral, if not welcoming in the presence of the other charges, and he looked up to the speaker - Michaela. With as much respect he had for any of the guardians, he nodded to her his attention and then found himself standing just behind Aaron, almost like a guard dog. Not that Aaron was ever in danger in this place, but as he was his only real friend here, if you'd call it that, he felt the most comfortable in his presence of a crowd. Aaron could handle crowds, he charmed them without effort. Renn, on the other hand, didn't like gatherings of large people. If he could focus on Aaron and standing next to him while Michaela's voice rung through his ears, then everything would be alright. It didn't even bother him that Seph was also present. He did his best to crack a smile in the corner of his mouth at her, but he wasn't sure she saw it in all the excitement.

He looked down at Aaron with a slight waving gesture of just a flick of his wrist and then stood firm, looking up at the others.

The darker gray colour connected with the slightly brighter one, gradually creating shadows on her painting. It had yet to take up a specific shape or even idea. Erin usually let her fingers do the walking and watched as a dark, yet beautiful image came to life on her canvas. Her breathing had finally evened itself out, now moving in a steady, controlled rhythm. Her face was expressionless, her eyes emerald and almost glowing in the darkness of her room. She had the curtains drawn, and only a little lamp on her desk was illuminating the room. She preferred it that way… today at least; keeping herself secluded and distant from everyone around her. Too much light brought the uneasiness back. So far she had spent three hours fighting the dark part of her so furiously shouting for her to let it go, clawing at her control. She closed her eyes briefly, a gust of air leaving her lips, which currently were painted dark red. It was just one of those days. The horrible, dark days. Days where she stayed away from Daniel in particular, but also even Renn. The two men were getting close and she knew that they were the reason her inner darkness was so eager to take over. She could feel its need to kill them; to remove them as the obstacles they were.

As it was, Erin had woken up, drenched in sweat after a dark, bloody nightmare. She had, as usual, been standing by that huge fall of fire, hearing cries from the other side of his; cries for help. They needed her to release them, begged her to take away their pain. They were demons, she knew that, and she had grown to stop caring about the screams. Of course the young woman had never been one for empathy, but they had still touched her at first. The fire wasn’t unusual, but the black-eyed copy of herself next to her was – she only came when Erin began caring about someone again. It was a warning. She opened her eyes, glancing at the tiny lamp. That little ray of light. Her lips quirked up into a wry smile as she thought of the irony – turn off that light and you’re left in complete darkness; that bit of light was really all Erin had left. If these people died, so would her last bit of light and she’d be swallowed by the darkness. She took a deep breath, glancing at the black kitten half-sleeping on her bed. “Maybe I should just give in,” she mused, looking at the kitten. Irayah lifted her head lazily, her words sounding so clearly in Erin’s head, ”that’s what I keep telling you.” She was exasperated, and Erin frowned at her, wondering for the hundredth time why she still kept the damn thing around.

Then she shook her head, about to return to her painting when Irayah cried out, a loud sound, startling the female Mori. She wheeled around, sighing when she caught sight of Fleet. That’s all she did though before the Navarene had disappeared again, his words only just having reached her ears. She turned her eye towards the roof, almost as if praying for divine intervention. Of course, however, she would never do that. She didn’t really have an appreciation for religion, for obvious reasons. Irayah had moved into a standing position on the bed, ”Are you going then?” She asked, her voice a little eager. Oh yes, she sociable demon kitten. How quaint. Erin glanced at the cat before taking a look at herself in the mirror, making a face. “I don’t think I have much of a choice, you know.” She couldn’t quite keep the irritation out of her voice. She shook her head; she was only wearing a long, white paint-splattered shirt over a pair of old jeans. She wasn’t going out in that. It didn’t bother her that others saw her in it, but she didn’t walk outside her room in it. Just a weird quirk, she supposed. The kitten snorted. ”If you walk out there sulking like that, pretty boy’s going to approach you, and you know it.”

She glared at the demon and her nickname for Daniel, before quickly dressing in this. She shook her head, letting her hair fall free as usual, her panda-eyes in place along with the dark red gloss on her lips. She looked at the demon kitten. “Are you coming, or do you have more to comment on?” The black creature jumped onto her shoulder, getting comfortable. ”You look like a mean slut,” she then said, an appraising tone in her voice. Only Irayah would ever consider that a compliment. Erin rolled her eyes and for the first time today, ventured outside. She blinked at the light, but soon got used to the brightness. What did these people want from her this time? Meeting in the courtyard. She was beginning to wonder what it was about, pondering in her mind silently while her heels clicked on the floors of the compound on her way to the courtyard, her plan clear in her mind. 1: go to the courtyard to see what the guardians want, 2: go back to her own room to sulk some more, 3: argue with Irayah about the attention she was sure to procure herself today, and finally, 4: go to bed and forget about this entire, horrid day.

The blonde made it outside, wincing inside at the sight of the many people gathered. She’d known she’d be late, but then again… she always was. Fortunately nothing seemed to have happened yet. Her face impassive, her eyes cold and distant, Erin made her way down to the back of the crowd, away from anyone who might approach her when she wanted solitude. Then again… Graham or Markus might just calm down the clawing her darkness was currently doing. Sometimes she wanted to scream at it to leave her alone. Speaking of Markus, there he was. Her eyes grazed him for a second before leaving him again. Such an odd thing, this pull she felt towards him – she knew it was due to the darkness, but it was still incredibly irritating. She stood by herself, not really looking at anyone, yet looking everywhere - noticing Daniel by Seph and Sinry, something that calmed her a little, knowing he had no time to notice her -, with her characteristic seemingly innocent black kitten on her shoulder. For once the thing remained quiet. Both their heads snapped up when Michaela spoke, however. Erin frowned, feeling Irayah’s unease. The demon didn’t like light magic. In fact, she only held any love for Mori magic. Demon pride and all.

Both demon and owner stood still, listening to the guardian’s words. Erin rolled her eyes. Great. It seemed she’d have to spend an awful lot of time here, when all she wanted to do was leave. Stories and surprises? None of these things could be said to be Erin’s favorites, in any way. She noticed others wore eager expressions and she sighed softly. These things were the reasons she sometimes just wanted to leave the Isle. These amazingly long, incredibly boring gatherings and the fact that some people actually liked them. Maybe her mood was just sour, or maybe she actually did despise these things. Really, she didn’t ponder it mainly because she didn’t care. Right now she thought what she did, and it wasn’t going to change. Still expressionless, however, the Mori watched the guardians, kitten on her shoulder a little tense. She didn’t like it when Irayah grew tense; the demon had an almost uncanny intuition.

Artemis was not difficult to find, he was where he always was, sitting under the wide awning that covered his table and chair in the Garden. Of course the term his may be a misnomer as that implies his procession of it however it was more or less his own in the minds of most due to the substantial amount of time he spent in it. He was, as was his custom, simply sitting there, a small tape recorder on the table and his eyes glancing lightly through the rife of paper that he held in his hand with a fountain pen in the other. He made small notes on several sheets as he read quietly and contently to himself yet this was not a forgone notion as normally he would think aloud to himself or anyone that would listen but to the contrast of custom.

His silence could easily be attributed to several things each more varied than the last and spanning everything from his skipping breakfast to the abnormally dark circles under his eyes form lack of sleep or due to his slightly irritated brow that while relaxed and subversive now had for the most part of the morning been furrowed in frustration at something. Whatever the reason for his silence it remained as he continued to quietly read over his pages, forcing concentration on the material in his hand. This was not he favourite activity, rather to the contrary this was his least, he always loathed reading over the editors manuscript of his works.

The pages were all neatly stacked and bound simply with six through ties of brass, a classic manuscript, the pages in a small courier type seemingly spaced to be devoid of all emotion, he always hated these manuscripts but that was the publishing world, it lacked the intricate nuances that the work itself exposed to the world in its painfully industrious efficiency. Thankfully his contract permitted him some choice on the final products font and spacing, he’d have to determine that before the final draft was due.

“Damn.” He cursed as he took the pen’s cap from his mouth and made several marks on a page near the rear quarter of the manuscript, “I like that dialogue… I don’t care if it’s grammatically incorrect… editors.” He mentally made note to ensure that he got the chance to talk with his editor again, the first time he was being scouted for publishing the editor had read several of his more grammatically sparse dialogue exchanges with a sneer and made a point to chastise Artemis for them.

”Have you even been through middle school kid?” the man had asked, forcing Artemis to stifle a frown and several memories, the short answer was no of course.

“Well uh… I was just taking a, umm… a literary license.” Artemis had explained with more than one nervous gesture.

The elder woman glanced up over the brims of her reading glasses causing Artemis to gulp at the time due to her rather imposing nature, “Hemingway had a literary license… you’ve got a learners permit.” That was her most memorable rebuttal that caused him to smile even now.

“Wonder if I’ve graduated yet?” he muttered aloud, of course one would hear it, that one being Fleet, who had just arrived to inform Artemis of a meeting in the Courtyard. Unfortunately the gust of air caused Artemis to leave a streak across his notations before the air blew the page he was on away making him lose his place. However, rather than get frustrated he breathed out and nodded to allow the very dedicated Guardian to move on, Artemis knowing he wouldn’t until he was sure that he had been heard. “Got it, be there in a few moments.” With a smile cast to the man before he left Artemis managed to keep up the façade long enough for no one to see the furrowing of his brow as he looked at the manuscript. He’d intended to finish proofreading it that evening so as to afford a day to himself tomorrow, though with this interruption he highly doubted that would still be possible.

Artemis arrived in his typical garb of levis lean cut jeans (dark wash, matching belt shoes, a button down white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and a simple brown vest to match his black shoes. After arriving a few moments following Aaron and the others he moved gently through the aft grouping of charges to settle nearest his preferred Guardian, Simon. He smiled and greeted a few without making a scene before moving to stand near the back closer to the other Guardians, more specifically he leaned against a nearby tree adjacent to Simon. He caught the exchange, something those who were less adjusted to the Isle might miss, and his brow furrowed yet again. However Artemis was no fool, far from it, and knew not to question it, not here, not now. Yet as the head of the island made such theatrics he had to wonder if it was at all necessary to be so flamboyant for a story. Even for an Omarian? “Insert ironic joke here.” He muttered to himself as he thought of the catch twenty two of an author judging flamboyant storytelling. He couldn't help but blink several times as her power washed over him, he hated the fact that it clouded his rampant thoughts, but he relaxed knowing the futility of resistance and just let the stroy begin.

Darcy Lilith Ratri

The day had been everything but what Darcy had even thought would happen. From the second Renn appeared up at her window to being brought down to the beach to feeling Renn's lips touch her own, she was in utter disbelief. This wasn't the Renn she had grown to know on the Isle. He was completely different in the sense that he had shown her that he cared for her rather than bury the feeling like she often did with her own. She was feeling happier than she had her entire time on the Isle. The second he joined her in the water, Darcy felt like they had found a reason to be happy again. Renn had barely gotten in the water, but Darcy had worked with the effort by splashing him on occasion. The smile that Renn had put on her face had remained throughout the evening. The sun had already set by now, but they would have plenty more together at the rate their happiness for each other provided. She had just tripped back into the water when she heard the message flow across the Isle. "Meeting in the courtyard."

Darcy found herself by Renn's side expecting the two to walk to the courtyard together. When she offered out a hand for him to help her out, she expected to feel his hand quickly swoop her out of the water, but instead while she was glancing back at the water one last time, she heard Renn's voice. "There's a meeting in the courtyard. Bye." She glanced up to see what had come over him, but his back was already towards her and moving further away with every step. She stood there for a few more seconds hoping he would turn around, but he never once glanced back at her. "What the hell!"
She had manage to pull herself from the sand, where she now stood staring out to where Renn had headed off to. A mixture of anger and disappointment ran through her as the shadows casted by the rocks began to grow. She begged herself to gather control, but instead the shadows now took over the entire beach. She took several deep breaths until the beach was back to the normal state of shadows.

How could he just walk away? Darcy's breathing was irregular as she found herself inside her dorm room. Why am I here? Why.. Why? The dripping from her clothes reminded her why she had came to her dorm first. The sound of each drip that fell from her shirt was matched by a tear from herself. She had opened up to him. She had let him in. She let nobody in, and the first person just walks away. She gave her left eye a rough rub, trying to remove all the tears that were now building before they could fall. She stripped to her bare self as she searched for something to wear. She couldn't let Renn see that he had broken her again. She quickly put together an outfit that she felt would show that the moments today didn't phase her. When she looked in the mirror, she gave a small nod to herself for what she managed to pull together. Now to just seem like my old self. That shouldn't be too hard for her considering all she had to do was not smile.

