Aella was, as usual, humming to herself as she braided the hair between her horse’s ears. So far, she had successfully braided nearly the entire mane, starting at the bottom. Occasionally, without seeming to notice she was doing it, the girl would rub a hand on her head like she had a headache.691Please respect copyright.PENANAcRW5bTRcQ8
Luna had come out of cat form and was on Neoma’s horse, watching Aella braid. She blinked, mimicking her hand a few times, then turned to Neoma, poking her and repeating the motion. The other girl rolled her eyes. Aella looked over at them and grinned. “I can show you how to do it properly later, if you want,” she offered.691Please respect copyright.PENANAv9ZldEzqWp
Luna grinned and nodded. “Please?!”691Please respect copyright.PENANAP7dWuvrYaL
”It’s a plan!~” She glanced back to her horse, then swayed a moment, seeming to space out, eyes unfocused.691Please respect copyright.PENANARGiigDjW3h
Neoma studied her for a few seconds, tilting her head. “You okay there?”691Please respect copyright.PENANA8MPMRANCTo
She blinked and looked back over at Neoma. “Hmm? Yep, I’m alright.~” she said, returning to her normal cheery self.691Please respect copyright.PENANA0BXV6j5VUO
“Ah, okay.” She didn’t dig into it, looking ahead, then pointing.691Please respect copyright.PENANA670TCZuUlA
“Are we at a town finally?” Aella asked excitedly, bouncing in the saddle and making her horse snort and toss its head. Neoma nodded slowly, keeping her eyes on the town ahead.691Please respect copyright.PENANAAWbTNRjeg1
“Oh, yay~” She settled back into her saddle, but still looked impatient to get there.691Please respect copyright.PENANAfZqY2XUjPY
Neoma kicked the horse lightly to make it go faster, looking behind her to see if Aella followed. The blonde nudged her horse so it was even with Neoma’s, and she smirked, mumbling, “Brat.” She jolted her horse even farther. Aella started grinning, speeding up her horse again.691Please respect copyright.PENANAJIx9lwITOD
The two continued to urge the creatures faster. Neoma watched the town grow bigger and taller, the smell of sea salt burning her nose. Aella took a deep breath, her grin widening even further. Luna itched her nose at the scent, moving her hand over her nose.691Please respect copyright.PENANAX1iX1r6Dd3
Aella winced again suddenly, slowing down. Neoma looked back at her, pulling back to have her horse next to hers.691Please respect copyright.PENANAMnMQ6707FE
Her eyes focused again after a second, and she shook her head. “My head hurts.” Neoma paused, grabbing a rope from the supplies and tying it on both mounts’ necks.691Please respect copyright.PENANAomvmGav4L1
Aella gave her a curious look. “What’s that for?”691Please respect copyright.PENANAVef1BWOrjZ
”So if you fall off, the horse won’t drag you.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAkCrRVtNKKy
“That would hurt.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAr8n4Any6nR
“Yes, it would.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAiGdPzwS7Db
Aella hummed, looking ahead.691Please respect copyright.PENANATdjJYarCHw
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Neoma pulled a bit on the hood of her cloak, keeping out the light and the sight of anyone, no longer riding on her horse. Aella had dismounted as well, now walking with a bright smile. Neoma looked at the ground as she walked, and Luna was walking next to Aella, blabbering on about the forest around her home. The girl appeared to be listening quite well, aside from the occasional wince.691Please respect copyright.PENANAMN2Kucjwko
“So, there’s a ton of animals and they’re all good for eating! But some of them are fast and hard to catch, and some are slower and even beginning hunters can catch them! And and…. oh, there’re more villages on the island, and they’re always fighting, and it wasn’t fun!” She purred a bit at that.691Please respect copyright.PENANAVoeVMnpjan
Wow.~ Did your village fight much, or were they nice and peaceful?” she asked curiously.691Please respect copyright.PENANAzci73fnybi
“Uh, it depends!” She thought for a moment, then grinned. Aella tilted her head questioningly. “We were like a family I guess, but they didn’t like the other villages…”691Please respect copyright.PENANAaBXfd0rDMO
”Oh…” She absentmindedly rubbed her forehead again, as she’d been doing increasingly often. Luna giggled and nodded, continuously rambling about her home. Before long, Aella suddenly stumbled to a halt with a pained expression.691Please respect copyright.PENANAMuPAq20KSa
Luna jumped a bit, pushing her arms out to hold her up. “Are you alright!?”691Please respect copyright.PENANADxwAZEOARF
“Oww… My head really hurts now,” she said a bit distantly. “And the ring burns.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAT37yqmczYY
