Another World. Another Time (Akira.S & Gracielle Grace)

[Akira.S]

Once Upon a Time...~

In a land full of magic, wealth and wonder, a dark prophecy was made. For many years the people tried to prepare for the darkness that would come, never knowing when it would strike or how it would strike. Instead of a Great Darkness that swept over the land in one night it came slowly. Land began to die, trees did didn't grow in the spring, animals did not reproduce, and it almost always rained. The skies became overcast, the sun never showed it's face and slowly but surely the people started dying.

The Great Darkness was winning. Consuming every bit of life it could find. But how were you supposed to fight an enemy that had no physical form? An enemy you couldn't see.

The people became desperate. They turned to their village elders for guidance and a way out of years and years of torture. Soon all the people would be gone and life in this world would cease to exist. Then one day many years later a young seer told of a new prophecy, one that would save all the people and their world. However it required the greatest of sacrifices, then and only then would the people be saved. Desperate times came for desperate measures and the people of the world gathered to find their champion, the one who would save them. However high and low they searched they could not find the one, the one destined to save them...the people began to lose hope of finding their savior and turned to the young seer again for guidance.

The seer told them that their champion would come to them with time and with patience. That their world would be saved not by the actions of one, but of four. Three more champions would appear before the time of Great Darkness would be at it's end. And so the people had to wait and be patient for their champions to arrive....but who? how? where? and what would they do to save their people and the land?

It happened in Harpenshire, a small forest village that the Great Darkness had not yet reached. Out of the forest at the edge of their small town, a figure appeared. A young girl bathed in a soft glow of light. The air around her was warm and inviting, the look of pure innocence. She came out of the forest, out of the fog, out of the darkness, in what appeared to be a moss blanket woven by forest nymphs.

The people of Harpenshire knew that this girl was not ordinary, her beauty surpassed all others in the village. Her hair was as white as snow, wavy and so long it reached the small of her back. Her skin pale as the elves but smooth as a newborn babe. Her deep indigo eyes were full of a great sadness for the land, and under the white bangs that covered her forehead was a diamond shaped mark with an intricate design almost like it was burned into her skin.

The young girl who was no more than twelve at the time was kept safe in the village, raised among it's people. And for the first time in a long time the people had hope. Life came back to the forest around Harpenshire, everything began to grow again and the people and the strange new girl were happy. But as the years passed the Great Darkness began to overwhelm the people again and the land began to die.

The people of Harpenshire believed that this girl was one of their champions. That she'd been the one they were waiting for. If so where were the other three...three more had to appear before the Great Darkness was cast out of their land.

And so the young girl who called herself Amaltheianna, grew into a beautiful young woman, waited patiently in the village of Harpenshire hoping for the three champions to appear so that the four of them could dispel the Great Darkness that plagued their world.  

[Gracielle Grace]

The night seemed like any other normal, peaceful, summer night. Everyone in the village was quietly sleeping in their own homes. Crickets sang into the warm, summer, night air. Mosquitoes and other various bugs buzzed around, flying into people's houses. In the dark sky the moon shone brightly and the stars twinkled, letting light shine down onto the world below. It looked like a typical night to all the villagers sleeping in their beds.

But everything was not as it seemed. Something terrible was heading towards the sleeping village, a thing that struck terror in everyone who saw it. It was sweeping over the land so quickly that nobody knew what to do. Everywhere it went, it left darkness and devastation behind, killing many people, animals, and plants. The Great Darkness would soon arrive at the little village like a disease. Even though everything seemed fine, the night was about to change.

In one house a little child, who was not yet a year old, slept peacefully in her cradle. Her mother had rocked her to sleep, singing a calming lullaby. No sounds were loud enough to wake up the baby. Not even the bugs buzzing around in the room made her stir. She slept on in a peaceful slumber.

Suddenly a chill came over the place. The crickets stopped their music, sensing something wrong in the air. All the bugs ceased their buzzing; not a sound could be heard. Domestic animals in the village lifted their heads with ears erect, feeling something terrible approaching. The moon and stars dimmed a little, making everything look darker than before. Torches in the village flickered and went out. Darkness was coming towards the village.

Then, it came. Plants began to die left and right, turning brown and drying up. Bugs froze in place and dropped to the ground one by one like apples falling from a tree. Fruits became all rotten inside and meat spoiled everywhere. Even the grass started to look dehydrated. All these signs were evidence that the Great Darkness had come.

Worse still was what happened in the village. The animals started to sound warnings; dogs barked, cats yowled, chickens ran around, squawking crazily, and horses whinnied and neighed in fright. In houses, people began waking up. All the villagers wondered what was wrong. But before anybody could begin to guess what it was, their breath left them. Soon, many people were dead. Killing was the worst thing that the Great Darkness brought.

