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Post by The Jenn on Sept 7, 2008 21:10:10 GMT -5
As his family practically charged him, Lior could feel some constriction in his chest relax and he wrapped his arms around her, a completely new sensation to him. Bipedal arms were... convenient. "I love you, Rhi. I love you so much." The words were barely a whisper, not meant for anyone else. He knelt down so she wouldn't have to stay standing and buried his nose in her fur for a moment, arms around her neck now until she turned.
He didn't want to look up. He didn't want to see Xiven's face, whatever expression was on it. Both of the children nearly attacked him then and he made a choked, happy noise, letting go of Rhi for a moment so that he could grab each of them and pull them close. His beautiful children. "Papa missed you both," he told them both in a soft voice, pressed close to them as he was. Really, he had missed them more than he thought he would, especially after what he'd done to their siblings. He would be having nightmares about that for years to come, he was sure. They would only be added to the pile. A good night's sleep was nearly impossible for him.
When Xiven spoke, he simply couldn't avoid it anymore and looked up, haunted golden eyes meeting hers. Oh Hills, the guilt... it would chase him until the day he died, wouldn't it? There would always be something he hadn't done or couldn't do or shouldn't have tried. This was a big one. He'd known there would be people missing him, their uncle in particular, but he definitely wouldn't say that everyone had been hoping for his return. He didn't know if Linda had ever forgiven him for what she said he'd done.
Swallowing hard, he let go of the children and stood up, swaying slightly. His head spun a little bit and he wondered in the back of his mind how long he had before he would fall asleep where he stood. "A- a lot." He cleared his throat with a cough and tried again, dehydrated. "A lot's happened, Xiven. I apologize, if you've been waiting for me to come back. There are reasons... but I don't suppose they really matter." He unconsciously pulled the cloak more tightly around him, his curse and his savior, the most confusing thing that had ever happened to him.
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Post by carcinoGeneticist on Sept 7, 2008 21:37:13 GMT -5
Rhiannon melted into the hug, wishing only that she had arms that could hug back rather than her rather... inflexible animal legs. She nuzzled into the soft fur of his cheek as he knelt, eyes closing from the pleasure. "I love you.. I missed you so badly." she whispered directly into Lior's ear. To the others, his aura of cold and death would likely be stifling - but to Rhiannon, it was a welcome home, something that had been strangely missing from her life for far too long. Before turning to Xiven she licked his cheek softly, nuzzling him. He came back.
Oh, Lior. If only you knew how much you meant to me.
As soon as his attention was on them, Treasa began to hop on her front limbs, licking urgently at her father's face, her tail wagging so hard she actually fell over once or twice. "Papa, papa, you came back. I was so scared you got sick too," And now papa had big strong arms he could hug her with! She squirmed into his hold, nuzzling his chest. Kieran was behaving in much the same way, except with much flapping of his golden wings. "But you're back, you're home! Isn't our new home beautiful, papa! And Mama Xiven! You have to meet her!"
Rhiannon could feel the tension dripping off of every word that was spoken, and she let out a soft whimper. Was this really a good idea? She wasn't sure if she should say anything, just turned to look at Xiven, her childhood friend, with a somewhat pleading expression. "But he's home now..[/b]" she said, sounding rather pathetic. She was a waste when it came to soothing other's hurt emotions, especially when she was in the middle of the reasons they were upset...
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Post by Kari Muffin on Sept 7, 2008 21:54:54 GMT -5
Her tail puffed up completely. That was the biggest load of bullshit she had ever had the pleasure of hearing--and she worked in politics for the Suit's sake! Her already clenched fist tightened to the point where her claws dug into her skin. Blood dripped down to the floor.
Xander backed up startled at his mother's reaction. His eyes widened in fear. "Mommy," he whimpered as he got close to the floor. He kept his eyes trained on her figure. Somehow the feeling he was getting from Lior just wasn't quite as terrifying as his mother's rage. It was still scary and made him shake, but Raging Mommy was a little more tangible for the boy to understand.
Her ears pulled back as he moved forward. "They don't matter?" She shrieked at the top of her lungs before grabbing the other feline's neck. "Everything matter's Lior. You're just too blind to see it! You're so damn selfish you make me sick! Did you even stop to think about how much pain you put everyone through. Saying you're back doesn't make it all magically better you ass. You better have a reason enough to STIR HEAVEN AN EARTH otherwise I am going to kick your ass sorry until you beg me to stop!"
She could feel the start of tears. Oh no. She wasn't going to cry. Xiven lifted back her bloody fist to punch him in the face. It wasn't hard enough to break anything--fragile man or not--but it was enough to get the point across. As long as it didn't make contact with his nose.
