Fantasy Howl's Flying Castle (Finished! ---Whoo! (*＾▽＾)／)

[Zer0]

[SIZE= 18px]- Johnny Caprice -[/SIZE]
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[SIZE= 14px]" Sorcerer's Academy, One day . . . "[/SIZE]
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"[SIZE= 18px]U[/SIZE]rgh . . . Frey? . . . Why aren'tchu glowing?" said Johnny, blinking his eyes blearily. His vision was swimming blurrily and he placed a hand on Echo's cheek as though to push it away because it was so close. "James is going to get mad if he finds out you've been eating the school's plants ag ---" the hand froze. Then felt Echo's hair, face, and finally nose. With a start Johnny blinked alert and he saw that it was Echo so close to him.


He fainted again.


And then suddenly one eye fluttered open defiantly. "Wait . . . before my strength runs out . . . What's . . . your . . . favorite . . . color . . .? " and he fainted for real this time.


@Katsuya

OOC || Characters || Interest Check
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[Katsuya]

-Echo Muses-
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Echo blushed when Johnny touched her cheek, blinking bemusedly when he muttered something about Frey eating the school's plants...again? Then he touched her face, hair and nose before waking up to see her so close and fainting again. She couldn't even answer back, her face turning redder than her hair. Was...he trying to get to know her?


"Wait! Oh for the love of-! Don't faint on me!" Flustered, her ears perked up in urgency as she looked over to see Butters and Meatball coming over to where they are. Then she heard Renee's wings flapping and the nurse scolding her for grabbing her again. The red head let the nurse take a look at him as well before asking Renee to put him on Butters and walked back to the nurse's ward with the large ram in tow.


Echo followed, not wanting to leave Johnny alone in the room. After all...he did ask what's her favorite color and she wants to answer it. Renee decided to come as well, letting everyone know that she's done training for today. Which made the students groan in disappointment.


After settling him in a cot, Echo sat on a small wooden chair near the bed, frowning in concern as Renee listened to the nurse. When she was done, the winged teen told her friend everything. "He's fine...Just had a panic attack it seems...And I'm guessing that he fainted after seeing your face, huh?"


The red head nodded, now feeling bad for being the cause of him fainting again. "I-I didn't mean to. Only wanted to see if he's okay." She felt her friend's hand on  her shoulder in comfort. "Well...at least he wanted to get to know you, right?" To that, Echo smiled.


"Yes...yes, he did...I-I thought he didn't like me...but...I guess he does?"


"Who knows~? Well! I'm going to find James and let him know what happened to poor Johnny. Good luck, Echo~!"


"Wait! Ren!! Augh...she left..." Echo stayed where she was, staring at Johnny for a bit before looking out the window that was nearby. Then red head turned to the huge ram and boarhound, smiling at them.


"You two look very fluffy like a cloud...I like it."


@Zer0

 

[Zer0]

[SIZE= 18px]- Johnny Caprice -[/SIZE]
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[SIZE= 14px]" Nurse's clinic, Sorcerer's Academy "[/SIZE]
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[SIZE= 18px]B[/SIZE]utters bleated proudly, his intelligent eyes twinkling, and shook himself so that his fur fluffed up and he pranced around the clinic as if to show off. Meatballs on the other hand had gazed at Echo with the happy, empty-headed eyes of a normal dog --- except the eyes were smoldering like embers. His bushy tail wagging excitedly, Meatballs stepped on to the bed, slobbering to lick her face. The boarhound's breath was smoky and smelled very bad.


"Ow!" Johnny woke up when one of the dirty giant paws stepped on his stomach. "Meatballs, you blooming dog!" he suddenly saw Echo then hastily unsummoned the boarhound. He looked really embarrassed probably for saying 'blooming dog' in front her, and also for fainting.


For some reason he didn't want Echo to know that he used curse words and was turning red again as he struggled for something to say. Butters nudged him encouragingly, but all he could do was mouth wordlessly like a fish.


@Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Echo Muses-
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Echo watched the ram prancing around and proudly showing off his fluffy fur while Meatballs licked her face. She laughed when he did, her nose cringed from the smell of Meatballs' breathe, and she wiped some of the slobber off her face. When Johnny woke up, cursing at the boarhound, the red head could only watch as he unsummoned it. She had to smile a bit when he blushed again and making an impression of a fish.