There was, however, one survivor left; the baby girl. Somehow, the Great Darkness passed her by. Her parents and everyone else in the village had all died. Even all the animals were gone because of it. But the young child was for some reason spared. She was now the only villager left alive.

As the child awoke, she began to cry. She was hungry and wanted her mother. When she realized her mother wasn't coming to her, she began to cry harder. “Waah!”screamed the baby from her cradle. Why wasn't her mother coming? She kept on crying in confusion.

Creak! A sound came from the front door of the house and sounds of feet on the floor sounded loud. Somebody was coming into the house! The steps came closer and closer to the cradle where the baby still lay crying. Suddenly, a face appeared over the side, knife in the hand of the intruder. The hand started to raise the knife, getting ready to strike......

Briennathaire gasped and sat up with a jerk. Someone was coming to kill her! The person had a knife as sharp as lions' teeth. Whoever this person was had come so cunningly like a thief! Briennathaire sat very still and waited for the intruder to strike, trembling in fear.
When nothing happened, she relaxed. She had been dreaming again. Almost every night she had this nightmare and every time, the same things would happen in it. The Great Darkness would be coming to a village, a one she was in, and it would strip the land of everything that was good in a flash. Thankfully though, it was just a dream. It wasn't even right about the actual Great Darkness because every time the Great Darkness would come it wouldn't devastate the land in a few seconds; it would take it's own time. With a yawn Briennathaire lay back down on her bed and was soon fast asleep.  

[Akira.S]

“You alright Bren, you look a bit out of sorts today. Having trouble sleeping again?”

Isley asked his companion as they road on their horses through the forest surrounding their quaint village. The twenty year old male looked concerned for her, riding close by on top of his white stallion, gripping its reins lightly with one hand, his hunting bow in the other and case of arrows on his back.

The male had the kindest of eyes – eagle gold with the look of patience and serenity in them. His skin was a light honey cream, toned from his time in the field, hunting and fighting other villages and larger animals for prey. He had long snow coloured hair that reached his shoulders, and wore a dark hunting cloak even though it was the middle of the day. Despite his slightly rugged physique those who knew him knew he was gentle, kind, resourceful, and to be the next village leader.

“You should talk to the village elders about it if it’s bothering you so much, maybe talk to Thea, she’s a good listener you know.” Anyone who was anyone in the village knew that Isley, the village leader’s son and his adoptive daughter Thea were engaged to be married. It was an unspoken arrangement but everyone knew it was going to happen eventually.

Isley looked out for his adopted-sister. He cared for her greatly like any good brother should, but cared about his people and his friends equally. He thought the world of Amaltheianna, but never once had he ever considered marrying her, that was just something his father came up with as Thea grew older.

When she first came to the village he spent many hours by her side, teaching her to talk, to behave, to survive, until she was to be taught how to be a lady…and Isley resumed his normal routine, spending time with Briennathaire and the males in the village. The two had grown up together, had been childhood friends for as long as he could remember, and he valued – treasured Bren’s friendship, even if he did treat her like one of the men sometimes. Maybe Bren disliked Thea when they were children but they got over it after they’d aged considerably, after all there was nothing to be jealous of on Thea’s side. She was a child with no memory, no home, knew nothing but loss and loneliness before she came to Harpenshire.

((I took out a paragraph, I didn’t want to jump too fast in case you wanted Bren to say or do something before you introduced your male character)).  

[Gracielle Grace]

After her parents had died, the baby had been found and taken in by an Elf. He had been to the village of the little girl many times even though he didn't live there and had been good friends with her parents. When he found out that she was the only one left in her family alive, he decided to adopt her. He didn't know of any other relatives of the baby and knew that the parents would have wanted him to take care of her under the circumstances. Soon, he loved the human baby like she was his own daughter. The elf vowed that he would never let anything happen to the girl; not even let the Great Darkness touch her!

Briennathaire shook herself a little. She had been thinking about her dream that she had had again and had forgotten what was going on around her. A second ago she thought she had heard her name, but she wasn't quite sure. “I'm sorry,” Bren mumbled sleepily. “I guess I shouldn't be out here so early. Last night wasn't such a good night. I had a that dream again. Uh....Did I tell you about it already?” She let out a big, noisy yawn to wake up and rubbed her eyes.

When she got the sleep out of her eyes, she became much more alert and happy. She flipped her wavy blonde hair out of her face so she could see better. Her bright blue eyes shone as she looked around at the morning with excitement. She patted her brown horse with a loving pat. A smile broke out on her face as she heard a bird singing off in the distance. Now, she was fully awake and the nightmare seemed less important than the morning walk in the woods.