(( OOC: <3 I had permission from Jenn. ))
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Post by The Jenn on Sept 7, 2008 22:07:24 GMT -5
When Lior saw the way Xiven's tail puffed up, he took a step away from Rhi and the kids, eyes widening as he watched her. It was like an unpleasant flashback, watching his papa get angry at something. Had she really... inherited that anger? Or just learned it? Was it inheritable? Was that just one more thing he had to lay on his head, Dell's rages? Like he needed more. The thought made him a bit sick.
His ears went back flat against his skull when she started screaming and he cringed, never one to withstand confrontation very well. It was what had made him flee the palace initially, after all, that fight with his sister where she had basically accused him of being the reason their father had died. It had made perfect sense to him at the time, though years and distance and worries in between made it more fuzzy and confusing now. Regardless, being yelled at always made him wilt.
She was right. Everything she said was right. He was selfish, couldn't even love half of his own children, didn't think about his family or what he put them through, wanted unreasonable things... "Xiven, I-"
He hadn't expected the punch, which surprised him after the fact as he fell backwards, landing hard on his rump and tail and wincing. Reflexively, he shifted back to his animal form. It was smaller, less of a target, and closer to the ground. She had hit him somewhere between the mouth and nose and he could feel the upper lip of his muzzle split, blood trickling down and into his mouth. Nasty flavor. He licked at it without thinking, a feline habit, and cowered. He was pathetic. He probably deserved this. Really, he probably should have been born the Torquehelm and she the Highlander. Odd how fate worked things. His mind was cruel and he didn't say anything. She probably wouldn't believe him, anyway. It was all ridiculously unbelievable. He just watched her. It would probably make her angrier, but he couldn't make words come.
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Post by carcinoGeneticist on Sept 7, 2008 22:20:36 GMT -5
Oh, no, this was terrifying. Rhiannon's yellow eyes were wide as saucers as she looked at Xiven, her pupils mere pinpricks. She moved towards the feline slowly, slinking low to the ground in a purely coyote motion, gently licking the feline's clenched fist, trying to calm her. She had no idea the history between the two - she'd never asked Lior for specifics, and he'd never offered them up, and she'd simply assumed that there wasn't too much despite their being half-siblings.
And then everything blew up. The coyote yelped as Xiven lifted Lior and pulled back, her fur bristling. "XIVEN![/b]" she screamed, trying to figure out what to do, and then Xiven punched him square in the face. Rhiannon's panic was so great that, without even being conscious of her doing so, she summoned Apocalypse and ran between the pair, fur bristling. Her back was to Xiven and her yellow eyes were focused on Lior, but it was clear she was protecting Lior as much as she was her Queen. She stood between her lover and her Queen, ears pinned back against her head as she glanced from one to the other, the tension so thick she felt she could barely breathe.
It was, however, Kieran who broke that silence, his sister having stumbled back to Xander and pressed her face against her half-brother's side, too terrified to do more than simply sob and whimper. Kieran, on the other hand, screamed.
"PAPA![/b]"
It was not a sound that a child should be able to make, and it caused Rhiannon to nearly double over in pain, staring blankly at the child that had run to his father's side, body language expressing terror. What... the hell was that /noise/ and how had it come from her child?
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Post by Kari Muffin on Sept 7, 2008 22:36:01 GMT -5
Xander let out a horrified cry when his half brother shrieked. He shook like a leaf with Sa by his side, tears flowing down his cheeks. That hurt, this was scary, and Mommy was still angry at the Lior guy on the floor. What was going on? He half whimpered as he tried to move closer to Sa. This really was too much for him.
Whatever that was it was painful. The Queen shudder and almost collapsed from the sudden terrible pain. She never was one for dealing with pain. But three seconds wasn't enough to get her mind completely off of Lior and the fact that she was still furious.
"Rhiannon. Move." She hissed. Lior still hadn't grown a pair of balls in the amount of time he had gone. She was completely puffed up now as she glared at him, completely ignoring Rhiannon. "If he wasn't so pathetic I would kick his ass--however right now I want him to explain himself. He needs to give me more than just an excuse. It's not acceptable after all he's done. I want to know the truth. I don't want the complete and utter bullshit he keeps feeding people just to make them happy."
She hissed. He hadn't changed a bit. She should have been born the Highlander not him. All her childhood hatred was just bubbling to the surface. She stuffed it back down, her fur starting to settle slightly--her hand was still bleeding where she stood. "If you don't tell me the truth--so help me on your father's name--I will make your life a living hell."
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Post by The Jenn on Sept 7, 2008 22:53:01 GMT -5
Lior's head rang at his son's scream as it ripped through his mind, the closest person to the boy and directly slammed by the blast. His eyes nearly crossed and he closed them tightly, trying to stop things from spinning. Half of him wanted to vomit from the pain and the other half just wanted to pass out. He was stuck in some odd limbo between the two, and then Xiven started speaking again.
