The Cursed

[SkySong278]

"Okay and oh um I'd love to do those things with you," Alivia said in reply with a small blush on her cheeks along with a small shy smile on her face as well to the first few things he said before continuing to eat her food until it was all gone.

 

She had noticed the maids peeking into the dining hall out of the corner of her eye and had smiled a bit before having her attention be back on her plate afterward. She excused herself soon after Quadir did but instead of following after him, she went into the foyer outside the dining hall to meet him there once he's retrieved the catnip.

[AroaraAngelwolf]

He came back out with his mask and a handful of catnip toys.  He met her by the Deity and handed her the mask that carried the catnip toys. He then genuflect before the statues alter and spoke to it. 

 

"Great Deity, You where Lord of the land before my family came. Thank you for providing protection for this land and caring for the people here. Although my family had spurned you, you still gave us strength and the ability to protect others. You have a wonderful heart of gold. Now, as a newfound father I ask you for your blessing to wed your daughter. " 

 

The statue glowed once more and the spirit of the Deity stepped down from the alter and reached down to lift Quadir's head. This startled him and he fell on his rump looking up at the creature's spirit before him.  The Deity held out his hand to help Quadir up which Quadir took shocked that it was actually corporeal.

 

" Such kind words from a soul who has suffered my anger. I did not intend the curse to last so long, but the way to break it was long lost until now. All of the previous Ladies here where Witches, even your mother, for their magic held a clue to breaking the curse. Until now, none had the gift of that specialty.  

 

Now, as for my Daughter, Alivia can choose who to wed. The one who makes her happiest already has my blessing. I have seen many weddings standing here, and I'd like to do the human tradition of the father giving away his daughter's hand. If I may?" 

 

Quadir immediately spoke at this question. "Of course you will! Why wouldn't you be able to? You are her father now, you have the right to! "

 

At this the Deity smiled and pushed up Quadir's sleeves undoing the wrapping on both wrists. Pressing a hand over the marks they faded to nothing removing the blemishes. " No more blood will need to be spilled on my feet to protect this land, for now my precious daughter lives here, my protection is constant now. No more marks of self hate Quadir Phobias de Maelstrom. It saddens her to see these. Now, I believe you have cats to see. "  The Deity smiled softly then turned to Alivia and hugged her again before fading away. Quadir looked at his arms, now free of scars in bewilderment.

 

 

[SkySong278]

She went outside after him when she saw him come back with his mask and some catnip toys, finding him at the deity statue and altar. When she was handed his mask that was filled with the catnip toys, she took it and held it with both hands while he genuflected in front of the altar.

 

She smiled when she heard his words of thanks and compliments before blushing a bit when she asked him his blessing to marry her. She hadn't known that he was going to ask him for that while thanking him and it had surprised her a bit as well as embarrassed her, but not much. It made sense that he'd go ahead and do that in the same trip, but she hadn't been expecting it.

 

Her smile then returned when she saw her father's spirit appear after the statue glowed and stepped down to be in front of Quadir. She held back a small giggle at his reaction, though her smile was a bit bigger than it had been earlier. She then listened to everything that her father said to her love, not knowing that the ladies before his mom had all been witches and why their magic gave each of them a clue to breaking it. She was thankful to them all the same and made a mental note to go down into the catacombs to thank them in her own way for their help. She blushed again at her father's words regarding her marrying whoever she chose as well as Quadir already having her father's blessing since he made her happiest before becoming shocked and super happy when she heard the latter's request to give away her hand in the human tradition, feeling glad that it could happen. She had been nervous that she would have to walk herself to Quadir's side, but now she didn't have to do that. She was still a bit nervous, but now she had a father that could walk her down and give her away.

 

She then had her attention be back on their conversation, hearing the rest of what her father said to Quadir while healing the scars on his arms where he had cut himself. She then sighed in quiet relief when she heard that no more blood needed to be spilled for the land to be protected since she now lived here and because of that, it would always be protected. Her blush returned yet again when she heard him say that it saddened her to see the self-inflicted wounds on him (Quadir) before hugging her father back after the conversation ended and also before he faded. "He uh can heal wounds and I guess, apparently, that also extends to old ones as well. He healed my finger after I pricked it to bind my blood and soul to him as his daughter," she said as she saw Quadir's bewilderment of the scars being healed.

