Skedaddle

[Soran Nightblade]

Adonis and Telanis both watched her as she bustled around the house. They both know that no amount of cooking and folding could erase the fear of what happened to her this morning, but it seemed like the best way she had of distracting herself. "Dinner would be great," Telanis said supportively. He stood up and walked to where Adonis had left the book. "Where did you find this?"

Adonis paused to weigh his response. "Home."

"Home?"

"The apartment," he clarified quietly. "Erik's and mine."

Telanis forgot to blink. There was an unnatural stillness in his brother's voice. "Are you okay?"

"Stop asking that," Adonis snapped.

"I only asked once. Adonis, what is that book?"

"Spells," the black unicorn replied flatly.

[Emora Deen]

Laya found a pot and washed it out. She through the ingredients for a vegetarian stew into the pot with water and hung it on a rack over the fire. She steered it and when she thought everything was mixed up she left it there to boil. Laya sat on the couch, her knees drawn up, and she watched the pot.

Laya swallowed. "Are there wards we can put up to keep them out?" she called to Adonis's room.

[Soran Nightblade]

Adonis narrowed his eyes at Telanis as he called in to Laya, "There should be."

Telanis frowned at him. "Adonis, what is that book?"

The black unicorn flipped open the cover and ignored his brother's expression. "At first, it was my training wheels."

"That book showed you how to find that stone?" Telanis asked warily. He was becoming more and more uneasy about this.

Adonis tilted his head in confirmation. "After the first few, the spells get harder and harder."

"You mean blacker and blacker."

Adonis took a breath and ignored him again. "The spells can only be read if you have the strength to use them. I've read the legible ones a thousand times... but I've grown considerably stronger since that time. There may be spells I couldn't decipher in the past that would apply here."

"Adonis, I don't think you should use that book."

Adonis glanced up at his brother warningly. "I think I'll study in the kitchen, where it's brighter," he said, taking the book and leaving for the other room.

[Emora Deen]

Laya watched the fire, listening to the chatter she could barely hear from the other room. What she could make out from the tone of voice, however, meant that they were not happy with each other. She frowned, narrowing her eyes on the fire. "I think there might be a game lying around here some where if you want to play Telanis," she said quickly, turning in the couch to face where they were. "I'm not sure if I remember how to play it though... We can make up something?" She was sure that Adonis would find playing a game too childish to partake in.

Laya went to the closet in her parents bedroom and opened the door.

Out a rat scurried, probably the largest rat Laya had ever seen. She screamed, jumping up onto the bed as the rat stopped just short of the fireplace and watched her. "Rat," she muttered. "Big rat... huge rat..." She plopped down cross legged and shewed the rat from a safe distance.

[Soran Nightblade]

Telanis walked back into the room behind Adonis and walked to Laya's side by the closet. "A game sounds good," he said thinly, not sure if he could focus, but needing the help to take his attention away from his brother.

Adonis took a seat next to the fire and spread out the book on the endtable next to him, using the firelight to read. He began poring through the book and studying the spells, one by one, for a solution to Laya's situation.

Laya's scream nearly jumped both men out of their boots. Adonis was on his feet looking ready to smite the offending party, while Telanis had bolted himself in front of Laya defensively. It took a few seconds for the protective instincts in the room to simmer back from full boil as the unicorns recognized there was no threat.

"Don't go screaming over nonsense," Adonis scathed, adrenaline still pumping in his ears.

[Emora Deen]

"Sorry, sorry, sorry" she repeated, covering her head almost in a defensive manner. She sat still on the bed, her arms sliding to cross in front of her. "It startled me. I'm really jumpy. I'll tone the nerves down, I promise." She let out a heavy sigh, her eyes finding the petrified rat in the corner. "So... can you talk it out?"

[Soran Nightblade]

"It's okay, Laya," Telanis said, throwing a harsh look at Adonis. "You have good reason to be on edge." He walked to the creature and crouched in front of it, whispered a few soft words, and it scurried off.

Adonis rolled his eyes and sat back in his chair, setting his gaze back on the spellbook.

Outside the house, the wind began to pick up and a few spots of rain quickly turned into a deluge. The shutters on the first floor thumbed intermittently on the walls, emphasizing how quiet the room had gotten.

