The Meeting(Darek/Genji)

[Nayeli]

’introducing
{leilani richards*}
featuring--! --! ---! ---!
Come on closer, I wanna show you
What I'd like to do, You sit back now
Just relax now, I'll take care of you
Hot temptations, Sweet sensations
Infiltrating through, Sweet sensations
Hot temptations, Coming over you

Taeli spoke with such an accent that I could not help but smile and her knowledge of the elven ways, though the explanation very little, was very extent. She was very smart and she was part of the riders counsel that I could only dream of being apart. ”You do not know, child… They might need you sooner than expected…”

[/color] I smiled at her for a moment and watched as she touched my shoulder and leaned over as if she were going to whisper in my ear, which she did. ”We should go find Lord Darek, MiLady… He did come and see you, leaving him for your brother to entertain is not honorable.”[/color] She said to me and I nodded in agreement. ”Yes, you are correct Taeli… We do need to find Darek, my brother should not have to entertain him since my lessons are over.”[/color] I said to him before turning my heads to the rather surprised Genji.

What was he so surprised about. He seemed to have the same thoughts I did about this marriage idea that my sister was trying to “force” upon us and I did not plan on having any part of it. My sister had no control over me and I had given up my title long ago so I had no obligation to the country at all anymore other than being a diplomat to keep peace between the elves and riders.

Leilani, as much as I would truly be content to just let you go on your merry way towards… whatever, I… cannot. I do not want to, nor would I ever, hurt you.” I looked at him for a moment and lifted my head. ”Well, then I fear you and my sister will be disappointed in your wedding, for I will not be there for it… I gave my title away long ago… My sister has no control of me at all and I have no obligation to this country due to me giving up my title as Princess when I became a diplomat of peace between the humans and elves.”[/color] I said, looking at him and speaking with the most calm I had in a long time.

”But every action I have taken in my life has been made in an attempt to honor my mother’s sacrifice. She endured much disgrace before and after my birth, though she did her best to keep her pain from my brothers and me. She was beautiful and elegant even in the midst of her agony. And I swore when I was very young that I would not let her suffering be in vain. I cannot just… throw away everything and abandon the path that I am on… the path that she set me on. I owe her just as much as I owe my gods, and I can think of no greater insult to my mother than to selfishly indulge my flights of fantasy when I have a duty to my city and my people to make sure our alliances do not crumble nor our trade agreements falter nor let both our countries’ growth stagnate – the very things my mother allowed herself to be sexually violated for in order to prevent them from happening.” I tilted my head slightly and did not allow my smile to fade away. ”What kind of son would I be if I allowed the destruction of everything she has worked for?” I lifted my head and took in a deep breath.

”If you think our lack of marriage would affect anything you have worked on, you are mistaken… You see, my sister has no control over you, even though she acts like she does and will continue to act like… If anything, my brother had more control over you then my sister does because to be honest, he is next in line for the throne… My sister is second and I would have been third… To be honest, this marriage will not be done until my brother has agreed upon it because my father has no ties to me anymore and my brother has the ultimate say because he is my full brother and the next in line… My sister probably completely lied to you about my uncle and if she didn’t, I doubt the bumbling fool remembers anything he spoke about with her… My sister takes her title as Count and takes it all the way up as if she is the Queen, but she is nothing more than a count of this city and won’t be any more unless my brother choses to release his title, which he has no plan to…”[/color] I said to him as I stood there, being perfectly calm about everything. The day was going wonderful and I was sure that if Darek had not come that it would have gone far worse.
[/blockquote][/blockquote]

Gonna take it slow babe, Do it my way
Keep your eyes on me. Your reaction
To my action is what I want to see
Rhythmic motion, Raw emotion
Infiltrating through, Sweet sensations
Hot temptations, Coming over you

’word count 0.809
’tagged Darek Von Cleft & Genji Lantieri
’comment ^_^ My muse is kinda low, but I hope you like it.
’song Come on Closer--! Jem
’post status done
’template creator nayeli

[/size]

[dantieduurden]

As Darek and Turin made their way to the sparing area they had small talk about how each was doing and the going ons of each persons place that they livid.

When they arrived at the area Darek went over to the weapon rack and pulled down a spear. " I hope you do not mind, but it has been a while since I have used a spear, and I care to see if I still have the touch." And with that Darek says as few simple words so that the wood remains strong throughout the fight and would not break. Then he uses magic to dull the spear tip. Once done he does the same to Turins blade. " Are you ready?" Darek asks as he crosses to the other side of the sparring area. When Turin tells him he is ready they begin.

