RP:A Lesson on Raven
Part of the Vakmatharas' Jar Arc
Summary: Sidd, Brennia and Aevo go over their recent encounter.
Brennia’s Room
This space of the castle is most private and not many get to see it anymore. This section of marble is covered in a thin layer of black onyx stone accented in gold and platinum, but no spare in opulence. Her own california king size bed centered against a wall sitting up a few steps, built out of dark oak and dressed in burgundy bedding and canopy curtains. This room having it’s own fireplace between it and the large washroom and thick curtains to block out the sun from all of the windows including the stained glass balcony door. A couple of elegantly plush love seats, a coffee table, and a wet bar adorn the opposite end of the room.
Brennia slept peacefully, mostly, with a velvety wing draped over herself to keep warm if they’d forgotten to cover her up. She slowly wakes up, bringing herself to sit up on her bed and when she wipes her face to see blood on it she looked a little confused. She doesn’t feel pain or a wound and… Her eyes widen and she starts to remember the events just before Raven was released, but when she looks down to see that she was decorated in spots of blood it didn’t phase her for she’s used to it by now. She gets up to get a warm rag from her washroom, probably walking right passed the gentlemen in her dimly lit room. Her eyes adjusted to the darkness and in the mirror she sees that her skin is left looking refreshed aside from the old love bite scars about her neck and shoulder areas. She tries to make quick work of getting the drying blood off her face and neck area while concentrating her powers to start up the magically powered bath so she can try to get the rest of herself cleaned off… Unless someone makes it known to her that she isn’t alone.
Sidd | There was a thumping on the door that caused Sidd suddenly wake, elbows used to prop himself as he tried to open his eyes and get himself more alert. "I'm up, I'm up!" he called out in a sleepy stupor. A trickle of wetness had him wiping the corner of his lip; A bit of leftover drool from his deep slumber through the night. He had stolen one of Brennia's pillows while she slept, assuming she wouldn't actually mind, and passed out at the foot of her bed on the floor. Aevo on the other hand had found himself a private sleeping quarters, as he assumed the two would be fine as they were. "Rise n' shine sweet cheeks." A familiar voice spoke, leather wrapped foot kicking the human in the side. When Sidd finally rolled over, he made the mistake of glancing up, coming to learn fairly quickly that Aevo was the type of guy to rock the commando style. "DUDE. Step back. Jeeze." he protested, shielding his gaze as he found the strength to sit up. It was upon setting those steel blues on the bed that Sidd had a mini panic attack, quickly jumping up to his feet as he exclaimed, "Brennia! Yo, where's Brennia!" He didn't know she had gotten up and headed into her private washroom.
Brennia heard the commotion outside the washroom and quickly slipped a silk robe on before emerging out of ‘hiding’, “you guys… Are you okay?” There was genuine concern in her voice when she came towards them about to embrace the pair, but quickly thought better of it knowing Sidd’s history with ‘darker sides’. An awkward pause as she looks down at her bare feet upon a rug over the floor, “what happened? Did one of those awful Flewminati see?” Concern furrows her brow as she looked from Sidd to Aevo and she now assumes this complete stranger has seen the worst of her, “I am so sorry you had to see that.” She suddenly felt thirsty and meandered passed them towards the wet bar in her room in order to find the small ice box that had chilled spring water and ice. She honestly did feel thoroughly embarrassed and the redness of her cheeks proved it, “I completely understand if you guys don’t wish to be under my employment anymore.” She took an ice cube and held it at the base of her neck trying to cool off. Raven can sense the monster under the surface of Aevo and she wants out to play, but without Brennia activating the tattoo Raven won’t be making any surprise appearances. She takes a deep breath, “but honestly I didn’t see a way around that one.” She couldn’t even bring herself to look at Sidd if there was any possible way he was looking at her with disgust.
