|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Sun Jan 28, 2007 11:11 am
Finally, the voice appeared, and as expected, the female was elegant in every fashion. Possessing curls that Ariston always admired, he stared at her, ignoring most of what she said, only because of his drunk expression.
"No apologies are needed, of course. Personally, I find that encounters with strangers are the most fun, so of course I was interested in finding you. But anyhow, my name is Ariston," He bent his head gently, and rose up in a sophisticated fashion. "May I have the pleasure of learning yours?" Ignoring the obvious hints that the mare was umcomfortable, he watched her, curling his lip at her beauty.
His eyes extended from her face to her horn again. It glistened and caught his attention fully, only because what a unicorn possessed was a mystery to him. Apparently his horns were there for battle, but hers seemed like it had some other reason.
Moving his eyes back to her face, he noticed that her color changed almost instantly. "Is something else the matter?" He was utterly confused.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Jan 28, 2007 4:17 pm
If Elizabeth hadn't already been flushing, she would have reddened anyway at the frank appraisal she was suddenly receiving. As it was, her cheeks flushed even darker, and not just with embarrassment. How dare he look at her in that fashion? Had she realized that half of of his staring was due to curiousity, she might have been more mollified; instead, she was now both embarrassed and furious.
Even as he was bowing to her, she was lifting her chin and stiffening her legs into a more rigid and dignified stance. He had no sense of propriety, that much was obvious!
But oddly enough, she was more discomfitted by what he was saying than by where he was looking. He sounded chagrinned, apologetic, sheepish even. Did kalona really possess those emotions, or was he just bluffing? She knew he had to be bluffing, but he just seemed so sincere!
~Focus, Elizabeth. You can't allow yourself to get distracted. Remember what you're dealing with~
Closing her eyes briefly to get her bearings back, Elizabeth opened them to stare calmly back at the kalona. Act or no, she was going to stay in control. And while she was at it, she'd show him how a truly mannered mare acted.
Her voice calm and polished, she acknowledged his introduction, even if she coulnd't find the sentiment to back up her words. "A pleasure, Ariston. My name is Elizabeth, Elizabeth Swann. However, I must inform you that even if you have taken meetings with strangers to heart, I myself was raised with the tacit understanding that such encounters can often be dangerous and that as a mare it is better to avoid being come upon unawares. You've merely caught me off-guard by your prescence here, that's all. That said, I'm sure you can understand my reticence towards this situation; finding myself alone with a strange stallion is an uncomfortable state of affairs."
A firm truth, if not the WHOLE truth.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Jan 30, 2007 7:42 pm
"Ahh," Ariston said, quietly and calmly. "Though, don't you think you are analyzing the situation quite too much? I mean, before even approaching me you assumed something that wasn't." Flipping his tail into the air almost too naturally with dramatics, he went back to his speech. "Encounters are usually dangerous if you make them that way. Obviously, there are some characters to be warned about, but did you seriously see a violent nature in muah?" Fluttering his eyelashes, he chuckled happily, enjoying the sound of his voice.
"I have heard such a thing before, and it always seems to be from females. Though, from many they only are intemidated by my beauty. What else is intemidating besides that?" Putting his nose in his hair, with his tilted head he looked back at Elizabeth, nuzzling his soft mane. "I am sure you can appreciate a nice mane, I noticed your wonderful curls from afar." Realizing he was discussing hair made him straighten up and face her more directly, and he realized how silly he may have sounded.
"Either way, I am glad I was able to finally chat with you. I would love it if you would tell me more about yourself, Miss Swann. I have not had the honor of running into you until now."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jan 31, 2007 11:53 am
...What on earth was going on? While Elizabeth had expected some sort of counter or else a direct attack as a result of her words, she had never once considered the possibility of wounded pride and a discussion about hair. HAIR, for God's sake? How many stallions went off on tangents about hair? The fact that it was his own hair he'd started out praising was even more bewildering...
As soon as he airily commented on his own beauty, though, Elizabeth suddenly thought she had his game. She'd heard that sort of self-adoration before, as well as that sort of you-me compliment. The delivery was off, but there was enough in common for her to immeadiately become wary...for a whole new reason.
But she wasn't going to show him that wariness. No, she'd see what he had to say for himself. Lowering her lashes demurely, she presented the perfect picture of ladylike decorum. "Violence isn't the only thing that a lady has to be warned about, you know. Threats to one's virture are just as severe as threats to one's life in certain cases."
There, the challenge was out. And until she heard what he had to say, she wasn't going to say any more.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jan 31, 2007 2:01 pm
A spectacle she was, Ariston watched how elegantly she presented herself. For one thing she was correct as well, and Ariston knew plenty on that issue. Though, he still was confused to why she seemed so uncomfortable. Narrowing his gaze, he backed up a little, wondering if that would help at all.
