July Vignette #1

[Jasmine]

July already!? Wow, time is sure flying. At any rate here's the next prompt.

It is 4:00 in the morning when you are awakened from your peaceful slumber by a loud knock on your door. When you open the door the only thing to be seen is a basket with an infant in it and note asking in one way or another for you to find a home for the child. The exact wording of the note is up to you as is the race of the infant. What happens now?


Just a note, even if your character would say "Sucks to be you kid, I'm not a babysitter" and immediately shut the door, make a short story out of that. I'm well aware that we have some messed up charas here and I'm quite curious to see how they would react.

[Sen Zelrok]

Las Racada is awakened from his dreamless sleep by the sound of knocking at his door. He looks out the window and sees it is only 4:00 in the morning. Grumbling he gets out of bed and walks over to the door. "What?" he asks as he opens the door to find a basket right in front of his face. He is as small as the basket if not smaller. He climbs into the basket and finds a baby boy. He had long red hair, bright blue eyes, and a little button nose. "Oh somebody brought me breakfast, how nice," he said as he telekineticly lifted the basket and brought it into the house. Putting it on the counter he finds a note in the basket. "Dear Sir or Mam, Please excus the lat nigt but I'm in a hury, in this basket is m child that I can not tak care of while fleing for my life. Please find it a god home to live. Thank-you."
She must have been in a hurry to make this many spelling errors. Las Racada thought. So this isn't lunch. At least that is what she is expecting anyway. He thought to himself as he reveled his claws. The child sensing the danger started to cry. It hurt Las Racada's ears, "Ow," he cried out as the child continued to cry. Las Racada took out some earplugs and put them in his ears, Much better, he thought then started skinning the child. It was almost 5 by the time he finished skinning the child and removing the meet from the bones. He then went to bed and slept. Around 9:00 he woke up and started cooking the child. It was cut up into little cubed pieces and boiled to a deep brown. After breakfast he put the leftovers in a bag and left for another adventure

[Dissinger]

"Seth, wake up," The voice was gentle even as the slender hand shook the form of the thief. A grunt and a grumble quickly showed that the thief was indeed getting up, if a bit grouchy about the circumstances. Rubbing his eyes to erase the fatigue of the night he looked bleary eyed at the form of his wife, who held a look of concern on her face before she carefully sat on the edge of the bed. Seth grunted softly before he noticed the odd way his wife was carrying herself and narrowed his eyes before he heard it the soft cooing of a child.

Looking over his qifes shoulder he noticed the small child in her arms, no more than a few months old. Her eyes looked up into the face of the grizzled thief before a delighted giggle erupted from the child. Seth felt a sense of protectiveness come over him as he looked to the door his wife would have entered from and managed, "Who?"

"I don't know they merely left a note and the child in a basket. At least they had the good sense to wrap it in a warm blanket. I'm more worried the poor thing has been there all night..." Liliana said softly as she gently rocked the infant child. Seth nodded as he carefully slipped from the bed and moved towards the front doorway, seeing the basket and the note left in the common area. A pang of guilt filtered through him as he looked briefly to the room his daughter had at one time occupied, before the Cult of Blessed Torture had stolen her from him.

He still felt pangs of rage filtering into his limbs as the rage washed the sleep from his system. His eyes took on a hollow look to them as he grabbed the note roughly and looked upon it. He scanned for any clue as to the parents that woudl do such a thing, but when he saw the note, he understood. Oh had he understoood...

To the Dahlios Family,

I regrettably cannot talk to you on the matter that causes me to do such a heinous act, but you are the last hope for my sister. I drop her at your doorstep in the hopes that you would care for her as your own child. With the Cult of Blessed Torture rampaging through the greater Corone area I cannot in good conscience leave her unprotected. I wish I could take care of her, but I lack the ability to even tend to her most basic of needs. I believe that you folks alone can take care of her, and keep her safe as I go out to hunt the bastards that killed my parents. It is not glorious or glamourous, and I may die, but they need avenging and my sister needs to be somewhere safe and free of reprisal. I could think of nowhere better than in the arms of the Lavinian Demon.

I shudder to find I am forced to this action. Thayne bless...

