Amarantha & Princess Luna
Luna sat in her room quietly writing away at her journal just to try and keep her mind off of things, she had forgotten to close her door leaving it open just a little bit. She was getting stressed out ever since Fleur came back at the wedding Luna was a little bit paranoid now. She hadn't even really kept her hair neat either that day as well, and was a little bit of a tangled mess as well from the stress and the voice in her head hadn't done wonders for her either for her sleep.
Amarantha strutted down the hallway that held all of the bedrooms, hers included; however, Amarantha was not headed for her bedroom. Earlier Titan had come and found her, explaining to her of Luna's situation and rather alarming appearance. It was odd and Amarantha was grateful that Titan had eyes that admired beauty but also things invisible to the average palace guard. Luna wasn't one to let her appearance drop. She held her role of Princess very high and was a perfect image for the royal family. Stress and disheveled appearances was not that.
She slowed as she reached Luna's room, with which door was wide open. Amarantha stopped, examined the hallway with passing servants and guards making their rotations. She looked back into Luna's room and leaned against the door frame, taking her friend's appearance in for herself. Amarantha felt a pang of guilt. She had left Titan to look after her, or Lennox while Amarantha busied herself with ways on how to stop Fleur. It was keeping her up at night and the lack of anything from the Witch Messiah was annoying. She thought the witch bitch would at least leave some sort of boasting calling card but there was stone silence. It was making everything and everyone worse.
"I could teach Titan how to brush hair if that would suite your needs," Amarantha said, breaking the only silence she could.
Luna jumped slightly when she heard Amarantha's voice and turned to seeing her friend was leaning just outside of her door, and quickly started to straighten up her hair a little bit. She gave her friend a slight smile and shook her head slightly and laughed slightly at the joke, as she started to relax now.
"I don't think he would like that job very much." She said jokingly, when she did leave her room she did always make herself presentable but today she was to tired to mess with it and waved her friend to come in as well.
"How are things?" Luna asked her.
"You underestimate what Titan would do for a pretty face," Amarantha said before she walked into her friend's room. She did shut the door before she crossed the floor and unceremoniously plopped onto Luna's bed. Luna's room had almost become a safe space for Amarantha to not be the commander of the Palace Guard. She was just, Amarantha: friend to the Princess of the Castle.
"Things are shit Lu, but we're making it work. What's going on with you?" Amarantha noted the open journal and pen in Luna's hand.
"Is it still helping? Writing everything down," she asked.
Luna nodded slightly everything has been pretty stressful for her since Fleur decided to come back, and yet nothing happened at all either which was also weird.
"You have everything under control." Luna said, and then she looked over towards her journal and then over towards Amarantha and nodded.
"It does, but doesn't really help with the paranoia going around, and sleeping though is when it is at it' worse."Amarantha smirked at her friend and leaned back on her hands.
"Excellent, the illusion is working then." Amarantha stood and went over to her friend's side and flipped through the notebook.
"I am doing what I can but the scouts I have sent out can not find her. I keep hoping for a sliver of information but I don't want to send too many away and arouse Fleur too much. I'd rather keep everyone strong here and wait it out. Honestly, I don't know what the best option is," Amarantha said and turned, leaning against Luna's desk.
"Have you tried counting sheep?""Hopefully she will end up slipping somewhere, and we can capture her or kill her." Luna said softly as she watched Amarantha moving over to her side, she watched her looking through the notebook and smiled awkwardly towards her.
"Counting sheep doesn't really help to much either, I just try and rest whenever I can." Luna then decided to change the subject.
"Hows baby Dawn that's her name right?""Hope is a dangerous thing. You shouldn't rely on it," Amarantha said and shut Luna's notebook. She didn't miss Luna's constant desire to change the subject. Well if she didn't allow herself to look like a low class person, Amarantha would almost let her get away with it.
"Dawn is fine. Growing into a bit of a dragon really. Quit changing the subject Luna."Luna didn't really mind letting Amarantha reading through her journal, she trusted her enough anyway as well and only allowed Myrus or Valda to look through it if they asked.
"Hope can be a good thing as well to though." Luna said shrugging slightly, she looked over towards her friend and sighed slightly.
"I just wanted to talk about something other then the drama around the Castle and me.""Not in my experience," Amarantha said in regards to hope. She left Luna's desk and went to sit back on her bed. It seemed the Princess had a more comfortable bed than the assassin did. You would think someone who was in charge of safety and killing in the royal's name would be allowed a decent place to lay their head at night.
