| Logs |
2004 February 29
| Idlewild |
| Realms |
Retired
| Reality Fault |
General Info
 |
| Realms: Idlewild Logs |
February 29
The morning dawns bright and unrepentantly cheerful. Steven rises with the first light, feeling unusually awake even for the relatively perky monk. There is no sound of anyone else stirring, but the edges of a dream linger in his vision for a moment, shaping the image of a white-haired elf with pale skin in a shaft of light before the vision clears.
Steven rubs his eyes a little, bringing himself awake fairly quickly. He lies in bed for a bit, breathing slowly as he brings himself awake, wondering about his dream before standing and starting his morning exercises.
Soleil rouses sleepily when Aiden walks in to rejoin him at dawn, but says nothing and appears to be trying to go back to sleep.
Aiden doesn't try to keep Soleil awake at all. He lays down on the bed next to him, after a quick stop to drop something off with his bag, closes his eyes.
Lotte awakens slowly and figures it to be early morning. She decides to practice her music in her room rather than wake anyone up with it.
Ghost raises her silver head to listen to Lotte, waving her tail briefly. The small wolf seems to like the music, as usual. Time passes quickly, and suddenly a commotion is easily audible in the common room-- no more than an hour after dawn.
Aiden lifts his head groggily. He was just beginning to drift off to sleep. He lets the door become transparent on his side, so he can see what's going on out there.
There seems to be a herd of horses in the common room.
Lotte frowns and pokes her head out of her door to see what is going on.
Steven pauses, frowning, and goes to open up his door, not knowing how to make it transparent.
A rose-colored horse licks Lotte's face promptly, and dances away looking for all the world like she's laughing silently.
Lotte squeezes her eyes shut as a reaction to the lick, then opens her eyes and stares at the horse in disbelief. After a few seconds, she laughs and smiles widely at it.
Steven sees a number of what appear to be horses milling about in his common room. They're almost as pretty as they are loud.
Lotte wipes her face with her arm and laughs again.
Aiden blinks several times, convinced he's dreaming. Horses don't come in pink. He rubs his hands across his face and looks back up. Course.. Neither do elves. He looks at Sol. "Sol? I think it's time." He rolls out of bed and pulls on his grey world pants, his grey shirt, the Parks Canada shirt and his UNBC baseball cap before he wanders into the main room.
Steven blinks in startlement, looking around. I didn't expect this this morning....
The pink horse snickers at Lotte. It might be approving. As it butts Lotte demandingly in the chest with its velvety nose, Clairchiare's voice calls "Where ARE-- oh." He sounds harried. A moment later he runs into sight on the path panting, and gives the assembled Grey Worlders an apologetic look. "Sorry about this. Truly. I should never have told them where you were staying."
Steven blinks. "Oh. Good morning, Clairchiare...."
Aiden looks around at the horses. "Uhm. What's going on?" He glances up at Clairchiare, "Morning..."
Soleil scrubs his fists at his eyes, runs a hand through his silky, spiky-short golden hair and walks out without pants or shirt. He sounds less than thrilled. "Clairchiare? I expected more warning from our diplomatic liason."
Lotte mock-frowns at the horse's playful behavior and lays a hand on its nose to give it some scratches. As Clairchiare enters, she blushes and moves to hide behind the pink horse.
Clairchiare bows to the naked Prince Soleil and murmurs apologies as his silver brother emerges, fully dressed. A moment later, Seodil is nearly bowled over by a silver horse rushing to get to him through the press of people and shiny elven horses.
Aiden moves to stand next to Soleil and hopefully away from the horses, who are really starting to unnerve him by this point. "Why's the common room full of horses? Anyone?"
Steven says, "I would say, judging by what Clairchiare said.. that they're eager for us to get on the trail and when they found out where we were staying...." For some reason, the fact that the horses came to wake them up doesn't surprise or shock him. he casts a half-glance into his room, to the trunk, then forces himself to not look.
Sol mutters and leaves the throng, returning to his room. Clairchiare, whose eartips are pink, gives Aiden a conciliatory look. "I am truly sorry, Aiden. We hunt today, the car beast has been sighted and appears to be coming closer. If you wish to try your way before the fire arrows, we must hurry. A group has already gone out to harry it."
Aiden nods, "Thanks, Clairchiare." He goes back into his room, to get his shoes - the hiking boots from the grey world, not the ones more native to this world.
Steven frowns, and nods, going back to his room to get changed into his Grey World clothing.
Lotte makes sure she is presentable before stepping out fully into the room. She says nothing, but makes sure to look ready to go.
Aiden picks up his wolf-skin and looks at it for a moment. He folds it and hands it towards Soleil, "Will you keep this for me?"
Sol nods, smiles barely and takes Aiden's wolfskin, putting it around his own shoulders and securing it with a non-piercing cloak clasp.
Steven saw nothing in his room that seemed out of place, but he hears a slow wooden creak as he turns away.
Steven pauses, and takes a long slow breath, determined not to look back. Okay... at some point this is just going to be my imagination.
Clairchiare beams at Lotte when she emerges. "Ready, Lady Bard?"
Steven hears the creak again, closer. Behind him.
Aiden leans in and kisses Sol's cheek. "Thanks." He takes a deep breath and walks back into the other room, nervous, suddenly.
A quiet, dressed Sol follows Aiden out.
Lotte smiles shyly and blushes. "Yes, I'm ready."
Steven really does have to stop and look behind him now, blinking and wondering if he's going to get pummelled by many hundreds of tiny feet. Maybe this time, though, there'll be WITNESSES.
Aiden pulls his hat off and rearranges his hair, so that it's pulled back, but covering the tips of his ears, the way he used to do it in the grey world. He jams the hat back down on his head and pulls the brim low.
