The lands of Arma would regrow, over time, but it didn't erase the fresh memory in her mind. The flash of fire, the scent of burning wood and flesh, the crunch of ashes underfoot that came from the trees and the animals that had simply existed, and had died for it. Denocte was without a regime now, but they were not lost. Oddly enough, they were together even more than they had been when the regime had stood at the head. They were supposed to guide them, not isolate them, hide them away, tear families apart, threaten their own people with a dragon that loomed over the pass, ready to attack anyone leaving.
The thoughts made her uneasy still. She recalled attempting to get past the gates, to no avail. Seeing the dragon looming in the distance.
Araxes also recalled calling out the regime, attempting to get their attention more than once. As council, she thought her voice would be heard, but it had not. No. They had retreated instead to their comfort, as if they had done nothing wrong, and ignored the cries of their people.
Bitterness coated her tongue at the thought, and she frowned, unable to push it all away. She would not stand for it, for this. They were gone now, but their betrayal, the attack on their own people, would be something to be remembered. Something to grow from, as well. Denocte deserved better and she would fight for those she called her people, tooth and nail, if she had to.
The ear-winged woman took in a breath, releasing it as she stood in the depths of the now empty court, finding it.. oddly peaceful, but lonesome all the same. They needed a regime, and she had no doubt they would soon.
The click clack of hooves caused the speckled mare to turn curiously, her mane bunched on her neck in a massive bun, held out of the way of dragging on the floor. "Hello," she spoke, flicking ears forward curiously.
Jezanna moved fluidly through the court, calm among the general clamor; statuesque. Her silver eyes were focused, and she was deep in thought even as she walked, cloven hooves clipping against the cobblestone. She had no real destination in mind, but was simply allowing herself to wander. She liked this, walking among the people she shared this Court, this home, with. Young and old, big and small, it was a place where so many different lives could cross paths, converge, before going on again.
The world was changing, she could feel it in her bones. She remembered the night in the markets, when she had seen the moon statue come to life, glowing so brightly it looked as though the moon itself had fallen from the sky and landed here in Denocte. It had reminded her of her world, the one she had come from, the role she had played. Jezanna had thought when she’d been brought here she’d had to leave that all behind, but now she thought that maybe she didn’t need to forget it all.
The midnight girl was pulled from her thoughts by a gentle voice. When she looked up, her silver eyes landed on an unfamiliar woman with wings behind her ears. Her expression brightened, a gentle smile turning up the corners of her lips. “Hello,” she returned the greeting, stopping by the spotted mare’s side. Although Jezanna tried to recall whether they had met before, she was almost certain they had not and she looked forward to getting to know a new face.
“It’s quiet here, isn’t it?” she said, bobbing her head slightly. The pair stood in a relatively empty area of the court, the crowds having fallen away, now stripped down to nothing but stone walls and streets with banners and torches hanging along the way. The air was still, only the flickering of the firelight a movement in her peripheral vision. She missed the jovial quality of the marketplace, the laughter of surprised citizens as the pygmy dragons bounced from back to stall to floor. This bareness was not the court she knew, and Jezanna wondered why this woman was here, alone. “Are you searching for something?”
Once upon a time, this corner of the Court had been alive with laughter and joy. Back before the clouds had rolled over from the mouth of the dragon, the thick smoke curling in the air. The entire Court had been joy filled and warm, welcoming, until they had been locked away without choice. Slowly but surely, they were once more beginning to open up now that they held their freedom in their own hands again, but it would take a while before the Court lived once more, at least like it had used to.
Araxes flicked her small wings, tucking them up against her neck as she was joined by the one she had greeted. She was a face the speckled mare hadn't seen before, but that was a good thing. It meant there were others she could meet now, could smile with, relax. Despite herself, Ara nodded at the words, letting out a soft sigh as her eyes roved over the area. "Yes. It used to be so alive with others, though now it looks abandoned." One day, there would be others here again, small stalls or just walking couples that lingered in the streets and enjoyed one another's company.
Flicking an ivory ear, her head turned as she was questioned, and her eyes softened a moment. "I suppose you could say that. I'm looking for the Night Court I remember... before all of the mess we went through." Perhaps it would never come back, and it would form in to a different Night Court, stronger than before. Either way, she wanted it to change to some semblance they had been before what had happened.
"I'm Araxes," she finally said, smiling softer, drawing her thoughts away. "The Champion of Wisdom here in the court. I haven't seen your face... are you newer?" Did she come from the outside when the gates had reopened? Or was she one of the many souls that had been held behind them?
