Roleplay City
Halflight => HALFLIGHT: Hiding In The Half Light => Library => Topic started by: Fell on May 19, 2007, 06:21:47 AM
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Ravi (in his human form for the moment) pushed open the door to the library, his movements silent out of habit rather than percieved necessity. There was no real reason for him to be here, save for the fact that he wanted to. Books were wonderful things, full of knowledge and enjoyment! He winked at the librarian as he passed, which only elicited a stony look. It always did. There was nothing behind either wink or look anymore, save habit. Ravi approached her desk and paused, placing his hands atop it.
"Have anything new for me?" the air demon asked with a small smile. The librarian often set aside things she thought the buoyant creature would enjoy, and apparently she had recently - at least, that\'s what Ravi guessed, judging by the way she leaned down, smiling a small smile of her own. "Try this. Just got it from England," she said softly, placing a large, leather-bound book on the desk. Ravi looked at it curiously. "Shakespeare?" he asked, glancing up at the librarian. She only nodded, though, before going back to her writing.
Ravi shrugged and picked up the book, moving into one of the reading areas- one with a view of the sky. The demon curled up in one of the large chairs, planning on doing some pleasure reading. Shakespeare, huh? he thought, opening the book curiously. It was all in a language not native to him, but one he\'d learned - and that was far more exciting! Ravi grinned, propping his head up with one hand as he moved quickly through the first play - Love\'s Labours Lost. Light laughter bubbled out of his corner periodically as Ravi read through one of Shakespeare\'s more humorous works, providing a slight disturbance to the terrible monotany that usually afflicted the library.
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(I know this is a bit old... so I hope you don\'t mind. ;p)
Earlier today, Malek\'s tutor informed her out of the blue that she deserved a treat for being so good today... and that treat was to be read some books at the library. He said that he\'ll read the girl some fiction even! Macha wasn\'t that excited about the idea... in fact, she wasn\'t even excited at all but wanting to be in good terms with the tutor, she half-heartedly accepted... but she had to admit, she was somewhat curious what kinda of books her tutor will be reading to her. The last time someone had read to her... was around ten years ago. Oh God, how she missed those days... those days when she was still with the Grandmaster.
Malek left her last class in a hurry, pushing fellow students out of the way and hoping her scholar wouldn\'t catch up to her and ask to \'talk\'. About 10 minutes ago, a boy attempted at taking Cekmek but quick as a flash, Malek grabbed his hand, pulling him forward before punching him in the face then kicking him in the stomach. No one was to touch her swords! Ever! She probably would of beaten the living shit of him if it weren\'t for the students restraining her. The girl shook her head and continued her way to the library... she had to ask a few people for the direction considering she has never been there herself.
After what seemed like forever, the small female reached the entrance to the library, Malek waited for for ten minutes just in case her tutor came but he didn\'t show. The girl sighed then pushed open the door and by god, the smell. It was so different! And it was so quiet! There was the occasional movement... the sound of pages turning... the one or two whispers... but that was about it. This first real time Malek had ever been in such a place and did she like it? No, not all. It made her feel jealous and disappointed but she promised that she would be here, so shrugging, the girl stood and waited for the tutor.
Someone was walking over to the girl, quite loudly too... it was a women.
"Ah hello. Are you the blind girl?"
Malak made a tut sound before answering, her voice cold as ice,
"Yes. I\'m Macha..."
The women hesitated before continuing,
"Ah yes. Macha. Mr Lee said you would be here... he should be here soon. Here, I\'ll take you to a nice area so you can wait for him."
Is she trying to be nice?
Then the women took her by the hand which made Malek absolutely pathetic,
"I can-"
But she was cut off by the women,
"Nonsense! Here. Wait here."
And with that, she pushed Malek into a seat and walked away. Tap tap tap tap went her feet. What annoyed her more, there was someone here... she could hear the him/her breathing... the occasional flicking of pages. Tilting her head to left, her eyes seemed to be staring at the person in front of her... when in fact, Malek could see nothing. She frowned slightly when hearing laughter, she wondered why he laughed but did not ask. This was not the place to start a fight.