Edited December 5, 2022 by SkySong278

[AroaraAngelwolf]

It took a moment for Quadir to register what Alivia was saying. "Oh, well that's good to hear. Um... So the cats. There's a spot near the castle we can visit. It's only a couple blocks away from your store. When will you open it?" He asked as he held out his hand to hold hers. 

 

He lead her to the cats, and several immediately ran over to him. He got down on the coble stone and started to play with them. "Give them the toys, they'll love you. Oh!" He reached in his vest pocket and pulled out dried salmon treats holding it above his head as he got swarmed by cats. He started to laugh. "I missed this!"

[SkySong278]

"Mhm. Okay and oh I almost forgot about my store. Between the ball, recovering from the poison, and then hunting the Pandasatias before breaking the curse, the store got pushed to the back of my mind. I'll see about opening it tomorrow or so. There's probably enough pieces of jewelry in there to sell after its opening and then I'll make some pieces during the slow hours," Alivia said in reply to his statements and question before putting one of her hands in his waiting one.

 

She then walked with him to where the cats were, smiling when she saw that several of them immediately ran up to him shortly after they got to where they were. She then sat down on the cobblestone while watching as he started to play with them, nodding when she heard what he said about giving them toys before giggling when he got swarmed by them after he got the bag of treats out of his vest. She picked up a few toys after she had gotten herself composed once again to entice a few other ones that weren't swarming Quadir. They came over to her and started to play with them, purring while doing so which made her smile. "I'll make sure that you take breaks in-between work and during them, we can play with them for a bit."

Edited January 21, 2022 by SkySong278

[AroaraAngelwolf]

Quadir looked at her in complete admiration. "You are the best person ever! Oh, ahk!" He got a face full of fur as a cat started to climb his arm and knocked over the treats. This was a chubby grey cat with a torn ear, scared face and body and had one blue eye. "That's ol Grey!" He said quickly grabbing the cat in question and snuggled him which got a loud purr and melted into his arms. 

[SkySong278]

"Thanks I try," Alivia said a bit shyly in reply with the smile still on her face and with the cat that she had been playing with earlier was getting comfortable in her lap while she sat with her legs crossed. She petted her a bit before hearing what Quadir said next, looking over at him just as an older cat that was chubby, grey in color, had a torn ear, and a blue eye climbed up his arm and knocked the treats out of his hand. "Ah okay," she said in reply while her smile got a bit bigger when she heard the cat start purring and saw it melt in his arms as he snuggled him.

[AroaraAngelwolf]

Ol'Grey snuggles for a moment then squirmed out of Quadir's hands and went away. The cats seemed to disperse as well as they wandered off to do their own thing. He then got up and checked the houses seeing if there's any sleeping or cats who have passed away in their sleep. He found one elder that did and removed him in his bedding setting the body with the bedding over near a garden that grew. Carefully he dug a hole deep enough and buried the cat, filled the hole and planted catnip over his body. The bedding would be burned later. 

 

Getting up, he washed his hands in a bucket of water by a spout, dumped it and refilled it then continued to check the houses. He got to one and looked over at Alivia waving her over and holding a finger to his lips and pointed inside. Two kittens lay snuggled up together mewing, eyes still closed and still quite tiny. Concern then crept to his features. "Where's their mama?" He whispers and looked at the other cats. They seemed to ignore the babies. Ol'Grey hissed and then flopped to the side. "Oh no, she got into a fight and was killed by the Pandasantias, they are a week old, and are very malnourished. I can't leave them here.." he said softly reaching inside and pulling out one full black kitten and one who was calico. They squeaked and complained until he bundled them up and set them in his mask. "Looks like we have a rare male calico and a female black. Shhh.. shhhh little ones.." he muttered seemingly forgetting they can't hear just yet. "Let's get home and feed them. "

[SkySong278]

Alivia watched as the cat that had gotten comfortable in her lap also got up and followed after the other cats as they dispersed. She then got up and followed Quadir as he checked the houses for cats that might have died. She was sad when she saw the older cat he found before he buried it in a hole he dug while leaving it in the bed that it was laying down in, bowing her head in reverence after the hole was filled.