Neoma moved over, grabbing her wrist. “Come on.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAtOU8ezgi5b
“Mm..” Aella let Neoma lead her without protest.691Please respect copyright.PENANAbhMcp1RNXo
She moved her into the shade, pressing a hand to her forehead. “How do you feel?”691Please respect copyright.PENANAWZevQfvQiY
“Not good…” She closed her eyes, tipping her head back a bit. “Ow. Cináed’s upset.” Neoma walked over the horse, pulling out a fruit for the girl. She reached for it, but dropped it almost immediately with a wince, so Neoma just sat next to her, one of the shadows holding up the fruit. Luna came over, sitting down as well.691Please respect copyright.PENANAuJVNHu8Tbv
Without warning, the girl flinched and went stiff, then started tearing at her slender hand. Neoma jumped up, taking a few paces back. “Damn it,” she growled, and glared up at them. “I hate you. I really, really hate you.” As she spoke, the blue of her eyes seemed to leach out, leaving a bright, metallic silver.691Please respect copyright.PENANAn6HkvxG9LT
Luna looked a bit hurt, but Neoma just… shrugged. “So, the shifter’s breaking through.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAk1TsFZi7f1
”What is this thing?” Cináed demanded. He had already shifted out of Aella’s form - not into the appearance they’d first seen him with, but a pale teenager with auburn hair. His irises remained their unnaturally bright color. Luna jumped back, her feet and hands dragging against the ground. 691Please respect copyright.PENANA0i9me3fKAb
"A silver ring," the elemental answered.691Please respect copyright.PENANARHxRflmrxh
“And why can’t I take it off?” he growled.691Please respect copyright.PENANASYH2MwUCD0
She rose one of the shadows from the ground. “Reasons.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAB1eyMIgUtj
”I want a straight answer.” His shoulders tensed up.691Please respect copyright.PENANA2YZOWndINc
” Well that sucks, because you aren’t getting one.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAFCaSnBaKqs
“And why’s that?”691Please respect copyright.PENANAbJ9dahUnqK
”Because, screw you. That’s why.”691Please respect copyright.PENANA3JJV66YzWH
”Great response,” he muttered. “Witty.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAeB53WcdjLG
Luna licked her lips once or twice, her eyes darting from Neoma to the other boy - Cináed or something - then went back to ignoring the fight, sniffing at the air (it smelled weird in the city, like trash and things) and scratching her nails to the ground.691Please respect copyright.PENANAxbikXLFj9I
Neoma crossed her arms. “I could come up with something better, but I don’t believe you deserve any brilliant backsass from me.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAZAVxORfNBU
He rolled his eyes at her. “You were a lot less of a bitch in Spain.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAjcV9iH6nG3
“‘Till I found out you possessed some girl’s body,” Neoma grumbled, the shadow going liquid-like and plopping to the ground.691Please respect copyright.PENANAzdqVDIizGa
“What do you care about some random human?”691Please respect copyright.PENANA135VeckDwr
“More like I don’t like the thing in her.” Suddenly her hands flipped palm up, causing shadows to pin his hands to the ground in almost a basket-like weave.691Please respect copyright.PENANA9Aidc8TkAI
”You seemed fine with shapeshifters when I first told you.” He snarled, trying to pull back.691Please respect copyright.PENANAaWq28Ml0ZL
“Sure, I’m fine with the species in general, but most don’t have to possess people.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAXzaUxvhxnH
“Most,” Cináed muttered. This seemed to tick her off, and she pulled out the knife from before and pushed it near his neck. He leaned back. “Don’t.” She poked him with the tip, leaving a red mark, then returned it to its sheath. He hissed, his hands twitching.691Please respect copyright.PENANAWJd02FySp6
Luna tilted her head. “Neoma, that’s rude.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAUdP1nV55Kg
”S’ also rude to be an ass, but this guy’s first class in that.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAOqkeuk0jit
Cináed growled again, trying to get free of the shadows. However, the shadows solidified as they got pulled, starting almost like rope. The more he pulled, the more they changed to a metallic feel. ”Damn it..” He stopped yanking on them, faint electrical sparks dancing across his hands in his irritation.691Please respect copyright.PENANAXya3l6zpBA
Meanwhile, Neoma continued the petty argument with Luna, almost forgetting about the shifter before looking back at him and going, “Oh, right.”691Please respect copyright.PENANA9eQ8JQvDuz
