[O|Gale] Your Castle

[Kieve Viho]

Getting in was far too easy, Kieve thought as he fiddled with his hair. Considering the students of Sanctuary were the city's last hope, the young man really thought they would better arm themselves against strangers within the compound. It didn't take more than a simple strut to get in though and that was a tad bit disappointing. It was even more disappointing that Royal Blue seemed to think the girl was entirely safe once they entered the school. The elder man had guarded her as if she was his own daughter outside of the place, but once they were in it seemed his work took priority. Or maybe she had fled him of her own will.

No matter the situation, Kieve found himself close to the girl now and she would be a lovely target indeed. Even as they first 'met' Kieve knew that she would be important. That this girl would serve him well in his quest to attain the strongest of the muses' magic. A wayward moment passed as the same haunting thought slipped in Kieve's mind as it had in his last encounter with the girl. A thought he didn't want to give in to, so he pushed it aside instead.

It was just a shame that her magic wouldn't be of use to him, Kieve thought with a slight frown. Her mother's magic was by far more refined than hers, so if he was to take hers it would be like downgrading and that just sounded useless. The young man rolled out of his thoughts and brought his full attention to his surroundings. Just beyond the door she had been studying for hours and it was becoming rather boring just sitting outside waiting for her to move on. It might just be a good time to move the situation along. Llyr would come running the instant he heard what happened and that was exactly what Kieve needed.

A moment passed where he wondered if he was doing the right thing to suit his ends. The moment was short lived as he slipped through the hallway to the door. Kieve's pulse raced as he ever so lightly began to push open the door. She was there. Her head of pale hair was the first think that Kieve noticed and he was suddenly caught in his place. Standing by the door there Kieve almost felt like he was some jittery young man looking at a girl he had a crush on-- but that was ridiculous!

Fists clenched tightly, head foggy, he took a few steps forward. "So then we meet again my dear summer's breeze," Kieve started slowly, trying to sound as all knowing and confident as in their last encounters. "Though this time we meet in one of your places of comfort don't we, muse?" The young man hoped it would have as much effect as he intended.

[Gale Devlin]

Everything felt like it was changing since that first student mentioned wanting to take the Etude. Gale was so unsteady when she had accepted, as thoughts of her mother haunted her almost immediately. It was hard not to dwell on how weary her mother had looked after the Etudes as she flipped through her books. Gale's eyes may have been looking over the text, but she wasn't sure any of it was sinking in.

Focusing only got harder the longer she sat there alone. The silence of the Study Hall was crushing and the books only urged her to think of other things. It seemed the entire city of Symphony was feeling the pressure and even though they could release for a short time with the festival it wasn't enough. It wasn't even a time to relax for Gale with what had happened...

The young girl's fingers ran over her lips lightly as she thought about him. It was all because she snooped on what was happening with Llyr that she continued to have such encounters with that beast. Thief Heart he claimed to be called. It was just another in the line of things that was overwhelming Gale beyond her ability to cope.

Even Llyr noticed that she was acting funny, which was uncomfortable considering Gale usually had the same blank countenance. A frustrated feeling was just beyond her grasp. An angry emotion she hadn't touched upon in such a long time. Such emotions still felt just beyond Gale's capability.

But there wasn't much time to dwell on such things. Even if Gale could fully wrap herself around the emotions she wasn't sure she would allow herself to do it. Responsibility overwhelmed all else. Especially now that she had students and Etudes to get ready for. The book before the young girl suddenly seemed too daunting so she closed it with a sigh.

"This is uncharacteristic," She muttered to herself. "I can't continue this," Gale continued as she pushed the book away. She wanted to give up her quest for information for the day, knowing it would be a lost cause until her mind cleared a little more. And her desire to give up for a short time seemed granted suddenly, though not in the way she would have wished.

His voice sent shivers down her spine. He wasn't supposed to be here. Gale was supposed to be safe here. Her heart seized and she thought about where Llyr might be and while she half wanted him to come running to save her she also knew that part of this was about her being a pawn. This Thief Heart wanted to use her for something, though she wasn't sure what just yet.

"So then you know I am a muse. You also know how to get into the Sanctuary. This is not that astounding you petty thief and I refuse to give you the reaction you want," Gale turned to look at him, wondering why he wasn't closer to her yet. "What could you want this time then?"

