[align=left] ![[Image: Ja3ruFa.png]](https://i.imgur.com/Ja3ruFa.png)  prince of ellywynn
sad romantic softie
She had everyone convinced that she had some dark powers, that she could raise the dead or curse you, and her pranks often reaffirmed the belief. But Nathan knew better, and had actually heard his sister bemoaning the fact that she couldn't actually hex anyone. Well, apparently, she could, just not in the way she might have preferred.
The pain in his ears was not the worst thing he'd ever felt, but it was far from the most pleasant thing he'd ever experienced either. The look on Natalie's face was somewhere between delight and dismay, which was much more alarming than her usual look of apathy with a hint of "I'm planning ten ways to kill you". Maybe because he was used to it, or maybe because she'd actually done something. What, he wasn't sure. There was something in his ears, something that was causing the pain. Whatever it was it was kind of heavy, at least it felt heavy considering nothing was supposed to be there.
"What did you do?" Nathan asked, gaze going over to Aenda for a second. She looked horrified, but slightly amused. It was bad, but not bad? Was that what he was meant to take from her expression? Slowly he reached up and felt... stems. Feeling along them his fingers grazed across flower petals.
Natalie drummed her fingers on the heavy tome in her other hand. "Oh man, you got so lucky. This was gonna make poisonous mushrooms sprout from your head." She consulted the book. "Those might have poisoned you. Or made you immune." She shrugged.
Nathan couldn't believe it. "You tried to poison me?" He was upset, to be sure, but not as furious or fearful as he might have been if it were anyone else. Not because it was acceptable in any way, but because he was used to his sister and her antics and pranks. And it wasn't as if she'd succeeded, though he couldn't say he was happy with what she had managed to do instead.
She seemed affronted by the accusation. "No, I tried to make you ugly so you wouldn't have people fawning over you all the time. It's annoying. No one fawns over me," She put a hand to her heart as she said this, "and I'm much cuter than you. Besides, they wouldn't kill you, just make you vomit." There was a lot to unpack there. For one, she did have someone fawning over her, Edward, but Natalie liked acting like he didn't exist. Secondly, "cute" was not the first word anyone used to describe her, not even Natalie herself. For another, he might like to not have girls fawning over him all the time, but that didn't make him ok with having mushrooms growing out of his head, vomit or no. Or flowers, for that matter.
Aenda was standing next to Natalie, now frowning. It was her job to protect Nathan from stuff like this, but she'd been unable to do anything before the young princess had cast her spell. "What is the protocol in Ellywynn for this?" She asked, her faint Aravanian accent more noticeable as she said something that reminded him that his knight wasn't born or raised here.
He rubbed a hand over his face and sighed. "I don't know. Look, Natalie, reverse the spell." If she did that, they could all forget this ever happened and she wouldn't have to get in trouble. And he wouldn't have to walk around with flowers growing out of his ears.
"Nope." She popped the "P" as she said it to emphasize that she wouldn't reverse the spell. "Can't do that."
Nathan's irritation with his little sister grew. "Can't? Or won't?" Knowing her, it was probably the latter.
Her response was unhelpful. "Yes." Nathan groaned, and Aenda squinted, trying to come up with a plan, what the plan was or what her goal would be with it was unknown to him. All he knew right now his sister had caused a pain in his ears and was being a pain in the neck about it.
//[member=210]Darky[/member]
[align=center] I wanna be your happiness I wanna be your common sense pain Wrap your head in a [glow=#684460,2,300]picket fence[/glow] Rebuild after the hurricane [abbr=this user is trailhead's miss american pye — aporia has tip toed in here, peed on all your things, and then deathdropped through the floor into hell — you've been poked by fangs — crows cleaned up apoira's pee and threw chocolate at you — joey baked you yummy cookies — firebird is definitely building a nest here — you have been bitten by a wild eskie (but w love though) — skullcrow has built u a pillow fort — vid sat on your head for about ten seconds before flying away — rev loves you — hoot hoot — you are my wife / you're my wife / boogie woogie woogie — hoot tried making a nest but got burnt zoinks — darwin gave you a kees — joey loves you <3]![/abbr] —
[align=center] [table] | | [align=left]![[Image: RCAwQT6.png]](https://i.imgur.com/RCAwQT6.png)  ambassador to ellywynn
disgruntled priest | [/table]
space
Wym hadn't caught most of the conversation between the two Royals and the Prince's Knight, since he'd been busily wandering through the castle grounds trying to find the stables. He hadn't found the stables, but instead the ambassador had stumbled upon what he thought was either a magical prank or very elaborate costume.
