Closed [Citadel Courtyard] Mind Over Matter (Fubuki)

[Ronas Dermir]

Season of Fall, Day 55, 513 AV Ronas Dermir was seated cross-legged in the Citadel Courtyard, the dark blue fog that permeated the place wrapping around him like a cold, wet blanket. The Courtyard was quiet this time of day, though it was quiet most days. It was as though the birds and crickets knew better than to disturb the quiet of the dead. Ronas often came here to meditate, because the Blood Hills were not a place to lose yourself to meditation. One needed to always be alert in the Testing Grounds, and meditation robbed you of that. Ronas knew about the ghosts that haunted this place. The moaning of their whispers echoed in the wind and bounced about as though they were emanating from the very graves planted in the ground. Ronas could feel a twinge of discomfort and fear in his stomach. He was not the biggest fan of ghosts, since he could not fight them very effectively. It was arguable that he really could not fight them at all, not at his current level of skill with his magic. Ronas shook his head. It did not matter what the ghosts of Sahova did. He knew the nuits had a master Spiritist keeping the ghosts at bay. As far as he was concerned if the masters ordered him to attack them, he would attack them, regardless of his chances of success, or lack thereof. Ronas closed his slate gray eyes, brow furrowed as he focused his mind, imagining a small point of light and focusing his efforts on concentrating on it. Meditiation was all about clearing the mind so that it can focus, and in return your mind gains control. Control over emotion, control over Djed, control over self. Power without control was useless; worse it was dangerous. Ronas did not know how other wizards handled it but, without regular meditation to quiet his mind, he could feel his thoughts running out of control. Sweet whispers in his ear, visions of the Void dancing in his mind. Ronas did not try to "concentrate harder". Ironically, that just made it more difficult to achieve a true meditative state. And meditation could not be rushed, so he took a deep breath. In through the nose, out through the mouth. In and out, deep breaths, once, twice, three times. Each time, he let another sense slip away. The eerie sounds of the courtyard faded into silence. The feel of dry grass beneath his legs rubbed out into nothingness. Soon he couldn't even feel the cold, clammy hands of the fog that always permeated the Courtyard. Just empty, inky blackness. And the point of light. The light had gotten smaller but, paradoxially, also brighter. It shone like Syna in miniature, so bright it was almost blinding. Ronas reached out and snuffed out that light too, leaving only himself inside. No thoughts, no emotions, no senses, just nothingness. It lasted for one tick, two ticks. Then it was gone, the thoughts rushing back like tidal waves. True empty mind meditation was a very difficult thing to maintain. Ronas knew there were masters who could empty their minds and keep it that way for chimes, even bells. But he was not yet at that level of mastery. No matter. The few brief ticks he got were sufficient, and he started to inventory his day. He would need to continue to practice his Projection if he was to be of any use to Sahova, and he had also determined to continue training in his martial art, since a soldier could not rest on his heels and allow his skills to go to seed. But unfortunately, Ronas was not paying attention to his surroundings. As was often the case with meditation, one lost track of one's environment. In the Blood Hills, that was tantamount to death, which was why he usually would only ever meditate in the Courtyard, where he would be relatively safe. Nonetheless, Ronas would not be aware, should someone approach.

[Fubuki Kouri]

