Author: Simone, Posted: Mon Oct 12, 2020 8:29 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Simone watched his reaction and held a gentle smile as he took it all in. She could tell that it hit him hard. The phoenix wrapped her arms around him and kissed his shoulder. “We’re both scared,” she whispered to him as she put her forehead against his shoulder. “It’s brand new for both of us. Isn’t it?”

For her, it was a bit different. He had never done this before but Simone… She closed her eyes and kissed his shoulder again. “I’m scared of losing everything again. Scared that maybe I won’t be enough this time around. Everything still doesn’t feel wholly real to me and yet… I’m here and you’re here.” She took a breath and held it before lifting her face and putting her chin on his shoulder the best she could.

“Suppose that makes us mortal, doesn’t it?” There was a chuckle from her but it was so light you could have missed it. “We’ll give it our all just like we always have… We’ll have to.” She turned him around and cupped his face softly so she could look into his hazel eyes.

“I think and believe that everything will fall into place as long as we work together. We can do anything no matter what the world throws at us~” There was a gentle reassuring smile before she pushed herself up on her toes and kissed her lips.

“We’re together until the end of times~” She took his hands and laced his fingers in hers. “We’re going to make mistakes and that’s okay… We just have to learn from them and make sure that we have each others’ backs no matter what. It’s okay to be scared as long as we do all those things.” She thought she sounded silly but feeling her heartbeat with his she couldn’t help it. “I trust you unconditionally for all times~ and nothing can sway me nor break me to change that. I’ll never lead you astray and I’ll always be honest with you even if you don’t want to hear what I have to say. I promise that to you. If I am the only one you can be open with or reveal yourself too… I’ll be that person no matter what. As long as I am here with you.” Simone put her forehead to Lewis’s and closed her eyes.

“So don’t hide things from me, okay? If you need to talk just find me as I’m never far from you nor your heart. That way we can overcome anything in our way.”

Author: Dusk, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 6:21 PM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

The whole room had a very unique feel to it. It was made with love and adoration for what was to come, a baby who was innocent to the world. Lewis was feeling something, but words couldn’t describe it. Growing up on the streets of Hoja Mesto had robbed him of this kind of upbringing, and in a way, he was sad about that. It had done so much irreparable damage that in every way, it made him the fucked up mess that he was today.

And yet, without that life he would have never met Simone. He would have never met Lord Riath, and Akira, and Xeik, and even Danwe. The people who had lead him to this very point had all, in their own way, supported his rise to this point. Even his ‘friends’, Rhenakos, Dae, and even Elrand…all of them had helped.

And now I can help another child to avoid the life I have… It was a twisted thing, knowing just how tortured but lucky he was. At least, though, he felt as though they were on the right path.

“It’s amazing,” he said finally, his voice shaky. “I…I’m scared though.” This was something different than he was used to. A raw emotion that was so much he could barely handle it. “I’m happy…and scared. It’s amazing…I just hope…” I hope that we can be enough…

Author: Simone, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 6:06 PM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Simone was in for the whole run of it as she played dodge Kalina all day with him. “We can do it. There is a load of people ready to be hired now that the island is safe,” Simone hadn’t found any spirits with Rhenakos but that didn’t mean there wouldn’t be any forever. Not that she couldn’t handle it if they did show up. “Definitely not, it’s hard right now maintaining everything with just the three of us here.”

Simone gave him a smirk and shook her head, “I said I am sickly sometimes so I can appear with my husband.” She shook her head at him and giggled.

Kalina mulled it over, “I can make a list for you and give it to you by the end of the day.”

Simone pushed herself up unexpectedly, “You finished the thing?”

“I did.”

“Come with me please,” she grabbed Lewis and pulled on him. “I have a surprise to show you.” She took them upstairs to where their room was but she cut to the bedroom off to the right. “Are you ready?”

She opened the door to a room done in a nightscape. There were crystals hanging from the ceiling and the light made them look like stars. The walls looked an awful lot like the forest that they had been in together. That special place just before their beginning.

