To get away from it all

[Ceara Mindelan]

She was in a terrible mood. Ceara walked through the tall moorland grass, her sword in it's sheath at her side as she kicked at the grass in frustration and anger. She hated living with her parents, they seemed to hate her so much. To be honest, it upset her more than it angered her, but she always hid it behind anger anyways. It was easier for her to be angry and lash out at people than it was for her to be sad. In her opinion, if you acted upset in front of people then you were just looking for attention. What she wanted to do most at the moment was to fight someone, to forget her anger and sadness because she was in pain, to knock someone down and be able to laugh good-naturedly. However, when she had stormed out of her house, desperate to get away from her parents, she had headed this way, towards the moor and the forest that she could see in the distance. If she had really wanted to fight then she should have just stayed in the city, of even gone to the castle and challenged one of the other knights.

Since she had to settle for something other than fighting as she couldn't see anyone else around at the moment, she unclipped her sword from her belt and threw it to the ground before following suit, collapsing onto her back with her arms stretched out on either side of her, staring up at the clear sky. She just stayed this way, thinking through the fight she had just had with her parents. It had actually been about the crown prince of Saor, but that wasn't too surprising as her parents adored Prince Peregrine. Seriously adored him. What had happened was her father had suddenly started speaking of him, saying how good of a fighter he was, and saying how he hoped her brother Damian become as good a knight as the prince was. Then she had very stupidly muttered that she was a knight, why didn't they hope she would become as good a fighter as the prince. That's when her mother had begun to yell, saying how she should concentrate on being more ladylike and not dressing in clothes that were supposedly only for men. She couldn't help it if she thought wearing trousers and a tunic was more comfortable. So she had stormed out of the house and now here she was, laying in the tall grass, half hidden and glaring up at the sky, as though blaming it for all the problems she had with her parents.

((Blargh. I'm sorry, this was a horrible first post xD I wasn't sure what to say, I'll try make my next one better.))

[Peregrine Alexander]

xx

read between the lines
that divides me somewhere in my mind

Slender dark legs cautiously waded through the tall grass, the skin flicking sensitively every so often. He was quite a beautiful horse, but he wasn't quite a brave animal. He meant well, but he just couldn't control his actions. It didn't matter much, however, for the youth astride his back was certain that he could handle whatever the young gelding threw at him. The dark bay was green and the prince was anything but a green rider himself. Therefore, Dogstar was a project, an experiment. He had made one wild beast into a valiant steed, a warhorse, even if, perhaps, there had been some magical intervention at that time.

Gently, he urged Dogstar through a patch of particularly tall grass, ignoring the horse's balking and fear, the Thoroughbred's delicate nostrils quivering with apprehension. A nervous horse had never upset the prince; from a young age, Peregrine, his sword at his side as always, had delighted in a challenge. The prospect was almost enticing to his sharp mind and fit body. He was both athlete and intellectual and still the process of training a horse that had been named un-tamable appealed to him. Nothing was impossible with Peregrine: he still found ways around every barricade.

Feeling considerably more confident and the dark bay did not attempt any new stunts. He put the horse into a slow trot, despite the gelding's protests. Blowing and tossing his head, half in fear, half in annoyance, Dogstar obliged. He had little choice with a rider like Peregrine astride his back.

As the cold, Winter breeze whipped over the tall grass, the prince brought his steed to a halt, deliberately facing his chest into the wind, daring, baiting the gelding to take advantage of that cold, exhilarating feeling he knew was rushing up his sensitive skin. The dark bay shivered and raised his head, then tossed it, but that earned him a swift reprimand from his master's un-spurred heels. He would learn some manners yet.

After a moment or so, or at least once it had become clear that Dogstar wasn't going to gallop off, Peregrine turned him back into the grass, resuming their trot. The Thoroughbred arched his neck and blew loudly again, but he did not bolt, though the youth knew every muscle in his body was aching to do so. Instead he kept him at a close rein, carefully monitored, until the showy horse snorted with alarmed and reared up, almost as if in surprise.

Peregrine jerked down on the reins and let all pressure off his legs. Spontaneous rearing was not an acceptable habit in any horse he rode. As Dogstar fell back to the ground, he pulled him around and stared into the long grass, only to find the form of a girl, lying there flat on her back.

