#lydianah

When she stepped inside she looked around. She’d always thought Cael’s bedroom was beautiful, with silk curtains hanging from the walls in rich blues and purples, gauzy cloth softening the light streaming in from the large window next to his bed. Unlike Lydianah’s, his bed was large; big enough for three, truth be told, though it was only in the last year or so that he’d had anyone in it besides himself. She smiled for a moment. She liked her; she was nice, she made Cael happy, and more importantly got him out of the general vicinity of the shop when she was home. A large bookcase was along the wall at the foot of his bed, a wardrobe near the door... and Lyandiel Silverstorm was nowhere to be seen.

She heard a sound coming from his bathroom. Shhhh-shhhh, shhhh-shhhh…

When she rounded into the bathroom and saw her mother, she sighed. Cleaning. Lyandiel had a stiff-wire brush in her hand and she was scrubbing down tile on the shower wall. There was a crutch that she leaned on, and she was up on her good toe as she reached. “You know he’s meticulous about keeping clean, right?” she asked, striding into the room and standing right behind her mother.

“I know,” Lyandiel replied, continuing her rhythmic scrubbing motions. “Lydi-bean, I have to do something. I’m going a little crazy, and the sooner I’m done with all of this the sooner I can get back to life, and the sooner Jericho can stop feeling so guilty.”

“It’s not his fault,” Lydi said with a sigh. Maybe she sagged a little more than she should have when she leaned against the wall nearby. She was so bone-tired, as she had been for months. “Why don’t you stop scrubbing an already clean wall, go sit on the bed, and let me look at your ankle? You know I can help speed it along.”

“I do. And I also know you’re dead tired from speeding it along for two weeks,” she retorted. Regardless, she stopped scrubbing, lowered onto the flat of her good foot, and tossed her scrub brush into the bucket she’d carried over, where it landed with a sploosh.

“And the sooner you’re healed, the sooner I can rest,” Lydi said stoically, watching as her mother carefully picked her way out of the shower. “I love you, Minn’da, and I want to see you get on with your life as much as you do.”

“I love you too, Lydi-bean, and I will.” Andi leaned in with a smile when she was close enough to her daughter to give her a short kiss on the forehead. “But you’re not going to kill yourself for me.”

“Let me look at it, at least. And I bought you your favorite scoo-oone!” She practically sang that last word as she ducked out of the bathroom and waited for Andi to join her. That, at least, made her mother move a little faster.

“Fine. I’ll let you look at my ankle, but only if you share that scone with me.”

“Deal.”

The pair moved to the common area and Lydi deviated to grab the treat and plate it. By the time she got to the couch, her mother was already perched there, her legs up on the cushions. Lydi set the plate down on the tea table. “He’s worried about you, you know,” Lydi said softly, seating herself just beyond her mother’s feet and taking a look at the casting around her foot and ankle.

“I know. And he thinks it’s his fault, which it is not,” her mother replied, sighing. “I wish… I don’t know. He’s been distant, and I don’t know what to do for him right now. You’ve been distant, too.”

“Excuse me? I’ve been up in your face every day!” Lydi protested, settling one hand over Lyandiel’s toes and one hand on her calf, just above her cast. She closed her eyes, settling into that focus that she’d developed and feeling her way through the injury. It was getting there, but there were a few places that were questionable… and so, before her mother could protest, she fed part of herself into it and guided bone and tendon to repair itself.

“Stop, stop, stop!” Lyandiel half-shouted, suddenly leaning forward and peeling Lydi’s hands off of her.

“Minn’da!”

“I told you I don’t want you spending yourself like this! Why won’t you go out and live a little? Call that cute guy you told me about! Unwind a little bit!” Her mother’s voice was fraught with concern, her eyes almost pleading. “Lydi, you’re hiding.”

“I’m taking care of you,” Lydi protested.

“You’re hiding.”

“Trust me, I’d call that cute guy if I thought he was even remotely interested in getting a call from me. I screwed that one up before there was even anything to screw up.” She huffed a bit and looked over at the scone she’d brought with her. She’d have to wash her hands before she even thought about touching it. “I’m doing much more good by helping you recover. Minn’da, you have a life, a man who loves you, and you’re going stir-crazy in here!”

“And you need a life, and people who are not related to you who love you.”

“I have Arandoros. And Se’lysona. I should call them.”

“Yes!” Andi said, throwing up her hands. “Call them! Call anyone! Get out there and live; I want to see my daughter happy and thriving, and right now you’re pushing yourself too hard for me and wilting. I’ll be on my feet again before you know it, and I promise I’ll be careful while I’m working myself back up to full speed. But you need to go out. Have fun. Figure out what you want out of life.”

“You already know what I want out of life.”

“And you’re not going to find it in this apartment.”

Mother and daughter stared at each other for a long time. There were so many things that Lydi wanted to say to her, like, I can’t, I’m afraid, I just don’t have it in me anymore… I’m broken. Instead, she just sighed. “You’re right, of course. I’ll… call someone.” Reluctantly she got to her feet and started toward the kitchen sink to wash her hands and find her com. Then she went and retrieved the bag she’d left by the door, put away groceries, and deposited a pair of books on the table. “For you.”

