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Post by RONJA IRIS AMALIA on Nov 3, 2009 19:16:03 GMT -5
Ronja looked at him softly as he described his nightmare and reached out a hand to clucth the fabric of his shirt, as if telling him something of great importance. "Nicholas, you have saved me, in ways you can't possibly know." Ronja told him meeting his eyes, the softness gone, hard reality was looking at him. He had saved her when he found her, he had saved her heart, shown her what love was, what a friend was. Without Nicholas, something slow and meaningful in any sense meant something. Nicholas gave her perspective, made her realize who she was, it gave her words.
Not to mention she was more lonely for a real friend than she would ever admit. Did he know that he was the best friend she'd ever had?
But Ronja, while talkative, kept many things to herself, and she didn't say anymore as she laid down, silently thankful for his supporting arm. She couldn't help but smile a little as he settled beside her. "Of course you can sleep there." Ronja turned to face him, trying to make it look effortless, which it wasn't. "Sweet dreams my friend." She said kissing her fingertips and placing them gently on his forehead.
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Post by NICHOLAS SANDROSE on Nov 4, 2009 15:25:42 GMT -5
"Sweet dreams my friend."
Nicholas smiled when he felt Ronja’s fingers touch his forehead. “Sweet dreams,” he agreed, closing his eyes. In the nighttime stillness, he could hear the soft whisper of her breath. She was beside him, she was alive -- and, for the moment, that was enough. Reassured, Nicholas soon drifted off to sleep.
No longer tormented by nightmares, Nicholas dreamed about a ballroom strung with garlands of roses. The war was over. That Atra had been defeated to the point of extinction. Now, the Argentum court could finally celebrate. Looking around, Nicholas saw Ronja dancing with her new lover, a handsome knight. Although the man’s face remained hidden in shadows, Nicholas somehow knew that he was everything Ronja had ever wanted -- strong, and brash, and a little dangerous. Nicholas waved to them before focusing his attention on the refreshment table. Sephora was there, chatting happily with her parents. The defeat of the Atra court had ended her slavery.
Then Nicholas heard a voice calling his name. Turning, he saw Ellylon walking toward him. She wore a frothy pink ball gown, and a crown of living pink roses, and she looked so beautiful. Nicholas caught his breath as he gazed at her. He was so awed that it took him a moment to notice the little girl clutching her skirt -- about three years old, with icy blue eyes and unruly brown curls. When Ellylon drew closer, the girl released her mother and immediately latched onto Nicholas’s leg, clinging determinedly to it even as he pulled Ellylon into his arms and began to dance. Great waves of happiness washed over Nicholas. Everything was right. Everything was good.
Happily ever after.
When morning came, Nicholas slipped out of bed without waking Ronja. His dream no longer remained as a conscious memory. But, for some reason he couldn’t quite place, Nicholas felt refreshed and optimistic. After conferring with Ronja’s maid, he summoned some messengers, who were soon sent scurrying off to various parts of the castle. They seemed a little surprised to see the court bard giving orders. However, Nicholas outranked them, even if he was just a mortal. So they did what he said.
Soon, two guards arrived to stand sentry duty outside Ronja’s door. And then one of the messengers returned carrying a huge vase stuffed with sunflowers. Nicholas knew how much Ronja loved the outdoors -- how she blossomed when surrounded by nature. Since she wouldn’t be able to go outside for a little, Nicholas had decided to bring the outside in for her. Returning to Ronja’s bedroom, Nicholas set the vase down on her bedside table, and then settled down to await her awakening
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Post by RONJA IRIS AMALIA on Nov 4, 2009 15:44:23 GMT -5
Ronja slept well, knowing Nicholas was close by, and even though she knew he was hardly a defense against any real threat, he made her feel safe. And she wrapped the covers tightly against her naked, worn body to create a sense of warmth and closeness as she fell into the abyss that was her slumber. She did not dream, she simply floated in darkness for hours. Though when she awoke, it felt like but a moment had passed except that she was greeted by warm rays of sunlight.
She had made it through the night.
