Concordia: Part 2

[Magix]

Good to be back.... Taran is still the shit brother. :)


Markel stood tall and still as he watched Sorcha look over the armor he had created. He was actually glad it had come out so well, seeing he had very little practice with the ability before his memories were erased. If his father hadn't always trained Markell in how his powers worked, then things wouldn't have even been as easy as they were. He'd downright be unable to properly use the magic, had that been the case. Luckily, it wasn't.

Markell's stance was a bit broken though when Sorcha threw her arms around his neck. It's not taht it was unlike her that caught him off guard, it was just that..... He hadn't been near any family for the longest time. There was..... Krystal of course.... No, it wasn't Krystal. It was Cleopatra. Markell would have to get used to that, but the sooner the better, If he didn't face his demons or lock them away before this war, it could be used against him quite easily. You didn't need to be a tactician to know that wasn't any good.

"As long as you will wear it, I will recreate it when we arrive in Concordia." He said with a bit of a chuckle as the armor disappeared just as quick as it appeared before. "You're very welcome Sorcha." As she mentioned the change of clothes, Markell could hear by the tone of her voice that she wasn't serious. Not that he'd let her know that. "That sound like a good plan." He said softly as he placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'd have to have to hurt that young man that can't seem to keep his eyes off you while you're wearing that. Oh and a little advice, if you want to blend in here on Earth, you're better off in the armor then a leather outfit." He said with a small grin on his face.

----------

Alone in the woods. So quiet, so peacef...... wait... no way.... ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!!!

After Shien had parted ways with Cleo and Demetrius, he did just what he said he would. Of course he hadn't mentioned that he was going to hide in the woods on Earth. The way he saw it, if Valius wanted to search him out, then it would be entertaining for Valius' men to completely waste their time searching for someone who isn't there. Either way, he liked Earth better then Concordia. True there wasn't magic on Earth, but there was a lot less chaos in retrospect as well.

Shien had found a nice tent on Earth and bought it. It would be more pleasant then sleeping in the elements surrounded by bugs. Shien could lounge in there all way, and there was no one around to bother him. At least so he thought. He didn't know exactly where he was on Earth, but figured he was hidden enough to be alone. Obviously, he was wrong.

Scythe had followed Corissa along, since she seemed really adamant in finding a good and hidden place. He didn't really care where they went, as long as she was content, then he was fine with it. Years of living alone in the harshest of conditions, made him indifferent to most things. However, coming across Shien inside the Tent that Corissa was interested in, set shivers of anticipation for a possible battle up his spine.

Shien could barely believe his eyes when he looked up after hearing Corissa's voice. "Are you shitting me? How the fuck did you two possibly find me? I swear to Orthniel, that I must be the un-luckiest person around." Shien paused and shook his head, before laying back down with his hands behind his back. "I returned to Concordia already. Shit's gotten pretty heavy there, so I took my leave. Do me a favor and let me know when the Royal Family is ready to go back. I suppose they could use a bit of assistance, but I really just want to see Valius' head on a Pike."

----------

Shit.... Even I forgot about Jason this time.....

Jason stood there as his breath began to return. Many of his wounds were still bleeding, but quick to stop. None of the were too big of a deal if taken care of somewhat soon. Obviously no infection was good. "Damn straight I'm ready. I didn't get my ass kicked fighting Mayren and Zades, to lose out there on the battlefield." He said with a small laugh. "I look forward to the next time we do, but you guys better keep training. I'm not going to slack at all with it, and I expect just as good a challenge next time, if not better." Jason smirked at the two wolves. A friendly rivalry never hurt anyone, even if his rivals were magical talking wolves. "I should probably clean myself up before going before the elders again you know. Battle Scars from training is one thing, but to be all bloody seems disrespectful. Unless that's some kind of respect thing in your culture of course. It wasn't long ago that I knew wolves could talk, I'm afraid I don't really know your cultures or anything yet."

[FunnyGuy]

VIP in the building!

Castle Animus had to be one of the darkest things Sindus had ever laid his eyes upon. The castle seemed to make the ancient Sparta’s domain look like pretty dollhouse. It wasn’t just the look of the castle, it was the feeling it gave you when just looking upon it. Grinning, the hideous monster climbed the many steps leading out of the ice cold valley.
“I wonder if the rumors are true… Valius actually needing full medical attention doesn’t sound impossible. The man is powerful, but he’s only human.” Sindus said as he moved passed by guards who recognized him as one of the creepiest members of the league. Wearing his tattered black cloak, he entered the castle with a smirk. Looking straight ahead, he saw the throne room shut. It was as if evil seeped through it. He wasn’t here for Valius though. He had gotten word of the oncoming war and his acquaintance Trifect needed his assistance on a special project. If it would help keep his place to roam about Concordia without a price on his head from his countless murders.

When reaching the door to Trifect’s lab, he scratched his sharp gauntlet claws against it. Any wise man knew not to just open the mage-scientist’s door.

[Aufeis]

Okay. Keegan Mindset. I can do this....Merp?

Keegan was glad to hear that Sorcha was going to get out of that outfit once they got back to Concordia, "If you like mobility, we could at least get you a pair of jeans and a t-shirt or something for here. It would help you blend in a lot more than that outfit, if that's your intention. Trust me, women don't walk around in outfits like that unless they WANT to attract attention to themselves." He said, patting the back of his bike, "But come on. Who knows what the bounty hunter is ill with, and I'm sure your healing would do her better than one of the hospitals on Earth." His voice was completely emotionless sounding, even to him, "When we start riding, just hold onto me, and wear this helmet." He said, crafting a helmet from the earth below them and holding it out to her.