”So what the hell are you going to do, just sit here and let me be trapped all day?”691Please respect copyright.PENANAz472siQVt0
”Shut up, I’m thinking.” She crossed her arms, looking at the shadows for a few seconds.691Please respect copyright.PENANALHb17oC0fX
”Impressive,” he muttered.691Please respect copyright.PENANAIUR0JxvjTu
”Screw yourself.” She glanced at him, then back to the shadows. “Yeah, we aren’t letting you go wander free.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAIQHkJYPZnq
”And why not?” he said sourly.691Please respect copyright.PENANAb4DXs880WI
”You have my ring~” She teased, then held her hands up. “And I can’t take it off you.”691Please respect copyright.PENANABRCgcskggb
”… seriously. Then who CAN take it off!?”691Please respect copyright.PENANAvUqf5L4Fc7
“Aella”691Please respect copyright.PENANAncYywKFowF
”FanTAStic. Fucking great.” He glared daggers at her. “So then what’re you gonna do with me, huh?”691Please respect copyright.PENANAw9UUoIMpVo
Luna finally piped up. “Well, there’s the chance that: A. you pretty much leave her body by letting her take off the ring and then going, or B… um… we’re stuck with you!”691Please respect copyright.PENANAF4OgNz5J4u
”Ah, no.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAGombIksjyg
“… Then we’re stuck with you!!” Luna grinned, jumping up from her sitting position.691Please respect copyright.PENANAPY6F0bRKCr
“… for how long, exactly?” 691Please respect copyright.PENANAEcqfgKbDCe
“Who knows?” Neoma smirked. “But the moment you try to run, let’s see how hot that silver gets.”691Please respect copyright.PENANA3hFfUCmBdp
He growled under his breath. “If I’m stuck with you, at least tell me what this ring is meant for.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAeFNSq90Nip
“Keep you in control.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAuoqwSVAbXZ
”I doubt this was custom-made.”691Please respect copyright.PENANARQIptJB430
“Not for you, but it’s a silver ring, and I guess it helps.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAjVfBPFTHz2
”Better hope it doesn’t burn my finger off,” he grumbled. Sure enough, the skin around the ring was dark red.691Please respect copyright.PENANAddE8LYlaRv
”It might”691Please respect copyright.PENANAb79G9zQfIQ
”You’ve gotta be kidding,” he growled. He attempted to pull it off again, hard enough that the nails of his other hand left bloody grooves on his light skin.691Please respect copyright.PENANAzyBOnPA8sU
“Hey now, dont want to scar yoursefl”691Please respect copyright.PENANArS1U1SyfLP
“Shapeshifters don’t scar,” he grumbled.691Please respect copyright.PENANAr4ZXgWOr5T
”Right, right.” She stepped up, not releasing his hands.691Please respect copyright.PENANAqMSHWY84rc
Cinaed automatically leaned back from her again. Finally, the shadows sunk around his fingers and into the ground. “‘Bout time,” he muttered, and stood, wobbling a bit. She grumbled a smartass comment and walked to the side. 691Please respect copyright.PENANAJiWE50VcOR
"Where ya going?" he asked, abruptly changing his tone from irritated to irritating.691Please respect copyright.PENANAGwYOTuUqBT
”Somewhere.” She pulled her hands inside the cloak, turning around.691Please respect copyright.PENANAepRHecAAja
”Oh, fascinating. I heard Somewhere’s nice this time of year.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAvgyBUfPVio
”It is, actually, not too hot, not too cold.”691Please respect copyright.PENANA7Ex6a4XwxT
”Pretty pleasant in all, not an awful amount of sunshine or rain.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAsUZwCbPNt2
”And you know, not too many people either.” 691Please respect copyright.PENANAqdvxiAWTIW
Luna looked between the two, then giggled.691Please respect copyright.PENANAvH4I45N2fx
”Excellent living conditions.”691Please respect copyright.PENANA4C4w3b6Dej
”Yes. Not too shabby of a building”691Please respect copyright.PENANADiBW0wBcoX
“Spacious, well-managed.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAbrzrrQ1076
“What are you two doing?!” Luna finally asked.691Please respect copyright.PENANA7QN85l904M
Cináed glanced at Luna, then with an irritated expression said, “Nothing.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAFv2wdyqHVO
She ran a hand through her tangled hair, then looked at Luna. “Come on.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAb6dfZ65ARu
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Neoma sat on the edge of the bed, glaring at the male in the room. Cináed glared back, standing against one of the room’s walls. Luna looked between the two. “So….” When they ignored her, Luna bit her lip, sighing, and shrank down to her ocelot form and to jump up next to Neoma. 691Please respect copyright.PENANAELMqKRBQRY
