Topic: Tell Me about Your Day...

Ahni · Date: 2015-04-02 08:08 EST

Early hours of 2/18/15

Mroow.

Mroooow.

Ahni lay flat on her back, arms raised above her head as she stared at the ceiling. She couldn't sleep -- she had too many thoughts. Too many thoughts in her head and no way to get them out. Neo had fallen asleep ages ago, it seemed, leaving the poor woman stuck in a sea of questions and confusion.

Mroowoww.

Mrowww.

Or maybe she had eaten too much candy.

Mrooow.

What... was that? Ahni sat straight up. The color of her irises were still split, one amber and one emerald, and her attention swiveled over to the still form beside her to make sure he hadn't been disturbed. He hadn't moved at all. She balled up a fist, rubbed it against her emerald eye, swung both feet around to the side of the bed, stood slowly. Carbuncle was nowhere to be found; the tiny Eidolon was most likely making mischief with the elementals in another part of the Tower.

Mroooww.

Did Carbuncle make that type of noise? The little Keeper snatched up an extra blanket and promptly burrito'd herself. She tippytoed over to the nearest window, neck craned so she could peer out. Ahni could see a large shadow on the outskirts of the Tower's property, that seemed to be the source of the sound. But what, exactly, was that shadow?

Mrowwoww.

Suddenly, amethyst eyes turned upwards and locked onto Ahni's. She gasped at first, then giggled softly. She would know those eyes anywhere! Heterochromic irises swiveled back to the bed, making sure everything was still okay, before she opened the window and stepped out into open air. The ground rose up to protect its Keeper, columns of stone ascending silently as each bare foot fell. The columns decreased in height until Ahni was standing next to the amethyst-eyed shadow, where she flopped down. "I have missed you, Rumpel! Where have you been? How did you know I was here?" The large feline rumbled happily in response and hauled himself closer to Ahni for the pets. "I am sorry, Rumpel, but Carbuncle is somewhere else. I do not know where." She scritched at Rumpel's ears. "There have been many things that have happened! You can come visit me here anytime you would like, because I do not want you going to my old home without me. It is dangerous there, and I would not like it if something happened to you. Shadow would be very angry with me, I believe." The overgrown housecat neither confirmed nor denied, simply purred loudly and laid his head in Ahni's lap for more pets.

"I won my Tower from Claire, and I have been here ever since. It is home. I like it here, and I believe Mela* does, too." She continued to speak to her furry friend in a hushed tone, not wanting to wake Neo high above them. "I have had tea parties and I grew a jungle over there so we could all have tea parties! Well, except for... for Anubis, because he is mean and I do not like him. He broke one of my ribs once. It was not nice." The little lady huffed. "But it is rainy there, in the jungle, so if you would like to go I would have to keep you dry. Shadow told me that kitties do not like to get wet. I do not know why, the rain is such fun! And it makes mud, and playing in the mud is also wonderful. Carbuncle does not like the mud, either." She tilted her head to the side, trying to think of everything else that had happened recently. "Um. Mela* let me listen to the music of the Ninety. I do not understand it. They spoke at length about... butts." She tittered a bit at the word. "Claire said that I should study the music of the Ninety some more, but then she told Mela* that he should not let me listen to it again. The music is strange. I do not think you would like it. Oh! I found a strange machine in the Tower! It has the flashing lights. Mela* called it a... a... pah-cheek-ah machine. Or something. He knew what it was, and I was able to watch him play for a little while before the room became spinny and he made me sit down." Ahni took a deep breath, let it out in a long sigh. Rumpel peered up at her, head tilted to give the lady optimal room for scritches.

"He is wonderful, you know. Neo. I have called him Mela* for as long as I can remember, but... now it is different. Very different." She paused for a moment to tap at the side of her face, a blush flaring underneath the old scars. "He gave me many candies for the Valentines Day, because he knows that I like them. I am not the best at making the candies, Rumpel. I am better at making the cupcakes and cookies and brownies. One day, I shall make you and Carbuncle some." She nodded decisively, patting the feline's side. "He questioned my eyes earlier this evening. I believe... I believe I am scared to tell him what it means. Perhaps I am not. It is hard to think of my feelings sometimes. Should I be scared, Rumpel?" Ahni glanced down, head tilted curiously. The feline shook his head slowly in response. Ahni knew her brain was wired differently than most, knew that she herself was different. To her, it didn't seem very farfetched to think that sharing her feelings with the one she cared about most would backfire horribly. She sighed deeply and shifted a bit to get more comfortable. "Perhaps I should not think of it. Thinking too much makes the brain hurt, I believe. He took me to see the ones he called the Four. They were much like Eidolons, like Carbuncle, you know, except not. I liked them. The one called Volt was very grumpy and made my hair stand up. Mela* did not let me touch it. I believe he was scared. I believe he... he..." Yawwwwn. "...he worries about me." Ahni laid down close to Rumpel, her head resting against his belly. "I worry about him, too. But... I know he is very strong. He has saved me before, you know..."

