The Forgotten Zodiac

"No way," Welk said at once. "No. Way. If I'm going to gain her trust, respect, and then affection, I'm going to do it without forcing it. A trick is a trick to both, in the end." He let Werr scratch behind his ears, purring loudly, then said "I'll win her over bit by bit, like I'm doing. I'm progress, I think." He flicked his tail, then tilted his head and said "Ha, I kind wish it happened like it did for Luen, though. Them two...I think they were born to be together. Like they just kinda knew, huh? For me and Isslia...I just don't think she knows yet."

Welk beamed at Werr's words, then glanced over at Obelisk. "Something wrong?" he asked, padding lightly over to the once-dark lord. He stared up at him for a long moment, then tilted his head back down and surprised them.

He delicately rubbed his furry, thickly-maned head against Obelisk's knee, purring lightly.

Then it was back off to Werr, his purr increasing tenfold.

Fawn had almost moved to pet Welk, but he moved away before she could. Obelisk sighed a bit, trying to hide his small smile. Perhaps...they would trust him a little more. Perhaps, now that he didn't look so horrid, they didn't think he was so. He had already gotten far past his bitter frustration with the world. Fawn had dragged him out of that since the day they were engaged.

"I don't know what just happened. I felt...a bit of myself, my powers...they were gone for a split second. I'm both concerned and angry; if our unknown enemy can somehow tap into my powers...there's no telling what he or she...or it...could do."

Welk barely surpressed a small shiver at the thought of what could happen if Obelisk wasn't controling his own powers. It was quite the dark thought, and he was quick to shy away from it, instead thinking of happier times. He formed an imagine of Isslia in his mind, kept it close and thought hard about it. But then he thought too hard and imagined himself kissing her, how her lips would fit so well against his own...

Wondering why his mind was choosing now to betray him, he shook his head and rubbed against Werr instead, finding that as good of a mind-reliever as anything else.

Werr just smiled and went back to petting Welk. "We'll figure out what's going on, Obelisk. Don't worry too much."

"Hmm, yes, I'll enjoy not worrying about it when someone uses my powers to destroy the entire city." Obelisk said sarcastically, shaking his head for the fourth time since the shiver.

"Lunch is ready!" Isslia announced, interrupting his thought process. She set the plate of finely cooked fish and vegetables. The fish itself had been large; there was more than enough meat to go around, and the vegetables were fresh and smelled delicious. Isslia had even found a recipe for a sauce that fit well with the dish. As she looked around the room, her eyes fell on Ophile; the wolf was still clearly hurting, not moving from his spot. She carefully made a plate and took it over to him.

"Thank you," The wolf said gratefully, careful to wait for Isslia to step back before lowering his head and eating.

"I, um...I'm sorry about being so scared before." She said quietly.

"It's okay. I understand completely." Ophile shook his head. "I shouldn't have tried to force it. You have my forgiveness, and an apology of my own."

"That's okay," She nodded, before heading back to the table to see who else she could serve. Someone who couldn't get their own food...who was awake, at any rate. Lexi was still sleeping, after all.

She had been sleeping since the accident. Seria had placed several heavy spells over her, most of which were to keep her deeply unconscious and numb from the neck down. The pain, Seria knew, would be very severe. Even now, Seria had to perform several routine healings two or three times a day, just to keep working at repairing the damaged nerves. The bones had been mended, yes, but they had sliced through several nerves and muscles. It was a slow, delicate process of mending everything and making certain that it held. Not to mention the fact that Seria had been trying her utmost hardest not to marr Lexi's fair, pale skin. If she wasn't so concerned with trying not to leave scars, she could be done in half the time, but...

Welk ate his food quickly, licking his muzzle for several minutes afterwards. "My fondest compliments to the chefs," he said, wagging his tail nearly like a dog. He switched to human form and took Isslia's hand gently, saying "Madam," playfully before bringing her fingers up to his lips, where he kissed them softly before letting go.

