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Post by Cypress Springleap on Oct 7, 2023 17:48:34 GMT -5
“ Kid, are you going to buy something or are you gonna be here all day?” Cypress blinks when she realizes a shadow has been cast over her; she sheepishly tilts her eyes towards the shopkeeper waiting on her with their hands impatiently resting on their hips. She looks at the bottle of slurry in her hand; it’s a beautiful, twinkling blue. If she holds it in just the right way, it glitters with a rainbow-ish hue. “ Um…” She looks with a slight grimace at the shopkeeper; they’re a sleazy looking elven individual, with hair so slicked back it looks like they’ve been dunked in a vat of goo, and a grin that’s almost as oily. They’ve been pedaling what they’re calling, ‘The Golden Consortium’s Miracle Tincture’. The elven individual has been peddling it as some kind of cure all that could even regrow limbs; and her first thought had been to Mister Everett; despite having not seen him in some time since she left Sol City with mister Cyran and miss Del. She was really hoping she wouldn’t catch their attention on the other side of this little wayward cart on the side of the road, but she probably should have known better. She takes a side glance at the basket dangling from the crook of her elbow; it’s full of breads and sweets and ingredients for tea. She’s spent all of her allowance. She frowns. “ Um… Not today, but I just wanted to look... Is this really supported by the Golden— hey!” A snuffled scoff fills the air, followed by the click of hooves as Cypress jumps to grab back the bottle that the elven man snatches from her hand. He holds it just out of her reach. She looks at him, brows furrowed and cheeks puffed. “ If you’re not going to buy anything, shoo. Read the sign.” They gesture at a sign which sloppily reads, ‘No Soliciting, No Loitering,’, and something else that she can’t make out because the handwriting is near illegible. Cypress gives the sign a quick study, then looks back at them. “ I can’t.” She lies bluntly, causing the elf to deflate slightly. “ Look— whatever. Kid, you’re blocking traffic.” Cypress furrows her brows, face flushing in frustration; a part of her wants to scurry off with her head down; but also, she doesn’t want to give this fellow the satisfaction of knowing they’ve won. She puffs, making a show to look left, then right; there's not many people on the road; before staring the elf down again. “ What traffic?” The elf gives her an unamused, snakey leer as they put their bottle back on the shelf, and round the cart to lean on its curved edge. “ What’s in your potions, anyways that makes them so special?” “ None of your business, goat; go graze somewhere else.” Cypress gawks and bristles, lowering her ears and scrunching her nose to stop herself from something; she’s not sure what exactly, but she has a sudden urge to kick this guy’s stupid cart. Or their shin. Or maybe their face. Heat flushes her face, but neither she nor the elf seem to notice when the heat begins to radiate from her. The edges of the cart begin to fray slightly at the edges, sparks licking at wood shavings. (Heat Cloak) “ You’re probably not even backed by the Golden Consortium, are you?” The elf scowls at her, looking like they’re on the last shreds of their already paper-thin patience. They start to shift, pushing their elbows off the face of their cart with an ugly look on their face; but after taking a step towards her, they hesitate. “ You’re just another one of those no good copy cats, sullying the name of the Golden Consortium with your stupid, fake potions! You know, you could really hurt someone with—” She doesn’t get to finish that sentence; the elf backs away from the heat he’s finally realized is radiating from her; and as Cypress swings her arm to point at the elf’s potions— whOOF— (Firebolt) There’s a chaotic symphony that follows— because whatever the hell was in those potions was flammable. After being knocked onto her tail by the impact of the firebolt, Cypress holds her head in a slight daze; then quickly blinks into reality when she realizes she’s facing down the equivalent of a fireworks display. Potions pop their tops, scattering into the air in a glorious display of twinkling flames in the middle of Darkveil. Oh…. Oh no. She blanches; all of the anger and frustration drains from her at once; and Cypress covers her mouth with both hands, a look of horror on her face. She quickly searches for the sleazy elf — thankfully, they seem to be less flammable — because they’re on their elbows in a daze behind the cart.
... She has mixed feelings about that, actually. However, she is not going to stick around to apologize about this. She quickly gathers what she can that’s fallen from her basket and scrambles to her hooves. She trips over herself on her exit, but hurries away from the scene of the fireworks show before a larger crowd starts to gather or before the elf gets their bearings.
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Oct 7, 2023 18:58:11 GMT -5
There are only a handful of reasons that Astrid ever goes to Darkveil. In addition to coming with the intention of getting Zarius’ advice, she also decided to follow up on an ask from the Consortium about an illegal potion seller operating using their name. Last time she looked into something similar with Beist, they found explosive potions being delivered inside of muffins, but this time the contraband conman is selling in broad daylight. This isn’t out of the ordinary for Darkveil, and Astrid is well aware of the dangers that can pop up whilst simply walking in the streets, so when she sees what she thinks is the cart she’s after go up in flames, well… There goes her evidence.
