Amaltheia awoke slowly. For a moment, she almost slipped back into that dismal mood she'd been so familiar with for the last umpteen centuries, but today was different. No sooner had she stood than her wings unfurled themselves as much as they could, and she strode to her tall mirror to admire them. They were lovely, as they'd always been -- as she'd always been. Now, however, she felt it. Her hair still wasn't splashed with that aqua and indigo hue she had come to love in her previous life, but she figured it was only a matter of time before she got back into the full swing of things.
She dressed accordingly, a low-back top and a pair of fitted jeans today. She left her feet bare, preferring to feel the fuzz of the carpet as she padded silently to the guest room. She tapped on the door gently. "Brennan?" she called softly. "Brennan, are you awake?" She pushed the door open a little, poking her head into the dark room. All of Theia's windows had black-out curtains on them save the ones in the front room. She never desired to know the time of day.
Not surprisingly, considering the fact that he'd actually died during his last conscious period (since it may have been more than a day, he didn't know), Brennan wasn't actually awake when she tapped on the door and called his name, though he was close enough to getting up himself that he groaned softly and pulled himself first to a sitting position and then started to get out of the bed as she opened the door and poked her head inside.
That was when it occurred to his sleepy mind that he'd had to shed his bloody, grimy clothes in favor of a shower and a clean bed, and he hadn't exactly slept in a robe. Considering his avian upbringing, that resulted with what pretty much amounted to a dive back for the bed, and the sheet that'd give him some semblance of dignity.
"Yes, I'm awake!" he told her quickly, finding a compromise between covering the necessities and not looking as though he was cowering beneath the sheet in returning to an upright sitting position. This was all sorts of awkward.
If Theia noticed, she didn't say anything. "Good, you're awake!" she squealed. She ran into the guest room and jumped onto the bed, bouncing up and down a few times when she landed. It was a comfortable, fluffy thing. "We slept for a whole day and a half. It's sunset outside," she explained. She realized that he was still just waking up, by the dim light that still shown as the oranges and reds fell off of the horizon. She reached over and turned on a little side-lamp, allowing the warm glow to illuminate the peach-coloured room.
She tilted her head a little as she watched his nervous movements. He sucked at trying to hide his flighty gestures from Theia, at least, when she was in a good mood. She locked eyes with him and smiled. "You aren't wearing anything, are you?" she teased. She was half-tempted to make a grab for the covers, but she knew Brennan would just get pissed off. "You know, the Falcons aren't as cold as the rest of the birds," she reminded, but stayed where she was for the moment. She wasn't about to run him off - he was... He was her only friend.
Having her run in and jump on the bed was the LAST thing he expected, and it was an effort not to make any kind of startled noise at the sudden 'attack'. She seemed pretty pleased, so he tried to slow his heart and not seem too bothered by the fact that he was naked under the sheet, a married man at that, and with her laying on the bed right next to him. At least she was dressed.
"Actually, I'm not," he answered rather quickly, not looking at her and instead focusing on the edge of the sheet, which he was turning over between his index finger and thumb. It was just for something to focus on, really, a flighty little nervous habit. He might have actually fallen off the bed in an attempt to keep the sheet, had she tried. Fortunately, she didn't grab for it because that would have been VERY damaging to his dignity.
Her next comment had his attention, and he flicked his now obviously violet eyes in her direction, despite his nervousness about being in his present situation. "I'm sure they're not, but seeing as I'm so new at this, and used to behaving like a raven, I'm not really surprised that I don't know what to do."
Theia watched him carefully, knowing by the telltale pounding of his heart that nothing she was doing was going to have any positive effect on him. She turned, and scooted to the foot of the bed, leaning against the board of it, and wiggled her toes contentedly as she watched him, whole body slanted slightly to the right.
"Try, 'whatever you want', Brennan," she said. She smiled, but she was serious. She sat up a little, drawing her knees in to sit Indian-style. "Listen. This is.. it. I mean, this really is it. This is the shit that little sparrows dream of, wielding a magic that can be so silent it can lull you into eternal sleep, or so loud it's smashing you in the face like a piece of marble. Brennan, we - you, me, all of us - so beautiful that our mere presence could make a mortal weep." She sat back a little, realizing she was a bit too passionate about something he hadn't really begun to grasp.
"Heh... like I said. You do.. whatever you want." She almost added, 'Damn the consequences', but she was still scared inwardly, and she'd NEVER say it, that she'd be stripped of her power again. She'd kill herself if it happened again. She really would.
He stared at her, watched her speak, and it was obvious to him that he really wasn't getting it. He didn't have the slightest clue where to go with any of this, and it was more intimidating than anything else he'd ever experienced. Other than his JOB, he didn't exactly have much in the way of choices to deal with. His entire life had been laid out before him from birth, and it had revolved completely around Avalon. His every decision had been easy, all dependent on her, and now he had something before him that had nothing to do with her and everything to do with him, and there was nobody there to lay it out for him. There was just Amaltheia, and she seemed determined to MAKE him figure it all out himself.
Really, her passion about the subject really didn't help, though he couldn't honestly say that it hurt. It just made it obvious to him that he didn't have the slightest idea what he was dealing with. She did, which made her invaluable to him, but he wasn't so sure that he WANTED to know. This was all such a mess.
"This may sound unbelievable, but I don't KNOW what I want. My life revolves around keeping Avalon safe, and helping her with her duties. Tending to the Flight. I don't know how to return to any of that like this, not without causing a huge mess. You call this beautiful, but many of them will call it frightening and monstrous. I don't understand it, so how can they? They won't understand, and they'll be afraid of it," he told her, obviously not completely certain, but he had a good idea. He understood crowds and what happened when people talked, and it wasn't going to be good.
"No, I get it," she said, though she sounded more polite than sympathetic. She reached out and squeezed his hand a little, though, which was something. "Be right back," she said. She got up and left the room, the sound of denim and Theia-feet moving into the kitchen. A drawer opened, and was pilfered through, before it slammed back shut, and she came barreling back down the hall. She jumped back onto the bed, this time settling next to Brennan.
Before he could protested, she leaned all the way across him, until she'd found something. "Here," she said, holding out a pair of green scissors to him. "Cut this tag, would you?" she asked. "We'll liberate you from your eggshell in babysteps," she said, looking up at him with a smile. She was still leaning across him, though careful of her elbows and whatnot... but she looked so refreshed and alive that it was almost like seeing a different person than he had before today.
Brennan had absolutely NO idea what she was doing when she took off for the kitchen, so he just watched her and pulled the sheet up a little more again, just...because. Within a moment of pilfering around the kitchen, she was racing back to the bedroom and leaping onto the bed, and he had to admit, at least to himself, that she really was beautiful with those wings of hers, even if the indigo and aqua coloring in them seemed so foreign to him. That naturally wasn't helping his current predicament.
Fortunately, when she landed on the bed, she offered him a pair of scissors, and that was enough of a distraction. "Were you never taught not to run with scissors?"
Was that a....joke? WAT?
Maybe she was making progress, or maybe he'd just snapped from the stress and strangeness. Whatever the case, she was offering him scissors and leaning over him in a manner that had him much less worried about how careful she was about causing pain to sensitive areas with elbows, and much more concerned with less appropriate things, and telling him to cut a tag. What tag? He could cut a tag.
