In the middle of it all
Jude Quinn
Singer

Age: 19 | Height: 5’10 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 3 - Strg: 12 - Dext: 18 - Endr: 20 - Luck: 7 - Int:
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Posts: 309 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#1
Jude
and I'm sick of waiting patiently
Jude's adventuring had always been for two reasons: to find solace in the solitude of the wilds, and to try and find Maeve. With the apprenticeship with Talyson on the table, it has now expanded to include adventuring for the sake of knowing each region - but his primary goal has never truly wavered.

Not one to gossip, it has always been hard to tap into the rumor mill for information, but he'd been given a paltry lead the he had followed out to the Feverlands. A small settlement, barely more than a nomadic tribe, who had been searching for a healer for an outsider in their midst. It could be a traveler who had eaten the wrong foliage in hopes of having found one of the ability-increasing power ups, or merely a merchant who was injured in the tar pits. Either way, Jude has a duty (to himself, mostly) to check it out.

The locals are guarded but not uncivil, and Jude's meek personality seems to disarm them more than anything. It's not like he is very physically intimidating either. They show him inward to the small hut-like structure that apparently houses this individual, and Jude thanks them politely before stepping inside - only for his knees to immediately go weak. "Maman?"
for someone that won't ever arrive
Maeve Ansel
the Nightshade
Madame

Age: 26 | Height: 5'4 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 10 - Strg: 35 - Dext: 37 - Endr: 43 - Luck: 37 - Int: 1
AIDON - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Artio Offline
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Posts: 2,404 | Total: 3,277
MP: 877
#2
Maeve

There had been letters at first. Almost sent on a daily basis to her family, updating them on her whereabouts and plans, telling them when she was planning to be home. That was until she got stuck in the Feverlands, turned around in the Tar Pits, unable to find her way back out. It wasn’t the first time she had ended up there, but the odds weren’t in her favor. Not this time. She wasn’t sure where it had all gone wrong. Just that it had.

Truthfully it was a miracle she was alive. Found by a traveler from a small village, the Nightshade was barely hanging on, dehydrated and delirious with fever. An infection running it’s way through her veins and ravaging her body with its sickness. She’s been under there care for some time now, slowly being nursed back to health, but even they couldn’t heal her fully.

Thus they did the only thing they knew to. They called for outside help. Not that they were sure anyone would come. It would be surprising if someone did. The outside in their midst wasn’t unwelcome, especially when he began to inquire of the sick traveler, but little did they know the gift they’d just given Maeve.

It’s the first voice she’s recognized here. The first thing to draw her from her feverish stupor. Hazy jade eyes blink open, pallid skin covered in a sheen of sweat as she lays in the dim light, in far worse shape than Jude has ever seen his adoptive mother. ”Jude?” Her voice is a hoarse crack, straining in the quiet as she forces herself to try and sit up, arms shaking with the effort of it. Jude..
I'm undone about to burst at my seams
'Cause I am picturing you beside me
So let me be everything that you need
Jude Quinn
Singer

Age: 19 | Height: 5’10 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 3 - Strg: 12 - Dext: 18 - Endr: 20 - Luck: 7 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
Change author:
Posts: 309 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#3
Jude
and I'm sick of waiting patiently
It’s true that it’s the worst he has ever seen her, but he has equally never been so bowled over with emotion at seeing her in the first place. Jude can barely feel his feet as he stumbles to her bedside and hits his knees hard, arms immediately going around her to both cling and usher her back down onto the tough mattress she is laying on. Always an emotive boy, tears spring hard and fast to his eyes until they burn.

It’s amazing she can recognize him at all in his opinion given he is now older. His mother hadn’t until they’d met eyes - can Maeve even see that well? She looks so sick. “Maman, it’s me. It’s Jude.” He presses his ear to her chest to hear her heart beating beneath her skin. It’s the only proof he needs to know this isn’t another one of his vivid dreams that insist he has found her, only to awaken with cold, empty arms and wet cheeks. Nights where he crawls into his father’s bed so they can hold each other until sunrise.

