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Post by Angel ♥ on Jan 28, 2009 10:10:03 GMT -5
Rory looked at Phoenix in disbelief as he said that they were going to jump. JUMP? With the cart still moving? Oh, that didn't sound like a good idea at all. Maybe it would be easy for Phoenix, but it certainly wouldn't be for her. She wouldn't be surprised if she ended up laid flat on her face in the middle of the road, not sure how she could land properly when the cart was moving, even though it was only moving slowly. Her grip on his hand tightened as she moved to stand with him at the edge of the cart, frowing to herself as she watched the road appear from under the cart before moving to join the rest of the landscape. "Alright...if you promise that you will catch me." She nodded to him slowly. He had always caught her when he promised to, so she knew that he would now.
She pouted at him as he flashed her that grin, as if she knew that it meant trouble, before pressing her eyes closed as they jumped, her grip on his hand tightening even more. She wasn't was well balanced as the thief as she landed, the only thing that kept her on her feet was Phoenix's hand on her shoulder, the Princess stumbling forward before being stopped by him. The blisters on her feet sent a jolt of pain up to her as she landed as well, grimacing as she felt them squash, rather sure that one of them popped. She took a moment to get used to the ground being still again before straightening up and smoothing her dress out. She seemed rather shaken by the jump, and her heart was still pounding in her chest.
She slowly turned her gaze up to him, narrowing her eyes at him ever so slightly. "I would rather not do that again Phoenix." She told him with a nod before turning to look over her shoulde at the cart and watch it trundle away towards the town. "Though, at least we don't have much walking to do...that is one bonus."
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Post by Vyncent Schwarz on Jan 29, 2009 13:50:05 GMT -5
"Sorry, but you gotta admit that it got the heart racing, right?" he threw her a dashing grin and winked, that look on his face that said 'you can't be mad at me, can you? Look, I'm smiling, so you can't be mad at me!' as he glanced down at her and set her on her feet, making sure she wouldn't fall. "And you're right, we don't have much walking to do at all now." he shrugged, brushing his hair out of his face and craning his neck to look up at Angel's Peak which was looming over them by now, before starting to walk towards it, keeping to one side of the road so that any carts that passed wouldn't accidentally run them down or anything like that. He was humming lightly to himself as he walked, one hand resting in his pockets and the sun catching his hair; Phoenix was in an admittedly more carefree mood now, he must be cheering up now that they were further away from Cressa!
The cart they'd jumped from had already trundled into the village below Angel's Peak, currently bathed in light because of the afternoon position of the sun. It really was a busy little cross-roads town, and other carts, carriages and travellers were easily visible setting out along the roads which stemmed away from the Peak; some were heading back towards Cressa, some off into the countryside, some into the grey, foggy mountains and others towards the tangle of forest a little to their right. Phoenix couldn't help but wonder which way Ilyria led - he didn't know yet what direction the Avalan-Marmosian border lay in, but he gathered that they could always find that out in the village, right?
Soon the hum of voices surrounded them as they neared the town, and Phoenix smiled. This was just what he liked, what he was used to. A busy marketplace, the buzz of voices, the endless traffic of people and carts alike... he could get used to it here, if they weren't moving on so quickly. But at least they got to climb the peak. "I'll ask about Ilyria first, alright Rory? And then we'll climb the peak... is that okay with you?" he smiled to her.
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Post by Angel ♥ on Jan 29, 2009 15:20:22 GMT -5
"Well...yes, my heart is racing, but I don't think that it is racing in a good way." She pouted at him lightly, though her pout disappeared as she looked up at him. Ugh, it was impossible to be even a little bit angry when he looked at her like that, the thief really did know how to get himself of out trouble, didn't he? Not that he ever really gave her any reason to be even a little bit angry at him. Phoenix was considerate and always checking to make sure that she was alright, why would she need to be angry with him? She doubted that Phoenix would ever do anything really angry, though it had to be remembered that it was rather difficult to actually make Rory angry. It was easy to annoy her, but that annoyance hardly ever turned into anger.