The crib was made out of dark mahogany and looked to be crafted with a lot of care. The stuffed animals from the fair were all around the room. There was a rocking chair and a bookshelf with many books. It was almost perfect. She wrapped herself around Lewis and smiled at him. “What do you think? For when we find a baby.”

Author: Dusk, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 5:56 PM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

As they cuddled in the family room, Lewis smirked at her devious nature. “It’s only natural that I be with someone so devious. It only makes me love you more…” Their resonance was strong right now, and that caused a wicked grin to spread across his face. “Round two?”

They spent the rest of the afternoon running about the lower floors, avoiding Kalina during her breaks. When it was time for dinner, they settled down and made a meal for all of them to sit down in the main dining hall. The meal didn’t last too long as the hungry couple had burned plenty of calories through the day, and near the end, Lewis was leaning back in his chair, stuffed. “We need to…hire people already. I’m not going to be able to keep up with the dishes that we have when this place gets busy…none of us will.”

He looked to Simone, who had finished her meal as well. “Well? What’s on the list for tomorrow then? Another trip to Benin?” Lewis turned to Kalina. “What supplied are needed? We’ve got the boat ready for transportation. Just tell us what you need and we can run to town to get it. Or…” he glanced at Simone. “Would it be a problem for my sickly wife to appear in public?”

Author: Simone, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 5:48 PM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Simone smirked up at Lewis now who had finally figured out what she had done. “I thought it was perfect.” She moved from the door to meet him. “Your poor ailing wife isn’t scared of superstitions~” She cooed softly towards him. She was an omen at this point she was sure. People were scared whenever they saw her bird form, as they should be.

She kissed him back and nibbled his bottom lip. “You don’t have to kill half the town yet~ They bought it for the time beginning. I was just going to burn one of their houses down if they didn’t do it.”

His suggestion made her grin a bit as she cupped his face and kissed him, “Your sickly wife always has the energy for that.” He picked her up and set her down on one of the new tables in the foyer. “Always~ As long as you do.” Her own eyes were azure and she felt the connection with him. They could make the resonance as strong as they wanted.

As they were done she kissed him softly. They had managed to end up in the family room on one of the couches for comfort and cuddling. She kissed his fingers. “I didn’t want to spoil the surprise. I was sure you would find out if it worked. See I can be devious~” She teased him. "And dangerous too."

Author: Dusk, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 5:41 PM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Lewis, of course, had heard everything despite not being a part of the conversation. One of the more useful things that they had learned they could do with their resonance. As long as they were within a few feet of each other, they could almost share senses entirely. It was hard to pull off, but with practice it could even go long distances.

As Simone closed the door and started singing aloud about how well her ‘plan’ went, Lewis was at the left stairwell, leaning against the bannister with his arms crossed. “Angry spirits? Black flame?” There was a hint of a smile as he spoke. “I’m surprised they didn’t see a dark omen, a black bird of sorts…” The assassin walked up to Simone. “I’d hate for my wife in ailing health to be disturbed by such evil things.”

He got closer, his eyes locked with hers. “Please do be careful. I’d hate to have to kill half a town to make a point…” His eyes flickered azure. “Although…for you I’d do just about anything…” Lewis wrapped his arms around her and gave her a quick kiss. “You know…we haven’t done this room yet…” It was obvious what he was hinting.

“Of course, that is…if my sickly wife has the energy of course.”

Author: Simone, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 5:35 PM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Simone wrapped her arms around his waist and kissed his shoulder. She felt happy. “I’m happy too.” She pulled him down and pet his hair. “I don’t know what I would do without you either…” Probably panic.

–

Simone was meeting with the officials in the family room. It was restored now with the darker colors that they preferred. She had tea ready for them, “I’m sorry about the wait we’re still waiting for the house to be restored before we hire house help.”

“That’s fine Mrs. Terrowin. We’re just checking in and making sure that the spirits kept their end of the deal,” the noblemen were nervously looking around the house for the spirits that were now protecting the Terrowin estate. “We couldn’t believe our eyes when they attacked us.”