Meanwhile, at the Hospital...

Aldrich was looking at his cell phone with apprehension. He had expected a phone call from one of Sorcha's brothers by now, but still nothing. He let his eyes trail back to Reicha. The girl was hooked up to enough machines to make him feel somewhat worried. The doctors were not quite sure what was wrong with her, though they were sure it had something to do with an allergen. Apparently, Reicha's body was reacting to some plant or other that grew quite commonly on Australian soil. At least, that's what he was able to glean about the her condition when the doctors were not soiling themselves over the discovery of the lifetime. They kept bombarding him with questions about where he had found this girl, because she sure as hell wasn't human. They wanted to run this test and that, wanted to call up this scientific community or that, and Aldrich had to remind them more than once that they were supposed to be saving her life instead of stroking their wallets over her.

So now here they were, with Aldrich having kicked them out of the room to actually figure out a way to cure her. He sighed and went to the window, looking out, hoping to see a familiar face, "Come on, Sorcha. Where is everyone?"

[LunaTalula]

Oops... I forgot Aldrich gave me his cell number...

"Thank you, Markell. I really do love the uniform and will wear it as soon as we return to Concordia." She hugged him again before walking back to where Keegan waited by the motorcycle. The thing looked frightening to her. "Are you sure that object is safe, Keegan?" Sorcha trusted him, but not the motorcyle. She looked to the helmet, taking it from him. Examing it with her eyes only, she wrinkles her nose uncertainly. "I do not know about this, Keegan. There is something about it that does not feel right." She hadn't liked riding inside those other thngs either. What were they called? Oh, right... cars. She'd much rather teleport but that involved taking energy she didn't really have to use. Fighting Cleopatra had drained her.

Sorcha took another step and suddenly felt something itchy on her skin. It came from the waistband of the leather. She scratched and heard paper rustling. Curious, she plucked it from the leather and opened it up to see a bunch of numbers written straight across it. Where had she--? Oh! Aldrich! How could she have forgotten about him! Blushing, she holds the piece of paper up for both brothers to see. "Aldrich gave me this number. He said to call his cellphone when one of you were able. What is a cellphone?" It was then she remembered the humans as well. "Oh dear, brothers. We must go back to the cave. Masaharu and Saige are waiting for us there, I am sure. Markell, will you go get them? Me and Keegan will go ahead and find Reicha and the others."

We're taking over your tent...

Corissa smirked, hearing Shien protest about their arrival. "We came into the forest to find a place to be alone in. I saw your tent and decided it was a good place. We're taking it over for the next couple hours. At least until we find out what the Royals are going to do." She took Scythe's hand and began pulling him towards the tent, not caring to wait and see what Shien said.

[Aufeis]

Magical Phone Box Majiggers

As Sorcha mentioned a cell phone, Keegan took the paper from her, taking a closer look at it. He punched the number into his cell phone before putting it to his ear. It rang once and Aldrich picked up.

"Hello?"

"It's Keegan."

"Ah. Is Sorcha okay?"

"We're all fine. How's the bounty hunter?"

"She's stable, at the moment. But they're freaking out over here about her, as I'm sure you might have guessed. They're calling up a bunch of scietific places and shit. We can't keep her here for long. As soon as they get her some cure for whatever it is, I'm getting here out of here. Where is everyone?"

"Taran's sniffing you out, the rest of us are in the same spot, more or less. Which hospital did you get her to?"

Aldrich rubbed his eyes, "Uh...North Mercy, I believe."

"You're not sure?"

"I was sorta carrying a dying young woman. I didn't exactly have time to stop and check."

"Indeed. Anyway, we'll be there soon enough."

"Looking forward to it."

"I'm sure." Keegan said sarcastically, hanging up, "He got her to a hospital. She's alive for now, but it sounds like she was not doing to well. And she's attracting some unwanted attention. We should probably move out as fast as we can. I'm going to tell Taran so he can get there faster." He said, punching in Taran's number and relaying the information.

Finally, he looked to Sorcha, "It's safe, by the way. Safer than riding a horse, actually." He didn't know whether that was true or not, but he was trying to allay her fears, "I won't let anything happen to you, little sister, I promise. Now, if you want to get back to Concordia with everyone in tow, we had best go save your friend from being dissected at the Smithsonian."

[FunnyGuy]

I Hate Hospitals

Taran moved across the plains with quickness, only stopping when he the wind disrupted his sense of direction. The scents of Reicha and Alderich weren’t the most familiar to Taran and the scents weren’t too thick in the air. After looking around and taking a good whiff of the air, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. Wondering who could be texting him at the time, Taran grunted. He pulled out his phone seeing Keegan had text him some information on the location of the two he was tracking.

After putting his phone away, Taran sprinted, following the scent. He slowed down though, as he started to reach more of a suburban area. He didn’t want to draw too much attention He could see the hospital from where he was, which allowed him to concentrate on dismissing his feral mode. It took about a minute, but he did successfully. It’s getting harder to go back. Taran was a bit worried, but he needed to keep focus. Entering the hospital, a place he didn’t enjoy, Taran went feral just to find where Reicha was being kept. Finding the door he turned the knob to see Alderich first.

