2 Logs in 1 : Ydryin & Ani talks

Ani

Shade beneath cherry trees.
The area is bathed with argent light as a thrumming power in the ground resonates from a war shrine of Lisaera nearby. A gentle breeze whistles around you. The spicy aroma of cherry-blossom is nowhere stronger than here, at the stand of the oldest cherry trees in this forest. Snow-white, star-shaped flowers flourish at the base of their ponderous trunks, between the tops of their exposed roots. The forest is shaded here, and looking up it is obvious that something else beyond the thick branches is blocking out the light from above. Reaching up as high as the eye can see looms the awesome presence of a living totem. A mature birch tree stands proudly here.
You see exits leading east, southwest, and northwest.

A bright aura of blue light glows forth from the Glinshari Circle, signalling that the Flame of Glinshari continues to shine.

Laughing merrily, a pixie flutters in from the east.

Continuing the hunt for his dark mate, Father Sun presses forward in his journey, lowering himself in the sky yet still casting even, full light upon the land.

A pixie flutters off to the southwest, barely suppressing a giggle.

The musky scent of loam and leaves fills you with vibrancy.

A bolt of lightning streaks down to slam into the ground, revealing Ydryin standing in a blackened circle.

You have emoted: Ani lifts her hand in greeting to Ydryin, "Hello."

You have recovered balance on all limbs.

A loud crack sounds as Ydryin's mouth turns up in a pained smile, the blackened half of his face shedding dark bark and a small flurry of ash.

Head tilting curiously, you ask Ydryin, "How do you fare this weave?"

Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "I fare well, I think. Lady Maylea has helped me come to terms with how long I have slumbered."

You have emoted: Ani nods with a soft smile, "I am glad that She was able to help you. Were you able to learn of your sisters also?"

Ydryin's eye falls and his mouth twists into a grimace. "One. Gone to the Scar."

You have emoted: Smile faltering, Ani dips her head with a whispered, "Oh.". She shuffles her feet against the petal-strewn forest floor before lifting her gaze to Ydryin again and offers quietly, "I am very sorry."

Ydryin's scars flare with gouts of flame as he glares at the road towards the northwest, though he closes his eye moments later and attempts to calm himself.

"...She says I should learn to put my past behind me, I'm no longer the hamadryad I was." Ydryin looks down at his scarred torso and a faint half-smile springs to his lips. "I suppose being on fire helps me remember that."

You have emoted: Ani's eyes widen as the flames grow within Ydryin's scars, but she remains where she stands. She clears her throat before asking, to change the subject, "Have you met many of the forest yet?"

You have recovered balance on all limbs.

Comprehension flashes across your face.

A loud crack sounds as Ydryin's mouth turns up in a pained smile, the blackened half of his face shedding dark bark and a small flurry of ash.

Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "There was...Elarin, and Laroine. Yugi and Emika, I believe her name was. Pysynne and I spoke briefly, and then..."

Ydryin's nose wrinkles in mild displeasure before he finishes, "Barrin. He...irked a temper I should not have allowed to be irked, and I may have spoken more harshly with him than I should have."

You say to Ydryin, "I'm sure he won't be too offended. I think you're allowed to be a little grumpy at times, you are only newly returned to the forest after a very long slumber, after all!"

As the hamadryad's legs fold beneath him, the grass smoulders and blackens to a crisp - smoke curling gently towards the sky as he settles down to a sitting position.

As he looks up to the gentle blossoms dancing on the branches, Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "If you must rest your body, I will not be offended, small one. Patience is a skill well practised by my kind."

Blushing, you say to Ydryin, "I will just have a quick nap.. thank you."

Flickering orange light flares in the scars across Ydryin's chest as a hazy, coughing laugh escapes his mouth.

[quick sleepy spam]

A cherry blossom falls from the stem and dances gently through the air, landing on Ydryin's torso and lingering for just a moment before it wilts rapidly and combusts into a small flame.

