"But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura
I V A R i'll use you as a makeshift gauge of how much to give and how much to take
Though there are no lean seasons in his tropical home, there is an uncomfortable pinch to the kelpie’s belly as he winds his way through the thick kelp at the floor of the cove. He had caught a grouper earlier (one of the orange scales is still bright in his exposed teeth) but that had been pre-dawn, and now the afternoon shadows grow long across the water. He’d not dared to look away and fill his belly, not when he was keeping careful watch on the pale and pretty nereid and her children. He has been watching them frequently since Aquaria had so rudely expelled him with her water witchery. He’s not quite sure where the newborn twins had come from. He knows for certain the nereid had not carried them within her, and yet they are clearly hers. More magic, Ivar has scoffed dismissively to himself on several occasions.
The golden-eyed creature has been waiting.
On an early winter morning, with bright sunshine shining down, he finally acts.
The kelpie drifts into the shallows where the children often play. He looks rather unlike himself, or at least unlike the shape he usually wears. His face is entirely equine and unremarkable save for the ethereal beauty possessed by many residents of these islands. His forelegs are hooved, and the teeth that he revels in a smile are those best suited to a diet of browsing and grazing. The tail he uses to move nearer the shore is as colorful as the rest of his coat: sapphire and gold and pearly white. He raises his head from the water, knowing that there is no turning back now if he has chosen his timing wrong.
“Hey.” He says, glancing from one silver-faced foal to the other. “I’m looking for your Mom. Is she here right now?” Ivar asks, sounding and looking nothing less than genuine. He does not look especially dangerous (anymore than a complete stranger showing up in one’s home is dangerous). Ivar hopes that the answer is negative, and he is ready. They’re both still young and easy enough to overpower. He need only touch them to have them under his spell, but he does not act yet. He would prefer to not have to exert himself in a hunt. It is easier when the prey comes willingly.
@[Marianas] and/or @[Kaimana]
and i'll use you as a warning sign that if you talk enough sense then you'll lose your mind
Nimble as a silver minnow, the gold coated boy flittes between the waves and the sand. He was dizzy with life, with his own existence, and sheer joy of existing outside of a shell. Boyish laughter spun across the cove as wave after wave rolled over and around him. Seafoam clung to his skin when he returned to the dry sand, flopping to the shore with a happy huff.
Gritty bits of sand stuck to his wet skin as he contemplated napping in the warm patch of sun. He could see his sister bobbing in the water. Light gleamed darkly on her wet head and back, a clear contrast between the filly and the water. "Don't go too far, Kai!" He called out with as much authority as a weeks old colt can manage over his minutes younger sister.
His eyes were growing heavy, halfway shut when a voice not his sister's answered. It wasn't his mother or older brothers either. Suddenly wide awake, the goldish colt stumbled to his feet, blinking at the face of a stallion bobbing just off shore. Marianas shot a look to his sister, about as curious as he was leery of the newcomer.
There were very few horses outside of family the twins had met yet. None of which had been anything but happy and kind to the new twins. Ma had always been present, of course, but so far their precedent for new faces had been a good one. The fin crested colt shrugged. "She's out. Paro- pato-" he paused, consternation wrinkling his baby brow. "She's walking 'round the island." Close enough.
Lots of horses needed his mom. She was Dame, and that meant she was the boss of the island. Sort of. That wasn't quite how she'd put it, but that was how it made sense to the young boy, and he figured that this stallion was one more islander with questions for his ma.
05-07-2020, 07:29 AM (This post was last modified: 05-12-2020, 03:44 PM by Kaimana.)
Oh, the albatross crash lands
This is divine.
It may be cold elsewhere, but the tropical breezes of Ischia remain as warm and temperate as ever. Even the water nearest the shore is still somewhat warm, not that the occasional blast of chilly water from the depths bothers the filly as she plays. Kaimana giggles and whoops, diving deep below the surface, well beyond the crashing waves of the shoreline, but she isn't remotely worried. The silver bay filly, nothing more than a splat of relatively drab brown in an otherwise colorful world, doesn't swim as well as Marianas, but she refuses to let that stop her.
