[center][img]http://i1150.photobucket.com/albums/o620/Vicier/Vicier%20-%20Through%20The%20Pages%20Roleplay/Character%20Collab%20Gifs%20-%20Everyone/Odette_zpsafk8zqrw.gif[/img][img]http://i1150.photobucket.com/albums/o620/Vicier/Vicier%20-%20Through%20The%20Pages%20Roleplay/Character%20Collab%20Gifs%20-%20Everyone/Scar_zps8yatxnzw.gif[/img]
[h1][color=LightPink]Odette Swan[/color] and [color=DarkOrange]Scar Lionhart[/color][/h1]
[h2]The Pride Lands ~ Fairy Tale World[/h2][/center]

The sands were hot beneath her feet- of course he was going to be out here… Having taken only a moment of pause in the open doorway, Odette had already made her way across the eatery and out into the open space of the private training grounds, only stopping once she had come but a few feet away from the man who gave her allowance and freedom to call the Pride Lands her home. He had done much for her since their chance meeting at Swan Lake- gave her a home, cleaned her up, put clothes upon her back, taught her just what it meant to be a royal… to be a Princess…

[color=LightPink]“..how could you..? Speak your mind; tell me what it is that I have done to anger you so that you would see fit to have my studies doubled..!”[/color]

No longer fearing the wrath of the blade as much as she had upon her first arrival; she moved herself round the other side of the training dummy which he was using for practice, her bright light blue eyes flicking over to it so that she could watch for a few moments as small chunks of wood splintered away at the force before she once more let her gaze flick back up to meet his, the gentle breeze causing her long though delicately curled locks of blonde hair, along with the beautiful material of [url=http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/spartacus/images/d/d3/Ilithyia-spartacus-vengeance-hd-wallpaper-13065.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20140304030549]her dress[/url] to flutter lightly around her.

[color=LightPink]“You knew… You knew that I had plan to meet with Shenzi and Ed in the marketplace..! They were going to take me shopping before accompanying me to the races..!”[/color] Dropping her hands down to the front of her dress, she took a gentle hold of the material, balling her hands up into fists and holding it up ever so slightly as she took a couple more steps closer to him, her expression showing him that she was truly unhappy with how things had gone down, [color=LightPink]“I had to send word with the guard that I would be unable to meet with them..! ..they are my only friends… and I broke my word thanks to your actions…”[/color]

Grunting, with one final, powerful swing, the edge of the sword became embedded into the wood, the tang of the blade wobbling with the force it had taken to do so. Taking a moment to wipe the sweat from his brow, Scar took a moment to look at the tiny blonde who had mustered up the courage to speak to him in such a way. He couldn't help it... he smiled. Two months ago, she was barely able to meet his eye when he had brought her back with him from Swan Lake. The Pride Lands had been so overwhelming, the poor girl wanted to do nothing [i]but[/i] study so she didn't have to worry about socializing with others.

Shaking his head though still holding his smile, Scar grabbed the hilt of the sword and with a powerful jerk, wrenched it free from its entrapment, only to return it to the sheath attached to his hip on the batters.

[color=DarkOrange]"Anger has not driven me to action today, I assure you."[/color] Scar chuckled, turning once more to face her keeping his hand on the sheath of his sword by sheer habit and placing his free hand on top of it to rest.

[color=DarkOrange]"And your involvement with the Hyenas held no place in my decision, either."[/color] he assured her. [color=DarkOrange]"The shopping can wait - they have had... larger upsets with me before... its not something they can't handle now..."[/color] Clearing his throat, pushing aside a few series of specific thoughts that had then entered his mind, he returned his attention to Odette.

[color=DarkOrange]"Your studies have been doubled this day because tomorrow, there will be none."[/color]

It was an outright lie. His reasons behind extending her classes had nothing to do with tomorrow. But after he had finished with his late brother's wife and was able to take to the sands to work off an bit of extra testosterone, it gave him time to think of what exactly he was going to tell her.

[color=DarkOrange]"Your sixteenth birth year approaches. I will have plans made and seen to, by your instruction. I've the rest of this day and all of tomorrow to see desires met."[/color]

She couldn’t help but pause at his words; confusion written all over her soft features as she continued to stare up at him where he stood- her sixteenth birth year..? They had spoken about her birth a couple of times since she had first been brought to the Pride Lands… never before had she celebrated the fact that she had been born, it wasn’t exactly something that Rothbart had ever really taken seriously; and it was because of such a fact that she had been unable to answer Scar when he had first asked her the date she had been born.

[color=LightPink]“..see desires met..?”[/color] Relaxing the grip she had upon the front of her dress, she let her gaze wander for only a moment before eventually, she brought it back up to meet with his own, her body still holding firm in its place before him, [color=LightPink]“..I would not know where it is to begin… never before has such celebrations been held in my honor; nor have I ever dreamed that they would be... is such a thing truly of importance to celebrate..?”[/color]

Scar's smile faded somewhat, and his gaze turned to that of sympathy. Slowly, he dropped his gaze and shook his head, opening up his arm to her as he then approached her and put it around her small frame.

[color=DarkOrange]"Walk with me."[/color] It was a command, but it came out soft. He started the pace, slow and casual, as he guided her across the sands he had been training on and back into the castle.

[color=DarkOrange]"Do you not think your life worth celebrating?"[/color] he asked, taking on the tone of a scholar, pushing for questions that they already knew the answers to. [color=DarkOrange]"Becoming a woman in The Pride Lands is a day of celebrating, unmatchable to any other. Birth years are celebrated annually, recognizing achievements and growth made in year past. But when a woman first passes blood, there is so much more to celebrate. A girl becomes a woman, and a woman can become a mother, and mothers produce heirs - future Princes and Kings to lead this Kingdom into prosperity."[/color] He stopped walking, pulling his arm back from around her shoulders and instead turned to face her, resting then both his hands on either shoulder and made direct eye contact.

[color=DarkOrange]"There is [i]much[/i] worth celebrating. And what's more... you will be announced to my Kingdom as Odette, Princess of The Pride Lands. You will, by bond and blood, truly become one of us."[/color]

He wished to celebrate her becoming a woman..? Unable to tear her gaze away from his, she bit down softly upon her lower lip, chewing on it nervously for a few moments as she let her mind wander over what it was he had been explaining to her- she was to become a woman when first she began to bleed... it was something that had happened a few years prior when she had emerged from the waters of the lake to find part of her dress stained crimson with her own blood. It had been something that had terrified her enough to call upon her captor for help…

[color=LightPink]“..I have bled for a few yearly cycles past... though explained to me that it now meant I was a woman; I knew not of its importance… only that such a thing frightened me…”[/color]

Scar nodded on understanding. He had figured as much. She was nearly sixteen, such a milestone in her life was sure to have already happened. But that didn't make her any less of a woman, and the thought had him smiling once more back at her.

[color=DarkOrange]"Then we've years of neglected celebration to catch up on."[/color]