"You can't make things worse than they were before Rhi," he hissed, fighting the throbbing pain in his head. The initial burst had faded into a persistent throb, a consequence of his exhaustion and overwraught nerves being rattled around like that. "The exhaustion and confusion and never-ending death... I really don't care what you do. I haven't slept in four days. I just brought someone back from the dead who I didn't kill." That statement would make no sense to anyone but Rhi. "I think... I'm just going to pass out now." And he did.
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Post by carcinoGeneticist on Sept 7, 2008 23:01:57 GMT -5
Kieran knew he'd done something terrible, but he didn't care. Angry words were being thrown around like daggers, and his mama's pretty Queen was staring down his papa but everyone was still cringing... Even as Rhiannon backed down, as per requested by Xiven, Kieran stood in front of the fallen figure of his father, standing defiant until Rhiannon whimpered desperately for him to move. He wouldn't leave Lior, however, moving to the larger feline's side and pressing against him.
His papa was a good man. Even when they were so little and so sick, and his mama had left... He'd always had his papa.
Rhiannon looked like she was going to start to cry, clinging even tighter to the scythe she held in her mouth, looking from Xiven to Lior and back to Xiven, whimpering with sheer terror. Everything had gone so terribly, terribly wrong... She'd been enjoying a lovely morning with Xiven, and her joy at seeing Lior again... both of those good feelings were replaced by a hollow feeling in her chest. When Lior spoke, her expression turned to one of confusion and terror. "But.. that's not.. that's not possible, is it?[/b]"
He never got a chance to answer her before he passed out, and Rhiannon let out a soft cry as she darted to his side, gently nosing him. "Xiven, love..[/b]" she whimpered, looking up to the feline, imploring her for help. "W-we just need to let him get some rest. He'll explain himself then, he will. He saved my life...[/b]"
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Post by Kari Muffin on Sept 7, 2008 23:19:03 GMT -5
She was still completely puffed up, staring at him. He was a bastard. Stupid idiotic bastard. Why the hell should he help his worthless ass when he caused so much misery for her and everyone else? Why did he deserve to have everyone's love and not her? What had he done that she hadn't?
Xiven let out a low hiss and punched the nearest wall with her bloodied hand, nails digging in deeper. She was still furious and she needed to calm down. She was doing her best to try to keep herself calm. "Fucking bastard I hate him," she whispered to herself. As she slowly turned around, her hair starting to lay flat. She gave Rhi a pained look. Why had she kept this secret from her? Of all the people why had it been Lior?
"He saved your life. Yeah. That's great. He just ruined mine, and at the moment that's all that I care about," she said flatly. She looked down at her bleeding hand, she really needed to try to get a better hold of herself. She swallowed hard. Why did he have to take everything she had?
"Xander," Xiven said just loud enough so the boy could hear. "Please be a dear and take Sa and Kieran to the nursery."
The boy wobbled to a stand. His ears pulled back and wide. Mommy wasn't supposed to be this scary. But he nodded and looked to his two half siblings.
Xiven was reluctant, but Lior should have been light enough so it wouldn't be too much of a struggle. "I guess... I'll carry him to my guest bedroom." It wasn't that far away, all things considered but still. Stupid bastard. She was going to poison his drink or food sooner or later.
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Post by carcinoGeneticist on Sept 7, 2008 23:33:04 GMT -5
What could she do? The woman slunk to the children, gently nosing Kieran from his father's side as Xiven picked him up, ears and tail both sagging. "Run along, love. There are other children you can play with there, a-and nice big beds to sleep on. I'll figure everything out.[/b]" It was a weak statement but she couldn't say nothing. She watched the retreating figures of the children, already dreading the things that would be said without them around to cushion the words used by the adults.
She couldn't shake the things Lior had said. The news that he had brought someone else back to life was utterly bizzare, but... Even stranger was what he'd said in regards to her bringing him up from the depths.
The coyote hybrid followed along behind Xiven as she hauled Lior's thin frame into the bedroom. Once he was settled into the bed, she looked up at her Queen, expression utterly unreadable. "I'm sorry.[/b]" she whispered, barely audible. "D-do you want me to get you something to eat or drink? Anything you want.[/b]" It was a weak attempt at cheering Xiven up, but her intent was there.
~~~
Sometime over the next several hours, Kieran slipped into the room completely silently, leaping up onto the bed his father lay in and curling up beside him, gently kneading his long and splayed toes into the man's chest and giving him a feeble purr. He wanted to hear his papa's purr, too. When would he wake up? Rhiannon hadn't had the heart to kick the kitten out and so let him sleep with his father, watching them for a long while before her own exhaustion caught up with her.
Rhiannon had fallen asleep in the chair she was sitting in, head hanging over the armrest, scythe still laying across her chest. The last several hours had been spent exchanging words with Xiven - namely, the reason why Rhiannon hadn't told her Queen anything about the identity of her previously mysterious lover. She'd learned about their childhood together. She still had no idea what to do about any of it.
Today was not at all what she'd hoped it would be.
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