"You mean, the one that says 'do not remove under penalty of law'?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow up at her as he asked, and trying for all that he was worth to forget that he was naked under the sheet, with an attractive falcon leaning on him, and focus on the strangeness of her request.
"Brennan," she chastised, flipping her blonde hair back to look at him. "Did you just make a joke?" She had a playful tone to her voice, one she wanted to instantly slap herself for, but, ah well. She shook her head at him, making a tsking sound with her tongue, and yet ceased to move until he'd cut the tag.
When he'd snipped it, she picked it up and held it next to him, nearly touching noses as she sat back up. "This is liberation, little Falcon. Today, a tag. Tomorrow, the world. Ah, you can laugh! But soon you'll be ready to conquer," she said. She was being dramatic on purpose, and it was even funnier in close proximity like this. She hadn't forgotten his situation, either, but she did her very best not to capitalize on it with comments, moreso because he never seemed to react the way she wanted him to.
She stayed in his face long enough that she wondered when he'd push her away, and turned to go back to her place at the foot of the bed after she didn't get any reaction from him right away. Theia was weird when she was giddy - which she was.
"Absolutely not," he returned seriously, though there may have been a touch of amusement in his voice, if she knew what she was listening for. His humor was pretty subtle most of the time, and would probably be for awhile. It existed, though. He proceeded to cut the damn tag so that she'd be satisfied, and she went on about conquering with an incredibly dramatic air, but it wasn't what she was saying that really had him. It was the fact that their noses were practically touching, they were so close, and he wasn't really even paying attention to what she was saying. He was, but he wasn't really worrying about it.
He hesitated, the story of his life lately, and it was as she started to move away that he suddenly grabbed her shoulder to keep her from escaping immediately and just as suddenly...kissed her. Why?
When he released her, which wasn't long after the initial surprise hit them BOTH (he couldn't believe he'd done it, either), he covered up his own awkwardness and disbelief with a suitably snappy comment. "Now we're even. I owed you that one," he told her, remembering rather clearly when she'd done the same to him. Actually, it'd involved him saving her life, and this involved her bringing him BACK to life, so it was pretty fitting.
Theia had been all settled to go back to her corner, when Brennan spun her around on the shoulder and drew her in for a... kiss? Stars and feathers, she hadn't thought - but he was so warm and he was a Falcon now, and so familiar, like flying...
And it was over, and from the tone of Brennan's voice, he was covering up his nerves with a spiteful remark. Theia, well, her mouth was slightly open as she sat, stunned, staring at him. She couldn't even think of anything to say to... he had stolen the words right out of her mouth. Literally. So, she did the only thing she could think of to do that would snatch that upper ground from him he'd just reclaimed, and quite cunningly, if she did say so.
She kissed him back. And it wasn't just a 'grab and kiss' sort of kiss, not like the kind Brennan had just tried to pull on her - no, this was a real kiss, and damn the Avian 'niceties' that Brennan knew, because Theia wasn't havin' any of those. One hand shot out to steady herself as she did this, because she wasn't about to jump on top of him (seriously, she wasn't anywhere near that point), and she did want something to support her weight with, since she was leaning forward quite a ways. The other hand rose, to run her fingers gently along the line of his jaw - flawless skin, with just the traces of stubble, something that made her smile as she kissed him, which caused her to pull back.
Whoops.
"Guess I took a little too much initiative.." she said guiltily, although if you knew her, you'd know she didn't feel too bad at all.
Was he expecting her to react as she did? No. Should he have? Perhaps. Just as she was realizing that he never really reacted the way she thought he would, he was starting to understand that the same was true in reverse. He had no way of knowing how she'd react to anything, which was making him want to be extra-cautious. He'd just tried the opposite, gave that impulse factor a chance, and now, there he was.
He couldn't deny that he liked it, not without lying through his teeth, but there was far more intimacy than he was used to in that one little situation. Even when he'd taken the initiative and kissed her, gotten her back for her stolen kiss before and turned the tables, it hadn't been like this. He'd been quick, surprisingly forceful for an Avian, and let her go. This was lingering, pressuring, but not really so forceful. It caused his mind to halt mid-thought, only to shoot right back to full working capabilities when she let go.
Fortunately, he was bad at judging emotions under normal situations, so he fell for that guilty tone rather easily. The fact that he'd jerked back rather suddenly (even as she was pulling away and getting some distance), and smacked his head on the headboard didn't exactly help his emotional understanding. What it REALLY hurt, besides the back of his skull for an instant, was his dignity, but he was already so off-kilter that being so startled wasn't really all that...startling. He recovered quickly, acting as though he HADN'T just bashed the back of his head off the headboard, and if he'd been in a bird form at the time, he'd have just fluffed his feathers up as he straightened somewhat. No, there wasn't any added color in his face, and he wasn't feeling out of place, why would you ask?
He was such a horrible liar, even in just body language and appearances. This was why he acted so stuffy and stuck-up, since it was much easier. Theia knew better, though. She'd never let him keep that up. What was he going to do here?
She just giggled when he hit his head, reaching up to place a hand on it. When she didn't distinguish any blood pouring from the back of it, she ruffled his hair playfully, biting her lower lip. "Come on, Brennan," she said, her tone entirely different - happy, light, casual. Theia was good at being emotional, and it was a nice, pleasant sort of feeling, not like how she'd been before. She was much warmer and personable now, although that would soon draw away as she fell more into step with her power... Enjoy it while you can, Brennan.
"Put some clothes on, I'll make something to eat." She rolled to her feet, straightening her shirt a little as she did so. She picked a small feather from the down comforter off of her shoulder and blew it away, walking to the door without missing a beat. She turned and smiled at him a little before disappearing into the hallway, wings sewing themselves up and vanishing behind her into nothingness. Theia didn't stand in the kitchen around potentially hazardous appliances in Demi-form, ohhhhh no.
It was incredible how different she sounded with that playful giggling and the way she teased him, not to mention the ruffling of his hair. If he hadn't known better, he'd have never believed this was the same woman who'd jumped off of a building the first time he'd met her.
How sad was it that he'd probably lighten up just in time for her to fall back into step with her power and grow cold again?
'Put some clothes on.' Maybe he just felt guilty, and he did, make no mistake, and that was why it sounded worse than it actually was, but he didn't give her any indication that she'd gotten to him with that one. His reserve was getting clamped back down and into place, if only to save his dignity a few more blows. Clothes would definitely help with that.
His shirt was a wreck and his pants were dirty, but not nearly as disgusting, or as damaged. He was going to have to figure something out in the near future to deal with the clothing situation, but for the present moment, the pants he had would work. He wished he'd had a shirt, but he'd deal. Throwing a 'temper tantrum' was really the last way to get anything done, and he'd avoid it if he could help it, just as he was going to try avoiding another awkward situation with Theia. His life had gotten complicated enough without having to worry about any of THAT.
With the clothing issues taken care of to the best of his ability for the time being, and Theia apparently cooking, he couldn't even begin to deny the fact that whatever she was making had rather suddenly reminded him that he hadn't had anything to eat in a very long time. When was his last meal? He hadn't been eating all that much before he'd been attacked, just because of his mood and how badly his life had gone to hell, and he'd slept for a day in a half (not to mention dying and being brought back as something he wasn't supposed to be), so it was understandable that he'd be hungry. He still didn't feel like eating, but the needs of the body were likely to take precedence over his personal preferences.