He stopped and knit his fingers together nervously, having not anticipated on meeting the heirs to Ellywynn's throne today. He was severely underdressed for such an occasion, wearing some simple garb he'd acquired a day after his ship landed on Ellywynn's shores.
"Uh.." Wym said casually, not sure if he should just hurry along or stay to help. The Prince looked frustrated, as did his Knight, while the Princess looked mildly smug about the whole situation. "Do you require assistance?" He asked, his Ostaesian accent making his words sharp when he hit an s.
He shot them a comforting smile, what he hoped would ease some of the tension between the three. He'd begun to notice Ellywynn was a tense kingdom overall, with difficult people and an even more difficult architectural layout.
He remembered the magical pranks played in Voln, usually by the same group of children with nothing better to do; he hadn't seen anything as specific as flowers sprouting out of someone's ear, but he'd helped lift quite a few "curses" back home. Things in Ostaesia were much lighter, much happier.
He normally would've laughed at the whole situation, but that was entirely improper.. At least he was pretty sure it was improper. Or at the very least it was extremely rude when he didn't know how the people of Ellywynn felt about this sort of stuff.
//I promise Wym will lighten up once he's not like,, afraid of insulting them
[align=center][div style="overflow: hidden; font-size: 12pt; color: #646464; font-family: georgia"]I need to save you, but who's going to save me?
[abbr=n/a]characters[/abbr] ++ [abbr=darky is the best little sib - pyre; tiddy - crows; how bad can i be - zodiac; #swiggity swooty I tolerate Hooty]staff ;p[/abbr]
[align=left] ![[Image: 8lZJveZ.png]](https://i.imgur.com/8lZJveZ.png)  knight of house raegendyr
[table] | | | | space
don't take no shit | [/table] You didn't come across magical pranks that often in Aravale, partially because of how rare magic was and partially because practical jokes in general weren't too common either and often looked down upon. But maybe that was just because she had spent most of her time with nobles and knights who were either too refined for such things or had better things to do. Or both. The one time she'd witnessed a magical prank was with Shaena, who was the only person with powers that she'd known back in Aravale. They'd been about thirteen, and Shaena was testing the limits of her newfound abilities, trying to see if she could impose her will on a bird. Maybe the bird had been compelled to do it or maybe it just felt like doing it, but either way Shaena's father's snotty herald had ended up with a white splatter on the shoulder of his immaculate jacket.
Aside from a few of Shaena's displays of power, Aenda hadn't actually seen much magic at all, and hadn't entirely believed the rumors that Natalie possessed dark power, or any power, until she'd seen it for herself when the young princess caused a plant to rapidly grow. Now Natalie was using her magic again, this time making flowers grow from Nathan's ears. At first she'd been a tiny bit amused, but it had quickly dissipated when Natalie said she wanted to poison him, and the reality of the situation - or what the situation might have been - crashed down on her. Someone had cast a spell on Nathan, and it was her job to prevent that. Not only that, but someone had attempted to cast a harmful spell on him, and if it had been successful in poisoning him Aenda was more likely to face punishment than Natalie. Everyone expected the princess to fuck with her brother, and everyone expected Aenda to protect him.
She couldn't change what had already happened, but she had to get control of the situation and get the flowers out of Nathan's ears before word of her failure got back to the king. She wasn't well-renowned enough here or so foolish to think that she couldn't be replaced if Harold was displeased with her. "Reverse the spell." She said forcefully, glaring at the shorter girl. She didn't believe that Natalie couldn't do it, if she was able to make it happen surely she could get the flowers out somehow.
Natalie shrugged and opened her mouth, but before she could reply, a stranger appeared, looking decidedly nervous. He had an Ostaesian accent, so she guessed he was the new ambassador, though she hadn't met him yet. "Do you have magic?" Natalie asked condescendingly, though there was a spark of interest in her eyes should the answer be yes. "Because if you don't, there's nothing you can do." Aenda wondered if she realized where the man was from and that it was likely the most magical kingdom of them all.