Clairchiare grins at Lotte and says, "My steed and I are matched. I see that you've met. Here, let me help you mount her." He holds out a hand to the redhead as the pink horse sidles closer to them.
Lotte blushes a very deep red and takes the pink elf's hand.
Steven looks behind him and sees the wooden chest of luggage showing teeth at him again-- those big, pale wooden teeth. A thick mahogany tongue caresses them before the lip snaps ominously shut again. The chest is a foot out of place, farther into the room.
Steven blinks. "I said I was sorry!" he comments, then sighs. "I'm going to have to do something, aren't I?"
Soleil comes quietly up to Aiden, kisses him on the cheek, and says "Be careful," before he turns to the soft green horse that nudges him in the back and swings easily on. Seodil is already mounted, though he leans far forward, looking like he's hugging the horses's neck, his face buried in its mane.
None of the horses have bridles. A few have small saddles.
Aiden smiles tightly at Soleil, then stuffs his hands into his pockets, waiting. He stays standing where he is, looking and feeling very much the Grey Worlder again.
Settling Lotte onto his horse, hands firm on her waist as he lifts, Clairchiare blinks at Steven. "What did you say, Steven?" The chest of luggage makes no move.
Lotte changes her gaze from Clairchiare to Steven, eyes still dreamy.
Steven says, "Uh...." He glances at Clairchiare. "Oh.. nothing. Sorry." He steps out into the room, careful not to get trampled by horses.
Aiden says, "Morning, Steven. Ready?"
Steven nods, "All set." He tries to put the incident with the luggage out of his mind.
Aiden finds himself suddenly between Sol and Seodil, both mounted. They start to speak almost at the same time, both clearly an offer to ride with them. They stop again, and look at each other... then down at Aiden, both with a hand still half-outstretched.
Clairchiare looks at Aiden, then quickly away to Steven. "Do you need aid mounting, Steven?"
Steven says, "Er... Yes, please, Clairchiare. I've.. never ridden a horse before."
Aiden smiles at Seodil. "Thanks." He takes Soleil's hand, however, and swings up behind him on the horse, shooting an apologetic look in Seodil's direction. He wraps his arms around Soleil's waist, heart thudding in his chest.
Steven blinks to the horse, and smiles thankfully. "Thanks," he says, patting it's neck. "I'll try not to embarrass you."
Seodil smiles at Aiden when the younger man catches his eye, apparently unhurt by the choice. His silver eyes are bright and almost look damp, but he's swept away in the mad dash too quickly to be certain.
Clairchiare gets Steven settled on a pale golden horse quickly, with a great deal of help from the horse itself, which whuffles encouragingly at the monk. A moment later, the pink elf swings up behind Lotte. She can feel his thighs squeeze the horse into motion, and then the entire small company plus several excess horses is off for a wild dash across the gardens at unsafe speeds.
Once out of the gardens, the horses burst through a narrow hedge gate and leave the cultivated grounds of the Court proper, pounding across the lush emerald grass. All the colors are almost too bright outside the grounds, the sky turquoise and the air sweet as the stereotypical perfect summer day. Heat slides warmly over the riders' backs as they race away from the early sun for long minutes at speeds no natural horse should be able to achieve. Perhaps twenty minutes in-- with more than one Grey World butt aching and set of fists clenched in silky mane for dear life-- the horses swerve and riders are visible in the distance, carrying torches and bows... and harrying a bright green VW Bug. The whole mess seems to be coming toward the Grey World group.
Aiden looks over at Steven. "This is us.." He leans forward, "Showtime. Wanna put me down right around here?"
Steven blinks. Whoa! That was fast! "Me as well, Clairchiare. We should get off here!"
Lotte looks at the group in the distance and does a doubletake at the green Bug. She prepares herself for a situation that will need her skills in healing.
Sol obeys the request promptly, though he murmurs, "Not really. But I tr... I'll be here if you need the help." He smiles and moves about ten feet off, not looking happy.
Aiden moves for Steven as soon as he touches the ground. "Oh, shit! When I said this was safe, I didn't figure an elven lynch mob into the equation! We'll be lucky if she sees us at all with that mob behind her."
Steven grimaces. "I wasn't thinking about that, but you're right. We should make ourselves as visible as possible, waving to the driver. Maybe we'll be lucky and they'll look away from the reaview mirror long enough to see us." He looks around as he folds the catskin over his arm. "She's not driving into the sun, is she?"
Aiden looks behind them, internal emotions churning between nervous as hell, and angry. "Just be ready to move and make sure that there's no way she can miss us if she looks in this direction. Shit. Torches? What the hell were they thinking?!"
The Bug, off in the distance, is revving its little lawnmower engine to the utmost, but the brakes are on at the same time--huge moist divots of that perfect green grass are rooster-tailing out behind it. There is COPIOUS swearing from inside, though muffled by windows that are rolled up so hard the handles have broken off.
Aiden's eyes widen and he looks at Steven. "Jump up and down, wave your arms.. and get ready to move, or she's going to cream us." He does exactly what he just recommended that Steven do.
Seodil draws his sword, grim-- changes his mind and sheathes it again. Clairchiare asks Lotte, murmuring into her ear to be heard clearly, "Where do you wish to be, my lady?"
Steven does so as well, following suit with Aiden. "What the hell is she doing? Is she trying to throw grass onto them that way?"
Ah, it's like the postcards you've seen of Pamplona! The car-beast doughnuts one hundred eighty degrees, to face its pursuers. The engine revs again, trying hard to sound fierce. Mostly, it sounds as though the car itself VERY much wants to be elsewhere.
Lotte says loudly, "Close enough to aid them if they get hurt!"