"My my my, are you always this quiet? For some reason, I find something like that hard to believe. Why are you holding your tongue in front of me?" Putting on a slight grin, he turned away for a second. "I thought I already made it clear that I accepted a lady like yourself worthy for such discussion." Ariston was starting to get more confused by the second, and when he got confused, that usually meant he would start to lose his temper. Although a lady seemed to be in front of him, he had his moments of ticks.
Sighing, he looked at the stars, enjoying their grasping attention that they were capable of. As he strayed away from his thoughts of the female, he wondered what made the stars so successful in attention. 'Who doesn't look at stars?' he kept thinking, and he chuckled at his random thinking.
"Well, this conversation has been, awkward?" He said, sternly while finally looking back at her. "What is it with females, lately? Is there some rumor going around about me?" Laughing as he spoke, he thought about such cicumstances and the humor behind it.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jan 31, 2007 2:19 pm
Worthy? Worthy in what way? And for what reason? Whether or not the kalona's words were meant to be a compliment, Elizabeth was starting to frown, and visibly. He'd reminded her of Guilian, she was now positive of that fact...but he seemed to be much less direct that the cardinal stallion. If this Ariston had the same things in mind, he was much more subtle. And confusing. Did he always jump from topic to topic like this?
Meditating on the stallion's behavior as she was, another flush slowlycrept unbidden across the mare's face. She had been accusing him of having ulterior motives, but she herself had so far been acting in a similar way. Hadn't she made up her mind about his character without even talking to him? Had she been able to get away without being noticed, that would have worked; but there was no justification for giving credence to rumors. And she'd never met or even seen a kalona; he might not actually BE a kalona, in which case...she was being rude for no reason. How appalling!
Her cheeks still stained crimson, she immeadiatley promised herself that she would learn to avoid these snap judgements. But for now, hopefully she'd be able to redeem herself.
That in mind, she gave the stallion a warm and slightly apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, Mr. Ariston, if my behavior has upset or offended you. I merely forgot the importance of using one's own judgement over rumor mongers, and allowed myself to be blinded to proper behavior. That in mind, let me start over."
Stepping back slightly with one hoof, she swept him a curtsy, duckin her head gracefully. "My name is Elizabeth Swann, and it's a pleasure to meet you." Rising back up to her feet, she smiled slightly at his last comment, then shrugged her shoulders. "And I can't speak for any other mares; your name and face are both unfamiliar to me. Or have you done something that merits such a rumor?"
Just because she was being nice didn't mean that what she had heard HADN'T been true, after all...and he was still a strange stallion.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Feb 02, 2007 7:51 pm
"I am flattered, m'lady." He gave her a true smile and finally felt his calm self flow back. "You did not offend me at all, I was just upset at first, of course. I was excited to finally hear your voice, and then see your lovely face. I hope that isn't too overwhelming." Winking at her, he turned his head away for a second, to peer into the landscape in a posingly matter. After he was satisfied with his random thought, he went back to the lady at hand. Hearing her last comment, brought his immediate attention back.
He chuckled, and looked at her carefully. "No, I have done nothing of this sort. I just seem to be in ill favor with some of the mares, and the reasoning I never know why." Shooting his shoulder up dramatically, he looked back at her with a flustered expression. "Being a gentleman seems to give off the wrong impression at times, so I become utterly confused."
It seemed with males and females, he could never do anything right. It could have been his ignorance, or his lack of paying attention that drove others crazy.
He strut forward past her, only to make a small circle and face her in a different pose. "So, tell me something about yourself, Mrs. Swann. I do enjoy talking about myself, though I am interested to hear more about you."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Feb 03, 2007 9:00 pm
M’lady…how nice it felt to be addressed with a modem of respect again. Since coming out to dwell among her new herd, Elizabeth had gotten used to simply being ‘one of the gang’. Though to be quite frank, she was relishing getting back to even that much respect, given that the stallions she’d met thus far on her trip were QUITE reprehensible. In fact, reprehensible was probably putting it mildly!
The mare’s eyes narrowed slightly, remembering the last stallion she’d met; how he had belittled and insulted her, spoken to her with disgusting familiarity and given the impression that SHE was beneath HIS contempt! The very idea!
But now she was unnecessarily distracting herself, which was never a good thing. Besides, she’d sworn to erase all of those unpleasant memories from her mind. That in mind, she managed to grace Ariston with a truly sincere smile. However, before anything else was said, there was a correction in order.
“That would be MISS Swann, Mr. Ariston, though the intent is quite considerate of you, to say nothing of a nice change of pace from how things have been for me lately. And considerate as your offer is, I’d much rather listen to what you have to say about yourself.”