She laughed when she saw Isley's concerned face. “What? Do I have a bug on my face?” She asked with a smile. Snapping her fingers, with a pretended, upset look, she cried, “I knew I should have kept that spider in my hair this morning! That is always the best thing to do when you have one in your hair. You never know when another bug could get in there. At least a spider would get rid of the other bug!” She giggled; he always seemed to be so concerned for her, but she didn't ever like to be without a smile too long.  

[Akira.S]

It seemed the conversation concerning her dream and lack of sleep was soon forgotten. Apparently anything Isley had just said had gone over the girl’s head almost like she didn’t hear him. He could have said anything to her just now and she wouldn’t have heard it. “Well I’m glad to see you’ve got your spirit back. Not to mention there are very few girls in town who appreciate having spiders crawl through their hair as they sleep.” If Bren wasn’t going to talk about her dream then he wouldn’t push it anymore. It was clear to him she wasn’t comfortable talking about it or was too strong of a girl to admit she had a problem. The older male hoped that if something was bothering she’d known she could go to him – for anything.

The forest they lived in was lovely, still green though dying slowly. The land outside however, the planes, the road that led outside their village was dying much faster than the forest that housed their town. It was almost as if there was a barrier surrounding the forest to keep it alive just a little longer before the Great Darkness could seep into their land and possibly destroy one of the few remaining forests in the world.

As the two were trotting along on their horses, nearing a river to allow their horses to drink, Isley’s horse began to buck against his wishes, neighing and setting his feet down in the hard ground below. “Woah...Woah steady, what’s the matter?” Isley quickly swooped down off his horse, with a great swishing of his cape and grabbed the reins, pulling on them to try and settle down his horse. Something was disturbing him; something in the air, in the trees, in the wind, in the water, something here was different. “Easy now, easy boy. What is it? What’s out there?” he asked calmly, stroking his horse’s long face looking into his eyes with a deep stare. The two had ventured through the forest many times, there was nothing here that would startle the horses this badly, so what had changed?

“Bren I want you to stay close and- Bren? Bren?!” Turning around he noticed she and her horse were no longer beside him. Knowing her she’d probably gone off to find whatever it was that had startled his horse; she was always one for adventure and always one to do what she was told NOT to do. Clicking his tongue Isley strung his bow over his chest tightly along with his quiver of arrows then hoped back onto his horse and kicked off to try and find her.  

[Gracielle Grace]

Bren was surprised when her horse had reared up like that. Normally her horse, Leather, was fine drinking in this river. Her horse was usually very calm in these woods and wasn't frightened by the forest creatures around here before. No wild animals were in sight to scare the horses. In fact, there weren't even bugs flying around. "Leather, what's wrong?" Bren asked her horse, wondering what had scared the poor animal.

Looking further into the trees, she wondered if she should go deeper into the woods. Leather was looking at something in that direction, shivering and snorting with fear. That was where the thing that had frightened her horse seemed most likely to be. If there was something out there then maybe she should go check it out, even if her father would forbid her to do so. She stood there trying to decide whether to go on or not.

Then, making up her mind, she made her horse go deeper into the woods. "I'll be fine," she reassured her self. "This is just the woods. There aren't any wild animals around right now and nothing bad has happened to me yet in these woods. No thieves seem to be here either. If they are though, I've got a dagger I can use against them. Besides, I have Isley with me who can shoot anything from a bear to a bee!" She told herself that she would be fine, even if she was going into a part that she wasn't very familiar with.

Suddenly, Bren gasped as she noticed Isley wasn't with her. Where had he gone? He had been riding along side her a moment ago, but now both he and his horse were nowhere in sight. She looked all around her carefully, but she couldn't see any familiar cape or white hair anywhere. The only things around her were trees. With a little worried look, she wondered if he had started back home and hadn't realized that she wasn't following. Bren wondered if she should go back to look for Isley.

After a minute of riding, she decided that she should start back. Whatever had scared her horse didn't seem to be around here. She knew she shouldn't have gone into the woods like that. Her father had strictly told her never to go into the forest without someone else coming along. Isley was always telling her to think before she acted, and now she wished she had. She hoped that Isley was still at the river waiting for her. Bren started to go back the way she came.

Then, she saw something she hadn't noticed before; a man.  