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Ravi had been quietly turning pages, enjoying the read immensely, when a librarian led someone - a girl - over. In and of itself, this might not have been odd in the slightest. It was the fact that she had led her by the hand that sparked Ravi\'s interest. Ravi raised an eyebrow at this, smiling slightly. Was she new? But no, she had on a level 5 sash. Ravi didn\'t recognise her, though, so she probably wasn\'t from Purificio.
She was also looking at him through sightless eyes. Ravi lifted his head and stared back, knowing that she probably wouldn\'t know exactly what he was doing. Or maybe she does, the Air Demon allowed, giving a crooked smile to the most likely oblivious girl. Ravi then glanced down at his page, though; he was in the middle of Love\'s Labours Lost, and it was a fairly gripping story. The men had just dawned their Muskovite garb... Ravi\'s eyes moved up to look at the girl across from him again, reflecting an inner debate that Malek couldn\'t see. Book or stranger, book or stranger... Ravi wondered, running his tongue along his canines thoughtfully. He pressed into one a bit, stopping just before he drew blood. It\'s not often you see a blind girl in the library, the Apprentice concluded.
"Hey," Ravi offered quietly, laying a hand on his book. He was more interested in what a blind girl was doing in the library than anthing else at the moment. "Do you come here often?" Thankfully, he had yet to arrive in the time period where that particular phrase was a common, and entirely lame, way of hitting on someone. Ravi wasn\'t trying to hit on her, either. It was mere curiosity and friendliness that drove him to ask.
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I bet he is not even going to show up...
Malek thought bitterly, grinding her teeth. Her tutor had a knack for saying that he will show up and never coming. How he became a tutor, the girl didn\'t know. Her smooth forehead furrowed slightly when she didn\'t hear the soft sound of pages being turned. Was she \'looking\' in his/her general direction? Did he/she assume that Malek was staring at them? The girl coughed uncomfortably and dropped her head, like ones does when ashamed.
A small gasp evaded from her lips when the stranger spoke to her.
Male. Oldish... perhaps early thirties?
The man was being friendly to her but Malek was completely oblivious to it. She wasn\'t used to treated with kindness especially from a student... or perhaps this man, was an Apprentice? Or even a Master! Ah, the horrible faults of being blind.
"...um... hello."
She whispered, uncertainly.
"No... no I don\'t. This is my... first time being here. My tutor wanted to read-I mean, he wanted me to show me some books. He really wants to show me Kitāb \'Alf Layla wa-Layla."
It took her a moment to realise that Malek that said the name of the book in Arabic. Apologising,
"I\'m sorry... I mean One Thousand and One Nights."
Malek didn\'t mention her blindness, she wanted to see if this man was able to tell.
"What about yourself? Do you take your time to come here regularly? What house do you hail from? And what is your name?"
Questions flew out of her mouth out of the blue but who could blame her? The blind were more cautious than those with sight. If she wanted to continue this conversation with this man, she would have to get some decent information out of him.
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Ravi cocked his head to the side, curious about this. She sounded fairly cautious... Can I blame her? She\'s blind, the demon thought, smiling a little bit. Sight was so important to humans... And Ravi *thought* she was human, anyway. But then, the Academy was riddled with things that only looked human. You never know! he thought cheerfully, still eying the girl curiously. When she mentioned her tutor reading her books (presumably; Ravi had finished her sentence in his mind), Ravi\'s idea of her being blind only solidified. Now, he could be fairly sure.
"Kitāb \'Alf Layla wa-Layla, huh?" Ravi asked, chucking. Arabic; he had recognised it. It was one of the languages he\'d learned from Faris. After all, it was his Master\'s native tongue. "It\'s a good book. I\'m sure you\'ll like it." Ravi probably would have said more, but the girl assailed him with questions almost immediately after he spoke. "Slow down!" Ravi laughed softly, holding out a hand with its palm towards her. Not that she can see it... right, the demon thought, letting the hand fall gently.
"I do like the library, yes. I\'m reading a new book at the moment - Shakespeare!" Ravi said, glancing at the front cover to remind himself of the author\'s name. "My name is Ravi. Ravi Sachin de Dysme," he continued, pronouncing the last of his names "dye-SEEM". "Umm... what were the other ones?" Ravi asked, wincing slightly. There goes my inner Air Demon again... he thought, half-fond of and half-annoyed with his nature. In the end, though, he liked what he had become. ...He also couldn\'t remember being anything else...
