Her Journey Part 1

[General Beatrix]

The moment she saw Agrias Beatrix thought that her heart may stop; instead, it began skipping beats in rapid succession as her shock took hold and her senses were stammering to reboot. She was speechless upon the Holy Knight's--Archer's--advance, and all she could do was quiver lightly when Agrias' delicate hand wrapped around her shoulder in a comforting manner.

Addressed to Robin and his merry men she simply nodded, her cheeks the color of her favored flowers before finally snapping back to the real world.

"Agrias!" she yelped in a very un-Beatrix fashion, grabbing the woman and pulling her into a tight, albeit loving, embrace. "It truly is you! You are alive, safe and...mostly unharmed!"

When she finally released the Archer she maintained a gentle grip on both of her hands and looked her up and down, and then glanced over to her seemingly new compatriots.

"I have been worried...please forgive me for not coming straight away to your rescue...I had wished to disembark from the Opera House the moment you disappeared...but we were at something of a crossroads. We had no real choice, as it would have provided us with the means to end this silly war once and for all..."

She leaned in to kiss Agrias, as she felt it was necessary. "The war does indeed still rage on, I'm afraid...and no doubt Atticus has obtained the keystone to his victory...a cheat, he swindled us out of the Impresario's prize." She looked skyward with a frown, both of her eyes now glistening. "As you can see...the Black Sun is born.

...oh, and why on Gaia was Acteur here? Miss Appleton randomly appeared aboard the Rose not too long ago, fearing for his safety."

[Abigail Crescentlight]

Abigail smiled a bit as Beatrix finally came together with Agrias. It seemed that this was really the first time that they had put aside everything that had happened and came to the conclusion that they did in fact love each other. With a sigh, the white mage was contented to know that things were finally going to work out.

Then, Luna came up and absolutely befuddled the animal folk. When she walked away, Abigail noticed Ellin going to speak to her and thought a bit on this. Things were about to get very dangerous for them... and this girl seemed... different than most of the other heartless they'd been forced to fight. With a smile, Abigail dismissed herself from the larger group and walked over, placing a gentle hand on the arm of the three-tailed vixen...

"You could come with us..." she offered, her sweet innocence adding to her generosity. She looked the heartless in the eyes as she spoke, unafraid and smiling. "If you're looking for somewhere to be, maybe you can find it among us? We're friends here, though we live in the light. Miss Ellin has taught us..." she paused, then smiled a little to the dark knight with a slight blush.

"...a new way of thinking. Perhaps we can begin to bridge the gap between our cultures if we can all work together to restore the balance of the universe?" she suggested, glancing up a moment to indicate the black sun above.

"What do you think? Would you help us?" she asked.

[luna]

Luna twitched her tails at the sudden attention that she was receiving, her head tilted and listened to Ellin as she spoke her peace, then over to Abigail as she pleaded to her. Luna could feel the darkness and light coming from the two women as they were beside her like being wrapped in two types of blankets.

Luna smiled as she batted her eyes "come with you ?" she asked as she looked at Ellin, "Help you ?" she asked Abigail. With a slight grin she looked of to they rest of the group, "Sure , why not, I'm no longer needed here, merely point the way , i will follow" she finally replied, while stroking one of her crimson tipped tails.

Anyone looking on , would not just see a Vixen but also have an almost unnatural attraction of sorts toward her, male or female. Unknowing to Luna , after her transformation, her heartless side produces a magical alluring aura.

[General Beatrix]

General Beatrix had Agrias in an embrace once more and, when she heard Abigail's suggestion she drew up a hand, scratching her chin in contemplation.

"Perhaps," she repeated in response to the White Mage. "But I would like to have her quarantined with Lady Lilith under yours and Miss Ellin's supervision until we've had a chance to cease tensions...the Black Sun is still a major influence, but I trust Acteur, and if he did this...well, like I said, we'll need to see."

She looked down at the garnet stone embedded in her gauntlet and noticed that it was blinking. "The Rose is close," she said. "We need to set her down for repairs and build a strategy...The Fallen and his allies will not be an easy bunch."

[Agrias Oaks]

"Agrias" called the General, which caused her heart to skip a beat when called in such a fashion...such a worried tone. Suddenly, an embrace from her, and she realized that the General had come to her senses... she was the old General. While Beatrix continued to speak, her brown eyes could not help but gaze to Beatrix...eyes! Her own eyes widened as she rested a soft, gloveless hand against the other's cheek and looked deeply into those blue sky eyes.

"...Beatrix..." she whispered, brushing the cheek that was just under what was once hiding behind an eye-patch. The general continued to speak on her theories of the heartless and still, Agrias could not get over the fact that for the first time ever she was watching a side of the woman she thought was forever buried. This was truly the woman she once had tea, and lemon pastries with... she was back!

The simple archer failed to realize her own gaze was being purified by such familiar air... the amber, gold color of her eyes returned... she felt stronger, wiser... not complete-- but she was lost no more. She turned to the others, the white mage and dark knight, and then to the new group member of the party, an altered Luna, and began to think.

