#lilythofthevallites

[anankelotus]

You’re Telling Me a Crest Stoned These Rocks?

Your hoard of crest stones collected from the Sealed Forest beasts grows steadily the more you work, in number and in power. The stones sing a siren song that appeals to some instinctual, animalistic part of yourself. A growing desire to take them, hold them, make them yours. It’s hypothesized that this is the very influence that attracted the animals to the stones in the first place. After a rash of attempted robberies and disappearances, you and another are tasked with guarding the Crest stones through the night. The strange curse upon the stones tempt you, but you must stay strong... [Grants Reason +1] non-mission board starter for @lilythofthevallites

Anankos stares quietly at the small bundle of rocks in his hands with many curious eyes, unable to tear his eyes from them as they seem to call out to him directly. He barely notices his bluebird by his side, completely entranced by the hum of the glowing ruby stones. He must protect them, he must keep them safe. The pOwEr must belong to him and him alone! He guards them even from the strange little bluebird by his side.

Wait... who was she again...? Did he even know her? Was she going to take his treasures from him? He wouldn't allow her to do that, they were his after all! No one could take them from him!

"You... do not take what rightfully belongs to Valla's king... You do not take what is... mine..." He doesn't know why his words sound harsh to him, it is rather strange that he would regret saying anything at all anyway. He cocks his head in confusion, hissing as a strange fabric falls from his face and exposes many eyes used to the dark to the bright, burning, light of the daytime. He does not understand why he was wearing that stupid thing anyway. What was the point of it...?

"Do not... take... little birdy... not without your king's permission..."

[paintingfallenraindrops]

Golden Eyes Get Brighter and Heavy Wings Grow Lighter

starter for @lilythofthevallites

Cadros adjusts rather quickly to the academy for the short time he has been here, especially considering how abruptly he had been all but flung through time. But all that aside, it was peaceful, and perhaps a chance to admit to himself how stressed he had been running Valla. Yet another reason why this could be considered a good thing! A wonderful chance to destress after running such a seculded kingdom for so long!

This place was only missing one thing: his beloved god. How was he supposed to function properly without the one person who had always been able to put him back on the right path once he got sidetracked? The one person who could keep him focused on the present rather than running forward aimlessly. It stung so much more than he had also been torn away from Anankos, a wonderful and gentle moment with his darling dragon, when he had been transported to this place.

He sighs softly, knowing he should not let himself dwell so on such things. If he let his mind get overwhelmed with what could be, then he would not be able to stand upright and lead his peopl- oh right, he did not have to do that here, other than lead the students he had been assigned to teach.

He's just as quickly snapped out of his thoughts upon noticing a familiar blue flutter past his vision. Instantly, he is upon his feet, chasing after it.

"Anankos, I'm so glad to see you, my frien- ... You are not Anankos..." He tries to hide his disappointment upon seeing that blue belonged to a girl. A girl who did so terribly look like Anankos if he looked a little bit closer.

"My deepest apologies... but your hair colour is exactly like his... I could not help but be caught up in the moment! I hope you are not offended!"

[grcndmaster]

An overnight outage to the stables’ heating system results in the deaths of several wyverns, personal mounts and beloved lesson drakes alike. In their grief, passionate students vowed to sleep overnight in the wyvern stables to help them keep warm through the night. [Grants Flying +1]

It had been reassuring to see such a display of camaraderie. If Robin was honest, it warmed his heart a bit, especially in the wake of the tragedy that was the deaths of so many. He thought distantly of Cherche, of Gerome, and their love of their own war wyvern. He knew that a steed could be like a family member in its own right, even if he himself had never bonded with one to that degree.

He still worries for the remainder of the monastery’s beasts, is pleased to see that others are worried as well, enough to take up watching them like they did, keeping them warm. He is here ostensibly supervising the situation, to some degree or another, but it is ultimately the students who are leading this one, and that’s fine by him. He’s proud of them for their actions and hopeful for the future (something he always tried to maintain). There will be no major trouble, of this he’s relatively certain, but he does fear more deaths of the animals, or illness among the students.