[Emora Deen]

Laya and Telanis were sitting on the bed in their room. The fire was warm and bright and it offered just enough light to see the board by. The board was old to the point that the paint had nearly faded from the rough carvings. Squares of different colors decorated the top and they had little cast metal pieces spread out across it.

Laya laughed as she stole Telanis's last piece. "I won," she said gleefully. "Though I suppose it was cheating since I made up the rules..." Her gray eyes flickered to him. "Thanks for playing. Do you want to play again?" She stretched her arms above her head, yawning. "Oh... I need to check on the stew. It should be done by now."

The storm outside made her uneasy, and she worried about the house. It had been so long since she lived in the house she wasn't sure if the roof would hold up, or if the walls would stay.

She rose from the mattress and went back into the living room to take the pot off the fire. She carried it into the kitchen, passing Adonis, and set it on the bar.

She stirred it to help it cool, jumping as lightening flashed outside. She stopped, moving to the window and peering out. The weather was a mixture of heavy rain and ice. Terrible weather.

"If your hungry its ready," she called, washing out the bowls for them to eat from.

[Soran Nightblade]

Adonis raised his eyes from his book, blinking the room back into focus. He watched Laya serving the stew for them and pondered just what he was doing here. His gaze dropped back to his book as Telanis walked in past him from the room where they'd been killing time for the past hour or so.

Telanis looked at him thoughtfully. "Are you alright? You have been reading that all night."

"I'm fine," Adonis muttered, barely glancing at his brother.

"You should take a break to eat stew."

"Later."

"Brother, I am concerned about that book-"

"Shove it, Telanis."

"Shove what?"

Adonis closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "I'll eat in a minute," he muttered, trying to focus on the page he was reading.

"Oh."

Over the next few seconds, the black unicorn became painfully aware that Telanis intended to stand there and patiently wait out the minute. Adonis raised his head from the book and stood up in exasperation. He tried to ignore his brother's concerned gaze as he made a B-line for the table where Laya was. "How was the game?" he asked conversationally as he picked up a bowl.

[Emora Deen]

"Different," she replied softly. "Would you like to play?"

She jumped at the sound of a shutter slapping the wood paneling outside. "This storm came on fast." She chewed the vegetables slowly, watching the weather through the grimy window.

[Soran Nightblade]

Adonis chewed a mouthful of stew to buy time on his response. "I'm not a great game person," he said.

"That's okay, Laya will make up the rules," Telanis said. "You should take a rest anyway. It's enjoyable."

Adonis tilted his head and looked at Laya. "Make up the rules, huh?"

[Emora Deen]

Laya swallowed. "I don't remember how to play it," she said softly, pushing around her food. "So I just made up a game for Telanis and I to play." She pushed her brown hair over her shoulder while she ate.

She finished her food quickly and carried the empty bowl to the sink. "It had no taste to it, but I would say it was filling."

[Soran Nightblade]

"It tastes fine," Adonis said, polishing off his bowl and setting it with hers in the sink. "Thanks for the meal."

Telanis observed his brother's human manners and repeated "Thank you."

[Emora Deen]

Laya smiled. "It was no problem," she replied with a yawn. "I actually think I'm going to go to sleep... I am exhausted." She stood in the doorway between the bedroom and the living room and looked between Telanis and Adonis. "Well, good night..."

She turned into the room and closed the door a little bit, leaving a crack encase Telanis chose to come to bed later.

She unbuckled her belt and stripped off her skirt, leaving it on the floor. Laya drew back the covers and climbed into the bed, resting her head on the pillow and her back to the door.

[Soran Nightblade]

Telanis looked at the door for a moment, then started in toward Adonis's room.

"Hey."

Telanis froze and looked at his brother.

"That's my room." He gritted his teeth at his brother's uncertain stare. "You go in there." He pointed at Laya's room.

Telanis took on a thoughtful look. "I... she didn't-.."

"She doesn't have to invite you every single night. Why do you think the door's unlatched," Adonis whispered harshly.

"Because it's cold," Telanis started, but tapered off as Adonis shook his head and pointed firmly toward her door. "Will you be-"

"Finish that sentence, and I'm leaving," Adonis warned.

Telanis paused, swallowed his words and turned toward Laya's room. He stepped in and closed the door behind him, crossing over to where Laya was falling asleep. He sat next to her on the blankets, and ran his fingertips across her forehead. "May I join you?" he asked in his soft, silvery voice.