“How is…” Taran paused as he saw Reicha’s state. “What does she have?” Taran asked before closing the door behind him. He headed over to her with a worried expression as his feral state vanished. Taran then shot a text message to Keegan giving him the actual address of the hospital. “Sorcha will be here soon.” Taran said not really feeling the need to discuss anything else.

[Magix]

The Doctor is [in]
(Bonus points to who gets the reference)

Trifect had finished his work on Valius, just as he heard a knock on his door. Whoever it was, was smart enough to knock. A shame really, Trifect was always interested in getting new volunteers for his research, by whoever barged in. He didn't answer at first, he put away all the things he was using on Valius first. Of course by put away, he threw everything in the sink. He moved Valius over to the stretcher next to the operating table, but the one thing he didn't do was clean up the blood. He walked over to the door and ripped the doors open. "WHO DARE BOTHER ME WHI.... Oh it's you." He said nonchalantly turning around and walking closer to Valius.

"I trust you know why you're here, correct Sindus?" Trifect placed his hands on Valius' stretcher and shoved it across the room straight into the wall. After bouncing off the wall, latches popped from the floor and latched the stretcher in place. Valius would be out for a few hours at least, so it wasn't like he'd know any better. After closing a curtain around Valius Trifect looked at Sidnus once more awaiting any response from him.

----------

When the fuck did I become the guy that fetches the humans? Ah forget it.... Not like I wanna go to the hospital anyways.

Markell smiled and nodded at Sorcha, but couldn't help laugh at the helmet that Keegan crafted. "Top of the line fashion, eh Keegan?" Markell said laughing. It would keep her safe, even if it was ugly as sin. "I'll get the humans and bring them back to my Pub. I should probably go make sure everything is okay there anyway. Meet us there when you get Reicha and we'll figure out where we go from there." Markell didn't actually wait for a response before he floated off using his telepathy. His powers had been stifled for so long, it was nice to be able to use them again.

As he finally reached near the cave where he had woken up, and his life was veritable ruined and saved in one foul swoop, he saw the two humans he was supposed to get. at least he assumed it was them. "Are you the two that was traveling with my sister? If so, I must ask one thing. Why? Why did you both, being normal humans, decide to help a complete stranger when you're so clearly out of your league here?"
----------

....... You wanna fuck in my tent? Why the hell does this happen to me? I swear, I'm regretting killing that ass hole all those years back.....

Shien stared at Scythe and Corissa for a few moments, trying to decide if she was actually serious or not. She was, as she started dragging Scythe closer to it. Shien was just in awe that he could possibly be this unlucky. He got up and shook his head. Part of him wanted to destroy the tent, part of him wanted to tell them to go fuck themselves, but he mostly just didn't wanna have to bother with Scythe after doing that and possibly upsetting Corissa. Scythe seemed to actually care about how she felt for some God knows what reason. Scythe liking more then just killing, that's a surprise. Shien got out of the tent, throwing a book of matches inside of it. "Do me a favor and burn it after your done. It's better for the world that way." He said as he walked away with a sigh. Where the hell was he supposed to go now? Shien just started off in a direction away from those two, not knowing the hospital wasn't too far off, and his luck of wanting to avoid people would soon be worse.

[xoxMissClairexox]

And the fun moves to the bathroom

Cleo stretched, reaching her hands above her head as she tried to stretch out the muscles in her body which had just become worn out from the physical activity she had just partaken in. She knew a hot shower would help though and couldn’t wait to get cleaned off. As Demetrius slid out of bed she moved to get up herself, groaning softly in protest against the movement. Her body followed his across the room until they reached the door where they both paused as Demetrius mentioned them parting ways. Cleo bit into her bottom lip a little before shaking her head and putting her hand into his. “I don’t mind waiting for breakfast after we shower... lets shower first then we can both head down to the kitchen together” Cleo suggested with a small smile. She didn’t want to be away from him just yet.

She knew that it was crazy for her to have an issue with him simply leaving her side just to go and organise breakfast for the two of them. She knew that she needed to allow him to have space and not appear needy. However Cleo had only just got him back and she wanted him to be with her. She needed him in her sights. Cleo didn’t know if Demetrius was aware of just how she was feeling on this issue but she was pretty sure he would see deeper into her just wanting them to shower together. He always had his ways of knowing what she was thinking or how she was feeling.

Taking his hand in hers she began to lead him down the hallway towards where the bathroom was. It was only a short trip there but the whole time her hand was in his, holding tightly. As they reached the bathroom, Cleo remembered the fact that Demetrius was still being controlled by her father. She frowned a little to herself as she thought about it and the fact that she still wanted to do something about it. When they had spoken about it last time Demetrius had told her to wait until she was feeling physically capable of it. She had certainly recovered from the ordeal both on earth and with her father in the castle. Cleo knew that mentally and emotionally she wasn’t doing too well but she also knew how important Demetrius was to her. She would do anything for him, even if that meant going up against her father. Cleo still felt some sort of love for her father, yet she knew that she loved Demetrius a lot more.