One student (one of the Blue Lions girls, if he isn't mistaken) looks particularly susceptible. Small, likely to shiver as the temperature dropped as the night dragged on. Something about her is a bit eerie, but she’s hardly the strangest student there, and he isn’t one to judge others based on first impressions or general peculiarities. Instead, he heads over to sit beside her, near enough to speak quietly but not near enough to infringe on her personal space.

“How are you holding up? Luckily it’s not as cold tonight as it was last night, but… it certainly isn’t comfortable.”

@lilythofthevallites

       Quiet night wind.

[peerlessscowl]

his wet cat vibes have bewitched me

(matchmaking starter for @lilythofthevallites)

"What on - ?"

Several things happened to Raven at once.

He had heard the chattering of their jailers overhead, attempting to keep himself from grinding his teeth, wanting to shout skyward, but knowing that ultimately it would lead nowhere. He heard the hissing of his saints-forsaken air patron, the mocking laughter in his ears, practically felt the glee dripping down his neck like rain that had gotten underneath his coat.

The card had appeared in his pocket, stiff card stock, pointed edges digging into his skin until he had fished it out, eyes skimming over the words written on it before registering that it seemed to be some sort of…adoption plea? He had the time to flip the card over to read the name Lilith in ornate metallic script.

And then, quite suddenly, he felt the familiar infuriating sensation of being buffeted by wind, but with more force, more control this time, lifting him to the tips of his toes and giving him not a moment to even consider fighting back before he was bodily dragged from his position at the outskirts of the ballroom, tugged from the shadows looming in the hall out into the bright lights of the dance floor, as though some anchor at his navel was attached to an invisible line that he was being reeled to, his toes scuffing against the shining, buffed floor.

He was stopped very suddenly - thankfully, just before colliding with a young lady, soft of feature and bright in the eyes. The stop was so abrupt he nearly fell to his knees, but recovered his balance well enough.

Once more, he felt the curling laughter of air in his ears. Now play, it hissed at him, make nice.

The urge to snarl was dampened by the girl blinking innocently at him.

And then he understood. Aided by the miserable weeks (days? Hours? How was he to know?) he had spent in the morbid toy house, the pieces fit together as he raked his gaze across the dance floor to find everyone else had been quite displaced from where they stood, presented to someone else as though for inspection.

He could not remember the contents of the card exactly, but it had indicated that she was friendly - no, perhaps more than friendly. Perhaps closer to eager.

Before she could open her mouth to confirm his suspicions; "I'm not…you don't want me."

[desertslegacy]

Mint candy: For when your breath isn’t as fresh as newly-fallen snow.

…These candies were probably not intended to be taken by a handful, but they were sweet! And crunchy! And they had a nice aftertaste, and so Lilith takes a handful and hurries off to an edge of the ballroom, so as to not be seen as the person who ate ten mints at once.

It is there that she meets one of the professors of the Academy- though not of any of her classes! As her mouth is still stuffed with mint candies, she simply uses telepathy instead.

“Hello, Professor! Have you tried any of these mints? They’re delicious!”

//please imagine she’s eating them like nerds

Igrene starts slightly at the voice in her head, not expecting it, but as she turns to see Lilith she relaxes. They don't do that at home. She smiles, kindly, and reaches out a hand, covering Lilth's with hers. The combined heat of their fire brands travels up her arm, almost refreshing in the winter night air.

"I don't think they're meant to be eaten that way," she says gently, plucking a mint from Lilith's hand and popping it in her mouth. "I believe you're meant to suck on them - one at a time - over the course of a few minutes."

After a beat, she laughs. "Although I suppose you can eat them however you'd like. Just make sure your teeth are clean - they have a lot of sugar in them. How...how many have you eaten?"

[anankelotus]

[ Cue the Music ] - The songs of the crickets have their own charms, Lilith thinks! Turning to her father with a wide smile- practically beaming, she holds out a hand.

“Father! Shall we dance?”

Anankos has wandered from Cadros' side for a moment, the other man preoccupied in his own engagements. It was fine, though, Cadros was a social creature, always had been. It pains his heart though, even for a single moment, that they must be apart again after so long. It seems so trivial, compared to his other pains, that he longs for to linger by Cadros' side for the entirety of this ball, that he does not want to parted from him again.