Sidd tried his hardest to smile at the woman and managed to at least get halfway there. He was mostly concerned about how she was feeling for the most part. "I'm perfectly fine, lass. Especially after we got back n' put ye t'bed, because Sidd and I cuddled through th' night. He's a sweet and gentle lover." The lycan replied first to Brennia, waggling both brows as he slapped Sidd on the ass. Sidd was momentarily distracted as he turned toward the Aevo, both palms lifted as he gave the guy another of his 'what the hell' looks. He was unable to maintain his more serious composure as he half laughed in disbelief. "Oh hell naw! Not in this lifetime!" Brennia is given a look next as he adds, "Totally not true!" It wouldn't take too long before Sidd's expression softened as Brennia spoke more, feeling relieved that she was actually okay. "Yeah. They saw. Before you freakin' axed them all. I mean, thanks for saving my life, but man, I had the dude's blood ALL. OVER. ME." He tucked his hands in his pocket, maintaining a bit of distance for the time being. "What was that Brennia? What happened? You weren't you. Your eyes... they were so black. And you just.. offed those dudes like it was nothing. Do I need to be afraid of this side of you?" He didn't mean to just accost her with questions like that, but he was genuinely scared last night. When she made suggestion that they could leave their contracts, Aevo was the first to speak up. "What? I ain't see much t'make me wanna quit, lass. You keep th' gold flowin' and I'll do whatever n' th' hell ye like. I've seen worse. Believe me." Sidd made a slow approach, a couple steps taken toward the ebon winged avian before sitting down onto the bed and putting his hands in his lap. "I won't quit either. I mean, I'm still here. We're still tight. I'm just glad you're okay. It would be cool to be filled in, though, you know?" he forced a bit of a chuckle to try and make her feel at ease, his words laced with play, "Though, next time, can we not gank a dude and have him bleed all over me? That was a little messed up."
Brennia smirks and let out a soft short chuckle at Aevo’s joking while attempting to play along with them, “well, now I’m jealous.” She pulls out a few small glass bottles with water in it and brings one over to Aevo on her way to bring Sidd one, “go ahead and have a seat Aevo.” She places a hand on his shoulder and he would feel how warm her hands are before she quickly took her touch away. Taking a seat on one of the loveseats across the room she nods once at Sidd’s questioning, “I owe you two an explanation at least.” Blue eyes fell down to the coffee table before her where a large leather bound book sat decorated in the same pattern as her tattoo, “I guess I should start with the fact that my father was a power hungry man.” She took up the book and walked it over to either of them, “within these pages are his documented journey to put together a magical ink of his own. Colossal Squid’s ink, Eldest Fairy Wings, Yoke of a Dragon’s egg and Enchanted Maple Sap from an ancient tree.” A sip of her water before a glance to Sidd, then to Aevo for she’s still not entirely sure of him, “um… This was quite the conquest for him and I was shown a memory from what I named Inky. In this memory I was shown that he used a very powerful avian bard to selectively erase my mother’s memory of what he’s done because she did not agree… Not only was he power hungry, but he was very corrupt and didn’t want any loose ends so he had her exiled from Island Vere and then assassinated, her name was Raven. She transferred her power to me that day right under my father’s nose and that is where I get my bardic powers from. Inky then remembered who she was, Raven.” She glanced to the covered up windows and wondered what time it was for a brief moment, “I didn’t even know of my ink until I turned a hundred and thirty when I went through the grieving process for my Lycan owner.” That was just an odd sentence all around, “that event was the catalyst to the Smyth family awakening, where those of my bloodline come into their own… But it woke Raven up as well and for the longest time we were at odds and I had no control of when she surfaced.” Another unsure glance to Aevo after she stood up and then a shrug when she pulled the silk robe open. Still decorated in blood and in under garments, she points at the lock tattoo, “this keeps Raven locked away and only I can activate it and I know… I know I can just somehow get the ink removed… But,” she turns to a floor length mirror to look at herself decorated in the ink and the blood, “it’s the last thing I have of my family. The last real, thing anyway.” She slowly ties her robe back up before genuinely asking, “any other questions?” Liberty blue eyes look from one then the other.
