Frivolous Flowers
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Zariah Launceleyn
the Merciless
Grand Sorceress of the Arcane Academy

Age: 33 | Height: 5'7" | Race: Abandoned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 7 - Strg: 10 - Dext: 23 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 10 - Int:
Played by: Grant Offline
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Posts: 1,101 | Total: 5,479
MP: 0
#1
As cruel, malicious, dishonest, calculating, manipulative, condescending, hyper-critical, relentless, unforgiving, cold-hearted, selfish, conniving, and overall not-nice as the Merciless could be, she was still a mother, and sometimes that meant doing things that were…a little less than evil. Beatrix had insisted that she plant something because it was Flowerbirth and everyone was planting something so they had to as well. If she hadn’t missed her child so much she might’ve put a kibosh on it. But today she had been willing to appease her.

So she had promised to plant something while making last rounds through the Hollowed Grounds. And while she could have lied…well. This was one of those instances where it was easier to simply do what her daughter wished. And so it was that Zariah found herself kneeling in the dirt in the forest, digging a hole to place a small flower she had gotten from the market to plant.

Zariah
I won't be held down by who I used to be
Evie Ignatius
the Evergreen
Warden of Halo / Apothecarist

Age: 34 | Height: 5'5 | Race: Abandoned | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 8 - Strg: 18 - Dext: 20 - Endr: 30 - Luck: 30 - Int:
MICAH - Regular - Tide Jaguar
Played by: Brit Offline
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Posts: 1,182 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#2

Two paths diverge in a crowded wood...and find each other soon after.

Evie has intentionally removed Zariah from her memories. She had been unscathed in that particular reign, but as a Natural she had never forgotten the wider scale of damage done, the cruelty exerted over her and her people. So when she bustles by, busy and distracted by the seedlings and sprouts in her arms, she nearly doesn't see Zariah there at all. Too blinded by purpose. When she does, a part of her nearly continues walking, but...well, this is prime planting territory, and Evie is no coward.

Setting her large bundle of starters down, she kneels not far from Zariah, brandishing her spade with a twirl and sinking it into the earth to begin a joke for her first. Blue eyes glance to the flower in the other woman's hands, and calls across the small distance. "Is that a market bloom?" She knows it is, despite the question. Shops there frequently, or drops off rarer flowers for celebrations that she cultivates privately.

evie
Please don't ever become a stranger
whose laugh I could recognize anywhere
Zariah Launceleyn
the Merciless
Grand Sorceress of the Arcane Academy

Age: 33 | Height: 5'7" | Race: Abandoned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 7 - Strg: 10 - Dext: 23 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 10 - Int:
Played by: Grant Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,101 | Total: 5,479
MP: 0
#3
Zariah would have been perfectly content to ignore the woman as she passed by. She would have been equally content to continue to ignore her as the woman knelt not far to her left and began to place flowers in the dirt as well. However, her contentment was rarely considered by the whims of others, and so the Merciless found herself woven into a tapestry of conversation she had never wished to be part of. Alas, such was life.

Still irritating as hell though.

”Indeed, it is a market bloom. A keen eye you have.” the former queen said simply. And though unadorned by attempts at pleasantry, she was not so cruel in tone as one might’ve expected, given her reputation. Little did most know, that Zariah’s ire was just as well earned as her adoration.

Zariah
I won't be held down by who I used to be
Evie Ignatius
the Evergreen
Warden of Halo / Apothecarist

Age: 34 | Height: 5'5 | Race: Abandoned | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 8 - Strg: 18 - Dext: 20 - Endr: 30 - Luck: 30 - Int:
MICAH - Regular - Tide Jaguar
Played by: Brit Offline
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Posts: 1,182 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#4

The space and silence between them isn't one she would normally break, though she hums softly at the compliment and tilts her head respectfully at earning it. If only because her parents had instilled such excessive mannerisms in her from the time she could open her eyes. "Thank you." Theres nothing further to say, and considering the quiet that had existed prior to her arrival and before she spoke, Evie assumes conversation isn't what she wants today.

The girl gives a cluck kf her tongue when her spade handle snaps unexpectedly. It had been old, but she has been putting off replacing it until this exact moment. Though her shoulders prickle with unease at the idea, she's aware of Zariah's affinity for magic and assumes the judgment a Natural might aim her way won't come. Her hand hovers over where she'd like the next seedling to be planted, the last one - because of course her spade snapped on the last hole - and uses her earth magic to help move the dirt out of the way. Plopping the little bud into the earth, she waves her hand over all of them one at a time, using her magic to tug their roots further into the soil and give them a little extra security.

