[Nexus - Plot] Honeymoon of a Mage and a Half-Dragon

[Halae]

As Cessie and Harnel step out of the purple portal, It'll feel like a blast of hot air hits them in the face. Arvan's lab is a lot - a lot - warmer than Cessie's room was before, and the fact that there's some sort of experiment on a burner in one corner of the lab doesn't help matters.

Harnel will try to say something to Cessie, but she won't be able to understand him. It seems the auto-translate from the Nexus isn't working anymore - Harnel is speaking Ascaerin, after all. If he notices that she's not understanding him, Harnel will switch to Hestopian, "Well... that's odd. must be a Nexus thing." He says something to Arvan, who nods and says something back, before picking up a bracelet off his desk and offers it to Cessie, "It'll let you speak Ascaerin while you're wearing it."

[Shadowcaller]

"Really? But then how are you speaking Hestopian right now? I don't remember you learning it, in fact, I don't remember any of the guests learning it at the wedding." Cessie asks as she puts on the necklace, looking curiously around the room.

She will cool down a bit using some cold eldritch energy (yes such 'energy' exists in elemental form.

[Halae]

((Bracelet, SC, not necklace :smalltongue:))

"Libra," Harnel says, "Her original reason for talking to me that first time was because it's apparently her job to give people the languages of the place they're going to in your world. She just decided to spruce things up with a wish or two."

The room is very clearly that of an experimenter and a scholar. Books line one of the walls, and the next one over is his workspace, with a full desk there. Arvan looks pleased that his invention is working, "I had hoped the bracelet would work properly. Good to know."

"Anyways, you two were wanting to go somewhere, yes? What's your first destination? This old wizard will help any way he can."

[Shadowcaller]

"I believe Harnel is planning this all on his own, you are Arvan correct? How nice to meet you." She gives him a small nod. "Let me personally thank you for aiding us with this, such a portal would be basically impossible to create in my world."

Smiling at the mage she turns to Harnel, "But I believe we are supposed to give your cousin a hopefully short visit right?"

[Halae]

"Roran? Is he still giving you trouble?" Arvan's brow furrows as he looks to Harnel

"Unfortunately, yes." Harnel rolls his eyes, "He has my marriage inheritance at the Therishein estate. Do you think you could put us down near there?"

"Does the transhuman factor of the curvature of magic form an integer of Q?"

Harnel stares blankly at the mage for a moment

Arvan says, "That would be a yes. Anyways, I just have to spend about ten minutes setting up the spell. Feel free to look around my workshop while I set up." And the pudgy man will move over to one corner of the worksop to begin chanting in a language neither Harnel nor Cessie know. Evidently, he trusts them not to destroy anything.

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie knows enough about her own kind of magic not to touch anything inside the room. At worst she just looks around curiously, trying to determine what the different things are used for.

Apparently her and his magic system worked quite differently and she doubted she could learn it in such a short time. It was their honeymoon after all, she couldn't study tomes now. "Thank you, I can tell you use quite different energies here."

[Halae]

Arvan doesn't turn around to say anything to her, still chanting and waving his arms around. He does, however, raise one of said hands to give her a thumbs up.

For his part, Harnel doesn't say touch anything either. He just looks around the room curiously - he hasn't spent much time in Arven's workshop before.

After about ten minutes, as promised, Arven will step away from his corner, revealing what appears to be a hole in the air. Through it can be seen a manor house surrounded by trees with vines and the like hanging from them, "There we are. Just step on through, and contact me when you wish to leave."

Harnel will offer Cessie his hand as he steps towards the portal.

[Shadowcaller]

"Thank you for all your help." Cessie tells Arvan before taking Harnel's hand to go through the portal with him.

[Halae]

For the record, Harnel is still carrying the mirror with him. In case that wasn't clear. The portal closes behind the two of them a moment after they're both through

Vine covered forests surround the house. It's a good looking place - large, well built, and quite large. A guard at the gate before them will look surprised when the two of them step out of the portal, but then will say something to the other guard, who nods and runs straight for the manor. Harnel will begin walking towards the house purposefully, presumably with Cessie coming along as well. The inside is as beautifully crafted as the outside, with wooden beams supporting the high roof. A woman will meet them them in the Foyer. She looks less than happy to see Harnel, "Welcome back to the Manor, Harnel. We had almost hoped you wouldn't come."

"Tanila? Is that any way to treat family?" Harnel says, quirking an eyebrow, "Besides, I'm just here to get my Marriage inheritance and leave. We have other places to be today."

[Shadowcaller]

"Yes, we weren't planning to stay long if it creates such a trouble. My name is Cessie Mithar by the way, I don't believe we have meet." She gives the woman a polite smile but doesn't really expect her to be polite back considering how she's treating Harnel.

[Halae]

Surprisingly, The woman gives Cessie a polite smile, "And I thank yo for that. Roran truly hates Harnel, and gets upset whenever he's mentioned. I'll try to keep him from getting too bad, but I can't make any promises." Cessie should not that she's wearing a wedding Earring. The same kind that Roran was wearing when they saw him last, "Roran's out right now, hunting with our son, and he's the only one with the key to the vault. I can take you to the guest rooms if you want to wait - we can prepare a meal for you."

[Shadowcaller]

"So I have heard." Well at least this woman is being very honest. Hate is a word seldom used in conversations where she's from. "I don't want you to get yourself worked up for us however, Harnel, would you want something to eat or do you plan to eat dinner somewhere else?" She asks with a glance at her husband.

[Halae]

"I don't see a reason not to eat here." he says, "Roran isn't around to harass us, so it should be fine. Tanila, would you be kind enough to show us to the guest rooms? We'll try to keep out of your hair."

Tanila nods, "Of course. Come with me, please," And she'll lead them up to the Guest rooms, which are on the second floor. After leading them there, she'll say, "I'll go get the servants to make dinner. If you like, the library is also open to you." Odd how nice she's being to Harnel now, despite how she reacted when they arrived. She points out a door before she leaves - presumably the library.

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie see reasons to not eat here. :smalltongue:

She can't resist the lure of a library however, "I think I'll go and check out the library. Tanila seem rather nice or at least put in the effort of being polite which is more then I can say about her husband."

[Halae]

"Roran's always been an ass, Tanila is always covering for him. to be honest, the only reason Tanila doesn't like me is because I upset Roran. Or, that's most of it, anyways. I wouldn't be surprised if she doesn't like me for her own reasons as well, but that's the big thing."

He seems thoughtful for a moment, "What do you want to do before dinner? Read in the library? We should have an hour or more to wait, so we're not lacking for time."

[Shadowcaller]

"Didn't I hear someone say she was a 'mouse of a woman'?" Cessie inquires with a raised eyebrow. "In any case, yes, I like to take a look at the library, I doubt there is much else we can do while we are here."

[Halae]

"She gets quiet whenever she's not the one people are directing attention at. She didn't have anybody to pass that off to, so she wasn't trying to hide," Harnel shrugs, "Any ideas What I should do? I have to admit, one of the reasons I could never stand noble life is because they do a whole lot of nothing some days. I guess that's why so many go hunting all the time."

[Shadowcaller]

"Well, Hestopian nobles generally live close to one another so they can pay visits all the time. I'm not sure what you should do however..." She fakes a cough. "I really doubt we can do anything together unless you like to read a book or talk a bit. It's no time for that here."

[Halae]

Harnel nods, chuckling, "Yes, I know. But yes, Talking souns nice. maybe you could tell me more about your work to become immortal, and we can bounce ideas off each other to see if we can figure out a way past that hitch with accidentally giving an elemental divinity."

[Shadowcaller]

"I actually already have a clear idea how to do it. I'm just working out all the details to avoid having things gone wrong. It's a very delicate process after all, I need to have the exactly correct energy fixture to the orb. I need to copy the gods essence... sort of. It's quite hard to explain." Cessie replies.

[Halae]

"I think I understand, actually," he says, "The general idea is to make yourself aligned in the same way as the dead god. Like drawing - if you can see something you can copy it, but it will never be a perfect replica if you do that. however, if you lay one paper over the other, you can trace the old drawing and make a perfect copy. On the other end of this metaphor, you're touching your own essence to that of the dead god in order to... copy it, in a way, onto yourself. Am I getting it right so far?"

[Shadowcaller]

"Very good Harnel." Cessie replies, smiling proudly. "That's exactly what's going on, have you ever considered studying more? You have hidden talents." Instead of you know, whack things with a sword?

[Halae]

But he's good at whacking things with swords! :smalltongue:

"People tell me I'm bright, if daft sometimes. you've certainly chewed me out for it before," he chuckles, "I find that most things are fairly simple in concept - it's the details that require a lot of work, and those details are what I don't like dealing with."

Push, Cessie, push! Maybe you can get him to read more books!

[Shadowcaller]

"So why don't get yourself a hobby? Is there any subject your especially interested in? It can be anything, weapons, armor, legends, dragons... I'm sure there are a lot to read about all these subjects. To understand both the practical and the theoretical aspects of something can be quite important. It doesn't need a lot of details."

[Halae]

He scratches his head, "I thought I had that already. It's why I like drawing, and working in a forge. admittedly I haven't exactly studied those things, but you don't need to know the name of a thing to build it properly, or draw it well."

[Shadowcaller]

"No, maybe not but without theory your basically on your own. Theory let's you access knowledge from all those before you. You have learned the basics of all these things from theory, when you learned to draw or work in a smith, you learned the basics from theory. By studying other techniques and methods you can actually evolve both those crafts. Theory let us share information much easier then we could practically and also maintain such knowledge over time." Cessie argues.

[Halae]

"Alright, fair enough. What say we look for some books on techniques in a forge then? Not sure how much my cousin likes hose things though, so I'm not sure if he has any of that kind of book."

[Shadowcaller]

"We could go look for other books if you want, I'm sure something will interest you." And we might want to hand wave that.

[Halae]

Time skip into the Library? sounds good to me.

Assuming they go there, they should find a number of interesting books.. There's two on magical theory that Cessie might like to brows, and a book on dragons, mostly built as an aid to hunters and other people looking to fight dragons rather than simply study them. Unfortunately, there aren't any books dedicated to forges or art in particular - most of the books are fiction.

[Shadowcaller]

She'll let Harnel have a book of fiction then, it's a good start at least.

She is all over the other books of course, maybe even suggest a book about dragons to Harnel, his grandmother is one after all.