Simone looked concerned, “Are you alright? My goodness, that sounds so terrible.” She sipped her tea as she blew on it.

“It was horrific. The windows blew in and shattered through our mansions and all of our lights lit up black. EVEN THE STOVES.” The men were in a panic. “We were warned by the pirate ghosts to undo the taxes so when Mr. Talon contacted us we did it immediately.”

“That is so horrific… I am glad that the spirits approve of us buying this island though. I was really worried about it.” Simone let a sigh of relief leave her mouth. “My health isn’t always so great you see. That’s why my husband purchased this land for us.”

There was an hour of discussion between them all before Simone saw the noblemen to the door. “Come again please!” She watched their carriages go towards the docks before she closed the doors. There was a smirk on her face as leaned against the doors. “I didn’t think it would work~” She sang a bit.

Author: Dusk, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 5:27 PM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

The next few days passed as Kalina worked on the important rooms first. When it was all said and done, Lewis and Simone found themselves alone in the newly renovated bedroom. The color was a lot better on his eyes, and made him feel somewhat at home. It would be a long time before he could really consider anything truly home, but at least this was a start.

“I think it’s a lot to take in,” Lewis replied. Their resonance had started to die down a lot, and he was starting to get a grasp on how to control it. For the most part, he silenced the emotions he felt, going back to his old self, though he could still at least understand them coming from Simone. Finding that balance had been a pain, but now that they were here, he felt a lot better.

Lewis sat down on top of Simone, and sighed. “I don’t really know how to take it. It doesn’t feel real.” He thumbed the ring on his finger. Until the end of days. He smiled. “These past months have been so much. And I’m so happy…” He laid on top of her, and closed his eyes, just holding her on the couch.

“I don’t know what I’d do without you…”

—

Weeks passed, and Simone worked her magic on the locals. Raile had contacted them about the almost immediate lowering of taxes, to which he asked how she managed to do it in such a short amount of time. Simone merely smiled and replied about her womanly charm, and Raile simply let it drop after that.

Even when Lewis asked, Simone remained quiet and merely smiled and gave him a kiss. Kalina had done a lot of the work, getting most of the downstairs done, and had started working on the upstairs. Everything seemed to be going smooth.

Author: Simone, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 11:11 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Kali smirked a bit, “I’ll call you whatever you want me to call you.” He was the boss technically. There was a choking sputter from Kalina as Lewis offered to off someone and Simone was giggling about it. They really were two peas in a pod.

Simone took a deep breath and nodded. “I’m in. Guess we own a really big house now… don’t we?” She should have asked how many gardens there were but it didn’t matter. She liked gardening it calmed her down. “This means we’re going to be busy for a long while Lewis,” Simone chuckled.

She waited until after he had signed to jump into his arms and kiss him. “This was just what I needed~ Thank you.” After that visit to Angela, she had been really depressed and now she had an out. They had an out together.

“We’ll probably have to acquire our own boat but for now I can always fly to Benin,” it was weird to hear Simone talking about her flight skills. She had gotten a lot better at transforming and her aerials were always something to watch because of her coloring.

“When can you have at least our bedroom and the kitchen done?” Simone was eager to get a move in.

“Give me three days and a heavy ass hammer. It will be done,” Kali was ecstatic to get back to work.

So when the work was finally done and they had started to move their things in Simone brought up a tray with some tea for her and Lewis to share. "It's crazy quiet here… except when Kali is yelling at her tools," she offered a smile as she fell onto the couch in their room. "What do you think about it all?"

Author: Dusk, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 11:02 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Sure, Lewis’ reaction was a little over the top, but at least Simone was on board with the changes. He looked behind him when Kalina came in, and agreed with Simone about the color swap and the change in ‘business’ as she put it. He was appreciative of the help, though he wondered what other deals Raile was actually getting out of this whole island.

Kalina and simone went on about ‘christening’ the whole palace, and Lewis was, for the most part, on board with it all. When they entered the bathroom, Lewis gave Kali a look at her remark. “Of course I want it redone. Just don’t…call me that again.” He hated the term. “I’ll even pay you not to call me that again.” He paused for a moment. “Do you need anyone killed?”