"Bloody--" He started, then stopped and thought better of the words he had been intending to use, instead, rephrasing his language. "Are you all right?"

my shadow is the only one that walks beside me.
my shallow heart's the only thing that's beating

___________________________________

word count: 501
listening to: nothing, at the moment
lyrics credit: boulevard of broken dreams by greenday
mood: hungry
notes: none

[Ceara Mindelan]

The sky was getting progressively darker and the longer Ceara stayed out here, the more bored she became and she soon began to regret having come out here at all. She should have thought this through more...though, to be honest, she rarely thought much things through. She usually acted before thinking about the consequences of anything, which was usually the reason she got in so much trouble, not only with her parents but with random strangers as well. It was the reason she had that painful scar on her back... Ceara shook her head, refusing to allow that painful memory to take hold of her once again. She already had more than enough nightmares about that night, she didn't need to think about it during the day as well.

Still, acting before she thought things through usually kept things pretty interesting in her life. She knew that was a horrible thing to think, that she should be doing whatever she could to get out of that bad habit, but she didn't mind it so much. Ceara glared up at the incoming clouds, though she felt better now that she had been laying here for a few minutes and she could just think. She knew she should probably get headed back soon, though, since it looked like it was going to rain soon, but surprisingly laying here in the grass was comfortable. She was still hoping it wouldn't begin to rain, anyways, since it seemed like it was always raining.

She didn't notice the man and his horse headed her way until the horse reared up and she threw her arms up to protect her head, rolling to the side so that she wouldn't be trampled when the horses hooves came back down. She sat up as the man spoke, asking if she was alright and smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, I'm fine, just...relaxing in the grass. Sorry about that, didn't mean to get in your way." She said, chuckling as she got to her feet, stretching her arms up over her head and inspecting the man and his horse. The horse was a beautiful creature and she immediately wanted to move forward to pet it, but she held herself back, knowing this stranger might not appreciate that. But the stranger looked strangely familiar, though she wasn't sure why. She didn't believe she had ever met him before, anyways.

She could tell by his clothing that he was of a high class, though she had never really been one to bow to people above her. Not out of disrespect, but simply because she always forgot to act formal and respective to others that were of a higher class than she was. Not to say that she was a peasant or anything, nothing of the sort, and she did come from a pretty high class family as well but she was nearly certain this man who looked to be about her age was higher up than her.

"You look kinda familiar..." She said, just watching him for a few moments before shaking her head, hoping he wouldn't become uncomfortable with her behavior and smiled in a friendly manner at him. "So, thanks for not trampling me with your horse. That might have hurt. I don't think we've met before, my name is Ceara Mindelan." She said, taking a step forward and offering up her hand for him to shake before remembering her manners and remembering that he was of a higher class and taking a step back again, bowing instead. She knew most women would curtsy but as she wasn't wearing a skirt or dress and she was a knight, she usually decided to bow instead.

((Did you catch my 'warning' on the Cbox? <) ))

[Peregrine Alexander]

xx

read between the lines
that divides me somewhere in my mind

She was blonde, something that Peregrine immediately noticed and analyzed. Blonde was a rare hair color for Caledonians -- usually their hair was red, black or brown, but blonde was sort of "reserved for the pure-bloods". Wonderful, a noble lying in the grass, what could be better? Plus, she was probably one of those stupid nobleman's daughter who didn't know one end of a horse from the other and who liked to "run away" because they were being forced into an arranged marriage. He knew the type so well and he despised their obvious lack of intelligence. Heaven only knew how many times he had ran away from various royal balls and other formal, stuffy events where he was supposed to meet his "future wife". How many times had he been engaged, again?

She wanted his name, did she? Well, he might as well go ahead and get it other with, she would find out sooner or later. Then the simpering would follow and the various attempts to convince him how she was a damsel in distress -- he was no strange to this typical, noblewoman behavior when they met him, a prince who would make a potential husband. Not over his dead body, they wouldn't; he belonged to one woman and she was an ex-slave of Sceith. Convenient, was it not?

"I am Peregrine Alexander, m'lady," He said, in something of a bored, let's-just-get-this-over-with type of voice. "Prince of Saor, son of King Paladin Alexander, etc, etc. Anything else you want to know?"