[Halae]

Harnel will actually go for the bok on dragon hunting, actually, and will start comparing things that it does right and what it says that's untrue. Or, rather, that he knows is untrue. He won't point them out to Cessie, though, if she seems wrapped up in her own books at the time, just reading different ways that hunting his mother's kind would be effective.

Cessie's book, on the other hand, details ways for mages to begin their learning in this world. Most of the information is presented in mathematical formula, but Cessie will probably understand most of it. A few things will completely elude her though, as they don't exist in her world. still this should give her a good idea of how magic works in Harnel's world

[Shadowcaller]

If she isn't too locked up in her own books she will listen to what Harnel have to say with great interest. She didn't know much about dragons either after all.

"It's almost sad that I won't be able to practice this type of energy. I always look for other ways to expand, to learn new things. I learned a bit of aether by Sakura but it's not really anything I can become more powerful in sadly." She will share with her husband as she looks through the books.

"Maybe I can focus on such things once I completed the ritual though."

[Halae]

"We could speak to Arvan about that. Maybe he has something for you to learn with if you so chose. He lives at a college, after all. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if you could sit in on a few classes there."

[Shadowcaller]

"Sounds interesting... then again, this is supposed to be our honeymoon. We are expected to have fun with each other right and not sitting down and study?" She says with a smile and if there aren't any other people in the library she gives him a passionate kiss, putting her arms around his neck.

[Halae]

They're the only ones in the library. He'll wait until they're done kissing to say, "This is as much about you seeing my world as it is our honeymoon. I won't object to you saying no, but this is an opportunity for you to learn something about magic. I'd be perfectly fine with it if you wanted to take some time to study."

He runs his clawss through her hair

[Shadowcaller]

"Maybe, but now I feel disappointed that most of what you learned in my world was what horrible kind of things there are in it." She replies, as she puts her hand on his. "We'll see how things work out and how long we'll stay here okay?"

[Halae]

Harnel nods and moves in to kiss her again. After a moment, though, a knock will come to the door.

"Milord? Milady? Supper is ready."

They can hear the servant woman scampering back off down the hall, presumably getting back to her actual duties.

[Shadowcaller]

As their kiss is interrupted Cessie slowly get's up from her chair and offers her hand to Harnel, "Alright, let's go and eat. I'm actually starting to get a bit hungry."

[Halae]

Harnel grins and takes her hand, standing up and going to walk down to the dining room.

Sitting in the dining room is Tanila, waiting for the guests before beginning to eat. The servants apparently roasted... some kind of bird thing? It's too sleek to be a turkey, but the meat smells seven kinds of delicious. Harnel will go to sit in the chair provided for him, indicating the seat next to him for Cessie. It doesn't have a hole in the back for his tail, however, so his tail is just swinging around to his front. Probably will leave a cramp unless he moves it often.

"Dig in. I hope the Catsha tastes good."

[Shadowcaller]

"Catsha? We don't have that in Hestopia, smells good however." Cessie says as she have taken a seat beside Harnel. They don't have turkey in Hestopia either so Cessie can't really compare it with anything.

She will wait for the others to eat before she digs in however, so there aren't any prayers or the like you need to do before eating.

[Halae]

"Catsha is a local reptile. They taste particularly good smoked, but roasted works well too," Tanila says, and harnel nods. he's always liked the taste of Catsha, but they were rare and you couldn't have things like that with the military rations he was used to.

Neither Tanila nor Harnel will hesitate to dig in, They don't really exchange words with each other unless Cessie prompts them.

Oh, and because i forgot to mention what she was wearing earlier, Tanila is wearing a low cut dress. It covers her shoulders and arms, but shows off some cleavage.

[Shadowcaller]

Well, Cessie have seen far worse clothes, like the ones Sakura usually are dressed in.

She just avoids looking at her too much for now, she just attempts to concentrate on the food. "So how is life here in Ascaerin? I understand that it's quite different here then in Hestopia." They had slaves for example.

[Halae]

"Hestopia is the country you're from, yes?" Tanila asks, finishing a piece of Catsha, "Roran has only really told me it's cold. I wouldn't know where to begin on the differences."

Tanila seems genuinely curious, wanting to know about this strange, far off land

[Shadowcaller]

"It's not that cold, it's actually quite warm during the summers." Cessie replies. "Besides, we have a number of provinces in tropical climates just like this one. We have quite different culture as I have heard of so far. Harnel have told me quite a lot about Ascaerin, it seems to be nice place to live in." I mean, just looking at her clothes...

[Halae]

Hey now, her clothes are certainly low cut, but they aren't all that bad. They cover quite a bit. :smalltongue:

"Life is nice here. Roran and Allaric are usually out hunting, so I have the run of the place to myself. Honestly, I was worried Roran would disown me when I couldn't give him any more children, so I'm just happy to still be here."

[Shadowcaller]

I meant Cessie's clothes actually. "Uh, I see. How nice of him." Warning bells...

"Harnel and I haven't had any children yet, I haven't really felt inclined." She explains. "It's a lot of work I imagine, taking care of kids. Bottle feeding them etc. Things like that. I'm sure you done a great job with your though."

[Halae]

Harnel stays silent as he eats, letting the women talk. He's listening in, however.

"That's an unusual attitude, but good for you. Yes, children can be difficult to deal with sometimes, but as they get older they learn to take care of themselves more and more, and you actually start missing the things you did for them when they were little. I used to sing to Allaric when he was very young. He thinks he's too old for that, now." Tanila shakes her head and takes a drink of the wine, which I'm sure Cessie hasn't touched... unless she doesn't know what it is. Not like Harnel or Tanila are about to tell her. :smalltongue:

[Shadowcaller]

"It isn't unusual where I'm from I assure you. It feels bad that you haven't had as many children as you wanted though but at least you have one stream of sunlight right?" Cessie asks with a faint smile. "Harnel want children too, don't you dear?" And no, she haven't touched the wine. She knows such things when she see them.

"Is there any water or perhaps milk I could drink?"

[Halae]

Harnel nods, and Tanila gives him an odd look.

"Is the wine not to your liking? Anna, go and get some water for our guest." Tanila remains sitting as a servant nods and rushes off to get water for Cessie. "I do apologize, but sometimes the wrong wine is brought up."

[Shadowcaller]

"I just try to avoid drinks with alcohol in Tanila, it isn't anything wrong with your wine." Cessie explains in a gentle tone. "So when do you expect Roran to return by the way? I hope he'll be able to act politely in front of his own son and wife. I'm sure he's a better man then the one as he acts as inf front of Harnel."

[Halae]

"I hope so. He can be quite rude when Harnel is around. Normally he's such a kind man..."

Much in contrast to what's been seen before.

[Shadowcaller]

"Yes, sadly I have only seen him with Harnel so I couldn't know. He was a bit rude the first time I saw him." She replies.

"I like the food though, I never imagined a reptile could actually taste good."

[Halae]

"No? You don't eat reptiles around Hestopia?" Tanila seems genuinely surprised

[Shadowcaller]

"Oh, some do but it's not considered a actual meal you could serve anyone. There are no reptile hunters or reptile breeders for example. We live so far north that they don't get that big anyway. I heard there are larger ones in the south however."

[Halae]

"That's right, reptiles don't like he cold much do they?"

Tanila thinks for a moment, "Fordal must feel quite warm to you, doesn't it? Are you alright in the heat? Especially in such a heavy dress."

[Shadowcaller]

"Oh, don't worry about me. I cool myself down with the help of some 'magic' so I won't feel too warm. I have been in such climates before though. I admit that I'm more worried about catching some type of tropical disease. I did that last time I was staying with one of my older brothers."

[Halae]

Tanila nods, "If something dreadful like that were to happen, we'd be sure to take you to a cleric - a guest of ours shouldn't have to deal with something like that." she nods to herself. It was only reasonable.

And then they hear something. "What?!" is heard from someone else in the house, towards the direction of the front door.

It seems Roran is home.

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie let's out a mental sigh but attempts to cover up the fact she's doesn't like Roran. At least his presence meant they would be out of here soon enough.

"I see Roran is home, means I finally get to see Allaric hopefully." Not that Cessie was actually very interested in children, it was just something polite to say.

[Halae]

Harnel seems like he's about to say something When Roran bursts into the room, throwing the door open. it slams against the wall, and rebounds, almost striking roran as he comes in, but he steps out of the way. instead, it slams into the servant that was behind him. He doesn't seem to care. Hate filled eyes shoot towards Harnel, barely sparing a glance towards Cessie.

"Here for the inheritance."

"Yes."

"Come with me."

It seems he doesn't care they were at dinner, since he starts stomping back towards the entrance. A little boy is tending to the servant, probably Allaric, and Tanila gets up to help him as well. Harnel seems surprised by the abruptness of this. "I'm sorry about Roran," Tanilla says.

Allaric looks at Harnel with angrily as well. He's learning from his father.

Harnel stands up, "We should probably follow." He's upset. Mostly about having to deal with Roran, and the interruption of dinner.

[Shadowcaller]

"It's okay." Cessie assures Tanilla, she was used to this by now after all. It was still hard to forgive him for not believing she was a noble however.

"Yes, let's get this over with. He was the one making you come here after all..." She tells Harnel quietly and then follows him along.

[Halae]

"Yeah," Harnel agrees.

Roran will lead them out of the manor, and then around to the back of the building. At the back is a large stone basement door, a massive rune carved into it. Roran presses his hand into the middle of it, and the rune glows briefly, followed by the door opening outwards, revealing a dark stone passage down into the ground, "This is the Therishein vault. your parents left your inheritance down there. Just press your hand onto the rune on the other side of the door once you want to come back out."

And Roran will begin walking away. It's pretty clear he's steamed. Once he's out of earshot, Harnel says, "He's angry. Angrier than usual, I mean. I think he had something planned for us, but wasn't expecting us to come so quickly."

[Shadowcaller]

"Something planned? What? Is he planning to kill us or something?" Cessie rises an eyebrow, this was rather childish, even if he hated Harnel couldn't he at least act like an adult?

"Or is he going to find some loophole to avoid giving you the inheritances? I don't get why he's so angry anyway, he was the one forcing you here. Didn't he think you would show up? He could have just giving you your money and he wouldn't have had to see you ever again."

[Halae]

"He's done things like this in the past. He's not outright malevolent, but he does what he can to make my life hell, along with those I'm close to. like I said, we probably got here too quickly for him to enact whatever idea he had."

