Private Tales Another World

A private roleplay only for those invited by the first writer

Arius

The Apprentice
Member
Messages
18
Character Biography
Link
The Spine
Amaryllis

"Perfect." Arius said as he plucked the flower from it's stem and placed it gently onto the page of his book. He admired it for a brief moment, then slowly closed the journal. Fingers tightened around the leather binding, letting the book press the flower. He held it there, then continued to slowly walk through the field.

Nearby his horse let out a nicker, head shaking as it expressed it's boredom.

Arius looked over for a moment, shaking his head before looking back towards the field. He had five more specimens to collect, and if he didn't get them all the Professor Trell would have his hide. The Old Dwarf was always rather grouchy, his mood only improving when someone brought him something new or made a discovery of some sort.

Unfortunately, Arius wasn't much for either of those.

He was a decent enough student, earned good marks...but well he just never got the opportunities.

Most of the professors thought that he was a waste of time. His magical talent wasn't all that much, and without that they figured he wasn't worth training. None had acknowledged that his skill lay elsewhere; alchemy. He was better at it than some of the professors, but they just never let him show it. A fact which irritated him.

His hop was to get into Professor Trell's good graces. A word from him and he would be able to finally get into the Alchemy Labs. At least he hoped.
 
  • Smug
Reactions: Amaryllis
Curled up in a round ball of fluff, the princess of the summer court had been dozing off for the past few hours, peacefully napping away the day in her animal shape: a cuddly looking brown bear. A faint snore could be heard from her corner of the meadow, but the high grass hid most of her shape well. Amaryllis had spent the morning basking in the sunrise for just a little longer than anticipated and as a result, the high fae had been catching up on sleep ever since.

When she awoke, she did so by mere chance and not because someone else–a human–had come around. Naturally, Amaryllis took notice of the young lad and for a while she simply watched him from a safe distance. His back was turned on her for most of it and although his horse stood not far away from where she sat, the friendly creature did not seem to mind her presence one bit. Everyone knew the princess preferred a vegetarian diet after all.

He was collecting flowers, or so she thought, and the method he used while doing so looked familiar to Amaryllis. He was quite eager to complete his work and so the friendly fae decided to give him a helping paw. The snuggly looking brown bear (not at all intimidating) got up and strolled across the meadow until she was within close range of the mortal. A few of the plants that grew here were more rare than others and once Amaryllis had found something of particular interest, she nudged it with her snout and let out a grunt.

Look what I found, she thought, but of course he couldn’t hear her.

Bears couldn’t talk after all.
 
  • Scared
Reactions: Arius
Arius had become rather lost in his search.

Finding these flowers could quite literally be the difference between life and death. If he didn't get them he wouldn't have any time in the lab and without that his trial would be utterly...fricked. Lips thinned for a moment and he took a breath.

He adjusted the book in his hands, peering down at the ground and searching when Amaryllis came up behind him. He did not notice the massive bear, too wrapped up in his mission to hear the slight patter of feet in the soft dirt.

It was only when she let out a grunt that he noticed.

His head turned. "Huh-OH FUCK!"

Arius swore, probably for the first time in his life. He immediately took a dozen steps backward, practically bouncing through the field until his heel suddenly rebounded against a rock and he found himself tumbling down onto his ass.
 
Aw, he didn’t get it.

Arius stumbled back, fell onto his ass and looked at her with his most bedazzled expression. Amaryllis, utterly amused by this, mimicked his behavior by sitting up on her behind and waving at him from a now safe distance.

Why hello there! She thought. A laughter would have erupted from her lungs at this point, but instead of revealing herself just yet, the mischievous fae princess merely sat there and put her paw back down, beside the precious flower.

Are you sure you don’t want this?

The mortal looked terrified, much to her delight, and to give him a sense of safety, Amaryllis got up and casually trotted to the left, putting some distance between herself, the flower she wanted him to have and the boy himself.

The princess has had a fair share of encounters with humans up until now, but none of them had ever been of particular interest – and none of them had been worth a memory. She did not think today would be any different, but there was still a little bit of time left before her guards would come looking for her.
 
  • Popcorn
Reactions: Arius
Arius blinked in confusion as the bear did not rush him and immediately try to disembowel his body. It seemed to wave for a second, and then shift...and walk away.