Isslia pulled her hand back, turning bright red. But she slowly came to the notion that he was just playing around. She smiled a bit, then sat down next to him to eat her own share. "Thanks...it was just something I found in a little recipe book..." She trailed off as she heard Carlyle speaking, mostly to Nate.

"You drink?" The soldier seemed a bit surprised.

"Can't really drink water. I don't get drunk, though." Nate shrugged. "My liver repairs itself quickly enough to prevent that. Dragon half and whatnot." He had been sipping on a bit of wine; Obelisk had quite a few bottles stored, and had shown the Dragonian which he was allowed to take. "Did you...want some?"

"Hmm...sure. I'll take a glass or two." Carlyle shrugged, fetching a suitable cup from the kitchen. He sat next to Nate to eat and drink, though he didn't say much after that.

Welk flicked his ears back at Carlyle, then looked up as Zelana skulked into the room. The beautiful blonde gryphon hadn't spoken with any of them for days and only ate in her own room. Currently, she came down and got herself a cup of tea, then exited just as suddenly as she had came. She didn't look at any of them, she didn't say a word, she just...vanished, it was like.

Carlyle watched her go, still sipping on his wine. "So, uh...I've been watching for a few days. You lot are pretty mismatched, but...somehow it works." He nodded at Nate.

"We have relationships built on trust and mutual enemies, mostly." The Dragonian replied with a small chortle. "That's how we all found each other, really. Tragedies and torment alike. Misery loves company, I suppose."

"You don't look miserable now."

"Of course not. I have a beautiful wife, friends who care for me, and my bosses have saved my butt on more than one occasion..." Nate chortled, speaking about Werr, Welk, and Cynyr. "We try to live simple, easy lives, but the fates just won't have that."

"I see what you mean." Carlye nodded. "So you all must stick pretty close together, right?"

"Of course we do. Danger follows us like hounds. We have to be careful not to let anyone go unprotected, or without backup."

"I see...I knew a group like yours awhile ago. They were bigger. They seemed pretty happy, and were always going on adventures and the like. Claimed to have saved the entire world once." Carlyle said wistfully. "Went off into the mountains one day. Never came back."

"What happened to them?"

"Who knows? Maybe they found enough treasure to travel and didn't see a need to come back. Maybe they were all killed. I only ever saw one of them ever again, really...and she didn't say a word about it. Murdered a few days after her return, Cyprus bless her soul."

A faint 'Mememememe' came from the Demigod's place near the fire. It was easy to forget that he was an object of worship back in Bulliete.

Welk listening to the talk in a half-interested sort of way as they all congregated to the living room, where he was mostly content to curl up next to Werr with a deep sigh of contentment.

Cynyr, who was still curled around Seria, woke with a start, gasping sharply. He glanced around quickly, then slowly moved a hand to his shoulder, feeling carefully. Maybe he was surprised to feel no pain there. He gave his arm a light twist, blinking at how smoothly it moved. It was like his joints and heart had been reset, all the way back, back to before he had developed magic.

((Also, Cyprus healed Seria's womb, too. IN CASE YOU WERE THINKING OF PULLING SOME 'past damage' GARBAGE ON THEM THE NEXT TIME SHE WANTS A KID. 8I))

"Cynyr?" Werr sat up at once, looking at his friend carefully. "Are you...okay? Cyprus healed you. He took your pain upon himself, I...I was worried, though. You seemed almost...dead." He said, his eyes trailing to Seria. "Is she okay? She's okay, right?"

"Would you like dinner?" Isslia asked, setting her plate aside and standing to fetch the half-cat some food.

((Also, Carlyle will go talk to Zelana soon. 936))

((ASKJFAHJSF, FIEN. I WANT ACTUALLY GOING TO HAVE HER LOSE ANOTHER BABY RIGHT HERE RIGHT NOW, BUT THEN I REALIZED THAT SHE AND CYNYR HAVE BEEN AVOIDING THAT EVER SINCE. YEAH, THEY TOUCH AND KISS AGAIN, BUT NEITHER WANT BABIES THAT MUCH ANYMORE.))