It made her actually smile at the idea of not smiling to be herself. She shook her head as she grabbed her guitar, swinging the strap over her shoulder. It was a good enough excuse to explain why she was one of the last to arrive at the courtyard. She gave herself one last glance in the mirror before leaving the dorm room. She had been walking for only a few minutes when the crowd came into view. She didn't even bother looking for Renn because she knew where he'd be. That meant she didn't need to look for Aaron because then she'd more than likely find herself spotting Renn close behind the Omarain. She decided that being on the outer lining of the group was the better route to take, but the idea of Renn thinking she was hiding made her push through some fellow Isle members. Finding herself near the center made her happy until she did finally manage to see Renn. Seeing him indifferent made Darcy clinch her first, until a few shadows began to grow.

She had no choice, but to go near him due to Xylea being beside Aaron. "Fan-fucking-tastic," she spoke under her breath as she sat next to her fellow Navarene that she felt very connected with. "Hi." The only word that came out of her mouth as she sat close to her friend, letting her head rest on the friend's shoulder. "You look lovely as--" She stopped when she realized Xylea's attention was drawn to Michaela and rolled her eyes. Darcy knew Michaela was beautiful like every other student on campus, but most didn't realize that Michaela didn't even have to use her glamour to come off as beautiful as she was now. She envied the beauty Michaela brought to a crowd, but looked up to Omarain Guardian as if she was Darcy's.

She leaned back glancing at Renn, turning her face into the most stern one she could manage. "How has your day been?" Her question was directed at Renn, but considering neither of the three present in the area were looking at her they could all answer if they wanted.

---

Harvey Mak Chinnen

"I'm coming as soon as I'm accepted! I gotta be reviewed, bitches."

Audibly expressing his boredom through a variety of melodramatic grunts, sighs, and groans, Graham lay sprawled out on the floor of his room, stretching and curling his fingers absently towards the faint glow of the light twirling overhead...Reduced to playing with fragments of light...surely at some point, he must have slipped from moderately bored to completely out of his mind with tedium, there was no other practical explanation for such otherwise. Another deep sigh to add to the rooms growing collection of such, and Graham lazily rolled into a sitting position, chin resting on his hand as he contemplated what he could possibly do, yet again

Under normal circumstances, he'd probably go seek out Aaron, but the boy had wanted to be left to his own devices for the night and there seemed little point to bother him--most things done alone tended towards the dull-er side of things, anyways. His usual back-up plans of Seph and Soren had fallen through as well, both having disappeared off to who knows where, probably the library or some likewise monotonous location he was likely to never enter. There wasn't any senseless flattery to be reaped from Hazel, she'd likewise disappeared before he'd even awoken--halfway into the day, of course, practically nocturnal as he was. The frigid Mori girl had shut herself off from all and any this fine afternoon, sealed away in her cave of a room painting or some trite--monopolizing that adorable kitten of hers all to herself, the audacity! Last he'd seen him, Milo had been napping quite peacefully all day and far be it from Graham to disturb a man's rest, he had some standards. The glorious Vendi had taken to carrying lumber on behalf of the moody old wolf, which had proved a show in itself up until the point he had to follow to keep watching; far, far too much effort for it to be worth it by then, so he too was not a viable distraction. Even Graham's own dashing counterpart, Markus, was hardly viable entertainment as of the moment, prancing about as he was, doing exercise, ugh, no way would the lazed Graham ever partake of such activities--watch for a bit, to admire the sheen of sweat on muscle and all, sure, but actually exercise just for the sake of it, that was sheer madness!...and really, really boring, ugh, not to mention the smell, how distasteful.

Essentially everyone, who mattered to Graham at least, was indisposed in some form or another and so still he remained, horribly, terribly bored, lounging on the floor with absolutely nothing to do. It wasn't even like he could go explore the isle himself either, not because he felt some responsibility to obey the whims of the Guardians, but rather as he was sure there had to be something interesting happening today for everyone to be making such a hassle--he was waiting for the show. A show he was sure to not miss, even if he would have to endure an hour of mind-numbing, agonizing monotony until then. Again, a dramatic sigh, and again Graham plops down forcefully on the ground beneath him to twirl his fingers 'round the specks of light. If something didn't happen soon, he was going to burst, he was sure of it, little bits of Graham Confetti everywhere and anywhere...it'd be a hassle to clean up, at the very least.

It was then, as though the forces that be realized the danger a ridiculously bored Graham would present to the fabric of reality--or just by chance, that Fleet made his way into the previously locked chambers of Graham. "Meeting in the Courtyard!" the Navarene called once and then was gone, leaving a furiously blinking Graham in his wake to ponder how exactly he'd gone about opening the doors...Eh, oh well, probably best to not fret over such things, 'twas what news he was after anyways. With a speed uncharacteristic of the normally fairly languid Graham, he lunged from his sprawled position on the floor, in one fluid motion back on his feet and already on his way out the door. What little piqued the interest of Graham really did so, as his practical giddy prance down the corridors of the compound would attest.

In little to no time, he'd emerged in the courtyard where most had already by then gathered, scanning for the familiar faces of those previously preoccupied with painfully dull happenings, before spotting his preferred targets company; Aaron, Soren, Seph, Hazel, Milo, and even lame little Daniel--he'd tolerate Ren's being there, figuring the male to be as impassive and silent as usual 'round him and Darcy hardly even registered as being there at all in his mind. Trotting his way over, Graham made one gesture to the group, half peace-sign half-wave, took the spot directly in front of Aaron, and for the umpteenth time that day plopped onto the floor, and sprawled, reclining on his elbows just tall enough to catch sight of the show imminent to unfold.

Michaela’s grin abated, and she let her eyes slipped closed. As serenity settled into place on her features, dusk truly descended. It was no illusion, no trick of glamour, but it hardly seemed a coincidence that the shadowy terminator was just now creeping over the westernmost of the tumbled-down fort’s walls. Twilight was upon them, and gravely, as the Omarain prepared herself, Matthew pushed himself away from his perch and stalked toward the wood he’d earlier stacked, choosing a path that steered him clear of clumped charges. He used a plain Zippo lighter to ignite a torch, and then thrust it into the tinder and kindling that had been arranged at the base of the soon-to-be-bonfire. Flames caught quickly, streaming smoke into the sky, and hungry fire began to taste the sturdier plinths of wood with flickering tongues. Matthew retreated, his duty discharged, but continued along in a circular path around the courtyard, using his captive flame to light braziers and standing torches that were used to light the fort by night.

As the last of daylight died, Michaela, eyes hidden away as if in repose, began to breathe deeply, rhythmically. Her chest swelled, making her breasts all the more obvious beneath the thin white cotton that veiled them. The fire crackled as it climbed the scaffold made for just that purpose, and then the luminous corona of white light that ensconced her began to spread out in every direction. At first it crept inches, and then feet, until every soul attendant was seemingly bathed in that light as well. Before their eyes, the light would seem to congeal, separating into motes that left impenetrable blackness between them, so dark all that would be visible aside from the pricks of white were their fellow charges and Guardians- each other, and the fire, which continued to burn. So potent was her gift that it might be a moment before some realized they were under the sway of an Omarain illusion, each and every one.

The walls of the erstwhile fortress were drowned in black. The library faded away as well, then the officer’s quarters, then The Compound itself, leaving nothing but endless darkness punctuated with little bits of light. It might be dizzying, or even frightful, to have the entire world as they knew it slip away from them, replaced with what might be the night sky, or the endless depths of space, or something else. Whatever it was or soon would be, the Omarain among them would know better than most how exacting the illusion must have been on Michaela. The other charges too; none of them, not even Renn, would ever have seen her display her power on such a scale before. Even the other Guardians seemed awed to behold it, all save for Simon, who simply folded his arms across his chest and made his face a still mask.

Adrift in blackness, they would hear her voice, but not from her lips. It seemed to come from all around them like the music of the stars that her motes of light were no doubt meant to represent.

”You have learned of your bloodlines, sweet ones, but most of you have been taught little of the ancestors from whom that blood flows. Most of what you have heard you learned away from this sacred place; lies, perversions, bastardizations meant to pollute what was once real magic, to reduce it to simple, commercial entertainment, to sanitize and slay it. Tonight you will learn more.”

The “stars” began to re-order themselves once more. They were legion now, great swarms of light particles in a silent dance with one another. They separated into five distinct-yet-shapeless clouds, leaving vast tracks of void beneath them, and then took their places behind the rough circles that the charges and Guardians described around the growing bonfire.

The largest free-wheeling constellation came to a stop between Michaela and Arietta, nearly between them but set lightyears back. Another settled into place 72 degrees to the first’s left, and another 72 degrees to the left of that, and so on until the five points of a star, or perhaps a pentagram, had been defined in the space around them. Some might have to crane their necks or turn about to see them all, and if they did, they’d note that the specks of light had begun a new dance, one that only lasted until they had taken on a new shape. The largest spread out, thrice as tall as Michaela (for in the illusion, sizes could really only be compared in a relative sense), and then grew even more massive as it unfurled its starry wings. The next separated into the three distinct forms, tall and slender. The next dance around the pentagram yielded two large shapes, one that seemed to walk on four legs and one that walked on two. After that, another large shape, but it was escorted by many smaller ones, and finally, to the right of the first, four distinct shapes of vaguely human size.

Michaela’s voice hummed like a leyline again, and as it did, the masses of stars, the tiny galaxies, would continue their dances, taking more distinct and recognizable shapes.

”The mighty dragons were fire and magic made flesh. They were old when the world was young. Their claws dug rivers, their breath stirred storms, and their battles raised the mountains and scorched the land into deserts. Their ways are mostly lost to us, but we know that they began primordial and will not end until the last Evincal is ended. The last true dragon was named Snowscale; she fled to the deepest reaches of the icy parts of the Earth after men had slain her brothers and sons. When the envoys came she agreed that it was the only way and shed a single frozen tear, the only component needed for the ritual that would make the blood of one strong mortal line draconic evermore.”

The largest shape was fully formed by the time she took a pause. The star-dragon was not a static thing. Its tail stirred through the deep blackness, its wings buffeted cosmic currents, and its head lowered, as if in a courtly bow, toward the circle.

”The envoys were the true fae, creatures either born of dreams or responsible for them. The truth will never be known, for they are all gone now, all sealed away in their own kingdoms to save themselves from the iron and church bells and saucers of cream that men learned were their banes. They were the architects of the Bloodlines, and stole away young men and women from a noble family for the turn of a single moon. They returned with lighter step and faerie blood and Omarain children in their wombs. The fae did not return, though. They locked the gate and melted down the key, consigning themselves forever more to dreams, until men are gone and their dreams with them.”

The three slender shapes resolved themselves into three fae, tall and willowy, with features that resembled those of humans, but too perfect to be anything but alien. They wore swords and finery of stars, and they too bowed, deep and courtly, toward the charges.

”The children of the moon had lost more and most to humankind. Their domains were the wyld places, untouched until civilization began its inevitable spread. They fought back with tooth and claw, but the advantage of men has always been numbers. The war of attrition dwindled them to almost nothing, but it made them remember that they were half-man themselves. Repentant rather than wroth, they chose a dozen humans and a dozen wolves, calling them The First Pack, and thus the Balaren were born.”

One part of the next set of stars became a dire-wolf so large that a grown man standing would barely reach its shoulders while all four of its paws touched earth. The other became a thing of nightmare, muscle and fur and claws and teeth. Both of the stellar apparitions lifted their head in an eerie, silent howl. The one on two legs declined its head toward the charges, and the one on four bent the knees of its forelegs, a lupine bow. The tale continued.

”The lords of the pit regarded humanity as little more than sustenance, things to be played with. They were the terror born of the darkness, the evil things that stalked the night, but they too were offered the chance to bind their fate more meaningfully to the races of men. Most balked or laughed, but one wise pit-lord agreed, abandoning the council of his enemy-brethren and infusing the most cunning and dangerous mortals he could find with his hellfire blood. The Mori would need his strength and their own as the centuries stretched into millennia, for there are cracks in the prison that was forged for demonkind.”

The demon lord that resulted of the dancing stars was nearly as tall as the dragon, powerfully muscled, with cloven hooves and a supple tail. In one hand he held a whip, and in the other a sword that glowed with starfire. He did not bow, but instead regarded the charges coldly with eyes made black by lack of stars.

”The spirits of nature only revealed themselves truly for the first time in the course of a single evening. They had always been there, perhaps for even longer than dragonkind, though it is not for me to say which came first, fire or dragon. They had sought harmony with men and beast alike, but men were too clever by far. Rather than being content with the gifts of the elementals, they found ways to trap them and bend them to their will without ever knowing the pain they caused. Still the elemental ones sought harmony, and bonded with a people who had never once enslaved them willingly that the Navarene might one day bring about the balance that was lost.”