Soon enough, the little Keeper fell asleep to the steady music of Rumpel's rumbling purr.

* Mela = Love

Ahni · Date: 2015-04-02 08:10 EST

Just after midnight, 2/19/15

Mrrrow.

Mrowwwww.

Ahni bolted upright, squeaking in delight at the arrival of her friend. She was more prepared this night than the previous, and she rolled out of bed with her jacket in hand. One of Carbuncle's beady black eyes popped open to stare at the little Keeper as she donned the taupe longcoat; the other opened when she pulled up the bear-eared hood. The tiny Eidolon lifted his head and sniffed at his master. "Come, Aier*," she whispered, arms outstretched. Heterochromic irises flicked back over her shoulder to make sure Neo was still sleeping soundly, which he was. The man slept like a brick sometimes. Carbuncle stood, deliberately made a show of stretching, before he made his way over to Ahni's arms. With a big smile, she carefully padded to the window and opened it. Amethyst eyes stared up from the same location as the night before. Climbing out of the window was much easier when it was only Ahni, and she had to balance very carefully to avoid dropping Carbuncle from the high window. Granted, the creature could've probably opened up a Rift into the Gray to save himself from splatting on the stone seven stories down, but Ahni didn't think of that. She was much too excited to tell her friend about her day!

Bare feet hit open air and descended just a bit before thin stone columns rose up to catch the pair. (This was Carbuncle's least favorite mode of transportation.) The columns silently ascended and collapsed as they made their way down to the courtyard where Rumpel waited patiently. Carbuncle jumped from Ahni's arms while they were still a few feet in the air, growling softly at his master for her shenanigans, and hopped over to the massive feline. The two touched noses in greeting, playfully batted at each other, settled down once the half-elf stepped closer. She sat down and leaned against an ivy-covered pillar, skinny fingers making grabby motions towards the two creatures. "I told you that Aier* missed you, Rumpel!" Rumpel purred and nuzzled against Carbuncle before padding closer to the little Keeper and laying down. Ahni's foxlike companion soon followed suit, curling up in the space between Rumpel's massive paws. Giggling, Ahni began to scritch the ears of both critters.

"Today, Mela* took me to a lake for ice skating! It was very fun, Rumpel, though I am not good at it. I could barely stand up. I kept falling and sliding and running into trees. I bruised my face." She tilted her head and pointpointed at her right cheek, lower lip stuck out in a pout. "I almost fell into the water, you know. I could not stop the skating and there was a sign that said I should not skate that way but I could not stop! Mela's* wings appeared and he scooped me up before I could fall in. Have you ever seen his wings, Rumpel? They are the most beautiful wings I have ever seen. They are very sparkly and you can see through them. Before, I was not able to look at them without forgetting everything. I believe the term Mela* and Misty and Lily used was, um. Bee-zom? I do not know what that is, but I suppose it is true. Lily once said that there were moo-vees about bee-zoms, though I have not seen them. I like the moo-vees." She smiled brightly, patted Carbuncle on the top of his head. "But after I was safe, we found a man nearby that sold tacos and hot chocolate and pickles from an odd vehicle -- I believe Mela* called it a vam, or a druck, or something -- and that was all right. Have you ever had a pickle, Rumpel? Aier* did not like them. They are wonderfully sour foods that look like a cucumber. Perhaps they are a cucumber... but why would their name be 'pickle' if they are a cucumber?"

