An Itch [Open]

[Kesshou N'harun]

Standing here, on the edge, Kesshou couldn't help but feel calmed, almost reverent, the silence offering a welcome embrace at the brink of everything and nothing. It had been a long, long time since she'd last set foot here, and the memory was hazy, a fog of a life she'd left behind for a time, yet the stillness still stirred the same itch, the same anticipation. Flightiness, if she might call it such.

Her mother had smiled (a somewhat dark and wild sort of thing, because she felt it, too), and told her that if the itch was there, scratch it. And so she had, and hadn't looked back.

Her darkly painted lips curved slightly at the memory, and the bones of her wings made an eerie sort of noise as she lowered them in reverence. Her mother had not been here when finally she had returned, but a part of her had never expected her to be. None would speak of the woman to her, but she found herself unworried. Her mother had scratched that itch, too. Perhaps one day they would meet again, or perhaps that quick-witted soul was gone from the plane of the living just as her father had been for centuries. Where once it might have bothered her, it certainly didn't now, especially not here in the silence, the stillness.

It had been one of her favorite places to think, to relax, and she tucked her skirt beneath her as she sat, the faint click of bone on bone the loudest sound but it made her smile a bit more. The simple things? No, that was far too whimsical, and while somewhat flighty, she had never been known for being whimsical. And yet a laugh bubbled up from her then, though it couldn't easily be described as much other than a bit dark, and she sprawled across the grass on her side, fingers reaching for oblivion over the edge of the cliff with a tinge of playfulness in crimson eyes, that calm reverence fading fast and that itch in its place with the sharp curve of her lips (and she almost felt young again.

As if she could tease the very abyss.

Oh, wouldn't that be something?

[Vaet Qou]

A week slipped by; a week from the Fire Kingdom. While it was just a mere week, he had wondered if anyone noticed he had left. He had disappointed Lang, the Fire Ruler, and refused to cross path with him until his creation was finished. While he had spent a lot of time dealing with gypsies and bartering for weaving elements from Water, Light, and Earth -- he at least knew he could get the rest by himself. This new weapon of his was going to be extremely powerful, and maybe even flawless. An amused smile appeared on Vaet’s face from the idea. Despite the fact that he held an optimistic appearance, several doubts wanted to show through.

Vaet came to Dark area, to the ancient cliff, to take some of the dirt from the edge’s ground. While he was not familiar with the way the Dark Feys used the soil, he knew it was a powerful cooling technique that would bring a curse to any object. The body of the weapon had been completed, the bandages around his hands symbolizing the labor had been intensive.

The Warrior approached the edge. He had not thought of running into someone, for the last time he had ventured here, no one was around. This time he noticed a figure -- the figure was moving, as though reaching for some sort of hand to hold onto. Vaet wondered if the person was going to fall right over the edge, but he said nothing. Out of all the Fey, he had almost felt sorry for the Dark. They were a backwards society, but they were a dangerous one.

Then again if the figure had fell over the edge and she screamed, the entire Dark society would be on Vaet’s flanks -- probably assuming that he had pushed her, which would cause a ripple of terror in their alliance. The Fire Fey frowned. He really did not want to start a conversation, but he had to. And if she was suicidal or just crazy, how does one go through a respectful introduction?

“What are you doing?” came out of his mouth, a flat tone, for that was the first thing that came to his mind.

[Kesshou N'harun]

The air had changed, albeit subtly, and as it did it drew Kesshou from her thoughts, from her fancies (quite dark things, her fancies, if one were ever to peer in upon them), and the glitter in her eyes had faded only slightly, her actions stilled. Her ears picked up on the sound of footsteps, though quiet, steadily growing closer, and yet still she remained still.

The air was just a bit warmer, and it wasn't a feeling one got from a fellow of the Dark (sometimes quite the opposite, even).

Though there was no air of danger, and she allowed herself to remain relaxed as the presence approached, only moving finally once the other Fey had spoken, and only so much then to roll away from the edge of the cliff, so that she may face this Fey and get a good look at he who would venture here, typically a place of solitude.