Raile shook his head in surprise and looked at Lewis. “Was…that a joke?”

“Did you take it as one?” Lewis asked, a little confused.

“I’d…rather not say,” Raile replied. “Anyway, let’s just call it a work in progress. Are you satisfied?”

Lewis looked to Simone. “I am if you are. Is this…okay?” The assassin was ready to sign the paperwork needed to get it all done. All he needed was the ‘yes’ from Simone.

Author: Simone, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 10:51 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

That smirk told her one of two things. Either Lewis was about to die of shock or Lewis was about to blow his lid and then die of shock. Sure enough when she opened the door she started laugh. “This is supposed to be a show of wealth. I hate it too.” It had been worth the shock. She now understood why Raile hadn’t show them it until now.

“We can burn whatever you want once we make a deal with Lewis,” she chuckled. “We’ll own an entire island to do whatever want~” Simone was excited about it.

Kali came in and she had a tool chest over her shoulder. “Are they buying the damn place or not I want to wreck shit and rebuild.” Simone hadn’t been lying about her about ready to crack attitude.

“Lewis would like to redo this in… darker colors and not as… busy. Maybe swap color pallets to a midnight blue with silver?” Simone suggested.

“Fine,” Kalina nodded, “I imagine like any first time home buyers you two are going to fuck in every room… Just give me a warning.”

“…How many rooms are there?”

“One hundred bedrooms and quite a few other rooms. The most work will be downstairs for the kitchen, libraries, and the washrooms of course.”

That… was a lot of sex. “Sure… Might take us a bit,” Simone said with surprise. That reminded Simone as she went over to a set of doors. “This is this room’s washroom right?” The bathroom was huge with an equally large tub. There were huge mirrors wrapped in gold and the walls were white with beautiful molding. It wasn't heavily patterned but it did have a pink like granite in it. Who knew how Lewis would like this.

“Big enough for four people if you are freaky enough,” Kali spoke and Simone blushed a bit, “Does his lordship require a color change in this room too?”

Author: Raile, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 10:35 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Raile smiled when she asked to see the master bedroom. “Of course, my lady,” he said with a sly smirk. He had seen pictures of the room, and had intentionally avoided showing Lewis for the shock value alone. Leaving the library, they made their way back to the foyer and up the stairs.

“It’s on the east side here,” Raile said as he went the opposite way that they had come from, and down the hall. “There’s a fantastic view of the lake from here, and you can even see the mountains that surround Benin. It’s amazing,” he said as he approached the ornate double doors. “And here we are.” He stepped aside to let Lewis and Simone open the doorways.

Lewis took the left door and Simone the right, and when they pushed they were greeted with a large room with ornate, baroque swirls on almost every surface imaginable. Golden patterns and sheets decorated the whole room, with a four poster bed at the right end of the room. A small gold table was at the other end in front of a gaudy hearth and chairs.

“It’s…so bright,” Lewis said with a disgusted look on his face. “And…so much.” He looked to the frilly window drapes, and he could see the view that Raile was talking about. At least he hadn’t lied about that. “We’re…burning all of this.”

Author: Simone, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 10:16 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Simone chuckled, “Kali has obviously been giving him lessons.” That was one woman she wouldn’t touch with a ten-foot pole after the show of strength at the fair.

There was a smile as Lewis freaked out a bit over it. “Most places have a family library and then a public space library for visitors. Books that they don’t want to go to others and books that are fine. Believe it or not, it comes in handy when dealing with family disputes. The family library, for example, could have tax information, castle information, and all that other good stuff. At least most places that are large like this one.” She corrected herself.

She pulled out one of the books and opened it up. She could smell how old it was and she smiled a bit as she blew on it getting the dust off. Simone blushed a bit at what Raile said and chuckled. “I don’t think we’ll have a herd of children quite that fast.”