"Angel's Peak looks even bigger from here." She murmured as she looked up at the large lump of rock. She knew that it was irrational, but as she looked up at it all she could imagine was the gigantic structure falling down on them and crushing them. It had been there for hundred of years, she just needed to remind herself of that. No matter how precarious it looked it had lasted for a very long time before they had arrived, and she was sure that it would refrain from collapsing in the few days that they would be there. If people climbed up there it must be secure, right?
She glanced to Phoenix as he spoke again, tearing her gaze away from the natural monument which loomed over them. "Alright then, sounds like a good idea." She nodded to him before turning to look ahead of them. The town was busier than she had expected. It was only small, and it was in the middle of nowhere, though she guessed that it's location was one of it's biggest advantages. Because it was in the middle of nowhere and laid between Cressa and Ilyria, most people would stop here for supplies and a rest before completing their journey. "I never expected there to be so many people here." She murmured and smiled. She quite liked it being busy, it made her feel less exposed.
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Post by Vyncent Schwarz on Feb 4, 2009 6:19:35 GMT -5
"It's a crossroads town." he smiled and nodded to her as they walked into the throng of people, Phoenix moving between them rather easily; he was used to crowds, he loved them... that and people were less likely to notice his quick hands when they were brushing past him in a rush. "Whether you're coming from Cressa, Ilyria or any of the smaller towns in between, this is like an oasis in a desert..." he glanced over his shoulder to her, offering her his hand so that she didn't get caught up in the bustle of the market, the travellers and the potential climbers and swept off into the fray. He knew what he was looking for, luckily, and Phoenix had to admit that it was rather unusual for him to even consider seeking out a guard and asking for help when he and the law had such a volatile relationship... but for once he was a civilian, not a villain, right?
The thief found what he was looking for soon enough, offering a bright smile to Rory before seeking out the guard currently standing next to a market stall, seeming more interested in the girl running in it that any of the wares; he looked as though he might have been from Ilyria from the elaborate uniform, shades of Marmosian culture apparent from his soldier-like appearance, his straight back and confident, outspoken speech, even if his accent was clearly Avalan. Phoenix approached him just as he stepped back from the stall, offering a light smile in greeting. The guard, despite his attitude seemed courteous and polite enough, and the two were soon caught up in a conversation. Phoenix was like a shape-shifter when it came to talking to people; he was anything you wanted him to be, the dashing rogue, the friend you could lean on, the reliable, upstanding citizen.
After a minute or so, with a light wave, he led them off again, further into the city. "There's a big entourage of carts and carriages bound for Ilyria leaving tonight." he told her cheerfully, "He said that if we were lucky we'd be able to hitch a lift from one of them. Surprisin', how cooperative guards can be when you tell 'em how to get a market stall girl to like you." he smirked, glancing around at the people on their sides with interest. "And there's s'posed to be a place that we can drop off our bags while we climb the Peak, so we don't get tired... you see it anywhere?" he frowned, puzzled.
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Post by Angel ♥ on Feb 4, 2009 9:22:37 GMT -5
Rory reached out to take his hand as he offered it to her, not wanting to get lost in the crowd in a strange town. It would have been bad enough to lose him in Cressa, but if she got separted from him out here she would just panic, which wouldn't help the situation. She followed him as he lead them through the crowd, darting between people, careful not to get in anyone's way. She also had one hand resting over her bag, as though being around Phoenix had taught her just how easy it was to steal things, and she didn't want to fall victim to some light fingered thief. Not that she had anything particularly worth stealing, all she had with her was her clothing, her 'Princess tools' and a little food taken from breakfast this morning.
She did seem rather startled as she realised that Phoenix was leading them towards a guard, scowling ever so slightly as she glanced to Phoenix. Oh, he must be mad. What if her father had sent out a warning about Phoenix and given his description to guards outside of Cressa? If the guard recognised Phoenix they could both be heading back to Cressa before night fell. The Princess was, admittedly, surprised as the guard chatted with Phoenix without any hints of suspicion in his eyes; maybe they really were safe outside of Cressa. Avalas was a large kingdom afterall, they had a lot of places where they could hide and lots of people to mingle in with.
