—Moved—

𝓐𝓷𝓭 𝓘 𝓓𝓪𝓻𝓴𝓮𝓷 — 𝐵𝑜𝑜𝓀 𝒬𝓊𝑜𝓉𝑒 𝑅𝒫 𝑀𝑒𝓂𝑒

{ ⟡ } — It had become an equally pleasing yet nostalgic habit... { Awaiting } with a weighted heart & memories swirling around her just as her ever-adored ghostly butterflies would, dancing & fluttering wherever her blossoms would conquer. Tonight was not different: At her favorite balcony; on a beloved manor, looking upon the vastness of the Empire & its beauteous cacophony, taking in the whispers & voices regardless of distance; … an orchestra so dearly different from what was still alive in the depths of her wounded soul — & yet it was gratifying to succumb to it; below the gaze of the stars; & the cold autumn breeze biting her porcelain skin…

For the Immortal with their diffused perceptions of time, the routine was not bothersome at all & sometimes details would bloom around with as much ease as breathing… —& create the Illusions of familiar voices & silhouettes sometimes would be a pastime in the solitude of this private place. Bittersweet; & yet enchanting, for that was all that would remain when all was said & done, it was the fear of forgetting, losing…

She could replicate voices; sometimes simply allowing her ears to be graced by words & sentences as a perfect script if she managed to concentrate enough while closing her eyes to the scenery. Living in her imagination, like in her youth… who she was before all that had dragged her to this present in the shape of faux beauty hiding a monstrous truth… —but it was a conscious effort…

Her heart skipped a bit at the words, spilling like written ink of old days… Few could even take her by surprise, & she made no effort into denying that victory by concealing the provoked & sincere gasp. How uncanny of someone so confident to be briefly fearful of facing behind her; perhaps afraid to discover her own abilities were fooling her too & creating a wishful mirage.

“This was hers; not because engulfed by centuries of wars nor steel & iron firmly held on trembling hands But because the Land itself had claimed her as its own; To keep a secret entangling delicately below the darkness of wings —a glowing spark reflecting hope, among the burned foliage.

...a treasure, perhaps, if an ebony bird would choose to come back”

She took the liberty to complete his words; as if to give time to her emotions to recompose & taking a deep breath, before a low & velvety chuckle would escape her.

“Poetry… ever a flame to keep my soul ablaze even at the coldest of Nights. There was a favorite poet of mine, a patrician expressing so much with just ink as his weapon of choice. Sometimes when I heard as he created, it made me feel I had wings once more~ … Truly talented.” Turning around with graceful serenity, golden gaze would seek for him across the candlelit stance beyond the doors of the balcony. Wishing to detail his features with endearment & astonishment, an ancient habit of hers: the eternal desire for new traces to memorize, for new lines of the story to fulfill questions— & yet perhaps it was a lovely lie to herself to cover her inner concerns when he wouldn’t be near to be found… as if nature itself had brushed the trails & hints away.

“Do tell me; Darling…” —& even there, a smile would betray her, curling her nightshade tiers into a concoction of relief & anticipation, stepping forward just enough to be at the frame of tinted-glass doors; her silhouette against the moonlight:

“Is the Poet willing to proceed, writing his own verses, on this story?”

{ ⟡ } — The pixies had found him first; surprised by the prowess & inherent talent of the little child to create such a lovely structure. They had clapped, & cheered in their bell-like giggling voices before swirling closely, some choosing to cuddle against him, some fluttering far to tell the Enchantress about the fantastic job done —& it was not without sincere astonishment, as Emilia could vaguely remember how complicated would have been for her to command the magic of the flora & foliage by the equivalent to Lief’s age.

Golden gaze softening in tenderness & pride at the thought, she would make sure to congratulate him when awakes from his little nap. For now, she would solely gesture with gentleness to support the large leaf with some others, until create something similar to a nest where various spring blossoms would graciously bloom.

“Now, now~ … Today is indeed a beautiful day to take a nap, isn’t it?” A little giggle would escape from her, before helping herself with vines & leaves too into a stair, until joining in the nest to embrace her small son. Everything could be halted as of now, let clones carry duties around if necessary, for now it was wonderful to forget her own position to remember her true nature underneath: just a motherly nymph, blissful to let go of her heavy facades.

“Sweet Dreams, my little Lief… & so to you, Lun Lun~” She whispered softly to his little legend pet too, before closing her eyes. ...When was even the last time she would be willing to spare time for rest either way?

—𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒯𝓇𝒾𝒸𝓀𝓈𝓉𝑒𝓇—

{ ⟡ } — “Many times, Vladimir, many times I had already told you: ‘I like the playfulness in my hunting, sometimes I portray a seductress so our targets will come easy & docile, following me to hidden dark places’ ; this is not the first time it has happened & it certainly won’t be the last, you know they fall easily & with less public commotions when they see a beauteous lady flirting with their miserable existences.” The Vampiress sighed deeply as carefully cleaned & mending wounds all across his body, daring to place little band-aids here & there for the small cuts that wouldn’t require proper bandages. They all were red & with childish designs of smiley wolfies, as those had been properly bought for Jack, & yet now it was another manchild wearing them.

“But no, no, no~ ♫… the invigorated Count Vladimir needed to prove his wife was only his to have when he noticed this targeted misbehaving dhampir who was obviously-a-prey would kiss her neck & just cut a little of skin with his teeth…” She heard his grumpy growl at the mention, yet her thorny vines would keep him secured to the bed, no matter the struggling. “…Yes, yes… he may have drunk just a couple of drops but you forgot entirely our whole plan to get rid of this group: I was meant to distract their leader away & gather the information, so you would not cause commotion in this town & draw attention to us again.” It had been certainly just a fall & a daring attempt from a simple fledgling to even try to bite more into the skin of an Ancient One, who also held magic entangled in her veins.

They had always been flirtatious with all different creatures, & the delights of flesh weren’t explicitly exclusive between them, either for hunting or enjoyment… —Yet, it was the first time another creature that wasn’t him would attempt drinking from it in a very long time. Something far more intimate, treasured & unique —something that was only done by him, since the day she had been liberated out of Sahn-Uzal’s captivity & command… … The Iron Revenant always mentioned her sorcery would give it a different Allure.

“Now we don’t have any information, nor does their Gild exist any longer for us to get it, either way, you destroyed that place as a merciless & devilish dragon… I could almost feel like a treasure at this point.” She sighed, trying to avoid her eventual smile before looking at him again while placing another little smiley band-aid on his nose bridge.

{ ⟡ } — Temptation & Conquest are Deliberate Games —; the kind she would ever-delight on the play when requiring obtaining invaluable information whispered to her ears, & oh, how the Progress Elitism loved to flaunt their achievements & riches at the first glance of a pair of long-eyelashes fluttering & a low voice expressing all they wanted to hear, the measured movement of her silhouette & even a practiced manner to breath. Of course, she could absolutely rely on different, less suggestive, tactics on this little game of hers… but they would never provoke the pure amusement & the tingle raising at her nape as when her adored Sheriff would step in, her arms pulling her closer & keeping her in place so suddenly a blush would crown her features.

The words —each working their own magic as the companion of the night left them alone, were like a delicious caress. Did she also like to do this on purpose to have Caitlyn show those displays? Absolutely.

“Oh, My Damask Rose. Were they truly?” She almost played innocently in all her tricks & baffled by such revelation. “I wouldn’t even notice they would expressing such peculiar thoughts & ideas. How bold to assume, I wonder what may have given him such a clue.”