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Post by skati on Jan 22, 2008 21:39:14 GMT
Diedrick looked out over the wide valley with green eyes full of longing. The sun was in the process of setting, its light bathing the world in an orange glow. He had forgotten how beautiful sunset here at Ea Valley truly was. It almost appeared to be contained in a fiery container.
His mind, however, was focused more on home, a small hunting village just north of his current position. It had been five years since he last visited the village. He had spent those years in study at Lairnen Si, the city of scholars.
Diedrick wondered what had become of his family, his friends. He had not written to them for a couple years, so caught up was he in his own life. He didn’t even bother to announce his coming. The young scholar wondered what his people thought of him.
“They probably think I consider them beneath me,” Diedrick muttered to himself. Not long after he said it, Diedrick immediately dismissed it. Such thoughts did not matter. The only thing that did matter was that he was here now. If his family had any accusations, Diedrick would just have to face them.
Diedrick closed his eyes as old memories swept over him. They were memories of family, of friends…memories of a girl. A vision of blonde hair flowing behind her, eyes the color of the stormy sea.
Almost as soon as the memory appeared, Diedrick snapped back to reality. That one had taken him completely by surprise…though pleasant. He found himself wondering how that girl has been these five long years. With a loud sigh, Diedrick shoved the thought away and renewed his journey.
Further along his path, he heard it. It was a familiar tune, a familiar voice. He stood still as he listened to the words. Theirs was a tale of love and tragedy, of sorrow and regret. After listening for a bit, Diedrick continued towards the source of the singing. The path took him through a wooded area before coming to a stop at a large lake in a clearing. As his eyes came to rest on the singer, he took in a breath of awe.
The woman apparently did not notice he was there. She did not turn to see where the gasp came from. Instead, she continued her singing as she sat at the lake’s edge. She almost appeared to be waiting for something…or someone.
Shortly after his arrival, the girl finished her song. As she sang the last few words, she dipped her hand into the lake. She lifted a bit of water from her cupped hand and watched as the liquid slipped through its temporary container and back into the lake.
It was then that the girl stood up, blonde hair flowing behind her. She turned around…only to stare in shock when her eyes fell on the young scholar. “Diedrick..?” she whispered softly.
Again, the memory of the young, blonde child overcame Diedrick. Included in the memory was himself and one other, a fiery redhead with blue eyes. They were all together, laughing and playing.
“Arina...” Diedrick whispered just as softly. A smile slowly spread across his face as he gazed upon the now woman he had secretly loved since they were children. Arina, however, simply lowered her head, frown on her face.
It was not the reaction Diedrick expected, but he paid it no heed. He was simply too overjoyed at seeing her again to care So tense was he that he could not keep himself from doing what he did next.
Diedrick ran to his childhood friend and hugged her tightly. Arina tensed in surprise at the gesture…but she did not return it. No, instead she just stood there with a sad, depressed look in her eye…yet she could not bring herself to shove Diedrick away.
“What is going on here?” a rough, male voice called. The tone was filled with contained anger.
“Is that…” Diedrick whispered. He broke his embrace with Arina and turned around to face the speaker. His smile widened when he saw the familiar redhair of the man before him. However, his smile quickly fell when he noticed the look on his friend's face. “Godfried...what's wrong?”
Godfried did not respond. Instead, he just continued to glare at Diedrick...his glare growing angrier when he recognized the young scholar.
Arina turned away from the two. She recognized the look in Godfried's eye. She knew full well what was soon to happen.
The wind stirred between the two men, as if signalling for a duel. Godfried took one step towards Diedrick, then another. As he neared his friend, the red head brought his hand back from his side...and slammed his fist into Diedrick's mouth.
The young scholar was knocked onto his back, the side of his face hitting the ground. Twigs and limbs ripped through his brown robe. He lay on the ground for a moment, stunned at what had just happened.
Diedrick slowly raised himself up and stared at Godfried with a look of pure shock. His blonde hair fell into his eyes and was covered with dirt, limbs, and leave. A trickle of blood fell down from the corner of his mouth.
“Godfried!” he yelled. “What's wrong with you? It's me, Diedri...”
“I know who you are,” Godfried said, cutting him off. His tone held the same controlled anger it preivously held. “You have a lot of nerve coming back here, the way you've treated us for the past two years, as if we didn't exist.”
Diedrick was silent at that. He knew that some of the villagers would have contempt for him. He did not expect such outright hostility though, least of all from his best friend. Diedrick lowered his head. “I did not mean to pain you so,” he said softly.
“Don't give me that crap,” Godfried snarled. “You...you went to that fancy school. Then all of a sudden, you got so high and mighty. Thought you were too good for your friends anymore. Simpletons, that is all we are to you, isn't it?”
“That's not true!” Diedrick yelled as he raised his head.
“Then how come you didn't have the decency to write us anymore? All you would have had to do was send one letter every now and then, or at least once every few months. But no, 'Sage Diedrick' has no more time for that anymore, no time to waste good paper and ink on a bunch of simple hunters.”