He had, of course, no idea to whom he was talking, thinking her to only be another runaway damsel whom he might have to return, which, with his current steed, was a daunting task.

my shadow is the only one that walks beside me.
my shallow heart's the only thing that's beating

___________________________________

word count: 285
listening to: follow through by gavin degraw
lyrics credit: boulevard of broken dreams by greenday
mood: pretty good
notes: sorry, it's short

[Ceara Mindelan]

Ceara, of course, had no idea what ill thoughts he was thinking about her, however it became pretty obvious when he spoke. Or at least, she could guess what was going through his mind. She was momentarily shocked to learn that this was the Prince, the boy she had hated for so long when she was a child only because of how much her parents had adored him and not her. A hatred fueled by jealousy that she had eventually gotten over. However, her opinion on the prince was quickly plummeting by the way he spoke to her, seeming to judge her barely after he had learned her name. Her fists clenched at her sides and she briefly wondered what would happen if she was to punch the prince in the face. However, he hadn't exactly done or said anything worthy of being punched just yet. She'd have to go back to that thought later if he continued to act this rude.

Not only was his attitude bothering her, but just the fact that he had called her 'm'lady' annoyed her as well, though she knew he was just being formal...most likely because he thought he had to be. "Yes, actually..." She said when he asked if they was anything else she wanted to know. Already the tone she spoke in was much less friendly. "Are you always this rude, or are you making a special effort today?" She asked, not sounding at all amused. She bent down and picked up her sword, clipping the sheath back on to her belt before crossing her arms over her chest and just glaring at him.

"Has being a prince and all gotten to your head? Maybe you think you're better than me?" She asked. She was dying to ask the prince to a duel. She knew he was a knight as well, it was impossible not to know that with her parents around. They seemed to follow his life almost as closely as they would their own child. She knew she couldn't actually hit the prince, not ever, that she would get in a lot of trouble if she did that, but at least if they were to fight she couldn't get in trouble if she beat him and knocked him down on his royal ass a few times. "I can assure you, the fact that you're a prince doesn't impress me much, if that's what you're worried about." She said darkly.

She couldn't resist but adding, in a slightly mocking tone. "Where are all you're guards? Aren't you afraid you might get attacked? Don't you need someone to protect you at all times?"

[Peregrine Alexander]

xx

read between the lines
that divides me somewhere in my mind

So, this one had spunk, did she? Wanted to give him lip, a hard time? Her funeral; he was only a great king of verbal fights, battles of wits and other matters of that kind. Her words washed over him like the waves of the Scottish ocean that he ran through in the summertime when the sin beat down upon his back. Only one of her low-brow comments truly got to him.

"Has being a prince and all gotten to your head? Maybe you think you're better than me?"

He narrowed his eyes. They were a piercing shade of emerald green and they shone with the intensity of the stars in the heavens, glittering with surpressed anger. He rased an eyebrow.

"Specialty," He snapped, tossing his head, so that the gathering wind stirred his long dark locks. "Tomorrow I'll be discussing adultery and seduction, so if you're looking for a husband," He paused, waiting for his sarcasm to take effect, ""a group of our most desperate damsels will be waiting under the right side of that tree over there. The distressed ones will be on the left."

He snorted, which wasn't the most regal thing in the world for someone like him to do, but it fit his fast-paced sarcastic style of comedic delivery and it fueled his next volley of words.

"I'm sorry, did I miss something? Are you a princess of some sort? Daughter of a king whose kingdom we've never heard of that we're supposed to worship? Because if that's the case, your highness, I suggest you start with my cousin, Prince Peter Alexander, or perhaps my brother, Pandion."

"I'm sorry," That was a complete lie, of course, but he needed it for dramatic effect. "Perhaps you're the one who missed something; I'm Peregrine Alexander? I don't need people buzzing around me every second of the day."

my shadow is the only one that walks beside me.
my shallow heart's the only thing that's beating

___________________________________

word count: 346
listening to: nothing, at the moment
lyrics credit: boulevard of broken dreams by greenday
mood: rushed
notes: none

[Ceara Mindelan]

Oh, this was going to be fun. Ceara had to fight to keep from smiling, her emerald eyes lightening ever so slightly as the thought of a verbal fight with this rude prince excited her ever so slightly. It wouldn't be as good as a fight with swords, or even firsts, but it was bound to entertain her for a few minutes at least. His words didn't hurt her at all, as she figured they were meant to. No, she wasn't looking for a husband and he was silly to think that she was. A husband was the farthest thing from her mind these days. His other words just amused her greatly and it took all she had to keep from laughing. This was supposed to be a serious fight, she didn't want him to know she was enjoying herself already.

