Half-Sil, Whole Conviction

Log Info

• Title: Half-Sil, Whole Conviction

• Emitter: Telamon

• Characters: Ravenstongue, Rune, Telamon

• Place: Ravenstongue and Telamon's house

• Summary: Leirune comes to visit Ravenstongue and Telamon in the wake of the incident with Zalgiman. The curse laid on Telamon is discussed, as is Rune's past. The three half-sil discuss their circumstances, and Rune is invited over for future discussions should she so desire.

The Lúpecyll-Atlon home, midmorning

Some things are perennial, like the seasons. And even if there's turmoil, enduring it will make you stronger and get through it.

And so Telamon is dressed in loose-fitting cotton garments -- a light tunic over breeches, and sandals -- and he's patiently working in the garden. With the chill of winter gone, a pair of unseen servants patiently turn and till the garden's soil, breaking it up and softening it as Tel comes behind. Planting seeds and sprouts, his elegant fingers touched with rich earth.

Humming softly, he gestures for one of the unseen servants to stop working, and bring over a large waterskin. "Some things are just worth doing," he muses to himself.

Cor'lana's not wearing the flower crown nor the adventuring robes that she wore to the rescue effort, so she looks far less regal in appearance, but her flowing waves of dark hair frame the somewhat sober expression she wears on her face by the very back door of the house, having just left it. She's dressed in a lavender-colored dress spun from cotton that seems quite appropriate for the spring despite herself, the curuchuil on both her chest and hand quite prominently visible.

"I'm just glad at least this wasn't taken from you," she says. "I know it is one of the things that brings you happiness, my love."

Under normal circumstances, Rune would not have stepped foot near the Temple of Eluna. Yet, she had for the sake of those she would like to consider friends. After standing vigil there, she'd been sent to the inn for a bath and rest and upon returning had discovered that the sorcerer had seemingly recovered enough to depart the temple's care.

Rune didn't have an exact location to go in search of the pair, but she had a vague location in the city. This seems to be enough for someone who's day-job outside of Adventuring is as a messenger. The rogue is dressed in her usual, dark-colored traveling clothes, but there remain dark circles under her eyes that suggest a lack of proper rest.

Carrying what looks to be a small package, Rune peers over the fence, some relief evident to see Telamon up and about. She raps her knuckles on the fence to announce her presence before speaking, "It's good to see you up and about. You had us worried."

Telamon finishes planting the latest flower, before levering himself up to smile at Lana, his dark eyes glimmering. "Nothing's been taken, love. Yes, it's a pain in the arse as Dirk would put it, and it's not fun for either of us. But we are going to get through it." As the unseen servant trundles over, he takes the waterskin, and uncaps it for a long drink.

Once that's done, he continues, "We are as one. I'm not quitting." Then he pauses at the sight of Rune peering over the fence, and blinks, before smiling again. "Leirune! Come in, come in... Lana, can you unbolt the gate? Yes, it was... unpleasant. And we're still dealing with a lingering issue. But, I'm alive. And where there's life there's hope."

The smile that Telamon wears results in a small smile on Cor'lana's face. "We are as one, it is true," she says--

And then there's Rune. She brightens to see the fellow half-sil, although there's still something weary about her that remains nonetheless, despite the smile and cheer on her face. "Hello!" she calls out. "I can get the gate."

It's in short order that she unbolts the gate and lets Rune in. "It will not be the first nor the last time that an adventurer will be in peril," Cor'lana replies. "But you were not the only one worried. Tel has many friends and many who love him--which is part of why the army I assembled was so large."

The bits and pieces that Rune picks up between them is enough to suggest that something still remains, hanging over the two. It is enough to give her next words a bit of an uncertain, shy tone, "I hope I'm not interrupting." Even so, as the gate is unbolted, the half-sil steps in, giving a bow of her head first to Cor'lana and then to Telamon. It's overly formal, likely because she still isn't quite sure where she stands with most people.

"Well... you certainly have a presence that commands people and draws them to want to fight at your side." Rune explains as she lifts her head, her dyed hair moving slightly out of her face as she offers a tentative smile. "But, with everything we face, it's important to stand together." The connections that half-sil have from their shared experiences certanily offer some thread to tie them.

