Sunflower

REBELLION {Aims&Sunflower}

Once his knights were on the other side of the door Triver turned towards the mages who were carrying on as if nothing happened. He didn't know how they could simply ignore threats and angry words. He guessed that it came with their jobs or from the battlefield. He guessed that it was a little bit of both.

"I cannot believe you two." Triver said as he rubbed his face.

"Hm?" The two mages looked at the prince before whispering to each other.

"What do you mean?"

"That sort of behavior. You just...you just threatened their lives and now you're acting as if nothing has happened."

Triver could not wrap his head around their strange behavior. Both shrugged, "We were raised to be this way. We are simply tools for the king and nothing more." Inaris said; it wasn't their fault that they had been raised in such a manner. Threats were to mean nothing to them unless they involved the royal line. They were to be mindless machines that the king could use and abuse.

There was something about the easiness with which Inaris spoke those words that made Triver's skin crawl.

"Why don't you go with them? We will know if any harm comes to you." Ser'deni said as she moved closer to the prince. "We are sorry for making you upset but we are not sorry for doing our job." She brought a hand to the prince's face before reaching the top of his head and ruffling his hair. "Run along and play, little prince."

The mages collected a few more bits of food before bowing to the prince and leaving. They passed the twins before making their way down one of the dim corridors. A few moments later Triver exited the room. "I apologize for their behavior." Triver would have bowed but he had always been taught to only bow in the presence of his father. "Now let us see the grounds."

Triver showed the twins where they could train, the special training area for mages, the gardens, stables, blacksmith, and a few other places before settling back into the garden. He wanted to know a bit more about them and the gardens would be the perfect place to ask. He failed to notice a crow sitting in a nearby tree, partially hidden by the leaves. "Come, sit with me." He gestured to the long bench close to one of the fountains. The gardens were extravagant and had been planned by his mother. All of her favorite flowers were in bloom and surely the Queen would be collecting some soon.

"Where are you both from?" Triver was curious about the world outside of the castle walls.

~*~

Within the southern tower of the castle, the mages roamed free. This was their territory. They lived within the tower because no one else wanted to live close to them, and the king's chambers were along the southern and most protected side of the castle. Inaris bid farewell to Ser'deni as they neared their rooms. His room was a floor lower than hers. His room was grand compared to some. It was the same size as the others but almost every inch of the room was covered in old texts. Even though the man was blind he had found a way to read by using his magic. But the walls behind the books were decorated in richly colored murals depicting the outdoors. His bed was large and focused in the middle of his room; off to the side there was a simple bath chamber and his room housed several large windows.

He quickly locked the door to his room before opening one of the books on his bed. No one must know that he had that book in his possession.

The Pro-Bender's Path [ Casually Insane & Sunflower ]

As soon as the second round started, Houjin was grinning. The thrill of ducking under the elements that were tossed at them always had been his favorite part of pro-bending. He was quite skilled at determining the biggest threat and backing them into a corner. This time, He quickly moved around his teammates while Ukik did the same. They never stayed in one spot during each round; this gave them some time to confuse their opponents, who would already be expecting one element and getting the other.

Houjin was caught off guard by a water whip that extinguished his flame. He recovered and redirected the stream of fire that came at him.

Ukik was quickly gaining more speed in delivering her attacks at their opponents. The attacks weren't enough to send the others flying into the marked off areas but they were enough to get them closer to the boundary line. She was hit by a clay disk that made her skid back into the area behind them. Houjin looked towards her for a moment before focusing on the attacks that came his way. He was pushed into a defensive style. He dodged some of the oncoming attacks before managing to find an opening for himself.

Like in the first round, Houjin and Ukik worked together in redirecting attacks and taking turns in singling out one opponent. At the end of the round, the other team had leveled the playing field.

"We've got one more round." Houjin said as he glanced at the two girls. "Let's make this last one count."

"If we have to go into a tie-breaker let's allow Mara to do it."

"Sounds like a plan to me." Houjin had no objections; so far Mara impressed the man greatly.

Ukik would heal them after their match but the dull ache of his bruises made Houjin uncomfortable. He knew that he couldn't give up now. His teammates probably had as many bruises, if not more, than he did. He had no right to complain when they were feeling the same aches.

This time the two decided on a different tactic - attacking separately. The other team was growing more frantic in their attacks, sending them every which way. They were getting restless. Ukik could tell that they were trying their hardest but there was a time when someone would try too hard. She focused on blocking and redirecting attacks rather than wasting her energy in sending her own their way. Houjin stopped midway through with turning up the heat (ha!). He began to do the same as Ukik. If they could get into a tie breaker then they would gladly let Mara take the center stage.

The fluid motions of redirecting attacks came naturally to the two, they still blocked Mara as much as they could but they began to allow more attacks to go her way in favor of testing her. So far they were impressed with what they were seeing.

