Return To The Ocean (Ollypop and Ladon~~<3)

[Amia]

It was a bright and sunny afternoon on the shore. The waves washed over the beach calmly and seagulls cawed above. It may have been fall, but it was a glorious, warm day. Such things were known to happen on occasion in the early part of the season after all. The beach was deserted as two figures appeared on the shoreline.

One appeared to be a little girl with lengthy semi-curly red hair, bright emerald green eyes, and naturally tan skin that gave the child a sunkissed look. The other appeared to be a beautiful young woman but looks could be decieving. This was a young man named Yuki and his 3 year old daughter, Lena.

The little girl's eyes grew wide and she smiled brightly. "Wow!! Mommy, look at the all the water!!" Cried the little girl, letting go of her apparent mother's hand and running to the water. She giggled innocently and trying to pick it up with her hands.

Yuki smiled at his adopted child. Even living through the war as hermits, she remained untouched by the darkness that once washed over the land. He looked out past the shoreline. "The ocean looks like it goes on forever, doesn't it, sweetheart? I remember wondering if the world never ended when I was little." He said.

However, his daughter seemed to be more interested in the sea than his words and continued playing. He watched the waves, thinking to himself. 'It's been so long since I've seen everyone....everything has changed. Everyone thinks that I'm dead....I wonder if they've all forgotten about me? Did Othallim forget me? Did he....did he open my letter?' He wondered. His cheeks turned a pale pink as he thought of that letter. He said how he'd been worried for everyone because of the war, how he didn't feel Lena was safe enough and that with the way things were, he he wasn't sure he'd ever be able to return alive. He told him his true feelings and how he'd never told him before out of fear of rejecttion for being a child. The last words before his name were 'Goodbye. I love you.' and now that he was actually returning, he worried what his friend and superior would think of him.

He smacked himself upside the head repeatedly, not thinking of how silly he looked. "Stupid, stupid, stupid!! You're a single parent! You have no time for childish thoughts!" He scolded himself. It was during the time he scolded himself that he let his guard down. He didn't notice anyone else arrive.

[Ladon]

One might easily describe running as a complex activity involving any number of motions, whether small or large, that all added up to forward motion. Cassian preferred to think of it as a simple push and pull; the push and pull of muscles straining against their own weight, the push and pull of air rushing in through chapped lips and out the next second. It was simple, really. Like everything else it could be reduced to opposing forces and how to overcome them.

At the moment, though, he was not so focused on the philosophy of the action so much as the immediate, bodily concerns like the burn of the muscles along his legs and the irritating tickle of loose, damp hair against his cheeks. Earlier there had been other men and other women moving with him through the simple drills, and a sort of easy camaraderie in a silence that had only been interrupted by his own quiet commands and the harsh breathing of those exerting themselves to follow them. Now he finished his last lap about the training field alone, head held low as he concentrated on forcing his body the last few yards in spite of the loose, wobbly sensation of muscles forced beyond their limits.

When he stopped, it was to stand splay-legged with his hands braced against his knees, damp blonde hair hanging in a loose mess all about his head and face. The dark, fitted clothes, padded for use in mock-battles, clung uncomfortably to his skin in any number of places but he mustered the will to ignore the sensation and straightened up as soon as he had caught his breath. Some never learned to enjoy the satisfaction earned in the mastery of one's own body, but Cassian had learned to embrace it as it was one of the few pleasures he allowed himself.

It had been hard work to reach his current position, and he meant to honor it and the people of Aver with his efforts.

Wetting his lips with a grimace at the taste of his own sweat, the shapeshifter moved forward once more at a sedate walk to fetch his things with only a brief stop to sate his thirst with a few mouthfuls of water from the flask bumping against his hip. It went down warm, but it was wet and that was enough to be getting on with for now.

Shaking his pale hair back from his face, Cassian made the short trek to the improvised armory set up alongside the training grounds to deposit the blunted sword and weighted shield he'd made use of not too long ago. Only when they hung neatly in their places did he turn away to prowl uncertainly in the direction of the fortress. There was little to be done today, though he had thought long and hard on it. The men and women he had appointed did their work well, and he had already verified that everything was running smoothly. Another visit would be superfluous at best, and so he found himself at loose ends.