Though she didn’t know Lewis’s idea of fast. “We’ll need to fix up everything first. Make it safe. Probably find a nanny for when I need to leave with you. Nanny or three… Depending. That means making sure we have wages. Not only that but house staff would be nice eventually. Going through the painstaking task of making sure people are who they say they are. I only got to sit in on meeting my bodyguard after he was assigned to me.”

That gave her a better idea, “How about we stop shocking Lewis…” Though they might shock him more. “Can we go see our bedroom?”

Author: Raile, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 10:06 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

The merchant took another look at his own documents. “To be completely honest, between the ghost pirates and…well, apparently this place was made with smugglers money, so I’m sure there’s probably secret paths and the like around here as well. The whole place is just a mess of superstition. The locals try to avoid it. You know how normal people are.” He waved the question away. “Besides, if there is an issue with it, between you and Rhenakos, you can fix it, right?”

Lewis nodded. “It shouldn’t be a problem. But smugglers? And how did it end up in the hands of whoever you were dealing with?”

Raile sighed. “You ask too many questions, you know. The documents trace back to an inheritance. Old smugglers must have given up the trade, and it got passed down through the family until someone decided they didn’t want it anymore. Long story short, don’t look a gift horse in the mouth Lewis.”

The young assassin was surprised at Raile. “Wow, you do have a spine.”

The merchant rolled his eyes. “A silver tongue only gets you so far in life.”

“So…this library is all ours? Even the books already here?”

“Yes,” Raile replied. “And all the books in the second library as well. I’m sure some of the rooms are furnished as well, but I can’t attest to the quality. Up to you.”

Lewis gave Raile a wide eyed look of shock. “A second…library…just how big is this place?” The teen was in shock. “I won’t know what to do with all of this space…”

Raile started to laugh, “Don’t worry Lewis. I’m sure you’ll be busy running around here soon enough. You’ll probably soon be wishing for more space…believe me.”

Author: Simone, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 9:43 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Simone shrugged a bit as she and Raile had their little negotiation. “I have nothing but time to wait. That’s reasonable too, I never said when I wanted to make the deal anyways that part was on you.” Raile really was silver-tongued though and she could see why someone like Leilah was drawn in but she had no idea how Kalina was… That part of the story had been left out.

She waved her hands at it. “I can maintain gardens, I worked for an alchemist.” Worked was the loose term. Something that sent her skin some goosebumps thinking about it. “Shouldn’t be hard to maintain the gardens at all.” She looked up at Lewis and shrugged. “I was the alchemy ingredient for two years.” An almost immortal human tended to fetch a good price.

She waved her hand at him. “I can do it, I was raised to kiss nobleman’s asses and did it quite well. It shouldn’t take too much to get on even grounds… If there are ghost pirates here… Angela said something about me scaring the dead so again I can take care of that, maybe.”

Going to the end of the hall on one of the wings she opened a set of double doors. It was a massive two-story library with stained glass. The bookcases were all built into the walls with fine mahogany. “So, who the hell built this anyways?” She tilted her head at Raile.

“This is a lot of love and care for someone just to abandon it…” She walked around the room and the floor broke and bit but she managed to avoid it. “Also, mine and Lewis’s room is upstairs right?” It would have been the largest bedroom in the house she was sure of it.

Author: Raile, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 9:22 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Raile listened with a sly smile on his face as Simone spoke of her ‘deal.’ It wasn’t entirely true on how he ‘bought’ the twins, but he was going to let her have it this time. But it was true about everything else that was happening. With the more recent events happening around Jayou, sales in weaponry were down, and he had already factored that into his calculations. The fact that Benin didn’t know of Kalina’s wares meant he had an entirely new market to sell to, and had been hoping to let her pop over and start her craft here to get a jump start on some profits. As for Leilah, she was out of commission for the time being, but he did know of the special moss that grew in the area, as well as other unique flora that might help in the alchemy.

