Fantasy Howl's Flying Castle (Finished! ---Whoo! (*＾▽＾)／)

[Katsuya]

Renee watched the whole interaction with a solemn glow in her eyes, already feeling terrible for Mrs. Rathmore. With a sigh, the winged Pendragon closed the door behind her and walked over to Seifer's mom.

"He's...he's alright for now...that, ma'am, is his heart and it's the reason why he's alive at all and the reason why he might endanger everyone here." Renee explained, looking at the red crystal with conflicted feelings. "You see Mrs. Rathmore..."

Renee told her how Seifer got that heart, how he was captured by the Deathknight called Wrath, why he voluteered and in essence became the reason why Renee could even contact Madam Suliman and Prince Kenren in the first place. She even told her what a philosopher stone is and that her brother and friend is doing everything they can to wake him up and save him.

"...I'm so sorry, ma'am. I know this isn't the reunion you wanted but I swear to you that I will do as much as I can to help Seifer. He helped so much to my family and friends and I want to repay him back." Renee consoled Seifer's mom, her orange eyes looking over at the sleeping archer before looking to the woman next in the room. She's really determined to keep her promise.

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Seifer's Cell -
" Master Warship "​

" . . . " Mrs. Rathmore sat on a stool beside the bed and did not speak as everything seemed a lot to take in. Her hands were clasped together as she sat straight- backed and regal, though there was a definite droop to her shoulders, and her eyes looked tired. "I have . . . a lot. of money." she gazed up at Renee. "Whatever you need, I will give it to you."

The sound of footsteps approached the room, then the door opened to reveal Kenren Taisho who gazed at the two ladies austerely. Behind him was Chenglei.

"Mrs. Rathmore, you were asked to wait in the parlor room." said Kenren, his voice was pleasantly even. "Chenglei, please escort Mrs. Rathmore back."

Seifer's mother stood up, her nostrils flaring. "Kenren Taisho." she began sternly as though she was his mother. "The last I heard of my son, a bomb blew up in the castle he was in because of an assassin. I did not know what happened to him. Do you know how that feels?" she said in a bitter whisper. "Then I hear a rumor that he was seen being taken by a great white monster in the Misty Mountains, next, that he was captured by a deathknight and now he doesn't have his heart and his soul has been separated from his body ---- AND YOU WANT ME TO LEAVE HIM? HOW DARE YOU!"

She was like a roaring lioness.

"THIS IS MY SON AND I WILL NOT BE PARTED FROM HIM. "

Kenren remained impassive and unaffected and simply waited for Chenglei to do his bidding.

Katsuya

OOC || Characters || Interest Check
​

 

[Katsuya]

Renee shook her head, smiling at the very incredible mother. "No, I-...Hm...Thank you, Ma'am. I'll let you know when we need it however I don't know when that will happen." She admitted, her wings tucked tightly on her head. "But...I will let you know when we do need it." That's when she heard someone's footsteps coming closer to the door and saw Prince Kenren with Chenglei.

Uh-oh...

The Pendragon teen flinched when Mrs. Rathmore raged at the Prince as Chenglei came inside, looking cold despite the smile on his face. "Madam, please. This way. I'm sure-"

"Wait! Chenglei!" Renee stood in front of the soldier and Prince, her arms stretched out as if she's trying to protect the woman behind her. Her orange eyes looked over at the Oriental Prince.

"Ken-chan, please. Mrs. Rathmore only wanted to see her son and be there for him. I know you don't care much about him, no use of hiding that fact from me, but he's important to her." and me, is what she wanted to say, but she wasn't going to because sentiments won't move the prince. He's a soldier in mind, despite being a heir to the throne of his country. So hard and cold facts or ideas will.

"...Ken-chan...I know you have a sense of duty to protect your people. You know that I do too, it's why I swore to you, it's why I'm training so that I don't let you or anyone else down, it's why my brother, my friend, and I are doing our best to figuring out how Deathknights work... but I believe she needs to be near him." Renee told him, showing him the book where she was writing notes in with the information she learned from the Libris Mortem.

"There's...there's a way to keep Seifer sane, I think. I looked over Wrath's...or rather Hisaya's notes and there's this photo, behind it is a letter from his wife." She plucked the photo from her book, showing it to the prince. "I believe he's called Wrath because he became angry. He was angry at the world for not helping his family. He became angry because he didn't want to accept his wife and son's death. He became angry because he was left alone and he was angry that he let them down."