 

After he was finished with that and he had washed his hands in a bucket, she followed him again to the other houses to see if there were more. When he gestured her over to another cat house, she went over to see what he had found and saw the tiny kittens curled up together and mewing. She frowned when she figured that they were only a week old before hearing what he said what had happened to their mom. “How do you know that?” she asked curiously before watching as he picked them up and bundled them up in his mask. “They’re adorable and okay. Maybe we can be their parents since the other cats seem to be ignoring them,” she said in reply.

Edited January 22, 2022 by SkySong278

[AroaraAngelwolf]

"Another thing about Ol Grey, he's actually a monster himself, but a lesser one and only half. That's why he's so big, can survive with all those wounds and is older than I am. He can understand human language and pantomime things. When he hissed and flopped over twitching it ment fighting and the twitching ment nightmares. Two abandoned kittens and the words fighting nightmares, I just put two and two together. Yes, we'll have to, well at least I got my kitten now..." He said softly. 

 

(The house isn't a full house, a cat tree like house stacked together. )

 

He lead the way back home and stopped by the kitchen for a couple of turkey basters and some milk. He then took the little ones to his room and carefully handed Alivia the calico and he took the little black cat letting her greedily sip drops from the baster as he hummed lowly holding the kitten to his chest. "Kittens know vibrations of their parents. This helps them feel safe and bond. " 

[SkySong278]

((ah okay. edited))

 

“Oh okay. That’s neat and I’m glad he’s a nice one. Alright and yes you do and I have one as well,” she said in reply before following him back home and and then stayed outside the kitchen while he went inside to get turkey basters and milk. Once he got them, she went upstairs with him to his room and took the calico male as he held the black female. She picked up the other turkey baster and fed the other little kitten with it while also humming and holding him close after hearing what Quadir said in explanation about vibrations helping keep them safe and to bond. 

[AroaraAngelwolf]

"Now a name... Hmm...." He said getting more milk for the little one. He seemed to be in thought for a long while, when the kitten ate enough he got a rough leather cloth and dampened it to 'lick' the kitten clean. "Void.  Your name shall be Void. " He said and nodded liking how it sounded. Setting the kitten down, he got up and left the room for a moment before coming back with a milk crate and scraps of clothing and a hot water bladder carefully setting it up by the fireplace and tucked the kitten inside. "They need to be fed every hour to get their weight up,  then every two to three hours. The milk will stay in here. " He said and scraped up a pile of ash near the fire setting the tin cup near it so it stays warm. 

[SkySong278]

“I like that name. Shadow also works, but Void sounds better. Now what to name you,” she said in reply to what Quadir named the black female kitten and then had her attention go back to being on the calico male kitten she held just as he was finished with the milk that had been in the baster she had. “Hm how about Patches,” she said as she took away the baster and as she heard the rest of what Quadir said about when they’d need to feed the kittens to keep their strength up. “Okay. Do you have a better name for this guy other than Patches? I kind of feel like it doesn’t quite fit but I can’t think of another name that would,” she said in reply and then asked his opinion on other names for the male calico kitten.

Edited January 14 by SkySong278

[AroaraAngelwolf]

"Patches? Hmmm, perhaps... Mocha maybe? Hm... " He studied the kittens coloring. "Truffle! " He said excitedly. "He looks like a chocolate coconut carmel truffle I love. I rarely get them so I only get two or three shipped to me on my birthday. It has a carmel stripe in the middle with chocolate on top and bottom with coconut all over. It looks just like his coloring.... And is making me hungry for a sweet dessert.." he said as his stomach grumbled at the mention of food. He ate a ton at their earlier dinner. 

 

He blushed embarrassed and cleared his throat. "Would you like to have some cookies or cheesecake? I can swipe some from the kitchen. " 

[SkySong278]

“Oh yeah. Now that you mention it, he does look like the coloring for a truffle. That’s a perfect name. Thanks for your help,” she said in reply with a smile. “I like coconut as well. Oh. When’s your birthday? Mine’s next month. That sounds like a really delicious dessert. I’d like to try one. Me too,” she said as her stomach also grumbled a bit.

 

“Um maybe cookies. I’m not particularly fond of cheesecake,” she said in reply to his offer while also a bit embarrassed about her stomach growling unexpectedly.