"Maybe she's trying to dissaude them from following he-- or maybe she's planning on charging. C'mon! Before they hurt her!" Aiden breaks into a run, straight for the little beetle.
Steven groans softly, "Oh, hells!" He follows Aiden, trying to get to the Bug before the riders do.
Two arrows are visible sticking out of the car's hood before it spins to face its pursuers. The riders face off, waving swords and torches and yelling high gleeful calls. One darts in to whack the car's roof with a sword and dashes away. The Grey Worlders on foot are not going to catch the car before it charges unless the drivers notices the two frantic runners in normal street clothes in her rearview mirror.
Steven scoops up a rock from the ground as he runs towards the bug, seeing that they're not going to get there anytime soon. He lobs it quickly at the bug, hoping it get the driver's attention.
Aiden was looking at the ground too, until he saw Steven huck a rock at the car. He grins and keeps running, aiming for the driver's side door.
The car ejects another brief double jet of sod from its back wheels as the driver hesitates. And then...they start throwing ROCKS? Oh, hell with THIS...
The Bug's rear window now sports a fresh ding from the impact of Steven's rock.
Aiden keeps running, "HEY! HEY! STOP THE CAR!"
The Bug revs again, with renewed fervor! The driver inside, who must be tiny from what little you can see of her head through the windows, narrows her eyes with steely determination and lets off the parking brake.
Aiden lets out a growl of frustration, he keeps yelling, whether she can hear or not. "THEY KNOW HOW TO BLOW YOUR CAR UP! I'm not kidding!" He takes a couple of quick breaths, "Should've stayed on the horses, shit.."
The little violent green car screams forward and plows through the mass of harrying elves on horseback. A horse screams as it's clipped, and the yells get ugly. Aiden and Steven, running frantically, were a mere twenty feet from the car before it gunned it.
Steven somehow gets the impression that throwing the rock didn't help at all. He grimaces and tries to run fast. Oh, hells!
Sol grabs Aiden and swings him up as Seodil does the same for Steven, carrying the runners swiftly toward the charging car and through the pack. "Where?" Sol says simply. Seodil doesn't ask.
Aiden says, "Thanks.. Get us in front of it.."
Steven nodnods to Aiden. "Yes. As best as we can before she does anything else!"
Aiden is an absolute bundle of energy. He never relaxes on the horse, ready to run again the second his feet touch the ground. He watches their progress anxiously.
Sol's horse pounds forward faster without much urging, Seodil right behind. In a few moments they are alongside the car, but having a little trouble pulling ahead. The horses try harder, but it's a slow fight although the horses are marginally faster and pull slowly ahead.
Lotte eyes get very wide as the car plows through the riders. She watches her friends movements closely and anxiously.
Clairchiare, holding Lotte's waist to support her on the breakneck ride, dashes along after them on his roseate mare.
Aiden leans towards the car, ducking his head to try to get the driver's attention..
The drivers-side window cranks down in a flurry of activity from inside, and a stream of desperate invective screeches out at the horses and their riders. "STOP %@#$ TRYING TO *#%^#$ KILL MY CAR! WHAT DID I DO TO *YOU* BASTARDS?"
Aiden says, "They're going to blow it up if you don't STOP. Please.. we're trying to HELP you."
The car jerks, and begins a gradual thumping list to the left as a rock punctures its tire. There is another long-suffering wail from inside, the window rolls back up, and the driver disappears from view. She's obviously not steering anymore. In fact, she's climbing over the passenger seat to hide in the footwell.
Aiden swears when she ducks and begins to swerve, "Sol, MOVE! Drop me here."
Deprived of its driver, the car begins to slow. It seems disinclined to come to a complete stop, however.
Bloodthirsty yells rise from the pursuing elves as they sweep around the slowing car. Aiden and Steven are to the driver's side of the car, as Sol promptly obeys Aiden's yell. Seodil hisses quickly, "Here, Steven?"
Steven just kind of stares as the car swerves. "Seodil, try to keep us alongside it! It should be slowing down now. Yes, let me down here!"
Aiden keeps moving, trying to keep up with the car. He tries the door handle.
The car begins to go in a forlorn circle, not too fast for running men to catch now. A high wail comes from something within its engine.
The door is, predictably, locked.
It is so, SO locked.
Steven tries to get tot he passenger side door, knocking on the window. "Come on, lady! Open up, before they do something to the car with you IN it!
One of the elves off to the side holds an arrow nocked while his friend lights it.
Aiden shakes his head. "DUCK!" He's yelling it to the woman inside. He pulls his hat off, wraps it around his elbow and tries to nail the window.
Lauren ducks. She's hunkered down well into the small nook now. Her arms curl around her head tightly. She's tiny.
Steven gapes at the elves lighting up a fire arrow, and bares his teeth,. While Aiden starts to break down the window, Steven interposes himself between the archer and the car.
The window cracks with a nasty sound, not shattering but fracturing and leaving a smallish crunched hole. It looks like another good hit would finish most of the job. A small piece of glass crunches into Aiden's elbow past the hat.
Soleil yells briefly in pain.
Aiden makes a quiet sound when the glass buries itself in his elbow. It sounds remarkably like "fuck, ow" Small price to pay for the girl's life, though. He gives the window another shot to break the glass so he can reach in and unlock the door.
The elves with the fire arrow yell at Steven and fire it into the ground near his planted feet. It seems they want him to get out of the way. They glare nastily and advance on horseback.
Steven glares back just as nastilly. "Aiden, hurry up, they're getting pissed!" And what are you going to do if I don't move, huh? Shove an arrow in me? Come on, then, bring it!
This time, the window crunches up into an odd crackly sheet of glass that hangs down into the interior of the car, allowing access.
