Avalon (Hat+Heart)

[Hat-tori]

Artanis was certain he had all the bindings correct. All the runs had been inscribed with perfection, and the floor was just as smooth as it needed to be. He had used the proper amounts of blood and other fluids, and had even made several sacrifices to Raven, the Goddess of magic. He had to summon the correct demon!

Of course, like many young man who discovered their powers during sexual tension, Artanis was attempting to summon a Seducer demon, or, in laymen's terms, a Succubus. Raven, Goddess of plans and magic, had better ideas for the young man than donating to the worst sperm bank ever conceived. Plans for him... and the young woman he was to summon.

Reaching through the mists of space, time, and dimensions, She connected his little tunnel of magic to another world entirely. Nothing but the woman would survive the trip, but that was just the Way Things Worked, after all. She was lucky he was working in a secluded basement. Even clothing and other things that survived the trip beside herself would rapidly age over time, visibly wearing out and degrading in minutes.

As he reached the crescendo of his ritual, his hood fell back, revealing a young face, with rounded features. Black bangs covered bright green eyes, and the rest of his body was obscured by simple black robes. The room was dark, barely lit by the glowing circle, mason jars and stone shelving almost all that was visible.

The portal opened, and pulled from the other world...

 

[HeartCatch]

• 
  It had been a long and tiresome day for her, and as the Sun retreated beyond the horizon, leaving streaks and swirls and yellow and orange, she retreated from the day to the safety of home. The small home was empty and quiet, few sounds echoing throughout and little light casting its glow across the walls and halls. Save for her presence, all was still. And as she trudged dramatic and miserably to her room, she still somehow gave the emptiness some kind of life.
  
  Throw the bag in the corner, work her way out of her blazer. It was a process, getting away from the remains of the day. But after she was dressed down, it was back down the halls to start the bath and grab the towel and washcloth. She was slow about getting everything together, and longing gazes were often cast down the hall. No more lingering and no more longing though. To hell with it! She practically dashed for the bathroom and stripped down completely, she slid into the tub, a contented sigh slipping from her lips before she had even fully lowered herself in. Warmed and relaxed, she lied back, mind as calm as her body.
  
  She had soaked a good minute before the peace was disturbed, and she hadn't even noticed initally. Dark brown eyes opened slowly, blinking once then twice as the young woman slowly sat up. It was like reality was separating before. Her eyes had bulged like saucers by the time the space around her had shifted. Reasonably panicked, she jumped up and grabbed her towel, clutching it to her chest. "W-what the hell is going on!?" Not that the oddity occuring around her would supply an answer. Before she could utter another sound even, the feeling of falling captured her, and only a yell echoed through the blankness.
  
  It was like a small piece of eternity, short and yet as though it lasted forever. She didn't know how long she 'fell' for, but before she knew it, she had landed on a smooth floor, grunting softly. One arm stretched out before her and the other crossed over her chest and still clutching her towel, she was haphazardly stretched out across the floor, lying on her stomach for a minute before she slowly sat up, confusion slowly overthrowing the blank expression on her face.
  
  As her eyes swept from one corner of the room to the other, the growing emptiness in her hands drew her attention down, mouth dropping and a quiet gasp escaping as she looked at her towel, deteriorating slowly. "N-no, wait!" She attempted to stretch it to its full length and fumbled about covering herself, looking up for a second and quickly realizing she was not alone. It wasn't a shock that a panicked scream followed, and she abandoned the towel completely to desperately wrap her arms around herself.
  
  Wet and no longer as warm, her soft, brown skin glowed softly in the dull light. Smooth curves and long legs, drawing to her chest, were illuminated softly in the light. Her hair that had once been clipped up was now thrown in disarray, the dark locks falling about her forehead and from their haphazard bun in loose strands. She looked every bit like a disoriented deer trapped in a pair of headlights. Headlights that were as mysterious as they were terrifying.
  
  "I- I don't understand... What's going on?" Any other time, she would have hated the fear that had edged into her tone. The slight crack in her voice would generally be the warning before tears started, and she hated that just as much. But in this moment, she could only focus on the youth before her and the fact that she was obviously not home, and probably not even on her world. She felt even worse than Dorothy did out of Kansas. Her eyes stared up at the young man before her. Wide, questioning and terrified. One thought surely was reflected in them as it echoed through her mind.
  
  What in the world was going?

 

[Hat-tori]

Artanis sighed. It was yet another failure in a long parade of humiliation. He was a proud man. Son of a long line of heroes, the Delarosas, Artanis was pressured to live up to the family name. But his family had done too well, perhaps. The world seemed peaceful, safe. So... What use was a hero? None, really. All he had was some inborn talent, and without a threat to fight, he felt lost and without direction.

So he tried to ply his family's natural gift for magic to discovering new magic. Today he was testing the limits of summoning, namely, the number of beings one could summon and contain. He'd been hoping to manage a squad of Succubi. At the very least, it would relieve some tension. But instead, he summoned a single mortal young woman. Without clothes. He palmed his face, walking over to the robe cabinet. He pulled it open as he spoke, sorting through the black robes.