Sidd sat at the edge of the bed, eyes never once leaving Brennia as she wove her story for the two men in full detail. During this time, once he had taken a look at the showcased book, Aevo would make his way to the empty loveseat and plop down, making himself quite comfortable without hesitation. He was never the kind of man to feel awkward or out of place; He made every situation something he simply belonged in- Kind of like a hound might. When the robe opened, both men looked attentively to the ink she pointed out, surprisingly neither letting their gaze wander astray. "So, let me get this straight.." Aevo began, "That tattoo is th' only thing keepin' yer dead mother at bay?" He looked a little confused, then muttered, "Where'n th' hell was this lass when ol' Red was givin' me trouble?" Then, almost as those missed words finally hit him, the tattooed man asked, "Lycan owner? As in a lycan owned you? Or someone that... owned lycans?" The last of his words were said with a hint of displeasure. Sidd was still in thought, quietly mulling over the avian's words. He wasn't quite sure what to make of this at all. He had never dealt with any form of possession before. and in honesty, it was a relief that this was the actual issue itself. it's not like she were inherently evil. Not like... her. "That sucks." he finally said after a few minutes of silence. "But I think I understand. I mean, if you can control her, then that's gotta be good, right? I get you'd want to hang onto her and all, given that you're like related. But it's gotta be a problem too? I can't really tell ya what to do in this situation, because this is just not really my area of expertise." He shrugs and flops back onto the mattress to stare at the ceiling.
Brennia shook her head, “no, not my mother; her name was Ninna. The tattoo pattern is what ties me to the memory of my family because we all share it, but Raven was a separate person all together and her essence mixed with the enchanted ink.” She walks over to her vanity which houses a plethora of jewelry items and lifts a small box, but Aevo’s questioning caught her attention, “Alariek was a slaver… At first. All I know is he was trying to turn one of my friends and I traded myself so he could escape, but I ended up becoming a lover instead because I can be… Persuasive,” whatever that means! She was idly caressing her fingertips over the scar where he dug those large wolf teeth into her shoulder in the thought of him. Both hands back on the box, “I am happy she saved you, Sidd. She did what I wanted in the first place because, honestly, if you weren’t there I would have… I don’t know. I just knew I needed to be able to act fast and the only person who could was Raven and she listened to me,” she was surprised a little. “The only thing is, I don’t remember a thing. It’s all a blur like a bad dream or something.” She opens the box and places it upon the coffee table once more, “because you gentleman helped me and I hope you don’t repeat what happened… I am going to trust you with this.” Motioning to the opened earring case upon the table to the jewelry that is gender neutral and black in color, “this is called the Mark of Sourdine.” The last word is obviously french and they would be able to hear it in her accent, “this will make you immune to bardic magic of persuasion or otherwise… I am sure one of you heard her sever a spine or two with just a simple short melody?” If Raven came at them with one of those feather daggers then that would be a different story. She crossed one leg over the other, “you only need one earring if you accept my peace offering. I don't want her to lose her focus and accidentally hurt one of you because she is strong, she is quick and smart… I mean you can’t be three hundred-ish years old and be dumb, but she is chaotic and wild with her attacks.” She looks down at the robe covering her legs up to the knee, still unable to look at Sidd directly, “again, I’m sorry you two had to witness that.” She will wait for their acceptance or rejection before she gets to her next question.