"Oh." And that's when she seems to remember why she'd come. Turning to Telamon, she steps forward. "I wanted to see if you'd recovered and... I figured it was as good a time as any to bring that tea." The package she carries is a small wooden box, nothing of any remarkable craftsmanship. "It's... mostly Harkashan's doing. I'm not very skilled with herbs and plants, but... He says it should help with relaxation and recovery."

Telamon rises to his feet, dusted with the soil of his garden. And then he approaches, smiling at Rune. "You're not. It's the spring season, and I like to plant my garden around this time." He glances back where the unseen servants are now carving holes for the bushes in the earth. "Well... sometimes I just supervise." He grins impishly.

He takes the box gently, and offers Rune another warm smile. "Well then, Lana and I will have to draft a thank you for both Harkashan and yourself. You're absolutely right -- standing together we can endure. Will you sit for a little bit? I can tell you about plants, and what has transpired, and what Lana and I are doing to fix it."

Rune's compliment paid results in a small twinkle in Cor'lana's violet eyes, and she gestures to the table and parasol that rests by the garden. "It is Telamon who is the charismatic one by conventional means," Cor'lana replies. "Most days, I feel I am cut from a different cloth altogether--but it is one that Tel appears to find splendid, so that alone brings me peace."

She peers with interest at the box of tea that Telamon takes. "We have tea inside--I'll bring out a few cups of tea for all of us," she says. "My Grandfather brings us a lavender-mint tea that we're rather fond of; it's our house specialty at this point."

And so Cor'lana slips back inside to retrieve three cups of tea. When she returns with a small silver tray, a familiar white-feathered bird is sitting on her shoulder. Pothy peers at Rune with those blue eyes of his.

"Hi," he says. But not in a mimicked voice. "You're Leirune, right?" Certainly not in a mimicked voice. He sounds like a little boy brought up in an upper-class home.

"After the long winter, it's good to see new life prospering." Rune answers in turn. "My mother used to have a flower garden back home. I remember it fondly from my childhood. My father never saw much point in it. He would always ask why she spent so much time tending things would just die again in a couple of seasons." Her father's viewpoint is characteristically Sildanyari, failing to sometimes see the value in short-lived things.

Inside the box is a combination of various natural herbs from the area, all dried and ground to be able to be used as a loose-leaf tea. It has some vague citrus and floral elements to it, with enough there for maybe a half-dozen brews.

"I couldn't say for certain if that's the case, m'lady." Rune answers, her head softly tilting to one side. "Regardless, the connection you share is... certainly enough to be inspiring." The invitation is met with another hesitant nod, following the gesture towards the table. "I think I know a little, but probably not the full story. These... were the same wolves that Dolan's group were discussing the other day?" She asks.

As Lana returns with her familiar in tow, Rune's eyes are once again drawn to the very unique creature that is Pothy. "Yes. And you were Apotheosis, if I remember correctly." It has become more common place for her to have encountered both talking weapons and creatures, so she seems to simply act as if they were people, worthy of the same respect as anyone else. "I believe you were partial to snacks, is that right? I might have some nuts and dried berries if that's amenable to your tastes?"

Telamon dusts himself off with a cantrip, before gesturing for the unseen servants to stop for now. "If I don't, they'll keep digging and plowing till they're across town," he explains.

Once that's done, he lets Lana and Rune sit down before taking his seat. "Yes," he says simply. "Werewolves, not just wolves. Wolves are natural creatures." He takes his cup, and sips, before nodding at the box of herbs. "I recognize a couple of those in there. This will be good for both of us, especially in the evenings. Well done, Leirune."

He chuckles as Pothy introduces himself, before shaking his head at Leirune's tale of her father. He lets it drop, though, instead moving on. "Well, to a more specific topic: I'm cursed. I can't touch Lana without suffering injury. Needless to say, we are most displeased with this matter and are consulting specialists on it." He scowls. "I know Lana feels badly about it, but the more I consider it, the more I find it petty. It's like... like the magical equivalent of dumping a sack of flaming dog droppings on your front porch. It's not some 'grand gesture', it's just one final insult."

Cor'lana's eyes darken as Telamon discusses the curse, but she takes a seat--furthest from Telamon, most likely because of the curse. "Zalgiman was but one of the most prominent figures among the werewolves that serve the Hound," she says. "In his death, there is at least the matter that we have destroyed the man who was primarily recruiting for their cause. He was... obsessed with me, and that was why he kidnapped Telamon and then cursed him."