Eyes closed as the paper rattled in his hand, a new brand of hatred blossoming in his heart. He merely shoved it down with the rest of the loathing he had for Cassandra Remi and her ilk as he moved back into his bedroom. Eyes closed, he bottled the rage and stuffed it down, knowing that the time to unleash it would eventually come and looked upon the poor child left in his care. He shook his head slowly as he gently rested his hand on the infants hand and shook his head, "Didn't even leave a name..."

"I think we should name her, just incase..." Liliana said her eyes lifting to Seth's own. The thief met her gaze before he nodded and sat heavily on the bed. The child giggled at the sudden rise and fall of the woman who held her before one of his arms wrapped about his wife's waist. She gently leaned against Seth before she whispered, "I think I named Samantha, its your turn to name one..."

Seth blinked the tears from his eyes as he shook his head to hide the fact he nearly was driven to tears at the mention of his missing daughter and whispered, "Meredith...Meredith Dahlios..."

Liliana nodded before she whispered, "Welcome to our family Meredith. We'll do the best we can for you..."

[Duffy]

Time had not been kind to the senior members of the once infamous Tantalum Theatre Troupe. Over the five centuries since its inception, they had been stricken with plague, famine, hunger, and tragedy, until the circumstances leading to the conclusion overwhelmed them all. Fortunately for the few members still alive, though bidden to suffer life’s unravelling, they were not bound by one of the world’s usually stringent rules. Time, for them, was unending.

Though one life was over, a new one was only just beginning. Promises, possibilities, and potential sparked in the air around them. Whispers of yesteryear faded in a thick, lancing wind, and solid, determined footsteps whisked them away into the undiscovered country.

At least, it would have done, if there had not been a knock at the door an hour prior. The perturbed look that had broken out across the grey haired matriarch Ruby Winchester’s face had remained ever since she had opened it. It was almost like she had been surprised, then turned to stone where she stood.

“Ruby, please pull yourself together. Forgive me for being morbid, but there’s a dead baby on the doorstep.” Duffy felt the need to grab his best friend by the shoulder and shake her to life. She gasped, shook her head, and then stepped away from the bard.

“It’s a baby, Duffy, it isn’t dead.”

“Well it’s not screaming, so what other possibility is there?” Duffy was good at many things, except parenting. He had been able to bond with the elder members of the troupe, and take some of the youths under his wing in his younger days, but the pressures of his new occupation had stolen away all his joy for inspiring others outside of the College’s Halls. Raiera, or so Duffy swore, needed him more than the mewing, puking, and hissing brats of the Winchester Orphanage.

“She’s sleeping, you inbred!” Knocked rapidly to her senses by Duffy’s idiocy, Ruby strode defiantly across the polished mahogany floorboards of the landing, and began to descend the modest stairway that lead down into the open planned hallway of the building. She ran her hand along the polished brass rail with a fond recollection of her days as a lady before she took on a more motherly waltz towards the double doors at the front of her new home. Her slippers padded over the black and white tiles with a muffled scuff.

“”You’re the one who ran back into the house screaming, Ruby, or did you for-” Duffy began to follow her, but stopped his barbed wit the moment she darted fiery cavalcades over her nightgown’s ruffled shoulder. “Okay then,” he whispered. With uncomfortable lurches and a careless advance, he followed suit and slinked down the stairs.

The knock on the door had not entirely been a surprise to the occupants of the Winchester Orphanage. Since the troupe had begun its exodus to Raiaera, and to Eluriand, they had been swept in an hive of activity and a demand of their services and time. Distraught mothers or wayward lords with bastard children had come to the doors of their sanctum all hours of the day, signing their name and paying the taxes demanded by the estranging laws of the elven heartland. It was entirely uncustomary for a person to leave a child unattended for adoption.

Ruby pulled the door open slowly, having left it ajar when she had made a swift retreat to find something blunt, and a man to hide behind. She had sworn there had been ‘something out there’, but when Duffy caught up and looked down at the bundle of robes in the straw basket, he saw nothing but the child. She was, through providence or fate, still sound asleep. Her porcelain skin glowed in the moonlight as it dropped down over the sprawling metropolis. Even before Ruby stooped to pick up the basket and peel back the woollen cloth that covered her face, Duffy strongly suspected that the baby was an elf.

They blinked, silently and awkwardly, and dressed rather impractically to stand in the bitter winter chill, and breathed heavily their indecision.

“And you say the orphanage was Leopold’s idea?” Duffy said with disbelief.

