Forums » Fantasy Roleplay » Trip to the Churchground [closed]

Haku arched a brow as the door opened.. and a child stared back at them? Haku blinked, and then his brow rose further as another face appeared, a different face that called for Landi by formal name. Haku blinked a few times. Children? They couldn't be no more than.. under 14. He looked back and forth between the two, and then lowly looked over to Landi. Haku lifted a hand and covered his mouth, a bit stunned to have been greeted by children. He turned around in a small circle, trying to think before even remotely opening his mouth, and possibly sticking his foot in it. He cloed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then turned around with a small smile. "... we are Mr.. Loa, Mr Bondsmiller, and Mr Ikarus. We have been corresponding with one from this church, and we have traveled here. Might we speak to the church ...er." he glanced to Landi to finish that sentence, as Landi had the churchy experience. Haku was at a loss for what to do.. or even how to act. He looked around them to find that the children seemed to be the only ones here. "... Illiandi.. I'm going to check on the horse again, and grab up the bolts of cloth from da kine cart ya? It's already dark, we'll need to eat soon." he glanced to the children, and then pointed to Landi. "This is Mr Bondsmiller." he stated, and then abruptly turned around and marched himself back to where the stables and the cart was, and could be seen disappearing around the wooden rickety frame and the whicker of the horse as Haku tended to it. [out for a few rounds.]

Illiandi had been looking ahead, but when the door opens just a bit, he takes a polite step back, accidentally in time with Ikarus. Reaching down to his belt pouch, Landi begins to answer the first child when the second opens the door more widely. Not meeting anyone's eyes directly, but keeping his gaze slightly back them to the room beyond, remaining in the forefront as Ikarus goes into full retreat.

Nodding his head gently as he's indicated by Ikarus and Haku both. Adding first to Haku's introductions, he says, "We have two bodyguards of the Lord's construction with us, but they mean you no harm. You won't even see them," he says with a mild quirk of the lips. Landi's jokes tended to be very, very subtle and quite literal. His tone and voice are soft and warm, like a cup of tea on a chilly evening. Like that cuppa, however, there's a faint suggestion of bitter tannin and sweet sugar melted in. His face is sharp, and manages to neither match the severe horn-and-bone ornamented armor he wears nor the cultured way of speaking.

Turning aside to his flustered hisband, Landi says, "Ya, Ipo, be careful, and call for help if you need it." His tone...when speaking to Haku, it changes to something slightly warmer, before he returns to the more patronly cadence.

"May we please see the Parson who services this community? I would like to speak with him immediately about how we can make use of our time together." It seems that like the others, Landi's made some immediate assumptions about the Parsonage here; it couldn't really be two teens, surely. "Young man, could you please take these inside?" he asks of the younger child, assuming him to be an altar boy or of similar usage. He offers out the bag he's holding, containing the carrots and requested seeds (more carrots, but also cabbages and a sprig of aloe and an illfated package of wheat).

Toby eyes the three of them with what could only be described as caution. He never took well to newcomers at first, something his sister fussed about endlessly. Then again, how often had he been wrong to not trust their frequent visitors? They were more trouble then they were worth most of the time. Still the sturdy, tanned boy would take the bags being held out to him at Landi's insistence. His demeanor towards the men was cold, unwelcoming, but this was mostly due to fear on his part, he did most of the worrying in his company. He was young as then men had determined, but his eyes held a maturity that was seen in those forced to grow up too quickly.

His sister was taller then her brother, her body was so thin and frail, she looked at once both younger, and older then her 19 years. She regarded everyone with a dreamy gaze, as if she was looking at them, but somehow looking through them all at once. Still she seemed far more welcoming then her sibling. She gave the men a sympathetic smile. "We are the only ones left Misters Bondsmiller, and Ikarus." SHe answered as the other left to check his horses. "We've a pump for water behind the stables Mr. Loa" She called out to him. Before adding "Unfortunately no hay."

Finally returning her dreamy smile back to Landi's face. "Welcome to you and yours, the The Church Of Divine Light. I've no issue with your guards, In fact, I've been expecting you all as I said. Do your invisible guards eat? I made enough stew for seven mouths."