The final four became fire, water, wind, and earth. Their shapes were vaguely human at best. Fire was the brightest, a burning crucible of stars. Water’s shape ebbed and flowed. The stars that formed Wind raced ‘round one another in vortices. Earth was more solid, compact and strong. As one, the joined what might pass for hands and bowed deeply.

In silence save for the crackling of the bonfire, the darkness receded, returning control of their senses to those assembled. The constellations remained, though, like an afterimage, and in the last light of dusk could be seen briefly in all their glory before they too faded. Snowscale’s armoring was gleaming alabaster, her eyes brimming with sorrow and intellect. The finery of the fae stole every color of the rainbow, and their skin was pale and far too smooth. The standing wolf had fur that was black as coal and eyes like slivers of the moon; its companion on all fours had fur of mottled gray and brown, and it was laying with its belly against the grass. The demon stood tall still, its skin burnished and rough looking, its features sinister but proud, its whip and sword forged of hellfire. The nature spirits were all the colors that they should have been, flickering or flowing or blowing or standing stalwart.

And then, they were all simply gone. The courtyard was restored to reality, and anyone who chanced to look upon Michaela would see her looking very tired, and very, very old. She drew a single breath, and in that span was young and beautiful again. She managed a smile, the weariness of which would match Arietta on her worst day. The Omarain spoke again, only just audible above the feast of flames gnawing at the wood.

”Humans are forgetting their magic.” She opened her vibrant eyes again, and let her gaze pan once more along the circle of charges and Guardians alike, Omarain and Evincal and Mori and Balaren and Navarene. ”It is the natural state of all things, even men. Remember childhood, when all the world seemed new and bright and exciting? When imagination weaved spells all its own upon you? Man has been squandering his magic, though. It is not enough for him to lift a stick from the ground and make it, just by thought, into a cane, or shelter, or a pretend-sword. Now he must cut the tree open and count the rings, must abolish every secret of nature in the name of Progress.”

Her survey of them all was done. She brought her hands together, clasping them in front of her with a gentle clap. ”There is hope for magic though. It is here, not around you, but in you. It is you. History cannot reveal a time when so many have Awakened to their blood at once, been found and brought together. Such things happened once; they were called Convocations, and the Bloodlines would meet and squabble and boast and the world continued to suffer for their arrogance. They had forgotten, but we must not forget.”

She spread her hands, as if to gather all of them in her arms. ”We must come together, not ignoring each other’s differences but embracing them. The days ahead will be different than the days behind. We have lapsed, in order to bring you all here safe and whole, but on the morrow, we begin in earnest to help you become what you must. I know to some of you, this sounds fanciful, but think of what you have learned to do already, what you have seen your fellows do. On the morrow, we begin in earnest…”

With a flick of her wrist, she sent something that glittered as it flew through the air catching firelight toward Renn: a set of keys. Where she’d hidden them on her pocketless person was anyone’s guess, as was how she’d managed to produce them, but they were there. ”Tonight, though, we revel.” Her warm smile became a grin. ”Or, I should say, you revel. It would hardly be a party with a bunch of stodgy grown-ups about, would it? Enjoy yourselves. Learn of one another. Relax for one final evening and make merry together…” One of her eyebrows lifted to form a perfect arch, as she continued. ”But try not to overdo it. I meant what I said about the morrow. You won’t want to still be feeling tonight when you awaken.”

Her fellow Guardians were not unaffected by the display; like many charges, most of them were still recovering from both the power of the vision and the strangeness of being made to see what had been so long ago. Simon had already slipped off, possibly in the midst of the presentation. Arietta was smiling softly, her expression cast thoughtful, as she rose to her feet and dusted herself off, preparing to return to the library. Matthew was frowning, but shook his head and stretched out, nodding curtly to anyone who met his eye before he took his wolf shape without a single cry of pain and raced off beyond the walls.

Poor Fleet looked positively a mess, his lower lip jutting out as he directed his attention, eyes wide, toward Michaela. She laughed, and the sound was the tinkling of bells more than it was laughter. ”Sweet Fleet, you are less a stodgy grown-up than many of our charges. Of course you may stay.” The Navarene Guardian let loose a cheer, jumping several feet into the air and then floating back down, as if gravity showed him favor just as the Omarain had. ”I need to find my hat!” he exclaimed before taking off at a run and then dissipating into wind once more.

”Good night,” Michaela called, her smile sweet as she turned to make her way back toward the officers’ quarters. No poppies followed her now; indeed, it seemed that she might have strained herself with the display. With her gone, none but the charges were left around the fire, which was now a roaring blaze.

The night was theirs.








Faerie princes were used to being attended, and so it bothered Aaron not at all when so many valued friends joined him prior to the presentation. Seph was gifted with a warm smile, and absently, his hand. He reached out, taking hers in his in simple, friendly fashion. When Renn’s shadow fell over him, he craned his neck to look up at his most beloved advisor, craning his neck back so far that his smile for the Navarene would essentially be upside-down.

Daniel and Hazel came to sit beside them as well, and Aaron lifted his free hand in a wave to the two, slight and courtly. He said no words, for it seemed a time for silence, though delight danced on his features, almost moving him to an excited greeting when Milo came to crouch at his other side. He grinned at the boy’s bafflement, before his attention was again stolen, this time by the advent of the Western Wind, bringing spring with her as always.

He heard a question, and only then noted that Darcy was among them as well. His brow creased and his eyes hardened just a little when he gleaned distress from her demeanor, but there was no time to find the cause with Michaela drawing them all in. Then Graham was there, so close at hand, and the hand that wasn’t linked with the wolf-born maid came forward to comb fingers through the demon prince’s hair, affectionately and absently, as one might stroke a cat. The realization of who was near cast light on who was not, and he glanced about quickly, finding the others in their small clumps or solitude. He had no hands to wave with, so instead, he fought back the falling dusk with a dazzling grin.

When Michaela began in earnest, he was still and silent (save for his hand teasing through Graham’s soft locks and the slight rise and fall of his chest), captivated. Snakes might be immune to their own venom, but the fae-blooded were far from immune to Glamour. Aaron in particular was more inclined to fall under its sway than most, his resistances stripped bare in the course of embracing what he could of the fae so eagerly. As her words and phantasms enfolded them, even his hand grew restive, to slowly slide from the Mori and into his lap; his hold on Seph remained, but slackened. It was eerie, that darkness. Unreal. Even though there was still earth as firm and sturdy as Renn beneath him, he could almost feel himself floating through it, the persistent whisper of vertigo in his ear.

The swarms of stars brought movement, his head whipping this way and that to mark them and track their progress while their leader described to them their forebears, codified the images that had been dancing through his head. The fae he knew of well, but he knew little of the dragons, the demons, the spirit-folk, the wolves. They all had their secrets, that was the way of it, but Michaela had elected to lay some of them bare in a fantastic showing.

He wanted to weep when it was done, when the shadows of the fae had faded, when stark reality reigned once more. Not so stark, though. Nothing seemed entirely real when limned only by firelight, and he drew comfort from that even as he struggled not to shed a tear. The impact of the presentation on Aaron was obvious; his despair might well have been written on his face in glowing ink. They’re all gone, but we remain, he told himself. A faerie prince must only cry for love.

Fortunately, there was more. In his consternation he had forgotten the surprise! His mind was practically tripping over Michaela’s songbird words until it came at last: a revel. The eldest Omarain was retreating, leaving them to their own devices. He had known parties in his time, everything ranging from the boring but beautiful galas of his parents’ world to the crowded teenage affairs that happened behind closed doors in boarding schools, but never had he enjoyed a party on The Isle, before…

… and the faerie prince hardly needed a pretext to dance. He already had Seph by the hand, and his grip strengthened even as he lashed out with his other for one of Milo’s. ”M’lord,” he spoke, looking left, and then ”M’lady,”, looking right. It was courtesy, plain and simple, but in a show of absurd dexterity he untangled his legs and rose in one fluid bit of worship to the god of movement, drawing them up to stand with him. As he did, the music began. Organ music, oddly enough, to compete with the crackling flames and the murmurs that would no doubt follow Michaela’s departure. It was the only remotely impressive trick of illusion that Aaron had mastered as of yet, to bring music with him wherever he went. Female voices in harmony broke in over the electronic organ, making known the unspoken command of the faerie prince: let the beat control you, let the beat control you…

His Gift was only so strong, though. Artemis, alone across the courtyard after Simon’s departure, would be the only one outside the range of the song, but he might still know what the youth was up to (Aaron often provided soundtracks for their fencing practice to join the clash of foil on foil). Everyone else would hear the song, growing more and more cheerful, infectious as a pox one caught from overeating sweets.

Tethered to Seph and Milo, he kept things simple at the onset, shoulders swaying, head bobbing to the rhythm, arms swinging so that his friends’ would swing as well. He was well aware that neither were dancers, not like him (but then, who was?), but he was content to simply drag them however clumsily they might along with him into the embrace of music and motion. He turned to glance at Graham, his eyebrows providing gesture that his busy hands could not. Up, up, slugabed! they exclaimed, bouncing up toward his hairline. Just you and me, let’s break it down!

Even as simple as he was keeping it for now, there was undeniable Glamour in the performance. His grin, broad and goofy, beckoned any who beheld it to give in to the joyous imperative that the song professed. He just looked to be having so much fun that only an enemy of fun wouldn’t wish to join in. He let loose delighted, musical laughter as he began to sing along, leaning in close to Milo, to Seph, to anyone who came near enough, as if his words were meant only to serenade them.

With song and dance, the revelry was begun. Leave it to a faerie prince to conjure a celebration from the very air.

Others arrived and despite his view of them he made sure to greet them with a smile or a friendly gesture, such was his way, though he stood by Simon for the opening festivities. Michaela was always rather cinematic and this was no exception in Artemis’ eyes, though as she began her speech and the pyre was lit he couldn’t help but notice that this encompassed a great deal more effort than her typical displays. He was as entranced as the others but it was hard even for Michaela to hold his minds complete attention. Inevitably random firings of electric signals in his brain drew his eye from her and over to the others, an odd thought had occurred to him and his eyes made to investigate as a slight bit of fog from his frontal lobe cleared. The students were entranced, that was no surprise, and Fleet, but then Artemis considered him less of a Full Guardian and more of an Initiate Guardian(not that there was anything wrong with such) but the surprise was that the other, more experienced elders where also enthralled. Not by some spell, no that was too simple an explanation, but rather by the scale of the illusion and the effort she put forth, nothing could more impress upon young Artemis the importance of this dialogue.

”You have learned of your bloodlines, sweet ones, but most of you have been taught little of the ancestors from whom that blood flows. Most of what you have heard you learned away from this sacred place; lies, perversions, bastardizations meant to pollute what was once real magic, to reduce it to simple, commercial entertainment, to sanitize and slay it. Tonight you will learn more.”

First as she spoke Artemis listened intently, but he couldn’t help but wonder if she had cast an acidic glare his way when she spoke of this and the content smile on his face faded for but a moment as their eye’s met. Whether she intended to speak to him, or of him was inconsequential at that point as she certainly caught the look on his face at this. They’d have words he was sure, civil ones, but words all the same, as Artemis sought to not “Bastardize” his fellows world like others would. But he returned to listening to her story and made mental note to speak to her later.

He strained to keep his mind from moving on to a related yet objective task yet in the same course of focusing on her words he also found his eyes glance at see the one person’s reaction he hadn’t other than his own, Simon’s. That was where his attention would dwell for a few seconds, though he still heard her words as the stars began to gather his peripheral vision still guided his thoughts. Simon was stoic, something he never really was, and seemed undaunted unlike the others which lead Artemis to one conclusion. There was precedence for this display; it was not some flight of Omarian fancy that she drew such power to a simple speech, and most importantly the fact that jovial Simon stood as a stalwart and masked man made it all the more clear to Artemis that something much deeper than others might see was being put forth in this speech. Finally Artemis found the strength to devout all his mind to the task at hand and as his eyes met Michaela’s yet again a calm washed over his mind which clouded to all but her voice, probably on her effort as she’d know how difficult it could be for him to not let his mind wander.

Now to believe Artemis was as a child with ADHD or some other affliction would be foolish, he heard every word of her speech and catalogued it all. He saw ever move of the stars, and noted their subtle differences, and he noted every nuance of her wording in the back of his mind to be later autopsied by his keen intellect. He issue was not hearing her or knowing her motions, it was in not hearing or knowing everyone else’s. It would make his night sleepless to be sure. To put it simply he heard it all, and noticed more. It was not that he couldn’t focus on her, it was that he could focus on everything, and random firings in his brain led his subconscious to strange and withdrawn conclusions that while he would be careful to ignore would undoubtedly make for strange instances later where his mind will have miss assumed.