Somehow, she didn't feel as nervous as before.


"...My favorite color is golden yellow like a sunflower..." She quietly answered his question from before. "Are...are you feeling better? You...you should rest more if you're going to faint again." Echo poked at her pot, still shy with talking to him.


@Zer0

 

[Zer0]

View attachment 211860​

[SIZE= 18px]- Johnny Caprice -[/SIZE]
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[SIZE= 14px]" Nurse's clinic, Sorcerer's Academy "[/SIZE]
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"[SIZE= 18px]I[/SIZE]-I'm not going to faint, see?" Johnny suddenly jumped out of bed and did jumping jacks in front of Echo, the redness of his face fading. Actually, his lips were starting to turn pale --- paler than how his clownish make up was making it look like. "I am fine, I am absolutely f-fine." he said grinning.


That was a lie. He was fighting his natural instincts to run away. This fear that he had learned whilst growing up being bullied by his nine ogre-ish older sisters.


He gave a shaky laugh, leaning on the bedside table, but was actually sweating a lot. "Sunflowers are nice this time of year. I-I like eating the seeds especially those being sold in my hometown, Winsnow."


Butters went around the bed and Echo, then lay on the wooden floor beside Johnny as if to rest. Johnny immediately petted him and he seemed to calm down a bit


"It's a t-town in the tundra north of Lordaeron. We raise reindeer and oxen, all sorts of cattle there and we make a lot of feta cheese and hot springs --- I mean, we have hot springs and snow baboons." even though Johnny calmed down, he was still talking fast as though he was afraid he wouldn't have another chance to talk this much.


"There are also dwarves ---grumpy dwarves --- who raise giant mountain goats as mounts. My family has a sheep farm there, oh and there's a monastery where monks live who are like ninjas. By the way, E-[SIZE= 12px]Ec[/SIZE][SIZE= 10px]ho[/SIZE]", it was the first time he called her by her name, "w-why do you [SIZE= 12px]hang[/SIZE] [SIZE= 12px]potted plants on [/SIZE][SIZE= 11px]your antlers, that is . . . if you don't mind me asking[/SIZE]?"


He pointed a shaky finger at her hanging pots. His expression was funny, a cross between trying to smile placidly, while suffering a slight stomach ache.


@Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

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-Echo Muses-
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Echo listened to Johnny, smiling at him. She can tell that he is really nervous about something, considering he's turning paler than his make up. Though she is worried that he might faint again, so she stayed where she sat, just in case. The red head didn't interrupt him since it seems he's on a roll until he asks her about her potted plants. Her cheeks turned red as her hair when she recalled of her reason.


"O-Oh! I...Um...I hang potted plants on my antlers because...my cousins made fun of them."


She rubbed on her arm nervously, her green eyes looked over to the pots on her left. "See, in my family, I'm the only girl who has antlers growing. So my cousins thought it would be funny to hang their wet clothes on them."


It really was a terrible memory. She can still remember her cousins laughing as they put their wet underwear on her antlers to dry them and then she get sick from the droplets falling on her head. "They would even tease me and call me 'manly' for having them...So...I thought 'why not decorate my antlers'? With plants. Since they are feminine and all."


Echo looked back at Johnny and smiled, her blush bloomed across her face. "It's why I like you. You seem so comfortable with your ears and horns and clothes, despite everyone's judgement. Unlike me who tries to please everyone with flora. I-I mean-! I love plants and all, don't get me wrong! but...it still would be nice to have someone tell me it's okay to be different..." She muttered sadly, her reindeer ears wilted a bit. Then she laughed quietly.


"I-I'm sorry. You must be thinking that I'm rea-really immature for e-even thinking like that, huh?" Her smile looked forced, as if she didn't blame him of he did think that.


@Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Johnny Caprice -


" Nurse's clinic, Sorcerer's Academy "


"Not at all!" Johnny said immediately. He gazed at her pondering upon how the environment you grew up in affects the way you look at yourself.


The golden afternoon light that streaked through the window cast soft shadows across her face, lining the edges of her deep red fur in bright amber. The gold glow reflected in her green eyes and it was like looking at emeralds that captured the burning sunset. It was beautiful.


'She must have strong antlers to hold up so many pots . . .' thought Johnny absentmindedly. 'Such fluffy ears . . .'


