[SE] over the edge

Who am I, that the morning star would light the way for my wandering heart?

Quick indeed, and the tides turned a bit too swiftly for Seren's taste. One moment she stood there, laughing at the wild chase and in the next she was turning and sprinting off along the terrace herself, with a dragon-and-Lena-train steaming straight towards her. Literally steaming, as Umbra couldn't quite stifle his enthusiasm and kept puffing sulfurious clouds of smoke from the nostrils.

With Lena in tow, there would be no aerial maneuvering, but that helped little. As their chain grew longer, it was harder for herself to completely avoid the others in the enclosed space. Seren took to zig-zagging across the yard and relied on nimble changes of direction to avoid the pursuit. Once, twice she had a close call and just barely slipped out of reach. But her luck could not last, and by the third attempt, she found herself backed into a corner. There was glee in Umbra's warbling cry as he booped her firmly on the shoulder, and she huffed a winded laugh at the sheer enjoyment he radiated.

"Alright, that leaves... the wyrms." Holding out an arm to link with Lena, Seren gave the shimmering cloud-puffs in the sky a dubious look. "How in the stars are we to reach them?"

Seren

Lena

hope is the thing with feathers
that perches in the soul

Lena didn’t have much of a choice, quite along for the ride as the rest of her linked force dove forward – though her whoops and hollers were out of pure amusement, rather than intrinsic fear. Seren could zig and zag, but only for so long when the creatures and Lena in tow – her arms reaching, the world maneuvering at a fast, diligent pace – until Umbra finally made his mark, and she could breathe again.

Which presented another problem, once she lifted her head and gazed over the remaining individuals. The wyrms bobbed along in the distance – she could nearly feel their smirks and snickers, their amusement at the tides being somewhat in their favor. As the Caretaker joined arms with Seren, she pondered the possibilities. It would be cruel and unfair to compel the urchins forward and into their grasp. Lena and Seren were far too large to be carried by the accompanying dragon or wyrm. “Might be up to them now,” gesturing towards the assembled team. “What if we follow underneath them – the wyrms can only go so far in the boundaries…,” uncertain, shrugging her shoulders.

and sings the tune without the words
and never stops at all

Who am I, that the morning star would light the way for my wandering heart?

Seren hummed thoughtfully, and watched the wyrmlings through narrowed eyes. "That is a good idea," she said. "I think I know a way to make it a little more interesting, though." Glancing at Lena, she offered the other woman a mischievous wink. Easy as breathing, Seren extended a pulse of will towards her and lightened them both as much as she could. Gravity became a thing of little concern; clothes and hair alike began drifting, and when the chain of wyrms and dragons suddenly lurched forward they were pulled along like buoys dragged behind a ship.

"Hold on!" she laughed, and belatedly hoped that Lena did not have a fear of heights. Or magic. This was going to be one wild ride, if Umbra's determined pursuit of the not-so-smug-anymore wyrms was any indication.

Seren

Lena

hope is the thing with feathers
that perches in the soul

To her credit, Lena didn’t scream.

She did grab hold of Seren’s arm and Umbra’s form quite a bit more tightly, the residual fear intrinsically looping into a sudden gasp and a reeling of her feet, completely losing focus on the game. “Oh,” she muttered, shocked and albeit sputtering, trying to loosen the feeling of her heart beating wildly in her chest.

For the woman, for all her attuned dispositions, had never flown. Her shifts were riddled in ivory, fox enamorings, coupled entirely with the ground, the earth, the soil, and not the rising heights wildly there under her now.

Perhaps their lead wrym took pity on her, dragging them all along quickly, efficiently, on puffs of ethereal clouds, towards its brethren. Intending to snatch, to catch, the rest of the mischievous creatures soared, and reeled, save for a smaller one who’d been staring simply for a little too long. Snagged and caught, with only two more to go.

and sings the tune without the words
and never stops at all

Who am I, that the morning star would light the way for my wandering heart?

Where Lena kept her composure, Seren did not hesitate to let her elation be known to the whole region. She whooped in delight as the ground disappeared from under her feet, and clung tight to the other woman's arm. What did this look like from a distance? Two cloud wyrms, a dragon and a pair of ladies joined together like a many-sectioned serpent from some toy-maker's booth, snaking and coiling through the air. It must be wild, as wild as the ride - nightmare inducing, perhaps - and yet it was the most fun she'd had in a while.

Up they went, and down, and around in a sudden turn as the chase for the last two cloud-puffers went on. Then, after a sudden abrupt change of direction one of them was caught, and a winner was left to slither in triumphant coil of sunlight-on-white. "Get it!" Seren urged on - and all of the drakelings obeyed her at the same time.

Chaos ensued as the link dissolved. The wyrms swarmed around their fellow, while a disgruntled Umbra was straining forward at a much slower pace, hindered by the two humans dragging after him by the tail. "Oops," the girl managed, in a gasp for breath between fits of laughter. "Sorry, boy. Maybe put us down..? Then you can chase all of them." Once they were close enough to the ground, she would undo the gravity-alteration. But she didn't want to scare Lena by dropping them suddenly from mid air.

Seren

Lena

hope is the thing with feathers
that perches in the soul

Lena could only relent a sigh of relief when it was over. For the most part it’d been amusing, but the surprise and sudden shock of flight had worn away the elation and left her a bit shaken. No laughter reeled from her lips – only a stunned sort of silence, with widened eyes and a slackened jaw. She was content to breathe when her feet finally touched the ground, incapable of doing anything more than shudder and tremble like a leaf for a few seconds. So while the rest of the party reeled and carried on in their jubilation and victories, she curled her fingers together, weaving them amongst one another. “Sorry,” she muttered – uncertain why she was apologizing to Seren. “I haven’t done that before. It was all very new to me.” Her heart beat rapidly in her chest; not a sing-song, not a melody, not a rhapsody, but something built out of fear and apprehension.

and sings the tune without the words
and never stops at all

Who am I, that the morning star would light the way for my wandering heart?