“It’s okay maman, I’m gonna get you home. I promise. Just lay down okay?” Jude’s sweet voice begs in a murmur near her ear, pulling at her pillow to readjust it for her. He looks around for the local, but they’ve clearly given him privacy, so he can’t ask about his mother’s illness. “Do you need me to carry you?” He has spindly arms, but nothing would stop him from getting his adopted mother on that skyboat, even if it meant calling on a spirit.
for someone that won't ever arrive
Maeve Ansel
the Nightshade
Madame

Age: 26 | Height: 5'4 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 10 - Strg: 35 - Dext: 37 - Endr: 43 - Luck: 37 - Int: 1
AIDON - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Artio Offline
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Posts: 2,404 | Total: 3,277
MP: 877
#4
Maeve

The fact that he has aged wasn’t lost on her, but it didn’t matter to the Nightshade. She would know his voice anywhere. Even if it had deepened with the onset of his magical puberty. The outline of him is hazy, eyes barely seeing him in the dim light of the hut until he draws closer, cradling her in his arms the way she’d done him so many times before. Her sweet Jude. Always so tender. His tears fall onto her face like a cleansing rain, pulling her further from her fever addled fog, ”How? How did you find me?” She rasps, breath an almost death rattle as he presses his ear to her chest, listening to the staccato of her heart.

The Nightshade couldn’t argue with him even if she tried. Her thin frame lays back against the mattress, a wince crossing her features as discomfort settles in her bones once more. ”It’s hard to move.. the infection.. they said it’s locking up my joints..” Maeve explains between shallows intakes of breath, a crease forming between her brows, recalling vaguely the cut she sustained and how it began to fester. The fever and hallucinations that soon followed.

A sudden stirring comes from outside the tent, a warning growl erupting as ember eyes flash from behind the thin curtain only to die out quickly as the scent of just who is kneeling beside his bonded comes through. Aidon nudges his way inside, winding around Jude with a trill, looking frantically between him and Maeve as if pleading him to do something more than what he is now.
I'm undone about to burst at my seams
'Cause I am picturing you beside me
So let me be everything that you need


Age: 3 | Height: | Race: OOC Account | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
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#5
The Feverlands have quite a reputation for its noxious fumes, rampant death, infernal decay, and that wonderful yellow fog that really gives the skin a fresh glow as you wander into its depths.

And ah…now you’re stuck.

Your feet have somehow become wedged in one of its many quicksand-like areas! Maybe you can find a way out – there might be a branch nearby. Or you can snag a friend.

Before the gore crows, blind swamp rats, and all those other lovely things do!

Honestly, what did you expect?

Jude Quinn
Singer

Age: 19 | Height: 5’10 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 3 - Strg: 12 - Dext: 18 - Endr: 20 - Luck: 7 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
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Posts: 309 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#6
Jude
and I'm sick of waiting patiently
He laughs, teary and relieved and disbelieving all at once as he holds her close. “I’ve been looking for you all this time maman.” Using every outing and expedition as a chance to ask around and request people keep an eye out for Maeve’s physical characteristics. At last, it has finally paid off. He can bring her home - not just for himself, but Edmund and his father too.

Glancing down at her exposed body as she mentions her joints, Jude privately bemoans having never learned more than the (rather advanced, but far from doctoral level) first aid lessons his father had given him growing up. Not that he feels he can do more for her than the locals had clearly already tried.

“That’s okay. The skyboat is still waiting, I can carry you that far. We’ll just -” he’s interrupted by a deep growl, one he has scarcely ever heard from the dragon who had effectively been his babysitter his entire life. Turning, Jude’s expression crumples with relief to see Aidon, and one arm frees itself to hold the dragon tight against himself when he winds his way in. Jude had thought the worst when he’d seen his mother alone in the bed, wondering if the snapping of their soul bond had worsened her symptoms. From outside, Jude hears the locals discussing something about quicksand. He’ll have to be careful transporting Maeve to the boat, but he refuses to wait another moment longer. “We should go now though, we need to get you to a healer. Do you need me to grab anything here?” He impresses even himself with how he takes charge of the situation, normal anxiety suppressed somewhere deep in his chest even with his wet cheeks and breaking heart. Maybe something of his father’s soul lives inside him yet.
for someone that won't ever arrive
Maeve Ansel
the Nightshade
Madame

Age: 26 | Height: 5'4 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 10 - Strg: 35 - Dext: 37 - Endr: 43 - Luck: 37 - Int: 1
AIDON - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Artio Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,404 | Total: 3,277
MP: 877
#7
Maeve

She tries to lift her hand up to cup his cheek as he drops his head against her shoulder, but the movement sends a searing pain through her nerves, the movement restricted by the infection ravaging her system. "Ma chérie... Tu ne m'as jamais abandonné?" Maeve rasps, tears springing to her own eyes, stinging them as she drops her hand back to her side. She can hardly bare to look at him, seeing so much of his father reflected in his eyes and Maeve knows that she's hurt her family in a way she can't ever repair. Even with the fever ravaging her brain, the knowledge that she's disappeared just like Phoebe did plagues her.

Harper, her Harper, alone again. Edmund, Jude, and her fiancé left not knowing what's happened to her. If she was alive or simply gone in the way that often happens in Caido.