(May be heading off shortly here, Not feeling so well)

Ikarus looked to Haku as the man retreated back to find food for the horse, and the two in the door were presented as the only ones living here. The woman was not too young, not young enough that Ikarus thought she was a child like his companions may or may not consider them. But she was certainly young enough that even the not-very-old Ikarus wondered what she was doing out here alone with not but a young boy with her. Wasn't it supposed to be dangerous here? Wasn't it supposed to be cursed? Why wouldn't these kids just move down into the other town where the other people were? Or why wouldn't they just leave this area entirely?

Landi took over the relations, and so Ikarus just waited behind and to the side of his friend. Quite, he'd drawn into himself as the strangeness of this whole thing started to sink in. There wasn't even the background noise of roosting chickens. For Ikarus, this might well be the underlying cause of his unease. The island they came from, after all, was literally infested with the animals. Still, they were invited inside, and once Landi got moving, Ikarus would follow, still having a small hobble to his walk from having that cactus in his heel earlier, the little wound is no longer bleeding, but it is oozing ever slightly (ew). Maybe next time he would take his brother's boots. Knowing Sol, the man wouldn't even go outside while Ikarus was gone. Quickly distracted away from the talk of soup and guards, Ikarus was looking up to the windows, and the pictures they had there. Unfamiliar with the stories in Landi's bible, he tried to piece together what he could from the glass. Yes. Maybe he could get Jilly to make him something like this. That'd be nice.

Illiandi doesn't fault the younger of the two children for the suspicion. He'd rather expected it, since he'd been warned of dangers, and it was why he came to the door bearing some of the gifts to show good faith. Neither does he find the expectation of the older child (younger woman?) that he'd not come alone surprising: Haku had frequently written about a 'we' that would be coming, and true noblemen didn't travel alone, in his experience. Too, he understands a bit about Churches either being the first or the last things to go in a community; never in-between. With all this mental weighing and parceling going on in his head, he still turns his face slightly away from the female as she looks more directly up to him and heads calmly inside.

Exhaling in the comfort of the familiar once in a prayer hall, he's glad to let Ikarus dart inside and head to stare at the pictograms. For a long moment yet, he just looks around, adding things to his mental to-do list and adopting, nearly instantly, an softer version of a commanding presence, as if this was his space and he was comfortable in it. "Not that I've seen," Landi answers at last. He could sometimes be slow like that, taking time to think before he began talking again. "Our guards, that is. We will of course share in your soup tonight, but we have brought our own food with us and will not impose further." Now starting to piece a few things together, such as the wispy inattentiveness of the first letters that didn't seem to understand the point of the correspondence, and the more informative last letter... It could indeed sound like a teenage girl and a tattling younger boy. Reaching down to his belt pouch to remove a long black strip of silk, he says, "Miss, may we have a name for you? I believe I can assume that our helpful young man is Toby."

As the man with the wings moved passed her, into the prayer rooms to look with wonder at the windows, Minuette's eyes would follow, noticing for the first time the presence of his brightly coloured wings. She was surprised by them, but did a well enough job of keeping that surprise inward. They were not the angelic white she would have expected, but be it due to poor education, seclusion or deep religious fervor, she could only assume he was exactly that, an angel of sorts. Her gasp though audible, was her only outward reaction to this assumption.

Her attention turned back to Landi as he once again began to speak, asking her her name, and if her Brother was Toby. This caused her head to cock slightly, as if she couldn't understand how he knew her brother's name, she was unaware of the last letter still. Toby shuffled guiltily on the spot.

Minuette sighed after a moment, drawing her own conclusions. "I certainly hope he didn't scare you too badly. Yes this is Toby, and I am Minuette, this was our Father's Parish, we are all that remains now though.."