Her arm went out to touch the space beside her. Empty. She should have known he couldn't stay. Her body hurt worse now than it idd before, the numbness wearing off and underneath the sheets, Ronja started to trace her scars, remembering. The pain and the face but she was alive and she had decided that she would not come out of this a victim. She refused to be so weak.
The door sung open and she stopped moving, closing her eyes almost completely and looking through her eyelashes at who had come in. Nicholas, with flowers. She couldn't hide the smile and she let her eyes open softly. But she couldn't think of what to say to him at all.
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Post by NICHOLAS SANDROSE on Nov 5, 2009 13:23:14 GMT -5
“Since you can’t go outside, I brought some of the outside in to you,” Nicholas explained. After setting down the vase, he gave its contents an appraising glance, and selected the largest of the sunflowers. With a playful bow, he placed it on the bed next to Ronja. “Not much is blooming this late in the year. But I thought you might enjoy these. They’re tall, and bold, and strong -- just like you.”
Still smiling, Nicholas sat on the edge of the mattress. “The kitchen is fixing a tray of all your favorite breakfast foods. I know you probably don’t feel like eating right now.” The smile faded, and concern filled Nicholas’s brown eyes. Reaching out, he placed his hand on Ronja’s brow, gently stroking her temple with his thumb. “But even having a few bites would help, if you can manage it. You have to keep your strength up. So you can get better.”
Then Nicholas’s voice turned apologetic. “I’ll need to leave for awhile this afternoon,” he confessed. “I have an appointment to get fitted for my Halloween costume.” It sounded like a frivolous thing, but Nicholas was a member of the Argentum court, and he had a duty to attend functions like the upcoming ball. His appearance reflected on the entire court. Nicholas might harbor some reservations about Ealdun’s ability to rule, but he wouldn’t deliberately make the new king look bad. Especially not in front of the Atra. “And after that, I’m spending the evening with Ellylon. But I’ll check in with you before sleeping. I’ll spend the night again, unless you’d rather that I didn’t.”
At that moment, the door to Ronja’s bedroom opened, and her maid entered carrying a tray of food. Nicholas motioned for her to set it down on the edge of the bed. A quick scan confirmed that everything he’d requested was present, as well as all the proper utensils, so he rewarded the girl with a nod of approval before dismissing her. Then he returned his attention to Ronja. “I know you hate being helpless. And I don’t want to treat you like a child. But I also want to spare you pain, if I can. Will you let me feed you? I think it might be easier.”
(OOC -- I thought I'd let you decide what Ronja's favorite breakfast foods are.)
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Post by RONJA IRIS AMALIA on Nov 5, 2009 17:03:38 GMT -5
Ronja smiled as she took the flower from him. Bold, strong, tall... she liked those words and she placed it where she could see it, it would be her sun--while it lived. Too bad flowers had to die, like mortals... her eyes found Nicholas and wondered how long he had left, if only there was a way to make him live forever. She would do it in a heartbeat. Even if it meant giving her own immortality away, she had no love to miss her. Ellylon and Ronja would both miss Nicholas. But she doubted Nicholas would ever accept a gift like that, even if it were possible.
Ronja was starving, she hadn't eaten in days after all. How could he think she didn't want to eat? Ronja ate a great deal, she just ran and danced and fucked off the calories. Hopefully she wouldn't get fat. "Spend the night with your love." Ronja couldn't make him stay with her again. "But do check in on me before you sleep."
She smiled a little. "I already have my costume, and if think you can talk me out of going, you're crazy." Ronja already had a costume because it was a modification of an old dress of hers. Queen of Hearts. But this holiday would not be as much fun as usual.
Then a maid came in with a tray, eggs and bacon and very light biscuits. More substantial food than most fae meals, but Ronja was never one for just sweet melt in your mouth morsels. "I want to try myself first." Ronja shifted herself up and very carefully began to eat. Her body was sore but it felt good to move, any movement at all was welcome now.
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Post by NICHOLAS SANDROSE on Nov 6, 2009 19:56:41 GMT -5
"Spend the night with your love."
