soul bond

Wait a minute… 

This wasn’t right at all. Had she taken a wrong turn? Impossible, she had never taken a wrong turn in her life, she wasn’t sure she even could take a wrong turn, not while travelling between reflections at least. Ha she simply misremembered, then? That didn’t feel right either.

The mirror must have moved, that was the only acceptable answer here. Surely. Probably. 

Ammutseba took a moment to survey the room before her dark eyes finally came to rest on what first appeared to be some paralysed girl gawking up at her. What was she doing? She looked from the plant and that fading aura, back up to her. Was this some kind of ritual? In a moment of realisation she fought to keep a wicked smile off her features. This could be fun.

“You, girl.”

“Why have you summoned me? Speak lest I lose my patience.”

You’re looking up like a doe in headlights, feeling what is most definitely pure despair in your very being. You’ve done it. You’ve crossed the line into true evil.

And now the demon is addressing you, specifically. Oh gods. You need to calm yourself down or you’re going to cry.

[Charisma check: 13 + 4 = 17]

You stop yourself from crying at the very least. But you still need to answer.

❝I! I... I...I!❞

Words sure are hard. You force them out.

❝I didn’t mean to oh gods I didn’t know I could even do this I thought necromancy was the magic of the dead and yeah demons use it sometimes but I didn’t expect it to actually summon a demon, please don’t kill me or eat me or whatever demons do aaaaaahhhh...❞

The first time Celes’ name showed up on her screen, she could barely hold back tears. 

But this wasn’t the time for crying. Celes would be at the apartment any moment now, and what should Aya say then? Hey, I missed you! or Hey, welcome back! They’re technically trapped though; would that be weird? That would be weird! You wouldn’t welcome someone back to prison, would y —

— That. Was definitely a knock at the door. Oh, no! Ohh no no no, if only she had a little more time to rehearse…!

“ CELES-CHAN, IT’S REALLY YOU! DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I MISSED YOU? ” The words fly in tandem with the door — so much for rehearsing, right? “ Come in, come in! Here, let me take some bags from you and we can set them on the counter over there. How are you doing? Has the city been treating you well? I’m just so glad you’re okay… ”

You’re not sure what you expected when seeing Aya for the first time in... well, you don’t know how long it’s been since you’ve been here, but it’s been about a month and a half in Acrine. You were excited, but also scared. You’re worried she’d be angry (her messages were nice but your self loathing is just that strong). All of your anxieties slap you in the face the moment she opens the door.

Those worries were unfounded, and she welcomes you into her home. You should be listening to what she’s saying, but she said one thing early on, something that you latched on.

“Do you know how much I missed you?”

Do you know how much she missed you? You understand it, in the most basic sense. She invited you to spend time with her and she’s excited to be around you despite everything that’s happened.

You have the strong urge to express these emotions. You tried, once. The way the recipient reacted, with confusion and surprise, made you reluctant to try with Aya.

You do it anyway.

Instead of answering any of her questions, you move forward and wrap your arms around her.

   What had caught his eye was simply not worth the sight he returns to. It’s immediately alarming to see a bird on this particular patch of ground, since Gonta knows that’s where the worms are; he gasps, hoping he can stop the seemingly ordinary bird before it comes into contact with them, but it’s too late.

“Oh no…” If only he had paid more attention. He looks away, since this isn’t the most comfortable thing in the world to watch, but it’s only then that recognition hits him. Birds with such red eyes aren’t common to come by, are they?

“Um… Churro, is it? Is that you?”

A sigh. “Didn’t you see Gonta making friends with them? Please don’t eat the others…”

Churro munches on the worm, ready to revel in the fallout. He expects tears, anger, maybe even some violence?

But. Nothing. Just a sigh. 

If birds could sigh, he definitely would too.

「This is no fun. Why mess with you if you won’t even react?」

Churro flutters his wings as he swallows what’s left of the worm friend.  「I will eat what I like, large bug man. Mayhaps I will eat the rest later.」

「...Ah, one moment.」

Churro waits a moment, as if in thought. He then conveys what he just said through very exaggerated body language. 

The first person you contacted when arriving was Aya. Seeing her name first on the contact list helped soften the blow of seeing no names other close friends on it, no matter how many times you read it.

Aya immediately answered, and you made plans to meet in her housing to have a “girl’s night.” You don’t really get what that entails, but you told Churro to stay behind anyway.

So here you are, outside her place.

You knock at her door, careful not to drop the bags of groceries you brought with you. You made a promise (not to Aya, but to yourself) to cook a friend some food. Your skills still aren’t anywhere near perfect (you’re not even sure if they’re good), but you want to try.