“Ooh, thank you! Oh! The two most recent Sunspell novels! I’ve been wanting to read these.” Andi grabbed one of them and began reading the back of it. “A human man and his elven friend with a complicated history. There’s something more there, for sure. Oh! Love Eternal, Part 2! It’s out!”

“You and your romance novels, Minn’da,” Lydi teased, and then broke off half of the scone held it up near her face to speak to it in a theatrically sultry voice. “Oh, Master Scone, you are everything I’ve ever wanted! I’ve been so afraid to give you my heart, but none could ever measure up to your baked goodness. Say you’ll be mine forever!” Her mother tossed a pillow at her and she almost dropped the scone, giggling as she snatched it up from certain floor-death. “No, my love! You cannot leave me like this!”

“You’ll be reading them next,” her mother chided as she grabbed the other half of the scone and took a dainty bite.

“Oh, of course! You’d better finish Eternal Love first, though, because I want to find out what happens with the San’layn.” With that, Lydi bit into the scone and hummed her appreciation. “Mmm. I’ll go make that call now so you’ll stop bothering me to do it.”

After parting words were shared, Lydi made her way downstairs and outside of the shop, plopping down on the nearest bench. And thumbing through her comm. She could call Arandoros—she had no clue what he was up to these days and she missed him. She could call Se’lysona—they needed to meet and catch up, and she missed her, too.

Zayneth’s name popped up on the screen and she hesitated. She’d left things on a semi-good note with him… maybe. And they had talked about going on a friend date that had never happened. Oh, what the hell.

She pressed the call button. Waited. No answer. She very nearly disconnected, but something stopped her, and when it came time to leave him a message, she hesitated there as well. “…Hey,” she said, after a couple seconds of silence. “It’s Lydianah. I hope you’re doing well. I know you’re probably busy and I’m sorry I haven’t reached out, but I… well, I suppose I am now. Get in touch if that friend thing is still on the table.” She’d tried to sound cheerful about it, but exhaustion was creeping up on her like a second shadow, and the tiredness was there in her tone. “Be safe,” she said before she hung up, and then leaned forward with her elbows on her knees.

What are you doing? That little voice inside her asked.

“I’m trying to make a friend,” she responded aloud, closing her eyes. If she let her mother see how tired she was, she’d never get her out of the apartment.

Cael narrowed his eyes. “I... did, I suppose. What are you up to?” he asked suspiciously.

“Nothing! I’m just sitting here innocently, trying to figure out why you had some hot girl’s photo shoved underneath your door this morning.” Confusion swept over him. People didn’t shove pictures under his door. Occasionally he got some strays in the mail, except for that one time Arandoros had sent him one on purpose just to get a rise out him and the one from Abigale that he still wasn’t entirely sure was even meant to find him in the first place. By and large, though, he wasn’t the type of person that people generally slipped notes or pictures... especially from attractive women. It must be another stray. “You know that’s usually a joke or a mistake. Let me see it,” he commanded, pacing closer and holding out his hand. The redhead gave him a smug look as she handed it over. As soon as he saw who was in that picture, his breath hitched in his throat. No, this was no stray; though just why Irikah had chosen to send him this very... he tilted his head, eyeing it more closely. Was she even wearing any underwear? Blinking, he looked it over again, but it wasn’t until his eyes lingered on her face that the tips of his ears turned pink. “Why on Azeroth did this come to me?” he asked no one in particular. That smile of hers was brilliant and he took it in for a while. When he finally looked up from the photograph Lydianah was standing right there and he jumped. “Sun and stars, Lydi!” “Who’s that?” she asked, everything about her demeanor excited. “Is that your girlfriend?”

He didn’t answer right away; just looked at Lydianah. She gasped. “She is! I knew it! You finally got yourself a girl!” “Very good friend,” he corrected belatedly, his ears burning. He promptly turned away from her, heading back into his room to put the picture in the drawer of his bedside table. His hand hesitated, though, and instead he laid it on the nightstand’s surface. Maybe it would serve as a reminder to ask Irikah about it later. “She’s really cute!” Lydi shouted, clearly having fun with this. He just shook his head, expelling a sigh and resting his forehead in his hand in exasperation. And maybe to hide the ghost of a smile that had taken up residence on his face. She really is, isn’t she? he thought to himself as he let his fingers trail over it. Then he turned, finishing with the brushing and passing his hands over his hair to magically dry it. Time to go open up shop... and get away from Lydianah’s teasing.

There was a bit of recoil in his posture when his and Cael's eyes met, but Arandoros didn't back down. No, this was going to be quite the uncomfortable experience, and a bit of awkwardness or surprise was almost welcome compared to what he somehow knew was coming. He gave a nod at Cael's inquiry. "Yes, that was his name. I make it a point to remember every name of anyone I've met more than once." He ran his hand over his eyes one more time, then let it fall back to the table, clasping with the other. "His name was Solaris, and he was my Enchantment instructor."