Although he wasn't aware of it, this was hardly the first time that Ikarus had been likened or mistaken for an angel. And while he would be sure to verbally correct anyone who called him such, he was always a little flattered to be likened to the fierce, noble guides of heaven. Perhaps because he was hardly any of those things in his opinion. Walking down the length of one of the pews, Ikarus entertained himself by reaching his hands up to try and catch the colorful light cast from the windows on his arms and such. Though taking a step back to try and get some of the blue on his fingertips, Ikarus forgot for a moment about his heel until it reminded him with a burning that took over his foot and the lower half of his leg.

Bringing up his hand to his mouth, Ikarus muffled the hiss and mumblegrumble of pain, hopping forward a step and then sitting down, drawing his foot up to his leg to have a look at it again. He was very much used to the comfort of his home island, where things were always accessible to him, and so now he hesitated in what to do. He didn't want to ask of their host so soon, but it huuuuuuurt. So finally he stood up again, walking back over to the trio left at the door.

"I'm so sorry, I know there are many things to be done, but earlier today I stepped on quite the large... burr... thing..." He'd encountered cacti before, but was unaware the cause of his pain was off of one. "Ah, is there..." He looked to Landi for now, "What should I do about it? Soak it... or...?" The heel of his foot already looked like it'd been a day or two since he stepped on the thing, but the little hair spines still stuck in there were preventing his naturally accelerated healing.

Haku had heard about no hay. He had to make do with what he could, which was.. the spoon. Unfortunately.. that meant that he'd have to go back UP to the church to get it, as his shock had him forget to grab that. He checked on the horse, which was resting and laying down from the long walk. He refilled the bucket of water, since that was all he had now, and returned to the cart to gather up what he could. The dirt could stay. He had his moment to think on things. Two kids left in a desolate town in a church. He was piecing his own little conclusions together. He had to live in harsh conditions as a child himself, so there he could sympathise, though his was.. forced upon him. In a way, maybe that was happened to these kids. He headed back up to the church, and didn't knock since he figured he was already seen, opened the church doors and wandered right on in. "Enjoying the windows Ikarus?" He asked quiet, and slightly amused sounding. He followed the invisible connection between him and Landi, found where he was, and then set the bundles he grabbed, the cloths, down by the wall. "So, now that we're here, and we have met the two kids, where's the letter bearers that initially wanted us to come here?" Haku had no idea it was the children... and just the children that were here. (He was outside and away for that conversation) and so he looked around, and then looked to the children. Haku stared at them with a sharp piercing, floored gaze... until it finally dawned on him. No.. parents were coming to greet them. He licked at his lips as he looked over to Landi. Then he looked over to an Ikarus that was hurt. Haku canted his head. "It's still bothering you? I might have omething in my bag if you really need me to help you with that." He glanced over to the kids. ".. your last letter stated that you needed medical things. I have a bag full of supplies." He looked around to Landi and then Ikarus.

"Miss Minuette," Illiandi repeats gently. Pausing to tie the black blindfold over his eyes, he adjusts the magically enchanted cloth gently and smooths some level of hair over the tie of it so that he doesn't show a lump over the cloth. His next words, however, are taken up with Ikarus's exclamation, and he says, "First you should sit down, my friend." Leaving extraction advice to the locals, however, he drifts over to Haku to rest a gloved hand - still in that fingerless armor, against Haku's arm. They had to be careful here. They didn't know how their relationship would be taken.

"Yes, Haku used to do first aid work, a couple of years ago. The kit should be well stocked. In addition to the immediate food and seeds in the sack young Toby has, we've got more goods in the cart?" Looking up to Haku, he's checking in to see if that's been unloaded yet, which makes the question curl. "Did the horse accept what our spoon gave it?"

Letting Ikarus be taken care of by the more experienced, Illiandi begins to shed himself of armor. Like most men, he's substantially more narrow than he looks while kitted, and as the leather pieces come off and are lain on a pew, though still no weakling. Of leanly muscled build, like a swimmer, he takes a few minutes to pluck the plain white undertunic away from his skin and stamp out the wrinkles in the pants. The boots, however, he leaves on, having seen the burrs.