A Fire Fey, by the looks of him, and the curl of her lips did not falter, though her eyes lidded just slightly as she went over the words. What was she doing? Well it was none of his business, and she had a half a mind to tell him so, but why be so direct? Where was the fun in that?

"And if I were to tell you?" she questioned back, instead, feeling sphinxish and almost lazy as she lifted herself into a sitting position, tucking a few strands of hair away behind her ear. A game of questions, if he would have it, would not be such a bad thing to liven up her day.

As fanciful as teasing the abyss, so playing with Fire was quite an entertaining debacle.

[Vaet Qou]

The girl’s response had been at a slow pace, movements first, investigating, only to respond later. Vaet wasn’t used to such methods in conversations, able to shoot one idea after another, as though no thought process was required. He admired the Dark Fey for their careful construction when it came to decoding people, but it also was awkward, considering one really knew what type of persona they had. With the Dark Kingdom’s inner court, there wasn’t a problem he had witnessed. The Queen seemed a little off, but she had such a ripple affect over her followers that it didn’t seem to matter.

A question was answered with a question. Vaet relaxed, confirming in his head that the girl wasn’t going to tumble off the edge. He would have went on ignoring the girl to get the material he needed, but she was so obstructive in his goal. “Your answer really wouldn’t make a difference,” he answered, obliging with the little question, unaware she was trying to make a game of it. “It’s your actions that do.”

Vaet continued closer to the girl, his eyes taking one lingering glance at her. There really wasn’t much light to see the girl’s features, besides the fact that her lips seem to melt in with the shadows downcast from the moonlight. Her hair was pale under the phantom light, and he would have pegged her as attractive, but did not trust that lingering thought -- darkness was deceptive in these areas.

Once he got enough of her, he glanced away, trying to figure out what part of the edge would be best to extract the soil. While he didn’t have a guard up like he did with an enemy, he kept a social awareness just in case she tried something.

[Kesshou N'harun]

He was quick but relaxed, and unthreatening (as he well should be, so close here to the Court), so Kesshou continued her lazy observations of the other Fey as he answered, a disappointing sort of response to the sort of game she had in mind, but one that said something of his character, and she was all for picking people apart, be they friend or foe, familiar or not.

He was here for something, though, and as his eyes lingered on her briefly her lips curled ever so slightly more, eyes regaining the spark of mischief as she watched him watch her, only to have him once again disappoint as he looked away. Busy, she reasoned, for whatever it was he was here for. And though her smile faded only slightly when her opportunity passed, he was also unsuspecting, so if she felt the itch to twist the situation, she could likely attain another opportunity.

"And what actions were you so terribly concerned with, to have a need to ask such a thing of me?" she questioned, shifting again, this time in order to roll onto her back (a difficult position to manage, with her wings in the way). What he was here for could wait, as it had been some time since she had gotten to play with fire, and the itch was there, it was simply a matter of deciding if it was wise or not.

Or perhaps, it was more of a question of whether or not this particular flame was worth the effort. She saw no reason not to continue her inspection, to continue to look at him, and no reason to not enjoy what she saw in the dim light. Fire was always such a fun thing, after all.

[Vaet Qou]

While the sun had been the better source of light, he was thankful the moon was illuminating enough to show where grass had ended, where cliff began. Since words were exchanged, he felt comfortable enough to stand at the girl’s side, feeling safe. The girl was laying in the grass, near the cliff, and so he felt going anywhere past her would have been dangerous. Vaet crouched, his eyes staring into the vast darkness. He placed his arms upon his knees and stared outward, feeling perplexed. There were eyes following him, no matter what he did and it compelled him greatly to return the goggling favor.

Being the polite thing to do, the Fire Fey turned his neck to see the girl sprawled in the grass. From this angle he could see her more clearly. She seemed territorial of the area, as though a feline stretching out at the base of the window, gathering up all the heat. Vaet wanted to chuckle, but he had not, not wanting to give away the little pun for his own warmth was radiating in the night -- it was no where near as intense as a camp fire, but it was as though an object that had been set out in the sun all day.