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The girl fiddled with her long fingers, a small frown creasing her forehead. Malek had predicted that the tutor was not going to show and she had a right to think that after all, the man wasn\'t exactly the most reliable type.
He isn\'t going to show... I suppose I should leave.
Malek made a movement but stopped when she heard the other utter Kitāb \'Alf Layla wa-Layla perfectly. It was obvious that he had learned the language or it was his mother tongue. There were no other people at the Academy that she had met that could speak it and a warm emotion flickered in her. It was nice. Nice to meet someone who speak the language that she was brought up with.
So the other\'s name was Ravi Sachin de Dysme. The name sounded original, that is, Malek couldn\'t pick the origin. Perhaps... no, the she didn\'t have a clue. She was about to speak once more till a scrunched paper ball hit the back of her head. Laughter... it was meant to represent happiness. But Malek found no joy in the situation and the desire to tear flesh apart was great but this was neither the time or place. With an obvious effort, the girl acted as if nothing had happened and proceeded talking.
"So you speak it? You only forgot one question: what house do you hail from? Oh... and I\'m Malek Sheikh though Malek is only my nick name. My real name is Macha."
All of this was said in Arabic, assuming that the other could speak it fluently.
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Ravi missed neither the flicker of warmth he saw in the girl across from him, nor the small ball of paper that some younger students threw at the back of her head. Ungh... the demon thought, knowing that he should probably be saying something to them right now... He just hated confrontation. It was so much easier just... to... leave? Well that would take care of it! he thought, cheered.
"Pleased to meet you, Malek Sheikh. I already gave you my name... And I\'m from Purificio." Ravi glanced over Malek\'s shoulder, towards the group of students who\'d thrown the paper. They seemed as though they were about to do a repeat performance. "Would you like to get out of here, so we don\'t have to whisper or keep company with cretins?" the demon asked, his voice half-joking on the last part. All that he said was spoken in Arabic - not perfect Arabic, but at least very, very good Arabic. He still said a couple of things with an accent, but he pronounced most of his words like a native. Faris\' insistence.
Ravi sent a glare over at the students, hoping that that would be enough to dissuade them until he and Malek were gone. He knew he had certain responsibilities as a High Apprentice, but discipline was one of his least favourite ones. Ravi decided he would wait until Malek responded to his first question before assailing her with others, such as which house she was from and how she\'d come to the Academy. There were few people here who were blind, and most of those that were came from blind races. But Malek...? I suppose I\'ll see, Ravi thought.
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The laughter, the childish laughter, the hurtful laughter. The laughter belonged to a group that Malek knew and now she understood why the paper was thrown. They were fellow Cruori and were in a couple of her classes and she wondered why they were so fearless... after what she did to their friend... or maybe this was revenge? A very poor form if it was.
"No. No, we will not leave. If I leave, they will follow. They always follow. They are petty. A pathetic excuse for humans. The think because I\'m blind that I\'m rendered helpless. I\'m not spineless."
Malek ran an agitated hand through the red locks of her hair, chuckling dryly.
"You know, I\'m surprised... I\'m really surprised. I really hurt their friend, I sent my first into his face and my foot into his stomach and yet they still pursue me. I don\'t know. Maybe it\'s their form of revenge. Some revenge."
Possibly, another reason she did not wish to leave with Ravi was because they had just met, she barely knew him plus the fact she was sightless. The girl had a right to be cautious...
"You\'re from Purificio? I don\'t know many that hail from there. In fact, I don\'t know any. No, I don\'t believe so..."
Malek rested her chin lightly on fingers, her expression thoughtful. It would be most interesting to meet someone that belonged to Purificio...
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Ravi\'s heart sank a bit when Malek refused to leave. "Alright then..." the demon said. His voice certainly sounded unhappy about it, though not for any malicious reason. Great... So now I guess I\'ll have to tell them off... he thought miserably. The demon\'s eyes flicked to the group. It wasn\'t a matter of whether or not he could take them; Ravi had no question about that. He simply hated to do those sorts of things. Ravi just hadn\'t been made for disciplining others. Killing others, sure, but disciplining? It was a contrast that Ravi always found funny, when he thought about it.