She only has fins on her neck and tail, and can't turn into a fish creature like he can, but she still swim. Using just her legs, Kaimana dives again, tail fluttering, going all the way to the bottom. She loves the underwater world. Above the surface, life can be so noisy, but here is blissful near silence. Gills expanding, the filly smiles and stands on the bottom, before leaping off of the sand and popping back up in time to hear her brother yell at her.
Kaimana opens her mouth to holler back, but someone else appears. Spooking, the filly jerks, deep brown eyes wide at the sight of the unfamiliar stallion. He's way too close to her, just bobbing there. Suddenly nervous, the finned girl swallows and starts paddling away. "Y-yeah. She's on the island. She'll be back soon, um, we can tell her you came, Mister...?"
I V A R i'll use you as a makeshift gauge of how much to give and how much to take
The kelpie rarely encounters children that are not his own, and while he is not especially fond of them, they sometimes have their uses. More often than not it is filling his belly, but he has lured a promising yearling or two back to his island to mature. Fillies, of course; he has no need for colts. But as his curious gold eyes look over the finned champagne in front of him, he thinks of the many children he has. Perhaps one of them might want a plaything? Or perhaps Ivar might shred him into little pieces so fine that he could convince Isobell they were fish. That idea brings an amused glint to his golden eyes as he looks to the speaking colt.
Aquaria is out patrolling, the masked champagne tells him, and it is a struggle for Ivar to force himself to show the opposite reaction he experience. A disappointed frown creases his forehead, and his he makes a soft tisk of chagrin as he casts his eyes toward the empty beach.
“Ah, that’s too bad.” He says, shaking his head. The kelpie has heard the splash of water behind him that is the bay filly, and though he does give her a glance his eyes do not linger long. There is fear in her wide eyes; the predator in him senses it. It is difficult to tear his eyes away, but he does. Hunger rumbles in his belly, but he lets Kaimana paddle a little farther away from him without a word to stop her.
Leaving Aquaria with a dead child and a missing one is an appealing idea, but it will be more difficult to lure the boy away if his sister is bleeding out in the water beside them.
Instead, he responds reasonably, still wearing the flawless mask of concern from earlier. “Yes, tell her I have need of her help. I just worry…” and there is real worry in his voice too, as he looks back over his shoulder at where the open water of the ocean glistens outside this protected cove.
“I’ve lost my daughter’s little seal,” he tells them. “It’s a black one, from the Island Resort, and she’s been wanting one for months, and it slipped away from me this morning before I could give it to her. Is there any chance you two have seen it?” Most of the story is truthful, and there is nothing suspicious in Ivar’s voice (kelpie are rather good at soothing prey, after all). The truth is that he’d gotten the seal years ago, and one of Svana’s brothers had eaten the thing before it reached adulthood. His daughter had mourned the little thing and Ivar has contemplated getting another for her, if only because it makes Isobell happy when he is seen to visibly favor her children over the others. But that would require a journey away from Ischia, and Ivar is disinclined to any sort of exertion unrelated to hunting.
“The longer it’s gone, the more lost it might get.” Apprehension colors his voice, fear of the dangers in the ocean to a little seal out on its own. These are Aquaria’s children, and while Ivar knows little of the nereid, her kind are so often tender-hearted. They do not recognize compassion as the weakness it is, and this would not be the first time that the kelpie has exploited the kindness of others for his own benefit. He looks truly concerned when he asks: “Are you sure she won’t be back soon? Is there anyone here that might help me search? An older brother or sister perhaps?” They are too young to help, he seems to imply. Aquaria is bold, that much he knows. He is hoping her children are the same.
and i'll use you as a warning sign that if you talk enough sense then you'll lose your mind
Marianas stared openly at the blue scaled man. He had not yet learned to be wily like Halcyon, or cautious like Cormorant. His elder brothers had life experience to draw on that might have steered them differently in this situation. The gold coated boy had only brief ideas about the nature of others, and no real concept of deception or fear. He'd been lucky enough to avoid those realities so far.