     The bustle in even the less populated streets was, even after weeks of getting used to it, still overwhelming for the Heron’s senses at times; even though he had entered Little Tokyo earlier in the day out of curiosity, he found his energy waning as the hours wore on, and by early afternoon, he was ready to retire for the day, or at least seek out a quieter landscape.

     He only turned to see the pair following him when he noticed the sound of softly shuffling wings behind him, just barely audible over the ambient noise around them. The girl didn’t exactly resemble a Laguz - at least not one of the winged tribes - but the bird accompanying her did resemble a Raven. Could it be that they were from Tellius, and knew of him? Could the Ravens actually be looking for him too? The thought was marginally less comforting than if the Hawks had found him first.

     “…Were you looking for someone?” he asked neutrally, eyes shifting between the corvid and the girl, trying to identify any hint of recognition or intent behind their gazes.

You’re not sure where you’re going with this. You’ve been following this (possible) stranger, stuck in an indecisive limbo. You can’t just keep following him around forever. You need to make a decision!

The more you follow, the more the voice in your head begins doubting this entire operation. This is silly, there’s no way this is him! Their hair is different, for one thing. Not that time hasn’t done strange things before, and...

...and he’s looking at you.

Oh gods, oh no. 

Your mind goes blank. You need to answer his question somehow, oh gods.

「Looks like it’s my turn.」

You look at Churro, take a deep breath, and...

@ravenpawn

They made her uncomfortable, no matter how she looked at it. It wasn’t to say she didn’t like the blossoms – their falling was beautiful, coating the world in pink, as if this wasn’t an urban area at all. Yet surely, she should have been the last person to belong here. Surely…

It’s a futile thought, after all. One that she can’t stand having. Holding one of the blossoms in her palm, she thinks perhaps it was a good idea to stop with the daydreaming, the lamenting – to go back ‘home’ before she got lost, and it got dark. Somehow, though, the trees blend together, a mass of pink with no distinguishing features to mark the way she came, at least to Aurica’s eyes.

“Ah…” The reality of the situation dawning on her, she glances around, tentatively walking through the trees until she comes across… a crow. Tilting her head, she follows its path to a dark haired girl – perhaps somewhat like a crow herself, sitting in the shadow of the trees. Though, she seemed far too gentle, surrounded by petals like that. Someone not to be disturbed.

She’s loathe to do it, but there isn’t much place to hide – she glances away and back again, before tentatively smiling. “Sorry… for disturbing you. Do you know the way back to the housing here…? I think I’m in… number 251.”

You’re just a simple kid, and all the technology and differences between your home and here can be extremely overwhelming. Oddly enough, you find yourself with more chances to rest and re-compose yourself here, despite all that. It helps that there’s a place that seems separated from the rest of the city, filled with trees bearing pink flowers. You hadn’t seen these types of flowers before arriving, but it’s more beautiful than any you’d seen.

You have a book with you: a story set in a place similar to your own, full of magic and beasts, heroes fighting for their kingdoms, and so forth. Churro is off doing his own thing, keeping to himself (for once).

[Perception check: 7 + 1 = 8]

You’re engrossed in your story when you hear a quiet voice call out. You jump, but not so much as you would have if it were anyone with a more demanding presence. You look up at the stranger.

❝Ah! Um...❞

You look around just to make sure that she was talking to you and not someone else. She has such courage, being able to just ask strangers things! You’re not too sure about this, but you feel like you should help.

❝Y-Yes, sure! I live in 244, so! Um... I know... I know how to get there...❞ Dear gods you sound like an idiot.  ❝Right! Um... I can show you? Ah, if you don’t mind, I mean! It can be confusing— not that you can’t figure it out I’m sure you’d be fine but maybe it’s easier to remember this way or... ahhh...❞

You’re not... great at technology.

Honestly, it’s a wonder you can even work the phone you were given. You’d never seen anything like it before, magical or otherwise! You’ve figured out how to send messages and how to take pictures, and that’s it. You haven’t been that interested in anything else, besides what you need to survive.

But this, this was amazing.

It’s a “video game,” from what you’ve learned. You have no idea what it’s about but there are a lot of different characters around. Lots of people with swords, a large ape, a smaller monkey, some other people, but then...

A cute pink orb. It’s perfect. 

You need to learn how to control your magic. If you’re meant to teach the children (who, oddly enough, you never learned the names of seeing as you were transported here before being able to do so) how to do magic, you have to know how to do so yourself. You’ve been flying by the seat of your pants for the past few years, but now is the time to face your fears and practice.

You stare at the flower sitting in the pot you just bought. All you have to do is use the weakening spell. Not the death one. Not the death one. 

The flower is surrounded by a dark energy and slowly starts drooping. Please don’t be the death magic, please...

