View Full Version : The Bounty of the Baroness: A Cold and Stormy Night
((This is a side thread to the original The Bounty of the Baroness thread. It continues from post #19 on said thread.))
Skylar, ecstatic to be saved from being pincered between two huge oddities of the Hidden One's creations (he could do without any more teethless grins for a while yet), listens to Uri's words with much enthusiasm. His bones were somewhat achy from the cold and the long journey, and the prospect of a room was very enticing.
"Alright, thank you very much. I think I will be turning in...."
As Skylar's eyes wandered across the room, his sentence trails off as he finds himself catching the gaze of the step-daughter, her pleasant smile second only to the fascinating green eyes that were painted the color of Salvarian pine needles. Figuring he should make the most of this moment, Skylar begins to cross in her direction, thanking the guard again as he goes. As he stepped closer, her features began to be more visible amongst the torchlight. Beneath the cloak which matched her eyes was a dress the type he had seen some of the workers on Father's fields wearing at times. Simple, but functional. Freckles were all about her face, as if one could have a game of connect-the-dots about her visage, assuming one could do so without seeming rude or downright odd.
As he came within a comfortable talking distance to her, Skylar couldn't help but notice the heat in the room was starting to pick up, which seemed strange considering from one of the windows, a decent snowfall was starting to pick up outside. He figured that maybe the servants had just thrown some more wood on the fire. It was about this time that Skylar realized that he, too, had stopped moving towards her, being close enough, and had been looking at her without a single word said for a few seconds now. He blinked as if waking from a dream and committed himself to some words.
"Hello, it is very nice to make your acquaintance, Lady Follingworth."
Skylar bows his head respectfully, as her name, Fia, whispered into his mind, and had been the first word to pop into his head when he had wanted to say her name. However, among nobles and in the name of good decor, he was obliged to the last name he knew of her. He did not want to offend, certainly.
Abrienda........that was what the Baroness had called her. A fascinating name.
"It will be an honor to work with you, Madame. We will do all we can to assure your safety, I promise you."
It was around that time that a finger tapped on the back of his right shoulder. As Skylar turns, he sees the face of Uri raising his eyebrows as a gesture of acknowledgement.
"Mr. Silverlake, I'm heading upstairs now, so if you'd like to be shown your room I can do that for you."
Suddenly remembering how tired he was, the idea of removing himself from the company of Fia sounded extremely appealing. In no way was it her fault. In fact, Skylar very much wanted to stay and be the attention-holder of those deep eyes she bore; he just wasn't sure what he could talk about. He was through with the pointless banter of noble courting, and in any case, he wasn't sure Fia was the type to do such things anyway.
"Yes, of course, thank you."
He turns back to Fia, bearing a somewhat apologetic smile upon his face.
"It seems I will be having to turn in for the night. If you will excuse me....."
Again, a courteous bow of the head towards Fia before he turns to the guard and begins to follow him towards the hallway outside of the room. Though turned away and focused on going to his room, a vision of her face still ran clearly through the priest-initiate's mind, those eyes seeming like they wanted to seek and unraval the entire story of his life. If they looked hard enough, he couldn't say that they wouldn't be able to. However, as he made it to the steps, he attempted to throw that out of mind, trying to achieve the meditative state of the prayer he would be making before bed, as he always did. Not enough thoughts were going towards Him on this evening. Skylar was now looking forward to a hearty prayer with his Lord and the winds of a winter snowfall lulling him to sleep as they used to in days long past.
~~~~~~
"...Mmm...?"
A warm and extremely soft bed was the first sensation that Skylar became aware of. It took him a couple seconds to realize where he was, or why he was in such a high class bed without being at home. Skylar manages to lean himself up amongst the drowsiness that came from sleeping for a couple of hours, and through the moonlight, he could see a blizzard raging outside and snow beginning to pile itself higher on the grounds below. It was a nostalgic sight.
However, these were not the sensations that had roused him up from a perfectly comfortable slumber. As his world began to come more in focus, Skylar's ears began to notice the sounds of rushed footsteps permeating through the wooden door. He manages to fling himself out of bed, despite the protests of his sore travelled body. His navy blue trousers were placed comfortably around his waist, but that was all that he wore, but things seemed too urgent to warrant getting his gear on. Bumbling through the shades of darkness to the door, he opens it up to have his eyes recoil at the flickering torches that were running past. His sight adjusting to the light, he could see guards shuffling down the hall. He stops one of them with his hand and a restrained yawn.