Aiden reaches in, unlocks the door, all the while saying, "I'm trying, the glass in my joint isn't comfortable." He yanks the door open and plants his knee on the seat, reaching to yank the emergency brake up.
With a sad wail the car shrieks horribly to a stop. Elves on horseback thunder past, then turn like a flock of birds to regroup. Steven's elves reach him and snarl. One is possessed of chocolate brown hair and eyes over pale tan skin, wearing leathers that match his coloring; the other has electric blue hair but the resemblance to Willow stops there-- this elf has a mohawk and is definitely butch.
"Getawaygetawaygetawaaaaay," the figure huddled up under the dashboard keens. Her shoulders shake.
Aiden turns in his spot and turns the car off, yanking the keys out and tossing them into the back seat. He touches the girl's shoulder. "Time to go.." Then grabs her and hauls her out of the car bodily, turning her as soon as he's out so that she's pressed against the rear driver's side of the car, with himself in between her and the riders.
Steven glances back at Aiden as he pulls the woman out, then turns to look back at the elves for precisely two seconds, his expression neutral. When he figures Aiden is far enough away, he turns and walks around the car to Aiden and the woman.
Aiden looks at Steven, then looks around for Soleil and Seodil. He has a feeling that these elves aren't going to stop wanting to kill the girl just because she's out of the car.
Lauren is only barely taller than the car. Her hair is black and thick, currently in two tangled wrecks of ponytails on the sides of her head. She's lightly tanned, but pale from terror, and her eyes are a dark brown. She's wearing perfectly prosaic Grey Worlder clothes--a black baby T and a pair of jeans with sandals.
Lotte says to Clairchiare, "Stop, please!" She hums a low sound and concentrates on the two elves near Steven, attempting to hypnotize them.
The elves milling about the car without fire arrows are more confused than anything, uncertain if this is victory. One is heard to say plaintively, "Did he kill it? How do we gut it?"
Aiden, still trying to catch a breath between the running and the pain, says, "We're on your side. Relax."
Clairchiare's pink horse stops on a dime at Lotte's request even before the elf's weight shifts to signal it, and as Lotte hums the blue elf glaring at Steven stiffens and loses all expression. His chocolate-haired companion in ire stops glaring at Steven's back with bow half-raised to shake his mohawked friend, looking alarmed.
Lauren looks plaintively up at Aiden, cradling a wrist that got a shallow glass cut on its way out of the car. "Like hell you are," she says thickly.
Clairchiare murmurs to Lotte, "Lady mage, what did you do to him?"
Aiden says, "We were out here to make sure that you got out of the car." He looks around again for Seodil and Sol. "I'll explain when there aren't others bearing down on us with arrows drawn."
Seodil and Sol are nearby, mounted and watching warily.
Lotte yells at the blue-haired elf. "Tell your friend to fall back. We mean no harm to anyone. Tell everyone."
Aiden looks at Sol, "Please, take her before they do?"
As Aiden makes eye contact, his elves move in. Sarete has shown up as well, and trots daintily over to Steven on a palomino with pink and yellow highlights.
Lauren shivers, and backs more firmly against the smooth green bump of her car. She leans to one side to get a look at her pursuers around Aiden's midsection. "STAY AWAY FROM ME!" she shouts shrilly. "I HAVE A GUN!"
Lotte's hypnotism victim nods slowly, and starts to earnestly talk to his chocolate friend... who gives Lotte a very unfriendly look before shouting to the group near the car, "Watch out! She's a mage!"
Aiden winces, "They're not going to hurt you, they're going to keep you safe. Will you please stop hurling threats? I'm willing to bet that there are more of them than you have bullets."
Lotte looks as though she's just eaten lemon. "Well that's just great," she mutters.
Steven's first thought is, Thank Pelor we didn't need rescuing! His second thought is interrupted when Lauren makes her announcement, then at the elf's call makes him more aware that the elves are not going to be pleasant. He narrows his eyes, calming his breathing and heartrate with one of the mantras his teacher taught him, watching the elves one after the other, watching for any making any sharp, sudden movements. Do NOT make me do something I don't want to....
Soleil moves in to reach for Lauren, eyes tight. She gets her first close-range look at what is very clearly an elf-- silky, pixie-cut golden hair, high cheekbones, slanty orange eyes, gorgeous willowy but firm figure. Reaching for her.
"They were SHOOTING at me," snaps Lauren savagely. "They've been chasing me for days! They're not going to keep me SAFE!"
It should be noted that there is no actual evidence of a gun anywhere on Lauren.
Aiden shakes his head, "Not these two. Those ones, maybe. They didn't understand. They were trying to save you. They think your car is a monster. Please, just go with them so we can get this sorted out?"
Aiden has his right arm bent and pulled in protectively towards his stomach. He's looking a bit pale, the adrenaline is starting to wear off and it's getting harder to ignore the shard of glass embedded in his elbow.
Lauren eyes Soleil with deep, deep distrust. She does NOT want to be touched, and slides away from the outsretched hand.
Soleil glares at Lauren and says through gritted teeth, "He's hurt and he won't go til you're safe. Come with me."
"Go away," Lauren insists with weakening vehemence. "You shot at me."
Aiden looks, as Sol said, like he's not going to move so much as a hair until he's sure that Lauren is safe, no matter what happens around him.
Seodil rakes a look over the tableau and moves in beside Steven and Sarete. He murmurs to Steven, "Please ride with one of us now... diplomacy may not last."
Steven nods quietly to Seodil, annd adds for the woman's benefit. "We need to get out of here now. We know you're confused, miss. But please, trust us. We know what you're going through, we went through it as well, but for now we need to get out of here. We'll explain everything soon."
Aiden snaps, "He's not shooting at you right now, and they're liable to start any second. I don't feel like being shot because I'm in their way and staying there. Will you please, just get on the god damned horse?"
