castleinthemist | 03 | Gem of Amarra

Entry tags:

buffy: harth fray [ou]

03 | Gem of Amarra | OTA

Harth was stunned.

The sun was bright and brilliant, gleaming off of his glasses. Even as a human he had seen so little of it under the blanket of smog over Haddyn. You had to give it to whoever was in charge, creating the universe, be it god, demon, powers that be, they had a particular poetic ism when it came to beauty. The sun gave life, life that sustained even those who were no longer living.

He walked through the courtyard, clumsily climbing onto a stone slab that seemed to have served a purpose at one point, but no longer. He sits there, enjoying the sun on his face warming his otherwise room temperature skin.

It was so warm.

But that warmth only served as a reminder about how much he yearned to have a decent meal. He he was starved, and no amount of birds or rats would satiate him. He needed a meal. Human. The problem was finding someone naive enough and gullible enough to follow him.

What he'd give to have that witch in his clutches, just now. Watch her scream into his hand before he bit her. Bonus? He wouldn't have to deal with her exposing him. But that would be too easy.

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At his request, a smirk came over her face, one that screamed of evil and mischief. She lifted her fists and slammed them on the pillar. It instantly dropped. They stayed where they were for a split second before gravity took over and they plummeted, though the ground was only just a few inches below them at all times.

As they neared the ground, the pillar stopped before slowly lowering them to the grass and the shade, standing upright on their feet. Her talent could be terrifying and incredible.

"There. That's better." She dusted off her front before walking past him. "We'll try to go as far as we can, but it's not a great idea to get too far into the castle just by ourselves."

She could handle most things that came her way, but still, that outing with the Duos had made her want to be more cautious.

She was going to make this difficult for him, wasn't she? And for that? Her pranks were becoming tiresome now. He offered a small chuckle though there was little emotion behind it.

"Let's go out and survey things. You can show me your tricks along the way." He said, stepping onward towards the common area.

"Sounds fine with me. Just pick a hall and we'll go." She shrugged to him, hands behind her head as she walked.

She waited for him to make up his mind before following him.

Toph wanted to get more controlled face time with these creatures. She wanted to learn more and more about them, see what about them she COULD sense, if anything.

He didn't bother making a gesture, or pick up a length of wood when he left the common area into the stair's room. He simply moved on up he stairs. They were going back to the trolley which seemed to be the most direct route and the easiest way far from the common area.

"This way, Toph." He said quietly, taking note of anyone he may have to answer to. Nobody watching just now. Safe enough.

Toph didn't think much of his actions. Or, rather, the lack thereof. She'd been told the castle was mostly too dark to see far, but it was bright outside, or at least hot enough to convince her it was bright.

Or maybe Harth had a fancy "flash light" like she'd heard Duo talking about. As for his lack of a weapon, she was just a tiny but suspicious. Ah, but he didn't seem like the fighting type. He probably hadn't thought to get one. But hey, he had her, right?

The thought made her grin, even through the light tingle in the back of her neck.

Something didn't sit well about the whole situation, but she shoved the feeling to the back of her mind. She had no reason to suspect anything bad would happen aside from a mishap with the monsters.

Although she paused in her advance to try and reassure herself, it wasn't but a minute before she was right behind him again, albeit quieter. She was listening for things.

It wasn't nearly as dark as people have made it out to be. Once they were in the sun lit stair room or the following long room, sure. It was dark in there. But once they were outside of that it was the sun beating down on them again. To think that Harth was just a mere lost ring away from a inferno. A fiery and untimely demise.

"I encountered the shadows with Heero. I think I'll be able to direct you properly." And hopefully he wouldn't need a weapon.

"This way." Up the second set of stairs onto that long stretch, up to the rooftop.

She followed him, attention on the ground and the various sounds around them.

"Is there anything back here worth exploring?"

She counted her steps as she walked, measuring how far from the stairs and how far down each hall and how many total they'd taken. She couldn't see through the entire castle like normally, but she could make mental maps and try to memorize them.

