Teh third fic
For Aoife and Niamh.....
There was a loud knock on the door, and both Neantog and Arden jumped. They'd been so immersed in their conversation (and mead), they hadn't noticed the previous, calmer tapping. Neantog bounced out of her chair, and went to answer the door. Ravenfire was standing there, looking very confused. "Um....I thought this was Arden's house? Nice to see you though!" she smiled with blood stained lips. Neantog grinned back. "I'm renting a room here now, literally just arranged it. Come in!"
Arden looked up from her tankard and waved to Ravenfire, looking a little worried about the amount of blood she was covered in. "Hello.....get in a fight?" Raven laughed and replied "no...was hunting, need to find a black bear, and then I got hungry. None of it's mine, don't fret!" A grin spread across her face and she continued "anyway, as I was in the area, I thought I'd come say hi, and give you" plonking a parcel, wrapped in leather, onto the table "this. It's deer meat, really good. It's best raw, but I know you humans don't do that, so I won't mind if you cook it", a cheeky grin spreading across her face. "Um....thank you Ravenfire...want some mead?" Aden said, staring appreciatively at the package, which had started to leak blood. "Oh yes please, I'm parched!" The bear...thing looked around then asked "tankard, where?", and Arden pointed towards the kitchen. Padding back into the room, she flopped into a chair and poured herself some mead. A crack of thunder shook the house as she did, and she jumped. "By Malar! I wasn't expecting that." The three looked out the window, where lightning was filling the sky, and rain poured down. "Looks like I got here just in time....so....news? I'm stuck on Albion most of the time right now, haven't heard much of anything...."
Neantog looked thoughtful for a second, then shook her head. "Nope...can't think of anything....Arden, can you?" Arden too shook her head. "Alls been quiet, really...but why are you on Albion? I thought you were staying on Camelot, with Cul?". Ravenfire's face drooped a little. "I was....but Cul is on Tamarus with the Wolfen, and Darinus asked me to leave. It's a long story....so I'm staying with Culrucans mother and the Chosen, until he gets back. It kinda sucks...a lot of the older men hate beastkin with a passion. I tend to stay in my room or hunt, mostly....been doing a lot of thinking and whatnot." They both nodded sympathetically, and she sighed. "You don't know anything about mind healing, do you?", looking to Arden. "Um...not much...I know I can't do it?" she replied. Raven chuckled, then looked more serious. "I'm trying to decide whether to lock away my past lifes memories, or unlock them all. And whether or not to get rid of the other two...but you don't need to hear me moan, sorry." Neantog looked very interested when Ravenfire mentioned unlocking memories. "Mind healing didn't work on me...I wish it had though. How did you get your memories back in the first place?" She smiled and replied "well...um...some form of mind thing....Treacle looked into my memories and that seemed to unlock the old ones. They've come back slowly, through my dreams...not all of them are good, but it's nice to have them." Neantog murmured agreement. "Still though, not all good....it's made my mind pretty broken and fractured. Some things you shouldn't remember" she said quietly, staring at the floor.
Arden and Neantog looked uncomfortable, and Arden desperately searched her mind for a different topic. "So.....why do you need to find a black bear?" she queried, and looked relieved when Ravenfire perked up. "Is for Alrisha....I said I'd make her a cloak like mine, but I want it to be black so it doesn't ruin her look", she giggled. Arden and Neantog laughed, and Neantog remarked "She is very set in her black and gold, isn't she." Raven just nodded. "They are the colours of her ancestor, so I understand it..." she managed to say through the giggles. "Do either of you know where I'd find one?"
The three mused on that for a while, then moved to other conversation. The mead soon ran out, and Ravenfire pulled a bottle of whiskey from her pouch to fill the gap. Before long the sun was rising, and the storm outside had passed. Realising the time, they decided they should sleep, and each headed to their beds, satisfied by the night gone by.
.
There was a loud knock on the door, and both Neantog and Arden jumped. They'd been so immersed in their conversation (and mead), they hadn't noticed the previous, calmer tapping. Neantog bounced out of her chair, and went to answer the door. Ravenfire was standing there, looking very confused. "Um....I thought this was Arden's house? Nice to see you though!" she smiled with blood stained lips. Neantog grinned back. "I'm renting a room here now, literally just arranged it. Come in!"
Arden looked up from her tankard and waved to Ravenfire, looking a little worried about the amount of blood she was covered in. "Hello.....get in a fight?" Raven laughed and replied "no...was hunting, need to find a black bear, and then I got hungry. None of it's mine, don't fret!" A grin spread across her face and she continued "anyway, as I was in the area, I thought I'd come say hi, and give you" plonking a parcel, wrapped in leather, onto the table "this. It's deer meat, really good. It's best raw, but I know you humans don't do that, so I won't mind if you cook it", a cheeky grin spreading across her face. "Um....thank you Ravenfire...want some mead?" Aden said, staring appreciatively at the package, which had started to leak blood. "Oh yes please, I'm parched!" The bear...thing looked around then asked "tankard, where?", and Arden pointed towards the kitchen. Padding back into the room, she flopped into a chair and poured herself some mead. A crack of thunder shook the house as she did, and she jumped. "By Malar! I wasn't expecting that." The three looked out the window, where lightning was filling the sky, and rain poured down. "Looks like I got here just in time....so....news? I'm stuck on Albion most of the time right now, haven't heard much of anything...."
Neantog looked thoughtful for a second, then shook her head. "Nope...can't think of anything....Arden, can you?" Arden too shook her head. "Alls been quiet, really...but why are you on Albion? I thought you were staying on Camelot, with Cul?". Ravenfire's face drooped a little. "I was....but Cul is on Tamarus with the Wolfen, and Darinus asked me to leave. It's a long story....so I'm staying with Culrucans mother and the Chosen, until he gets back. It kinda sucks...a lot of the older men hate beastkin with a passion. I tend to stay in my room or hunt, mostly....been doing a lot of thinking and whatnot." They both nodded sympathetically, and she sighed. "You don't know anything about mind healing, do you?", looking to Arden. "Um...not much...I know I can't do it?" she replied. Raven chuckled, then looked more serious. "I'm trying to decide whether to lock away my past lifes memories, or unlock them all. And whether or not to get rid of the other two...but you don't need to hear me moan, sorry." Neantog looked very interested when Ravenfire mentioned unlocking memories. "Mind healing didn't work on me...I wish it had though. How did you get your memories back in the first place?" She smiled and replied "well...um...some form of mind thing....Treacle looked into my memories and that seemed to unlock the old ones. They've come back slowly, through my dreams...not all of them are good, but it's nice to have them." Neantog murmured agreement. "Still though, not all good....it's made my mind pretty broken and fractured. Some things you shouldn't remember" she said quietly, staring at the floor.
Arden and Neantog looked uncomfortable, and Arden desperately searched her mind for a different topic. "So.....why do you need to find a black bear?" she queried, and looked relieved when Ravenfire perked up. "Is for Alrisha....I said I'd make her a cloak like mine, but I want it to be black so it doesn't ruin her look", she giggled. Arden and Neantog laughed, and Neantog remarked "She is very set in her black and gold, isn't she." Raven just nodded. "They are the colours of her ancestor, so I understand it..." she managed to say through the giggles. "Do either of you know where I'd find one?"
The three mused on that for a while, then moved to other conversation. The mead soon ran out, and Ravenfire pulled a bottle of whiskey from her pouch to fill the gap. Before long the sun was rising, and the storm outside had passed. Realising the time, they decided they should sleep, and each headed to their beds, satisfied by the night gone by.
.