It was not long till both were in the heat of the moment, Turin was the first to get hit, but the quick pokes and prods did nothing compared to when he swung his sword and hit Darek. Both the Sword and the armor were made to bypass most spells so it took much out of Darek to make the man even feel any of the hits, and even longer for it to slow him down. " Knew I should have used a sword." Darek laughed as he just narrowly avoided a slash at his arm, using the center of the spears shaft to deflect the blow, then he twisted it sending the back end into Turins rib. But before he could pull it back Turin had locked his arm around it and pulled him in. " You wont get away with that one so easily." Darek laughed as he let the spear go, getting rid of all the energy he had been using trying to hold it against Turin was now released, and where once their were two opposing forces, now their was only one. And as Gravity would have it Turin feel backwards, Darek was on him in an instant picking up the spear that was dropped, but he moved to fast and did not notice Turins blade swinging for his legs, so when it hit he fell down right besides the boy who would be king. " So you have been practicing I see." Darek said slowly getting up from the ground. That is when he saw Leilani and Taeli coming towards them and he got up and helped Turin up. " It seems your sister is finished with her lessons Turin. Would you mind?" Darek asked as he watched his love walking towards them.

[Elloria]

Genji sat and stared up at Leilani as she stood and lectured him. She really was a naïve fool. She really had absolutely no idea what was going on in her own household. No clue whatsoever about the threat her uncle and sister posed to anyone who dared stand in the way of their success. She was going to get both of them killed if she was not more careful.

He watched her start walking away, his mind still reeling from the horrifying realization that she really could destroy him with her own innocence. He could feel the insidious influence of Zhayu in that girl’s passionate ignorance. And his downfall was being cemented with every step she took, every word she spoke. It weighed upon him like an iron weight, like a dragon’s paw, like fate. With great effort, he rose – still fluid, still graceful – and caught up with Leilani in just a few steps. Neither Mami nor Rikuto immediately followed him, but they tensed up all the same. Neither woman was certain what Genji was about to do. He was as impulsive as he was calculating and they could only pray that whatever happened would not result in senseless bloodshed.

Genji’s hand reached out and caught hold of Leilani’s arm, halting her in her tracks. His grip was firm, but not cruel. She turned to him, eyes wide with confusion and more than a little indignation. He did not tighten his hold. Neither did he loosen it. He held her gaze, his eyes no longer cold and unfeeling but earnest and quite sad – as if they had seen far more unnecessary anguish than anyone should and wished that things could change. His voice was low and perfectly matched the expression in his eyes. “Allow me to be painfully honest with you for once. I do not wish to marry you. I know that it would be difficult for either of us and I know that you resent the position you have been placed in. But I would suggest that you move forward with greater caution than you are currently showing. Your uncle is not as senile or oblivious as you seem to think he is. He is insane and can be manipulated, but he is not stupid. With the right resources and no Riders interfering, it is entirely possible that he could have won the Blue Divide.”

He waved away her polite, diplomatic objections. “Please just listen to me. The last thing that I want to see is for a vibrant, intelligent young woman like you be crushed because of her idealistic world view. For a moment, stop thinking like one of those cheolhag-ui shǎguā.” He stopped, realizing he had slipped back into Itasu. He closed his eyes, trying to find the right word in Broddring Common. “Philosophers, I guess would be the word – those who think that every problem can be solved by just saying the right words. It is a noble ideal, but very far from the truth of things. The truth of things is that your uncle is far more than he appears to be. And he is nothing compared to the threat of your sister. Your Rider friends are powerful and perhaps they can protect you. But do you honestly believe for even a moment that she will not slip a knife between you or your brother’s ribs the moment either of you becomes a legitimate obstacle to her plans?” He tightened his grip slightly and leaned in closer. “She is an assassin. She acts like an assassin, she thinks like an assassin and worst of all she plans like an assassin. And she is good at it – a master. That is not a statement I make lightly, for I have seen more exemplary assassins than I would have ever cared to. And the key to being a master assassin is one’s subtlety. She may seem bold and brash, but she is the coldest, cruelest, and most calculating individual it has ever been my misfortune to encounter – barring only that harlot of a prophet, Malandra. I agreed to make this attempt at an engagement because I will not make myself seem like an obstacle to your sister. And if you are as intelligent and open-eyed as you appear to be, I would ask that you at least pretend to go along with it until you can come up with a better way of dealing with Nayeli that does not involve sending in the entire collective of Riders to handle her.”