He was hungry, and Theia was making food. That was all that was necessary to get him into the kitchen. "What are you making?"
A smile flickered against Theia's expressive features as Brennan emerged from the back of the house, shirtless. She bit back a comment about how she'd only kissed him twice and he was trying to parade around naked now, knowing he would take it the wrong way no matter how much she meant it as a joke. When he inquired as to what she was making, she only looked guiltily away for a second, and held up the frying pan.
"Eggs?" she asked. "Actually, omelettes. Is that bad? They aren't Falcon eggs, so technically, I'm not a cannibal. You won't vomit, will you?" she asked, only slightly concerned as she regarded him, the pan still tilted upward. The burner began to smell funny, and she set it back down, scraping the cheesy-egg combination off skillfully with a plastic spatula and depositing it onto a white plate with blue leaves painted into the edges of it.
"If you don't like it, I can make you something else. I'm really feeling breakfast food right now, but I've got..." she trailed off and opened her freezer. She looked so normal just then in a pair of jeans and a tank top, bare-footed and hair touseled just so. It was almost surreal. But she was talking again - "Eggos, Jimmy Dean sausage... Orange juice, bacon, ham.. pancakes?" she asked, looking back at him. She held the Bisquick box up close to her face and smiled, like an advertisement. "I have maple syrup," she offered temptingly.
Oh, yes, he'd have taken that the wrong way, in the process proving that he really wasn't very good about distinguishing jokes most of the time. He'd have defended himself and gotten flustered, since it really wasn't appropriate, but he was lacking in options. Pants were better than nothing.
Ahh, distraction.
He actually made a sincere effort not to turn his nose up at the eggs, and he thought he succeeded rather well. His stomach even growled, suggesting that if he had no other options, it'd be time for another compromise. He'd eat the eggs if that was all she really had, and he'd be grateful for them because he was hungry. "No, I won't vomit," he promised, though he wasn't really looking forward to the eggs. It wasn't even the cannibalism thing, since even ravens will eat the eggs of other birds if they're hungry enough. As a falcon...
She really DID look incredibly normal in her jeans and tank top, like some pretty woman out of a movie. Having never lived that 'normal' sort of life, it seemed almost surreal to Brennan. Avalon didn't make her own food, and really, neither did he. He had the most basic cooking knowledge, but Avalon was royalty. She was taken care of by others, and he usually was as well, just being married to her. Somehow, having Theia take care of him just didn't feel right, though.
"Pancakes and syrup sounds perfect," he told her quickly, rather pleased to have that option instead of the eggs. "And orange juice? Is there anything I can do to...help?"
As long as she didn't try to get him to operate a frying pan, or one of those square ended, flat utensils that flipped the food in the pan, he'd be fine. What was that thing even called? He didn't spend nearly enough time in the kitchen.
Theia stared at him for a second, and then snapped into action. "Bitch, please, do you even know how to work an oven? Listen, I know you're used to the fluffy and high life, so just... get the glasses out of the cabinet and pour the orange juice, okay? I wouldn't want you accidentally setting yourself on fire. Do you know how much trouble that'd get me in?" she asked sarcastically, moving to bump him competitively as he tried to get between her and the center island to the cabinet she'd indicated the cups were in.
She looked back at him and smiled, not surprised that he was all wry again. "Brennan," she said with a sigh, setting the Bisquick down with a loud thud. "You need to loosen up, okay? Think of my house as a sort of..." she trailed off, blue eyes raising as she struggled to find the words. "As a padded room. You can do what you want here. Say what you want. Act as shitty as you want - as long as you don't try any of that royalty crap with me," she warned, lifting a finger to point at him.
"I know things are going to be really... fucked up for you, and it's going to be like that for a while. The least you could do is stop trying to walk that weird emotional tightrope you people do," she affirmed. And by 'you people' she meant every other Avian.
Did....she just...? Yes, she'd called him a bitch! He actually managed to look indignant for a moment there, but she continued to give him hell about setting himself on fire and being used to the fluffy and high life, and he couldn't even argue with her. As much as he didn't want to admit it, she was right, so he kept his mouth shut. He was pretty baffled when she bumped him for trying to get to the cabinet the cups were supposed to be in, though. Had he done something wrong? He was seriously going to have to get used to the more casual contact if he was going to be spending time around her, which was looking as though it'd be more difficult than it sounded.
Emotional tightrope? Was she talking about...the avian reserve? He didn't see how dropping that would do him any good. More like, show off the fact that he had NO IDEA what he was doing and that if he stopped to think about what was going on, he might freak out. That reserve would keep him together. Not to mention, after spending his entire life learning how to lock his emotions up, it wasn't exactly possible to just STOP all at once.
"I have 'loosened up'. I cut the tag," he offered, though the very fact that he was standing barefoot in her kitchen without his shirt was proof that he was TRYING.
"You did," she said, her voice very congratulatory as though she were talking to a child who'd just used the potty for the first time. "That's right, and I'm very proud of you. Maybe after we eat, you can count to twenty for me?" She shook her head and laughed. "Listen, I get that it's going to be hard, but all I'm asking is that you not take every single thing I say and do as an assault on your manhood, okay?" she asked.
She turned and grabbed a mixing bowl out of the cabinet, and started with his pancakes. It wasn't long before the sun had totally set, and there they stood in the middle of her kitchen chatting while she made breakfast food at roughly 6:45 PM. She'd begun to make a small mess, and had little smudges of Bisquick powder on her cheek, nose, and arms. She'd decided to make extra pancakes so that she could eat them later, intending to hoard them all for herself later after Brennan had either left or gone back to sleep.
"When are you going to see Avalon?" she asked out of the blue as she began pouring the batter into the pan. "She probably thinks you're like, dead or something."
There she went again, insulting hi---oh. Well. That meant he was going to have to assume that every insulting thing she said was meant in jest, which...would take some effort. This loosening up thing was going to be harder by far than he'd expected, but he nodded nonetheless. He'd do what he could, and see where it got them. Considering she was his best bet for figuring out what was going on with him, he could certainly try to do as she asked.
After getting the glasses out of the cabinet and pouring them both some juice, he rather carefully got out of her way, lest he end up as part of her slowly growing, though still fortunately small, mess. She wasn't the only one who'd noticed how strange it was to be having breakfast with the sun going down, but considering he'd just woken up, Brennan wasn't going to argue. He almost choked on his orange juice at her question, though.
Avalon. What was he going to do?
"She'd have every right to. I did die, if I remember correctly," he remarked dryly. Was he going to go see her? How would he even begin to explain something that he hadn't even been alive to witness? "I don't know when I'm going to see her. I can't even fathom how she'll react to this, especially so quickly after I lost my ---"
He hesitated for a mere instant, realizing that she probably didn't know the full extent of what had happened, including why he hadn't just flown away when the wolf attacked him, and he wasn't sure he wanted to hash it out. "I don't know that she'd trust me now. If it was someone else, I'd have kept an extra eye on him to ensure she was safe, so I couldn't blame her." He didn't want to say that he was worried she wouldn't want him. He was afraid that if he went in there to see him, she'd take one look at him and send him away. He'd seen his eyes the night before, cleaning up before bed, and how could he possibly expect her not to react badly to them? He couldn't.