Pothy sighs. "It was tragic all around," he says as he hops off Cor'lana's shoulder and lands onto the table. "Not the kind of tragedy that can be soothed with just nuts and berries, but any kind of snack is greatly appreciated, Leirune." He looks at Rune with bright and shiny blue eyes. "So long as it is shared with everyone, that is."

"We still have work to do," Cor'lana says. "Regarding the matter of werewolves. I wish to find this Marsward Seraquoix that Zalgiman said was responsible for turning him into a werewolf--he appears to be the head of the whole operation. And I would like to end him."

"Mmm." The slight sound of affirmation follows Telamon's clarification. "I know. I'm just so used to just calling them 'wolves', but I suppose it's worth being more specific." Her brows furrow slightly, "Hark probably knows more about the affliction than I do. They weren't as common in Am'shere as they seem to be here, though."

As the specifics of the tale begin to be laid out, that concerned look lingers on her features, connecting this story back to what she already knows. Her blue eyes look between the two, widening slightly at the revelation of just what has befallen them. "That's... horrible." Though she has never had that depth of connection with another, the mere thought of such a thing causes a dull ache in her chest.

"Sometimes... if you can't destroy someone directly, the best way is to strike at the things they hold dear." Shaking her head, the rogue shifts slightly, unlacing one of the pouches from her belt before she finally takes a seat along with them. "I'm not sure if there's any way to help directly, but... if there is any way I can help, just ask."

Then, turning to Pothy, she opens the bag and partially pours the contents out. It's nothing fancy, simple small bits of dried fruit, nuts, and seeds. For all purposes, it seems to be the sort of thing a traveler would have to supplement their regular rations on the road. "Of course, all are welcome. It's not much, though. Some of the berries are native to the Mythwood, though. I brought some with before I left."

"Of course." There's a clinical, controlled tone in Telamon's voice, belying the look in his eyes. A look that suggests that Zalgiman might be safer dead. "But it is a lashing out, a refusal to accept a hard truth. That's why I called it petty." He sighs. "Regardless. Lana and I are not totally forced apart." His eyes twinkle, and he taps his temple. "Well before this, she enacted a spell that bound us telepathically. It was this that let her come to my aid, and despite our current predicament... we are not apart."

He smiles at Leirune. "I won't say 'don't worry' because that's a stupid thing to say. But take heart! Your rescue was not in vain, and Lana and I aren't giving up. That's what marriage is about, after all." Tel's eyes drop to the fruit, and his eyebrows rise. "Say, those are wilderberries! I've not seen those in a while -- have some, Pothy, they're really good. Uncle Telgari would bring a bagful every time he visited."

"I would not have gotten Telamon back if it was not for the efforts of everyone involved," Cor'lana says seriously. "We are indebted to everyone who came; everyone who showed up and supported us will be remembered forever. Especially Dolan, who I appointed as my 'general'--but did not learn until after the fact he was not supposed to be fighting. He did anyway out of the goodness of his heart."

Pothy's tail is already wagging happily. "What a superb snack!" he says, and he picks out the wilderberries to try. "I missed these from the last time we were all in the Mythwood together."

"We honeymooned in the Mythwood," Cor'lana explains with a warm smile, remembering fonder and simpler days. "Our wedding was almost half a year ago now--it feels like time has passed quickly and yet not so quickly, to be truthful. Pothy had a whole room to himself where he gorged himself on all the food that the estate had to offer."

"That's some comfort, at least... to still have that connection despite all else." Rune's nose twitches slightly, "Though, I'll admit, I can't imagine sharing thoughts with someone. There are dark places in my head I wouldn't want anyone having to live in, even those I care about most." She and Dolan seemed to have some measure of that in common, it seems.

"If anyone can find a solution, I'm sure it's you two. If nothing else, you've got strong friends. Sometimes, that's a strength more valuable than your own personal power." And then, something in Cor'lana's words has her expression faltering.

"I... didn't know. Honestly... we probably would have been overrun if it weren't for Dolan's strength." There is a halting way in her speech, little pauses between statements here and there. "He seemed to be in some pain afterwards. It's... obvious he's been through hell. I'm... greatful, though. I think we would have seen major injuries if it weren't for him."