What was she doing here? Kouri could ask that question to herself. She was standing at the entrance to the Courtyard... again, the place that utterly shook her to the very core, the place where she experienced a life-changing event. Mistress Wanda, Sahovan Master Spiritist, figuratively slapped her hard and opened her eyes. Kouri changed for the better, but... Wanda involved Rena, her little sister, in her punishment. The Spiritist dusted the girl, storing her in a jar, as an assurance that the older sister would not cause trouble for the Wizards. Kouri couldn't see Wanda's logic on that one, Rena was innocent, why she should be the one who suffer? Nevertheless, here she was again, the very same place where Rena was taken away from her. In her Vantha self, long ebony locks and sapphire blue eyes, the ghost girl was putting on her human disguise. Materializing herself, she looked utterly indistinguishable from a normal little girl to the naked eye. A spiritist or aurist could sense her true nature, as well as people were familiar with ghosts and physically touched her and felt her freezing skin. Kouri had drank some of Wanda's soulmist beforehand, granting her the ability to wander the Courtyard for up to two bells without the risk of being trapped. She felt powerful, mighty, strong, and infallible; the power of the master spiritist's soulmist was incredible, it was like an elixir of unlife. She wanted to make the best use of it so her tiny feet trudged forward, "walking" on the ground. As she entered, the heavy presence that aimed to weigh her down could immediately be felt, but due to Wanda's soulmist, Kouri scoffed it as if it was nothing. The ghostly limbs that lightly pulled at her hair and dress also were also ignored, combined with her materialized state, she really looked like a normal girl just passing by. Kouri was not expecting any unusual encounters that day, but that expectation proved utterly wrong. In front of her was a... male human, yes, her eyes couldn't be wrong. He looked corporeal, firm, and Kouri couldn't sense any soulmist coming from him so he was most likely a human... or was he a Nuit? She changed her mind, the bald man must be a Nuit, why would a human be sitting there, alone, and unmoving? The man's body looked muscled and healthy, with a dark skin-tone. If he was a Nuit, then he would be the most healthy-looking Nuit she had ever met. All of them looked like corpses except for Amaryllis and this unknown man here. Kouri was wracked with doubt and curiosity, what was he exactly? If he was a human, what was he doing here? The little girl couldn't resist, she approached the meditating man. "Uhm...." She twiddled with the hem of her white dress, her barefooted feet fidgeting. "Hello..." She worked up the courage to greet him, if the man noticed her, Kouri would smile at him, easing the awkward atmosphere. "I uhm... I'm curious, Sir, a-are you a Nuit or a human? I-I don't mean any offense, but uh... you look much too healthy to be a Nuit." Realizing she might ire the man, Kouri put her hands up and shook them "A-ah, I'm just curious, Sir. That's all. By the way, I'm Fubuki Kouri Snowsong, but you can call me Kouri, may I know your name, Sir? It's okay if you don't want to tell me." Even as she spoke, Kouri didn't realize the notion that the man might find a little girl wandering around the courtyard to be even stranger than a meditating warrior.

[Ronas Dermir]

Season of Fall, Day 55, 513 AV A voice. Ronas was hearing a voice. With practiced ease he rose and in one fluid motion his hand was on Equalizer's hilt as he whirled around to see... a little girl? She had long, straight, dark hair and was walking about barefoot, and looked extremely incongruous in a place like this. But this was Sahova, so Ronas remained guarded as the girl approached him, twiddling with her dress as she greeted him hesitantly. Ronas listened in stony silence as she asked him if he was a Nuit, and introduced herself as Fubuki Kouri Snowsong. And then she asked him for his name. Ronas took a moment to consider his response. Though the girl appeared young, he knew that the Nuits of Sahova were often hundreds of years old. Not to mention here in the courtyard, ghosts abounded, and the girl might be one of the angry spirits that howled and raged against their bonds here in this foggy, desolate place. "My name is Ronas Dermir. I am not one of the dead, though I serve them, in the capacity of Initiate of the Blood Hills, and as a soldier," he responded, his voice low, yet reverberating through the empty space. His gray eyes glinted. "It is unusual to see another here in this place. I come here primarily to meditate and train." Ronas was not certain how he ought to address the girl. She did not behave like a Nuit, haughty and superior. He had no problem with haughty and superior, to be honest. As a solider, he would be obedient regardless of the attitude of his superiors. Nonetheless, that self-same attitude had become a familiar presence for the shaven-headed man, and he did not sense the same attitude from this girl. And that was dangerous. He had no idea what her intentions were, what she wanted, whether or not she was a threat, about to tear his heart out, or whether she was one of his masters that he needed to obey. But he was a solider of Sahova. If she was a nuit it was his duty to obey her commands. "Tell me, are you one of the dead?" he intoned, his voice echoing across the mist until it came back sounding like some form of low, hideous laughter. "If so, I am at your command."

