So Eden Sank to Grief

Rune felt his shoulders tense as they entered what remained of the village. The traitor behind this had sent the children away – protected them from the mairs, if one witness was to be believed. While he was grateful that none of the children had died, they were orphans now.

He sighed. Most of the bodies had already dissolved into light, the soul moving on to its next life. A few remained, mostly those who had died slowly – torturously. “Why is he doing this?” he asked of no one in particular.

A soft, strained voice answered his question. “To make us feel helpless.” Yori stepped up beside him and shook his head. He looked up at Rune. “It’s working. The morale of my division is… low. We’ve got to do something, Rune.”

“We’ve got to find him first, Bellissima,” Rune said, his voice thick with emotion.

It’s all the same

Edmund listened to the details of the case. It was uncanny, really. When he and Ilya had found the tale of the Watcher of the Woods in the old book of ghost stories, Ilya had been so sure that it was nothing more than a local legend.

Now, though, he listened to the details of the what had been happening since they had taken the memorial stone. They were exactly like those in the story. The legend, like so many other old tales, had a kernal of truth to it.

Edmund shuddered and looked at Ilya. “It’s all the same,” he said, his voice strained.

Footsteps are mosaics of possibility

Sindri found the traces in the sand by the river. It was strange. They hadn’t been there when he’d been by earlier. He began following them.

Where would they lead? Who had left them? One never knew. He shifted to his cat form and pressed his nose into one of the tracks.

He inhaled deeply. Then, he chirped and scampered on ahead. It was always fun to follow footprints. You never knew where they would lead you.

In a silent language

Rune leaned his chin on his hands and watched Yori. His mate was petite and slender. He moved with grace. These were traits people usually associated with a woman. In some ways he was very feminine. In others, far less so. Gryphons were enough to make his head ache.

“Rune?”

He blinked as he came out of his reverie. He smiled and played with the fringe of hair over his forehead. “Yes, Bellissima?” he asked.

“What are you thinking about?” Yori frowned and tilted his head to one side. “You seem so… troubled.”

Rune choked back a laugh and shook his head. “No trouble, Bellissima,” he said. “I was just… are you male or female?”

“Yes,” Yori said, chuckling. He tucked his hair behind one ear. “You seem so tense.”

“Tense is a word for it.” Rune smiled when Yori moved behind him and began rubbing his shoulders. It never ceased to amaze him just how well Yori could read his body language. He sighed lightly. It didn’t matter, ultimately, what Yori’s sex was. All that mattered was that they cared about each other. He reached up and covered Yori’s hand with his.

“I love you too,” Yori whispered.

Save yourself, or remain unsaved

Yori was shaking slightly. He was near his breaking point. There was only so much longer he could hold out. He was worried about Rune. Had they captured him? Was he still alive?

He shook the thoughts away. Those sorts of thoughts weren’t going to get him out of this situation. Rune was safe. He had to believe that and focus on keeping himself safe. He took as deep a breath as he could manage and peered out of his hiding place once more.

They were still there, but they were holding back now. His last show of force had made them cautious. Good. They wouldn’t expect him to run now. He stepped back a few paces and spread his wings. If he could fly quickly enough, he could slip out between them.

“Now or never,” he said. Then he took a few running steps and launched himself forward, spreading his wings wide.

Sun-kissed

Yori smiled faintly. The strawberries were just beginning to ripen. “It won’t be long,” he said to the little fruits. “Then, I’ll get to eat you.”

“Oh,” a low, sultry voice said. Hands settled around Yori’s waist and Rune leaned over his shoulder. “Is it just me, or did that sound dirty?”

“It’s just you,” Yori said, rolling his eyes. He shook his head and squirmed out of Rune’s embrace. “I was talking to the strawberries, for your information. The sun’s been pinking them up nicely.”

Rune smiled and arched an eyebrow. “They aren’t the only thing the sun is turning pink,” he said. He reached out and touched Yori’s cheek. “You ought to wear a hat, Bellissima. You’re too fair by far for all this sun.”

Yori sighed and touched one of his cheeks as well. As Rune said, it was hot and, no doubt, red. “I have a sunburn,” he said, irritation coloring his tone.