He startled himself for gazing too long and looked away scratching his nose, redenning a bit.


"Er, by the way, this is Butters, my guardian spirit." he smiled trying to cover up his long silence.


"Baaa." Butters playfully nuzzled Echo's side and curiously sniffed her fur. The giant ram's entire horned head was as big as a small boulder and wider than a man's chest. 


"I'm an apprentice Summoner under Professor Magnus together with James. Is your major Herbology just like Renee, E-Echo?"


Johnny sat on the floor. His stomach was aching dully but it was getting easier to ignore it.


@Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Echo Muses-
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Echo's smile turned from forced to natural when she heard Johnny's response, her ears perking up slowly. Somehow...he calmed down her nerves. She didn't feel nervous anymore. Like she can finally be herself around someone without fearing their judgement.


The red head noticed how the sunset's lights reflected on his already light blond hair and horns, creating a thin golden halo on one side. The warm shadows made from his fisherman's hat made his eyes a lot more darker; a lot more intense with a red-orange tone. She couldn't look away from them until Johnny broke the eye contact and Echo blushed again, poking one of her pots again. 'Woah...his eyes are...captivating...' Her face went redder as she gulped quietly.


When Johnny introduced her to Butters, Echo smiled at the large ram, gently petting his head and horns. "It's nice to meet you, Butters....Wow~! Your fur is soft too! It's better than any pillow I've ever laid my head on." She giggled as Butters sniffed her fur.


"Yes, it is...but I want to be a botanist. Once I graduate from here, I'm planning run my own herb shop and help any herbalists like Ren." Echo replied before sitting on the floor with him, not too close but not far from him either. "What are you going to do once you graduate, Johnny?"


@Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Johnny Caprice -


" Nurse's clinic, Sorcerer's Academy "


"Run away to a circus." he said determinedly after taking a long moment to decide if he should tell Echo this secret. He decided to open up and trust her.


" I already made plans to travel with the theatre troupe of Madame Goodhart's Travelling Carnival for two years as a performer of elemental shows with my summons, before setting up my own theatre. I love entertaining people!" he whispered even though there was no one else nearby.


Johnny brightened as he stood up, bowed, then grandly swept his blue hat off his head. He showed Echo there was nothing inside, flipped it, then dramatically pulled out a deck of artistic cards from within.


With charisma and flair he made four cards come out of one, whipped his hand out and in a blurr they disappeared, then finally he squirmed as each of the four same cards peeked out from under his shirt collar. He pulled them out, smiling like a craftsman who was confident and happy with his art.


"~Tadaa!"


@Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Echo Muses-
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Echo gasped in awe and wonder from his magic trick before clapping enthusiastically. "Wow! That's really good, Johnny. It's like watching a pro!" The red head meant it. She has watched others perform magic like this and she thoroughly enjoyed them. Especially when the entertainer love their craft and to see Johnny so happy while performing...


She believes that he'll reach for his dreams within no time.


"I'm sure your theatre will be one of, if not, the best one out there! Let me know when your first show happens, okay? I would love to come and see you perform on stage!" Echo excitedly exclaimed, her ears perked up in her cheer.


@Zer0

 

[Zer0]

[SIZE= 18px]- Johnny Caprice -[/SIZE]
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[SIZE= 14px]" Nurse's clinic, Sorcerer's Academy "[/SIZE]


"[SIZE= 18px]T[/SIZE]hank you, and yes I will!" said Johnny pleasantly. All traces of nervousness left him as he began chatting about the kind of theatre he wanted to set up: a glass palace where people can come in and listen to fine music and watch plays about far off places, daring sword fights, and princes in disguise.


Johnny seemed to be very fond of story telling, and liked sharing all the things he's seen and the people he's met in his travels for he has indeed travelled a lot. Before his family settled down in the tundra town of Winsnow, they were part of an ancient nomad people of shepherds who travelled from place to place herding large sheep and goats. On clear nights they would sing and dance to drums and flute, or tell stories about the spirits of the land in the light of bonfires.


Johnny had been a little boy when he had seen one of Madame Goodhart's shows and there he fell in love with the arcane art of summoning. He had loved animals for as long as he can remember, and the creatures the performers summoned from the other eight realms of this world were the most beautiful and fantastic he had ever seen, and from there on wanted to meet as many of them as he could.


