Know why the Nightingale sings? {open}

[Little Sparrow]

She would convince Jaime's sister. She was sure of that. Since Jaime had volunteered and he seemed a good enough cadet, he needed to join. Not had, needed. It was essential that he joined. Cloti for one didn't like to draw her twin blades. But just in case, she brushed her thigh, where one, Feather, was strapped onto. It was invisible to the public, but she could feel its familiar sheath as she walked. Strangely comforting. She was protected and despite that, she couldn't help but keep an eye out for trouble.

Jaime took them through a long, winding back road where many others lingered around. Not all were human, almost all were still. They didn't take much heed to the company of travelers, though it seemed that Jaime seemed to have pity on them. She guessed that it was a normal thing. Cloti didn't use the back alleys very much, knowing that the crowds of the Spirit were big enough to hide her. Here she was one grain in a beach of sand, one bird in the flock. An insignificant person.

What seemed for a long while, perhaps twenty or so minutes, they walked, until finally reaching a house. Pretty decent, though not too extraordinary. Average, one could say, though the object that came flying out was rather... bizarre. Maybe this sister of Jaime's was a little overreactive... or maybe she was jumpy.

Cloti cast a glance toward Jaime, who had dropped Tuft to halt the vase. The little Nyeene hurtled into the house, presumably to hide himself from... something. Something. Her first impression of Briar was: normal. And then she noticed that she and Jaime looked rather alike. Close enough to be brother and sister, not a doppelganger. And if Tuft was comfortable around her, she should be fine too.

"Who're they?"

[/i]

Jaime answered for them, getting straight to the point. Well, that saved her the trouble of conjuring up a good response. Jaime's sister knew who they were, the weight of the organization and she let them in. Cloti smiled grimly, casting a look towards Winter. The moment of truth flies closer.

"What do you want?"[/i]

That was a simple, straightforward question that she would reply to with a simple, straightforward answer. No fluff, no bushes. The faster this was done, the more relieved she'd feel. "To recruit Jaime." She replied, looking Briar in the eye confidently.[/center][/color][/size][/font]

[Jaime Keating]

Immediately, Briar's entire body tensed up, and this... look appeared on her face. Jaime really couldn't describe it. It kind of looked like she was upset, in pain, angry, and shocked all at the same time, but even that seemed like a horrible description to him. For several moments, the woman stared Cloti down, her green eyes burning into the other's.

The longer the silence went on, the more antsy Jaime became.
He knew Briar (he had spent 17 years of his life with her), and so he knew how... reactive she could be, especially when it came to him. It was probably nothing that Cloti and Winter couldn't handle, but still. He didn't want to be the cause of injury to someone standing in this room.

Suddenly, abruptly, Briar turned and escaped into the kitchen.
There was a clanking and a watery swishing sound, like she had been in the middle of doing dishes.
After another few moments, she returned with her hands covered in soap and water. Tensely, Briar folded her arms over her chest and glared at Cloti, then Winter, then back to Cloti - after all, it was the woman who had said those dreaded words.

"Why? Why would you want to recruit Jaime? He's still young! And joining the Song could cut his life shorter than it's supposed to be," Briar snapped finally. Jaime cringed.
"I want to join, Briar."
She hesitated and glanced at the boy, then shook her head and looked back to Cloti.
However, her glare wasn't as intense as it had been a moment ago.
Gaining confidence, the boy stepped toward her. "You know I've always wanted to help people! And this is my chance to actually help people, not just help someone every few days or weeks out here in Spirit. I'm old enough to be considered an adult, Briar, so I could leave without your permission - " he paused at the stricken look on her face, shaking his head quickly and continuing before Briar broke into hysterics or something of the sort " - but I won't do that. I want your permission to join."

The woman glanced away from Jaime, almost sheepishly, back to Cloti and Winter, as if asking if they had anything to add to her brother's little speech.

[Winter]

Winter nodded gravely. "Jaime has proved that he would make a fine addition to the Song in both spirit and values." he allowed himself a soft smile, "But you must see, your little brother truly wishes to do this, to help people to the best of his abilities. The only thing holding him back is his love for you. He does not want to hurt you and I believe he wants your approval more than anything at this point."

The changeling sighed, "The Song of Heroes is a dangerous life, but it is more rewarding than you could imagine. If you truly love your brother then you would let him join and let him live out the life that he's dreamed of."