"Oh...! Hello, Lilith..." He smiles softly at his daughter and her playful outstretched hand. For once, his mind is not on his troubles, and his smile seems to have a tint of a strange happiness that it usually doesn't.

"You extend your hand so easily... please do remember that is how we are to exchange the marks we wear... but if you were to want mine..." He takes her hand, so small and gentle in his own that have been tattered by time, and squeezes it, watching carefully as a small green flower blooms on her vines.

"Haha... I suppose it doesn't matter between us anyway... we are family, after all..."

[paintingfallenraindrops]

Sweet Bun Trio: The first bun is filled with sweet cream and topped with icing and a candied cherry. The second is a sweet roll filled with almonds, pecans, and dried cranberries and glazed with honey. The third is a bun sliced in half, filled with almond paste and whipped cream, dusted with powdered sugar on top.

“Sir Cadros!” Lilith bounds up with her treats in hand. She is still a little nervous around him, but the only way to get past that is to get to know him better! She had already eaten one such trio- and, finding them as delightful as they appear, she brings them as an offering. “Have you tried these yet?”

Cadros perks up at the sound of Anankos' daughter's - his daughter's - voice, a brilliant smile flickering across as he sees her. Her youth was vibrant, filling a room with her endless energy.

"Lilith, darling, you look wonderful! Have you seen your father? He looks quite beautiful as well! Probably not intended, but if you were to stand next to each other, you'd make quite a perfect match with your outfits! Anyone would be proud to call you family, but especially me!" His own finery is a familiar old one, Valla's flowing white robes an old staple of any of his outfits. He takes the food offered to him gratefully, reminded slightly of both of the kingdoms he had called home in his lifetime. It seemed that no matter where he went, there would always be some sort of sweet bun to enjoy.

"No, I haven't, but they look quite delicious! Oh, and you do not have to be so formal with me, dear Lilith. If you are comfortable, I do not desire such titles, especially since any child of Anankos is surely a child of mine as well." He glances to his hands holding the buns, remembering the marks that they all bore.

"Right! And if you desire an exchanging of marks, I happily offer that as well!" He resists the urge to pull her close to him, to pat her head and kiss her forehead, as if she were truly his own. She is not, not quite yet. But he hopes someday, that she will happily call him 'Dad' the same way that she calls Anankos her father.

[desertslegacy]

a playful,  happy kiss in the rain :D?

Something she did not think that she would ever grow accustomed to was the rain. She had seen rain, of course, she was no sheltered child, but it was so scarce in the desert, and when it did fall it evaporated, scattered in the sun and the wind as everything else was, impermanent, fleeting, a grain of sand in the hourglass of eternity. 

But this rain was so different, clouds hanging heavy and dark in the sky, not a downy shimmer but enormous, booming, clamoring for space, fat droplets spattering the ground about her, slapping against her skin. Transfixed for the moment, Igrene turned her face upward, her eyes fluttering shut as she extended a hand, supplicant accepting the offering of life from the heavens. 

She heard a musical chirp of laughter from faraway, from right beside her, and she glanced down to see a young woman, a student, spinning in a little dance not far from her. The student glanced up from her merriment and made her way over, floating steps scarcely leaving ripples in the growing puddles. 

"Isn't it lovely, professor?" The student said in greeting, and then, as though overcome with joy, Igrene felt the press of lips against her cheek, and the student grabbed at her wrist, dragging her along for a refrain of her little jig. 

It was lovely, she had to admit. It was lovely and it was incredible, and it was powerful and dangerous as all things in nature were, but Igrene pushed the thought from her mind and allowed herself to abandon her reservations and simply dance in the rain. 

[anankelotus]

He holds her gently, not quite sure how to fix this. This is his fault, he has done this to her. He has hurt her. And now she cannot even tell him what is wrong, how she is pained. He feels like crying, over what he has done. He had promised himself... that he would not hurt anyone again. And now look at what he has done. To his own daughter even!

