[b][color=F4A460]E'nasha Williams[/color][/b] ~ [i]Yarosmere[/i][hr]
E'nasha listened as the king spoke, wondering how long it would be before the group actually saw anything to justify or disprove the Sand Cobra's thoughts about the man. [color=F4A460][i]King A'dul, born near the coast...[/i][/color] Before she would get a chance to ask any more questions, proof of the Prophet's nature finally began to show itself. As the man's eyes dulled and he began to mutter to himself, E'nasha's hand went towards her pocket to grab one of her seeds. Her fingers closed around something at the same moment as the king's expression cleared, the cold look on his face making her want to run already. In the next moments, she watched as he made his declaration, rising to her feet just before the rest of the people in the room...

She ran with the rest of the group- well, was dragged with them by El’kan. She’d frozen up at the sight of so many people just.. How could they do that? How could they trust in this man so much, to the point where they would throw their entire life away to prove some point? She was lucky El’kan was more level-headed than her. She probably would have been left behind he hadn’t grabbed her hand.

Once back in the Resistance Headquarters, E’nasha explained what she could to Sahra and the other Sand Cobras, but she felt like it didn’t really help them at all to know. The entire encounter with the King seemed surreal in a way... and now that her mind was clearing from the shock of it all, she had a theory about this A’dul. She didn’t tell any of the Cobras though. There was a very real chance that she was just imagining connections where there are none. But, the way the King had suddenly known that Mar was a Naga, and the way everyone else in the room just decided to commit suicide with no hesitations at all… It seemed like A’dul might be a Psychomancer. He could have been reading the student’s minds from the second they entered the room, and when he found something he could use to justify his aggression he latched on. The “sand god” could just be a ploy, to make him stand out at first and convince people to believe him, where a ‘normal’ man’s opinions would’ve been shrugged off. Now, it was just a simple act to pull off. As for the suicides, while they could be just what they appeared- sacrifices made out of loyalty to this man- they also could have been the actions of puppets, where A’dul was the one holding the strings. 

E’nasha shook her head at herself, dismissing the thoughts. She was biased, for sure. She just wanted to paint this man as a manipulator- or at least that’s the only reason she could think of to explain the harsh thoughts. Just before the Cobras opened a portal to the college, she glanced over at El’kan. He’d been watching her since they got out of the palace- probably worried about her. Granted, she was worried about him too. With the king’s proclamation… they weren’t welcome in Yarosmere anymore. Their Homeland. It was hard to accept, or even think about, and E’nasha’s heart began to ache the more she tried to. She jumped through the portal just after deciding to talk to him about all this later. For now, it was time to go... 

~ ~ ~
[i]Back at the College[/i][hr]
As her feet hit the ground just outside the front gate, E’nasha shivered from the sudden change in temperature. It was [i]freezing[/i], and she was dressed for the arid desert air. She crossed her arms over her chest as she ran for the gate, rubbing her hands over her arms to try and keep herself from freezing before she could get inside. She already missed her homeland, more than she had before they’d gone back. An icy wind blew through her, and she felt like she was going to freeze solid. So far being back here was going just [i]great[/i]. 

She ducked inside the dorm building, and started making her way through the halls to the room she shared with El’kan. Once there she threw on her warmest sweater, and proceeded to hide from the cold feelings under the blankets of her bed for a few minutes. That’s about how long it took for El’kan to get to the room too, though it felt like forever. He walked in and shut the door behind him quietly. E’nasha moved the covers just enough that she could see him as he came over to speak to her. [color=A0522D]”How are you doing?”[/color]

She made a noise, somewhere between a grunt and a sad moan. El’kan just sat on the edge of her bed and asked again. She sighed before actually answering this time, her voice monotone as she tried to keep herself from giving away just how bad she felt right now.