It wasn't something that happened often and Cassian wasn't entirely sure that he liked the sensation. Tapping an absent rhythm against his thigh, he turned smartly on his heel to make for the shore. A short walk and a swim might give him the time he needed to think, and the relaxation certainly could not harm him.

It can only help, he thought with a wry twist to his mouth as he considered his own state of mind. There was such a thing, after all, as too much work.

One was never really far from the ocean at any given location in or around the fortress, so it wasn't long before Cassian found himself dawdling along at the edge of the beach. It wasn't empty, of course. It never really was, and he'd done his best to skirt his way around the small, scattered groups of people on his quest for an unoccupied stretch of sand. It was apparently a venture doomed to failure. His own reluctance proved to be the deciding factor. Bright eyes silvered with the reflection of the sand, he gave in to the inevitable and wandered closer to the water with his [polished black boots hanging by their leather laces over one shoulder. A woman and her child stood nearby, but he doubted either would mind his relatively quiet presence so he dropped his shoulder and let the boots fall before dipping his head in a polite greeting.

[SUNIL]

But in the end I’d like to hang my head on more besides
The temporary trappings of this world.

The day was splendid. Sunlight, little clouds in the sky, and the breezes told of warm kisses to the skin that only a late summer wind could give. Othallim had been standing at the shoreline since the first moment of daylight, his gray eyes off in the horizon to catch the glistening rays of the rising sun to the east of Aver. It hovered higher in the sky now and smiled down at him, his forever companion, and Othallim smiled back. These moments were only just now becoming something the once Ice King was used to, but every morning, his breath still never failed to leave his lungs with a wistful, pleasant sigh. There were times that he missed the frost that clung to the trees like glass, moments where he missed the nip of cold when he opened the door of his home, but these shores were undoubtedly more refreshing, and Othallim could not remember a time that he felt so relaxed.

The two years he’d spent here as Aeryana’s right hand man had changed the man considerably. Though still reserved and quiet, his musical voice still soft-spoken and his embraces still restrained compared to the passionate Water, those lips of his that were once frozen into a thin frown now smiled almost every moment of every day, and his once cloudy gray eyes now sparkled with a new life he’d forgotten he had. It was true; the war had had devastating effects on the Ice and Water tribes, the death toll so enormous that a great deal less than half of those he used to lead had survived. But these were new days, and with the silver thread of a wall that surrounded Aver came a sense of security that had been found again. These were the days to breathe easy, to lay down spears, to watch the tides, and to live.

Othallim looked down at his bare feet while the tides washed playfully over them and curled his toes in the sand. Another wind caught hold of his shaggy black hair and whipped it in front of his eyes, concealing for a brief moment the white sun embroidered about his eye. A number of individuals had started to trickle onto the shore now, and in the background of his peaceful thoughts, he could hear them laughing gaily and frolicking about. Another contagious smile caught him, and he looked up again, but this time when he looked up, it was not just the rolling tides he saw.

Not far off to his right approached a familiar face. Cassian, Aver’s military head, had been one of his own before the war. A dedicated powerhouse indeed, he fit the job wonderfully. It was refreshing to see that even the leader of armies had enough time to enjoy the beautiful weather. Othallim turned on his heels and raised a tanned hand in greeting, the palm and forearm forever bound by bandages to hide the scars of years past. “Cassian.” his low, musical voice caught the wind and rode it to the other former ice member. But when Othallim squinted and shifted a bit to move his eyes out of direct sunlight, another site caught his eye. The curvature of a young figure with long white hair, and a girl toddling alongside the individual. The reserved face of the Advisor could not hide the surprise. “And… Yuki?” he said the name unsurely. Everyone had thought the young boy had died back in the war when he failed to return to them. Othallim included. But for one thing he was sure, the boy’s appearance was unmistakable, and lest he was seeing a ghost, the lad had returned to safe shores once more.