He released her arm and stepped back as Darek and Turin walked up. He bowed slightly to them in greeting. “Gentlemen. How was your spar?”

(OOC: Cheolhag-ui shǎguā means "philosophical fools"

[Nayeli]

’introducing
{leilani richards*}
featuring--! --! ---! ---!
Come on closer, I wanna show you
What I'd like to do, You sit back now
Just relax now, I'll take care of you
Hot temptations, Sweet sensations
Infiltrating through, Sweet sensations
Hot temptations, Coming over you

I knew what I was doing far more then Genji thought I did. I did not care if he considered me a fool, I had my plans and I had no want or need to go along with this marriage. I did not plan to play along with anything my sister put in front of me. My brother and I knew it, but I had agreed with my brother to be civil during this visit and so far I was. But I had made my point very clear and I did not plan on changing that point at all. As I turned to walk with Taeli, I smiled over at her for a moment, about to speak about how pretty she looked in that dress. She hated the dress and it had taken me hours to convince her to wear such a beautiful dress.

As I walked away, I was nearly seven strides when I felt a hand grip my left arm, my body yanked away as I turned to see who had dared touch me and before my eyes was my future groom to be, though he would not be if I had anything to do with it. Taeli had turned as well, her hand on her hip where there was a hidden blade, but I put my hand up. My eyes went from warm and soft to nearly as cold and hard as those my sister would of held with this man. My arm was firm in his own hands and I wanted to slap him, but I restrained myself.

“Allow me to be painfully honest with you for once. I do not wish to marry you. I know that it would be difficult for either of us and I know that you resent the position you have been placed in. But I would suggest that you move forward with greater caution than you are currently showing. Your uncle is not as senile or oblivious as you seem to think he is. He is insane and can be manipulated, but he is not stupid. With the right resources and no Riders interfering, it is entirely possible that he could have won the Blue Divide.” I narrowed my eyes as I was not stupid as to the history of my own country and that of the elves. I knew the war would have been won had the riders not stepped in finally and I was glad they did. I was glad they took our military leader and that of the elves to stop the military from moving. I was not stupid as I had been brought in from my education only a few weeks prior to that.

I was about to object and again tried to yank my arm away, but his firm hold did not allow it to slip easily. ”Please just listen to me. The last thing that I want to see is for a vibrant, intelligent young woman like you be crushed because of her idealistic world view. For a moment, stop thinking like one of those cheolhag-ui shǎguā.” I looked at him completely confused by what he had just called me and I was completely prepared to slap him until he finally spoke again. ”Philosophers, I guess would be the word – those who think that every problem can be solved by just saying the right words. It is a noble ideal, but very far from the truth of things. The truth of things is that your uncle is far more than he appears to be. And he is nothing compared to the threat of your sister.” What threat was he talking about that I did not know about my sister already. ”Your Rider friends are powerful and perhaps they can protect you. But do you honestly believe for even a moment that she will not slip a knife between you or your brother’s ribs the moment either of you becomes a legitimate obstacle to her plans?” I narrowed my eyes. It had before crossed my mind and it was the reason my brother had not tried to approach her before. It was not a secret to the world he was next in line, it was no secret that he was just standing back… I felt his grip tighten and I put my right hand on his hand and tried to pull my arm from his grip. ”She is an assassin. She acts like an assassin, she thinks like an assassin and worst of all she plans like an assassin. And she is good at it – a master. That is not a statement I make lightly, for I have seen more exemplary assassins than I would have ever cared to. And the key to being a master assassin is one’s subtlety. She may seem bold and brash, but she is the coldest, cruelest, and most calculating individual it has ever been my misfortune to encounter – barring only that harlot of a prophet, Malandra. I agreed to make this attempt at an engagement because I will not make myself seem like an obstacle to your sister. And if you are as intelligent and open-eyed as you appear to be, I would ask that you at least pretend to go along with it until you can come up with a better way of dealing with Nayeli that does not involve sending in the entire collective of Riders to handle her.” Finally his grip let go and Taeli pushed herself over to my arm, cutting between myself and the man.

”Let me go ahead and tell you something very quickly, Genji… I am not stupid, I am not as Naïve as you make me out to be. I know exactly who trained my sister and I know exactly why she was trained… I also know what threat my sister poses, but I will not sit by or play along with her plans to marry me off just so she can get me away from my duty that I have to the Riders.”