Tilting his head in careful curiosity, Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad asks, "What is your favourite part of nature, Ani?"

You have emoted: Ani watches the cherry blossom's journey, thoughtfully considering Ydryin. "This might be a silly question, but I presume you being on fire is the result of the lightning striking your tree and our help to heal you?" She shakes her head, instead answering his question, "My favourite part of nature? I..." she bites her lip, thinking before she answers simply, "the wildness of it, I suppose. Nature is both kind and cruel, the cycles of life and death, the seasons. The way the world works and is connected..." she trails off, and nods. "All of that!"

"You are correct, the circumstances of my healing and my awakening is the reason that I have this..." Ydryin gestures at his scarred torso and offers a lame, wan smile. "When I was a young bloom, I would have said my favourite part of nature was the spring. To see the flowers beginning to blossom upon myself and my sisters, to see new life run through the forest..." He looks at the ash of the blossom beginning to blow off of his shoulder and says, "Now I believe you to be correct."

Ydryin smiles softly.

Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "Again."

You have emoted: Ani reaches out to touch the nearby cherry tree, fingers tracing lightly over the bark as she asks Ydryin, "What sort of flowers did you bloom?"

Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "When I look at Nature, I now see its fragility and how soon it can perish. That makes it all the more beautiful, and worth protecting. Destruction even brings new life, when wildfires spread conifer seeds and lightning clears that which would smother others. I..."

A plump wild rabbit hops in from the east.

A plump wild rabbit bounces out to the southwest.

Ydryin pauses and blinks, as though your question had caught him off guard.

Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "I may no longer look like it, but...wisterias. My youngest sisters would pluck them to decorate their boughs, and when the wind would blow strong, they would shower my surroundings just like this grove."

You have emoted: Ani smiles softly, "Wisterias are very beautiful when they flower. And your sisters, they were all different, too?"

Softly, his voice getting progressively quieter as he sinks into memories, Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "Oh yes, and they were just as lovely. Magnolias, peaches, orchids, lilac...hydrangea..."

Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "But I can scarcely remember them now, their colouration, their bloom cycles, their autumn colours.... I should be placing my past behind me, I hardly doubt any of them would recognise me, after all."

You have emoted: Ani steps away from the cherry tree, dropping herself to sit beside Ydryin, though keeping herself just a little apart from the smouldering ground. She turns towards the hamadryad and offers an encouraging smile, "I can imagine they were all so very pretty..." she looks up to the blossoms above, "I'm sorry if I have stirred memories.. but our past should be remembered for the good, no? They might not recognise you, but they would sense you are kin, I am sure!"

Ydryin holds up his forearm to look at a scar running through it, and the burning fire visible within. "Perhaps, but I grow further from the hamadryad I was every day. It is not a bad thing, I will be able to aid our commune and the little ones who live here in a much greater capacity."

A loud crack sounds as Ydryin's mouth turns up in a pained smile, the blackened half of his face shedding dark bark and a small flurry of ash.

Your mouth turns up as your face breaks into a smile.

You say to Ydryin, "Perhaps the Lady Maylea would know of a way to find fire-flowers for you."

You tilt your head curiously.

Flickering orange light flares in the scars across Ydryin's chest as a hazy, coughing laugh escapes his mouth.

You say, "I have heard that She is very fond of all flowers!"

Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "Can you imagine that? A mane of burning wisterias, crackling away just as quickly as they bloom? It would be quite the sight."

Eyes brightening, you say to Ydryin, "Ohhh, that would be amazing!"

Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "I will have to ask Her if She will help me regain some of my lost bloom, then. I hardly doubt She will shy from the opportunity."

You smile and say to Ydryin, "I know that I can't speak for our Divine, but it seems like a challenge She would possibly enjoy? I know She said to move on from your past, but if your wisteria is part of you, you should have it back. Even if it is a flaming kind!"