The young apprentice was utterly stunned to say the least, his head shaking in confusion for a moment as he watched the creature move to the other end of the field. His eyes flickered briefly from where it had been standing, seeing the flower he had been searching for.

Lips thinned. "Did you..."

Confusion pulled through him.

"Were you?" The words didn't finish on his tongue. There were stories of animals helping people, but usually it was when they were in danger. A baby lost in the woods saved by wolves. A man drowning at sea offered rescue by dolphins. But this...

No student mage searching for flowers had ever been offered help by a bear.

Arius swallowed. "Are you trying to help me?"

It seemed unlikely, but why not ask?
 
  • Smug
Reactions: Amaryllis
He was so very oblivious to the whole charade.

Amaryllis scratched her back with one of her paws, appearing entirely indifferent to the question Arius had just asked. If he had taken a closer look at the bear, then perhaps the young mage would have caught a glimpse of her light brown eyes, and noticed how little resemblance they bore to just any animal. The fae were barely distinguishable from true animals but to the experienced adventurer there were indeed a few unique traits which marked them fae rather than mortal.

Arius was no such person however, and going by his youthful looks alone Amaryllis did not expect him to be very wise – nor smart.

Still, he was entertaining enough. Funny even. The way he spoke to her, asked her about her intentions – as if a bear could be expected to respond. Amaryllis trotted over to the next patch of flowers, a different kind this time but perhaps he would enjoy them all the same. She sniffed them carefully, as if to show him that she too was inspecting the plants with utmost care and even a little insight, before moving on to the next spot.

She didn‘t mind doing this until he dropped his guard. And if he did well, she might even let him scratch her ears.
 
  • Popcorn
Reactions: Arius
It did not, in fact, seem as though the bear was about to eat him.

Fingers tightened for a brief moment, lips thinning as he stared at the creature. It seemed to shift, moving over towards another patch of flowers and sniffing them as if they would be of some interest as well.

Arius frowned for a moment. Did the beast somehow know? Had it been watching him?

There were a few stories about werebears and the like, though most of them came from the far north and beyond. They spoke of people who could transformed into bears and think, even reason. He did not think this was what...though it seemed off.

"Uhh." The Apprentice wondered, slowly pulling himself up from the ground.

"I don't need those." He told the bear, feeling like a fool. "I need Dragon lillies."

He explained. "They're rare."

What the frick was he doing?
 
  • Smug
Reactions: Amaryllis
Then Dragon lilies it is.

Amaryllis was in high spirits today and decided to bless Arius with a hint of a miracle. Even if the fae’s affinity lay with fire and light, on mortal terms her magick was still vast and seemingly endless. The summer princess continued on in a slow pace, sauntering across the meadow until she found one more individual of the flower he desired. With a gentle grunt, the brown bear notified the human of its discovery and moved away.

Once Arius headed for the single lily and turned his back on the fae, the princess sat down and released her animal form. No longer a bear, but a beautiful and tall woman, Amaryllis now had proper access to her magick as well. Quietly, the immortal cast a spell into the field, just around the area where she was currently resting and from the veins of magic below the earth, a hundred dragon lilies sprouted from the ground and blossomed under the sun.

Amidst the flowers sat Amaryllis, her delicate, otherworldly features painting a beautiful picture. The princess wore an almost simple looking white gown with long, wide sleeves and a deep neckline. Lucious brown locks fell softly around her shoulders and below her waist and Amaryllis golden eyes shot Arius a curious look.

“And what do you need them for?”
 
Last edited:
  • Stressed
Reactions: Arius
Arius looked back towards where the bear had been, hearing a beautiful and almost ethereal voice echo out. "Did you ju-"

The Apprentice fell silent.

His jaw dropped, his eyes bugged out, and he stammered something that might have been considered as words in any other kind of situation. He felt his throat go dry, and the journal in his hands nearly slipped from his grasp.

"I err." For a few seconds Arius forgot that magic existed. "Where did the bear go?"

He wasn't a fool.

The young Apprentice knew very well that changeling and the likes existed. He even knew of the Nordenfiir, men and women who could change into massive bears at will. That didn't come too him at the moment, too stunned by the sight of the woman and the dragon lilies that surrounded her.

His gaze darted down towards the flowers that spread around her. "I errr...stu...studies."

He couldn't remember. His mind went rather blank.
 
  • Smug
Reactions: Amaryllis
“What bear?”