[/color] I said, rubbing my arm slightly as I looked at him hard. ”I might be young, but I am Nayeli’s full sister, I know how to defend myself very well… I don’t need you to tell me what my sister thinks and how she does it…”[/color] I pulled my hand up and pointed straight into his face, my eyes as cold and hard as the elder sister who was famous for those eyes. Mine might have been a warm green, but right now, I knew they were cold and hard. ”And if you dare to touch me again you stupid foreigner… You will not need to give my sister a reason to kill you because I swear that I will…”[/color] I looked at Taeli’s who large eyes were wide and I feared that the scene had caused her to nearly lose her composure and transform back into her true form, one that was beyond beautiful. Her eyes held every show of the feline she was and I put my hands on her face, which was hot from anger. ”My dear friend, calm down… I am fine, you see that now…”[/color] She looked at Genji as if he was nothing more than a piece of meat to destroy and rip to pieces. I pushed her towards the sparing yard where I knew Turin and Darek would be and looked to see them coming towards us.

”Gentlemen. How was your spar?” I looked at Genji, my eyes blazing with pure anger and hatred for him having to touch me. I did not plan on hiding my anger from my lover or my brother. I knew my brother had possible seen him touching me and my own anger.
[/blockquote][/blockquote]

Gonna take it slow babe, Do it my way
Keep your eyes on me. Your reaction
To my action is what I want to see
Rhythmic motion, Raw emotion
Infiltrating through, Sweet sensations
Hot temptations, Coming over you

’word count 1.287
’tagged Darek Von Cleft & Genji Lantieri
’comment ^_^ My muse is kinda low, but I hope you like it.
’song Come on Closer--! Jem
’post status done
’template creator nayeli

[/size]

[dantieduurden]

As Darek and Turin begin their walk back he looks to Leilani and smiles to her as he sees both her and Talie walking towards him and her brother. But just as quickly as that smile came onto his face it fade and was replaced with that of an animal ready to rip something to shreds. Clear as the sun is up in view of any who were watching, Darek witnessed Genji grab Leilani by the arm and turn her around. How dare he. Darek all but growled as his pace began to pick up, trying to get to his love more quickly. Turin almost in a run trying to keep up. His normally kind yellow eyes taking on the full look of the predator he was. I will rip that mans beating heart out if he hurts her. Darek says in the ancient language not even noticing that he has switched languages. As he gets closer and closer he sees that it is also taking all of Talies will not to kill the man where he stands, and if not for Leilanis hand he is sure she would. Unlike Talie though Darek does not have a hand holding him back. As he continues getting closer and closer moving in almost a blur, all that can really be seen of the man is the red of a ribbon and the shine of silver where his head would be. As he moves he sees Leilani try to pull away from him once more, again he holds her back and now he has had enough. Just then the man turns to them and greats them. How dare you talk to us as if we did not see what you have just done you…you….mortal. Darek says in the ancient language, as he says this he throws his arms forward pushing Genji back with all his strength, barring his fangs and letting his wings come free from behind him under his cloak. As the man goes flying back he sees Turin step in front of Darek to stop him from going any further. Looking at Turin Darek said in a calm voice, though his edge was still their. You can not tell me you are going to let this thing get away with that Turin. Dantie says in common trying to look over Turins shoulders to see where the man landed. When he can not see him he looks to Leilani, though keeping his body turned so he can also keep an eye on the skum he had just thrown if Turin ever let him get back within sight of him. Are you ok my precious? Dantie says to her in the ancient language, confident that Talie has now taken her place out of Leilanis arm reach so that next time she will not be stopped.

[Elloria]

(OOC: Italics means it is spoken in Itasu, Genji's native tongue.)

As Genji straightened up, he suddenly found Darek entirely too close for comfort. The words come out of the freak’s mouth made the count frown. While his understanding of the Ancient Language was not the most complete, it was enough to know that this creature was attempting to threaten him. It would have been more intimidating had the thing not needed to look up at Genji to look him in the eye. The count would have smirked were it not for the fact that as soon as the word “mortal” left the creature’s mouth, he was sent flying backwards. His flight path was jarringly slowed as he slammed into something both soft and unforgiving, sending what little breath he still possessed from his lungs. He and his cushion crashed to the earth, the crack of a skull on cobblestones telling his addled senses that it was probably one of his guards. With a quiet splash, they skidded to a halt in the small fish pond beside the oak tree that had just recently been the scene of Leilani’s first lesson.

“Kazan-sama! Rikuto-unnie!”

