Lore of Leyuna RPG (FRPG)

[C S]

"Natalie is a nice name. Not a nice lady, I don't think," the girl mused. Carefully, she rolled onto her side so that she could look at her teacher without having to turn her neck constantly. "I don't think she'll get out. She had a hard time figuring out how a window worked."

[Hopeflower]

'You expected anything else?' Arsenic asked, snapping out of his contemplative state to arch an eyebrow at Andruil. 'Watch, even months from now we're all going to be randomly remembering that Vix's great-great-great uncle was missing a finger, or something.'

"One of them was born missing an entire arm," Vix told him, absolutely straight-faced.

Rowan blinked. Narrowed her eyes at Vix. "You're sh*tting us."

"I am, actually."

That got a genuine laugh out of Arsenic, and Vix felt entirely justified in being a little self-satisfied.


"She won't," Viho assured his student. "It's a very secure location. That said," he added, leaning forward, "she has friends. They'll get the same when we find them, but until we do..." The corners of his mouth twitched upward knowingly. "Let's not have any more unarmed heroics, hm?"

[C S]

Dahnae frowned. She could tell Viho had been busy. "How long have I been out?" she asked. Nevermind what she was going to do next time, if there ever was a next time, she found herself on the cusp of witnessing a crime; how much more did she miss?

[The Kingpin]

They were not alone in their laughter, The Knight chortling at it himself. "According to my father, I have a great great great uncle who has three extra fingers and protruding canine teeth. Durvin the Boar, the Niyerians call him," he added once he's settled. "Incidentally his nickname is for his eating habits, not his teeth."

[Hopeflower]

"I'm going to hope you didn't just decide to do that teaming up thing couples do," Rowan muttered after a pause in which she eyed Andruil, drawing another snicker from Vix.

'If they did, I'd say you're screwed,' Arsenic informed her.

Rowan twisted around to look at him, demanding, "You're just going to leave me to try to try to one-up them on my own?"

'I'd help you bullsh*t back at them, but I don't have much of an extended family to tell tales about,' he said, spreading his hands and giving a shrug that wasn't any bit as helpless as the gesture looked. 'Or at least, I don't know if I do.'

That made Vix pause and give Arsenic a curious look. "You don't?"

'Mom was born in the village and was an only child. Illness took her parents before I was born.' Fortunately, the topic didn't appear to upset Arsenic - he stayed relaxed, his gaze steady and a light shade of blue. 'I don't know about Viho, apart from the fact that he came from somewhere else.'


"Almost a day," Viho said, lifting a calming hand. They could only work so fast - it was a measure of luck that had gotten them this far so soon, in his opinion. It was lucky enough that Dahnae had seen Natalie before she'd had the chance to get into that building. That enough people had found Dahnae to get her the help she needed and bring Natalie in only strengthened his opinion. It only followed that their luck was about to run dry. "Frankly, I'm surprised you're already awake. You lost a lot of blood."

[C S]

"I'd like to think that the Gyphan tribes have grown stronger than most, because of everything that can kill a person in the jungle," Dahnae said offhandedly. The girl may not have been a born fighter -- just someone with the spirit of one -- but she was no stranger to violence, it seemed. "Cats heal quickly, too," she added. Dahnae turned her nose up. "If getting hurt like this means sleeping through a day, I'm not letting it happen again."

[The Kingpin]

Andruil shrugged nonchalantly, looking over at the Mute Assassin as he responded, "What can I say? The Western Liullwyns have some questionable social practices apparently. Well, that or Durvin made a mage angry. I actually hope that was the case, stupid as he'd have to be to do it." His tone was completely deadpan, dead serious as he spoke.

[Hopeflower]

'Such options,' Arsenic replied dryly. He shifted, settling more comfortably on the bed. 'I'm glad I don't have to worry about coming from a comparable family tree.'

"You never know," Vix said conversationally, laying one stack of notes over another just so. "One of these days, I might turn a page and find your mother's name mentioned somewhere."

The mute elf barked a laugh. 'Now that would be something.'


"Good." Viho sat back in his chair and ran a hand through his bangs. "I'd recommend learning how to fight, if only to be able to defend yourself. You've got excellent instincts, but I'd guess little to no training," he mused, studying Dahnae thoughtfully. "You'll pick it up quickly, I imagine."

[The Kingpin]

Smirking mischievously, the Knight responded, in as level and honest a tone as he could manage, "I can't say I'd be surprised. I considered it quite the coincidence to meet two redheads in the span of two days, under the same roof." He let that statement settle for just a moment, before adding, with barely restrained mirth, "And we've already established Arsenic could play a very convincing woman while his back was turned to you."

[Hopeflower]

'Back to this, are we?' Arsenic asked over Vix's undignified snort. He tilted his head as though wounded. 'And here I thought we'd come so far.'

"You do make for a pretty woman, Nick," Rowan put in with a smirk. "What?" she asked when he turned the look on her, lifting her hands placatingly. "Don't give me that, you know I've seen it."

Arsenic huffed and muttered, 'Just come right out and tell them, why don't you?'

"I didn't," she pointed out, then tacked on, "Intentionally." Have you not shown them?

Obviously.

Oh. Well, no time like the present.

[The Kingpin]

Andruil's brow arched as he looked between the two. "Please do. My curiosity is killing me," he stated, perhaps a bit more convincingly than he needed to. He still remembered the day they managed to escape Freyr-Lunge two years ago, but aside from his occasional teasing, there had been little else to the supposed joke other than several flustered or irritated retorts from the elf.

