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Post by Bee on Nov 30, 2010 1:55:23 GMT -5
Getting the girl out of the room of the birth was a good idea, even though he still wasn't quite comfortable with the Queen and didn't like the idea of going back to him. But who knew what kind of trauma staying in there could inflict on--on some newborn who nevertheless seemed to be a fully cognitive and functioning adult? And honestly, Zeki didn't want to be down there either. The scene was disturbing, and though he had known the woman for only an incredibly short span of time, he had a vague feeling that he had failed her.
"You're welcome," he said, and turned his gaze up to the Queen briefly. "He can't get in because of magic, so we're going to go to him and figure out what we're going to do. Something awfully...sketchy has been going on." He led her through the stairs and closer to the crow.
When the task of making sure the girl was clean and healthy was complete, the unease came rushing back at him, worry for Virtute jumping the barriers of sudden fright and emergency birth that had kept his anxieties at bay. He told the crow, "I don't think we're getting into the Court of Spades." He honestly did not feel compelled the keep trying, as horrible as that sounded, objectively. He had done what he could for the poor woman. He wanted to make sure no harm came to her child. But getting into Spades itself had not been his drive. Every second they were here were seconds he didn't know if Virtute was safe. The thought picked at him like crows on a corpse.
"At least," he continued, as inoffensively as he could, "you aren't. I think we should get to the Court of Hearts."
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Post by Vyn on Nov 30, 2010 11:18:03 GMT -5
Though Wulfram was loathe at admit it, the Corvie was right.
All of his attempts to enter the Court so far had ended in failure and there was no use just wallowing around in the basement with a corpse. The only real option remaining was to leave and it couldn't hurt to try appealing to the Court of Hearts for help. The failure of it all left a nasty taste in his mouth.
"You're right." There was a hint of disdain in his voice, but it faded as he continued. "Ve'll go to the Court of Hearts. I can do nothink further for my Court vhile here, it's best to keep movink und see if I can find help."
Having settled on a plan of action, Wulfram turns to the Torquehelm woman at last. It was so strange to imagine she'd only just been born and yet, physically, she was undeniably adult. There was still a great deal to find out about her. Had she been born with a name like she'd been born with a binding? Or was she, in essence, a blank slate?
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Post by Kari Muffin on Nov 30, 2010 12:14:50 GMT -5
The little girl nodded at the explanations, thankful that the Corvie was telling her things. She glanced back at the corpse. Shouldn't he be more frightened though? Her existence was very wrong and shouldn't be possible.
She made a rather surprised chirp as she was ushered down the stairs on mildly wobbly legs, her ball and chain clattering with each step. She moved to the side and out of the way of the two men, her ears panning forward to listen to what they were saying. She couldn't exactly contribute with what little she knew.
The Court of Hearts? That was far away right? Were they going to walk the whole way? Was that even possible? Her brow wrinkled in thought, her ears drooping a bit. She knew basic concepts, but actually experiencing things must have been different.
"H-how are we going to get there?" she asked quietly, looking up at the pair with wide eyes. She glanced back to the stairs, her ears drooping further. "And are we just... going to leave her there?"
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Post by Nathalia on Nov 30, 2010 21:03:15 GMT -5
((Oops! Zeki seems to have tripped over something...what's this?
Empty Bowl: While this bowl certainly appeared to hold nothing,
something certainly reached out and slammed the finder in the
stomach! An invisible force slammed into them and left them with an
incredibly painful, achingly empty sensation that left them
unable to stand for a full ten minutes.
After this however, they slowly returned to normal. One week after the
event, they will slowly come to realize that they no longer need to
eat. Their body continuously sustains itself on its own with no need
for nourishment, it gives itself the proper nutrients to keep it fit
and healthy. The Creature in question can still sample things to
taste, should they like, but will find themselves uncomfortable after
five bites...or they can just suck the flavor out and spit.
The SD in question also no longer needs to hydrate themselves, and
five or more gulps of any liquid will have them puking like
mad...careful with the alcohol...
~Nathalia
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Post by Bee on Dec 1, 2010 1:25:26 GMT -5
"We can take a carriage," he suggested. "I'm sure there must be someone around here we can persuade to get us there quickly." Money--such as the bag of wealth the Queen had thoughtfully offered him earlier--could convince even the most reluctant of folk to get the wind in their sails. "Or you two could fly and I could take my plane, but that would require backtacking into Corvistowne first and you wouldn't--you probably wouldn't know the way to the Court if we got separated."
At the mention of the recently deceased, Zeki glanced toward the stairs, too. He didn't want to see the terrible mess the woman had been turned into, and something in him chafed at being potentially stalled when he just wanted to go go go--but--he would want to take care of his dead, he thought. How much of her mother was this little girl cognizant of, anyway?
He chewed his lip a little and said, "We can bury her, if you want, quickly." He thought about hauling the body out and digging a hole and felt a little nauseated. It would be dirty and saddening work and--and it would take precious time, frankly. He felt terrible for thinking it but it wouldn't go away.