Nathan seemed embarrassed now that someone else was witnessing his predicament. He was probably imagining that Wym had heard about his soft reputation, and this wouldn't help that much. "We've got it." He said, though that was decidedly untrue. The situation was definitely not yet under control.
[align=center] I wanna be your happiness I wanna be your common sense pain Wrap your head in a [glow=#684460,2,300]picket fence[/glow] Rebuild after the hurricane [abbr=this user is trailhead's miss american pye — aporia has tip toed in here, peed on all your things, and then deathdropped through the floor into hell — you've been poked by fangs — crows cleaned up apoira's pee and threw chocolate at you — joey baked you yummy cookies — firebird is definitely building a nest here — you have been bitten by a wild eskie (but w love though) — skullcrow has built u a pillow fort — vid sat on your head for about ten seconds before flying away — rev loves you — hoot hoot — you are my wife / you're my wife / boogie woogie woogie — hoot tried making a nest but got burnt zoinks — darwin gave you a kees — joey loves you <3]![/abbr] —
[align=center] [table] | | [align=left]  ambassador to ellywynn
disgruntled priest | [/table]
space
Wym watched as the Knight snapped at the Princess, before turning and snapping at him. He held his ground fairly well - Ostaesians had to tolerate a lot, since they came from the homeland of dragons and all - and instead he looked to the Prince, waiting to see the reaction from the Royal. He'd heard rumors about the Prince being, well, kind of soft but Wym was personally excited to have a ruler in the future that wasn't trying to strongarm the rest of the world all the time.
"Oh, I- I don't have any magic personally, but I do have a few cures for minor hexes like that!" Wym said helpfully, tempted to back down in the face of such an angry Knight but still staying rooted. "But if you've got it handled, I can take my leave."
It was true that Wym didn't have any magic; he'd long since past the age where any new abilities might spark up inside him, but that didn't mean he was floundering in the subject. After all, he'd spent his entire life in a world thriving with magic. It was actually kind of weird to him how dull Ellywynn felt without the sparks of life that magic brought.
Did the people of Ellywynn even know what they were missing out on? True, Ostaesians lived shorter lives but it was full of absolute splendor and happiness even when they lived on one of the bleakest places on the map. But Ellywynn had other things going for it, things he intended on finding and enjoying to the full extent of his stay.
//screaming sorry this is so short, he's not focused on his past or anything really interesting rn
//i promise my next post will be longer
[align=center][div style="overflow: hidden; font-size: 12pt; color: #646464; font-family: georgia"]I need to save you, but who's going to save me?
[abbr=n/a]characters[/abbr] ++ [abbr=darky is the best little sib - pyre; tiddy - crows; how bad can i be - zodiac; #swiggity swooty I tolerate Hooty]staff ;p[/abbr]
[align=left] ![[Image: t13WF0a.png]](https://i.imgur.com/t13WF0a.png)
princess of ellywynn // monotone freak
There might be an amused look on her face, but Natalie wasn't entirely pleased. Sure, she'd managed to make something happen and annoy her brother and his knight, but it was still a failure in her eyes. All the books, potions and charms in the world couldn't alter her ability, and her ability was not hexes or necromancy or anything remotely interesting. It was making plants grow, a power more suited to a farmer than a princess. Sure, objectively none of the things she wanted were suited for a princess, but at least they were fun. But of course, she wasn't allowed to have any fun, no royal was. You'd think that because she could stay out of the political sphere she'd have a bit more freedom than her older brother, but it didn't matter how involved you were, you had to sit and act pretty and dignified. She just didn't have the work and responsibility Nathan had, and there were times she envied him for it. He had something to do. But the tedium of the paperwork and the exhaustion of having to be diplomatic to others sounded terrible, so she only envied him in her most bored moments, partially just to then think about how terrible it would be as a means to alleviate her boredom, if temporarily.
Aenda was insisting that she reverse the spell, but even if that was within her power, Natalie didn't know how to do it. Even if she did, she wasn't sure she wanted to let her brother off that easily, even if it displayed powers she tried to hide having. No one was really sure what her abilities truly were anyway, so it'd be easy to play it off as a hex of some sort, and a completely deliberate one at that. She didn't want to admit that she didn't know how to reverse it, or even if she could, so she'd lie. Say she couldn't reverse spells - even if she hated to admit that her powers did in fact have limits - and that she wouldn't, though that was a truth. Whatever worked, really.
