Alder's Grove

A Change in Routine
inventrix's Let's Pretend
Class is in Session
A Brief Reunion
inventrix's Unexpected Visitor

Luke had been curious who this Nanaya was that could get Apollo training against haybales. As it turned out, she was an Amazonian strawberry-blonde woman with an easy smile and a mischievous lift to her eyebrow. Watching her run through kata with the other students, Luke was willing to bet she was deadly in a fight.

He noted, too, that although most of Leo's students managed to hide their surprise when he called Leo jae' - as was right, he reminded himself; he still had a couple centuries on Lightning Blade - Nanaya just smiled more broadly. She'd be an interesting one to hunt alongside.

That was a thought for another day, and probably for some other world. He was here to see Apollo and Leo, and he was talking to Leo.

"I'll be starting class in a few minutes; would you like to stay and watch?" Leo had grown up somewhere along the way. Luke had seen it the last few times he visited Cloverleaf, and yet he still found himself surprised by it every time.

"I'd love to." Luke smiled. "I hear you've got some interesting tricks here."

"Oh, well-"

"They're sneaky," Apollo interrupted, half in awe and half in complaint. "You think they're coming up to your left and then all of a sudden, boom."

Luke chuckled ruefully. "Sounds like a hunt, doesn't it?" He raised his eyebrows at Leo. "It doesn't usually work well with my Students, but I remember when you were training with Ciara." His expression slipped. He wanted to be proud of her, he really did, but...

...another day, another world. "It's a good thing to learn." He pulled the conversation back to the dojo. "The Nedetakai and the monsters don't usually fight fair, do they?" He was talking to Leo, but his words were still aimed at Apollo.

52 23 Days To 52 Weeks

For the 52 days leading up to the 52 weeks of Addergoole: Year 9, I will be posting something Addergoole-related (almost) every day.

Today I bring you Ciara and Amadeus

Ciara is a clever and tough young lady, a tiny go-getter whose Change leaves her marbled and elven; Amadeus is a large wolfish guy twice her size, a predator by nature and inclination.

Ciara came to Addergoole thinking that is was a finishing school; Amadeus, in his fourth year of the school, knows exactly what it is. They're both in over their heads, because neither saw the other one coming.

They have appeared in :
Wolf at the Door (LJ)
Wolf in the Circle (LJ)
Ciara: Wolf in the Hand
Pet Wolf (LJ) (Ciara)

And today, you can ask them anything.

So kuroseishin is doing an Icon sale (which go check out) and I realized I don't have a description for Ciara yet or her Change.

Anybody picture her at all?

I think she's petite, and I think she's of the family line (Fridmar) that turns colors with the Change.

All right. She's a daughter of Fridmar. She's short-by-my-standards, 5'4" or so, and resembles Miroslava Duma, especially in this set of pictures.

We don't know much about her except that she bakes, she's been training in combat, and she's polite and likes lists (sounds like someone I know).

I think her Change turns her into a deep nut-brown elf-girl. She gets a bit slenderer and a lot taller (8" taller), her ears go long and pointy, her eyes go tiger-eye, and her hair gets veins of lighter brown like a rock.

...She is Taro's half-sister maternally!

After Wolf in the Circle (LJ).

Ciara was floating, for a moment, dreaming of a pasture full of bulls, angry bulls, stomping their feet and grumbling.

She came to in a rush of disorientation, to find Luke leaning over her, his wings spread wide like a canopy, sheltering her from view. "There you are," he murmured. "Clever girl. I got you stabilized, but you need to go to the doctor's."

She nodded, startled at how much energy that seemed to take. "Amadeus...?"

"He's standing right here, holding your purse." Luke looked worried. "Ciara..."

"I know. Tigers and tails." She nodded. "Muzzle him before I let go of the tail."
( Read more... )

First Saturday Dance, Year Nine:

Ciara had been talking in a corner niche with a couple of upper-classmen with whom she shared her Chemistry class, but they, being a couple, had moved onto the dance floor when the song went to a slow, romantic tune.

She hadn’t found anyone that she was interested in being romantic with (except the guy she’d just been talking with, but that was clearly not going to work out), but that was no reason to mope in the corner. She turned to go find some of her classmates, and found herself face-to-face with a bicep.

"Dance with me."

The voice attached to the bicep was deep and rough; the bicep itself was covered in a deep red shirt. Looking up, she saw a black tie, with a tiny woven design of swords. Further up revealed a predatory smile; to the top showed shaggy black hair covering sapphire-blue eyes.
( Read more... )

Next: Wolf in the Circle