That would probably be the safest way to determine whether or not he was a threat; you could learn a lot about someone by listening to them. “Now that we’ve established you’re misunderstood, for example, you could tell me why? Though I can understand if that’s too personal a subject for you. We can talk about whatever you want, to be quite frank…”
She was rambling, but it was just so nice to be able to talk to someone again; to truly talk, and not defend. At least for the moment, she could simply enjoy a conversation.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Feb 03, 2007 9:22 pm
(LOL I meant to write Miss rofl Well, its sillier this way XDD ))
His head titled to the side, and he let his grin expand into a curled smile. "Miss? Well, that makes me happier, in the sense that there is still a lady out there that is single." Fixing his confusing position, he realized he was starting to enjoy her silly means of conversation. Although he was confused by what she was even saying, her witty ways were intriguing him.
And of course, watching her speak kept his attention as well.
"It is strange to me though, to hear a lady want me to talk about myself. That is usually something that I am told to never do." Letting himself chuckle, he caught his attention back on her. "Misunderstood? I think quite not, actually. Others add judgement to who and what I am, though it does not make me feel any different. " It wasn't that the subject was too personal, he was just confused to her actual asking about it.
"Yes, I am a Kalona, and yes, I am speaking to you and not trying to eat you." Taking a small breath in, it had finally occured to him that something was missing; the mare had every right to question who and what the heck he was doing. "I tend to forget that my race seems to matter so much.."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Feb 03, 2007 10:37 pm
Elizabeth could feel the blood rushing to her cheeks. She couldn't believe that she had been so obvious, but in the course of one sentence Ariston had managed to address exactly the issue that had dictated her behavior towards him. Had she really been so transparent that she mistrusted him by virture of breed alone?
Logic managed to remind her that he WAS a kalona, so it made sense that he would be aware of the stereotype. In fact, it was highly likely that he encountered reactions like hers on a regular basis and had consequently fallen in the habit of issuing a disclaimer.
Logic didn't do anything to settle her nerves, though. She must have offended him horribly with her behavior, there were no two ways about it.
Perhaps if she hadn't been so hung up on the details, she might have paid more attention to his first statement, the one about her single status. After all, he HAD reminded her of the detestable Guilian; but self-debasement didn't usually leave a lot of room for notice of much else.
Cheeks still crimson, she nodded her head slightly at the stallion. The question, though, was what to do now. Was an apology appropriate? Perhaps. But what if he HAD just been generalizing? Then she might offend him with an apology...this was far too complicated! Best to go with a safe route.
Glancing away in nervousness, Elizabeth's voice was soft. "In my own experience, you are the first kalona I've ever met. All I knew of your breed was rumor, and that rumor was less than flattering. Assuming that my exposure is routine, then perhaps that's why so many tend to judge on breed alone."
Not quite an apology, but hopefully close enough without offending. Still, Elizabeth wasn't brave enough to look at his face; if he WAS annoyed, she'd rather not see the rage in his eyes. Eyes had a habit of being far too intense to begin with, and burning with anger...the thought alone was enough to make her wish she'd taken the chance to flee when she had it.
((Goofs are amusing XD))
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Feb 06, 2007 9:09 pm
"Oh please, no need to be so formal. I appreciate the kind gestures and words, but it is something I deal with constantly." He let his face shift to a dramatic expression. "The Soquili around here are always faced with such nonsense. I feel terribly sorry for them, the Kalona around her are so hideous in every nature. The ask for respect but yet attack all that admire, what the heck is that." Realizing he was going into one of his Kalona rants, he took a deep breath and returned to the mare.
"If they need to worry about something, they should worry about the fact that I am a sin." He winked at her, and shifted his hair over to the other side of his head in an elegant fashion.
"Though, as your first Kalona experience, I hope to remain the most memorable. Tell all your friends that you 'survived'. " Letting himself laugh, he hoped that she finally would see that her thoughts on him were false. The mare was confident and bright, and there were no reasons for Ariston to try any mindgames on her. He also was enjoying their conversations, and hoped she would open up more.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Feb 07, 2007 5:31 pm
Elizabeth relaxed slightly, both amazed and embarrassed at how this little interview was going. In spite of her earlier behavior, she was fast (and rather shamefacedly) coming to the realization that Ariston was far more mannerly than virtually any stallion she'd met so far, barring her friend Zaphiro. And that realization made her all the more regret her initial misgivings.
At least he was gentlemanly enough to not bring up her disgraceful behavior; she was thrilled to be able to enjoy an actual conversation without having to worry about rudeness.
Though it was quite fascintating to listen to him criticize his own race. The breed that he was describing sounded eerily like what she'd been warned against, though, and that knowledge brought a slight shiver to the mare. So there WERE soquili like that out there...a terrifying concept, to be sure.
