[ Chapter 01 - SCENE ] Fish out of water

[sacredpennance.livejournal.com]

Who: Estellise, Raven, and Leon/Judas
Where: Belkend; The Dungeons of the Heurassein Manor
When: At about the same time as the Engeve scenes.
Warnings: None. :)


Estellise was often bored in her room; there were times when her imagination and her books were simply not enough to feed her insatiable appetite for entertainment, and this was one of those times. Surely, she could ask the maids or the butlers if there was any possible way to help with their tasks, but their reluctance to let their "Princess" work alongside them made her feel as if she were more of a burden to them than anything. So she refrained from asking too often.

Estellise was careful as she wandered around the manor; though she was certain nobody would stop her, she didn't want Mother or Father to find out and overreact as they sometimes did. She clasped her hands together loosely in back of her, moving through the halls as quietly as she could, green eyes glancing around for anything, anything which would give her something to do.

She turned a corner and stepped down the stairs, her mind not quite keeping up with her feet at this point. It didn't register in her mind as to where she was headed until she was already a couple steps from the door.

This ...

Her eyes widened, and she stepped forward, placing a gloved hand on the doorknob, hesitating. The dungeons were one of the places blacklisted to her.

"I shouldn't be here," She sighed to herself, shaking her head. But her curiosity ... what of her curiosity? That little nagging feeling in the back of her mind? Was she willing to risk getting in trouble in order to appease her curiosity?

... Yes. At the moment, yes. She was.

So, before she could think of turning back again, Estellise turned the knob and opened the door, stepping into the dungeons and looking around, her expression that of utter fascination.

The door closed behind her, but she didn't notice.

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[urusenai.livejournal.com]

The dungeon was small, and the individual cells dark due to the lighting provided. It wasn't Raven's frst time in a dungeon, but man, it was boring. Even the warden was asleep, and his snoring was making it hard to fall asleep himself. At least with the warden asleep he didn't have to be subjected to the experience of having to pee in front of somebody else.

However, the door opened, and up went the pants. Raven had the unusual ability to be able to stop the flow, though he hoped he could finish soon enough. Still, he took a seat, and took a look out behind the bars, and saw the opened door. There was a sight to behold... a pink-haired lass in noble clothing, and a beauty at that. Crossing his legs, he was sure that she couldn't see him due to the lighting. More than that, he recognized her. Smirking, things were going along to plan.

"Aww, they're nice enough to have these sorts of perks in a dungeon?" he spoke aloud, making sure the lass could hear him. "I certainly could use some company, as this old man's got some stories to tell. So, what is it? The world where the sky was falling, and a dark-skinned girl saved the day? The one with the bone mask that couldn't hide anybody's identity? Or the twin-swordsman who killed a bunch of people in cold blood yet was considered a legendary hero for ending discrimination?"

[sacredpennance.livejournal.com]

Estellise let out a small gasp as she heard the voice, jumping a little. Well, now. That wasn't something she expected. Even so, she made her way over toward the direction of the voice, finding herself in front of one of the cells. She noted an odd smell coming from it, but out of politeness, she didn't mention it, or make any move to cover her nose. She peered curiously at the man inside of the cell, blinking a few times before catching herself staring, and closing her eyes, shaking her head again before averting her attention back to him. She had to wonder what he'd done to end up in here, but again, there was a factor of being polite.

She clasped her hands in front of her again. He had stories to tell. Stories she'd never heard of, or could never even dream of, from the sounds of them! This officially made the man interesting. Her lips widened into a bright smile.

"You seem enthusiastic to tell your tales," She noted amusedly, though without a doubt, she was interested.

"I'm willing to listen. Which would you like to tell first? They all sound so ... so interesting!"

[urusenai.livejournal.com]

"Oh, but I'm always enthusiastic no matter what if it's for a cutie like you." Raven smirked. He stood up, and walked into the light to where she could see him. Since Estelle approached the cell more towards the right, he made sure to stay towards the left so she wouldn't feel threatened. Leaning with his back against the bars, he smirked once more. "I also got the story about a young country boy stumbling across a talking sword... or the man who had the blessing of his homeworld to return victorious and bring back life and hope, with all of his peoples' lives riding on his shoulders... and the boy and his group of friends who had to stop him at any and all costs. So, which will it be, little lady?"

[sacredpennance.livejournal.com]

Estellise brought a finger to her lips, a thoughtful expression crossing her face as she thought of all the options she had been given, as far as stories went. Well .. it was difficult to choose just one. While Estellise had a bit of a favorite genre, she also liked to hear new things from time to time. So she figured she'd begin with just that; something different.

"How about .. the last one you mentioned? The one about the man with the blessing from his homeworld to bring back life ...?"

Yes, that seemed like a good start.

[urusenai.livejournal.com]

"Your wish is my command, sweetie~" Raven chuckled. "Once upon a time, in the world of Aseria, there was a fierce and intense battle between the Demon King Dhaos and the four heroes, and they just barely sealed him away... until he did a time jump, but that's when the heroes' descendants were waiting for him..."

