𝑪𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝑻𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒏𝒔 ⭒ 𝔟𝔲𝔫𝔫𝑦 𝔵 𝔱𝔞𝔰𝔰𝔲 ᶰᶳᶠʷ

[Bunny]

. . Lumia Crellevé . . . . . . 𝑎 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑚𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑒𝑥𝑖𝑠𝑡 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑑𝑎𝑟𝑘𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑠 . |​ ⊰  —————————————–  ⊰  ✦  ⊱   —————————————–  ⊱​ Hunting was not her forte. The idea of killing an animal was too much for Lumia. Even once dead, there was so much more that needed to be done. Cleaning, skinning to name a few. It wasn't’ as if she didn’t understand where meat came from but it was a luxury for one such as her. More so, when she refused to hunt herself. Mia, instead foraged and made medicine to sell in the village. It was how she fed herself and kept the meager roof over her head. Winter was by far the worst time, when the world grew cold and frigid. Plants dying only to be reborn in the spring. However, nature always provided. Cupping her hands in front of her mouth, Lumia exhaled into her frozen fingers. The threadbare gloves were not doing much to keep them warm, but it was better than nothing, if barely. Looking into the basket at her feet she took stock of her haul. A few bunches of spruce needles,some birch bark and twigs. Both were good for tea. Ruby little rose hips were bright against the more earthy tones within. It had been a lucky find and Mia was happy with them. They had a variety of uses and could be sold for a premium at this time of the year. Burdock roots also lay covered in dirt still at the bottom of her basket. They had been a pain to dig out of the frozen earth, but they would help feed her. Now, she was on the hunt for mushrooms. This part of the forest was silent, still. Mia found beauty in it. It was said the fae wilds crossed over somewhere near here. While known, the fae tended to not bother with the humans much. The borders were meant to keep the more dangerous fae from slipping into the human world and while it was said to work, most didn’t venture too close. Mia too, tried to keep her distance, but when you were desperate.. Besides, was she miles away or right beside it? Lumia had no idea. It wasn’t as if the border were marked now, assuming it had ever been marked. Fae could feel the border, but a human? As Lumia crossed over the boundary into the fae wilds, was unaware, basket in hand. A small clump of winter mushrooms were nestled in the roots of a tree and she knelt beside them, fingers brushing snow from around them. “Such a lucky find,” her voice was sweet and soft as she talked to herself. Lumia wanted to take all of them, but it wouldn’t allow them to grow again next year. It would behoove her to keep that in mind and only take what she needed. Her eyes caught another little clump of mushrooms not too far away and her lavender eyes lit up. Leaving a handful at the tree she’d found first she wandered deeper into danger, unknowingly. Finding her way back shouldn’t be that hard, her tracks in the snow would lead her home again, assuming it didn’t snow. So as she found treasure after treasure, she paid little heed to how deep she was going. Her small basket filled with a wealth of foraged items. Pausing she knelt back on her heels, her back resting against a tree as she lifted a snow filled canteen to her lips. The crystal clean snowfall had melted next to the heat of her body and was icy and refreshing as she rested. Shaking her head, Lumia tried to shake free some dark, ebony locks from her face to no avail. Huffing she blew at them only for them to flutter up and fall in the same place. Distracted, Mia never heard the predator approaching. Had she not been, it was also unlikely that she’d have been alerted to the naga that stalked her. It was her human scent that had lured it out of its burrow, otherwise the reptilian creature would not have ventured out into the snow kissed lands. A long, snake-like body with a human-like torso, covered in the same scales. Four arms, muscled and ready to rip apart its prey. The face was almost human, though like the brethren that Mia would have known, it could dislocate its jaw. Scales made no sound on snow as it drew closer to Lumi. It would be her end, a painful, horrible end and no one would ever know where Lumia had vanished to and in a few years, she’d be forgotten. It was perhaps lucky that the naga was not the only thing hunting her in the snowy woods. #f4bbff​

 

[Tassu]

