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Post by Hectic Snapdragon on Jan 12, 2007 20:44:30 GMT -8
Hectic nodded. Her sister needed to see Araia, or so they said. And right about now, she'd do almost anything for Sirath; his saving her pretty much cemented her infatuation with him. She rose into the air, not quite back to herself, but at least she was no longer crying. The strangeness that Sirath noticed in her shirt was that her tears didn't burn through it; Spinner had her spiders make it, so it was of course enchanted. "Alright, follow me," and led them at a more cautious pace to her home.
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Post by sirath on Jan 12, 2007 20:48:37 GMT -8
"Thank you," Sirath said as he alighted again, looking back at Araia before following Hectic again. He had never been to Tintagel, so he had no idea whether they were at all close to Flower's house, but he hoped that they would arrive soon. He hadn't know the devastation that Flowers felt when Araia had been taken away, for he had been in a different place than them at the time of his capture, but he guessed that she would be as, if not more, upset than Araia himself was.
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Post by araia on Jan 12, 2007 20:53:43 GMT -8
Araia nodded, watching the strange little Fey continue to lead them. He was glad that the pace had slowed, though he had no problem running around barefoot. The ground they were walking on simply felt strange to him after being used to burning stones and sand, and everytime he stepped on a twig he mentally cursed from the pain.
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Post by Hectic Snapdragon on Jan 12, 2007 21:11:53 GMT -8
When she got home, Hectic didn't bellow as usual, but just said, "Come on, she's probably in her room, maybe my parents too." She stopped and said, "Wait...I need a favor." She blushed a bit, and said, "If my parents find out what happened, they'll never let me fly alone again, even though I'm 500 years old already. Please let me change clothes before we go see her, I promise I won't take long." Her parents were so used to her changing clothes and not explaining mysterious stains and smells, so it would be a small matter to hide her near death experience.
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Post by sirath on Jan 12, 2007 21:14:46 GMT -8
Sirath nodded. "Hurry," he said quietly, and then once she was gone he turned to look at Araia. "Are you going to be alright?" he asked, massaging his left bicep that had begun to ache slightly, as it did off and on. He knew that Araia had to be nervous, but they were so close that they couldn't give up now.
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Post by araia on Jan 12, 2007 21:25:55 GMT -8
Araia's eyebrows shot into his hairline at that. Five hundred?! She was just a kid! He shook his head slightly. He was being ridiculous. He'd been around beings that had lost count of their years somewhere after infinity, and still retained their youth. But still...five hundred... He watched as Hectic entered the house to change, and then looked to Sirath. "I'm fine. You're the one who looks worse for wear." He commented, gesturing loosely to Sirath's slight singed shirt. Not that he looked too pretty, either, coming straight from Hell. At least Sirath had gotten to change his clothing.
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Post by Hectic Snapdragon on Jan 12, 2007 21:27:54 GMT -8
Gratefull, she rose into the air and planted a watery kiss on his cheek, then flew to her room to dry off and change clothes. Coming back, she saw Sirath rubbing his arm, and said, "My sister has a plant that can make your shoulder feel better. Come on, her room is this way." She leads them to the room and sees her sister for the first time. She's surprised at how much she looks like mother, but then, Hectic looks a lot like father. Interrupting quietly, she says, "Mother, Father, I met a pair of people who say they know Millifiori." Realising her sister had never seen her before, she flew up, and seeing the wolf lady, smiled, but got in the way. "Hi. I'm your sister, Hectic Snapdragon."
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Post by sirath on Jan 12, 2007 21:32:21 GMT -8
Sirath shrugged. "Maybe," he said, though he knew he looked horrible. If his scars weren't bad enough, his dirtied appearance and burned shirt simply added to the mess. He was very grateful that the places where his shirt had been burnt were so small that his scars weren't visible, though when he remembered Hectic saying something about providing another shirt he became slightly worried. He didn't want anyone to see his scars. At all.