Standing, she tilts her head towards the previous Queen. Considers doing the same to the flower Zariah had planted before dismissing the notion out of hand. "Have a pleasant remainder of your day." Scooping up her broken spade she frowns at it, walking away slowly as she considers whether or not she can repair it.

evie
Please don't ever become a stranger
whose laugh I could recognize anywhere
Zariah Launceleyn
the Merciless
Grand Sorceress of the Arcane Academy

Age: 33 | Height: 5'7" | Race: Abandoned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 7 - Strg: 10 - Dext: 23 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 10 - Int:
Played by: Grant Offline
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Posts: 1,101 | Total: 5,479
MP: 0
#5
As subtle as it was, the small bit of magic the girl worked did not go unnoticed by the former Queen. Oh no, instead her hazel eyes locked onto it, quietly patting the dirt around the newly planted flower with her fingers as she did so. How interesting. She knew good and well exactly how the people of the Hollowed Grounds treated Abandoneds. Surely this was a small sign, a small question, a wish that the Merciless would take some pity, and bestow the gift of acceptance upon her.

”Wait.” Zariah said as she too stood, a hint of command in her tone. Not mean. Not forceful. Simply the voice of a woman with power, and one who didn’t need to flaunt or earn it to have it either. ”Tell me, what is a talented Abandoned girl doing in a place like this, surrounded by people who scorn your very existence?” she asked gently, near conversationally.

Zariah
I won't be held down by who I used to be
Evie Ignatius
the Evergreen
Warden of Halo / Apothecarist

Age: 34 | Height: 5'5 | Race: Abandoned | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 8 - Strg: 18 - Dext: 20 - Endr: 30 - Luck: 30 - Int:
MICAH - Regular - Tide Jaguar
Played by: Brit Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,182 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#6

Evie wipes her hands on her apron, pausing when the word breaks the quiet symphony of birds and wind through the trees that hsd previously kept them company. She keeps the distance she has claimed, turning to gaze upon Zariah as the deposed Queen stands and speaks. Unease prickles at her shoulders, but there's nothing she can do about it now. Whatever curiosity she has inspired in the woman will not die until she answers.

"I was born here, it's as much home to me as it is to them, bigots included." Her bright blue gaze turns to scan the horizon, shrugging slightly. "I know I can't change how they think, or their prejudice, so I let them think I'm Accepted even if it means hiding. As more Outsiders arrive, tolerance rises, and there's less need for me to pretend." Precisely why she had begun doing these small acts, even though they still make her stomach clench with habitual fear. "But I would never let them chase me away into a place I've never been either. I have as much right to the Grounds as anyone, whether they know what I am or not." Stubbornness had been a defining trait of hers from birth. This will always be her home, no matter how the other Naturals would treat her if they knew.

evie
Please don't ever become a stranger
whose laugh I could recognize anywhere
Zariah Launceleyn
the Merciless
Grand Sorceress of the Arcane Academy

Age: 33 | Height: 5'7" | Race: Abandoned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 7 - Strg: 10 - Dext: 23 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 10 - Int:
Played by: Grant Offline
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Posts: 1,101 | Total: 5,479
MP: 0
#7
The former queen listened quietly, doll-like face blank, expressionless, and unreadable. And for a time after the young woman fell silent, she remained still and contemplative. How sad it was, that such a talent, had been given to one who could not see the twist of her logic, and thus limited herself. "And you truly believe that a little shift from some Outlanders will make them accept you? That this bit of happiness you've created will not be dispelled as soon as you reveal who you truly are?" she asked softly, not accusing, but curious if she could see the flaw in her reasoning.

Zariah knew these people wouldn't accept her. She knew her little Oasis would come crashing down around her. And she was confident that this young woman knew it too.

"You say you've a right to be here, and I agree, you do. But so long as you pretend you are what you are not, you accomplish nothing." she said with a shrug. It was easy to be accepted when you pretended you were not something to loathe. "If you wish to truly make a point, to prove that you and your skills have a place in this world...I would make you an offer." she said, tilting her head slightly. Zariah loved the Abandoned above all the others - any who had been under her rule would know that.

Zariah
I won't be held down by who I used to be
Evie Ignatius
the Evergreen
Warden of Halo / Apothecarist

Age: 34 | Height: 5'5 | Race: Abandoned | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 8 - Strg: 18 - Dext: 20 - Endr: 30 - Luck: 30 - Int:
MICAH - Regular - Tide Jaguar
Played by: Brit Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,182 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#8

Evie, despite her years of having societal manners pounded into her brain, can't help the wry smirk and snort of disbelief that she exudes at Zariah's first words. "Of course not, I was born here I'm well aware of how deeply ingrained their biases run. But I would not be alone in my exile, and the Outlanders are as welcoming as any with their lack of prejudice against magic." Not that it would ease the sting of said exile, the agony of the revelation, of losing her old Natural friends and family. It's why she continues to lie, to hide, to revel in their company while she still can. It's inevitable that she will be revealed of course. Especially as her magic grows stronger with every day. But she comforts herself with the knowledge that the Outlanders will accept her if nobody else will.