[Fubuki Kouri]

Kouri was startled a bit when the shaven man turned around, hand perched on his weapon, her very long hair swayed back in the air, lingering perhaps a tad bit too long than normal. As expected of the stoic Sahovans, his expression didn't even flinch when he faced a little girl in a creepy courtyard. Kouri was not surprised, she bet even a monster suddenly springing up from the ground wouldn't make him raised an eyebrow. He regarded her with neutrality though, stoic and calm, Kouri appreciated that. She giggled sheepishly and approached him further, finally setting herself on sitting on the ground beside him, gazing at the haunting tombstones littering the courtyard. He gave her his name, it was already a sign that he did not regard her as a threat. Ah, so he was a human soldier, that explained his trained movements and demeanor. "Ehehe~ Sir Ronas, nice to meet you~" She smiled at him, a grin on her small lips showing her white teeth. "Hmhm~ I was right! You can't be a Nuit since you look so... healthy! Hehe~" Kouri brought a bundle of her ebony locks to her front and began rubbing it out of nervousness. "You meditate here?" She tilted her head, well, she was aware that the Courtyard posed no danger to the corporeals, maybe he just found the somber mood and occasional screams of rage to be calming. "Tell me, are you one of the dead?" "....." The little girl frowned, how did he know? Her curiosity was answered by herself a tick later. This was Sahova, everyone here had some weird - and powerful - magic of some kind. Identifying her true nature shouldn't be a major problem. Kouri didn't feel the need to keep up her charade so she just nodded. "Well yes, ehehe~ you are good, Sir Ronas, many people usually can't tell that just by looking." It was true, non-mages had no way of differentiating her just by sight alone. "If so, I am at your command." Now this statement brought a curious giggle to her. They barely met each other and he was pledging his loyalty to her, Kouri found it odd... and amusing. Her mind whirred itself, she wanted to play "princess" once in a while. So Kouri put her right hand to her mouth and tried to imitate a noblewoman's laugh "Ooo ho ho ho~♪" but of course, it sounded like an adorable child's giggle more than anything else. "What services can you provide for me, Sir Ronas? Hmmm... I know~" If her assumptions were true, then this man shouldn't refuse this. Kouri stood up and approached him, then her materialized right hand extended to trail on his chest "How about... you let me go inside you for a moment? Can you do that for me, hmmm?" She was expecting him to decline, but Kouri was really curious to see what's inside his mind... and she also held some kind of illogical dislike for adult men due to... past events, she wanted to mess with him for a bit. After all, he could't refuse an order from his "Mistress", could he?

[Ronas Dermir]

Season of Fall, Day 55, 513 AV Ronas frowned when Kouri asked to "go inside him". This was not something he was used to or understood. If she was a Nuit, what possible meaning could that statement have? But then, what else could she be, if not a Nuit? She had acknowledged to being one of the dead. Ronas suspected she may be a ghost, but she would have to be a very powerful ghost to be able to stay here, in the courtyard. From what little he understood, the ghosts of the Courtyard were prevented from manifesting by a very powerful master Spiritist. "Then you are a spirit, not one of the dead ones," Ronas replied cautiously. It was both question, and statement. He had misjudged the girl, as her somewhat pale features, and the nature of her questions, implied she was one of his commanders. Technically, he owed her no allegiance; as a spirit or ghost, she was not one of the dead ones that commanded this place. Nonetheless, his words earlier could be interpreted as a promise, and he had no wish to anger a ghost powerful enough to manifest in this place. More so since he had precious little defense should she wish to kill him. "Very well." Ronas intoned, his gray eyes poring into Kouri's blue ones. He did not know what exactly "going inside" would entail, but it probably would not be all that pleasant. In order to prepare, Ronas decided he'd try to meditate. If she wanted in, she'd have to deal with an empty mind, one devoid of thought or memory. He imagined in such an environment, he could have some small measure of control over what she did, and more importantly, what she did not see. In addition, he was not too keen on a little girl in control of his faculties, even if she was a ghost and likely many times older than he. Ronas gave Kouri a curt nod, then settled back down into his normal cross-legged position, shaved head bowed and slate-gray eyes closed in meditation and concentration. "Begin when ready," he announced, as he took several calming breaths. In through the nose, out through the mouth. Ronas tried to clear his mind again, concentrating on the cold, clammy feeling of the morning air combining with the unnatural fog of the Courtyard. Points of light in his mind, representing thoughts and memories, snuffed out one by one as Ronas tried to clear his head of thought. If Kouri possessed him at that moment, she would likely fall into the same abyss Ronas had sunk his mind into. It would be midnight-black, with many points of light in every direction, each one sparkling and twinkling and representing a thought or memory. Ronas' mental form would be seated, cross-legged and almost statue-like, in the middle, reaching out occasionally to grab a point of light and snuff it. He would not notice the intruder for a moment or two, allowing Kouri the time to wander about. If she touched one of the points of light, the light would grow brighter and brighter, until it was almost unbearable, and consume both her and Ronas until it engulfed them, drawing them both into a memory long past.