"What you rather us do? Braid each other's hair?" Her smile was devious as she spoke before she forced a laugh.
"All we have going on is the drama around the Castle Lu. There's nothing else we are able to discuss until it has stilled." "I could always make you braid my hair if you want." Luna said with a slight laugh, even though she did have servants who did it she usually did her own hair whenever she could. Luna then closed her eyes and let out a slight sigh and nodded as she leaned back in her bed, everything had been nothing but drama.
"There never is really a dull moment here though theres always something that comes up or happens daily drama."Yes there is." Amarantha sighed and laid down next to Luna. She stared up at the ceiling and wondered. She had come a long way. She was till a hard ass but Amarantha had a cause she believed in now. A fight worth fighting. The more the Castle and Luna needed Amarantha, the more she needed them. She never really thought of that until now.
"If you didn't have this life, being a royal... What would you do? What would you want?"Luna laid down on her bed and looked up at the ceiling and then over towards Amarantha for a moment at her question, she really wasn't sure she had been taught everything on how to act, how the courts worked and what the people needed of her. And when her parents died the king and queen she was forced to grow up even more until Valda came back.
"I don't know.. all my life I've always been taught what to do, and how to act for the people." Luna said as she looked over at her friend.
"What about you?""I did, once. I thought of running from the Young Army, living in the woods in a house I made. Gardening, hunting, living isolated. Puck didn't have a use for deserters so if they got away, that was fine by him but if they got caught... He would make use do the executions. I was seven the first time I killed someone," Amarantha informed her friend.
"As for now? I don't know anything else. I wouldn't know how to be anything else."Luna listened to Amarantha as she spoke, she couldn't imagine killing anyone she didn't even want to either as well which scared her taking anyone's life. She looked at her friend and reached out to hold her hand as she started to remember mentioning what Myrus had said a few days ago.
"Myrus wanted me, and Valda to try and run away with him." Luna said softly towards her.
Amarantha felt Luna's hand slip into hers' and it took her a moment to accept and allow it. She squeezed her friend's hand back, thankful for the support. It was dark in friendless in Amarantha's head most days and so it was nice to have some semblance of comfort and home. She looked back at Luna when she spoke about Myrus wanting them all to leave. Amarantha knew Valda never would. She couldn't. Not with the hell this place was about to go through. Was going through. But the Prince and Princess...
"Why didn't you?" Her voice was but a whisper, desperate. She didn't want Luna getting hurt.
Luna felt Amarantha holding her hand and looked at her, as she thought awhile there were a lot of reasons why she didn't want to leave.
"Valda didn't want to leave, and I wasn't going to abandon her alone and I didn't want to leave you alone and defending the castle alone without us there. And this is the only home that I know of.." Luna answered.
"Valda would have been fine. Will be fine with me looking out for her. It would have been easier to look after your home without you here. It's not to late Luna. I can get you and Myrus out of here without anyone knowing. I have a lot of connections still." Amarantha was sounding a bit desperate now, which was very unlike her. She just wanted her friend to be safe.
"You could make a new home elsewhere. Who knows, maybe a change of scenery would help you with, everything..."Luna did care a lot for her family, and she wasn't sure how she would take it if she heard the news Valda was killed by Fleur's witches or even Myrus as well if she ran. She closed her eyes as she started to think a little bit more she could hear Amarantha's desperation, and she trusted her friend.
"At the first sign of trouble i'll try and get Myrus to leave and Valda I promise.."Amarantha looked away from her friend. She shouldn't expect more than that. She should admire Luna for wanting to remain with her family but all she could think about was how stupid she was being.
"Trouble's already here Luna. It's too late," Amarantha said. It was the truth she felt. She pulled her hand from Luna's and sat up.
Luna looked down as she fought the urge to hold back the tears, she knew that she was being really stubborn and a pain as well to deal with right now as she looked over at Amarantha as she let go of her hand and stood up.
"I just don't want to be alone, I've already lost my mother and father and I don't know if there is even a cure for my condition out there, I wouldn't even know where to go or even start over either..""You wouldn't be alone. You would have your brother and I'd send Lennox and Ahote with you. No one knows where to go when they leave, they just go. You figure it out once you are there." Amarantha looked back at Luna and noticed the struggle for her to hold back tears.
"There's nothing here for you Lu. Your sister is Queen, you can't be anything else here. Why not go somewhere else and be more than what you are?"Amarantha did make a point, her sister was the queen and the only thing she was good for was being married off to some other noble but she really didn't want to leave her sister alone either.