It was interesting, though, just how capable Malek seemed to be. She spoke of what she\'d done to their friend so frankly. No one at the Academy is helpless, Ravi thought, half pleased and half proud. Even their blind could fight well, though Ravi didn\'t really understand how. Sight seemed a rather important thing, though Malek seemed to be more than capable of going without.
But besides all that, Malek had continued to speak. Ravi listened respectfully, then smiled. "Is that so? Well, then I\'ll have to try to leave a good impression," he joked, his mood already lightening. It was very difficult to keep the air demon\'s spirits down simply because sadness was not in his nature, as it was in a human\'s. "What about you? Which house are you in?" Ravi asked in return, curious as to where she fell in the school\'s structure. He wasn\'t sure which house would be the most receptive to the blind, but clearly one house had accepted her. Or maybe none have... But that\'s not possible, Ravi thought as he awaited Malek\'s answer.
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The disappointment was obvious in the other\'s voice and it annoyed Malek slightly. What was wrong with making conversation in the vicinity of the library? Even if they had to share company with petty folk. It was better than being alone with a stranger... then again, Malek wasn\'t completely defenseless. But what if this one was skilled with magic? Then, yes, the girl would be helpless. Completely helpless.
She sat still as a statue and listened to the question carefully. The large grey eyes looked so alive but at the same time, blank.Those eyes stared into the other\'s like knives but of course, it was unintentional but then again...
"I am in Cruori... but.-"
Malek stopped, small creases forming on her forehead. How would one say this? How would one say this without sounding...
"But they did not want me at first naturally. No one wanted me. What use is a little blind girl?" The soft voice was now slightly louder, bitter... upset. "But I showed them. I showed them that a blind girl is capable. On my first day, I killed a boy in cold blood... his voice! It knew no respect. The only thing it was capable of was to insult. Hurt. Mock. Nothing else. Should such a thing continue to live? No."
The hands shook with anger but the female took a deep breath and relaxed. There was no need to get angry over it. Especially now.
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"Cruori, huh?" Ravi said. Outwardly, he sounded fine, but inwardly he was thinking, Oh no... The demon looked her over once more, still listening as she spoke. Ravi could have guessed as to the Houses\' collective reaction to a blind girl. She sure sounds upset about it, though... Oh great, a Cruori with a chip on her shoulder, he thought, slightly distressed by this. Cruori tended to be ticking time-bombs of violence.
Yup... Ravi thought, sighing as she told him how she\'d killed a boy on her first day, told him how he hadn\'t deserved to live. Cruori\'s the right place for you. "Well, congratulations. You\'ve made it pretty far, considering," he told her, his voice friendly. Ravi cocked his head, smiling a little bit. "I don\'t imagine you\'ll be stopping here, either," he continued with a bit of a laugh. No, you\'ll probably kill your way to the top... Ravi thought inwardly.
In truth, the people of House Cruori scared him. Ravi was never one for fighting, or even confrontation, and everyone in that house seemed to be raring to go, all the time. Ravi always felt like he had to walk on eggshells around them just to avoid getting into a fight. Well, maybe Malek won\'t be like that! the Apprentice thought hopefully, though he had a feeling, just listening to the old anger in her voice, that she fit in very well with the rest of her house.
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Liar
A small disbelieving smirk flickered upon hearing those words. This one could not be blamed after all; Cruori is and never was a ‘popular’ House. They possessed a terrible reputation for being violent and obsessive but Malek wasn’t about to defend it. Anyway, there isn’t enough evidence to say that Cruori was in fact a gentile House! If such a day happens… all the impossible would happen for example, Malek’s eye sight would be restored.
Perhaps too much information was leaked out? Yes. If one had enough sense, they wouldn’t tell someone that they killed a fellow student on their first day… unless of course they were proud of the fact. The girl lacked people skills but it had nothing to do with being in Cruori, even as a child, she had no idea how to act around people.
“You’re lying.” Malek crossed her legs, “It’s perfectly understandable that you are not, ah, fond of my House. I, myself am not particularly fond of it.” She sighed and uncrossed her legs. “What is there to like? Anyway… they were the only House to accept me so I should be grateful, correct?”