[Amia]

As Yuki punished himself for being what he deemed 'childish', he failed to notice the other two nearby. It wasn't until he spotted a blonde man out of the corner of his eye that he focused again. He turned to the other, cautiously bringing his hand to the dagger concealed at his side but when the other nodded to him in acknowledgement, he lowered his hand.

"Oh. Um, good afternoon...." He said, sounding slightly unsure. His voice had deepened just slightly in the past two years but really it only sounded more womanly as opposed to the young girl he'd once sounded like. One would have to know his gender already to be able to tell he was technically more boy than girl. He gave the male a bit of a sheepish look. "Forgive me. The war never really ended for me, so I'm....a little on edge still...." He confessed, feeling badly for having automatically thought the other an enemy. He looked out to the sea once more. "I need to remember I'm in friendly territory now." He said, half watching his daughter playing.

Suddenly, he heard a voice. A familiar voice questioning if it was really him. His breath caught in his throat, making a half gasping noise. He turned his head slowly, the sea breeze blowing his hair elegantly around him, framing his face as he stared into the eyes of his former leader. "....Othallim?" He asked, having trouble believing that it was really him. The man looked so much more peaceful now. It was like their roles had reversed. Yuki had matured greatly physically and mentally, becoming more serious and growing into his feminine looks with elegance.

Before he could think of what he was doing, he ran to the man, taking both of his hands and kissing them softly in a respectful sort of way almost like how one would kiss the hands of their monarch. He showed such restraint compared to what he once had. Two years ago he likely would have tackled the poor man and kissed him to death regardless of the other's feelings. It just showed how grown up he was now. He smiled up at the older man. "I've missed you, my friend." He said softly, letting go of his hands and stepping back.

Moments later though, he remembered what he'd just been thinking of and blushed a little. "I....imagine by now you've read my letter...." He said, looking down out of embarrassment.

[Ladon]

Cassian tensed subtly, tracking the path of the woman's hand with his eyes as she reached for her dagger in response to his greeting. Out of all the responses she could have made, that one he had expected least of all, but she relaxed and after a few wary seconds, so did he. Friendly territory indeed..

He opened his mouth to reply, but only got so far as a low, puzzled noise when he heard his name and then the woman was off like a shot, leaving him blinking in her wake. Cassian turned, lifting a hand to comb his loose hair back from his face and paused before drawing himself upright. Othallim. Of course it would be Othallim when he was standing barefoot and sweaty on the beach, wearing a no doubt bewildered expression on his face.

He might have continued staring, but decorum demanded some sort of greeting so he bent at the waist in a shallow bow and did his level best to melt back away from them. The woman seemed to be some sort of friend to the adviser if her warm greeting and declarations were anything to go by, and Cassian had no real desire to land himself in the middle of some personal reunion.

"It is fine, my lady," he finally said, the words softly enough that she might choose to ignore them if she so wished; truthfully, she could have knifed him, he'd been surprised enough by the unexpected promise of violence that she might have landed a blow but nothing bad had come of it. "No one was hurt," Cassian finished with a faint shrug, bending to fetch his boots up in one hand and rising once more in a single, smooth motion.

"Othallim," he spoke the farewell quietly, dipping his head in a brief acknowledgement of the other man's rank.

[SUNIL]

In a flash, Yuki was on him. Othallim might have expected it, after recalling the various times the young boy had showered him with affections before he had disappeared. Though he lived with a wider variety of people now, and certainly a fair amount of them had no trouble with showing their emotions through physical contact, Othallim was still as reserved as ever in that regard. Yuki grabbed his hands and kissed them, to which the man simply smiled quietly and nodded, his regal authority draped over him like a cloak to replace the traces of roguish freedom he felt before. He was never quite sure what to do with this boy, who always tested the boundaries with which he was comfortable, but he was happy to see him alive and well nonetheless.

It didn’t take long for Yuki to mention the letter he’d left behind, but to that, Othallim simply shook his head. Another matter for another time, and certainly not one meant for the placid beach in the company of others it did not concern. Like clockwork, just as the thought came to his mind, he heard the soft voice of Cassian drift back to him. Othallim looked back to the other leader with the slightest tilt of his head. “No need to leave, Cassian. Please.” he gestured for him to come closer. He was quite aware that the man was soft-spoken and equally as reserved as he, but if the man felt the need to leave simply by witnessing a reunion, Othallim would not cast him out like that.

