60damnprompts / Porom (FFIV) - Day Two
My second entry to 60damnprompts! Let me show you it! :o (I figure it's better than just letting this journal go to waste, anyway. Whee!)
Title: A Bond Thicker Than Crystals, A Dream Thinner Than Death
Author: little_mysidian
Claim: Porom of Mysidia
Other Characters/Pairings: Palom of Mysidia (mentions of Mysidian Elder, Zeromus, and various FFIV cast members)
Fandom: Final Fantasy IV
Prompt: #002: Trance
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 2,534
A/N: Rampant cursing and incorrect grammar usage from a six-year-old boy, along with characters dreaming of violence and death. Stay away if that offends you. :)
Summary:
She was walking quickly down a red-lit corridor, a smoky haze wrapping around her lithe frame, and making it difficult to see the distance that was ahead of her. Chainlike claws of the cursed minions of Mount Ordeals, accompanied by the embodiment their humanoid screams, lashed out from the side, harshly picking at her leggings and robe, stopping only when she struck their dirty hands with the lapis gem topping her silver staff.
She had to make it!
Everyone was relying on her to save him or her, to lovingly protect and grace the world with her own natural talents as a healer. The letters from the royals of Baron, Damcyan, Toroia, and Fabul called out to her in sync with their respective crystals, recalling the Mysidian Legend. The time of hope was near, and nothing was going to stand in her way.
There she goes! Just like…
‘No-no, little one… No, I do not think so…’
A barrage of fear enveloped her as she came to a halt, soon unable to see through what was now a painful wall of smoke. An icy chill ran down her spine, something akin to sweat pouring profusely through her matted brown hair, and bathing her hands in an ill odor.
‘I think I’ll take this. You’ll no longer need it, where you’re going.’
The healer tried her best to hold on to the staff, but the grander evils succeeded, leaving her in a state of shock. How could this happen? Oh, if only she had been a tiny-bit faster…
‘Yes, little one. Dwell on all your problems, for they are your fault -- yours, and yours alone! Did you ever stop to think if you had what it takes to progress? No? Perhaps that is why your friends will soon know of your defeat, and curse your name with last dying breath:
“ ‘I hate you… Porom.’ ”
The haze cleared to reveal a man with blue skin, black eyes narrowed into slits and a ferocious, bloody snarl about as taut as the oddly patterned robes pulled about him. With a harsh swish of his wrist, a light emanated from the core of the staff’s blue gem, wrapping fully around the child healer.
‘Children were always pests to me. I think I’ll go after your brother next,’ he added, revealing a rather gruesome row of uneven teeth as he grinned, the light lifting her up to about his height. He enjoyed the fact that she was paralyzed by his fear, was tempted to touch her cheek with one of his long fingernails if it would only lead to hear her scream.
‘Then, the curse…’
He stopped then, and led her, the light, over to a glowing, ruby crystal. Another swift wave, and the healer found herself trapped inside, the sweat that bathed her previously becoming far more intense, and a haze stinging her befallen eyes once more.
“Zeromus,” she whispered before she lost consciousness, and fell within the fire, transitioning from a fall of grace, to a land enveloped in darkness.
* * *
“Porom…? Porom! He-llo, world to Porom!!”
Porom cracked open an eye, not amazed in the slightest to see her twin brother looming over her from the side of the bed with a goofy grin plastered on his face. Usually, Palom was in her room for one of three things: to bother her for some inane favor, to "borrow" ("Oh, you know you’re stealing it; don‘t give me that!”) some of her Gil, or to start a merciless taunt tirade, declaring she had missed a class, or had received a grade lower than a 100%.
“Good morning to you, too," the girl replied, sitting up in her bed as she rubbed the last wisps of sleep from her other eye. Palom’s grin, let alone his enthusiasm, refused to let up, and she was sorely tempted to kick him off the bed when he sat down at the foot. “What do you want?”
“Walter told me something very interesting, sis,” Palom began, a hand tracing the stitches of Porom's quilt. “Apparently, our ’friends’ in Damcyan, Baron, Fabul…”
Friends…
They will curse your name… With their dying breath…
“…Have sent you -- Hey, are you even listening?! Porom! You look pale as a white chocobo!”
The remnant of the dream, its trance, faded once more, and Porom tilted her head, garnered by Palom’s attention. The Dark Magician had a look of pure concern on his face -- something that was rarely seen by anyone, Mysidian or otherwise.
“I’m… Yes, I’m fine.” Porom shook her head as though to clear her mind. “I guess I’m just not fully awake yet.”
