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Frozen Memories


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    Rumors were whispered that she would find them here, the siblings separated from her side, brothers that hardly uttered a farewell in their departure to the North. Long before such came to pass, was she told not to pursue, to not walk down the path of bloodshed and danger --yet such words fell upon deaf ears. She was to be a lady, a scholarly sort, under the tutelage of her Father. Ah, their words fell to deaf ears, for even after they left, after the death of the eldest Marcelloix,  For some time now, she sought to know the history of her line, to understand why her small world came undone before Calamity claimed the lives of those she cared for soon after. She fought creatures, strengthened her bow arm and took every gil she had to go on her own exploration across the realm of Eorzea. 

 

     Without speaking her agenda to another soul, Rivienne took it upon herself to find the answers in a land not united among the three-states; it is where the Holy See ruled them, mind, spirit and heart. Behind her, she left others with little to go on about her whereabouts, just that she had personal business to attend to. Her friends, nor her brothers, must know her whereabouts. The Elezen took it upon herself to cut short her lustrous tresses and tint them a different hue. She kept a hood low to conceal eyes of gold, which glittered from behind the cool shadow of her disguise. Clutched in one hand, the leather reins keeping Avenger steady, the other, a rosary carried from mother to older brother that bears a leaf, and behind it, the three spears of Halone .. engraved.

 

     Bitter cold nipped and prickled at the back of her neck; her cheeks captured every crystalline snowflake that fell from the clouded heavens above. Not once had she experienced such a plummet in temperature and, unfortunately, she was ill-prepared for the long trip through this Coerthas and her mountainous terrain. Treacherous with creatures never before seen by her, it was an exciting venture, especially with the ingredient of danger put into this suicidal cocktail. The winds howled into her ears and whispered of the potential threat of dragons ahead, yet she ignored the caution of the current and guided Avenger forth until a settlement came into view behind the curtain of flurries. To think, this land, before Calamity, was as lush as her beloved home. That this was Ishgard.

 

    Was it a mistake to have come so far? To travel alone, with her weary companion, to through these snow-capped hills and frozen valleys? Only to arrive at this Observatorium to be declined entry, even if it was to give her Chocobo rest?

 

[align=center]Nay.[/align]

 

    They looked down to her, this unbeliever, with cold eyes and did not easily welcome her to their equally, frigid, hearts. These xenophobic, sentry knights, merely saw one who was placed on the same level as their heretics.. in their eyes, she was merely a foreigner coming to meddle in their affairs. They turned their cheeks until she revealed the rosary dancing betwixt tired, cold fingers. Quickly did their tune change and she was accepted to come in, though under a scrutinizing gaze of the armored Elezen that watched her walk past the threshold and toward the stables, where she offered trade with the keeper there for some warming balm to keep Avenger from frostbite. Rivienne's body shuddered violently against the onslaught of the winds, but she ignored such need for warmth for the sake of her companion being tended to.

 

     Her hair whipped against her flushed cheeks, the snow left her attire wet and uncomfortable; the knights could see, plain as day, she was not from their frigid lands. Sympathy, however, was lost in their eyes, all except one, who welcomed her within one of the shelters to give her a moment's reprieve. By the hearth, her limbs gained life once more from their frozen state. She was able to dry her clothes and was given a moment to take a meal. 

 

    However, her stay did not come without a price . . she was to assist in tasks outside, against the chilling winds of their winter wonderland. Against the plea of her body, the Elezen, wearing light attire, went against the might of the element and did what she was asked. But even she has a breaking point, and upon the moment she was going to inquire about the rosary she carried, commotion had stirred about parcels carrying Draconian ones! What little knowledge she had about the dragons came from talk between the sentries that she happened to stumble into. They were fervent in their beliefs that this belonged to the weakened house ..Haillenarte. It was his rose crest that pegged him as the heretic.