"Excuse me, what is all the commotion about?"
"Lady Follingworth."
The title struck her as strange, like she was wearing a gown that overwhelmed her features, but it was true, wasn't it? It had been a while since anyone had been polite to her. She'd almost forgotten what it was like, so her tongue was tied with surprise.
Mr. Silverlake was an attentive fellow, proper with names and introductions. He spoke with genteel precision, but it lacked the clipped pace of her stepmother. His collected air and bearing spoke of other similarities to her stepmother, yet Fia could not lump them together for more reasons than his attire.
"I promise you."
This snatched at Fia's mind. For her, a promise was a strong thing. In her village all you had to hinge whether you starved or ate on was a man's word. Gold was scarce, so vows became their currency and consideration.
She murmured, "Thank you, Sir," and meant it.
Fia found herself wondering what river had swept up this man's life. A man who assuaged when he was not compelled to, but wore one of the cruelest weapons at his side. Such a thing was made for close combat and had a brutal strike. She shuddered to consider it.
When he asked to be excused, Fia awoke from her contemplative reverie. She was unsure whether this required a response, so she erred on the side of caution.
"Of course."
Something remained to be said but the eventful day had overwhelmed her mind, and she could not formulate anything appropriate save a kind expression.
~*~
The guard shuddered to a stop, swinging his torch in a recklessly broad arc.
"Commotion? Just making the rounds." Even the rushed guard realized the flimsiness of this excuse.
"The Lady's prized hound got loose, might get hurt or give some of the serfs flocks a scare. Nothing for you to worry about."
His group was vanishing around the corner. Trying to catch up he threw an answer over his shoulder.
"Just being a good landlord."
The sounds of torches in the wind and steady footfalls were swallowed by the dark hallway, and the stone ceased to echo their passing.
"Prized dogs have full bellies, no need to hunt or wander, especially in this weather."
Ethereal light from a thin slit of a window colored the hall in the hues of moon shadow and frost. Fia stepped into the cool illumination, barefoot and in a night shift. A blanket was wrapped around her shoulders for modesty and warmth.
"What is this house is hiding?" she mused aloud.
Perhaps something would be unlocked, she'd break open some little corner of this mystery. Her deep green eyes flashed with purpose in the dark, before Fia vanished into her room to throw on a dress and cloak, and to pull on her boots.
She re-emerged quickly and looked to Skylar for a brief moment, silently asking or searching. Then, with light step she began to follow after the guard, falling towards the dark end of the hall.
Watching the hurried guard be enveloped by the darkness of the hallway beyond, Skylar's curiosity increased, not at all persuaded by the man's headlong argument. He couldn't even figure out where the landlord comment came from, but it only added more to the conspicuousness of the situation. However, as tired as he was, he was nevertheless tempted by the sweet embrace of bed covers and the wind whispering to him through the window. This perfect thought immediately flew from reality once he realized a set of eyes were looking at him and his half-naked body through dim oil lamp light strewn on the walls. He hadn't realized how close Fia's room was to his, otherwise he might have taken more time to dress before opening his door to the racket. Skylar was speechless with surprise and embarassment, but he was able to put aside the fact that he was shirtless in front of a baroness's step-daughter because in her gaze he could glimpse something along the lines of strong determination. This excursion had piqued her interest, and she was going to find out what it was. As she turns away and is about to make her trek down the hall, Skylar makes to say something.
"Lady Follingworth, we shouldn't-!" The young initiate catches himself, realizing how late it was and lowers his tone to an appropriate level whilst reconsidering his words. ".......Please, wait a minute."
He silently swings his door open and finds his white tunic that he wears underneath his armor and tabard, his brown leather boots, and his belt with his mace strapped to it, donning them with haste. Something told him that with that many guards running around, the two wouldn't be creeping their way towards a late-night tea party. He was hired to protect her, after all, but he wasn't bound by duty but rather by concern, and as late as it was, there was much to be concerned with during such events.
Besides, he wasn't old enough to so easily ignore his curiosities.
Swiftly catching up to her daintily stepping figure, he keeps pace with her, standing right at her side ready to step up to anything that may threaten her as they made their careful steps through the shadowy hall. Keeping alert, he slightly tilts his mouth towards her as his eyes peered ahead.