“Don’t scare me like that, damn it!” Palom reached over, slapping his twin on her forearm. He quickly raised his arms in defense when Porom tried to retaliate, knocking the girl back to her original position on the bed. “You rarely space out. Sure you aren’t gonna turn into one of those bards any time soon?”
Porom rolled her eyes as she moved from the bed to a shard of a mirror in her room, her little hands pulling her long brunette hair back into a makeshift ponytail. “Must you always speak ill of King Edward? He didn‘t do anything to you.”
Palom bounced off the bed, and was right behind her, much to her chagrin. “Master Tellah didn’t like him!”
“That’s false, and you know it!”
“Yeah, well; you’re false! You AND your ugly hair!”
“How can I be false if I…” Porom blinked, trailing off. Her twin grinned in the mirror, flexing his non-existent muscles in what she considered to be a rather idiotic victory pose. “Wait a moment; why are you even IN my room anyway? You usually don’t bother me this early in the morning unless you want something.”
“As a matter-of-fact, I do -- I wanna know something, anyway,” Palom replied, rounding on her. “Walter said you got letters from everybody! You know, I hate that dumbass son of a --”
“-- Yes, and…? Well, out with it! I want to get out of my nightclothes!”
“Okay, fine! … Anyways, I got them, too!”
Porom had moved away from the mirror, intending to open the door to her room to usher her twin out, but stopped midway. Reluctantly, she looked back at him, and was surprised to see a rather somber look on his face. “You received the letters, too?”
“Uh huh.” The Dark Magician kicked at the flagstones lining the floor, his arms crossed. “Have you read any of them yet? The one from Baron was supposed to be read first, apparently.”
“I got mine yesterday afternoon, but I didn’t read any. I had to spend the rest of the day cleaning up the alchemy lab, then going out to the fields to replenish the jars with hyacinth leaves, and water blossom petals,” Porom replied, sitting on her bed. “I was going to read them last night, but I fell asleep before I could think of anything else. They’re on my desk,” she added, pointing to the wood holder in one corner of her room, the said envelopes stacked neatly.
Palom snorted, a grin teasing the corners of his mouth. “Good job, Por-dumb! Just like you to mess up school equi --”
“That's it! Get out of my room!”
“Fine, fine; I’ll behave!
“Apparently, each of the nations wants us to visit them. Seems like life is too boring without us around, and who could blame them?” Palom grinned, as though to say ‘we’re SO damn awesome!’ which inadvertently caused his twin to roll her eyes. “Things must be too quiet for Cecil, and Edward, and Yang, and all of them, so they gotta call on us to help them out; to liven things up a little. Oh, and the Elder, and all our precious school work, and him wanting me to be the next Tellah? Not to worry about him. I asked him this morning, and he thinks it's a good idea; an educational experience, he thinks,” he added, rolling his eyes. “Yeah, right. As if we’d study the whole time while we’re partying, huh!”
Porom frowned as her only option of staying in Mysidia was eradicated; it was just like her studying-hating brother to make things complicated to the point of dragging her along. All she wanted to do, really, was advance in her class, and maybe (just maybe!) become as skilled in White magic as Queen Rosa of Baron was.
Honestly, do you have to do everything Palom does, Porom? You two are not babies anymore, you know! Haven’t you always wanted to see the world? There are plenty of grand libraries as there are sugar feasts to keep the both of you happy! Baron is also on your invitation. Maybe if you met with Queen Rosa…
The thought was certainly enticing, though it still caused its own shadows. The last thing she wanted to do was give Palom the benefit of a doubt of his assumption, but the confident smirk on his face did not hold much chance.
“Oh, all right; what harm can it do?” Porom slid off her bed as Palom whooped and jumped, a fist pumped up in victory. She stopped shortly to regard him, wanting to smile at his elation, but shook her head (the makeshift ponytail becoming rather loose; nothing a good brush would do later on after dressing for the day, though) and continued to her desk. “But I’m warning you: if you do anything to embarrass me, we’re coming straight home to Mysidia!
“Which reminds me: how in the name of the crystals are we getting to all those places?” She turned as Palom came up beside her, blinking. “I don’t think we’d be able to just up and walk to Fabul, or Toroia, you know.”
“Well, duh!” Palom rolled his eyes. “Airships, my dear little sister: airships. And, no; we’re not gonna steal one, or anything stupid like that,” he quickly added, seeing the look of shock on Porom’s face. “We go in order of these invitations: first to Baron via the Serpent Road, then a convoy from Damcyan will take us there. They’re all individually marked, which you would have noticed, had you not been so dumb to nearly set the alchemy lab on fire.”