"I'll think about it and talk to Myrus and Valda.." Luna said looking up at Amarantha, she at least wanted to talk to them about it as well.
Amarantha sighed but nodded. It was the most she could hope for from her friend. Amarantha stood and rolled her shoulders back, stretching out a bit and then she got a crazy idea. She grinned and looked back at her friend, a sparkle of wickedness in her eyes.
"Have you ever broken a rule Lu?"Luna watched as Amarantha stood up and looked up at her friend for a moment when she asked if she had ever broken any rules and shook her head a little bit. She was always pretty well mannered growing up, she was curious though what Amarantha had in mind as well as she stood up from her bed.
"I don't think I really have before." Luna answered.
"Well today is your lucky day. We need to change your clothes though. Much too fancy for where we are going," Amarantha announced. She took Luna's hand and pulled her from the Princess's bedroom and down the hallway to Amarantha's room so they could find appropriate clothing. Luna was much smaller than Amarantha so they would have to get creative but she would find her something.
Luna blushed a little bit as Amarantha grabbed her hand and started to follow behind her and out of her room, she was used to wearing her clothes and never really did have anything to wear that more common people wore anyway.
"What did you have in mind anyway?" Luna asked she was getting really curious what she had in mind.
"You wanted a distraction. To talk of something else other than the turmoil in the Castle. Well, I am about to deliver my little friend. We're going dancing. A great way to transport yourself to a different world. Alcohol of course aids in this venture but I won't push that on you," Amarantha started pulling clothes out of her closet. She handed Luna a few numbers.
"Now, go try one on at a time and we'll see what we are working with."Luna smiled a little bit as she moved into Amarantha's room and started to look around a bit she had been in there a few times as her friend started to pick out some clothes for her to change into. She of course had gone dancing numerous times before during events held within the Castle itself, and once Amarantha picked out some clothes for her to change into Luna smiled and quickly went to get changed.
Cuyler Eysteinsson & Arnora Skadidottir
Arnora had finished the afternoon training with Runa, she had gone and check up on her grandson and daughter-in-law after all as well. She was leaning against the edge of the balcony just outside of her room, she was now just taking the time to relax now as well. It was a nice day as well as she enjoyed the fresh air it had been a good two days after the wedding now as well.
Cuyler had parted ways with his mother for the day. Her having some business she needed to take care of with Asgard or something or other. He was still a bit concerned with the whole Loki situation and found the need for working out or running was a good way to burn off some access energies. He was running past what would be the castle of sorts for Asgard when he looked up and spotted Arnora.
"Oi! What you doing hiding up there for? Shouldn't you be training?" Most every day Cuyler teased his friend. They were each other's biggest competition and it was always good to have a healthy push.
Arnora was looking down below when she saw Cuyler and then heard him calling out her name and smirked slightly and gave a little bit of a shrug.
"Runa is with her daughter in-law and grandson, thought i'd give them some space a little bit." She called back as she stood up a little bit.
"Shouldn't you be training with your mom anyway as well?" She asked teasingly since they usually did have their own little private sparing sessions in between.
"She's a little preoccupied," Cuyler noted and gestured around him at the whole of Asgard. He smirked up at Arnora.
"Good view from up there is it?" Half of Cuyler and Arnora's training sessions were also teasing sessions. It never seemed to end between these two. They were no better than siblings.
"I can certainly see that, being the queen and all." Arnora said as she looked over at the surrounding area and nodded.
"It's a pretty nice view from up here. What are your plans right now anyway, you are more than welcome to come up here if you'd like." She asked
"I've got some energy yet I need to wear off. Care to come for a run and then a bit of a swim?" Cuyler hopped from foot to foot, trying to keep his body warm so he wouldn't cramp up when he started running again. He was always a fan of physical work but he had never been physically active like this before.
"Sure i'll be down in a minute." Arnora said as she quickly turned and started to get changed into something that was more light for running and quickly started to make her way down before quickly catching up to Cuyler.
"Though I may end up freezing the water and turn you into an icecube." Arnora said jokingly, she of course had full control over her more natural abilities.
Cuyler stretched out a bit more as he waited for her. He smiled when she joined him. He laughed at her words.
"Just as long as you know how to unfreeze things." He started running with not so much ceremony and waited for her to catch up.