Ahni tilted her head quizzically, pausing just a moment to think. No answer came, so she shrugged a bony shoulder and continued to pet the creatures. "Then we came home and made cookies, but amin hiraetha*, Rumpel -- we ate them all." She frowned very seriously at the feline, her single emerald-colored iris flickering a saddened gray for a moment or two before the lightbulb went off and she perked back up. "But the Pretty Blue Lady gave me stick pixies!" A blink, a shake of her messy head. "No. No, that is not the right way. Um. Pixie stick!" One hand ceased the pets just long enough for Ahni to dig through one of the longcoat's pockets, and she produced four pixie sticks in varying colors. "I do not remember her name -- Jem, perhaps -- but she is pretty and blue and is my candy friend, though she is not made of the candy. I shared my Valentines candy with her, is what I mean. She is nice. She said they are not made from the pixies, which is a very good thing, because I do not think I would like eating pixies." Giggling, she ripped open the tip of a red pixie stick and dumped the contents into her mouth. The second one, a green one, was deposited into her hand and offered to the two critters. Carbuncle declined, turning his tiny nose up, while Rumpel gladly licked every bit of sugary powder from Ahni's palm.

Thinking of Jewell made Ahni think of the Outback, which made her think of seeing Anubis, and she immediately froze, fingers splayed in the air, both eyes wide and irises a hazardous yellow as fear gripped her. Her shoulders slumped forward as she tried to make herself look smaller. He is not here, he is not here, she finally told herself, both eyes closing tightly. Once the fear subsided and she reopened her eyes, both Rumpel and Carbuncle were staring at her in concern. "Um. I wanted to duel after making the cookies, but Mela* did not, so I went alone to the Outback. It was not a good idea." Her voice tapered off into a faint whisper, goldenrod irises staring off past Rumpel's left ear. "The... the slaver was there. He saw me. He talked to me. Told me to come to him, but I did not. I was so frightened, Rumpel." The overgrown housecat rumbled, stood and moved closer to Ahni so that she could bury her face in his scruffy neck. "I believe he saw my sign at the jungle. Perhaps he became angry and wanted to put a collar on me because I called him a meanface. Or hurt me again. I do not know. A collar would not look good on me, Rumpel, where would my Key go? Would he take it? He could not take my Key. It is mine. I... I need it." Shaking, the little Keeper wrapped too-skinny fingers around the Key at her throat, staring off for a few moments before coming back to reality. "It is all right. Lilith grabbed my hand and pulled me away from him, and Terry challenged him to a duel. I must remember to send them tea and cookies for saving me. I am scared to tell Mela* what happened." Ahni swayed a bit, blinking, as she tried to think of how Neo would respond. Every possible outcome wasn't pretty at all. Which made her think of what happened after! "Oh but Rumpel, you would not believe what Scary Queen Tara said! She said that one day she will be gone, and that I will take her place with... with him. It was terrifying. I could not imagine..."

Rumpel rumbled a growl and shook his head, making a 'blech' face as best he could, before he glanced at the Key and tilted his head. "Oh, you are curious as to why I need it? I shall tell you next time, mellonamin*. It is late now, and I must try to sleep without having the nightmares. You are more than welcome to sleep out here in case the meanface tries to take me away." Ahni kissed the tip of Rumpel's nose, gathered up a dozing Carbuncle, gave one more good scritch to feline ears, before a column of stone lifted her back up to the window.

* Aier = Little One
Mela = Love
Amin hiraetha = I am sorry
Mellonamin = my friend

Ahni · Date: 2015-04-02 08:11 EST

Around 130a (RST), 2/21/15

Ahni came home late. Very late. Carbuncle and Rumpel had busied themselves with chasing each other around the courtyard while they waited for the little lady to come home. They both stopped at the same time, eyes turned up towards the window the little Keeper climbed out of most nights. Stone columns just large enough to support a single foot rose up to stop her freefalling, and she gingerly stepped from one to the next until she hit ground level. She beamed a megawatt smile at the pair of critters, produced something wrapped in parchment paper and tied off with twine, made herself comfortable leaning against an ivy-covered pillar. Rumpel and Carbuncle both came sniffing over, trying to figure out what Ahni was protecting.