“Godfried, stop it!” a frightened, desperate voice called out.
The two boys turned their attention to Arina. Tears had started falling down her face as she alone bore witness to their conflict. Arina could not bear the pain this whole situation had caused her anymore. She did the only thing she could think of doing to escape it. She fled.
Diedrick quickly tried to stand up and follow her…only to be shoved back down by Godfried. “You stay away from her,” he said in a deadly tone. “You broke her when you quit writing. Two years of not hearing anything from you, not knowing if you were even still alive has reduced her to what you just saw. She loved you, Diedrick…yet you betrayed her love when you refused the only contact she could have with you.”
Godfried left the young scholar there with those words. Slowly he stood back up and followed the route Arina took to their village. He did not bother looking behind him, to see if Diedrick would follow.
Diedrick, however, didn’t follow. He stayed right where he was, in the exact same position he was when Godfried left. He didn’t realize how much he had hurt his childhood friends when he quit writing home.
In truth, he had gotten so caught up with his studies and new friends that he had forgotten all about home. He thought his two best friends, Godfried and Arina, would understand that if they would have given him the chance to explain.
Given their reaction to him, Godfried figured the opposite was most likely. Out of all of the possible welcomings he had envisioned from his friends, this was the farthest. As he thought about what Godfried said of Arina before he left, he started to feel tears in his own eyes. It wasn’t long before they fell, as the pain of this welcoming completely sunk in. He continued like that for a long time.
Night had fallen when Diedrick finally regained his composure. The full moon’s light fell right on him, as if to reprimand him more than his friend had. Diedrick stared up at the moon with a sad smile on his face.
After a while, he stood up. He did not know how the rest of the village would welcome him, but he no longer had any hopes for a happy return. Slowly, silently, Diedrick traveled the familiar path to his village…towards his home.
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OOC: Ok, this takes place in a European style fantasy world. Scholars, in this case, are a type of mage. Lairnen Si is the largest scholar city in the kingdom and has quite a good reputation amongst other scholar cities.
The three friends in this post are all in their late teens. If anyone wants to play Godfried or Arina, you're more than welcome to. Just get up with me first, so I can inform of you of some background info that applies to them, since I have some in my head.
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Post by Taya on Jan 23, 2008 7:35:01 GMT
The moon's light made Carra's light brown hair shine in the night. It was braided tight to her scalp in a french braid so that it would stay clear of her face. It had been a long full day of chores and now was the only time the young 17 year old had to practice her skills that her father had taught her.
She wasn't trying to hide anything, but work always came first. But if she wanted to prove her worth some day, Carra needed to practice. It was lucky tonight was a full moon, it cast enough light for Carra to aim her arrow at the fence post. Her back faced the road into the village.
Her tunic arm pulled back the string of her bow and she fingered the shaft of her arrow. She let the arrow fly and it landed in the wood with a thud. She wore a quiver on her back and vest over her tunic. During the day she wore skirts, but tonight wore a pair of breeches made from the same leather as her vest.
The past five years of her brother's absence had seen Carra change from a little girl into a woman. She was taller now and had grown into her figure. There had been a point when Carra had waited eagerly for word from her brother. But then letters became fewer and soon they stopped coming at all. She had felt abandoned and forgotten. Carra yearned for the comfort that Godfried doted on Arina. As the years past, her bitterness to Diedrick grew. She avoided saying his name and whenever he was mentioned she quickly left the room.
Carra notched another arrow caressing the fletching as she did. With a smile, she pulled back once more and let the arrow fly.
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Post by skati on Jan 23, 2008 19:41:49 GMT
A male figure watched the girl with dark eyes, a smile on his face. Light brown hair framed his face, reaching down just a bit past his shoulders. He was dressed in a long sleeve, white linen shirt and leather pants, though barefoot. Though the shirt hung loosely about him, one could easily tell that he was rather built. Though in his fifties, Garr Jarlson, captain of Jagerheim's hunters and patriarch of the Jarls family, was still a rather imposing figure.
Tonight though, his eyes were soft and filled with joy as he watched his younger daughter. She has become quite skilled for a girl, he thought to himself as he stroked his short beard. Though he only taught her as a means of fun, seeing such skill gave him great pride. At least one of my children isn't weak
His mind soon turned to his son, a scholar. Magic, he thought in disgust. A real man has no need for magic.
By chance, he looked out to the road...and saw a figure heading towards the village. He squinted his eyes, trying to get a better look in the darkness. It wasn't long before he recognized the familiar figure of Diedrick.
His smile was quickly replaced with a frown. "Carra," he called as he stepped off of the porch. "Go inside."
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OOC: From here on out, Angel has control of Arina.
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Post by Taya on Jan 23, 2008 20:46:47 GMT
Carra turned to her father confused for a moment. She was certain she had finished all her chores. Noticing the frown, Carra asked,
"Father, whats wrong?" Her voice was full of concern. He usually didn't mind he practicing. He was the one who had taught her in the first place.
