viceofvoices | Of Courts and Courting

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hild,
roleplay

Of Courts and Courting

Traveling beyond enemy borders is no easy feat no matter who you are. It takes some finesse and knowledge and maybe even a generous amount of luck. And if you're trying not to be found? Doubly tricky! But Hild managed. After all, her love life was on the line.

Since their botched wedding, Hild and Krichevskoy went about life much the same way they did before, only now the tensions between their two clans of demons was focused primarily on a third threat: the monsters and lesser demons who had risen up much earlier than anticipated thanks to Hild's secret meddling. And while that meant Hild and Krichevskoy no longer had to get married, it seemed she had less and less time to even spend time with him out of her own free will. War councils and spell preparations, magic training and scouting missions...really, all she wanted to do was sneak away and spend time with...

Pausing under a tree in the forest lining this border of Krichevskoy's kingdom, the cloaked Hild paused and grinned to herself, swept up in the memory of their last encounter. He'd actually kissed her back, which was more than he'd ever done before. Hands to her cheeks, one of the most powerful demons in the universe squirmed in bashfulness as she recalled the event, oblivious to her surroundings.

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It wasn't long before another cloaked figure appeared in the forest, looking behind him every so often to make sure no one was following him. Krichevskoy stopped suddenly when he saw Hild and, smiling, pulled down his hood as he closed the distance between them. "I must confess, the danger in all of this is quite appealing."

"...!" She stopped her undignified fangirling and turned, her cloak fanning out behind her. "Ah! Darling!"

Ccompletely undoing any stealth and subterfuge on their part, Hild launched herself at Krichevskoy, all hearts and sparkling eyes. "You came after all!"

Despite himself, Krichevskoy froze when Hild launched herself at him. They may have shared a kiss, but Krichevskoy was still unused to such shows of affections from fellow demons. "O, Of course. You did not think I would?"

As per usual, Hild seemed uncaring of his reticence, draping her arms around his shoulders and smiling brightly. "I think many things about you," she answered, as if that explained anything. She then paused, glancing over her shoulder.

"...we shouldn't dawdle. Is there a place within your lands we could safely relax?"

"'Safely' is a bit difficult, but I believe there is a watchtower nearby. It was abandoned recently," he said, putting his hands on her hips. Very recently, in fact. With the alliance that had recently been formed, another watchtower had become more strategically viable. There wasn't much of a reason to keep an eye on an allied land, after all.

...Krichevskoy might have had a hand in the decision as well.

Her eyebrows rose at his hand placement and she shot him a sly, flirtatious grin. While Hild was, obviously, not privy to Krichevskoy's machinations on his side of the present political strife, she had an inkling he was doing more than he'd let on. She moved closer, pressing her chest to his and all but purring up at him.

"Well, then, no point in waiting. We have much to discuss, dear...let's do so comfortably."

he seemed a little disappointed to be moving so soon, but Krichevskoy knew Hild was right in wanting to move somewhere private. Though the border was not as dangerous a place as it had been in the past, he wasn't sure what would happen if they were noticed. "This way," he said, and started toward the watchtower.

They likely both sensed it at the same time -- murderous intent from the cover of the shadowed trees around them! Thus Hild had no real worry for Krichevskoy, for the man who'd captured her heart would obviously be no push over. Even before the twang of a bowstring sounded, she moved, dodging backwards. An arrow, its magical properties quite apparent to her eyes, vibrated even after it sunk into a tree behind where they had been standing.

"Ahh...already?" Hild sighed, blowing her bangs from her eyes in annoyance.

Edited 2012-12-09 04:51 (UTC)

Krichevskoy frowned and glanced back at the arrow. He thought he might have felt another presence in the forest, but he had dismissed it as his being overly cautious. It seemed he shouldn't have dismissed their enemies so easily.

He reached back into his cloak and pulled out a spear, eyes narrowed as he glared into the trees. "Such impatience is unseemly."

Another arrow aimed right at his heart was Krichevskoy's only answer. But from the shadows, a slender silhouette followed the attack, slowly revealing herself. It was short demon archer, blonde ringlet curls and an adorable dress directly in conflict with the grim, dark expression on her face.

For her part, Hild hovered in space as if sitting on a throne, her elbow on her knee and her chin in her hand. She smiled slightly, glancing between the two. "Hmm...one of yours, darling?"

"Yes..." Krichevskoy replied distractedly. What in the world was an archer doing here? And why would she be pointing that arrow at him? He sighed. "Traitorous acts may be better received by us, but this is hardly the time for an assassination."

And that would have to be a very powerful bow if the archer wanted to even pierce his skin, much less his heart.

Hild barely moved, but her eyes narrowed and her smiled tightened ever so slightly as she gazed beyond the archer to the forest behind. A pulse of power, so faint even she could barely feel it, seemed to be flowing towards the little demon girl from the shadows behind her.

The archer lifted her bow again and drew an arrow. Though it seemed perfectly normal to the naked eye, something dark and powerful could be sensed within the weapon now. Hild lifted her chin from her hand in alarm.

"Krichevskoy!"

The arrow was let loose and with it, a dark curse like any other.

Krichevskoy moved the moment he heard her warning. Though the arrow didn't meet the mark it intended, it still managed to pierce him through the shoulder. He cried out and dropped his spear in pain, but kept his wits about him enough to toss a large ball of energy the archer's way in retaliation.

An explosion and the archer was flung backwards into the trees. She hit the ground with a sickening crack, a stunned expression on her face -- almost as if she hadn't expected to be hit.