Ruby, still nervous, could only do what she did best. She laughed. Her laugh echoed so loudly in the porch that the baby stirred, and with the rude awakening, a new day, a new chapter, and a new episode of diapers, restless nights, and absent bards was set to begin.

[Ashla]

Ashla had had the rare ability to sleep in someone's house one night- if she left early the next day. She was trying to sleep in the bed that had been given to her. Her cat Fireleaf, was already snuggled up in a ball, fast asleep, next to her feet. She wished she could sleep, but she couldn't. Something told her that something was wrong.

She suddenly heard a knock at the door. She didn't hear the man who let her in open it, so she decided to see what was going on.

She went downstairs to see that no one was there. So she decided to open the door herself. When she opened it, she saw no one, but she heard crying. She looked down to see a small baby in a basket. He was crying.

"Oh, poor thing!" She said startled and she picked the child up. When she did so, a she saw a note in the basket. Still keeping a strong grip on the child, she bent down and picked up the note. It said:
I am sorry to interrupt you at this late hour, but I cannot keep my child safe with me any longer. Please take care of him.
Signed: The child's mother.

Ashla knew she couldn't take care of the child by herself. She was homeless of course! She decided to tell the Master of this household. She tip toed upstairs, and went to his door. She heard voices inside, "Yes, we will kill the queen and-"

Ashla opened the door to see him talking to a dark man in a black robe.

"She heard our plans!" Shouted the stranger, "Kill her!"

So the house keeper drew a sword out and ran towards her. Now, Ashla always had her sword and large knife in her sheaths, but she was holding an infant! What could she do? "No!" She cried just as a streak of orange and white flashed by her and bite the man's ankle.

"Fireleaf!" Ashla cried in a combination of relief of her life being saved, and fear of loosing her only family, which was a feline.

Ashla then noticed a closed basket on a chair close to her. She quickly ran to it and opened it. It had bottles of poison in it! She dumped them all out and gently, but swifly, put the already screaming baby inside it, "I know this isn't the best crib, but it'll have to do for now." She left the child, drawing her weapons!

She ran to the man and using her agility, dogged his sword and stabbed him in the stomach. He stared at her for a second, then fell to the floor dead.

The other man, seeing that this teenage girl was a fair match, jumped out of the window. Ashla knew that she would see him again; but until then, she had this infant to deal with. She picked him up and ran downstairs, Fireleaf bounding by her side. She went outside and was shocked to see a young woman next to the door.

"You were able to keep my child safe?" She asked.

"This is your's?" Ashla asked.

"Yes. She said. I came back realizing that this was the very place those goons were threatning my life. So I came to get my son back and take him somewhere else."

"You mean?" Ashla concluded.

"Yes," She said, "I am the Queen." Thank you for keeping my child safe, and facing up to those evil men. I will never forget it. Do you wish for anything in return?"

"Well..." Ashla thought for a second, then she knew what she wanted, "Your Majesty, I only want a place to sleep tonight."

[hoytti]

"Sorish," Roxi whispered in my head, "Someone is at the door, you need to open it."
I moaned as I got out of bed, It is four in the morning, who would be stupid enough to wake up a man bigger than you at this hour? I asked myself then went to the door. I opened it and saw no one was there. I looked down to make sure it wasn't Los Racada. Wasn't I surprised to see a basket lying on my door step. I picked it up and looked in it. I was even more surprised to find a baby in it. The strangest part of all was the fact it was a Coralian baby with the water bubble breathing spell . There was a note in it. "Hello Baby, me and your father was wondering if you would take care of your baby sister for a few years. A man attacked our undersea home and we need to defend it. I'm sorry I can't see you but I have to get back to the war. Oh, at six months please name her. The name is up to you. Thanks again. Sincerely, Mom."

That Conqueror must have attacked it after all. He is in for the fight of his life, I thought looking at my sister. She had the pink reflective eyes that are known among the Coralians. She had a 7.6 cm crown showing her age of 3 months. She was only 3 inches. She was green with blue in the cracks. She was beautiful. I knew that she would have to learn the customs of both her people and the Kings of Above. I took her into my room that I was renting. I'm going to have get a crib for her, I thought as I laid her basket down at the foot of my bed then went to sleep.