"More carts? At least it is better than walking...and we can sleep on the carts rather than paying for a room tonight." She smiled brightly and nodded in agreement with him as they moved away from the guard, rolling her eyes at him a little at his second comment; men were strange sometimes. "Somewhere to leave our bags? Hmmm..." She trailed off as her gaze darted around, flashing purple in the light. "Oh, there?" She asked, pointing over towards a blue flag with a crude representation of Angel's Peak sewn onto it. The flag was next to what looked to be a windowless hut with a barred door, a wealthy looking man leaning against the wooden wall of the hut swinging jingling keys around his fingers as he called to the crowds. "Just three brozen pieces! Fully secure! Who wants to be carting heavy bags up to the top of our magnificent Angel's Peak?"
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Post by Vyncent Schwarz on Feb 4, 2009 14:55:58 GMT -5
"Mmhm, we'll be cutting our journey time in half too, considering we'll be travellin' while we sleep." he smiled to her and nodded, following her gaze to the man with the blue flag, tilting his head. "Alright, let's drop everything off and then we'll climb this thing." he chuckled, walking towards the hut and using his free hand to lift six bronze pieces from his pocket. It was better not to ask where he'd gotten these from considering they'd been pretty broke when they'd left Avangarde, but at least he made sure that they never needed anything, right? Handing the coins to the wealthy man at the entrance of the hut, he lifted his bag from his shoulder and handed that over too, stepping lightly to the side to allow Rory to do the same.
His eyes flitted around the people as he waited, looking curious; he'd kept a hand on his bag as they'd walked as well, but he was almost certain there were no real thieves in the area right now besides himself. They had a certain look about them, thieves, one that others in the profession could recognise. His eyes soon found the guard again and he smirked - the girl from the stall had just finished for the day by the look of it, and was now arm and arm with him. He hadn't noticed at all that it could be dangerous to talk to a guard. He doubted her father would have sent a wide scale warning about him, his daughter was meant to have been whisked off to Marmosia, there'd be no reason to suspect that he was part of it. For now, anyway.
"So, how long do you think it'll take for us to climb this thing?" he smirked to Rory as he folded his arms and craned his neck up to look at the towering Angel's Peak above them, sunlight dancing around the perimeter, outlining it and making it look even bigger. "Five, ten minutes, tops?" he chuckled, brushing his hair out of his face and tilting his head. Phoenix loved heights, and to be honest he couldn't wait to start climbing. He'd heard a little about Angel's Peak from the slums, and it was hard to believe that he was right here, seeing it.
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Post by Angel ♥ on Feb 4, 2009 15:34:11 GMT -5
"I suppose that I won't miss too much sleeping while we travel. I expect that the countryside is practically the same for miles and miles around here, just field after field of crops and grass." She nodded slowly, almost as though trying to convince herself of that. At least sleeping while they were travelling meant that they would have more time to spend exploring the city, and she was certain that there would be to see in Ilyria. But first, there was Angel's Peak to climb so that they could see the view from up there for themselves. The man smiled to Phoenix polietly as he handed him the coins and the bags, handing Phoenix two stones with little white symbols painted on them. "You need to keep hold of those so that you get the right bags back when you come back." He nodded to them, smiling to Rory as she handed him her bag as well. "Without those you can't have the bags back, so, like I said, keep them safe." He explained, disappearing for a moment to stow their bags away before appearing again. "Have fun climbing, the view from up there really is breathtaking." He assured them. "Ten minutes?" She laughed at him lightly and shook her head. "Never. I would say somewhere between half an hour to an hour...as long as it's still light when we reach the top I don't mind." She shrugged to him, letting her gaze stray to the top most tip of Angel's Peak, seeming to be trying to pick out a way to get up there before looking to Phoenix. "Come on then, let's go." She nodded and smiled excitedly, putting her hand into his as she started walking.