After another few seconds, Neoma piped up. “Okay.” He raised an eyebrow “Obviously, you’re going to be around for a while.”691Please respect copyright.PENANA02ktM2ENLy
“Yeah. And?”691Please respect copyright.PENANASo7C1ZTqdi
“You need to be of some use.”691Please respect copyright.PENANADC24N2sSlW
His eyes narrowed. “I don’t NEED to be.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAZOULl1pq36
“The faster we’re gone, the faster you’re out of my hair.” He continued glaring, waiting for her to continue. “So, you’re going to be buying stuff from now on.” She smirked a bit. “I mean, imagine what would happen if two girls got caught doing such!”691Please respect copyright.PENANAPsmxxGNDUJ
He gave her a flat look. “You’re kidding.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAUststmWWSz
“‘Course not, and if we did get caught, all the time I would take to escape.” she made a ‘tch’ sound and shook her head. “Such wasted time it would be!”691Please respect copyright.PENANAAl8iHyyBl8
“Pretty sure you’re capable of shopping yourself,” he said sourly. “Unless you’ve always had a guy slave to do it for you.”691Please respect copyright.PENANA5dQoiLumIn
“Of course we can, what do you think these are for?” She gestured to the heavy cloak.691Please respect copyright.PENANAQfe8jTXEPH
“Then why don’t you use them?”691Please respect copyright.PENANAVC3JV3zzzD
“There are some things we can’t buy in cloaks.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAGKtoXc6kSb
“Like?”691Please respect copyright.PENANABawR5cIJea
“For instance, clothing.” Neoma practically growled out that word, but she gave a smartass smile nonetheless. 691Please respect copyright.PENANAbYgu1VHmEy
He growled. “Don’t see why it’s that big of a deal,” the shifter muttered. “And even if you don’t want to be caught buying clothes, you can get whatever else yourself.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAQBuKeYSLcO
”Of course I can, but then there’s no fun in tormenting you.”691Please respect copyright.PENANA3Wm2yODGYZ
”I am not gonna be your slave because you’re too lazy to buy stuff yourself.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAMLaeUejMjI
“Nah, I don’t believe in slavery. I do believe in tormenting assholes.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAsZsPuBfAYT
“… You’re paying for all of this.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAMNYmhKijvy
She dug through her pockets and threw a bag of coins at his head. “Naturally.” He caught it quickly and opened it to check the contents before leaving the room with an angry look. She laid back on the bed, looking up at the ceiling.691Please respect copyright.PENANAo3W0kywtHH
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Cináed stepped back into the room and promptly dumped the food right on the bed, then threw the money bag at Neoma. She jolted up and glared at him, catching the bag before it hit her. “And a fuck you too.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAriHmC79tq4
”Good enough for you?” he nearly spat.691Please respect copyright.PENANAInY1FI7iHv
Luna looked at the food, then Neoma. “No meat?”691Please respect copyright.PENANAG3MKubJeEI
”No meat.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAFTJJpgk72w
”Oh…”691Please respect copyright.PENANA0m14cEcYIu
Cináed huffed and sat down. Neoma threw a fruit at him. “Earth’s fruits are weird,” she commented. He considered throwing it back just to irritate her, but settled with just keeping it. 691Please respect copyright.PENANAPTH0dz8Uch
She bit into one, still glaring at him. He glared back, passing it between his hands for a minute before finally taking a bite himself. Luna was taking huge bites and swallowing them whole, except for maybe pressing it to the roof of her mouth once or twice.691Please respect copyright.PENANArAi1f9wcuz
Luna glared at the fruit, mumbling how a nice rabbit or bird would be better than this. Meanwhile, the other two silently glared across the room. She finally finished her portion, looking at the bread and glaring again.691Please respect copyright.PENANAonqoUzMAH3
”Not a fan of varied diets, huh?” Cináed asked absently into the silence.691Please respect copyright.PENANAeF2J7Nh7AG
”No.” She practically growled, gripping onto the bed.691Please respect copyright.PENANAXEey1o30dG
”Heh…” Cináed went back to glaring at Neoma, apparently disinterested in the conversation. Neoma stared back, biting into the fruit one last time to finish it. Cináed was still holding his own, not even half eaten, appearing to have forgotten about it. She threw it off to the side to throw away later and glared at him as she went to lay down. Cináed’s eyes followed her, still icy. She rolled over to face the wall, yawning as she did, while Cináed just remained sitting. Luna stared at him for a few seconds, then sunk down to cat form and laid next to Neoma.