Othallim nodded toward Yuki. “This is Yuki. You may not have known him; he only stayed with us for a short while.” As the leader, Othallim had made a point to know every individual that passed within the borders of the once Ice Tribe. He did not expect the same of his warriors. He gave Cassian a warm look before turning his attention back to the young lad. “How is it that you’ve found your way to Aver? Everyone feared you had perished.”

[Amia]

Yuki smiled softly as the blonde referred to him as a lady. When he was younger he would have been embarrassed to be thought of as a woman but now it just amused him. "It's a lovely day, isn't it?" He asked the male. Before he could really say anything more, Othallim came into the picture and he ran to him, forgetting himself for a moment.

The older male responded so calmly as he always seemed to have in the past and Yuki watched his face with child-like awe for a moment. There was so much he wanted to ask him....but....then he remembered all that had happened. Everything had changed. He wasn't the boy he once was. His expression suddenly became something it had never been before: distant. Like he was hiding away his true self. He was guarded now, defensive in ways. He was introduced to the other male and he gave a small, unusually reserved -at least for him- kind of smile. "It is nice to meet you, sir." He said.

It was at that point that Lena ran up to the blonde male and hugged his legs, smiling up innocently. "Mommy, he looks like the prince from my storybook! What's your name again, mister??" She asked, pulling back and swinging her arms like any ordinary little girl would, looking up at Cassian with a cute expression.

Yuki chuckled at his daughter. "She's grown, hasn't she? She was just a baby when I left Ice...." He said, watching as she tried to get the older male to play with her by gesturing to him then running off in the other direction. Othallim asked him how he'd come to Aver, how he'd survived the war and he gave the man a sad smile. "I....I did some things I'm not proud of to survive the war....Lena doesn't know. I just....did what I had to as a parent." He said. He never said that what he'd done was painfu for him, but his eyes showed hurt. He'd been forced to grow up for the sake of his daughter. However, when he looked at her, waving at them a little ways away, he smiled. "I gave up on my silly daydreams of someone someday falling in love with me and whisking me off somewhere amazing for her sake. She's more than worth it, though. Without a doubt." He said.

It was rather sad to hear Yuki, who had once begged Othallim on his knees in the frigid cold to tell him love was real and worth waiting for talk of his heart's true desire as a 'silly daydream.' The tear-stained goodbye letter confessing his true feelings seemed to depict such a different boy. One who didn't hide behind weak smiles and a serious expression. One that would pour his heart and soul out just for the sake of honesty. Just what had he gone through during the war that had changed him so much?

"I'd hidden away for so long that I almost didn't believe it when I'd heard the war was over, but when I came here and saw the peace of the land, I decided it was time to leave the cave I'd been living in and come home. I want to raise Lena with the luxuries of any normal little girl. She shouldn't have to live in a cave with only me to talk to for the rest of her life." He said.

Lena suddenly called out to them. "Oi~! Come on, you lot! I wanna play!!" She cried, giggling and laughing.

Yuki laughed softly at his child's enthusiasm. "Well....it doesn't hurt to go for a run....care to join me?" He asked, turning to Lena who squealed and started running again.

[Ladon]

Othallim's quiet request and the slight gesture were enough to halt him, and though he considered making his excuses he turned about to make his way through the soft sand to stand near the adviser and his friend. "This is Yuki. You may not have known him-," Othallim began, and while Cassian had not stopped listening, the rest faded back as he slanted an assessing stare in the stranger's direction. He'd been nearly certain, earlier, that Yuki was a woman, and what he saw now certainly seemed more the build and look of a woman than any young man.

Though now that he knew what to look for, he wasn't so certain even of that. Setting aside his curiosity, Cassian began to dip his head in his usual customary bow only to find himself staring down the length of his own body at the young girl suddenly clinging to his leg. "Prince?" he answered, dropping his voice into a low, amused murmur to avoid disturbing Othallim and Yuki's conversation.