[Fubuki Kouri]

"Eeeeh?" The little girl tilted her head again, she found Ronas' statement to be perplexing. He said she was a spirit, but not one of the dead. That was odd, last time she recalled, she was already dead, extending her stay on this cruel world due to unfinished business. Perhaps, he was differentiating ghosts and Nuits, it was a strange term to not call ghosts "one of the dead" but who was she to judge his preference? "Mhm~" Kouri nodded, twirling a strand of her black hair and smiling happily "I'm a ghost! Booo~ I'm scary! Ehehehe~" Due to her materialized state, aside from her appearance, her voice sounded very real, like it was coming from a true little girl, not a ghost. "Very well." Well, that was quick. Her child-like mind immediately saw the shaved man as the male version of Kriemhild. Quiet, precise, and no-nonsense, his words were straight, no hidden meanings, no double entendre, just a plain straight to-the-point answer. "Mmm..." Her mischievous urges slowly died down, she felt bad for wanting to prank such an honest man. She decided then, she would not do strange things using his body, she opted to practice her possession on him instead. She watched him sat down and meditate, Kouri prepared herself as well, closing her eyes and clasping her hands together, inhaling and exhaling unneeded breath. "Begin when ready." "Mhm..." The Vantha nodded and approached him, she knelt down and hugged Ronas tight, her hands wrapping around his shoulder and her feet around his waist, she placed her chin on top of his left shoulder, her cold breath brushing against Ronas' skin. "I will..." She whispered directly into his ear, her lips just right next to it "...begin now..." With that statement, Kouri's body started to glow as mists began enveloping the soldier's form. The ghost girl unmaterialized herself and her form grew more and more transparent as the mist entered Ronas' body through his pores. Ronas would feel a weak presence trying to grip at his astral, so weak that he could push it out with a single defying thought. Kouri could only hope the soldier realized her incompetency in possession and relaxed himself to allow her in. After what seemed to be a long grueling process, her form disappeared. From here on out, it would be a joint effort in Ronas' mind to ensure the "ritual" succeeded. In the mind... Kouri woke up, her blue eyes fluttered open as she found herself curled up in a fetal position, floating in the blackness of empty space. Not a cloth on her body, it was like she was just birthed moments ago. "Unh..." She was familiar with this, she would have to find a way, a door, to take control of Ronas' body. She got no time to lose, Ronas' natural mind defense might kick her anytime soon. Shifting to a standing position, the ghost girl wandered, her knee-length black curtain trailing behind her. She saw a figure... it was Ronas, it the same position as his physical body. He was meditating, occasionally reaching out to... Lights, lights spawned all around her and the man was grabbing it. They were beautiful... colorful like the aurora of Avanthal, Kouri couldn't help herself but reached out and grabbed one of them. It started to glow brighter and brighter, until it was too much and she closed her eyes on instinct. Then the light engulfed the darkness... ......... ..... ... Ronas would wake up, his vision focusing to find himself in the body of a little girl. Long black hair trailing his back and tiny feet thumping on snowy ground. He couldn't control his movements as if he was watching the life of another person through the person's eyes. "Kouri! Kouriiiii~ Wait up!" A voice behind him, in a language he didn't understand. Ronas would find himself stopping, turning around, and be glomped by a little girl with shoulder-length black hair. They both tumbled and rolled around on the ground, the other girl giggling. "Hehe~ Got ya!" "Aaaah! No fun, Cassandra! You tricked me!" Ronas, or at least the body he was occupying, found himself speaking. The high-pitched sing-song voice of Kouri escaped his lips. He was seeing Kouri's memories through her eyes. It was clear both of the girls were playing, around them were the beautiful scenery of the City of The Winter Goddess-Queen Morwen, Avanthal. Cassandra's eyes shifted to yellow in excitement as she poked Kouri's cheek with her right index finger. "Ehehe~ It's your fault that you're so gullible! My turn then!" With that, the other little girl stood up and ran forward, Ronas felt Kouri standing up and growling, while puffing up her cheeks. "Waaaait! I'll get you!" She ran forward, the children continuing their game of tag. OOCI'll let you decide on which of Ronas' memory leaks to Kouri's mind.