"Now now, we have to shaaare. Sharing is caring, you know." Patiently, one finger held up. "Shadow told me that you should not have the cheese, Rumpel, but I like cheese and think that we should have a snack. I have been up very late, you see. I had a shift at the Annex." She nodded and booped the feline on the nose with the raised finger, before starting to unwind the twine around the ball of cheese. "I had pickles earlier because pickles are amazing. Perhaps pickles and cheese would taste good together? Hmm." Ahni tilted her head thoughtfully, plucking off a bit of cheese and holding it out for Rumpel to eat. She then followed suit with Carbuncle, but the tiny Eidolon didn't devour the bite as Rumpel had. He daintily chewed, paws scrubbing at his face after each bite. Ahni pinched off a little for herself, then continued the process as she spoke. "I signed up for the Madness. I believe it is a dueling tournament, not actual madness. I do not think there would be so many volunteers if it was actual madness. I am a little worried, though, because the meanface signed up, as did a great many names I do not know. But Mister Cor signed up, and Mister Cor is just the nicest person. He taught me the Highest of Fives, you know. It is a wonderful move. I tried it when I was dueling a lady named Valentina, a pretty lady, but it did not work. Val is my new candy friend, like the Pretty Blue Lady, but Val did not like the pickles. She said I cursed her. But why would I want to curse my new friend, Rumpel?" The little Keeper frowned, then popped a piece of cheese in her mouth. The feline stood extremely close, his nose touching the bundle of cheese and watching it like a hawk, but he didn't take more than what Ahni offered to him when his turn came around.

"Perhaps she was simply being the joking." Nodding decisively, Ahni scritched at critter ears between bites of cheese. "Oh! On the way home, I stopped by the Marketplace. It is likely that I should not have stopped, because sometimes it is dangerous at night, and I do not have a talky item for peet-zah and making sure Mela* knows I am safe. I believe that talky items are for talking to others and not just for peet-zah. Perhaps. I am not sure." She made no mention of the picture Claire had shown her, and though Neo had reminded her of it numerous times, he was disinclined to show her another picture for fear of overloading her cuteness tolerance again. "There was a man in the Marketplace selling this strange powder, he said it was a new kind of tea. He said it was... 'inn-stants,' which I believe means I do not have to steep it. Well, since it is a powder, I suppose it would be like... um. The hot chocolate mix? Have you ever had the hot chocolate, Rumpel? With the little tiny marshmallows? I love stealing the little tiny marshmallows and eating them." She giggled, swayed, continued to ration out cheese to her furry friends. "It tasted funny, the powder. Almost sweet, but a little sour. It was strange. I only drank the one cup before I saw you and Aier* playing. Perhaps I dran-- what was that? Um. Drank it too-- ooh. Drank it too late." The effects of the 'Love Potion' were kicking in, and Ahni's irises changed to an alluring violet. Rumpel and Carbuncle peered curiously at the little Keeper, then shared a look. Ahni shifted uncomfortably, a blush rising to her cheeks. "Um. It is most likely because it is-- mmm. It is very late. Perhaps cheese was a-- oh my heavens. Um. Please excuse me, Rumpel. I... I have to see if Mela* is... um." She tittered, flapped a hand at her face, peered up towards the window. The cheese, all but forgotten in the wake of the powerful aphrodisiac, tumbled from her hand -- however, Rumpel was swiftly on the case! Being a nice kitty, he split the remainder with Carbuncle and gulped his portion down before Ahni could completely stand up.

She gave the feline one final ear scratch before a moan involuntarily escaped her, violet eyes closed for just a moment. Giggling and blushing more, Ahni snapped her fingers and disappeared in a swirl of flower petals. Fortunately, she thought to close the window she climbed out of before waking Neo.