The travelling carnival was run by vampires and was known for it's odd collection of witches and wizards of different races. From half-giants who dive into tiny glasses of water and somehow magically fit inside, to acrobatic mermaids who swing and tumble as they trapeze from one giant fish bowl to another.


Johnny's goal was to learn the ropes of running a show under Madame Goodhart.


He happily chatted with Echo long into the afternoon, listening to her when she spoke, and also offered to share with her a tin of chocolate frogs from his bag. The frogs hopped realistically inside the stomach.


@Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Echo Muses-
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She listened, her smiling growing wider from hearing Johnny's dream theatre, how he started to dream of joining the traveling carnival, his nomadic roots. It made her wish to explore and travel around since it sounds wonderful and grand.


When he mentioned about singing, however, is when she started to talk about her love for music. Echo loved to sing ever since she heard an unknown band that was traveling around her windy but sunny hometown, Dawnsfield. She was just a little girl when she first heard them in a small park nearby her home. The lead singer was looking for someone to sing with her and she picked Echo to come up to the tiny wooden stage.


Of course, she was terrified at first, being in front of a crowd and her cousins were there too, ready to tease her. Then the lead singer told her to just imagine everyone is a pumpkin and she was alone in a field full of them. She followed her instructions and started to sing. Boy, did she surprise everyone with her strong voice. The lead singer even let her sing the whole song without joining in, wanting to listen herself as part of the audience. It was the most amazing thing she has ever done in front of people.


After that however, she didn't sing in front of others anymore. She couldn't imagine the field of pumpkins whenever someone asks her to sing, too afraid to even try. With each year passing, people stopped asking and Echo would only hum quietly. It's when she's alone and in her aunt's greenhouse that she would start singing to the plants, noticing how they grow faster the night after.


"Most people who knew, forgot about it or don't mention it anymore, which is fine with me. I rather sing for the plants since they like my voice enough to grow." Echo giggled quietly, grabbing a chocolate frog and biting into it's head. "Thank you for the chocolate." She grinned at him, her reindeer ears twitched a bit.


@Zer0

 

[Zer0]

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[SIZE= 18px]- Johnny Caprice -[/SIZE]
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[SIZE= 14px]" Sorcerer's Academy "[/SIZE]


"[SIZE= 18px]Y[/SIZE]ou're welcome." said Johnny, looking at her ears. He really wanted to touch Echo's fluffy ears, but thought better of it.


"Baa!" bleated Butters suddenly in surprise and butted Johhny grumpily with his horns.


"Oh, sorry, Butters!" He was petting the giant ram and had accidentally pinched one of its ears hard after he saw Echo's ear twitch. His wanting to touch them was the kind of desire people had to squeeze bunnies or squish baby chickens when they were too adorable. Johnny rubbed Butter's soft nose in apology. "Sorry, sorry." he said softly.


"Baa!" Butters snorted, still grumpy, and with a poof of cloud disappeared.


"I, erm . . . accidentally pinched his ears." Johnny explained to Echo as he waved the smoke away with his wand, a white one with a carved handle. He was curious about how one could make plants grow faster by singing and wanted to ask if Echo could sing him one small song when nurse Pomona came out of her office at the far end of the clinic and shooed them out as the school was already closing. It was already getting dark outside.


Johnny wondered why James didn't come in to see him, he wasn't attempting to tame his lightning salamander today as he was practicing how to cast a lightning shield charm. They usually hung out after class and walked back to House 44 in Ruby street together.


"E-Echo, I'm going to go look for James. What about you?" said Johnny hoisting his bag over his shoulders. The hallway outside the clinic was empty. The magic lanterns had been lit and the only sounds came from outside where students of the academy's various sports clubs were finishing up their training and preparing to go home.


@Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Echo Muses-
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She jumped from Butters' bleat, raising a worried eyebrow as he disappeared in a puff of smoke. Echo wondered why Johnny would pinch the large ram and was about to ask when Nurse Pomona shooed them away.


It felt like time flew by quickly for Echo. She didn't even notice how dark it was outside until she saw the magic lights glowing in the hallways.


"I should go home soon...but I'll help you look for him, if you like?" The red head secured her shoulder pouch with her hand. "I need to ask Ren about something before I go and she might be with him."


The red head wanted to get the recipes from her friend and practice.