"Yea-ah, I somehow don't know how her guard would react to a dark Falcon just strutting on in. 'Hay guise wats up?' sort of doesn't seem to play out well in my noggin, but you know, things could have changed in the last... few.. hundred years." She squinted a little and scooped the pancakes off of the pan and onto a plate, turning off the burner with a flick of her fingers before she forgot and the house smelled funny for a few hours.
She turned around, plate in hand, and set it down on the island in front of him. "Forks are there." The syrup was already out. "You should probably call her. I don't even know if anyone knows what happened yet, unless that Aristide fellow placed a phonecall to scare the daylights out of everyone. I can say this, though, " she added, voice suddenly dropping all of its previous humour, "If I somehow get dragged down because of this, your friends will find out exactly why the Falcons are totally separated from their society."
Basically, she just told Brennan if anyone tried to screw with her, she was going to harm them. He didn't need to analyze this one - the threat was very clear.
He just STARED at her for a moment when she called him a 'dark Falcon', mostly because it sounded like some sort of freaky Animal Planet edition of Star Wars.
Yes, he'd seen Star Wars, and had been caught falling asleep to Animal Planet before. He wasn't THAT removed from human society, even if he acted like he was.
"I may be wrong, but I'm willing to assume that it wouldn't go over well," he told her, matching her tone for seriousness as he grabbed a fork from where she gestured, though he stopped and fixed her with his newly violet eyes again as she made her threat.
All the more reason not to call Avalon, as far as he could tell. How would she and the others react to this? He hadn't even fathered a child with Avalon, and blood mattered so much to the Avian ruling family. Oriana was never going to tolerate him remaining with Avalon, and she was still Tuuli Thea, by all rights. Even if Avalon didn't refuse him back, she was bound to her duty, and the Avians couldn't have a mongrel for an heir.
Her threat didn't even matter, because what reason did he even have to go back? "Even if she and the guard don't react badly, I can never stay. The child of a hawk and a...falcon could never be the heir. She would need a new alistair regardless of whether I live or die, now," he admitted out loud, taking a seat rather heavily for one of his usual bearing. He needed to eat, he knew that much, but he really didn't feel like it.
Theia fell very silent as his words hung in the air. Oh, shi- she thought. She hadn't even realized what all this meant, in a real-time sort of thing. She was just so excited that there was another Falcon, another familiar face, even if it was stuffy ol' Brennan. "I... " she trailed off, and then in an instant, had changed gears.
"You know, I didn't mean for this to happen. I didn't tell Aristide to make you a Falcon, okay? He just used me to bring you back to life, and evidently that meant spawning you with some really, ah, different attributes." She spoke quickly, but very clearly. She was plainly saying, 'This shit isn't my fault'.
Obviously, Theia realized she'd pretty much accidentally ruined his life.
Brennan would eventually 'loosen up' and stop being so 'stuffy', but it was going to take time, especially with how screwed up his life was lately. Who knew, perhaps having his life turn upside down would help him go with the flow a little better. There was no longer a safety net, or any sort of real support system, to anything he did. His family would essentially disown him if they found out, Avalon's family would refuse him, and he'd be left to either linger and watch his wife take another alistair, or just vanish from the whole picture in a state of shame and dishonor.
Better to be thought dead.
He watched Theia again as she spoke, actually somewhat surprised at her reaction. She was defending herself, like she thought he might really blame her. There wasn't a reason for him to, was there? He didn't know most of what happened, so he didn't know. "Why were you there? When I...died. How did you and that man both end up there?"
He had no idea that she'd caught him just as he departed, or that her grief had caught Aristide's attention. Honestly, he didn't know that anyone cared enough to have that sort of a reaction. Considering how closed-up Avians were, that anyone would grieve for him so openly was a foreign thing to him. Not to mention, there weren't too many people who would grieve for him at all if a situation such as this could completely ruin his life.
She shrugged a little. She would have had plenty of comments for his inner monologue had she heard it, but Theia wasn't about to read his mind. "I was just out and about. I just got this... feeling and, I don't know, poked my head down in the alley. At least, that's what I remember, anyways. A lot of it was a blur." She leaned off of the counter a little, picking up her juice to take a sip. When she set it back down, she continued.
"That man heard me screaming, I guess. I guess he could pick up on what I was. I don't know, Brennan, I'd never really met him before. Anyways, he said he could fix you, and I told him I'd give him anything for it." She held her hands up. "And here you are, good as new."
The tone of her voice was more sarcastic than excited, like before. She didn't like that he wasn't happy about his new situation. Theia was capricious, vain and selfish, and there was no altering that out of her personality, no matter how many bindings or unbindings you did.
Screaming? She'd been screaming when Aristide found them? About...him? That was somewhat surprising, and enough to make him rethink this situation a little. It didn't make much sense to him. "Why were you screaming? For...me?" That anyone would really feel that strongly about his death would take awhile to sink in, but that sounded as though it was what she'd meant, and it made him wonder if he wasn't looking at this entire situation the wrong way. There were some horrible aspects of it, but perhaps some of it wasn't going to be so horrible.
She'd said she'd give anything to fix him. That wasn't such a simple promise, even if her explanation wasn't quite as friendly as her tone had been before.
"I'm sorry, really, I am. I'm just...trying to figure out what to do, and any of the things that feel right also sound as though they're going to blow up in my face," he explained, or at least, tried to. He DID feel bad that he was such a pain in the ass for her, but there wasn't all that much he could do about it, especially immediately.
Theia grabbed Brennan by the biceps suddenly, forcefully, and shook the hell out of him. "How many times do I have to say it to get it through your head, Brennan? You matter to me. Unlike most of the bird world, I am actually allowed to feel emotions, so when I thought you were dead, I did the most natural thing - I screamed my head off." She released him just as forcefully, and if he wasn't careful, he'd bounce right off of the counter.
"For all of the shit that the 'avian lords and ladies', " and she even made quotations with her fingers, "say about not showing emotion because of how degrading and insufficient at fixing problems they are, it sure as fuck worked for me. Maybe not quite the way you wanted, but it did work."
She folded her arms, satisfied she'd once again shot down the avian reserve theory for bullshit. "And now I'll get off my soap-box," she concluded, finally affirming that she was finished on the topic.
He actually flinched when he was suddenly grabbed and shook him like that, not at all used to having people be so physical with him, but what she said made sense...in a strange way. Of course, the fact that he was contemplating her words didn't help when he literally bounced right off of the counter upon her release. He was going to have to get used to this, and fast.
Really, what did it matter? He might as well try to lighten up. It wasn't like he was going to be returning to the Avian court anytime soon. It was true that she hadn't fixed things the way he would have wanted, but the alternative was death. That wasn't much of an alternative.
"I'm sorry, you're right," he admitted, and he meant it. He sighed, trying to do as she wanted and relax, and it worked, a little. He even smiled, and it was an affectionate gesture this time, though still somewhat curious. "You've given me a second chance. I should stop being so depressing, shouldn't I?"
Self-deprecation, but still an attempt at humor. See? He was capable of it, even if it wasn't all that great to begin with. He was trying to break out of the mold.
"Yes," she said firmly, satisfied that she'd won, although it was unclear as to what. She nodded to him a little. "You should take a look - a real look - at your wings when you get the chance, by the way. They're... stunning. If you thought you looked handsome as a raven, wait until you see what Falcon magic has done for you." She smiled a little, trying to lift his spirits with some complements. She meant them, at least.