Not that she cares much about the evidence right now because the short stack absolutely caught all of the disrespect given to Cypress by one snooty elf, and little miss Astrid really cannot stand that kind of behavior. Just as the guy starts to get his bearings, Astrid glances around and sees most of the onlookers have cleared the area for fear of their safety, so she rushes up to the guy with a burst of speed and fucking decks him in the face. It sends him to the ground, unconscious, with a very purple bruise seeping into his flesh. This dazes him, and sure the assault is probably illegal, but ooh does it feel good. He deserves it.
Without a moment of hesitation, Astrid hoists the delirious man to his feet. “Are ya alright, mister?” she asks. He doesn’t even realize that she’s the little tankard that just pummeled him. How could she be? Astrid is simply a small child in frumpy clothes.
“Hrn…? What… What happened to my cart..?” he mumbles, rubbing his cheek.
Producing a hefting chunk of hot stone from… nowhere(??), she tosses it up and down in her gloved hand. “Strangest thin’! This piece a’ ol’ Mount Drakolt came rocketin’ down from the sky and totally smashed up yer cart!” she explains with such confidence, that it’s hard not to believe her. “Good thin’ too, ‘cause there’s some folks from the Consortium here lookin’ fer someone hockin’ fake goods. Ya wouldn’t happen ta know someone like that, would ya?”
Sobriety suddenly snaps the elf back into the conscious world. “No way, I don’t know anything about that! I run a perfectly legitimate business!” he cries.
“Ah, is that so?” Astrid says, squatting down and picking up the remnants of a broken potion bottle. That's an excuse she's heard many times before from one specific Fellblood who has yet to convince her that anyone saying as much could possibly be telling the truth. “These don’t look like official labels.”
“How the hell would you know, squirt? Get out of her, let me clean up my shit!” When he tries to grab Astrid, he finds that the small, unarmored child goes completely unmoved by his attempts. “What the?? MOVE!”
Astrid stands upright and produces a piece of paper from her bag, unfurls it, and reads off the page, which Cypress could catch a glimpse of and see that the images and words appear on the page as Astrid starts talking again. “Well, ya see, mister, I’m a member of the Consortium meself, an’ I’ve got a drawin’ of the official labels an’ a picture a’ the culprit that looks uncannily like yerself.” She turns the page around, revealing to the elf a perfect rendition of the Consortium’s approved labeling and a guard mockup sketch of the elf standing before her.
Suddenly, he’s not so confident. “I-I don’t know who that is! I–”
He takes off running.
Astrid giggles to herself and rolls up her magical parchment then looks at the cart. It’s as good as done for, and the man’s been scared shitless enough for her to think he’s not going to be willing to try this again. For now, anyway.
Looking around, she spots Cypress not too far away and strolls right up to her. “Sorry that guy was bein’ such a jerk,” she says. “I think I rattled his noggin’ enough that he don’t even remember what happened. Are ya okay? What happened?”
Bullet Dash Punch with a side of fade from memory Summon Possession - mount drakolt whetstone Smooth Talking Immovable Bastion Wanted Poster
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Post by Cypress Springleap on Oct 7, 2023 20:53:09 GMT -5
Cypress probably would have hauled tail straight back to the orphanage had she never looked over her shoulder to make sure that no one was following her; but she does exactly that. The potions are still popping, but not nearly as much as they had been upon impact; now and then, one shoots off and explodes into a burst of glitter and suspicious substances (she still does not know what is in them). Coincidentally, the sudden clocking of the elven man takes place just as one of the potions pop — hiding the noise of the impact as much as it highlights the visual — like an explosion of glittering karma. So, it is by chance that she witnesses a blonde bullet absolutely obliterate the elven shopkeeper in the same moment he’s getting it together. The sight is such a shock that Cypress skitters to a stop on the cobblestone before she can clear the scene. Her jaw drops, and for a minute, she just gawks at the audacity— like, she had blown up the shopkeeper’s cart by accident— but even from here, that seemed like a well-timed uppercut and it had landed true. That was going to leave a mark — actually, it already was… Should she be concerned about the justification she feels after watching a man get clobbered? Especially after the hassle she just experienced from the potion seller, the sight of this girl so casually running the shopkeeper in circles has Cypress chortling beneath her breath; her hands (one still smoking from a rogue firebolt) move to hide a bemused smile while she watches. She’s still close enough to hear bits and pieces of their conversation. She lifts her ears towards the sound of conversation, trying to hone in on what’s being said; she doesn’t entirely understand everything, but she hears the Consortium’s name; and watches the elven man start to get immediately nervous about it. Cypress blinks a few times, looking quizzically at the corners of a paper drawing by itself, before the girl holds it out to the elf— and then, he’s off like he’s running a race. Cypress stays where she is, her head turning just enough to watch the shopkeeper disappear through the labyrinth of buildings that makes up Darkveil. ...
Wow. She bristles slightly when she hears footsteps and turns; she takes a wary pace backwards until Astrid speaks and there’s no intent outside of concern that she can hear. She lifts her ears towards the other girl, then raises her head to look at her better. “ Oh,” she hums. “ I’m… I’m okay, thank you.” She scratches at her cheek sheepishly and avoids her eyes when she asks what happened. “How much of that did you see…? Probably a bit, huh?” Cypress’ shoulders slump a little with the acknowledgement that she must not have noticed the other girl around— if she already knew the shopkeeper was being venomous, then she definitely saw her blow up a whole cart full of potions.