-Renee Pendragon-
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Renee sat on the stone benches in the north courtyard, watching her brother practice the lightening shield charm, and sighed. It's been hours since she left Echo alone with Johnny and she wanted to visit them or at least spy on them. To see how they were doing, but James told her to mind her business. Her curiosity is nagging her though, wanting to know if they are getting closer or are they just stuttering around like usual.


She wants to know~!!


But she knew her brother had a point, so she stayed with James and noticed the sky turn into a darker shade of blues and purples. Renee distracted herself with homework and creating a list of herbal attacks she could make. The books Professor Grandiflorus gave her were open, papers filled with theories and research spread apart and all over the benches. She could barely see her written words anymore, even with the magic lanterns on.


"James, don't you think you should stop? You'll run out of Manna if you keep doing this and I need to make dinner tonight." Renee started to clean up her mess, putting them in her bag once they were in order.


@Zer0

 

[Zer0]

[SIZE= 18px]- James Pendragon -[/SIZE]
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[SIZE= 14px]" Sorcerer's Academy "[/SIZE]
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"[SIZE= 18px]Y[/SIZE]ou can go ahead." said James, wiping the sweat off his brow. "I'm staying here a bit longer."


Compared to Renee, his efforts haven't been very successful. She was right, he was running out of manna and had already drunk his last manna potion. He was biting off more than he can chew, like the beginner weight lifter who tries to take on heavy weights even though he doesn't have the muscle for it yet. He had successfully casted the lightning shield charm for the first time today, but it was still rough around the edges and weak against the lightning salamander which was a tier three war beast --- Johnny's boarhound was a tier two . . . it was literally an apprentice level protection versus a professional level of hurt.


But there was no short cut to getting better, he knew he had a lot of ground to cover and only practice can close that gap. Practice cuts a groove in your mental wiring while your body develops the arcane endurance. Doing the action over and over until magic and synapse work in unison and the spell you wish to manifest comes out exactly the way you want it to be.


"Jaaaames! Reneeee!" called a familiar voice. Johnny waved at the two from a distance. He was walking beside Echo and was looking quite cheerful. The gap between them was a couple of inches shorter compared to the distance Johnny usually places himself apart from other girls.


James smiled. It was nice to see his buddy happy. They gripped each other's shoulders in greeting. "Hey, Johnny.Hi, Echo, is your shoulder alright?" James asked her.


@Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Renee Pendragon-
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Renee managed to finish packing up when she heard Johnny's greeting and turned around to see him with Echo, walking next to each other. Not stuttering at all. Heaving her bag over her shoulder, she waved back, watching Echo greet them both without being shy. "Hi Echo! Hi Johnny!"


"Good evening, Ren. Good evening, James. It's better now. I can move it to a certain extent." Echo moved her shoulder and arm back and forth before wincing. "Um...yea, to a certain extent. Thanks for asking, James." Then she turned to Renee, blushing a bit as she whispered her question into her ear.


"So...um..can I borrow the recipes you were talking about before?"


"Of course! I'll bring it to school tomarrow. Is that fine?"


"Yes, thank you, Ren." Echo smiled, her ears twitched gleefully. Renee raised an eyebrow at her, wondering before quickly coming to a conclusion and grinned. James was right; It was best to leave them alone.


"James, did you manage to make your desired charm yet?" Echo asked, tilting her head at him. The winged teen noticed how her friend stayed next to Johnny, a bit close than normal in any other case, and said nothing about it.


"Only once, but he wants to continue practicing despite running out of Manna." Renee answered before James could, frowning at him with a bit of a motherly glare. "He scolds me for staying up late, but then does this stunt. Can you believe him?" She said, her wings puffing up a bit. Her orange eyes didn't move from her brother's darker eyes as she explained, making a point for him to come home and rest for the next day.


Echo frowned as well, worried about his health. "James, you should rest. Even Ren takes breaks in between her training."


@Zer0

 

[Zer0]

[SIZE= 18px]- James Pendragon -[/SIZE]
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[SIZE= 14px]" Sorcerer's Academy "[/SIZE]
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"[SIZE= 18px]N[/SIZE]o." said James stubbornly and firmly. "Don't worry about me, I'm fine." But his fine sounded just like Johnny's 'fine'. James didn't look like he was having a stomach ache, but he did look weary and thirsty. "I just need a short rest. You two just go home ahead, good bye, Echo."