An hour went by. Two hours. Or was it now three? It didn't matter. Raven didn't have this much fun in ages, and this was probably the first time somebody actually listened to a story of his all the way through... ever since those days at the orphanage. Shaking his head, he ended it. "And then the pink-haired mage shouted out 'INDIGNATION', and Dhaos went 'WHAT THE HECK IS THAT?!', and Dhaos was finally gone once and for all. However, Martel took pity on him, and gave him and Derris-Kharlan the Mana Seed from Yggdrasil. After that, there were no records left of the Heroes of Eternity..."

Raven sat down cross-legged, and folded his arms. "So, how was that, beautiful?"

[sacredpennance.livejournal.com]

Estellise was wide-eyed by the end of the story, bringing a hand to her lips before speaking. "The heroes did all of that and were never any records of it? And poor Dhaos ... perhaps if there were a better line of communication between everyone, he wouldn't have had to die ..." She seemed genuinely sad, and still quite engrossed in the story.

But she snapped out of that relatively quickly, smiling at the other man; beaming, really. "That was the most interesting story I've heard in a while, sir," She said, "Thank you for sharing it with me!"

[urusenai.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, unfortunately, not everybody's as sweet as you, babe." Raven sighed. "It goes to show that not everything can be solved ideally... and that the world is full of people who won't listen to each other. Aseria isn't all that different from Auldrant, really." Turning himself to face Estellise, he tried to smile once again. "It's too bad the world isn't filled with more people like you."

[sacredpennance.livejournal.com]

Estellise felt herself blushing. She looked away, smiling sheepishly. "I've actually never known the world outside of the manor," she admitted.

"Everything I know is through books. Books are fascinating, don't get me wrong, but ... sometimes I really do wish I could have the experience that many people have out in the world ..." She sighed, smiling back at the older man.

"It looks so amazing from my window ..."

[urusenai.livejournal.com]

There was his cue. "Well, little lady, if you'd like... I know a secre~" He chuckled. "See this key?" He held up an iron key so that Estellise would see it. "This key is what the dear angel's price for showing us the path to freedom. In exchange for the story I told you, how about we collaborate on a new story? A story to be written as we go along?" It might be that easy, it might not. It really depended on how trusting this girl was, but Raven really had to pee. Hopefully, even if this try didn't work out, she'd come again sometime to listen to another story, and he'd have a chance again.

[sacredpennance.livejournal.com]

Estellise was naive, but she wasn't stupid. She knew what he was asking ... and she found herself actually considering it. She'd never seen the outside world; she'd only been able to watch from her window. More than anything, she wanted to get out and see things with her own eyes, experience things she'd only read about in books ... and the current situations with her parents and other noble families didn't give them any points, either.

Even so, this was a huge decision. There were unknown dangers out in the world, and though she was trained to fight with a sword and was a seventh fonist who was quite aware of her abilities and able to use them, would it be enough?

Was this a risk she was willing to take?

... Yes. Yes it was.

After several moments of thinking, she had finally come to a decision. She smiled at him.

"I'm more than willing to collaborate with you on this new story, sir .." And this was the part where she realized that the two of them had not been properly introduced.

[urusenai.livejournal.com]

"Raven. Raven Ecks." Raven stood up, and bowed. Sure, he was scruffy looking, but he had to comport himself in a manner which was befitting associating with a beautiful lady such as Estellise. Taking out a paper flower he had stored in his breast pocket up until now, he offered it to her. "Please to make your acquaintance, lady...?" He patiently awaited her introduction.

[sacredpennance.livejournal.com]

Estellise took the paper flower as it was offered to her, the blush returning to her cheeks as she smiled once more and did a small curtsy.

"A pleasure to meet you, Raven," She said sweetly, hoping it was okay to address the older man on a first-name basis. Then again, they were ... partners, from now on. In a way, at least.

"I'm Estellise Sidos Heurassein," She said. Sure, her name in itself was quite a mouthful, but it was only right to introduce herself that way. After all, he'd used his full name, himself.

[urusenai.livejournal.com]

"Estelli..." Raven sort of muttered. "Wow, yer name is a mouthful; that has to border on child abuse. I think I'll just shorten it to 'Estelle', if that's all right with ya." Winking, he tilted his head as he opened the cell door, which was unlocked the entire time.

---

"Aa, feels so nice to have the sunlight on my face again!" Raven certain was relieved, as in the corridors he took a slight detour away from Estelle in order to relieve himself. Of course, he accidentally pissed on a monster, and had to pull up his pants again before running back to Estelle, so both of them could defeat it.

"We're outside of Belkend, now." Raven turned to Estelle. "My contact is in Belkend Port, though he's kinda shady, if you ask me."

[sacredpennance.livejournal.com]

Estelle also had to make a stop before going out of the manor. Now, instead of the more 'formal' attire she had sported before, she wore something which she deemed a little more suited for traveling. In all actuality? It wasn't much better.