Harnel shakes his head, "Come on, let's go get whatever it is my parents left me." and he'll begin descending in the tunnel.

[Shadowcaller]

"Yes, let's just see what's inside..." Cessie replies and will follow Harnel along trying to sense any magic as she is going along.

[Halae]

as they get closer to the vault, Cessie should start feeling quite a bit of magical energy down below. It's not overwhelming, but there's quite a bit.

At the bottom of the stairwell, there's a large pair of heavy wooden doors, which Harnel will start moving out of the way. Cessie will get the first sight of the treasure within - There are literal piles of gold as high as her waist. they're also littered with gems, finely crafted swords and armor, and other things.

Apparently, Harnel's mother left him her treasure hoard. Harnel is still moving the doors out of the way - Cessie will have a chance to respond before harnel finishes.

[Shadowcaller]

"Just be careful not to touch anything until I checked it out Harnel, I can feel some magical energy here. There might be cursed items for all we know." She tells him as she start to look around the room.

"But this is all your mothers wealth then? I can't believe Roran would even get a piece of this, I doubt he liked her more then he likes you."

[Halae]

Harnel looks at all that money and just sort of stares at in shock. "That's... that's a lot of money. Wow. I always wondered where Mother kept it, but I assumed she just didn't have that large a hoard.... but, then... this! Where the hell did she get it all?!"

Harnel won't move forward though. He's wary of Cessie's warning regarding the potential of curses. In the middle of all this is a pedestal with a scroll on it.

[Shadowcaller]

"There is a possibility it's an illusion of some sort but maybe... hmm... you know, if your mother acquired this wealth in a method commonly associated with dragons there is a chance that's what Roran is planning to raise hell with. To contact the original owners, if any." Cessie replies as the scroll catches her eyes.

"But perhaps we can find out, it seems someone have left something for us." She continues as she approaches the scroll, trying to determinate if it's enchanted in some way. "You should probably read it, it's your inheritance after all."

[Halae]

Cessie won't find any sort of magic emanating from the scroll. Assuming, she doesn't stop him, Harnel will nod and pick it up, to begin reading it. As he does, she'll be able to feel sadness from her bond with him. He'll read it twice before putting it back down on the pedestal, and take a deep breath. "It's a letter from my parents." He actually looks like he might start crying, but he holds it back.

[Shadowcaller]

"...what does it say?" Cessie asks carefully. She knew his parents were a rather touchy subject.

[Halae]

Rather than say, Harnel will take a deep breath and hand the scroll to cessie.

It reads as follows, in hard written letters, as if the person writing didn't know he was pressing too hard:

"If you're reading this, then you've found yourself a woman to be proud of. Well done, my boy. Couldn't have been easy, and if you've found someone to love, hold onto her as best you can. It's a rare thing to truly love, and you should make the best of it. hopefully, you can find a few others as well - you're nobility, remember, even if you've never lived in an estate with servants waiting on you hand and foot. believe me, that gets dull after a while. considering the amount of money your mother is leaving you, that shouldn't be too difficult to do, even if your cousin Roran finds some way to keep you out of the estate, which, as far as I know, he can't legally do. Technically, it's your house once you get married. Anyways, I haven't actually left you anything, since there is no way at all that I could compare to what your mother is leaving for you. Hopefully the training I've been giving you is enough to see you through life; you certainly seem to have taken to it well enough."

The writing changes here, to something more delicate and feminine

"Harnel. I love you very much, and always will. When I had you with your father, I knew right from the moment you hatched that you were special. You have that fire, the one that lights the way of destiny. hold onto that - take it and make sure that you can move forward in life with your head held high, no matter what the humans say about you. as a half-dragon, you're the scion of a powerful bloodline. if you can find a way to become a full dragon, I would support you in that as well. You'll be a hero by the time you're a wyrm, I'm sure. Speaking of which, by the time a dragon is an adult, they should choose a name for themselves. Choose something good!

And to you, the young woman in blue, you treat him right. He's been through hell for most of his life and he'll need a steady, supportive hand. Give him your love, and everything he needs, but remember that it's part of dragons to be greedy. don't give him too much, or he'll just keep taking. It's not an insult; that's just what he is. It's the job of a mate to moderate their other half. Watch him, and make sure he doesn't do anything stupid. That something he seems to have inherited from his father.

I've left you sixteen thousand nine hundred and four gold coins, sixteen freshwater pearls, four onyx, six aquamarines, three violet garnets, a silver salad fork, a polished obsidian mug, a crystal inkwell, a bronze lamp, a silver snuffbox, a silk pillow stitched with gold thread, a hand carved hickory bookcase with glass doors, a woolen tapestry bearing the holy symbol of Suugan, three gold chains, a pair of gold bracers engraved with leaping flames, a crystal vase, a mithral hat pin set with tiny ruby, a silk tunic with embroidered “W”, a pair of nagahide boots, a teakwood serving tray, a painting of the dwarf Queen Hammerskjold, two silver serving platters, a silver anklet with tiny elephant-shaped jade charms, a ceremonial darkwood staff topped with gold orb, a platinum circlet, a gold candelabra shaped like dragon’s claw (badly, by the way), a silver belt set with ruby, a small onyx statuette of a centaur, a small onyx statuette of a pegasus, a pair of diamond earrings, a cape of demon feathers, a platinum pendant set with three matching emeralds, and a gold tiara set with a large jacinth.

No, I don't know how she remembers all that.

Sincerely, your Mother and Father, Bastion Therishein and Auverixenaelus "Anabelle" Therishein"

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie need to read it more then once as well just to get all the details in place. She's still left with a few questions though.

But she could ask those later. "Are you okay Harnel?" She puts her hand on his shoulder, "The letter... it must mean a lot to you."

[Halae]

Harnel looks at Cessie sadly, "I... I'll be fine. Do you have any way of transporting this stuff out of here? I had no idea Mother left this much for me." He's moving onto business to avoid the topic of his parents.

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie shakes her head, "Not really. My magic works to summon things to this world, but it can't control things that are already in it. But I'm sure we can think of some way to do it, however before that, do you mind if I ask a few questions about the letter I liked cleared out?" She asks carefully.

[Halae]

Harnel blinks, pushing his feelings of sadness away for the moment, "Of course. what do you want to know?"

[Shadowcaller]

"Your father had written something about 'find others as well' what did he mean by that exactly?" She didn't want to assume anything here.

The amount of gold could be dealt with later...

[Halae]

"Ah... right," Harnel looks embarrassed by this, "Ascaerin Nobility... We're allowed up to three spouses. Technically, since you married into Ascaerin Nobility, but the laws of the empire, you're allowed to do this as well." He shrugs, "It's not a law I came up with. Frankly, one woman is enough for me."

[Shadowcaller]

That's barbaric! She knew she disapproved with Harnel's empire on several issues such as slavery, but this came as a surprise to her. She had never seen someone with two wives or grooms yet. Plenty of slaves though.

"I would hope so. One man is certainly enough for me, how can you have more then one true love? In Hestopia more then one marriage would be enough to declare them all null. Does this mean Roran have more then one wife?"

[Halae]

Harnel nods, "He does. From my understanding, most of the marriages are political in nature. Nobility is expected to make their first marriage for love, and the other two for political reasons. Tanila, of course, is Roran's first wife."

[Shadowcaller]

"But didn't your father suggested you to do this? It sounded... well, I guess I know what you mean but it still seem so wrong to me. Aren't marriages supposed to be special?" Well, that's the kind of view you get from being raised in a church.

Cessie sigh, "I don't think I will ever understand your culture Harnel."

[Halae]

Harnel shrugs, "I don't think I will either. Is there anything else you wanted to know?"

[Shadowcaller]

"Yes... what are we supposed to do with all this wealth? It's much more then I could ever imagine and I find myself wondering what it all really came from too. Your mother seemed to have a pretty good guess who I were too..." Cessie states with a glance at her husband.

[Halae]

"Mother studied magic, just like Gran. Divination isn't terribly difficult, but it is hard to get more than a few glimpses of the future, from what I understand. She probably only saw that you were wearing a blue dress, really."

He looks at the treasure sitting around them again, "As for all this... I have absolutely no idea. She had over three hundred years to collect all of it, so I honestly don't know where it all came from. At least I can get that tower built now, huh?" He chuckles oddly. he's never seen this much money before

[Shadowcaller]

"Yes, this should be more then enough, now you don't need to hire yourself out at least." She smiles relived as they don't have to deal with that any more at least. "I still like to pay for half of it however. It will be our home after all. Why a tower however?" She could question him about divination later on.

[Halae]

"I... like towers?" Harnel says, shrugging, "I'm not sure, I suppose. A tower just, really appeals to me. Being high up. It's part of the reason I bought that clifftop."

[Shadowcaller]

"Oh, well I guess a tower might be nice, we'll discuss it later, okay? I'm more curious about divination. No such magic exist within our world and doesn't it's existence prove that there is some type of 'fate'?" Such an interesting existential question. Maybe nothing she should't discuss with Harnel however. :smalltongue:

"But we do have bigger issues, like how we are supposed to get all this out. You don't suppose you have a friend to call on? I mean, I could summon a bunch of earth elementals to carry it all out, but we still need something to move it to."

[Halae]

"I have no idea where to put it." Harnel says, "WATCH might have a vault, but I... well, yeah. I don't have any friends that could hold this for me. I think our only option is to leave it here until we have a way to store it."

[Shadowcaller]

"And Roran isn't going to attempt to take it from you somehow? I don't trust him one bit. Might as well have Helios watching over it." She rolls her eyes.

[Halae]

Harnel sighs, "Yeah, you're right. What do you think we can do? I suppose we could have Arvan store it at the college, maybe give them a little of it in order to pay for the storage or something."

[Shadowcaller]

"Okay, and he can 'teleport' it then I suppose? I just want all this gold safe for you. Not just for it's material value, your parents left this to you, it's their final gift to you and you truly deserve it Harnel. No one else should take it from you. This is all yours and no one else." Cessie says firmly as I guess they are going to move the gold somehow.

[Halae]

Harnel nods and pulls up the mirror that he'd been using to speak with Arvan. After a brief exchange, and a little time where they're simply waiting, a portal will open in the treasury.

a group of young men come through it, only to goggle at the amount here. After a moment of shock, they'll start bringing things through the portal. Harnel will move the larger things, such as the cabinet, for them, since he's quite a bit stronger than they are..