Maybe she should have scuttled while she had the chance; then again, that was really cool.
“ I just wanted to see what they were selling, and they got so angry about it… They kept talking about some cure-all from the Golden Consortium, but I don’t think I can believe the Consortium would let in people so awful…” Cypress lowers her ears, finally looking back at Astrid with slight desperation. “ The whole cart thing was an accident though! I promise it was, I just— they were so mean, and I got so upset, and then boom!” A latent potion pops off near the cart, making Cypress jump. Her hooves click as she hits the ground again; and albeit subtle, small seedlings begin to coil around the cobblestone near her feet. (Plant Growth) She looks over the girl’s shoulder in a slight panic, before looking back at her and continuing in a hush. “ Please don’t turn me into the authorities about the cart, it really was an accident, I swear!”
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Oct 7, 2023 21:10:33 GMT -5
“Yer welcome!” Astrid says with her classic gap-toothed grin spread across her freckled face, hands on her hips in a triumphant pose. Every bit of the interaction with the conman was worth her time. “I saw everythin’. He was bein’ a big jerk ta ya. Honestly, he deserved it all. I was already comin’ over ta harass him when thin’s went up in smoke. Bit a’ magical fire gave me a perfect opportunity ta clobber a bully, ya know?” With a smirk, Astrid punches one fist into her other palm.
Then her brow furrows, and her expression drops. “Huh? That guy weren’t part a’ the Consortium,” she says. “He wouldn’t a’ run away if he were. I called him out fer fakin’ his business an’ spooked him real good.” From her pouch, Astrid produces two specially mint coins printed with the emblem of the Golden Consortium. “Now these are from the Consortium! Got some special alchemica-magical properties.”
Following Cypress’ eyes, Astrid glances back at the flaming cart then shrugs nonchalantly. “Nah, I won’t turn ya in. Guard here probably would’ve just taken what they want offa that anyway, an’ we can’t have unsafe potions in the streets.” She looks back at Cypress, and her brow furrows again as they look studiously at the fawn. “Have I seen ya before? Where are ya from? I'm Astrid, by the way. Astrid Stormstone!” In classic Astrid fashion, she extends a hand to shake.
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Post by Cypress Springleap on Oct 7, 2023 21:45:21 GMT -5
The girl’s big, gap-toothed grin and confident posture helps draw Cypress out of her initial shell. Every word that comes out of the girl’s mouth isn’t critical of her, and Cypress feels pretty vindicated in this whole incident. It’s even better that she seems like she’s not going to turn her in.
If she did, she can only imagine the look on Cyran’s face when he gets back from his trip…
The girl punches one fist into her other palm, and Cypress laughs when she does. “I suppose…” she agrees, albeit the magical fire was something she couldn’t control.
She tries not to think of the many ways this could have ended so much worse.
“He really did deserve that… and you really got him good, too! I think I saw his soul leave his body when you socked him like that!” Cypress mimics the girl’s punch in the air, albeit it doesn’t have nearly as much strength to it. She giggles as she withdraws her arm back; but when Astrid produces two coins out of her pouch with the emblem of the Golden Consortium on them, her eyes practically glitter.
“No way— wait, are you really from the Golden Consortium!?”
It takes so much willpower— so much— not to snap up one of those shiny coins to see it for herself. Or step into the girl’s personal space to get a better look at the coins. But Cypress still leans forwards a bit, tail wiggling excitedly as she peers at the glittering crest. “What do they do?”
When the girl introduces herself, Cypress manages to get it together.
She looks up, blinking quizzically as Astrid asks if they’ve seen each other before. “Oh… um… I’m not really sure. My name is Cypress— Cypress Springleap, thank you for your help miss Astrid.” She reaches out, clasping Astrid’s hand in a shake— and using her free hand, basket awkwardly balanced in the crook of her elbow— to curtsy. She rises again, smiling sheepishly as she adds, “There’s an orphanage I live at; it’s, um… it’s down that way.” When she releases Astrid’s hand, she points in the general direction. “Mister Cyran takes care of us.”
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Oct 7, 2023 22:20:01 GMT -5
“I don’t take well ta bullies,” Astrid says simply. “S’pecially not when folks are bein’ jerks ta kids just tryna go about their business.” She watches Cypress box the air and stifles an entertained giggle. “He definitely weren’t expectin’ some short stack ta come runnin’ up an’ flatten ‘im! I think I hit him so hard he forgot where he was! Certainly ain’t remembered that I did it. Might not’ve done it if I didn’t think I could get away with it, truthfully.” The half-dwarf gives the fawn a playful wink.