[Kieve Viho]

Reactions, no matter how stifled with this girl, were always so very rich. Perhaps it was even better with the girl because of how hard she tried to make sure he didn't see her weaknesses. Kieve opened and closed his fists nervously as he waited for her to turn and face him. Waited to see that perfect face in such restrained turmoil. Oh the emotionless child grappling with feelings she was convinced she didn't have. 'It very well be my fault she became this way. Oh the look in her eyes before...' Kieve couldn't even begin to cover the malicious grin.

The grin dropped the instant he heard her voice though. For some reason she didn't sound as shaken as Kieve wanted her to be. He didn't seem as shaken as he was. The young man's fists clenched tightly as she turned around, continuing to utter things that served only as fodder to his anger. Why was this girl having an adverse affect on him now? When this had started she seemed so shaken by him and yet he now was the one at a disadvantage. This would need to be remedied. Kieve would have to do something to regain his composure. Power over every situation was vital and Kieve refused to lose his to a mere girl.

"Petty thief?" Kieve returned, trying to look hurt (something that was much harder to accomplish just right when half of your face was obscured by a mask). Now was the time to turn the tables, Kieve told himself as he prepared. Slowly the man edged forward a little, trying not to seem too stiff in his movements. Kieve felt like every little detail he didn't have perfect control over was ruining him entirely. Perfectionism at it's best, the masked boy thought bitterly.

The young man stopped when he felt he was close enough to the girl and crossed his arms casually. "You seem to do this to me every time, my dear. We just appear to be getting to the end of our meeting and I think perhaps you might enjoy my company, but alas we must go through this routine every time we meet again. Have I done something offensive?" The usual twist of devious smile came to Kieve's face readily. This was where he was most comfortable. Playing his little games, hiding behind his golden mask.

"I am not here for anything but a bit of your time, just as it was the last time I saw you. Oh you looked rather radiant then," Kieve uttered wistfully, remembering the situation rather clearly. "As you recall then, at the festival, I only had good things to say of you. Your attire was such a surprise. Yet we've touched on this before and there are so many other ways I'd love to flatter you. Like for instance by complimenting your dedication to your studies." Kieve's eyes landed on the book she was reading, wondering what she was studying in the first place.

"Do muses still find need for studies, or are you just a particularly devoted one?" The boy questioned, looking back to his prey. "You see there is so much I don't know about you or your people. I'm rather new to it all. Or perhaps you didn't know that." Kieve played at being somewhat clueless. Curious. Perplexed. Then distraught. "You know so little of me and what I know of you I had to find out on my own. It's such a shame. We could be great."

[Ventus]

Ventus yawned widely as he wandered through the halls and closed his eyes groggily, wiping tears from his eyes. God he was hungry… And tired. But right now mostly hungry. Staying up all night to do homework? What kind of sadistic mind came up with this type of torture? He didn’t even stay up all night training in the Land of Departure, save once. But that had been when he WANTED to! Nowadays it seemed he would have to do all this work because if he didn’t he would be kicked out of the school. He thought school would have been more… fun. Not all this hum-drum.

“Sigh… Well I don’t really have any choice but to buckle down and-“

"Do muses still find need for studies, or are you just a particularly devoted one? You see there is so much I don't know about you or your people. I'm rather new to it all. Or perhaps you didn't know that. You know so little of me and what I know of you I had to find out on my own. It's such a shame. We could be great."

Hm? Weird. He had never heard that voice around the castle before… His stomach rumbled in protest. Who cares who it is? It was time to eat! But Ven ignored the rumbly in his tumbly and peered around the corner. There he saw the source of the mysterious voice. It was… a kid? He had on a golden mask that was shaped like the beak of a bird. His clothes were kinda weird but hey, look at what Ven wearing… But for some reason, while listening to the boy’s voice, Ven started to dislike the guy. He had this snobbish, self-righteous air about him… It reminded him of a certain dark Keyblader…

Not to mention the look on the girl’s face told pretty much the whole story. She was uncomfortable and the boy just kept pressing her. If he had a single polite bone in his body he would have just backed off. But considering the way he neared her, there was no way that was happening anytime soon… Ven’s stomach gave one last pleading growl but he was ignoring it completely now. He walked down the stairs swiftly and stepped between the boy and girl, giving him a steely glare even though he could see no eyes behind the mask.