His twin had more caution to her, and he watched with bewilderment as she kicked away from the stranger. He wasn't left to ponder long, though, as the fish tailed man began to speak again and successfully drew his attention away. The worry in the kelpie's voice drew him step by step nearer to the water's edge, eyes wide at the skillful tale unfolding. A seal pup! The dark faced boy looked at his sister in awe. Ma would never let them have a seal pup.
But maybe, just maybe, if he could prove he was big enough to help someone on his own, she might think he was responsible enough for one. The colt quivered at the thought. "I... I could help you look. If you want." He did his best to look big and clever. It had more of the opposite effect, but he didn't know that.
His stubby caudal fin whisked from side to side, betraying his boyish excitement at the idea of an adventure. A puppy adventure. The young nereid didn't know how predictable it was that his heart squeezed at the thought of something small and weak in danger. Did not see the irony of it. Instead, he looked at his sister bobbing in the waves, pleading expression on his face. "Kaimana, I want to help find the puppy! Can you stay here and tell Ma if she gets back before us? Pleeeease?" He drew out the word, stepping into the water to meet her. Soft purple eyes blinked at her, as large and soulful as any seal's.
Oh good, the weird man isn't pursuing her. Kaimana snorts a bit of seawater from her nostrils as she swims towards the shore, dark ears pointed back to listen to the stranger as he talks. She doesn't catch it all -- something about a lost puppy, but apparently her brother has heard every word.
Kaimana feels the sand under her feet and scampers out of the sea, scaly tail arched up. Unlike her mother, the dark colored filly is no mermaid, and while her heart beats with the thunderous waves of the ocean, her legs crave the stability of land. She doesn't know it yet, but she will never be as comfortable in the water as Marianas, or her mother, or the blue kelpie bobbing just off shore.
But the thought of being left behind is too much to bear.
"Awww, Marianas!" the girl cries with a stomp of her foot. "Mama said we had to stay here! And besides, if YOU get to go, how come I don't?"
I V A R i'll use you as a makeshift gauge of how much to give and how much to take
Ivar knows the colt is snared. The boy advances one steady step at a time, drawn in by the tale and oblivious to the danger. It takes focus, but Ivar only opens and closes his mouth as if to speak when the boy is within tooth’s reach. He does not lunge forward to snap his long jaw around the boy’s tender neck and pull him down, but the temptation remains strong. He is hungry, a hot meal is there for the taking. It defies instinct to leave it untouched, but the prospect of a better meal in the future gives him the strength of will to do so. If he does not kill them, he can use them to exact revenge on Aquaria, and that is a prize sweeter even than another man’s colt.
So Ivar tears his gaze away from the boy, having nodded hopefully at Marianas’ tentative offer. He seems to be looking to his sibling for confirmation, so Ivar does the same. The boy asks her to stay, and Ivar considers the possibility of leaving one of the children here unharmed to tell Aquaria of what has happened. No, he thinks, no. Their mother is too powerful to allow her to be that angry with him. Ivar enjoys his life on the isle and has no desire to risk it. His original plan, to steal them both away and leave their bodies somewhere for an Ischian to find still seems the best route. Aquaria would not be able to prove Ivar had done it, and a lack of nursling foals at her hip would make her far easier to convince to join him on Kelpie.
He has to have them both or at least ensure the one he does not take cannot tell the tale of its siblings capture. Ivar has nearly decided that Marianas will be the one he takes if his sister refuses him, meaning Kaimana’s body will greet their mother at the end of her patrol. Yet just before he begins to move forward, to grow teeth to crush her delicate throat, the bay filly reignites Ivar’s hopes that he might have them both.
“I bet if you both help me look, we could find it before your Mom even gets back.” The suggestion is crafted to appeal to them both, Kaimana with her insistence on following the rules and Marianas’ genuine interest in the seal. “I don’t think it could have gotten very far, but there are lots of places I’m too big to look.” The kelpie’s shoulders shrug as if helpless, the implication that the two of them with their smaller figures might be able to do with Ivar cannot.