As the display closed and the fog began to recede his mind broke free from her glamour before some of the others, actively shaking his head to clear it. He enjoyed her display but he wanted as little of it remaining as possible. Glancing up he saw her in her aged forum as the others gazed at nothing, though to them it was the remnants of the figures, and Artemis swallowed hard. He knew it was not his place to be concerned for her though, but he still was, and now he understood or at least assumed he understood Simon’s concerns. Did this display cause her pain? Did it leave her with less than she started? It was not his place but he felt something akin to pity to her for having to expend such power for them. She breathed and returned to her beautiful and young self and Artemis smiled, aware or at least believing that she was more than beautiful to the eye, that was secondary, she was Michaela and a beautiful person beyond the surface. The others had also come around and as Michaela told them to revel Artemis chuckled and nodded in agreement. He was about to turn and say something to Simon but instead found him gone, vanished in the illusion, and at this Artemis’ eyes narrowed to look into the distance for a sign of him. Perhaps there was more going on. The various Guardians had to pass him to leave and he smiled at them all and did consider pulling Michaela aside for a moment as the others began to revel, but thought better of it seeing the exhaustion in her eyes, it could wait.

And so Artemis just smiled and gently grasped her hand as she passed, giving it an endearing squeeze in a “you did good” kind of way; she didn’t need his approval, but he’d give it anyway. But he was unsure if he could join in the festivities, he had to finish proof reading the manuscript before it was too late or both his and the Isle’s finances would be penalties. However the longer he thought on it the more he realized he wasn’t going to sleep anyway and that he had very little left to do, so he decided to take a chance and moved to a near-by metal post that was stuck in the ground. Its official purpose was to hold a torch however Artemis had found a better use for them as he reached out to it. His hand enclosed the bar and before his skin actually touched it a fury of small sparks arced between his skin and the cold steel. His hand quickly grasped around it hard and silenced any sound associated with the sparks as his fist shook from the heat the bar grew to as he expelled his energy into the metal. The bar was grounded and soon his muscles on his forearm stopped throbbing and his grip relaxed as the twitching from the electricity that had flown through him ended. This was his standard ritual before making contact with his fellows toward the end of the day, he was always careful about where his power sat and tried to ensure that there was no stale energy within him to unconditionally expend without consent when he did make person to person contact.

So the night began and Aaron, God bless his soul, began the festivities and by the look on their faces he was probably using his abilities to grant music to the air. Artemis couldn’t hear it but he knew what he was doing from their fencing practice and the body language of the others. Artemis walked forward with purpose, careful not to miss the fun and moved to the group, he went to Xylea first, someone he knew well and got along with. As he passed toward her he moved behind Renn and with a tap on his head deliberately sent a small amount of static shock into his scalp, making his already spikey hair stand even more on end and giving Artemis a reason to grin mischievously at his friend as he passed. He walked right past Xylea at first but in his stride to cross her and his hand grasped hers to pull her up and along with him, “Up we go! Time to dance!” he told her as the music had finally reached him several strides back and pulled her into the fray with the others and a bright smile on his face. One would find it hard to believe if they were told of his past because he was so very good at putting his mind to other things and enjoying good times with friends. Perhaps it was because of his past he could do this.

He caught the keys in one swift motion, nodding to Michaela as she left. The keys she'd provided only went to a few select things, things that Renn wasn't sure the charges needed on a night that they'd have to wake up in the morning - early no doubt, but it wasn't his call to make. In addition, Fleet would be staying as well, so he wouldn't be alone in helping maintain the peace between them and ensuring everyone had a pleasant, safe evening.

As if trying to wake him from his thoughts, or just his own way of a friendly gesture, Artemis had made his way behind him, waking him with his touch. Renn laughed a bit, looking over his shoulder at his friend as passed because it had tickled in a sense - and now his hair was shocked and ready for a party. Perhaps it was that reason he'd done it. Had he messed it up back there on the beach with Darcy? Darcy... There would no doubt be a point in the evening in which Renn would get Artemis back - maybe he'd raise a piece of the ground just to trip him or something. Nothing dangerous. He wasn't sure, but the game was on.

As he turned on his heel, Renn had apparently been oblivious to the people who'd sprung in to dance. While he understood the notion as an entertaining passtime, it wasn't in his ... Well, he certainly wouldn't be joining without some alcohol. -- Speaking of, Elvis seemed to be on the same page as he overheard, "Oh no. No, no, no. I dont do parties unless hard liquor is involved.". Watching Elvis move, he found himself next to Vendicare. Renn had no problem with either of them, as he knew the pair just about as much as he bothered to get to know anyone, but there was a first for everything, and with someone with two solid feet on the ground, it wasn't as if he lived off of their approval. He headed in their direction, nodding up at the pair to get their attention with a jingle of the keys in his hand.

"I don't do parties without the alcohol either." He'd heard the thick Italian accent respond to whatever Elvis had spoken to him, but he shook the thought to intervene from his mind. It didn't matter. "Come help me lift all of it out here, yeah?"

With that, he breezed past the bunch with (hopefully) the pair behind him for additional heavy lifting. They'd passed Darcy on the way, and Renn offered her a smile only to be matched with... Well, whatever it was, he hadn't expected it. Was everything okay? Was he supposed to be reading in to this? Was it nothing? Fuck this social barrier.. It wouldn't matter anyway. After a few drinks in him, he could loosen up and.. Well, he'd never been drinking after his power's awakening. Who knew what could happened?

They found their way through the darkened kitchen and Renn flipped on the lights so they could make their way to the walk-in fridge. Upon entrance, there was a metal door that led to a cellar of sorts. You could see everything on the inside from the fridge, as it was barred like a jail. One could see exactly what they wanted before the lock clicked open and allowed passage, and once it did, Renn found himself at least three different kinds of tequila, whiskey, and a box to fit it all in. Once that box was filled, he pointed over to a keg so that one of the other two could grab it. Behind it was a rack of bottles - various wines, maybe some more liquor, he wasn't sure but with their addition, there was certainly more than enough to entertain the party tonight.

After the three men juggled who would carry what, they brought it out, locked the door behind them, and made their way back to the party. Renn's voice called out like the announcement of an earthquake, the ground hardening beneath them to grab their attention after a few staggered here and there. "Listen up! You heard what Michaela said... Tomorrow we'll all be training more intensely than those of us who have been here for a while will have ever performed. What you do tonight sets the tone for the new lives we lead tomorrow. Handle this information with care.- With that in mind... Have a great evening! We are the Bloodlines!"

His moment of attention came and went as quickly as he'd demanded it. He set up the keg for the easiest dispersement for others, scattered the bottles and various drinks on a nearby table barrel or two, and then left it sitting there. Thanking the pair who'd helped him before taking his leave, he made his way from the others beginning to gather at the alcohol to a corner across the way. Isolated, watching, and calm. That's what he wanted, but as he watched the others enjoying themselves and the others that would head for the alcohol, he couldn't help but wonder:

Will we even wake up tomorrow?

Xylea was aware on the peripheral edges of her mind that someone other than Michaela had spoken to her, but she couldn't bring herself to respond. She was enraptured by Michaela's Glamour, allowing herself to be pulled in farther with every passing moment. A beautifully energetic smile bubbled to life on her face as the world around her faded away and all that remained were the bodies of students and guardians alike, seemingly orbiting in space. The stars all twinkling around her held her attention as she rolled onto her back and let her eyes un-focus on the universe. Letting her arms fall wide, she imagined an alien ship floating through orbit, pausing momentarily to take in the new developement in its domain: a floating gaggle of magical students. Laughing to herself, she reached out, trying to touch the stars above her and found she couldn't quite reach them causing her to frown. Then they started to shift, to change, to morph, and Xylea gasped in excitement, remembering Michaela and her speech she quickly flopped back onto her stomach, diligently watching the show.

She tried to pay attention to each of the quick histories Michaela mentioned, she really tried, but her eyes kept drawing back to a grouping of stars that whirled around itself near it's quartet. She couldn't help herself, it was just so wispy and pretty. She wanted to swirl, it beckoned, begged her to swirl with it. She giggled again, and waved to it with wiggly fingers, ecstatic because she somehow knew that it saw her too, and that it loved her. She had only vaguely listened to Michaela, so she wasn't entirely sure why the quartet made a show of respect to the students but she smiled at it in 'thanks'. Tilting her head to one side, she watched as all the pretty star patterns became more solid, more real, then disappeared. Startled out of her dream world, she looked to Michaela now, but had an increasingly hard time paying attention as her skin had begun zinging, pinging. She could feel all her tiny molecules bouncing about within her and she relished the feeling, closing her eyes. The only other time she'd felt this was when she'd gotten her hands and feet to dissipate into the air around her. Something told her it wouldn't have been appropriate at this moment, so Xylea bit her lip to hold in her joyful tinkle of laughter.

Just as abruptly as the prickling of her skin had begun though, it ended. Pouting, Xylea looked around to see if anyone else had noticed and was completely confused by how many people were standing. Looking back to where the guardians were, her eyebrows shot up, they were gone! All of them! Where had they gone? When had they gone? More importantly, could she go get some ice cream? Curiously she glanced at the Compound considering her options. Just as she'd come to the conclusion on exactly what flavor she wanted (blue bubblegum with chocolate sprinkles and marshmallow sauce) the music began and Xylea giggled, ice cream thoughts gone in an instant. She wiggled her shoulders as she lay on her back, a goofy, duck-lipped, playful scowl crossing her face. The very picture of youthful enjoyment, she threw her arms above her head and started wiggling all over: toes, fingers, nose. She didn't question the reason she'd suddenly been filled with happiness, she simply embraced it and let its warmth radiate through and around her as she wiggled on the ground. Raising her arms to the sky she closed her eyes yet again and hummed along to the rhythm happily.

"Up we go! Time to dance!" Xylea gave a tiny gasp of surprise as she felt strong hands grasp hers and a pleasant tingle shoot down her arms, warming her. Without opening her eyes she knew who it was and allowed Artemis to pull her up to standing. He was strong, and she was light, so not only did she come to stand in front of him, but she momentarily floated skyward, just past where her toes were on the ground. Smiling beautifully she enjoyed the slower-than-normal descent back to earth. She opened her eyes then and looked at Artemis, reflecting his bright smile with her own high-wattage grin. "Dancing's my favorite!" The words came out bubbly and light as she let him lead for a moment, gliding along with him. Had anyone been paying close attention, they would have noticed her feet had still not fully come back in contact with the ground as she flowed around. Xylea's focus stayed on Artemis longer than was normal under the circumstances for it wasn't one shiny thing pulling her attention but a plethora of interesting moments happening all around her. So she bopped along to the movement, enjoying the tiny static jolts that tingled along her palms when she touched his. Artemis lifted one of her hands above her head and, guiding her, began a spin. Obligingly, Xylea whirled about in a circle, letting the wind play with her hair. She luxuriated in the wind tickling through her tresses, and followed her new dance partner in a twirl away from Aaron.

Graceful and dexterous, her seemingly solo dance would have made Aaron proud. She felt the familiar rush of air as she tugged on the wind, pulling autumn leaves and dandelion sprigs toward her. The natural confetti she'd created floated around her and twirled with her, ebbing and flowing, a show involving her own type of constellation theatrics. As suddenly as she began, she let all of her natural visual effect drop the ground, her self included. As her toes hit the earth gracefully, she put a finger to her temple and scrunched her eyes in thought. Then, suddenly, she spoke, "Tanzen ist die Bitte um Aufhebung der Schwerkraft. German! Hmmm..." A few cross language translations and then, "That's it, Aaron!" She called out the Omarain laughingly, "'Dancing is a request for the recession of gravity!' You're a genius!"

Her attention broke again as the ground beneath her feet... flexed. Her eyes wide she looked down and spread her toes in the grass, watching as different shoots of green started growing closer together as though the very earth was tightening beneath her feet. Then she heard Renn's voice and looked up watching him with soft features. He reminded her of a clock, or the tide, or the moon, or a wall, or a good pair of high heels. Sturdy, dependable, always there for you and never-changing. She liked that about him. He didn't confuse her as often as other people did because he always stayed the same Renn. She waved at him gracefully.

Seph and Daniel wiggled into view and Xylea's focus shifted yet again. Amused, she watched the dancing, her skin a buzz with everyone's energy. She smiled warmly as Milo walked over, out of breath. She had the random thought of somehow forcing air into his lungs, then thought better of it for fear she might hurt him in some way. Shaking her head, she let him come to her, a warmth filling her and radiating outward the closer he got. "Whew! Who knew fun was so much work?" Immediately Xylea's smile dropped and the confusion set in. Her brow furrowed as she dissected what he'd said. Work wasn't supposed to be fun, from what she'd gathered from her parents. If anything, it was quite the opposite of fun. Fun was supposed to be enjoyable, something you wanted to do, and work was something no one ever wanted to do. Maybe Milo wasn't having fun then! Maybe he was working... but why? and on what? and how did he come to be out of breath then?"Fun shouldn't be work," her words held a deep concern for her friend, "That's why it's called 'fun'. Were you working! Oh Milo!" Xylea's lips turned downwards as a thought struck her, "Oh wait! Eísai kalá? Are you okay? You aren't sick are you?" Her hand drifted to his forehead as she mimicked a motion her mother had always done to her as a child when she'd thrown up or felt like she was on fire. She wasn't really sure what the purpose of the motion was, so she let the back of her hand just sit on his forehead, waiting for whatever was meant to happen, to happen. "Michaela said we were supposed to enjoy ourselves! You can't enjoy yourself if your sick! Or if you are working... Don't be working! That's it, Milo, my friend!" Leaving her right hand on his forehead, she snapped her fingers with her left and turned away from him as she'd seen that Sherlock guy do whenever he made a statement about what he'd discovered, "As mas apolamvánoun! Let's enjoy ourselves!"