The grass blackens and burns as Ydryin slowly stands, looking into the distance.

Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "Perhaps I will find Her, and ask, then. I enjoy speaking with you, Ani. I hope for nothing but good things for the Serenwilde, hopefully I can help you all."

Ydryin leaps skyward, his form dissolving into a bolt of lightning that streaks off into the distance.

A plump wild rabbit hops in from the east.

A plump wild rabbit bounces out to the southwest.

An ominous rattle marks the entry of a rattlesnake from the east.

You have emoted: Ani lifts her hand to wave goodbye, but the hamadryad's form has already dissolved into the lightning bolt and gone in a flash. "Goodbye, Ydryin. I hope to see you again soon!"

Ani

2nd log

=========

A secluded glade.

It is rather chilly. An oak sapling clings tenaciously to the ground here. Looming overhead is an enormous moonhart tree, her branches reaching high into the sky. Flickering with bright orange flame, a magnolia petal rests here in a blackened circle. Short and squat, a peach tree grows here with its branches laden in magenta-and-white blossoms.

The delicate white flesh of this petal is barely visible beneath a flickering wreath of bright orange flame. The fire dances around, and originates from, the gently curving tissue that makes up the bloom, the only damage to the flower's skin a slight tear where it was plucked from its home. The grass surrounding this petal has blackened to a crisp in a perfect circle from the heat emanating off of it.

The faint fall of snow throughout the glade is a pleasant contradiction to the gentle warmth that springs from the ground, melting against the ground and your flesh as soon as it touches.

You have emoted: Ani peers down over a large, burning magnolia petal and murmurs "You weren't here before...", she then tilts her head back, smiling up into the falling snow as it drifts through the glade, while her hands unconsciously hover over the warmth radiating from the ground.

The faint crackle of burning grass and moss, along the smell of burning wood, precedes the quiet hoof-fall of Ydryin's entrance behind you.

You have emoted: Hearing a faint crackle, Ani turns slightly, greeted by the scent of burning wood and Ydryin's figure. "Hello, its good to see you again.", she says with a bright smile.

His voice slightly morose, Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "I was sad when you were not at her vigil, Ani. I know you would have liked to be there."

Smoke rises from the grass beneath Ydryin's hooves as he steps forward and then kneels down, carefully folding his legs beneath him and to the side as he settles among the rabbit moss near the petal with a sad smile on his face.

Her smile faltering and turning to a frown, you say to Ydryin, "I'm sorry that I missed it.. I had not realized until I woke this weave and caught up on the news that a vigil was being held.. I wished there was a longer notice."

His voice even, the sad smile on his face remaining as he turns his torso to allow his head to face your way, Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "I do not blame you, little one. Come and sit, and...lend me your imagination. I cannot remember what she looked like, and I would love to hear where your mind takes you."

You have emoted: Ani tilts her head, her eyes regarding the scorched features of the hamadryad for a heartbeat or two, before she nods and sits down upon the grass. "My imagination is not the greatest, but I can try. Do you remember anything of her at all?" she asks Ydryin, her tone soft and thoughtful.

His gaze falling back down to the petal, Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "Each day, I remember less and less as I learn more and more, and feel more of this new power. She...she was smaller than I was. Delicate, but expressive, much like her blooms. White, and so many colours that...that..."

Ydryin frowns and gives an awkward shake of his head, blackened half of his neck splintering awkwardly. "...that I cannot remember."

Clasping her hands together in her lap, you say to Ydryin, "Magnolia blooms are predominately white or pink, though creams, purples and yellows are other variations. And then combinations, so it would make sense that you can remember colors."

You say to Ydryin, "Though delicate and expressive... it leads me to imagine that her blooms would start at their base with dark pinks, fading slowly to pale blushes up their petals to the snowy white at their tips."

You nod your head emphatically.