It didn't always work, but she tried, at least.

"Seems like the most straight forward direction to access the rest of the castle." He remarks dryly as he approaches the last step to the roof, then turning his eyes around. He could see and hear birds fluttering around, flying free in the blue sky. His eyes then fell down to the dome shaped structure to his right. He stepped towards it.

"Over here, Toph. Can you sense what's down there?"

"Over where?" she asks automatically as if on impulse, but quickly makes her way to his side and focuses her attention at where she figured he was looking.

She put effort into it, going so far as to actually start squinting. It did her no good visually, but helped her concentrate a little.

Still, it was all in vain, really. A hand rested on the bars in front of her and she sighed, sounding annoyed with herself.

"I dunno. I can tell it's there, but I can't tell what's in it. Why, do you see something I can't?"

Y'know, besides the whole great big bright and clear obvious entire world around her.

"Hole in the ceiling. Wonder what's in there." Privacy. Supplies. He just says it with nothing more than mild curiosity. Betraying not his intent to lure her anywhere out of sight and out of mind.

"How about bending a way down there?"

"Just as easily done as said," she giggled with a mischievous smirk.

Her feet spread wide and she focused her concentration and pull on the roof, the iron, the wall, and the dome. A width of stone shot out from the roof they were standing on and stretched like taffy out to the dome. The iron bars were merely moved out of the way so they could get to the long walk way that she'd made.

She relaxed back, fists on her hips and a look on her face that screamed, "Behold!; the power of the greatest Earthbender in the world!"

"Okay. Come on." She climbed onto the walk way and headed down towards the dome. The walk way crackled and dropped bits as they walked, but otherwise stayed solid and strong under their steps.

That smirk of hers was beginning to wear his paitence thin, not to mention cause him to feel concern whenever it appeared on her face. It wasn't fear, just apprehension. Whenever she assaulted her with her pranks out of boredom all it did was annoy him. Thankfully in moments it would nolonger be a problem.

He started down the steps on the walkway towards the dome area, looking down in what seemed to be a storage unit. A few metal crates on the floor, but it was spacious and roomy. Harth liked it, provided there was a new roof.

"We could use this place." He remarked, looking up at the hole in the roof as he looked for a door.

"There's no real way to access this place, but that roof could use a repair."

"It seems easy enough to access from up here. I could just make stairs for the way down," she told him, standing on the edge of the break in the dome and the walkway.

Almost as easily as she'd formed the walk, she worked on the stairs. Her back was turned to him as she did so, and it wasn't until she'd pulled stone from the dome itself to form a door and an outcropping, did she turn to face him.

"There. How's that? It's not repaired, but it's certainly improved!"

She moved through the door and began tip toeing down the stairs.

"Geeze. Roomy in here, isn't it? What would we use it for?"

"If you say so." Harth replied slowly, stepping fully into the domed room, moving, climbing down awkwardly into the room proper.

"A secondary shelter? A check point?" What did he know about exploring? Not that much, but it made sense to him.

He stumbled again once he was on the ground. This boy was not sure footed at all.

At least he seemed that way. She concentrated on his movements for a moment before turning her head back to the rest of the room.

Something still didn't sit well with her, but she couldn't put her finger on it. Without something substantial to solidify her fears, she simply pushed it to the back of her mind and moved into the darker corners.

"Those work, I guess. It depends on how thick the monsters are around here. If it's not that bad, maybe I'll call it mine!" She grinned to herself and tossed herself to the ground against the wall, relaxing in a mound of hay. ... molding hay.

"Ew."

Harth moved over to her, standing then crouching beside her. He took a piece of the hay and examined it. Still plenty for a small offering. For a small spell. Good idea.

In another language, one he used deliberately, he seemed to recite a short little poem over her, turning his hand upwards as the hay dissolved in his hand. With what was left, he sprinkled the dust over Toph. A very simple sleeping spell.