With that he strode away from ear shot and began practicing again, shooting jets of blue light at a practice dummy surrounded by lightning runes. Beside it was a heap of blackened training dummies, burned from electrocution.


"He'll be fine, don't worry." said Johnny reassuringly. He was very understanding of James persistence. It was a man's ego. If you tell him to stop like that he'll think you're calling him weak and will take it as a challenge to prove you wrong. Guys didn't like admitting to weakness, especially if it was a girl asking them to stop --- much more so if it was your little sister you were trying to protect. He looked at the two girls and from the whispering earlier sensed that perhaps they wanted to talk longer.


"Well, shall I wait for you by the gate before we go home, Renee?" asked Johnny pointing at the gates of the academy. "Or shall I go ahead?"


@Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Renee Pendragon-
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Renee stared at her brother's back as he walked away, now frowning for a different reason. "You can go on ahead, Johnny...." Her wings wilted when James continued on his practice, and sighed again. Echo heard and asked quietly so James wouldn't be able to hear.


"Worried?"


"Yea...I just...I don't know how to talk with my brother sometimes..."


Echo tilted her head, wondering for a bit before asking again. "Well, maybe you should do what you did before?...with the bet thing." Renee quickly looked at her, confused.


"What do you mean?"


"He listened to you then right? When he made that bet with you. You should do whatever it is that you did before."


Renee looked back at her weary brother, trying to remember what she has done to get him to listen for once. She was nervous before, that much she knows, and she guessed James noticed that too so he waited for her to calm down...


Did he react to how she felt at the time?


The red headed fawn noticed how Renee's eyes gleamed and grinned a bit. She turned to leave, her hooves making a 'clop clop' sound with each step she takes. "Good night Renee."


"Good night Echo...and thanks for the advice." As Echo left the courtyard, Renee walked to where her brother was at, leaving some space in between so he wouldn't be alarmed. Twiddling her fingers, she sighed again before revealing how she really felt by her tone of voice.


"James?...Please? Can you come home with me?" Renee pleaded quietly, her wings wilted even further down. She tilted her head down while her eyes looked up at the back of his head, frowning sadly. "Please? I want to spend dinner with you and the twins and Johnny together at the table..."


@Zer0

 

[Zer0]

[SIZE= 18px]- James Pendragon -[/SIZE]
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[SIZE= 14px]" Sorcerer's Academy "[/SIZE]
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"[SIZE= 18px]N[/SIZE]o, you go ahead." said James calmly without looking at Renee, but there was a slight edge to his weary posture now. Like he was starting to get annoyed.


The dummy he enchanted with the lightning shield charm held up for a few seconds under the sizzling shock from the lightning runes, before it caught fire. James sighed, frustrated, and strode forward to put out the flames with a bucket of sand.


"Good bye teacher!" some students from his master's class yelled at him in the distance. James didn't even look at them. The students must have thought that he couldn't hear because they yelled good bye even louder.


@Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Renee Pendragon-
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Renee tensed a bit, biting on her bottom lip. She's really worried about him. If this keeps up, then there's a chance that he might faint. Who will carry him home if he does faint? No one would be here to even alarm her if that happens. Nor would there be anybody to stop him if he goes too far. She heard his students saying goodbye, her frown grew when he didn't say good bye back.


So she tries again. "James...please. I know you want to practice on the charm, but you ran out of manna potions." Renee reasoned, not moving from her spot as she watched her brother put out the fire.


"You shouldn't push yourself like this...It's really bad for your health. Come on, James. Please." Her voice quivered, like she was holding back her fear of losing a member of her family again. Renee is not willing to give up yet.


@Zer0

 

[Zer0]

[SIZE= 18px]- James Pendragon -[/SIZE]
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[SIZE= 14px]" Sorcerer's Academy "[/SIZE]
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[SIZE= 18px]J[/SIZE]ames sighed, annoyed now. "I don't want to go home." he said in a deadly whisper and rounded on her with an icy look. "Understand?" He was really irritated right now and it didn't help that the students in the distance were now chanting "Good bye teacher! Good bye teacher!", not realizing that it was annoying and was aggravating him further.


"QUIET!" he snapped at the students, wand cackling with blue electricity. They flinched and then scurried away surprised and wondering what was that all about.


@Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Renee Pendragon-
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Renee took a step back from his icy glare, not used to seeing that before taking a step forward. She glared back, though questionably at her brother. "No, I don't, James. I don't understand why you want to continue practicing when you barely have any manna left!" She took another step closer.


"Nor do I understand why you are pushing yourself like this! Tell me big brother: why are you trying to make yourself sick by running out of manna? What is so important that you are desperate enough to harm yourself, huh?!" Renee yelled at the end, taking another step forward.


"Because let me tell you this: I rather have a healthy big brother to compete against than one that made himself sick!" Her frustrations, worries, and anxieties came out as she screamed, wanting to know what in the world is her brother thinking. Her wings flared open with the feathers puffed up.


@Zer0

 

[Zer0]

[SIZE= 18px]- James Pendragon -[/SIZE]
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[SIZE= 14px]" Sorcerer's Academy "[/SIZE]
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[SIZE= 18px]J[/SIZE]ames looked as though he wanted to hit her. He was clenching his shaking fists in boiling anger. He closed his eyes as if praying for patience.


He loomed over her. "It's. because. of you." he growled. "Because you just won't let this whole thing with the dragon go." he pinched the bridge of his nose frustrated, "Our parents are dead, and you just won't accept that, so I'm doing this to beat you so that you stay here where you're safe."


@Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Renee Pendragon-
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All of her frustrations left her body as she hears his reason. Her eyes widened as her heart pounded against her chest. He's...doing this...all because of her? So she can stay safe? That's...


Her anxiety spiked. She couldn't catch her breathe as her mind went into overdrive. From her fear of that dragon to her fear of losing her siblings to her memories of those powerful flames, all of the emotions she tries to block off to continue living normally just flooded out.


Safe? He think they were safe ?!


"James...none of us are safe from that dragon. None. of. us. are. safe! As long it's still there, in Paroosia, we're all in danger!" Her legs started trembling from the thoughts of it coming to where they are, destroying the buildings and killing innocent people. Thoughts of it killing her brothers. Her friends...She can't take that happening again, if her parents really are dead. She can't take losing another person she cares about.


"Want to know why I'm not letting this whole dragon thing go? It's because I don't want to lose anybody else! We already lost mom and dad and Markl and Rhea and the witch of the waste and Sunny! Because of that dragon!" She started to hyperventilate, crossing her arms as to stop her body shaking.


"I don't want to believe that our parents are dead because I need physical proof! and to know once and for all, I need that dragon to go away! I need to find out if our parents really are dead as everyone else proclaims!"


Her face turned pale as she continued rambling in her panic. "At first, it was to help Sunny. I wasn't thinking realistically back then. I didn't think dragons would happen. I didn't think our parents would disappear from our lives! I didn't think that we would do this stupid bet whenever or not I can leave! But now-! Now, when I know how dangerous that-! That-! monster really is, being so close-! So close to it's flames-! I can't help but want to make it disappear! The army-! Your so-called- professionals-! They still can't stop it! We know what the answer is! Sunny told us! We told the general what to do-! We told them what Sunny told us-! Sunny is older than any of us! He knows what to do! He knew what he was talking about!" She screamed at him, fat tears started to pour out of her eyes as she sobbed.


Renee couldn't look at him anymore as her trembling shoulders hunched. "Sunny went through this before! With the other manna trees! All seven of them! But four of them lost their lives for the same reason as now: because of the giant egg!" She exclaimed. "James, I don't want to lose you! I don't want to lose Sen or Seth or Calcifer or Hein! I don't want to lose our friends-! That's why I wouldn't let this issue go! It's why I agreed to this stupid bet! It's why I'm willing to even fight you in an arena full of millions of people and against professional fighters-! I DON'T WANT YOU TO DIE TOO!!!" She wailed, before crying loudly, wiping away her tears futilely as more tears ran down her pale cheeks. Her wings trembled harshly as she panicked.


"BUT FINE, JAMES! I'LL LEAVE YOU ALONE! JUST LIKE HOW YOU WANTED!" With that, Renee ran, her sobs can be heard in the dark hallways as she passed through them. She didn't return home that night, however. Instead, she went to the one place she knew would calm her down...Echo's home in Dawnsfield.


@Zer0

 

[Zer0]

[SIZE= 18px]- James Pendragon -[/SIZE]
​

[SIZE= 14px]" Sorcerer's Academy, Night time "[/SIZE]
​

[SIZE= 18px]W[/SIZE]ith an emotionless expression, James watched Renee go without saying a word.