“Umm...” She said quietly as she squeezed Demetrius’ hands softly. Slowly she turned to look at him. “I was thinking, after breakfast I could have a go at trying to help get rid of my Dad from your mind? I am feeling better now and you said when I was better that I could” Cleo said in a slightly nervous voice. She was worried that Demetrius wouldn’t let her or that by bringing it up she would dampen his mood. However Cleo really wanted to try this, she wanted to feel like she was worth more than just being sent to babysit or sit around waiting for a man to decide things for her. She wanted to control her own powers and it had been awhile since she had really stretched them.

[FunnyGuy]

Time to Take off the Gloves

Sindus snickered darkly as he entered Trifect’s lab. It was as eerie as he had remembered, unless he altered his own memory of the place. When watching Valius’ stretcher slide across the room and slam into the wall, Sindus began removing his gauntlets. He didn’t want to damage Trifect’s good work with his claws.

“Do you believe I ventured across Concordia just to stand here and stare at you? I have memories to create for your near soulless bodies.” Sindus said with his raspy voice before his hands glowed gold. “Now... Let’s get ready to shape our kingdom with our hands.”


Valius for Breakfast! Fuck Pancakes

Demetrius had been ready to go on with how he planned things, until Cleo’s expression caused him to stop. She didn’t look like she agreed with what he had said, and the shake of her head confirmed it. He raised his eyebrows at first, wanting to know what could have been wrong, but he didn’t need to question her after her suggestion. That was if you could call it a suggestion as Cleo took his hand and pulled him down the hall. She didn’t want him away from her, and didn’t seem to give him a chance to protest. He didn’t mind her dependence though. He had been away from her longer than they both wanted him to be.

Demetrius decided to just keep a smile up as she led him to the bathroom, her grip fairly tight on his hand. The trip was short, but it was just long enough for something interesting to go on with Demetrius. The man’s irises changed from their natural blue to black, and his face was left to hold a blank stare.

”What is it?” Demetrius asked in the dark depths of his mind. He assumed it was the being that had helped him in his training. At least until he watched a familiar figure begin to approach him.

”Demetrius… Is that any way to greet your king? Ha! I’m sure you’re surprised to see me again.” Valius said as he stepped from out of the darkness of Demetrius’ mind. The man grinned evilly before snapping his fingers and diminishing the darkness. There was now scenery displaying the sun at the peak of the sky as snow fell from above. it was like a mixture of summer and winter. The ground was lightly covered in snow, but there was healthy vegetation around that eventually led up to a garden. It wasn’t any garden though. This was Cleo’s first garden from the Pendus Manor. Demetrius looked around at his surroundings, not surprised by it. “So this is what you hide in the darkness from me? Why..? You know what? Never mind about your fantasy. We have a war to plan.” Demetrius just stared at Valius coldly. The old man didn’t even seem to be worried.

“I don’t see how the Wolfsbanes will be a threat. The only ones I would worry about are our traitors, Scythe and Shien. Even then, I doubt they know how to use a successful strategy against us. We know what everyone is capable of on their side, while we have gotten stronger in the five years passed. All we need to do is await for them to arrive, unless you want to spare casualties?"

“I guess you may be right. First, we’ll gather our forces to each Lord’s post… All of them!” Valius ordered before Demetrius scowled at the man, knowing he'd have to be the informant. Unfortunately, that left him scowling right at Cleo. He had already been kicked out of the conversation with Valius. Cleo looked as if she had just asked him something, so he now looked like a deer in headlights. It wasn’t as if he chose not to listen, but he wasn't going to dare tell her he wasn't anyway. His irises had faded back to their normal color before he nodded. “Yeah… that’s fine.” Demetrius answered, not knowing the question. He then looked around the bathroom, almost not believing he was there already.

“Now, let’s shower.” Demetrius said with a smile. He wasn’t trying to hide anything, but instead was trying to find the right way to tell her what had happened. He was sure that she would think of using her powers against her father’s, but he was nervous about what might happen.

[xoxMissClairexox]

A shower can cure everything

Cleo waited nervously for his reaction to her question and it appeared in the form she had been dreading. A frown. Cleo didn’t want him to have any reservations about this, he had to want it and be okay with it since this was going to occur in his mind. He couldn’t be resisting this in any way since Cleo could only fight against one thing at a time. She couldn’t be fighting Demetrius to be inside of his mind as well as her father... it just wouldn’t work. However despite the frown, he said that it was okay for her to try after breakfast. Cleo didn’t know how true the answer was but she could sense that there was something more to it, something he wasn’t quite telling her about. Her eyes studied him for a moment before she looked away from him, only returning as he continued to speak.

“Okay...” She said as he mentioned the shower and she pulled away from him to turn the taps on in the shower. She adjusted them a little with one of her hands under the water to find the right temperature. Cleo knew that for Demetrius the temperature of the water was irrelevant since he could control his own body heat or the heat around him but for Cleo there was no way she was taking a cold shower. Once it was set to a nice hot temperature, Cleo turned from the shower and began to undress. She left the clothing in a pile as she stepped into the shower, reaching for the soap instantly to clean herself off both from the activities earlier on in the morning as well as from the past twenty four hours since she had showered.

It felt so nice to be under the warm running water and to have Demetrius so close to her once again. Cleo felt content, something she hadn’t really felt in a long time. There were still things to take care of but at the moment Cleo was just happy being with Demetrius in this moment. Everything else could wait until she was out of her shower.