Sputtering, Genji rolled off of his guard. He shook his head slightly, trying desperately to clear his mind and eyes of water as Mami knelt hurriedly beside them. His mind cleared, he rapidly took stock of his own injuries – bruised chest and bones where the animal had shoved at him, whiplash in his neck from the sudden attack, slight headache as a result of the crash and whiplash, pins and needles in his arms and legs. All in all, he was fine. He would recover. But Rikuto…

He grit his teeth, shoved the concern he felt into a small box in the corner of his mind and pulled first Hinote’s sheath free from his back, then Seisui’s from his side. He set them on the earth before pulling his tunic off. Mami had already carefully pulled Rikuto from the pond after determining that no damage had been caused to the Ishinomori’s neck. From the way Mami was behaving, it appeared that Rikuto had not inhaled any water – a small blessing, but he would take it because he had something more troubling to deal with. Head wounds were the worst; Genji knew that all too well. He handed the tunic to Mami, who swapped it for her own so that the drier material could be used for a makeshift bandage. “I am going to kill him, Kazan-sama. Even if I die in doing so,” Mami murmured, her eyes hard and unforgiving as Genji met her gaze.

He shook his head very slightly as he unsheathed Hinote and began cutting the material into strips. “I will handle this when we have tended to her.”

The first few were used to clean the wound, which was done with the typical Itasan efficiency. The count then shifted Rikuto’s head to his lap and used the rest to pack the wound as best as he could, his brow furrowed in concentration and his mind praying, praying, praying. As he worked, Mami continued trying to rouse Rikuto. Her efforts were eventually rewarded with a quiet groan and blinking, bleary, earth-colored eyes. Genji let out a shaky breath at the blessed sight of those eyes. Rikuto’s brow wrinkled. “You are not injured, Kazan-sama?” she asked, her words slurred and somewhat difficult to understand.

Genji snorted. “You are the one bleeding from your head and you ask if I am well? Are all Ishinomori as hard-headed as you?” The spearwoman grinned, though it was more grimace than anything else. With a gentleness rarely seen in him, Genji slowly lifted Rikuto into a sitting position. When he was certain she would not collapse, he gestured for Mami to take his position. “Stay here with Mami. I will return in a moment.” He unsheathed Seisui as well and shook both blades free of water before he rose from his kneeling position. His pants and body were still damp – a mixture of the water and the cold sweat that had covered his skin as he worked on Rikuto. He swayed slightly as he stood, but his iron will soon took over and made him stand straight and steady. His hands clenched tightly around the hilts, drawing strength from what those blades represented – the enemies he had conquered with them.

Without the slightest quaver in his step, he walked back over to the group that still stood a few dozen feet away. He stopped a dozen feet from them and well within their line of vision. Keeping his blades turned from them, but never relaxing his grip, he simply stood there meeting Darek’s gaze directly. The count’s eyes were not angry, though anger was certainly something he was feeling. They were not cold or contemptuous, as they usually were. The one emotion that was winning out, no matter how desperately he was trying to ignore it or hide, was concern. “I did not realize that I had done something so terribly wrong as to deserve such treatment from you, Lord Darek,” he said. “I merely took hold of the lady’s arm in order to hold her back a moment to speak with her. As far as the rest of the world is concerned, she and I are affianced – though I myself do not like the state of affairs. If I was wrong for acting as I did, a simple reprimand would have sufficed and an apology would have been forthcoming. Difficult as it may be for many elves to believe, not all of us are utterly unreasonable mortals.” The last word was spoken silkily, making it clear that Genji had understood what Darek had said earlier. His expression became much colder as he swiftly continued. “But from where I am standing, I did nothing to cause your attack upon me. Now, it is my understanding that the Riders do not wish for Itasus to become embroiled in a war on this continent. And an external war is the last thing my mother’s people need right now, not to mention that it is assuredly the last thing Alagaesia needs. I pray that Rikuto does not die due to your jealous actions, Lord Darek. You are an undoubtedly noble elf and I hate that another’s blood has been spilt by your noble hands for a feud that should be between just the two of us. I would hate even more for her life to be on your hands. The Ishinomori are the least forgiving of the ruling clans…and the most relentless. And do not mistake that as a threat from me. I am simply informing you of how her family would react, which any reasonable person would consider to be a fair response to the senseless death of one of their own.”