"My name is Artanis Delarosa." he said, pulling one down. "Do not panic, you are in good hands. You will be clothed, fed, and informed of your situation to the best of my ability." he tried to remain calming, but he was irritated. She signified a failure. A mistake. Oh well, he could at the very least provide her with an explanation. He tossed the robe into the circle. "Go on and put it on." he said, snapping his fingers and lighting the candles around the world with flames that flew from his hand. "You may leave the circle whenever you like, clothed or not. it is ultimately up to you." he said.

 

[HeartCatch]

• 
  Although a small sense of security cloaked itself around her since the male before her hadn't made a move to attack or approach her, Camille still felt every bit as confused and lost as before. Here she was, Camille Wilson. Nude, who knows how far from home and certainly not as safe as she would have liked to feel. No all-encompassing safety that promised eveyrthing would be alright. Who knew how the hell things would be here. She couldn't even be bothered to guess, at this point in time.
  
  She watched him go over to the closet, unable to utter a word as he spoke, trying to absorb and process this information without hurting her head. He still hadn't provided her much, but at least he seemed willing to inform her as to whatever was going on, and hopefully about where exactly she was. Considering he didn't seem all that ecstatic about her presence, she could only assume something wasn't right about her being there. She watched the robe fall into the circle and blinked down at it before looking back at him. She pulled a hand away from herself hesitantly and gripped an edge of the robe, digging her fingers into it and trying to be certain it wouldn't begin disappearing like her towel had. She knew someone was playing some cruel, disgusting cosmic joke on her if it did.
  
  But no, it remained solid and present, not deteriorating and certainly felt safe. It was some form of coverage. She pulled it around herself and covered her nudity to the best of her ability. She looked up to the male again, Atanis as he had introduced himself, and stood slowly. At least she hadn't lost her balance in all her nervousness. She looked around the room once more and down to the floor before looking up again and walking slowly away from the circle. "I'm Camille Wilson. Do you know how I got here? Where am I exactly?"
  
  Since she felt even a small bit more comfortable, her mind was ready to run a mile a minute, and her lips had followed, letting the questions flow after introducing herself. But he said he'd inform her, so she had to cut herself short and not question him non-stop. Considering how calm he seemed, something about this situation must have been commonplace, if not expected. That only brought more questions to mind though. She almost hated to try and make sense of anything, it felt like she had more questions than answers.
  
  Either way, she was grateful for whatever he would offer her, whether it was the food, robe or information. She generally didn't like relying on strangers or burdening someone, but seeing as she was essentially helpless in this world, she had no choice. "...Thank you. For helping me." Even if she was disoriented and lost, she couldn't forget her manners.

 

[Hat-tori]

He frowned, then shrugged. "I suppose I can put you up for a few days while we get you situated and look into your... unique issue." he said, gesturing for her to follow. "As to where you are, we call this world Avalon, and the city we are in Rivermeet. My name is Artanis Delarosa. You can call me Art." He showed her a large map that hung in the hall. It looked like someone had taken a circle and cut a large slice out of either side of it. "We are here, in the central continent." he said, pointing at the map. His hands were callused from heavy labor, but if he saw her looking, he'd hide them discreetly.

"In any case, let us eat." he said, then knocked on the wall. As if from nowhere, a tall... creature appeared. A long snout, ending in a pink, wet nose, whiskers at either side. White hair, red eyes, smallish ears... A humanoid rodent. "Jiles, go get us something to eat and set it up in the dining hall?"

"Right away, Master Artanis." and the creature was gone.

"That was a Seeran, a race of humanoid rodents. There are at least 24 sentient non-human races... five of them not even humanoid." he said, leading her into a grand dining hall. "Please, ask any questions you like. I'll answer to the best of my ability."

 

[HeartCatch]

• 
  This was very different than what Camille was used to. No, this was abnormal compared to what she was used to. Her days could be weird, yes, but never were they... Well, it was a bother even trying to think of the word that applied well and fit right. Regardless of what was going on or how she got here, she was just thankful she'd have what seemed to be a safe place to stay and food supplied to her.
  
  Her suspicions about being in a different world were confirmed, not that she wanted to mull over it any further. She followed him closely, though made sure to keep some space between them. She didn't want him to feel like she was crowding him, especially if she was going to be living off of his hospitality. She glanced from the map to him, blinking curiously at his hands before looking to his face and looking away. She generally wasn't so awkward, well, she was fairly snarky in fact, though not without some form of sweetness and playful side to her, but this was kind of situation left her feeling off. She wasn't used to this at all. Not that she should be. She wondered if anyone would be used to falling into other worlds.
  
  Camille watched him knock on a walk and quite visibly jumped, even yelping softly, when the humanoid rodent made himself apparent. As polite as Jyles seemed, he still gave her a damned good scare. This world was going to take a lot of getting used to. Following him into the hall, Camille's eyes were wide and alert, glancing this way and that. She couldn't be caught off-guard like that again. "May I take a minute? My head kind of hurts..." That wasn't quite the appropriate sentiment, but seeing as though her thoughts were a jumbled mess and she had yet another shock, every question she had was swimming about, out of her grasp, like most of her other thoughts.