[FunnyGuy]

Demetrius felt relief inside as Cleo seemed to take his answer without a doubt. He still wasn’t aware of what question she asked in the first place, but he just assumed it was something small, especially since she didn’t seem to mention much after his answer. His curiosity of the question faded as he undressed and stepped into the shower with Cleo. Steam wasn’t something Demetrius usually saw in the bathroom, so he found it out of place. Good thing he had something much better to focus on in the bathroom.

After the shower, Demetrius and Cleo dried off with towels. The two covered up in bathrobes before heading to the room to get dressed. Demetrius had given Cleo some of his clothing, which was too large for her.

“I promise you’ll have your own clothes soon.” Demetrius mentioned as the two exited the bedroom once again. His hand was still in Cleo’s, which was what kept a grin on his face as the two walked through the halls of the castle. On his way to there, Demetrius spotted one of his servants. “Renolds, Cleo needs clothing.” Demetrius said. Renolds didn’t speak, but looked at what Cleo had on. He then nodded.

“Yes, Lord Black.” The man said before walking by, his eyes landed on Cleo a second time though, before looking to Demetrius. Demetrius caught the man’s gaze, feeling that something was up.

“Is there a problem?” Demetrius asked with concern.

“Um… No my lord. I will be off now.” Renolds said before moving hastily down the hallway. Demetrius watched the man until he turned the corner. He then guided Cleo to the kitchen area. The place huge; it was Demetrius’ private kitchen with his own personal chef, but where was the chef? Demetrius pondered this before hearing footsteps approach from behind him.

“Ah! Finally, I have another mouth to feed. I haven’t made anything in days.” The chef said as he entered. Demetrius gave the man a puzzled expression.

“Days?” Demetrius asked before looking at Cleo and then back up at the heavy set man. “Weren’t you feeding Cleo?”

“No… She never came to this kitchen. I was honestly worried for the woman.” The chef admitted. Demetrius looked at Cleo, his eyes accidentally piercing hers.He didn’t want to give her such a look, but he wasn’t happy with her.

“Cook up something… now!” Demetrius said to the chef, but his eyes seemed to stay on Cleo. Demetrius walked to the table to take a seat, his eyes never leaving his love’s. He was waiting for an explanation.

[xoxMissClairexox]

The shower had been fantastic and Cleo had enjoyed it immensely. Once she got out she dried herself off and eventually got dressed into some of Demetrius’ clothes. She was actually getting used to wearing them but despite that she was looking forward to getting her own clothes and smiled as Demetrius mentioned it while they were getting dressed. It would be nice to actually be able to wear something that would fit her. Once they were ready the two of them headed out to the hallway to go and get breakfast. This was also something Cleo was glad of this since her stomach was grumbling due to the lack of food over the past few days. However it wasn’t long until they were pausing in the middle of one of the long hallways because Demetrius had spotted one of the servants. She smiled at the man but the smile turned to one of curiosity as he seemed to find her interesting. There was something behind his gaze.

Cleo was instantly worried. She didn’t want anyone to tell Demetrius just how she had been acting the past few days. It wasn’t that she wanted to keep it a secret, she just knew that he would make it into a much bigger deal than it really was. Everything was fine now that he was back. The curiosity turned to a worried expression as Demetrius paused the man from leaving him and asked if there was a problem. Thankfully he didn’t say anything and Cleo gave Demetrius’ hand a squeeze. “That was weird...” She said quietly before continuing with him to the kitchen. The kitchen was amazing and she was slightly disappointed she hadn’t come to see it sooner. However the chef was not someone she wanted to see, especially after he opened his mouth.

She listened to the two of them talk as if she wasn’t there and frowned. It was clear that she was not happy. He had no right telling Demetrius of her eating habits. However what made her even more upset with the situation was the look at Demetrius gave her. It wasn’t necessary. Plus, it wasn’t as if he was her father and had to be concerned about her eating habits. In fact not even her own father cared that much. As the chef was ordered away to cook just a few feet away, Cleo followed Demetrius to the table.

“What?” Cleo said as she looked at Demetrius with a far from innocent expression as she sat down beside him. Cleo knew exactly what the look on his face meant and she was avoiding answering him. She certainly hadn’t been wanting to have this conversation with him. There had been many reasons as to why Cleo hadn’t eaten while he had been away. One of them being that she didn’t exactly know where the kitchen was but the main one being that she didn’t think she would be able to stomach anything. Her stomach had been in knots the entire time Demetrius had been absent from the castle and she had known if she had eaten something then it wouldn’t have stayed down for long. Whenever she was emotionally stressed Cleo went without eating. It had always been something she had done, even if she often had hidden it well... not that her father had ever taken the time to notice.

Demetrius’ didn’t stop looking at her and Cleo knew that she was going to have to answer him, whether she wanted to or not. Her eyes looked away from him and down into her lap as she considered her words. The last thing she wanted to do was to make him worried about her, since in her eyes it had been nothing to make a big deal about anyway. He had been without food these past few days as well.

“I wasn’t hungry...” Cleo said with a sigh. It was clear that wasn’t going to be enough of an answer. “How could I possibly eat while you were off doing god only knows what on top of that stupid mountain? You could have died! I felt sick to my stomach... It’s not like you were eating” Cleo said, her voice turning more into a mumble as the final words left her lips. While she was speaking her hand didn’t leave his. She knew that he wasn’t going to be too happy with this and she wasn’t exactly happy he was making this into such a big deal but she still didn’t want to let go of his hand.