Even with this added worry, she can't help but have a softer expression as the group finds their shared appreciation of the wildberries. "This is probably the last of what I have. Worked through most of my stores on the way here." She inclines her head at Telamon, since it had been his father's letter that brought her in the first place.

Telamon lets his eyes drop to the table. "If I... we had known he was hurting... I knew he's been working on recovering, ever since he got mauled by... well, that's not important. But..." He sighs. "...Forget it. We'll just have to help him as well. Fortunately, I think he's got a good friend in Zeke, that makari priest of Daeus."

He smiles again at Rune. "No one appointed you the omniscient, Leirune. You can't know everything. All you can do is do the right thing, and try not to flub it. You're going to make mistakes -- we all do -- but I'd rather try to do the right thing than not."

Tel nods at Rune's worries about having someone in her head. "It's been different. We all have little things we have to get used to, but... when you care about someone, deeply, you find those flaws aren't really important. It's like... the dwarven concept of arvulgin, reforging. Sometimes you're stronger because of those flaws."

Cor'lana reaches out a little to Rune, holding her hand out in sort of a gesture of friendship. "Dolan and I both know about darkness," she says. "Telamon grew up in a happy and stable home, but... I did not have that, and the way I came into adventuring was... More of a desperate 'last chance' than anything." The admission is one couched in subtlety.

But then she turns to Telamon and smiles warmly at him. "Then I met Telamon. I learned more about myself and the family that I'd never met before at the same time that I fell in love with him. There are joys to be had in this life, and it is of utmost importance that we always remember the sunlight even when we do not feel its warmth upon us."

Pothy pauses mid-eating. "Dolan is a very determined soul," he says. Far too intelligently for the voice he uses. "He will not stop once he's made his mind up. But that's also why he's a good friend."

There is another curious tilt of Rune's head, obviously intrigued by the small portions of a full story that Telamon lets slip. It's obvious that something had happened, perhaps something that isn't meant to be shared beyond close company. That much, she can understand. "It's okay. If I've learned anything since returning to Alexandros, it is that there are... things happening here beyond my understanding. I just... hope the fight didn't do any permanent damage. Dolan does seem like a good friend."

Rune's connections to people are still delicate threads, not the strong bonds that so many other have. So she can't exactly expect the same as those forged with both time and trials.

Maybe it is the touch of Cor'lana's hand, or maybe Telamon's words, but Rune seems to steel herself. She had struggled with her recent past, but little by little, the help of others has allowed her to face some of it. "I... was killed in Am'shere a little over a year ago. Hark was the one who brought my body back to my father in the Mythwood." That may explain part of the bond between those two and how odd it happens to be. "I'm not entirely sure how I was brought back, or why." Her shoulders lift in soft gesture.

"Seeing those effigies brought me back there. It happens sometimes. I can understand love, and trust, but... I certainly wouldn't want to subject anyone to that." Rune explains.

Telamon actually startles at that, but he doesn't recoil. Instead, he reaches over to take Rune's other hand, giving her a lifeline. "Gods, that's... it's good you were returned from the Halls, but it couldn't have been easy." He makes a face. "Being an adventurer is dangerous. I've... been lucky, as has Lana, but you can't rely solely on luck."

He squeezes Rune's hand, reassuringly. "I wasn't conscious and didn't see the... effigies, though I was told about them when I woke up in the temple." His face becomes taut. "I wondered what Dirk was shouting about in the fight, but..." He picks up his teacup and knocks back the contents, before setting it down. "A shame it's too early for wine," he growls.

"But as Lana says, I was ... fortunate, to grow up in a happy, welcoming home. And it left a mark on me: that my home should be just as warm and welcoming to those in need of a haven." He smiles at Lana. "Let us live in a house by the side of the road, and be a friend to all in need of one."

GAME: Ravenstongue rolls Perform/Oratory: (19)+23: 42

Cor'lana's eyes are filled with sympathy for Rune's story. She nods soberly and gives Rune's hand a gentle squeeze of reassurance as her husband does. In this, the half-elves are united.

"Death is a thing I have flirted with before," Cor'lana says gently. "The closest I came was at the hands of a necromancer, who intended to turn me into a shuffling corpse as he'd likely done with others before me. That does not make the concept of it easier. As for why you were brought back..."