Now there was a stranger walking over to them, and she leveled her usual look of venom and sadism towards him as he said he didn't have magic, figuring he'd act like most ambassadors and scurry. He was unflinching under Aenda's fury, but surely he'd know that he had an immunity the knight would dare not touch. The look that Natalie gave him, however, hinted that the princess would if he crossed her, and what she'd tried to do to her brother would only confirm that.
"This is no minor hex, you fuckwit." She said, waving her dark red book in the air before Wym. It was an impressive tome full of dark spells, ones that could raise the dead or kill a man, none that she had successfully used without it being warped somehow, like with this one. "This is a spell that changes the very way his biology works!" No, it was not, it was a minor hex as the Ostaesian guessed, but she wouldn't miss an opportunity to build her myth. "It cannot be cured!" Natalie glanced at Nathan out of the corner of her eye and saw his face wilt a little, and a little trill of satisfaction went through her.
"The hell it can't!" Aenda snarled, attempting to snatch the book from Natalie's hands but not only failing to do so but getting swatted with it for her efforts. "If you can't - or won't - then I'll find someone who can." Natalie narrowed her eyes, disliking the idea of Aenda running off to find a sorcerer more powerful than she. Well, she'd very much like to meet such a person and become his or her apprentice, but being introduced because of her failings didn't sound appealing to her. "Can we just pull the flowers out?"
"That sounds like a bad idea." Nathan said, holding up his hands in that "don't be hasty" way.
Natalie's smile became just a bit more evil. "It is. Do it."
He shook his head and put his hands to his ears, covering them as much as he could with the flowers sticking out. He looked at Wym almost pleadingly. "We don't have this handled. What do you suggest?" Natalie scoffed, and Aenda looked slightly annoyed but didn't protest, either because it was Nathan asking for the stranger's help or because she knew they needed it.
[align=center] I wanna be your happiness I wanna be your common sense pain Wrap your head in a [glow=#684460,2,300]picket fence[/glow] Rebuild after the hurricane [abbr=this user is trailhead's miss american pye — aporia has tip toed in here, peed on all your things, and then deathdropped through the floor into hell — you've been poked by fangs — crows cleaned up apoira's pee and threw chocolate at you — joey baked you yummy cookies — firebird is definitely building a nest here — you have been bitten by a wild eskie (but w love though) — skullcrow has built u a pillow fort — vid sat on your head for about ten seconds before flying away — rev loves you — hoot hoot — you are my wife / you're my wife / boogie woogie woogie — hoot tried making a nest but got burnt zoinks — darwin gave you a kees — joey loves you <3]![/abbr] —
[align=center] [table] | | [align=left]  ambassador to ellywynn
disgruntled priest | [/table]
space
The venomous look that Natalie shot him that would've sent any normal diplomat scurrying off to hide held no power over Wym, and he offered the Princess a friendly grin in return. It was hard to be intimidated by a kid, especially a trickster like the Princess seemed to be; Wym had dealt with troublemakers in Voln, hell most of them he considered his brothers and sisters. Though the dark book in her hands was kind of troubling.
He watched them argue for another minute, nervous at Natalie's mention of changing his biology but confident she hadn't actually managed it. After all, a huge spell like that would've sucked every bit of magic out of the castle grounds and he could feel the familiar but unnervingly faint hum of magic all around them.
Pulling them out was probably a bad idea if they didn't know the full scope of the spell, and he let out a noise of agreement to the Prince's objection. "I wouldn't recommend pulling them out, you might take a chunk off of him with them."
"Ah- Well alright, I'm happy to be of service. Magic-imbued salt water usually helps lift any sort of malicious hex or curse in my experience, though if this is a large spell like your lady suggests it is then it won't work, but at least we'll know what we're working with then." Wym said, already trying to figure out if Ellywynn's atmosphere was potent enough to imbue the water naturally. "Back home a quick dip would sort this right out, but here we might have to acquire it in another way."
[align=center][div style="overflow: hidden; font-size: 12pt; color: #646464; font-family: georgia"]I need to save you, but who's going to save me?
[abbr=n/a]characters[/abbr] ++ [abbr=darky is the best little sib - pyre; tiddy - crows; how bad can i be - zodiac; #swiggity swooty I tolerate Hooty]staff ;p[/abbr]
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