Amaryllis laughed. A soft, light-hearted laugh that suited her silken voice and gentle eyes. He seemed utterly flabbergasted at the circumstances and the fae was reminded of how simple humans were – their thoughts rarely reached beyond what they knew and this one clearly did not know a lot. He was young, she could forgive him.

Apparently he had already forgotten his reasons for coming here.

“I would like to keep you company, if you don’t mind.” The princess said and plucked a few of the flowers before offering them to Arius. “They are not rare anymore right now, so take as many as you’d like.” Some of the flowers had grown rather tall and the brunette maiden, once her hands were free, lifted up the lower parts of her white gown to move a little bit more freely amidst the meadow.

He mentioned his studies and Amaryllis plucked another flower, this time eyeing it carefully. She twirled the little plant between her fingers, gave it a sniff and then swallowed it whole, chewing with her mouth properly closed for a while before offering a shrug. “Not that good, honestly. What’s it for?” She asked curiously.

"And is this the only flower you need?"
 
  • Scared
Reactions: Arius
Arius found himself utterly stumped.

Had he imagined the bear? No. He had seen it, that much he was confident of. She could try to play him for a fool, but there was a reason he was here. Fingers tightened for a moment on his book, but he would not challenge her. "You're not supposed to eat it."

They were not deadly, not to most beings anyway.

Slowly he reached down and plucked a few more of the flowers, taking them the same way he had the first and ensuring that they were safely tucked away.

Still weary, Arius kept his distance. Whatever she was...shifter or sorceress it was clear that she was capable of some sort of magic. Would the flowers even last? Were they an illusion?

"They're an ingredient in a potion." Or they would be. "I have all the other flowers I need."

In his satchel back on his horse. He frowned a moment, taking just one step towards her. "Who are you?"

Arius asked, still holding off a bit.
 
  • Smug
Reactions: Amaryllis
“Oh,” said Amaryllis – and swallowed anyway.

“It’s not that good anyways,” the fae continued the casual conversation until her gaze fell upon his notebook, a journal of some sorts. Amaryllis wanted to take a peek, but the human reeked of suspicion by now and not wishing to cross any limits too soon, she simply stood up where she sat and contentedly stretched in the sun.

He plucked a few more flowers and she watched him do so quietly, without interrupting. The humans of this world were all too familiar with magic, but less so with the faeries. He kept his distance, but didn’t allow her to hinder him from his objective and she found the way in which he was going about his business endearing.

“What kind of potion?”

Perhaps that is why so many high fae kept themselves in the presence of mortal companions, she wondered. Because they were, in a way, entertaining. Not entertaining enough to permanently burden herself with the responsibility of their well-being, but then again: how much responsibility could a life so fragile and short possibly demand?

Amaryllis was torn from her trail of thoughts when Arius approached her bravely and demanded to know who she was. “You may call me Amaryllis,” she responded with a smile and lifted up her long dress to take a step over the flowers and towards him.

“And you?”
 
  • Thoughtful
Reactions: Arius
Arius mirrored her step forward by taking a single step back again.

A woman who could turn into a bear was...well something not to entirely trust. Particularly when she had appeared out of nowhere. His eyes narrowed in suspicious, tongue folding over the sound of her name as if he could determine her origin with it.

"Arius." The boy replied after a few seconds.

His parents had not raised him to be rude.

"Many different kinds." He added after a few seconds. She had helped him find...maybe had even created the other flowers. The least he could do was answer her question. "I believe this will end up as Harrows Brew."

Arius continued. "A potion is said to cure all manner of ailments."

As he spoke of the potion Arius became visibly more excited. A thrill ran over his face, and his fingers tightened around the notebook. Harrows Brew was rare, almost impossible to get right, even with all the proper ingredients.

The thought of creating it, and getting it right, made him practically giddy.
 
Arius,” she repeated after him and put on a thoughtful expression. Amaryllis had never bothered herself with the humans and the lives they lived, even though their company was valued in some of the other courts of the fae realm. The princess couldn’t see how someone, whose lifetime was over within the blink of an eye, could add any sort of meaning to her own, ancient self but perhaps she was just too arrogant to see it.

Not on purpose of course. Ama was a likable person with an outgoing persona and a fairly open mind – but when you were a thousand years old with powers rivaling the gods, seeing eye to eye with someone who needed flower potions to heal any sort of ailment just seemed...absurd.