“Didn’t want to assume you were going to throw yourself off the edge, so I merely asked. At the moment, I’d rather not deal with territorial killing,” his voice was soft, trying to interact without any malice. Without real purpose, he allowed his gaze to do another once over. It had been awhile since he came across a female, considering he didn’t count the gypsies to be very womanly -- with their erratic appearances.

Vaet lifted his right hand up, glancing away to double check that his bandages were no where near his knuckles. In one instance, a tiny flame appeared above his index’s fingernail, in which he rudely hovered over the girl’s sprawled out form. This time he looked at her with more purpose, finding her to actually be attractive.

[Kesshou N'harun]

A feline manner, however much a pun he thought it, was still quite a well fitting manner for Kesshou, and she gazed up at him, albeit upside down for the time being, with half lidded eyes, though despite that her observation was no less than scrutinizing. His warmth was something that made her want to stretch, and at his words, she allowed herself that luxury, her back arching gracefully and her arms extended almost close enough to touch him as she rolled again, a mite closer.

She did enjoy a warm spot every now and then, and he certainly was one, a fair tribute to his heritage.

When the flame's light touched her, she lifted her gaze to meet his, a little push, so very slight in that look. Bold of him, to look at her so openly, and yet she deemed it appropriate of the Fey she saw him to be so far (and of any Fey of Fire, as she had never known one to be particularly timid). Fire was such an unpredictable thing most of the time, but a fun challenge to pick apart, and the steady unsteadiness of a flickering flame was much more comforting than the unwavering burn of the sun.

"Such a silly thought," she commented, eyes not leaving his though the push was still so, so small that it hardly did a thing, "to think of leaping into such an abyss..." Oh, but many a man she would have had do just that, though this one... She thought that a different sort of game would be more appropriate, especially considering the alliance... It wouldn't be so wise to treat this one too poorly.

[Vaet Qou]

The shift of the girl’s arm close to him, caused a slight ripple of the small flame above his fingers. Her presence was a cooling one, but it was far different from Ice or Water. This time, Vaet did chuckle. He rarely laughed in the open, but it was like she had heard his thoughts and acted upon them. It brought him comfort to see the orange glaze cover the girl’s flesh. While it was not enough burst of power to light up the darkness of the cliff, he was content with being around the unseen.

Kesshou’s eyes lifted to Vaet’s, and there was a sudden pause. Her eyes were a kin to his own, two rubies glimmering in the shallow light. Yet, there was something else coming off from her stare. A feeling crawled up through Vaet, and it wasn’t a spur of emotion he wasn’t familiar with. Fire Fey, after all, were full of lust when it came to power and possession, and however small that igniting sentiment was -- Vaet could sense it. Shoving his hand down, the flame dissipated, the darkness shrouding the two once more.

Vaet could still see the girl’s eyes, now a sick white color, soaking up the moon. “Silly? I don’t think anyone would throw themselves off for no good reason,” those were his opinions, for suicide wasn’t an easy decision -- suicides only happened when Fey had their wings removed, or if there was a disgrace. Everyone offed themselves out of some type of pride, but in the end it really showed no glimmer or that prowess -- all pathetic.

You’re here for a weapon, a thought reprimanded him, and suddenly his lids lowered. He really was overworked if he got caught up in a Fey this quickly.

[Kesshou N'harun]

A moment of something hot, something heavy, something distinctly...

But the banishment of the flame caused a shift in her, and her eyes, though once again shadowed, grew sharp. His answer hardly mattered anymore, what with the way he seemed to avoid her (though not quite as directly as he should have), her gaze still piercing as she let it scan his features again in the dark, only to once again rise to his own (perhaps to offset the importance of their visual contact).

"I could think of a few," she answered, vaguely but oh so telling if you knew where to look for it (and he probably didn't, not with her at least, not when they'd only just met, only the Queen seemed to have such intuition with her, and she had kept their meetings as brief and unassuming as possible).

But then his eyes changed, a reason she wasn't aware of but likely one of the ones he was here. A reasonable assumption, seeing as he had seemed so temporarily fascinated (a not uncommon thing to her).

