Homebound(A Haley Reintro)

A figure enters the main hall, wrapped up in a cloak of black and the fresh remmants of snow, carried by a being of metal. The mountain climb was still the same as always, and the snow was as white as she remembers. It was also as open as she remembered. It was genuine hell for Haley, who suffered from a fear of open spaces, to make the climb was torture.

At least, she had help. After she dismissed her summon, Haley takes a moment soak in the warm reception hall, walking in a ballet like manner as she spins and turns, avoiding the people with a heavy suitcase in hand. Finally a space she belongs, the indoors. And the indoors was a comfy space that gives her the freedom to do what she needs. Finally she shifts towards the receptionist, sliding over and leaning over the counter. She had sent her letter ahead of time, but it never hurts to check.

"Hello there, looking good as always I see, yes yes I did send it. Oh sure, I'll be waiting there then," Haley takes a bow and scoots over to a table, taking a seat on the comfy chairs. Just as she remembers. Haley can't help but wonder if the people she remember are still here. Last she heard, Leona is still the one in charge. The popularity seems to have shot up however, the lucrative tourism business seems to be bustling more. Maybe she should find the bar and whip up a few drinks for the guests, her skills behind the counter had improved since her early days.

With the nostalgia rising, Haley places her briefcase on the table, unlocking it. The whirring gears and whimsy noises relays a sense of childish wonder and magic, before a click and ding. The silver haired bird reaches into the briefcase, putting her whole arm into it, fishing around for something, and with a glimmer in her eye pulls out an entire easel, a canvas and a set of painting tools. Haley begun to have her onlookers, but she did not mind, right now, she shall roost here till she gets properly reinstated again.

Oh, who would it be to come and entertain her?

Post Count: 373
Total Count: 373

Wearing a blue t-shirt and khaki cargo pants with white and silver tennis shoes since she had chosen to dress sort of casually for the impending trip to her office, Leona was standing outside of the guild cafe with a white porcelain mug of coffee with the Silver Wolf guild emblem printed in black held in her right hand. She really needed to get one with the emblem printed in blue to match her guild tattoo, but she had not had the time to look into getting one made just for her. She had other things to attend to like the seemingly endless stream of paperwork that found its way to her desk and finding the missing components needed to start her latest personal project.

The Guild Mistress had just raised her lips to the third cup of coffee she had purchased today when she felt a magic signature enter the guild hall. Curious as to who it might belong to, Leona lowered the porcelain mug and began to look for the source. After a bit of walking and careful looking she found the signature's owner seated at a table in the guild's reception hall. It belonged to a young woman who was currently wearing an eye-catching black cloak and had striking silver hair.

Leona calmly looked at the person and felt a dim sense of familiarity, but she was not sure where she had seen them before. The latter appeared to be an artist because they had a few of the tools of the trade out for everyone to see. The Guild Mistress calmly took a sip of her coffee and looked at the stranger again.

They looked sort of familiar, but placing them was beyond the blonde's ability right now.

Maybe an introduction was in order.

"Hi there. I'm Leona Jarnefeldt, Guild Mistress of Silver Wolf. Is there anything I can help you with?" Leona asked the artist.

[Post Word Count: 320]
[Leona's Word Count: 320]

The painter was in the middle of painting out one of the table lamps used to light up the cafe tables. With a palette of oranges, yellows and blues, she slowly brings to life the lamp on the table onto the canvas. Haley even started swaying to the rhythm of her brush strokes, humming to herself before a voice finally snaps her out of her flow state.

There was a pause, long and silent. She puts down her brush on the easel, before turning to face Leona. Red eyes, crimson like blood, yet they seem to have this metallic shine to them. A grin from cheek to cheek. Haley bounces right towards Leona, hands outstretched as she begins to feel up Leona's face, giggling to herself as she prances around the guild master.

"Oh my Leona, you really don't recognize an old face like me?" Haley dips down, looking at Leona's exposed legs and laughing to herself before returning back to standing proper in front of Leona and her easel. The silver haired woman undoes her cloack, showing her black and red dress she wore underneath. "But forgive me, I should explain. Maybe you haven't read my letter. Or perhaps you need a better visual representation?"

Haley steps back, before throwing her head back while running her hand through her hair which lets the sleeve of her dress flow over her face. As she stood upright, three large crow feathers stuck into a bandanna, and a pair of glasses appear on her head. Haley then shakes her head to make those features disappear. "The Shapeshifter, the author of the Chronicles of Candlelight, the wielder of the Book of Legends. Voila, tada and behold! Haley Halcyon Musea!" Haley poses, arms raised into the air in a large V. Some onlookers applaused, but otherwise it is awkward silence.

"Was... was that good?" Haley's confidence shrinks suddenly. "I've been like... practicing it for like the past two weeks before I came back..." Haley rubs her back of her head, looking away for a little.

