Topic: Angels and Demons

Krysanthe

Date: 2010-04-21 17:36 EST
?Guard your Mind.?

The words would haunt her as she stirred from a restless fit of sleep. Normally nestled against the chest of her Remedy, her Jackson would keep the nightmares at bay and her spirit at peace but tonight she could not shake that feeling.

There was a disturbance in the spring feeding whispers in her mind ever since the seasons had changed. She wondered on it as she questioned as much the Valendria Witch curse. Would the legend and the curse stay and hold true even for the sister of Light and the sister of Dark?

Krysanthe moved in hopes to not disturb him as she tiptoed out of the room, soundless on her dainty feet as she paused only for a moment to draw on a robe. Since leaving the Circus and being freed of the manipulation of the Straw Man and the Palm Reader she had kept such a restless spirit. Mostly she was able to hide it from Jackson.

A quiet sigh was exhaled as she breathed in the night air and felt that much more soothed by it. The quiet calm of the glen had helped bring at least some small measure of peace to her spirit but her tranquility often came from the illusions her mind would create.

Laniandra had ever had the favor of the demon touched, even as she had carried their Blade and now bonded to the Demon, Kaleb her powers would only grow and strengthen. The darkness, the shadows, the twilight beasts would ever be hers to know and command, control and manipulate to her will. She was ever a woman of midnight desire and black silk.

Krysanthe understood that she was just the light side of her sister?s powers, wielder of that angelic blade she knew that her soul carried the light and that she would be their Fallen Star. A sister of light and a sister of dark were Krysanthe and Laniandra, yet even now Krysanthe had to question if a future would be found for angels and demons in the blood of a witch.

Even chosen the grace of favoritism could not save them every time. Heavy hearted she walked barefooted in the forest as her own mind crafted an illusion to bring to her such tranquility. She would sit upon the seat of the wooden swing even as it was forged from the boughs and vines of the tree before her.

A child?s whim would soothe her as she began to swing, her legs moving back and forth as that swing moved in the air and brought the wind to her to caress the golden starlight of her hair.

Laniandra had bonded to a Warlock and had been bound by blood and body and mark to her demon consort and maybe that would save her from the curse.

But Krysanthe? there had been no bond, no claim of blood or mark and she wondered if even the giving of flesh would promise salvation with her Remedy.

She remembered the Circus and being up so high above and how she wished nothing more then to fly. At that moment on the swing forged of her mind she could dream she could fly and that she and her Remedy would be free of that curse.

Krysanthe just couldn?t tear her mind away from wicked curse that the Three Elders of the witches of Valendria had cursed all of the Valendria witches with.

All witches of Valendria were bound to leave their men, sometimes kill their men to be free of them, if only to return to the Coven.

They were honor bound and tied by blood oath, they had no choice? it was written in their blood.

The truth of it weighed so heavy and Krysanthe only would swing higher as if in hopes that she could escape that damnable fate. She had loved him from the moment she saw him, had dreamed of him before she even knew of him and yet she had catered to a whim of make believe in happily ever after.

Silly Krysanthe should have known? happily ever after did not exist for Valendria witches.

Slow Rain

Date: 2010-04-22 15:36 EST
That lone sentry again, from his post, wakes him.

Some things just can't be turned off or away, no matter how comfortable you may get.

Her movements are gentle, tender, considerate, as always they are when she stirs, and more often than not he will let her go. The dark eyes open, keeping his place, though her presence is immediately missed, as though she had taken a part of him with her when she moved away from his side.

He never thought he would see the day when one person could matter so much to him that the fact of her moving away from him would leave him feeling so incomplete...when they are here in the night, he feels more and more as if she were more than simply the woman he loves, but more a part of him, as though she were the half he had never known he was missing.

Which makes it that much worse, to know what is gone from him.

Not a movement is made as he watches the moonlight-bathed golden figure move to cross the room, her steps soundless to all but his own ears, donning a robe and slipping out into the night.

Moments only does he give her before he moves, sitting up in the bed they share, moving to the edge and slipping from the clinging grip of the sheets to slip into something better to walk around the night in than his own naked skin.

He knows something has been bothering her, but he says nothing of it. She hides it very well, but there are little clues that he picks up on, things he notices that she might think he can't see.

Her nighttime sojourns that she takes, trying to keep him unaware and asleep when she goes - whether not to awaken him or simply because she desires to be alone, he's not sure.

