| .: Story 2: Fly Away :. |
[08 Oct 2026|09:20pm] |
Though the moon has disappeared behind a cloud, Faith is still keenly aware of the line of trees spread in front of her, as the wind in their leaves stirs soft rustling sounds. If she squints, she can barely make out their shapes, bending and weaving gracefully with the tugging of the breeze.
Light flickers below, and her head turns toward a new sound as a shadow moves across the square of light falling on the dark lawn. The shadow pauses at the window, then slides away as the light goes out. Faith shakes her head slowly; she knows that her parents still disapprove of her coming out to sit on the roof, though the wings arching over her shoulders preclude any possibility of fall or injury. Still she persists, for she is drawn to the night sky and the breeze and she finds that she is most comfortable with a bird's-eye-view of her surroundings.
Hugging her knees, she tilts her head back, searching for what few stars are visible beyond the layer of cloud drifting lazily overhead. Amid the flurry of change that had overtaken her life in the past few months, this time is precious; as the wind sifts the leaves and clears away the clouds, so this nighttime scene sifts through her whirlwind of thoughts and chases the dark clouds from her mind.
Another sound meets her ears, but this one is more comfortably familiar and many times more welcome. She knows better than to turn and look, for the winged cat's deep blue-black fur renders it almost undetectable even in low light; that is how he works, silent and graceful as the shadow he is named for. With one final beat of wings, soft paws make contact with the roof, claws extending to grip the shingles as the cat trades sky for solid footing. A brief pause, and Faith smiles.
The sound changes once more, and Faith does turn around this time to watch apprehensively as Kura approaches over the peak of the roof, soles of his shoes scraping as they grip the rough surface.
Resting her chin on her shoulder, she resigns herself to watch. "I wouldn't be out here without wings, you know," she comments, voice subdued as her eyes follow his cautious trek.
One more step and an exhalation of breath, and he settles down beside her, folding his arms over his knees and staring out at the dark shapes of the trees. For a moment they are silent, listening to the song of the wind as it touches leaves, grass, and skin alike.
Abruptly leaning back, Kura pulls a small object from his pocket and offers it to Faith. Glancing at him, she unwinds her arms and accepts it questioningly. Cool, silky fabric meets her fingers, along with the smooth touch of metal. Letting her legs slide forward down the roof's incline, she lays the object out on her lap; in the darkness of nighttime, she can make out the outline of a pair of gloves, fingerless and each with an intricately designed metal circle set in the palm. Again she turns to look at him, fingers running over the material.
"They're amplifiers." Kura's gaze remains on the swaying trees, his voice soft. "When you pass electricity through the center discs, they will increase the power output exponentially, depending on how much current you run into them."
Reverent eyes turn back to the gloves as Faith smooths them out, then slides each one onto her hands. The fabric stretches for a perfect fit; her palms mold around the small center discs, still allowing for her to clutch her hands into fists. Upon closer inspection of a raised palm, she discovers that the design of the amplifier is not purely aesthetic. "My transmutation circle."
"I thought it would be faster than having to draw it each time. Some of the alchemists we met at Central had their circles tattooed on their hands; I think this will work the same way."
She traced the border of the circle with a finger. "Yeah, I can feel the circle's energy, a lot closer; kind of like having a light switch nearby instead of having to build a fire." Drawing her legs up again, she rests her arms over her knees as her eyes fall. "With some practice, you'll be able to depend on my alchemy now. No more troubles because I can't draw the circle fast enough, like last time." Her face darkens with the words, remembering too vividly the fight only a few weeks ago; her reliance on a transmutation circle that took to long to render had almost cost him dearly. Pure panic had substituted for lack of time, and she had defended him, but barely; the memory still weighed on her.
"This is to keep you safe." She looks up and is surprised to meet Kura's eyes, the blue stare that is becoming more and more familiar. "If you don't remember, you almost died last time. If you had looked up from drawing that circle a half second later, that fire elemental would have incinerated you. Battles depend on speed; you need to be able to move faster to stay out of trouble."
Faith stares at him for a second longer, pondering his words and the cool weight on her hands; then she smiles, turning her palms up to expose the circles once more. He surprises her by returning the smile, eyes softening almost impreceptibly.
Overhead, the near-full moon emerges from behind its cloud cover, sending a soft glow over the previously dark landscape. Twin glints of light flash from her palms and Faith turns, admiring the shine of the metal twisted into the shape of her own brand of alchemy. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she spies an answering flash of silver light and smiles.
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