At the end of it all, the entire treasure horde, not even a few coins remaining in the vault (Harnel made sure of that!) is transferred into a basement room of the college. One of the college masters speaks to Harnel about it, and they agree that, for five hundred gold, they'll hold it until Harnel and Cessie have a place to put it.

Harnel and Cessie will be left with Arvan then in the basement room, the students having gone back to their rooms or classes, the master having left.

"I never thought I'd see a dragon's horde," Arvan says, "And all this is yours?"

"It is. My marriage inheritance."

"Wow. Er... shall we get you going to your next destination then? I'm sure my gawking can be done while you two are enjoying yourselves somewhere else."

"We're done in Fordal. Would you mind sending us to the Arshal Archipelago? Preferably close to Elnard."

Arvan nods, "Of course, my friend."

[Shadowcaller]

"Arshal Archipelago? So what's so special about that place exactly?" Cessie asks Harnel carefully hoping it's someplace where they can be just by themselves. She doesn't mention such things near Arvan however. That's private business.

[Halae]

in that case, She'll likely say it once Arvan has moved off to a corner of the room to cast his spell.

"It should be, yes. The only things there besides ourselves should be some small lizards, where we're going." He'll attempt to kiss her, "I want to show you Sanctum Corus."

[Shadowcaller]

She'll kiss him back quickly and smile, "That was the place with the volcanoes right? Remember that I'm only immune to my own fire though. Sounds wonderful otherwise."

[Halae]

Harnel smiles, "It's not like we're going to be stepping into lava, Sia Memamosal. Well, I might, but I wouldn't expect you to do so. There won't be any other people there. Just us."

[Shadowcaller]

"You don't need to step right into the lave to get burned dear so let's just be careful okay?" Cessie reminds him.

[Halae]

"of course. I know better." Harnel says, smiling.

Yes, he actually says that :smalltongue:

[Shadowcaller]

"Good, let's go then shall we? I'm very curious how this place look like." She replies as she goes towards the portal room.

[Halae]

As they step through the portal, Cessie will once again feel the heat of the place she's going to. It's warmer here than it was in Fordal, though not as hot as it is in a desert.

On the other side, they can see the ocean stretching out before them. Islands can be seen, some close, some in the distance. Harnel points to one of the closer ones and smiles, saying, "That's where we're heading. I would have had Arvan take us straight there, but Sanctum Corus is supposed to be a secreeeeeeet.

As Cessie listens to Harnel speak, the world seems to slow, turning grey. Time grinds to a halt, and even the grass becomes still. Cessie, though, will retain her color. Things haven't stopped for her.

And she will hear a voice all around her, "And what do we have here? A human from another world, eh?"

[Shadowcaller]

The mage scowls, she had experienced similar things before, she wouldn't feel afraid however. She hadn't showed fear that time either even thought she had been completely helpless. "Whatever is going on, I suggest that you stop it at once. I'm not going to indulge to anything as long as I remain in this state."

[Halae]

A man suddenly appears, standing before her. He looks very much similar to this (http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2010/144/3/7/Deity_v_5_by_Kuroi_Tsuki.jpg)

"Very well, I'll show myself. But I rather think you should change you attitude. You're not the one in control here."

[Shadowcaller]

If Cessie is surprised at his appearance she isn't showing it and greets him with a completely neutral expression. "Then I assume you are?" She says with a raised eyebrow. "I must ask thought, what do you want me?"

[Halae]

"Mostly, I find you interesting is all." He makes a grand sweeping gesture out towards the world around him, "You see, much of this is my world. I designed the sky you stand under now, the pattern of the stars and the four moons."

"But you, you are something different." He steps closer, and will bend a little over to look her in the eye, "You're not from this world. You're from a much more unstable one. Do you have any idea what we do with things from unstable realities?"

"We erase them, as if they never existed. you husband here? he would never even remember you existed. you would be gone from the world, and nobody would mourn."

[Shadowcaller]

"...but you won't. Otherwise you wouldn't be talking to me right now wouldn't you?" She had actually faced off against a similar being before and manages to keep her cool even under this prospect.

[Halae]

"That's correct," He smiles, standing up straight again, "I find you interesting enough to shield you from the others of my kind, and to allow you to continue alongside your half-dragon. But know this - the moment you cease to be interesting? I Will erase you."

"So, understand my position when I say that I wish you to be as interesting as you can be. If you have an idea for how to make things more interesting, I'd be willing to listen, of course. If you don't... I'll start finding ways to make it more interesting." He smiles, a predatory gleam in his eye. "So, decide. Will you present an idea to me, or shall I have some fun on my own?"

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie swallows but dosen't really show any signs of nervousness, she didn't know how much of this was true after all but considering what just happened she found it wise to play along for now.

"I don't know what you find interesting sadly, we have just meet after all and I can't like you, read minds. You have to excuse my limited imagination but really can't make up something at the spot."

[Halae]

He nods, "Very well then, you have made your decision. It will be interesting to see your reactions, and those of your husband."

The winged man will vanish in a puff of black and white smoke, "If you feel the need to speak with me, I suggest you seek out a temple of Suugan."

Color will slowly return to the world, and the Harnel will begin moving again, "Cessie? Are you alright?"

[Shadowcaller]

"Wait I didn-" Oh great. Whatever he had done was not good. She had to think positive though, they were in a remote area and maybe he would change whatever he had done back soon enough, she just had remained calm.

Once the world start around her again she quickly looks over her arms. "Oni, like in my world, it changed something but I don't know what yet. Just try to be calm..." She was mostly reminding herself though.

[Halae]

Harnel looks worried, and realizes that she's trying to calm herself down. He'll attempt to pull her into his embrace, to comfort her. "It's ok. Take a moment to think about your body. Do you feel anything different?"

[Shadowcaller]

She hugs him back and he can easily feel her shiver as she let's out the fear a bit. She felt safe or well, safer, in Harnel's arms however. "No, but it could be a subtle change... we should probably go and try to talk sense to it as quickly as possible. Do you know where the temple of Suugan is? He never told me." She takes a few deep breath's as she attempts to calm herself down. Harnel's meetings hadn't been this terrifying had they?

[Halae]

"Er... Suugan? Why, exactly did he want you to go to a temple of Suugan?" Harnel looks confused.

[Shadowcaller]

She sigh, "I guess it just isn't a any kind of temple is it? That's where he wanted me to go to talk to him." She was starting to get an idea just what this being found interesting.

[Halae]

"No, it's fine. Suugan is the suky god. I'm just curious why an oni would want you to talk to him there. There's a temple in Elnard," He points at the city that isn't terribly far away, "We could go right now."

[Shadowcaller]

"We could... what's the city like?" She asks as she sets course for the temple. She had no idea what that oni had in store for her but she knew that she would probably have to suffer for it at the end of this day in either case.
She didn't know what was worse though, to wait for whatever had changed to present itself or to suffer the change itself.

[Halae]

"It's... a typical human dominated city. They've had a lot problems with dragons before, so I don't know if I should go in without a cloak. would you be able to find the temple if I gave you directions? It's a fairly large building."

[Shadowcaller]

"I suppose I could, I would be missing you though, this is making me feel pretty nervous." She admits, not that she really should need to, he can sense her fear though the earring.

"I don't want to risk your life though so I suppose I should go alone, I warn you however, my sense of direction isn't worth much."

[Halae]

"It's fine. Suugan temples are always really tall." She should be able to Feel Harnel's worry through the bond, which is ramped up by sensing her fear. He'll describe how to find the temple easily enough, of course. It should be near the center of town, and if it isn't she'll be able to see the temple from there. "I'm going to wait here, alright? There's a little alcove by the water where I can duck down if people start coming around."

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie sigh, "This is horrible, you having to hide. It shouldn't be like this Harnel." She gives him a sad look. "But I'll try to be quick about it, if this is some type of trick on his side..." Cessie shakes her head. "Just wish me luck and I'll be back soon... hopefully." He can feel another wave of fear from her as she gives him a quick kiss which eases it somewhat.

[Halae]

"Alright, get going. I'll be here when you get back." Harnel says, walking towards the alcove he mentioned.

As Cessie goes towards the town, she'll notice something... interesting. Most people here simply don't wear anything on their upper bodies, save for breastbands if they're women doing strenuous work. The clothes on their lower bodies are usually light, as if they could be abandoned at a moments notice. Sea shells and coral make up most of the decorations here, as well as some glass designs and porcelain. The people here have tan colored skin, usually with lightly colored hair and grey eyes. Cessie gets many, many odd looks for wearing a dress so heavy, especially in this sunny weather. What could she be thinking? Doesn't she know that's way too many clothes?!

As Harnel said, the temple of Suugan isn't going to be difficult to locate. If she follows his suggestion to go the town square, she'll find a tall azure colored tower standing in the center of the plaza. Cessie will notice that it has some stained glass in it, the most prominent of which... depicts the oni that appeared before Cessie.

[Shadowcaller]

It's not too much clothes for her. :smalltongue:

Cessie have a easy time ignoring the stares though as she doesn't want to look at people willingly dressed in such clothes. She walks quickly, her eyes focused on the path ahead and nothing else.

She wasn't here on a walkabout anyway, something very serious had happened she needed to have corrected.

She will likely get a bit lost before she eventually reaches the temple, her sense of direction is really as poor as she claims it is.
However if that doesn't give her any trouble she frowns at the creature depicted on the glass and will look for some way to enter the building.

[Halae]

The front door is wide open, showing the azure stonework inside as well. An acolyte is inside, scrubbing the floor.

[Shadowcaller]

She enters then and turns to the acolyte. "Excuse me? I assume everyone is welcome inside? It's my first time here as you might guess and I was wondering what kind of figure that is depicted on the stained glass? The one with wings." She points at it.

[Halae]

The boy, who stands up when approached, first looks oddly at Cessie's clothes, and then oddly at her when she mentions the depiction in the stained glass. "That's an image of Suugan, milady. Don't they worship him in the northern provinces as well?"

[Shadowcaller]

"Not as far as I'm aware, this is the second time I have heard the name mentioned. I do wish to learn more about him though. Do you mind if I have a look around?" Cessie asks the boy.

[Halae]

The Boy nods, "If you want to get a feeling for the kind of god that Suugan is, you may want to try the top floor. people go there to commune with him."

[Shadowcaller]

"Ah, thank you, just what I need." She gives the boy a a polite nod and is then on her way up the tower to contact the oni once she reaches it. Unless there is a line or something like that.