Hild completely disregarded the archer, straightening out her body from its casual sitting position to a powerful stance hovering over the ground. Her arm outstretched, she tossed her own ball of energy towards the presence she felt still watching them. The force of her power blew her cloak and hair backwards, debris swirling in the air, but it wasn't fast enough -- the bolt hit nothing, their enemy vanished.

She grit her teeth in vexation, allowing her feet to touch the ground. "...there is more here than I prepared for." She moved quickly to Krichevskoy's side, her gaze flat as she took in the sight of his wound.

"...you were hit..."

Krichevskoy reaches for the wound and wraps his hand around the arrow. "It is fine. I have suffered worse injuries." He tries to keep himself somewhat relaxed but every so often a bit of pain lances through his arm. "You.... would not happen to know any healing spells?"

He had no doubts that he would easily heal in time, but he would much rather have it taken care of now, just in case they had another visitor.

"Or... shall we go to that tower now?"

Hild's expression softened in worry at the sight of his pain, but just for a moment. Then a darkness entered her gaze, her voice a soft, quiet threat as she reaches out to help support him. "They will pay for this." While her other arm supported his waist, she hovered her other hand over the arrow. A deep magenta light spread from the tips of her fingers to the arrow, surrounding it in light before dissolving it into nothing. When the light faded, the wound bled freely...and dark black tendrils were crawling from the wound, up his arm and under his skin.

"Krichevskoy..." Hild's jaw tightened. "Yes, the tower. Can you make it on your own two feet?" By her expression, it seemed she would carry him if she had to.

He stared openly gaping at the wound. "That... I have not seen before," he half-whispered.

Krichevskoy swallowed and took a step. He felt weaker by the second, but he was sure he could make it. "Yes. I should be able to," he said, bending over to pick his spear up off of the ground. His gaze traveled to the wound again, but only for a moment. The longer he looked at it, the more his stomach turned.

She watched his back in silence, hands clenched into fists. The cold anger inside her, while excellent motivation for battle, helped nothing at this moment. She had to calm down and make sure not to alarm him. Adjusting her hood over her head, she glanced dispassionately down at the fallen archer for a moment before taking his arm and smiling gently.

"Come. We'll get you situated comfortably and I shall see about decoding this nasty little wound of yours."

He nodded, only cautioning a glance back at the wound in hopes that it might somehow have healed a little during the walk. Needless to say, he found himself regretting that choice.

"It should be in a clearing through those trees."

Hild said little as they made their way to the tower, her eyes still sharp and brimming with some powerful emotion just under the surface. By the time they entered the tower, their linked arms became necessity as much as anything else and she feared he would fall at any moment if not supported by her demonic strength.

The building, though hardly inconspicuous, was luckily absent of any guards or witnesses, so she pulled Krichevskoy up to the top and sat him down on a chair.

"I'd like to give you a more comfortable arrangement, but I'm afraid this needs to be tended to as soon as possible." Hild knelt by his side, peering up at his face. "...how does it feel?"

"It does not hurt anymore, but it is not quite... comfortable, either," he said, resisting the urge to roll his shoulder a bit. Frankly "not comfortable" was a bit of an understatement, but he wasn't sure how to go about explaining how it felt, either. Itchy, disgusting, but not painful.

"I am a bit afraid to ask how it looks." Magically as well as physically. He reached up and pulled at the ties of his cloak, removing it with his uninjured arm. As he reached up to pull his shirt collar down a bit to show the wound, he stopped. "Would it be better if I removed this?"

Even if he didn't, it was plain to see that the curse had gotten further along. The tendrils had spread up to his neck and upper arm, the area where they had come from slowly fading to an inky black.

"No, don't move...I'll do it," she was quick to respond, rising to carefully loosen his collar and get a glimpse. Such rapid spreading...what creature had this power? Who was it that had aided, if not outright manipulated, that lowly archer girl? It was only the naturally queenly bearing she had that prevented her face from twisting into fear and anger.

Instead she gently removed his jacket and brushed back the curtain of lavender hair from his shoulder. "I'm...not certain what this is," she finally said, placing her fingertips lightly to the blackened flesh. "It's not poison, certainly magic, but...it's nothing I've seen before."

She paused and then straightened, untying her cloak and tossing it aside. "I might have suggested removing your arm, but it's spread too far now. I must attack it head on with my own ability. May I?"

His eyes go wide and he pales a bit. "Remove my--?!" He swallows, not sure whether it's that suggestion or Hild's idea that attacking the curse with her own magic is somehow more drastic that worries him more.

"You think it is that dangerous?"

Finally she allowed herself to express her concern, brow furrowed. "Krichevskoy, the arrow was enchanted to begin with, or you would not have been hit. They were prepared for your strengths and planned around it...which means this is no simple curse."

Once more, she knelt at his feet and put her hand on his knee, the light violet of her eyes fairly glowing in the light from the tower window as she gazed up at him. Her voice was a little rough as she spoke next. "Without knowing what magic this is, it's impossible to tell how it will react to any magic I or your healers could use, but there's simply no time to be cautious." Hild let her eyes fall to his chest, where even now the darkness was spreading.

"Inaction is as much of a death sentence as anything else. And I will not sit idly by and watch you d--" She broke off, lowering her head to gather composure.

"...please. I must try."

Die... She was going to say "die," wasn't she? He frowned, took a deep breath, and nodded. "Very well. If there is no other way around it, we must do what we can." He wasn't ready to die for a very, very long time, especially not when things seemed to have been starting to go well.

Krichevskoy smiled weakly. "And it sounds considerably better than losing an arm."

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