Clairchiare yells at the assembled elves, "By order of the Princess, these are our guests and not to be touched! I speak with her voice!" The confused elves relax immediately; the chocolate one looks grumpy but doesn't yell back. The blue mohawked elf is making the rounds earnestly trying to tell anyone who will listen that Lotte means them no harm.
Miserably, Lauren nods. "Fine," she says at barely a whisper. "Whatever you want. Where do I go?"
Aiden motions at Sol, up on the horse, "Up there."
Soleil gives Lauren a narrow orange look and reaches a hand down.
Lauren reaches up to clasp the hand of the strange alien creature and his damned odd horse, and lets her small frame be lifted up. She sits on the horse, gazing numbly down at her lap.
Clairchiare swears under his breath and says to Lotte, "Go back with them, she'll bear you safely. I will stay here and explain." He slides off and walks over to the group of former hunters.
Lotte watches as the elves relax and notices the blue elf still heeding her command. She hides a smirk and returns to watching the rest of her group. As she notices that Aiden is hurt, Lotte becomes anxious. She tells Clairchiare, "We need to go somewhere safe so I can help Aiden heal."
Looking tight and pained, Sol growls, "Seodil! Get Aiden. Now. Steven, ride with Sarete."
Aiden breathes a sigh of relief when Lauren is finally on the horse. He bends and grabs his cap from where he dropped it on the floor, and puts it back on with his left hand, ignoring any bloodstains on it. It's his school. He's not about to leave it on the ground. He steps away from the car, shutting the door with his foot.
Steven winces a bit at Sol's orders, but he doesn't say anything. He nods to Sarete, looking tired, and tries, without causing a scene, to get onto her horse.
Stronger than she looks, Sarete assists Steven in mounting the horse behind her. She smirks at him, "Hold tight," and clearly enjoys her position.
Seodil offers Aiden a hand up, then stops and leans down to pick the smaller elf up bodily, seating him in front. Aiden has hardly any work to do at all.
"...could I get something to eat?" Lauren ventures. "I mean, you killed my car...seems fair?"
Steven looks a bit unsure, and a little nervous about this position. "Er... all right...." He tries not to enjoy this position. Fortunately, he''s tired and worried about getting shot at with a flaming arrow.
Soleil's voice laughs sharply behind Lauren's head, taller by a good bit. As they start to ride, putting distance between the former lynch mob and the forlorn car, he relaxes only a little. "Of course we'll feed you. We haven't had breakfast yet either, I'm sure it will be there when we arrive."
Aiden leans back slightly against Seodil, still cradling his arm protectively. He's already cringing, because he has a feeling that this ride.. is going to hurt.
Lotte sighs as the pink elf of her affections dismounts, and grabs on to the pink horse as it follows Soleil's lead.
The elf behind Lauren feels not at all happy and quite tense.
Lauren says, "And you can't actually butcher the car," Lauren adds glumly. "Not unless you're a trained mechanic.""
Saret rocks easily in her seat as they gallop. Steven gets the impression that if he could see her face, she'd still be smirking. It's... not uncomfortable. Physically.
Aiden discovers he was right, as the group of Grey World supporters picks up speed quickly.
Steven tries very very hard to keep himself back a bit from... various parts of Sarete's anatomy, even though that's impossible bareback. he focusses on wondering how the heck elves deal with riding bareback so much and manage to stay on without stirrups.
Lauren hears Sol hiss in pain and growl soft, nasty curses. Rather shortly, the golden elf says "Is that so. Don't be too sure they won't try. --What are you doing here in that beast, anyway?"
Aiden closes his eyes tightly, actually wishing he'd ended up behind Seodil so he could've held on. He's not feeling too steady at the moment, and he goes a few shades paler, and a touch towards green.
Lauren hunches her shoulders. "I was DRIVING. And getting shot at. What do you think?"
Sarete laughs softly and tells Steven with an edge of mischief in her voice, "Hold my hips, you'll fall. We're about to go faster."
Steven swallows. Faster. Which means... uh, faster. "All... all right." he does as he's told by her, squeezing his eyes shut.
Sol's voice is irritated and slightly unsteady, an interesting combination. One might get the impression he's in some pain. "I THINK--" he bites it off and says less viciously, "I think we'll be there soon and feed you. Why did you go travelling with no food?"
Lotte's pink horse takes good care of her, and her ride is not only more fun than anyone else's-- but perhaps Sarete's-- it's G-rated.
"I didn't go travelling. I was coming home from work...are you all right?" With some difficulty, Lauren turns to get a better look at Sol. Creepy alien thing though he is, he IS pretty. And if she starts making nice-nice, maybe everything will be all right and they won't cook her.
Seodil's arm tightens around Aiden, and the silver elf murmurs comforting things as they ride, nearing the sprawling garden castle of the Summer Court at last.
Sol looks kind of green and nauseated. "I'm fine. Where do you work?" The pleasantry is made a little odd by the pain-lines around his luminous, slanted orange eyes.
Aiden focuses on breathing, and not throwing up on Seodil or his horse. He's actually more worried about the horse, oddly.
The group thunders through the hedge opening-- insofar as one can thunder over grass-- and starts making a horsey racket along the garden paths.
"The, ah, the Blue Ginger. It's a restaurant," Lauren explains. "Are you SURE you're all right?"
Sol groans. "Don't talk about food or I swear I'll kill you."
Lotte's borrowed pink mare floats along like a dream of riding air, easing to a stop in front of the suite door ahead of the pack and tossing her head.
Lotte dismounts quickly and waits for Aiden to arrive.
Lauren settles back into a defensive hunch in front of Sol, keeping half an eye on the scenery. She lets herself glaze over, for the moment.