"I would say there is more to this than an escaped pet. Let us take care with our steps."
Another guard darts into the hallway from a room ahead, heading down the direction they were going at a pace close enough to be called a full-out run. He had not seen them, Skylar assumed. His hand brushed against the mace on his left hip, causing him to tighten his eyebrows with thought. He hoped the situation was far less drastic than it was playing out to be. Despite his worries, there was one thing he was sure of: if there was blood to be spilt this night, it wouldn't be hers.
At Skylar's request, the gentle tap of Fia's steps came to a halt. She paused in the hall, floating in the pool of darkness. Surprisingly, her spirit was eased, knowing that she would not be wandering alone.
Fia knew he was near more by sound than sight: the loping rhythm of a man's steps and the swish of a weapon handle swinging against fabric. When he was close enough, her light trot began again. He was directly beside her when they rounded a corner into a hall that fluttered from dark to dim in the lambent light of a brazier of coals. In the meager light, Fia realized Skylar's change in attire, or more specifically his lack of attire earlier. Her mind had been so set everything else was blurred in the periphery. It was strange that even in this moment Fia's cheeks could color with embarrassment. Many women of the world wouldn't think twice at her age, but she was ever a country lass at heart, given to provincial standards.
When he warned for them to take care, Fia mimicked his cautious steps. It was good one of them was thinking of what could befall them in the pursuit, since her thoughts were enveloped by the dangers of the destination.
The guard erupting from a room ahead gave Fia a start, but she controlled her breath and kept silent. Glancing to Skylar, she read the intent to follow this one.
The guard did not take them far in the narrow, winding halls before coming to a tight stairway that plummeted to the bottom of the house. A rug on the stairs muffled the pair's steps, but the guard seemed too harried to notice much apart from his task.
He eventually slipped out an august, iron bound door that released one into the land at the rear of the house, nearest the woods.
When they came to the door, Fia was not surprised that Skylar bid her wait while he pushed it open and looked around. Fia shivered as the winter chill gusted over the threshold and clutched at them. It nipped at her exposed skin, prickling it with goosebumps.
She peered into the expanse of snow and the ominous cluster of black trees crouching beyond a small swell in the road. The world was coated in its own set of silver armor, beautiful and severe.
"Do you see where he went?"
Rising from the dark tangles of the wood, came a howl that pierced the flesh more than any cold. At that sound, something twisted in Fia's gut, releasing a barbed memory into her consciousness.
(OOC: Hope you don't mind the mild bunnying. I'm guessing it's what your character would do.)
Skylar was worried about the idea of braving the fierce winter storm which he assumed was still thrashing the air outside. There had been many stories of messengers being pushed to make their deadlines being found dead in the frozen mounds days, sometimes even months later. As much as Skylar loved the winter weather and the cold, a person who lives in Salvar learns very quickly to respect the severity that nature could unleash upon the unprepared traveller.
However, as his hand pushes on the chilled metal of the iron bound door, it was clear to see the weather had made a very drastic improvement, reduced to only a persistant flurry of snowflakes. Enough to annoy one's eye, but nothing life-threatening. Nevertheless, he was glad he had put his boots on.
After her question, Skylar's eyes shifted over towards the group of snow-dressed pines that looked ominously back at them, as if relaying some soundless warning. Looking down, it seemed clusters of half-buried bootprints seemed to point over to that way. Their next destination seemed fairly obvious.
Then the howl came.
The air became supernaturally still, ceasing all the brief winter gusts and bringing more uneasiness in Skylar's already apprehensive attitude. At the sound, Skylar's hand jumped to the hilt of his weapon, looking around to see if perhaps that sound hadn't come from the forest, but from everywhere. Upon seeing no movement among the black forest, he releases his hand, but his eyes remain ever vigilant. He then turns to Fia, wondering if this was the straw to break the camel's back, to turn her curiosity into terror and send her back into the safety of the emotionless manor. She had stopped moving, and he could see an inner tormoil among the freckles and snowflakes upon her face.
"Lady Follingworth, are you alright?"
