Roleplay with Nerezza and Byakomyun #1

Byakomyun looks over the railing of a tall tower, built above and from the rocky cliffs of the mountain. She watches the clouds breeze by steadily below. The room she stands in is relatively bare, with only a small cupboard and a couple of chairs. The watch wouldn't be back for another hour.

She looks down at the clouds, as if willing herself to look through them. She calls, softly, "Nerezza... Born of shadow, master of tricks. Can you hear me, still?"

A familiar voice rings out from the shadows behind her. "My dear Byako... you'll catch your death out here without your cloak."

The golden eyes of Nerezza open, giving away his location in the dark. "It is good to see you again. Good to hear your voice finally."

She flashes him a rye smile. "It's a pleasant breeze, for me at least..." she traces the edge of the railing as she turns to face him, spiraling snowflake patterns of frost following her touch.

Her eyes soften. "You were always as kind as you were teasing. It's...nice to see you again, after these few years. I'm sorry for my sudden disappearance."

"Sudden, yes... but not unexpected." Nerezza steps into the light, wrapping his wings around him in a makeshift cloak.

"I must say, I was quite surprised to see such a large mass of land just gone. Quite a feat."

"Yes..." she glances out the window again, remembering. "It was a mix of masterful engineering, a great draw of my power, and... Extreme luck. I'd like to think some of the old gods were helping, somehow." She coughs hard with a shudder, pausing a moment to regain her composure. "To tell the truth, I haven't quite felt the same since."

"Quite... I've sensed something off with your... well... let's just say I have ways of keeping tabs on my friends."

She smiles again, laughter behind her eyes. "Yes, I should have figured as much from such a talented god as yourself."

"So tell me," she carefully takes a seat on one of the chairs, "What mischief has Nerezza been up to? How fares the world below?"

Nerezza leans against the wall, seeming to sink deeper into his wings. "I can't say much, I'm afraid. I have actually been traveling a lot. Searching for more of these..." he pulls a small piece of crystal from his belt pouch, holding it out for her to examine. "I don't know how, exactly, but it... allows me to access my magic."

Byakomyun studies the crystal for a long moment, starkly brilliant against your shadows. "Well... It definitely seems to hold some magic itself. Where did you find it?"

Nerezza is silent for quite some time, as if embarrassed by the answer. Finally, he looks at her, dark tears running down his face, and says. "Where he said Goodbye.... "

Her breath catches in her throat. An icy tear traces her cheek. She says nothing, feeling his intense emotion buried down inside of him, just barely bubbling to the surface.

With a twitch of her icy blue fox ears she stands and appears beside him in an instant. She envelops Nerezza in an embrace; one of comradery, empathy, and peace. A soft exhale forms a healing cocoon of mist around him; a gentler, more soothing adaptation of her old water magic.

Tears run down freely as she tries to help channel some of his sorrow, her heart almost rending from the breadth and depth of his anguish.

Nerezza tightly wraps his arms and wings around Byako. He weeps freely, letting his emotions out, feeling safe within the cocoon of mist. A good deal of time later, his tears subside. He tucks his wings back behind him, and releases her. "Thank you. I... I miss him more than I can express... more than mere words can explain..."

She observes him with a gentle expression. "Words are a poor conduit for the... enormity of emotion. But like rains cleanse and purify the world after fire, tears can cleanse and purify the burning sorrow of our hearts. When our mouths cannot form the words... our eyes speak in their stead."

"In all my years, I've never seen or felt such closeness between two souls. Saar's loss was..." Her eyes threaten tears again, "...Difficult for us all, in our own ways. But you and he were...like brothers."

She looks at him, closely studying his face. "More than brothers. You shared shadows, and melded as one many times. I sense you carry a part of him with you...always."

Nerezza looks around, as if making sure they are alone, even peering into the sky before reaching into his satchel. He pulls out what appears to be a very thin silk cloak, and holds it out for her to inspect. "That is because... I do. You see, when I melded with him, became his shadow, his true shadow came detached. I... kept it. I didn't return it..."

Her eyes widen. She steps tentatively forward, her fingers trembling a hair's breadth above it. "His... Shadow? This is...this is Saar's?" Her voice catches in her throat, her tail twitching.

"Yes. It is his." The well-known mischievous grin spreads across his face. "Not all of him is gone... a small portion of a person's essence is bound to their shadow. So... he still exists." Nerezza lifts the shadow fabric as he speaks, bringing it closer to eye level, almost as if it will speak if they are silent.

Byako remains silent for a long time with him. Initially, she watches the shadow...wondering what possibilities it could hold. But...

Then she looks at Nerezza again, studying that golden glint in his eyes; a hopeful glint. A desperate, almost hungering glint. Her chest pangs with worry and sadness.

"I know it sounds difficult, but I've been around for a very long time... mortals do impossible things for the smallest reasons all the time. If there's but the slightest chance... do you think I should try?"

She doesn't say anything for a while, but her eyes give away that she's thinking. She slowly looks back at the shadow, and how delicately he holds it.

Byako speaks slowly, picking her words with care. "I will not deny that... I too wish to see him again. To share a laugh, a drink... a story with him again..." she touches the shadow with reverence, unsure if it would have any sensation against her mortal skin.

"He and Aria brought a special... spark... to our little group of adventurers." She gives a wan smile, ears lowering slightly. "I know he cared dearly for you, Nerezza... If you have a plan, a sliver of hope... Please try. I know that you will regardless of what I say, so I will support you with my blessing for it. But," she looks at him with a very serious, steady expression. "If I knew Saar Tempest, he would not want you to suffer for the rest of eternity because of him. You carry his memory. His love. His brotherhood. He would want you to be at peace."

Nerezza gingerly folds the shadow back up and tucks it away in his satchel, looking back at Byako afterwards. "I believe that... if I can somehow make it back to the Nest of the God's... I can bring him back, or at least find someone there who will be able to assist me. I have faith, and that is worth more than anything in this broken world." He smiles, his eyes glowing the bright and vibrant gold of the adventurer she knew years ago. The eyes of a man with purpose. The eyes of Nerezza, the God of Shadow.