[Halae]

There's no line. Surprisingly, the temple is mostly empty today. Wonder why?

Regardless, Cessie will be able to reach the room of communion easily. the walls are clear here - she can see through them, all out over the town and to the other islands, and the domed top of the temple can be seen through as well, to show the sky.

Within moments of her arrival, she'll hear a familiar voice as the winged man materializes before her once more, "Did you change your mind? You wish to choose once more?"

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie scowls as she see the oni, was she truly powerless against him? "I wish to know what you did to me if that isn't too much trouble. And besides that, it's not easy for me to pick something which is negative for me. Can't you give me some options or something like that for this sick game?"

[Halae]

Suugan laughs, his voice ringing like bells in the wind, "I haven't done anything to you child, not yet. And I never stated it had to be a bad thing, just an interesting one. Many times when I offer this to a human, they sometimes refer to it as a miracle, or wish. Does that give you any ideas?"

[Shadowcaller]

"I'm perfectly contented with my life at the moment." Cessie insists, "If I have any problems, I try to fix them myself, not letting someone else do it for it for me. If you can read my mind, I believe you can easily tell this. I'm not a person that like sudden changes to my life like the ones your offering."

[Halae]

"Quite interesting indeed. Most humans would jump at the chance for an easy way out. An Easy way to solve their problems. After all, wouldn't it be wonderful if your beloved husband could the streets of the city without fear of being stoned to death? Many wish to have something different about their loved one, or to be different for their loved one."

A large wooden table and chairs will appear, and Suugan will move to sit down, seeming entirely relaxed, "Please, sit down. There must also be things an energy manipulator such as yourself would wish for. Maybe you'd like more power? An understanding of more types of magic, and the ability to cast them? The ability to learn those magics much faster than you would otherwise be forced to? You have many options."

[Shadowcaller]

The sorceress looks doubtful but decides that sitting down probably would be the best thing right now.

"All wishes have a price... Harnel was offered the same thing and there was a price eventually. However if this truly is a matter of existence and non-existence I shall try to indulge in this little experiment of yours. I do believe that knowledge have to be earned though, not just inserted into you. However if you would just make things a bit easier to understand that would be more then I could ask for." She says calmly, acting as this was some kind of business meeting.

[Halae]

"In that case, describe to me how I would find that interesting? I find high emotion interacting to be interesting, frankly, and while I may have suggested it, I wish you to hold my attention for quite a while. This simply doesn't seem interesting to me. I was merely explaining what other individuals have wished for, or what you might have."

Suugan, while not reading her mind, appears to have picked up on the business aspect that Cessie has decided to employ

[Shadowcaller]

"You probably wouldn't." Cessie says and sigh openly. "Look, I'm probably not the right person for this. I don't like the idea of picking my own poison since I personally don't like those type of highly emotional conversations, it makes you... lose control." She explains.

"Though... I guess I could ask for the same thing I have asked of another being. I like to see Harnel's ideal me." She asked this from a goddess a long time ago. Then it was about Aegnor however.

[Halae]

Suugan smiles, "Very well."

A mirror rises up out of the floor, next to Cessie, and she should feel a bit different. Her clothing... it has changed to a stylish version of what she has seen in town, including the lack of a top, her hair tied into a ponytail with a beautiful large violet flower in her hair. She'll also notice her hips are wider, her chest is much larger, and... she has scales covering several parts of her body? Blue scales. She should feel comfortable in this outfit, much more than she would have been unaltered. "He can't decide whether he likes you better as a half dragon or a human, so I chose something in between. He also wishes you were more likely to pick up local garb - he likes seeing your body, and the heavy clothes of your native land don't wok well with that."

[Shadowcaller]

Cessies blushes profoundly and reflexively covers herself up, unused to the added weight. She instantly looks extremely nervous, if anything could make her lose her cool it was lack of clothes. Not to mention in this changed form. She had expected a lot of things, but not this.

"I didn't ask to be changed myself." She manages to say after a while turning away from the oni. She's afraid to even raise her voice in case someone would hear them. This was way too much to take at one point.
"Just change me back." Cessie begs him, not really being able to cope with this at all.

[Halae]

Suugan tilts his head a bit, looking curiously at Cessie, smiling with interest in his eyes. "You see, this is the sort of emotion I find interesting. Fear. You fear the fact that I appear male while your chest is exposed, yes? That I can see your naked body?"

He's not looking at her with lust, just business-like interest.

[Shadowcaller]

"Just change me back, please. Yes, I can't really cope..." She pauses and attempts to calm herself down with a deep breath. This was against pretty much everything she had learned in church, to show skin, to manipulate your body, to expose yourself.

"I don't like it okay? This isn't what Harnel rationally would want, this is just a stupid fantasy."

[Halae]

"Why would I do that? This is very interesting! Here we have you having a strong emotional response, and that is something I greatly enjoy. I have no reason to change you back - but I could make it so that you enjoy the changes." Suugan leans back in his chair, smiling

[Shadowcaller]

"No." Cessie replies coldly. "I like who I am and I'm going to continue being that person. Just please, if you want something intresting do something else, anything. Just not this."

[Halae]

"Anything?" Suugan grins

"Very well."

And then he's gone. The table, his chair, the mirror, all gone. All that's left is Cessie, back to her normal self and in her normal clothes, sitting in the one chair that remains in the room. When she stands, the chair will vanish as well.

Probably a poor choice of words.

[Shadowcaller]

"Wait, when I meant anything... come back here! You have no right playing with my life like this!"

If he doesn't respond Cessie is going to sit down on the floor and close her eyes. She will then do what she haven't done in years, pray. It's a completely silent prayer to Artaris, more of meditating really as she relaxes her body, closing off the outside world.

She is going to sit there a while.

[Halae]

Then she's going to be sitting there a while. or at least until she realizes she can still feel Harnel through the bond, and he feels extremely, extremely worried. He was able to feel her terror during the exchange with Suugan, and now he's all kinds of anxious.

There will be no response from the oni/god.

[Shadowcaller]

Harnel, I'm okay. But he have changed something else, I don't know what though. She briefly wonders what it would be like to be his dream girl for just a night or so, but that is probably not a rational thought either.

She just wished this was over.

[Halae]

A-are you sure? You felt so scared before. Are you sure you're alright?

Harnel does indeed sound very, very antsy. He's extremely worried about her

[Shadowcaller]

I'm perfectly fine Harnel, I wasn't that afraid was I? I'm going to be honest with you, I asked him about how you saw the ideal me and he changed me... he changed me back though. I hope. Unless he just changed my perception. I hate this. She replies with a mental sigh.

[Halae]

Alright, come back to me, ok? Maybe I'll be able to tell you for sure. Just please, come back so I can see you're alright.

[Shadowcaller]

I will. And she's already on her away from the tower, not wanting to worry Harnel, changes be damned. She was already too paranoid about this.
She crosses her arms over her chest and heads down the tower, giving the acolyte a polite nod as she passes him by. She appears rather rather self conscious and doesn't stay to chat as she normally would. Instead she will head directly out of town back to her husband.

It was... interesting to see at least. It's an fascinating fantasy. She tells him as she looks for him in his hiding spot.

[Halae]

Cessie will get just as many odd looks as she did before. They're all the same as before - why is she wearing so many clothes?

As she gets back to Harnel's hiding spot, he looks her over fearfully, hoping nothing is wrong. He'll rush up and hug her, and then search her up and down, looking for whatever has happened to her. "You look normal again, like we just walked out of Hestopia. What fantasy are you talking about? What did he make you look like?"

For the record, Harnel looks no different

[Shadowcaller]

"Your fantasy apparently. I know it isn't rational however. I love you." She assures him and hugs him tightly, never really wanting to let him go. "He changed something else though and I'm not sure if I should stay here so I could go back to the temple or if we should continue our journey..." She sigh.

[Halae]

"What do you want to do? I can get us to Sanctum Corus before nightfall, but I'm not willing to fly in the dark. Do you want to stay here?"

Harnel, is, of course in danger if someone finds him here. But Cessie would need to be close to the city if she suddenly found something wrong.

Choices, choices.

[Shadowcaller]

"Then let's stay here, just in case. I just don't get why I need to go there to contact him, he probably likes me to run around for his amusement." She shudders, starting to feel sick. This was a game she didn't want to play, least of all when she just wanted to enjoy her honeymoon with her husband.

"Let's just stay somewhere safe okay? I couldn't live with myself if I somehow put you in danger." She stays close him him, refusing to let go.

[Halae]

Harnel will hold her close as long as feels she needs the comfort. Eventually, he'll point out that, while this island wouldn't be as safe as Sanctum Corus for him, the little alcove where he was hiding before should be enough to keep them safe for tonight.

The night should pass uneventfully. Harnel will build a little bed for them out of some of the long grass and such on the island. It won't be particularly comfortable, but it's still a lot better that sleeping on stone or something.

However, when she wakes up... Cessie will notice something different. As she wakes up, she'll find no differences with Harnel, who is still fast asleep, but her own body has changed. She completely covered, head to toe, in blue scales. She has a pair of wings on her back, and her tail hangs out of her rear, though it'll still be under the folds of her dress if she wore the dress to bed. A single, very large yellow horn protrudes from her forehead, and she bears the same digitigrade feet that Harnel has.

Suugan made her a half-blue dragon. She'll be able to feel energy in her chest, beating alongside her heart. It feels good. All the strengths, immunities, defenses, and natural weapons of a half-blue are hers... and all the social stigma, in this world.

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie closes her eyes and opens them again, wishes this was a dream again. She hadn't been able to sleep very well out of might have changed. In a way, it was easier now that the change was so obvious but it still freaks her out.

It wasn't quite as bad as the last change however, she still had her clothes and she had been like this before when she used that illusion. There were obvious changes though.

She moves her tail and then her wings and feels her horn, it was all real. Closing her eyes a second time, she sigh deeply. "Can you stop this? I wouldn't mind exploring things with Harnel when I'm willing to. We have done that many times before as you might know. I wouldn't mind so much if not for the fear it might be permanent and that I can't control it." She says out into the air, hoping the oni would hear her.

[Halae]

This actually wakes Harnel up. He doesn't quite catch what she says as he wakes up, but as he raises himself into a sitting position, he says, "It's good to see you feeling good enough to use your illusions like that. I didn't know you could do wings." It's obvious he's still quite groggy and not quite thinking everything through.

There is absolutely no indication that Suugan has heard at all.