He took a little step in the direction of the cellar and promptly tripped and fell on his face, and curled into a ball as pain wracked his stomach. His first thought ran something along the lines of light help me, is what happened to the woman happening--, before he realized he didn't feel full, he felt empty. Like suddenly there was a gaping hole in his abdomen that would never, ever be filled.
"Actually," he said, haltingly, wheezingly. "Actually, I may--be a moment."
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Post by Vyn on Dec 1, 2010 13:06:38 GMT -5
Wulfram eyed the mangled mess of woman. Frankly, it wasn't worth the time it would take to give her a decent burial. Before he could say anything, of course, Zeki had turned to head back into the room and promptly tripped over... what was that, a bowl of some sort? It didn't appear to contain anything, but the Corvie definitely reacted as if he'd been hit, crumpling to the ground in apparent pain.
"Corvie, vill you be alright or do ve need to get you proper attention?" Why was it always one thing after another? He turned back to the puffin, brows furrowed in a mixture of concern and frustration. "Ve don't have time to clean up the body right now. Best to leave it here for now. Once the trouble here is taken care ov, ve vill return and take care of the body."
If the damned Corvie didn't keel over on him, that is.
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Post by Kari Muffin on Dec 1, 2010 13:30:44 GMT -5
The puffin looked down at her ball and chain. Could she fly with it? It was supposed to be a proper binding, so she had her doubts as far as what she was capable of doing. She gave it a light poke with her foot.
When the Corvie suddenly went down she let out an alarmed chirp. Oh no, was he okay? He didn't look okay? Her ears drooped as his distress only seemed to grow. Bowls weren't supposed to do that were they?
She looked up at the Tulgey with wide eyes as he spoke to her. So they were going to just.... leave her mother there? They had to get to the Court of Hearts in a hurry? But... they could at least cover her up right? She glanced back down at her feet. The Tulgey was clearly the one in charge, she should just obey his word and be done with it. "Okay," she said quietly.
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Post by Bee on Dec 2, 2010 1:56:40 GMT -5
He had to admit he was somewhat grateful for the Queen just stepping in and making the decision for them--his ordinary desire to make someone feel better and his drive to find Virtute were hitting each other at weird angles, and the little mental battle clearly wasn't doing anything good for his cognitive abilities. The current pain wasn't doing them any favors, either, though as minutes ticked by--"I don't need medical attention, just a minute," he told the crow--the ache began to subside, until finally he was able to stand back up.
But all of that meant that they had lost time. And he had been the one to lose most of it, for being so stupidly conflicted and clumsy. He needed to shove niceness in a box and bury it for the next couple of weeks, because it clearly wasn't doing him any good.
"All right then," he said, "let's go."
The rain, unfortunately, had not abated, but hopefully they would soon have drier transportation.
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Post by Vyn on Dec 2, 2010 13:03:58 GMT -5
The distress in the little puffin's face was almost comical, though Wulfram hid the malicious smile behind his ever present mask of calm indifference. Instead he reached out, brushing a hand over her cheek lightly. "Don't worry, everythink will be fine." He cast one last glance into the room, studying the carnage left behind. Covering it would've been a nice consideration for whomever stumbled over it next, but he couldn't go in and he didn't intend to send the child-woman in either. The Corvie, of course, was doubled over in pain (thankfully not of the critical exploding rabbit sort).
Once the man could finally stand, Wulfram arched a brow at him and fell in step with him. Whatever had happened, the man seemed fine and that was all that mattered now.
"Ve can check the Palace stables for a horse und carriage, but I doubt ve vill find a driver to accompany it. I saw no one else on ze grounds until locating you und ze rabbit." He watched the puffin as they walked from the tunnel and out into the garden. How much trouble would she have walking an extended distance? Could a Bird born of a Rabbit even fly? And of course it was still raining. It would be so much easier to locate a carriage than to worry about all the things that could go wrong with the walk. "One of us could drive, unless you'd like to attempt to find somethink in a nearby city?"
They were on the border of Corvistowne. Hopefully it would not be as eerily deserted as the Palace was.
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Post by Kari Muffin on Dec 2, 2010 13:39:33 GMT -5
She blinked at the sudden gentle touch of the Crow. A small blush formed under her feathers as he pulled away. So... he was nice? She smiled a bit looking up at him. "Okay. Thank you." She had no reason to disbelieve him. She tucked her wings in and settled herself until the started moving again.
The Puffin followed silently after the men, periodically glancing behind her. She still felt awful about leaving behind her mother's body. Would it be safe? He had said that everything was going to be all right, so she shouldn't doubt him right?
Her ears were perked with curiosity. Knowing basic concepts was completely different than actually seeing things. So a carriage ride would probably be an interesting thing to experience.
When she stepped out in the rain she made a surprised little chirp, glancing up at the sky. Falling water! Rain! A small smile appeared on her beak. This was nice. A bit more cheerful she made sure to stay close to the men. She wanted to ask them questions, but they both seemed focused on getting to the Court of Hearts.
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