"Lilith... please do not speak... you are in pain... do not waste your energy...." He does not want to hear her voice, how it trembles and squeaks in her torture. Torture that he had forced upon her.

"Oh...! Ah... I can try... but I am afraid if I try to pull it out... I will only hurt you more... I'm so sorry... I never... I didn't mean for this to happen... I... for a moment... I was blinded by the power... and in that... I... I caused you so much pain... I'm so sorry Lilith..."

Lilith chirps, trying to comfort him. Language eludes her, but emotions do not, and her father’s distress was clear to see. She pats his arm, finding it easier to do than her failed attempt at an embrace. Hopefully it is reassuring. Hopefully. Her beast form, twisted amalgamation that it was, had suppressed most of her telepathic ability- but it seemed that Anankos was still somewhat able to hear her. It was worth a try.

“Fa… ther…” Even she knew her voice was strained, without hearing it, as if she had not spoken in many years. “Father…”

But it was a success, nonetheless. She raises her other hand, the stone still embedded in her palm. “... Can… you…?”

Can you take it out, she means to say. She cannot say for certain if removing it will undo its transformation, but its presence means that her magic will remain corrupted, as long as it stays.

She chirps again. Speaking telepathically was far more difficult than it should be… likely the stone’s influence. Hopefully he will understand anyways.

[anankelotus]

Without the stones so close to them, so close to their body, their grip on Anankos' shattered mind begins to weaken. They have hurt Lilith again, turned her into this... this monster. The scales granted to her by Moro are twisted and warped beyond recognition, and Anankos feels like they cannot help but apologise to their draconic sibling.

"Everything will be fine Lilith... it has to be fine... I..." Their words are more muttered as a prayer to themself, that they can help her, that she is not beyond saving, that they will not fail her this time.

"I... I'm so sorry... this is all my fault, my dear girl... I... I can fix this... I will fix this... I promise... I... I have to..." They try to hold back their tears as they hold Lilith's small form, as she tries to reach out to them. They cannot bear seeing her in pain, not in any form, and especially not like this.

"... I ... will not lose someone I love so dearly again..."

She focuses on the stars. She fears if she takes her eyes off them for even a moment, she will lose herself once again. She cannot afford that, not now. He comes to her side and she flinches- she cannot see the regret on his face. He speaks, but the stone still holds its influence over her, and she cannot understand him. She understands the sorrow in his voice, and her own tapers out and her scream quiets. But her eyes do not leave the stars. She hopes he can understand- she is grasping at clarity, even while it is too far for her to truly reach it.

Then she is in his arms, and it isn’t trapping but protecting her, and tears form in the two eyes that still shine gold. Father… her own limbs cannot hold him as her human form can, and she holds out the one without the stone to attempt so, at least. Has he returned to his senses? She hopes he has, but has no way of knowing, not until she is freed. If she is freed.

It is not so bad, she tells herself. As long as her eyes remain on the stars and she keeps hold of her own mind. He remains gentle with her, and she tells herself it could be worse. It is what she must tell herself to keep her mind calm. And there must be no risks of losing control.

[anankelotus]

Anankos can't help but breath a sigh of relief as she finally stops trying to bite him, stops her incessant wiggling and nipping. Did she finally understand that he was not going to change his shape, even with outside intervention? Did she finally understand that it was not so simple?

"You do not try to nibble at your king anymore. I see you have finally realised that your attempts were futile anyway." He notices how she falters completely, glancing towards the sky. And then she starts screaming, and he cannot bring himself to submit to the stones any longer. Not with her crying out, for help, for him, for anyone.

"Lilith... why do you cry, dear girl...?" He tosses aside his cloak, containing the stones, just to get away from them for a mere moment. He feels terribly bad, that he forced this upon her as well. But just for a moment, he had wanted to feel the power that had once coursed through him once again. He could see that he was wrong now, so so terribly wrong. He takes her small form, still a bit too big for him to hold properly, into his arms, whispering a soft song beneath his breath to her.

"I'm so sorry... you do not deserve to be in pain... trapped again like you were under the dragon... I'm so terribly sorry..."