Winter met Briar's eyes with his own bronze ones. "You may never meet again, but all I can leave you with is the knowledge that he's making a difference in this horrible war. Maybe he'll be able to come home someday. Look, I know this must be hard for you and what I just said won't help to convince you, but you have to look at this from Jaime's perspective if you are ever going to understand."

Winter looked to Cloti, silently asking her if she had anything to add before he looked back to Briar and Jaime. He felt slightly bad for saying the things he had, but they were all true, all possibilities. Hiding things from her would just hurt more for both of them. It was best to just lay everything out on the table and let people decide from there.

[Little Sparrow]

Cloti held Briar's gaze, like green acid trying to break down a wall of iron. She wasn't getting through, for Jaime's sake and other fae's sake. Jaime was a valuable addition to the Song and well, it was better for both of them. If Jaime wasn't recruited, she'd have to get rid of both of them. She hoped that she wouldn't have to do it--for all of their sakes. She was human and she hadn't gotten over taking lives yet. Heck, she probably wouldn't ever.

As if Briar needed some time to herself, she whirled around, escaping into the kitchen and immersing herself with the sound of running water and clanking. Cloti didn't blame her; it was a hard decision to give up her younger brother whom she had been with for the past few years. It wasn't easy, even if it was for the better good. This was tough business. She sighed, awaiting Briar's return. Hopefully she was calmer now. It was hard to tell, having her gaze stonily between her and Winter. She couldn't tell what she was thinking, but she could tell that she had just been washing up due to the soap and water on her hands and half-way up her forearm.

Brother and sister conversed, Jaime seemed to be convincing her. Finally, she turned to them. Winter had given all the information, good and bad in a nutshell. She couldn't help but allow a wan, slightly regretful smile onto her face. "I am no older than you are, and I am human, just like you. If there is one thing that I can promise, it's that I will take care of Jaime. With the skills that he possesses, he is a worthy addition to the Song, but further training will benefit him more." She looked Briar in the eye. "I will personally oversee him and be sure that no harm comes to him, as Clotilda of Aimela, the leader of the Song of Heroes." Well, she had given her word as the leader of the Song when she was actually co-leader. Well, leader had a more powerful and reassuring ring to it. She hoped that Briar would trust her. Members of one species tended to trust another of their own better than one of another species. Now all they needed was her consent.

[Jaime Keating]

Briar listened to both Winter and Cloti intently, staring each down as they spoke. Both met her eyes as they spoke, and that gave them both points. After they had finished speaking, the woman was silent for another minute, staring down at the ground in front of them. Jaime held his breath as he waited for her to speak, anticipation building as the seconds ticked by.

"If something happens to him..."
Her eyes flicked up from the ground, locking directly with Cloti's.
"I'm holding you personally responsible. You better be true to your promise."

Immediately, excitement coursed through the boy's veins. If she was speaking like that then.... "Then does that mean that you're giving your consent?"
His sister glanced at him, a hesitant smile creeping over her lips, and nodded.
Without any warning, Jaime leapt directly onto the woman, tackling her into a happy hug; both Keatings fell into a jumbled heap on the floor. Laughter rang up from the pile, and Briar began shoving playfully at Jaime. "Okay, okay, I get it! You're happy! Now get off me, Jaime, or I'll take it back!"

The boy pulled away, grinning from ear to ear, and sat back on his knees in front of his sister, who smiled at him as she pulled herself up into a sitting position. For a few seconds, the two stared at each, before Briar suddenly reached forward and grabbed hold of the boy's shoulders, dragging him forward into another hug. "You better be careful out there..." the woman whispered into his ears, and Jaime thought he detected a watery hint in her voice. He pulled away from her, staring at the wet streaks that had made their way down both of her cheeks. "Briar, are you...?"
"No!"
One hand snapped up to swipe the tears away.
Jaime smiled tenderly at his older sister.

"I'll be fine, you know. Cloti and Winter will look after me."
"Yeah, yeah... Well, you should probably go find Tuft. I think I scared him when I threw that vase at you guys." As if on cue, the little Nyeene bellowed happily as he came trotting into the room, covered in dirt. Briar took one look at the creature and immediately growled at him, swatting in his general direction. "You little creetin! You got into my plants again, didn't you? Jaime!"

The boy laughed, standing and picking Tuft up.
Briar stood as well.
Her eyes flicked between the three of them, and then the woman rolled her eyes, placing her hands on her hips and leaning toward them. "Well? You have my consent. Now get out of my house! You're disturbing the peace." All of this was said with a grin, which Jaime returned to her.