The problem with Falcons was that eventually they were so wrapped in illusion and secrecy that you never knew what was real and what was imaginary. It would apply to Amaltheia soon enough, and eventually perhaps even to Brennan, depending on how he took his new abilities. Theia was a child of the White Islands, however, and so her mannerisms would come back stronger every day - it was fortunate, perhaps, for both of them, that she was usually a passionate enough individual not to lie.
That and she still liked Brennan, and as long as he stopped 'being depressing' she'd stay liking him.
Perhaps things would go his way, since he was now consciously trying not to be such a downer. It wasn't going to be an instant change, but he would try. He still had to figure out the specifics of what he was doing about Avalon, since never talking to her again felt...wrong, but he wasn't going to make it a public thing.
It hadn't even occurred to him that some Falcon mannerisms might start to surface in him, to be honest. He was only just accepting the idea that it was all real, and considering what she'd said about his wings. He couldn't honestly say that he'd prefer this foreign magic to what was familiar, but he would look as she'd asked, and he'd try to look at them with an open mind. If he looked and considered what they meant, how his whole life had changed, he might begrudge them just because of that. He was going to try to be positive.
Maybe Theia's presence would help with that. If he was lucky, she'd keep him busy enough while she was showing him the inner workings of what had happened to him that he wouldn't have the time to really focus on any of his own problems longer than it took to decide how to deal with Avalon.
"I will, I'll look," he promised, and he smiled back. Despite what he might think, she was trying to help him, and the compliment was nice to hear, all in all. Who didn't like hearing that they were thought to be attractive, and to be offered a good point in all of this was nice, even if it was so minor as that. He appreciated it. "Yours are beautiful. I can see why you mourned them so, besides the obvious."
She beamed. "Aren't they?" she sang, with an 'I know' sort of giggle to her voice. She was as vain as any other female, at least - that was a consistency about her that would never go away. She shook her long blonde hair and sighed a little, stretching her arms.
"So, what shall we do? We can't stay couped up in the house all evening, not unless you'd prefer to. I'm full, but I could use some activities, or else I don't think I'm going to be very congenial. I can't just sit and do nothing, I'm too awake." She tilted her head a little, wondering if Brennan was even willing to venture outside at the moment.
Really, a vain female was nothing new to him, and he was willing to bet that most women were like that. He hadn't met any that really stood out in his mind as being an exception to the rule. Besides, she had reason to be vain, even if modesty could be quite the virtue. She was beautiful, as a human and in her demi form, and any male would be stupid to claim otherwise.
"No, I don't mind going out. I don't exactly have a shirt, though. Mine is covered in blood and too torn for me to wear, so I think it would draw too much unwanted attention. If you have a solution for that, I don't really care where we go," he told her honestly, making a real effort not to hold anything back. He was truly putting out the effort to put emotion into his expressions, though it was impossible to think that it would be an instantaneous transformation. Even so, it seemed that his blatant honesty showed through in a genuine expression. The first step seemed to be cutting down on what he filtered between his mind and mouth.
Speaking of being open and honest about his thoughts, there was something that had worried him slightly in the back of his mind, which resurfaced right then. Food and sleep out of the way, and the clothing situation out in the open, he could focus elsewhere. Like on the fact that he now possessed falcon magic, and didn't know what the hell he was supposed to do with it. Not good. "This...magic. It's not going to suddenly blow up in my face, is it?"
It hadn't caused any trouble just yet, but that didn't mean it wouldn't.
"Brennan, I can get you a shirt," she said with a laugh. "If you want, you can take a shower and I can run down to the store and grab you one... unless you want to wear one of mine. I don't feel that a tiny white t-shirt with a Playboy bunny on it would be appropriate, unless there are some things about you I'm unaware of..." she trailed off with a laugh.
At his inquiry of the magic, though, her laugh quickly faded. "Brennan, something you need to know... we're potent. Very potent. Well, I'm not positive about you, but I know who and what I was before, and I feel exactly the same now - if you're an extension of that, than you've got the potential to be very well-versed in the magic we weave." She paused, not sure how to continue. "But... it can be dangerous. Which is why I don't want you working yourself up if you can help it. Not until I can get you a crash course in education on this... promise me?"
She seemed serious, now, so it was better if he promised.
Even with all of the 'open-ness' he was trying out, he was somewhat shocked at her description of a 'tiny white t-shirt with a Playboy bunny on it' as she was applying it to him, enough that he actually laughed out loud. That alone was even MORE startling, but it was really such a ludicrous image that he could hardly help himself. For once, instead of a quiet, controlled chuckle, he'd actually just let himself laugh. Why? Because it was what she wanted, and he was finding that one thing was certain: he'd been raised to do as he was told, and he was good at it. Perhaps it would be more helpful than he expected.
All signs of humor, however unexpected they'd been, vanished once more with her description of that magic. He'd known it was going to be trouble, but he hadn't realized it was why she was so against him freaking out. That made sense, and theoretically made him want to disappear right back into the avian reserve. "I promise," he told her, and he meant it. He was going to be walking a fine line if he was supposed to temper himself, and let go, at the same time. It sounded to him like the reserve was good if it was a bad emotion, and not if it wasn't.
Double standards, hah.
Whatever. He'd have to figure it out, and he would. Eventually. He hoped.
"I think I'll pass on the Playboy shirt. I had money in my pockets," he offered up, suddenly rather interested in whether or not it was still there, and it was. His wallet was surprisingly untouched, and he still had both bills and credit cards. He offered her a fifty, more than she'd need, and gave her a rather hopeful look. "Pants, as well?"
With his luck, he'd get a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, which wasn't his usual, but he wasn't going to complain.
"Yes," she affirmed. "Tell me your size?" And with that, she walked down the back hall, her wings turning almost to misty, glittering streaks behind her before disappearing from view completely. When she emerged, she had on a light jacket and shoes, and a purse slung over her shoulder. Hey, you had to play the part of a human properly.
"Do you require anything else?" she asked, tilting her head like a bird does. "Food, particular drinks...?" She wasn't just going to go out and come back for one thing. "I shop fast, and I bet you'll shower slow, especially when you see how big it is and how many products I've got - don't worry, they won't leave you feeling too feminine," she teased.
It took him all of about thirty seconds to fill her in on his size requirements and move on to consider anything else he might need. He really didn't know what she had available in her kitchen, though he was fairly sure he could make it work, whatever it was. He wasn't a strict vegetarian like some avians happened to be, but he still preferred fruits, vegetables and grains to meat. He'd been a raven, however, and they aren't opposed to meats in the least. That was just his own personal preference, and in the Avian Royal Court, he'd been quite capable of keeping to his preferences. Things were going to change, that much was certain.
"I don't require anything specific, but I wouldn't mind some fruit if you don't mind the extra stop," he told her, shrugging a little. For the most part, he didn't mind leaving her to her own devices where a shopping trip was concerned. As long as he had at least one set of clothing that wasn't all bloodied up, he could take care of the rest on his own at some point.
He believed her when she said that she shopped fast, though it was still hard to believe that ANY woman could manage that, in all honesty. He was willing to bet that it was all relative, and her mention of his shower being slow only helped him in that theory. He'd bet against that one, since 'products' had never been enough to distract him into taking forever in the bathroom before. A hot shower would feel good just to scrub out the grime that he felt almost certain had escaped his shower the night before, but that was all in his head. He just had some getting used to this situation to do.