That's when her eyes glowed as she glared at both soldier and Prince, her feathers puffed up in her fiery annoyance. "And now, we have a similar situation, but his mother, the one he cares the most, is still alive. She can calm Seifer down and not destroy this ship, Ken-chan. You are denying our one chance of making sure Seifer won't outright kill everyone here when James and Lydia finds a way to place his soul back. Don't you dare waste my family and friends' efforts and make this woman cry. She's as important as you and me and every other life in this ship and you are trying to put a dent on our research by separating her from her son. How dare you, Ken-chan? Chenglei?"

Renee is not having it as she understands perfectly of how Mrs. Rathmore feels at the moment. "Seifer's deathknight name is 'Pride' and want to know what calms and soothes a prideful person? The one who cares about them the most. For Seifer, it's his mother. Her presence is needed and I want her to stay with his body so that he knows that she is here with him right now. Maybe it'll have a higher chance of not having an evil deathknight within the proximity and not kill us in the process."

Zer0

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Atelier-
​

Lydia's slender little nose wrinkled slightly as James' snorted and she held the Pocky between two fingers hanging upside down as she looked at it then back at James as his eyes opened. She couldn't help but giggle a bit at his embarrassed expression and shook her head, "you didn't do anything, you were just dreaming... about cows and Renee," she continued to laugh and showed him the snack stick, "I brought this for you... but..." she assumed he'd notice the booger, then she held out her own and blushed slightly, looking away, "you can have the rest of mine if you want..."

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Kenren Taisho -
" Master Warship "​

'Why does this girl, always make sense?' thought Kenren as he looked on emotionlessly at Renee. It was dishonorable for a woman to talk back to a man, and the prince himself no less. It was a good thing it was just Chenglei here, otherwise he would have lost face in front of his soldiers and council men with what he was about to do next.

"Mrs. Rathmore, you are no longer permitted to return to your airship. You know too much now. You may stay, but disobey my orders once mroe and you will not see your son again." said Kenren.

Mrs. Rathmore hugged Renee. "That is --- that is --- yes, I will stay here. I will not leave." she said, relieved. "Thank you, your highness." she bowed deeply, her attitude towards the prince now a complete one-hundred eighty degree turn.

"If you have any letters you wish to send, my servant Chenglei will attend to it." Kenren turned the blonde. "See that none of this information leaves the ship. All the knowledge here is the sort people kill for." He gave Renee a stern look, probably for blabbering about said knowledge. And with that he left.

Katsuya

- James Pendragon -
"Atelier"​

'Isn't that like an indirect kiss?' thought James, whose brain went completely blank for a few moments. ". . . No, you just finish your own." he said, shaking his head, his ears reddening.

He must have not noticed the booger because then he chomped on the Pocky stick on Lydia's other hand. "I'll haff' 'hiss 'won, thankthss'." he smiled, the snack in between in his teeth. "Ith' 'thastes delishes." he nodded, chewing. Gulp . " It's got a nice little saltiness to the chocolate."

Roleplay Skittle

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Atelier-
​

Those big green eyes shifted back towards James, her head slowly turning back to face him as she smiled and put her own snack stick back between her lips, very nearly dropping it as James took a bite of the Pocky she had brought for him, 'oh no... he didn't... should I tell him?' how embarrassing! She didn't know if she should tell him why that chocolate was a little salty. He'd be embarrassed knowing he ate his own booger, and she felt like she'd be a bad friend if she didn't say anything. Her gaze darted about, anywhere but at James as she panicked on whether to tell him or not.

"uuuuuh....." James could probably see the little light bulb go off above her head as she quickly munched down the rest of her own Pocky stick before scurrying over to the table and collecting the tray, quickly coming back to James with it and setting it down, "I brought you breakfast!" she hurriedly poured him a cup of coffee and waited for him to take it and swallow a gulp.

"James... um...," she fiddled with the hem of her haori as she looked away from him, "errm... that chocolate wasn't supposed to be salty," she squinted her eyes shut as she turned her face more fully towards him, "you snorted when I poked your nose with it and....you just ate your booger."

Zer0

 

[Katsuya]

Renee smiled warmly at the prince as her wings flapped excitedly. Her face turned into a pretty shade of pink as her joy soared from feeling Mrs. Rathmore's arms around her. She managed to keep her promise to both Seifer and his mother, now she needs to do the same for the Prince...speaking of which...

The white-haired Pendragon bowed at the Prince and stood up quickly as she looked at him with wide and open eyes as she showed her gratitude. "Thank you! I won't let you down, Ken-chan! Promise to make ya proud!" She answered his stern look with a wide and happy smile and once again, she hugged the prince before letting go quickly so he wouldn't feel as awkward.