Post Count: 341
Total Count: 714

Leona blinked when the person put their hands on her face and struggled to keep the coffee mug in her right hand from tipping over and possibly spilling coffee on the newcomer, an accident which would have definitely ruined the other person's day. After a minute or two the newcomer performed an impressive change of appearance with seemingly no effort whatsoever. The blonde was drawing a blank until the name "Haley Halcyon Musea" came up.

The blonde thought about that name for several moments before her eyes widened in recognition. Haley was one of the Silver Wolf members who was present when Leona had first joined the guild at the invitation of Leila Vergious herself. Haley was one of the ones Leona had interacted with when the latter was a newcomer and had started interacting with some of her guildmates.

That had been a lifetime ago.

"Haley? As in the Haley I met back when I was a new member?" Leona asked after finally putting two and two together. The blonde could not even remember the last time she and Haley had interacted, but it was definitely years ago.

When called upon to critique Haley's flashy introduction Leona was at a loss for words because she had never seen the other mage behave so energetically. She had no idea what to say and did not want to say something just to say something. Leona took a sip of her coffee before speaking to the newly returned mage.

"I like the energy you put into it, Haley. I also liked the titles you used." Leona commented with sincerity. The other mage had made quite the impression on the Guild Mistress because she did not remember Haley being that energetic. Or maybe the blonde's memory was not what it used to be. Either way Leona would have trouble forgetting the mage's return to the guild hall.

[Post Word Count: 314]
[Leona's Word Count: 634]

Haley sighs in relief. She wasn't entirely forgotten after all. Maybe her appearance was not memorable but at least her name seem to struck a chord inside the memories of Leona. The mage offers a seat to Leona, before sitting down herself. A stretch, and Haley makes herself comfortable on her seat once again.

"Oh thank you Leona!" Haley gives the guild master a big hug, ensuring to avoid the coffee mug. Leona would not be entirely mistaken. Haley was a much different person. Aside from now having more white hair, less feathers and a pair of glasses, she definitely seemed a bit more, active. The Haley of before would struggle to come up with such a flashy intro, or even paint in public, yet the gleam in her eyes and that brief moment of doubt was very much Haley.

"You know I couldn't believe you became a Wizard Saint in the time I was gone," Haley laughed, the waitress of the cafe bringing her a cup of hot cocoa. After a sip, she sighs, enjoying how the heat of her drink spreads through her body, which, was much more brazen. Before she would wear an outfit of much more modesty, though the irony was that those clothes were created through her body, owing thanks to Haley's innate shapeshifting bloodline, but it covered more and showed way less.

But right now, it as an outfit that emphasized the charms of a woman and more. It was meant to be seen, with the bright red standing out from her blacks. "It was so neat thinking I had to write to someone as amazing as you are. But I digress, the letter I sent can wait. I'm the newbie here now, and I don't remember such a crowd." Haley looks around, she certainly remembered less people visiting the guild, even more considering that to get here, they would have to go through the cold first. Not what she called prime tourist destination, but perhaps the remoteness is its appeal?

"So catch me up on the details will you? I wanna here all about it." Haley takes another sip of her mug.

Word Count: 359
Total Count: 1073

Leona did not remember much about the old Haley, but the new one certainly had energy and confidence to spare. The blonde was glad that she did not spill any coffee on her old guildmate because few things would kill a reunion in a hurry like a coffee burn. Leona took the seat that had been offered to her, expertly balancing her coffee mug so that she did not burn herself with the hot beverage by spilling it in her lap or on her leg. Once she was seated Leona faced her old guildmate and stole a glance at Haley's outfit.

The first thing the blonde noticed was the striking color combination. The second thing the blonde noticed was that the new outfit was more bold and revealing than anything she had remembered Haley wearing in the past. However, Leona did not have much room to talk because she had developed a fondness for tube tops over the past several months. Leona made eye contact with Haley again and recalled the request that had been put to her, which was a request for an explanation on why the guild hall had so many visitors.

"It's a long story, but the guild's renaissance was brought about with the help of three talented Silver Wolf Aces. Mercury Arsenault, Theo Silversong, and Aspen Azarov. They helped me revitalize the guild with their hard work and excellent ideas." Leona admitted that the guild's fortunes had turned for the better because of those three. They had come along with impeccable timing and had diligently worked with Leona to raise Silver Wolf to new heights. The guild had maintained that momentum and now Haley had returned to see it in its reinvigorated condition, something that made the blonde feel something approaching pride.

The Wizard Saint had played a part in helping raise Silver Wolf to the heights it currently enjoyed, but Mercury, Theo, and Aspen were the ones who were the driving force behind the guild's revival. She could never fully repay the tremendous debt she owed them, but she could make sure that they got the credit they deserved for their incredible work.

[Post Word Count: 358]
[Leona's Word Count: 992]