"This is relaxing, isn't it?"

"Mhm. We just have to get to the tie breaker."

Once the round was called into a tie, the referee tossed the coin. "Blue team chooses."

Unfortunately the opposing team was chosen.

After a minute of deliberation they chose their element. "Earth."

Ukik and Houjin stepped back to allow the center platform to rise. The cocky grin that the earthbender of the other team gave them was enough to know that they were confident. Ukik and Houjin had been taking some attacks for Mara; to the other team she would be easy pickings. But the two wished that Mara would win.

If they didn't win this match, then they'd be happy that they had the chance to compete. Ukik didn't know if Houjin would let Mara on the team permanently if they lost but there was no doubt that the firebender was rooting for her. It had been a while since Ukik had seen Houjin so interested in a match, well mini-match.

The Pro-Bender's Path [ Casually Insane & Sunflower ]

I thought it was a great ending. I think my favorite part of the entire series was when Varrick proposed to Zhu li. :3

Alright! I look forward to it.

The Pro-Bender's Path [ Casually Insane & Sunflower ]

As long as she knew the rules then Houjin guessed that they would be fine. A comforting hand was placed on his arm. He looked down at the source and found Ukik smiling brightly. "We'll do fine. Just have a little faith, all right?" He returned her smile before ruffling her hair.

Ukik quickly re-braided her hair before holding out her fist. She waited for Houjin to do the same. "I'm ready!" She chirped.

Houjin placed his fist with theirs and smiled. "I am too. We can do this." Houjin lead the way towards the entrance to the center of the arena. When they arrived at the doors Houjin noticed Zira and her teammates. They were slumped against the wall with their helmets resting in their laps. By the frowns each wore on their face he didn't have to guess what happened.

"Hey." Zira said with a weak smile. "Looks like there's always next year for us."

Houjin wanted to say something to make things better but he knew that there was nothing he could say without messing up. Ukik was silent as she took in the heartbroken looks of the three sitting on the ground.

"How about after our match we all go out for some dinner?" Ukik asked, "Or I could make some-"

"Nah. We'll be fine, thank you though." Zira said softly. "I don't feel hungry anyways."

Ukik deflated at her words. They said their goodbyes to Zira and her team before heading towards the platform that would take them across to the inner area of the arena.

"Ready?" Ukik asked Mara.

Houjin took up his place on the right side of the middle section of the platform while Ukik took the left side, leaving Mara to stand in the middle. Their opponents must have been new to the sport of pro-bending, Ukik had never heard of them and she religiously followed all of the pro-bending teams, even when the Badgerfrogs weren't active in the pro-bending scene.

Houjin tuned out everything the announcer and audience said after they were given the green light to go ahead and begin the match. He didn't hesitate in letting the fire fly. He concentrated on the earthbender of the opposing team. He didn't even know the name of the team they were against. Houjin sent out short bursts of fire from his fists. He managed to push the other firebender into pulling defensive moves.

Ukik, on her side of the platform, targeted the feet of the opposing players between dodging water whips and flying clay disks. When Houjin created an opening with the opposing firebender she let a short but powerful burst of water towards the firebender. It caught him off guard and pushed him into the next space, allowing the Badgerfrogs to advance.

Houjin dodged a water whip that was sent his way, only to be met by a clay disk a few seconds later. He held up his arms to block the disk before sending a quick ball of fire at the opposing earthbender. Houjin and Ukik worked well together, giving Mara openings to strike while they blocked and redirected attacks.

When the first round was called to an end, the Badgerfrogs were in the lead.

The Pro-Bender's Path [ Casually Insane & Sunflower ]

Sorry this post isn't so good. I'm not the best at action/fight scenes.

Oh! I finally finished watching the series~

REBELLION {Aims&Sunflower}

Sorry for the wait!

REBELLION {Aims&Sunflower}

"Thank the gods he's getting more friends." Inaris joked. Triver shot him an irritated glance before going back to his food. Ser'deni elbowed him in the side.

"Be nice to the prince, Inaris."

Triver wanted to slam his head onto the table and he had been thinking of it up until the time he heard Inaris mention something about getting the prince a pillow. The mage always had his abilities out in the open and he had a habit of prying into the minds of others for a quick observation. No doubt he was doing that to the twins. For a mage skilled in magic of the mind, they were able to be almost undetectable. For those like Ser'deni, who used the ability sparingly due to the strain, it was often a very painful experience for those that they targeted.

"Why do you seem surprised that Triver is so unlike the picture that you were given?" Inaris asked Daryn. His tone was light, as if he had just mentioned the weather or commented on the food. Triver could see the large dagger that Inaris clutched tightly in his hand. The mages always reacted to the slightest things; often mistaking them as threats. That was one of the reasons why the king was so well protected; they acted on things before they truly became threats.