"And what is it exactly that has brought you so far from home?" she finally questioned, finally brought that thought forward, as it seemed the right time to ask, pushing herself up onto her elbows to be just a hair closer to this Fey and his warmth, and she had the inkling to touch him, perhaps to touch him, but kept it reserved for the time being.

[Vaet Qou]

At the girl’s question, he seemed to cave in. This was going to be a conversation whether his thoughts fought it or not. He had a yearning to get out of the Fire Kingdom, and while he had blamed his wandering on a weapon; he knew he was following in his parent’s footsteps. Defeated, Vaet lowered himself out of the crouch and settled himself into a sitting position. At first, he was afraid to stretch his legs out, but when his feet didn’t meet any air (the edge of the cliff), he relaxed. He didn’t ignore the subtle hint of her words, for he knew many have probably fallen to their death -- unwillingly.

Vaet could sense the girl in his space now, like the curve of her body was a missing puzzle to match up to him directly. She did not fill that space, and he wondered if the girl was simply lonely, or if he had sent some signal without knowing it. Whatever it was, he didn’t shrug it off, but welcomed it. Rather, he was feeling bitter over the estrangement of his best friend, and a female’s presence built up a confidence of his.

He had wanted to place his hands into the grass, lean on them and toward the girl, but he did no such things. His hands, at the moment, were badly injured with cuts, bruises and a few blisters. The Fire Fey placed his hands into his lap instead, and craned his head in the direction of the girl’s, his lids still lowered in thought. To tell the truth to the girl would only bring up memories that bothered him, but to lie was a greater fault, so he simply summed it all up.

“Getting different elements to finish a weapon,” he sounded bitter about it; yet, his eyes flickered back up to the girls. Vaet had not noticed that their faces were just inches from each other, and he could now see the girl’s dark lashes. They were like black spider-legs, disgusting in thought, but truly appealing when it came to such softness. He had not ran into many few with crimson eyes, and somehow felt assured to share this trait.

[Kesshou N'harun]

Kesshou watched, taking in each emotion that became apparent in the Fey next to her, each subtle nuance she had learned over time to pick up on, to hone in on, to twist when she needed or wanted to, quiet as he made up his mind on how to respond, even as their bodies became closer through his shifting (and perhaps hers, too, she didn't pay it too much mind).

She watched the way he placed his hands, having seen the bandages in the flickering light of the flame he'd conjured before, and as he answered her question, the need for them seemed to be apparent. And yet he'd moved so close, perhaps without realizing it, and as such a familiar color gazed back at her she thought again of entrapment, of a lovely game, but wondered briefly if it was necessary, though she would not be one to break the gaze for any reason.

A smithy's heart, she mused, and yet something more, and she couldn't help but push a bit into their stare, subtle stirrings but a desire to dig deeper. "Is that so?" she questioned, though it was his prerogative to answer, for the weapon was nothing that held her fancy as much as the Fey himself.

She let her hands fall to rest, then, just enough that the tips of her fingers rested just in contact with his person, but for now, all it remained was a simple touch, nothing more, nothing less. Purposeful, but not with the purpose of her power.

[Vaet Qou]

Now matter how anyone looked at it, Vaet wasn’t that much of an interesting person. He knew of things only that his Kingdom offered, and although his parents weren’t very respected; he was. Perhaps responsibility hindered the youthfulness of flame, and along all those troubles he had lost grasp of it. All of this paged through his thoughts; all of this while he was gazing into the girl’s eyes. Vaet tried his best to be unlike everyone else, wanting to have more ground. A week of exhaustion made rational thinking hard to bear.

Simply to give in to anything would have been easier at this point. The question wasn’t an open-ended one and he didn’t adjust well with rhetoric. They were on speaking terms, but they were still strangers. As though an invisible flame had been ignited, the temperature around the two seemed to have heated up. It had felt nice to simply push all of these misconstructions out, and the girl seemed just as eager to experience some change.

