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Post by Justine-Juliette de Vair on Sept 10, 2020 20:14:34 GMT
A small, comfortable room near Ceutinde's personal chambers. Here, the air is warm and the bed is filled with goose down and covered in several quilts. It is possibly the most luxurious place Justine has ever slept in the past 20 years.
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Post by Justine-Juliette de Vair on Sept 10, 2020 20:15:48 GMT
Justine laid on her bed, again trying to read the history book.This time, the distraction was the large number of pillows behind her. She was thankful it was from Ceutinde's library and not something she had actually paid for because the book was so dry she just...might...sleep...
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Post by Demetrius on Sept 10, 2020 20:40:26 GMT
"It's me. Are you up?" Demetrius said after knocking on the door to Justine's quarters.
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Post by Justine-Juliette de Vair on Sept 10, 2020 20:46:44 GMT
Justine startled from her near-sleep. "Of-of course! Its midday, why wouldnt I be?" She tied the belt of her loose robe and put the book down on the bedside table before she opened the door for Demetrius. "How are you?"
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Post by Demetrius on Sept 10, 2020 21:03:40 GMT
Demetrius looked disheveled, the bags beneath his eyes telling the story of his restless night stalking the waterfront. He entered the room frantically, locking the door behind his back. He smelled of salty beach air, and still damp to the touch.
“I have to tell you something...” He said, crossingthe room to the window and peering through the blinds. “I need to travel into the mist, though I don’t know where exactly I’m going.” Taking a moment before being satisfied nobody had followed him, he finally turned towards Justine. “I know it by name only, Lake Arawn, but I think it’s the source of all this...” he shrugged, “Of the mist, and of me.”
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Post by Justine-Juliette de Vair on Sept 10, 2020 21:21:05 GMT
"Woah there..." Justine took a step back as he locked her door and ran about like a man possessed. She recognized that fear and panic in an instant. "Sit down, youre safe here. I promise." She nearly told him the Reclaimers downstairs would make short work of anyone...but she hardly thought that would comfort him, not with the way he seemed to vanish sometimes in the Mist. Instead, she took his shoulder and pointed toward the well-cushioned chair in the corner. "Sit there."
"I've never heard of Lake Arawn. Are you sure that's what its called? Who told you about it, and how did they know you needed to go there?" She poured a glass of water and held it out to him as she sat on the ottoman near the chair and waited for him to join her.
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Post by Demetrius on Sept 10, 2020 22:23:19 GMT
He settled down in the offered chair and took the glass of water, though he did not take a sip. "I've never heard of it either, but I don't think I was lied too." He did not look directly at her when he talked, his focus was elsewhere. "I'm not sure what exactly they were, or if they were human, but I believed them when they told me. They gave me their names... Zenobia and Xenophon, though I'd expect creatures like them to have other names as well. They seemed ancient, talked about a time long past as they sat upon a throne of shadows and told me my destiny called me to Lake Arawn." He let out a deep breath, looking helpless, "I know I shouldn't have listened. I never should have even gone looking for them in the first place. But they drew me there, I could sense the mist, right here in Bastion."
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Post by Justine-Juliette de Vair on Sept 10, 2020 22:54:42 GMT
Justine watched him speak with a frown.
"Does what they said bother you, or is it the ones who said it?" She hated to see him like this. They had always protected eachother when the darkness came, but this time she felt there was little she could do. "Do you want to go? I've never heard of Lake Arawn, but I think questions answered is better than never knowing. What kind of place in the middle of the city held mist, anyway? On the island we found little...balls, I guess...they generated mist, but it could be banished and the things could be broken."
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Post by Demetrius on Sept 11, 2020 0:26:09 GMT
"It wasn't the mist itself, just a faintness of it." He shrugged his shoulders and thumbed the glass of water in his hands. "I don't know how to explain it, but I've always been able to feel it. This time, I felt it here, in the city, by the waterfront. Those two things I met reeked of it, the same way I do." He sat up a little taller, "But you're right, I cant go on not knowing, I have to find this lake."
He finally took a sip of water, relaxing a little bit. "There's more though, they talked about a god... Estos was his name I think. I will have to find someone who knows more about all of this stuff. And my parents!" he exclaimed, nearly forgetting. "They mentioned my parents Justine. They said they knew who they were but I was too slow to get an answer." He popped up and out of the chair, setting the glass aside so that he could pace pensively. "Do you think any of the Reclaimers you helped would possibly know the way, or be able to lead us through the mist?"
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Post by Justine-Juliette de Vair on Sept 11, 2020 1:42:01 GMT
Justine exhaled slowly and went still. "I guess I ignored that...you and the mist. You always were less uneasy than I was when we passed through. Almost comfortable, except for the fact that you knew we werent supposed to be comfortable." She bit her lip and looked at her hands. "I never heard of Estos either. Maybe you could ask Herneiros, hes this human who thinks hes an elf, or Kjell, whos only got three fingers on a hand, or maybe Mr Thorn...well, maybe not him."
She was quiet for a moment, as if she was struggling with words. "Its such a coincidence that you were given clues about your parents today...because I spoke to someone about my mine, too. I could get my title back, and my lands. Wouldnt you like that? You could live there with me. We would be safe. You wouldnt have to worry about anything. Not even the mists."
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Post by Demetrius on Sept 11, 2020 3:12:15 GMT
He immediately stopped pacing, and wrapped Justine in a big hug. "That's amazing news! Who told you all of this? How did they say you could regain your inheritance?"
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Post by Justine-Juliette de Vair on Sept 11, 2020 13:31:21 GMT
“He said he was one of my fathers old friends, and gave me some things of his.” She handed Demetrius the sword, in its sheath, and let him inspect it. “There’s more than that, but it was the most important for me. Taking everything back will take a long time. No end of plotting and secret alliances...”
She took a deep breath. “It sounds like Lake Arawn is much more immediate, though. We should go. Because of course I’ll go with you.”
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Post by Demetrius on Sept 12, 2020 2:58:42 GMT
He took the sword, rolling it over in his hands. He wasn't sure he'd ever seen one as ornate or intricate before, despite his experience with full sized blades being limited. "This is something else Justine, you weren't kidding when you told me you were from a well off family." He let out a low whistle before handing back the sword. "Maybe what I learn at Lake Arawn will help us take back what you had stolen from you. Either way, you know I will help you however I can."
Demetrius stopped for a moment, mulling something over. "Your father's old friend, the one who told you the news. Do you remember him from your childhood? Are you sure he doesn't have ulterior motives?" He hated to rain on her party, but he had to be sure.
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Post by Justine-Juliette de Vair on Sept 12, 2020 15:16:08 GMT
She shrugged. “My father was a lord. We had an estate and all. I don’t really remember him but I recall very little. It was so long ago and all my mind is taken up with her and the asylum now.”
“Perhaps it will be the end of the mist...or perhaps it will make things worse. Either way, answers will be best.” She took the sword back and squeezed his shoulder. “Maybe one day there will be answers for me, but I don’t want to steal your moment.”
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Post by Demetrius on Sept 13, 2020 5:28:53 GMT
“We can both have a moment,” he assured. “I don’t think I’ve been to an estate before. At least not one I was invited too.” Demetrius straightened his back, lifted his chin, and held the lip of his pocket with his thumb like a proper gentleman, “Think I could fit in with a crowd like that?”
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