He is roaring. Does that mean transformation is coming? It must be working. She keeps wriggling, eventually breaking free of his grasp, and opening her mouth again. Her body is not used to its new form, and she misses the next attempt entirely. That is annoying. She turns around slowly, but not carefully. Then tries again. Misses.

Frustrating. He is too small to hit easily. Not when she moves so clumsily through the air. But he is not transforming yet, and that means she must keep trying. She flails, readjusting her position in the air, letting out a low… growl? It sounded more like a whistle, reminiscent of the nickname she is being bombarded with: bluebird.

She is trying to help but he is not transforming. That is not good. Some, small part of her recognizes that he is saying something, and she should be able to understand- but she doesn’t. It is just out of reach. Just like he is… Now some distance away, she has to turn her gaze upward to look at him.

When she does, her attention is no longer on him. No, it is on the stars, shining so brightly behind him, even through the stained glass of the windows. It stirs something in her. She is not sure what it is.

Fleeting light… of the stars.

Out of the many eyes that now decorate her form, two gain clarity. They had failed. She takes a deep breath, noticing how she is able to make sound now. The reason she was unable to call earlier gone, she starts screeching- loud, desperate, pleading. Words fail her, but she will not fail him. With any luck, a knight or guard will come in. She is not too proud as to not accept help, especially not now.

[anankelotus]

"DO NOT DARE TO TELL ME WHAT TO DO!!" His mirth quickly turns to rage as she begs for him to hurry up and transform already. Unfortunately for her, the stones do not have that kind of control over him. If anything, he is the one who commands them. He is a god anyway! He would not let a mere rock force him to transform!

"What in the world are you begging for anyway?! If I wish to transform, it shall be on my OWN time! Neither you nor the stones can control me! And you are surely foolish for thinking that you can!" Then the sudden piercing of her teeth into his flesh comes, and he hisses slightly in pain, the rage within him continuing to bubble up to the surface.

"Helping?! HELPING?! What are you possibly HELPING with, Child?! I do not need HELP!" She continues to beg him, but he does not relent. He cannot. Even when people fell at his feet, he would not grant their wishes, and the same would apply here. He would not do something simply because one begged him for it.

"You think me bad at transforming? Dear, I am not BAD, I simply don't wish to! And your forceful little way of begging is not going to change that! I am a god, I do not bend to the same pitiful rules as you do!"

He sure speaks a lot. She does not understand. That meant that he had not given into the stones. He was supposed to be like her. Why did he still resist the stones? Foolish. What purpose is there in that flimsy looking form? But he laughed. Laughter meant mirth, and mirth meant something good was happening. She wondered what it was. Maybe his transformation is slow.

Hurry up. He gets angry. No longer happy. Is he transforming now? She waits. He does not transform. She is impatient. Transforming is easy. Is he not able to do it? Why does he resist? 

She opens her mouth. It is strange, and difficult to do. The first time, she clamps it shut very quickly. That is annoying. She needs to be able to open her mouth. She does it again, and when he finishes speaking-

Why did she wait for him to finish speaking?

She bites down on his arm. Hard. She searches for blood. Then she can put the stone with the blood and he can transform. The eyes on the side of her head facing him look at him. Transform. She lets go, wiggling in his grasp, trying to reach a stone. I am helping. You are bad at transforming.

[anankelotus]

Anankos tries to hold back the cackle that threatens to escape his mouth, but he does not manage to for very long. How stunning indeed she was, once she shed that all too pure form! Now she truly was like him, a monster inside and out. If she remained like this, perhaps he would allow her to call him Father, so long as she was willing to serve his every will.

"Yes... you are much more beautiful like this, little bluebird. Clearly, you were always meant to be like this! Whoever created you... they did a shoddy job with your nonhuman form. A mere fish is far from good enough for someone as powerful as you are now! This is what you should have been all along!!" His laughter echos amongst the trees, into the air of the forest, as if it could carry for miles and those who heard it would bow down and laugh with their king. He runs a hand across the girl's now monsterous form, mirth continuing to play across his lips. Though, the message she projects does not escape his ears, his mouth quickly falling into a frown.

"Hah? JOIN you?! I would never submit to such a beastly form! I am a god, and a king! I would not demean myself so by allowing myself to transform like you have, servant girl!"