Oddly enough, the fae princess decided to give it a chance anyways.

“Huh,” she said and mustered up some interest. “And the recipe to your potion is in that book you keep clinging to, yes?” She had noticed earlier how he’d held on to his notes, clearly not willing to give up his secrets just yet. The excitement was written all over his face and Amaryllis only frowned in response.

“Has someone you care for fallen ill?”

Going by his expression alone, she didn’t think so. He didn’t look desperate, at least not like that. There was probably something else going on and the female curiously tilted her head to the side while continuing to watch him.
 
  • Popcorn
Reactions: Arius
Arius glanced down at his journal. "No."

He denied stringently enough that one might have thought he was actually lying, though the explanation he added quickly after would dispel those thoughts.

"That's all up here." He gestured to his head. "The Journal has some of the other flowers, they need to be pressed to work in the potion."

It was true, though not the whole of it.

Aside from that, the Journal also contained his personal musings. Some of the things he had come up with, invented. They were important to him, and he guarded the leather bound book as much as a hound guarded it's master.

He knew it was pretty much the only way he would be able to graduate Althhaven, the only way he wouldn't be...he wouldn't be turned into one of them.

Arius took a breath, shaking his head and feeling himself relax a little. "No, but I need it in order to uh..."

Lips thinned.

"In order to pass a test." An excuse that seemed rather silly now.
 
  • Smug
Reactions: Amaryllis
Amaryllis arched a brow. “A test?” The fae princess ran a hand through her sleek, brown mane and wrinkled her nose in wonderment. “A test of alchemy then,” she eventually deduced and began twirling the strands of her hair between her fingers.

“I guess that means you’re a student of some sort.” Amaryllis wasn’t an expert on human relations, but the faerie had lived long enough to know that they adored gathering and sharing all sorts of knowledge – about all sorts of things.

A thought crossed her mind and her lips lifted into a smirk.

“Do you want my help?She offered and gave him a knowing look. Tests of all sorts could easily be cheated on or completed in more ways than one, you simply needed to know how. A fae at heart, Amaryllis was always up for some mischief, especially now that no one else was watching. The human seemed weirdly genuine and she almost expected him to decline her offer.

“I can help you pass any test in this world,” she purred.

But perhaps he could be convinced.
 
  • Popcorn
Reactions: Arius
Arius nodded. "I'm a student at Althhaven."

What was the harm in telling her that fact? The school wasn't exactly easy to attack, and it was doubtful they would let any harm come from...a bear woman. He frowned for a brief moment, shaking his head at how stupid the thought was.

Of course she wouldn't attack.

That school was making him paranoid, seeing knives in the dark. She had only helped him so far, and was only offering more help.

A frown touched his lips as she spoke of passing tests. Alchemy he did not have problems with, he didn't need help with that, it was...it was everything else that gave him difficulty. His lips thinned for a moment, and he took half a step forward.

"I...no...not with alchemy." There he knew more than some of the Professors. "But..."

Arius hesitated. "How could you help?"
 
  • Smug
Reactions: Amaryllis
“A student,” Amaryllis repeated his words with a solemn nod. There were a lot of those in the mortal realms – they often tried to acquire as much knowledge as possible with what little time they had. Amaryllis didn’t think much of it, although the fae did notice that he was still very much hesitating and that he did not trust her.

He was wise to do so.

She noted his frown, but wasn’t able to place what it meant. When Amaryllis offered some help however, something about his behavior changed and he became almost...tempted. The fae princess offered him her kindest smile. There was really nothing about her that seemed threatening or gave reason for concern and even her bear form was very cuddly and adorable.

When he took a step forward, the fae smiled.

“I can make you better.” She said – and it wasn’t a lie.
 
  • Stressed
Reactions: Arius
Arius didn't move.

No one would ever have described him as brave. The word 'courage' did not exactly spring to mind when one thought of him, but neither did 'coward'. As Amaryllis stepped toward him the young student twitched slightly, looking up at her with a slight frown.

"H-" He frowned for a moment, noting the pleasant scent that seemed to permeate the air around her.

His nose crinkled slightly, though not because of anything unpleasant. There was something...calming about her, though just what it was he could not have guessed. His fingers twitched at his sides, and he took a long calming breath.

Arius cleared his throat. "How?"

The alchemist asked tentatively.