* Mela = Love
Aier = Little One

Ahni · Date: 2015-04-02 08:13 EST

Just before midnight, 3/13/15

It had been quite a while since Rumpel had visited the Tower of Earth, and this night, Ahni was waiting for him in the courtyard. She'd asked the elementals to help her hobble out to one of the benches, and that was where she stayed until her feline friend could join her. Skinny fingers traced the bandage circling her left thigh, dull red irises staring off past her knee. Rumpel rumbled a purr as he approached, started to rub against her leg, stopped when he noticed the Keeper's current state. That rumble turned questioning, to which Ahni gave a ghost of a smile. "Quel undome, mellonamin*! Oh, this? This is nothing to fret over. I will be fine." Those sentiments had been echoed thousands of times by then, mostly directed to Neo and the few little elementals that must have had some sort of mothering attitude embedded in them. Rumpel didn't look convinced. Ahni flapped the hand attached to her good arm dismissively at the kitty, then scritched his ears. "Madness started last sunrise. There were so many duels! Mela* was scheduled to fight, um." She blinked a few times, head tilted curiously as she tried to remember the name. "I believe his name was Begas, or something like that. I have never seen him before. But Mela* won! It was wonderful!" Her big smile was full of pride, both rusty irises flickered warm amber for a moment before shifting back to reflect physical pain. She shifted a bit, checked her bandaged shoulder, then continued to scratch at her fluffy friend. "I dueled against a man named Sylus. He was very large and scary-looking, but he did not cut me, even though he won. I believe he is a very good swordsman. I am a little sad that I did not win, but Mela* said I did wonderfully considering we only started practicing last moon cycle. Or perhaps it was the one before?" Ahni frowned, tilting her head. "I do not remember. I was so tired, Rumpel. I do not know how Mela* can keep crossing swords with people time after time." Because he is stronger than I am. She kept that part to herself, smiling faintly. He would probably disagree with her.

The overgrown housecat sniffed at Ahni's thigh, curious amethyst eyes tilted upwards. "Oh, Mister Sylus did not do that. I said he did not cut me, uma*? Perhaps I forgot. Well, he did not!" Skinny fingers scritched at that certain spot underneath the chin, and Rumpel purred loudly. "Um. His name was Cane. We dueled after the Madness matches were over, and he asked if I wanted him to hold back. Mela* was busy fighting, um. What was his name... The man who says nnn, and smiled when I bled... Salvador!" That would forever be her point of reference in remembering the Spaniard's name. Ahni patpatted at Rumpel's side, coppery head tilting just slightly. "Cane cut me quite a bit. He even took the handle of his knife and smashed it here--" Skinny fingers danced across her sternum. "--and I could not breathe. I have never seen that in a Swords match before. Is that proper, Rumpel?" The feline didn't comment, simply continued purring and rubbing his chin against Ahni's knee. He seemed to be very careful not to bump her leg.

"I had to tell him, Rumpel." Ahni blurted out suddenly. "I did not want to, not really. He asked, though, and I cannot lie to him." Her index finger twirled in his fur, gently looping it around her knuckle. Once, long ago, the little lady had been accused of keeping secrets -- though, to be fair, Ahni's addled brain put her in a world where information was not freely given, and one needed to ask the right questions to get the information they sought. Unfortunately for Neo, he had never asked the right questions -- until then. However, he was slowly picking up on how her brain operated. Ahni took a deep breath, lifted Rumpel's head so she could look him in the eyes. "You will not tell my secrets, will you?" She smiled brightly and giggled as soon as the words left her lips. Of course her friend would never tell!

Ahni chewed her lower lip for a moment, unsure how to begin. "The Mother gave us a special ability." She said slowly, her head tilted to the side and back just a tad so that she could see the stars. "Um. My family, I mean. We can... take pain away. Take it into ourselves. We are strong, you see. Strong here." Skinny fingers danced across her sternum once more before resuming the scritches. "We take it, and we heal ourselves, so that that pain does not go elsewhere. We are the menders, Rumpel." Dull red irises misted over a bit as she tried to remember her family, remember anything more than snippets of her life before she came to Rhydin.

Rumpel nosed at her hand, demanding more pets, and brought her out of her shattered memories. His rumble resumed as soon as the little Keeper came back to the here-and-now. "Amin hiraetha*, Rumpel. I did not mean to lose myself in memories. I do not have them anyway, not really. Only little pieces." She flapped her free hand dismissively, waving away the concerns of her past life. "Where was I? Oh. I am scared that his magic, and the wards, too -- that they are the same. That he will take the pain from me. I cannot allow it. He tried to tell me that the pain... um. The pain disappears? But that is not what happens, Rumpel. I take the pain, I heal. Where would my pain go if the wards took it?" She frowned, peering down at the feline. She knew he had no answers for her. It was probably getting late, and in a moment of lucidity, Ahni realized that sleeping outside in her current state was not a good idea. Skinny fingers traced along the teeth of the Key around her neck, and a fissure appeared near the bench. It was much easier than trying to hobble up all those stairs! Before she stepped into the hole, she turned to Rumpel, waggled fingers in goodbye, muttered a single phrase.

"I cannot let him take it from me."

* quel undome, mellonamin = Good evening, my friend
* Mela = Love
* uma = yes
* amin hiraetha = I am sorry