Without a second thought to whether or not Milo could be ill, she looked to him expectantly, her hand still on his forehead. Her eyes were glowing with anticipation of whatever "fun" Milo could come up with for them.

We always have the rhythm here, in our blood and in our souls.

It was an uncomplicated song. Nothing in it called for elaboration, and so the faerie prince needed not do anything more than give in to it. In terms of blazing, his grin rivaled the bonfire as he cavorted with his friends, more and more of them as each bar of catchy, synthesized music went by. He was silly. Even faerie princes could afford to be silly, from time to time. His hips swung to bump up against Milo; releasing him, he lifted his arm and Seph’s up over head and led her through an unrehearsed walk around one another, every footfall conforming to the beat, the beat, the beat, the beat. That brought him near enough to Tally. He’s spotted her running off, and welcomed her back by shimmying towards her, his spine arching backward more and more with each tiny step until he was nearly doubled over. He looped himself underneath his and Seph’s arms before springing upright once more, only to find that his wolf-born dance partner was being stolen away. He didn’t mind at all, not so long as it meant another dancing body, another soul given over to the rhythm.

He busted some moves. That was really the only way to describe it. He was dancing with anyone and everyone within range, now, or really, more likely, not really dancing with anyone at all. For a while, he did the running man, knees coming up high, legs forming right angles, arms pushing out and then pulling in. Then it was The Twist, his feet pivoting back and forth as his arms swung at his side. He grape-vined his way past Milo when the boy wandered off, a smile of jubilous encouragement bowing his lips, rolling his arms in truly ABBA fashion as he went. There was some cabbage patch, some shuffling. Xylea’s encouragement nearly had him blushing (it was hard to tell, since his blood was pumping hard as a matter of course), and he slowed, never quite stopping, watching as she summoned a flurry of leaves about her and exalted in dance. He spun his way around Tally, hands in the air, and then brought them down again in order to vogue with Artemis and Xylea for a span before he was off again…

Seph was returned to him, and he embraced her in a hug, likely surprising her as he lifted her clear off the ground and twirled twice around before setting her on the ground again, just in time for the first song of the evening to abruptly end. He’d gotten so lost in the music that he’d hardly spared a thought toward choosing the next one.

The faerie prince was gleaming by firelight. The roaring fire warming the air and physical exertion conspired to soak his shirt and skin in sweat. With a flourish, he reached up to wipe his brow and catch his breath, sending a volley of glistening droplets off to splash against the earth.

”My Liege, might I request of thee a dance?”

Was it true or calculated, the way he seemed to have forgotten that Graham was there at all? He whirled to face him, grinning like sin with lips. He could hardly blame the demon prince for botching the style… My Prince or even Your Grace would have been preferable, but being his liege for the span of the next song would suit well enough. He half-bowed in courtly fashion as the slower intro proceeded, letting that be his reply. He slowly extended a hand toward Graham, letting it rise… but just as the beat picked up and the Mori reached for him, he snatched it away, smirking impudently and clasping his hands at the small of his back. Rising to the balls of his feet, he danced forward, using the four bars of energetic beats to circle around poor Graham twice, rising up nearly on point to pirouette perfectly, his right leg kicking out, on every down beat. He came to an abrupt stop directly in front of him, very close, facing him, and then took a single sliding step backwards as the vocals came in.

In what followed, Graham would be less a partner than a prop. The Mori was transformed into the anonymous “you” that the song spoke of, but in truth, Aaron would have been served equally well had his friend been born a sturdy pole on a raised stage instead of infernal royalty. This display was a far cry from his earlier enjoyment. Aaron’s eyes were half-lidded, his mouth a sultry curl. Every movement was enticing or enticed, as if lust itself had been clad in sweat-kissed flesh and set to prance about.



He twined their arms around himself, cutting out his singing as the chorus began. For its duration of, he was doing little more than swaying and grinding against his counterpart, eyes closed serenely but his lips still set in sexy bit of pout. His form undulated, sinuously rubbing against the taller boy’s. This Glamour was… different. Probably more uncomfortable to experience than the bubbly cheer he’d been strewing about before. It might not have made the other charges want him (though it certainly could), but it would very definitely make them feel the acute sting of want. Flushed and still sweating, he let himself be enfolded in Graham’s arms, forced them to enfold him, luxuriated in the almost obscene heat of their bodies pressed together, back to front, not a stone’s throw from the bonfire.

He’d somehow turned them around in the process, though, so that they were facing the cadre of hold-outs and booze-fetchers. His eyes snapped open, and a devious grin took his lips. Expressive as always, Aaron’s features communicated something very clearly: there’s still half a song left; give in to it, or you’ll leave me no choice.

Seph couldn't help but laugh a little at Milo. Any traces of self consciousness she had at her own dancing were wiped far away once she was dancing alongside Milo. Of course, Seph was no expert critic of dancing technique, but she couldn't help but feel that Milo lacked to a much more severe degree than her the required grace needed for dancing of any kind. Whereas Aaron's dancing could take her breath away, Milo's seemed to just make her smile broadly and feel better about herself.

Maybe that was the point? She'd never thought about it that way.

Daniel came in for a dance, and Seph was smoothly transitioned from partner to partner. He was no Aaron, of course, but that wasn't entirely a bad thing. Trying to keep up with the Omarain boy was pretty taxing, to tell the truth, and Seph was glad for a dance with Daniel, as she hadn't seen him yet today. Or rather, hadn't talked with him. She was quite certain Daniel was keeping an eye on her whenever he could. Because of his desire to look out for her, of course. Daniel was so kind like that. And while she hoped that soon enough she wouldn't need the Mori watching out for her, Seph understood that there were still a great deal of things she didn't understand, and a great deal of ways she could unknowingly get herself into trouble. So he was her safety net, she supposed. Always there to catch her if she tripped.

"My day... was wonderful!" she said in between breaths. "For the most part. I did... accidentally make Sinry fall down a flight of stairs, but she was alright! And... I guess I helped her find something, so it worked out!" Thinking of Sinry, Seph tried to get a few looks at the people who hadn't joined in on the dancing, for reasons she couldn't fathom. She did not see Sinry among them, but she could have missed her or something. But then, Sinry didn't seem as comfortable around other people as she did Seph, so maybe it made sense that she didn't want to dance with all of them.

As the dance just about ended, Seph stopped rather suddenly at hearing Renn's voice. She didn't really understand what he meant, about setting the tone tonight, for tomorrow. For one, she didn't think she grasped the phrase as well as she should have. Setting the tone... and she had thought tonight wouldn't have affected tomorrow. They were going to have fun tonight, and work tomorrow. They were two totally separate things, as far as she knew. Unless they kept dancing all they way into tomorrow, but Seph didn't think she could dance for that long.

But there were drinks over there, that Renn and Elvis and Vendicare had brought out. That was worth checking out, as all the dancing had made her somewhat thirsty. Maybe she would go get something soon.

Their dance ended, Daniel led Seph back over to Aaron. She heard him say something about her having fun before Aaron swooped in on her. She gasped in surprise as he lifted her small form into the air in a hug, feeling that same little flutter in her stomach as he spun her in two complete circles before letting her feet touch the ground again. Her stay with Aaron this time was short-lived, however, as Graham had come forward and requested a dance of him.

"Go for it," Seph said, wiping away a bit of sweat from her brow, "I think I'll get something to drink." As Aaron began his dance with Graham, Seph took her temporary leave of the impromptu dance floor, taking a moment admire the beauty of Xylea's dance with a smile before heading off towards the drinks that had been brought forward.

Reaching the drinks that Renn and the other guys had brought out, Seph found that she didn't recognize even a few of the names. Tequila. Whiskey. Wine. She'd had some wine a few times at Sonja's place in Anchorage, but it hadn't tasted all that great to her. Maybe these were other kinds? There sure seemed to be a big variety of them. One thing was certain... there was no water.

She looked up towards Renn, who would probably see the uncertainty on her face. The two of them were on pretty good terms now, especially since Renn had stopped asking about her being a wolf so much. She found him to be very kind once she'd gotten to know him a little better. Maybe he was a little awkward at times, but hey, so was she.

"So... which one is the best?" she asked, shifting her weight onto one foot, her eyes passing back and forth over the display of drinks. "If there is a best, I mean. Is there something you prefer?"

Erin inwardly groaned in frustration when Daniel cut into her path. Why did he insist on making her life so very, very complicated? She needed him to stay away for, love of kittens. Why could he not get that through his thick skull? Only when he was in front of her, did she stop. She considered merely walking around him to avoid even looking at him. She had to keep the darkness away, and Daniel only made its persistent howling worse as it sensed a threat. She had to make it shut the fuck up or she’d go absolutely ballistic. "Hey there Erin. Nice to see you." He said, cheerfully… cheerfully. Yes, Daniel was being… cheerful. He couldn’t have chosen a worse day. She’d take Markus’ probing with a smile if it meant she could get away from Daniel’s cheerfulness. Oh, she cared for him – she knew that, and she loved being around him… on her good days. But today was a horrible day and she wanted him far away. She had even told him what happened to people she cared about to try and scare him off, and yet… he was undaunted. She couldn’t figure out if he cared too much, or if he was just plain stupid right now. Probably a mixture of both.

She glared at him, her voice cold as she said, “Daniel, with all due respect. Get lost.” And then he laughed. He. Actually. Laughed. She narrowed her eyes as he blissfully waved and sauntered off. Oh, this was just… she didn’t even have words to describe it. What did she have to do to make this guy realize that she was no good? That he would end up dead, and that she would rather be alone than risk his that? Frankly… what could she do to scare him off, or at least cause him to not want to hang around her? She sighed as realization hit. Daniel had feelings for her he really shouldn’t entertain, and not a lot of things broke through that haze. She knew of one thing that might, however. So as she watched Daniel steal Seph from Aaron, she took a deep breath. She didn’t want to ponder it too much tonight. She knew she’d hurt herself by hurting him, but it was simply the prize she’d have to pay. Rather hurt than dead, she decided. Then she turned back to Markus who was now walking towards her with Irayah in his arms. The cat looked awfully pleased with itself, very comfortable in Markus’ arms. Inwardly cursing the demon once more, the female Mori walked to meet Markus who was grinning, mischief in his eyes.

She hadn’t even been paying attention to what had been going on with the group her kitten had decided to infiltrate, and frankly, she didn’t really care either, but as she looked up she noticed Elvis’ absence. Hmm. She shook her head, looking up at the tall form usually going by Markus, but oftentimes dubbed much less flatteringly, looming over her, his eyes wandering along her body as he greeted her. Eh, men. Then again… she didn’t dress in a way to prevent such looks. She crouched down to retrieve the demon Markus had so kindly placed back onto the ground and couldn’t help a wry smile (the only kind she ever really showed) at his words. Irayah hopped onto her shoulder and the Mori stood back up, the heels of her thigh-high boots fortunately providing her with some height to compensate for the huge gap between her eyes and Markus’. “Yes, I’m sure you were busy gushing like a little school-girl,” she countered with fake pleasantry. Her voice held that touch of malice and sarcasm, telling anyone that she was not being pleasant in any way. Then again… Markus usually gave her tit for tat… or flirted in that very special way of his. Somehow it tended to help improve her mood.

Erin tilted her head a little, the throb in the back of her head slowly resolving due to Markus’ presence. Her body relaxed a little as the clamoring her dark side had been doing all day, steadily growing louder, came to rest. Her dark side, as well as her demon pet, adored Markus. Really, she was certain they’d like all Mori who’d embraced their dark sides and tried to make her do it too, but really… that was only a calculated guess. She’d only met Graham and Markus, of whom Markus was by far the one who had the bigger influence. When Markus made his comments about Daniel, Erin raised an eyebrow at him, the rest of her face remaining impassive. “Yeah, and then he burst into song about it.” She said calmly seemingly serious, safe for the very slight touch of biting sarcasm in her voice. She didn’t like the animosity between Markus and Daniel – it bordered on a pissing contest and it was completely ridiculous. She took the time Markus spent scanning the group, to try and figure out what was going on with her fellow charges right now, noticing that Renn, Elvis and Vendi were carrying boxes of alcohol. Ah hell. She was drawn back to reality when Markus spoke again.

