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 Posted: Sun Jun 29, 2014 9:39 pm
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It had taken a day for Nergui and Soren to settle into their new home. A day to unpack the bags, to do some limited decorating with what they had managed to acquire since the fall of the isles. A day of nesting, and bliss, and celebrating that lasted well into the night. It meant the air had slept in later than was usual for them. The priestess arrived at her old hut in the reserve late in the morning, and she was practically glowing when she let herself in.
"Bastion, my sweet, I hope you have been packing." Her voice rang out through the small domicile, melodic and serene. "Trust me cousin, you will love the new quarters in the tower. It is amazing."
She was still very much giddy over everything that had happened. The lose of Death was a heavy blow, but everything they had gained? How could anyone say the ends did not justify the means? The tower was beautiful, it was everything they could have ever wanted. Life was going so well!
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Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2014 9:48 pm
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Bastion had not been packing, but that was only because he owned a scant few things. Said things were already ready to go, including all of his work supplies and tools, all in one big, clunky wooden trunk. What few pieces of clothing he owned had been thrown haphazardly in there last minute; but otherwise, he was simply biding his time, and waiting, impatiently.
When Noni came to get him, he was antsy and impatient. He stood up quickly, and started to walk in circles around his trunk, pacing it wildly.
"I trust you! I am certain that whatever our lady has provided, I will love! But I want to go now, I have never been more ready for a change!"
He'd lost contact with people who'd have been his only reason to stay - and that loss was heavily felt. Now, all he wanted to do was leave, and start anew. This need showed in his quickened steps, his pacing, his stride. "Are we ready? Did you need any last thing from your hut?" He certainly hoped not.
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Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2014 10:01 pm
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Her small hut looked very unwelcoming with all personal effects stripped from it. She blinked, almost startled by the sight. It had been one thing for her own possessions to be removed, but Bastion's tools and work has still littered the main room and it hadn't seemed so very empty. Now it was bare and the priestess wondered how she had ever accepted the tiny hunt as home.
With a thoughtful sniff she moved to place herself in her cousin's path, and dark hands were upon the stallion's cheeks the moment he was close enough. "I am filled with joy seeing you so excited about." She had thought, dreaded, that Bastion would have some reservations about the move, but to her delight he seemed nothing but eager.
She smiled up at him, the thumb of her right hand moving to smooth along the lines of grey that marked his face. "I am so proud of you, Bastion." He ad been so brave in the tower, that maze, and then coming to her defense during the final battle.
Letting him go, she gave a small shake of her head. "We are ready, I was very thorough with my packing and left nothing of value behind." A glance was turned down to his singular trunk. "Do you need help carrying anything?" The question seemed to ask as well if that was all he was bringing. If it was, she was going to have to help him fill his new home.
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Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2014 10:24 pm
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Truth told, Nergui was always proud of him. His work as a jewelcrafter was beyond compare, and no matter what task was placed before him he always put forth his best effort to see it through. He did not have to be the strongest, or the bravest, he was perfect as he was, and she adored him for it. That joyful expression warmed her heart, and she rose up on her toes to lay a soft kiss to his chin before he slipped away to retrieve his trunk.
And it was just the one trunk.
A soft tsk sounded as she turned back for the door, and the mare was already making a check list in her mind of the essentials her cousin would need in his new residence. Dishes, of course, and proper bedding - those would be taken care of before the end of the day - the rest, less important, could be gathered up in the coming weeks.
Out the door, Nergui gave the hut a last brief glance before directing Bastion towards the portal that would let them into the tower. They had a lot of stairs to climb.
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Posted: Tue Jul 01, 2014 7:32 pm
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"What are you tsking about, Noni?" He inquired nosily, already hearing some sort of displeasure in the one single sound. "Are you unhappy that we're leaving your old home? Or have I not dressed well for the occasion? Oh, but we must go through all of the clans before we reach our new home, won't we? Oh, those ladies at Conquest are going to take one look at my tatters and twitter like gossips." He had much more experience with the women of Conquest than he'd ever wished for, due to Gold Kingdom's exposure. Lan alone would make some quip about the state of his exposed chest, he just knew it. Would he see the Lady Lan, or the great Lady Lifen herself? Or would the world of Conquest be holed up and secretive, as it often was?