[Shadowcaller]

She stares at him for a moment, not feeling all that awake herself. "Think Harnel, why would I want to use my illusions right now? When half-dragons are hunted around here?"

[Halae]

"Oh," Harnel says, trying to think through the haze of having just woken up. Not an illusion? Then why did she look like a half-dragon?

And then it hits him.

"Oh."

"Well, uh, it could have been worse, right? There was a lot of other things he might have changed."

[Shadowcaller]

"It could have been worse." She agrees with a slight nod, still remembering what the oni claimed to be Harnel's dream girl. He could have liked though, she couldn't know.

It might be good to ask though...

"I still prefer to be me however..." She glances at Harnel, "Or do you like me as this? Your fantasy that he showed me... would you prefer if I different clothes?"

[Halae]

"I..." He just woke up. He wasn't prepared for relationship defining conversations less than five minutes after waking! He decides to tell the truth, because it was so much easier than coming up with a good lie right now. "I love you. And, I love the way your scales look, and your wings, and blue eyes." He swallows a bit, "Yes, I think I like you better like this. It... feels like your closer to me." He doesn't mean physically, of course, but having another half-dragon nearby... what a thing that is. Plus, dragon instincts tell him that she has an extremely healthy covering of scales, wings, and a strong body, which makers her a good mate. Both sides of his heritage are appeased with her current appearance.

"As for clothes... I like seeing your body, that's not a secret. Hestopia is one of the most covering countries I've ever seen."

And now he's terrified that he might have said something stupid to her.

[Shadowcaller]

That's quite a statement, she isn't really sure what to say, what had she really expected? Why had she even asked in the first place? The answer was that from some time had feared she just hadn't been enough for him. Ever since he had made that wish.

"But... I like to show you my body when we are alone." She manages to say, she really had expected him to avoid the question. Normally she would have gone closer to him at this point, but everything felt so odd right now.
This was not how she had planned the honeymoon, it wasn't even supposed to be oni around here.

[Halae]

"And that's enough for me, Cessie. I talked to you about clothing once, and even convinced you to wear pants, but I understand that you feel comfortable in the dresses you've always worn. I like seeing your body, and would love to see more of it, but I wouldn't force you to wear anything you don't want to, whether in private or in public."

He likes fantasizing about her in skimpy clothes. He's not about to force her to wear them.

[Shadowcaller]

"Harnel... I understand our cultures are different and I don't blame you for... having such thoughts. I... have similar thoughts about you at times." She admits, that had been a hard one but now she might as well go along with it. "I like imagine to you shirtless. It's only natural as long there is moderation." She says, finding justifications in what she have been taught.
"I'm sure there is a middle way in all of this..." She slowly offers her now clawed hand to him. "I love you Harnel and I like you to feel good just as you. Marriage is about compromise, no?"

[Halae]

Harnel will take her hand with a worried smile. He knows this is hard for her, and that she's accepting of it is amazing, "Are you sure? You don't want to change back? This will be a pretty big change, I think."

He thinks for a moment, and then will move closer to her, "Would you... like to try flying with your wings? We can be at Sanctum Corus in a little over an hour and a half."

[Shadowcaller]

She actually didn't say anything about being a half-dragon, but she could put that discussion aside for a moment. "Yes, I would Harnel." She says with a smile. "I would love to fly with you."

[Halae]

Harnel's smile brightens and he stands up, "Come on then. We should get into the air - see how you handle your new wings." He'll move towards the entrance of the alcove, attempting to pull Cessie along with him. Even as he does this, he stretches his wings

[Shadowcaller]

She stretches her wins as well as she follows him along, somewhere between the line of nervous and excited. "Uh, yeah, let's try this." Is the only thing she can add before I guess they take off.

[Halae]

The trip to Sanctum Corus will be fairly uneventful, except for the advent of flying through the air. Cessie will probably feel the true joy of flying for the first time - the feel of air beneath your wings, wind rushing past your face. She'll also discover her second set of eyelids, the pair built to protect a dragon's eyes during flight or swimming, so she'll be able to keep her eyes 'open' with no issue at all. She will, however, feel the instinct to move her tail as she soars through the air - normally, it acts as a rudder, to help a dragon control themselves during flight. Cessie having it under her dress causes a few problems, but nothing that can't be compensated for.

Harnel wants to be playful on the way there, but he's mindful of disrupting her during her first time flying. if she does things with him, he'll start playing as well, but he won't unless she tries it, and if she falls, he'll move to catch her.

Sanctum Corus is a fairly large island, but it's three interconnected volcanoes and the huge landmass they've formed between them. Lush jungle fills the landscape itself, with high cliffs and large caves buried in the sides of the volcanoes, though considering all but one of the Volcanoes are quiet, no lava is pouring forth from the caves. Harnel will begin descending at this point, aiming for a cave that he points out to Cessie.

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie wouldn't mind being playful, wanting to enjoy this as much as possible. She isn't that nervous, she can use her own magical energy to aid her after all so she doesn't have any trouble flying. She have already a spell for this after all so being in the air doesn't feel completely alien to her.

She'll land where he points out of course once they reached the island. "So this is it then? It looks beautiful."

[Halae]

"You should see it at night," Harnel says, smiling. If Cessie looks inside the cave, she'll see that the walls appear to have scratches in them, making runic designs. Of course, there's also the forest stretching out in front of them below, and the fact that, with a little effort, they could fly to any of the nearby islands fairly easily.

"So... we have the whole day today, and it seems like the Sanctum doesn't have any other visitors right now. Is there anything special you want to do? All we have right now is each other and a whole lot of time."

[Shadowcaller]

"There are other visitors? Well... I like to try a few things while I'm like this." She replies. "Do you know somewhere comfortable where we could um... make love?"

[Halae]

"Other dragons come here to get away from the world sometimes. This is known as a Sanctum for a reason."

It's clear he's blushing, "Ah, we can, uh, go somewhere with some softer ground if you like. Or, well, I've never had trouble with stone thanks to my scales, so this cave here should be fine, if you'd be alright with it."

as a matter of fact, Cessie's tactile sense should be similar to Harnel's now, so hard stone? Not to worry.

[Shadowcaller]

"I've... had it in more uncomfortable places I suppose." Like against the hull of a ship. <.<
"But why the blush? We're married for Artari's sake Harnel, we should make love whenever we want. In fact you should take initiative more, I'd like that." She says with a smile as she slowly start to undress.

[Halae]

"I... don't... know," he says. Why in the world is he blushing? It might be that she's just never said it exactly like that, he supposes.

"You'd like it if I did it for you more, huh?" He smiles at that as he begins to get undressed as well. "Well, how can I not, now?"

Once he's done, which is likely faster than Cessie, He'll move over to help her undress, kissing and pulling the curtain as he does.

Assuming she doesn't stop the curtaining for some reason, Cessie will find that she's much stronger than before. Harnel will still have her beat for sheer power, but there is no way she was that strong before.

[Shadowcaller]

The curtain drops and some time later it's pulled up again. Their tails are probably intertwined as they lay next to each other. "That felt nice... almost made me forgot about my current situation." She says with a slight smile. "But... I don't want to cut our honeymoon short, but if that being is still playing games with me, we might have to try to leave your world Harnel."

[Halae]

Harnel sighs and nods, "Like I said before we left, it's up to you how long we spend here. If you want to go back to the Nexus right now, we can do that. We just have to tell Arvan that we want to be leaving, and pick up our new treasure horde on the way out." Cessie should probably feel a stronger attachment to the money Harnel inherited than before. That would be the hoarding instinct, and since they were mates, well, it was her hoard too.

[Shadowcaller]

"Or... I could attempt to talk to it in that temple again, maybe ending this that way. That would probably be a better method considering it might not even allow me to leave." She sigh, "I'm... not sure I can stay like this either. There is so many things to consider like my family and my friends... Don't get me wrong though, I have enjoyed all this very much."

[Halae]

"That... presents another problem, doesn't it?" Harnel says, worriedly, "You're a half-dragon now, and you'd have to go into a city filled with dragon hating humans

[Shadowcaller]

"I know, but if I use an illusion of myself and I will be able to pass by without too many weird looks." Cessie replies. "Then we could stay on this island as long as we want and go and visit all other places in your world."

[Halae]

"Alright," Harnel says, "Do you want me to come with you then? If you can hide yourself with an illusion, maybe you can do me at the same time, right?"

[Shadowcaller]

"Okay, I think I will feel safer with you anyway. Let's try to end this." She glances at the discarded clothes. "But first we need to get dressed." And so they will, you can assume they fly back and try to enter the city with illusions. Harnel will probably look like Arik.

[Halae]

And so they fly back! And change into disguises!

Harnel still feels odd walking on human feet, but he won't object to anything Cessie decides on. He'll be wearing a complete set of clothes, like her, so he'll get as many odd looks as she does once they're in town.

Once again, surprisingly, the temple is empty when they reach it, even lacking the boy who was scrubbing floors yesterday. This... isn't really normal, is it? On the upside, nobody stops them from going up to the Communion room. Harnel says nothing once they get there. He's surveying the room to try and decide what the good exits are and how he can best defend Cessie if it comes to it. Admittedly, there's not much he can do against the being that's been playing with them, but there it is.

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie is once again completely focused on the way to the tower, she doesn't care of the glances she get's, she is just going to end this.

She strides into the communication room confidently, "Okay, you had your fun, you have had interesting reactions, but can you please end this now?" She says out loud.

[Halae]

"But you enjoy it, do you not?" Comes the reply from the air. Harnel looks wide eyed up towards the roof, "Look at yourself. You can use your magic to appear as completely human. what reason do you have to be changed back? Don't you like the power? The strength? That feeling in your heart of energy waiting to be sent forth? The feeling of flying under your own power, rather than magic? There's so many things you can do as a half dragon that cannot be done as a human."

Harnel is looking uncomfortable. Suugan, to his understanding, is a god. He doesn't feel he can fight a god, but if it comes to it, he'll do something. He has to. That's what he agreed to when he married Cessie.

[Shadowcaller]

"My family, my home, my friends, I need to return to other people that love me as well and they wouldn't recognize me like this. I need to think of other people as well." She replies. "And... it's against what I believe in, your supposed to be happy with what your born as."

Your body is a temple and all that, one of Artari's teachings.

[Halae]

"You were born as a baby, nothing more. A baby human with the potential for magic. You forget that we are always constantly changing. Even I am constantly going through changes, just as you mortals are."