“You know. It seems to me like the lady isn’t interested. So why don’t you quit bothering her and go back into the hole you crawled out of?”

In all honesty, Ventus was more than surprised by his show of gusto right now. He hadn’t expected to say anything like that at all but hey. It was out in the open. Keeping the glare, he clenched his hands slightly, ready to move in case this guy decided to resort to violence.

[Gale Devlin]

When the young man started talking he seemed just as he always was. Whatever it was that Gale was detecting before, the peculiar feeling surrounding the fact that the boy wasn't already closer to her, wasn't a problem for the boy anymore. The things that he said made Gale's skin crawl. The way that he was so full of himself. So utterly insane in his confidence. Gale hated it.

"Have you done something offensive?" She repeated, "Of course you have. Unless you forget." Gale of course was referring to what happened with Llyr when they first met. She recalled so vividly the fact that the muse had broken his mask in that fight. It was apparent he had backups. Thief Heart continued to speak and Gale had to make a specific effort to not let what he was saying affect her any.

Things got harder when Thief Heart began to recall the festival. Gale felt violated every time the memory arose. If anything, this young man was very good at getting under her skin. She felt a little bit better as he changed topic, but it still bothered her. Bothered? Gale wondered if that was even the proper word for it. She still didn't register feelings just right.

"I study when I see fit," Gale interjected quietly. The way that he was talking about it made it feel like she was doing something wrong, and that was even more uncomfortable. He continued to explain that he didn't know much about muses, but Gale found that hard to believe. The young man had gathered so much information thus far about her and Llyr that it was obviously hard for her to accept him saying such a ridiculous thing.

Then the last thing he uttered hit the young muse. Gale felt like she was suddenly stripped naked in front of this boy. What was he doing and why would he say something like that. "We?" She sputtered. The word felt grotesque and dirty. Just as she was about to say something someone else beat her to the punch.

A student? Gale's heart jumped in her chest. The boy was one that she had seen about before of course, but she had yet to have an Etude with him. Still lowest tier by that logic. "You're a student? You should leave," Gale announced in the steadiest voice she could. If Thief Heart saw her showing weakness now he might take advantage of it. He might harm this boy.

[Kieve Viho]

It still wasn't what he wanted it to be, but he could tell that Gale was at least a little put off. It never got any less entertaining to see that child, proclaimed emotionless, squirm as she did. Resisting was so futile when strong emotions were about. That was something that Kieve would have to teach this girl. Gale could not continue to pretend she didn't feel. No one could. Not even Kieve, the boy thought with a deep set scowl.

The short little clipped bits she managed to sputter out didn't seem very important, so Kieve skipped over them. It might serve to further bother the girl anyway and that was just a plus for the masked boy. For a moment it looked at if Gale was getting ready to say something when- Kieve turned to where he heard the voice coming from. Quite daring of such a meek looking thing, Kieve thought frowning. Gale didn't take long to throw in a little something either.

"I believe he was talking to me, my sweet," The masked boy said smoothly to Gale before turning his attention to the intruder. Kieve noted how ridiculous his attire was before realizing that they all must have been around the same general age. Fighting people his age was always so useless, the green-haired boy thought with a sigh. Teens were still so weak and lacked the experience that would at least entertain Kieve for a while. "Now let me attend to whatever drabble you wanted to go on about child. Something like you were trying to be a knight it shining armor?"

Kieve laughed lightly. "I suggest you know your situation before you go barreling into it. For all you know this beautiful young lady and I could be playing. For all you know I could be a merciless killer," Kieve made a light gesture of dismissal as he mentioned the killer part. Certainly Gale already knew, but this boy did not. Too bad. It seemed everyone was lacking a small bit of information that could change their outlook of the situation. Gale might not even know he was a killed truly unless she remembered the day he drenched himself in her mother's blood.

Oh the memories, Kieve thought with a twisted grin. The masked boy decided there was more he could say so he began to walk over to Gale. He circled behind her and leaned in to wrap his arms around her neck. Things like this were things that she had yet to resist, so he couldn't imagine her trying to do as much now. That entertained him. "Gale here is so dear to me you could never understand. Are you sure you want to get between me and my pet?" As Kieve spoke he leaned in a little more, speaking closely to Gale's ear. It would probably disturb her and that was what Kieve was hoping for.

