Of Magic and Nature (Interactive Story)

[TheFabulousHorse]

Follow/hang out with Ophelia maybe?

[sparrow;]

Go back to the school and get your leg & cuts looked after, while also seeing Amy.
Hi, I just jumped in here, hope that's okay c:

[Piefan]

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Ｋｈａｉｒｉｎａ
Female---Druid---13
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Ｉｎｖｅｎｔｏｒｙ
Saddlebags
Saddle
Books
Paralysis pastry
$8
Postcards
(no stamps)
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Ｓｔａｔｕｓ
Injured leg
Cuts on forehead
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Notes;;
Watch me do the thing that
is most certainly not railroading.
*nervous sweating*
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Ophelia leaves without another word, and you choose not to call out to her again. Glancing up at the sky reveals that dark grey clouds are gathering, which somewhat surprises you. Given the druids' absolute control over nature, it seldom rains unless they want it to; if there is a drought or something similar. You decide not to dwell on it for too long, however, heading back to school.

***

When you reach the building, you are drenched with rain. Using a few gusts of wind, you dry both yourself and Earth Beat. Due to your lack of real control over your power, the effort takes more energy than you would like, but you shake it off.

You sense her concern as she looks at your leg, where blood trickles from the bite marks you had gotten earlier, staining your ankle with small dots of crimson. "You have no excuse not to get that treated," she says. "You aren't doing anything else, and bandages haven't harmed anyone yet, as far as I'm aware."

The hallways (if they can be called that), for whatever reason, are nearly empty, a fact for which you are grateful. Deciding to follow her advice, you head for where you believe the nurse should be, somehow innately familiar with the route. You have a feeling that you will be visiting more often than most, given your current situaton and your apparent knack for getting into danger.

The nurse is in the same field as before, just beginning to pack up and leave for the day. When she sees you, however, her eyes widen slightly. "Did you get into a fight or something?" she asks. You grimace, choosing not to answer the question. She takes no notice.

Under normal circumstances, you would be questioning how she keeps all of these materials sterilised in the middle of a random field.

These are not normal circumstances, by your standards.

She quickly dresses your wounds, wrapping a bandage on your leg and sticking a plaster on your forehead. Once she's done, she waves her hand, gesturing for you to leave. "Try not to get into any trouble," she says, to which you nod. Telling the truth would be a pain, and you doubt she wants to hear it.

Earth Beat insists on staying downstairs, and you do not protest; climbing stairs is obviously a pain for a horse. You head alone to your room, where Amaryllis, as usual, is waiting. If you did not know better, you would swear she just stands there all day.

"Hey, Khairina!" she says, her curly hair bouncing as she jumps to greet you. "I was worried you were caught in the rain. Glad you aren't!"

"Yeah, me too," you reply halfheartedly, though you are glad Ajax is not here. It's clear he is not eager to patch things up with you, and you have only just gotten yourself bandaged. "Did I miss any-"

CAW!

The sudden sound shocks you, nearly causing you to fall over. You quickly regain your balance, however, and glance at Amaryllis. She only stares at you, dumfounded. "What's up, K?"

"... Nothing." You are not an idiot, and it is clear she did not hear it. Explaining would either make you seem insane or take too much time. Turning to the window, you look through it, scanning the skies. A flash of flaming feathers, flickering and fading; a pointed beak opening in a silent scream. Did you hear that? you ask your companion, thankful for the telepathic link you share.

It would be hard not to. Her reply comes almost instantly. What do you suggest we do? Investigating could be dangerous, but then again...

(note: though I didn't write out the question itself in its usual format, it should be implied from Earth's dialogue.)

[Xura]

Nah. It's time to stay inside and take a nap or something lol

[retroaqua]

Can I make something like this?

Also, yeah! You should explore the cawwing..

Probably the Phoenix..

[Piefan]

╭xxxxxxxxxxx╮
Ｋｈａｉｒｉｎａ
Female---Druid---13
╰xxxxxxxxxxx╯

╭xxxxxxxxxxx╮
Ｉｎｖｅｎｔｏｒｙ
Saddlebags
Saddle
Books
Paralysis pastry
$8
Postcards
(no stamps)
╰xxxxxxxxxxx╯

╭xxxxxxxxxxx╮
Ｓｔａｔｕｓ
Injured leg
Cuts on forehead
(Both bandaged)
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Notes;;
New poll is up. Sorry
for taking so long to
post! Also, from now on,
I'll be excluding the questions;
just answer by stating what
you want Khairina to do.
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We should stay, you reply telepathically. You may have somewhat of a thirst for adventure, but you would be a fool not to rest now. Come morning - or whenever your leg heals - you can investigate. Tomorrow, maybe.