The thought of sleeping beside Ellylon should have filled Nicholas with joy. But instead, his gaze dropped and he shifted uncomfortably on the mattress. “I’m not sure she’ll let me. She...goes away at night, sometimes. She won’t tell me where. When I ask her what’s going on, she just says that she can’t talk about it. All I know is that she seems really sad afterwards.” Nicholas bit his lip. He wanted to believe that Ellylon trusted him, but it was hard to ignore the secrets she concealed. “I don’t understand why she won’t tell me. If you really loved someone, you’d tell them when something was wrong. Wouldn’t you?”
A soft sigh escaped Nicholas. Maybe he should follow Ellylon tonight. The idea had occurred to him before, but fear always held him back. What if she snuck off to meet another man? What if they danced together in the moonlight and laughed about the foolish mortal who imagined that he’d earned the affection of a fae queen? Nicholas’s heart couldn’t take such betrayal. The madness Ronja had glimpsed when he drank the Atra potion would be nothing compared to what might happen if Ellylon was toying with him.
Nicholas shook his head, bringing his thoughts back to the present. It was good to see Ronja tackling her food with such enthusiasm. He’d been worried that the pain and trauma might cause a loss of appetite. Fortunately, the opposite appeared true. As the smell of bacon tickled Nicholas’s nose, his stomach gurgled softly, reminding him that he hadn’t yet attended to his own breakfast. But that could wait. Right now, his main concern was Ronja.
“I wouldn’t dream of keeping you from the ball.” It was still a week away, and the chance of attending would give Ronja something to look forward to while she recuperated. “What’s your costume? I’m going to be the Phantom of the Opera.” Nicholas had come up with the idea himself, and he felt particularly proud of it. Nice clothes, no more disfigurement than what was implied by the partial mask, and it even alluded to his passion for music.
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Post by RONJA IRIS AMALIA on Nov 6, 2009 20:16:46 GMT -5
Ronja looked up at him thoughtfully. "She probably doesn't want to worry you, it probably has to do with why she stepped down as Queen or whatever. It's probably too much to explain." Ronja said thoughtfully, popping a pastry into her mouth. She didn't mean to appear uninterested, she was just extremely hungry and the hunger and pain in her body was taking over her. She had listened to his words, but she wasn't sure what to tell him, she had no idea what could possibly be going on with Ellylon, Nicholas knew the old queen better than she did anyway.
"Oh, Phantom of the Opera, I remember sneaking into a mortal theater to see that once... don't remember when though.... I saw it when i was looking for..." Ronja paused and bit her lip. "Nevermind." When she had been very young she'd made a switch, left a changeling. not her own child, the fae mother died giving birth--magical complications. And Ronja became slightly attached to the child and every so often, even though she knew the child was long gone, she went to look for him. Not like she had any idea what she'd tell the lost fae. She'd never told Nicholas, she didn't tell anyone about her trips to the mortal world. ((ooc- this didn't completely come out of nowhere, i re-read my app recently, and this was part of it, lol))
"Queen of Hearts," Ronja said with a nod. "It's revealing, but I bet you could have guessed that. It'll take way too much energy to glamour over my scars but it'll have to be done, i refuse to be all covered up in order to hide them."
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Post by NICHOLAS SANDROSE on Nov 7, 2009 15:35:16 GMT -5
“I remember sneaking into a mortal theater to see that once...”
“Really?” Nicholas lifted his eyebrows, clearly surprised. Of course, some fae spent a lot of time in the human world. Especially Atra fae -- the madness and violence they found there held great appeal for them. But Ronja hadn’t struck Nicholas as someone who possessed much curiosity about human novelties. Until their friendship began, she’d apparently regarded mortals with complete scorn. What could possibly attract her to their realm?
“I haven’t been back to the human world since I first came here.” Unlike most mortal slaves, Nicholas never thought of himself as kidnapped. He’d gone willingly. He stayed willingly. And although he’d never tested his freedom by trying to leave, he suspected that no one would stop him. “I can’t go back now. As soon as I leave the fae realm, my body will instantly mature to its true age. Whatever that is.” Would he suddenly be middle-aged? Would his skin wrinkle and his hair turn white? Or would he simply decompose?