It was somehow a great deal harder to talk to a small, smiling person than it was to order about one of his men, but he wasn't entirely immune to the charm of a cute child even if he had very little experience with them. And it was, of course, both flattering and vaguely humorous to be compared to some fictional prince," My name is Cassian."

Before it occurred to him to ask her name, she had left off trying to entice him into play and moved on to the others. Which was, truth be told, more than a small relief; he'd little to no idea what to do with a child not yet old enough to wield a sword. Which was a pity in more than a few ways, but he didn't care to delve too deeply into that just now. It was a good day, bright and cool, and it felt good to see Othallim again outside their official capacities even if it felt odd after so long.

[SUNIL]

So much had changed in the past two years; for that, no one argued. It was easy to congregate with a group of people who had survived past the war to reminisce of the times of the Elemental tribes, reminding each other of old customs that had been sacrificed for the sake of unity, and laughing along with cherished memories shared. But as Othallim looked upon Yuki, who was still so unfathomably young to have survived such an ordeal as the Great War, he could see the change in his eyes, in his voice, and the heart he always wore on his sleeve. There was, too, no doubt, the enormous change in Lena, who Othallim hadn’t seen since she was merely an infant. She was cavorting around and speaking now. To see them both, despite barely recognizing them both in their new skins, he had to smile.

Out of the corner of his eye, Othallim caught snippets of the young girl making conversation with Cassian, and the wisps of a smile caught his lips as his attention turned back to Yuki. The boy spoke of acting in ways he wasn’t proud of to survive, along with the sacrifices that came with being a parent. Othallim tilted his head a little to the side, the wind catching his black hair and whipping it in front of his gray eyes again. “We’ve all done things we’re not proud of because of the War, but it was always for the greater good, out of love.” he reminded the boy. There was never a moment where Othallim was caught off guard enough to be able to offer a wise piece of information to younger generations, always acting the kind and patient scholar amidst a horde of eager and curious children.

It was sad, indeed, to hear Yuki talk about abandoning his dreams of love. Dreams, of course, which were falsehoods anyway, but the loss of innocence in that regard still made the smile drift away from Othallim’s face. Only when the subject changed again did the quiet man speak once more. “Well, it is good to have you back, Yuki, there is no doubt in that. Aver is safe for both you and Lena, and everyone will celebrate your return.”

But when Yuki asked Othallim to join along in the game of tag, he smiled in resignation and gave a little shake of his head, waving the young boy off to chase his adoptive daughter. It was a game meant for children, and he encouraged romping in the sand for as long as youths still held onto their imaginations, but silly games had lost their music for the man, though he still appreciated watching others partake in it all the same. Othallim took the brief moment to join Cassian, who seemed to fall under the same opinion as himself when it came to cavorting with youngsters. A distant, reminiscent expression passed over his face, and he spoke to his friend and peer while he watched Yuki and Lena. “Do you remember those days? So simple and free…” a smile spread across his lips again. “This is what the new generations ought to be growing up with. Thank the gods we have finally found it.” and his eyes met his old friend briefly, a warmth there that was once impossible to see.

[Amia]

Lena smiled up brightly at the blonde. "I'm Lena Kawamoto. Nice to meet you, prince Cassian! Can I call you Cass??" She asked with an innocent smile. She seemed quite certain he was a real prince even though he wasn't. She ran off, laughing until she realized he wasn't chasing her. "Hey! Come on, it'll be fun~!" She called to him.

The white haired boy looked to Othallim sadly as he spoke of everyone having done things they weren't proud of but nodded when he said it was out of love. "Yes....I may hate the things I've done, but they were for her so I don't entirely regret them." He said. It was still very strange to see this adult version of Yuki. He shouldn't have had to grow up so suddenly but he'd sealed his own fate when he decided to take in Lena.

He smiled warmly when told that it was good to have him back and that everyone would celebrate his return, giving a glimpse of the boy he once was. "I'm glad to be back. I look forward to starting a new life for Lena and I. I just hope I can find a nice home for us to live in. I want the best for her." He said.

Before he could say much else, the redhead called out again. "Oi~! You're not old men yet!" She teased.