As the other woman spoke, Jezanna's eyes traced the same path as her companion's. It was true, she remembered fondly the first day she had set foot within the Court. It had been late in the night but laughter and firelight had filled the streets, bodies rushing past going from where and to where she didn't know. All she had known then was that this place, its customs, its people, were strangers to her. She felt differently know, knew more now. She guessed many had left at the announcement of the gates being closed, but many had also stayed.
"It may seem neglected, forgotten, for now, but it will pass. Better days will come, others will return. Nothing stays lost forever," Jezanna smiled gently, attempting to reassure the speckled woman at her side, "Least of all hope." It was them who kept such things as hope alive, their love and care, their loyalty. If they did not give up then they could only have fruitful pursuits. She believed that and would always stand by it. All was not lost, indeed.
Her silver gaze appraised the expression of the woman's face, watching the way it softened. Jezanna was not surprised by the sentiment that was spoken, but she thought that perhaps the other was searching for something that was gone. "I don't know if the Night Court you seek is here any longer. It, and its people, have changed and will always be changed." Her head lowered a bit, seeking the other woman's eye, "But, perhaps, a better Night Court is on the horizon?" It was something to work toward, at the very least.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Araxes," Jezanna spoke, another smile forming on her face as she lifted her head again, "I'm not so new anymore. It was spring when I first came here," she explained, reminded once more of those days that seemed so far behind her. How was it that so much could change in just two seasons, the midnight girl wondered. She may have lived far longer than her mortal years, but she had never witnessed, much less been a part of, anything like what coming to Novus had given her. "My name is Jezanna," she said at last, and she finally accepted all parts of her, past and present.
Araxes knew that her company was right, that the Court would grow to be prosperous once more under whoever it was that took the mantle in the regime. Regardless of the direction it took, someone had to step up to it, and Denocte would hopefully grow and change again, pick up pieces and put them back in place. Wear the jagged edges seamed with gold proudly, as the scars of their past would make them more beautiful as they moved forward. They had learned a hard lesson.
"Oh yes.. I still hold hope for Denocte, that we will grow once more and prosper. What has happened in the past has happened.. we won't forget it. We will learn and move forward." Hope was still held in her heart, but she had to do more than hope, she had to act and perhaps she should hold a meeting for all of Denocte, or at least its Champions and Warden, those left over from the split.
Speckled lips shifted in to a small smile, and a light laugh spilled from her throat, soft and gentle. "Hopefully there is a better one on the horizon. I do not like the one now, in shambles as it is, fractured. I wish for a whole one once more, and for our people to be strong." It would happen, she knew, with the right leadership and right cooperation of the people. It's something for her to think about, and her wings flicker a moment at the sides of her head, curious. Yes, she'd need a meeting of some sort with the rest of the council, to raise hope once more and begin anew.
Turning her head, she gently bobbed it in a warm acknowledgement to the other woman. "Jezanna... it is wonderful to meet you. Even if you are not so new, you are new to me. That tells me there are others here that will be new to me too, and I should get to know them." She smiled at the thought. Perhaps the council could have a small party, to raise the spirits of those in Denocte. It seemed like a good thing to do, didn't it?
"Hearts are flawed things. Though we may have the best intentions they can be misplaced," she said, nodding her head in agreement, "but if we learn from those mistakes we can only do better." Jezanna wanted to believe that Aislinn, even Isorath who she had not known, had only had their people's safety in mind when they chose to close the gates, to split the court. She didn't think they did it out of malice. Ignorance, maybe, and pride, but were not all creatures prone to those things?
The midnight woman's eyes drifted over the silent streets, empty but for a few bodies here and there. "I see strength in them, to remain, to persevere. They will draw more strength, too, from those they look toward," she indicated toward Araxes, though the sentiment was not only for her. The court would draw their courage from those they trusted and who lead them in their time of need. The champions, the warden. Perhaps, even, the regime. Not everyone had, after all, thought they were in the wrong.
"Yes, that I believe. News will spread and some will return." She thought of those had who been chased away with the promise of a dragon at their backs, "and others will come to use anew." Fortunately the gates had been closed for a relatively short time. Perhaps that, if anything, they could thank the gods here for. Though she couldn't say how quickly change would happen, Jezanna new in time it would come. Change, of all things, was inevitable. It could be put off but never prevented.
"Speaking."
@Araxes Maybe we can wrap things up in the next round?