"I don't seek to accomplish anything as of yet, I haven't had a goal surrounding more than myself. But if you have an offer, I'll listen." The least she can do, with denial still within her rights depending on what the once-Queen has to say.

evie
Please don't ever become a stranger
whose laugh I could recognize anywhere
Zariah Launceleyn
the Merciless
Grand Sorceress of the Arcane Academy

Age: 33 | Height: 5'7" | Race: Abandoned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 7 - Strg: 10 - Dext: 23 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 10 - Int:
Played by: Grant Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,101 | Total: 5,479
MP: 0
#9
Zariah smirked, leaning into one hip ever so slightly more than the other, crossing her arms. "Good. You didn't strike me as a fool." she said as Evie confirmed she didn't think change would come so easily to her kin and kith. "But of course, even as newcomers arrive and accept you as you are, they can't really replace the acceptance of those who raised you, can they?" she said, though she already knew the answer. Family and community were near impossible to replace, and even if one was successful in doing so, the sting and pain of rejection would always remain. Perhaps it would go unnoticed for days or weeks or months, but eventually it would rear its ugly head to strike and cause suffering.

"My offer is this: come to Halo. I will teach you to control your magic and grow stronger with it." she said, a hint of warmth suffusing her smile. "The only way the people here will ever learn to accept people like you is if one of their own proves their worth with it. And sure, you could stay here and toil away on your own, trying to make headway under the scornful watch of your fellow Grounder...but why, when the option for skilled tutelage is but a portal away?" she said in dulcet tones, coaxing Evie to walk down the path she wished her to take. "In doing so, you can return with the ability to make a real difference for your people, an overnight difference even to improve their lives. They could not hate you then, not truly, instead, they would have to commend you, and give you the acknowledgement you deserve...and surely that which you've never really been able to seek before."

Zariah
I won't be held down by who I used to be
Evie Ignatius
the Evergreen
Warden of Halo / Apothecarist

Age: 34 | Height: 5'5 | Race: Abandoned | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 8 - Strg: 18 - Dext: 20 - Endr: 30 - Luck: 30 - Int:
MICAH - Regular - Tide Jaguar
Played by: Brit Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,182 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#10

If Zariah is looking to play on her emotions regarding her parents, it's not quite the right path, not in the wake of her father's death. Her grin is wry, but at least the woman is partially accurate. "Then we wait for that generation to die out, and replace it." But a shrug of her shoulders and a soft sigh permits allowance of the grief of ostracization. "It's no substitute. But advancing magically, how would that solve anything either?" Asked more out of curiosity than anything else, wondering what Zariah intends with bolstering Natural Abandoned individuals. Surely magic with a wider breadth would only worsen the reaction from their families?

Zariah goes on to explain it, and Evie mulls over it quietly. Halo is a realm all of its own, an entirely new place to discover, but it's also not home. Is she more adventurous or a homebody? It seems she has been stuck here in this place since her first breath, but even that feeling of entrapment can't stop her from thinking of the place fondly. "And the details? Of where I would be staying, and the frequency of my returns here in the Grounds?" If it is of her own volition, she can be enticed into going. Evie is already so close to the edge, to accepting her own nature after so many years battling and suppressing it. And as much as she distrusts Zariah, at least the woman appreciates and fosters power.

evie
Please don't ever become a stranger
whose laugh I could recognize anywhere
Zariah Launceleyn
the Merciless
Grand Sorceress of the Arcane Academy

Age: 33 | Height: 5'7" | Race: Abandoned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 7 - Strg: 10 - Dext: 23 - Endr: 27 - Luck: 10 - Int:
Played by: Grant Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,101 | Total: 5,479
MP: 0
#11
"Mmm...yes, wait for the old generation to die out, in the meanwhile they nurture hatred into their young." Zariah said with a wry grin. "No change worth having ever comes through inaction, my dear. Remember that." she said softly, in an almost motherly tone.

It seemed though, the young woman had snatched up the bait, and now all the Archmage had to do was reel her in. "I am building a school of magic. There will be living quarters for those who travel in from other lands." she said, a light shrug accompanying her words. Finding lodgings, trips home - what childish concerns. She expected nothing less from one raised in the Hollowed Grounds. They were tittering mice, loyal to their captors and suppressors, terrified of anything that might grant them more. But perhaps this mouse could grow. There was potential, at any rate. "You'd be free to come and go as you please, though the trek from the portal to the Citadel is not one you would like to make often. Halo is not a forgiving landscape." she explained. Zariah would not keep her tethered, but she would also make no promises that such travel would be easy.

But nothing in the Hollowed Grounds had ever been easy, so really, what was the difference?

Zariah
I won't be held down by who I used to be


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