She looks contemplative for a moment.

"We who live in the world have but one weakness:

We do not get to understand the how nor why

By which the world breathes, sighs, or laughs

As it spins and turns into the rest of eternity

While we are with it for only a seldom age.

So while it is truthful that mystery is common,

The answers are all the more wanted,

Carried close to the chest like keys of gold

Made for locks wrought from tarnished iron--

Yet living is all the more sweeter for knowing,

Yet living is all the more lovely for knowing."

The words flow out of her easily, and she looks... a little bashful as she realizes what just happened. "As someone who has lived through learning her own answers through her mysteries, that is to say--do not despair. You will learn them in time, and when you do learn? You will be far happier."

That contact feels like a lifeline. Rune has been alone for much of the time that she has been back in the land of the living. Finding solace in others feels like it is a whisper, reawakening some part of her that had lain dormant and quiet in the solitude. Her fingers flex, eyes closing briefly in appreciation of the support.

"That... is the sort of warmth I remember." She explains, blue eyes opening to look first at Telamon. "My mother was a kind soul, her home always open. When she passed, it became a cold place. My father loved her dearly, but... he never embraced her way of seeing the world." The corner of her mouth lifts slightly, "I'm more like her, I think."

Then, it is Cor'Lana begins to speak. There is something entrancing about it. Words that flow over her and draw out sweeter memories. Memories that push back at those dark, broken places. It shows in a slight easing of tension in her shoulders. "I appreciate the kindness. Both of you."

"I have another chance, so... that's why I want to take full advantage of it. Whatever it means, helping you both seems to have been part of that." The weight of it isn't so easy to lift, but it seems lighter when there are more shoulders to help carry it.

"Absolutely, Leirune." Telamon's voice is warm and gentle. "A second chance is a gift. Take it. Drink deep of life, and find happiness. The past will always be with you, just as it is for us -- but that doesn't have to define you now." He twitches his head with a grin, and there's a shimmer in the air as one of the unseen servants comes over to refill the tea cups.

"Despair has always been the enemy. More than anything else. But if you move through it, past it... as Lana did... you may find yourself so happy you'll wonder why you ever worried." He picks up his cup, once it's filled. "So let's drink to that, my wife and my friend. To hope, and better tomorrows, and triumphs that await us so long as we have the strength, the courage, and the power from which to mold victory."

Cor'lana smiles back at Rune in the same way that the fellow half-sil does. It's a sort of quiet satisfaction and contentment that only comes with seeing someone else in need of happiness getting what they need. "You are always welcome here should you need us, Leirune," she says softly. "I have a feeling that you and I, in particular, should speak more--I also lost my mother a few years ago. If you can forgive my fits of poetry, Pothy's need of snacks, and Telamon's unerring tendency to play the ever-popular host, that is, among others who are known to dwell here."

She lifts her teacup. "I'll gladly drink to that," she says. "Speaking of the 'others' who dwell here, I'm earnestly surprised that our pixie friends aren't coming out to say hello. They must be in someone else's garden admiring the menfolk."

While all of Telamon's words may speak truth, sometimes things are not always so simple. Wounds take time to heal, and this seems among a number of small steps Rune is taking to help move beyond the shackles of her past. "If nothing else, I'm happier now than before. Old friends and new... I thought I'd be better facing things on my own, but... it's easier with others. More than I realized."

At the prospect of the toast, Rune does lift her hand, taking one of the cups and tipping it up before taking a drink. Then, she looks to Cor'lana, adding, "As long as I'm welcome... It sounds like we have more than a few things in common." Things that may be best left for other discussions.

"You have... pixies in your garden?" This seems to spark some interest.

"I do enjoy being host, as Pothy will attest. I've even been known to do parties and entertain small children." Telamon grins broadly, as he takes a sip from his tea. "But yes -- you would be welcome here, Leirune."

At the mention of pixies, Telamon's eyes glint. "I... may have mentioned a couple of our neighbors were building gardens as well. I think Mirabilis said she was going to survey them. Usually, though..." At Rune's inquiry, Tel grins. "Garden pixies, yes. They're mostly boy-crazy, friendly little girls. But, um..." His expression becomes slightly embarrassed. "Talk to Lana or I if they offer you anything to eat or drink. Sometimes fey treats can have unexpected side effects."