Edited August 23, 2023 by SkySong278

[AroaraAngelwolf]

"I'll answer when I get back. " He said and slipped out of the room. He came back with a plate of cookies and a half tin of lemon cheesecake. "I love cheesecake, lemon and strawberry ones, the cookies are oatmeal, sugar cookies and tea cakes." He said pointing to the round powder sugar covered cookies. He also snagged a couple cups of hot milk. He sat down on the chair and started to dig into his cheesecake. 

 

"So you're a summer baby? What day is it? Mine is December twenty first. The darkest day of the year."

[SkySong278]

“Okay,” she said in reply and got a bit more comfortable on the floor. She was staring at the fire when she heard him come back. She turned to see the plate of cookies, tin of cheesecake, and cups of hot milk. “I’m okay with some that masks the taste of the cream cheese but ones where it’s not masked, I’m not okay with. I’m weird. I love all of those types of cookies,” she said in reply before taking an oatmeal cookie and a sugar cookie off of the plate. She took a bite of the oatmeal cookie when she heard his questions and his response to her question.

 

“Yes and it’s the fifteenth. Ah okay and I’ll remember that so that I can wish you a happy birthday when it comes.”

[AroaraAngelwolf]

"And I'll remember yours so I can get you something nice and have a celebration in town on your birthday. I agree on the cookies, however I don't like oatmeal, and I prefer peanut butter cookies over oatmeal.  Chocolate cheesecake is too rich for me. So July fifteenth, mum's was on the nineth! Dad's was in August. Oh! That reminds me, we have three festivals around here that nobody else seems to have plus the usual ones. One is your father's birthday in a way, it's on February thirteenth. We celebrate the Deity and bring him the best offerings and thank him for the blessings we had the last year and ask for new ones.  Then we have a remembrance week at the beginning of November, mourning the ones we lost and helping them achieve afterlife with paper lanterns.  Lastly we have Amar Heart day.  It's the day after the festival of your father where we have roses everywhere and people connect with old friends, loved ones and distant family and couples get blessed by the people here, usually it's family and friends of the new couples that get gifts to bless their homes or work places. " He explained.

 

Now on his third slice and half way done he wipes his face and set the tin down for a drink. "Then we have the usual yule tide at twenty-first of December, unfortunately my birthday lands right on that day, the new year called the Old Stars festival where the ancient star constellations appear back in the sky marking a new year at the end of December, then summer solstice we just had on the twenty first of June. "  He set down his milk and picked up the tin holding a small forkful of the cheesecake. "Are you sure you don't want to at least try a bite? " He said with a blush. 

Edited January 23, 2022 by AroaraAngelwolf

[SkySong278]

“Oh thank you. It’s been awhile since I last celebrated my birthday which, I think, the last time I celebrated it was back when my parents were still alive. I haven’t celebrated it since then. Oh, but I bet peanut butter cookies would taste better with oatmeal. You should try them and see if you like them or not. I like the chocolate one only because the chocolate flavor covers up the cream cheese, but it is a bit rich. Drinking milk with it helps. Mhm and oh. I guess our birthdays were really close then. Oh, really? I can't wait to go to these festivals as they sound very interesting," she said in reply to his explanation after swallowing the bites of the oatmeal and sugar cookies she had gotten off of the plate before finishing eating both afterward in-between sips of the hot milk.

 

She then got another oatmeal cookie and then also a tea cake cookie as well and started to eat those while hearing everything else he said including the question he asked shyly while holding the tin out to her that had a small forkful of cheesecake left in it. "Oh, so you can't go to the yuletide festival since it falls on your birthday? Maybe we can both go to it for a bit this year before we have your birthday celebration. Oh that one sounds very interesting as well and ah. I'm sorry I missed it. Um I guess it wouldn't hurt to try it," she said in reply to his statements and shy question before taking the offered tin. She then picked up the small bite of cheesecake and ate it, looking a bit surprised that it didn't taste too bad. "It's good. I guess this flavor is another favorite of mine now."

