A Fallen Star on Mt. Hakobe (intro/Saraphina)

Sometimes she truly took things for granted when it came down to things like travel. Usually she would take a ride via her bodyguard or a studio would send for a limo to escort from point A to point B. The extravagance was something she had not taken too fondly to, however she didn’t want to be a problem to someone who was only looking out for her, so it quickly turned into her doing it to be nice. Never would she take someone for granted such as this, so for her to be on her own for now was not so easy really. She kept no hold of employees or others who would wait on her hand and foot despite having plenty of money to do so. That was not her style and to forge independence and responsibility, she needed to be able to do things on her own from time to time in order to make sure they were done to her liking. If it wasn’t done her way, who knew it was done the right way? How would she know any issues stemming we’re like it.

This brought her to the frigid mountains of Hakobe. A Midi flower in the wretched grasp of the icy peak was a trek, but the gushing blizzard going on had certainly made the trip much worse. Had it not of been for the one person whom she was even up here for, this place would have been the end of her. With howling winds blasting against her, toward her, swirling around as though ready to form snow tornadoes, there was no way to successfully navigate the treacherous way without many any issue. It proved to be a hard, monumental task, however her drive to being peace and and form of closure to those who may need it, she was very much more than willing to go to bat for the brunt of the steps. After all, it was her own step to bear the responsibility and face any consequences that came from it. Should it stem into the starlet needing to take her place, then so be it. It could be the least she could do to make it up to her for all she did for her. To take over caring for those whom her kind heart kept safe.

Clothing could only help the raven haired girl so much, which no doubt wasn’t too much with the frigid temperatures and subzero winds, however she was taught one good tool in order to successfully help herself; hair magic. That’s right, something somewhat impractical had been a bit of a saving grace for her. Using the icy and snowy winds to melt into water, strengthening her all natural barrier even more helped to keep her dry, which in turn would also keep her warmer. The cycle was a bit strange it did help her through everything up until she arrived at the doors of the castle in the snow. Truly she thought her mentor was joking when she said she cleaned a castle, however this only proved her stories to be correct. Quickly, Addilyn pushed her way into the hall and shut the doors all while retracting her “shield” from the elements. Kicking her feet of the built up snow, her attention turned to two maids whom greeted her with bows and welcomes. Her grip holding the collar in hand, something that never left one hand let alone both her whole trip was now being gripped tightly.


”I.. Thank you...” She returned the welcome. It became quickly apparent how nervous and out of place they were. That was when one maid looked around and leaned towards the guest, asking if she even knew what she was doing here. ”Mhm... I do. Umm.. I must speak to your empr- sorry, slip of the tongue... I request to speak to the Queen, Saraphina. It’s.. very urgent and important.” The girl responded, clutching onto the collar in hand. One maid seemed to question why someone both foreign and unknown would look so direly to see the guild Mistress, but looking to the other, the second maid motioned lightly to look back. That was then they both noticed the collar in her hands. The two maids just looked to one another, nodded, and one would quickly dash upstairs. Little was she known that the maid whom went to fetch Saraphina was Nadaline, her personal maid. Meanwhile, the second maid offered to seat her in the dining area, offering a drink before leaving her to seat by herself in the room, awaiting her arrival while almost hiding the maids collar underneath.

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It was so eerily quiet sitting alone at the end of the table in this room. She wasn’t expecting anything like a bunch of friendly folks to welcome her or see what made her so upset, but what she COULD pick up on were a number of whispers. All of them from maids in various styles of design. While all looked very cute, she didn’t understand why such a place did have so many maids if her teacher was the head one. She had not been told how many there were or anything, so seeing bustling servicewomen and men moving about made her a little more guilty. Imagine having to be in that side of the table to hear the coordinator of your entire operation was now dead. And now the actress had to be the one to bare the news!? It was... nowhere near the gun she had anticipated either. What was she to do when or if it came down to the idea she’d have to tell them to make any form of amends to the fact she gave her life up for Addilyn? It really tore her heart apart thinking about it.

Her hands wrapped around the collar of the former maids. Refusing to part with it or even let it go currently, she had stopped staring at it in both frustration and disappointment as the sound of the doors opened. There, the previous maid had come back, this time along with a very regally appearing woman. The way she walked, held herself, and just in air had Addi jump from her seat. She stood up until Saraphina had taken a seat, doing so afterward and then placing the collar back on the table while still gripped in her own hands. After a quick moment, the maid returned with a set of tea for the Snow White haired woman and in the very tense and choking moment, she had zipped on it without a word said. Then, it came. ”I-I uh.. I-I’m Addi- Addilyn Amara.” She stammered and struggled just to speak. Between the unsettling feeling of being in the Queens presence among the others of the pent up guilt and self hatred for her own weaknesses as well as the unknowns in her life now, she couldn’t do much to speak well.