The next morning I woke up to crying remembering what happened last night I got up and went to my sister in her temporary bed. She was crying, probably hungry. I picked her up and went down stairs to ask for a bottle and some sea water. The owner looked at the child in my hand then smiled and nodded. He got me a bottle and filled it with sea water which had had been specially ordering for me. He asked if I needed it heated. I nodded he smiled again and heated it up. I took a piece of my crown and crushed it mixing it with the sea water then added some of the algae from my skin. I closed the top and shook it till it was well mixed then started feeding my sister.

"Who was the lucky girl?" the owner asked with a smile.

"This is my sister Mr. Gord," I said with a smile. "My mother had come to drop her off last night. I'm afraid war has broken out at home and I can't go to help them. Instead I am to babysit my Sister just like most of the other older siblings do while our 100 year old and older Parents fight."

Mr. Gord looked at me funny then asked, "How can someone over 60 fight?"

"My people can live to be 300 years old. 100 is still young in our eyes." I said still looking at my sister as she ate. She started to gain more algae. After a few more minutes she was done and happy. I stood up and went out carrying her. Many people saw her and started to swarm around me asking many questions. Some wanting to hold her others wanting to know who the mother was and still others were just curious how something so small could get as big as me?

After answering the questions and letting a few people hold her they asked if she had a name. "I'm afraid that due to our tradition she doesn't have a name yet. My parents are in a war and I will be the one naming her at 6 months which is in 3 months." Everyone was shocked that she didn't have a name. She was to cute to ignore though so they kept tickling her and playing with her. I need to really go shopping for her so I finally said, "I really need to get going and buy some supplies for her," then started to move towards the bazaar. A huge crowed was following as I went to the baby store and bought her a small portable crib, some bottles, I didn't need diapers since Coralians don't poop or pee. Afterwards I returned to the hotel and to my room set up the crib. I finally finished and looked at my sister who will be with me for the next few years. "I can't believe that I have been gone for two years." I said then went to sleep

[Caelan Bolish]

(W.I.P)
A breeze that had a chilly bite to it blew straight through the thin tunic of Caelan. However unlike most of the Salvarians that were harboring against that cold in this village it didn't faze this man. Some of the summers in Skavia when the Horsa didn't present enough offerings to Helias, the god of Summer, he would punish them by not allowing them the haven of warmth he grants them for those three months. Yet he could tell that this cold could kill the unwary down here in the lowlands if they didn't find a good warm place to wait out until Winter finally passed and Spring came to bring life back to the land.

As he pass through the only road, which was just packed, frozen dirt, that the village was more like a ghost town. The road was dead, lifeless with only a few wandering souls that were more mounds of fur and pelts and clothes than actual people trying to find a relatively dry place where they can hope and pray that they can live through another Winter. Those wandering souls gave Caelan strange looks as he passed clothe in only a tunic and furry trousers made from the pelts of a bear. He chuckles slightly as he wonders what the Skavians must think of him. Ah what must they think of me. Just clothe in a simple outfit of a tunic and trousers in a temperature they consider freezing. They must think I am insane. This has happen to me ever since I left my home behind in a fiery flame cause by the fear that the All-Seeing Eye harbored for his people. Everything seem strange and alien from his home.

Caelan stare at one of the latest souls that gave him a strange look. The man stare straight back at Caelan in the eyes for another split second before he divert it back to the ground. Caelan shurg deciding that Skavians were such strange people.

He kept along the road until he got to the biggest building in the entire village, it was two stories high wooden building. Pitch black smoke billows out from the three rickety chimneys that sway slightly in the direction that the breeze was blowing. Behind the inn was a good size stable yard that was at the brink of overflowing. As he got to the door of the inn he could laughter and the singing of popular simple tavern songs. It was a good change from the other buildings that aline both sides of the road that gave an aura of dismay and sadness, but the inn had a warm, inviting presence.

A creaking noise made him turn his head up to find a sign that was swinging back and forth on the ropes that held it up. On the sign there was a smiling man that wore a baggy tunic with one side being a deep emerald green and the other being a crimson red. He wore skin tight leggings that were of a red that was lighter and more cheerful. To top it off he had a hat that was much like a sleep cap except that it had a brass bell on the end instead of a puffy white ball.