[Akira.S]

The white haired male cursed under his breath in a foreign tongue that wasn’t their own. It paid to know the tongues of the neighbouring towns and people in the land, but it was rude to curse at someone in a foreign language. Sitting on his horse Hawthor, he trotted around the forest looking for his companion, wondering which way she’d gone. He was quiet, listened for any sign of her or her horse, anything in the forest that was out of place. But it was far too quiet for his liking; everything about this part of the forest was out of place.

Pulling the reigns he stopped Hawthor and ran his hand down his horse’s long sturdy neck. There was a small lump growing in his throat, panic growing in his chest. If anything had happened to Bren...her father and his father would never forgive him. He wasn’t supposed to take his eyes off her, never supposed to let her out of his sight. “Where have you gone...” he muttered to himself before kicking off and heading deeper into the forest to see if he could find any sign of her.

Finally, after some time of wandering aimlessly in what he felt was circles he caught sight of her off her horse looking at something. She looked unharmed – oh thank god. He sigh in relief, releasing the worry building in his chest. He hadn’t seen what Bren was looking at but he figured she’d have enough sense to stay a good distance away from whatever it was, she wasn’t stupid.

Sliding off Hawthor, he stroked his horse on the head and quietly crept up towards Bren, trying to make as little noise as possible. Moving the bushes and trees blocking the way with his bow very softly he stopped just behind her to see what she was seeing.

His golden eagle eyes widened as he grabbed her upper arm and tugged her back slightly. The nearest man village was several days journey from their forest, so what was this man doing here? But it wasn’t just the appearance of man in their forest that was strange, his clothes were foreign, his skin smooth as if untouched from working the land, everything about him was not natural.

“Bren, get away from him, leave him where he lies. He has no business here...” he muttered quietly in her ear trying to pull her away from the scene. Her eyes were glued to him, as Isley’s were, though he wanted to deny his curiosity. “Come away, we should head back to the village.” It wasn’t that he was scared of man, which was hardly the point. The village hardly had visitors even now with the Great Darkness slowly purging the world of all that made it beautiful, green and healthy, travelling the lands was dangerous; whatever this man was doing here could hardly be good.  

[Gracielle Grace]

Getting off of her horse, Bren stared curiously at the man on the ground. Even though she lived in an Elven village, she had seen men before, men that had just been passing through. They had never really paid much attention to her and she never paid attention to them. But what was a man doing here, lying on the ground? With growing curiosity, Bren stepped closer to get a better look at him.

He didn't look like any man she had ever seen before. All the men she had seen had big, strong, muscular arms due to working hard at the fields or some other hard work, but this man had thin, weak-looking arms that looked like he had never had to work in his life. Even though he looked old enough to be growing a mustache or beard, his face was smooth and didn't have any hair on it. The strangest thing about him was his clothes; he didn't wear a cloak or cape, nor did he have any kind of attire that Bren had ever seen. He wore pants that she thought looked too long for him and he had a shirt that had strange designs on it. Bren stared at this strange man with wide eyes, wondering where in the world he had come from and what he was doing here.

Just then, Isley came up to her and told her to leave the man, but Bren didn't budge. She wanted to find out what this man was doing here and where he was from. Still looking at the stranger on the ground, Bren quietly said," No. I want to find out about this man. He is very strange and I've never seen someone that looks like that. If I could talk to him, maybe I could learn who he is, where he is from, and what he is doing here."

Bren sighed as she made up her mind. She knew that she could be getting into something that she shouldn't, that this man could be dangerous. But she couldn't shake off the feeling that this man was important. He looked strange, but she couldn't just leave a person out in the woods to die. There could be wild animals around and the Great Darkness was always around. If he was starving the woods might not have any edible food. She decided that she had to try and help this man, even if he was dangerous.

Then, with a smile, Bren came up with an idea that she thought for sure Isley wouldn't disagree on. "Isley, I have an idea!" she exclaimed. "Why don't we tell Thea? She'll listen to us and she always seems to know what to do. I bet she'd know what to do with this situation!" Smiling, she hoped her white haired friend would agree to her plan.  

[Akira.S]

Isley didn't like the sight of the stranger in his forests. Even more so when Bren's curiosity got the best of her. She was curious - approaching him slowly to get a better look. Her white haired companion huffed silently and followed closely behind her, trying not to make a sound.

This man was indeed strange. Unlike any man he'd seen in any other land or town. He wasn't fit to survive, judging by his appearance and his attire. What could a scrawny little man like him possibly do to defend himself during such hard times? If his appearance and clothing didn't bother him enough, it was his age that seemed to irk the hunter. He looked around the same age as Isley but had no possession of any sort of qualities that would deem him a man or a hunter. What was his role in the land from which this man came? What did he do for his people? Most importantly why was he here?