[AroaraAngelwolf]

"I'm glad you like it!" He grinned and took another bite of his cheesecake. "Tea cakes cookies are my favorite type. No, usually my birthday and the celebration is wrapped up in one. My parents let the townspeople celebrate Yule Tide, and we'd make a day of seeing the festival during the day then have a quiet moment with us, and I'll get to open three gifts that night, then the rest in the morning. Then we'll go sledding down the mountain. Although, since Mom got ill after dad died the castle held decorations but we never felt the same without him. Dad would lead the staff in a completely hilarious version of out of tune songs, then play the fiddle dancing around with bells on his feet and a crown of Holly on his horns, hair done up in ribbons and all crazy like. I only know how to play a lute, and it's been so long since I've done it that I've forgotten how to. " He looked vacantly into the fireplace.

 

"The laughter that used to fill the halls around my birthday fell silent long ago. Lately I've been borderd up in my room during those times, listless and grieving. If mother unlocked my door during that time, I'd sit in the bathroom and she'd read here on her chair. Father.... Was the heart of the family. Mother was the soul. The day we lost the heart, the soul left soon after leaving just an empty shell behind. I doubt I can live up to my father's legacy." He said glumly finishing his pie and drink. 

[SkySong278]

“Me, too. Oh but maybe we can do the same kind of thing this year and you can open a gift from me that night after the festival and then open the gifts from the staff the next morning. That sounds fun. I haven’t sledded in forever. Oh. Maybe we can still sing some songs, although it might not be the same as previous years with your parents. I can put green and white ribbons in my hair and wear a crown of mistletoe if you do the crown of holly,” she said in reply before finishing eating the cookies and drinking her milk before looking at him and noticing that he was looking in the fireplace vacantly.

 

“Maybe we can try to bring that laughter back little by little. It might take some time, but we can start this year. I’m going to suggest that you do what your father did, but do it better and live up to how you’d like your legacy to be and not what your father’s was and how he did it,” she said in reply to the rest of what he said while sitting close to him and putting what she hoped was a comforting hand on his arm. “I tried to live how my biological father wanted me to live my life and it just stressed me out so I just lived it how I wanted to instead.” Then she took her hand off his arm and looked down at the floor before saying shyly, “Um sorry if that ended up not helping and maybe I shouldn’t have said anything. We don’t have to do those things if you don’t want to and you also don’t have to live your own life and not try to live up to your father’s legacy.“

Edited January 23, 2022 by SkySong278

[AroaraAngelwolf]

He turned to her and studied her. "That makes sense. About living up to my own legacy then my father's. But... Perhaps we can do something new for our holidays then the same thing. Something for the both of us? The old way would be too painful to try and reenact. " He said setting his hand over hers.  He then yawns and flushed. "We should get ready for bed. " He said and gathered up the plates and cups then toon them downstairs setting them in the sink. 

 

Once back upstairs, he got his pajamas and went into the bathroom to change out of his clothes and wash up. He came out, checked on the kittens and crawled into bed.

[SkySong278]

“Okay and I’m glad I could say something that could comfort you a bit when you seemed so down earlier. Sounds like a good plan,” she said in reply with a smile back in her face and as she looked back up at him from her attention being on the floor while feeling his hand on top of hers. “Alright,” she said in reply to his suggestion of then getting ready for bed before also getting up. As he took the plates and cups back downstairs, she went over to her room, got dressed in her nightgown while also washing her face, then got under the covers of her bed after unmaking it, and then falling asleep as soon as her head hit her pillow.

 

She figured that she’d head back over to Quadir’s room when she heard the kittens crying to be fed again. She also planned on sleeping in his room tomorrow night and would tell him that when she saw him later.

Edited January 24, 2022 by SkySong278

[AroaraAngelwolf]

Quadir woke up and fed the kitties every hour. The fourth time he got up he went to get Alivia to help out. "Can you and I take turns to keep the little ones fed?" He said after opening the door a bit. He rubbed his eyes sleepily. 

[SkySong278]

“Oh, yes. Sorry I temporarily forgot about the kittens,” Alivia said in reply as she woke up when Quadir opened her door and she heard his question. “I can also just stay in your room for the rest of the night to feed mine as you feed yours.” She said this other statement as she sat up and then got out of bed to take both Void and Truffle from him and then headed back over to his room where he had the turkey basters and the milk. “You can go ahead and go back to sleep. I’ll take care of them.”

Edited April 20, 2022 by SkySong278