Ser'deni quickly looked towards the knights before pressing her lips together and whistling. Red eyed crows flew through the open window and landed behind her on the large chair.

"Calm down! Inaris didn't mean like that!" Triver stood to his full height, knocking his chair down behind him. He was just thankful that she hadn't brought out the vulture. "You always overreact!"

"It is my job!"

"No, your job is to protect fath- my father, not me!" Triver yelled at her.

Inaris was trying to calm the both of them down. Inaris knew what Ser'deni meant about it being her job. He wasn't as oblivious as they thought.

Once things calmed down between the two of them, the woman pointed a finger in the direction that she thought Daelyn was (and surprise, surprise...she was wrong.)

"You....you're the one that kicked my bird at the trials."

"He's to your left...."Triver said with a dry voice. The crows had remained in the room under the orders that they would be on their best behavior. They bounced around the room picking at the shiny objects they found before depositing them on the table in front of Triver. "No, go over a bit more. There he is."

Inaris giggled lightly. "Someone's as blind as a bat."

Triver looked at his new knights with a pleading 'put me out of my misery' look. He mouthed 'help me' when The crows tried to steal the buttons on his tunic.

REBELLION {Aims&Sunflower}

I think that I'm going to keep Triver's personality as kind of goofy and always laughing unless he's in the same room as his father or doing something important. I really don't get the chance to play goofy characters.

The mages have the right idea of raiding the breakfast for good food.

REBELLION {Aims&Sunflower}

"Ah! Welcome." Triver said as he stood up from his chair. "I am Triver and these are my friends." The prince gestured to the two mages on either side of him.

Inaris gave a short laugh, "More like we're his babysitters." Ser'deni threw her pillow at him. Inaris threw it back, only for it to accidentally miss and hit the prince. Triver's cheeks flushed pink as he picked the pillow up off of the ground. He launched the pillow at Inaris with an irritated growl.

"Watch where you're throwing things!" Triver said before rubbing the red spot on his cheek. The unholy pillows of the infirmary felt more like pieces of wood that feather pillows.

"Aren't you going to introduce us?" Ser'deni asked as she turned her attention towards the direction of the knights. "I see that you've healed nicely." She said to Daryn, "And how's your brother's injuries? Rean healed him but everyone knows she doesn't like to put her full effort into it."

Triver tried not to laugh. The prince was a goofy boy when he was with friends. This was the true Triver - he enjoyed a good laugh or two and would gladly be the butt of the joke. Not many people got to see this side of him. He cleared his throat before speaking up. "Where are my manners? This is Ser'deni," The woman bowed her head, "And he is Inaris." the blond man gave a slight wave before lying back in his bed.

"Why don't we give you a tour of the castle and then we can go about doing a few things for the day?" Triver suggested. He smoothed out his clothes before looking at the two mages. "We will come back to visit you--"

Inaris held up his hand to silence the prince. "We're fine. Just still a bit tired and the nurses aren't watching. This place is too stuffy." He got out of the bed and slipped on one of the robes that were off to the side of each bed. The patients usually were in their underclothes and the robes were for modesty’s sake, although Inaris really didn't care about being modest. He just didn't want to sunburn or blind anybody.

Ser'deni also ignored the pleas of the prince to stay and rest. They only needed to rest after yesterday's events. It wasn't like they had their legs cut off or something. She tightly wrapped the robe around her body before walking around her bed and towards Inaris. Together they walked towards the doors of the infirmary.

"I think I stood up too fast."

"Shh...We’re going to get some food. I'm tired of gruel."

"Do you think little Triver would mind?"

"He's going to take the knights for breakfast. I'm not going to miss out on that."

Triver sighed before turning towards the twins. "I am sorry for the way they are acting. Usually they are quite...creepy. But they will be joining us for a while today so please...just don't take anything they say to heart." If he knew the mages, they would try to make the new knights as uncomfortable as possible. Well Inaris would, Ser'deni would just sit there and nod her head when appropriate.

The prince led the way as he pointed out some of the important areas of the castle and finally when they reached a small dining room closer to his wing of the castle, Triver motioned for them to take a seat. "I've never taken knights before but I will treat you both well. This is where you will come to eat if you wish; it is a private room for my servants to dine in, and there will be no men who will hit on you in here." He said to Daryn. Triver helped the servants bring out the food and set it on the table before taking his seat again.

"I will ask of one thing of you both. So long as you serve under me, please do not think of me as just a prince."

"He gets touchy about that." Ser'deni spoke up as she stole a piece of ham. Next to her, Inaris was busy stuffing his mouth with a few rolls spread with honey and nuts. "Just think of him as a kid that needs protecting."

"I am not a child anymore."

"You will always be our little prince, we will always protect you."

Triver felt his cheeks warm up in embarrassment.

Sunflower's Original Ideas

Updated.