Among the Trees

[Lilith]

Lilith snipped away a few rebellious branches of the growing tree. Aaron's grandfather had shown her how to prune all kinds of trees, so that they would grow in an orderly fashion. Aaron had not left too long ago, but already, Lilith missed him. She knew it would be better for her to stay here; his grandfather was a great magician, and would help Lilith control her magic. Even so, she longed to be by his side. She would never be able to forgive herself if anything were to happen to him, if she was not near to share his troubles...

"Lilith," the old mage stood behind her, his hand out to recive the shears from her. He was, in ever way, an older version of Aaron. His eyes, his smile, even is voice was an echo of her sage. Or maybe she was just imagining it. She handed him the shears, and he lead her in to his house. They walked down, and the air grew cold and damp. Into the man's inner sanctum they went, to read and to meditate.

"grandfather," Lilith whispered, addressing him as he had kindly told her to, "will we be casting any spells today?"

"No, little shaman, no. Today, and the next, until you show proper control, we will cast no true spells. We may practice some curses, but, given your history, we must take this slowly. My grandson can handle things on his own. I know you worry, but believe me, you would be more like to relapse and harm him without my training." The man spoke not unkindly, but had took a stern, no-nonsense tone. "Now come, little one, I have a book that will interest your studies..."

OoC: PM me if I'm breaking anything!

[Lilith]

"There are too many people here," Barek said, smoothing out Lilith's hair. "Though most come from Laus, there are bound to be some coming from other places. Some my know of the demon-possessed Witch of Worde." He rubbed a bit more of the dye through her hair. He said it was a mixture of a few plants that would turn her hair a pleasant, yet unassuming, auburn color. "Some may know the Witch as Lilith DeGarte. From now on, you must be... Elia, the natural daughter of the Lord of Badon. That should do."

"You wish me to pose as some man's bastard? I... If it will help, then I will obey, master." Lilith had wanted to cry when he told her he must dye her hair. She knew it would fade and wash out, but still... Her golden locks have always been a point of vanity with her. "Anyway, you will take your place as James's page. Cast no magic unless we are attacked. I will call for you when we are to practice your darker arts. You will find James in the main hall, attending to patients."

He paused, washed the dye from her hair, then put a wrinkled hand to Lilith's cheek. "You are precious to my Aaron, as far as I can see. Because of that, I will do my best to help you. But you must help yourself. When we invite darkness into our souls, only we may harness it. Go now, little one, and do some good."

Lilith wandered to the main hall, a crowded, loud place. It was where the wounded were gathering, and there were many; the roads were no longer safe. The shaman spotted the brown-haired sage and made her way over to him, bowing when she reached him. he was stitching up a gash on a woman's leg. "I'm here to help, James, if it pleases you."

"Elia! Good, good." the sage had a nice enough voice, and a kindly visage, though it was marred by a thin scar from cheek to chin. She wondered where he had got it from. "Here, take these packs, and this poultice, and apply it to the new patients," he said, pointing over to a group of wounded sitting by the door, "then show them to empty beds. Here you are, then" he handed her the supplies and shooed her, getting back to his sewing.

[Lilith]

Lilith scrubbed her hands, trying to get the smell of mold off. Many of the poultices they used to bind wounds were based from mold, as they seemed to keep wounds from festering. She had asked James if he could help them with magic, but he had told her that the amount of magic that it would take to heal all of these people would turn even the Archsage to dust. So mold it was, for the time being. three days had passed without any word from Barek, each night ending with a bit of meditation. She could feel the magic in her wanting to break free, and the tome under her bed called out to her, even waking her one night, vibrating so hard it knocked her off of the bed.

Then it came. A small note, reading; meet me in the study at midnight. James will let you retire early to get some sleep before hand. Eat a large meal. Lilith had done as he had asked, but found herself unable to sleep more than two hours out of pure anticipation. She packed her tome up in a bag, making sure to pad it, as it seemed to be angry with its lack of use, a prone to sparking when her hand got near it.

Midnight came, and Lilith found herself in the library, not remembering have walked there. Barek stood before her, and James behind.

"Drop your tome."

Lilith did as she was told, placing the Luna tome on the ground as gingerly as possible.

"Name it, and describe your tome's effects."

"Luna, a tome that shapes magic into night. It ignore's your own magic, as well as your enemy's magical defenses, striking with its own power. It is one of the most accurate of elder magicks. It has a slightly higher chance of landing a more powerful strike than most dark magic tomes. It is a very dangerous tome, and sometimes has a mind of its own. It is not recommended for beginners." Lilith recited from memory, not pausing once.

Barek picked up the tome, and put it in his own bag. "Aaron told me how it was given to you. Your demon enchanted an empty book, making it more her tome than yours. Magic is fickle, but from what I have seen, this particular tome does not like you." he took another tome out of his bag, and placed it in front of Lilith.

"Flux-" Lilith began, but a grunt from James cut her off.

"This was purchased using your funds, so it is yours. Flux, as you were about to say, is change. Life is change, and flux is life. Flux is the most common and versatile tome. It is regarded as weak, but should not be taken lightly. James will come to your room at this time every night. You are to perform a few simple spells for him, and once you have shown mastery and control over flux, perhaps Arum's Luna tome will open up to you, and claim you as its master. You may take the tome and return to your room. Goodnight, Elia."

Lilith grabbed the Flux tome, remembering the days of her first apprenticeship. It seemed like a lifetime ago. She bid her masters goodnight, and made her way back to her room. Once there, she collapsed on her bed, falling in to sleep, and with it, dreams of running her fingers through Aaron's hair.

[Lilith]

Lilith sat on the rooftop of the mansion, finally alone. She had found a safe route up to the roof, climbing on a few of the lower buildings, until she found a spot she liked. She lay on her back, staring up at the starts. She knew all of the constellations, from Elimine's Staff to the Great Waterfall. She wondered what it would be like to be up among the stars, and if there were, perhaps, other worlds. She hummed a tuneless song and closed her eyes. Her tome shook in her hands, waking her a second later. She opened the book and looked over a passage, mouthing the words to herself.

An odd feeling swept over her, and she did it again. This time, she found a method in the words. She sang them, this time, aloud, to a melody of a song her mother had taught her. And orb of darkness issued forth from her hands, given life from her words. The darkness swayed and moved with her voice, as though it was responding to the spell-turned-song. She held the last note of the melody, and the ball shimmered, then flickered out of the world. She wiped tears from her eyes and cheeks, unsure of what to do next. The darkness clearly responded to more than just the words of the spell, but what did such a thing mean? Technically, she was not supposed to do magic when not supervised, so she knew she could not ask her masters.

Lilith decided to let the matter at hand go, and lay back on the tile roof, staring back up into the night sky. She made no attempt to hide her sobbing.