A few moments later, the others arrive with ringing hooves and the general flurry of dismounting resolves into Sol sliding Lauren off the horse and propelling her into the suite common room toward the laden breakfast table with one hand, snapping at Lotte in passing, "Fix him please!"
By the time the horses reach the suite, Steven has resorted to dredging up every last recollection of the nuns at the orphanage, of his teacher, of ever miserable stop he made in the Midwest while he was vagranting, every fat small-town sherriff who burbled something about 'We don't lahk yer kahnd here, boy-uh,' and kittens. It seems to help keep him sufficiently focussed on anything but the trip... or rather the particular particulars of this trip,
Sarete slides off her horse with further nonphysical discomfort to Steven and grins widely up at him from the ground. "Same time tomorrow?"
Steven blinks. "Er... pardon?" he asks, as he tries to get down from the horse, pausing to thank it for the ride.
Lotte nods and ignores Sol's attitude. She feels the same way. "Aiden, come with me before you bleed to death!"
Aiden doesn't open his eyes until the horse stops moving. He whispers a quick thank you to Seodil then slides carefully down to the floor. "I'm not going to bleed to death, Lotte. It's a puncture wound. It's probably hardly bleeding at all.. or won't be, until you yank the glass out." He actually manages to smile past the nausea.
Sol abandons Lauren once he gets her in sight of the food and goes to join Seodil and Lotte in hovering at Aiden's side, looking green and anxious.
Lotte rolls her eyes and lays her hands on the green-faced Aiden as quickly as she can. She hums a strong note and closes her eyes, trying to push her energies into his wound.
Lauren descends on breakfast with chin-dripping abandon. Is it poisoned? Is it digestible? She really doesn't care. It's been a day and a half since she polished off her last stale granola bar, and she sets to with a minor cacophany of slurps and munchings.
Sarete's horse tosses its head and nudges Steven appreciatively. Sarete herself grins. "I said, I'd like to go riding with you again. Tomorrow?"
Aiden's elbow echoes Lauren's slurping with a little popping noise as it heals itself and squeezes the thumbnail-sized chunk of bloody glass out. It glitters redly as it falls to the floor and bounces on the moss.
Aiden whimpers softly as the glass is pushed out. He clenches his fists to stop his hands from shaking. "T.. thanks."
Steven blinks. "Ah...." he blinks at the horse, lightly rubbing under its chin. There's no graceful way he can get out of it. "If.. if some sort of problem doesn't come up between now and then.. ah.. sure, that would be fine." He smiles; it's actually genuine, though inside he knows he's just asking for trouble. "Thank you very much for being there today.
Almost all of the fruit is familiar to Lauren, and tastes absolutely wonderful. If she tried, she might even be able to polish off the entire tableful before anyone else stops gawking at flesh wounds.
Lauren ventures away from the food--making damn sure it's still in sight, though, and not without two large chunks of fruit in each hand. Most of it is already in her stomach. She cranes her neck to see what everyone is making such a fuss about. "Hello? Is someone hurt?"
Lotte looks satisfied with Aiden's healing and looks up at the two elves hovering around them. "What is the matter with you two? I thought he was going to die by the grimness of your faces!"
Aiden closes his eyes, the nausea beginning to go away now that the chunk of glass isn't embedded in his elbow anymore. He snorts self-depreciatively. "See? What'd I tell you? Piece of cake."
Sarete grins and flutters a sunset-lashed wink at Steven. "Nowhere else I'd rather be today... I will expect you here, for riding tomorrow." She pokes him lightly in the chest and turns to go, then pauses with a slightly evil gleam. "If you don't find yourself a horse, I'll bring your mount." Flashing perfect teeth, she turns again to go in a swirl of gauzy slit riding-skirts.
Lauren watches Sarete go with a lift of the brows and just a nudge of haughty grimace. Yes indeed, that was a TART.
No one appears to be hurt anymore in the little cluster of elves and normal people where Lauren looks. Seodil gives Lotte a haughty look and says "I was merely concerned. Lacking your healing skills, I did not know the extent of his injury... which you clearly had no trouble with. Thank you." He bows, a little, looking serene and elegant.
Steven says, "Ah... thank you...." There's somethign about the way she says 'mount,' though, that bothers him greatly. It takes a few moments for the innuendo to hit him."
Steven returns to the common room, feeling tired, and settles onto a couch, rubbing his eyes.
Soleil says, looking much, much better, "Was just worried, Lotte, y'know? Shouldn't have been with you around." He beams at her, looking younger and cuter by far than minutes before.
With another couple pieces of fruit happily digesting, Lauren stands on tip-toe for a better look. She's only about five feet tall, and slightly built. Obviously she's used to people looking over her head. "Hello?"
Lotte snorts and makes a mental note to point out Seodil's crush to Aiden. She hopes with all her heart that the silver elf's brother does not share the same... preference. She turns to Lauren and gives her a warm, "Hello!"
Lauren blinks. "Uh," she says, inelegantly.
Aiden flexes the arm experimentally, then smiles. "Thanks, Lotte. Much better." He walks over towards the small girl he pulled out of the car and smiles. "I'm Aiden."
Lotte smiles at Lauren again and says, "And I'm Lotte."
Steven strightens, having regained some of his composure, and moves to get to the food table. He smiles and nods to Lauren. "Steven."
The food table is, by now, basically just a table.
Soleil smiles charmingly at Lauren and gives her a sheepish tone. "My name is Soleil. You can call me Sol. Sorry I was short with you, that's my consort you hurt." He nods at Aiden.
Lauren bristles, just a bit. "I didn't hurt ANYBODY. He put his elbow through a car window. It happens." But she relents, and bobs her head at all the introductions. "Er. I'm Lauren."