He appears before them once more, and within instants he is once again sitting at a table in the middle of the room, this time with a pair of chairs, one for both of them. Harnel looks worriedly at it all, then looks at Cessie. He's not entirely sure what to do.

[Shadowcaller]

"So? That doesn't mean anything to them. Of course we change all the time but it got nothing to do with what other people will think." Cessie replies.

[Halae]

"It has everything to do with what people think, actually. I'm sure you weren't ready to marry Harnel when you first met him. It took enough time to understand what kind of person he is, and whether he would be good for you, and then you had to work up the courage to ask him. If you had not kissed him that first time, you would not be here, speaking with me. That is because you had enough of an opinion change in order to kiss him. Your relationship is a change to your life that has gone on a long time, and is just one example of how you have changed over the years. You are not as you were when you born because you have never been as you were at birth, except for the moment when you entered your own world."

He waves a hand towards the chairs, "Please take a seat. I am enjoying this conversation, and I would like to have our eyes be reasonably level."

[Shadowcaller]

"Yes, that's all true." Cessie says as she sits down, "But I choose how I like to change, while I enjoy the feelings coming with this change, I need to see other aspects of it too. I can't predict what my family would think of me suddenly not being human anymore, not to mention Sakura or Arik. I love them too and... well, I'm afraid to see their reactions towards such a change. My love to Harnel is a different thing... but perhaps there is a middle ground? What do you think Harnel?" Cessie asks, turning to the half-dragon.

[Halae]

"I think that this isn't my decision," Harnel says, "it's your life, and you know your family best. Do you really want to stay as a half-dragon? do you want to go back to being a human? I think you should follow what you want." He loves the half-dragon form that Cessie has now, but Harnel knows that her feelings on it come first and foremost. "I think you should forget what others would think of you for a moment and decide if it's something you would like to live with."

Suugan sits patiently. He has all the power here, and all the time. Plus, this is interesting.

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie gives Harnel a slight nod of understanding before turning to the oni once again. "I don't suppose you could allow me to change between the two forms? That would be the middle ground I mentioned."

[Halae]

Suugan chuckles, "I suppose I could make you a dragon. That way Half-dragon would be your middle ground."

He's joking, probably.

Maybe.

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie rolls her eyes. "Please, this is important, can you do it or not?" She asks, though a dragon... that would probably be silly and that might change her mentally as well and she didn't want that.

[Halae]

"Of course I can. you can be a dragon in a matter of moments." Suugan says, smiling brightly. Now he's just doing it to anger her, I think.

[Shadowcaller]

The sorceress sigh, "I don't think that's the only way you can grant me that, so you can do it, but the question is, will you? Surely that would be something 'interesting'?"

[Halae]

"It certainly would. I could in fact make the pair of you dragons, and yes, without changing the way you perceive the world." Suugan smiles. He's liking the prospect of this, somewhat, "And of course, you would be attracted to each other as dragons; I know you're worried about that."

[Shadowcaller]

Not this again, she knew Harnel wanted to become a dragon but the prospect of becoming one herself was completely alien to her. Half-dragon was one thing but... this was something different.
"I... a dragon's body would be completely alien to me. I couldn't pull it off, I'm born human, not dragon. I couldn't lay egg or anything like that." Cessie shakes her head, saying this as much to Harnel as to Suugan.

[Halae]

Suugan's Grin widens, "That's perfect then. A completely new body for you and your lover, to see how you react. I like this idea! You can come up with some interesting things when you put your mind to it, can't you?"

"That's not fair! you can't just decide that!" Harnel yells

"Can't I?"

[Shadowcaller]

"Technically you might be able to do that... but we could only change back once we come to the nexus. There are powers there you wouldn't be able to effect." Cessie informs the oni. "Besides, we could just change into our original forms so there wouldn't be much of a difference beyond the fact we could turn into dragons. Which we wouldn't." She still didn't know how dragons and children worked though.

[Halae]

"Then why is it a problem?" Suugan asks, smiling.

Harnel looks at him, open mouthed. He doesn't have an answer for that.

[Shadowcaller]

"Since I don't want to be changed against my will." Cessie replies. She figures he could fix the baby problem as well though...
She wanted human children, or well, at least part human if she was going to have children at all.
She glances at Harnel trying to see what kind of feelings he's feeling right now.

[Halae]

Harnel isn't really sure what to say. To him, this feels like an argument between Suugan and Cessie, and his upbringing tells him to stay out of the argument. He is, quite simply, not sure what to say.

"But if you can be changed back as soon as you leave, why not try it out? Who knows - you may like it. And then what? Once you leave this world, you'll be completely away from my power. Well, maybe not completely, but I won't exactly be interfering with your life anymore, will I?"

"And besides, who says I'll abide by your desires? I could simply do whatever I want to you. You're in no position to make demands - why don't you make me an offer?"

[Shadowcaller]

"I have nothing to offer you, all I wanted to do when I came here was to have a nice honeymoon with my husband. Nothing else. But I guess I couldn't have that right? Even after my own wedding was nearly ruined by insane cultists and now you come to ruin my honeymoon as well?" She says all this in a perfectly cold tone.

"However, I can come up with an interesting offer if you promise to leave us alone after that, do you agree?"

[Halae]

"I promise on my existence as a creator of this world, that if you present me with an option I find Interesting and won't grow bored of quickly, I will leave you alone and merely watch as you go about this world. Nothing more, nothing less, unless you seek me out specifically, in which case I will appear before you."

Suugan can be reasonable. He just chooses not to be most of the time. Harnel doesn't say anything, still. Cessie has it handled.

[Shadowcaller]

"Alright, you can turn us to dragons during our stay here under already established conditions plus that you will turn us back by the end of our stay in this world. Unless we of course have changed our minds of course." Cessie says calmly, the last part was just to attract his interest though.

[Halae]

"Alright then. Now, do you wish for the dragon types you have now? A blue and a red? or do you wish for a different pair of colors? Maybe being the same color as each other?" It seems he likes the idea. "If you wish to remain as dragons, simply leave once your time is up. if you wish to be as you were, come find a temple, speak to me, and I will turn you into whatever you wish."

[Shadowcaller]

"I don't care what kind of dragon you turn us into but they must be able to shapechange so we can turn into our true forms and no mental changes." She glances at her husband. "Harnel, you can add any details if you want to."

[Halae]

Harnel nods, "And no shenanigans with making us baby dragons. Our actual ages might not be very old for a dragon, but carry our developmental stages over. Adults, preferably."

"Very well. Just a moment please." Suugan quiets for a moment, and his eyes glaze over, as if he's staring at nothing. in a moment, Cessie and Harnel will feel power coursing through their veins. their strength steadily increases, their minds become sharper, more intelligent, making connections between things in the past that, at the time made no sense. They are growing more intelligent, smarter, stronger. Everything a dragon is in this world. Though Harnel won't be gaining any magic from this, Cessie's magic will grow very much more powerful, alongside the elemental energy she now holds in her chest. They will know instinctively how strong they are, the kinds of abilities they have - including shapeshifting, which is active currently to keep them from bursting through the roof - Everything a dragon is, they are now. "Congratulations, you are both now dragons. Have fun with that."

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie just blinks, trying to ignore the change as much as possible, she was still the same, home is where the heart is wasn't it? Well, her heart was in this human from. Or maybe the half-dragon from, it didn't matter. It was who she was.

"...yes, so you don't need to be here anymore, would you be so kind to leave us alone now? We are on a honeymoon after all."

Once he's gone Cessie will close her eyes and make another silent prayer to Artaris.

[Halae]

Suugan nods and vanishes, taking his furnishings with him one more.

Harnel looks at Cessie, "Are you alright? I know this has been... er, somewhat stressful. At least now we can get back to our honeymoon, right? Sanctum Corus is still waiting for us if you want to go back there."

[Shadowcaller]

It can take a while before she reacts to his voice, just nodding slowly. "I'm okay Harnel. Are you?"

She then opens her eyes and let's out a sigh, shivering slightly. "We should continue as if nothing had happened, I just want to do what we came here for." He can tell she isn't in the best mood right now.

[Halae]

Harnel nods, falling silent. He's not about to prod Cessie after something like this.

They'll get the standard odd looks from the townsfolk, naturally, and will be back out of Elnard in short order. Harnel, once they reach the waters edge, will transform into a dragon to fly to the sanctum. If Cessie doesn't want to become a dragon at all, Harnel will carry her on his back knowing not to push her about anything until she's feeling better.

Harnel's flight is much quicker than in half-dragon form - having much larger wings will do that for you. In about half the time it took for them before, Harnel will arrive at the cave where they made love earlier. He'll land, and if Cessie rode on his back, let her down.

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie does not like to turn into a dragon, no. She'll just ride on his back, finding it pretty odd to still feel attracted to him in dragon form. She doesn't comment or say anything about that subject though, instead she have another question for him. "Do you enjoy to be a dragon Harnel? More then your normal form?" She inquires as they have landed, slowly getting off his back.

[Halae]

He's still in dragon form as he talks, "I do. It's a nice feeling, large and powerful. Like I could fight anything and come out of it the victor. For someone who's been fighting all his life... this is a wonderful feeling. It's like nothing I've ever felt before.

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie get's off Harnel and looks him over.

"But you..." She really have a hard time coming up with negative sides at this point. "You aren't yourself, to me you will always be Harnel the half-dragon, thats the person I fell in love with, that's the person I married." She says even though she didn't find this fomr that bad looking either. Something which still bothered her.

[Halae]

Harnel lays down, resting his head close to Cessie, "My mind is still the same, And I can take that form whenever I feel like it. I'm still Harnel Mithar. I'm your husband, and I love you - nothing will ever take that away." he says, making sure to not the change in name since they were married. He has a very large golden eye looking at her at this point. He's worried about her, that much is clear. "We're dragons until we leave this world at least, right? We may as well enjoy it."

[Shadowcaller]

She slowly starts to pat his snout with great affection. "I know that Harnel." Though she's reminded as he says that by the oni's claim of deleting her. That almost makes her want to cry but she just keeps close to her husband instead, reminding herself that he's there for her.

"I love you too, whatever from you or I take... but I'm just trying not to indulge into his little game. He wants us to enjoy ourselves as dragons and I'm not sure I like to play along."

[Halae]

"You want me to transform back into a half-dragon right now then, right?" He asks solemnly. He enjoys this, but if Cessie feels he should, then he will. She'll be able to feel through the bond that he doesn't want to, but he will if she asks.

