Summary:Zahara readies Reaver to be sent off to rejoin his people.
XP:Z1
Tags:< What's Left To Hope For | Sol Invictus Logs | A Star of Strangling Ivy >
zahara calls to Reaver through their bond, as she sits on a liquid bench near one of the Essence fountains. Next to her sits a specially designed air-enchanted pack that is easy for him to carry, and she toys with an object in her palm.
The tiny aalorai comes into view around a corner, and Zahara is struck by how much he's already grown, in the almost two years he's dwelt within the Cascade.
Having started out not much more than eight inches tall, Reaver stands a towering two and a half feet now, and his proportions have started to grow out towards their eventual endpoint: his head, while still comically huge, is no longer almost as large as his entire body, and his wings -- elegantly folded behind him now -- have expanded, filled out to a more full size.
The little Hundredfold bounds over towards Zahara, and then as he draws near, expands his wings out, giving a quick and forceful downward push to the air beneath him and propelling himself in a half-glide, half-leap onto the empty side of the bench, where he seats himself and licks his metallic lips.
zahara grins, "Hello, Reaver!" She fondly offers him a choice piece of dented armor, still beautiful with engraved scrollwork. "I can't believe how big you are already."
Reaver grabs the piece of armor and devours it with relish.
zahara brushes a light finger over his metallic feathers. "Do you like living here, among us?"
Reaver swallows the last piece of his rather sizeable piece of metal with a large, elaborate swallowing gesture, and then nods eagerly.
zahara "Good." She smiles again. "That makes me happy. But I often think that I should not have taken you away from your people, as much as I love you..." As she says this, she realizes that it is true. She does care for him in a way she could not have before.
Reaver folds his wings again and clambers up into Zahara's lap.
zahara wraps her arms around him in a hug, careful not to crush his wings. "Our people are not on the best of terms, but I wish to change this, little Reaver. So that you can be with them, and with us whenever you like. Would you like that?"
Reaver leans back and makes the strange, metallic sound that Zahara had learned to interpret as giggling. He nods eagerly again.
zahara tickles his shiny tummy, after a surreptitious glance to make sure nobody's watching. "That's my little guy! My big guy now, hmm?"
Reaver writhes entertainingly under the vicious assault of tickles.
zahara laughs, herself, and gives him another hug. Then, she pulls away and picks a small wooden ring up from the bench where she'd set it, and offers it to him. "I made this for you." She makes a face, "Wood, so you won't eat it."
Reaver picks it up and looks at it inquisitively for a moment. Screwing up his face, he lifts it up to his mouth, tentatively tries to bite it, frowns, and then looks up at Zahara inquisitively.
zahara "See?" she takes it from him and slides it onto one of his fingers. "Like this. When you learn to speak, you can talk to me through it."
Reaver looks down at the ring on his finger, then reaches over with another one of his (many) tiny hands and taps it curiously.
zahara shows him her matching ring, on one of her, relatively few fingers. ::Can you hear me?::
Reaver looks around in confusion.
zahara touches her lips then her ring, then his ring, and his forehead. ::The ring lets me speak to you::
Reaver 's eyes widen a little. Now he starts staring at Zahara's ring.
zahara smiles. "Yes, that's it. Now you try, think hard at me."
Reaver screws up his face in effort.
zahara ::You can do it, Reaver!::
Reaver After a long moment, Zahara hears some kind of weird staticky squwacking faintly in her mind.
zahara ::That's it!:: "Good job, now you might need to practice a little, but if you need me wherever you are, you can call me, okay?" She offers him a notched sword.
Reaver puts away the sword in three huge gulps, then burps.
zahara "Hmm I should send someone with you. It's a shame Mr. Iggles Lux is only around when the Fable is here."
Reaver licks his lips and turns his head sideways in curiosity.
zahara "Perhaps I'll talk to Ssithumi, she may know a Pterok that would be willing to accompany you." She scratches his chin. "You like the Dragon Kings don't you?"
Reaver buzzes happily and leaps back down to the ground, spreading his wings out again.
< What's Left To Hope For | Sol Invictus Logs | A Star of Strangling Ivy >