[Ronas Dermir]

There was a strange sensation of... intrusion when the little ghost girl decided to enter his mind. Ronas could sense it, a foreign presence, and his very being wanted to reject it. But he pushed that aside, just as he pushed aside all other feelings and thoughts. Meditation was all about clearing the mind, including clearing it of such distractions as vague sensations of intrusion. If Kouri wished to play in the empty void, then she was free to. Reaching out, Ronas snuffed yet another light, another memory. He wasn't destroying them, just... dismissing them. He needed an empty mind, and these memories were a distraction. Ronas could feel Kouri reaching for one of the points of light. He was not able to stop her before she touched one, and the light grew and grew, overwhelming them and drawing them into... what appeared to be one of Kouri's memories. Surely it had to be, he found himself in the body of a small girl, with long black hair and tiny little feet. The memory dragged him along, apparently she was playing a game of tag with someone named "Cassandra", and all around being a normal little girl. Ronas mused this must have been one of Kouri's happier memories. But as quickly as the memory began, it began to fade, the colors of the memory grew wobbly and indistinct, until only Kouri and Cassandra were standing in once again an empty void of nothingness. Then "Cassandra" slowly changed, her hair growing long, her eyes turning bright blue and within ticks it was Fubuki again, staring into the slate gray eyes of Ronas' stern face. Ronas had half a mind to scold the ghost for what she had done, but before he could open his mouth they both fell. It was the strangest sensation, like as though the void around them somehow opened up and swallowed them both whole. Something in the back of his mind, like an itch that could not be scratched, wanted to come out. The idea of memories being unlocked had triggered this, bringing forth something buried. Ronas tried to block it. His organized and disciplined mind Usually adept at finding and squashing unwanted thoughts, unwanted memories. But as a very distant point of light kept getting closer and closer, nothing Ronas did would diminish its light. And before he knew it, the light had consumed them. Kouri would now find the roles reversed. She was the one now stuck in Ronas' body, staring at a scene filled with carnage. Somehow she would know that she was not the one responsible for it, but had arrived too late to stop it. Ronas was wearing the fairly nondescript clothes of a Syliran Squire, lightly armored but still fairly well-protected. She would stride forward, toward what looked to be a decently-armored man who had been stabbed several times with a sword of some description. He was a Sylrian Knight, who had died honorably, but pointlessly, on the battlefield. "A terrible waste," came a voice from behind him, and Ronas whirled to see what looked to be a fairly tall Akalak with an easy smile and a large axe in either hand. Kouri would feel Ronas grunt, frowning back down at the fallen knight. "Well, there's really nothing we can do for Ser Dorn," the Akalak shrugged, as he made to go back down the path he and Ronas had taken. And that was true. Dorn was well past anyone's ability to help, save Lhex. But Ronas' orders had been clear. Protect Dorn. He'd failed in that, but he could still... "What are you doing?" the Akalak asked, as Kouri would watch Ronas bend down, retrieving a scroll with a set of orders for the one still in Ser Dorn's armor. When she felt Ronas stand back up, he would turn toward the Akalak with an impassive stare. "I am switching the orders," he would reply, simply. "Switching the... they would exile you! Or worse!" the Akalak cried, his eyes wide with shock. Kouri would feel Ronas nod curtly. "He was a brave man, but foolish, to disobey orders. But mine were clear. Protect Ser Dorn. And as I can no longer protect his body, I can at least protect his memory." The Akalak was silent as Kouri would watch Ronas picked through the bodies of the squires that had been killed, retrieving any personal effects that he could. "Look, I'm sure Ser Dorn would tell you that your orders don't mean shyke now that he's dead," the Akalak tried. "He charged up ahead, despite orders. The fact that he was ordered to after the fact doesn't change..." Kouri would see Ronas stand up suddenly and fix the Alakak with a sharp glare. "Orders are orders. They commanded I protect Ser Dorn. And I will do so to the utmost of my ability. What happens to me, is irrelevant." The memory would fade in and out, the Akalak arguing some more and Ronas insisting that there was no choice. Never was, when it came to orders. You either obeyed or you did not, and Ronas always obeyed... The memory progressed rapidly, flipping through the stern, angry faces of the Knight commanders, whose judgment was passed upon Ronas, that he be stripped of his Squirehood for cowardice, and banished from Syliras for failing to obey orders to support Ser Dorn. The Akalak, who so argued against this course of action, stood statue-like behind him, never once opening his mouth in his friend's defense. The judgement was passed. Ronas could never go home. For obeying his orders, his reward was banishment. "... out." Ronas did not want to see this. It was not a memory that should be shared. Not knowledge that any should have. The truth of Ser Dorn's death was supposed to die with him; the Akalak long sworn to secrecy. This was a secret long buried; should it come to light, Ser Dorn's reputation would be ruined. And that would mean he had failed to carry out his orders. That he had failed to succeed in his mission. "Out." The memory needed to stop. The meditation had failed. And permitting this spirit inside had clearly been a mistake. "OUT!" With as much strength as his disciplined mind could muster, Ronas shoved hard, pushing Kouri out of his mind, out of his body, and most importantly, out of his memories.