[Terra]

The Sanctuary.

Something Terra has not visited until just now. Ever since arriving at this new world, all he has done was explored the city. It was about time he visit the school he was suppose to be attending. As he arrived at the gates of the academy, he looked at the huge building and took a deep breath.

"Well here goes nothing."

He entered the building and looked around. Where to go he did not know. However he needed to go somewhere and where better than go straight ahead. An interesting school it was. He has never seen this back in the Land of Departure. He walked pass a cafeteria and stopped to ponder. He thought of getting food but he wasn't really that hungry. But he thought he'll get a snack for later. He walked in and came out with an apple as he tossed it in the air and placed it in his pocket.

Continuing his exploration, he heard voices around the corner as he decided to listen in. Leaning against the wall, he peek around the corner and saw a familiar.

"Ven!", he whispered.

He was about to approach Ven but he seemed to be having with a conversation with a lady and man in a mask. Judging by the mask man's actions he was someone not to be taken lightly. The lady felt uncomfortable around him and Ven was as usual trying to protect her. However this mask man did not fold, rather he mocked him. His last statement towards Ven question his thought about this mask man. Could he really be a merciless killer? He needed to be cautious around this guy, or things would get ugly. He decided to appear casually, nothing to big......yet.

He turned the corner and chuckled as he walked towards Ven. "I see you haven't changed a bit since you arrived here, wouldn't you agree Ven?"

He crossed his arms and looked at the mask man.

"And as for you. What gives you the right to call this lady your pet, huh? I suggest you leave her alone, or things are gonna get ugly."

If he were truly a merciless killer, he would either strike him or rather scold him. Whatever the case may be, he was prepared for anything. Anything to protect his friend, Ven.

[Ventus]

Ven couldn't believe what he was hearing. He had intervened because the woman looked like she had needed help and all he gets from her is being told that he should leave! She was a lot like her... Like Aqua...

"Ven... Then I can't stay here."

"Let me go with you, Aqua!"

"No Ven! Do as I say and go home."

"Why won't you let me...?"

"I don't want to put you in harm's way... You understand?"

Everyone was like that with him... No matter what he did, everyone seemed to think he wasn't competent enough to do anything for himself... Well he was going to prove them wrong, starting with the situation here. He looked back and gave her an apologetic glance. Now that he saw her close up, he recognized her as Gale Devlin, one of the Muses. Might as well slap on insubordination with making threats on his permanent record..

"I'm sorry but... If he is dangerous, I can't just leave you alone with this guy. As for you...

His eyes returned to the masked boy and hardened once more. It was ironic how all of his encounters with a young man wearing a mask always seemed to end with a brawl more than likely ready to ensue. Perhaps he should just stay away from people who wore those accessories... Anyway, now wasn't the time to think about that...

"Yeah, I am going to get between you both, whether you want me to or not! So either leave now or fight! It's your choice!"

"I see you haven't changed a bit since you arrived here, wouldn't you agree Ven?"

That voice... It couldn't be! Ven looked away from the masked boy without a second thought and saw the large frame of one of his best friends!

"Terra!"

He wondered what had taken Terra so long to get here. Dozens of questions flashed through Ventus' mind to ask the man. Did he manage to beat Master Xehanort? Did he know where Aqua was? What about the darkness? Did he manage to overcome it? But he had to put these questions on hold until after he took care of the irritating masked menace. Then Terra began to talk to the boy as well.

"And as for you. What gives you the right to call this lady your pet, huh? I suggest you leave her alone, or things are gonna get ugly."

This was awesome! If he was working together with Terra against this kid, he didn't stand a chance! He returned to the previous cold glare he held before with the boy, waiting to see how he reacted to the drastic turning of the tables.

[Gale Devlin]

Things were getting more complicated by the moment. Gale wasn't sure what she could do, but she knew she had to try her best to prevent the student from getting hurt. Cursing her luck, Gale began trying to think of a way out without including the student. The only thing that really came to mind was giving in to Kieve, and the thought wasn't the smartest out there. Her lack of emotion might mean that she was best suited for martyrdom in the situation.

"It's not your choice if you leave me with him or not," Gale started sternly. "I'm demanding you do, lest you find yourself in detention later. This is my problem and..." Her voice trailed off as she noticed another student finding his way into the picture. Unfortunate and potentially frustrating, Gale thought with her empty expression.