[Nayeli]

’introducing
{leilani richards*}
featuring--! --! ---! ---!
Come on closer, I wanna show you
What I'd like to do, You sit back now
Just relax now, I'll take care of you
Hot temptations, Sweet sensations
Infiltrating through, Sweet sensations
Hot temptations, Coming over you

My brother was by my side quickly and Taeli was calm but it was not before Darek had reacted as quickly as he had. Count Genji was across the grounds and many guards had stopped their actions to watch what was coming on. I knew most of the ancient language, but it had been spoken so quickly I had missed nearly all of it. I felt a hand on my shoulder, it was that of my own brothers and he was angry as well. I could see it in his eyes, the rage that he felt for another man touching me, one whom had no right to touch me and whom I had never given permission to touch me. Darek, my love, he had my permission to touch me on the arm, shoulder, and waist. He had permission to hug me and kiss me if he wished, but he did not disrespect my space like Genji just had.

”You cannot tell me you are going to let this thing get away with that, Turin.” I looked at my love who had finally turned back to my brother who had lowered his hand from my shoulder and I placing his own sword, a new one given to him by Darek, into its sheath. ”I will handle this Darek. Calm yourself my friend.”

[/color] My brother said before I watched as they were attending to their friend, though I did not want anyone to get hurt, I was too mad that he had grab me. He had no right to and I would not keep quite when he did. ”Are you ok my precious?” I looked at my love and nodded. ”I am fine, you can calm down, he did not hurt me.”[/color] I said to him as I placed my hand on his arm and squeezed, smiling up at him.

It was not long before Genji was returning over towards us and I watched as he held his blades though they were turned away from us, which showed he was not going to use them but he was not relaxed. My brother looked at the count with not any form of calmness. He held all protectiveness in his eyes and it was strong. I watched as Genji’s eyes were not angry or cold, in fact, they were concern and I honestly was surprised about that. ”I did not realize that I had done something so terribly wrong as to deserve such treatment from you, Lord Darek.” He had to be joking, right? He thought grabbing a woman was okay and I could see the shock in the eyes of my brother as well. ”I merely took hold of the lady’s arm in order to hold her back a moment to speak with her. As far as the rest of the world is concerned, she and I are affianced – though I myself do not like the state of affairs. If I was wrong for acting as I did, a simple reprimand would have sufficed and an apology would have been forthcoming. Difficult as it may be for many elves to believe, not all of us are utterly unreasonable mortals.” I lifted my head and rolled my eyes. His homeland either had little respect for women or they just didn’t care about being grabbed.

”Let me tell you something now Genji… My sister and uncle may be trying to get rid of my sister through marriage, but you still have one word to gain and that is my own… I am the man in my family, my uncle had no ties to my sister and my father is not in the picture… You might be ‘affianced’ to her by their words, but you are not her husband and you have not been given permission by her or myself to touch her in any form other than a mere tap on the shoulder, which she would have easily turned to listen to… The only man other than myself who has gained permission is this man here, who has my blessing, unlike you… You had better no ever touch my sister… This wedding, in my opinion will never go through, not without my blessing and the choice of my sister who has refused… Now, you can continue to push but until the day she had given her choice to do so, you shall not touch her again, unless you have Her permission… You might be a count, but I am Prince of this Country and I only give that as a suggestion, do not make me make it more than that.”[/color] I was highly surprised by my brother words, which he had never spoken so much before. He had also never once called himself Prince, even though everyone in the country knew he was prince, he had merely only asked to be called Lord Turin or Turin… His eyes were hard and they held something in them that showed determination.

Darek then continued and I listened to him as he words turned colder. ”But from where I am standing, I did nothing to cause your attack upon me. Now, it is my understanding that the Riders do not wish for Itasus to become embroiled in a war on this continent. And an external war is the last thing my mother’s people need right now, not to mention that it is assuredly the last thing Alagaesia needs. I pray that Rikuto does not die due to your jealous actions, Lord Darek. You are an undoubtedly noble elf and I hate that another’s blood has been spilt by your noble hands for a feud that should be between just the two of us. I would hate even more for her life to be on your hands. The Ishinomori are the least forgiving of the ruling clans…and the most relentless. And do not mistake that as a threat from me. I am simply informing you of how her family would react, which any reasonable person would consider to be a fair response to the senseless death of one of their own.” I looked at him coldly and lifted my head as my brother came over and checked to make sure my delicate arm was not bruised, which is was not, but he was also concerned. ”Go back to your estate Genji… We will see you at dinner.”[/color] My brother’s words sounded like more of an Order then a suggestion and it was something that was beyond me.
[/blockquote][/blockquote]

Gonna take it slow babe, Do it my way
Keep your eyes on me. Your reaction
To my action is what I want to see
Rhythmic motion, Raw emotion
Infiltrating through, Sweet sensations
Hot temptations, Coming over you

