Re: [Zorolo] Kyralie's Training
At first she didn't even know there was someone beside her, so caught up in her misery was she. Then, distantly it registered that the rain no longer dampened her wings, the only moisture falling were those from her eyes to the ground below.
A voice then, smooth and warm. Speaking of the Prince with fond memories and the knowledge of loss. The voice said so much to her, yet all she could grasp was the kindness that flowed from it, the sympathy and offer of help.
Kyralie raised her eyes slowly, the tears blurring her vision so all she could see was a hand against the green of the forest. Blinking, she stared at it in confusion until the earlier words echoed in her head, their meaning clear.
An offer of friendship, given by someone who understood the loss she felt. It was a kind gesture, she thought numbly. This man, Zorlo, had no reason to offer his aid to her yet he had and Kyralie found herself responding to the kindness in his words.
Slowly, her hand reached out hesitantly, until it was grasped firmly in his. Distantly, she noted his hands were callused, as a warrior's was wont to become after years of wielding a blade. His strength as he helped her to her feet was steady and sure - a man capable of many things.
"I-" her voice rasped, dry from the earlier fit of crying so that she had to clear her throat, "Thank you..."
A gentle smile was on the man's face, his eyes approving of the strength she displayed in finding her feet once more.
Wings curled tightly around her body, feeling hesitant and knowing it resembled the first time she had shown Hunter her powers, Kyralie gave him a hesitant smile. Her mind was still numb from the emotions that had racked her earlier, yet she was in control now and would function. Perhaps when the wound wasn't so fresh she would learn from this, learn not to run away from fears.
"I-I would accept that offer of help... and if you are willing that friendship as well..." her voice trailed away, her eyes going distant at some remembered thought.
"Miss?" his voice prompted her and she realized she had stopped speaking.
"I'm sorry... I have so much on my mind at the moment..." she offered weakly.
Understanding was written all over his face as he nodded and turned, "If you would come this way? We shall head back to the Dome and escape this foul weather." He watched her carefully as she followed him, her unique eyes downcast, her face still pale and drawn.
Realizing that an uncomfortable silence would soon be upon them, he latched onto her eyes as a topic of conversation.
"Your eyes are very intriguing, is it a hereditary thing?" he asked pleasantly. Perhaps speaking of her parents would bring up fond memories.
Instead, his words seemed to have the opposite effect intended. Those eyes he had sought to brighten instead darkened and turned bleak.
"No ... well, maybe. It could be said they are a throw back to my Father, even though his eyes are golden. He is a Chaos Lord and were it not for his unique ability to make trouble from nothing I would not exist, even in my torn state," Kyralie frowned slightly, not liking her half explanation.
Zorlo paused, "Are you implying you are troublesome?" that was negative thinking and something he was not aiming for from his student.
Kyralie gave a slight shrug, her wings rustling with her unease, "I feel like trouble... It's hard not to think like that when your own Mother despises your existence and your Father at the best of times views you as some sort of experiment. Even with Hunter I was troublesome and in the end he left too..."
The Aura Master sighed, looking forward as her words died, "Mistress Kyralie, you should never allow yourself such negative thoughts. While I cannot speak on behalf of your parents, I can positively say that the Good Prince would never have seen you as troublesome. He is not one to judge others so harshly unless they deserve it through their own idiocy. Surely while you were with him, he did not resent your presence?"
Kyralie looked at him, her eyes lightening with hope at his words, "He never said anything against me, indeed, he strove to understand this curse I am under and to stand by me in our endeavors," she smiled, not even realizing her wings were slowly losing the bleak black and returning to their usual pure white, "He was a good friend... and he truly did put up with my selfishness."
Her pace had picked up with her spirits, and ahead she saw a glint of light, a flash of gold through the foliage around them.
"I see we are reaching our destination," Zorlo murmured, also seeing the light ahead.
Curiosity was slow to rise within her, but when it did, Kyralie practically threw away her depression with a vengeance, determined not to smirch the Prince's memory in her mind with her dark thoughts. She wanted only to remember those good times they shared as they worked to decipher the hidden mysteries of the Dome.
Pushing her way through the brush, the young Valkyrie stared at the sight before her. It was not what she had expected.
In the clearing stood a large set of golden double doors, the sun peeking through the clouds just to make them shimmer with warm light.