"That's enough. Leave him where he lies. It's far too dangerous to bring strangers into the village. Besides, I doubt he could even understand us if he wanted to..." Man live among side the creatures of the land but it was rare to find someone who could speak multiple tongues. Translators and messengers were usually sent back and forth between towns and other clans to decipher messages when it came to trading and communicating. Isley was well versed in several different languages, but the language of man was not one of them.

Finally Bren came to a decision. Despite his countless warnings she refused to leave the man without help. She seemed quite pleased and enthused over the idea, quickly sharing her thoughts with him. After hearing what she had to say, the male was taken a back a little. Once she'd made up her mind about something he knew it was pretty much impossible to change it - as hard as he tried, and he tried often. Sighing heavily to himself, he strung his bow on his back and gave her his answer, "Alright. Knowing your stubbornness you won't give up until you've had your peace with him." Quietly walking away from the area, he quickly hopped back onto Hawthor and pulled on the reins slightly.

"Let's be quick about it, the sun will be going down soon and the forest isn't very safe at night..." he said looking around, waiting for her to get on her horse and follow him back to the village. If Bren was right about anything it was that Thea would know what to do in a situation like this. The sweet girl was incredibly kind, resourceful, and had an uncanny amount of sympathy for others, if anyone would know what to do in the village it was her.

((I'm surprised you haven't had the guy spot or hear them yet. I figured this entire time they were hiding in the trees and bushes while watching him. I'm assuming...he's unconsious since you haven't really said otherwise.))  

[Gracielle Grace]

(( Oops! Sorry, I guess I forgot to say that the guy was unconscious. Yeah, that's the reason he hasn't seen them or started talking yet. sweatdrop ))

"Good!" Bren told herself quietly, smiling. Isley had agreed that they could tell their friend Thea about the man lying on the ground, even though it was obvious that he didn't like the looks of the stranger very much. She was glad that he had consented because she, as she usually was with strange and new things, was very curious about who the man was that they had found. Since Isley agreed to ask Thea about it, Bren thought for certain her questions could be answered. "Thank you Isley! I'm sure Thea will know what to do!" she cried happily to her Elven friend.

After Isley remarked about her stubbornness however, Bren felt a bit guilty about her plan. He was quite right when he said, "Knowing your stubbornness you won't give up until you've had your peace with him." He was always very kind to her and was just trying to protect her as best as he could. Running off like that into the woods wasn't a smart thing to do, nor was being near a stranger very wise either, and she had made Isley worry for her safety even though she was fine. And, without thanking him for trying to save her, saying that she was sorry, or even greeting him, she had rudely refused to turn away from the man. To top it all off, she had even suggested to ask his sister, Thea, about this matter. She knew that Thea probably was quite busy and didn't need a whiny, rude, teenager to ask about some strange man in the forest. Bren's happiness soon turned into a guilty feeling, weighing down on her.

"I'm sorry," Bren said to Isley. "I shouldn't have been so careless.You just want to be extremely careful in these woods and don't want to get into trouble. Going around the forest and finding strange men is a very safe thing to do, so I'm sorry for my curiousity and my stubbornness. You're right about how stubborn I am, and I'm sorry. It's just that I can't leave someone out here all night. We have to tell Thea!" She hopped onto her horse and repeated, "I am really sorry for causing so much trouble."  

[Akira.S]

((I figured he was unconscious, but I just wanted to make sure LOL – PS you haven’t really provided me with a description of what Bren actually looks like lol))

Isley felt in his gut that he was going to regret this somehow. Humans often made up stories that depicted the Elven as cold, heart-less, without a real sense of emotion. That was all a lie, that was only the way they were presented to humans so it was common that they thought that. Elves were like humans – except better, hence their pride. Isley worried deep down inside for Bren’s safety, although his facial expression didn’t often show his concerns, nor did his voice betray his feelings either. Bren was overjoyed when he agreed to take her back in order to bring Thea. They both knew that if anyone knew what to do it was her. Plus she could keep a secret pretty well. If any of the other villagers found out a human was lurking around their woods they’d be furious...

However, before the two left Bren’s attitude suddenly changed. She apologized for her behaviour and her erratic decision-making, but she couldn’t just leave someone out in the forest to be taken by its mysteries. It was often hard for Isley to stay mad at his young companion. She was so...different from his people it was often refreshing as it was tiresome. At least, despite her stubbornness, she stayed true to her convictions and let nothing stop her – that was something he could admire about her....amongst other things.