The Nightshade lifts her head as Aidon appears, but can only hold it for a moment, letting it fall back against Jude's shoulder once more. "Okay.. Okay.. Just my pack and weapons." Both of which were leaning lightly against the wall of the hut. Aidon doesn't need any prompting, moving to grab the bag in his maw, the weapons attached to either side of the pack with straps. He lets out something akin to a whimper, tail thrashing as his head whips back and forth between, eyes tracking Jude and the movement outside.

Her fingers clench loosely at his shirt, the loose linen shift that's covering her modesty clinging to her with sweat from her fever, a damp red splotch from pus and blood clear on the fabric that's stuck in the wound of her thigh.
I'm undone about to burst at my seams
'Cause I am picturing you beside me
So let me be everything that you need
Jude Quinn
Singer

Age: 19 | Height: 5’10 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 3 - Strg: 12 - Dext: 18 - Endr: 20 - Luck: 7 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
Change author:
Posts: 309 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#8
Jude
and I'm sick of waiting patiently
Her hand falls halfway, but Jude's meets it, holding tight and giving her something to grip onto even if her joints will not obey her. The tears come harder at her croaked question, because how could she ever think he would stop looking for her no matter how old he grew or how much time passed? "Jamais, maman. Jamais. J'ai regardé partout où j'allais." It feels so good to speak in their shared tongue, something his father only knew pieces of. A private, sacred thing he'd only ever shared with Maeve.

Pulling back at her weak request, Jude roughly brushes his eyes to try and swipe the tears away, and by then Aidon has already brought the pack over. "Thanks Aidon," he murmurs, and shoulders the backpack immediately. Leaning over his mother, he kisses her forehead and squeezes her hand. "I'll try not to hurt you, I'll be as quick as I can." Turning over his shoulder he shouts for the man who had invited him into the small village, and the man ducks in moments later, looking over the scene with stern eyes.

Standing but never dropping Maeve's hand, Jude explains the situation as quickly as he can, and nearly sinks with gratitude when the man merely nods firmly and moves to help him. It takes some positioning, but between the two of them they manage to get Maeve off the bed and into Jude's arms. He doesn't have the strength to pick her straight off the bed, but he won't rob her of her dignity by having two people awkwardly carry her. As Jude steps back out into the thick, humid air, he turns back to the man with teary eyes. "Thank you. Thank you so much." Whatever he can send in thanks, he will do it the moment he touches down in Torchline. Nothing will ever repay the gift he has given Jude, but the boy will try.

It is a long walk back to the skyboat, but even when his arms shake Jude doesn't cease in his journey. Not until he is walking up the gangplank and onto the deck, where he carefully lays his mother down on the provided cots for the long journeys. It's a little graceless, but at least she is safely on board. "Take us home," he calls to the captain in a way he would absolutely consider rude of himself any other time, but he refuses to leave Maeve's side to explain or kindly request. As the boat begins to lift into the sky, Jude picks up Maeve's hand and presses a salty kiss to her knuckles. "We'll be home soon maman, I promise."
for someone that won't ever arrive
Maeve Ansel
the Nightshade
Madame

Age: 26 | Height: 5'4 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 10 - Strg: 35 - Dext: 37 - Endr: 43 - Luck: 37 - Int: 1
AIDON - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Artio Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,404 | Total: 3,277
MP: 877
#9
Maeve

She doesn't have the energy to reply, eyes simply closing as her tears run into her ears, soaking her tangled hair at her temples. Maeve's fingers twitch in his, a vain attempt to return the squeeze only to find that she can't manage it, fighting back the fresh sobs that threaten to rise in her throat at the realization.

Her son spares her any embarrassment, ensuring that she's carried to the skyship with as much dignity as he can afford her, not daring to falter in his steps. The short trip is rough and she winces with each step, body protesting at being moved so roughly after having been in one position. Still, she manages to hold tightly to him with an arm around his neck, "Thank you..." She rasps to the man who had been watching over her, a smile on her cracked lips before she resigns herself to lay limply once more.

Another bed meets her back, cradling her abused body and she sighs in relief, thumb able to brush back and forth just slightly over Jude's fingertips. "How is your father? Is he..? Does he-" She can't finish the sentence, throat clenching shut tightly with a sudden swell of emotion, a shuddering breath wracking her thin frame.
I'm undone about to burst at my seams
'Cause I am picturing you beside me
So let me be everything that you need
Jude Quinn
Singer

Age: 19 | Height: 5’10 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 3 - Strg: 12 - Dext: 18 - Endr: 20 - Luck: 7 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
Change author:
Posts: 309 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#10
Jude
and I'm sick of waiting patiently
The skyboat whirs to life beneath his feet, and Jude sinks to his knees both to be closer to his mother and because the relief nearly forces him down. It is only the first hurdle to clear, but they've done it. Now he just needs to keep Maeve stable until they reach Torchline.