A hint of sadness in her eyes, mixed with the love that he still finds so breathtaking as it shines in her gaze, but there. And yet he doesn't understand the why of it.

Something is bothering her, and it has to do with him...somehow.

Fully dressed from head to toe in a dark grey, form-fitting suit of light cloth, he sighs, his enhanced hearing still picking up her steps, more distant now.

The wood.

He slips from the house in silence, footsteps sure and silent, from moon-soaked night into the shadows he blends with so well in moments, following her trail. Light of step she may be, but not so light that he can't see where she's tread.

Even as he follows, his mind dwells on something, a question he's had that has little to do with the things he is curious of now.

He loves her. There would be no point in denying it, were it even possible to do so. It is a certainty, a fact, beyond denial, beyond doubt.

And with that certainty has come a realization of sorts - that he would rather give his own life up than be without her, without the promise and sweet remedy of her next to him, of tasting her lips on his, of hearing her breathing and smelling her scent, of feeling her skin and seeing her every single day for as long as life extends.

But words have never been his gift, and he has as yet to find a way to ask her for the thing he has been thinking most of for some time now.

A bond. A sacred tie of flesh to flesh, blood to blood, heart to heart and spirit to spirit.

Even as his mind ponders this, his body operates independently, her tracks followed, traced from shadow to shadow, a ghostly grey figure in the darkness.

Until at last he finds her, and comes to a stop. Enraptured as always by the sight of her, so much like a child in her innocence, a vision of heavenly beauty of ivory and gold that robs him of breath and all other thought save to follow her swinging motion, lost in the sight of her as he watches from shadows.

Krysanthe

Date: 2010-04-25 17:00 EST
He was everything to her. She would sense him even before the swing had stilled. If anything she never had the desire to leave him.

There had to be some way to break that curse. She had to find a way. Feeling him,sensing him there brought her to pause.

Breathless and chest tight as her heart swelled with love at the very vision of him.

"Jackson."

She wished for, wanted for, hoped for the happily ever after with him. She needed it so.

So she would go to him, shining as radiant as a fallen star as her hands went for him and soon enough she was in his arms.

"I did not wish to leave you or concern you, my Remedy. I am sorry."

A delicate whisper from that sweet dulcet as her eyes found his before she was burying her head against his chest.

"I love you, Jackson. I never wish to be apart from you. I wish forever with you. That's why... it will be so hard."

The pain left her eyes blazing as she looked up to him, those blue eyes shining with unshed tears.

"There... is something we need to speak on."

She was going against all rules now, breaking all vows to confess to him the curse of the Valendria witches... but he had to know... if she left him... it was not of her own desire or whim.

Lani Valendria

Date: 2010-06-06 16:58 EST
The Witchy Woman awakened as she felt the reassured beat of Kaleb's heart beneath her hand. She didn't know what had awakened her until she sensed the glistening presence of Krysanthe's energy trickling like moon beams through her mind.

"What is it, Krysanthe?"
"She is freed."
"Who..."
"The youngest of us all. Can you not feel her...the earth... it changes for her... the beasts are silent in wait for her return."

Laniandra sat up in her bed, feeling Kaleb stir beside her to pull her more intimately in his embrace. A sigh breathed out and she almost broke the link to share another moment of pleasure with her love.

It was a cause of worry amongst the 'sisters' of the Valendria witches to know that Teynela had returned. Of all she was the one that while she did not seem bothered by the curse, they knew well that the romantic heart of the earth dancer was one that was unwilling to face that curse.

Teynela would struggle, would be burdened by that curse if she fell in love. She more then any of them.

Only Laniandra had seemed to have found a loophole through it all... but again...she already had died once... perhaps death was an answer, but she was of the Night... she was not of the Earth as Teynela, not as the Stars and Light as Krysanthe.

A sigh was breathed out as she sank down against Kaleb.

"We will figure i' out when she comes Krysanthe... we will watch for her."

A pause then.

"How are you holding up with Jackson? Have you all begun to find a way to free yourself of the curse."
"I have not told him...but he knows someting is amiss...as he always does...my Remedy. Forgive me sister, I did not wish to burden you with this...but know...soon."
"Oui, soon."

A sigh and she curled against the dark comfort of Kaleb. She willed herself to be freed of the thoughts of Teynela's return.

She could not bear to think of another broken heart being the sacrifice to the Valendria curse.