“You’re sharp,” Raile said as they continued looking about the bottom floor. “However, you need to factor in a few other things. Even with gating, transportation of materials is costly, and a lot of times it’s easier to ship it across the sea despite how slow it is. You wouldn’t be able to afford the cost of materials. Mass transportation is costly, and draining. No discount, however there can be a commission on what she makes that gets put back into the house which should help with repairs and upkeep. Based on the area I’d say….twenty five percent should be good. And for Leilah, there won’t be much she can do until after the twins are born, so you’ll have t o wait until she can work again before we can make any deals. Until then, no discount on that front either, but that’s open for discussion once she’s back to work.”

“In the meantime, you can start pressing and bottling the materials for storage, which I don’t mind buying at cost. I’ll even set up a trade deal for you to make it easier on shipping. That would be 100% profit for you, as long as you maintain the gardens here.” He showed them the next set of rooms, and continued on with his negotiations. “Lastly…I’m sure Leilah wouldn’t mind having help with the girls when they’re born. But, like I said, we can negotiate that once they’re born. So for now, no discount.”

“If you must know, Simone, I bought this place for quite a steal. It is still an island though, and Benin was not very happy with my acquisition. Something about angering the ghost pirates. Anyway, short version of that whole ordeal is that they taxed the shit out of the island. Lucky for me, it’s still well within what I expected from the original price, so it was workable…” Raile looked to Simone, and then to Lewis. “It’ll be up to you two…you’ll need to make a good impression on the locals.” He looked back to Simone. “Well…more on you than on him.”

Lewis gave Raile a look, “Excuse me.”

“Well, you aren’t exactly…sociable,” Raile replied back. “Anyway, if you guys can lower the taxes on the island, I’ll give you a break. Until then, I can’t afford less than the three thousand a month.”

Author: Simone, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 9:15 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Simone held Lewis’s hand when they walked in and even she seemed like she was at a loss of words. “This… This is almost as big as Auclair castle.” Auclair had been a small successful nation during its time but this place… It was huge even by its standards. Simone let go of Lewis and she dipped herself under the light. “The stained glass is in perfect condition…” Whoever had made it was a master of their craft.

Listening to the math the boys had going on… It was pretty cheap for how big it was. “Not so fast. Listen to what I have to say first,” Simone strolled over and crossed her arms. “You are silver-tongued. No wonder you managed to get the twins by buying them.” She was tapping her foot.

“There’s a lull in people buying weapons right now which has put Kalina out of work. It’s making her irritable. I want a discount and Kali can work in this place as long as we provide the materials. Also, a discount for providing Leilah with all the flora she wants as long as she doesn’t strip the place. I heard for hours last night about the moss and the flowers here and how good they are for ingredients. I’ll let you have all you want for a discount.” She was drilling holes into Raile.

“Also, I’ll take the girls whenever you two want a break once they are born. I figure all in all this is a fair deal.” She put her hands on her hips now. “I got time, the flora, and the workload that you need. Kali is going to crack soon if she doesn’t get a decent workload. This place will at least give you two months to have the weapon stock she made deplete.”

Once that was said she rolled her shoulders, “That’s it. You can think about it. Like you said this is investment… Isn’t it? For all of us.” The first room they came to was a huge great room. It had dark wooden floors that needed to be touched up and a large stone fireplace. “It’s made out of dark marble isn’t it?” She went over to it and tilted her head. “The craftsmanship is good but it’s starting to crack a little from having no care,” she looked around the room and was fond of the big picture windows looking out over the island. “It’s cozy…”

Next was a dining room she supposed with the way it was laid out next to the large kitchen. There was even a pantry off of it that was the size of their old room. Enough room for a lot of kids.

Author: Dusk, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 8:40 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Raile was walking back when they separated, and he had a smile on his face. He had a general idea of what had happened, and based on their mood, he was sure they wanted to go through with the plan. He offered to show them around, and lead the way into the main hall.

The interior was much better than Lewis had been expecting, and the pictures that he had seen had not done the place justice. The main foyer was bigger than Raile’s shop, with an elegant, stained glass ceiling that let natural light in. Two massive stairwells on either side curved upwards to the second floor. In the center, there was room for several pieces of furniture, and the back was mostly glass with a path to the back, inner courtyard.