Seodil inclines his head slightly from the more than respectable height of 6'3". "Seodil. What befell you, Lauren?"
Sol smiles at Lauren less friendly-like. "He did it for you, however. He, Lotte and Steven wanted to prevent you from being shot with fire arrows to make your car beast explode."
Aiden looks over at Sol. "Not her fault. It was a snap decision on my part."
Lauren looks up. "My car beast? WHy were you hunting MY CAR? It's a...it WAS a Volkswagen! Low emissions, all that!"
Lotte frowns at Sol. "Be gentle, Sol. She didn't know. Everyone's fine now."
Steven says, "Er... they didn't know.. probably still don't know... what a car is."
Soleil eyes everyone chastising him, narrows his eyes, and unclips Aiden's wolfskin cloak, offering it back.
Lotte looks sympathetically at Lauren. "There's a lot to explain. Maybe you should tell us how you got here before we try to explain where you are."
Aiden takes the cloak and smiles. "Thanks for keeping it safe for me." He puts it on and settles down on a couch. "Lauren? Did you get into some sort of accident on your way home from work?"
Sol smiles back at Aiden, and curls up on the couch beside him. Abruptly, where there was an elven Sol, there is instead a large golden wolf with orange eyes. It continues to watch Lauren and look at whoever is speaking.
"Aygh!" Lauren startles away from the big luxuriant wolf. The past three days have conspired to set her nerves a little on eadge.
Lotte gives Sol a look and goes to calm Lauren down. "It's ok! They can all change like that. No one is going to hurt you."
Aiden's hand settles onto the wolf's neck, fingers idly scritching behind his ears. "It's alright.."
Sol shifts back and says, "Sorry." He smiles at Lauren, still tilting his head to be petted.
Steven grimaces a bit. That, amongst other things, is what he'd hoped to ease the new Grey Worlder into. instead Sol went and rushed into it. "You're among people who don't want to do you any harm, Lauren," he says gently. "In fact, we're all very curious as to how you came about to be here? What happened?"
"W-whaaa...oh, God." Lauren takes a deep, calming breath. "I...w-was driving home, and I was at a stoplight and it was late, and I think I might have dozed off..."
Aiden nods, "And when you woke up, you found yourself here?"
Lauren nods. "It was a field, and then a forest, and then people came on horses and shot at me. They took off the bumper of my car!"
Hooves sound outside, a single horse this time, and feet hit the ground. Moments later Clairchiare strolls up and quietly walks to murmur to Lotte, "Could you come with me a moment?" They walk off toward the garden path, out of earshot.
Aiden half-grins, "Yeah. We.. uh.. saw it. That's when we got involved in trying to get you out of the car."
Sol chuckles and says, "They're taking good care of it, Lauren, at least."
Lauren munches down the last chunk of fruit from the breakfast table, having gotten some of her golden color back. "The last three days have been straight out of hell," she confides, looking pathetically relieved to have a sympathetic ear.
Aiden says, "I can sympathise. None of us got here easily either. You aren't hurt though? Just hungry and confused?"
"And lost, and VERY late for work, and out of range for my cellphone, and...hell..." Lauren seems to have regained enough energy to mope. "This place makes no sense."
Steven says, "It... grows on you. But youre right... we're ... very much out of cell phone range."
Aiden says, "It doesn't make sense for a while. There are parts that still don't make sense to us, but we're learning slowly. I'm sorry we weren't there to help sooner."
Lauren holds up her hands in dismay. "But what's going ON? How did YOU get here? Who are these people, and why are some of them pink?"
Sol looks at Lauren and starts snickering. "You're just like he was, when he first showed up... only more vocal about it."
Aiden says quietly. "I was fishing, on a glacial lake up in the mountains, and getting ready to settle down for the evening. It was mid-afternoon. My boat capsized and I got dragged under. I woke up here. That's about all I know about how I got here."
"YOU can cram it," Lauren says to the elf with great authority, summoning every micrometer of her full height.
Aiden laughs. "If it's any consolation, he teased me when he first found me, too. Only, he did it in wolf form. At least he can talk to you."
Steven nods, "That was more or less what happened to me. I was on a pier in a state park, I fell in, and then...." He shrugs a little. "I woke up... somewhere else.
Sol smirks sweetly at Lauren. "Oh, I can and I have."
Aiden keeps his dignity and completely ignores that comment from Sol.
"..." That kind of stops Steven from saying anything more.
Lauren plows right past that comment, dammit--she's an Angelena, she's seen worse. "But what about the pink?"
Seodil rolls his eyes and continues monitoring the conversation with quiet intensity.
Aiden tilts his head off to the side. "There's more.. variation in colour here than there is back home."
The silver elf tilts his head. "There is no pink, Aiden?"
Aiden looks at Seodil. "No pink, no silver, no blue, no green. At least, not naturally. We're pretty much limited to brown, black, red, blonde, and grey in the elderly."
Lauren digests this new information, and latches onto the most significant tidbit: "BLUE? There are blue people too?"
Aiden looks thoughtful, "Well.. Hair, yes."
Steven says, "Er.... yes. In fact there are probably colors we haven't even seen yet." He lifts his shoulders a little. "I guess we've gotten used to it."
Seodil flips a strand of his pale silver hair absently. "I see." He regards Lauren with strikingly metallic silver irises. "She has a rather elven face, Aiden. You should let Sol taste her to see."
Steven almost chokes on a breakfast fruit at Seodil's way of putting it.
Aiden gives Lauren a serious look. "Steven, Lotte and I are all from there, but none of us belong there completely. We're also siblings. There's a chance that you're like us. Soleil can check, if you'll permit it." He brushes his hair back, tucking it behind his ear on one side. His ear is pointed.