[Fubuki Kouri]

Huh... uhm...? Kouri knew what would happen, some of Ronas' memories would leak to her, but she didn't expect... this. She found herself seeing through Ronas' eyes, into his memories. The image of a corpse of what seemed to be a Syliran Knight in front of her along with a tall man with very unusual skin-color, Kouri had little knowledge of the Akalak race but by the looks of him, he must be a warrior. They both argued about something that Kouri's child-like mind couldn't comprehend, at least not without further explanations. She just mentally tilted her head and watched, so many questions flooding in her mind. Who was the tall man? Who died? What happened? Why were you both arguing? She could deduct some assumptions though. It looked like Ronas was a knight, assigned to protect his superior but he failed due to a blunder... a blunder that was caused by the knight he was supposed to be protecting. Uh... uuuhn! She mentally held her head, what came next was too fast for her to see. She could see seething faces of stern knights boring into Ronas. They blamed him for failing his orders and kicked him out... Grrr... aaaagh! She couldn't take it, her skill was not enough to handle this and Ronas' rising refusal to her presence certainly didn't help. "Kyahaaaah!!" With a high-pitched wail, the little girl was kicked out of the soldier's body. She flew out and landed on the ground, her hair splaying at her sides. "Uuuhn..." Kouri shook her head and stood up, she turned around to face Ronas once more. A confused expression on her face, mixed with curiosity. "Well..." She scratched her hair and nervously played with one of the strands. "I take it you didn't like me seeing your memories? I'm sorry... uhm, I bet you saw mine as well, right? What did you see?" Innocently cocking her neck to the side, her bright blue eyes staring into the shaved man. "So... you were a knight? I have been in Syliras before... you looked like a good man, b-but they punished you for something you didn't do? That... that's not right! Knights are supposed to be good people! W-well... except some of them." She shuddered, the memory of a squire trying to violate her came back for a tick before she quickly snuffed it out. "Sir Ronas, it's okay." The little girl approached him, materialized herself back, and lovingly hugged him like a daughter to her father, she buried her head in his chest for a few ticks before looking up, her large Vantha eyes glittering with concern. "You don't have to act so emotionless, you know?" Her motherly instinct kicked in, she felt Ronas was acting this calm and stoic just to repress his past, evident by his outburst when Kouri saw some of it.

[Ronas Dermir]

Ronas' mind rang with the sound of battle, the screams of dying men. His nostrils filled with the acrid stench of burning flesh and the sickeningly sweet of fresh blood. The battlefield... it took him a moment to realize he was not on that plain, or in one of the innumerable battles he'd taken place in. He was safe, relatively, here in the courtyard of Sahova's Citadel, and his gray eyes fogged a bit as he tried to clear his thoughts. The ghost girl, Kouri, had been expelled from his body and his mind, and had landed a short distance away, seemingly unharmed by her little foray. She apologized for seeing Ronas' memories, to which he mostly just grunted. Could be be angry at the girl for seeing something she should not have? Perhaps. But it was equally his own fault, for not having a disciplined enough mind to keep her out. For permitting a memory like that to resurface. "I saw..." Ronas' voice was less gravelly then usual. Childhood. Innocence. It felt like a lifetime ago. It was a lifetime ago. "I saw a child. Cassandra. She had shifting eyes that changed color... you were chasing her in a game. It was..." Ronas was not sure what word to use, so did not finish his sentence. He'd been a child like that once. But his childhood ended when his squirehood began. He'd done everything they asked. Obeyed every order. Carried out every command. He was loyal. But they kicked him out... all his years of loyal service worth nothing to them. "Yes, I was in Syliras, but I am not a Knight. I am a Squire... or at least I was." She'd seen it already, but he wondered how much of it she understood. "The Knight you saw, Ser Dorn... if I had not switched the orders, he would have been disgraced. My orders were to protect him, and I failed in that duty. So I protected his memory, and in so doing took his punishment upon myself." Ronas had hoped at the time that his years of loyal service would blunt the damage. That the Knights would be lenient because of his dedication. But they were not. They only saw what they wanted to see; a dead Knight. And a Squire that did not protect him. After all, the orders said so. And why would Ronas deliver the wrong orders to the Knights? When the ghost hugged him, Ronas looked down impassively. It'd been a long time since anyone had even spoken to him at all in a manner that was not curt and commanding, or blunt and derisive. He didn't have to be emotionless... she didn't understand. She didn't see... "My discipline, my loyalty, was the one thing they could not strip from me," Ronas insisted to Kouri. "They could take my title, my position, even my life, but my loyalty would remain unshaken. I am loyal to Syliras still, in my own way, despite what they did to me. I cannot be a Squire for them, but I can prevent the monsters on Sahova from spilling out into the greater world, and in that small way aid Syliras." Sighing, he patted Kouri on the head. "Do not worry about me, Kouri. A soldier accepts that his life is not his own." Ronas pulled away from Kouri and settled down on the ground in a cross-legged position once more. His gray eyes looking into hers, he nodded once. "Are you ready to try again?" he asked.