That didn't seem to matter to Estelle right now, though. No, she was still getting accustomed to her new nickname; she'd never had a nickname before. This was different ... and kind of nice.

"Estelle," she murmured to herself, hands clasped together tightly, "Estelle ... Estelle ..." Wow, she liked that nickname a lot. In fact, she was so engrossed in becoming accustomed to it that she didn't hear what Raven said to her.

[urusenai.livejournal.com]

Raven had to shield his eyes from the bright that seemed to exude not from only hr hair, but also her ostentatious outfit. She seemed to continue being in such a light-headed daze until the two of them reached the port, where Raven then tried to keep an eye out for his contact. "Where could he be?" He wondered. That, of course, was a stupid question. Raven was so engrossed in telling his story to Estelle that the time went way over limit, and he certainly wasn't the patient type... sighing, Raven knew he was going to continue getting the cold shoulder from this guy. Best to head toward the tavern where they originally agreed to meet... though he had no idea why a sixteen year old would be allowed inside of a tavern.

[fatedirony.livejournal.com]

That idiot was running late. Several hours, in fact, that left Judas' frustration to build continuously. Why someone else hadn't been sent in his place, even he couldn't quite guess, preferably someone with the patience to put up with the old fool, whatever their rank may be. Regrettably he couldn't quite ignore the orders he had been given, and so he still waited within the tavern that had been their agreed meeting place.

He had begun to nearly hope that a monster had devoured the old man upon his departure from Belkend Port, when the door near his table, undesirable due to the sea breeze, swung open to reveal the object of his frustration. With a short muttered word and an irritated flick of his hand, he sent away the tipsy and twittering women from where they had taken places at his side. Despite their coos and pouts, which only left his eyes to narrow, they filtered away to other tables and flung themselves onto men as equally tipsy as they were.

Now relatively alone where he sat, he lifted his cold slate blue eyes to peer at the man past the mask that interrupted his features. "You're late."

[urusenai.livejournal.com]

Putting Estelle in front of him so that he had an eye on her, Raven pulled a chair for her and took a look at Judas' narrowed eyes. Yeah, he was definitely pissed. Still, that meant Raven had to smile all the more to offset the frowns this guy was exuding. "Estelle, this is Judas. Judas, Estelle. Don't mind him if he's scary, sweetie; he's just constipated, hence why his legs are crossed." Raven let out a bit of a laugh. "Anyway, I take it that our next course of action is to take a ship away from here, huh?" Raven sat down, and put his elbow on the table while cradling his chin with his hand.

[sacredpennance.livejournal.com]

Estelle blinked. Well, that was a rather crude way of describing him, but she had to admit, albeit internally, that Raven had a point. Even so, she smiled brightly as she sat down, then held a hand out to Judas.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Judas," She greeted sweetly. She figured she would stay quiet while they talked otherwise. They obviously had plans of some sort.

[fatedirony.livejournal.com]

As Raven moved the young woman with pink hair in front of him as they approached, Judas let his gaze flicker momentarily to her. Other than the first impression that she was very brightly dressed however, he made the decision to instead simply dismiss her. Her presence there had little to do with him and thus was none of his concern.

Though as she sat and addressed him directly, he once more settled his cool gaze upon her, expression more mild than the narrowed eyes he had fixed upon Raven previously. She was polite, he would give her that much. A pity for her that he had no need for polite strangers.

"I'm sure..." he said dismissively as he shifted in his seat, arms folded over his chest as he simply ignored her outstretched hand. Let the old man have this girl. He had no need for more acquaintances than he had already been forced to have.

Her greeting taken care of, he turned his attention back to Raven, eyes once more made to narrow in frustration. "The ship has been ready since the appointed time. If you had arrived when you were supposed to, I could be rid of you sooner."

[fatal-old-man.livejournal.com]

"Look, no matter how many times I hafta apologize you and I both know you won't forgive me." Raven beamed with his bright teeth almost shimmering. "My detour took longer than expected to acquire the desired results. Prison cells aren't exactly an active place to be, y'know." Raven was finished with his explanation, knowing he couldn't delve too deeply into this issue.

Besides, Judas wasn't interested in his mission. He came along because he was told to.

"In any case, shall we depart?" If there was nothing else to say, Raven would have preferred to be on the boat already. Turning to Estelle, he grinned. "Hey, Estelle, you ever been on a boat before? The ocean breeze is fantastic!"

[sacredpennance.livejournal.com]

Estelle had to fight from showing the pout she desperately wanted to show. How rude! This man had been greeted, and very nicely at that, and yet he- oooh, it just made her so--

Wait. Boat? What was this about boats? A boat?

Estelle's eyes widened, and she turned her gaze now from Judas to Raven. She smiled brightly, very obviously excited about this most recent plot development bit of news.

"No sir, I've never been on a boat before!" Green eyes sparkled with the excitement she could barely contain. Sparkle, Sparkle.

"Oh, this is so exciting!" And once more, Estelle could hardly keep herself from bouncing up and down.