Sidd laid there with his hands behind his head, eyes shut so that he could both rest and take in Brennia's words attentively; He was still fairly tired, given that he didn't get a whole lot of sleep through the night. "Oh, I getcha now." Aevo's voice piped up when the avian clarified the relation. When she spoke of her persuasive nature, the roguish wolf smirked and said only, "Woof." When Brennia began to address the human, he nodded, still not lifting himself off of the bed, his reply trying to be somewhat light-hearted. "I remember. I'll probably never forget either. I've seen some pretty crazy crap, man. That though, was intense. Did I mention I got covered in some dude's blood?" A soft snort escapes. "But yeah, I'm glad she saved the day. Though I won't lie, chicky, she was a scary ass bitch." Aevo leaned forward to the table when Brennia opened the box, thick digits taking one of the earrings out to examine it up close. He then tosses it to Sidd, whom still hadn't moved from his sprawled out position on the woman's bed. Blindly, Sidd felt around from where the object hit, and when he had found it, held it above his head so that he too could get a better look. "Aye, it weren't too hard t'miss. Although, didn't know what actually happened. They jes sort'o crumpled right then n' there. This'll come in handy, methinks." Aevo wasn't sure if he would ever need this thing, because he wasn't exactly positive if he had plans to stick around yet or not. He did get on well with Sidd. Brennia was now his employer. There had been no immediate plans on really getting to know anyone, outside of work colleagues until he figured out what he wanted to do. Yet, it seemed as though those plans may in fact change. 'Think nothin' of it, lass. I'm tellin' ye. I've been through worse. I promise ye. I were once tormented by a demon in this land. Th' bastard even banished me between worlds once. Lost all me friends. Me lover. Ain't no damned she-witch gon' make me lookit ye any different." It was true, Aevo hardly cared at all. Sidd was quite silent for some time, thinking about her words and peace offering. He did like Brennia. A lot. As far as friends go, in this world, she was his best. Yeah, that crazy broad known as Raven scared the crap out of him. But did he really want to let that one incident sour things? " It's cool." Sidd said, finally propping himself up onto his elbows so that he could give the woman an earnest smile. "I still dig ya. I still got your back. No matter what."
Brennia smiled a half smile at Sidd and his last words, but she still felt awful and still felt as if this has sullied their growing friendship to a standstill. Aevo seemed to not care either way and she gave him the same type of smile, but this all felt so awkward now. “So… I cannot remember what happened. Would either of you care to elaborate for me?” She pulls her gaze from Aevo as if he was a sun too bright to stare at and not only because he’s probably sitting in an unfortunate fashion showing his own family jewels, but because she's getting this subtle desire to let her own monster out… Like an itch you can’t scratch. Adjusting herself on her seat and sipping on her bottled spring water before pulling her hair free of it’s ponytail and letting the wavy black tendrils cascade down to her waist. Long slender tattooed fingers smooth through it and push it all to one side while waiting for their stories.
Sidd went back to his laying position, eyes fastening themselves to the ceiling as he tried to recall what went down. "Well, like, some bastard put a knife to my neck. And when they grabbed you, you kind of... changed. Your eyes went black, which was crazy, but your wings, they... hardened? At least I think that's what happened. All I know if that you threw one at the dude holding onto me and it stuck in his head like a knife. Bled all over me." He wouldn't let that last part go, no matter what. "Uh. Then you grilled that chick for answers by nearly drowning her a few times. You barely did anything, they just sort of... did what you commanded. The other dudes all dropped outta nowhere." Aevo sort of catches a hint and crosses his leg over the other, chiming in shortly after. "Aye, there seemed t'be some sort o'attack here at th' college. A few culprits. Thinkin' they're all dead now. I know I saw wounded and a couple o' dead when I came lookin' fer ye's." Sidd took over again, "yeah. As soon as Aevo came into the hot spring, you finished off those Flewminati jerks by ganking them each in the throat. Then you, or Raven, ordered us to bring you back here and watch over you. To not speak about this to anyone." A shrug, "After she told me that I was 'off limits' whatever in the hell that means." Aevo nodded, "Aye. That's about it. I got meself a cot t'sleep after some o' the security n' I made sure th' grounds were clear- n' Sidd stayed here with ye through th' night."
Brennia listened sort of smirking when Sidd continues to bring up the blood part and still didn’t look much to Aevo as she touched the bottle at the side of her face to keep cool. “She said that?” She looks even more surprised and sort of conflicted, “she’s learning to listen a little more I guess… The whole reason of bringing her out was to protect you, Sidd.” After putting all the details together, “you said she got some information from one of them, right? Do either of you remember what that was?” When she finally did look back to a more covered up Aevo she recalled a bit of something, probably due to Raven, it was the look and feeling Raven got when she set her gaze on him… She didn’t think Raven was into anyone, could that even be possible? Or was she just hoping for a bit of fun other than killing? Brennia felt she was about to make a huge mistake asking this, “Security, huh? Were any students harmed? I’m surprised they got passed the enchantment to begin with. If anyone approaches the castle with intent to harm any of the residents it looks as if it’s not there, confuses the assailants and sets them traveling in circles… But it seems I should have put of a backup plan.” In complete uncertainty she forces herself to look at Aevo, or continue to, “what are your thoughts on security work for the college instead?”