"Unity..." she muttered softly, before suddenly being wrapped in an embrace from Beatrix once more, and caused the archer to go red in the face, "...what we..." she started, clearing her throat a little, "..what we need is to fight for a single purpose..."

The woman turned to the others-- watching Ellin and Luna-- creatures of the dark that were not evil at all, but that which fought for balance, or for... well, she did not know Luna's purpose yet, but it was all done for Unity... Abigail and Ellin seemed to have gotten close since her own disappearance, a balance of pure light and pure darkness...

"...our purpose is to stop Atticus and restore the peace between Day and Night, but for that to happen, we must all be in agreement that his realm is under false, or unjust leadership." she sighed, looking to Beatrix, " If Miss Luna, a Heartless and Ellin, a dark knight of purest blackness are so calm, and so eager to end such war... why must we think that all Heartless and dark-likes are evil when they are probably following orders in order to stay alive? If we are to end this war we must go to the source which causes such displeasure. For that to happen we need unity, and show the Heartless folk we are not any enemies of theirs, but of that which is driving us appart...and that is this Atticus, correct?"

[Secondary Characters]

Robin Hood had never been so detatched from a situation in his life! So many new comrades, and the sudden change of a beloved friend into something he couldn't begin to comprehend was all too much to keep up with all at once! However, once he was again composed, he removed his cap and dipped into a deep bow.

"Well met, Allies of Lady Agrias!" he said brightly, standing once more to place his hat back in place. "So many unhappy happenings... I'm afraid we can't be better hosts in all the confusion. However, I can extend the olive branch by moving us all to a suitable location for the arrival of your... uhm... transport?" stated Sir Robin. He assumed they were waiting for some kind of boat from the way they spoke of "the Rose", so he would lead them to a large clearing on one side of the kingdom where ships were to be received, leaving the mayhem of the burning castle behind, knowing at this point that it was beyond saving.

The whole trip, Little John would be trying to understand Luna's decision, walking with her and talking things over. "Look, I'm not telling you how to live your life, but are you sure this is such a smart idea? I mean... we've seen what just a few of these things can do, so what happens if..." he would go on and on, showing fatherly concern for the little vixen...

Robin, however, would busily begin building fires and dipping into hidden food reserves he kept around Sherwood Forest to begin feeding and preparing his "guests" for their journey. "And if there's anything else I can do, the full resources of Casle Loxley will be at your disposal..." he offered, feeling generous since they just succeeded in toppling Prince John from his false throne..

[Abigail Crescentlight]

Abigail smiled brightly when Luna agreed to join their group and fight back against imbalance. She gave both Luna and Ellin a cheerful look before leading them over to the group at large, just as they were on the move to a new, probably safer location. As they walked, however, she'd stick close to Ellin and at one point, even wrap an arm around the woman's, holding her closer.

She'd speak softly to the dark knight, smiling sweetly all the while. "You never cease to amaze me, yanno?" she whispered, blushing lightly as she did. "I think... you might be the foremother to a whole new frontier... the harold of an amazing and bright new future."

Abigail looked forward and sighed softly, her features growing heavy with worry. "But there's a lot happening very fast... and all very mad..." she said, then lead Ellin off the beaten path for just a few moments while the others walked ahead of them. When they were alone, she stood in front of the knight and took her hands into her own, looking up into her eyes. "I've seen too many friends die already... and always before I've had a chance to really know them..."

She paused, then looked down. "I just... I don't want anything to happen... we've been through so much already and..." she covered her face a little here. "Ugh... listen to me... rambling like an idiot when I should be more focused!" she took a deep breath and lowered her hands before looking into Ellin's eyes once more. "I just... I wanted to tell you..." she paused, then let out an exhasperated sigh at her own inability to approach the topic. "Oh, Cosmos take it..." she muttered (which is pretty much like taking God's name in vein for her) and threw her arms around Ellin's shoulders to stand on tip toe...

...and kiss her full on the lips, deeply and passionately... A long moment would pass, and she'd pull back, sighing. "I... I just didn't want to let this slip by like I've let everything else do..." she whispered, then slowly let go. "We uhm... we should catch up..." she said, then started going after the others...

[Ellin Destroix]

Ellin had been trying to remain focused on the recent events, but found it difficult as her vision would blur a little by the darkness. She was not turning into a heartless or anything of the like, but her roots where slowly awakening within the hot blood running through her veins. She heard something about Acteur by Beatrix...then something about Atticus being stopped by Agrias-- It almost felt dream like. Suddenly they were all moving, and her feet were cooperating with moving her body along to be near the others. Her lavender gaze looked about slowly at the pitch black forest, before looking to the guiding lights which led them to a safe place.

'Whats...going on...?' everything seemed slow for the first time to Ellin, the adrenaline making her heart race, even out of battle!

She was slowly losing herself to the premonition brought upon by prophecy of her clan: The one of purest black mana would bring upon a death destined for the greatness of Darkness. What a horrible thing to have in stored for a child, she thought, thinking that none should be forced to make such decision. That is why she went against it, and to this day has not killed a single being. She did not feast on any meat that was not already killed by something else. She did not kill any enemy, but turned them in to the authorities to be handled with justly might.