Cor'lana has the common courtesy to at least look a little bashful. "They're friends of mine," she adds onto Telamon's explanation of the garden pixies. "Well--more accurately, they have sworn service to Telamon and I as their 'Lady and Lord Lúpecyll-Atlon'. I, ah--through my father's bloodline, I am descended from a member of the fae nobility known as the Feathered One. We simply call him Grandfather."

She points to the dark mark that adorns her chest. "This is the mark that proclaims my descent from him to other fae. I do not hide it as I consider it a matter of pride--when I discovered I had a member of my family who had loved me from afar my whole life and I never knew, and that he and I were more alike than I was even to my own mother, I decided to wear his symbol as a badge. That I am his child, in his flock, a feather in his wings."

Pothy sighs. He looks at Rune. "Get used to bird and feather puns if you're going to be around here, too," he says. "At least the snacks are tasty."

Rune warms both hands around the cup of tea. Which may be a strange gesture given that the temperatures have warmed somewhat. Still, both may have noticed that her fingers tend to run a bit cold, it seems. There is an almost enraptured expression there, all of this playing neatly into her love of stories and storytelling. It seems Cor'lana's life truly does have some fairy-tale aspects to it, quite literally.

"I'll be careful. I... already got into a bit of trouble for getting too absorbed into a book. As in, literally being absorbed into a book." That bit of information had been shared at the same meeting the Werewolves were brought up. Strange books with magical properties, it seems.

Then, her eyes seem to look to Cor'lana with fascination. Well, at her face and then at her chest and then with a flush back up again. Staring at someone's chest just seems like it may very well be improper. "I... had wondered if it had special meaning." Rune motions to a bit of one shoulder and arm which is visible, showing a tattooed mark, "These are a copy of ones my mother had, or at least as close as I could remember them. But I don't entirely know if they meant anything." After a pause, she admits, "I don't know much about who she was before she settled with my father and his family is mostly Llyranesi researchers and historians."

Her lip quirks slightly as she shows a more relaxed look, responding to Pothy. "Well, birds of a feather and all that."

"Mother doesn't quite approve of tattoos, though she admits this," Telamon taps the curuchuil on his hand, "is classy and a good way to signify marriage." He chuckles. "Lana's markings are... unique, but then, we're all unique. And sometimes they're more than just art. There's a star chart emblazoned across my back that's magically... active, I guess is the best word. I don't usually show it off much."

Telamon continues, "If you seek answers, though, this is a good place to do so. The library is extensive; the magical college is full of researchers; and there are a number of very skilled adventurers happy to offer advice if you ask."

Cor'lana doesn't mind the gaze. After all, she was the one who pointed it out, so she gives Rune sort of a reassuring look before she peers at the tattoos that Rune points out on herself, a curious look crossing her face. "Hmm," she says. "And your mother was the human rather than your father, so the odds of it being an unconventional curuchuil like my family's is nil. I wonder..."

She leans back and sips her tea, ruminating a moment more. "The problem is, there could be so many things it could be. It could have just been art of significance to your mother. It could have been indication of a bond or pact with something else. It could have also been something that simply manifested for your mother one day--which is how Telamon received his 'star chart' on his back." Her eyes twinkle a little.

Pothy looks at Rune. "I got stuck in a book once," he says. "It's not really very fun. I don't recommend it, really."

"I've got enough questions to fill a small novel." Rune replies with a soft chuckle to her voice. "It's part of what brought me back to Alexandros. That... and delivering that letter from your father." That particular job had just given her a nudge in the right direction.

As Cor'lana starts to lay out possibilities, Rune slowly sets down the cup of tea, rubbing her hands together as if she wanted to hold on to that lingering warmth. "I've... got a sketch of the full design. Maybe I could show it to you at some point." She suggests. Clearly, the part that is visible is only a small bit of a larger piece of artwork.

"I don't really have any leads other than one, but... we can talk about that later. I'll bring the sketch and my necklace over next time I visit." With that, Rune pushes up to her feet. "I am so glad to see you up, Telamon. We'll talk again soon."

Then, there is a smile for Pothy. "I agree, my friend. My adventure involved a gingerbread house and an evil hag trying to eat children. Maybe I'll tell you about it next time."