Minuette snapped to attention when she heard the winged man cry out in pain, his heel covered in spurs from a local jumping cactus. She was in action right away, firstly echoing Landi's advice. "Oh dear, you poor man, please sit down. We'll soak your foot for a while, and then pick the ones that don't fall out in the water, out with a needle. Toby, please fetch a pail of warm water. Here, I'll take the bags." She held her arms open and took the bags from the young boy to free him up for the task.

She stacked the bags in the corner of the room for the moment. and then looked to Haku who was mentioning the things they had brought. "Thank you ever so much for your charity, but surely there are others in more desperate need then us."

Giving a puff out of his cheeks, Ikarus moved to sit on one of the closer pews, next to Landi's shed armor. Waiting for the pale of warm water, Ikarus just leaned over to look at his foot. He couldn't see anything sticking out, but he was very sure there was something still in there, or else he would've been okay by now. He pinched around with his thumb and forefinger, slowly working out that this might have been some very strange form of cactus. He was fairly sure there wasn't anything poison happening (as he would've had a fever by now if there had been). This was a horrible place to live.

And on that note, he looked up when Minuette spoke of others needing the charity more. Ikarus looked honestly confused as he looked up to the woman with a tip of his head. "There are?" The tip up in his voice suggesting that this was an honest question, not something trying to be sarcastic or cruel. As far as Ikarus could see, these two here in the church were in the most desperate need. The town they'd passed through had been empty (and therefore there were no people that would need help), and the town before that had at least looked like it was struggling along well enough on its own. "Well. Still, forgive me for saying so, Miss Minuette, but we have come here. Perhaps it would be best for us all to work together while we are all here, and then if others come forward seeking help, we can work something out then?" This idea passed a bit more towards Landi, who was pretty much by default the leader of the trip. Being the one who had the most dealing with churches, as well as the one who's ad was answered made it so. As soon as the water was brought, Ikarus stuck his foot in carefully, and waited, watching the others standing around.

Haku didn't bother to wait to see if Ikarus was going to say 'Yes I need help.' It seemed that Minuette ordered toby to get a pail of water, and while that was happening, Haku headed over to his medical bag, and rummaged through it to see if there was anything that could be useful in drawing something out of the flesh. He pulled out a few ointments to read them. He looked up and over to the girl as he mentioned.. that they weren't in that dire a need for help. Haku ... stared at her. She.. didn't just say that. He licked at his lips and tossed a hand in the air. "... One kine lolo wahine ya... what you tink you be in, some gran kine hotel? Nah, brah, you be in heah one run down church with nahting kine fo' wen feed anyone, ya? what you tink you be saying to us, we come travel all dis way fo' to help, and you say oddahs wen need bettah? NO. NO." He shook his head as he paced over to Ikarus, tossed him some ointment. "Put on da foot ya." he muttered as he ran hi hand through his hair. "If you two is da only kine wen left heah, den we come we be helping you two. No one else around? None?" He paced in front of the doorway as he tried to calm himself down. "Illiandi, go wen tell dem dey couple lolos fo' wen tink dat we come for pleasure, no, we come to help." He nodded to Landi.

They had been warned by Toby that the 'sister', whom he knew now to be this slip of a girl, would try to refuse them again, even after traveling all this way. Now looking lighter, and considerably more rumpled, and a lot more human himself for the lack of most of the armor, he listens to his companion's responses to her. With Ikarus' temperate response being closer to his own, and Haku's bringing a smile, happy and loving to his face, Landi gravitates over toward his husband to touch him on the arm again, this time without armor between them.

"Sometimes pride can be accumulated under the guise of humility, Miss. That's something I still struggle with myself, and I recognize it in your attempts to turn help away, as you have done so many times in our correspondence before now." Very subtly, his thumb moves over Haku's wrist before he lets go and approaches the woman, blindfolded, and with both hands folded lightly behind his back. "My friends and advisors are teaching me in my old age to not force help on those who truly do not want it - even if they clearly need it." He glances over to the boy Toby before looking back to the older of the two children.