“Aye, I’m from the Consortium,” she says while Cypress examines the coins. Without thinking much of it, she plops the coins into Cypress’ hand so she can get a better look. Astrid knows well what it’s like to be curious and want to touch things and examine them, especially when it’s hard to find something like that. She remembers well staring at the very hammer hanging from her hip every day and being shooed off for it. “Learned meself some alchemy from a nice doctor friend in Zeinav,” she continues. “An’ from me gran. Got real lucky they could help me learn ‘cause knowin’ metal’s important fer smithin’.”
“The coins? Oh, I can use ‘em ta do certain magics that need like a material component ta make ‘em work. They got little bits a’ Formulae on ‘em that help it along. If I focus real hard, I can even turn the gold one ta silver an’ vice-ah-versa!”
Cypress’ name doesn’t ring any bells, but the mention of Cyran does! “AH! Cyran! I know Cyran! An' Del too! They're real nice folks.” Another second of thought brings the memory to the forefront of Astrid’s mind. “Oh, that’s right, I got a glimpse a’ ya when I dropped by once! Nice ta properly meet ya! If yer one a’ Cyran’s kids, ain’t no way I’m lettin’ the guard get their smelly hands on ya!” There’s a long pause.
“We don’t hafta tell him ‘bout the cart. What were ya lookin' fer anyway? Maybe I can help.”
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Post by Cypress Springleap on Oct 8, 2023 10:52:20 GMT -5
“Definitely not!” Who would expect a kid to clobber them like that? Astrid came out of nowhere and absolutely obliterated him! She has no idea what else took place upon impact, but as far as she’s concerned, Astrid downright scrambled his brain like an egg. She naturally chuckles after Astrid’s playful wink; but when the girl actually places the coins into her hands, she lights up.
There’s a sort of weird reverence in her heart over something so minuscule; the coins are a little chilly to the touch, but they warm quickly within her palms. She feels like she shouldn’t be holding them; even as she flips them over and examines the crest on either side. Her tail and ears wiggle with a sort of childish glee as she does so.
“Really?” She doesn’t look up despite a smile growing on her face as Astrid explains her friend in Zeinav and her grandmother helping her learn alchemy. She listens more intently as Astrid explains the coins to their fullest, and Cypress can just barely get out an awed, “Oh man, that’s so cool…”
She holds one of the coins between her thumb and index finger, watching it glint in the light (and admittedly, mentally trying to send some kind of magical change-to-silver brainwaves in its general direction, as if it will do anything); but she offers Astrid her attention again when the girl’s enthusiasm makes her jump. Cypress’ shoulders hop briefly, before she relaxes again with a series of blinks, “Oh! You know mister Cyran and miss Del?”
Reality is a cooling sensation.
“They’re very nice, they take good care of us.” Cypress agrees, her smile softening but not disappearing; she offers the coin between her fingers a sort of longing glance as she places it back in her palm and offers them apologetically back to Astrid. “I must have missed you if you came by,” she admits, feeling a bit bad that she actually doesn’t remember Astrid at all. “But it’s really nice to finally meet you, too.”
The way she looks— her bright red horns, her outfit, and her golden hair— she feels like she should remember her had she spotted the girl around the orphanage at some point. Admittedly, she tries to keep herself busy, though; so, maybe she’d bypassed her at some point without realizing.
It’s not that mister Cyran or miss Del ever really ask her to stay busy; they don’t ask her to make snacks for the other kids, or clean up after them, or help herd them to bed. They really are so nice, almost a ‘too good to be true’ kind of nice. They have never made Cypress feel like she wasn’t welcome, or made her feel like she has to earn her place there; but to some degree, it’s like she’s still waiting for the fateful drop of the ball in which she does.
But it never comes, and it gives her mixed feelings of safety, and warmth; but also, a quiet worry about when it will end. When she will inevitably cause it to end, just like she inevitably caused the end of that scammer's cart.
When Astrid asks what she was looking for, Cypress makes a face that seems embarrassed, “Oh. Um…” She avoids Astrid’s gaze for a moment to look over her shoulder at the remains of a smouldering cart, before looking back at her. “Well… they were yelling about this potion that was some kind of healing potion— like, a really powerful one! You know, the kind of healing that could fix anything; even like, if you lost an arm?”
She still looks a bit sheepish that she might have almost fallen for that scam, “I made a friend who’s real nice that I caused a lotta trouble for when we met… He was all washed up on the beach and he lost his arm, and... he was in a bit of a bad spot, so I just thought… it would be nice to give him something that would help him get it back. You know, if he wanted…” She takes a breath and sighs, her ears drooping a bit. “He helped me more than I helped him when we met— even though I promised to help him, and then I kinda... did the opposite.”
Mister Everett was really nice. He was patient and sympathetic even though she had been struggling to control her emotions that night. He reminds her vaguely of mister Cyran or miss Del; but maybe a little goofier. She hopes he’s doing well— she hasn’t seen him since then, and she doesn’t know if she ever will again, really.
She hopes she does.
She blinks, offering Astrid a sheepish smile to mask the melancholy. “So, when I heard it could do that, I just thought… if I ever met him again, I would give it to him. I probably should have known no one would sell something like that, though.”