Orin Talvanas 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑑𝑒𝑎𝑡ℎ ℎ𝑎𝑠 𝑎 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑡. ⊰  —————————————–  ⊰  ✦  ⊱   —————————————–  ⊱​ The Faerie, tethered to the mortal realm by pathways older than humanity itself, followed the eternal rhythm of the seasons—yet with grandeur and intensity far beyond human comprehension. The changing tides of nature shaped not only their lands but also the intricate politics of their kind, the mischievous and ephemeral creatures entwined with the ceaseless cycle of death and renewal. It was known that when the winter released its icy grip, the young Queen of Spring ascended to her throne, ushering in an era of blossoming vitality. Her court would be filled with music and mirth, the fae reveling in the surge of life coursing through the world. But her reign was destined to be fleeting. In time, the wrathful and passionate King of Summer would rise, his fiery temperament mirrored in the blazing sun. His court thrummed with fervor, hosting tournaments where bold nobles vied for supremacy. Festivities of boundless ecstasy ensued, often spilling into unrestrained debauchery beneath the fading light. When the leaves turned to gold and crimson, the Queen of Fall would take her place, reigning over the Court of the Reaper. Here, the living danced with the dead, their harvest celebrations lavish and unending, marked by banquets that grew ever more opulent. But autumn, too, would yield to the inevitable. As snow blanketed the earth, the Winter King reclaimed his dominion, his Court of the Dead steeped in peril and intrigue. Malicious games and shadowy schemes thrived, the fae enduring the long frost in anticipation of the spring's return. ⊰  —————————————–  ⊰  ✦  ⊱   —————————————–  ⊱​ "Interesting," Orin mused to himself as he crouched down by a pair of tracks, the bitterly cold winds ruffling his long white hair. "It's chasing her. She's going to die." The fae prince could not feel the sting of winter, his pale skin inured to frost. He was the firstborn of the Winter King, his tall frame wreathed in otherworldly energies. He had never been cold in his life. Orin should not have been earthside. He should have been at his father's side as he held his court. The young prince had never had the patience for the convoluted games that his relatives played whenever his father held the throne. They called him a summer heart, someone far too passionate to inherit his father's crown. "Blood will be spilled today," the fae prince unsheathed the long curved dagger he carried at his side, the cold metal gleaming ominously in his hands. Wicked spells had been laid on the blade, its edge impossibly keen. Orin could feel the dagger's hunger through his fingers. Insatiable, Everfrost craved to be sank into a living, writhing thing. "Easy now," Orin murmured as he sprang into a run, trailing the large naga with ease. The magic woven into his boots allowed him to dash through the quiet forest without having to worry about his feet ever sinking into the snow. Feeling the thrill of the hunt, the tall fae grinned, his smile terrifying to behold. His blood sang in his veins. Gaining on the beast, Orin slowed down, his pale gray eyes focusing on the serpentine monster stalking the human girl. No. Human woman. Small as she might have been, there was no mistaking her for a child. "Watch out!" he called out, his words ringing like steel in the otherwise quiet woods. Orin's swift feet carried him across the small clearing, the fae almost too fast for human eyes to follow. The slithering fiend stood no chance, the fae prince falling on the naga like death incarnate. A quick blow severed one of the creature's limbs, the stump covered by hoarfrost. The monster roared in pain as it lashed at the fae, only to strike at thin air. Orin was far too fast for the naga, his dagger sinking deep into its scaly hide, Everfrost reaching its heart. The creature died before it could realize what had happened, its blood frozen in its veins. The fae prince could feel the blade twitch with perverse joy even as the naga slumped down, tendrils of frost running along its greenish skin. Tugging his blade free, Orin turned to the human woman, tilting his head to the side. He knew he wasn't supposed to mess with humans. Laws and traditions decreed that the fae keep their existence secret from men. That they only laid their hands on humans who managed to slip into faerie. Orin had never been particularly obedient. "You have no idea," the rest of the words died in his mouth, Orin stepping close enough to sense her. The young woman was unlike any other human he had ever met. She felt different, her soft scent filling his mind. He frowned, shaking his head. Was she truly a human? Was the young woman a changeling? "Who are you?" Orin insisted, sheathing Everfrost, a storm brewing in his gray eyes. The young fae could swear he could taste her in the back of his mouth. She was mulberry wine on his lips, his body aching. "What are you?" Orin's melodic voice rang with frustration and adoration. ​

 

[Bunny]

Lumia Crellevé 𝑎 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑚𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑒𝑥𝑖𝑠𝑡 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑑𝑎𝑟𝑘𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑠. ⊰  —————————————–  ⊰  ✦  ⊱   —————————————–  ⊱​ The call through the forest was the first hint of the danger that was practically upon her. Almost in slow motion, her head turned and she saw the creature in the snow. It wasn’t human nor was it animal and it was the first hint that she’d slipped through the border into the lands of faerie. The shout had caused her to jump and she stumbled back into the snow with a scream at the sight of the monster. Blood showered from the beast, though not in a spray of warm wetness, but in little blood filled shards of ice. The color was like that of a pomegranate. Not that Lumia had ever seen one outside of her books. Limbs fell to the ground, sinking through the soft powder and all she could do was watch in horror. One, two, three and four. What cut them, she’d not seen, not at first. It was like some macabre puppet show. The roar from the beast reverberated through the trees and made her blood run cold as that primal part of her took over. That part that knew that things went bump in the night at this beast was one of them. Though, it would have simply eaten her. Whatever was killing it.. What would they do with her? A from appeared, back toward her as a blade sunk into the chest of the creature and Mia backpedaled till her back hit a solid tree trunk. Snow fell from the thin branches and dusted her head and shoulders as she gaped up at the man before her. Man? No. He wasn’t a man. Far too beautiful. Far too swift. Far too deadly. Faerie. His voice carried across the small clearing, though his word faltered and died as he gazed down at her. His feet seemed to carry him unbidden closer to her and Mia could not crawl away any further than she’d already done. Sweetness of berries and vanilla would tickle his nose along with something almost herbaceous and honeyed. His blade sheathed, he demanded who she was and then what she was. Beautiful eyes darkened, a tempest of emotions brewing within and she shivered and it had nothing to do with the cold. Hands grasped at the tree behind her, and frozen fingers pulled herself to stand. Her back slid against the bark the whole way and when she finally was on two feet, their size difference was apparent. He’d seemed to tower over her while on her rear, but even at her full height, he eclipsed her. “I..I am Lumia.” Her voice trembled and while she knew she should look away, not allow him to bewitch her, Mia couldn't’ seem to draw her gaze from him. As to what she was this was met with a touch more confusion. “Human?” Though a question it wasn’t unsure more questioning why he’d questioned her to begin with. Mia had no idea what power flowed in her veins, neither did any of her family before her for a few generations. The knowledge had been hidden and died away with the passing of the seasons. So to her, she had only ever been human. She’d no powers to speak of and no indication that she was anything but what she was. Nails bit into the trunk behind her and she frowned up at him. “You.. are faerie.” This was no question and she looked toward the snow. At some point between her stumbling thought he words, the creature and the fae, the snowflakes had begun their lazy waltz to earth and her tracks had been hidden under a fresh dusting of snow. The horror set in. Had he allowed her to leave, which was in doubt to begin with.. How would she have found her way home? Her eyes shot back to the fae male. It wasn’t as if he’d lead her from the cursed faerie lands. #f4bbff ​