Earth seems relieved as she departs, trotting out of the room. You ought to visit your family soon, she notes idly. It's only been three days, but I quite like your mother.

Have you been keeping track of everything?

Of course. She turns around, seeming almost to smile. And just so you know? You have talked to three new people and/or animals today. Also, judging by how much gets done within one day, the time between dusk and dawn is about fifteen hours. And she trots off.

You look back to the other girl in the room, just as a clap of thunder penetrates the silence. This is loud, unnaturally so; though you like to think of yourself as disciplined, the shock of it snaps the mental barriers that every druid has. The thoughts of animals pierce through your mind, overwhelming you, and you collapse upon your bed, though you just barely manage to keep yourself sitting up.

It takes you a moment until you gather enough focus to push the creatures out of your head. Amaryllis looks at you with concern colouring her expression, but you wave a hand. "I'm fine. Just... frazzled. Where's Ajax?"

Although her grin seems to fade slightly at the question - is that worry you see on her face? - she quickly recovers. "I'm not sure, actually. He's not telling me, and our link's getting a little weak." She doesn't move from her spot near the window, continuing to gaze out of it. She says nothing more, though you are uncertain as to whether that's good or bad.

Neither, for that matter, are you sure what else to do here. Immediately going to sleep would seem ridiculously insensitive, but what else are you supposed to say?

[Xura]

Go around it, make conversation with her. And then go to sleep.


( Great job btw! Love your writing

[retroaqua]

Ignore the question and sleep, like Xura had just mentioned.

[Piefan]

╭xxxxxxxxxxx╮
Ｋｈａｉｒｉｎａ
Female---Druid---13
╰xxxxxxxxxxx╯

╭xxxxxxxxxxx╮
Ｉｎｖｅｎｔｏｒｙ
Saddlebags
Saddle
Books
Paralysis pastry
$8
Postcards
(no stamps)
╰xxxxxxxxxxx╯

╭xxxxxxxxxxx╮
Ｓｔａｔｕｓ
Injured leg
Cuts on forehead
(Both bandaged)
╰xxxxxxxxxxx╯

╭xxxxxxxxxxx╮
Notes;;
... so I accidentally reset
the poll... Also, yes,
companions can see dreams.
Apologies; I couldn't really think of
any other choice Khairina could be
presented with at the end.
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Rain falls, the sound seeming surprisingly vivid in the silence of the room. You could probably make out the sound of each drop against the ground, if you tried. You don't. Shifting your feet awkwardly, you decide instead to try to make conversation with the other girl. "On another note, how's classes?"

She seems relieved, almost, at the question. If she notices your attempt to skirt around the topic of Ajax, she doesn't comment on it. "Pretty good, I'd say!" Amaryllis replies, regaining her former cheery tone. "And you?"

"Same. A little tiring, though. I guess I don't really have the devotion the rest do." Especially in Animal Charming, you add mentally. Though you do take the subject, it doesn't seem to have helped your experiences with them at all. Of course, most of that consists of animals' subjugation to you, and the teacher heavily insisted upon not doing that until it was absolutely needed.

"You don't really need devotion - just willpower! You're in Water Manipulation, right?"

"Yep. Are you?"

For several minutes, the two of you continue to talk. Of arcane magic and druidic; freedom and fate; whatever comes to mind. Though you disagree on many subjects, she has good reasons to her beliefs, and she respects yours, as do you with hers. At last comes a gap in the conversation, at which point you bid her goodnight.

You fall asleep within minutes.

***

You wake up far too early - stars are twinkling outside, against the backdrop of the dark sky. Walking towards the window, you crane your neck to find the moon. It's high above you - midnight, most likely. Oh, sure, when I finally get to sleep at a decent time...

The rain has stopped, though the grass below still seems moist. Occasionally, you hear the cry of some nocturnal creature, or another student who happens to still be awake, but otherwise, all is silent. Then you hear Earth Beat, greeting you. Good evening.

It's midnight.

Good midnight, then. A moment of silence elapses between you, having nothing to say. Though the two of you have grown relatively close - a side effect, apparently, of having almost every thought shared between you - telepathy does tend to eliminate most need for conversation. Are you okay?

Yes. A little tired, but fine. Why are you awake at this hour?

No real reason, apart from the fact that I can't seem to sleep. Feeling your concern, she adds, No worries, I'll be fine. But that's beside the point - I was asking about you. Were you not having a nightmare?