Just because he's the Prince doesn't mean that she couldn't talk to him like a regular person. Not when they are working together to reach the same cause.

Chenglei shook his head in disbelief, his smile didn't look as cold anymore. "Lady Storm, you ring your title true. Not even the Prince could reason with you." He said as the prince left, not minding if he heard or not because he knew the prince is probably wondering the same thing right now. Then he headed out the door, waving his hand around at the two ladies in the room.

"I will be back, lady Storm, lady Rathmore. Just have to introduce your family a new guard that will keep an eye on you. Remember, no telling anybody about this, Lady of Storms."

"Yes, yes. Thank you Chenglei."

"Heheh! It's my pleasure, my fair and silly lady."

Renee shook her head at the blond soldier as he left the room find the new guard and looked at Mrs. Rathmore with a huge smile.

"There. Now you can see your son. Just please remember not to tell anyone about this. The information I just revealed can really endanger not just you and Seifer, but everyone on this ship too if anybody hears it." Renee warned her as though she really wanted to avoid that at all cost.

Zer0 Roleplay Skittle

 

[Zer0]

- James Pendragon -
"Atelier "​

James spluttered out his coffee in the direction of the fireplace, the vapors hissing. That-was-super-dumb- why-did-his-brain-stop-working-that-choco-stick-was-right-in-front-of-him!

"I-I . . ." he stuttered, staining his haori even more as he wiped his chin with his sleeves, even though there was a napkin right on the tray. He was so red with embarrassment as he tried to recover some dignity. "I meant to do that. I . . . Boogers are nutritious." he said seriously, trying to look smart.

Oh how he absolutely blew this moment with Lydia. This is the worst in the world, he totally messed this up.

"You should try it some time." he said calmly. If he could palm slap himself he would. Why does he not have control over himself?

Roleplay Skittle

- Seifer's Cell -​

"Yes, I know, I won't." said Mrs. Rathmore smiling. She has dimples. She longed very much to touch her son, but just settled to holding the bed post. "Thank you, dear, you're a very good friend. Thank you for taking care of my son."

A tear trickled down her face as she held Renee's shoulder. "I would not have known what to do if he was gone." she sniffed, composed, dabbing the edges of her eyes daintily with a kerchief. Her manners were very much like a noblewoman.

With that she reached down the basket and carefully caressed the bottle with Seifer's soul, saying hello and talking to him, asking him how he's doing even though he couldn't reply. She began telling him of the things going on back at home and how his friends have missed him and are on their family's airship outside. She told him it was going to be alright, and that once he's back to normal he can meet them and they will all go back home together.

Katsuya

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Atelier-
​

Lydia's eyes popped open as she heard the spray of liquid and the hiss of steam from the fire place. Her gaze going from James to the fireplace than back, 'oooh... I shouldn't have said anything!' she mentally grumbled before looking to her hands where they rested, still fumbling with the hem of her haori on her lap, her feet tucked beneath her bottom.

She looked back up to him as he stuttered and made more of a mess in his embarrassment and she smiled gently, she remembered the younger of her two older brothers saying something similar to her... as he chased her around the dining room table when she was five and he was seven... with a booger on his finger. She couldn't help but giggle at the memory before gently clearing her throat, she didn't want James to think that she was laughing at him.

"Here..." She lifted the napkin from the tray and gently shook it to release the folds before she brought it up to the bottom of James' chin where there was still a little droplet of coffee cleaning to his skin, "you missed some," she gently wiped it away before offering him the napkin.

"I'm sorry I woke you... you missed breakfast."

Zer0

 

[Katsuya]

Renee found her smile to be very beautiful and wondered if Seifer's smile would look like that too...

The winged Pendragon noticed on how she kept touching the bedpost instead of holding her son, narrowing her eyes a bit before making a decision. Then when she heard how a good friend she is to him, Renee flinched. The memory of Seifer telling her that they weren't friends ringed in her mind, her wings wilted a bit. Right...they weren't...but she still cares about him and that's not gonna change obviously.

"Right...Seifer and I...we aren't friends...he told me that a bunch of times while traveling to Holt..." Renee admitted quietly, looking away as she rather not let Mrs. Rathmore know on how she felt about that. Though her wings wilting down is an obvious indicator of how hurt she is with their relationship...if she could even call it that.

"Believe it or not, he hates me...but I understand how it feels to lose somebody that you love dearly, so...I...I..." Renee stopped talking as she decided to stay in the room and continue on with her research, seeing if there were any differences with Seifer whenever his mother talked. After a while, the winged Pendragon gently grabbed Mrs. Rathmore's hand and lead it to Seifer's cheek, knowing that it won't harm anybody.