"I'm sure you'll enjoy that, won't you? All those women fighting for your attention. It'll boost your self esteem, I'm sure, and make you think even more highly of yourself that you already do." She said, forcing her tone to remain dark and unamused when in reality she was still fighting off a smile. "Not that you need that, you seem to already have a pretty bloated view of yourself." She said, her tone completely serious. "Is it a hobby of yours, to talk down to strangers?" She asked.

"I'm not a princess, nor would I want to be. I prefer thinking I'm equal to everyone, therefore I'd much rather not join the club you and your family seem to have going where you think, sorry, know that you're better than everyone else." She said shrugging. Finally the smile came to her lips, though she didn't even seem to notice. She was enjoying herself, and while she did mean half of what she was saying, the other half she didn't. She honestly had nothing against Peregrine, though he was rude and did seem to have a very bloated view of himself.

However, his last comment intrigued her. "Really, not even for protection?" She asked, her tone implying that she didn't believe him. "I've heard that you're a knight and all, but do you think you're really so good as to not need guards?" She asked, her tone still highly disbelieving. "So if an assassin came out of no where right now and tried to kill you, I wouldn't have to protect you?" She asked.

[Amri Amatzya]

(Perfect place to start Amri up, if you don't mind me saying.)

He was pleased, no, more than pleased, he was satisfied. Something about walking undisturbed on "enemy" territory just felt good to him. As such, his signature smirk was on his face, raising his lips only slightly to reveal dazzling white teeth. He looked very confident, and the simple reason for that was that he was. Even if he didn't have an enormous halberd that was larger than his own body resting on his shoulder, he knew he could beat anyone with the power of his fists alone. After all, it would normally take three strong men to lift his companion, commonly called Banryuu, yet he could pick it up with one hand, either one of them. He had plenty of reason to be egotistical.

Of course, one might ask why he was here. Other than he need for some alcohol, which he always wanted in spite of his age, he felt rather out of practice. How long had it been since his last kill? Nearly a week! Much too long for his comfort, and that person hadn't even been strong, wasn't a challenge. He desired the rush, the adrenaline, the excitement of mortal combat, one thing that had been his companion even before Banryuu came into the picture. He still remembered his first victim clearly. He considered it one of his happiest memories, the joy, and power he had discovered from growing stronger, from proving to the world that he could protect something if the need ever arose...

Angrily, he shoved that thought aside. Lately, in the back of his mind, something was telling him that he didn't kill for pleasure, but that he killed so that he could prove he could protect something. What that something was he had no idea, but the thought disgusted him. All he needed was the taste of battle and drink, and he'd be a happy man for all of his years.

Then he saw them...just standing...how stupid of them. What kind of people just stood there? Didn't they know that during the day the monster under their bed came out and walked among the people? That it's name was Amri Ban Amatzya? He smiled to himself his own devilish smile, one that deserved a class of its own. The predator had found his prey, but how would be play with it?

He took Banryuu off his shoulder and spun the oversized blade in one strong hand. He was like an insane kid in his own warped version of a candystore.

"Didn't your mother tell you to run away when dark strangers come up to you?" he asked, chuckling slightly as he rose his head to reveal his face, "Of course, I wouldn't know, which I suppose is why I became that stranger. You should start running, it makes it more exciting."

(Oh my GOD, I LOVE role-playing this guy!)

[Peregrine Alexander]

xx

read between the lines
that divides me somewhere in my mind

Blah, blah, blah -- did she ever shut up? Peregrine felt like clapping his hands over his ears to shut out her mindless mouth as she spend on and on, lecturing him on his supposed royal pride and all the girls who were supposedly swooning over him. He supposed the latter part would have been true, if he had been spending more time attending formal, stuffy events instead of being around Meg. But that was all right; he liked his days like that. Had she been a damsel in real distress and not just a runaway girl, he would have helped her, but stereotyping just made everything so much easier.