(Lilith transforms! I am bad at transformation scenes, but still under a read more just in case.)

It is hopeless. Lilith feels her form warping, her magic no longer her own. She was always weak, relying on someone else’s power. The form Moro granted her thus falls out of her grasp. The stones promise release, as long as she gives up. Her father will accept her, and love her. It will be as easy as going to sleep…

She closes her eyes, and that is the last of what Lilith thinks. The stones provide no magic, instead changing what is already there, just as Moro had long ago. But this is no divine intervention, and it shows. The red patterns on her split, each forming a small eye that catches the light and focuses on the one before her. The only stone which may now decorate her skin is the one still firmly attached to her hand, though it sinks into it, allowing her to remain balanced despite its presence. Limbs stretch grotesquely to match her growing size- the bright blues and whites that decorate her fins fade as they sharpen, losing her childlike helplessness.

She remains small, comparatively, though no longer as easily held as her prior form. She stares at the man before her. He is not yet corrupted, but he is close, oh so close. All eyes focus on him, blinking one after the other. Join. Me.

[anankelotus]

Lilith's smiles warm Anankos' heart, something that he never thought that he would be able to enjoy pureheartedly. Something that he never thought that he would be able to revel in. He was perfectly content in dying for her, letting her live while he faded away forever. He never expected to be able to get this perfect life, a life that he knew that he could never deserve.

"I am glad that you are happy... dear Lilith... you deserve a happy life... it was all I wanted for you when I first met you... that it would bear you into this world and make suffer... it pained me..." He follows her as she begins to dance, clumsy and awkward, but full of life. He does not have pride in his dancing skills, does not think that he will be able to live up to anyone standards, especially with all the people around who may see his own clumsy steps. But he will try... for Lilith, and perhaps Cadros later, if his king should wish to dance.

"It does matter if you are not a good dancer... so long as... you enjoy yourself... I have never been one for ballroom dancing either... but I do so wish to dance with you..."

The flower that blooms upon her vine necklace- she will treasure it for as long as it lasts, despite his self-deprecation. She spends a moment gazing at it, smiling softly, before returning the gesture, a red blossom now adorning Anankos’ ornament as well. 

“Nothing will make me happier than to have the flowers given by my family, Father!” She smiles, and means every word she says. Taking his actions as an acceptance of her offer, she pulls him to the side of the dance floor. 

She wasn’t very confident of her ability in dancing, and she was aware of his avoidance of large crowds, but she did so wish to share at least one dance with him! She moves clumsily even before starting the dance, unused to her dress and accessories, though it doesn’t dampen her mood.

“I have never danced in a ball like this before, Father! I hope you don’t mind…”

[paintingfallenraindrops]

"Yes... I suppose the canyon is one way to enter it, though I don't think I ever heard of it referred to as bottomless..." Though, it had been a long time since he had left Valla's green hills. Things certainly could have changed in the world outside of what felt like such a peaceful realm.

"Wait- what...?! Your father?!" Since when had Anankos had any kids?! Well... maybe it was possible, since his god was well... an ancient god, but Cadros at least though he would have told him! Or something. He would have... told him... right?

"I... er... well... not exactly lovers, but well... you know..." He smiles awkwardly. If this girl is truly his god's daughter... then he must treat with even just half of the respect that he would give Anankos. Anankos... who is... decidedly still not here. Oh! How dearly he missed him.

"Ah! Wait, perhaps it is me being Valla's king that you have a problem with! You are shocked that someone so grand would inhabit such an academy! Understandable! But I do not think of myself as so perfect, I can learn from those here and they can learn from me! That and... well, I do not have much of a choice. Woe! Some unknown power has ripped me from Valla and my loving god, and now I find myself with no other choice but to remain! Not that I am complaining, other than the lack of Anankos." And there he goes again, rambling without a second thought in the world, running his mouth like it was the only thing that he depended on.

"Oh! I guess if Anankos is really your dad, that makes me your other dad! Ooooo, you're a princess, haha!"