A moment silence and Malek continued,
“I must appear… strange in your point of view. Even fellow students view me as strange. Just look how they treat me. They throw scrunched up paper at me! What does that tell you?\'”
She laughed. The laughter, it was not pleasant but sadder. Broken. Quiet.
“I apologise. You are still a stranger to me and yet, yet I still tell you these facts.”
Yes, why did Malek tell this one so much information? Why? Her and Ravi had just met, perhaps for only thirty minutes and already telling him everything. Well, not everything obviously but a fair amount.
Kindness. What was that again? But she was sure that this one was displaying it and maybe that’s why she was talking so much. Kindness. Is that when… when someone is not horrible? Not mocking? Not, not hurtful?
“I apologise, you do not have to agree but may I feel your face?”
In the years that Malek has spent here, only once has she asked to touch someone’s face and that was her tutor. If one was to look at this, they would think that she would want to become romantically involved but that’s hardly the case. The only love that girl had was for her Grandmaster. Her real Grandmaster. Her beloved Grandmaster.
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Liar? Ravi repeated in his mind, surprised. He hadn\'t said anything he didn\'t agree with - he\'d been honest. He just hadn\'t elected to share his views on Cruori... Though apparently she knew them. She even admitted that she didn\'t like it. "Gratitude, sure, but if you don\'t like it... Well, you could always switch," Ravi said truthfully. Malek seemed to have more than proved herself as a competent student, so it wouldn\'t be too difficult for her to switch houses if she wanted to. Hell, Ravi could even help! Probably...
A moment or two of silence followed, but Malek broke it soon enough. Ravi shook his head at first, then smiled at his own folly - she couldn\'t tell he was shaking his head. "No, not really," Ravi said, shrugging. "Even if you can\'t see, you\'re more than capable. What else would matter, here? Well - " the demon amended with a laugh, " - to me, anyway. And I don\'t mind if you talk to me. It\'s a pleasure to listen." Yes, Ravi was a nice guy - a rather rare breed in every sense, at least at the Academy.
Malek\'s next question surprised Ravi. It took him a moment to process it before he realised that the reason was obvious. I guess she has to see with her hands, the apprentice thought, smiling. "That\'d be fine," Ravi responded, though he wasn\'t really sure what to do after that. Should he lean forward? Should he wait for Malek to come to him? He decided just to wait and see what she did before doing anything else. A little voice in the back of his head warned him to be cautious, to not let people come too close... Ravi had to, albeit grudgingly, admit that it was a generally good policy. He would make sure to stay on his guard, though he found it sad that he had to.
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Was there the possibility of changing Houses? Even if she could, Malek did not want to. To change was just as pathetic as giving up or at least in her point of view. And anyway, the other Houses did not appeal to her and they probably felt the same. If they had felt different, they would of accepted her with open arms but no. They turned their backs upon the blind girl and said nothing, it was only Cruori that took the girl into a cold, \'loving\' embrace. And anyway, the Grandmaster wished dearly for Malek to be in this house because he himself was in it... but that was a long, long time ago.
"No, I will not switch. To switch is polite way of \'giving up\'. And my Grandmaster wanted me to be in Cruori..." The red head paused, suddenly thinking that Ravi might not understand when she said \'Grandmaster\'. "When I meant Grandmaster, I mean the one not here. I was at another, ah, academy before this." Was academy the right term? It was more of a sanctuary than anything... whatever.
Ravi did not seem to mind listening which was surprising. No body ever wanted to listen, all they wanted to do was hurt and mock. Malek was confused, her eyebrows contorting slightly but asked no questions.
With a quick movement, she stood up and walked forward. If one saw this from a distance, they one were to see this, they wouldn\'t think that she was blind. The vibrations through the floor told Malek were exactly Ravi was and so there was no fear of knocking into something... or someone.
With a careful but bold hand, she touched brow, nose, cheeks, chin and lips.
"Your facial structure is very similar to that of my Grandmaster... handsome. Your flesh is smoother than his however but that\'s only due to age."
Her hand fell and walked back to her seat. It was most interesting, this one... his face was so alike to her Grandmaster, her beloved, her everything.