"Very ew." He concurred, retreating from her and moving around.

"It's not too bad. Just dry old strings of hay and straw. We don't even have any thing close to this in haddyn."

She froze when she noticed his nearness. His words caught her attention too, more because she couldn't understand them than she actually heard them. She didn't pay it too much mind- he was from another world, after all, maybe it was another language. Still, it interested her.

"... what was that, a nursery rhyme-" she asked, pausing to sneeze at the dust come over her. "What?! Ew! Harth!" she quickly stood, but didn't bother brushing herself off. She was used to being covered in dirt and dust. "And what was THAT?!"

That was ANNOYING, that's what! Ah, but maybe after all her pranking and jokes, she deserved it. The kid probably wasn't much of a clever prankster and couldn't think of anything else.

She summoned a small whirlwind of dust and threw it at him, a smirk on her face. She was almost proud of him, but that didn't mean she wouldn't keep striking back. She would have thrown a small stone or something, but... Oosh, maybe all that exploring was getting to her.

Harth was chuckling. A clever joke it was, though she'll never understand it. He stood back away from her, though allowing himself to get hit by the dust cloud, coughing just for his own amusement and practice keeping himself in character. Once the dust cloud dissipated he looked back down at her.

"Feeling tired?"

"No," she protested, though she fell back onto a stony chair, laying back into it rather than leaning forward as she usually did. "Why? Are you? Let's take a break. It seems safe enough, then-" she couldn't hold back a yawn. "- then we can continue."

Darn. She was tired.

"C'mon, take a rest," she offered, pulling up an identical chair for him just in front of hers. Probably bad placement, but she didn't care too badly. She was... actually kind of too tired to worry about the proximity.

He took the seat, but kept his eyes scanning the room. For both shadows and anyone else who might decide to explore this new little area with the stairs leading down to it. It wouldn't take long for any of this, but then he also had to deal with the story he'd tell anyone who had questions. As far as he knew, she was taken by the shadows.

So he just watched, her, arms crossed. "Yes. We can rest a bit, I don't mind a bit."

She felt herself relax and drift off for nearly half a second before she remembered where she was. She jolted awake with a silent start.

Something was wrong. Very wrong.

"... maybe we need to get back to safety," she insisted. "Come on, let's go. Now!"

Was that fear in her voice? ... yes, actually. She... she felt like she shouldn't, and she didn't know why or how... and it was a bad thing in this horrible environment where monsters could eat them at any given moment. She was worried for herself, and her friend.

She turned away from him and took a few steps, only to fall to her knees and arms, trying to hold herself up, staying awake by the few thin threads of sheer hardheadedness and determination, and she clenched everything from her fists to her teeth, thinking that some how if she relaxed even a little, she'd be out.

Something was definitely wrong.

Harth let her insist, push him backwards and he stepped aside to let her push past him and fall to her knees. He stood up over her, standing next to her.

"Toph?" He asked, reaching down to her to try and rouse her. See how effective the spell is, it sure was taking a while.

Just sleep now, little one. It will be over soon.

No. That was it for the tiny Earthbender. Her elbows gave out and she fell the rest of the way to the dusty ground.

She was asleep before she hit.

Although her eyes were still open, she was out like a light. She was breathing deep and slow, a very unresponsive little girl.

Good night, world. Good night, Toph.

And Harth pulled her up into his arms, checking her response. None. She was out, unconcious. A painless end for her. How merciful was he. He couldn't have her screaming, could he? No. Not with such tight knit networks.

He didn't hesitate after that, not a moment longer did he allow his face to stay the same. His changed, face distorting to that of the beast, the demon inside. He bared his fangs, turning Toph's head to access her neck before taking a bite, and he drank. And drank. And drank until he felt her heart slow to a crawl, and then not moments later, til it stopped. Until her heart was done, her veins tight and empty.

Toph the Earthbender was no more.

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03 | Gem of Amarra | OTA

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