“Come off it already!” Porom snapped, squarely catching the top of Palom’s head with her fist. Her brother grumbled an expletive underneath his breath, and rubbed the sore spot in bitter retaliation. “Sometimes, I wonder why you act the way you are. Everyone says I act the part of the older sister, but you’re really --”
“-- Your big brother, yeah; heard that story a thousand times,” Palom responded in tandem, frowning, and still rubbing his head. “I still think you’re goody-two-shoes, you know! If you weren‘t a girl, I‘d -- I‘d hit you!”
“And I still think you’re a brat! If you weren‘t my brother, I --”
The image of a ruby entrapment swirled in front of the girl’s face, the subtle feeling of fear wrapped around her body like a black sash.
The transition of a life full of hope, to a death justly deserved.
“Porom…? Porom! You’re doing it again!”
Her blue eyes blinked, widening when she half-realized her twin brother was inches from her face. Both of his hands were cuffed square to her shoulders, a worried look brought to surface in his brown eyes.
“That’s it; you’re gonna go see the Elder! I don‘t care if it‘s in your pajamas, or not!” Palom tugged on his sister’s hand, leading her to the door. “You’ve done this twice already! I might call you names, and stuff, but I‘m your big brother, and we‘re -- ”
“We’re the only family we’ve got.” Porom faintly smiled as she finished his thought, tugging her hand out of his. “I’m okay, honestly! I guess I am still a bit tired. I did fall asleep reading Alchemy and the Eternal Alembic; it’s my fault for staying up past my bedtime…”
Palom regarded his twin sister carefully, a brow raised. The scowl across his normally cheerful, mischievous face led Porom to believe that he would not accept this explanation as readily as her amusing clean up of the alchemy lab.
“You’re such a dummy.” The boy mage let down his resistance, but kept close to his suspicions. “Making me worry like that. What’s gonna happen if you get sick, or, worse, go blind? You won’t be able to study anymore! It’s no wondering, you…
“Hey, wait!” Palom’s eyes widened in sudden realization, a smirk quickly rising to his face, as though the previous discernment had not taken place at all. “If the Elder makes me go to bed at nightfall, then you should be doing that too! That’s not fair! I’m gonna tell on you!”
Palom darted to the door, skidding on the flagstones as he paused, looking over his shoulder at his sister. “Oh, and we need to be ready to go to Baron in four more days. That oughta give us enough time to pack stuff, like ice bombs, and exploding worms, and --”
“Lovely.” The magess sighed, rolling her eyes. It was obvious her brother did not remember her previous warning about embarrassing her. “I hope you’re just joking.”
“Nope!” Palom grinned as he opened the door. “See ya at breakfast, sis!”
Porom winced as he slammed the door shut behind him, glaring at it soon after. Her brother’s intentions were mostly good, yes; but she often wondered whether he knew.
“A couple of months with him wouldn’t be too much of a terrible thing, I’m sure,” Porom told her reflection as she dressed for the day. “We’ll even get to see our old acquaintances again, though I‘ve only spoken to some once or twice, such as the Ninja King of Eblana, and Yang of Fabul.
“I guess I could see it as expanding relations with Mysidia, though I’m sure Elder has that all under control,” she continued, brushing her medium-length hair, and snapping a neater resulting ponytail through a jeweled barrette. “Still, it will be nice...”
Giving her reflection a last look, Porom headed towards the door, her heart filled with a cheerful smile. She would not bother taking the letters with her, as there likely would not be room at the breakfast table, let alone the fact that she was studying afterwards. She would take Palom’s word for it, and, after making a note to seek council with the Elder, make preparations later.
As she rejoiced in Gaia’s giving, the child healer eventually forgot the horrible trance. Studying the cause and effects of certain flora submerged in different potions for a good part of the day bided her time, only to rise to irritation when she returned to her room in the afternoon to collect a book of astronomy calculations, to find her personal library stripped of their shelves, and a note bearing, “For your own good! ~ Palom” thrown carelessly on the floor.
The dream’s maker did not feel the same way, however. Like a blanket of snow, it remained icy, impenetrable to its own feeling, except a coursing stream of bittersweet hate. Eventually, it would come to rise, to make its return known once more.
No; not yet. Better to give it some time first. I already have what I needed to set this plan in action.