’word count 0.000
’tagged Darek Von Cleft & Genji Lantieri
’comment ^_^ Wow, turin has never said so much in one post... No word count, I am tired.
’song Come on Closer--! Jem
’post status done
’template creator nayeli

[/size]

[dantieduurden]

Dantie may not have been able to see the flight path that had been taken but the loud crash gave him an idea of what had happened. One of his two guards must have got in the way. Fools letting their oaths to protect him come in their way of common sense. Darek thought to himself as he began to regain some of his mental control as Turin said he would take care of the situation the rest of the way. But not once did he let his guard down as he went to Leilani and she let him know that she was fine and that it was ok for him to calm down. Slowly he wrapped one of his wings around her, protecting her from the counts sight. He did not even deserve to see the woman.

It did not take long though for Darek to see the new threat, and though Turin said he would take care of it Dareks hands were already on their respectful hilts. Ready to draw if the rime arose. He would gladly cut down this fool if the man wished death he would see why he was not welcome in the elven homeland and why many humans feared him and wanted him dead. He was always the predator. The hunter in the night, and though his senses were dulled in the light, they were more then enough to take on one mere human. And when Genji stopped a few feet away with his blades facing the opposite direction it put him even more on edge but still he did not move, the man would have to strike true and hard to kill him in one attack. Darek knew his limits and made a mental map of where everyone was on the battlefield as Genji spoke. “I did not realize that I had done something so terribly wrong as to deserve such treatment from you, Lord Darek, I merely took hold of the lady’s arm in order to hold her back a moment to speak with her. As far as the rest of the world is concerned, she and I are affianced – though I myself do not like the state of affairs. If I was wrong for acting as I did, a simple reprimand would have sufficed and an apology would have been forthcoming. Difficult as it may be for many elves to believe, not all of us are utterly unreasonable mortals.” The silver tongues words were woven so well it was a surprise he was not a snake and as Darek was about to respond Turin stepped in, and surprised Darek beyond what he thought possible as he called himself the prince. Slowly Darek picked his words, making sure the snake could not twist them so that he was in a way correct. Even the ants know in their own race not to lay their hands on those above them unless given permission. To do so would mean death. If your mind was not so closed you would see the errors of your ways. But let me place it in simple terms for you to understand Genji. Darek said, though the anger was still in his eyes his warriors training had now kicked in with Genjis blades being revealed. If you were to do that to a rider one of two things would happen, and yes I am using the riders because like Lady Leilani they are above you. If you were to place your hand on one of them and then force them to listen to you not letting them go they would have broken every bone in your arm, while that was going on their dragon would rip you limb from limb. The other way things would turn out would be if you came to an understanding rider who had been around humans enough to understand them, in the ancient language he would have made you repent in whatever way they saw fit, the dragon though would still try to eat you. Darek then proceeds to take it a step further and say And if you were to ever touch any of the elven cohort in such a manner you would be dead in a matter of seconds. You are a long way from home, you may want to learn the new customs of the land and what is right and wrong. Because the next time you may not be so lucky to have your guards their to protect you. Darek finishes almost positive that the man can not twist his words. But then the fool continues and tries to turn the blame on him about what has happened to his guard and Darek starts to laugh at what the man thinks. For one count if I were to attack you, or any elf for that matter you would not have been given the time to stand up before you were dead, or fighting prone. As for the riders not wanting your people to join a war, what you failed it seems to understand is that Turin here, the next lord of Brodding just made it clear to you that you were in the wrong. For your army to match forth it would bring death down upon your race. Tell me in 6 months with your whole military deployed how many ships would get by the humans and elves aligned in a common goal? I myself could simply rip them apart and make them sink, now that the riders have gotten the two people to be calm they would turn to protecting their own which would invoke their wrath upon you. Do you think your own people would make it across the sea in such a scenario? Then hearing him call him jealous what did this little creature think he was. You may want to rethink your life count if you think I would be jealous of you. You may have a strong port city, and a military where you come from, but unlike you I do not need such things. I will not bring those into my own fights. I had tribes that worshiped me as a god, and not once did I take advantage of that, instead making sure to make their lifes better. In All the time I gave you to win her heart you have only accomplished to do with her is get her to agree to learn your culture. Still nothing to be jealous about if you ask me count. If anything it is you who holds jealousy in your heart for all the things you wish to do, in your short lifetime you shall not accomplish half of them. And if your friend does die and her people do come I shall be the first to meet them. You may be informing me of what your people do, but do you know what mine do? They protect their own. And they guard them. Tell me how many of them can use magic Genji? I am sure with your countries warrior training that non can breach your mental defenses, but can they stop the world around them? Can they tame a sea that wants nothing more then to make them drown. Can they calm the storm or make a home grow from a tree? Be weary of your words, for every word you speak puts another nail in your coffin.