[C S]

Dahnae's frown deepened just a tad at the notion. Viho meant well, but fighting was also something she wasn't a stranger to. She was born with a gift, and that gift was something others wanted to capitalize on. Day after day of being pushed for some goal she hardly considered worth her time and effort had soured her on both fronts of training, combat and shapeshifting alike. The old elf was able to revitalize her pursuits of the skill, but fighting wasn't something she was interested in. And now that she was bedridden and hospital bound for a full day because of it, putting herself in harm's way on purpose was something she wanted nothing to do with for a long time, if she could help it.

"Let people like the glow-lady fight. They like doing it."

A nurse came by shortly after she said her sentiment, hearing her voice. Dahnae's ears twitched at the hurried, receding footsteps. "Off to make a fuss, I think. Back to sleep." Dahnae gingerly rolled herself back onto her back. "It might be time for you to sleep as well, mister. It's late."

[Hopeflower]

Instead of saying a word, Arsenic sighed, glanced at the ceiling as though praying for patience, and took a few seconds to concentrate. He'd woven this particular illusion often enough that he hardly had to think about what he was projecting. It was a practical thing, and he knew that - but that didn't change that he was in for a hell of a lot of teasing.

To the others in the room, the changes were subtle. The angles of Arsenic's face smoothed and rounded while his scars faded from view and his eyes shifted color to a warm hazel - and stayed that way. His hair darkened and lengthened until it was somewhere between brown and blonde, spilling over his shoulders without being excessively long. His arms and legs softened, losing some of the definition of hard muscle. Curves grew just slightly more pronounced.

It was a delicate balance this illusion struck, one perfected through trial and error. A woman attractive enough to draw many a wandering eye without standing out from the crowd. Even the feminine voice Arsenic projected was pleasant but unremarkable, and he mouthed the words as he "spoke" them to make the image that much more complete.

'Rowan calls it Ambrosia.'

"I can't very well call you Nick when you look like that," the scarred woman said, shrugging.

Vix blinked a couple of times, shook her head as though to clear it, and said under her breath, "She's right. You do make a pretty woman."

Arsenic rolled his eyes and said dryly, 'Thanks. I think.'


"Yes." Viho rose from his seat and reached out to ruffle Dahnae's hair. "You don't need to decide anything right now. You just worry about recovering. I'll come by again when I can." He left slowly, almost completely lost in thought by the time he reached the hospital doors.

[The Kingpin]

"And now I am a knight surrounded by three attractive women. It's almost like something out of a fairytale. Admittedly one for a more restricted audience," Andruil joked. looking Arseni-Ambrosia, up and down, he pondered the various intricacies of the illusion. "I wonder how thorough this illusion is," he added, ducking as if expecting to be pelted with a book.

[Hopeflower]

'As thorough as it needs to be.' Arsenic flicked another glance skyward rather than reaching for the nearest heavy object. 'It depends on when I see my chance to strike.'

"She's saved my *** a time or two, Ambrosia," Rowan said, a faintly nostalgic smile curling her lips. "Good times."

Arsenic snorted. 'For you.' He crossed his legs, free to do so now that Vix had cleared the bed of her notes, and idly considered how long to hold the illusion while he picked at his fingernails. He could technically hold it for a very long while - but he'd already satisfied Andruil's curiosity. Probably. With that in mind, he prepared to let it go.

[The Kingpin]

If anything, Andruil was even more intrigued now than he had been. "Oh, so Ambrosia has seen some action then?" he asked, pleasantly surprised. As if bracing for something none of the others were yet aware of, He shifted his sitting posture, getting comfortable. Moving a bit further forward, he settled behind Vix's back, his legs stretched out and raised at the knees on either side of her, hands clasped around her waist. He chose not move his head too far away from her shoulder, though he did switch to the other one, not wanting to make her too uncomfortable. "Please, do tell," he requested, looking every bit like a boy eager for an exciting story, albeit a few years past being able to get away with being called a boy.

[Hopeflower]

Rowan tipped her head back and cackled while Vix sighed softly and leaned back into the embrace, some tension that had been unnoticed until now leeching from her shoulders and upper back.

Arsenic fixed Andruil with a look that might have been faintly annoyed - or amused. The only tell was the twitch at the corner of his mouth, with his eyes not changing color at the moment. 'Surprise, Andruil - just because I'm not interested doesn't mean I've never slept with anyone. Comes with the job.' He shrugged one shoulder and folded his arms loosely. 'I can also make someone think something's happening without ever touching them...so if you actually want to know, you're going to have to be more specific.'

[The Kingpin]

"I had meant the times you rescued our dear Rowan from an untimely death, but go on," retorted Andruil, seeming almost offended at the Mute Elf's assumption. "I am sure you'd much rather regale us with stories of your more illicit activities as a woman," he continued with a wry smirk, even as his hands began to casually rub and squeeze the Innkeeper's back.

[Hopeflower]

"They're related. I never said anything about an untimely death," Rowan said, still chuckling. "There is the odd moron who decides to try and make a move when we've been on assignment. Usually it's me on the receiving end and Ambrosia needs to run defense."

Arsenic tipped his head toward her. 'Can't just punch someone out when you're meant to be someone who's never hit anyone in her life,' he said, keeping his expression perfectly neutral. 'Can't get a guy alone without making some promises.'

Vix hummed appreciatively and rolled her shoulders a little, teasing, "Spoken like someone with experience."

'Just said I was, didn't I?' However different the illusion's face looked from Arsenic's, the crooked, almost self-deprecating smile was entirely his.

[The Kingpin]

"Experienced indeed. One would almost mistaken you for a street-walker," teased the Knight as he pressed a thumb up alongside the Innkeeper's spine, smirking. "Almost, if I wasn't too familiar with you to overlook the distinctively Nick-ish aspect in whatever form you chose to take."