Had Palom stopped on his way in, or Porom cared to look on her way out, the primly stacked envelopes on the healer's desk were no longer there.
Title: A Bond Thicker Than Crystals, A Dream Thinner Than Death
Author: little_mysidian
Claim: Porom of Mysidia
Other Characters/Pairings: Palom of Mysidia (mentions of Mysidian Elder, Zeromus, and various FFIV cast members)
Fandom: Final Fantasy IV
Prompt: #002: Trance
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 2,534
A/N: Rampant cursing and incorrect grammar usage from a six-year-old boy, along with characters dreaming of violence and death. Stay away if that offends you. :)
Summary:
She was walking quickly down a red-lit corridor, a smoky haze wrapping around her lithe frame, and making it difficult to see the distance that was ahead of her. Chainlike claws of the cursed minions of Mount Ordeals, accompanied by the embodiment their humanoid screams, lashed out from the side, harshly picking at her leggings and robe, stopping only when she struck their dirty hands with the lapis gem topping her silver staff.
She had to make it!
Everyone was relying on her to save him or her, to lovingly protect and grace the world with her own natural talents as a healer. The letters from the royals of Baron, Damcyan, Toroia, and Fabul called out to her in sync with their respective crystals, recalling the Mysidian Legend. The time of hope was near, and nothing was going to stand in her way.
There she goes! Just like…
‘No-no, little one… No, I do not think so…’
A barrage of fear enveloped her as she came to a halt, soon unable to see through what was now a painful wall of smoke. An icy chill ran down her spine, something akin to sweat pouring profusely through her matted brown hair, and bathing her hands in an ill odor.
‘I think I’ll take this. You’ll no longer need it, where you’re going.’
The healer tried her best to hold on to the staff, but the grander evils succeeded, leaving her in a state of shock. How could this happen? Oh, if only she had been a tiny-bit faster…
‘Yes, little one. Dwell on all your problems, for they are your fault -- yours, and yours alone! Did you ever stop to think if you had what it takes to progress? No? Perhaps that is why your friends will soon know of your defeat, and curse your name with last dying breath:
“ ‘I hate you… Porom.’ ”
The haze cleared to reveal a man with blue skin, black eyes narrowed into slits and a ferocious, bloody snarl about as taut as the oddly patterned robes pulled about him. With a harsh swish of his wrist, a light emanated from the core of the staff’s blue gem, wrapping fully around the child healer.
‘Children were always pests to me. I think I’ll go after your brother next,’ he added, revealing a rather gruesome row of uneven teeth as he grinned, the light lifting her up to about his height. He enjoyed the fact that she was paralyzed by his fear, was tempted to touch her cheek with one of his long fingernails if it would only lead to hear her scream.
‘Then, the curse…’
He stopped then, and led her, the light, over to a glowing, ruby crystal. Another swift wave, and the healer found herself trapped inside, the sweat that bathed her previously becoming far more intense, and a haze stinging her befallen eyes once more.
“Zeromus,” she whispered before she lost consciousness, and fell within the fire, transitioning from a fall of grace, to a land enveloped in darkness.
* * *
“Porom…? Porom! He-llo, world to Porom!!”
Porom cracked open an eye, not amazed in the slightest to see her twin brother looming over her from the side of the bed with a goofy grin plastered on his face. Usually, Palom was in her room for one of three things: to bother her for some inane favor, to "borrow" ("Oh, you know you’re stealing it; don‘t give me that!”) some of her Gil, or to start a merciless taunt tirade, declaring she had missed a class, or had received a grade lower than a 100%.
“Good morning to you, too," the girl replied, sitting up in her bed as she rubbed the last wisps of sleep from her other eye. Palom’s grin, let alone his enthusiasm, refused to let up, and she was sorely tempted to kick him off the bed when he sat down at the foot. “What do you want?”
“Walter told me something very interesting, sis,” Palom began, a hand tracing the stitches of Porom's quilt. “Apparently, our ’friends’ in Damcyan, Baron, Fabul…”
Friends…
They will curse your name… With their dying breath…
“…Have sent you -- Hey, are you even listening?! Porom! You look pale as a white chocobo!”
The remnant of the dream, its trance, faded once more, and Porom tilted her head, garnered by Palom’s attention. The Dark Magician had a look of pure concern on his face -- something that was rarely seen by anyone, Mysidian or otherwise.
“I’m… Yes, I’m fine.” Porom shook her head as though to clear her mind. “I guess I’m just not fully awake yet.”