[Fubuki Kouri]

"Oh..." Kouri tilted her head down and pressed her cheek against Ronas' chest again, sucking in his body warmth to her cold soulmist body. Memories swam inside her, happy memories. "Cassandra..." She whispered her friend's name in Vani, Kouri didn't look up and kept burying her face on Ronas' chest as she her whispers echoed in Ronas' eardrums "She's a good friend of mine... the color shifting eyes, it's a Vantha's most beautiful trait though..." She finally got the courage to look up at the man, her large eyes bubbling as if she was about to cry. "I lost it when I died... I can still change it but I have to do so consciously it's..." She hugged him tighter "...not worth it." It was not the same, Vanthas were supposed to reflect their mood through their eyes, not changing it consciously, she felt like a fake. "Mmmm..." She released her hug and gained a small distance from the soldier, her gaze directed to the somber atmosphere of the Courtyard. What Ronas told her about the knight incident made her sad, it wasn't right, he sacrificed his dignity for a dead man. It was all in the past, there was nothing he could do to change it, Kouri learned that the hard way through the knowledge that her parents would never come back. The little girl put her hands behind her back and slightly tilted her head as she smiled gently to the soldier.The contrast between the stoic shaven man and the smiling long-haired little girl as they faced each other were rather symbolic to gaze upon. "That's..." She put a stand of her hair behind her ear as her smile gradually turned into a small sad frown, what held the man to keep clinging into the Knights? As far as she could see, he had nothing left in the Fortress City. "That's not right... you're hurting yourself." She felt like a mother trying to beat some feelings into her machine-like son. "I'm sure it was just a big misunderstanding, the Knights, I think they can understand if you explain what truly happened..." Truly the simple thought process of a child. "Ehehehe~" She giggled happily when she felt his warm hand on her head. She saw him sat down again, ready for their next session. Kouri was taken aback, she thought the soldier wouldn't want anything to do with her possessing him anymore after their memory leak. "Uhm... okay, if you want to." It was rude to just refuse his generosity, especially since she was the one suggesting to do this in the first place. Kouri slowly walked to the man once more. Ehehehe... I think I'll... She felt mischievous, a naughty plan to elicit some reactions from the man formed in her mind. He looked so uptight and stoic, Kouri wanted to make him smile, even if it was only for a chime. "Ahahaha~" She suddenly charged, focused her soulmist on her upper body, and tackled the man down with surprising amount of force for a girl so little. Kouri was aiming to make him fall on his back to the ground then she would giggle happily while hugging him, if he didn't fell, then she would have to complement his endurance. Whether her plan succeeded or not, the ghost girl would began her possession process. They didn't quite succeed the first time, but she somewhat got the hang of it, no more grabbing those lights, focus on Ronas himself. She hugged him tight and her body became transparent as her soulmist entered the human through his pores. Once inside, she would ignore the void, the lights, everything, she went straight to the sitting man and hugged him again, nuzzling her forehead as she took control of his astral. She tried her best, Ronas' cooperation would determine the result of the second ritual.