"I suppose we'll see how feminine I feel by the time you get back. Just don't let me change my mind about that shirt of yours," he returned dryly, but he still smiled.
It didn't take Theia too long. She hadn't lied, she was a fast shopper in the respect that she didn't dally. There was an outdoor sort of mall only two lights down from her home, and she went in quickly to grab her items. She walked into the guest room, finding that Brennan was out of the shower, but hadn't left the bathroom yet - no doubt soaking up the steamy warmth and aromatherapy of it all - and set the bags down on his bed. He'd pick out what he wanted to wear, but ultimately, Theia had chosen his wardrobe. Dark colours suited him - simple dress shirts and relaxed jeans.
"Brennan," she called, leaning against the wall by the door, the grocery bag still in her hand. "Your clothing is on your bed. I'm going to put your food in the fridge and pantry," she said. She heard a muffled response and then went about her way. Brennan would find her in the sitting room, a green apple in her hand as she flipped through a magazine she'd picked up. She was in undeniably higher spirits since all this had transpired, considering. It was as though the other Theia had never existed.
It was true, he HAD been soaking up the steam, warmth, and time to himself. Normally, he was quick and efficient, but he'd made it a point to actually relax this time. He needed it, or he might just lose his mind in the end of all this. He still had so much to deal with.
Avalon. What was he going to do with that? Honestly, he didn't have the slightest clue. That would just be one giant mess, in all honesty.
Theia shocked him out of his thoughts enough to make him flinch, though he responded fairly normally. Time to get moving, and figure out what he was going to do with himself. The longer he took, the more difficult everything would be.
Getting dressed was first, though. He left the bathroom in a towel, not entirely surprised that she wasn't in the room, but he couldn't have said he'd be surprised if she was. She obviously didn't have the same beliefs as Avians about personal space and privacy, which was why he appreciated her being elsewhere right then. Obviously, she'd thought enough to take that into consideration, since she could have just as easily been sitting in the bedroom to read that magazine.
Jeans, pretty much as he'd expected he'd get, fortunately weren't something he was strongly against, though he usually wore something slightly classier. She'd gotten him dress shirts as well, which made for a much more pleasant balance. He could definitely deal with this, and did so. He padded into the sitting room barefoot after a few moments, and actually smiled for her.
Yes, he felt better. She wasn't the only one in slightly higher spirits, though their situations were so different. Still, he was trying to see it her way, and that was a step in the right direction. "Thank you."
"No problem," she said lightly, and it seemed like there wasn't anything to worry about. She set her magazine down and reached to the small stand next to her, tossing a peach at him. "Catch," she said, almost as the fruit flew dangerously close to him. It was hard to determine whether she did it maliciously or not, but her tone was always so innocent, and that little grin on her lips so serene, that it was easier to think she was behaving playfully.
"Do I need to take you back into the city? You can fly now, but I don't know how well the Guard would react to a soot-coloured Falcon in their airspace. Speaking of which, what sort of Falcon are you?" she asked curiously, standing up and approaching him before he could take off. "I'm a Merlin, I know. I'm exceptionally tiny," she added, a snort. She walked 'round him in a circle, tilting her head as a bird only can, before pausing. "Usually I can tell, but you're not going to read right to me for a while. I guess I'll see eventually - unless you plan never to take your other form again. I can't say I would be pleased, but at least rove freely here in your demi form when you have the energy. You can't imagine how splendid your wings look." She paused suddenly, realizing she was babbling, and frowned.
"Anyways," she said abruptly, waving her hand. She took the peach from him and took a bite of it, giving it back while he stood no-doubt open mouthed at the sudden gesture, and walked passed him back to her chair. "Do you need me to call you a cab? Is there someone you trust to come get you?" She stopped and smiled coyly. "Should I escort you in myself?"
Theia wasn't to full power, and probably never would be like she had been long ago, but it didn't mean she didn't once regard herself as unstoppable again. It was more or less her natural attitude about the state of affairs. Falcons were simply superior to other Avian races. Period. The Guard might have the last laugh, but she was confident she'd bruise more than their egos before that occurred.
It wasn't exactly the most graceful of movements on his part, but he caught the flying peach that she'd thrown, and most certainly wasn't going to comment on her decision to throw it to him. If she'd intentionally given him no warning, then he was pleased to have disappointed her in not dropping it, and if it hadn't been something of a prank, then there was no harm done. It simply wasn't something he felt a need to worry about. He had more pressing concerns.
Like, her offer, and the question.
Would he be the same as she was? He hadn't yet tried it out, so he couldn't tell for sure, but it would make sense if he was. It'd be the ONLY thing that made sense in the whole situation, but at least there'd be that. He stood still while she circled him and declared that she really couldn't tell what kind he was and that she'd be displeased if he never took his full bird form again. Once more, he was torn between being proud at her compliment to his wings, and not liking that there was such a difference. Double-edged sword. He'd do as she asked and be sure to wander in his demi-form around her house, though. She HAD asked, and he couldn't deny that he preferred it. It felt more relaxed.
"If everyone doesn't think I'm dead, it'll be a miracle, so I'm not going to call anyone to pick me up," he explained, hesitating at the idea of having her escort him. That was a tricky one. He wasn't sure if mixing Amaltheia and the Royal Flight would be a good idea, but he didn't know what would happen if he went alone and did something unintentional. She was the only one who could help him deal with his new situation, and going in blind seemed like a bad idea.
As long as she wasn't going to level the building, it would probably be better if she went with him. "If you don't mind coming with me, that may be best."
Having her along would also increase his chances of surviving in case it got nasty, which he hoped it wouldn't. Brennan was honorable, but he didn't want to die again. Once was enough for one week, thank you.
"Well, than we can go now, if you want. Or, we can wait until morning. It's up to you. Do you think you should call her, or would you rather just... show up?" she asked, canting her head from her position in the chair again. She felt like every time she spoke to Brennan, his formal nature made him seem like he was on a chopping block. Theia spoke with ease, be it harshly or kindly, and everything he said seemed so precise and held-back. She'd stopped trying to press his buttons because it ceased to be amusing, but she wondered what else she could do.
She let the thoughts slide by as quickly as they'd come. "Either way, we'll be flying. I refuse to deny the sky my form any longer than I have to," she said firmly. And there was the Falcon attitude she'd been retaining all these years. She didn't smile when she said it, because she was absolutely, positively, one-hundred and ten percent serious. To deny the blue skies the lovely vision of her small, light Merlin form was a crime against nature, and she was ready to remedy it as soon as possible.
There wouldn't be much of a point without Brennan, though, considering that was the whole reason she'd be leaving the house.
Did he really want to call her and warn her? That might be best, just so everyone didn't freak out when they showed up, though calling her would also put her on guard about why he HAD to call and warn her, and why he didn't just come home. Either way, it wouldn't look good.
Great.
It was unfortunate that she wasn't thrilled with his formal nature, since he usually liked it. He HAD promised to try not to be so bad, and he actually wasn't feeling so much like freaking out over much of anything. He didn't give her a funny look when she refused to 'deny the sky her form', which meant he either hadn't paid much attention to it, or hadn't really thought much about what she'd just said, and there was also the fact that he hadn't done more than STARE at her when she stole the fruit back, took a bite, and returned it to him. He'd turned his now violet eyes on it, seemed to manage a mental shrug, and then bit into it himself.
If that wasn't loosening up on his part, what was?