"Here...You can touch him like this. Don't move his body, but light touches is allowed." She would know...Renee always checked his pulse on his wrist and neck whenever she visited him.


***

Chenglei walked in the hallways with an armored knight, his quiet steps are a contrast to the metallic ones as they reached the Ateliar.

"And here is where you can find two very smart and young warlocks and witches. The blue warlock here is Young James Pendragon and the young lady next to him is Lady Lydia Dubois. These two are the few who we must look after- Hello guys! I have a new companion I would want to introduce you to."

The blond soldier looked at the knight, smiling princely with all the flowery red Camille and glitter shined around him. "Well? Don't be shy, my good man. Tell them who you are."

Zer0 Roleplay Skittle Panzer

 

[Zer0]

- James Pendragon -
" Master Warship, Atelier "​

Pleasantly surprised with the gesture and feeling relieved Lydia didn't add anything to the booger conversation , James accepted the napkin. "It's fine. Thank you for bringing me breakfast." he patted the rest of his face dry.

"I'm having a really good time right now, even though that just happened." he chuckled. "I'm not normally like this." he brightened up at the sight of tea and sashimi and tucked in for a meal. "Hey, you remembered my favorites!"

He beamed at her and began eating with gusto. "Say, Lydia, what's your favorite food?"

At that moment, the door opened and in walked Chenglei with a knight. James greeted him with a nod and a firm handshake.

Roleplay Skittle Katsuya Panzer

- Seifer's Cell -
" Master Warship "​

Mrs. Rathmore was happy and squeezed Seifer's cheek affectionately. "Like this?" she said carefully.

When Renee spoke about Seifer's immense dislike for her she was surprised. "Hates you?" repeated Mrs. Rathmore. "I can't imagine him hating you, unless you insulted our family or insulted one of his friends? But you don't seem like the mean type. How odd . . . Did you do any of those things?"

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

Renee smiled, nodding at her. "Yes...That is fine. Heheh..."

Then she grimaces at that before shaking her head a bit. Now's not the time for being stuck at the past. "Um...I sort of did insult his friends, but I thought I saw his friends picking on my friends who were there and it got me really mad." Renee explained, her wings stayed limp.

"After winning a duel against him, however, I apologized to his friends. I was wrong and I wanted to make it loud and clear to his friends and to him too, that I understand my mistake and take full responsibility for it. So...I don't blame him for hating me...I probably hate me too if someone hurt my family and friends...It's why we're always at each other throats." Renee giggled a bit ironically, her orange eyes looking at the sleeping archer as her grin stayed small and humbled.

"We would argue about the most simplest of things and yet...he still looked after my friends and family while coming with us...I owe him so much, starting with thank you." She meant it. It took a while, but Renee acknowledges Seifer's efforts and it made her like him more...which sucks because she's trying to not like him anymore than she already does!!!

Her eyes softened up as she talked about their adventures to his mother, letting her know that the white 'monster' was actually her in her other form, laughing about how he tried to rescue her only to be rescued by her at the end, how he switched bodies with another member of their group.

"Honestly...even if he does hate me, I'm glad that he came with us." Renee said at the end, blushing as she smiled sweetly. Her wings fluttered joyfully.

Zer0

 

[Panzer]

-Kampfhunde Oppenshire-
Greetings.
​

During his slow walk down the hall, he couldn't help but feel a bit empty inside. Every part of him would have rejected the job- If he had the choice- of course. But fact that he couldn't afford anything is bashed into his head every time he steps foot out into the public. The cold feeling of metal combined with the cold-hard- truth made him shiver.

During this time of reflecting his decision in taking this job, he was interrupted by some eye catching- animated movements that stemmed from greetings. Hunde couldn't help but feel bored at the thought of meeting these people. All he had to do was guard them for-however long it lasts- and get paid. It didn't require all of this non-sense. He couldn't care less for them.

He looked down to Chenglei, hearing his request to tell them who he was. The annoyed glare Hunde gave him was fortunately covered by the helmet that masked his face. After a moment of hesitation and frozen anger, He decided to follow the order he was given. He let out a low sigh and cleared his throat.

"Greetings, I am Kampfhunde Oppenshire. " His voiced echoed through the mask, making it difficult to understand his words.
"But, you can just call me Hunde." He continued, making it seem a bit polite and honest with his lighthearted tone of voice.

