A Light in the Dark (Social/Private)

Torches were for chumps. At least, that's what Neru's opinion was. It was biased, perhaps, given that she had her own light that followed her pretty much everywhere, but that was beside the point, wasn't it? Even now, her orbs led the way and provided rear guard with their glow, their twinkling ranging a wide variety of colors, not one of which was negative. Despite the relatively awful reputation this forest had, coupled with its frankly eery aura, Neru was, for the moment, comfortable. She'd come to find something new, and find something new she would. Too many times had she heard cool things about the Lycan Woods to not become interested. It was sad that it was a dangerous place; Sapho would have liked it. But it was a bit dangerous, and Neru knew she still had a long way to go in terms of power, so Sapho was kept at home. The butterfly fairy hadn't seemed too cut up about it; Neru had given her a potted flower to care for not long ago, and that seemed to be nearly everything Sapho had wanted to do as of late. She had simply supposed it was instinct. Not much was known about fairies, and until Neru learned the language, not much more would be known unless somebody else found one. Sapho was a treasure, and Neru would do everything she could to protect her happy little friend from harm.

That reasoning was why she walked through the forest with only a flute and her bag for company, boots rustling pine needles and other debris with the barest of sounds. Nothing had attacked her, which she was (for now that is) attributing to the light she gave off. Perhaps it was being mistaken for fire, which was common as a way to keep wild creatures off.

As if in argument to her, a light that wasn't her own caught her eye. Neru turned, her eyebrows coming together in a betrayal of her confusion. Was another mage around? The light was bluish-white; it couldn't be a fire of any sort. Pausing in her wanders, Neru surveyed the area. It didn't feel like anybody else was around... No reason not to check it out then. She altered her course, making her way towards the light. It was a short walk away; the only reason she hadn't noticed it before now must have been due to the low amount of light it was giving off.

It was a gate of some sorts, standing high enough above her that when approaching it, Neru was forced to tip back her head to see the top properly. A ceremonial gate, perhaps? She could see the forest on the other side of it, even if it was a bit faded out. Could enter it and find out, she thought, her head tipping to the side. That brief impulse took hold of her like a craving, and Neru quickly gave in, gathering her lights to her side and stepping through the gate.

...

It was not ceremonial.

There was still a forest, yes, but it was in no way similar to the dark land from which she'd come. It was filled with lights, dazzling her with the blues and whites to a point that Neru almost assumed she'd accidentally cast Flash on herself. A long sigh was drawn from her lips, and she reached up to push her bangs from her eyes, not wanting any of her sight obstructed. Whatever this place was, she'd certainly found the interesting thing she'd come looking for.

A silence fell over Neru as she paused for a few moments, staring at the forest with the gaze of one who didn't realize that they were caught, nor knew how to escape. She hadn't come to the Lycan Woods, part of the Cursed Lands, for all's sake, to be encompassed in such beauty. It was awe-inspiring, in a way, that such a place existed inside a land many feared and others challenged for the causes of that fear. Now that Neru had found such a place, her interest was piqued. And she was not a person to simply walk away once she'd found a curiosity for something. What wonders did this place hold? Her journal practically itched at her from her satchel, begging for the sights to be recorded. Opposingly, her flute felt heavier on her back, begging her to fill the place with a music befitting of its beauty. Her orbs faded between pink and blue, equally split between the two colors.

Her reverie continued until a voice that seemed to echo slightly. Whether it was due to the trees or to Neru's own mind was uncertain. She blinked, shaking her head slightly to clear it and turning in the direction of the voice.

An unfamiliar girl stood near one of the closer trees, attention clearly and firmly on Neru. The sight of her was surprising, the quiet peace of the forest had given her the unconscious idea that she was alone. However, it made sense that others were here, given the light the portal had been giving off and its general sizing being much larger than the average creature or human. "Oh!" Realizing quickly that she'd delayed an answer for perhaps a few seconds too long, Neru lifted her hands, shaking them back and forth in denial. "Not lost! Simply exploring. I saw the light of this place through the trees and found myself drawn in. Do you know anything about this forest? I've never heard of anything like it on any of my travels or any of my studies." As she spoke, Neru motioned back towards the portal. A glance revealed to her that the forest from which she'd come was still visible, though barely. It was just how this side had appeared from out there as if she'd dropped a wet paper over it. See-through, but not enough to define details.

