Topic: A Place Called Home

Lydia Loran

Date: 2006-10-08 03:40 EST
Roaming sheep in search of the place you've never known
Listen to the wind until you can hear the sign
Roaming sheep in front of the gate that closed so tight
Take a rest on the earth, until you can find the key

Roaming sheep in search of the people full of love
Bathe yourself in water until your mind soothes again
Roaming sheep in front of the deep and dreamless sleep
Here you're by the fire, able to warm your heart...

Each and every moment, oh as time goes by
All in this world has to change...

Roaming sheep in search of the place you've never known
Better take a breath until you can hear the sign
Roaming sheep in search of the place you've never seen
Better watch your step until you can find the key
Roaming sheep in search of the place you may never reach
Better love yourself; tomorrow's another day.

Roaming Sheep~Nobuo Uematsu


Where is home? The answer to this question differs to every person. It could be a simple house or cottage in town. Or maybe deep in the woods. It could be a castle. It could be a room in an inn. It could be in someone's arms. Everyone seeks their own, personal home in a variety of places, be it some place simple or some place fancy.

Lydia's new home was by no means fancy.

It was nothing more than an old, destroyed fortress, missing a wall, overgrown with plants and moss. It was discovered by accident one day, during a long walk, longer than usual, through the woods. It was abandoned, no one had been there for quite some time... most rooms were destroyed, rubble had caved in rendering them unlivable. One room however, still had a small, musty cot, most of the original structure was up, and despite the cramped quarters, awful stench of roses, dampness of the stones, holes in the walls...it was still livable. For the most part at least.

It was free, deep in the woods where she wouldn't be bothered...so who could argue with that?

"More roses!?"

Well, no home is perfect...

Lydia Loran

Date: 2006-10-09 20:38 EST
A fistful of burnt roses and vines were chucked outside the open window of the stone walls. It was done. All roses within the confines of Lydia's room had been eradicated. The roses in the rest of the ruins would soon be dealt with by the shifting seasons.

Her eyes narrowed a bit as she stood at the window... it was really just a hole in the wall, no glass, no curtains, nothing, and far too much sun was shining inside. Lips pursed thoughtfully before she turned, scampering around her room, shuffling through various possessions and bags. A smile crept across her lips as she produced a thin blanket sewn together, made from a few ribbons of many colors she picked up during a 'Ribbon War' at the Red Dragon. She had sold some, but leftovers were put to use to create the blanket...of course it was far too small and thin to be used practically, at least as a blanket.

She carried the colorful cloth over to the window and draped it over the opening, tacking and using various stones to keep it in place. It didn't really *darken* the room, it simply cut out the direct sunlight shining through. Lydia took a moment to smooth out the colorful fabric before turning to regard the rest of the..erm, room. Pale eyes narrowed as a finger tapped against her lips.. what needed to be done next?

Of course!

One of the various random bags laid about the place was snatched up from the cobbled floor. Reaching in, she pulled out a small white pillow purchased from the marketplace. Pillows really made for more comfortable sleep, so she didn't mind spending a little extra on it. She carried the pillow over to the corner and dropped it at the head of her cot. Much better!

A content sigh escaped her as she dropped onto the cot after that...that contentment only lasted a moment however before all four legs of the cot gave out and with a loud snap and crack of wood, the cot fell to the ground from it's one foot suspension in the air. Brows furrowed as she huffed, not amused at all, but not suprised either..the thing was rather old.

Crossing her legs, she reached for the half finished quilt at the end of her cot turned futon. Grabbing the needle, she set to work on it, because after all, she'd need a warm blanket to sleep under as the days grew colder...

Lydia Loran

Date: 2006-10-10 02:00 EST
She shivered, the colorful fabric in front of the window wafted in the air a bit as a cool breeze made it's way inside. The sun outside was setting and the once blue sky was shifting to a variety of pinks and golds. Soon it would be night.

Lydia mumbled a bit to herself as she studied the quilt, usual trademark of many colors patched together forming it. Though half the size of a normal quilt she tied the thread off and lifted it to her mouth, using teeth to 'cut' it. The cot turned futon was small, and she was small, so it would do. The small quilt was then set aside as she lifted up a nearby satchel, carefully returning needle to a case within with the rest of her sewing supplies, which wasn't much, but enough for the basics.

Satchel dropped, she then stood, moving around the room to collect various bags and clothing, moving them away from the center of the room so that there was a large open area there. When that was done, some stones, leaves and twigs were collected from the corner and brought over. Stones were arranged in a circle, and twigs and leaves were dropped in the middle. Her pale eyes shimmered white for a moment as an incantation was murmured and a spark within the stones caused a small fire to erupt into a makeshift 'campfire'.

Lingering next to it for a moment, she allowed the fire to warm her, and the warmth of the flames to flood the small room. Content with that, she moved from it and towards the window, pushing the colorful fabric aside to lean against the stones. Pale eyes never wavered from the sky once as she sat there, watching colors shift and fade, watching the sun fall behind the horizon, watching the moons rise, and watching the stars above slowly dot the midnight blue sky...

...Simply breathtaking.

Lydia Loran

Date: 2006-10-11 19:22 EST
How long did she stare at the stars and the moons? Did it matter? Time was meaningless right now.