"NOBODY is putting a damn hand on me." Lauren props her fists on her hips. "Hand, tongue, whatever. NO."
Aiden says, "It only takes a moment, it doesn't hurt, and it's fairly important that we know."
Steven reaches for another fruit.. and finds all the rest gone. He blinks, seeing that Lauren has... devoured... all the rest. "It's, uh, actually quite important. There are reasons why we were brought here." He pauses. "Are you an orphan or adopted, Lauren?"
Lauren says, "Go to hell! I said no! NO TASTING!" With a glare for the elves in attendance, Lauren backs up a step."
Sol says in bored tones, "If it helps, Lauren, I wouldn't touch my tongue anywhere interesting on you even if you asked nicely. No offense."
Aiden sighs, "He's not going to bite you, Lauren. Just a little touch of the tongue."
Steven rubs his temples a bit at the volume Lauren has. "Lauren... let him do it, please? Because then we know wether to give you good news, or awful, horrible news."
Lauren's cheeks flush red. "How many times to I have to tell you? I can't think of a SINGLE good reason that I should let some strange man LICK me when I don't want him to!" Her hand trails to where a can of pepper spray would be on a belt clip.
Very much under his breath, audible only to Aiden and Steven close to him, Sol says "I only bite people I like."
Aiden tilts his head to the side. "I can think of one. If you aren't related to us, you don't have to worry about being forced into servitude at the hands of a madman."
Aiden coughs suddenly.. ducking his head for a moment while he gets the coughing under control.
Steven is about to speak, when Aiden beats him not only to what he was going to say but to the delivery as well. He nods in agreement.
The golden elf with the slanty orange eyes grins at Lauren and says, "Well, we don't have any strange women handy to lick you. Shall I send out for one?"
"...oh." Lauren deflates. "You...should have said that first."
Aiden smiles, "I was trying to be.. delicate about it."
Lauren tenses visibly and pokes out a hand toward Soleil. "Fine."
Without the slightest touch of interest or sensuality, Sol leans forward and touches parted lips gently to the back of Lauren's hand. A moment later, tiny wet spot already fading on her skin as he sits back, he nods. "Elf, and one of you. You don't all have the same amount of elven flavor, some of you are more.. human musky than others, but you do all have a family tinge to you and she's got it. Not much muskiness, either. More tart." He smiles.
Steven grimaces a bit. "Well, then. We should start from the very beginning and tell her absolutely everything."
Sol says, "I'll be napping right over here." He grins. "That might take awhile."
Aiden winces. He was sort of hoping that there wouldn't be another one of them and that somehow she'd just made it here by accident. "Lauren, have you slept?"
Seodil winces ever so slightly at "tell her everything."
"Sort of...well...mostly, no." At the mention of sleep, Lauren stifles a yawn. "Did he just call me a tart?"
Aiden laughs, "No. I think he just meant that you have more elven blood. Maybe." He frowns, "There's a lot to tell you, but if you want to sleep first, please, let us know. You can actually sleep here without having to worry about being shot at."
Looking innocent and confused, Sol says "Did I?" He smiles at Aiden and nods.
Aiden looks over at Sol and rolls his eyes, amused.
The very picture of sweetness and light, Sol gives Aiden a golden smile.
Aiden doesn't believe it, but lets Sol get away with it, this time.
Lauren looks sheepish. "Actually, is there maybe some place I could take a shower and do some laundry? I've been wearing these clothes for three days.
Steven nods, "There's a spare room, I believe....
Aiden nods, "Shower's easy.. Laundry, though.." He glances up at Sol and Seodil
Seodil speaks up. "Where will she sleep? She can have my room if she needs it; I can take a couch. We are occupying all the rooms in this suite, unless she wants to take an empty one all to herself and be alone..."
Lauren blinks. "I'd, uh, yeah. I think I'd like to be alone, thanks."
Sol shrugs, "What's laundry?"
Aiden frowns, "I don't think that's wise. She can take one of ours to sleep for a few hours today though, right? All of us just got up, and we can figure out the arrangements more permanantly later."
Seodil regards Lauren thoughtfully. "Do you really wish to be alone in a strange place, with no one close enough to help if you scream?"
Steven looks at Seodil, and shakes his head. "That's not making things better! For now, Lauren, you can have any room to rest in, it's all right. We'll figure something out later."
Lauren blinks again, harder. "Excuse me? I thought...didn't someone say this place was SAFE?"
Aiden says, "Yeah. Here in this suite, with us."
Lauren says, "So what's this about screaming?""
Aiden says, "When we say alone, we mean another suite completely. We've got all the rooms in this one right now. Just grab one, though, we'll work something out so that we all end up staying in this suite."
Seodil says, "You are part of us now, Lauren... under our protection. I am afraid that you also inherit our enemies, but no one else will protect you here besides your kin."
Lauren swipes her elf-tested hand on her jeans, just to make sure, and nods. "I think that makes sense." She manages a smile. "Thanks. I was expecting to be sukiyaki by now, but this is much better."
Aiden smiles, "And we will help protect you, Lauren. You're welcome.. Go on, grab a shower and a nap. I'd say you've more than earned a break by now."
Lauren heaves a deep breath. "I guess so. Where was the shower again?"
Aiden motions at the doors that lead off into bedrooms. "There's one in every room."
Seodil looks at Steven. "I do not mind giving her mine, but you also offered. It is your choice."
Steven says, "I don't mind, either....." He pauses visibly, and half-looks at the door to his room. "Uhm...."
Lauren stumps wearily through one of the doors, chosen at random. Figuring out how the plumbing works is likely an adventure in itself, but it is one she will overcome alone!
Steven thinks about the mobile luggage with big sharp teeth in his room and wonders how best to not recommend his own room.
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