Trying to change the conversation she looked over at the chef who had been annoying her only moments before. “Is there any chance of getting some eggs? I have a real craving for some, if that is okay” She said, trying to be friendly but it coming off a little forced. After all he had ratted her out to Demetrius.

[FunnyGuy]

Iron Chef Chaplin!

Demetrius sat at the table glaring into Cleo’s emerald eyes. He was not only angered by her actions, but also with the expressions she was now making. He wasn’t furious with her but he couldn’t just shake the feeling of her starving herself. He was gone for while and if he had been gone a few days more, Cleo may not have been in the same condition she was currently in. She worried him, and the fact that she seemed to brush it off as nothing was what upset him.

When Cleo mentioned that she just wasn’t hungry, Demetrius raised his right eyebrow. The man wasn’t born yesterday, and he was mildly insulted that she’d even consider using that as an excuse. It wasn’t until the reason came up, that let listened with a bit of sympathy. He knew that being away after what had happen could possibly make Cleo physically sick, but he didn’t see what she did as right. He searched for his words before speaking, and was ready to speak until Cleo seemed to direct her attention to the chef. Letting a low sigh escape his chest, Demetrius spoke.

“Cleo, listen. I left you here to protect you. To hear that you were only harming yourself during my absence troubled me is all.” Demetrius said. He held back, not wanting to have a long discussion about her eating habits. He still seemed tense though. Giving Cleo a softer expression he managed to smirk. “I was going to take you out for some sparring today, but you wouldn’t last minute with way you malnourished yourself. Perhaps tomorrow.” Demetrius managed to reach out to the chef who was delivering two glasses of orange juice to both Demetrius and Cleo. His free hand grabbed hold of the glass before putting the rim to his lips. He took a few sips of his beverage before setting the glass down onto the table. “I think I may have to settle for Arkai, the guardian of the mountain.” Demetrius said aloud.

“Arkai? Didn’t he leave you in the infirmary for two days once?” the chef asked with a chuckle as he cracked some eggs loud enough for Cleo to hear them. He was sure she wasn’t happy with him, but that didn’t bother him, nothing ever really did, except for him not being able to cook anything.

“Chaplin, don’t worry Cleopatra of my battles.” Demetrius said with his smirk still on his face. “I will defeat Arkai this time.”

“I wish I could witness your second defeat. You do have a much cockier attitude now than when you had departed to Animus Castle.” Chaplin the chef chuckled again. “Cleo will you be able tell me how the battle goes while Demetrius is getting wrapped up?” Chaplin asked. Demetrius took in what Chaplin said, thinking about how much a simple thing like love change him. His heart had been locked away in the coldest of fortresses and Cleo had come and broke it free. This fight he was thinking about taking on would be very difficult, but Demetrius needed training from somewhere.

[xoxMissClairexox]

*** redoing for a certain someone who didn't like my last one ***

[xoxMissClairexox]

She knew he wasn’t happy. The look on his face and the sigh that escaped from his lips was enough to tell Cleo that Demetrius was not just going to let this go. However his words were... well it was clear that he was holding back. Cleo knew that she had worried him but there wasn’t anything she could do about it. The thought of eating had made her feel physically sick and she knew her body well enough to know that if she had eaten anything then it wouldn’t have stayed in her stomach for long. She hadn’t done it on purpose yet he was making it out as if it was the end of the world. He hadn’t eaten either yet apparently it was different when it came to him. Double standards. She was annoyed with him but decided to try and move past it when he mentioned that she was malnourished and couldn’t spar with him. She rolled her eyes but managed a small smile on her lips when the orange juice came out.

Picking it up she took a sip of it. However the liquid didn’t stay in her mouth for long as she choked on it upon hearing what Demetrius was planning to do. He was going to go out and get into a fight with someone who had put him hospital for two days! If she hadn’t been so worried about the liquid in her throat, which wasn’t really there anymore as she coughed, Cleo would have sent a vine down the chefs throat to stop him from laughing and finding this entertaining. Her attention turned to the two of them as she looked between them, finally being addressed in the conversation which had been happening around her. Her eyes settling on the chef, clearly not happy.

“Why don’t you tell me how it goes...?” Cleo said with a frown. “You seem to be very good at talking” Despite her words being directed to the chef, her eyes were on Demetrius. Her eyes were filled with anger. He was being such a hypocrite. Whether he was being serious about this or was just using it to prove a point, Cleo wasn’t listening to any of this. She didn’t want to play games with him, not anymore. If he wanted to then he could play them all by himself.

Part of her had been worried. The last time that Demetrius and herself had lived under the one roof it had been a disaster. It had been filled with mind games and fights and had resulted in one of them being forced from the house. She didn’t want that anymore and was at the stage in her life, after everything that had happened where she simply wanted to live a normal life and to have someone who loved her. Cleo didn’t want to be constantly fighting or trying to outdo the other. These past few days had given her the time to think about what she wanted out of life and considering everything that had happened with her father in relation to both her and her mother, Cleo just wanted to have a normal loving relationship. She couldn’t deal with the mind games.