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Post by Vyncent Schwarz on Feb 4, 2009 16:06:33 GMT -5
Phoenix nodded a little and tucked the little stones into one of the pockets in his waist-coat, smiling brightly to the man as Rory started to lead them away again. "Alright. Wish us luck!" he chuckled, moving to walk with her and give the Peak his full attention. By the looks of things there was a specific trail for those who were unsure about their climbing ability, and the rest were left to simply find their own way. He found himself wondering whether anyone had ever fallen and if it was actually safe to climb up there (he didn't really care about his own well-being, but if anything happened to Rory then he didn't think he'd ever be able to forgive himself). But after examining the Peak a little more while they walked around from the town towards its base he came to the conclusion that it must be safe, or people wouldn't climb it so often.
And the slant upwards to the top of the Peak wasn't as smooth as he'd first thought, there were hundreds of footholds, ledges and even places people had built specifically for others to rest along the way... the view must REALLY be breathtaking, then. "Bah, I still reckon we'll be at the top in ten minutes." he flashed her a grin as he looked up at the top of the Peak all that distance away, "Either way, I think it'll still be light by the time we get there. Maybe not by the time we get back from the top, but that's alright." he smiled, leading them to where everyone else appeared to be starting the climb. "You want to take the trail or go it without help?" he asked her with a laugh, already having half guessed which one she would choose.
From his experience Rory didn't seem the type to light heights all that much, although that might have actually been because the only time he'd seen her around them was when he was catching her from a rooftop or doing something equally as dangerous. They really had done some odd things in the last few months, hadn't they?
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Post by Angel ♥ on Feb 5, 2009 6:04:07 GMT -5
Rory didn't look particularly confident as she studied the way to the top, rather glad for the mutiple ledges on the way up. She would just have to try to remember not to look down and not to painic. If she panicked then she would end up stuck on a ledge half way up refusing to go either up or down, and she doubted that Phoenix would be able to catch her if she jumped. It couldn't be too difficult to climb up there anyway, with how famous it was and how many people had climbed up there in the past she was sure that it must be at least do-able, if not challenging. There were enough footholds, natural or otherwise, so picking out a way to the top should be easy enough, she just hoped that she didn't run out of energy.
"It is only early afternoon, I would hope that we are up there before it get's dark." She smiled to him and nodded. At his second question she tilted her head at him, as if to ask if he really needed to ask that question. "The trial. I don't want to get stuck clinging to the wall half way to the top and have no way further up." She nodded, brushing her hair back from her face as she looked up at the trail again, as though to check that there were footholds that went all the way to the top. It looked safe enough, as long as she didn't let go she shouldn't fall.
Heights? Rory didn't mind heights. Her balcony at home had been rather hight up and the tree that she had used to hide in was tall. No, she was more scared of falling, or jumping. Jumping down from a high place wasn't exactly a nice experience, but at least every time she had done it Phoenix had caught her.
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Post by Vyncent Schwarz on Feb 5, 2009 6:36:57 GMT -5
"We'll get up there in no time." he grinned to her and stretched as he glanced to where the trail began. Only a few people were actually using the trail, although Phoenix could guess that they majority of people who visited Angel's Peak either visited with the intent of just passing through, or came there specifically to climb the thing. He smirked over his shoulder at her as he wandered to the beginning of the trail, slipping his hand out of hers so he could climb better. "You wouldn't end up getting stuck, Rory. I'd have to swoop in and save you if you were left clinging to the wall." he chuckled and threw her that dashing smile of his, brushing past the first of the blue flags that signalled a rest point on the trail. He didn't really think he'd find the climb that difficult after scaling buildings and dashing over rooftops, but he'd be willing to slow down for Rory.
"I think there are places like this all the way up, so if you feel tired or anything we can rest there whenever you want." he smiled to her as they stepped onto the first incline of the trail, stepping around large boulders to weave his way up to the top of the Peak. "So just look for the blue flag if you feel like you need a break, 'kay?" he murmured, stretching as they began to walk. He still figured that, with the help of the trail it'd only be early evening at the very latest when they reached the top of the Peak. He wanted it to be light when they got there, just because the view would have been better. But then being able to say that they'd climbed it would be acceptable, whether they got to see from the top or not, right?