[Elloria]

Genji’s eyes flicked over to Turin as the prince quietly chastised him for his actions and words. One eyebrow rose slightly at the hard look in the prince’s eyes. So Turin possessed a spine after all? That was a slight comfort to Genji. The prince would need all the spine and determination possible in order to deal with the threat of his middle sister. If that was the case, then it would probably be prudent to let the matter drop. The whole thing seemed to be stemming from a fundamental misunderstanding of the situation – one which Genji had contributed to at least somewhat. He had not been wrong, per se, but he had been acting in ignorance. Of course that was not excusable, but it was somewhat more forgivable. His jaw twitched, prepared to make his apologies, when the creature Darek spoke.

The count turned his gaze back to the creature. As it spoke, he flicked his eyes over it – not missing a single word or detail. Its eyelids twitched and the eyes themselves were somewhat bloodshot. It was as if it had recently gotten over some sort of intoxication, but Genji had smelled no alcohol on its breath. Moreover, there was a more animalistic bloodlust in its gaze that the count suspected even elves would have found abnormal. And its skin had the barest hint of red to it, when before it had been almost painfully pale. Odd…and it just seemed to be generally irritable, rather than specifically pissed at Genji – though it certainly was pissed at him. Its body was tense, but there was more to it than just its aggravation at him. Genji’s eyes flicked upward, noting that the sun had just hit the apex of its journey across the skies. He frowned slightly as he brought his gaze back to Darek.

The creature was still speaking, so Genji took a moment to pull up his extensive mental library and began looking at all the information he possessed about supernatural beings. His eyes grew distant and slightly unfocused as he went through what he knew. With the rapid speed of his thoughts, it didn’t take long to find the specific being he suspected Darek was – vampire. But there was something else factoring in that affected Darek’s vampirism, else it would have already burnt to ashes. Hell, it wouldn’t even be out in the daylight to begin with. Vampirism was something that worked best on elves and humans, as far as Genji had been able to determine. There were no records of dwarven victims or of wereanimals being subject to the crippling effects of it. It was possible that he and the elves just didn’t have access to those sorts of records, but it was just as likely that no records existed because there had never BEEN a vampire dwarf or vampire wereanimal.

Fascinating. It explained so much about the creature, it was almost laughable that Genji had not noticed it before. If his hunch was correct – and it was a rare thing indeed for his hunches to be incorrect – that meant that Darek was currently at its weakest. And even though it was still an elf and possibly a wereanimal, the noon sun ensured that a fight between them would still be relatively fair. Yawata no Kami’s strength was ever in Genji’s arms and he knew beyond all doubt that Yawata no Kami would not abandon him if the fight was just.

Oh. It had finally finished speaking. He supposed he should answer its questions in as scathing a tone as possible. It thought it could educate him and that it was oh-so-superior to him? It was not even a Rider. It was not any better than him or any other human. He would give this creature another piece of his mind and this time he would not be polite about it. As he opened his mouth to unleash a torrent of criticism, movement from above caught his eye. His head jerked back to see a messenger hawk circling overhead – once, twice, three times before diving towards him. Without thinking he lifted his left arm up to offer it a perch, which it gladly took. Strapped to its back was the tube that would contain whatever message had been sent to him.

“Allow me to hold her for you, Kazan-sama.” Genji turned slightly and held the hawk out to Rikuto and Mami, who had just walked over. Rikuto was leaning heavily on her assembled sanjiegun, the blade throwing off bright reflections of sunlight. The hawk hopped over to Mami’s arm and Genji proceeded to take the rolled-up parchment from the tube. As he turned to face Leilani and company once more, he unrolled the parchment and began reading. He was surprised to find the letter written in Itasu, but his mind easily switched over to his native language. As he read, his eyes widened. The fleet was here…with his mother. And she had brought him a bride. He just stared at the letter, his mind thrown off-track. With just a few written words and her mere presence, his mother had completely changed the course of his life. Something akin to horror filled his gaze in a most un-Itasan and painfully obvious fashion as he just stared at the word “bride.” His jaw dropped slightly open. He couldn’t help it. Was this some sort of cosmic joke?