Given it was a portal, was she in the same area? The same continent, even? Was she still in the present? No, she must be, a magic such as that would be far too difficult to weave together. Not to mention the cost something like that might have. Far beyond one's life energy, she could assume. Absently, she hoped it didn't close before she got back. Sapho would need to be given more food eventually. Neru hadn't left enough for more than a month or two on her own, and even that was for the worst-case scenarios.

Neru tore her eyes away from the portal and back to the woman just in time to see her dissolve into thin air. A shot of surprise coursed through her, the orbs that surrounded her starbursting into shades of orange. She'd never seen such a type of magic before. More questions, those other than the ones that were already at the forefront of her mind, leaped to her tongue. Every second she was here, it seemed, Neru found more that she didn't know, and every new thing made her want to learn all the more.

Movement behind her caught her attention, and she whirled back to the portal to see the girl standing next to it. Teleportation magic? she thought, unsure of what else it might be. Despite her curiosity, when the portal began to disappear she bristled, a stain of red and brown seeping into her magic. She drew the lights close, prepared to fight her way out of the forest if need be. Her worry was quickly dissuaded, however, when the silver-haired girl explained herself. Normally, she might not trust so easily, but somehow this girl had an air of peace around her. Neru didn’t feel that she had anything to fear from her. So she nodded, allowing her orbs to float on their own once more. She unconsciously took a step back during the introductions to avoid any possibilities of getting hit with the top hat.  

“Neru Faye,” she spoke softly and evenly, answering Leila’s implied question. By way of manners, she inclined her head slightly, a polite smile flitting along the edges of her features. The fact that this was the Garden of Eden, however, had her stomach dancing in excitement. She’d only ever heard mentions of such a place, and even then definite information was laughable at best. As far as Neru had managed to find, the Garden of Eden was a mythical garden, nothing more than a story. Given that she wasn’t one to go chasing after something she knew to be a myth, Neru had long since left it at that. In fact, it's been many years since she’d even thought of the place.

Her gaze traveled back to the trees, almost as if to check that they were real. Between this place and Sapho, she must have used up all of her luck for the next century, at least. There was no other plausible way such things could have happened to her, especially when one added in that the caretaker of the Garden itself was willing to tell her more about it.

“I’d love to hear anything that you’re willing to tell me,” Neru replied, even if somewhat belatedly. She bowed her head again this time in gratitude rather than greeting. “Time is no issue unless you’ve got places you need to be.”

Neru instinctively perked up slightly at the sound of her name, even if she'd already been paying attention. Part of her, the same part of her that was constantly questioning, questioning the garden, questioning Leila, questioning the portal, wondered who it was that had a name similar to hers. She'd yet to meet another Neru, though she didn't doubt it'd be an interesting experience. In the town she'd grown up in, there was a couple who shared the name Charlie. They were married as well, so it wasn't long before one of them had been shortened to Charles, simply for some sort of distinction.

Pulling her mind back to the present, Neru politely sat through the scrutinization she knew she was receiving. It wasn't off base, considering she was technically a trespasser to this place, so she took no personal offense to it. Subconsciously, Neru knew she should feel the same sort of wariness, but currently, all she felt was excitement and curiosity.

Leila began to move, and Neru turned her body to follow the movement, her hands coming to clasp together behind her back. Patiently, she held her tongue, allowing the caretaker to have a moment to gather her words. After all, a place such as this no doubt had quite the history. When she was gestured to come closer, Neru did so without argument, her hands coming up hesitantly to her headphones. This didn't seem like such a loud place, so surely she would be fine removing the protection from her ears? Her fingers tightened on the objects for a moment before she carefully slipped them back, letting them come to rest around her neck. She pulled her hair free while Leila spoke, holding her attention carefully lest it stray. Without the headphones dulling the noise, everything around her seemed all the louder, each chirp, each twitch of a leaf vying for her eyes and ears. It was worse when she was in louder places, but here it was bearable.

Returning Leila's smile, Neru nodded. Her orbs flurried with shot of yellow, her happiness at, for once, being allowed to ask her endless questions as she pleased. "You said this is the Garden of Eden? How did it come to be? How big is it? What sort of plants are here? Are they all species unique to his place, or are some common to the outside as well? Why is there only one caretaker? Are you from a line of caretakers? You seem quite young to have been the only one."

All of this was said in one breath, after which Neru gasped slightly, desperately pulling the air back into her lungs. Distantly, she knew she'd probably asked too much, but she also knew there was no such thing as too much knowledge. And after all, Leila had requested that she ask, so she might as well get the most basic questions out of the way before going into any detail. It was only fair.