It was quite a ride back to the village, but they hadn’t lost too much time. Thea was as usual, in town, surrounding herself with the young Elven children, playing with them, teaching them, and taking care of them while their parents worked the land. They all adored her, as all the villagers did. Her beautiful smile, her kind eyes, and her big heart was a quality that brought everyone together and kept their mind off the troubles of the outside world and the Great Darkness. Her presence was truly a blessing.
This afternoon she and the village children were sitting by one of the water wells, she was telling them a story while some napped and listened eagerly. A young girl of perhaps eight in human years sat on her lap as Thea braided her hair. When she saw Isley and Bren approach on their horses, she lifted the young girl from her lap and walked towards the two to greet them.

Amaltheianna was the essence of pure beauty and innocence. Even her stride was nothing but lovely. Her skin almost milky white, her hair the colour of snow and lighter than Isley’s, her large eyes a deep purple, and her lips the softest shade of rose. Her dress was very slimming and becoming of her, a very soft and light shade of lavender. The dress hung low on her shoulders and had a long enough train to look like she was floating towards them as she walked. “Isley, Briennathaire, what are you two doing home so soon?” Thea’s voice was soft and sweet, calm and lovely all at once. She was so out of place among the elves; not quite human, but not quite elf. As a sign of respect, she walked up to her adoptive brother, embraced him lightly and kissed him ever so softly on both his cheeks. She was as beautiful as any of them could boast, but there was something so unearthly about her, something more that made her more than the beauty that stood before them. When she pulled away from him, she moved her bangs out of her eyes, allowing the two a brief glimpse at the flower shaped mark in the centre of her forehead.

(Just wanted to give you an idea of what she looks like, I can find a picture of Isley if you want)  

[Gracielle Grace]

After arriving at Harpenshire, Isley and Briennathaire's home village, Bren smiled as she looked around at her village, and thought that no place could be any better, even with the Great Darkness around. Ever since she could remember, Harpenshire had been a busy village with every villager working hard at some sort of job. All the villagers tried to do their best at their jobs and to remain cheerful, brushing away the thought of terrible times. The younger children always seemed to be surrounding Thea, listening to her stories, playing with her, and trying to learn what she was teaching them. To Bren, it seemed everybody knew everyone and would be willing to help each other in times of need. Harpenshire was the place of her childhood and she hadn't ever visited any other village, though she sometimes dreamed of traveling to other places. Looking at her village and it's people, she wondered if any other village could be as nice, kind, and peaceful as Harpenshire.

Bren soon saw a circle of children clustering around someone and grinned. If there was a group of children somewhere, that almost always was a sure sign that Thea was there. She confirmed her guess when she spotted a whiter-haired head and lovely, purple eyes peeking over the rest. Thea was the person Bren and Isley wanted to see, and thankfully it hadn't been too hard to find her through the group of children. Bren smiled as she and Isley walked over to their friend.

Compared to Thea, Bren was quite plain. Whereas Thea was kind, gentle, and had a calm appearance, the human girl, though she was friendly and tried to be as kind to everyone as she could, was a bit rude sometimes and acted a bit like a tom boy sometimes. Nobody trusted her with breakable, flammable, or fragile things because she could drop and break things easily. Instead of having lovely, flowing, white hair, Bren's blonde, wavy hair stuck out at different places and had hundreds of tangles in it. Her blue eyes weren't as dazzling as Thea's lovely purple ones and didn't make people stare at them. Her dress was simple, it was the shade of green, was nothing special, and there were obvious smudges of grass, dirt, and food on it. Bren was quite the opposite of Thea when it came to looks.

Still, Bren didn't let that bother her. She had gotten used to people looking at her a bit disgustedly when she came inside with dirt all over her dress. After a time, she had come to realize that Thea was quite beautiful, but still didn't see the reason why every girl worried about their beauty all the time. "Sure," Bren thought, "I don't want to look like an Ogre or Orc, but I don't really care too much about how others think of my looks. I just want to look like me, not some dazzling princess!" Bren admired Thea very much and wasn't envious of her.

As Isley and Thea greeted each other with a kiss on both cheeks, Bren caught a glimpse of Thea's mark on her forehead and wondered about it. Nobody had ever told Bren the reason for her friend's mark. She had no idea if her friend had had it for all her life or not, but it had always been there as long as Bren could remember. No one else she'd ever seen had a mark like it. The mark was so strange, and sometimes it made her wonder where Thea had gotten it.

(Sorry, I don't have a picture of Bren. Thank you for the picture of Amaltheianna though. She is very pretty!) biggrin  

[Akira.S]

“We had something we wanted to ask you.” Isley embraced his adopted sister lightly, allowing her to kiss him on both cheeks before he lifted her right hand and pressed his own lips against her palm.
“Hm?” Thea was curious now, and turned to the both of them while waiting for one of them to speak.
Isley was a bit surprised when Bren didn’t automatically jump at the opportunity to tell Thea about the human she found, instead his younger companion was glancing at Thea’s bangs which covered her forehead, and the red flowery mark that sat right in the middle. Instead of interrupting Bren’s thoughts, he decided to tell Thea of their story, hoping she’d have a solution and go with them.

