Raum slinks down into the depths of the mountains. He is a shadow upon the grey rock, a whisper over parched grasses.
Mila is a silhouette upon the distance, as fragile as a deer and as changeable as sand. He keeps her in sight as he weaves his way over the loose terrain of skittering rocks.
He is owl silent, pouring down the mountain towards her as though he were made only of smoke. Appearing beside the younger Crow is blue eyes gleam.
“Hello Mila.” He murmurs, those Crow eyes ever watchful. The mountains stir, echoing his voice and it makes him restless, uneasy. Even in the heart of Denocte the Ghost boy does not trust easily.
Wings carry his mind back to the King of Thieves’ sister all red hot fire beneath the unrelenting sun. It was their home now, beneath Solis’ watchful eye, but here, here beneath the shifting night and shadows, this is where he belonged. A creature of mystery and shadow such as he could truly belong nowhere else.
Unlike Rhoswen.
His upper lip curled with displeasure, but eases as his eyes tumble from the mountains to find the young girl before him. “How are the crows?” He asks softly. Raum could not return often, not with watchful watchful Solterran eyes everywhere. Not even the Ghost of Denocte could easily escape that place, shadowless as it was.
His eyes sweep back from mountain ledges to the gypsy child, a dash of sand and tropical beauty in an otherwise rugged, stone terrain.
@Mila and anyone else who wishes to join - especially them Crows
You're one microscopic cog
in his catastrophic plan
08-26-2017, 11:29 AM - This post was last modified: 08-26-2017, 12:23 PM by Raum
he was a blur of red and gold against the pale crags that rose like pillars towards the sky high above her. A lovely little thing that trotting with sure steps, her small hooves loosing pebbles that tumbled down the slope behind her. Higher she climbed, the air thinning in her lungs, until the pass began to level out. The trail was skinny and fenced on parallel sides with mountains placed by gods; the rocks jutting out to scratch at those who dared to pass too close. She traveled quietly, immersing herself with the shadows, a ghost of blood and promises of untamed tempers.
Far ahead of her, a silvery phantom moved silently over the rocks. Emerald-jeweled orbs widened in surprise and recognition, like the pop of salt in a pastry, sweet and tart and unexpected. Her hoofbeats quickened, her gaze never leaving him as she neared him. Her lower lip hung — at a lose for words — as she took the sight of him in. A greeting, a hello; one she should return. His voice was soft but bellowed off of the mountain walls; a tell-tale sign of lurkers, and one that was far too open for her liking.. for his safety.
Mila ignored his question as she beheld him, her frustration and longing bubbling like lava in her veins. "You idiot," she scolded, eyes burning as she pulled her fellow Crow — their spy, her brother — deeper into the shadows of a nearby aclove. "What are you thinking, Raum? You can't be here, someone could see you." A huff of air shot through her nostrils as she snorted, releasing the tension in her bones. With a slow exhale, her brow furrowed, eyes growing wide and the bittersweet nostalgia of longing flooding her instead. She rushed on him, grabbing him into a quick embrace, before letting go to look at him. "You look well."
"She's right, Raum. It's risky returning at a time like this."
His voice came like thunder from the shadows, the rest of his muscular body following like water over rocks, or the milky way through the stars. Raum's return was always a welcome one, despite the circumstances, and the King of Night couldn't help the easy, conspiring grin that fell upon his black lips as he looked over one of his eldest crows. Raum had been just a boy when he'd found him, now he was one of the biggest threats in Novus. It was strange to see those same slim shoulders, the same cool, calculating eyes that had peered up at him when the boy had been a child - now turned all-seeing, all-knowing. Even Reichenbach questioned how Raum discovered buried secrets, hidden plans and unknown coups. He'd far surpassed what he'd been as a child, now he was capable and desired. Reich enjoyed seeing the Crows success.
"Calligo smiles when you return."
He added, proof that he wasn't going to tell Raum what he could and could not do. If Raum, one of the best damn assassins in all of Novus, wanted to visit his home, so be it. Reich turned to Mila, flicking his sharp gaze over her as he checked for any scabs or injuries, but of course she had none. Nobody could touch Mila if she didn't want to be touched, and Calligo help any who tried. While some might have considered Lavinia and her knives a bigger threat (she had a bigger mouth, too), they would have been playing into Mila's delicate, waiting hands. She was subtlety and slyness, poison that came from behind the veil of a pretty face.
"Mila"
And the tone was affectionate, fatherly.
"You met Aislinn..?"
Was his next question, curious to know what she thought of the beautiful winged warrior. Aislinn would be one of their greatest assets if it came down to war, for she was loyal and fierce, and as dedicated as every one of his Crows. He turned to Raum, raising a brow in question;
As incredibly 'treachorous' as Arma mountains could be, it was an adventure for the small Lavinia. She was all auburn and dark browns as she moved along the path, these great pillars of stone and rock seemed to be trying to reach the heavens in front of her. She gave a small snort as her pale hooves touched the ground with sureness in every step, every now and then pebbles were loosened with her movements but she was careful. She had seen her twin heading this way and so she was on the move to catch up with Mila. Why Mila was climbing here she didn't know but she wanted to be sure her sister didn't fall to her death by being careless.
Soon enough she heard varying voices she was all too familiar with. She quickened her pace until she began to see the familiar figures of her sister, king and fellow crow. Though the crow..she was surprised to see. Raum was not supposed to be here, it was dangerous for him to be but..she was also glad that he was alright. Her golden gaze glanced over him and then went to her twin and her king, there was curiosity there as to why Raum was here.
"Raum..it's good to see you." She finally replied with a hint of affection in her soft voice. She came to stand off to the side of the others, not one for showing much in the way of affection but it was clear on her face she was glad to see him.