"Bye, Briar. I'll come back as soon as I can."
"I'll hold you to that."[/color]

[Little Sparrow]

Briar looked down onto the ground, seeming to contemplate what they were saying. Somehow, Cloti's heart didn't feel the urge to race even though she herself knew the answer. When someone was like that, it meant that their consent was literally given and they had no real choice. They were convinced.

"If something happens to him... I'm holding you personally responsible. You better be true to your promise."

Cloti grinned. She had to close her hand into a fist to stop from, well, showing proof that she was capable of protecting him. Feather and Claw the twin blades seemed to be singing along with her. They had a new recruit, and a healer at that. "Of course." Cloti said, not daring to deepen the promise with her life. Privately, she thought that her life was more important. If the Song had no leader, then it would fall apart. It didn't mean that the promise was any less important.

She made no move to stop the scuffle that Jaime was having with his sister. Let them say goodbye, for the last time in a long time. She didn't mind, they could handle it, being brother and sister, though she wasn't sure if Jaime could be able to handle the initial home-sickness, if he had any anyways. Cloti looked at Winter with an approving, content look in her eyes. Success was always good. She thanked Winter with a blink and a slight nod before turning to brother and sister.

They had gotten up from the wrestle and although Briar's back was towards them, she could tell that from the quick swipe of her arm across her face, a few stray tears must have been able to escape. She made no comment, simply waited for them to calm down, fingering her feathered wristband and sending a silent thanks to Reikuani. They had the goddess's blessing. Hopefully she was on their side as well.

Another bellow interrupted them; it was Tuft. The little Nyeene was covered in dirt. Well, he hadn't been burying into the earth; for the dirt around here was rather dead. No, it had to be the plants that Briar was talking about. As Jaime picked his little companion up, she moved forwards, ready to exit with Jaime and Winter.

"Well? You have my consent. Now get out of my house! You're disturbing the peace."

Cloti couldn't help but smile. "Aye, ma'am." She saluted playfully. Beckoning to Winter and Jaime, she started towards the door. Did she have a spare blindfold with her? No, unfortunately not. Hopefully Winter did; the faster they got to the base, the more reassured she'd be.

[Jaime Keating]

Briar laughed at the playful salute, shooing the three of them out of her house. Once they were all out, the door closed behind them. For a few moments, Jaime stared at the door to his home, and he wondered when he would see it again. A week? A month? A year? More than that?
Jaime had been without his sister before.
When he was younger, Briar had gone off on some adventure (because she had to) with a group of people she had met, leaving her younger brother in the care of some of the Spirit residents. It was around that time that Jaime actually began to study the White Sorcerer magic that he held.

Subconciously, his hand lifted to his chest, feeling the crystal pendant under his clothing.

But, it wasn't time to reminisce.
A smile spread over his face as he turned to look at Cloti and Winter, his smile spreading into a grin. He, Jaime Keating, was a member of the Song of Heroes! Who would have ever thought that was possible? Holding Tuft in both hands against his stomach, the boy tilted his head in his new leaders' (Winter counted in his mind, considering he was second-in-command) direction.

"So, what now?"
Would they take him to the Song's base?
Jeez, he could barely contain his excitement.

[Winter]

Winter stood and bowed to Briar, a vibrant smile crossing his lips. "Thank you miss. I assure you we will do our best to keep him out of harm's way." The changeling straightened and followed after the others, whistling a jaunty tune as he strolled.

They had found a valuable asset today, no doubt about that. And if the boy was anything like his sister they had nothing to worry about. He caught up to Cloti and Jaime and cut off his tune. Most likely they would bring him back to the base and teach him he ways of the Song. "We will just have to see. It's likely we will go to the base."

The boy would also need to learn how to fight, but that could be arranged easily enough. Winter would let the boy bask in his excitement and let him forget the world for a short while. It was the least he could do for recruiting him. The boy could never be the same after working for the Song, at least he should be allowed to have one more day of joy.

For now, they would just follow Cloti. They had a whole day ahead of them, and it seemed to be going splendidly. It was best just to go with the flow.

(Should we just end the thread here?)

[Jaime Keating]

ooc|;;
Sounds good to me.
This looks like a good place. xD

[Little Sparrow]

(( Yep~
Let's. There's no real leads to continue any more.
So this is thread closed? xD ))

[Winter]

Yes, end thread. This is the best ending we're going to get. :3

[Little Sparrow]

(( *hearts siggy*
Even though I made it. xD;;
It's a bit plain. :/ *lazy* ))