"You do, do you?" The prince held up a slender finger, as if he was thinking very hard. "You know, that's an interesting view, but it's a pity the world doesn't work that way." He snorted, not a very princely habit, "What? Been locked up in a tower all your life, solipsistic wench?" He glanced at the sword, then shook his head. "No, I doubt you even know how to use that."

He put Dogstar into a walk, making him tread a circle around the girl, Midelan. He was rather proud of that skill, which he had been perfecting for most of his life. It usually made his opponent feel uneasy and restless if nothing else. And there was nothing quite like seeing the look on someone's face when they saw a tall horse, carrying an armed rider, walking in menacing circles around them. Of course, the effect would have been ten times greater, had Peregrine been riding Vollo, preferably in full armor.

"I've already told you -- I'm Peregrine Alexander. I don't like having clusters of vapid idiots having tea with Sceithian brats. I don't need them. You don't really think the most wanted man in Sceith could have survived so long if he didn't know what he was doing?"

Okay, maybe not the most wanted man, but to prove his point...

"In fact, I..." But his voice trailed away as he heard a rustling noise, not far from where they were standing.

"Didn't your mother tell you to run away when dark strangers come up to you?" Came a heavily-accented voice. A oddly-dressed figure rose. "Of course, I wouldn't know, which I suppose is why I became that stranger. You should start running, it makes it more exciting."

Dogstar blew hard, alarmed his tail raised, his nostrils flaring, his ears straight up, his entire body tensed with fear. Peregrine, not missing a beat, drew his sword and advanced toward the stranger, rolling his eyes. This should be fun; just a little something to make this day go from bad to worse. Throw in a little murder and bloody skirmish, why don't you?

"And just what to you think you're doing?"

my shadow is the only one that walks beside me.
my shallow heart's the only thing that's beating

___________________________________

word count: Probably 450 or so
listening to: nothing, at the moment
lyrics credit: boulevard of broken dreams by greenday
mood: pretty good
notes: none

[Ceara Mindelan]

Ceara narrowed her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest as once again her anger began to rise. Peregrine was royally pissing her off and she would have loved to smack him. Or pull her sword on him and prove that she knew how to use it. She wasn't a knight for nothing, and nothing angered her more than people doubting her skills with a sword, especially if that person was male. All her life people had been telling her that she wasn't strong enough to be a knight, that she should be wearing dresses and doing her best to look pretty to attract a husband. Well, she didn't want to do that and she had been spending the majority of her life trying to prove to everyone that she could make as good a knight as any male could, and here the prince was doubting her abilities.

She didn't move as he began to circle her on his horse, not looking at all intimidated. Did he think circling her was going to scare her, that she would break down in tears or something and beg him to stop? Oh of course, because a horse circling her was so absolutely terrifying. She rolled her eyes, keeping her eyes on him as he circled her, besides when he was directly behind her as she didn't actually turn to keep her eyes on him, only her head. She doubted he was about to strike her down with his sword from behind, anyways. Had he been an actually enemy, like maybe someone from Sceith, she never would have taken her eyes off him, not even for a second, but as it was she figured she was relatively safe for now.

She would have liked to insult the prince more, continue trying to knock his self-esteem down a notch, but it was obvious that she wasn't having much success in that, and that's when she noticed the stranger approaching them, at the same time as Peregrine had. Had it not been for the threat and the tone he spoke them in, she would have laughed. As it was, however, she quickly unsheathed her sword, holding it up and at the ready, her body immediately falling into a defensive position as she advanced far slower than the prince himself was. She'd hang back for now and watch his back, make sure they didn't have any other attackers and if it looked like he was in trouble she'd jump in.

All the anger she had felt at Peregrine a moment ago disappeared. He was no longer someone she was beginning to seriously dislike, but a temporary comrade in arms while they fought off this threat. A smile came to her face at the thought of a fight and she would have loved to just charge at the threat and try take him out on her own. Two thing kept her from doing this, however. One was the giant ass sword he had on his shoulder that made her wonder how heavy that thing really was, and the second was the fact that Peregrine was already moving forward, and on a horse, and she knew that he would get there before she did.