Suddenly, thrashing could be heard in the trees beyond, and a figure was starting to emerge as Skylar's heart began to spike. His right hand flies to the hilt of his mace again, this time expecting to pull it out, but soon relaxes his grip a bit when he sees the guard make his way through the trees, almost running into one as he desperately flings himself through the deep snow treading and out of the clutches of the forests' branches. His eyes quivered with horror, his breath very uneasy. He bears the two of them no mind, going right past them, an empty sword scabbard swinging on his hips. As the harried man makes it to the door, he stops and turns to the forest in a bloody defiant voice, proclaiming "They aren't paying me enough for this crap!", right before he slams it shut. Skylar turns to Fia, wondering how this new development would affect her. He could think of no other action then to assuringly rest his hand on her shoulder. Soon after this, a glaze of confidence paints over the fear in Skylar's eyes as he turns fully to Fia.
"Do not worry, the Hidden One is watching over us. We will be fine."
His words began to inspire him too, finding more courage and warmth among the cold and the fear through the thoughts of the Lord he loved and cherished so. One more howl bellows from the mysterious wood beyond, but Skylar resists the urge to keep frozen and starts to stomp his way through the heavy snow pockets towards the wood, gingerly taking the hand of the blonde-haired beauty and keeping a light squeeze, reinforcing her resolve with his faith. Her hand was cold from the weather but its remarkable warmth was refreshing to the touch and soothing to the stress. He found her hand not to be the same delicate smooth skin that most noble women were quite known to have, but rather nicks and slight callouses, but these did not cause him to recoil in the least. He wanted to muse on it some more, but there were more pressing matters.
His right hand kept to the ready as he approached the forest. He was prepared to fight Evil itself now.
Fia barely heard Skylar's question. The white scars on her back, burned with remembered pain. Her fingertips reached for her shoulder blade on reflex, feeling for warm blood, but found the same raised welts that had been there for years.
The shaking trees spat up a madman that clamored past her, doing little to assuage her apprehension. Her hand gripped the doorframe until her knuckles turned white. She was no fighter, no mercenary. What had her curiosity driven her toward?
A touch on her shoulder pulled her back into the present.
For all her common upbringing, Fia had survived blows and beatings to her heart and occasionally her body. A black forest was not so fierce a thing, and this time she was not alone in the icy dark.
Dread didn't dwell in Skylar's look. A steady fervor had inhabited his eyes and brow. Why shouldn't she at least attempt the same mindset? The peace the name and blessing of his god gave him spilled over into her perception a little.
Her fear did not vanish, it remained coiled in her gut, but her desire overcame it.
The second keening howl made Fia glad for her companion's hand. In this unexpected fellowship they trudged through the snow towards the heavy wood.
At the edges of the tree line the snow thinned, most of it caught in the canopy of branches. Fia heard the crunching of ice under their steps, and then it trickled into her ears. Her eyes shut, as if in prayer.
Their voices lacked the heavy sound of a physical tongue. Almost words shimmered in the brushing of wind and bough and beat from the roots winnowing into the earth.
Fia could never hear language like full dryads, but she heard rhythms and ghostly melodies. This tone was a warning, a recognition of an old familiar threat.
She whispered without turning her head to the side.
"The trees give a warning, but we already know to be careful."
She paused, concentrating on the timbre of their whispers.
"It's not a man, but not an animal."
After she betrayed her heritage, Fia couldn't look at Skylar, unsure of his reaction. Most people who heard trees muttering were soft in the head.
Through the latticework of branches came a flare of orange and a man's gravelly cry. A sharp crack sounded but it was met by a snarl deeper and more bestial than anything a man could churn from his throat.
Suddenly, the fiery light vanished, and only silver spears of moonlight filtered through the branches.
Fia's first steps towards the sounds were halting, but she soon began to lope along like a fawn. She was not so bold to release Skylar's hand, though.
When the trees grew denser, and their shapes more sinister, her pursuit of the mystery slowed.
Skylar could sense more than the trees were drawing in. A heavy presence trespassed the woods. It smothered the biting winter air with an unnatural foreboding that came from more than the dark and the old, creaking trees.
A breeze shifted a branch releasing light into a pocket of shadow. Twin mirrors, luminous eyes, flashed directly in front of them, but they were too high and too large to be from any normal creature.
A low growl reverberated out from the dark and hummed up Fia's spine. Her body flashed colder as she realized the sound was a prelude.
Not a man, but not an animal.....