He looked to the blond soldier , bearing a question in mind that he must obtain an answer to.
"Sire, how long will this last before I get paid?" He asked impatiently.
It was a bit of a rude question to say in front of the guests. So he repeated his question in a more "masked" way.
"I mean...how long will I be guarding them, sire?"
Zer0 Katsuya
(hopefully this is good, I'm a bit tired rn so my mind might be a bit warped...)

 

[Katsuya]

"As long as your services are required or until you quit. I don't blame you if you do for this is a hard job, however, you will be with a silencing spell so that the information these two or any of their friends provide doesn't leave your lips, my good sir." Chenglei answered cheerfully, debating if he should tease this knight too, one more person to add on his ever growing list to annoy people by being himself.

"Your pay will be given at Dalaran, which should be about two days, and if you continue your services, I'm sure you'll continue to have your pay two days after as well." The blond soldier said, not minding his disgruntled attitude towards his wards and himself.

None of his business if the man is a bit tense.

Zer0 Roleplay Skittle Panzer

 

[Panzer]

-Kampfhunde Oppenshire-
Greetings.
​

As the cheerful blond explained the situation to the knight, He could feel the last bit of hope die inside of him. Yet, he knew he would have to stay polite. He thought of many things to say and do in this situation. From the brief silence he gave,it was obvious that the knight was choosing them carefully. Despite the numerous actions he felt he needed to take, Hunde only managed to give Chenglei a light nod before he turned his attention to the others. He stepped towards them his arms crossed in a gesture that seemed accepting of activity- or simply bored of waiting.

"Okay gang, Whats the plan for today?" He asked, stepping in front of Chenglei to get their attention.
"I'll be your guardian for two days- or as long as I'm needed. If you need my help, then don't hesitate to ask. " He informed them in his light posh voice.Although he was offering his services , he assumed they wouldn't be needed. They ARE old enough to handle things themselves...Right?

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Atelier-
​

Lydia hadn't said anything about her brother's little game when they were children simply because she felt that saying anything more about boogers would only prolong James' embarrassment, and that was the last thing she wanted to do, she nodded and smiled, putting her hands back on her lap once he took the napkin and watched him intently. His accidental booger munching did nothing to deter her feelings for him and when she realized she had been watching him too intently for perhaps a bit too long, she quickly looked away, reminding herself of Serena.

The young witch of course wasn't privy to the conversation he had with Serena a few nights passed. She had just assumed that Serena was no longer angry about the misunderstanding and that James likely took the information Lydia had given him to heart and was acting upon it. With this thought in mind, she rose from her place on the floor with him and pointlessly adjusted her clothing, "I'm glad," she laughed slightly as he exclaimed on her remembering his favorites and shrugged her shoulders as she slipped her glasses from their case. It was hard to forget what he liked to eat, she couldn't recall actually seeing him eat anything else and he had specifically told her those were his favorites when she had asked him when they went diving, "well... sandwiches because they are quick and easy... put anything between two pieces of bread and it's a sandwich."

She giggled again and put her glasses on. Certainly she had spent enough time around James just working that she knew how he typically was and the fact that he was trying to explain himself, well she found that acutely endearing. Smiling to herself as she prepared her materials for the day, she paused in her motions as the door opened and Chenglei came in with a stranger.

Lydia eyed this masked and armored soldier curiously, but warily as well. She glanced to James and then Chenglei, wondering if this was really necessary. She felt that they were fairly safe aboard the airship and that they had managed to do things that others could not in order to come to be where they were. Though she did suppose someone that was good in armed combat would be pretty useful because as it stood they were mostly ranged unless herself and Echo counted and Lydia felt that she could hardly be counted in the warrior class. Of course she could hardly be counted in the mage class either and this thought disheartend her somewhat, but she tried not to let it show.

Seeing as no introduction was necessary, Lydia simply nodded and offered a gentle smile before pressing her circular silver spectacles up on her nose and uncovering the Libris Mortem. Of course the thick velvet cloth that had been used as a sort of safeguard when handling the book purely for the sake of the book leaving a sort of grimy feeling on the fingers when it was handled, it wasn't really as necessary now since Wrath's soul fragment had been removed, but it was force of habit to cover the book, like tucking it in at night.

Lydia paused a moment as Oppenshire addressed she and James, trying not to laugh. It wasn't because she found him amusing, but there just really wasn't a whole lot going on. She leaned against the table slightly as she looked to Oppenshire thoughtfully, "well... this is where James and I usually stay... we have something we are working on and it needs to be completed as soon as possible," she took a seat after arranging her journal, Wrath's notes, and the formerly cursed book in a manner that was to her liking, "I'm afraid it's not very entertaining... unless you like reading," which of course, she and James did, and researching things they didn't know seemed to be at the top of that list.