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Oct 8, 2023 11:42:45 GMT -5
Astrid can really appreciate Cypress’ admiration for the coins in her hands. For a moment, she considers not taking them back, but maybe she can offer her something even better if the conversation allows for it. (Or doesn’t. She’ll shoehorn it back in at some point.)
“If they’re runnin’ an orphanage, they better take good care of the kids,” Astrid says, pocketing the coins. “Don’t worry much about missin’ me, I only dropped in fer a minute. Actually, a few kids there I brought ta Cyran from the Marsh Flats with a friend a’ mine. They were livin’ in an ol’ run down place bein’ cared fer by a ghost named Melodia.” The girl smiles a bit at the memory but also the knowledge that Cyran and Del have a good reputation with the kids there based on what Cypress is saying. But wait, that means Cypress is… She looks at the satyr girl sympathetically. She’s glad that the kids have a good place to stay with people who care about them – it’s got to be a lot better than living on the streets, and they’re probably like their own little family, but it’s probably not the same as what they really want. Astrid purses her lips while she ponders, but decides to hold that for later. It’d be a bit rude to ask about it right now.
“A powerful healin’ potion, huh?” Astrid says. “I’ve got one of them, actually. The doctor from Zeinav, he invented a potion that could help the person drinkin’ it cast a powerful light magic spell! His name’s Kvasir! Real swell guy. Maybe a bit dumb, like ah… don’t make the best decisions, but real book smart!” Then she murmurs, “His not-romantic-partner is a real piece a’ work though…”
Seeing Cypress’ ears drop while she recounts the events with this Everett fellow, Astrid tilts her head. “I’m sure ya actually helped him,” she says. “Bit a' kindness can go a long way fer people. Besides, folks don’t tend ta expect much from us kids, but it’s real fun ta show ‘em that we’re awesome. Do ya know where he is? Bet we could find him an’ fix his arm with the potion I got! ‘Specially if that’ll make ya feel better. Maybe I could help ya with magic or… I dunno, teach ya some stuff about alchemy if yer interested. Ya seem it.”
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Post by Cypress Springleap on Oct 8, 2023 12:59:14 GMT -5
Cypress withdraws her arms, resting one hand on top of her basket, and the other resting against her opposite wrist. “They do,” she promises on behalf of Cyran and Del with a nod, “I was worried about bringing my little brother here when I realized it was in Darkveil, ‘cause… well, it’s Darkveil, but… They’re very kind.” She lowers her lashes with a subtle smile, but blinks in surprise when Astrid mentions a bunch of kids that she dropped off that had been cared for by a ghost.
For a moment, Cypress stares at her, utterly bewildered.
“Oh… I know some of those kids,” she remarks, adding quietly, “All this time, I thought they were telling tall tales about the ghost… They really had a ghost caretaker…?” She raises a hand, fingers curled, to her mouth while she furrows her brows slightly. She remembers hearing about Melodia; but she had always had a hard time truly believing them.
She lifts her eyes to Astrid again; and they widen when she reveals she has a potion like that. “Wait, really? That’s amazing!!” But her smile freezes when she mentions her doctor friend in Zeinav’s name. Cypress ends up gawking instead, the miracle potion briefly forgotten. “Wait! Wait, like—” She fumbles a little over the words in her surprise, “—like from the Golden Consortium? Kvasir Sigurros? The one who does the dissertations on nature in Charon!?”
Her tail wiggles excitedly.
She also does not notice anything else Astrid says about him except his name.
Cypress has cut out a number of Kvasir’s dissertation entries and placed them in her bedside table to be scrawled into her journal later; where she’ll carefully transcribe them after Cashmere’s gone to bed by candlelight, and add an admittedly childish and not-that-great representational sketch of the plant. She then presses the original dissertation on the page across from it.
She knows she’ll never be a real alchemist, but keeping projects like that for herself soothes some bitter part of her soul; and looking forwards to Kvasir’s dissertations has been a source of quiet glee for her since she moved to Darkveil with Cashmere.
“Oh my gods, that’s so cool…” The magic fades when Astrid mentions that she probably did help Everett; and reality washes over her with a couple of blinks. Cypress’ big grin softens a little; she’s not so sure about that, but she appreciates the encouragement.
Still, Kvasir’s potion could help Everett!
Except…
“I, um… I don’t know where he is, now. It was before Mount Drakolt woke up that I met him in Sol City.” She admits, smiling sheepishly. “He could still be there, but he might not be, either.” She breathes a soft sigh, her smile still present as she masks the gloomy acknowledgement that Everett has probably moved on by now.
Astrid’s suggestion that she could help her with magic, or even teach her alchemy, takes her by surprise. Cypress perks up, a glitter in her mismatched eyes— one that fades quickly when reality washes over her once again.
She’s not like Cashmere, who can control magic. She worries, too, that learning magic will make it less controllable, or more chaotic, or… worse, somehow. She already risks hurting people, and she doesn’t want to make that part of her stronger— she actually wants it to go away.
It’s what stands between her, and a life that could feel more normal; maybe even a life at the Consortium, or one where she could join Cashmere in the Mage’s Academy, or just… anything at all, really.