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Post by Angel ♥ on Feb 5, 2009 6:58:15 GMT -5
"I will be relying on you to swoop in and save me when I get stuck." She smiled to him, not quite sure how he would save her, but she was sure that Phoenix would find a way. One thing was for sure, he wouldn't leave her stranded, which was comforting to know. She just...didn't know what would happen if Phoenix got stuck, though she doubted that would happen. He seemed experienced enough at climbing around; he had even scaled the wall up to her balcony back at the palace, which couldn't have been an easy task. She would just have to trust his climbing skills for both their sakes, if she didn't she wouldn't dare even attempt climbing up to the top of Angel's Peak.
She moved to follow him as he stepped up the first incline, skirting around the boulders. She hoped that her feet wouldn't start hurting too bad, she could already feel a dull, throbbing pain in her blisters, but hopefully they would make it to the top before she experience too much disconfort. If not then they would just have to take advantage of one of those resting points. "Alright, those flags are easy enough to see if I get tired." She nodded to him, keeping her gaze on where she was walking now to prevent her from tripping up over the scattered rocks.
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Post by Vyncent Schwarz on Feb 5, 2009 7:27:45 GMT -5
Phoenix had found the way up to the top of Peak fairly easy going, to be honest; it wasn't that steep, and the trail had been built for the needs of anyone, whether they could climb or whether they needed a little help along the way. The rest points had been consistent, never too far away from where they were climbing, but by the time they got to the top it was just reaching sunset, and Phoenix got the impression that Rory might have found it a little difficult. He couldn't blame her though, could he? With the blisters she'd had when they'd set off from Avangarde, clambering all over a rock can't have been too good for her. They would have to make sure that for a few days, at least, they didn't end up in a place where there was a giant monument for them to climb.
"I think that's the top..." he turned to look over his shoulder as he pointed to a few feet above them, where the Peak levelled off so that people could stand and look out at the plains around them. He smiled lightly down to her, taking only a few minutes to clamber up to the top before glancing down to offer her his hand and help pull her up alongside him. A light breeze was rushing through the air, and the sun was beginning to sink down below the horizon by now. It wasn't dark, so they were still pretty lucky, even if it had taken them a little longer to get to the top because of Rory's blisters. But in a way he didn't mind that, because it meant there weren't many people left climbing the Peak, and it wasn't as busy. Besides, what better view to have of the thing than at sun-set, right?
"You've gotta see it up here, Rory." he beamed down at her, amber light playing through his hair and lighting up his face, "All the time we spent climbin' this thing is more than worth it, I promise." the thief seemed pretty excitable really, so it must have impressed him, at least.
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Post by Angel ♥ on Feb 5, 2009 8:43:38 GMT -5
Rory's expedition up to the top hadn't been particularly easy. The blisters on her feet were killing her now. She was sure that more than one of them had burst, and every time she put a foot down she felt a new flash of pain, even when she was sat down her feet ached. She was trying not to let it show though, not wanting Phoenix to suggest that they turned back before they got to the top; she had come this far, she refused to give up now! All that aside, relief flashed in her eyes as he pointed out their goal, glad that it was so close. Finally! She had thought that they would never get to the top! This view had better be worth the climb, she was sure that it would be. At least they could say that they had climbed all the way to the top and seen the view for themselves.
She smiled to Phoenix, reaching up to take his hand as he offered it to her, letting him tug her up onto the flat ground. However, her gaze lingered on Phoenix for a long moment instead of turning to the view. His hair looked as though it were on fire in the light of the sunset, the colour even more vibrant than usual. She wasn't sure why he held her attention like that in that moment, he just looked...different for some reason. He looked like the hero out of a fairytale; he was dashing and handsome and brave and everything else that all those hero's in the books were like, and in that moment she was oblivious to any of his flaws.