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Post by skati on Jan 23, 2008 20:57:54 GMT
"Do as I say," he replied roughly, though keeping his voice at the same level. He moved to the village road, intent on blocking his son's path.
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Post by Taya on Jan 23, 2008 21:09:33 GMT
"Yes, sir" Carra said leaving her arrows in the fence post. As she moved to the porch, Carra watched her father with concern. She looked to what he was watching. A traveler? This late? Torn between her curiousity and her respect for her father, Carra paused at the door. Her amber eyes watched hoping her father wouldn't notice her still standing in the shadows.
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Post by skati on Jan 23, 2008 21:56:23 GMT
Diedrick came to a stop in front of a imposing man blocking his path. He gave a small smile to him, recognizing the familiar figure.
"So, you've come back," the man said with a frown.
"Yes I have...father."
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Post by Taya on Jan 23, 2008 22:02:27 GMT
Carra clapped her hands over her mouth to keep herself from making a sound. Could that oung traveler really be her brother? The one who deserted her. He grew up and no longer cared about her. But now he had the nerve to come back. THe nerve even to stand there and talk to Father that way. After all he had done how dare he. It took all of Carra's will power to stay quiet. But her blood boiled at the sight of Diedrick.
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Post by skati on Jan 23, 2008 22:42:32 GMT
"What happened? Your school kick you out?" Garr asked, his frown deepening.
"No...actually, they thought I was studying too much." Diedrick gave a small laugh, hoping to lighten the mood. His father, however, was not amused.
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Post by Taya on Jan 23, 2008 22:51:52 GMT
Carra scowled as she heard Diedrick's weak attempt at a joke.
"He should be begging for father's forgiveness. Not giving him cheek." Carra grumbled to herself. Maybe she should give her traitorious brother a warning. She reached into her quiver with a rather mean grin. The arrow landed exactly where Carra had been aiming. It stuck out of the ground directly in front of Diedrick's feet. Maybe he would take the hint and leave.
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Post by skati on Jan 24, 2008 5:33:49 GMT
Diedrick took a step back as the arrow landed in front of him. "What..?"
Garr, however, did not wait for him to finish his question. He turned his head slightly and called loudly, "that's enough, Carra."
"Was that..." Diedrick looked up and past his father at the woman on the porch, bow in hand. "Carra..?" He would've smiled at her, but he was in too much shock at being shot at.
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Post by Taya on Jan 24, 2008 5:47:34 GMT
Carra stepped off the porch and into the light. Her frown matched her father's and her eyes were filled with bitterness.
"The way he speaks to you, Father, its disgraceful. He doesn't belong here." Carra said addressing her father and never Diedrick.
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Post by skati on Jan 24, 2008 19:17:05 GMT
Diedrick lowered his head. He had come to expect something like this from his family, since his reunion with Godfried and Arina. Even his younger sister held the same animosity Godfried did. He never realized his neglect would have hurt those he cared about so much.
Garr ignored his daughter's words. Instead, he just responded with "go back inside, Carra...do as I say this time, lass."
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Post by Taya on Jan 24, 2008 19:44:36 GMT
Carra wanted nothing more than to get away from this man who claimed to be her brother. His very being disgusted her. So she turned around and marched inside. There was something else that bothered her. Her heart. It hurt. Her cheeks were wet as she sat down at the table. the pain seemed too much. It was much easier to continue to hate.
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Post by skati on Jan 25, 2008 9:27:39 GMT
Adelle set down her old book of spells in exasperation for the fourth time that evening. All day, when she could, she brought the dusty old book out in hope that it would somehow restore the magic she once had. Ever since her son went off to school at Liernan Si, she had been trying to rekindle her lost magic. The main reason being so that she could teach Diedrick more advanced spells. The kind of spells Liernan Si would most likely not teach. She smiled softly at the thought.
She was proud, proud that one of her children held the same magical spark her family had. Ever since she lost most of it, Adelle had been worried that the magic than ran through her family would be lost forever. The fact that Diedrick had showed such potential pleased her greatly.
The sound of stomping feet quickly took her attention away from her studies. Though her husband normally marched through the house, she could easily tell that these footsteps did not belong to him. Curious, Adelle left her bed to investigate.
Along her way, Adelle caught a glimpse of herself in a mirror. She smiled at her own reflection. Though in her mid forties, Adelle still had the look of a woman in her mid twenties. She may have lost the ability for more powerful magic, but at least she could still handle more subtle spells, such as doing away with on coming gray hairs and wrinkles. Adelle reached up and brushed away a strand of blonde hair, which reach down past her shoulders, away from her green eyes.
After a bit more admiring, Adelle left her room. As she traveled through the house, she started hearing a soft sound. It sounded like someone was...crying. Quickly she picked up speed, until she reached the kitchen. There, sitting at the table was her daughter. “Carra?” she asked softly. “What's wrong?”
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