Lilith watches his face. He seems almost crestfallen when he realizes that she is not her Father, and that alone puts her on edge. Who seeks out Anankos so eagerly if not for revenge? He has suffered enough. A whole slew of emotions seem to pass across his face, most of them negative, and Lilith watches it all. To her surprise, they seem less hostile than she would expect.

…

…Wait.

Did he just say ‘Valla’s King?’ Lilith, caught off guard, does not even interrupt him as he continues: her father is his god- that made sense, as he was Valla’s god, his friend- strange, perhaps, but- a lover? 

“Wait- wait- Um- Professor Cadros, Your, um, Majesty?” She mixes the honorifics up in her fluster to stop the slew of information. “You say you are the King of Valla and my father’s lover? What is the meaning of this?”

She waves her hand in front of her, and brings one to her forehead and dragonstone. This was all too much, especially if he told the truth. In a way, she supposed if her father took on a lover during his stay here it would not be too much of a stretch to crown him king of Valla, but… in her world, Valla was ruled by her Lady. Not by some unknown man- no matter how much she loved her father, that would not change.

Perhaps testing, just to ensure she is not mistaken, she grants a vague question to him. “You speak of Valla… the country beneath the Bottomless Canyon?”

Just... in the off chance there just happened to be another Valla that she had somehow not known about.

[anankelotus]

So this was her true form, truly just a pathetic little bluebird. Just like Moro had once been. Unable to do anything, and would eventually leave this world without every having touched a single soul.

Why. Why... Why do you submit so to the stones' call...? He ignores the echo of a lingering spirit with him, batting away any emotion that came along with it. He did not need to feel guilt over vanquishing this poor bird... why should he ever care about her? She was nothing.

"I am not your father, girl! And should you keep insisting, as your rightful king, I shall have to do something about that! And I think neither of us want it to come to that." The hum of the stones continues to lure him into submitting- wait, what exactly was he submitting to? He did not submit! He was Valla's rightful ruler, and king to all that his light touched! He was the one in cOmMaNd here!

"Just accept it..." He grips the small creature into his hands, her tiny face easily dwarfed by his hands even with how small they were. She already had the stone, so it was only a matter of time. She would fall under the influence he had so carefully crafted - but it wasn't his was it? No! It was! It had always been his!

"There is no point in resisting as you do... don't you want to serve your king...? If you don't, then there is no point in you being here either... I want no disloyal traitors in my midst."

The stones were getting louder- she could almost make out what they were saying, if she were paying attention. Every word that Anankos speaks makes them louder- he gains power from them, and they, from him. She can’t help but feel hurt with every statement she hears, even though she tells herself it is the stones speaking, not her Father, her father wouldn’t say this to her, even though it is his face, and his voice, and- and-

He slips the stones into his pockets, but that is the least of her worries as she quickly ducks out of the way of a small blast of magic. Thankfully, it wasn’t powerful, nor was it truly targeted at her, and she feels a glimmer of hope. Though the area it grazes stings, she wants to believe that it was more due to her reflexes than his hostility... as that meant that Father didn’t truly want to hurt her. Please let that be true!

Though, her head starts buzzing and the stones, having found something to latch onto, whisper that he would accept her back as long as she took them in hand, just for a moment. She knows enough that she shouldn’t trust the promises made by weird corrupting stones, but it distracts her. Distracts her from how Anankos’ voice grows eerily calm, how he approaches her swiftly and with purpose, and how he drops a ruby stone in her hand.

It burns. She shrieks, but it is too late, and though it burns she cannot remove it from her palm, almost as if it were embedded in her skin as her dragonstone was, or as it was in the bodies of the poor animal that once held it. 

She drops her human guise first. The stone takes her magic, and twists it, and to fight it she cannot expect energy on cosmetics. It is a losing battle. Astral Dragons cannot vocalize, and she is no different, thrashing in the air silently as she tries to remove the infernal stone from her form. She reaches out to his mind, barely noticing the fog within. Desperation drives her to scream telepathically, as long as someone can hear her.

“Father…! Get it off of me!” It is uncommon for her to lose control over her telepathic voice, but it rises in octave as she does as well. “I’m scared… Father, please!”