Ydryin's eye slowly drifts upward as his gaze rests just above the burning petal, staring out into the distance as if searching for a memory.

After what feels like an eternity, Ydryin's head lowers and shakes slightly in a despondent fashion. "Perhaps. I...I cannot look at her in my mind's eye, and my other sisters...I can only remember their blooms."

You have emoted: Ani unclasps her hands and reaches one towards the flame-wreathed magnolia petal, fingers dancing dangerously close to the fire. "Perhaps...perhaps that is all you need to remember, their blooms. Your sisters are deeply rooted to the forest, yes? Their flowers must be here and there and everywhere. You are surrounded by kin, just like you once were so many years ago. And more now, with the commune members like me" she flashes Ydryin a smile.

A wan smile flashes across Ydryin's face as he looks at you, "You sound like the Lady Bloom. It simply feels strange, to feel the memories of my siblings fade away, only returning in short bursts when a sensation should stir my mind."

You say to Ydryin, "Think of the memories as trapped away, instead of fading. Then when you have these short bursts and remember something, we could... write it down somewhere?"

You tilt your head curiously.

An ethereal wind wreathed with cold moonfire blazes in from the southeast, revealing Lleuke amid the pale flames.

Utterly entranced, Lleuke emits a long "Ooooh."

Lleuke inclines his head politely to those around him.

Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "Perhaps, but I do not like that my own memories are so hidden."

Ydryin's eye flicks towards Lleuke at his entrance, and he gives an awkward nod of greeting. "Little one. Ani and I were speaking of your vigil, and my sister. I was sad that she could not be there to witness such."

Creasing his brow in a frown, Lleuke Myeras, Chosen of Ellindel says to Ydryin, "I feel the same way."

Lleuke Myeras, Chosen of Ellindel says, "Next time I plan something like this, I'll make sure to give more advance notice."

Returning his gaze to the burning petal, Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "Much as I appreciate your enthusiasm, and your effort, perhaps in the future we should ensure that all of the Wilde has ample time to become aware of such plans should they wish to att--."

A loud crack sounds as Ydryin's mouth turns up in a pained smile, the blackened half of his face shedding dark bark and a small flurry of ash.

Lleuke utters a deep, rumbling laugh.

Lleuke Myeras, Chosen of Ellindel laughingly says, "I do fear that it was excitement and enthusiasm to perform a rite as I once did."

Lleuke Myeras, Chosen of Ellindel says, "I'll make sure to temper this in the future."

Lleuke winks knowingly.

Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "It is your responsibility to record such events, to ensure that the happenings have not been lost."

Lleuke Myeras, Chosen of Ellindel smiles and says, "Absolutely."

Orange light pours from the blossom, further blackening the ground beneath it as Ydryin's gaze tenderly remains upon it.

Smiling gently, Lleuke Myeras, Chosen of Ellindel says, "It's good to see you both. I need to go rest a bit, I was just checking in."

Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says, "I should return to the Lady's side as well."

Lleuke holds the Flame of dae'Seren aloft and an emerald light shines forth, revealing a hazy hallway of ancient trees. As Lleuke walks through the hallway, the trees close around him and disappear.

You say, "To lleuke it was good to see you too."

You say, "Oh."

You look skeptical and say, "Everyone moves so fast."

As the man vanishes and he begins to rise from the ground, Ydryin, the Scorched Hamadryad says to you, "You heard his promise, little one. I trust you will hold him to this promise."

You nod your head at Ydryin.

You say, "I will,."

Ydryin reaches out and gently touches your forehead with a wooden finger, the bark hot but not unbearably so. "The forest will thrive, but we must aid each other. I will see you again."

Ydryin's form glows and becomes ethereal, fading away into hundreds of burning blossoms like a cloud of dandelion puffs that spread into the wind around the glade, the temperature returning to normal as his attention is called elsewhere.

Lief

I loved reading both of these! You both write so vividly and well. Thank you for sharing this!