"I'd rather fly. I miss it, and I have a new set of wings to try out," he answered, far more honestly than usual. It wasn't something that was extremely obvious, but it was there. Now, to see what happened next.
It wasn't like anyone had to wait any longer, though neither of them were likely to realize what was wrong. Standing there eating that peach, he felt almost like he'd zoned out, though he heard Theia say something. "Alia for a girl, Aeson for a boy. What do you think?"
What?
Did he hear her right?
Um.
"What did you say?" he asked, actually blinking at her for a second. He must have spaced out and not been paying attention, because that didn't make sense. Why would she have said that? No, it made no sense.
"What?" she repeated, looking up at him. Her expression clearly said that she hadn't even been listening after his initial response, having gone back to her magazine. "I said, do you want to leave now or tomorrow? It's dark out, so it'll be easier to get by unseen, but I don't know if I want you flying around when you still don't know what you're doing. You might end up flying into a building," she laughed.
Amaltheia still hadn't thought about the gravity of this situation, and if she had, she hadn't been thinking about what she needed to be. Brennan's sudden outburst went right by her, and she just figured he was still confused about what was going on.
Oddly enough, when Theia had still been Aleya, she had definitely considered the names of her mother and brother for a child, but that was a distant past that would never have happened thus. She'd have probably flipped out of he'd even uttered what he'd just heard.
Fortunately for Theia, Brennan frowned, but didn't ask again. He knew what he'd heard, but he didn't get it, so he just let it go. She'd asked a different question in its place, and that was something he understood, something that applied to his current situation.
"I know how to fly," he reminded her, not at all understanding her concern. Sure, flying in the dark wasn't easy, but it wasn't as though he didn't know how. "Why would I fly into a building?"
As long as she wasn't planning on jumping off of any, he figured he was safe. He'd only ever flown into one building, and it had been intentional on his part at the time. He wasn't going to bring that factor up, however, since the woman before him was so completely different from the one he'd met that day. The fact that he now understood what she'd been feeling, having lost his own wings as well, helped achieve his silence on the subject. He hadn't wanted to die when his time came, though. Would she have changed her mind by the time she reached the ground?
He was focused on her for the answer to his question, since he HAD asked it, but as his thoughts wandered to the one time he HAD flown into a building, it was as though his entire mind wandered completely away. He didn't seem to think it at all strange that he didn't even feel like he was in her sitting room, but flying towards that building once more, watching her fall. For a few horrible seconds, all he saw was her falling, and he didn't dive for her. He merely watched, wondering what could be so bad that it could cause a woman to dive from a building. He thought he saw her reach the ground, but without any warning, she was falling again, and he didn't wait and watch this time. He dove, feeling much like he'd done this before, though he didn't know when, and shifted in mid-air to catch her and attempt to slow their fall. He didn't crash through a window, however, and instead impacted the building's wall, hard. This time, they both fell, his back and wings burning from the impact like a fire that slowly began to spread throughout the rest of his body. They fell, and he was powerless to stop them.
Perhaps his only saving grace here was that they impacted the ground, and he jerked back into Theia's home with a sharp gasp and a few frantic looks around. The burning was fading, though his confusion only managed to increase. What. The Hell.
He blinked down at the peach that he'd nearly finished, almost as though he thought it might be responsible, and tossed it in the trash.
She studied his features with a blank expression, one that she'd managed to re-summon after thousands of years of not even bothering. By Theia's traditional teachings, she had an amazing poker face, and she was utilizing it now more than ever since she'd gotten her control back. She felt like herself again, and that meant that everything else would align by the minute.
"Brennan?" she asked, as he threw the peach violently at the trashcan. It went in, which was good, because if it hadn't, she'd have been making him clean it up. Peaches were sticky, as she'd found while pressing her lips together while she sat in her chair. She needed to get a drink to wash the juice away, but she hadn't felt like moving until that moment.
There was a mild... disturbance around him. She couldn't find any other way to put it. She frowned now, which meant that she was actually bothered by it. "We'd better go now, then." The feeling was familiar, and yet she was still out of touch with her memories and her magics, so while they were there, they hadn't yet started hitting the surface of her thoughts. She was impatient on this matter, but it wasn't something she could rightly control. Her human mind had muddled her thoughts together, and now her Falcon mind was sorting them dutifully, but slowly.
"We should go now, before it gets any later," she said. She walked to the kitchen to get some water, and then went to the door. "You know the way, so I'll just follow you."
She couldn't help that little feeling tugging at her about just driving there, but she pushed it back as her own apprehension to the entire situation. She didn't like the idea of popping up - one Falcon against what would very well be the entire Avian Guard... she'd be gearing up with every beat of her wings. Hopefully she'd be prepared by the time they got there.
He didn't exactly mean to, but one isn't raised a certain way without things becoming habit, and the Avian Reserve was on of those things. Unsure of what to make of what had just happened, he fell upon his Reserve to keep him from looking to troubled, and instead nodded at her decision to leave immediately. He couldn't know what prompted it, but it was a decision he hadn't wanted to make. He would have, but he hadn't particularly wanted to. Now, he didn't have to.
How was he to know that this 'disturbance in the Force' was dangerous?
Fortunately, he'd flown to her place in the past, so he actually did know how to get back. This time, he didn't feel the need to worry about someone seeing him, either. The Royal Flight was going to have more to worry about than the fact that he'd been in Theia's home. She'd decided to fly, and so his only hesitation laid in the fact that he'd lost the wings he was familiar with. Sure, he still knew how to fly, but this was still a big deal. Giving Theia the chance to prod at him about it wasn't an option, though.
One deep breath later, he'd shifted to take to the sky.
Amaltheia couldn't fight the strange feeling creeping up her spine, the one that told her that something was very wrong, but she shifted and followed him all the same. She let out a small cry of glee as she took to the sky, her small, light form rocketing passed him and diving down to his side after a moment of self-satisfying glory. She was still as fast as she'd ever been, and that made her just as giddy as a mouse.
The flight wasn't a terribly long one. Pyrige was only an hour or so away from the actual city itself, and so Theia wasn't nearly even beginning to get winded when they began approaching the scene of tall buildings. She focused her keen eyes more sharply on some of the ones that were decrepit, making a note that the unlit ones were going to be problematic if she didn't stay high enough. Neither of them were dropping any altitude, though, and she stayed just a breath behind Brennan, giving him some room. She wasn't interested in crowding him while he got his new bearings.
The absolute first thing that Brennan noticed upon taking flight was the strength in his wings. He'd never been weak, but there's only so much that a raven is capable of. A falcon holds so much more power in flight than any raven could ever boast, and that didn't even take into account the increase in sight. He felt as though he'd been blind before, and only now could he really see. It was like nothing he'd ever experienced before, and he wanted to push his own limits just to see what exactly he could do, but he refrained. Better to get a grip on it before pushing.
That was a wise choice since, unlike Theia, he didn't have that feeling warning him that something was wrong. It was just him and this new form, though he took notice of Theia shooting past him and then diving. She looked brilliant, much in the same way that Avalon looked as a hawk. They were different, of course, but it was the same sense of beauty in this form. They were opposites in their own right, though. Avalon was always golden and warm, where Theia's feathers took on a silvery sheen that was only enhanced by the moon and the city's lights as they approached. She fell back behind him to let him show the way now that they were in the city, but that didn't change the fact that the city was beautiful. It just drew his eyes from her form as well.