Sidd tried his best to remember what was spoken last night. In truth, everything happened so quickly, and so violently, that it had been hard to focus. Both hands lifted to fall to the sides of his forehead as he struggled. "Uuuuuh. That dude. Vermin... something. She was asking something about him being 'one' or something." His eyes fell shut again, those events replaying over and over in his mind while he tried to sift through the relevant information. "Something something... primary brother? um... something about you being a threat for welcoming filth into Schezerade. i'm gonna guess that they mean people like me... haha." The human's hands come to rest on his chest as he concludes, "Oh yeah. I think they're pissed you've been considered a candidate for senate or something. So like, political assassination?" Aevo had been digging through his satchel when he found what he had been looking for; A shiny red apple. It crunched beneath his powerful jaws, a few thorough chews as he listened in on Sidd's recollection. When questioned by Brennia, he turned to her and said, "A few. Although, from what I been hearin' this morn', all minor injuries. Th' fatalities were all th' attackers. Although, th' dead that I saw sure as hell looked like students. Inside job, y'think?" Another bite, brow lifted to her more interesting question. "Aye. I think ye might be ont' somethin'. I'd be more'n happy t'put in some work here fer ye. Ain't th' first time I'd be hired as protection." This would most likely be in reference to his days traveling with his former partner in crime. He had spent many years acting as the assassin's bodyguard and closest friend.
Brennia looked angered and that’s when her cold tone showed itself again, “if they mean you then I am glad they are dead.” When he said she was being considered for Senate she looked shocked and the glass bottle shattered to the floor before her, “me?” She joked about it before, but thought it was a long shot, “hm.” When Aevo was assessing the attack she felt sick to her stomach and her hand went to the area as if that would make her feel better, “this is bad… They’ve put their trust in me. I have to get ready and get down there.” It’s still Sunday right? She walks passed Aevo on her way toward the windows and dares peeks outside to see what time of day it was. Immediately she backed away hissing the word, “merde!” Her hand was a red welt where the sun hit it and she puts her hand to the temple as she got an immediate headache. “I’ve got to get ready and get down there to see the students,” she walks over to the door to her room and opens it for them, “you two could retire to Sidd’s own room or whatever you want to do. Aevo, if you’ll stick around I will show you around the castle properly? Get you familiar with the grounds.” Once the men approach her she would try and stop Sidd with her voice in a near whisper, “I can’t stop saying how sorry I am, Sidney.” She knew she should have told him back at the Whaler’s bar and just to test the waters she reached a hand up to attempt a caress at his cheek.
Sidd sat up fully when the glass bottle shattered, quick to make sure that nothing sinister was taking place. The woman's genuine surprise at the news had the human studying her in a curious manner, not exactly sure what to say. "Sunday? I Don-" Aevo began, only to be interrupted by Brennia's foolish behaviour in letting the sun scorch her flesh. Sidd shot the lycan a look that told the big guy he would explain later. As soon as the door opened, Sidd hopped off the bed and Aevo rose, both careful to not step in the broken shards as they started their exit. Both understood, that a woman in her position, had to take these necessary actions to keep things calm and collected. "Aye, lass. I'll be goin' t'fetch me some grub if'n it's not too much trouble. I'll look for ye later, once yer business is tended to." Sidd was nudged in the ribs, "An' you, come find me once you get cleaned up. That blood's makin' yer stink." The wolven nose was at least good for something. before Sidd could make his exit, he was stopped, steel to become locked in dance with liberty as she spoke. The hand that was lifted was not recoiled from like the night prior, the touch forcing the man to smile. He said nothing for a moment as he looked upon her, before lifting his own appendage to gently honk her nose. "It's cool, Bren. I'm totes over it, so stop apologizing. Okay? Go get ready and do your thing. You got this." he would lean in then and place upon her cheek a giant and silly kiss, complete with an emphasized MWAH. "Best pals yo." With those words, he makes his exit off to his own quarters, in a dire need of a hot bath.