Zer0 Katsuya Panzer

 

[Zer0]

- James Pendragon -
" Atelier "​

"We will, sir Oppenshire." said James cordially. He had never met a soldier who bluntly asked when he was going to get paid in front of his charges, as though he was annoyed to be here. It was rude, thought James, but he took it astride.

"Now that you mention it, we have four friends in the training grounds who would benefit from your experience in battle.They're fairly new to soldiery and you could show them a thing or two. Chenglei, why don't you introduce sir Oppenshire to the rest of the group, unless he's met them already?" said James holding the door open.

In truth, he wanted to be alone with Lydia for as long as possible. Because once the princess is finally safe in Dalaran, she may not come with them to the Storm Wall. That's about two days away and he'll probably never see her again.

Katsuya Panzer

****​

Later, after brushing his teeth and putting on a new change of clothes, James moved a table near Lydia's. He settled comfortably next to her and got to work.

It turned out that the Soul Recall spell circle they used on the cursed book will work on Seifer and they can begin putting his soul back any time. The only unknown factor is what's going to happen once it's there, and even Wrath's notes could not tell them anything.

It came down to two choices: leave Seifer as he is and let the fragment of the black dragon's soul consume what's left of his spirit still inside his body, or make his soul whole even though they don't know what that's going to do to him?

Roleplay Skittle

 

[Katsuya]

-Chenglei Zhou-​

Chenglei continued to smile his princely smile as he thinks it's a good idea. "Of course! Young Pendragon, truly your mind works well in many fields of smarts. How wonderful to know that you are becoming a fine warlock in your own right! Truly marvelous!" His flowery aura bloomed as he got close to the oldest Pendragon and cupped his face, smiling in his princely smile as he looked into his eyes. "I cannot wait to hear everyone talk about you even in my lands! Yes, it will be a spectacular feat to accomplish, but I'm sure you will do it!"

Then Chenglei let's go of James before he could do anything and walked out of the door with Hunde in tow. "Come, my good comrade in arms, I'll show you where the training grounds are." The blonde Oriental soldier said to the disgruntled armored knight and lead him towards the training grounds, telling him who's who in case they were busy with Master Sai again.

"There's a blonde girl who's a violinist, her name is Serena. She's really good at playing her violin, you should hear it anytime now because she tends to play whatever she's feeling. Then there's Echo, a reindeer satyr. It's her birthday today but she wanted to train to get stronger. The woman is insanely strong already but she told me that she wants to be faster, so she's going to train for today as well. Then there's her boyfriend and my new friend, Johnny. He's the most colorful one out of everyone. Loves to make people feel welcome no matter who they are. Nice chap, he is. Lastly, there's Young Pendragon's little brother Seth. He's a fast one, he is. Truly a free-spirited fellow. Never liked taking orders from Master Sai."

Zer0 Roleplay Skittle Panzer

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Atelier-
​

Of course Lydia had thought Oppenshire's question was rather rude, but she wasn't about to call someone on their manners, at least not until she knew them well... like with Seifer. She felt somewhat relieved when James ushered him out, she wasn't sure she would be able to focus with him in the room. She had grown a bit more accustomed to new people than she had once been. It was likely her own personal growth that had made her adapt, or perhaps it was just the fact that she didn't have a choice as after they had all left the castle, and even at the castle, she was constantly faced with the unknown and that meant strangers. However, his armor was rather distracting and the fact that he was so geared up in a place that probably required only a fraction of what he was wearing, well it made her quite suspicious.

She gave James a grateful smile and set back to work.

* * * *
​

Lydia was still hard at work, scribbling bits and pieces from the Libris Mortem in with her own notes and even more from the notes of Wrath, her brow furrowed in concentration as she leaned over her table slightly, peering through her little silver glasses.

She smiled somewhat hesitantly to him as he moved his table nearer hers, but she said nothing and settled in as this was completely normal, sliding the tome so that it sat right on the divide between the two tables so that they could both easily see its pages.

After a moment she let out a soft, whining, hum which eventually turned into words, "...James... I don't like this," she set her quill down and turned to face him, her large green eyes marked with worry as her still well maintained brows were drawn together, she lifted the page she had been writing on from the top edge and held it out to him, "I've outlined every possible outcome I could think of and none of them are good," true to her word, the page held a bulleted list.