She batted her eyelashes at him, all innocence, “Markus, you always prance around like a pansy, so I believe that’s a moot point.” She didn’t explain why she’d actually come over – he knew that quite well already, he was just trying to get on her nerves right now. The thing was, however, that she was already irritated with Daniel, which made her more pliant with Markus. She wasn’t sneering nearly as much as she could have been, but then again, her biting very badly at Markus were usually reserved for her good days because she hated having him around on those. She didn’t need anything promoting the darkness on her good days. Then Renn was speaking up, but she didn’t take her eyes off of Markus. She should leave; she wanted to be alone right now, but she couldn’t make herself move. The darkness was so blissfully quiet right now and she couldn’t take any more struggling. She’d end up hitting something – probably Aaron. He was not making her day any better with his horrible music, and… speaking of that, here came a new one. Her gaze momentarily went in his direction. He was dancing around Graham and she couldn’t figure out whether it was amusing or nauseating. She was leaning towards nauseating. Some people just didn’t have public boundaries.

Once more, Erin was pulled back by the male Mori before her as he spoke and she nodded absentmindedly. Then she narrowed her eyes, realizing what he’d asked her, and with that smile of pure trouble on his lips, one would be a fool not to grasp the fact that Markus was in fact planning something. She just didn’t know what, but as she began feeling Aaron’s glamour, her narrowed eyes turned into a glare which she directed right at the dancing Omarain, completely ignoring Markus’ offered hand. “Do you feel that?” she murmured thoughtfully, half intending the question for Markus. She hadn’t felt this way in what seemed like ages, and she hadn’t done anything to even warrant it now. Sure, Markus was attractive, but there hadn’t been heavy flirting, nor had there been any touching. Fucking fairy shit. Now she wanted to get out of there more than anything – out of reach of this whole glamour and alcohol deal. Suddenly Markus’ idea sounded much, much more appealing. Besides, she might be able to figure something out in regards of Daniel, while at the same time irritating him right back. Her room wasn’t by any means far enough from here. Her gaze went back to Markus, still not taking his hand. She gave it a look of “seriously?” and then moved it to his eyes. “I’m not holding your hand, you idiot.” She told him.

It was Erin’s form of “yeah, I’ll go with you”, and as good as it was going to get right now. She was still feeling the glamour and it made her very irritable, despite the darkness being quiet. If Markus began walking, Erin merely walked beside him, keeping pace, fuming on the inside while impassive on the outside. She hadn't even noticed that Irayah had remained completely silent on her shoulder.

the fool

Milo watched as Xylea's cheer transformed into wild confusion, and his own brow twitched downward as if to match her. "Whassa matter? Do I got somethin' on my face?" he wondered idly. The girl went on to explain to him the mechanics of fun, and an amused albeit still befuddled smile found its way onto his face. "Hahaha, no, no!" he began, trying to wave away her worries. "You aren't sick are you?" she continued, one of her smooth hands reaching up to brush against his forehead. The quietest of snickers, held in by him biting his knuckle, trickled from his mouth at the silly gesture, but a warmness had begun to bubble in the pit of his stomach at the gesture as well. Really, who didn't like to be doted on- cared for?

He didn't get a chance to explain to her that he was, in fact, not ill at all because he was quickly distracted by her suggestion to enjoy themselves. Peculiarly, her hand just... stayed there. He wasn't particularly weirded out by the gesture personally. Her hands were really soft, actually.

"Hmmmm, okay." he agreed, a suddenly serious face coming about as he wracked his brain for things that could be fun. What did he find fun...? He liked video games. His eyes flashed upwards to Xylea. "No, no, too simple. Have a little imagination, Milo." he thought to himself, dismissing the idea entirely. Napping? He was a sucker for a good nap. That was fun, right? He squinted as he stared into the depths of her blue eyes while he contemplated. The exchange must have looked intense from an outsiders point of view, like something very grave was being discussed between the two of them, what with his scrutiny and her concern.

"Ah... I have... some cheetos in my room. I can go get 'em and be right back." he finally offered, the entire build up brough down gracefully by his casual suggestion. This... this was Milo's definition of fun. "I mean, I could bring a frisbee, too, if you're up for it... A couple of yo-yos...?" he added as an after thought. Was it safe to play frisbee at night? Hmmmm...

Milo was completely oblivious to any speak of alcohol or similar debauchery, completely enthralled in the excessively oblivious exchange going on between the two of them.

---

THE PRINCE UNCROWNED

Vendicare's stoicism had broken under the pretension of semi-tolerable company, a smirk winding up on his face, and the younger Omarain found that simple fact quite conciliatory. A sense of satisfaction settled down into his gut, curling up there and snuggling into his chest. The only evidence that spoke for this feeling was a dim twinkle that appeared in his eye, but no more could attest to how bloody great he was starting to feel. "Piacere, Elvis."he'd said, and Elvis wondered to himself whether that accent would ever be anything other than incredibly endearing. So, Vendicare thought the ceremony was "interesting", and hesitantly so. He denied himself the pleasure of prodding Vendicare's brain, resisting the urge to dive in and figure out what, precisely, interesting implied. There was time later. As tempting as it was to race to the good stuff, you had to ease into those sort of things or they'd never end up happening at all, he'd learned.

"You are planning, non?" Vendi had said and, to this, Elvis quirked his head to the side. "When am I not?" he'd barely had the chance to slyly reply before, strangely enough, Renn had approached them. Elvis let his eyes roam over the other inspectingly, curious as to why he'd come to them of all people. Surely, the man had better friends. Not to say that either of the two weren't fond of him, but he seemed popular enough to not ask mere acquaintances for help. Perhaps, again, such abandon was the key to this aforementioned popularity.

Regardless, Elvis wasn't upset in the slightest when Renn, key bearer of sorts, led them to the house and through the incredibly dark kitchen. Unlike his counterparts, Elvis wasn't part wolf, nor atuned to nature's oh-so bountiful gloriousness, so he was completely fucking blind in the black veil nighttime had cast over them. Thankfully, light soon poured in and illuminated what might have been the most beautiful thing Elvis had ever seen- rows and rows of all kinds of alcohol lined up, just waiting to be taken. He might've cried if he weren't such an emotionless, robotic bastard.

Elvis carried a fair amount over, though admittedly not as much as either of the others. Certainly not as much as Vendi- dear god, was it even healthy to be able to lift that much? He digressed, and trailed his way back to the party behind them.

Overall, the trip to the wine cellar had proven to be a somewhat awkward, completely silent, and testosterone filled encounter that Elvis looked back on fondly if not for the comedic value of the situation. A wolf, a rock, and a fairy walk into a bar and... Ren's speech was short lived and to the point, which was respectable enough.

And then, they were free to do as they wished. Elvis still found himself at Vendicare's side, and he snatched up the tequila he'd carried, unscrewing it, lifting the mouth of the bottle up in the air as if giving a toast, and downing enough to loosen up his thoughts a bit- get himself more comfortable in his own mind. He'd always thought he functinoed a good deal better when he was a bit less sober. His tactics seemed more natural and his insufferable self loathing died down a tad. Of course, these assessments could be inaccurate, due to the fact that they were made while he was, indeed, inebriated. He liked to think he knew better than that, though.

He passed the bottle over to Vendi without even thinking to ask if he partaked in the sport of underaged drinking. He was Italian, right? That's just what they did. The entire concept of abstinence- of any sort- was one that Elvis often forgot all about.

"So, Vendi, I was wondering... are you allergic to chocolate? You know, with the whole... dog-wolf thing in mind." he inquired, actually curious yet still managing to spice up sincerity with a bit of snark.

Darcy Lilith Ratri
The Twilit Princess

The turn of events caught Darcy of guard as a majority of the group around her had now dispersed into dancing. She knew that this would only lead to further Glamour control from Aaron, so she knew that she needed to get out of range from his powers. The sooner she stood up, the sooner she spotted Renn walking past her. Her face seemed to form into the darkest of expressions as the flash of Renn walking away from her came across her face. She was too late on changing the expression she saw that he had given her a smile of all things, so when she had mustered up a small lift of her lips into what one might consider a smile, Renn's back was to her.

She felt herself walking towards him until she saw the two boys that were close behind him, so she retreated to a distance that she felt was far enough from Aaron's grasp. She looked around the group of students, knowing that their destinies were all about to change. She knew that somewhere deep down that this time next year they wouldn't be standing around a campfire dancing. The quick site of death in her mind made her push back against the tree as the moon provided her with the shadows she needed to build up the wall to hide herself. She enjoyed being able to watch people without them being able to watch her back. She liked the way her power supplied her with it's own power in meaning. She played with the hem of her shirt as she bit her lip hard seeing how happy everyone seemed to be in their little group of friends.

It seemed that this was how Darcy was suppose to be the rest of her life; alone. Even Renn had walked away from her in a moment that she felt was so much more, but his lack of realization that walking off was a big mistake made her clench her fist into the grass as her back slid down the tree. "Fuck feelings." She said as the shadows grew to most intense shade of black, no longer letting her see outside of the wall she had formed. She didn't like having her feelings out in the open, so the chance of it happening again was slim to none. Hearing the clanking of glass, she let the wall fade as she spotted what the boys had been after. Alcohol. The smirk across her face was something to behold, but luckily for her only Renn had the pleasure to know she was able to. He had just finished setting up the keg that he all too soon disappeared himself into the outskirts of the forest, like herself.

She knew that if she wanted him to want her as much as she wanted him to want her that she would need to change the distance between them. Walking through the wall that had formed, she walked straight towards the refreshments. She eyed over the lot of alcohol, settling for two beers. She needed Renn to loosen up, but the idea of throwing liquor into his system scared even her. She knew that many of the people standing in the courtyard had probably never drank with their power, but the second her eyes hit Harvey she knew her statement needed to be revised. She hated all that Harvey stood for, but even she couldn't completely hate him. He had so much to offer to the world, but something in his past held him back. The thoughts of Harvey stopped as Darcy turned back to her present task. Talk to Renn.

With the cold beer against her palms, Darcy knew that her powers would be at ease with the sensation of the cool sweat from the bottles. She found herself in front of Renn faster than expected, but even she could admit she had been drawn to him. With no hands available, she pushed the nearest bottle towards Renn. "Drink." The word came out to be filled with so much more than the actually meaning, but only Renn would catch the cramming of emotion in the single verb. She wanted to yell and scream at him, but she knew that would get them no where. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she felt herself trying to come up with the right words. She had now managed to open her beer bottle, down half of it, and feel the need to go get another. "What happened on the beach?"

As soon as the question was out of her mouth, Darcy wanted to bring it back in. She closed her hands hard as she felt her powers building a wall between herself and Renn. She didn't want this to happen. The wall was growing darker as she stepped through it, making her only inches from Renn's body as she looked up at him. "I don't want to run from you, but when you just left me.." Her voice drowns off as the wall falls, allowing her to take back her original distance. "You just left me."

---

Harvey Mak Chinnen
The Duke of Sighs

Fuck me now. The thought sprawled across Harvey's mind as his gaze fell across the fire, begging it to consume his being. He closed his eyes for what seemed like hours, trying to fathom why the fellow Omarain insisted on doing shit like this. "I swear. Sometimes I want to beat the shit out of him." He felt her was bringing blood to his lips as he bit down hard before returning the cigarette to his mouth. He inhaled for the longest time, holding it deep within his lungs before releasing the smoke out into the forest. He tugged at his jacket, pulling out another cigarette because the way the evening was going he would need to entire pack.

Seeing Erin's cat welcome Markus kindly, he didn't dare test the cats limit by offering out his hand. He had the idea of kicking it, but for some reason he liked it. Of course that was mostly due to it's owner, who soon followed behind. "Erin." He nodded seeing the look in her eyes. He could tell that tonight was not the kind of night she would intentionally find herself in, so he kept his words minimal as he remembered Something's attempt at a joke. A thought crossed his mind that made him put the second cigarette back into his jacket. He smirked as his mind worked wonders on what could possibly happen if he successfully achieves what he has in mind. He tossed the blueberry into his mouth that he had forgotten was there, tasting it's sweetness almost immediately. He smirked at Something who was still remaining on the ground with smoke in her eyes. He had guessed that the presence of Erin was also having to do with her remaining low.