“Don’t scare me like that, damn it!” Palom reached over, slapping his twin on her forearm. He quickly raised his arms in defense when Porom tried to retaliate, knocking the girl back to her original position on the bed. “You rarely space out. Sure you aren’t gonna turn into one of those bards any time soon?”
Porom rolled her eyes as she moved from the bed to a shard of a mirror in her room, her little hands pulling her long brunette hair back into a makeshift ponytail. “Must you always speak ill of King Edward? He didn‘t do anything to you.”
Palom bounced off the bed, and was right behind her, much to her chagrin. “Master Tellah didn’t like him!”
“That’s false, and you know it!”
“Yeah, well; you’re false! You AND your ugly hair!”
“How can I be false if I…” Porom blinked, trailing off. Her twin grinned in the mirror, flexing his non-existent muscles in what she considered to be a rather idiotic victory pose. “Wait a moment; why are you even IN my room anyway? You usually don’t bother me this early in the morning unless you want something.”
“As a matter-of-fact, I do -- I wanna know something, anyway,” Palom replied, rounding on her. “Walter said you got letters from everybody! You know, I hate that dumbass son of a --”
“-- Yes, and…? Well, out with it! I want to get out of my nightclothes!”
“Okay, fine! … Anyways, I got them, too!”
Porom had moved away from the mirror, intending to open the door to her room to usher her twin out, but stopped midway. Reluctantly, she looked back at him, and was surprised to see a rather somber look on his face. “You received the letters, too?”
“Uh huh.” The Dark Magician kicked at the flagstones lining the floor, his arms crossed. “Have you read any of them yet? The one from Baron was supposed to be read first, apparently.”
“I got mine yesterday afternoon, but I didn’t read any. I had to spend the rest of the day cleaning up the alchemy lab, then going out to the fields to replenish the jars with hyacinth leaves, and water blossom petals,” Porom replied, sitting on her bed. “I was going to read them last night, but I fell asleep before I could think of anything else. They’re on my desk,” she added, pointing to the wood holder in one corner of her room, the said envelopes stacked neatly.
Palom snorted, a grin teasing the corners of his mouth. “Good job, Por-dumb! Just like you to mess up school equi --”
“That's it! Get out of my room!”
“Fine, fine; I’ll behave!
“Apparently, each of the nations wants us to visit them. Seems like life is too boring without us around, and who could blame them?” Palom grinned, as though to say ‘we’re SO damn awesome!’ which inadvertently caused his twin to roll her eyes. “Things must be too quiet for Cecil, and Edward, and Yang, and all of them, so they gotta call on us to help them out; to liven things up a little. Oh, and the Elder, and all our precious school work, and him wanting me to be the next Tellah? Not to worry about him. I asked him this morning, and he thinks it's a good idea; an educational experience, he thinks,” he added, rolling his eyes. “Yeah, right. As if we’d study the whole time while we’re partying, huh!”
Porom frowned as her only option of staying in Mysidia was eradicated; it was just like her studying-hating brother to make things complicated to the point of dragging her along. All she wanted to do, really, was advance in her class, and maybe (just maybe!) become as skilled in White magic as Queen Rosa of Baron was.
Honestly, do you have to do everything Palom does, Porom? You two are not babies anymore, you know! Haven’t you always wanted to see the world? There are plenty of grand libraries as there are sugar feasts to keep the both of you happy! Baron is also on your invitation. Maybe if you met with Queen Rosa…
The thought was certainly enticing, though it still caused its own shadows. The last thing she wanted to do was give Palom the benefit of a doubt of his assumption, but the confident smirk on his face did not hold much chance.
“Oh, all right; what harm can it do?” Porom slid off her bed as Palom whooped and jumped, a fist pumped up in victory. She stopped shortly to regard him, wanting to smile at his elation, but shook her head (the makeshift ponytail becoming rather loose; nothing a good brush would do later on after dressing for the day, though) and continued to her desk. “But I’m warning you: if you do anything to embarrass me, we’re coming straight home to Mysidia!
“Which reminds me: how in the name of the crystals are we getting to all those places?” She turned as Palom came up beside her, blinking. “I don’t think we’d be able to just up and walk to Fabul, or Toroia, you know.”
“Well, duh!” Palom rolled his eyes. “Airships, my dear little sister: airships. And, no; we’re not gonna steal one, or anything stupid like that,” he quickly added, seeing the look of shock on Porom’s face. “We go in order of these invitations: first to Baron via the Serpent Road, then a convoy from Damcyan will take us there. They’re all individually marked, which you would have noticed, had you not been so dumb to nearly set the alchemy lab on fire.”