Despite things having calmed down a little with her powers once Demetrius had got home, she still wasn’t in complete control over them. Without a second thought she used her mind powers to get the Chef to put his hand on the frying pan, straight down into the cooking egg and onto the heat. She heard him scream out as her eyes turned to look at him, clearly angry. After a moment or two she relaxed and let her power over him go, letting him release his hand as she frowned and turned to look away from the two men.

[FunnyGuy]

IRON CHEF DEMETRIUS!

It had been hard for Demetrius to keep up with his short conversation with Chaplin as he heard Cleo struggle to swallow her juice. A slight look of worry appeared on his face until she stopped to glare at the two men as they continued on. When Chaplin asked his question, Demetrius looked at Cleo, only wondering what was going to happen next. Cleo wasn’t the type of woman to just complain about something. There was usually something coming after it. When she finally spoke to the chef though, her eyes darted to him. He looked into her piercing eyes.

Demetrius’ body was on full alert, as if it were instinct. Perhaps all of the countless scuffles with the woman in the past triggered this. He simply knew that there was something unpleasant coming, almost making him want to regret that he chose to show her up the way he did. It was a stare down at the table. Demetrius wished he would have been paying more attention to Chaplin though as he heard the man scream. Demetrius’ eyes widened as his attention turned to the man placing his hand directly into scorching hot frying pan.

“Cleo!” With effort, Demetrius concentrated on drastically lowering the temperature of the pan and the lively flame beneath it. Chaplin ceased his screaming, but hissed at the stinging pain in his hand. If it wasn’t for Demetrius the man would probably be unable to use that hand for a very long time. “Chaplin, get to the infirmary!” Demetrius demanded as the man cursed under his breath as he held his injured hand and exited the kitchen. Demetrius looked toward Cleo with a bit of anger. "See, you don't like it either." Demetrius said to the woman not looking at him. "Now, we both know we did what we did because we care about each others well being, right?" Demetrius said as he took Cleo's hand and squeezed it in the same manner she usually did. "I understand that I can't tell you what you can or can't do to yourself, but it doesn't mean I won't care... Now talk to me." Demetrius asked much more than demanded.

[xoxMissClairexox]

And the steam rises then falls

Her eyes didn’t even wonder to look at Demetrius as he called out her name. It was clear that he had noticed what she was doing despite her not having even lifted a finger. Part of her wanted to show both the Chef and Demetrius that although she was a woman, she did posses a great deal of power. Power, which she was more than happy to use to get her point across. The other part of her felt just a little bad for what she had done to the chef... although he had asked for it when he had become involved in the conversation and argument that she had been having with Demetrius. If he couldn’t handle the heat then he didn’t deserve to be in the kitchen.

Without turning her head to look, Cleo heard the chef being told to go to see the doctor. She was glad to know that he was gone... Cleo really did dislike the man at the moment. The words which followed though out of Demetrius’ mouth confirmed to her that this had all been but a game. He had wanted to get a reaction out of her and to show her how it felt. Yet Cleo still felt that this wasn’t fair. What she had done hadn’t been on purpose and what he had been about to do, would have been. She didn’t want to play games and the frown on her face settled a little more. Even when Demetrius softened his voice and gave her hand a light squeeze, Cleo didn’t turn to look at him or let her mood improve to something even resembling happy. Finally though she was forced to look at him as he said he wished to talk.

“What do you want me to say Demetrius? What do you want to talk about? I don’t want to play games anymore” Cleo said with a sigh. She was trying to keep a level head but in fact she was still fuming. Part of her wanted to yell and scream at him for what he was doing to her. With him it was a battle of wills and of words... something he had always been better at than her. Emotionally and mentally Cleo wasn’t in any state to have her mind toyed with at the moment. She was still very drained from having him gone for a few days and the revelations about her father. However Cleo knew deep down that he had only been looking out for her and was concerned because he loved her. After a moment or two, she gave his hand a small squeeze back.

“I wasn’t trying to hurt myself on purpose; I simply knew I couldn’t stomach anything...” She said, trying to explain to him that it hadn’t been intentional. This time when she spoke the anger was completely drained from her voice and she appeared a lot calmer. Cleo really didn’t want to argue with Demetrius. Despite her anger with him before, she knew that she needed him. She needed someone to hold her and tell her it was all going to be okay, she wasn’t the kind of person who could go through life alone.

“And you know I never want to see you hurt... not really hurt” She said as she corrected herself. Cleo knew that their relationship was too dependent on the ability to physically fight with one another and who better to test their abilities out on and strengthen them? Despite this Cleo knew that neither of them would really hurt the other. Cleo managed to flash him an almost teasing smile as she stood up and let go of his hand. She walked over to the stove where the chef had left the pan on the stove and she went about tipping the contents into the bin and beginning the eggs again. Cleo was still starving and she figured it was the least she could do considering she had caused the chef to have to leave half way through preparing them breakfast.

[FunnyGuy]

I Bet You're Happy

Demetrius had been waiting for Cleo to answer him. Her ignoring him felt worse than her yelling at him for what he did for some odd reason, maybe because he was being deprived of her attention or perhaps her silence made him worry. Either way, Demetrius was waiting for something to leave the lips of his love. Then she spoke, sounding as if exhausted about the whole situation. All the man could do though, was make a worried expression on his face as he thought of what she said about not wanting to play games anymore. What? He didn’t exactly know what she meant as it wasn’t a term used in Concordia, but he had a hunch it was about him solving their troubles the way he just had. It hadn't been the best way, and he knew that now.