When Cael continued speaking and divulged his tutoring of Solaris, Aran leaned forward with slightly widened eyes. "You...you -trained- him?" he asked, sounding surprised. "I didn't know what sort of magic he dabbled in, but there was something rather unfamiliar about it. It was nothing like what my mother taught me when I was a child."

The gaze Cael put him under wasn't exactly unfamiliar, but he didn't shy away from it. He'd been to a number of doctors and specialists by now, which meant the look was one he'd grown used to. None of them, of course, had found any sort of cure. They'd suggested things from medicine to alcohol, some even suggesting he indulge in some sort of illegal. None of those solutions had worked, of course.

"Now I am curious to find out if my suspicions are correct. Would you like me to attempt to find the trigger tonight, or would you prefer we do that on a separate occasion?" Cael asked, that gaze still on him. It was as though he were being analyzed, a project for a professional.

It was familiar, but it wasn't comfortable. Some of the professionals he'd sought out in the past had attempted a magic-based probing of his mind. His body, however, simply had rebelled, not allowing much in the way of discovery. With this in mind, Aran looked down into his tea, a small shrug rolling through his shoulders. "I don't know."

He took a sip, staring down into it as he continued. "In the past, any time someone has tried to dive into my mind, to..to figure out what's going on, my body simply lashes out. I've broken arms, fractured noses...even kicked someone so hard between the legs that their mouth started bleeding." He winced a bit, shivering--he'd received a kick of quite some power between his own legs a few months prior, and that was certainly no picnic. "So unless you have some sort of system of restraints, I..don't know how easy that particular search would be."

There was no hesitation in the mage's voice when he replied, but what he said sent shivers down Aran's spine.

"Well, I do have the ability to put you in arcane chains," Cael suggested, "but that would hurt like hell for you. Would you rather I wait for Lydianah to be here to do it? I have a feeling that she could hold you prone if it comes right down to it." Aran's brow quirked as he suspected teasing, knowing his and Lydianah's past, but when he looked into the man's eyes he could tell there was a deadly seriousness to his words. Finally, Cael spoke again. "The only other option I can think of is one that involves putting you into an unconscious state, and even then there is no guarantee that whatever it is that is blocking your magic would not simply wake you up."

For a moment, the chains actually sounded like quite the plan. And somewhere, somewhere buried incredibly deep in the back of his brain...somewhere that the curse hadn't affected him, an idea began to brew in regards to the chains. But it was nothing even remotely relevant to this situation, and in truth he didn't even notice the seed that had been planted. Cael's words quickly debunked any possibility of the chains being used, and Aran simply shook his head. "If we can't think of anything, we could try the chains, but I'm loathe to unless it's absolutely necessary. Though, now that you mention Lydianah..."

He slowed, bringing a hand to his chin and scratching gently. "I've seen her render people immobile, unconscious even with just a single touch. I bet she's even done it to me in the past...that might be the best route, since you've mentioned it."

Cael took another sip, Arandoros staring at him as the mage set his cup back down. "Then why don't we set up a day when all three of us have some hours to spend, and I will go delving into your mind after she has worked a little of her own brand of magic on you. It may take a while to find the trigger, but I will do my best to find it as fast as I possibly can."

Aran's teacup had fallen empty, and in truth he was glad of that. He wanted to be out of here--simply the fact that magic took place in here as often as he knew it did sent his skin crawling when he thought about it too much, and he was fairly certain Caelendras was ready for him to leave as well. When Cael spoke, his suspicions were confirmed. "Do you need a refill?" he asked politely, but on a once-over, Aran discovered he actually looked rather dirty. It was as though Aran had interrupted the man in the midst of his work.

Truthfully, this entire affair had exhausted him. All he wanted to do was go back to his apartment--there was no way he was subjecting Naivaria to this. In fact, he almost hoped that next time they saw each other, she simply wouldn't ask about what he'd been up to. Knowing her that wouldn't be the case, but a man could hope for the impossible every so often.

Aran shook his head at the offer of tea, instead standing up and stretching. They'd hardly been there more than a half hour, yet he felt like they had been for hours now. "No, I think I ought to head home. I need to think, and prepare for next time." He gave Cael a smile, one that spoke of his own exhaustion, but also his tentative gratefulness. "Thank you for helping me with this, by the way."

With a somber tone, Cael responded to his thanks. "I live to serve," he said, standing. "I will nail Lydianah down long enough for her to listen to me, and then perhaps the three of us can come to an agreement as far as our next meeting is concerned. Steel yourself, though; if it hurts you, this is going to be unreal. The hope, of course, is that it yields results so that you do not have to go through this pain for much longer."

As they walked toward the door, the mage continued. "Now, I see that you are tired, and I am sparkly enough to step up on stage somewhere and begin performing. So I am going to give you the friendly advice to go home and get some rest, and take your days to think on it while I go upstairs and wash this dust off." He smiled then, something unnerving about it as he stepped out the door.  "And don't thank me yet."