Her mind was embedded in dark thoughts, and it made her nauseous. Thankfully, her mind was brought back at the feel of a kind woman wrapping her arm around the dark knight.

"You never cease to amaze me, yanno?" Abigail said, and this caused the Knight's heart to skip wildly out of something else other than a battle rush.

"M-me?" Ellin would ask, pointed a metallic index finger at her cheek in question, "What did I do, Miss Abigail?"

"I think... you might be the fore-mother to a whole new frontier... the Harold of an amazing and bright new future."

"Y-you give me too much credit, Miss Abigail~!" She felt her cheeks on FIRE from the white mage's comment, "If anything... I think it is all of us taking a big step into bringing the balance... All of us have a part on it... Cosmos would be proud."

It was then when the mage took her aside from everyone else that got the Knight worried. She wondered if the girl was injured, and would ask, until the mage continued to talk. Abigail spoke of such kind things to suddenly bring about such worry... "I've seen too many friends die already... and always before I've had a chance to really know them..."

"W-wait a minute, Miss Abigail!" Ellin flailed her arms a little before holding the white mage's shoulders, and keeping her there while she made eye-level contact, "There is NO way I will ever die-- Not when I've set out for justice! You and me, remember? We vowed to restore the peace and see this to the very end! We are going to unite all in a loving embrace, and bring peace between light and darkness! " Here, the dark knight held the white mage in an embrace, and held her tightly to assure Abigail that it would all be fine, "So... don't worry, alright? We'll fix things..."

Even after she had said this, Abigail seemed so worried about something, and it caused Ellin to frown. Her lavender eyes gazed upon the kind mage, and gave her a confident smile, wanting to know what was so difficult to say. . . until it was shown. Ellin's eyes widened at the feel of soft lips pressed against hers, and she could of sworn she had been in the presence of the sun again... warmness consuming her in a moment that she wished would last forever, but... it would not.

"I... I just didn't want to let this slip by like I've let everything else do...We uhm... we should catch up." the mage whispered, and before she would go to catch up with the others, the knight held her from behind in a loving embrace. She wrapped her arms over her shoulders and kept her there delicately with the chunks of sharp metal that formed her armor and gauntlets.

Ellin kept her in that hold for a few more seconds, resting her forehead against the back of Abigail's head, breathing softly the aroma of light, which was rather addicting. "Miss Abigail..." the knight would say softly after those few seconds of silence where gone, "... do not be afraid... and that light which is you will bring back the day which has been lost to the worlds..."

The group they were with could be dimly seen through the forest greens, but Ellin did not seem to care of that at all at this point. She could find them easily later, if that was the case, but now...

"... A dark knight..." she started slowly, trying to pick the correct words, "... a dark knight was born to kill, and to hate, and to destroy... and a knight that showed anything else that were not those three things would be executed. If they were to speak of flowers and beauty they would be maimed and stoned to death... if shown kindness torn limb from limb."

The embrace grew a bit tighter, sharing her own warmth with the girl now while she continued to whisper, " Lady Abigail... no punishment... not even death can keep me from feeling how I do when I am around you, and such warmness that you bestow so kindly to me is unmatched to any other experience I have encountered. It is safe to say that I do care for you... to brave death, and say that I love you. So... smile with me, and let us find peace again... together?"

Ellin was shivering a little, uncertain of what it was she was saying. It only felt right to say it-- it felt RIGHT to say it...

...was this... what speaking of the heart was? Had something been born out of this dark knight that set her apart from her own species?

[General Beatrix]

Beatrix had a full understanding of the goings-on between Abigail and Ellin on their trek to the place Robin had mentioned, where they would await the arrival of the Red Rose. She maintained a close proximity to Agrias on their adventure, holding onto her with loving care and staring at her more than she would care to pay attention to the road.

"Agrias," said the general, looking over her outfit once more, a finger tapping her lip lightly. "Why are you outfitted in the guise of an archer, anyway? And what of Save the Queen? Where is she?"

Unfortunately, Beatrix could not see the shining between their sister blades the way Agrias could, only hear the sweet music that chimed from the cores...but right now her heart beat too loud for even that. She beamed with joy and burning fury simultaneously, and all she truly wanted was to eliminate the enemy.

"Anyway..."

[Abigail Crescentlight]

Abigail stopped the moment she felt arms around her, and smiled a little as she snuggled softly into that embrace. This was... nice. A small bit of peace in a world of chaos and madness. A soft sigh of contentment escaped her as she listened to Ellin's words. She smiled despite herself. This was a crazy time, and a scary future was ahead of them, but she smiled. For Ellin.

Turning around, she looked into the woman's eyes, sharing her light, her warmth with the woman before slipping her hand into Ellin's. "Together..." she said soflty, agreeing whole-heartedly with the dark knight. "Come on..." she said, then started walking hand-in-hand with her, completely unafraid of who saw or what they'd think.

Such times as these... a little love shown can go a long way.

Abigail looked skyward as the Rose made its approach. A moment's rest was ahead, and then...

War.