“This…is almost too much,” Lewis said, looking at Raile. “And I’m paying you HOW much for this?”

Raile shrugged. “Between the upkeep and your income, I’d say…” He did some quick mental math. “Three thousand silver a month. And you’ll have to fix the place up. So that’ll add a couple thousand silver. And once you get that set up, inspections, licensing, furnishings, food…”

“I get it,” Lewis replied, shaking his hand. “I should have enough. It’s not like I’ve spent my earnings on anything else.” He shrugged. “Just don’t break me, Raile.”

The merchant smirked. “Please. This is an investment, believe it or not.” It was almost scary the way he said it. “Anyway. Let’s check out the bottom floor first. Here…” He lead the way down the first hall on the right, showing off the initial set of rooms.

Author: Dusk, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 8:40 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Raile was walking back when they separated, and he had a smile on his face. He had a general idea of what had happened, and based on their mood, he was sure they wanted to go through with the plan. He offered to show them around, and lead the way into the main hall.

The interior was much better than Lewis had been expecting, and the pictures that he had seen had not done the place justice. The main foyer was bigger than Raile’s shop, with an elegant, stained glass ceiling that let natural light in. Two massive stairwells on either side curved upwards to the second floor. In the center, there was room for several pieces of furniture, and the back was mostly glass with a path to the back, inner courtyard.

“This…is almost too much,” Lewis said, looking at Raile. “And I’m paying you HOW much for this?”

Raile shrugged. “Between the upkeep and your income, I’d say…” He did some quick mental math. “Three thousand silver a month. And you’ll have to fix the place up. So that’ll add a couple thousand silver. And once you get that set up, inspections, licensing, furnishings, food…”

“I get it,” Lewis replied, shaking his hand. “I should have enough. It’s not like I’ve spent my earnings on anything else.” He shrugged. “Just don’t break me, Raile.”

The merchant smirked. “Please. This is an investment, believe it or not.” It was almost scary the way he said it. “Anyway. Let’s check out the bottom floor first. Here…” He lead the way down the first hall on the right, showing off the initial set of rooms.

Author: Simone, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 8:11 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

She listened to his words and snuggled her head into his chest. A little smile appeared on her face and she tilted her head just enough so he could see it. “I’m okay when I’m with you too.” Even she could have her moments where the resonance wasn’t great for her but it had waned greatly in the past few months. They still needed each other but they could be apart for a time and it didn’t bother them as much.

Simone made it look like she was thinking hard about it but she just ended up chuckling, “Yeah, yes. Let’s do it.” She pushed herself up and kissed him gently. “However, ground rules.” She poked him in the chest as a joke. “We take turns getting up. It sucks if you do it all by yourself.” Babies were, in fact, brutal. Only one of them had any experience raising kids at least fully and even Simone hadn’t raised them to adulthood. She had never had that chance before.

“Kids are brutal though~ They tend to be little drunks… Think you can handle that?” He had already made up his mind though and she shook her head. “You can handle anything.” She looked up at the house. “It’s so big Lewis… That’s a lot of kids.” She couldn’t say she wasn’t happy because it did make her happy.

“How the hell did we even end up on a similar wavelength but not know what was going on,” she threw up her hands as a joke. “Resonance is weird…” Did it even work like that? He had a solution to her problem and she had his solution. It wasn’t perfect but it was theirs.

“Want to go see the inside?”

Author: Dusk, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 8:05 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Lewis held her for a moment. He wasn’t sure what to say or how to react. If anything, this was the first time he was clueless on what to do. She was so strong all of the time, but now? In his arms she felt so frail, so easily breakable. “We can do whatever we want here…if you want it. I…” He gripped her tightly. “Simone…as long as I’m with you, I’m okay. So let’s…do it. We can adopt as many kids as we want to, and take care of them here.” It was because he wanted to add more to the world.

It all made sense. Simone’s mood was as clear as day now, and Lewis understood, if only a little, that what he was doing now might help. It wasn’t the perfect solution, but then again, they weren’t exactly the most typical of spouses to each other. This was their way of fighting back against the hands they were given.