Of course as the night came it grew colder and colder. She had no choice but to retreat from that window and pull the colorful fabric over it in an attempt to keep the cold out. The fire helped of course, as she moved further into the room she could feel it's warmth.

Darkness was something Lydia was used to, so the dim room and surroundings didn't bother her a bit. And with the fire, it's not as if she was immersed in total darkness. Using the light of the fire to guide her, she moved about the room to put things away, organize, and just do some general tidying. Silvers she had earned were removed from the bag on her waist and dropped into a small iron storage box she kept in the corner.

There wasn't much of monetary value in that box. A few small pouches of silvers she had been saving, a shell necklace, picture frame with a certain picture in it, a T-Stone that glowed a bright ruby red, and a few other trinkets she wanted to keep safe.

With a sigh the box was closed and pushed back into the corner. A little crawl was done over towards the cot where she promptly laid down and pulled that half quilt over her body for warmth. Pale eyes fluttered closed as she battled her thoughts for peace and sleep.

Another simple day of a simple life in a simple home.

Lydia Loran

Date: 2006-10-12 22:03 EST
Mon P'tit Chat (My Little Cat)

Un petit gar?on, bien sage,
Aurait bien voulu savoir,
Comme touts enfants de son ?ge
Comment rencontrer la f?e.

Celle des livres d'images
Qui punit tous les m?chants.
Ou bien la f?e des voyages
Qui prot?ge les pauvres gens.

Pourvu qu'il rencontre une f?e,
Il lui dirait:
"Madame, pouvez-vous m'aider
A retrouver et ramener mon p'tit chat?"

Mon P'tit Chat~Nobuo Uematsu


It was the usual routine of every morning. Wake up, roll out of bed, scamper off to the nearby stream to bathe, change clothing and head off to the Red Dragon to work. This morning was different however. Lydia was almost ready to go, she had pulled on her boots, grabbed her bag and was just about to step out-

Mew.

She paused and turned around, gaze darting this way and that. Just what was that? It almost sounded like-

Mew.

Colorful fabric hanging in front of her window fluttered a bit as the little white cat jumped inside. It sat in the middle of the room, casting pitiful yellow eyes towards Lydia. She was quite startled to see it actually. There's all manner of animals in the woods, but little white cats? That's not really one of them.

Mew.

"..hungry?" She pondered a moment before digging through her bag. She had picked up some beef jerky at the marketplace to try, but even now that she could tolerate meat she found she just didn't care much for it. The jerky was broken up into small pieces and set on the ground in front of the cat. "I'm sorry little kitty... that's all I have."

Lydia had to leave so she could get to work on time. Deliveries had to be made! Honestly she didn't expect the little cat to still be in her room when she returned home. He was just a passerby right?

Mew.

A greeting as she returned home. She smiled down at the little cat who was waiting and staring at her. All the jerky she left? Gone.

"Does this mean you wanna stay little kitty?" She took slow careful steps to the cat, thinking he'd run away but hoping that he wouldn't. She even reached out to pick him up off the ground..and recieved no resistance. "Friendly aren't you...?" A little scritcha scratch behind the ears made the little cat offer up a low purr. "Isn't this place a little..out of your way? Hmm?"

Little cat in her arms she wandered over to her cot to take a seat. It, who she then lifted up to discover was a he, seemed quite content. He laid in her lap, purring, meowing and loving the attention. Lydia never did have a pet, always fearing that she'd not be able to take care of it. And having pets in Veian? Certainly not a common practice.

"I suppose you're not really a pet though are you little guy?" She smiled brightly at the little cat. "Not a pet at all... Mellon."

Lydia Loran

Date: 2006-10-21 15:14 EST
Mon P'tit Chat (My Little Cat) Deux

Now that Mellon was staying with her, Lydia felt she needed to make some proper accomidations for her new friend. It just wouldn't be fair for her to have a bed and warm place to sleep while he didn't. It was a problem easily remedied though, a trip to the Marketplace let her pick up a couple things for Mellon. A few extra coins spent perhaps, but she felt it was worth it.

After the trip she walked back home, carrying a wide shallow basket in her arms the whole way, filled with a variety of things for Mellon. As she stepped into her room that white blur was already headed her way, weaving around her ankles, rubbing against her, purring.

Mew.

"I see you're happy to see me! I guess you know I have something for you yeah?" Lydia chuckled a bit as she walked, taking care not to step on her friend. Finding an empty space against the wall, not a hard task at all either, she kneeled down and set the basket aside. A couple feathers and a small red ball was removed from within and set out for Mellon. The little white cat walked over and curiously sniffed at the feathers and pawed at them a bit. "It's not much I know... but I can't afford all the fancy things they had for cats Mellon. I'm sorry." An apologetic look was offered to the cat before she took out a few unmarked cans of various meats. Food for Mellon of course. They were set aside in a corner before she reached into the basket again, this time pulling up a small blanket and pillow. Blanket was set back in except neat and smoothed out, pillow was fluffed and then set against the edge of the basket which was then pushed against the wall close to her cot turned futon.

"There, now you have a bed of your own!"

Mellon pawed a bit at a feather, and then a ball, but the bed caught his attention. Quick steps carried him over to study the bed for a moment before he crawled in and curled up into a little white ball.

Mew.

Lydia smiled and picked up one of the feathers and tapped him on the nose with it a couple times before laying it at his side. "I'm glad you seem to like it... I guess I better get started on your dinner then."