Among Skylar's strong points, riddles were not one of them. Moreso, he had to second guess how Fia had gathered such things. The wind made whispers and hauntings as they caressed the leaves on their passing, but there was no language to it. No thought. Just a coincidence of natural sounds set into motion by the Divine One himself. Trees couldn't talk. But he couldn't find himself looking at the frightened form as a lunatic, either. Maybe He was talking to her, speaking warnings into her very soul. Yes, that had to be it.
Not a man, not a beast.
Eyes laid before them now, bringing them both to a halt and his body at a jump. The silvery moon's light covered all the folliage, the powdery ground below, and the reflection of two beastial spectators, but the rest of it was black. The moon dared not reveal it, perhaps sparing their fragile hearts a few more second's grief. Those seconds went slow, filled with the sound of short breaths and a deep hum of gutteral heaves from the thing in front of them. Ideas, plans raced through his head, his attention going to the guards who had run out to more than likely contend with this monster and the fact that they were now unaccountable. This was nothing the Hidden One created. Not an animal......not a beast........
Of course.
Skylar's right hand flicked quickly to his mace. It slides out of its leather holder with not a sound, gripped tightly against his palm. His other hand released the warm hand, no longer needing its assurance or giving its own, because the heat of blood, determination, and courage coursed and pounded through his body now. She wasn't going to follow where he was going to next.
The eyes glared now, sensing the movement and responding with its own brand of hostility. A snarl blasts from the dark and the eyes begin to quiver, maybe in rage or in preparation.
Skylar's hands both go onto the handle of his instrument, grasping the cold steel weapon with no intent of letting go. A silent prayer works through his lips, his tightened glare never leaving the eyes of his enemy. One word escapes through his tightened mouth, a simple instruction for Fia's benefit.
"Stay."
He leaves no time for a reply. His knuckles whiten with its grip, his breathing becomes harsh, his teeth mash together and grit with a quiet rage, knowing the nature of what stood before him. An abomination. An enemy to Althana. And most pressing of all: A threat.......
To Fia.
"Demon! You will hurt no MORE!"
Skylar flings himself forward at all the speed his body would allow, snow flying in his wake. His mace held with his arms above him, at prime position. His target in front of him, the eyes ever present. A make-shift battle cry erupts from Skylar, throwing all his fear and resolve into its creation.
"AaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaRGH!"
The mace swings towards the location of the eyes, his full strength bearing down in a left vertical swoop, not caring about the features he may see up close. This demon would not get the best of them. Not if he struck first.
When Skylar's fingers slipped from hers, Fia's mind began to thaw and the moment came into blade sharp focus.
The savage weapon was now firmly clutched between SKylar's hands, and his posture mirrored the crouching monster before him. Both were on the precipice of some drastic action.
Skylar's command to stay was so firm she obeyed automatically, but as she watched him go towards the creature Fia tried to give a warning. Her voice was enmeshed in surprise and tendrils of fear, so it gusted out only in a gasp. She did not expect her desire to unchain the house's mysteries to bring them to such peril in so little time.
Her words would have fallen on deaf ears anyway. Purpose securely tethered Skylar's focus on the seething shadow and mirror eyes.
At the battle cry, Fia instinctively flinched and looked away, but she recovered to see how the blow fell.
The monster dodged quickly with an eerie understanding of how a man moved. Its great furred body leapt the direction of Skylar's swing, curling around the paladin. The snarl became a canine roar as the swinging mace made some contact with the beast's haunches, flicking dark blood on the snow.
For a hot second, the monster loomed between Fia and Skylar, partially revealed in the strange forest light. A gray wolf without parallel in size stared through Skylar with eldritch green eyes. It was grotesquely thick and swelled with muscle and sinews, but most disconcerting was the almost human strain in its proportions. After a blink, the beast swung its wide head around towards Fia.
She had nothing in her hands to defend herself, the monster seemed to notice and rumbled with a predator's pleasure.
Her green eyes caught Skylar's before she turned to run.
This immediate flight surprised the creature, it hadn't expected her to shake off her fear. The wound in its leg slowed its initial bounds towards where the girl had stood, so for a moment it shared the clearing with Skylar alone. But soon it would plunge between the ashen trees into the murky wood, pursuing its hare.
(OOC: On a random note, I saw Mogwai as your choice in the music thread. I compliment your taste. If you like them you should try the bands "Godspeed You Black Emperor" and "Sigur Ros".)