"The only possible way I can think of that might work out in the end is if we can somehow seal off the dragon's soul from the rest of the stone so that Seifer's soul can have full reign... but even then, a dragon is a powerful thing and I can only deduce that a dragon's spirit is the same," She set the paper down and groaned, slumping back in her chair. It was unusual for Lydia to get frustrated, but there was just too much at stake and she didn't know what they should do.

Zer0

 

[Panzer]

-Kampfhunde Oppenshire-

​

Hunde took note of Lydia's plans, nodding along with her words. It didn't seem like they needed any supervision. This seemed too .. intelligent for someone who he was supposed to supervise.Well, At least he wouldn't be "Working" at all during his stay. He let out another bored sigh and dropped his arms by his side.his right arm rested on the standard leather sheath that held the rather common short sword.

The sudden shout from the his side made him jump. The knight, relying on old training, Grapsed the sword handle firmly with the arm that once rested on it.He froze once more in a tensed posture. The knight thought about his actions for a brief moment, calculating the possibilities of an attack in this place. After realizing the lack of danger to the charges, He glanced to his side to find the blond soldier from earlier,Chenglei.

Apparently , he had been discussing something with the charge. It was something about combat, or maybe it was training? The knight could not recall the conversation as he was not listening in the first place. As the soldier walked out, the knight looked to the pendragon with a confused expression before he decided to follow the soldier.

Chenglei had led him to the training yard, and began blabbering on about the local trainees. Already the knight had enough of it. If the guarding- thing wasn't babysitting already, than this is even worse. Despite these thoughts, Hunde remained silent throughout the tour. he only gave a silent nod on the occasional sentence that this soldier said.

 

[Zer0]

- James Pendragon -
" Atelier "​

James rubbed the top of his quill against his jaw, looking thoughtful. "Let us ask . . . Wrath." He gazed at the urn where the deathknight's soul was kept. "Make a bargain. 'Tell us how to seal away the dragon's soul, and we'll do the same for you?'."

His expression showed that he was very much aware of the danger, but they were at a dead end. Even if they were able to create a spell circle to seal away the dragon, the manna required to do it successfully was beyond their means. They'd have to have another powerful dragon, or maybe a manna tree, or twenty thousand powerful warlocks.

Roleplay Skittle

- Training Grounds -​

It wasn't hard to spot the four companions in the training grounds, for they were the only ones who did not look oriental.

Johnny Caprice, was in the pools once more training with the underwater combatants in water rescue techniques for summoners; Seth was with Serena practicing acrobatics with the addition of hitting targets as they ran, tumbled, dived, and wall-ran through the obstacle course with the shinobis.

Johnny, for some reason, was very enthusiastic and randomly shook people's hands. When they asked why he was so happy and smiling the whole day, he'd just blissfully say, "Echo kissed me today." while grinning goofily.

He wasn't doing well in training since he kept averting his gaze to the red fawn, finally accidentally creating a wave with his summoned water elemental that swept over the table where the soldier's snacks had been piled ready for their fifteen minute break.

Master Sai was not pleased. Master Mushi, though found it all very funny, and the big panda went over to greet Echo happy birthday. As a present, he decided to teach her how to fight Drunken Brawler style.

"First, you drink." he said offering her a gourd of sake.

Katsuya Panzer

 

[Katsuya]

-Renee Pendragon-​

Renee walked back to the Atelier, clutching onto her book of notes in her arms to her chest and pondered a lot. They have a way to keep Seifer sane, at least long enough for him to calm down. Now all they needed was a spell circle to transfer his soul into the crystal.

If only it was that easy...

The white-haired Pendragon excused herself after admitting that she was glad of having Seifer, promising to come back as soon she drops her notes to her brother and Lydia. When she arrived in the room, Renee sighed happily before sitting next to Lydia and curled her arms on top of her book before noticing the weird atmosphere around the pair. It...it definitely put a damper on her happy mood.

"James?...Lydia? What's going on?" She asked tentatively, her wings fluttered nervously as she sat up straight to look at them with a concerned look on her face.

***​

Chenglei laughed as he watched his friend making a mess with his water elemental, shaking his head. He knew of his friend's glee of finally being kissed by the one who he's falling for, but honestly the entertainer needed to calm down. The blond oriental walked as close as he could without getting his shoes wet and waved his arm at him, grinning. "Yukio, over here."

Echo smiled at the panda and bowed like how the soldiers would do, her ears twitching. "Thank you so much, Master Mushi!" Then when he mentioned to drink from his gourd, she raised an eyebrow at him. She...needs to drink his sake?