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Cináed had fallen into a light sleep, and was still dozing at sunrise. He woke up just after the sun came up, and glanced around with a yawn to see if the other two were already up. Luna was asleep, curled up in a tiny ball. Neoma on the other hand was over by the window, giving the sun a death glare691Please respect copyright.PENANAqUJAuowt4f
“You look like it insulted you personally,” he commented.691Please respect copyright.PENANA0Lq86OtJm0
“It did, it rose and made the moon and stars die away,” she bitterly commented on that, looking back at him.691Please respect copyright.PENANAbiO4DAam1d
He rolled his eyes. “They always come back, so why bother getting irritated over it?”691Please respect copyright.PENANAo8cfPAD9Tc
”Because the sun, like you, is an asshole.” Neoma walked over to the bed, pressing her hand to Luna’s furry head.691Please respect copyright.PENANAeRsUiz9mTp
”Tch…” He rolled his eyes again at her and sat up fully.691Please respect copyright.PENANAIMvvtfq4Gd
Luna lifted her head before sleepily lowering it again. Neoma cracked her knuckles, then got up and grabbed her cloak. “First thing is breakfast, then we get to have a marvelous trip to go get dresses.” She said the sentence in a grumble, and Luna jumped off the bed and shifted to human.691Please respect copyright.PENANAFJ7YI98kip
“How great,” Cináed muttered.691Please respect copyright.PENANAx88QYxYN8y
“Don’t worry, I’m just as excited as you.” Neoma shrugged up her shoulders and crossed her arms. He sighed, still sitting. “Come on asshat, let’s get this over with.” She made to walk to the door. Luna grinned at him for a moment, then slowly followed.691Please respect copyright.PENANAuzMni2YzS0
He shot a glare at Luna before slowly getting to his feet and walking after the two. Luna strayed behind a bit, staying somewhat near Cinead, but still within reach of Neoma. The shifter was reluctantly following, occasionally glancing at Luna with something between curiosity and a bit of confusion. She was humming softly, and despite practically jumping in her steps, her feet made no noise when hitting the ground.691Please respect copyright.PENANACqQ1ELZOoh
”So how long is this gonna take?” he asked, shifting his gaze to the back of Neoma’s head.691Please respect copyright.PENANAlSxQNFPEQL
”How the hell should I know?” A few people turned their heads to the girl to glare, but besides that, the small group was ignored.691Please respect copyright.PENANAyhGsi7UmKf
”Haven’t you done this before?” he asked irritably.691Please respect copyright.PENANAehrH53JLcE
“Where we’re from, almost everyone has some sort of magic.” Luna fell behind to say this in a soft tone, glancing around to make sure no humans heard. “So it’s used for almost everything!”691Please respect copyright.PENANAxHF4OoOd6x
”Shapeshifters are like that too,” he said, dropping his voice as well. “I don’t shop. At all. Y’know, except when I’m forced to.” He added the last sentence under his breath, almost inaudibly.691Please respect copyright.PENANAaPwhIgduck
Neoma nodded slowly, looking ahead for a minute then back at him. “So thievery?”691Please respect copyright.PENANAwv7zT3ooG3
“You bet.”691Please respect copyright.PENANAuzRlayCgPw
Neoma only grinned.