A slight pang of triumph flowed through Skylar when he felt the mace connect upon his furry target. The rush soon went away once he realized that all he had met was one of its hindlegs. Upon the white snow below it, unnaturally dark blood flecked across its surface. This thing was fast, and it knew what his weapon was. No normal wolf would have been so able to predict and counter an attack like that. Skylar's mace swung over his left shoulder, preparing for another swipe, but even after injury and the battle cry, the creature was paying him no mind. Its grim gaze fell upon the defenseless maiden who stood only a few feet away. It had found its prey.
Fia!
The mace attempts again to fly towards the beast's midsection, a desperate act to avert its attention, but to no avail. The flanged mace only meets snowflakes and frozen air, as the beast begins its game of cat and mouse, springing off towards its quarry. A crippled leg wasn't going to stop its pursuit. Skylar can think of no other action but to fling his body towards the direction of the wolf, his feet finding its footing through the uneven snowbound forest ground. He keeps right behind, trying to catch up and deliver another hard impact upon the demonic wolf, but it dodges the attacks swiftly, starting to gain mor speed. Soon it would be completely out of reach, and eventually its sharp fangs would edge towards Fia.....
Without a conscious thought, Skylar found himself thrusting his body directly onto the the wolf's torso with a loud grunt, to grab it and attempt to stop its pursuit. If it succeeded, they would be sure to roll across the snow violently, smashing int o a nearby tree while Skylar struggling with it to keep from running from the girl he was protecting. That could buy her more time to get to the door which Skylar could see in the distance ahead, but what fate laid in store for him, he wasn't too sure about. Grappling with a wolf, especially a gigantic one like this, was not the best of ideas, but he had run out of options. Terrifying teeth bared in an animalistic frustration. Not good.
Skylar's mace, meanwhile, had slipped it out of his hand during the ensued wrestling match. It plopped onto the snow ahead of the two dueling bodies. A dash of blood was beginning to freeze upon one of its groomed edges.
((Thanks! I listen to Sigur Ros occasionally. Good band, relaxing. AND I LOVE SUFJAN STEVENS. Kudos to you.))
(OOC: I listen to Sufjan religiously. He was the last real show I went to at the El Rey in L.A. and it was amazing. If you've never seen him, he's just as good live.)
Every breath seared the back of Fia's throat. Her lungs ached and burned from the rushed intake of the crystal air. But this didn’t matter, as a worse fate snatched at her heels.
Claws and teeth had crippled her life before. The memory was a jagged bit of glass cutting at her heart when rattled. And it was making ribbons of her heart at the moment.
Her steps tumbled over roots and her fingers pulled at knotted trees as she pushed herself through low boughs and slim crevices between trunks. It was a frantic path that she ploughed, but not without the wisdom of instinct. An animal that big would get tangled in her narrow road, giving Fia precious time.
In the distance, there was a ragged hole in the treeline. The hilly plain they had stomped across hand in hand was in sight, and beyond that the arched doorway. Snow still fell gently stark against the deep indigo sky. It was strange that something so lovely could still exist in this moment of fear. The world had not ceased its mechanisms for her.
A man's grunt mixed with the guttural cries and Fia heard the sharp crack of branches.
Skylar had flung himself on the animal that was now writhing and bucking like a fish newly caught. The clack of its teeth could be heard as its jaws snapped, trying to tear out a piece of its captor. But it could not curl its thick neck back far enough to even graze the paladin.
The contorting beast slid and struggled on the icy forest floor, until they were almost facing where they came from. Nearly righted, the monster's claws franticly dug into the tree roots. Splinters flew in all directions.
Skylar's tenacious bear grip around the wolf's ribs was slipping. In a final thrash, the monster shot from Skylar's grasp its hind claws kicking out behind it.
It's bearing was not easily regained. The monster skidded across the snow before facing Skylar again.
Even as the wolf's eyes raised to face Skylar, a shivering voice, loud with false courage warned it.
"Back! Away!"
Her hands were steady on the handle of the mace, but her body trembled. It was too heavy and ungainly for her to hold well.
If Skylar claimed the weapon from her, he would find that her grip was tight from fear, but she gratefully relented at his touch. Another's near presence slowed her sprinting heart.
