Sarcelle Renard

Children of Light and Darkness at War: Can Love Bloom on a Battle Field? (Still unsure of the title) (no longer active)

@RiverMaiden "Whelp" is pretty much the perfect word for our poor prince's reaction.

Children of Light and Darkness at War: Can Love Bloom on a Battle Field? (Still unsure of the title) (no longer active)

Asher didn’t truly appreciate the comical amount of books he had piled around him until he heard the sounds of some poor sod getting buried under them. But it wasn’t until he heard the person quoting one of his more interesting reads that he took his attention away from the book in his hand, his head perked up in curiosity. Worlds Apart, the book the stranger had quoted, took a look at the similarities and differences between the Dark and Light and attempted to establish a sense of common ground for the reader. Personally, the prince found the book too overly idealistic, but even he couldn’t refute some of the points the author had made.

From his position, the stranger was invisible behind one of the stacks of books he had gathered, so he leaned his chair back and craned his neck to try and get a better look. A glimpse of red hair made him stop dead in his tracks. Asher blinked once as he realized that he had recognized the stranger’s voice. Two blinks this time, as it occurred to him that it was the same creature from yesterday. Another blink, as he questioned the odds of running into her in a city as large as Linore. His expression must have been a delightful mix of disbelief and astonishment as the ridiculousness of the situation fully dawned on him. The prince didn’t realize he had lost his balance on the chair until he found himself falling backwards, but he was honestly too shocked to try and catch himself.

There was a loud crash as the prince hit the floor most ungracefully, but his face still illustrated just how dumbfounded he was. Asher found himself pinching the bridge of his nose, eyes shut tight, as he considered his options. Unfortunately for him, they were all terrible. ”You have to be joking,” he finally sighed, but even he wasn’t sure if his remark was directed at the strange creature on the floor next to him or to whatever cruel being that appeared to be in charge of his fate. ”What in the world are you doing here?”

@Ace of Flames01

Children of Light and Darkness at War: Can Love Bloom on a Battle Field? (Still unsure of the title) (no longer active)

Linore was an oddity in the world. It kept one foot in the Land of Darkness and one in the Land of Light, a fact that could be seen with its mash up of architecture and people. And even then, there was no clear division between what was Light and what was Dark, as the buildings all seemed to incorporate both styles in a seemingly random fashion. Sure, there were some houses that were rather traditional in their design, but by and large each one was unique to the person that made it. Asher found the sense of individuality the houses gave off remarkable, but remained skeptical that such a place could truly remain at peace as long as the war raged on.

The prince made his way through the crowds discreetly, the hood of his dark cloak pulled almost past his eyes. There were plenty of other cloaked individuals like him, those that did not want to be recognized fraternizing with the enemy, but Asher hardly gave them a second thought. Rather, his attention was focused on the monumental library looming in the distance. It stood brilliantly against the twilight sky, its walls sheer white and simple. Even in a city as large as Linore, the place was hard to miss. Opening the

To Asher, the smell of books was oddly comforting, which made wandering down the aisles of books a rather pleasant experience. And when he picked up a book, thoughts about the war, about his duty to his people, about his father’s expectations, all seemed to fade away. It was a respite that he knew full well he could not indulge in for long, but one that he welcomed nonetheless. As much as he loathed to admit it, Valentine had been right about his body's need for rest. Besides, a little reading wouldn't make him lose his edge. And more than anything else, the place reminded him what he was fighting for.

-----

Asher looked up from the pages he had been engrossed in. What was meant to be a quick trip to grab a few books had turned into several hours of reading, as one book became two and so on and so forth. The prince found himself in a relatively secluded corner with several stacks of books surrounding him, as if trying to shut him out from the world around him. Sheepishly, he scratched the back of his head, unintentionally pulling the hood away from his face. A small tinge of embarrassment crept into his expression as he realized just how easily he got caught up in his reading, as he realized he should have already been on his way back to the castle by now.

”Screw it,” he muttered with a small shake of his head, his eyes returning to the pages once more. ”What’s a few more minutes going to hurt?”

Children of Light and Darkness at War: Can Love Bloom on a Battle Field? (Still unsure of the title) (no longer active)

@Cuccoruler To me, it seems like he's more concerned about Asher being weak rather than not wanting peace. I personally like the idea.

Children of Light and Darkness at War: Can Love Bloom on a Battle Field? (Still unsure of the title) (no longer active)

@Narcotic Dollie Watching people squirm is fun!

Children of Light and Darkness at War: Can Love Bloom on a Battle Field? (Still unsure of the title) (no longer active)

@ArenaSnow I feel like that grimiore could have been easy pickings for a miffed vampire looking to get something out of the train wreck that was the day before. You know, just saying.

Children of Light and Darkness at War: Can Love Bloom on a Battle Field? (Still unsure of the title) (no longer active)

@Lord Zee Stay strong Luci! give in to the ship. What kind of light knight cuddles with a child of darkness!? blame it on the fever.

Children of Light and Darkness at War: Can Love Bloom on a Battle Field? (Still unsure of the title) (no longer active)

@Ace of flames01 More like his fascination in their style of literature, as I like to imagine that most of the authors on his side of the border is comprised of stuffy old vamps that insist on keeping to tradition in their writing. For him, something from the other side is a much welcome change of pace.

And it was pretty much an open invitation for somebody to find him knee deep in books and proceed to make him squirm.

Children of Light and Darkness at War: Can Love Bloom on a Battle Field? (Still unsure of the title) (no longer active)

@Narcotic Dollie The only thing I can think of when I picture Naya's house.

In other news, Asher is off to sate one of his guilty pleasures. Make him regret all of his life decisions folks.

Children of Light and Darkness at War: Can Love Bloom on a Battle Field? (Still unsure of the title) (no longer active)

The book in Asher’s hands was snapped shut, frustration seeping out of him as he got up to return it to the shelf. Having been confined to bed rest by Valentine, there was little for the prince to do other than read but unfortunately, the prince had already read every book he owned several times over. And to make matters worse, they were no longer helping him take his mind off of things. From the memories his father dredged up to the multitude of events that had transpired the day before, there was a good deal the prince was trying to avoid.

After putting the book back, Asher couldn’t help but admire Valentine’s work on his hand. A few quick clenches reminded him once more that it was still almost as good as new, something he had questioned the possibility of mere hours ago. Sure, he had to stick his hand into the alchemist’s brew of darkness-knows-what, but it was an awfully small price to pay. Even if the smell made him question just how badly he needed his nose for a few excruciating minutes.

The prince’s attention shifted to bandage covered torso, which was partially obscured by his open robe. The mage had left him with a cracked rib and a nasty burn, but for the most part those two injuries had already been taken care of. However, it was the serious case of light poisoning that had left Asher so weak and also what caused Valentine to insist that he get at the very least a week of rest before even thinking of returning to the battlefield. Glancing back up at his collection of books, he quickly realized that there was no way he was going to make it through the day, much less a week, before going stir crazy.

The robe quietly fell to the floor as he made his way to the dresser. Literature on his side of the border had its merits, but the prince was getting tired of its tendency to be dry and unimaginative. Something we have those archaic vampires to thank for, he noted as he pulled on a black, long sleeve shirt. No, if he was going to be confined to this room for a number of days, he was going to be reading something different. A small grimace crept into his expression as he donned a dark cloak, as that meant he needed books from the other side of the border. Which meant he was going to need a trade city that had managed to remain neutral in the war. Which meant he was going to Linore.