It seemed within minutes that Something and Harvey were on their own, so he placed a hand around her wrist bringing her back up to his level. "More blueberries." He said as he placed his arm around her shoulders, seeing his plan unravel in front of him. He leaned close to her ear, pushing back the hair so she would clearly hear his words. "Ever watched Dirty Dancing? I'm about to make you dance a little dirtier than that. Don't resist. It's all for fun." He smirked against her ear before pulling back a normal distance. He was just about to walk away when he felt the slightest movement where their shouldn't have been. With a quick pat down, he looked over his shoulder to see Soren with his lighter. She wants to play this kind of game. The smirk was replaced with the thoughts of how he could get back at her, but at the moment he was too busy shocking the majority of people in the circle.

He led Something to the middle of the students, pulling her against him as he let his glamour take control. Their hips began to grind as Harvey let himself darken the music, giving Aaron a look before he continued to grind against Something. "Let the music take over." He said through almost a whisper that only she would be able to hear. The movements matched what would look like a scene from Dirty Dancing, so he was pleased by the awe most people now gave them at their willingness to openly grind against each other in the most inappropriate way. Catching the eyes of Seph, the most devilish smirk came across his face as he licked his lips as he grinded with Something. The poor girl would never know what she meant to him, but in this moment he knew that it would be fun to play the game with her.

Though she had been crouching, and her greeting whispered, Something could not say she hadn’t noticed the way Erin and Markus had completely ignored her. I mean, WOWZA. Not even a nod in her direction. Definitely not a goodbye. Simultaneously, she could not say she was surprised, or that it made her sad. She had been crouching and whispering like a strange wild child. Perhaps Erin hadn’t heard her quiet greeting. Or perhaps they had forgotten about her since she was so near the ground. Or perhaps it was a joke of theirs. Maybe a joke... Yet while she was crouching on the ground, she saw from her peripheral Harvey plopping her blueberry gift into his mouth, and the corners of her small mouth turned up ever so slightly. A smile so faint it was mostly seen by the crinkling of her eyes.

Something was huffing and puffing on her gifted cigarette when unexpectedly, she was being pulled up from the ground. Her eyes grew wide as she drew her brows together, face concerned, mouth forming a little "o" as Harvey's arm slid comfortably around bony shoulders.

"Oh blueberries! Of course!" Why hadn’t she thought of that? Of course Harvey wanted more blueberries. They were particularly delicious this time. She reached around to her backpack, but Harvey had her already moving forward before she could get adjusted properly. She was having difficulty rummaging around while walking but she was certain they were right ther-...and then his hand. It pushed her hair, the tips of which caressing her shoulder, tickling her. Instinctively she shuddered and shied away, backpack slipping to the ground as her hands moved to swat his hand, the trembles down her spine uncontrollable. But he was persistent, and she was uncertain. His lips, she felt them against her ear. Her eyes grew as wide as they ever had been.

"Ever watched Dirty Dancing? I'm about to make you dance a little dirtier than that. Don't resist. It's all for fun." Harvey had cooed.

"Whaaa--?" her voice high and tiny, as her face blushed a bright unattractive red as his mouth moved in a smile against her sensitive ear. Her ears had taken their cue from her face, also adopting a flaming hue at this point. She didn't quite understand...there were plenty of scenes in Dirty Dancing, lots of dancing oddly enough. How was he expecting her too...did he really think...she couldn't dance like that. She simply didn't know how; she felt bothered by his closeness, ashamed even; and she wasn't sure if he was making fun of her. Her confusion added to the embarrassment, and it negatively fed into each other into a continually amplified loop.

Yet he pulled and pushed, albeit gently, and she clomped after him, resisting like a weak shell-shocked child, "I-..." she attempted.

As Harvey began to dance with her, she tried to scoot away from him, like a dog tucking its tail between its legs and leaping at an unfamiliar touch. She felt so unsure. This was a joke, right? She chirped nervously, wooden hips moving stiffly as her eyes fluttered from Harvey to those around her back to Harvey, searching his eyes for a reason.

‘Why?’ her eyes pleaded.

"I-..." she tried again, but she didn't know what she would say, she was so flustered by the entire thing. She felt so strange. What was this feeling in her gut? In her chest? She didn't understand how she felt. A strange warmth, a pressure, a breathlessness. She couldn't fathom that two of the Omarains were using their magic to plant these seeds, these desires in her heart, neurons firing foreign messages that she had never felt before. Everything was incredibly conflicted. She didn't know where to put her hands, so she placed her slender arms gingerly around his neck, as if this was the prom she was not yet old enough to have attended. Was this what it would have been like? She was unsure of his own hands. Were they helping and guiding? Selfishly exploring? What? There was a war within her ribcage where two entities were ripping each other savagely apart. One that viciously sought the unfamiliar warmth his body had to offer, hungrily. The other wanted to crumble, to run, to hide. They both shrieked and raged at each other's throats, snarling with the flashing of gnashing teeth. Something was blinking excessively as she attempted to sort it all out.

They were grinding. "Let the music take over." His voice was so soft. He was speaking to her, not anyone else. This new part of her wanted to listen. Her body was thrumming and vibrating with this…But she couldn't completely. She knew she moved so awkwardly; she was not sensual by nature. She was not graceful. She was not one who was envied. She was not one who danced. And she was especially not one who danced like this. Even more especially not one who got to dance with someone of Harvey’s status. Every glance they got, she was sure was disapproving. Mocking. Judging. She bit her lip to fight away tears.

There was something that was wrong. She wouldn't act like this. It was so totally out of her character. Why did she feel like this? The chaos in her mind, this perpetual blush, it was making her hot. Or something else was. But she was sweating. Face sheening with this unnatural sweat. This feeling...a swelling feeling in her chest was a growing hive of increasingly agitated bees. Her heart was thumping as anxiety threatened to burst from her chest like an alien baby forcefully birthing itself from her ribcage. It pounded. She was afraid she might be breathing too heavily.

"I-.." she repeated unsure.

He moved so well; his movements felt so erotic to Something. He could be sensual. Like a well-oiled, experienced sexy bot machine boy. She felt like an ugly wooden puppet in his arms, grotesque in his strong hands. She felt so defeated that she almost gave in, eyes slowly dropping. And all at once she realized something. A horrifying something. A terrible awful monstrous something. His penis was centimeters from her leg, separated by layers of fabric. From her own private parts. It was there. She could feel it now that she concentrated on it. There. It was right there. It was right there!

Her eyes grew increasingly wide and then welled up with tears. In the middle of her dance, (which probably wasn't even good given how gawkily she moved, something she was self-conscious about in itself) her eyes began brimming uncontrollably with tears so hot they felt like her skin blistered as they fell. She believed they must have been boiling. She knew in her head she was fine. She supposed everything was fine. Her face was fine. But her heart felt like it had imploded from the building pressure. She covered her burning scarlet face with both of her hands and she tried to hold in the sobs, standing stiff and straight.

"I'm sorry!" she blurted.

She did the best she could to hold it in, to fight it back, holding her breath, yet she ended up sipping in little bits of air as she stood rail straight. Her knees felt weak so she just sank to the ground. Let it happen. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Harvey." she repeated. But she was making it worse, she knew. Harvey would be angry. Not only did she not dance well for him, now she was a quitter. He would be so mad.

"I just don't know how, and I'm not making excuses or anything I'm just so sorry," voice thin and muffled behind her hands. "I need a drink," she finished balefully, sniffing and looking up, doleful defeated eyes. "Let's get drinks." She clumsily gathered herself up and tentatively grabbed Harvey’s hand tenderly to pull him along with her, releasing her grip as they grew an arm’s length apart, darting to where the alcohol was.

"I need whiskey," she breathed towards no person in particular but rather anyone near the alcohol, wiping her face roughly, angrily even, with her forearm. Her voice was a bit lower than usual. Perhaps it was the determination. Perhaps the desperation. Renn, Vendicare, and Elvis technically had claims to the drinks, as they're the ones who invested their time and energy into getting them. She felt strange just swooping in and taking things that weren't hers. Hesitantly, she eyed a particularly attractive bottle of Jameson, fingertip scratching at the crevice where the bottle met the table. But a new thought brought a new worry to her a face. A worry that temporarily distracted her from her self-loathing; her face almost appeared to brighten for a moment.
"Oh, do you have any teacups?" She hated drinking whiskey from anything else.

Upon setting down and setting up the alcohol, and finished with his makeshift speech, Renn had it in his mind that it probably wouldn't take long for the others to swarm around it and drown themselves. Okay, perhaps they wouldn't drown themselves, but even Renn would admit that it had been a past time for him at a younger age. But you're a different person now, in a different life. You can't do that here. Spinning around, he eyed the first to arrive and among them, found the curious maiden wyld. He let out a laugh as he saw her glance over the variety, because for whatever reason, the idea of her intoxicated brought a smile to his lips. When she finally glanced up at him, he winked at her. It wasn't a flirtation, but just something between them that let the other know they were watching out for them. They weren't extremely close, nor were they the best of friends, but once he'd gotten over his fixation with the fact that this girl had been an animal, he found out that he enjoyed spending time with the person she'd become. A friend.

"So... which one is the best? If there is a best, I mean. Is there something you prefer?" She asked him, and he leaned over to whisper mischievously in her ear.

"If I were you," He said, his voice low as his finger pointed to various bottles: the liquor, "I would stay away from those bottles." He then pointed over towards wine bottles, "You won't enjoy those much either. The taste is awful until acquired or accompanied by food." Finally, his gestures found the kegs and cups. "This stuff won't taste any better, but if you're going to explore your options, I would start with it. It's going to taste like piss, though." He shrugged at her, giving her a thumbs up and a mouthed, Good luck!

He did this best to gesture an appreciative thanks to the men who'd agreed to help him, and whether or not they noticed, Renn found the quickest route through the crowd to create some distance. It wasn't the people - though he didn't particularly like large crowds. No, this was the face that now, out of the illusion that Michaela had so created, he was aware of the rather large bonfire that had been set earlier. Fire. He hated the stuff, and with good reason. If it jumped and hit any one of his plants, his creations, they would turn to ash so quickly and the earth beneath them would be ... disgraceful. This was also a reason that he didn't tend to .. enjoy the company of people with powers such as Daniel. He was an alright enough guy, but when it came down to it, they were opposites and destined enemies as far as their powers went. Fire and Nature? No, thank you.

As he made his way down the path that lead to the surrounding trees and forest, passing by the others who'd shared his sentiments about parties and large crowds, until he found himself followed. Naturally, concern found it's way to the back of his head that it may be a charge who needed help with something, and being the present pseudo-guardian, he supposed he did have a sense of responsibility for the others. He believed in the system, in the regulations, and in keeping everyone safe on his watch. He was the perfect candidate for something like this - always on point. He would simply watch them from afar and intervene if it was necessary. - They were all mostly adults, though, weren't they?

But when he turned around, it was Darcy. Darcy. He felt a soft tremble beneath his feat as the pace of his heart quickened. Glancing from her face to the items she carried, he calculated the trouble he could get in to if he took the beer she offered. And the trouble he could get in with her if he decided not to take the beer. The pros and cons were just about even, however, as he figured things would be from now on, Darcy came out the winner. He reached for what was offered and attempted to lean over and kiss her on the cheek. He had not expected her reaction, though, at all.

"What happened on the beach?"

He wasn't sure what to tell her, or what she meant entirely. They'd enjoyed themselves, hadn't they? Maybe she hadn't, and it was all his pure pleasure? She must feel awful about it. Guilt ran down his spine, his brows furrowing. How selfish could he have been? Luring her out there, interrupting her music, and then demanding so much only to.. Well, what exactly had he done to piss he off?

"I don't want to run from you, but when you just left me..."

She took a step closer, as if fighting the barrier he metaphorically felt coming between them. That means she wants this, right? Is she trying to lure me, now?

"You just left me."

Then she stepped back, reclaiming the distance that had come between them, though her voice was obviously more even. It was as if Darcy were trying very hard, trying very hard to figure me out. Renn was thankful for that, honestly, but the back of his mind buzzed.. What did it want? You just left me, she had said. Oh, he'd thought, finally catching on. He nodded to her slowly, bringing up a hand to brush a stray few strands of hair out of her face. Truly, he'd done it because ever since the beach, Renn wanted any excuse he had to touch her. Even though she was upset, and she was wanting, and waiting for him to answer her, all Renn could focus on was the way his gaze continued to fall about her features. Her hair, her dark eyes, the tattoos that told stories all about her body.. Her body.

He remembered the beer in his hand and without thinking, took a few sips. Liquid courage, right?. He swallowed hard, taking it in before another few sips drowned his thoughts, and the nagging responsibility he'd initially felt. No, he didn't figure out what he'd done wrong, but it didn't matter any more. Not to 'not-so-sober' Renn. No thoughts of how to remedy the situation, to over-analyze it were in his mind. No thoughts of how a walking earthquake shouldn't be drinking, or how he may end up hurting someone who desired someone.. not as emotionally unavailable. He was starting to realize, starting to pick up on the signs. It wasn't just him, it wasn't just his desire. He could sense it from her, the way that the darkness seemed to envelope them, rather than separate them. She was transparent in the way her power controlled her. He decided, instead, to speak with what he knew best. It seemed to work last time.