"So I'm giving you this chance now, before I become further invested in acting here. I will not work here while you protest further, nor will I ask my people to. I do plan to magically revitalize the churchyard enough that it will support, at least, grass. I plan to work in your garden. I plan to see about fixing your roof, though I can't do much about your steeple. I plan to leave you with a magic item that will ensure at the very least that you and your young brother do not starve to death." Staring through the safety of the black blindfold, which keeps in check the arcane energy behind his eyes, he watches hers. "Please consent to this. If you do not, we will rest here the night, and leave tomorrow."

Ancient and calm, Illiandi is not a bluffing man. His tone, and his stance are solemn, but the only line of tension is in how he holds his back, which is aching from the armor and the walk. His words under a Church's roof are always true, but there's a set in his lips that drags the corners slightly down into a decidedly paternal brace of mild disapproval. He waits quietly.

Minuette was notably taken aback by the reaction for the three men, to her assumption that there were others in more dire need then them. She paled just slightly, quite nearly even taking a step backwards, it was clear she did not handle confrontation well, even when said confrontation was presented in a friendly and rational manner.

She bowed her head slightly. "Forgive me for appearing ungrateful. I mean only to say that the God's have created our circumstances, and thus will look after us as they see fit. There are many mouths that need feeding in other places, that do not have the comfort of knowing they partake in Heaven's plans. "

Her eyes though, shifted over to the winged man again, and a thought came to her, perhaps these men were the salvation they waited for from the gods, they'd brought an angel with them, surely that must have been a sign. She began to look contrite. Her mind changed instantly on the matter, without any explanation.

"I apologies. We of course, will accept your help. If you'll excuse me, I feel I must take my evening prayers early. I have thanks to give, and forgiveness to ask, for my foolish pride."

Toby returned with a wooden bucket of warm water, and placed it gently by Ikarus's damaged foot.

Ikarus couldn't help having to turn away a moment and cover his mouth as Haku went off in his heavy accent. It wasn't because he thought that Haku wasn't being serious in his agitation, but because it was not Ikarus who was the main cause of the agitation, and really, he just liked the word 'lolo'. It reminded him of throwing flour around in Haku and Landi's house that one night, wrestling just for fun. With his foot in the bucket, Ikarus looked around again, staring at the windows so that hopefully Haku couldn't see him smiling.

Landi, of course, was much more forward with what he was and wasn't going to do, and this kind of 'take it or leave it' is what let Ikarus collect himself before he turned back. Realizing then, rather suddenly, that Minuette was looking at him, Ikarus turned to look down into the water of the bucket, turning his foot around and being generally impatient with wanting to be done (nevermind he just started, he wanted to walk around and explore and look at their windows, not sit with his foot in a bucket).

He looked back up when Minuette started to excuse herself. "Oh. Of course, Miss Minuette. Thank you for having us in." Of course he wanted to ask what was with the rumored 'curse', the dead town down the road, and the meanings in their windows, but those things could wait (he was assuming Toby was going with his sister, after all). He looked back to his foot again, accepting the ointment from Haku, and reading it over himself to see what it did. For all his trusting, Ikarus was long ago trained to read everything that was supposed to be 'medicine' or go without if need be- if not simply because he could survive.

Ikarus would find that the ointment was a salve mixed with honey and something with alcohol that helped soften the skin so that it would be easier to remove whatever was in flesh. It probably didn't smell that great but if it worked it worked. He arched abrow as Minuette again tried to tell them they didn't need to help.. and then thinned his lips as she changed her mind. He glanced over to Toby as he came back with a bucket of water, and Haku watched the girl leave until he couldn't see her anymore. He slowly turned around as he collected himself. "So. we'll be helping with how we can, where we can for the remainder that we are here. I will see what I can do about educating.. one of the kids about what's in the bag for medical supplies." It.. was what Haku COULD do. A far as hunting, Haku could try and hunt nearby game, if there was any, but seeing the lands around the church.. had him wonder if that was even a good idea. "so.. what exactly HAPPENED.. You.. Keiki Toby. Can you tell us who.. or.. what did this to the town.. and the lands? Half of this all looks like a fire ran wild..." He paced over to the door and opened it a crack to see out in the dark silent eerie outside world. Unless Toby went with his sister, then Haku would be talking to the air..