It was the sound of his voice that pulled her from her thoughts, her cheeks colouring as she swiftly looked away from him and let her gaze move to the view that they had come up here to see. "Wow." She breathed, the warm light making her eyes glimmer. They were surrounded by miles and miles of fields which created a patchwork of different greens, broken here and there by winding paths. In the other direction Ilyria rose up from the fields. It wasn't as big as Cressa, but even from here you could see that it was better planned and all the buildings seemed to match. It was dominated by the white tower that rose in the middle of the city, the walls looking almost orange in the light. However, the most spectacular sight was the sky. It was washed with the most amazin coloures. Bright red fading down to orange, then pale yellow...and close to the horizon it almost looked to be a greenish colour, the golden orb of the sun just sinking down under the horizon to let night fall.
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Post by Vyncent Schwarz on Feb 5, 2009 9:25:08 GMT -5
Phoenix was gazing down at the sprawling landscape below him with an excitable glimmer in his eyes, pushing his bangs out of his face as they were ruffled up by the breeze. He seemed vaguely puzzled as he glanced over to her, having caught her blush but choosing not to comment on it right now. Was... did that happen because of him? He automatically glanced down at himself as if to make sure he hadn't done anything overly flirtatious without noticing, but he was just... standing there, really. He smiled faintly; Rory always looked spectacular to him, even if he could only ever be her friend. Phoenix had seen God knows how many women in his life-time, but none of them even came close to Rory, her beauty or her personality; not that he'd ever tell her that. He doubted anything would come of it anyway, considering Phoenix's aversion to commitment of any kind.
He turned his gaze out to the view again after a while, acting as though he'd not noticed what had happened, letting his eyes find the bright tower of Ilyria. It really didn't look that far away from here, but then when you were above everything else he guessed things looked closer, you got to see them from a different light. Although it wasn't that which caught his attention the most but the sky, the thief tilting his head back to look up at the array of colours which dazzled the horizon, sighing softly to himself. He didn't think that anyone could come up here and not be inspired or humbled, and it was certainly called the Angel's Peak for a reason. Doubly so, because Phoenix was pretty certain that he'd come to the top of the Peak with an angel, but he refused to let his thoughts wander down that route again.
"It's like nothing I've ever seen..." he murmured eventually, smiling and gazing across at her, "I'm glad we came up here... you said you wanted to see the world, right?" he rested one hand in his pockets, "I think this is a pretty good start to seein' it all, anyway." he nodded as the sun sunk lower into the horizon, and darkness began to fall. "I think we should turn back now though, or we might miss that cart to Ilyria." he glanced across the top of the Peak to a blue flag which led a to a safe, easy trail back to the base. "You ready? Or do you wanna stay a little longer...?"
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Post by Angel ♥ on Feb 5, 2009 10:25:00 GMT -5
Rory, spectactular? She would never go as far as to say that. She knew that she was pretty, not even she could deny that, but she would never have thought that she were any prettier than any other woman. She didn't think that she was the most interesting of people either, and she knew all too well that her personality was flawed, far too flawed for anyone to think that it made her better than anyone else. Then again, that was just the type of person she wasn, wasn't it? She was modest, and she wouldn't want to put anyone else down to make herself feel good, she preferred to see the best in everyone else and view every person as an individual rather than comparing them to herself.
A light breeze stirred her hair as she watched the sun sink down below the horizon, finally letting the curtain of dark begin to fall over the land. She could see where the rock had got it's name from, it was easy to imagine creatures like angels when you were surrounded by such a view. Just like when they had looked down at Cressa from that hill, it made you feel small looking around, making you realise just how big the world really was in comparison to you. There was so much more to the world than what she knew, and standing up there just made her more determined to see as much of the world as possible before they went back to Cressa; this was the one chance that she had to explore the world, and she was going to make the most of it.
"I think that this is the best start to seeing the world. Up here it feels like you can see the whole world." She told him with a bright smile, finally letting her gaze move away from him and return to Phoenix. She nodded slowly as he suggested going back down. "Yes, hopefully we can get to the bottom before it's fully dark. It shouldn't take as long to get back down...I wouldn't have thought so anyway."
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