Fia couldn't articulate what pulled her back towards the monster in the dark. It was an idiotic move. She only knew that she could not run away unless certain Skylar would follow. She was afraid, not a coward.
His duty may have been to protect her, but she could not flee as another suffered the consequences of her curiosity alone.
The beast lowered its shoulders, soon to pounce, but a massive flash of white slammed into its already sore ribs. With a wet thump, it careened on the snow.
A similar creature now growled over it. It was pure white and almost beautiful but for its savage teeth and red eyes. From the dim another monster, coal colored, slinked forward.
Their concern was for the gray creature. Not a glance was spared for the intruding humans, rather they circled the gray wolf to ensure that it could not continue its hunt.
Fia's cold fingers curled around Skylar's arm as she moved behind him.
Inhaling heavily, Skylar pushes himself off the ground. The feeling of the hot breath of the demon wolf still caressed his face in a horrible embrace. Skylar could not figure out why he was no longer pinned to the ground by the wolf's weight. He had successfully kept it from biting his neck...perhaps the beast had become frustrated. Now on his feet again, Skylar's eyes lay upon a mace occupying Fia's hands, the weapon stained of a faint hue crimson. Her voice had its own power, as shaky as it may be, but her body relayed the residing fear through the quivering eyes and the whitened knuckles. Skylar, noticing a somewhat pulled muscle in his leg, makes a crudely masked limp over to her, taking the mace from her hands in a gentle but deft manner. Their gaze met for a brief second with Skylar's blue eyes pronouncing his gratitude. Though fearful, this thin, fragile-seeming lass was more courageous than she ever seemed on the outside.
The split second was over, and Skylar's attention was back on his beastly opponent, but a new development, involving more wolves which seemed to be siding with the humans, began to stir, and it was around this time that Skylar had realized that either he and Fia were both leaving, or none of them were leaving without the other in tow. And among that, Skylar was not one to allow a blessing to go to waste. With mace in one hand, the priest initiate takes hold of Fia's shoulder, and begins to urge her towards the Follingworth mansion.
"Let us hurry!"
Ignoring the pain of his calf-muscle, Skylar, with Fia a couple steps a head of him, began a full-speed dash towards the door. Snow crushed under his boots, flakes fell through the air, passing by his face as if to slow any pursuing parties. From behind, the sounds of beastial growls and yips travelled through the late night air.
Wherever those wolves have come from, the Hidden One be praised!
The door finally comes within reach, and Skylar maintains his gentleman-like habits even in the present situation by swinging the door open for her before entering himself. Only a couple of snowflakes escape through the open portal before Skylar slams the reinforced wooden door closed, racing his hands over the handle for a lock of some sort, latching it with a couple fumbles while gasping for breath. Soon the adrenaline started to wear off. The notion of being 'safe' coursed through his mind. He throws his body's whole weight upon the wall and slides down it, plopping on the floor in front of the door, back resting against the smooth oak. His lungs burned, his leg shot with pain, his mouth dry, his face sore from the cold, and his head was starting to pound.
A good ten seconds pass before Skylar looks up to Fia's exhausted face, finally getting his bearings while rubbing his leg a bit. He manages a wearied smile as he wipes his sweaty brow after laying his mace down with a loud thump.
"They say that curiosity kills the cat. A great night not to be a feline."
((OOC: Hope you don't mind the bunnying.))
Fia did not need to be told twice. Under Skylar's guiding hand, she dived back into the shelter of the trees.
Air labored through her lungs scalding them twice over, but she was too driven to cringe with pain. Distance had to be placed between her and the trio of monsters before they changed their beastly minds. The chorus of high pitched cries and rolling barks was like a lash at her shoulders, spurring her forward.
She stumbled over the last thick drift of snow, but scrambled to her feet again with newly scratched palms. The door was so near, but she wondered if she had the spirit to pull it open. Skylar saved her the effort by acting the honorable noble. Her body barely tumbled over the threshold.
When her feet felt stone floor, she took two steps before crumpling to her knees. The warm air was a balm to her scorched lungs. An empty ache prevailed in her chest, even as her heart began to slow. Cold hands touched an equally chilled face. Her fingers were pink and her palms raw with tell tale traces of rust colored blood. Behind her, Fia heard the comforting sound of the locks clicking into place, and she wilted in relief.