“Oh. Um…” She doesn’t want to appear off-put, but she’s doing a poor job of hiding something that worries her about the offer. She looks down, finally realizing that flowers have been blooming beneath her hooves; growing in happy, curled vines and silken cream petals. (Plant Growth)
She can’t even be excited without this happening.
“I don’t really get along well with magic.” She admits, offering Astrid a grateful smile nonetheless. “I don’t really use it, it just… kinda… happens. And I like alchemy a lot, but, um… When you’re throwing fireballs around by accident and blowing up people’s carts, or… or turning a whole arm into crispy bacon by accident, it’s kinda…” she trails off, slowly ducking her head; she does not realize she hasn’t provided context for that last example.
“But I really appreciate the offer!” Cypress perks up, hoping she doesn’t offend Astrid; she offers her a smile, but it’s a little more melancholic than the ones that have come to pass. “I just, probably really shouldn’t... Cause I’ll just want to learn more if I let myself learn too much, and then someone else might get hurt.”
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Oct 8, 2023 14:21:01 GMT -5
It figures that the idea of a ghost caretaker does seem pretty outlandish, and Astrid grins while Cypress puzzles it out. “Aye, her name’s Melodia! She did some magical stuff so I could call on her whenever I need her. Me da likes ta call on her too. Helps keep ‘im from gettin’ too lonely when I ain’t home, which is good. She’s real nice an’ takes good care of us both.” At least, in the little ways that she can. Being a ghost and all makes it challenging to do much more than keep an eye out and offer kind words or those of advice. Regardless, Astrid is happy to have her in her life.
When Cypress jumps at the mention of Kvasir, Astrid scratches her chin awkwardly with a little chuckle. “Aye, I think he’s writin’ a bunch of stuff about plants,” she says. It’s about this time that AStrid notices the growth of new plants at Cypress’ feet. That’s new and unusual. There weren’t plants there before, at least she’s pretty sure there weren’t. “Maybe I could introduce ya sometime. Or let him know ya’d like ta drop by. He’s way better at stuff than I am. I’m still learnin’, but I’ve got a lotta stuff down well enough.”
Now, while Astrid isn’t exactly a teacher, she does know what it’s like to be unfamiliar with magic. It’s very challenging, especially if you’ve never tried it before. Though turning an arm to bacon without meaning to does sound… dangerous enough. Still, what’s doing something new and exciting without a bit of danger? “I don’t mind teachin’ ya, really,” she says. “Or at least tryna teach ya. I done me fair share a’ blowin’ stuff up. Got a good spot in the yard fer it. Ain’t nothin’ left ta break in that spot!” She giggles. “Sometimes ya gotta make magic work fer ya, an’ sometimes that means just lettin’ it happen an’ feelin’ it out.” With one hand, Astrid motions to the flowers at their feet. “Somethin’ tells me yer magic has a lot ta do with feelin’s. Last thin' anyone wants ta do is hurt people they care about on accident. I know that fer a fact.”
It's a shame Cypress doesn't know where this armless guy is exactly, and it's been a couple of weeks, so there's no telling how far he's gotten. “Hm, don’t s’pose ya have a way ta contact this guy, do ya?” Astrid asks. “We could go askin’ around. I can get us ta Sol City real quick like.” She has her methods. But also…no wonder Cypress feels guilty if she’s the reason he doesn’t have an arm. “Un-bacon-ifying his arm can’t be that hard with the right magic an’ potions. I saw a guy get crisped up by Vulcadreaus an' still come out of it alive 'cause of magic.”
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Post by Cypress Springleap on Oct 10, 2023 16:26:23 GMT -5
Cypress’ brows furrow despite the smile on her face when Astrid presses, saying that she doesn’t mind— but also, she’s never tried to teach Cypress. The girl makes a face that’s hard to read; it could be interpreted as nervous, guilty, or uneasy; but she does think about what Astrid’s saying.
Had Astrid been somebody else, she might have tried to retreat back into her shell; but she has a cheerful and optimistic attitude— one that makes it hard for Cypress to mope for very long when she giggles or grins. It gives her a little butterfly of hope that settles against her chest as she looks at the girl inquisitively.
Astrid’s contagious giggles prompt a soft one out of her despite the gloom that’s taken to her.
Could… she learn to use her magic? The Satyr looks between her feet at the flowers coiled around her hooves; she watches as the petals of a daisy open, bright in contrast to the stone around her. “I…” she trails off, blinking a few times when Astrid predicts her magic might have a lot to do with feelings; and while Cypress doesn’t know exactly why her magic does what it does, she’s not wrong about it latching to her feelings.
Her lashes lower when she adds that the last thing anyone wants to do is hurt people they care about; and that hits too close to home.
“Do you really think I could?” She wonders out loud without meaning to; the pitch of her voice holds some quizzical hope to it— it’s more of a question for herself than for Astrid. “What if I can’t control it and it just gets worse?”
It’s the same excuse she gives every time, but it’s a concern.