The door to the inn was open by a stout man with a mustache that curl up at both ends. "Hello stranger." He said with a warm, welcoming smile "We always have room for one more in the Jolly Jester" Then the stout man walk into the inn with Caelan right behind him.


__*O*__

It was starless night when he heard the light tapping of a soft fist against his door, and soft footsteps of someone fleeing from his door. Caelan place his hands behind his back and pushes himself up into a sitting position, and rubs his eyes trying to clear up his bleary eyesight. Once he was finish he spoke up, "Who is there?" He was answer by the cooing of a baby coming from the door.

He got up from his bed and walk over to the door asking again, "Who is there?" He open the door to find a basket woven out of cane with bundle of heavy blankets, stash inside of the blankets was a young Skavian girl that could have not been even more than six months old. She was a pretty thing with a beautiful, shiny man of chocolate-brown hair. Her large violet-colored orbs scan the face of young Caelan before a enchanting giggle came from the infant. Caelan bent down and pick up the bundle of blankets wrap around the girl, as he did that he notice a note attach to the bottom of the basket and pick it up. He held the baby girl in his right arm close to his chest as he read the note.


Dear, Sir or M'lady
I know you do not know me and you do not owe me anything, but I beg of you to take care of my child or find a good place where she can grow up healthy. This oncoming Winter is going to be a brutal one and I can feel in deep in my bones and I know that I will not be able to take care of my sweet daughter. I may not even be able to survive this Winter myself, so again I ask you look inside your heart and take care of my child. Please give my daughter the chance to have a life.

Caelan carefully places the note into his pocket and his thoughts turn to how is he going to take care of this child. He just can't simply leave her out here for someone else to take care of, but he can't take her with her he doesn't have any permanent place to call home to keep her safe. His thoughts start to become rampant and out of control, he decides to go back to sleep and think about this more. As he is about to close the door behind him and big meaty hand with sausage for fingers stops the door from closing. The hand pulls the door open and the stout man from earlier walks in.

"Did I wake up Paul? I am sorry if I woke you up." Caelan said as he place the child down upon the bed.

Paul had that same welcoming smile on and said, "Don't worry it is my job as the innkeeper to make sure my guests have all they need. So what keeps you up this later?"

"I woke up to a knocking" He turn to the side showing Paul the child "and I found this child bundle up in blankets in a basket. The guardian of this child decide that she/he could not take care of this child anymore, so she/he decided that she had a better chance with a stranger surviving this Winter. Yet I don't have any place to call home and I am only residing in your inn until Spring comes. So I have to find a place where she can stay and grow up at."

The stout, friendly innkeeper shuffles over to the girl. He strokes the child's hair with one of his meaty fingers as he stares into her violet orbs. Then he smiles and looks back at Caelan, "I will take her under my care. Once she is old enough I will have her work under my service as a maid or kitchen help"

"No you don't have to do that Paul. That is too much to ask"

"Don't worry Caelan she will work back the debt when she is able to work for me"

"Thank you Paul. You are to kind"

"Don't worry young sir. So what is her name?"

"Her name is Lelian" Caelan smiles and stares into the girl's eyes.

[jerk]

"M'lord? Wake up, m'lord..." It was Neela, Nehriss Hall's housekeeper, shaking Tornac to wake him up.

Tornac groaned and rolled over in his large four-poster bed. Looking out of his window, he could see it was still dark. "What time is it?"

"Four o'clock in the morning."

"Who could possibly want to see me at four in the morning?" Tornac sat up stiffly, rubbing his back. "Alright, I'm coming. But this had better be important, or I'll go straight back to bed." He spent a while dragging on a richly-embroidered silk robe and a pair of straw sandals, and tried to tame his hair as best he could. He walked downstairs awkwardly, still trying to get used to his mechanical leg. This was all to his advantage - by being late, he would put off the visitor, and perhaps make them leave. Then he could go back to sleep.

Tornac didn't know what to expect, but he certainly didn't expect a tiny baby, lying in a basket on his doorstep. It looked nothing like the little, clean, pink babies he was used to. It was purplish and slimy, its hair damp, and it was still covered in sticky strands of white afterbirth. It couldn't have been more than a few hours old. On top of the baby's blanket, there was a note in thin, spidery handwriting.