Skylar was propped against the door. His cheeks flushed with energy and cold and a feverish sheen was on his brow. The human's strained smile and commentary soothed Fia a bit.
Her countenance became lighter with a smile that gave way to a small, weary laugh.
"Indeed, Mr. Silverlake."
Gingerly, Fia rose to her feet and sunk next to Skylar against the wall. She did not know how to formulate what needed to be said, her nerves were still jangled and her breath was not yet steady.
"Thank you."
As she spoke she could not look at him, momentarily shy.
"I owe you a great deal for following me into this little mess."
She finally looked at him, but her gaze was soft.
"It is a fine thing to meet someone who keeps promises."
....a fine thing to meet someone who keeps promises......
He was thankful that his poor sense of humor had been able to call forth a quick moment of revelry. The warmth of a well-built fireplace shined from her pine-green eyes, a most beautiful color that Skylar had not had the chance to see so close up until this moment. The joke, as horrible as it may have been, was well worth her smile.
"Please. Call me Skylar. Mr. Silverlake sounds more like my father........"
Images of Simon and his father pop into his head. The Silverlake estate, the servants, his friends, all of them floated from the depths of his mind, turning his contented mood into a serious degree of thoughtfulness. He turns his eyes away from Fia for a second.
"........and the noble life, well, I left it behind."
Promises.
He looks back at Fia, remembering the horrible fear on her face when the wolf charged toward her. He remembered how helpless he felt, against this beast. The image of the beast tearing her apart had filled his mind during the chase, and it had filled him with pure, unrelenting dread. Even now, the thought made him unsteady. His eyes turned to an object dangling from his belt. He pulls his flask out. The cold glass permeates through his skin and all th eway to the bone. He raises it to eye level, appraising it, the water inside a most clarion quality. His eyes drift back to the freckled girl.
"Here."
Carefully, he passes the flask onto Fia. He watched her eyes, carefully gauging her reaction.
"If evil should ever nip at your heels again, use this. I blessed this water through the power of the Hidden One. When the water splashes upon wicked flesh, it will punish them."
Once she accepts the flask, Skylar then winces as he takes to his feet, picking up his mace and securing it at his side. Weariness was staring to take the place of his consciousness, and he rubs his eyes a bit. His clothes were also wet, and he was eager to get out of them.
"I do believe we have a long day ahead of us, Lady Follingworth, and we will need the rest."
He holds a hand out for her, a genuine smile taking to his face as his eyes reflected a gentle light.
"Shall we?"
When Skylar told Fia his first name, she repeated it quietly like a brief prayer.
"Skylar then."
A tired smile diffused across her expression. She was pleased with this gesture. Names were powerful tokens to Fia, not to be shared lightly.
The nobility she might have guessed. He had the carriage of an Elf and observed small expressions of protocol. That sort of thing was usually bred into those who had the luxury to observe them. Even still, the admission gave her a twinge of surprise. He did not behave as though he saw the world in strata of haves and have nots. There was no sense of entitlement in regards to his surroundings.
As he raised up the crystal flask, Fia thought he would take a drink. It looked like a precious sort of water, colored a faint blue by the bottle. Perhaps taken from some distant stream or sacred fount.
The flask was cool in her hand like a widely cut gem, when he passed it to her. The gift surprised her and she almost readied to take a sip. Thankfully, he did not wait that long to offer an explanation as to its contents.
Her understanding of its power was not full, but she sensed that it was hallowed and dear, blessed with something like magic but of a different shade.
She curled one hand around the present and pressed it reverently to her chest.
"Thank you, Skylar."
In the blue-black light of the hall, Skylar stood up before her and offered a hand to lift her to her feet. A simple thing to most, but Fia had been supping on loneliness long enough to appreciate even the small sips of goodwill offered her.
She took his hand and began to speak as she rose.
"We shall. And please call me F-," the phrase dissipated in the air. She reconsidered her words.
"…Abrienda."
Quietly, the cold and damp pair ascended the steps back to their rooms and passed through the hallways like phantoms.
Only when they stood before their doors did Fia undo the spell of silence.
"I'm in your debt, Skylar." Her timid hand took his in an expression of gratitude.
For a breath, she paused, cradled in the moment. Sleep heavy lids hid her dark eyes and she could not lift her chin.
"Sleep well."
Her hand slipped from his, and she floated away to her room down the hall.
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