Girls, from what he remembered, had always wanted to talk about themselves. So, instead of pressuring the strange girl to listen to his tale of wandering; he moved in a different direction. “You know, I never seemed to have managed to get your name,” he started, finding nothing smooth about how blunt he was. Still peering into those ruby eyes, the Fire Fey allowed a smug smile to appear on his face when he leaned over to bump his shoulder with the girl’s.

“Cold?” he mused, voicing that he was aware of the girl’s closeness.

[Kesshou N'harun]

As he thumbed through the pages of his thoughts, Kesshou simply observed, as she seemed so good at doing just then. She pondered this yet to be introduced Fey, this stranger (and oh, a stranger was certainly nothing new to her), trying as if she could to see what was beyond his eyes, and while she certainly didn't have the power to do such a thing, she didn't need one to be so knowledgeable in reading others.

His question of her name was indeed blunt, but straightforward, at least, and she could admire his boldness in her own way, the bump of his shoulder warming her a bit more and she let her power leak just that little bit more out of a selfish want to keep him fixated. "Nor I yours, love," she responded, exuding an almost playful sort of air in the tone of her voice and the curve of her lips, "but you may call me Kesshou."

And at his idle inquiry that smile grew only a fraction darker, eyes lidding marginally though she never broke that gaze as she let her fingertips trace a fold in his clothing.

"Always," was on the verge of being a purr as it left her lips, the idea of how trapped he would be should she wish it so such an enticing thought, though she would take her time.

[Vaet Qou]

The moonlight flickered out for a second, the white lost under the drab of clouds. He noticed how dark it was in this area, and knew exactly why the darkest things would roam here. Vaet could barely make out where the girl’s figure began and where it had ended; yet, he felt the girl reach out and tug at the end of his shirt. For a Dark Fey she was being rather playful. The warrior was unsure about these gestures, not easily to give out trust to strangers. Knowing someone’s name didn’t make them friends exactly, either.

“It’s a pleasure, Kesshou. I am Vaet,” he seemed to answer in a mechanical way. While he didn’t mind a few banter remarks here and there, he was starting to second guess things. Everyone in these times always had a second layer beneath them, a hidden intent. Vaet, exhausted from the labor and from the darkness, didn’t want to be a fool and succumb to any trickery.

The Fire Fey reached down and placed his hand upon Kesshou’s -- the one idling at his clothing -- and it was obvious that her flesh was cooler. In fact, the girl really had felt like she had sat in the dark for hours. Like Fire, they tended to migrate to the warmth and much like Dark, he had figured that was why the girl was out here basking in the quiet shadows. Vaet curled his fingers around her hand, giving it a little squeeze.

He said nothing about her being cold, unaware of the open seduction it could lead to. Right now, Vaet was unworthy to be related to the ever changing flames, for he remained grounded. There was a goal out there for him, and he hung onto it firmly, keeping that in mind always.

[Kesshou N'harun]

Vaet. Kesshou tested the name in her mind, and then on her tongue, and as the shadow crossed the moon she was wont to stretch again, almost catlike as she did, enjoying the feel of the cool grass against her skin in contrast to the warmth of the Fire Fey next to her. The sound of her name on his lips was far from what she would have wanted to hear, though, and yet...

The direct skin to skin contact was a dangerous thing, and in the darkness her smile widened. A cat that ate the canary, she felt she fancied him to call her Mistress instead, but still only allowed herself small, subtle threads of power. She wasn't going to let him leave until she was ready for him to go, and she shifted the hand that he held, twining her slender fingers with his.

It was an intimate sort of gesture, as until that point he had been in control of that contact, and if it frightened him she still wouldn't let him go. If she did, she wouldn't live up to her prowess at all, and that just wouldn't do.

And so she reached with her free arm, fingertips boldly but unthreateningly brushing the line of his jaw, lips parting in a soft sigh. Each type of Fey had their own unique things that piqued her interest, and with this one it was certainly his warmth, combined with that pretty face.

Oh, she was quite wont to have him for a while.

"The pleasure is mine, I assure you, Vaet, dear..."