Chuckling, Rune leaned forward and kissed the other cheek. “Shall I rub some sunblock into your skin?” he offered.

Yori’s brows furrowed. “All right,” he said. Holding up a hand, he added, “But no funny business, Rune. I mean it!”

“Ah, this won’t be amusing, Bellissima,” Rune said, his eyes glinting with mischief.

Witching Hour

Nicholas licked his lips nervously as the clock in the hallway chimed the hour. Midnight. The monster that had attacked him was stronger in the dark. Midnight was the darkest hour of the night – the time when it would have the most strength.

He scanned the darkened windows that covered the far wall. His bed was surrounded by light, but it was black as pitch beyond. A shadow moved out of the corner of his eye and he gasped, pulling the covers up to his chin, like a frightened child.

“It’s just me,” someone said softly.

Nicholas sighed in relief at the familiar voice. He looked over at his friend and gave a weak smile. “Alexei,” he whispered. “Are – are you all right?”

“I’ll live,” Alexei replied, stepping into the cone of light that surrounded Nicholas. He sighed and sat down on the foot of the bed. Looking a bit chagrined, he asked, “Can I stay here until morning?”

Nicholas nodded as the tension left his body. The monster wouldn’t attack him, if he weren’t alone. If Alexei was with him, then they were both safe. “Sure,” he said, sliding over, so that Alexei could lie down beside him.

Dear Clone…

“How can two people be so similar and yet so different?” Yori said, looking from Leisl to her sister. He looked over at Rune and scowled. “Greta’s so… cheerful and – and…” he trailed off, struggling for the word.

“Friendly,” Rune said, nodding.

Yori’s cheeks warmed. “Which isn’t to say that Leisl’s not friendly,” he said. He tucked a lock of hair behind one ear and looked back at the pair. “She’s just… not as demonstrative of her kindness.”

Rune laughed. “The girl’s serious and just a bit cold, Bellissima,” he countered. He shook his head as Yori made a sound of protest. “They might look alike, but they’re still two separate people.”

“I suppose,” Yori said, his voice soft. He couldn’t help but smile when he looked back at Greta and Leisl. His officer was normally so distant and prickly. Somehow, though, her expression seemed to be softer when Greta was with her. “They should spend more time together.”

“Somehow,” Rune murmured, “I don’t think they’d disagree with that.”

February Album Writing Month is here!

It’s the beginning of the month and February Album Writing Month has begun. The idea is to write fourteen songs (an album) during the month of February. This is my fourth year doing it. Hopefully, I’ll do as well (or better) this year as I have in the past.

I’m off to a good start, at least. I’ve got one song, sort of a theme song to The Visions of a Lily, written and I even have a melody for it. By the way, anyone wanting to read the novel can stop by my deviantArt page (the Nicco-Nightstar one), since that’s where I have it posted in its entirety.

My goal for this month is to write thirteen more songs for this universe. I’d really like to have a theme song for both of my completed novellas (the other one is What the Cat Saw… I think I still need to post that one). I’m also intending to make opening and ending theme songs for Views from the Garden (which is the title of my Screnzy endeavor). That’ll be a bunch of stories written in script format. I’m imagining it something like an anime, so there will be the obligatory character songs for the main characters and their relationship songs. I’m really excited and a little nervous.

I guess that’s all for now. Comment, so I know you exist.

Like a star in chains

“You always have to remember, Dayrin,” his master had told him once, “binding elementals was like trying to chain flames. You might hold them for a little while, but eventually they will break free.”

Dayrin glanced over at Rose. That was the name his master had given her, but they knew it wasn’t her name. That name, like the form she wore, was part of the prison meant to hold her there. If either part failed, she’d be free.

Rose was quiet at the moment. She was sitting still in the room his master had given to her. There was a strange expression on her face, as if she were straining against something that Dayrin couldn’t see. “What are you thinking about Rose?” he asked.

“My name,” Rose said. Her brows furrowed, forming deep creases across her forehead. “My name isn’t Rose. It’s nothing like that. I know that but… I can’t remember it.”

Dayrin nodded. She was straining against the bonds that held her prisoner. How long, Dayrin wondered, would his master be able to keep her contained?