Small though it may be, the motion of her thumb across his skin is grounding, and though he can't look away from her face his brain is wholly focused on the feeling of their connected hands. The question she asks is painful, because Jude knows the answer isn't one she wants to hear. "He's been having a really hard time," he admits, voice wobbling a little. It has been incredibly hard for Jude to witness, as Harper tries to be open and honest with his feelings to provide a good example while still concealing the worst of it from his son. But it doesn't mean Jude hasn't noticed those darker days. "But he's okay. He actually - he just got voted King alongside Hadama." It had been a messy affair, but Jude is endlessly proud, just as he hopes Maeve will be. Something positive for her to hold onto.
for someone that won't ever arrive
Maeve Ansel
the Nightshade
Madame

Age: 26 | Height: 5'4 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 10 - Strg: 35 - Dext: 37 - Endr: 43 - Luck: 37 - Int: 1
AIDON - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Artio Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,404 | Total: 3,277
MP: 877
#11
Maeve

A task that should be fairly easy, all things considered. While the movement causes a new sort of discomfort, it pales in comparison to the knowledge that she's finally going to be home. Aidon curls at the foot of the bed, keeping watch and her feet warm, amber eyes locked on the door as his bonded finally knows a semblance of peace once more.

He's right. She doesn't want to hear it. Her heart shatters in her chest, surely audible to her adopted son as he kneels beside her, clenching tightly to her hand. Maeve squeezes her eyes shut against the onslaught of tears. "He must hate me..." She whispers, unable to keep the thought to herself, unable to stop the words from slipping past her lips just as much as helpless as she was to stop the salt streaming from her eyes.

The news of his leadership is surprising in the simple fact that Harper never wanted to lead in that capacity, but it doesn't surprise her that he stepped into the role. That he was chosen by the people. "Good... Good... I- I'm glad he's moving on." The 'without me' goes unspoken and Maeve feels a surge of guilt for placing this on her son's shoulders. Weakly a hand raises to his curls, brushing through them limply, "And how are you, ma chérie? Avez-vous pris soin de vous?"
I'm undone about to burst at my seams
'Cause I am picturing you beside me
So let me be everything that you need
Jude Quinn
Singer

Age: 19 | Height: 5’10 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 3 - Strg: 12 - Dext: 18 - Endr: 20 - Luck: 7 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
Change author:
Posts: 309 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#12
Jude
and I'm sick of waiting patiently
It's a topic no son should be exposed to, if only out of respect for the privacy and sanctity of his parents' relationship, but he can't blame his mother for her grief. But what is he supposed to say? Harper has never spoken an ill word of Maeve or Phoebe in Jude's presence, but that doesn't mean he knows the inner workings of his father's feelings. "He'll understand maman," he whispers instead, heart breaking and wishing he could offer better comfort.

As for moving on, Jude doesn't know about that exactly. His father had partly run for King to keep Jude in his home in the Court to ensure stability for them both. To Jude, it seemed Harper was clinging to as much familiarity as possible. But he can at least muster a wet-eyed smile of reassurance when Maeve refocuses on him instead, able to answer this more easily. "Yeah, I have. Nothing really exciting to report," he laughs, thick and wet. Nothing to make his mother proud, which hurts to realize. Just a best friend who means more to him than the world combined, a maybe-sort-of future apprenticeship, and a needy cat. "You don't have to stay awake to talk maman. I can tell you all about it when we get home." Giving her permission to rest if she feels like she needs it in order to let go.
for someone that won't ever arrive
Maeve Ansel
the Nightshade
Madame

Age: 26 | Height: 5'4 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 10 - Strg: 35 - Dext: 37 - Endr: 43 - Luck: 37 - Int: 1
AIDON - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Artio Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,404 | Total: 3,277
MP: 877
#13
Maeve

Maeve let's out a tired breath, exhaustion settling over her as her eyes slip closed, fingers tightening on his, "I hope so." The Nightshade whispers, letting that be the end of it, not wanting to put anymore weight on her son than she had already done.

"I doubt that's true, my sweet. You've grown so much." And Maeve can't doubt that Jude has found things in his life he loves. That he's poured value into. Connections and hobbies. She starts to push, wanting to argue with him, needing to know more of his life than she does now, but he stops her with his gentle words. Her breath leaves her in an exhale, eyes slipping closed, "Okay.. Okay.." And with his soft reassurances, her breathing evens out and she slips into a shallow sleep.

~FIN <3~
I'm undone about to burst at my seams
'Cause I am picturing you beside me
So let me be everything that you need


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