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Ravi frowned slightly. It seemed strange, to him, to stay somewhere difficult just because you didn\'t want to give up. Oh, sure, there were some things worth pursuing, but in general Ravi would much, much rather take the path of least resistance. "Well, if you want to stay... That\'s good too, I guess. I\'m not going to try to stop you," the demon said, smiling. He didn\'t have to understand it for Malek to live it. "But... what was the other Academy? What was it like?" Ravi asked. He was curious... he didn\'t know anyone else who\'d attended more than one institution of this sort, after all. Perhaps Malek had some insight the demon had missed.
Ravi was surprised when Malek stood and made her way towards him so easily. She didn\'t seem blind at all as she did that - it was no wonder she could manage to be an assassin without her sight when she moved with such surety. The way she touched his face, though... Her hands were too gentle for her to be able to see. Far too gentle. Ravi felt the strength in them as well, though, and had no doubts about her ability to do damage.
A smile tugged at Ravi\'s lips when she called him handsome. It was funny, being called so by a blind girl. "Thank you... What was he like?" the demon asked, curious now that he\'d been compared. It would be funny if they turned out to be at all alike too, though Ravi highly doubted they would. After all, it would be hard for someone like him to make it to Grandmaster.
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The only way Malek could ‘see’ was through the vibrations through the ground. There were not many people in the vicinity, so it was easier to pick up movements. However, if the room was more vastly populated, she would be very confused. However… the vibrations, she was quite sensitive to them but was this unique? Could any other blind people feel it? There were some days when the girl felt, not human. All these raw emotions rampaging through her, they did not feel human. What human could feel this?
Anyway…
The other ‘Academy’? Well, it wasn’t much of an Academy… more of a sanctum than anything. It was for sick and orphaned children but as they got better, they were taught how to fight. So… so they wouldn’t be defenceless. So they could fight against those who would want to hurt them. They were not taught how to read or right, just to fight.
“It was hardly an academy. I just didn’t have a better word for it… but perhaps, sanctum?” Malek asked, though, it was more of a rhetorical question. “Uhm. It was just mainly a place for sick, orphaned children… they taught them how to fight. No reading or anything. Just to fight, how to kill. It wasn’t anything special but its home.”
She was quite surprised how Ravi’s facial structure nearly matched with that of the Grandmaster.
“What was he like? Everything I’m not. An alchemist, a warrior... a father to all.” Malek spoke in a far away voice. She loved talking about the Grandmaster; after all, she was quite obsessed with him. The girl hoped one day, they would exchange emotions but could such a thing happen? Could it? Malek wished and wished but she knew… the Grandmaster could never love her back like that way she did. Oh God, what juvenile thinking! Thank God, this one couldn’t read thoughts or else…
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Ravi listened to Malek\'s explanation with his head resting on a fist, interested. Not really an Academy, huh? the demon thought, nodding as Malek went on, revealing more. "A sanctum... That\'s a nice way to put it," Ravi commented when Malek finished her little explanation. So Malek had been an orphan... The air demon supposed that made sense, as it was a rare parent would send a blind child to learn to become an assassin. Any child at all, really. It was mostly those with traditions, or histories with the school. Some had perhaps been sold in. Others run away, then happened upon the area... There were many ways, but few involved parental consent.
Unless their "parents" were crazy air demons themselves, Ravi thought affectionately, a smile growing on his face as he thought of Kalyan. Still, it was funny to think that Malek\'s story could just as easily have been his own. What if he\'d found that sanctum instead of Kalyan? Well, who knew...
Ravi found himself more and more honored to be compared with that grandmaster the more Malek said about him. The demon let out a soft chuckle. "Well... he sounds like an amazing man," Ravi said after Malek finished. It sounded like the blnd girl across from him thought so as well, though the way she talked about him it sounded more like a - Oh, the demon thought, his eyebrows raising slightly. Is that how she feels about her grandmaster? Then again, it wasn\'t too surprising. It reminded him of how he felt about Kalyan, really... the first person to show him love, affection, give him a home... Yeah, Ravi could understand what Malek meant - assuming she had such feelings at all! Ravi was no psychic, so it was all just guesswork.
"Thank you," Ravi said quietly, sincerely, "I think that\'s the biggest compliment I\'ve received in a while." The demon smiled, though Malek couldn\'t see it. But hell, maybe she could tell anyway - she seemed to be very perceptive.