[color=F4A460]”I’ve been better.”[/color] He smiled lightly, trying carefully to change the mood. [color=A0522D]”That’s an understatement.”[/color] Her reply was just as cold as the air outside. [color=F4A460]”No, not really.”[/color]

She curled up into a slightly smaller ball as he reached out and shook her shoulder lightly, trying to keep her attention. She could feel herself spiraling into a fuzzy numbness the longer she just laid there, tears beginning to fall silently down her face. [color=A0522D]”Hey, we’re fine. You know that, right?”[/color] She didn’t respond. El’kan looked like he was going to say something else, but a loud tapping noise from the window took his attention. She saw him glance over at the frosty glass, and then a smile came onto his face. [color=A0522D]”Well, about time the bird-brain showed up!”[/color]

[color=F4A460]”What?”[/color] E’nasha sat up and wiped her eyes with her sleeve, while El’kan stood and walked over to the window. He opened it, letting in a blast of frozen air that stung her skin, along with a familiar large bird. As soon as the window was closed again, She got out of bed and crossed the room to her dresser, where the Raven had landed on his perch there. She held out her hand and smiled just a little as the bird pecked at her fingers for a few seconds before nuzzling her. She was still crying a bit, but the cold shock from opening the window and the joy at seeing Sir were starting to make the numb feeling go away.

[color=F4A460]”Welcome back Sir. Did you have a good time while we were gone?”[/color] Of course, Sir didn’t answer her. Well, not verbally anyway. He hopped off of his pedistal and onto her shoulder, pecking gently at one of her pigtails once he was there. [color=A0522D]”Nah, he missed you too much. See?”[/color] El’kan reached out to pat the bird on the head, but pulled his hand back when Sir snapped his beak at him. [color=A0522D]”Gr.. Guess he didn’t miss me all that much.”[/color] E’nasha couldn’t help but laugh at that, a small smile staying on her face as she pushed her thoughts and worries to the back of her mind. 

[color=F4A460][i]Focus on the here and now, that’s all I have to do…[/i][/color] She poked Sir as he sat on her shoulder, and seeing that he wasn’t going to move, sighed and decided that she might as well get something done now that she was up. [color=F4A460]”I’m going to go and figure out just how much homework I missed or something.”[/color]

El’kan just rolled his eyes at her. [color=A0522D]”You and your studying.”[/color] He crossed his arms and waved her off, a soft look in his eyes despite the joking manner he carried now. [color=A0522D]”Go on then. I’m gonna hang out here for a bit, then probably go get some food before dark. See you there?”[/color]

[color=F4A460]”Yeah, got it.”[/color] E’nasha smiled at him as she spoke, and then turned to leave as he nodded at her in satisfaction. They’d meet up again later.

As she left the room, Sir still sitting on her shoulder, she started thinking about what she should do next. The mission was over, and most likely a failure. She probably should go talk to Ucile about what happened, but as she began to walk in the direction of the teacher’s office, she couldn’t bring herself to actually go there. Instead, she let herself wander, until she ended up by the kitchens. A couple of loud voices were drifting out into the hall, and the usual sounds of clanging pans and simmering foods were intercut by loud thuds and sharp words from the people within. Curiosity peaked, E’nasha stepped up to the doorway and peeked inside.

“Gods damn it! Where’d the bugger go this time?” One cook was shouting from one corner of the room as two others stood back to back in the middle, all three of them looking around wildly at the floor. One held a large metal pot like it was a weapon, and the other two each held a small net in their hands. The first one looked around for a second before shouting again, “THERE!” and diving at a spot on the floor. E’nasha stepped into the room just a little further and saw what it was they were talking about. A small ferret was running around these guys in circles. 

After a minute, the creature darted for the door, practically running right at her. She grabbed for the ferret once it got close enough, but it saw her at the same moment and managed to skitter just out of reach before E’nasha landed on her face on the floor. [color=F4A460]”Shoot! I missed him.”[/color] She straightened up and began to try and figure out where the creature was now, speaking to the cooks as she did. [color=F4A460]”Uh.. You guys mind if I try to help?”[/color] She was already kind of invested, but considering this had started as their problem it was probably a good idea to ask if they even wanted her to try. Pride could be a funny thing sometimes.



[@Fallenreaper]