Sirath blinked as Hectic returned, and then followed her inside. When Sirath saw Millifori, he was glad to see that she was happy, though was slightly confused. He could tell that she had been upset shortly beforehand, though the traces were very light, and hoped that her happiness would stick even when she realized that Araia had returned. Feeling as if he didn't really belong, Sirath stood away from the group. After all, the only reason he was here was so that Flowers' parents wouldn't annihalate Araia on the spot.
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Post by araia on Jan 12, 2007 22:11:27 GMT -8
Araia walked into the house, staring at his feet. He couldn't bring himself to look up until they had stopped moving, and then he stared at each of the faces like a lost child. He was slightly surprised to see Miaka there, for though he didn't know her name, he had seen her before in Beyond. The last person he looked at was Flowers, in the center of the room. And then he couldn't move his eyes away. He was petrified, but managed to say shakily, quietly, "...Flowers?"
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Post by Millifiori on Jan 12, 2007 22:24:42 GMT -8
Flowers had been about to greet her little sister, who didn't look quite as wild as her mother had described, when she heard the last voice she thought she'd ever hear in her own bedroom. Eyes wide, she trembled, and looked past everyone to see none other than Araia. She shook violently, all the images coming back to her, the song from her dream suddenly replaying, and she reaches mindlessly for her leather pouches, pouring seeds on the floor until she's knee deep, and with a gesture, they surge forward, separating Miaka and her family from him in a panic, literally dividing her room in half.
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Post by sirath on Jan 12, 2007 22:27:54 GMT -8
As Sirath saw the wall rising up, he immediately moved in front of Araia and shook his head. "Flowers!" he shouted loudly from behind the wall. "Please don't do this, we aren't here to harm you. This is Sirath--you remember me, right? You must forgive Araia and give him a chance, he didn't know what he was doing that day. We were taken to Hell by his brother, but Araia overcame his family's control over him for you, Flowers. Please give him a chance to explain himself; he only wants to make things right again."
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Post by Millifiori on Jan 12, 2007 22:45:22 GMT -8
She concentrated, and the flowers formed the shape of her face, which spoke with her words; yes folks, her full powers were back. "I MUST do nothing!" the blossoms said, shaking with fear, resembling her face shape perfectly, "He tried to kill me! If my father had not come for me, I would have DIED!" As quickly as the face of flowers had appeared, they reverted, and the hedge sprouted wicked looking thorns in their places, as if she feared he'd try to come for her again and finish the job.
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Post by sirath on Jan 12, 2007 22:51:14 GMT -8
"Please, Millifori, Guardian of the Thousand Flowers, listen to us! I beg you to listen to us! We mean you and your family no harm, your sister can testify to that herself. Please, Millifori, hear us out. I know you have suffered, and you have every right to be angry, but please, Millifori just give him a chance to make this right," he said, pleadingly but firm.
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Post by araia on Jan 12, 2007 22:53:16 GMT -8
The instant the wall came up, Araia regretted coming to Flowers's house, in a 'what were you thinking' kind of way. He shrunk back, pulling his arms in defensively to his chest and lowering his head once more. When Sirath moved in front of him and spoke, he was shocked, and looked back up just in time to see the flowers take the form of Flowers's face.
He stared, still shocked as they spoke and turned to thorns, and took another step back, lowering his head again. Quietly, he spoke to Sirath, "Leave her be, she wants nothing from me." He looked back up, his expression unreadable as he stared at the wall of thorns. "It was a mistake to come here...I apologize for the pain I have caused you and your family. I do not deserve your forgiveness."
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Post by sirath on Jan 12, 2007 22:57:22 GMT -8
Sirath looked back at Araia quickly, and recognized that downtrodden state. "Don't give up so easily, Araia. It wasn't your fault!" Sirath insisted, possibly more vocal than he had been in ages. Then, he pleaded to Millifori again, ignoring Araia's request. "Please, Millifori, give him one last chance. You two were happy together once, and you can be happy together again. You're both good people who deserve to be happy. Please at least consider it, Millifori."
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