Once he was alone in the north courtyard he sighed, tired and feeling a little bad for making her cry. His anger had deflated earlier when his sister started crying. It broke his heart to see her so anguished. He wanted to comfort her, but he did not show an ounce of pity. Cold hard logic stayed his hand. He could not show a soft heart right now.
 


The logical probability of his sister being able to do something about the dragon by going into the Storm Wall to look for someone called the Aged Author was close to zero percent. No one has ever gone inside the Storm Wall and lived --- nobody.


'Why can't she understand that this was impossible for her?' thought James, kicking a rock. Did she know how to sail a ship across the Shoflo Ocean? What sane captain would actually take her there? Nobody even knows what's beyond the Storm Wall, and most of all that was where the vicious dragons disappeared to. What was Renee going to do when she comes face to face with one?


Okay, so the army has been failing. So what? They can try again . . . Although James did wonder why they weren't doing what that manna tree told Renee to do. But he wasn't sure . . . that wasn't the sort of thing you announce in the newspaper. Maybe they are doing it? There was one person he could ask about that.


Abandoning his training dummies, James quickly made his way to the headmaster's office. Hopefully Madam Suliman hadn't left yet, and as luck would have it, James caught her just as she was locking the door to her office.


"James, this is a pleasant surprise. What are you still doing here after school hours?"


"Good evening, Madam Suliman." James bowed, panting. He was really tired. "C-could I have a short word if you wouldn't mind, of course?"


Madam Suliman observed him for a while with that pleasant unreadable expression of hers, before unlocking the door. "Let's make it brief, there is much I still have to do today."


"Yes. Thank you."


Madam Suliman's office was a grand and spotlessly clean chamber full of mirrors, though there were some mirrors that were odd. James had never been here before and wondered why a few did not show his reflection. Instead blurry shadows of strangers moved across them, some whispering, some sitting down or sleeping upon invisible beds. They didn't seem to be aware that they were being watched.


"Please, have a seat." said Madam Suliman gracefully, gesturing at a handsome chair across her desk. "Now, what was it that you wished to talk about?"


"Yes, er, it's about my father, Markl, and the Witch of the Waste." said James. "Were there any warlocks who went down with them to the roots of the manna tree who survived?"


"Yes, only one: Master Drake Bertrand of the Wizengamot . . . people found him unconscious and wounded on the beach of Trill Island just two days ago. He's still recuperating in the city of Dalaran. If you have any plans of asking him about your family I suggest you hold off until he is well enough."


"Yes, do you think it would be possible for me to get an audience with him? You see, it's my sister, Renee. She wants to go to the Storm Wall and look for the Aged Author to find out how to make the dragon go away so that she can look for the bodies of my family. I want to convince her that they're dead so that she can move on with her life."


"You can send a letter to him. I can write you the address, but first I have one question . . . James, has Renee been hearing more voices lately?"


"Er, not that I know off. No . . ." said James shaking his head, wondering what this was about.


"I see." A look of disappointment crossed Madam Suliman's face, but only for an instant. "Well, here is the address." she took a slip of parchment and wrote something with her quill.


"Er, Madam Suliman, may I ask if there have been attempts made to pass through the Storm Wall?" said James after a few seconds.


"None as of late as it's the monsoon season in the Shoflo Ocean, but I believe there will be an attempt next month when it's over." She handed him the slip of parchment. "Why, James? Would you like to go and join them?"


"No." said James immediately. "That's . . . suicide. All who went in were never heard from again."


"That's true, then again a black dragon appeared two weeks ago when we thought they all disappeared into the Storm Wall. Perhaps something has changed in there."


James just nodded. Was she trying to encourage him to go there? Because he wasn't and he was never going to tell Renee this. "Madam Suliman, could I make a humble request? If Renee comes asking, will you please not tell her what you told me? I don't want her to die."


"You have my word." said Madam Suliman in understanding. "But I would like something in return, James. If Renee begins hearing voices again, you must tell me."


"Yes, I will." said James smoothly, but in truth he was hesitant about this. "Thank you, Madam Suliman." James bowed courteously and left the office. 'Hearing voices?' he thought as he walked back down to the north courtyard to clean up. 'Voices from what?'


@Katsuya