“Come off it already!” Porom snapped, squarely catching the top of Palom’s head with her fist. Her brother grumbled an expletive underneath his breath, and rubbed the sore spot in bitter retaliation. “Sometimes, I wonder why you act the way you are. Everyone says I act the part of the older sister, but you’re really --”
“-- Your big brother, yeah; heard that story a thousand times,” Palom responded in tandem, frowning, and still rubbing his head. “I still think you’re goody-two-shoes, you know! If you weren‘t a girl, I‘d -- I‘d hit you!”
“And I still think you’re a brat! If you weren‘t my brother, I --”
The image of a ruby entrapment swirled in front of the girl’s face, the subtle feeling of fear wrapped around her body like a black sash.
The transition of a life full of hope, to a death justly deserved.
“Porom…? Porom! You’re doing it again!”
Her blue eyes blinked, widening when she half-realized her twin brother was inches from her face. Both of his hands were cuffed square to her shoulders, a worried look brought to surface in his brown eyes.
“That’s it; you’re gonna go see the Elder! I don‘t care if it‘s in your pajamas, or not!” Palom tugged on his sister’s hand, leading her to the door. “You’ve done this twice already! I might call you names, and stuff, but I‘m your big brother, and we‘re -- ”
“We’re the only family we’ve got.” Porom faintly smiled as she finished his thought, tugging her hand out of his. “I’m okay, honestly! I guess I am still a bit tired. I did fall asleep reading Alchemy and the Eternal Alembic; it’s my fault for staying up past my bedtime…”
Palom regarded his twin sister carefully, a brow raised. The scowl across his normally cheerful, mischievous face led Porom to believe that he would not accept this explanation as readily as her amusing clean up of the alchemy lab.
“You’re such a dummy.” The boy mage let down his resistance, but kept close to his suspicions. “Making me worry like that. What’s gonna happen if you get sick, or, worse, go blind? You won’t be able to study anymore! It’s no wondering, you…
“Hey, wait!” Palom’s eyes widened in sudden realization, a smirk quickly rising to his face, as though the previous discernment had not taken place at all. “If the Elder makes me go to bed at nightfall, then you should be doing that too! That’s not fair! I’m gonna tell on you!”
Palom darted to the door, skidding on the flagstones as he paused, looking over his shoulder at his sister. “Oh, and we need to be ready to go to Baron in four more days. That oughta give us enough time to pack stuff, like ice bombs, and exploding worms, and --”
“Lovely.” The magess sighed, rolling her eyes. It was obvious her brother did not remember her previous warning about embarrassing her. “I hope you’re just joking.”
“Nope!” Palom grinned as he opened the door. “See ya at breakfast, sis!”
Porom winced as he slammed the door shut behind him, glaring at it soon after. Her brother’s intentions were mostly good, yes; but she often wondered whether he knew.
“A couple of months with him wouldn’t be too much of a terrible thing, I’m sure,” Porom told her reflection as she dressed for the day. “We’ll even get to see our old acquaintances again, though I‘ve only spoken to some once or twice, such as the Ninja King of Eblana, and Yang of Fabul.
“I guess I could see it as expanding relations with Mysidia, though I’m sure Elder has that all under control,” she continued, brushing her medium-length hair, and snapping a neater resulting ponytail through a jeweled barrette. “Still, it will be nice...”
Giving her reflection a last look, Porom headed towards the door, her heart filled with a cheerful smile. She would not bother taking the letters with her, as there likely would not be room at the breakfast table, let alone the fact that she was studying afterwards. She would take Palom’s word for it, and, after making a note to seek council with the Elder, make preparations later.
As she rejoiced in Gaia’s giving, the child healer eventually forgot the horrible trance. Studying the cause and effects of certain flora submerged in different potions for a good part of the day bided her time, only to rise to irritation when she returned to her room in the afternoon to collect a book of astronomy calculations, to find her personal library stripped of their shelves, and a note bearing, “For your own good! ~ Palom” thrown carelessly on the floor.
The dream’s maker did not feel the same way, however. Like a blanket of snow, it remained icy, impenetrable to its own feeling, except a coursing stream of bittersweet hate. Eventually, it would come to rise, to make its return known once more.
No; not yet. Better to give it some time first. I already have what I needed to set this plan in action.
Had Palom stopped on his way in, or Porom cared to look on her way out, the primly stacked envelopes on the healer's desk were no longer there.