"I think i'd rather keep you there as an ice sculpture." Arnora said jokingly as she quickly started to run after Cuyler and started to catch up to him pretty quickly.
Cuyler laughed as they ran side by side. With all the training they had been doing it was pretty easy for him to keep up a conversation now.
"I would make a rather dashing statue," he pointed out. The whole of Asgard was nothing like the earth he knew. The colours seemed brighter, the air cleaner. The people were a bit more high class but their was a ruggedness to them all the same. Cuyler smiled at people he recognized as they made their way to the lake.
"So how's your mom? I never see her much." It seemed almost a shame that Cuyler got to spend so much time with his mother and Arnora very little; although, Arnora was getting on well with Runa as her trainer.
Arnora ran along with Cuyler and shook her head slightly and laughed.
"I don't think your mom would like you being an ice statue." She said jokingly, as she looked towards some of the people who were there and gave them a slight nod and smile. She certainly enjoyed the time here as well, and then her attention turned towards Cuyler when she brought up her mother. Arnora was a bit jealous but she didn't have to much contact with her growing up either still.
"She's been busy with fighting the Giants in Jotunheim they have been stirring lately from what Skadi told me."Cuyler rose a brow at Arnora as they ran.
"Giants? Why don't you go fight them with her? You could place a nice ice sculpture giant in the garden," Cuyler teased her.
"Well i'd rather not be turned into a crushed pie or anything." Arnora said as she continued to run until they were at the lake now and looked over towards Cuyler.
"Hows things with your mother anyway?""Ah, minor details. You'll be fine." Cuyler looked out at the lake and smiled. He loved it here. Most of his training was here although he was picking up on some other things from his mother, shadowing her a bit.
"Things are great. Sometimes I feel she gets annoyed with the amount of questions I ask but I haven't been this happy or carefree feeling in a long time.""And i'm more focused on learning from Runa as well to, I've learned a lot more since being here and want to complete my training as well." Arnora said as she looked at the lake and smiled a little bit as she started to make her way over and took off her shoes and stepped into the water a little bit.
"And i'm sure your mom has the patience of a saint with all of your questions.""Ya, Runa is a great teacher," Cuyler complemented. He laughed at Arnora's comment and nodded. He kicked off his own shoes and pulled off his shirt as well.
"Oh, you have no idea." He waded into the water until he was waist deep. It was like an old friend to him now and he ran his hands over the surface, grinning at Arnora before he dove under the surface.
Arnora walked deeper into the water until she was waist deep now as well, she kept her clothes on they would dry off later on anyway as well to as she started to get comfortable in the water as Cuyler went under the water half expecting him to splash her or dunk her underwater as well so she was starting to get on her toes.
Cuyler swam around under the water, much like the fish he was now growing to be. He had always had a healthy fear and respect for the water. He still possessed that respect but had less of a fear now. He watched Arnora wade in from underneath the water, smirking as she seemed to hesitate a bit. He swam further out before popping his head up. He tread water, watching her.
"Afraid to get wet Arnora?"Arnora looked at Cuyler the moment he poked his head out of the water and smirked as she quickly dunked his head under the water and started to swim a little bit deeper.
"Knowing you, you would probably end up dunking me or dragging me under the water." Arnora said with a slight laugh and then started to splash him with water.
"Now would I do such a thing like that?" He splashed her back a few times, using the added benefit of his power to increase the amount of water he was able to splash at her. Cuyler laughed, feeling like a kid without a care in the world. How was that even possible with everything that he had seen, everything that they had all gone through. Here he was though, blissfully unaware and at peace.
Arnora laughed a little bit as she was splashed with water as well, and started to do it again making the water considerably colder but not freezing it before stopping and sighed slightly.
"So, ever think of you know going back home?" Arnora asked Cuyler as she started to float on her back.
Cuyler noticed the temperature change but it didn't really seem to effect him. He got goosebumps but beyond that, he rather enjoyed the chilly water. It reminded him of the Nordic waters of home. So when Arnora asked him of going back, his mind was already there.
"You know my village was destroyed right? There's nothing much there for me now. New people live there and it isn't the same. As for the Castle... I'm not ready to return. I only will once I am ready, once I feel worthy to return... Besides, I'm learning so much here." Cuyler did miss earth but there was only one thing he missed in particular and he wasn't ready to face her. He didn't want to go back and not be worthy of her. Plus there was the added fear that she wouldn't even want him anymore. Their last conversation wasn't exactly civil.