"Urg...yeah, actually...I'm fine," Cynyr said, shifting Seria gently to the side so he could sit up. He put a hand over his chest, feeling his neat, smooth heartbeat, wondering in how it was no longer erratic and jumpy. "In fact, this is the best I've felt in a long time," he said, marveling at how easy it was not to move his arms, to stand, to slid gracefully from movement to movement. He smiled, the move brightening his scarred face, then he swept his mask lightly from his face and rubbed the spot just over his 'nose'. After giving a light tap on the spot where his skin had been split, permanently showing a thin sliver of his white skull, then turned back to Seria. "Seria...is she okay?" he asked, sitting down and pulling her close. He stroked gently down her arm, inadvertantly coming to rest his hand just over her stomach. He bent and kissed her forehead tenderly.

((Woo!))

Werr smiled a bit as he watched them, but slowly relaxed and laid back against Welk again. Cynyr could take care of Seria just fine. Even Cyprus seemed to be eased by Cynyr's sudden recovery and near-perfect wellbeing. (Actually, Cyprus had been worried that Cynyr would be mad that he hadn't healed the scars on his face, but the Demigod had no way of communicating that, after all.)

In light of the delicate moment, no one seemed to notice - or care - that Carlyle stood (taking the bottle of wine) and headed towards the back of the house, where the gryphon girl had gone.

Zelana was in her room, staring out the window and frowning mightily. She raised the cup of tea to her lips, sipping lightly and wondering how her cousin Jagat was. They had said he had a family. Married...a human. She could only wonder how well her dear, childhood friend was getting along. Quite well, apparently, as he already had a child.

She folded her legs up next to her chest and set the cup aside, settling her head on her knees.

There was a sharp knock on the door. "Would you like some company? It's never good to be alone, really...and we both seem to be somewhat ignored by the majority of the group. Might as well converse, shall we?" He opened the door a bit, sticking his head in. "I have wine, if you want some, too."

She jerked her head up, her eyes narrowed sharply down to slits, and hissed loudly before faintly recognizing him. "Oh...it's you, is it, boy?" she said, shaking her long blonde hair. "Hmm. I don't partake in those mind-fouling drinks, thank you. Keep it to yourself." She turned her head pointedly away, exhaling. "What's your name again? Carlie?"

He chortled. "No. Carlyle. Not a bad guess, though." He stepped in and sat down on the bed, not really caring about her hostility. "I see you like to exclude yourself. It's not exactly healthy, you know." He took a drink from the bottle, smiling a bit at the taste. This 'Obelisk' person had an excellent mind for these things, it seemed. "Allie Waest, that girl without legs, she could have killed herself last night. I fell asleep halfway through the night, so I wasn't able to stop her or anything. Not that I particularly wanted to...I partially wanted to see what reasons she had, but she didn't speak very much. I guess the difference is that you want to be excluded and left alone. She just has rotten luck."

She gave a dismissive shrug, as if wondering why he was still bothering to talk to her, then said "Allie was lucky, then. Just after her attempt at suicide, she found true love. Something that seems to avoid the rest of us like the plague." She shook herself as he sipped from the bottle. "Her luck is changing. Another rarity, I suppose. I guess live just decided she had had enough trouble and pushed Luen her way. I sense the Goddess' good-will behind it." She shrugged again, flicking her long golden tail.

"Ah, the Goddess. Ever interfering with the fate's business to destroy us all." Carlyle snorted. "I suppose it's just something we all have to deal with. I myself am due for a change of luck, if I do say so myself. It's not exactly easy, being me...how about you? I do hope you're doing better than myself. It would be simply awful if we had the same sort of luck..."