She blinks as Astrid asks about contacting Everett, and Cypress scrunches her nose. “Um… I don’t.” She admits, her voice a bit guilty; in hindsight, she didn’t really think this all through very well, did she? “Quick-like?” She wrinkles her brows a bit at Astrid’s wording, “I thought we had to take a boat to get to Sol City?”
When Astrid continues, a slight look of horror crosses Cypress’ face; she’s not sure what’s worse, the assumption that Astrid thinks she crisped Everett’s arm into a sizzling piece of bacon, or the fact that she claims to have seen someone get crisped up by the living Mount Drakolt. “You mean, the mountain?” She whispers, hushed as if it’s name is simply not to be spoken. “That’s horrible!”
Although, the fact that he was still alive because of magic afterwards is… impressive. Really impressive. It goes to show how truly powerful it can be in the right hands. She shakes her head, clenching her fingers into the skirt of her dress. “No, it wasn’t— it wasn’t his arm that I crisped up it was this one that I… I found it on the beach. Y’know, just like…”
Cypress waves her arms around in some kind of charades, making a chopping motion across her elbow, “…like, just the arm! I thought it was Everett’s, so— so I grabbed it— and he told me it was, but then it wasn’t— and then I freaked out and it kinda went… pfft.” She makes a little gesture of explosion with her hands; a momentary look of embarrassment crosses her face. "And then it kinda... cooked."
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Oct 10, 2023 16:50:09 GMT -5
It isn’t hard to sense the hesitation in Cypress as she considers Astrid’s offer. To Astrid, making mistakes and blowing things up is part of the learning process. She has plenty of burn scars representative of misusing the forge, careful as she might have tried to be. Heck, she’s even got a few singes from practicing magic, not to mention the scars from being struck by lightning and all. As a kid who’s taken on a dragon god, not a lot scares her.
But something else about Cypress makes Astrid want to push her to try: she reminds the half-dwarf of Cantio, someone who she thinks is really good at something but is often too nervous to try because of his stage fright. Even that she thinks he could overcome in time, it’s just that it takes baby steps. No need to throw anyone off a cliff, even if that’s what Astrid decided was the best way for herself to learn how to fly at the Lord of Ghouls’ villa some months ago.
So, she watches Cypress ponder it, hesitate, think about the possibilities – both negative and positive. That doesn’t make Astrid’s confidence falter at all. She wouldn’t have gotten to where she is if people hadn’t helped her.
“Aye, I think ya can do it,” she says with a confident smile. “‘Specially if yer worried about accidentally hurtin’ folks. I’m sure learnin’ ta control it’ll help that not happen, ‘cause…” Astrid looks past the fawn at the smouldering remains of the potion cart. “Well, yer already blowin’ stuff up on accident. If yer gonna make stuff explode, might as well be on purpose! Learnin’ magic is hard on yer own, but a bit a’ practice in the right place’ll make all the difference! An’ if it gets worse then… I dunno, we’ll figure it out. But I don’t think it will.”
Oh right, Astrid didn’t exactly mention her methods of travel can be faster than by boat. “I’ve got a magic potion that’ll teleport ya ta any major city around Charon,” she declares proudly. “Special stuff, an’ I can make sure we got enough uses fer the both of us!” However, she does not consider the strangeness of approaching a person she’s only met in passing and offering to whisk her across the sea without warning, though in Astrid’s mind, they’d obviously tell Cyran and Del that adventure’s afoot.
“Ohhhh, it weren’t his arm still attached ta his body, per se, it was just some…random arm?” As Astrid considers it, she doesn’t actually seem all that perturbed. “Well, whoever it belonged ta, they shouldn’t a’ lost it, ya know? Somethin’ was bound ta eat it if it weren’t claimed by its owner.” Honestly, not that bad considering the flesh monstrosities she and Cantio encountered in the swamp.
Astrid leans in with a devious grin on her face. “An’ aye, I mean the big ol’ sleepin’ dragon god that blew the mountain up.” From her pocket, she produces the hot rock she used to mess with the illegal potion seller. “Got this from some a’ the rocks that went flyin’ ‘cross the country!”
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Post by Cypress Springleap on Oct 10, 2023 17:29:24 GMT -5
Cypress blinks, clasping her hands together in front of her and wringing them thoughtfully when Astrid just smiles confidently and agrees. She blinks towards the cart, the whites of her teeth baring in the slightest grimace before she blinks back at Astrid. It’s better to blow stuff up on purpose… She doesn’t respond immediately; taking a moment to think, instead.
It's not like Astrid is wrong by any means... it's just that Cypress doesn't want to have to become a hermit in the woods if things were to actually go poorly; but something about Astrid's certainty that it will be good, and that it could be figured out, gives her just a glimmer of hope. "Maybe... maybe it couldn't hurt... too much to try..."
She still sounds a little uncertain.