To his surprise, Nicholas felt a rare pang of homesickness. Nothing in the human world mattered to him anymore -- he’d never had any friends, and his father was almost certainly dead by now. And yet, he’d lived there for eighteen years. It was forever a part of him. “What’s the mortal realm like these days? I remember it being dirty, noisy, crowded and...sad.”
When Ronja described her costume, Nicholas nodded approvingly. “The Queen of Hearts. That’s a good choice. I can picture you stomping around the party yelling: Off with his head!"
Nicholas hoped that Ronja’s scars would heal quickly. And if some traces remained, he hoped that she would eventually learn not to be embarrassed by them. They marked her as someone who had successfully survived a terrible ordeal and that was not something to be ashamed of. Besides, no lover worth having would be bothered by such minor flaws in her otherwise perfect beauty. “I don’t mind your scars,” Nicholas admitted. “They make you look like a brave warrior.”
(OOC -- Yeah, I remember the bit about the changeling in Ronja’s application. I always thought it was an interesting aspect of her character.)
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Post by RONJA IRIS AMALIA on Nov 7, 2009 16:12:48 GMT -5
Ronja noted his surprise and looked away a small blush creeping onto her face along with a little smile that passed over her very quickly. "Yes. I go every 40 years. I'll go again soon." She said, not offering a reason why and praying silently that he wouldn't ask, but he probably would. What would she tell him? Could she trust him with the truth? Of course she would trust him with her full name (ignoring the fact that people might try to force it out of him if she did). So maybe she could tell him...
How old was he? She wondered if she could figure it out, maybe if he told her when he was born, she kept track of years more than most fae did. Some just stopped counting and you'd just compare ages based on what wars the human world went through and such. "Well, a lot has happened to your world since I first went. I'd say its a busy colorful place, dirty in some places, loud in some... it depends on where you go. You belong in this magic though, I think the sad realities of your own world might crush your spirit." Ronja liked the bustle of the human cities, but there was despair easily readable on the faces of many, but just as much happiness. Ronja didn't know how it felt to live knowing there was an end. She had no point of reference, but this world suited Nicholas as far as she could tell. Beside, Ellylon was here. "I might know how old you are if you tell me when you were born." She told him.
Ronja laughed, off with his head, or maybe off with her head... Radella... She'd like to cut her head off herself. But it was fitting somehow, that character. She smiled as he told her they looked like a warrior. "I won't mind them when I come to grips with them, when I move on to be better than I was before I met her. But not a moment before." If she only survived in body it was nothing, to be a survivor worthy of pride in her scars then she had to survive emotionally as well.
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Post by NICHOLAS SANDROSE on Nov 14, 2009 11:42:58 GMT -5
"Yes. I go every 40 years. I'll go again soon."
Ronja’s answer surprised Nicholas even more than her initial statement. Had something happened to her in the mortal world? Was she honoring some special anniversary? Ronja hated routines and duties -- Nicholas couldn’t imagine her performing a ritual for anything she hadn’t loved. Was there a significant mortal in her past? That seemed so unlikely, considering her reaction to him. Nicholas knew it wasn’t really any of his business. But he and Ronja were friends now, and he’d detected a note of sadness in her voice. If a secret sorrow weighed on her soul, maybe he could help her carry it. “Why every forty years? What keeps calling you back there?”
"I might know how old you are if you tell me when you were born.”
Nicholas furrowed his brow, trying to remember. It had been long time since he thought about the flow of time in mortal terms. But he knew this; he’d seen the date written on documents his father kept. Closing his eyes, Nicholas pictured the faded sheet of paper he’d discovered in the bottom of a drawer, tucked beneath a picture of his mother. Nicholas Elijah Sandrose. Born to Lorelei and William Sandrose on November 18, 1964.
“1964,” Nicholas announced, sounding a little proud of himself, like a dog after the completion of some difficult trick. But then apprehension clouded his features. What if Ronja said that a hundred years had passed? What if she told him that his time was nearly over? To die now, when he was just starting to live...when he’d finally found the courage to act on love instead of just dreaming about it...when he’d earned a friend like Ronja and a lover like Ellylon...that would be a terrible tragedy. But it was better to know. Bracing himself, Nicholas awaited the truth.
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