After hesitating for a second, Echo nodded and gently took his gourd, looking at it as if she's wondering why she needed to drink it. Then gathering her wits, the red-headed fawn lifted the gourd like how her father would: with one hand on the side and the other on the bottom, she took three large gulps of the drink before sighing in relief.

It's the only way she thought people drank liquor since her father was the only one who would drink alcohol in front of her and believed that there's a special way of drinking it. She didn't know that she could have just taken a sip instead. Her cousin who got plastered in her seventeenth birthday didn't tell her on what not to do when it comes to strong alcohol.

Zer0 Panzer Roleplay Skittle

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Atelier-
​

Her gaze drifted to James for a moment from where it had been placed on the table in front of her. Her frustration eased somewhat, she always liked how he looked when he was thinking. She quickly shook her head. What in the world was she thinking about? Her attention was quickly deviated as James mentioned Wrath and she looked at him wide eyed as though he were absolutely mad. She didn't voice this thought, instead she became rather solemn and looked back towards the table and all of the papers and books that were spread out.

"Oh James... I don't know what we're going to do," She huffed slightly and placed her elbows on the table, resting her head between her hands, the balls of her palms under her chin, "I don't want to let anyone down and I know Renee is counting on us to get this done before the Storm Wall," getting discouraged was the worst. It happened to her more now that she actually had the chance to practice magic than it ever had before, then again, it was hard to let anyone down with theories alone.

She turned her gaze back to him, pressing the loose strands of her black hair behind her ear on the same side as James, the little silver hoop she wore in the lobe of her ear glimmering slightly, her lips parted as she prepared to speak when Renee opened the door. Lydia sat up straight and followed the white haired Pendragon with her eyes until she took the seat to the other side of her. She stayed silent and when Renee questioned her, she looked to James, gently biting her lower lip.

Zer0 Katsuya

 

[Zer0]

- Training Grounds -​

"Chenglei, old chap, how are you this fine morning?!" smiled Johnny, coming over and jovially wringing the oriental man's hands. He sighed and draped an arm over his shoulders. "The training grounds are so beautiful today, aren't they? And the storm is just magnificent."

As if in reply, thunder boomed overhead as rain continued to hammer on the windows of the flying warship. The training grounds of Kenren Taisho's elite was a field of blood, sweat, and discipline as squads wielding spears, bows, oriental blades, and throwing knives trained in unison under the stern eye of Master Sai and Kenren who had come down to oversee the training of the swordsmen himself; he was currently having mass mock battles with them on a rotating cylindrical floor that tilted and shifted erratically by some arcane enchantment.

"And who might you be my good fellow?" said Johnny, shaking Hunde's hand too as if they were old mates. "You look like you've seen a lot of action."

Katsuya Roleplay Skittle Panzer

- James Pendragon -​

James reached out as if to touch Lydia's hand, but heartily patted her shoulder instead. "Hey, we'll figure it out, we always do, Lydia." he said bracingly. "Before Echo's birthday dinner or after, we can practice our spellwork for a while, let loose and just blow up some training dummies if you like?"

He gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze, before standing up to fetch the urn. "Ah, and I forgot to tell you, my birthday's on December the twenty-second." he probably forgot, but James had already told her yesterday when they made their way to the Bonzai Courtyard.

That's when Renee came in. James told her their findings and his suggestion of asking Wrath, clearing away papers and setting the urn carefully on the table as he did so. He drew out his wand and cast shielding charms on himself and in a circle around the urn.

"Would you two like to leave the room, or do you both want to stay?" he asked, fingers on the lid.

Roleplay Skittle Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

Renee heard everything and thought it would be best to stay. She tucked her notebook to somewhere the crystal won't reach in the room and sat back down once her brother cleared the table.

"I'm gonna help. Need to confirm my theory on Wrath and his past...Oh! And I need tell you two something about Seifer later." Renee added at the end, now bracing herself to hear Hisaya's screams of anger.

***

Echo stood there, wondering what's going to happen only to stumble in her spot. Her face flushed as she smiled in a goofy manner as she hiccuped cutely. It sounded like a baby bird's chirp.

The red headed fawn stared at the panda in front of her and said without a care in the world: "you're a fluwfy p-pandada, Mashtah Mushi." She giggled into her hand, her eyes are half lidded. Echo got drunk really fast.

Chenglei raised an eyebrow at his jolly friend and nodded with a smile. "Of course. The storms look lovely today." He agreed, looking around to see all the blood and sweat and tears in the training room before landing his ash purple eyes on his new comrade in arms.

What will he do this time?

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