The students seemed to know each other and both seemed to have a hero oriented drive. It was extremely unhelpful for the situation, but the muse supposed it couldn't be avoided now. Things would boil down into a fight and Gale would have to heal the students if they got hurt, which she felt they very well could considering Thief Heart once battled with Llyr on what seemed like even ground. The girl looked to the students to try and size them up.

"You both need to leave now. Please," Gale pleaded, probably uselessly. It wasn't like her to do such a thing, but she didn't feel good about others coming face to face with Thief Heart. Something about the boy threw her off more than anyone else and she wasn't sure if it was just because she knew he was dangerous or... No other feelings made sense to the child. Gale still wasn't good with her emotions or anyone else's for that matter.

"This isn't about them Thief Heart so just leave them out of things."

[Sorry this isn't so good. I can't seem to post very well lately but I wanted to keep this thread moving.]

[Kieve Viho]

The boy made his decision quicker than Kieve would have imagined and he suppose he owed a bit of respect to the little thing. It was unusual for such a weakling to so quickly decide to stick up for someone, it was just too bad for them it was Kieve against him. In the end it didn't matter who was standing up against him or how much begrudging respect he was dishing out to them, Kieve would destroy whoever got in his way. It was just as he was about to say something however that another person decided to edge their way into the matter.

Kieve did not make any efforts any longer to contain his distaste for all of it. He supposed it was fine when it was just one wimpy little boy telling him no, but when another student decided to try and step in he was reaching the end of his tolerance. The students clearly did not understand the danger of the situation and it was unlikely that they would considering they both seemed so keen on being saviors.

"Well then, it seems two want to get in my way. That's quite alright with me, it just means I have more pins to knock down," His cruel voice was cold and unfeeling. Perhaps before he would have continued to play his little games and speak in that particular tone of voice, but now he was simply done playing. "I shall do as I like with this woman and neither of you will be able to stop me. Now let's see how fast we can get this over with."

It didn't take more than a moment for Soul, Kieve's weapon, to be in his hands at the ready. The young man was about ready to start the fight when his little gust decided to stick up for the pathetic creatures, which was a bother as well. The way that she stuck up for them was in true muse spirit, which he supposed was the way things would have to be. If she could get them to leave with just her words he supposed it didn't matter to him at all, so long as she didn't think she could get away from him.

Once she was finished she addressed him and, with his free arm, he pulled her close. Hand running along her jawline he said sternly, "Well you heard her boys. You can leave now and I suppose I can forget this ever happened. I can just imagine how happy that would make your dear teacher, and me." It was hard not to smirk and push on the matter. Messing with others would probably never be any less addicting to the young man.

[Terra]

As much as he wanted to catch up with Ven, there were other things Terra had to worry about. His attention was focused on the masked boy. He seemed like a cynical person, who needed to be taught a lesson. As much as the teach tried to plead with him to leave, he wouldn't take no for an answer. It just didn't feel right leaving her alone with this guy. It was his duty to protect people from bad people, no matter what the cause. He glance over to her and shook his head.

"Sorry no can do. Put me in detention if you want, but I'm not leaving you with this guy. And I'm sure my friend here would say the same."

Listening to her plead with the masked boy, he heard that his name was the Thief Heart. Maybe it was a nickname or something. Either way, he didn't like the sound of that. Did he actually steal hearts? Terra couldn't help but think about that moment, when he lost his heart to that treacherous Master Xehanort. He experienced it once, and he didn't want anyone to go through what he has been through. He was all talk, gloating how they won't be able to stop him. Terra stared down this "Thief Heart" with determination to take this guy down.

"We'll see about that."

Just then, the masked boy summoned out his weapon, as he was getting ready to fight. Seeing his weapon, Terra flick his wrist, data appeared forming the shape of his keyblade. It then turned into cube, which finally manifest into his keyblade, End's of the Earth. He swung it back and got into his battle stance.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but we're not going anywhere.

He looked over to Ven and nodded at him.

"Just like old times huh?"

He gave a quick smiled to Ven and quickly turned his attention back to the masked boy as the smile disappeared and replaced by a serious look. It was time to see if he still had it in to keep the darkness in check, and beat this guy with the help of Ven.