The city was beautiful. He'd never taken the time to really look, and though there was certainly filth and trash, that was on the ground. He had no need to be on the ground. He was in the sky and the city's heights were brilliant. Light and dark, the buildings rose up towards the clouds in what looked to be a vain attempt at achieving what Brennan and Theia already possessed.
He didn't take any notice of it as a building seemed to fade in and out of reality, or that others were doing the same thing. He was so caught up on the lights and the movement that it never got through to his rational mind that something was wrong, even as he flew closer to buildings that were both there, and not.
Theia had fallen behind enough to feel the disturbance in power. She felt something shift, some sort of... interference. She narrowed her eyes on Brennan as he suddenly descended, and flew directly towards a rather large building that was well-lit, if nothing else.
What is he DOING?
And then it hit her.
Before she had time to react, they flew in too close, and she was only barely able to stop him from slamming into the building. She shifted into demi-form as she grabbed him, still in his own Falcon form. She forced her energy through him, causing him to go back into demi-form as well. The only problem there, was that he was too heavy for her to simply hold up and support herself, as well as retain their current position in the sky.
They were going down.
"BRENNAN!" she screamed. "LOSE THE WINGS! NOW!"
The descent was horrifying as they spiraled downward, a tangle of black and blonde hair, black wings and white, until she felt the impact. The terrifying sound of glass shattering against her wingless back snapped pain through her, and she screamed, holding onto him as they plummeted through a rooftop pool encased in artistic, architectural glass.
She hit the water, hard, and sank to the bottom, limbs flailing as she struggled to push off the base of the pool and up. A ripple of magic tore through the enclosure, the glass walls and man-made structures bending and finally exploding, sending the icy, sharp shrapnel in all directions. She caught a few pieces in the face and arms, but it wasn't enough to stop her as she swirled madly in the tumult of water.
"Brennan? BRENNAN!"
It took him precious moments to realize what was going on, that there was a problem, and then the shock of being forced to his demi-form hit and further disoriented him. All he knew was that they were falling, and it was as he tried to flare his wings to slow them down that she screamed for him to 'lose the wings'.
So, he did.
He saw the glass right before they hit it, and couldn't do a damn thing to stop it except squeeze his eyes shut and tilt his head downwards to protect his face. The image of the water below them was a godsend, even falling in the rain of glass as they were, and he actually pushed off of Theia and to the side before they could impact. The last thing he wanted was for his weight to force her down harder. Again. She'd already hit the glass harder, something that naturally threw his thoughts to their first meeting. He hoped this didn't keep happening, and then he was crashing into the pool water and not wondering much of anything.
That hurt more than he expected, especially with all the glass. Nothing compared to Theia's scream echoing in his ears and mind, though.
This was all his fault, wasn't it?
He kicked off the bottom of the pool as soon as he hit it, shooting for the surface to the sound of her screaming his name. Again. "Theia!" he called in return. He was bleeding, but he couldn't be as bad off as she was by far. She'd hit first.
"What happened? How badly are you hurt?" he asked her quickly, pushing through the water with no real regard for himself and the glass in the water. Above all, he felt guilty. He wasn't supposed to endanger people. It was his job to protect people.
Theia looked like something out of a horror film. White-blonde hair was streaked with blues and purples from the blast of power, and stained with blood. She had strange, spiderweb cuts all over her bare arms and most of her back, since the top she'd been wearing was low-backed enough to let her demi-form out with ease. She stood at the edge of the pool, still coughing, trying to wipe the blood and chlorinated filth from her eyes long enough to see.
She was shaking, trying to gather her thoughts. The blast of power was nothing she wasn't able to shield, but the structure itself was completely ruined. She couldn't hear any voices or shouts below, which led her to believe that this was commercial property, probably something sublet, and currently unoccupied. She couldn't see any traces of life around the area save Brennan, who was wallowing around in the water, trying to get out.
"Get to the stairs," she finally said, unable to believe what was happening.
"Aleya, if you only knew what I have seen."
"Aeson?" she said suddenly, jerking her head. "Fuck!" she screamed. Was Brennan sucking her into the void? Was she falling into it herself? The Ecl, all-claiming. The hollow, the place where you go and just don't come back. She could feel the draw, the seductive sound of white noise, and Aeson's voice, but he was so far...
"We need to get to Aristide, NOW," she commanded, reaching out to pull him out of the water. She was soaked and bloody, but so was he. This wouldn't, she felt, be any sort of unusual occurrence to that demonic man.
"I won't be tormented by the voices of the damned," she hissed to herself, under her breath. She stalked towards the nearest exit, and if Brennan wasn't following, she was going to finish him herself before he leveled the city on accident.
Well, apparently, she wasn't too badly hurt. She called out some name that he...recognized. Aeson for a boy... She said she hadn't said that! Was she deliberately messing with his head? What was going ON?
"Aeson? You said that earlier, and Alia. Who are they?" he demanded, following her out without hesitation. He'd like to get to Aristide, as well. He'd had enough already, and wasn't going to keep this up. Of course, he had no idea just how bad it all was. Flying into buildings and seeing things that weren't there wasn't the least of it.
How far was it to Aristide? He didn't know, didn't know anything about the guy, except that they had to get to him and make him fix this. "What's happening, Theia?"
Amaltheia whipped around so fast that her hair slung back, splashing bloody water droplets around in the stairwell, no doubt spraying Brennan. Her eyes narrowed, and she took a step towards him in an almost threatening manner. She hadn't done that in a while, and with her power and grace behind her, restored, it was... as frightful as it should have been.
"You are never to say those names again, Brennan. Ever. Do you understand me?" she asked, her voice dangerously quiet, a shrill sort of whisper, laced with rage and sorrow - the same sorrow she'd been carrying when he stopped her from her swan dive into the asphalt.
She turned back around once she was satisfied, power arcing in her eyes, making them effervescent. "What's happening, Brennan, is that you got put back together wrong. You're a Falcon in form, but not wholly in soul, and your magic is going to basically equate to someone dropping an atomic bomb on this city if we don't find a way to fix it." She spoke stiffly as she descended the stairs, banging through doors as they came.
"He knew what he was doing," she said. "I don't care what he says, he knew we'd be back." She was firm that this was some way to ensure that he collected the debt she owed him. She was generally going to assume something was wrapped up around her, even if it wasn't, but that was as logical a reason as any when dealing with the witch doctor.
"Keep yourself calm and under control, Brennan. Every time you stutter in your power, everything else around you is going to be affected, and that doesn't exclude you."
Okay, he didn't get this. None of it.
He stopped dead in his tracks when she whipped around like that, torn between getting angry and indignant himself (since he hadn't DONE anything to learn those names, SHE'D said them), and feeling appropriately cowed (it was his fault they were in this mess). It was a tough spot to be in, but he kept his mouth shut and simply nodded.
Then, she explained, and he just STARED.
Put back together WRONG?! Atomic bomb?! WHY would someone want that? It didn't make any sense! "Why would that man do that intentionally? Isn't that...stupid?" he asked, somewhat surprised that she was basically telling him to go back to the Avian Reserve. Within seconds, it was back with a vengeance, but that didn't mean he was going to keep it up. He felt so easily distracted. He'd never had that sort of problem before.
Oh.
That explained it. Time to focus.
Thread continued here (http://angdar.com/nightsomen/index.php?topic=1369.0).