@[Marianas]
@[Kaimana]
and i'll use you as a warning sign that if you talk enough sense then you'll lose your mind
The scaley coated colt was primed to argue with his sister, the conversation poised to devolve into childish bickering. They were saved that by Ivar's suggestion. While Marianas had been excited about the idea of doing something big by himself, he knew Kai wouldn't hesitate to rat on him if he dared leave her out of it. If Ma made it back first, he'd be in trouble for sure.
With a sidelong glance at the larger stallion, the nereid colt nodded at his sister. "Okayyyy. But you have to keep up, Kai!" He added, head tilted with worry he wouldn't express. His sister was okay at swimming, and he knew she wouldn't drown easily. But the shifter boy was better prepared for the open ocean, and he'd never forgive himself if he lost her to a riptide.
Luckily it was a baby seal they were looking for, and he was pretty sure that one of those wouldn't get very far in the open water. Like his sister, they were better suited to the beaches and lagoons. Dashing the rest of the way into the water, his boyish features lit up with excitement. "Where should we start looking?" He asked, face turned up toward the fish-tailed stallion's.
They had to find it fast, before their mother completed her morning rounds and returned to their play beach. He road the wavelets with his neck craned high to see if the little black seal's head was bobbing in the surf. Not that it was likely that their search would be so easily completed, but he had hope. Maybe the rocks on the far side of the waterfall? Lots of weird stuff washed up over there.
She loves her brother dearly, but sometimes Kaimana loves to pick fights and argue with him. He's always so bossy! He thinks he's older than her, and he is, by, like, one whole hour. That doesn't count, in the filly's mind! Marianas looks ready to start bickering with her, so the chocolate colored girl puffs up her cheeks and gills, drawing in air to match whatever he has to say, but the strange man speaks and her head whips around.
"See? He wants us both to help him," she boasts, glaring at her twin as the golden boy quips about keeping up and gallops into the ocean. "I can keep up! I bet I'll find the puppy WAY before you, Marianas!"
Without hesitation, the filly canters after her brother, diving into the water, using her wings and her tail to help her swim. Kaimana bobs to the surface and looks at the stranger. "Yeah, where do we start? And what's your name? I'm Kaimana, that's my brother Marianas."
I V A R i'll use you as a makeshift gauge of how much to give and how much to take
Ivar does not interfere in the conversation between the siblings. He has set the lure, and only time will tell if they will take it. The process cannot be rushed, not even if his golden eyes flick frequently to the beach to reassure himself that their mother has not returned. The colt dashes into the water, calling behind him for his sister. Only when Ivar sees Kaimana begin to gallop towards where Marianas bobs above the waves does the kelpie himself wriggle backward in the shallow waters.
It takes only a moment for him to reach the pair of them, and he glances at the girl’s feathered wings. She will not be up for a long swim, he decides. If he can get her to his island she will likely be to tired to swim back. Her brother will stay with her, Ivar is sure. He can keep them long enough to convince them to stay. He’s not used his hypnosis on children before, but he does not think it will be much different than with adults.
He usually prefers to take them struggling, but rather than tug them below the water with hungry teeth, Ivar surfaces just ahead of them. The long fins of his tail trail in the water, brushing against the children’s legs and fins. That is all he needs for hypnosis, after all. You don’t want to come back here, is what they will each think, not in Ivar’s voice but in their own, a subconscious awareness that might take some time to manifest. He watches them cautiously, golden eyes sharp for any sign of the hypnosis taking affect. Will they more susceptible than adults, he wonders?
Best to not risk it, so he says aloud: “I last saw it heading north.” at the exact moment that You will want to stay with me instead, on my island.
Surely one of his women will be nursing and can provide for their needs. Two of the winged ones (he rarely remembers their names) are due to foal soon, Ivar knows; perhaps one of them can feed the twins. Maybe both, if their children are unacceptable again this year.
@[Marianas]
@[Kaimana]
and i'll use you as a warning sign that if you talk enough sense then you'll lose your mind