But one thing that he said caught her ear. "A...sin? What do you mean, you ARE a sin? Don't you mean that you DO sin?" Which logically made more sense. After all, everyone was guilty of sinning at some point. "If so, that's nothing to be ashamed about."
She smiled as she spoke, sure that he was teasing her. Did he think that she'd assume he was perfect otherwise? Silly stallion, as though she was that naive! "And I'm sure that no other kalona experience will be quite this interesting, that much is certain." Since she planned on keeping her distance from the breed, that would be easier than anything!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Feb 08, 2007 11:50 am
"Well, sin is something that we all do, whether we realize it or not.." Pausing slightly, he looked at her, unashamed of what he was. "I am the sin of Pride, one of the seven deadly of course. Most Soquili are unaware of it, but we live and breathe just as you all do." Putting on slightly twisted smile, he gleamed at his truth, and ignored any ill feelings from the mare. "Have you had any run ins with other sins? Some are quite violent." He chuckled, thinking about his friend Wrath.
Whenever he spoke of such issues, everything about his appearance tended to make more sense then. Engulfing his nature into every glimmer on his body, he radiated every aspect of Pride about himself. It wasn't just a title; it was a way of life for him, just as his other sins decided to live.
"You should be lucky you have not run into any other Kalonas, they are such idiotic creatures. They would not appreciate anything about you, when really you deserve much more praise then them." Keeping his voice stern, Ariston was not one who complemented; he spoke from his mind seriously when he wanted to. He knew a spectacle when he saw one, and other Kalona could never match that of the unicorns.
"Though, you seem very sane, that is to say," He said, smiling, "I recently had a run in with a UniKalona? That made me question what Unicorns are.. though you seem just fine." The female he ran into was vicious, twisted, and even crazier than other Kalona females. The mare in front of him seemd to have none of these things.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Feb 08, 2007 3:15 pm
Elizabeth's smile had faltered as she listened to Ariston speak, and now she was eyeing him with a completely new sense of intimidation. If what he was saying, then that meant that incarnations of the other sins were roaming the land...and if she remembered the list correctly, that could be very bad. She didn't think that encountering Sloth would be so bad, or Gluttony...but what about Wrath? Or Lust?
Harrumph. For all she knew, she might have met Lust already in the guise of that blasted cardinal. But no...he hadn't mentioned that, and besides; he looked like a bird! If Ariston truly was a Sin, the fact that he didn't really resemble anything else seemed telling. And somehow...the way that he had said he was Pride made her believe it.
She wasn't exactly afraid of that knowledge on it's basic level; after all, Pride wasn't necessarily dangerous...was it? Unless he was intrinsically evil because he was a sin..which ALSO made sense.
And he was a kalona. A sin and a kalona. That had to mean something, right?
So she was a bit more guarded, a bit more wary, when she answered the stallion. "I don't think that I've met any other sins, but if I did then they never identified themselves as such."
She was aware that he was making more comments about Kalonas, and then something about unikalonas (whatever those were; she'd never so much as HEARD the term before), but she was far too hung up on the sin issue to really be aware of that.
How was one supposed to act around a sin? "Are the sins...dangerous?" Not that she'd expect him to admit it if it was the case...or would he? He was Pride, right? So that meant that he must be proud of what he did...right? So he'd admit it?
She really hoped so >>
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Feb 08, 2007 4:07 pm
"Heh, I'm sure its not suprising that I would blatently abmit my sinhood," He was unbelievably proud of his sinful heritage, and of the other sins. "To be the representation of something bigger, it truly is an amazing feeling." He noticed she seemed to have tensed up, and he enjoyed her reaction. He drained from her the fear and uncertainty she was showing so openly, and he naturally smiled towards her, hiding some of his other feelings away from her.
"Of couse sins are dangerous." Rolling his eyes dramatically, he chuckled at her reaction. "A sin in itself is dangerous. When others commit sins, they are dangerous. We represent such sins, naturally." Loving the way he sounded, he continued on, especially since he wanted to explain it as best as he could. "Let's put it this way: My buddy Wrath, is angry, all the time. So, of course he is unbelievably dangerous, especially in the physical sense. Now, there are other kinds of dangers, but they are just expressed differently."
Feeling a slight shiver develop from the wind, he let his wings loose, and moved himself around to regain some bloodflow. "I already explained to you, though." He said, slowly. "Just because I am a Kalona, and just because I am a sin, doesn't mean I always listen to what I am "supposed" to do." Winking at her again, he flipped his tail, proud of his arrogant nature. Why should he listen to what other people told him? There is no right way, unless its his way.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