Illiandi doesn't take further action, glad that for whatever reason they have temporarily leave to give aid. Had it been a hard bargain? Perhaps not as much as it sounded, since he certainly would have left all the goods they brought behind. "Thank you, Miss. I've found, personally, that God helps those willing to work for it or ask for it." With the last obstacle of the day passed, Landi settles on a pew himself, heavily, and with a slow sigh.

"Does the salve help?" he asks gently of Ikarus, able to be more personal now that the formal bits are over with. He asks while Haku indulges his curiosity with the boy, and with his posture showing just a bit of a slump while he does so. Reaching toward his belt pouch, now just sitting on a pew with the rest of the armor, he pulls out a slim roll-up before he catches himself, and tucks it back in. No, he'd not be able to indulge ANY vices while here. Still speaking to Ikarus, he says, "We'll probably have to go into the abandoned town in the morning; see if we can pull back any wood from the houses there. See if we can find any lime, hammers, nails, saws, and the like."

Minuette took her leave just as soon as she felt it polite to do so. Toby, notably, did not. In fact, if anyone were to watch closely, they might have even detected an eye roll from him, as his sister took her leave.

His Attention was drawn to Haku, who was asking about the about the state of the town. He frowned deeply, a sort of haunted look coming to his eyes. "The town folk called it a curse, my sister would call it God's will. Truth is, I'm not really sure anyone knew how it happened really. I was only a babe when it happened, but the way the story goes is, One night there was something like and earthquake, only it seemed to shake the sun right out of the sky, because it didn't come up in the morning, or the day after. When the sun came up finally, on the fourth day, the forest was scorched but only in certain places, and the land had turned to clay. Then the winds came, blowing so hard within the village that it became impossible to live here. Either the famine killed them, or the winds drove them out. The winds stopped the day the last person moved from the parish..."

Ikarus listened to the story, but he also knew that he wasn't going to have particularly brilliant ideas about what had happened. He hadn't lived through enough natural disasters to know. Island storms on several different kind of islands, sure, but Landi was the one who had seen fire, famine, plague, and undeath. Haku, even, probably had better experience with volcanos and tidal waves. Still, Ikarus nodded to Landi. "It will." He said of the salve, which he'd put on after soaking his foot a while longer, so for now it rested in his lap.

Getting an idea for the next day, Ikarus nodded, taking his foot out of the bath to give it a look over and started to spread on the salve. "Alright. Maybe we should've invited Mr. Wolfshock along for the steeple." Sighing, he shifted back in the seat to relax, staring up at the windows and folding his arms behind his head, wings tucked into the corner of the pew like feather pillows. "Do you think-" He looked over to Toby, and then Haku, "I think I would like to sleep just here tonight, if no one should mind my doing so? It's... it's nice right here, and I'd ought be up early in the morning anyway." Such was the man's natural sleep cycle, fashioned over a year of waking early and staying up late. There was soup to be had, but after such a long day of travel, Ikarus's stomach was hardened for a longer walk than it had been, and he wasn't much hungry.

Haku canted dhis head as he listened to the tale of woe. He looked out the door, then closed it and then narrowed his eyes. "... is there.. a volcano around here anywhere?" It sounded very much like a volcano might have exploded. Maybe they didn't know what volcano was? Maybe. He looked around the church. He didn't feel anything odd, in the way of.. odd spirits or anything. Not that he was one to feel thing like that. The entire town just had him creeped. When Ikarus mentioned sleeping well. Haku nodded, "Yes, tomorrow we'll have to work hard and gather what we can. For now, we eat, and sleep." Haku looked over to Toby, if there were places to sleep. Haku looked over to Ikarus. "You aren't sleeping in here alone. You are gong to come with us if there is rest." If they were shown where there was a place to sleep, Haku gathered up the bags to find the place to rest, where if given the chance, Haku rested. He again, fitfully rested, and come the morning, Haku woke up before his compantions. He dressed for the day, and then paced around the building before he headed out to the outside, and stood in the doorway, thinking about the errands. [next day]