Though you know she can't see it, you raise an eyebrow quizzically, sitting back on your bed. Not that I remember. Why?

You weren't? But I... Her confusion is evident in her tone. I can see your dreams, and you were most definitely having a nightmare.

You sigh, flopping backwards. You usually remember your more unpleasant dreams, especially since you tend to wake up in a flurry of emotion - shivering, flailing, screaming. It's hard not to doubt her. Still, you don't want to completely dismiss Earth's words. What do you mean? What was happening?

There was a phoenix involved, I think. It was screaming, and it was sad, and... it's hard to explain verbally. A lull in the conversation ensues, during which you fidget where you lie. You don't know what else to say - you've never been the most sociable of people, nor have you been the one who makes all the decisions.

Again, a caw penetrates the silence - though it is less loud than the last one, its suddenness still surprises you. Why in the name of Daniel do birds keep disturbing you?

... Just so you know, that's probably a phoenix. Though you cannot see her, you know Earth is craning her neck to look at the sky. From your position on the bed, you do the same.

And you came to that conclusion based off the fact I had a dream about one?

Yes.

From what little you can see, you make out a trail of red, stark against the otherwise midnight blue sky. Alarmed, you stand, walking over to the window. High above you, you see fire, bright and fiery. We need to investigate this. You don't know why, but it suddenly looks so strong, as if it could destroy everything you know in the blink of an eye. Heading to the door, you begin to open it, before your companion speaks.

Wait; you're being unreasonable. You pause mid-step, deciding to listen to her. It's the middle of the night. I wouldn't recommend leaving the building at all - they may not place heavy emphasis on rules here, but they do still have them, and I don't think they'd be happy about you leaving the school in the middle of the night.

"I'm pretty sure I could get through any security if I needed to. Besides, what are they going to do, send me to detention? It's not like I'd be losing anything by that." In your eagerness to leave, you realise you were speaking aloud, rather than through telepathy.

It's not that - there's danger out there, especially with some flaming bird on the lose. You didn't take classes on how not to be flammable, did you? If nothing else, you need some form of knowledge on phoenixes before hunting one down. And - no offense - knowledge is exactly what you don't have.

Your eyes stray to the pile of books on the desk, all of which you had borrowed during your little trip to the library.

[Piefan]

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Ａｊａｘ
Male---Hawk---???
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Ｓｔａｔｕｓ
Healthy and uninjured
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Notes;;
Yay, you're Ajax now.
You'll remain as such for
the next couple posts,
so go ahead and respond
to this.
New poll is up.
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It's late, you note. Or rather, early. The morning twilight is striking, and the sky casts a pale blue light upon your feathers. Magnolia-white clouds dot the azure expanse above you. At the back of your mind, you feel Amaryllis, thoughts coloured by concern and worry. She doesn't know you're here.

You dismiss her.

Cocking your wings forward, you glide onto the branches of a tree, perching yourself on one. You always did prefer flight, but you're too tired to continue.

The creatures of the night are just beginning to head back to their dens-slash-nests-slash-trees-slash-wherever they live in because you don't really care. You consider swooping down to grab one as a late meal, but you decide against it. Reckless though you usually are, you prefer to at least know what you're eating before going through all the trouble of catching it.

The forest stretches around you, and you make a soft noise as you look out at it. The trees rise several metres above the ground, shrubs and sprays of bright-coloured flowers filling most of the scant gaps between them. There's a narrow dirt path, though, winding around them in loops.

This place has a name, you're fairly sure - the Wood of Driyla? Doesn't matter.

You don't have any real reason to be here, actually, apart from the fact that you like it. It reminds you of freedom and hope and not having stupid supervisors who don't even let you hunt anything. You're pretty sure you were born here, actually. Your memories aren't the best, though, and you've never gotten it confirmed.

A rustle. You turn to the source of the noise, seeing a wolf emerge from the bushes. In spite of the presumably uncomfortable twigs and leaves stuck to its pelt, it doesn't break stride to get them off. Following the beast is a teenager - male, clothed in the typical druidic garb. Unlike that of the wizards', it's more practical than anything else, with little care for what looks good and what doesn't.

You notice a smile spread across the boy's face, and he raises an eyebrow at the canine. They're most likely communicating, then, albeit telepathically. From their apparent bond, you would assume that the two are companions.

What's he doing here? True, it's not unheard of for people to come strolling through the woods, but not at dawn. You venture a guess that leaving school - most of the ones here are boarding schools, right? - this early would be against the rules.

You wonder if you should attempt to communicate with him or not.