"You brought me a gift. Like the flower." He grinned at her, looking down at the beer before taking another sip. That's what this was, right? "I don't think you understand how this works."

Renn took a few steps backwards, but his hand found hers, pulling her along with him. When he had her beneath the tree, next to the trunk, he released her hand to replace his own at her waist, attempting to keep her pinned. His voice was low, a whisper in the secluded world she'd created for them with her shadows, as he found her ear, "We both know I can't comprehend the severe disadvantage of power you have over me. So instead of speaking to me with words I don't understand... meanings I can't fathom..." He pulled back, looking in to her eyes as he spoke, desire laced in his words without his recognition. "Speak to me," He started trailing her hair with kisses, towering over her in height as his waist leaned forward, attempting to hold her there tighter, the pressure of his heartbeat apparent. He continued, "...in a way that I can understand."

The alcohol hadn't even hit him yet.

Renn was confusing Seph, but he probably knew that. The winked he'd given her she'd come to recognize as meaning that he had her back... which, if he was doing that now, probably meant she should steer clear of the alcohol. Renn had become almost as helpful as Daniel or Aaron recently, as he'd started to see her more as a person, and less as a wolf. At first he had only been able to make her uncomfortable, asking her with his genuine curiosity what it had been like before she transformed, what being an animal was like. She knew he didn't mean to make her uncomfortable, but talking about her past wasn't something she was fond of. Anytime after that initial transformation was fine, but the year before... she hated even thinking about it.

But Renn had gotten over his curiosity, and as was only natural, her spending the majority of her time in human form caused him to eventually see her as a human, and not a wolf. Or perhaps not only a wolf. They'd become friends once he'd seen that there was more to her than the obvious unique aspects of her past.

And now he left Seph with another piece of his guidance, though she didn't quite know how to take it. She wanted to ask him more, but he was gone already, making his way away from the others. So she steered clear of the liquor. She came before the wine, which was apparently an acquired taste. She wasn't familiar with the phrase, and hadn't the slightest clue how one would go about acquiring a taste. It seemed to already have a taste. How could one acquire another? It didn't make any sense, so she moved on.

To the kegs of beer. Which apparently tasted like piss, from Renn's words. She briefly considered the implications of Renn knowing what piss would taste like, before deciding that line of thought wasn't going to end anywhere pleasant. None of this made any sense. If it tasted like piss, why would she drink it? She'd never drank piss before, but she'd smelled it, oh, she'd smelled it quite clearly, being a Balaren and all. And her past experience taught her that things that smelled bad typically tasted bad, too. But some of the others were doing it, so it couldn't be all that bad... right?

Best to get it over with, she decided, thinking that she'd used enough time over here by the drinks, and wanted to get back to dancing, maybe talk with Milo or Xylea, or just do something else. She snatched a cup up, filling it slightly the way she'd seen someone else do, and took a few precautionary steps away from the keg, as though it were indeed filled with piss and not beer. She held the cup firmly in both hands, lifting it to her face and taking a careful sniff. Not piss, she could tell quite clearly. It certainly smelled, though. Cautiously, she tilted the cup, and took a very small sip.

After taking a sip, she decided that Renn was lying. There was no way piss tasted like this. That said, it still wasn't satisfying at all, really, and it left this taste in her mouth... she didn't like it. Sighing, Seph decided that perhaps she would refrain from drinking anything tonight. Unless someone brought out some water or something.

Turning back towards the makeshift dance floor, Seph found herself more or less frozen by the sight. It was Harvey, and he was dancing with Something. His gift darkened the music, and the whole mood seemed to change somewhat. Harvey seemed to be enjoying himself, but Seph had learned that his enjoyment often came at the expense of others. Something didn't seem to be having a good time at all. It looked like she wanted to get away from him, actually. So why didn't she? If Harvey was doing something to hurt her, why didn't she leave?

Ugh, and here Seph had thought that Harvey couldn't make her angry tonight. He was really the only person who could do so, as she just didn't understand how he could enjoy doing the things to others that he did. She also felt frustrated that she didn't know exactly what was going on, and why Something looked so distraught. Come to think of it, their dance looked somewhat reminiscent of what some of the male wolves had done to those they'd chosen for mates... but converting anything wolves did to what humans did was extremely difficult.

And then he met her eyes, and he smirked, and licked his lips, and Seph suddenly found herself feeling uncomfortable, and a little indignant. He shouldn't be able to do this to people. Someone needed to stop him. And then Something was apologizing, and then they were making their way over to the drinks. And over to her. Something was leading the way, but she was bringing Harvey right to her. She was vaguely aware that she needed to say something.

"What were you doing?" she asked, unable to think of anything better to say. If there was some reason for what she'd just seen, she wanted to hear it. "Why did you do that?"

”That’s great! That you don’t mind, I mean. And my power isn’t like an air thingy, it is an air thingy! He dropped himself down into a crouch beside her, not actually sitting. He didn’t like sitting, especially not against a wall. He liked to have open space all around him, so he was just to her side, maybe six inches from the wall, but angled to face her. He bounced a bit on his heels and rested his arms across his thighs. ”I can do all kinds of stuff with air.” Her question had utterly derailed the story he’d been about to tell about the last party on the Isle. His mind only had room for so many topics at once- well, one topic at once, really. He was smiling though, quite enthused. ”I’m not sure what would be like an air thingy. Maybe a water thingy? That’s kind of like an air thingy, because liquid is more like gas than solid. I guess fire is kind of like air too, except it EATS air, and I don’t like that.” His eyes narrowed, and he gave the bonfire a dirty look, as if it might have offended him somehow. If any actual person had ever managed to offend Fleet, it had gone unmentioned and undocumented.

He saw her wave, and followed her eyes to Tally. He waved at her as well, lifting his right arm from his thigh and flapping it dramatically at the Evincal girl. Quite suddenly, his cheery grin wilted, turning into a heart-breaking frown. ”The Navarene Guardian was a Water-Touched. Her ability was like an air thingy, because it was a water thingy. I miss her all the time, when I remember to.” Despite it having been explained to him several dozen times that he was, in fact, the current Navarene Guardian, the Wind-Touched still didn’t quite seem to grasp it. His gaze dropped to the dirt in front of him, but then he lifted his head and tilted it, regarding Hazel. ”Wasn’t it sad when all those things Michaela made went away? I don’t like being sad.”

Just like that, he wasn’t. As if someone had flicked a switch connected to his mouth, he was smiling again. ”I’m glad we’re having a party. We had a party here once before, you know. It was nothing like this though. It was when Matt and Arietta got engaged. There was a lot of yelling, I hope there isn’t a lot of yelling tonight.” He shook his head. ”Yelling is just being sad except louder, s’far as I can tell.” He reached down with his left hand and extended his finger, drawing a frowny-face in the dirt.



He’d forgotten about the chocolate bar entirely while the Omarain Guardian made her presentation. By the time it was over, what remained of it was half-melted all over his hand, done in by his own body heat and that of the bonfire roaring nearby. A scowl had developed on his lips, washing away any traces of awe that would otherwise have been left over from the illusions she’d conjured. He’d become preoccupied with the standing wolf-creature, the one that towered over everything else but the sorrowful dragon. If he could become something like that…

But he couldn’t. His lycanthrope blood was thin. His war-shape was a paltry imitation of the monster that the faerie woman had showed them. That was the stuff of nightmares. No wonder humans were so afraid of werewolves, even after how ridiculously they’d been portrayed for years in the media.


All of that, and then the announcement, like it was some kind of gift or something, that they were going to have a party. Can we just skip to the training? he wanted to ask. He was sick of laziness. Running around the forest was fun and all, but he wanted to see what he could really do with his gifts. He’d sized up all of the other charges and found them wanting, save for very few.

He lifted his hand to his mouth and began to lap it clean of chocolate. An involuntary twinge went through him when Aaron’s music began. He quickly looked anywhere but at the Omarain. He’d learned before that it was easier to not feel anything he didn’t want to if he wasn’t actually looking at him, especially when he was dancing. The catchy little tune cut right into his brain, and he nearly growled as he quickly chomped down the rest of his chocolate bar and shot to his feet. The movement of shadows and his peripheral vision told him that a group was forming up to dance, but apparently he wasn’t the only one who didn’t intend to get his groove on.

Where had Matthew gone? He’d missed him taking off, whenever that had been. Matthew was about the only person around who he actually had any respect for. He looked around for his next favorites. Elvis was being taken by Renn somewhere, the only Balaren competition he had was going with them… His looking around meant glancing Aaron’s way, and for the brief instant that his eyes skimmed over that blond, dancing form, he felt his pulse trying to conform to the beat of the song, felt his fingers begin to tap away on his thigh to the rhythm. No, he told himself, his voice in his mind a guttural growl. His body and mind were his own. He wasn’t going to submit to the charms of Glamour unless he wanted to, and he decidedly did not want to.

By the time he was through wrestling for control and imagining Aaron with a pair of wolfish jaws clamped around his neck (not killing him or anything, just forcing him to be still and silent for once in his life), Elvis was back. Wynston turned and headed toward where they were setting up the alcohol. His features were practically blank as he approached in his dirt-and-grass stained clothing. He nodded to Elvis, and then nodded even more slightly to Renn, and then finally initiated a stare-down with Vendicare. He wasn’t going to break it, so it would be up to the Italian Balaren to do so… or to move the challenge up to the next level, the level where someone ended up on their back or their belly. Wynston was fine with either result.

Seph didn't even warrant a glance. She might as well not have been nearby, for all the attention he seemed to pay her. He was vaguely aware that she was talking, that she moved off to speak to the asshole Omarain, but he didn't need to acknowledge her existence to know that.

Tally scurried away, and Artemis had a strong urge to chase after her, pull her close and, he shook his head while casting a glare at Aaron, “You’re causing trouble there mate…” he commented but doubted anyone would hear him. But, having gotten himself settled he just sat back and watched the others for a bit. They were all having great fun so Artemis decided to let them be for the moment and headed off toward the fortress interior. He returned a few minutes later with several boxes and left again in the same direction, after a few trips he’d retrieved a table, several plates of party foods and snacks, some non-alcoholic beverages, and his last trip consisted of a cooler, and a bag of ice slung over his shoulder. This was abnormal as typically the Isle was rather strict on supplies, but Artemis had made a point to catalogue what he’d take and would allocate more to the food budget to make up for it, Michaela had told them to enjoy themselves and he could tell from the look on several faces that many were probably getting hungry, dancing and just generally being up later than usual was no doubt to blame.

He laid out the fare on the fold out table next to the beverages and the alcohol and retrieved some plastic table ware from the first two boxes he’d brought and then just stepped away, letting the ravenous teens at it as they say, though he grabbed a few finger sandwiches himself before moving over to get a beer. He didn’t normally drink; he just had a Yingling (he kept a stash in his dorm) with Simon every now and then, maybe Renn if the other young man needed to unwind. The brand here was not his favourite but it would do for a buzz, and that was the point of drinking after all, that and socializing. His strange mind went to work as he took a bite of one of the sandwiches wondering why all this food and drink had been so easy to find, and why the kitchens had been unlocked. Maybe it was just Fleet had unlocked it but why had the prepared foods been ready? A smile crossed his face as he instantly recognized that someone, probably Michaela, had intended for this. Hell, she might have even implanted the idea of gathering the food for the party in his head during her display, as he’d been contemplating it subconsciously for a while, “Check and Mate.”

Artemis hadn’t really re-joined the others yet but as Seph came over and tried some beer he took note of her, she was newer to the island compared to most of Artemis’ friends and they didn’t speak much socially beside a kindly hello in the hallway, still he knew her name, much like he knew of most of the new arrivals, and he couldn’t help but inwardly chuckle at the face she made at her no doubt first drink of alcohol, “Aren’t you a little young to be drinking?” he asked with a nonchalant grin, clearly he really couldn’t care less about that, “It’s not the best tasting, but it’s the effects most are after…” he was careful to be lack and seemingly sluggish when talking to her, having learned that she was a Baleran he knew much about how body language spoke volumes for regular people and could only imagine someone who could change to a form with almost all communication being non-vocal. He had noted that she seemed skittish around him, and so he was careful not to give her any cause for concern.

He couldn’t help but follow her eyes over to Harvey and Something coming their way. Something was a kind enough person form the look of her, but Harvey, he was someone who gave Artemis pause. He was cautious around all like him, but that guy particularly rubbed him the wrong way second only to Markus. Artemis stood a little straighter. Harvey might not have seen Artemis near Seph before, after all he had been sitting a few minute s prior across the yard and after that bringing out food. He had no doubt his presence would not give the man pause over causing trouble, but if Artemis was nearby he could keep an eye on it.