Teynela Valendria

Date: 2010-06-06 19:25 EST


The poetic grace of the night called to her as she found herself free and running through the forest. Fingers claiming the graceful swirl of the dress as it licked at her ankles. Freedom was an offering she knew would be a sacrifice she would not be able to offer in the end.

She would and could not sacrifice her heart. Perhaps she ran from the curse, the unwilling nature to not harm one that she found fondness for. It might have to do with the hopeless romantic way of her spirit.

Gaia had blessed her so.

Teynela knew when she had come to the place the Goddess wished her at.

~What is it you will of me, Mother Goddess?~
~The Dance... bring this world once more to life~

A bow of head, resigned in that request.

~As you will, so I will do~

She whispered as her spirit answered the request. The scent of roses and oak, rain and dew filled her senses and she breathed them in. Welcoming the scent of them.

Teynela did not think of the other sisters of the coven in that moment. She was nothing more then an instrument to be played as her foot brushed along the grass. Knowing the earth beneath her as something to be respect.

In the circle she swayed and twirled, the skirt spinning out and flowing around her in a circle of its own energy and radiant power.

The power was summoned and she was once again one with the energy and life giving flow of earth magic as she gave to the earth even as it provided for her.

It mattered not when she realized she was being watched. For this night nothing mattered but her freedom, her will to survive...and her wish that if love did come that the curse would not claim her love or her heart.

Slow Rain

Date: 2010-06-21 20:44 EST
All too willing to take her in his arms, he pulls her in close, so close against him, her slight figure all but engulfed in his grasp. As always he does, he inhales deeply, taking in the sweet, light scent of hers that he cannot compare with anything else.

"You should know by now that trying not to disturb my sleep is a wasted endeavor...though I'm thankful that you do try. You have nothing to apologize for, Krys...save perhaps the secrets you keep from me."

His voice is soft, loving, not even the slightest hint of recrimination. His fingers slip into the moonlight-bathed gold of her hair, even as she buries her head against his chest and speaks again. He feels something stir in his chest at her words - a sleeping beast that he doesn't dare to let loose, something that the Devil himself would fear to stand in the way of.

It's the same one that threatens to waken every time he's even obliquely contemplated a life without her, his Remedy.

Looking down into her eyes, he can see it. Something familiar, something he's seen in the eyes of hundreds of others.

Fear.

The beast inside stirs again.

He breathes a deep sigh, putting it away. Now is not the time or place for it.

"I know something's been bothering you, my love, even if I don't know exactly what it is...although there was something I wanted to talk to you about too."

For a long moment, he is silent, trying to find the words to say what he means to say. It should be simple to tell the woman he loves that he would rather be dead than live without her...and yet, the words catch in his throat, every time he tries to say them.

It shouldn't be this hard.

He raises a hand to her face, brushing his fingertips over her cheek, her lips, along her jawline and over her neck. All familiar territory, and yet each time he touches, he is every bit as enraptured by the sensation as he was the first time.

His dark eyes settle on hers, deep, warm pools that see the pain in her eyes. Just like the first time, all he wants to do is take the pain, the fear away.

"Please, Krys...tell me. Whatever it is that scares you like this, I won't allow you to face it alone."

Krysanthe

Date: 2010-06-21 21:19 EST
She couldn't take her eyes off of him. Drawn and distracted by him as she always had been since the first moment she saw him.

He was the vision of the one she had dreamed of since she was a child. The words were struggling to escape her lips.

"I'm cursed. All of the Valendria witches are..."

A look down as she closed her eyes.

"The Elders made it so that we would always remain within the Coven, by making sure that if we fell in love... that eventually we would turn against those we gave our heart to... and take their lives."

Her voice fell to a whisper, the unshed tears burning and blinding her.

"I don't...I don't wish that to happen. I feel like I should leave you to be safe... but I cannot.... I cannot leave you, yet I cannot bear the thought of you dying by my hands. I love you Jackson, so very much."

It had been said, and she struggled under the weight of its truth.

Teynela Valendria

Date: 2010-07-23 13:25 EST
From as long as Teynela could remember there were two things that always would be constant when it came to Valendria witches. The one thing of course was the curse itself that ever kept a Valendria witch bound to her coven, the other being that each Valendria witch was bound to a beast. The connection to the beast that chose them was one that went far beyond a common bond, the pair were intertwined through powers, mind, and spirit and meant for each other. Only one beast was intended for each Valendria witch, just as one spirit guardian was intended toward each witch. If the beast or spirit guardian no longer existed, never would another take their place, so strong was the bond between witch and chosen.