Everything was silent in the room for a few moments before Demetrius felt a small squeeze to his hand. A surprised, but relieved expression came to his face as he gave Cleo his attention. She then explained why she didn’t eat. The reason wasn’t legitimate enough for him at first, but he then internally acknowledged the fact that he was very inexperienced with showcasing his emotions and couldn't completely understand the pain she was in. Only basic ones he had tried so hard to suppress his entire life were fine to get a handle on. Love, hate, happiness, despair, anger, and even humor crept its way through him from time to time. At least he knew that Cleo’s actions weren’t something she had done purposely. He raised an eyebrow when she spoke again and even kept his expression when she corrected herself. When Demetrius trained, he had always went with the ends justifying the means. Valius had taught him to train like he fought, and Valius taught him to fight until he couldn’t. With another war on its way, Demetrius could only think of training unconditionally hard. This was something he and Cleo would need to discuss, but would he bring up the topic now or later?

When Demetrius caught Cleo’s teasing smile, he could only guess that she had corrected herself earlier for training with her. He smirked at the opportunity, but a quick flashback entered his mind. It was of his second trial to gaining a handle on his magic; it was when he had to face what appeared to be Cleo. His expression went cold for a second, but then he heard the cracking of eggs.

“So you want me all to yourself?” Demetrius asked playfully as he wrapped his hand around the glass of juice in front of him and watched it begin to bubble. Steam fumed from the liquid before he let go. “Perhaps we can spar later today and maybe tomorrow… We might go see an old rival of mine tomorrow as well; Arkai. I’m too tired for a real fight if it happens today.” Demetrius admitted. He was sure she wouldn’t approve, so he’d need to explain. “It might just be talking… If it becomes a fight, I won’t let him touch me.” Demetrius spoke seriously. He wanted to talk about this rather than argue, so he waited on her response.

[xoxMissClairexox]

"Of course I want you all to myself... If you remember correctly as a child I was never very good at sharing" Cleo said with a grin as she watched the juice bubble in Demetrius' hand. She still found it amazing the control he had over temperature, yet Cleo also found most abilities interesting because they were not something she could do. Her own, well Cleo found them quite boring. As soon as the bubbles started, they stopped and things returned to normal. Her attention turned back to the cooking which she had taken over, still very hungry and it being her top priority at the moment. Also, she did want Demetrius to relax and she knew he wouldn't until she had eaten.

The cracking of eggs could be heard as Demetrius mentioned that maybe they could spar later today or even tomorrow. Cleo was excited since it had been awhile since they really had been able to fight with one another. Of recent it had been verbal arguing they had endured but it had been a long time since they had laid a hand on one another. Also, Cleo was more than positive that she could give him a run for his money and had a silent confidence that he wouldn’t win too easily. When he mentioned going and seeing his old rival, Cleo wasn’t quite as thrilled but continued to cook the eggs and bacon at the stove.

"You are right... he won’t touch you" Cleo said in a level voice. She really didn't like the idea of him going and doing this but she also knew that they both needed to remain calm and talk about this. If they were going to make this work then they needed to know how to communicate. That didn't mean she was going to completely agree with him or let him do it. "Because I will be there with you and will stop him" She said as if it was as simple as that. She didn't care if it drained every ounce of energy from her, Cleo would be protecting Demetrius from an avoidable fight. It was one thing to get into a fight for a good cause but he wasn't going to get hurt on her watch for nothing.

"Don’t forget after breakfast you said that I could try and get rid of my father from your mind" Cleo reminded him in a quiet voice. She didn't really want to bring her father up into the conversation but she was determined to give this a go. Her ability was probably the only one which would be able to help in a situation like this and what was the worst that could happen? She would pass out and regain consciousness a few moments later. For Cleo this was a very small price to pay to be able to eliminate her father’s control over the man she was in love with. Not only was she doing this for Demetrius but it was also for herself. After what she had learnt about her father, she needed a clean break from him. Cleo needed to be able to forget about him and she couldn’t do that while at any moment he could take over Demetrius. All those intimate and special moments between them... well Cleo wanted them to be private.

[FunnyGuy]

It Depends On what Mood You're In

Demetrius had smirked a bit when Cleo said that she’d stop Arkai. He didn’t doubt her, as she had a very menacing ability, but picturing it all in his head is what got to him. Arkai was a fighter that doesn’t use magic like most do in Concordia. Demetrius made his orange juice cold again before drinking it. He nearly choked though when hearing what Cleo said next. He was glad that he didn’t bring about too much noise through his reaction. Now he could give himself time to think about what was going on. Bewilderment strongly crossed his face as he looked at his love prepare breakfast.

When had the topic of her getting rid of her father from his mind come up? He didn’t recall this at all. He would have remembered something like this. In fact, it would have been in his thoughts the whole time during breakfast.

“What..? Cleo what are you talking about?” Demetrius asked honestly. Demetrius then heard a loud cackle, which made him look around the room to see where it came from, but there was no source. He could only assume it was Valius laughing at his misfortune. Demetrius scowled away from Cleo before looking back to her. He didn’t even know why he questioned her just a few seconds ago. He wanted Valius out of his head, and he knew exactly how to do it. “I’m sorry if I forgot. We can do it after we finish eating. I want to know more about your power before we do though.” Demetrius really wanted to know if what he was thinking could work.