"Running? From you? Yeah, right." She said, her tone mocking as she continued to advance.

[Amri Amatzya]

He sighed. How much questioning did they have to go through before they would actually attack him? How much threatening did he have to do? Some people would start fighting him before he even said anything. Words were not his strong point, brute force was. In fact, he really wasn't bright at all. You could tell him that seven minus two equaled four and he wouldn't blink, however, if you told him that his opponent was stronger he would laugh in your face and prove you wrong. No opponent was stronger. No opponent was as determined as he was to become the best. He had been in more fights already then what some men would see in their entire lifetime, or what multiple men would see in their lifetimes. Maybe it was because he lived for nothing else, or maybe it was because he knew nothing else.

"What am I doing?" He smirked, lifting his Banryuu slightly off his shoulder and then putting it down again, and then repeating the motion. He liked the feeling, and it also showed off his companion, all nine feet of it, "Oh, I don't know. It's been days since I last fought, much too long for a mercenary. Been itching for some practice."

Then something caught his eye in the sky, a bird. It wasn't his own golden eagle, Halil...it was just some bird. Like a small child, he watched it for a few moments, normally cat-like eyes becoming wide and innocent, but not for long. It didn't take much for him to shake his head slightly and snap out of it. He swung Banryuu off his shoulder, and spun it like a helicopter in one hand. His nimble fingers were twisting the handle around so quickly that the naked eye wouldn't be able to see what they were doing. It gave the illusion that his spinning halberd was just floating by his hand. Sometimes just that image was enough to send many people running, thinking he was a demon or something like that. It would always make him smile...a demon of battle, how great would that be? Not just being in wars, but causing them...it sent tingles up his spine. But, this place sure didn't need his help. it seemed every country was at the throat of another one, a mercenary's dream. Sure, right now he was employed by Sceith, but that would always change. He never trusted anyone.

He ignored what the girl said, who cared about her? If she could fight with that sword she was wielding, fine, then fine, he would take her on to. But in his opinion, if a girl didn't fight, all she was good for was pouring his drinks. Whereas men, they were only good for fighting, either as an opponent or a comrade, the latter of which he had none currently, but was wanting to find some, if they were strong enough.

"Prepare yourself, whoever you are," he said darkly.

[Peregrine Alexander]

xx

i walk the borderline
that divides me somewhere in my mind

Sceithian mercenaries...lovely. He was just what Peregrine needed on this steadily improving day. Dogstar wasn't helping with all of his trembling and snorting, so the prince slammed in his heels into the gelding's barrel. He meant business and he meant it now. Normally, he was a patient and able trainer, one who liked to communicate with the animal and trick them into doing whatever it was he wanted them to do rather than force them with spurs and bits. But now was not the time to be gentle.

And then there was the matter, Mindelan, who would most likely, want to prove her "valor" by waving her sword around in the stranger's face. If he was about to fight a trained assassin, mage or anything with a sword as long as this youth's, he did not needed to be distracted by a probably pure-blood girl with a tongue sharper than her blade,

"With pleasure," Prince said, with relish, slamming his heels into Dogstar again. With a squeal of alarm, the Thoroughbred leapt forward, Peregrine astride his back, rushing toward the stranger, sword held aloft, waiting for the collision. But even as he cantered awkwardly toward him, Peregrine knew he was going to need a better plan. He did after all, have a very long whatever-it-was and the prince had neither lance nor spear on him.

That, or Dogstar was going to have to have very good dodging reflexes.

my shadow is the only one that walks beside me
my shallow heart's the only thing that's beating

___________________________________

word count: 236
listening to: nothing, at the moment
lyrics credit: boulevard of broken dreams by greenday
mood: pretty good
notes: er, ceara, no offense, or anything, but your character is starting to seem just a bit mary-sue-ish, just fyi

[Amri Amatzya]

Finally, time to get this on. Every part of him was tingling with anticipation. This was what he was born to do, and what he had been doing his whole life. This was life. Drinking was great, so was laying back and chilling with his friends, making crude jokes about their victims, but this...this was what surged energy into his muscles.