 

[ to be continued ]

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    The affairs of others were usually kept at arm's length, she wanted little involvement, yet, she found herself in the center of controversy. This time, it was the same as before - in order to achieve her goals, she had to sacrifice time and assist others in hopes that their hearts would soften to her plight. With the talk of a potential heretic in the air, it seems that her request for help would be ignored. She was going to drown in this tidal wave of political hostility, but it could not be ignored - she was already being pulled into this rip current without a way to break free. Already did the eyes settle upon her person, for a weary knight had his gaze focused solely on Rivienne, as if she held the key to help with this distressing turn of events.

 

She longed to be elsewhere at the moment.

 

    Before a word could be uttered in protest, already she was reined into assisting him. The draft, of cool air, sunk into her light leathers as this knight guides her back outside-- she already missed the warmth of the fire. He was convinced that such accusations on House Haillernate were all a farce, for never had Lord Francel performed an act of heresy. He urged for the huntress to speak of the flower edelweiss to Lord Francel, and he will know to trust her words. Thus, her involvement with the noblesse formally began. 

 

    To the Skyfire Locks she went with Avenger facing the onslaught of snow that made visibility difficult; the snow caused her chocobo to shudder. Every vibration made by him caused a pain of sympathy to run its course through her; she promised him that he would be fed heaps of gysahls upon their return to more temperate climates. Perhaps she promised too soon, for this dilemma goes deeper than what she anticipated would be a simple delivery of ill-news. The secret word was spoken, but that did little in helping her further along with her own personal mission, nay, Lord Francel could offer no assistance for he feared that already his House was put in jeopardy for the acts of corruption brought upon him.

 

    He inspected the rosary she had presented him with, not the Draconian, but the one she worn around her neck for years now. Peculiar item it was, and though he offered little to go on, a name was whispered to her, another one of the four major Houses. Oh, she was growing tired of nobility already. This Lord Haurchefant, of House Fortemps, was to receive a missive from Francel, introducing her, along with the minute details of what was taking place beyond the gates of Camp Dragonhead. Again, she was cast to the cold and pointed to the North, where a dark fort stood solitary against the canvas of white.

 

    The weather worked against her, constantly retaliating with flogging winds that sent her hood back a few times, exposing her visage to the fury of the currents. Her lips dried minutes of being out as she encouraged her companion forward; Avenger would not yield so easily until they were in the comfort of being surrounded by four walls again. After what felt like long hours in the cold, they were greeted by knights, though these had a different view of the traveler, for not frigidness could be seen in their gaze and they easily welcomed her, a far better introduction than previously. 

 

    Avenger was passed along to a stable-hand, who guaranteed that he would be taken care of and, without missing a beat, Rivienne made her way where it was said Lord Haurchefant sat in wait.

 


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    His steely gaze locked unto her own and the Elezen, a gallant Lord with a grim expression, was no other than Haurchefant himself. For the first time, Rivienne's feet were planted on the ground and her limbs stiffened in place. It was not his glare that caught her off-guard, for she was getting used to such from most of the sentries - but the sudden change of expression when she was announced. 

 

"It is rather warm here," the accented voice spilled from Rivienne's lips quietly, but it was enough to resonate within the room. Golden eyes did not linger on him for too long; she observed the room and was drawn immediately to the roaring fire. 

 

"Come forth and warm yourself by our hearth," he followed her gaze and soon every motion she made when redirecting herself away from the fireplace to stand before him. A quick sweep of the eyes and he sized up the woman before him, settling his gaze on her bow and quiver full of arrows for a few seconds longer. His eyes sought her own.

 

"There is little time for pleasantries and comforts," Rivienne reached into her satchel and gathered the rolled missive to present to him. She wanted to get this affair over with and continue on with her search, but the serious look he wore, whilst reading, told of a different path she was going to take.

 

"This does not bode well, there has been talk about heretics within the High Houses, but such is probably not of your concern. Tell me of your other reason for an audience."

 

The rosary was presented to him and a perplexed expression crossed his face. He didn't recognize it. Could it be that her brother had not made it this far? The thought caused concern but it melted away when he picks it up and gives it another look over.

 

"I have seen this before. Let me look into this, for the time being, I'd like you to step outside with a few of my knights, watch them train, and I invite you to join them if you will.." He spoke quietly and watched her turn away, though she had a feeling something was amiss --from the way he looked at her upon her leave.

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