[Shadowcaller]

"No, you can be a dragon... you don't want to turn back when we leave do you?" Cessie asks still running her hands over his snout lovingly.

[Halae]

"I will if you want me to" He says.

Left unsaid, but understood by both, is that no, he doesn't want to change back. But he loves her too much for that.

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie can probably feel that, "You don't need to Harnel... if this is what you want you should do it. I'm just not sure what I should do. I mean, I guess I could remain like this..." She looks doubtful though.

[Halae]

"I think you should try it out," Harnel says, "However briefly. If you don't enjoy it, then you don't have to remain like this. I won't force you to do so. There's volcanoes around here, of course - I was going to go bathe in one of them. Maybe you'd like to come along, try it out?" He won't force it, but perhaps Cessie would enjoy the sensation. He's done this before, and it feels good, like a warm bath would to a human.

[Shadowcaller]

"Bath in a volcano? That's something..." She sigh, "I guess we could try it... just a question. What happens with clothes once you... shift form? I mean, I still got my normal clothes."

[Halae]

Harnel blinks, then looks at his own body. He's certainly not wearing clothes now. Where did they go?

"I... don't know. Maybe they get taken up by the shapeshifting? Er, let me try something."

In a flash of yellow, he'll transform back into his half-dragon shape. His clothes are back on him. He looks confused as he checks himself over, "Now, how does that work? These are real clothes..."

[Shadowcaller]

"How very odd, I guess we should ask Arvan later about this." She says with a curious glance at Harnel. "However... you should probably transform first." She says, not wanting to be the first to change.

[Halae]

He shrugs, not understanding the mechanics behind the transformation either and in another flash is back into dragon shape. "Come on. I'd love to see what you look like as a dragon."

His wedding earring and the ring Cessie gave him have both increased in size to suit his new shape.

[Shadowcaller]

"Alright, alright... just for a brief time then. What kind of dragon did he turn me into anyway?" Cessie asks but doesn't wait for an answer.

In the same yellow flash of light as Harnel she turns into a large red dragon, probably almost uncomfortable close to him as she underestimated her size.

There is a confused expression on her face.

[Halae]

It's like a pair of people trying to fit through a doorway at the same time. It's cramped, but at least there's a little space. Harnel will move forward to give her a bit more room, standing on the lip of the cave entrance, which is certainly wide enough for the both of them. A smile colors his face, "You look beautiful. But how could I expect any different from someone like you?" He says, "Do you like it? I know it must feel odd, when you've almost never had wings or a tail before."

[Shadowcaller]

"I've had..." Cessie pauses and steps back a bit to give them both some space. "My voice sounds different, I'm not even sure how to describe it..." She lifts up one of her front paws and turns her neck to look at it. "It's hard to believe this is me..." She says slowly, staring at it.

[Halae]

"We're larger, so our voices are deeper," Harnel says, "The same way it is with anybody who's tall."

Harnel will mover up and attempt to nuzzle her face. her instincts should tell her that this is about the same level of intimacy as a kiss, and for dragons, it feels much like one, just using their cheeks and necks rather than their lips. It's clear he's trying to reassure her.

[Shadowcaller]

"Yes, but your voice have always been much deeper then mine..." The sorceress (dragon) replies before he starts to nuzzle her. She returns the same movement, giving him an odd expression. "Well... I guess he made me a red one. Always figured I would be a blue." Cessie gives him a look before bending her neck around to look at herself. "I'm... pretty large." She looks unsure how to describe herself much further then that.

[Halae]

"Look at the differences between us," Harnel says, using his foreclaws to point at Cessie and himself. they're a lot like hands, actually, "I have a lot more muscle than you do, but you're slimmer, more sleek. Your scales shine, you still have your blue eyes, the horn pattern you have is very good looking. All in all, I'd say you are a fine example of draconic beauty. In fact, I don't think I could have imagined you better looking."

[Shadowcaller]

"Uh, thanks, I guess." But she can't even see her own horn pattern!

Cessie looks back at Harnel. "You... don't look so bad yourself." She admits as she looks him over, of course she already knew that. "I thought he said there would be no mental changes but I guess I can't complain..."

[Halae]

"Maybe he didn't," Harnel says thoughtfully, "You said for no mental changes, yes, but he must have taken that for this transformation. Maybe it's left over from when you were changed into a half-dragon?"

He entertains the thought, but says, "Well, the volcanoes await. Shall we go?" and he moves back to the entrance again, waiting for her.

[Shadowcaller]

"Your attracted to dragons as a half-dragon?" Cessie asks with a raised eyebrow, or the equivalence dragons have. That sounded pretty strange to her.

She'll move along with him to the volcanoes however.

[Halae]

While they're in the air, Harnel says to her, "Is that so hard to believe? That's half of my heritage, after all - I see no reason why I shouldn't have been attracted to dragons to begin with."

As they near the volcano, they'll be able to see ledges over the caldera, sized for dragons who wish to rest in the heat without actually being dunked in the lava. Harnel, plunging in headfirst as always, will immediately dive into the caldera rather than land on the ledges. Within a few moments, he'll resurface, keeping himself afloat in the deep molten rock easily; it doesn't take as much effort to stay afloat in lava as it does in water since lava is much denser. He seems like he's really enjoying himself

[Shadowcaller]

"But dragons are... huge, there is no possible way... nevermind, let's change the subject." She says before he dives in.

"Uh, is that really safe? If I changed into my true form now I would die wouldn't I?" Cessie inquires as she slowly step into the lava, far less enthusiastic then her husband.

[Halae]

"I doubt you'd have to worry," Harnel says, "Dragons are still elemental beings, even if they're in human form. It probably wouldn't be good for your clothes though."

Cessie will find the lava to be fairly deep, but where she is specifically is shallow enough that she can stand straight up and only have to worry about her stomach starting to touch the lava. Where Harnel is, however, is clearly deep enough that he doesn't have to worry about making dives.

She'll also feel the stone ledge she's standing on beginning to break away. But this feeling? It's like being in a hot tub - it's relaxing, warm, and helps work out stress. Who knew temperatures that could melt rock would feel so good for a dragon?

...

Dragons, probably

[Shadowcaller]

"Hrm, I still see myself as humanoid before a dragon, home is where the heart is. A question though, can really our rings and earrings withstand this heat? I'm surprised they even change with us." She asks while glancing at Harnels dragon-sized jewelry, stepping away from the ledge and further into the hot lava.

She doesn't know how to swim as a dragon though but considering it's lave (and she isn't incarnated by just standing near it) it shouldn't be that hard to stay afloat.

Once in the 'tub' of molten rock she instantly seem to relax. She's mostly trying to forget what and where she is and quickly closes her eyes.

[Halae]

"Our earrings are adamantine; a little thing like a volcano isn't going to break them."

"It's relaxing, isn't it? Helps to work out tension. I missed this." He says, just sort of floating in place. In fact, he lays his head down in the lava, so that as he's floating there, his neck and head stay afloat as well.

[Shadowcaller]

"Mmm..." She can't help to wonder if the amulet would make it as well but she decides not to worry about it. It hadn't melted so it was probably made of adamantine too.

Her eyes remains closed though so she can't really see Harnel.

After relaxing some time, working out the worst of the stress of being harassed by the oni she slowly opens her eyes and looks at her husband.

"Harnel... what do you think we should do? I don't think I could stay as this even though it solves a lot of problems. There is the issue of children for example."

[Halae]

Harnel raises his head up again, then, lava dripping off his neck and chin, and he swims over to Cessie, to be close to her, "Cessie, I believe you should do what you feel you want to do. Keeping your family happy is important to you, right? You have to decide, is it important enough that you want to stay human, or is being a dragon or half-dragon better? Just remember, you don't have to decide right now. We have as long as we're on honeymoon before any decision has to be made, alright?"

[Shadowcaller]

"Yes, but... I think I already figured out the positive and negative sides of being a dragon. Most of the negative sides have to do with an eventual offspring, I mean, I'm as much a dragon who can turn into a human as a human who can turn into a dragon right?" She replies, yet having dared to dip her heat into the lava, keeping half of her body above the molten rock.

[Halae]

"That's about right, yes," Harnel says, "You are what you choose to be, I suppose. And you still have your magic, don't you? You're still a mage, just like before. All that's changed is you now have a dragon body."

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie frowns, "I liked my verbalization better, I don't really feel like being a dragon. Of course, it could be useful at times..." She sigh. "Maybe I'm just being silly." The dragon mage closes and opens her eyes. "We should do what you said and just try to go though this honeymoon, it's just that I'm in a completely different body. It's kind of hard to forget that fact."

[Halae]

"Then let's change out of the completely different bodies, shall we?" Harnel says, nuzzling her once, before he takes off to one of the ledges overlooking the caldera. He shakes of the lava still clinging to him, much like a dog would, and then transforms back into his half-dragon shape. And then he proceeds to undress so that his clothes don't roast in the lava.

Once he's stripped, he yells down to her, "Like I said, the lava should feel fine, even if you're in human form!"

[Shadowcaller]

Cessie isn't all that sure about stepping into lava as a human, but she do want to get out of the dragon form. She repeats what Harnel did, being far more through with getting all the lava off her though before shifting back into her human form.

She peers at Harnel as he's bathing in the lava. "Are... are you sure about this?"

[Halae]

Harnel is actually still up on the ledge at this point - he hasn't descended into the caldera just yet. "I am. If you're worried, use your magic to lower yourself in slowly. If you start feeling pain, back off, but I don't think you will."

[Shadowcaller]

"Alright... but I really don't how my skin could be able to take terrestrial heat." She replies as she undresses and slowly flies down into the lava pool, apparently without feeling any pain or being incarnated alive. This is rather strange.

"I have no idea how this works..." She says as she's half-way submerged in the lava.

[Halae]

As before, the lava will be nice and warm, like a hot tub. "Dragons are elemental. We don't lose that in human form," he says. By this point he'll have landed in the lava, and is now swimming over to her. It's a lot thicker than water, so she may have trouble moving, but she didn't exactly lose all that draconic strength when she became human. She's probably still about twice as strong as she ever was before.

[Shadowcaller]

She waits for him to swim over to her then, she's unused to use her physical strength for anything other then very basic tasks. For everything else, there is magic.

"Elemental? Who would I need to ask to have this explained more thoroughly?" She asks before he reaches her, a part of her telling that she probably just should relax with her husband right now instead of looking for that answer.