The flower is suddenly covered in shadow. But that’s not magic shadow, that’s just regular shadow. You look up and see a very tall woman staring back down at you. A woman with dark tendrils coming out of her back.

You are a fool.

You remember when you first arrived to this island. Not this time, but the time before, when the city was a barren landscape. You were scared, alone, without your best bird friend. You thought you were going to die, if not from the environment, but the loneliness.

And then someone reached out to you. An elven man, with large bird wings protruding from his back.

[Stealth check: 8 + 1 = 9]

You are a fool with hope. Your first friend in Spirale may be back.

And so you’ve been following this person with large wings, mustering the courage to reach out to him. You’re not even sure if it’s him, but you can’t leave it alone.

Churro’s master is off searching for old friends. Which is fine, let the little coward do what she wants. But seeing as she’s preoccupied with doing that, he’s allowed to do what he wants.

And would you look at that? He found one of her friends.

A very large young man, who really loves insects for some reason. He could see the appeal of hurting things too small to defend themselves, but that’s not the case here. He speaks to them as friends, protects them!

Yeah, Churro immediately realizes what he needs to do.

[Stealth Check: 16]

Now he waits quietly. He waits until the young man looks away for just long enough...

Celes — D&D oc

warlock who knows necromancy, and only necromancy

sheltered teenager that looks younger than she actually is 

the Sick Kid™ until her dad did a forbidden ritual to heal her

side effects of forbidden ritual include: dead dad! unwittingly becoming a follower of the Raven Queen, an extremely mysterious and fickle higher being! having your soul bonded to a demonic crow!

the bird’s name is Churro and you will hate him he’s a jerk

cannot speak without stuttering/pausing

sometimes the bird will help her and it will not be a good time

afraid of everything that moves, especially if once dead and made of bones

never uses her full name, due to being framed for murder

please protecc she’s babie!

alternatively, manipulate her she’s way too trusting

testimonial: “#local girl with questionable pet asks why she attracts questionables”

Additions to canon from last time:

sixth level now! can now sense jack her bird (and the bird can sense jack her)

chose to become a magical teacher/babysitter to a bunch of magician kids

she’s gotten slightly better at asserting herself

(the birb still isn’t helping)

also is now 100% sure her own family wants her dead (they sent assassins!!) 

and almost killed that assassin in anger!!

Your voice is so quiet it barely echoes within the cave, yet everyone around you acts as if it’s a loud proclamation. As expected, they all look at you with surprise. You hear your bird saying something, but you aren’t paying attention, because you just keep talking.

❝These kids... they’re... they’re not good at hiding, right? But... but I am. I mean, not, not great, or anything, but...❞

Your group found another made up of young kids running from the Mage’s College, looking for a place to belong. Just like you. And your group found them extremely easily. There’s no way they’d survive like this. 

“No, Celes has a point. Ignoring the bird, she has avoided being chased for years.”

You perk up at Feynris agreeing with you. The elf is your best friend, but you’re never confident in people liking you or taking you seriously. It’s nice to have him on your side. 

“Is that alright for you? She’s a capable magician, she’ll help you control your powers.”

Right. You’re a capable magician. You can help them.

====

A capable magician. You can help them not be like you.

You stare down at the captured mercenary. He has just told you how much your mother hates you, how she wants you dead.

Years of running and staying quiet in the shadows have made you aware of the words around you. You’ve heard rumors of spirits hidden as cats, weapons with the power to end the world, secret societies, and all sorts of impossible stories. 

But one has always comes up, time and time again: the story of a scary mage girl using dark magic who murdered one of the strongest mages in the world. She’s easily spotted by the evil familiar on her shoulder. Sometimes it’s a cat, or a bat, or a snake. Sometimes... it’s a crow.

You heard these time and time again, hoping somewhere deep in your heart that maybe your mother would understand that you never wanted to hurt your father, that it was just an accident!

This man’s existence proves your worst fears.

You don’t want him to exist. If he doesn’t exist, then everything will be fine. You won’t be hated. You’ll have a chance to be happy. You need that chance, you need something to hold onto—

You look down at your hand and see the dark haze of necrotic aura, the chill of death running through your entire hand. You should be ready to quell your powers. But something stops you.

[You could. You could do it. You can end this, you can end— ]

You close your fist hard enough for your nails to dig into your palm and draw blood. The conversation continues, no one noticing your intent to kill. 

You truly are the worst.

====

You’ve said your goodbyes to your travelling group of the past four months and are ready to meet your new... students? Students. 

You try to stay positive. You can get better. You’re not a monster. No one can know that you’re exactly as bad as people say you are. You close your eyes, breathing and centering yourself. 

You open your eyes.