"Lena!!" Scolded Yuki, running after her, to which the child screamed and ran off laughing happily as he chased her.

[Ladon]

"Thank the gods we've found it and pray to them that we keep it," Cassian answered, staring after Yuki and Lena quietly with the rush of the surf loud in his ears. He turned finally to meet Othallim's eyes, a little startled and faintly shamed by the warmth there. "It's good to see you again," he offered haltingly, mouth curling into an uncommonly warm smile. The expression felt strange on his face after so long, but Cassian would not deny that it was a good feeling.

"But don't let me keep you if you'd like to join the game of chase," he offered airily in a rare and entirely unexpected moment of lightheartedness; it was one of the few times he could truly say he'd startled himself. Like everything else about himself, he set the moment aside for later inspection and let himself fall back into the ease of action and reaction.

"Was our manhood just challenged by a toddler?" Cassian mused aloud, settling on the first question that came to mind with his head canted subtly to one side, bright eyes narrowed against the sunlight into slivers of color beneath pale lashes. Looking at him now, he could remember a time before when they had been more than peers, and he wondered if that had changed. Cassian himself spent a great deal of his own time embroiled in matters of the military, whether that meant the larger problems of logistics or the smaller, more personal matters of sorting out his personnel it had always meant he had very little time for himself. Things had, of course, calmed down more recently, but this was the first time in recent times he could remember stopping to talk with his old friend.

That thought brought another pang of guilt to mind, but he smoothed it away before it could do anything more than show as a faint frown line. Othallim had clearly changed, and while he'd noticed it before in passing, this was the first time he had ever truly confronted the difference in the adviser's bearing. "How have you been, Othallim?"

[SUNIL]

The grey eyes of the Advisor watched Yuki scamper off after the young girl, sand flying in his wake. He took the quiet moment to stand next to his peer, and together they watched youth and innocence dance before their eyes, untouched and unscathed by violence or fear. Othallim hoped with all of his heart that children would be able to continue growing up with such freedom, such care-free happiness that they could bound after each other along the shores of Aver without fear of enemy ships invading the harbors. Cassian’s voice came to him before Othallim’s eyes drew back to his friend, and the warm expression in return seemed just as unnatural on Cassian’s face as it had on Othallim’s. To that, he had to smile more. They were a couple of hardened men from the tundra, used to the stoic ways of the Ice Tribe. They were people of duty and professionalism, so to lower the walls and let humanism shine through again felt odd and enormously refreshing all at once.

To his voice, Othallim shook his head lightly and ran his fingers through his tangled, black hair. “Why mar what is already perfect? Having a lumbering old man chasing after them would ruin the moment.” he replied smoothly, almost jokingly, even, which was an exceedingly rare moment for him. He let out a brief moment of musical laughter. “In no time, she’ll be bossing everyone around, no doubt.” he mused, eyes trailing after the toddler and her adoptive father once more.

But his attention was stolen away back to Cassian, and in their brief moment of privacy, an air that had long since disappeared came back. They had been friends, once. The title never disappeared from their lips; there was no fight or falling out to speak of, but simply through uncontrollable changes in the world around them, they had drifted to separate worlds. Othallim, by taking on the challenge of helping his dearest friend Aeryana piece together a new Kingdom, and Cassian, by swearing to protect the new Kingdom from harm, an extraordinarily difficult task when Aver had been built by the shattered remains of defeat. Yuki was lucky to have been hiding during those stressful times, when laws of two worlds had to come together as one, and a mad scramble for organization was forced out of chaos.

But time slipped by, and until now, Othallim had not had the time to stop and notice just how long it had been since he last sat down and shared words with Cassian, though they lived but a few minutes walk from each other.

That shared connection seemed to bring them back down onto a level plain away from the sounds of the tides and the laughter of children. Cassian had simply asked Othallim how he was, but the depth of the question scaled beyond the usual mundane phrase. It was a catching up, a question of drifting friendship, and Othallim bowed his head a little, his voice lowered. “I have been well. It seems like things are finally settling down around here. It is good to breathe easy again.” A smile drifted back to his lips. “And you? The warriors seem to be coming along nicely.”