M'lord,

I regret that I cannot speak to you in person about the decisions that I have had to make to come to this point, but know only that they are good ones. With my baby's father dead in the Corone War and a harsh winter approaching, I have no means to provide for my child. My only hope is that you can use your wealth to find a good home for her. it pains me to do this, but I have no choice.

Gods bless,
Meyra



Tornac stared at the baby hard, his breath steaming in the chill winter air, as if it was a faerie glamour he was trying to see through. He was reluctant to touch it - it seemed strange, almost unholy. He understood the mother's situation - he knew many people in his station who had lost relatives or children in the Corone War, but it had never affected him until now. He'd never really needed to think about it, because Nehriss Hall contained everything he required for his own narrow world. The one time he'd left, properly left, it had ended with him losing his leg. He planned to take his next journey in style, if he could. The baby was an intrusion into all of that, and he didn't like it. It was even worse when the baby started crying.

"Why's she crying? What on earth could she want?" Tornac was not going to be happy with this. The baby's cry was thin, raw and ugly, and she had a mouthful of spit that gurgled at the back of her throat every time she screamed. It grated against his ears like a piece of sandpaper rubbing against his eardrums.

"It means that she's hungry, m'lord." Wow, I really do have no idea about babies...

"What about some milk? We could heat her up some milk."

Neela shook her head. "She's too little. What she needs is breast milk. I think Lahra's still nursing her baby, shall I go and fetch her?"

"Yes. You do that." As Neela hurried off to fetch the servant girl, Tornac stood dumbly in the doorway. Well, it's what my parents always wanted anyway. "We'll soon have a baby in Nehriss Hall!", they would say, and stare at me, as if I was going to be the one to do it. Are you happy, Mother?

Neela soon came back with Lahra in tow. The young servant girl picked up the baby tenderly, holding her close, and bared her breast. The baby grabbed at it greedily and began to suck. "Poor thing," Lahra muttered. "Who'd do this to it? Have as much as you want, my darling." Soon enough, the baby had drunk its fill, and fell asleep peacefully in her arms. Lahra wiped it off with a towel, and the three of them stood there awkwardly, still trying to make sense of the situation.

"So," Neela asked, breaking the silence that filled the air in the antechamber like a poisonous fume. "What do we do with her now?"

"We can't keep her forever. She'll have to go, and soon," Tornac declared.

"Go?" Neela snapped. "Forgive me, m'lord, but that's impossible. The baby's not likely to survive if we put her in an orphanage. Look at how tiny she is! That means she's newborn, and obviously premature. We have to take care of her as best we can before we do that." Lahra simply looked distressed.

"I don't want to give her up!" Lahra cried, holding the baby even closer to her. "I'll take good care of her, m'lord, truly I will..."

"Heavens help us, boy, the fool child's in love with it. Do the right thing by her." And with that, Neela patted him on the shoulder and walked away, it being almost time to start the day's chores. Tornac put his chin in his hand and stroked the few fluffy black hairs that were growing there. Lahra was looking at him with a pleading gaze, and her eyes were full of what could only be described as love-light. "Do the right thing by her..."

"Fine," he growled eventually. "Keep the child, then. But don't blame me if she's too much trouble, mind. And you'll be expected to carry on with your duties as needed." He turned away from Lahra and the baby, and stumped back up the stairs, leg wheezing and groaning all the way. Tornac opened the door of his chamber and immediately flopped back into bed, wondering what to make of all of this. "A baby in Nehriss Hall!" But not mine, Father. Hopefully, never mine.

[Moonberrycat]

Iris was supposed to be sleeping, well, supposed. She couldn't sleep at the moment. She was at a motel renting the night there, it was a nice place, but as she tried to sleep she heard a knock on her door.

"I wonder who's there..." She whispered to Deer, her kitten.

She got up and opened the door, there was a basket with a blanket over it, and a note. Picking up the basket and note, she sat down on the bed again, she opened the note to find out what it was.

Dear Sir or M'am, I am sorry but I cannot take care of my baby, I am to poor and the winter is harsh and my husband and I already have 2 other children to attend to, I beg you to find a home for her and to keep her safe, I provided some baby food to feed her and a few diapers with and I thank you for helping us.

Iris stared in awe-struck at the note. She opened the basket to see a peaceful sleeping baby, wrapped up in the old blanket for warmth, she was a bit dirty and could use a diaper change. She took the baby out and cradled her in her arms. Iris started to cry, remembering her own past. Setting the baby down, she wiped her eyes and wetted a towel to clean the dirt off of the baby's face face.