"Will we see the other Clans as we rise? I have been informed of the layout, but with no experience of it myself.."
He should have worn his finest clothes. How embarrassing.
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Posted: Wed Jul 02, 2014 9:58 pm
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An indulgent smile followed the plethora of questions Bastion presented her with, and she slowed her pace so she could fall into step at his side, a hand on one arm. "I am tsking over all of your possessions fitting into one trunk." Her and her guardian had 6 bags between them, and she had considered that packing light. There would be spoiling in his future, she would make sure of it. Gifts of garments or accents that would simply appear in the stallion's home. One day he would look around and realize how very much more there was, then when he had first moved in.
"You look like a proper stallion from Death," she assured him, giving his arm a fond pat. "They have their own style, and we have ours." It was, considering Bastion's horns, perfectly likely someone at some point had cared a great deal for someone in conquest.
They reached the portal, stepping through it and found themselves just inside the base of the tower. "We will, it is truly a sight to behold." A grin touched dark lips. "It is home. From the sights, the smells, and the sounds. It is home."
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Posted: Thu Jul 03, 2014 2:50 pm
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"Proper, hah!" Bastion felt nothing about his meager wardrobe was proper, but this was because of his definition of proper, which was once more tainted by the world of Conquest. He grinned at her, and dragged his trunk all the way in to the portal. He wasn't looking when he arrived, but when he turned he stopped and hurried to catch up with her at the base.
The sound of home reminded him of both things good and bad, but he tried his hardest to focus on the good. "Home," He repeated, letting out a fond sigh. "Well, I'm ready to find out for myself just how well the tower has captured the spirit of our home." He hefted his trunk, and then waited at the base of the stairs, bowing pleasantly.
"Ladies first, of course!"
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Posted: Sun Jul 06, 2014 9:53 pm
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"The forge," Bastion breathed out, slowing on the stairs for a moment as he took the thought in before rushing to catch up with her again. "Ah, Noni, I've missed that more than anything I can imagine. Not more than our family, but certainly more than any one thing from the Isles. I simply cannot wait - if there is one thing that should put me at ease.."
But as they rose the steps, he would instead smell the faint blossom and flowery smell of Conquest. And it was strange, but that, too, put him at ease.
"I shall love it here, surely." He finished, a fond smile playing faintly on his lips.
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Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2014 11:46 am
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"I would argue there are members of our family less missed than the comforting presence of the forge and every sight, scent, and sound that comes along with it." Primarily Anya, though there were more among their kin that had been unpleasant or dismissive to the two young black skinned babes.
The more superstitious of the family had considered them a bad omen. Bastion had somehow managed to retain a positive outlook on all of it, though Nergui suspected the truth of it was buried down deep. Denial was not a force the priestess was familiar with on a personal level, but she had seen the effectiveness of it in others.
Close as they were, Nergui wasn't blind to his reaction as they made their way up the stairs within the Conquest level of the tower. Mismatched eyes narrowed slightly, but she smiled easily enough as he expressed his optimism regarding their new home.
"Did you know," she started, trying to draw his attention away from the gardens and gold beneath them and back on her. "The home you're moving into is right next door to Soren and I?" She grinned, clasping hands together instead of holding his arm. "And you'll be sharing this space, which is considerably larger then my hut had been, with Lushka."
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Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2014 2:05 pm
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Bastion chuckled, giving his cousin a knowing side glance. Their family had set a standard for keeping them separate from the others, but Bastion always thought it was for the best, and Nergui had always taken more insult. He reached out and gave her a hug around the middle, letting out a squeak as he squished her mightily. "But look how we've turned out, who can say if things were not meant to be as they were?" Harboring disdain for his family, and the past, was something Bastion did not have the ability to do. It wasn't as if they didn't deserve it, he just.. couldn't hold anything against them.
He'd been different. He knew it. They'd known it. He accepted his fate long ago.
Nergui did her best to steal his attention back towards the good of their clan. He did not, however, look pleased to be moving next to Soren and his cousin. In fact, his face looked like he'd just sucked on a lemon when he thought about it. The mention of Lushka made his eyebrows lift with worry.
"Together? I hope it works out well. I'll do my best not to be a bother."
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