Mila comes, feather soft, from around the mountain’s winding path. Her small feet whisper over stone and loose rock, he knows the moment she sees him, hears the subtle hitch of her breath that has the mountain turn its attention onto her. Her feet rustle over the rocks now as she hurries to draw level with him.
This girl is hot sun and desert nights and where once he thought of only desert nights, now the heat of her skin reminds him too of Rhoswen. Tension lines his jaw like steel, but it softens, it eases, as she touches him. Her touch, this night, is a balm but Raum is no fool, he has seen the way her hand will deliver poison as softly as a caress.
The Crow lets her drag him into the darkness, lets her fuss like any sister would. He sets electric blue eyes upon her, watching her as she watches him. It is a mutual look, a demand for each other to be safe. It sets his jaw tight again and only their embrace and the touch of his muzzle to Mila’s cheek – the brush of a thumb – can ease the tension settled there.
“As do you.” The mercury boy murmurs. He sighs softly, “You know as well as I that none can catch me when I do not wish to be caught.” There is no bravado there, just grim fact. So grim, in fact, it is a wonder if the Denocte’s Ghost actually wishes to be caught…
He moves to say more, but the thunder of Reichenbach’s voice has a frustrated sigh slipping from his lips. Denocte’s king appears, his thunderous warning still loudly sung by he mountain range. “And yet you deem to draw attention to me with your loud voice, brother.” Raum murmurs, blue eyes sparking as he watches his King of Thieves. The Denocte Ghost was a creature of sly quiet, of shadowed whispers and silent malevolence, Reichenbach was vibrance and life. They were opposites, yet brothers, bound by duty and love. “If you draw unwanted attention to me I would like to see how you will explain away what a Solterran is doing in a secret meeting with the Denocte king.” The spark grows sharper, yet mercurial lips have begun to curl into a smirk.
“Teach our king how to whisper, won’t you?” He asks of Mila, brows lifting. It was dangerous to bait Reichenbach like a lion, but it was nothing the Crows had not done to each other before.
Calligo smiles when you return.
The words were both a comfort and an ache and pulls Raum back to more serious matters. “And Solis scowls when I leave for Solterra.” He clings to the camaraderie of the Crows, easing the heat and tension Solterra has wrought upon his spine.
“No news yet. It feels like the calm before the storm though. Maxence has appointed his –.“ The assassin paused as sounds of footsteps reverberated again. His eyes flick to Mila, for where one twin was, the other was surely not far behind. As Lavinia appeared, slinking through the darkness with a feline grace akin to her sister’s, Raum let’s his gaze return to Reichenbach. “Maxence has appointed his champions and we are working to secure food from the neighboring courts to sustain the Solterran people.”
His attention returns at last to Lavinia, a small ghost of a smile curling his lips. “Lavinia. Been keeping your sister out of trouble?”
er eyes widened with the kind of love that was saved for siblings — from an older brother to a younger sister — as she took in the sight of Raum. Her original annoyance had been easily replaced; sweet relief flooding the gaping hole and easing it's way in instead. Raum was all quicksilver and smooth words where the Twins were fire and seduction. Now, although still a child of the Night — as all of the Crows were — Raum had the musk of dry summer heat and deserts. The common stink, and reminder, that he called Solterra a temporary home. And a dangerous one, at that.
Her ears flicked and she nearly jumped in her skin as Reichenbach's voice thundered from the mountain's shadows. Mila's delicate gold head snapped towards him as the King of Thieves emerged from the dark. She smiled at the words that spilled from the King Crow's lips, her own emotions mirroring the exchange. Deep down, she was truly glad that Raum had returned.. however, she knew in her heart and mind that it was not with the most ideal of circumstances. That was the way of the Crows however; they were misfits, dancers and raiders, poison experts and spies. But together, as one, they were a family not bound by blood; all found and brought together by no one other than Reichenbach himself. He had plucked them from the streets and their previous lives, and had woven something stronger from nothing. Mila's heart swelled at the thought.. for she would always be grateful, and indebted to him no less.
Mila's mind reeled with these thoughts as the King of Thieves turned to look at her, her emerald-jeweled eyes meeting his of liquid silver. He was like a father to her, his tone affectionate, until his next spoken question brought up the hint of curiosity that she did not expect. She dipped her crown rather playfully in answer, her eyes narrowing until she was looking at him teasingly through thick lashes. "Your lady knight sends her regards," she replied, a toothy, devilish grin accompanying the remark.
With a snort, she turned away, taking a delicate step back as — without surprise — her twin joined the fray. Where one was, the other was surely to follow. That was how they were; quite literally, it seemed, to be attached at the hip. Mila moved to stand side by side with Lavinia. Separate, they were red and gold cunning mistresses; but together, they were a lethal team of poisons and daggers. She searched her sister's face, seeing no hint of warmth there save for her words, but she knew better. Lavinia was not one for showing her affection for others — except for maybe Mila — but Mila knew that the darker twin was no short of glad to see their brother Crow.
Once more, they were a family of blackbirds reunited under the goddess' gaze.
Her heart warms and cools at Raum and Reichenbach's exchange; ice growing in her veins like shards of glass at the very thought — the what if — of them being caught. Reality burned around them whether they wanted it to or not now; for Denocte's Ghost called the court of Day home.. for now. She snickered at the very mention of Solterra's sovereign, and the lurking danger that lingered like a storm roiling and building in the far off distance.
And then the ice in her veins thawed, a wicked chuckle bubbling in her throat. "Who me? In trouble? Never." Mila laughed, a musical and bell-like sound, bumping her sister's shoulder jokingly as a genuine smile broadened on her face.
@Raum @reichenbach @lavinia
yay for our whittle crows c:
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