Teynela in every way had realized that she was a late bloomer in all of these factors that came natural to the other witches. Laniandra had found her Chosen when she was not even in Maidenhood, the Shadow Stallion, Mystic Shroud had found her when she had first come to Rhy'din... and her spirit guardian was of course the demon Kaleb. Teynela had to admire the fortune of her eldest 'sister' for the shadow weaver had managed to not only find her guardian and her chosen, but had found a way to break the curse for herself after sharing the soul bond with Kaleb and becoming the demon's familiar.

As for Krysanthe, the woman seemed bound to some sort of angelic connection from day one, Tey couldn't help but wonder if Krys was straight from the heavens herself as ethereal and gifted in the Light Bringer's way that she was. Krys herself found her own spirit guardian was present in the Angel Blade she possessed. As for the Chosen for Krys, was it any surprise that the Fallen Star would find a white tailed kite to claim as her Chosen.

In the end it left Tey, her Guardian easily had become known as soon as her powers had awakened in earth elements... Nature itself protected the little dancer. As for her Chosen... that in itself was a curious thought and wonder to consider for the Tamer of Beasts.

She had thought at first that the panther of metal may have been the one, given the odd sensation of being drawn to the beast as she had been, but when the beast disappeared she had to wonder if she was ever meant for a Chosen. The curse eluded her to this day and perhaps it was the same with her Chosen.

As soon as Neo had walked her home she found herself drawn to the comforts of the woods once more, in the moonlight and shadows she wandered to the clearing that seemed like a sanctuary to her. Easing down to her knees she smoothed out her skirt, toying with the ribbons, petals, and ivy in her hair as she sat and meditated to bring that serenity forth again.

A wistful smile touched upon her lips as she closed her eyes. Perhaps she was meant to be the Maiden, perhaps a Chosen was not meant for her... maybe the Elders were right. Still Teynela found herself hopeful and waiting for that moment when her Chosen would come.

Teynela Valendria

Date: 2010-07-24 11:00 EST
A fool. Even Nature could be a fool. The forest had been left after she had meditated and had found herself drifting once more and again to the Annex. She knew he would be there, had gone there to cheer him on as she always had since first they had met and she had watched him duel.

The vision of Misty in such a condition, collared and then the crystalline blues of that woman that had enslaved the Kirn. Past and present seemed to mold and meld in that moment as her fury was a calm emotion within her. Dangerously stirring into awakening until she was sent off.

Fingers clenched to her sides as she looked around herself as she returned to the forest, fingers brushing against before sinking in and past the water's surface as she knelt by the small stream trickling through the forest where she remained so often.

"So you are truly here den Teynela..."
"Of course, but she's still alone. Without a guardian, without a Chosen, without us... but it's worse for her."
"Worse?"
"You know why!"

Frustration snapped in her voice as she glared over her shoulder at Laniandra as tears blurred her eyes. The tears only came far more freely when she saw that Kaleb was with her sister.

Shakily she rose to her feet as she threw her arms out wide in accusation.

"You HAVE your Guardian and Consort in Kaleb and his demon. You HAVE Mystic Shroud. You even have the one to balance you... you have Krysanthe. The Light has her Dark and the Dark has her Light. The Night Flame has her Celestial Breeze to coax her into true life.... where I..."

She trailed off looking away before she moved to pass the dark witch. "I made a mistake coming here...especially when she's still trapped."

"Cher..."

A quiet summoning as pain light those black diamond eyes as she looked to the green gold beauty of the earth witch's eyes. Teynela shook her head until Laniandra fell silent.

"You were murdered by our kind and brought back by the shadows and the dark souls themselves, Krysanthe was the prisoner of the Palm Reader, I was the pawn of the Elders... and... we know... that she's still there. We were all enslaved...but she's still trapped. She's still...locked away. She needs to be set free. If you won't help me, I'll do it myself."

"Why such a wish, cher?"
"Because no one knows until they are bound to us... what we have gone through...that we all wear the scars and carry the emotional wounds of the enslaved and the tortured. I am no longer the Elder's pawn. It's time I proved that. I want to set her free..."

The final piece.

If she could not have her Guardian, if she could not have a Chosen, and was damned to that Curse... then she at least would find her Balance once more.

It was the least she could do... and maybe then...it would all make sense why she was so drawn to Neo.