"You're going to have to be quicker than that!" he shouted, jumping to the side as the man...boy, whoever he was, came towards him on a horse. Really? He had to rely on an animal in battle? "You have to be as quick as...as, um..." s***! Why did he even begin to say that? He knew he wasn't good at metaphors...this was why he needed some comrades, ones with good vocabulary who could finish his sentences. Now what was something this guy would have to be as quick as? What was something he knew that was fast? Then he smiled, "as quick as me." Yes, that was good. Good Amri. He congratulated himself on his quick thinking. (Though, it hadn't actually been all that quick.)

Except now he had more important things to worry about rather than his own lack of being articulate, well, he didn't really have to worry about it, more he had to pay at least 1/10 attention to it. As the boy on the horse went past him, he stopped spinning Banryuu and grabbed a hold of it, and with the momentum he had gained from twirling it about, he swung it full force to hit the ground, send shockwaves from where it had hit, and breaking up the ground with more efficiency than a plow. Why did he do this? Two reasons, the first being that it showed his opponent just how d*** huge and powerful his weapon was, and the second was that he wanted the moron to get off his horse and fight him on the ground, this was a way to speed that up, unless he wanted to ride on ground like that. Not to waste time, he wrenched his halberd out of the ground and held it in front of him, pointing towards the boy.

"Get down and fight me like a man."

[Ceara Mindelan]

Ceara wasn't a moron, she knew just charging in and trying to fight off a giant ass sword like that was just likely to get her killed. However, she was at a bit of an advantage right now. Amri seemed to have taken his attention off of her while Peregrine attacked, so he obviously didn't think she was a threat. This annoyed her to no ends, though she did her best to keep her cool and think this through. She could use that to her advantage. Neither men thought much of her at the moment, that much was obvious. She wanted to just go charging at him now, prove that she knew how to handle her sword, but again she held back for now while she thought. Perhaps she could catch him off guard and attack?

Ceara hesitated for only a moment before throwing herself forward, aiming a jab at Amri's ribs. She wasn't behind him, which would have been even better, but she was hoping that his attention would still be mostly focused on Peregrine and that he wouldn't have enough time to block her when he did actually see her out of his peripheral vision. She rolled her eyes at his attempt at a metaphor, wondering why he had even bothered trying to make one if he didn't have to brains to come up with a good answer. However, this told her something important. He obviously wasn't the smartest person ever, and if worst came to worst then she and Peregrine could easily use their brains to try beat this battle.

If she managed to stab him in the ribs, she would quickly take a few steps back, to get out of the way of his giant sword. "You can't say that to him, you're not even a man yourself!" She couldn't help but taunt. When people got angry, they made mistakes. She had learned that a long time ago.

[Peregrine Alexander]

xx

i walk the borderline
that divides me somewhere in my mind

As the boy swung, Dogstar half darted, half jumped out of the way of that abnormally long sword. Had the prince not been such an accomplished equestrian, he would have fallen from the nimble animal. Perhaps the Thoroughbred was good for something -- Vollo wasn't as agile as he, due to his size and general outlook on life.

On the outside, this looked like an impossible fight. The stranger had all the advantage -- a long sword, surprise and Peregrine's divided attention. Yes, that troublesome girl had now entered the fight, to the prince's dismay. He couldn't do this, even if the enemy's sword extended as far as this one did. He was a knight, not a barbarian and he could not gang up on any man like this, particularly one who had not proved himself. Two on one simply wasn't a fair fight; it was murder, even if it did involve a woman who probably didn't know one end of a sword from the other and a strange Sceithian whose sword looked backward anyway.

"Keep back, Mindelan." He growled, distractedly, while trying to keep Dogstar under relative control, hold his sword straight and make sure he wasn't suddenly made into mincemeat by the stranger. "You can play with swords after I disarm him."

This was nothing more than a puzzle, though and Peregrine was the clever intellelect meant to solve it. He had always placed mind over matter, despite his skills has a warrior and physical condition. All he needed to do was find the stranger's weak point and Mindelan's "cool it" button.

my shadow is the only one that walks beside me
my shallow heart's the only thing that's beating

___________________________________

word count: 261
listening to: some celtic instrumental piece
lyrics credit: boulevard of broken dreams by greenday
mood: pretty good -- going to see harry potter in a few minutes
notes: none