"Oh dear, i'm going to have to take care of you now aren't I? You poor darling, i'm just a girl, but I have tooken care of babies before" She picked up the baby again, after changing her. Now, to feed her. She took one of the baby foods and found a spoon, she fed her slowly, it seemed as if the poor thing hasn't eaten in days. She then held her and took her to the front desk.

"Sir, do you know who would of brought a baby here? Do you also know where I could take her so she would be taken care of? I am to young to raise her myself and I was given her just now."

The man shook his head and said "Perhaps my wife and I could take her, we've always wanted a baby girl, but my wife cannot have children.

Iris said "Thats a shame, of course you can have the poor darling, I know you'll take good care of her." She grabbed the basket and the food and handed it to the man who worked there.

He smiled at the little girl and handed her back to Iris, "I want you to name it, so the family knows is went somewhere safe."

Iris nodded "I want her name to be.....Charie" She said with a smile, the name she wanted when she was younger.

"Charie, I like that. Now, you and your cat can stay here whenever you want and how long you want, and any friends to, just to thank you for this."

"Thanks...but...I....ok." She stammered. She picked up her kitten and walked back to her room, to maybe sleep, or think. She climbed into bed. I'll never forget my little Charie, maybe i'll even get to visit her!

[Amber Eyes]

A soft crying filled the mystic’s ears as she opened her eyes to the darkness of her room. For a moment she assumed she was still dreaming, Akiv’s younger years still invading her reality. Something about the cry was different though, and after a moment it became clear that it wasn’t a product of her still-sleepy mind.

Kyla Orlouge pulled herself from her bed, untangling her feet from her covers as she stood and stretched. Her nightgown brushed the floor with a soft swish as she made her way to the doorway and opened it. At her feet lay the one responsible for all the noise, an infant human child, not more than a few days old. She was wrapped tightly in a pink knit blanket, in a flower basket with a note attached with a piece of twine. Kyla bent over and picked the child up, leaving the basket where it lay and plucked the note from its binding. The girl gently closed the door, holding the infant tight and made her way to her bed once more. She laid the baby down gently and untucked the child’s arm, glancing quickly at the blue veins that confirmed her suspicions that the baby was human. She read the note quickly, scoffing at the words. Apparently the mother was in a desperate situation and knew the Orlouges to be loving and attentive. Sei himself had two human daughters who were adopted; surely they could find a way to make this little girl one of their own. It was ridiculous really, to assume that someone would take responsibility for a child just because it was left on their doorstep. Kyla barely found the patience for Akiv at times, how could she even consider keeping this—this—admittedly adorable, but all the same incredibly needy tiny being? She sat for several moments just holding the infant, breathing in that smell that babies have that seems to flow through your nostrils and straight to your heart, no…she couldn’t do this. This child wasn’t hers and it certainly didn’t ask to be adopted by the powder keg that is Kyla Orlouge. She kissed the top of the child’s head and held her close, tomorrow she would take her into Radasanth and find Mother Holly, the child would have a proper upbringing under the woman’s watchful eye.

The sound of shuffling feet filled the air and Kyla turned to see Akiv stumbling towards her in the dimly lit room. He crawled onto the bed and stared down at the sleeping child. “Is she my sister?”

“Of course not Akiv, why would you think such a thing?”

“Well…I asked Grampa Sei for a sister and he said I might just get one someday.”

Kyla looked down at her little boy and watched his eyes light up as he watched the baby coo.

“Well, maybe we can keep her for just a little while, until we find her parents at least.”

Akiv smiled up at his mother and brushed his fingers through the infant’s soft fuzz atop her head. “What’s her name?”

The mystic thought for a silent moment before she spoke again. “Alayna, Alayna Marie Orlouge. Welcome to the family little one.’

[Amber Eyes]

Dissinger receives 1600 exp and 200 gp

Duffy Bracken receives 880 exp and 150 gp

Sen Zelrock receives 100 exp

Blue Ghosts of Seaside receives 100 exp

Hoytti receives 100 exp

Caelan Bolish receives 100 exp

Jerk receives 100 exp

Moonberrycat receives 100 exp

Amber Eyes receives 400 exp

[Letho]

EXP/GP added.