Seren landed with cat-like grace, unruffled in demeanour even though both hair and clothes were windblown and disheveled. The wide happy smile faded immediately however as she turned and noticed that Lena did not share her elation. "Are you alright? I am so sorry, I should have asked first," she worried, hands reaching out to offer support or comfort, should the woman need a steadying touch. "I keep forgetting that not everyone is as fond of heights as I am."

How many times had she been scolded for climbing without thought for what might happen should she fall? Too many, and yet it always ran off her like water from a goose. It was in her blood, to reach for the stars - but that did not excuse being inconsiderate. "Have I turned you off flying altogether?" she asked, fearful of having caused lasting harm.

Seren

Lena

hope is the thing with feathers
that perches in the soul

“I’m okay. Just need a moment.” In between the latest plunge of nefariousness within the Temple, and now ascending into heights she’d never imagined, conjured, or dreamed, the youth had a rough couple of weeks. She did take her much required instant, breathing long and low, placing her sights on the sky, and then on the ground. “Asking next time might be the safest option,” and here she managed a small smile, along the quiet folds of her voice.

As far as flying? It might’ve been exhilarating or elating, but any thrill had been lost in the state of panic, confusion, and the unknown. “I can’t say for certain,” and there was the smile once more, trying to alleviate any wrongdoing or discomfort. “I’m Attuned, so, if I ever acquired a flying shift, perhaps I could practice then.” On her own terms and time, rather than being flung into something. “Do you do that very often?” Scale up into the air, as if it were nothing?

and sings the tune without the words
and never stops at all

Who am I, that the morning star would light the way for my wandering heart?

For all the reassurances, the woman didn't look fine, and Seren kept hovering anxiously. The last thing she wanted was for this game to leave a bad aftertaste. She did make a mental note to stop unleashing her magic upon others so randomly; no one had ever minded before, and so she'd never realized it might be taken this way. "I do, yes," she admitted, and thought of all the times she made herself lighter or heavier, for some purpose or merely because she enjoyed it. "It's a trick I've been able to do all my life; it's second nature to me. Like breathing."

Biting her tongue, Seren hunched down before Lena, and gazed up at her with worried blue eyes. "Would you... If you want to, I can do it again, and you can move around on your own? It's not dangerous; it's only shifting gravity around you. To make you lighter, as if you were under water. Or heavier... though that one is not as much fun." Holding out a hand as if the suggestion was a gift that could be picked up, the offer was for Lena to take or reject. "You would be in complete control, and as soon as you say stop, I will drop the spell."

Seren

Lena

hope is the thing with feathers
that perches in the soul

Lena hadn’t meant to make the other anxious; it was simply the nuances of her emotions, striving to keep everything steady when trepidation had run so rampant moments before. Perhaps it was a delightful thing when one was used to it, when they’d had it their entire life: the Caretaker could say the same about her wayward fox ability, though perhaps that was mundane by these standards. “I see,” she could only offer in return, fingers still trembling amidst one another.

But there were assurances and suggestions extended. The youth hesitated, her eyes glancing up towards the wryms, who’d seemed to have collected in and amongst one another, staring down at her sheepishly. But there was a sudden pressure and she didn’t like it – recoiled against the sentiments, the ruminations, as she shook her head. “I’m not sure if I’m up for it quite yet. But thank you for trying.” For asking this go around; and her gaze went towards her basket, left along the ground, scooping it up for something for her hands to wrap around and not shudder so much. “Maybe another time.”

and sings the tune without the words
and never stops at all

Who am I, that the morning star would light the way for my wandering heart?

The outstretched hand dropped empty to her side, in quiet defeat. Seren nodded her acceptance of the decision and masqued disappointment with a gentle smile. "Another time," she promised, "whenever you want. Or not at all, it is completely up to you." It was a lesson learned, and an unfortunate way to learn indeed.

Sensing the jarring discord in her heart, Umbra left his victory laps through the skies and came to investigate. The wind stirred up as he winged by ruffled Seren's hair, and the held out än arm for the dragon to land on. He did so gingerly, almost too big to perch on her shoulder, and solved the issue by draping himself around her neck. His wedge shaped head reached out to bop the caretaker in a soft nudge, leaving a huff of warm breath behind.

"Thank you for playing with us," Seren translated. "I hope you had fun, too."

Seren

Lena

hope is the thing with feathers
that perches in the soul

At the very least, Lena could funnel agreement and accord back into the alteration, away, away, away from the trepidation. “Of course. Thank you.” She looked down at her basket, maneuvering pieces and portions, flighty, restless, feeling the need to escape. But Umbra’s touch was far more grounding, and she found herself reaching to gingerly pet the dragon’s snout, kept within for just a moment more. “You’re welcome. And I did.” Then she released the companion, eyes meeting the wyrms up above, until they too began to dissipate.

“I must return to the Celestine.” Duties and distractions were a welcome combination now, and there were multitudes of things to think about, ruminate over, in between. “Feel free to come by anytime you’d like.” And with that, the Caretaker waved, hastening back over the bridges, and not glancing downward into the sea.

{FIN <3}

and sings the tune without the words
and never stops at all