When Saraphina brought up the collar, the bright eyes of the actress lowered down to it. A tear streamed down her face for a moment and she just nodded her head. ”The.. the reason I asked you to come is.. because you deserve to hear it... hear it from me first...” Rising from the collar to the woman across the table, she had another tear roll down her cheek. ”Sens- ..Sanguine is... d-dead.” She finally it out. The feeling didn’t get much easier, but there was a sense of relief that came over her for it. ”I was.. the girl she had taken the security job for. The actress with the death threats? Well... they were more than death threats.” She had to pause, her hands reaching up with the collar in hand. The look in her eyes showed how much guilt and time she spent beating herself up over it all.

Her hair on the other hand would make its way up, wiping away the tears. Purposely done in a way to show that one of the maids own Magic’s had seemed to be instilled in her. ”The ones who attacked us, well some are dead, the rest I guess are arrested. I panicked. I had grabbed her lacrima, her collar, and ran. I was afraid, I didn’t know who I could trust anymore. The only place I could think would be remotely safe was here. Sensei always told me that this place was like a home to her, and I didn’t know really what she meant. But... you’re ultimately the one person who I sought to see.” It was the jist of her story, trying not to bore the woman with the details, but expecting a complete lashing of verbal proportions... nothing she probably hadn’t said to herself before either.

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2029 thread total

A small smile seemed to form from her lips as she listened to the Queen mention her name. Seeming to keep herself locked up in thought for a moment, it became clear that Saraphina had been trying to recall if she had heard the name, but ultimately she seemed not to. Just judging by the lack of interest in the job or the situation at all for the most part, it was all that Addi could assume was the issue at hand. There were a number of things that she had been told in her time with Sanguine about this woman. From what she had taken from it, she was someone who could be very entitled and scatter brained. She was also the type who proclaimed that once something was said, it was to be done, no questions asked. Frankly, she felt the deceased maid had done her best to keep from finding out what happened to those whom failed to obey those types of orders. Something about a fascination with heads on sticks? Or pikes? Frankly all she thought of from that was a human head shaped popsicle, but perhaps that was childish imagination.

Putting her mind back into the game, so to speak, the raven haired girl had looked up from the collar in hand at the question. It felt gut wrenching to hear such a question, but honestly... it felt true. ”To be honest... I haven’t stopped beating myself up over that notion, your highness...” She replied, her head sinking a little lower toward the table. ”I cant tell you how little sleep I have had since then trying to make heads or tails of the choice or why. I know sensei was super religious as well, usually mentioning how things were done by the will of god. But, I don’t think you care to listen to that.” Her hands reached up to the table, setting the collar in hand onto it and then pushing her cup of tea aside. The desire to continue it was not with her anymore. At least not right now. She had ruined her own appetite for the drink currently.

And there she went. Out of habit, there were still her traits of throwing around Midian slang into her conversations and it seemed to create a rather small divide in a language barrier. At least until the maid beside her popped it with the point of knowledge. But before she could apologize, the woman in white confirmed and seemed to be at least happy in some way to have known how close this place felt to her. As Saraphina walked over to the still seated girl, a moments thought to shoot up to her feet crossed her mind. But, she chose to stay seated. Her eyes did watch as she had picked up the former maids collar and hold onto it for a moment while she said she was going to further her Sensei’s teachings. She looked up, confused and in that moment, the woman albeit slapped on the collar and proclaimed her taking her place. Her eyes went wide at that order, but she didn’t move an inch at first.

The first thing she did was reach up to the collar, feeling it against her neck. The comment about her being her “favorite maid” has gone over her head a moment, but frankly she began to tear up. Nothing from sadness or defeat, but there was a sense of emotion she couldn’t directly define it, wearing the same collar that her own teacher did. It was in that moment something snapped in her mind. A burning passion, both of hatred and what she felt to be righteousness. In that very same second of a snap, she got up from her chair and turned to face Saraphina. The look in her eyes held the few tears built up and also the look of a very serious and determined person. ”I will make you a promise, Saraphina. While it is that I cannot live up to Sanguine’s expectations, I will do my best to do the job. And in return for this, I will make it my life mission, no matter my own morals...” She balled up her fists, beyond anger at this point that she normally didn’t hold any of. ”I will make sure to slaughter every participant involved in her death and I will bring back their heads for you.” While she spoke, her eyes never took their attention away from the other woman’s. Not for a second.

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3200 total thread wordcount