Arnora listened to him and nodded a little bit she didn't really have anything else to return to back on Midgard either her father had passed away, and she didn't really have anyone to interact with as well either back home.
"I do remember you mentioning about what had happened to your village i'm sorry about that." Arnora said softly, she wasn't sure what exactly kept Cuyler away from going back to the Castle, eventhough she knew that Arya was killed she was told not to mention anything about it to Cuyler.
Cuyler smiled softly at her and shrugged, moving to float on his back next to Arnora.
"It's not so bad anymore. Myth was from my village as well and she survived so, at least there is that."Arnora looked at Cuyler as he moved next to her she remembered that it was mentioned once or twice before as well.
"At least you have someone that you knew growing up here though." Arnora said towards Cuyler and smiled a bit.
"From a different life. Much has changed since then. Do you have anyone back home that you still try to keep in touch with? Or did before we came here?" Cuyler never did. He made new friends to each place he traveled. It was an added bonus to his former career path. He made plenty of contacts over his years of traveling on his own.
Arnora thought for a moment, she didn't really have to many friends other than her father who sadly had long since passed.
"I did meet a guy briefly, the day of the wedding I met some people who were traveling from our homeland, to the Small Wet Country. One of them I enjoyed talking with by the name of Ahote we kind of got separated at the wedding.""Ooo, a boy! Should we braid each other's hair now too while we discuss how charming he was?" Cuyler shifted away from Arnora encase he was about to get hit.
Arnora looked at Cuyler and glared at him for a moment and laughed a bit and shook her head.
"I barely met the guy anyway, and besides it's been a long time now i'm sure he wouldn't even remember me."Cuyler rolled his eyes.
"Oh please. You have the power to freeze things. Has he seen you use that power?" Cuyler started to swim around while he spoke, using some of his new found power and training to create mini whirlpools and shooting water fountains. It was the little detail things Cuyler was trying to prefect. If a library needed to be flooded, he knew how to do that very well.
"Yep he did first meeting, the ship had a hole in it and I went and froze the water that was filling in rather quickly." Arnora answered as she watched Cuyler starting to swim around.
"Though I didn't tell him that I was a demigod and he thought I was what he called a mutant or something.""Ah ha! So you saved his life. I doubt he'll forget you anytime soon then," Cuyler said and created a funnel of water before it quickly dispersed and showered him with unnecessarily cold water. He frowned and looked over at Arnora. At least he was already wet.
"Mutant? What a strange word... Did he explain what it meant?"Arnora closed her eyes and groaned a little bit, as she stared at Cuyler as he made a funnel of water.
"Really? I do not like the guy in that way, I saved a whole ship from sinking so I saved way more lives." Arnora then shrugged slightly she wasn't really sure what the term meant at all.
"Something to do with powers, where he's from apparently it's way more common."Cuyler swam back to Arnora, smirking.
"If you have to defend that you don't like him, that means you do," he joked. His logic fell in the same realm of boys liking girl when they picked on them, or hit them. It was childish but it worked really well.
"Sounds like an interesting place. Maybe we should go visit when we return. See if he is there waiting for your return," he teased further.
"Oh yeah, I totally like a man who I had only met for a few hours before being whisked away to my homeland." Arnora said rolling her eyes again and sighed.
"You are certainly way more like your mother then it seems."Cuyler laughed and relaxed on his back again, kicking his feet a bit so he drifted along.
"The apple does not fall far from the tree it seems. Well, if not mystery man, is there someone you've met here that catches your eye?" "Don't make me have to turn you into an ice sculpture." Arnora said jokingly and then started to think for a moment and shook her head, she hadn't really had time to socialize with anyone.
Nope, I've been more focused on studying and training.""You've used that threat already," he teased her. He looked up at the sky, watching it shift and change. He liked everything about this place.
"Ya... It's a lot easier to focus on that." Cuyler's voice had turned distant though. He had pretty much submerged himself in learning all he could about Asgard from a first hand basis and training over time with his mother and on his own in order to keep his mind busy. The quiet times were the hardest. As time seemed to lengthen, the more he thought of Arya again. At first he was mad with her, livid but that was seemingly short-lived.
"Would you rather I turn you into a bunny or something then?" Arnora said to Cuyler smirking a little bit as she swam around a little bit longer and looked over towards him noticing that he had gotten silent now which was pretty odd for him.
"So, is everything okay?" Arnora asked him, she had a feeling that it may have been related to Arya, but she wasn't really sure either.
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