“Bren found something...in the forest,” he started out with a hushed tone in case the children, although half were sleeping, would hear. If the children heard they’d definitely tell their parents and their parents would tell the head of the village and then they’d be in trouble. “There’s a human lying under a tree by the river, dressed in strange garb, who appears to be sleeping or unconscious. Bren here...insisted we ask you for advice where as I suggested we leave him be. You know how she can be.” Even Thea knew from playing with her as a child that Bren wouldn’t stop until she got what she wanted, even if she was trying to figure out a way to get an apple from the orchard before dinner when she was much smaller.

“Is this true?” Thea asked the younger girl with her gentle soothing voice and deep purple eyes. You could always get lost in those eyes when you looked directly at them.
When Bren confirmed Isley’s story there was nothing else to be said. “Then we should go see him. Even if he’s human no one should be allowed in the forest after dark. I’ll explain it to father, I’m sure he’s harmless.” That was just like Thea and Bren to see all the goodness in people without really knowing them. She always gave them benefit of the doubt and was willing to help others if she could help it.
She told the children who were still awake she had to leave for a while, but would be back to play with them a little later on or tomorrow depending how the rest of the night went.

When she said her goodbyes, she followed the two back to their horses. Thea stroked Hawthor’s mane a bit and steadied his reigns as Isley waited for her, to assist her up. He road in front and she road behind him, side sitting as she held onto his waist, looking over at Bren and her horse, “lead the way.”

It didn’t take long for the two to return to the spot where they found the human, the air around him still strange and uninviting. The sun was beginning to set now, leaving the bright glow of orange and deep purple in the air. It almost made Thea’s snowy white hair and radiant skin glow in its orange light. When Thea saw the young man she approached him cautiously like Isley would, but like Bren she wasn’t afraid. It would be dark soon, and it would be dangerous to leave him here in the forest, they had to wake him, and move him quickly...

Of course Isley was overly cautious for both young girls, taking out his tooth shaped dagger and holding it in his hand in case the man posed any threat. He kept Bren at his side, leaving only Thea to approach the human, so he only had one person to protect. It would have been much easier to keep an eye on Bren here in comparison to beside the human with Thea. She moved over closer to the man, lifting his wrist slightly to feel his pulse, “he’s still alive.” She assured them. When Thea turned back to him she got a really good look at him...and was awe struck.

She’d never seen a man like him before...his skin smooth and soft, his features untouched by the weary look of having to work every day of your life, and his clothes were certainly unlike any she’d seen before. No wonder Bren was so interested. Thea put her soft and warm hand against his cheek, the colour of her skin paled in comparison to his. You could tell Isley was furious with how Thea was behaving, but held himself back as she examined the human. The white-haired female leaned in closer to him, almost as if she was about to kiss him...but instead pressed her forehead against his, whispering something so quiet and inaudible it seemed pretty difficult for anyone to really hear.  

[Gracielle Grace]

As the trio rode through the forest and into the area where the strange man was lying, Bren couldn't keep a smile off of her face. She was grateful to Thea for agreeing to investigate the stranger. Nothing like this had ever happened before in her lifetime and she longed for an adventure Even though Isley thought the man was dangerous, Bren was overwhelmed with excitement that she had found somebody in the woods, someone so out-landish, and she didn't think the man would be an enemy. Coming to the place where the unconscious man lay, she could hardly contain her excitement.

She was still amazed at the strangeness of him. He was like no man she had ever seen, and that wasn't just because he was a Man! In her village, none of the men had such smooth skin, and not many women did either. No muscles stuck out to show that he was a hard laborer, which didn't make sense as to how he could survive anywhere. “He looks like he isn't any stronger than me, maybe even weaker than a normal girl my age,” thought Bren as she stared at him. This man looked so different from anyone else in the village that, even though she had seen him before Thea, it still made her stare at him with awe and curiosity.

While Bren pondered where the man had come from, Isley made sure that they were well protected. He had taken out his dagger with the swiftness of a trained warrior and was holding it in front of him. In fact, he was pointing it at the form on the ground, waiting to strike at any offensive move from the stranger. Every muscle seemed to be tensed for action in the Elf's body, ready to defend both of his friends. Bren didn't doubt that he could and would protect them from any harm, whether it came from the one lying on the ground or from some other danger.

