I chase your shadow, collapsing more [FOP]

born an angel, heaven-sent
falls from grace are never elegant

It hadn't been the demonstrations and fights within the arena that kept her occupied during the third day festival. Instead, her gaze had been stuck on the two silver haired sorcerers seated at the row front of her, where she had only expected one of them. The thought of running into him did cross her mind every now and then. A thought that was swiftly pushed to the back of her mind using rational arguments, immediately terminating whatever maternal feelings came paired with those thoughts.

And now he found himself within her reach for the first time ever since she had been forced to leave him behind. It almost distracted her from the sole purpose of her visit; Finding Alyssia a suiting marriage candidate in order for her to pass on her magic to the next generation. A magic she herself had never been granted. The priestess had to refrain herself from being the target of suspicion, seated beside the parents of the young man which definitely caught her attention in terms of her quest. She couldn't afford to get distracted now, though she couldn't help but to find herself gazing at the back of his head for most of the tournament, silently wishing she was granted one last look at this face before he'd disappear out of sight once more.

Perhaps it had been that glimpse of hope which made her stay close behing them as they exited the arena, relieved at how Alyssia kept clinging onto him, though her behavior also raised suspicion. Her daughter wasn't usually this outgoing to anyone except her guard, though she had mentioned that she had been able to make a friend at the festival. Could it be? Did they know..?

Passing the exit of the arena, she was quick to place her hand upon the boy's shoulder as he walked by, silently ordering her daughter to follow their company back home, hoping to fiend a brief moment of privacy to talk to him. She wasn't sure if he knew, she wasn't even sure whether she wanted him to at this point. Yet, she unconsciously decided to use the uncertaintly of the relationship between him and Alyssia as an excuse to talk to him.

Patiently waiting for most of the crowd to leave the arena, she quietly removed her hand from his shoulder, trying her best to keep a neutral expression as she tilted her chin upwards to look him in the eye. "Excuse me, lord Vylasar," she spoke indifferently, keeping her stone cold mask on for as far as her maternal instincts allowed her to. "Would you mind accompanying me to the royal palace? There's something I've been meaning to ask you." She briefly eyed her daughter and her company, which now remained quiet a few steps ahead of them as they returned towards the palace. "In private," she added, avoiding the quesion of why she decided not to keep up with the others.

@ Ezekiel Vylasar

I chase your shadow, collapsing more [FOP] Dc9fazz-fda8fc7d-25ee-4fbb-998d-421aba47540f.gif?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzA0YzVlZWEyLTkyNjQtNDU2OS04ZDgzLTAzZTBiMTI2NjIyMlwvZGM5ZmF6ei1mZGE4ZmM3ZC0yNWVlLTRmYmItOTk4ZC00MjFhYmE0NzU0MGYuZ2lmIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0

this is a dance for liarsa competition for sinners, our little, secret game we both enjoy too much

The silver-haired summoner was getting worse and worse hiding his increasing distress every passing second. He had not only seen the man he had spent a very intimate night with enter the arena as a traitor but also seen him disappear into thin air. He only knew it would be a short hunt to find the necromancer and end his life in a much less theatrical way. Ezekiel's heart ached for it. Even if he knew he had said his goodbyes that night. His imagination still clutches to that straw that maybe something could happen in the future. That it wouldn't be the last time their paths crossed. Well, he had been right: their gazes had crossed once again, but it now had truly been for the last time. And no proper goodbye could follow.

The man held tight to his wife's hand as he made his way back through the worked-up crowd. Nobody knew what was happening and the tension lingered heavy in the air. His sister followed closely as he was funneled into the crowd of nobility, trying to rush their way home. He urgently raised himself on his tiptoes as he tried to look over the hoard of people, wanting nothing more than to board a boat as quickly as possible and return to his literal safe bubble underneath the Sanguine Sea.

Somewhere in the rustle of the crowd his fingers had disentangled with his wife and he could already hear her scolding words as he imagined their reunion soon after. "How could you lose me!" she would yell. "You'd promised you'd protect me!" she would follow it up with. But instead, it was his sister who managed to stick close to him. That was something he would probably have to explain too.

He couldn't care less at this point, to be honest. He only wanted to hide away and fester away in his self-pity. It was then that he felt a hand on his shoulder, which made him turn around as if he were poked with a branding iron. Somewhere in his mind, he had conjured up the illusion that he would look up into those big, mischievous eyes. But to his disappointment, it was a strange woman who met his eye. He immediately noticed her silver locks. Another Rizal, he quickly clocked, not being able to get rid of the words of his sister, that everyone with his hair color was "one of them". She addressed him with his surname, making him narrow his eyes quickly. Why did she know him and he had no idea who she was? His presence had spread as wildfire among the diviner family. A frown formed on his face as her words continued, which ended in an uncertain expression. Why did this woman want to pry him away from his family? He quickly looked around, but his sister had also strayed from his side.

‘‘I'm afraid I don't know your name, my lady. But I assume it ends with Rizal,’’ he spoke as he spoke with rushed words as his gaze went from her to the crowd passing them. ‘‘What could be so important that you have to ask me now?’’ His gaze went back to the woman in front of him. He didn't bother to be very courteous at this moment. His heart was still pounding in his chest and this woman was only a delay, and he wasn't planning to take a detour to the palace.

NC