She still gives Astrid her attention she starts talking about her methods of travel. “ Really?” She sounds a little winded at the idea of a potion that can zoom anyone to a major city around Charon. That’s… really cool!! Her eyes widen a bit, “ Woah…” So they could go to Sol City, find Everett, and come back to Darkveil before dinner? “ That’s incredible!” She does not at all consider the fact that she doesn’t actually know Astrid; so far, the girl’s been very nice. Cypress has no reason not to trust her, especially after she stuck up for her in the face of the shopkeeper. Plus, the idea of finding Everett and “ Huh? Oh. Yeah.” Cypress answers, slightly more perturbed than Astrid about the existence of a spontaneously detached arm on a beach in Sol City. “ It was just, like… on the beach, in the sand— it was all scaley and red, and… and… hm…” Cypress pauses for a moment as she considers it. “ That... probably should have been the first clue that it wasn’t his arm, actually…” … it was dark, though, what can she say? She gives a sheepish shrug, “ I suppose so… something’s probably gotten it by now, especially after it got cooked up.” She still remembers the smell of it though, and she can honestly say it doesn’t sound very appetizing… She shakes the thought of the arm off, perking her ears when Astrid leans in. Naturally, Cypress leans in too to hear her better, ears perking with interest as Astrid talks about the big, sleeping dragon that destroyed Mount Drakolt. She blinks in surprise, looking at the hot rock when Astrid pulls it out. Hesitantly, she reaches a hand out— not touching it, but feeling the warmth around the atmosphere of the stone. “ Woah…” she whispers, hushed with reverence over a literal rock. “ It’s warm..." She looks at it for a moment longer, before looking up at Astrid. “ Does it do something special? You use it for alchemy at the Consortium?”
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Oct 11, 2023 18:47:58 GMT -5
Watching Cypress ponder over things, Astrid is happy to hear her agree. “Right! I think the worst thin’ ya can do is nothin’! Never know what’ll happen ‘til ya try. Fer instance, sometimes ta get what ya want, ya just gotta ask. That’s how I got meself adopted! Er… Well, I didn’t ask so much as I dared ‘em, but it worked!” A little flustered from her excitement, she collects herself. “Anyway, the point is ya gotta try!”
Now, they definitely won’t make it back to Darkveil in one day since the transportation potion is so hard to make, but Sky Peak is close enough, right? She could get her back without too much of a delay. It’s fiiiine.
“It was red an’ scaly…?” Astrid echoes, pondering. That couldn’t possibly be that lizardfolk from the Fighter’s Guild arm, could it? Depends on when everything happened. Astrid thinks about what Xalmann would think of knowing that the arm was cooked, and then she wonders how on earth a fiery lizardfolk’s arm would even be cooked. Either way, it’s definitely been eaten by crabs by now.
“Eh, don’t think about it too much,” she says with a disaffected shrug. “That’s the best way ta get through adventurin’. If ya stop ta think too much, ya’ll get whacked while yer distracted.”
She watches Cypress hold her hand over the heated stone. “Aye, if I prep a weapon with it, it’ll superheat the metal fer a bit! Real handy. Wish I’d had it when I was fightin’ trolls in Arid Mesa. Those thin’s were tough! Weren’t keen on fire ‘cause it stopped ‘em from regeneratin’.” Tossing the rock up and catching it in her glove again, Astrid stows it away.
“That’s the other reason I ain’t all that worried about ya blowin’ me up while we’re practicin’ magic. I’m pretty hardy after alla that.” Crossing her arms, Astrid looks at Cypress. “Anyway, ya wanna go on a trip?”
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Post by Cypress Springleap on Oct 11, 2023 20:21:00 GMT -5
Astrid’s excitement surprises her a little; particularly, when she exclaims that it’s how she got adopted. It doesn’t click for a moment, but when Astrid pauses, her ears lift slightly; so, Astrid was in her position once? Not this exact same position, of course; but Astrid was an orphan? She doesn’t chase that line of questioning, but she smiles sheepishly when Astrid encourages her to try.
For the first time in a long time, she allows that little bloom of hope to settle in her chest, and remain there.
“Uh-huh.” She agrees when Astrid questions her about the arm; but when she says not to think on it too much, Cypress cocks her head. She… supposes that she’s right; she hasn’t thought much about the arm, frankly… it was gross, but its origins are mysterious and unknown and probably will forever stay that way.
Cypress removes her hand from over the stone after a moment, looking at Astrid with a blink, “Oh?” Cypress doesn’t know much about weapons, admittedly; but her eyes glitter with quizzical interest all the same. When Astrid mentions the trolls, her eyes widen a minuscule amount. “You… fought trolls from the Arid Mesa…?” She prompts, tail wiggling quizzically. “Wow… you’ve done a lot.”
She feels some admiration for Astrid.
Although, she could totally be lying; the satyr has been around enough small, bluffing children to know that it’s pretty common… but after seeing the girl’s punch first hand, Cypress isn’t so sure about that. If she said she punched a troll, she might actually believe her.
“Hm…” Cypress hums; she raises one hoof, snapping small vines that have begun to braid themselves into her fur; and then lifts the other. She adjusts her basket on her arm, before looking at Astrid with a sheepish smile and nodding. “Where are we going?”
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