When Thea had walked over to the man and checked his pulse, she bent over his form in a peculiar way. Bren stifled a giggle as she thought her friend was going to kiss him. However, Thea didn't kiss him at all. Bren felt a bit embarrassed that she had thought Thea would act so unseemly, but sighed with relief that her friend hadn't acted recklessly and without thought. It seemed that Thea had actually just whispered something into the man's ear. The sound was inaudible for Bren, but she saw her beautiful friend's mouth moving as if speaking to him. “What did she say?” wondered Bren aloud, but in a whisper.

Just at that moment, however, the unconscious man on the ground stirred. His eyes squeezed shut more tightly than before and he breathed in deeply. The grass rustled slightly as the man slowly turned his head, still keeping his eyes closed. Bren watched with wonder as he yawned widely, showing his white teeth. Rubbing his eyes with his hands, he slowly began to sit up. Then, he stretched and let out another huge yawn. “Finally!” exclaimed Bren excitedly. “He's waking up!”

While the man had been yawing and stretching, he had not really thought very deeply. “Oh brother,” he had thought to himself lazily. “Why do I have to wake up now? I was just having a good sleep a minute ago, but now I have to be waken up for some reason. Is it time for breakfast or something? I sure hope so! I'm starving!” Then he opened his eyes and was startled to see three figures standing over him.

He gaped at them. Who were these people? Why were they here, and why were they all looking at him? What were they going to do to him? Would they kill him? But why would they do that?

Thinking about those questions made him wonder even further. What about himself? Where was he? Why was he on the ground? What was he doing here? How did he did here? Or, more importantly, who was he? Panic began to rise in him like water boiling in a pot as he realized that he had no idea about anything about himself. “Who are you?” he cried out in fear. “What's going on?”

(I hope I find out what Thea said sometime)  

[Akira.S]

(Thea pretty much just whispered to him to try and get him to wake up, lol nothing that important)

Isley was just as confused at his adopted sister's behaviour as Bren was...leaning so close to a human in a way that looked like she was going to kiss him. If Isley didn't have some restraint he would have pulled back on Thea's arm right now and the three of them would have been on their way home. But that wasn't his style. He was almost just as curious as Bren was now that Thea was here to deal with the situation accordingly. He noticed, and heard her whisper something into the man's ear, Bren wondering aloud but still quietly what she said. "I'm not sure...Thea has this way with people..." he lied. Maybe only part lied.

As a child he observed his sister's way with people and animals in the forest. She would whisper things to animals and acted as if they talked back to her, she would visit the sick and hold their hand, stroking it within hers as they were almost magically cured of their illness. With this boy Thea was no different. She almost seemed like she was in a trance, like she wasn't herself whenever she did strange things like these. His father told him not to ask questions and not to pry too much concerning Thea. She was special, she was magical, although what magical properties Isley wasn't sure of. All he was sure of, was that he had to protect her and whatever magic she brought to their small village.

The man Thea sat by began to stir, awakening from his sleep. Bren exclaimed happily that he was waking up, but that only made Isley more cautious. He quickly grabbed Bren from behind and covered her mouth with his hand, keeping her close, telling her to shush as to not startle the stranger. But he was already startled.

Being kind natured and gentle as she was, Thea tried to calm down the human before her, clearly noting his fear and panicky nature. 'Tamm...tamm sez-tze...oueo tamm...' No matter what she tried, the male before her looked at her in fear. Although her voice was gentle and soft she figured he didn't understand her, nor did she really understand the words coming from his mouth. "Thea, he'll attract attention if he doesn't shut it." Isley said ready to strike at the human and cut his throat open if he didn't quiet down. The sun was slowly setting and as soon as it got dark the forest was a dangerous place.

With Isley ordering her, and the human male next to her just about having a fit, Thea did the only thing she could think of. She'd thought about it in theory but had never tried it before...
Taking the stranger's face in her soft pale hands she leaned foreward and planted her soft pink lips upon his forehead, stilling him and quieting him down for a moment. Isley was almost embarrased to see her act so forward and so physical towards such a stranger, she had to be stopped. After a moment, he pulled on her shoulder, hard, pulling her away from the human and back at his side, allowing Bren to be the one to step forward and question him.

"Are you out of your mind? He could be dangerous, you don't know anything about him!"
"It was all I could do to calm him down, if you hadn't noticed he can't understand us."
"And you think your 'kiss' is going to change that?"

While the siblings were arguing amongst each other they seemed unaware that the human was now looking up at them as if he was able to follow every word they were saying as if they spoke plain English. It seemed whatever Thea had did to the man had worked and they were now able to communicate with each other.