“So…what do you say, Simone?”

Author: Simone, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 7:59 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

“Playing.. on.. it?” She looked at Lewis with a really hurt expression at first. She had no idea what he wanted to do and it just sounded like he was planning on a future he couldn’t have with her. Simone took the paperwork to look it over and she tilted her head at some of the details.

When her husband finally exploded towards Raile she had this innocent expression like 'What the hell just happened?' between them. Then it was just the two of them and Simone stared at Lewis.

Staring at Lewis as he failed to look at her. At first, she tried to copy his words just so she could figure them out, however, when he spoke slower her face lit up a bit. “So… Lots of children then?” It was perking her up more than she had been in the last few days since her health check-up. “Even babies?” It didn’t need to be a baby from her not if Lewis was open to others.

“I…” She looked sheepish for a moment. “Found some stuff out from Angela.” She looked a bit sad. “I’ve had a lot of doubt in myself and for a moment I was scared that…” She took a breath and she found herself hugging Lewis tightly burying her head in his chest. “Angela said the fey lord cursed my womb so bad that she couldn’t fix it. For some reason, that really hurts.”

Author: Dusk, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 7:51 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Raile started to list of a variety of issues, most of which were low cost maintenance things. Floor repair here and there, wall repairs on the upper floor. A few pieces of roofing needed to be replaced, and other issues that seemed like they could knock out in a few weeks at best.

“Oh, and there’s a cave on the other side of the island with a rotted out pirate ship, but…as long as no one’s playing on it,” he gave Lewis a look. “It should be okay. Getting that removed would cost a pretty silver, but it isn’t required.” The merchant handed Simone the paperwork to review, still giving Lewis a look.

The young assassin glared back. “Fine! I’ll ask damnit! Just stop looking at me.” Raile gave a smile, and walked off, taking time to look at the small mansion on his own. Perhaps he had other ideas to go alongside Lewis’. This left the two of them alone, and Lewis was starting to get nervous again.

“So…” Lewis said looking to the side. “Iwanttostartanorphanage.” The words tumbled out. He paused. “I. Want. To. Start. An. Orphanage,” he repeated much slower. “I think it will…do good in the world. Xeik…” He didn’t want to say more about it, and simply didn’t. “I enjoy what I do, but…I want to try and do more. And I want your help…”

Author: Simone, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 7:43 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Leilah had her fun with Simone putting her in a sundress telling her to live for her in the moment. She wanted to go and Simone had submitted to the clearly cabin fevered pregnant woman. She looked rather cute all things considering. It was a shade of plum that she wouldn’t have picked for herself but it did look nice on her.

Though it was also a little short for her liking but Rosenites were also weird. It was just Lewis and Raile anyways so it was okay. Taking Lewis’s hand she walked off the ship and looked around. “We got time,” Simone answered dryly. Her mind was still elsewhere.

Once she saw the house she let her eyes get wide. “Lewis, when you said you found us a house… I didn’t know you meant a fucking castle.” She didn’t sound upset if anything she sounded sort of happy. She barely knew anything about it but that it was on an island and that they were visiting it.

It looked cute with their ivy. “And you said that… No one else wanted to buy it?” That was the devil in the details as she stared at Raile. “Not that it matters… How rotted is everything or is it in good condition?"

Author: Dusk, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 7:34 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

The fact that Simone was acting a little more like her usual self was a good sign. Lewis knew that something was wrong, but even with the resonance they had together, he couldn’t tell what it was. It wasn’t like Lewis wasn’t dealing with his own issues as well.

Xeik had called him out in their last fight. Lewis was well aware that he was a killer, and he knew that what he did was justified, but the younger boy had made a strong argument. All Lewis did was take from the world, and kill, and slaughter. He could hear Xeik’s words echo in his mind.

You kill left and right with no thoughts on the consequences. At least when I try to help, I pull children off of the street so they have a place to grow up without fear! What do you do? Just pile bodies in the streets?

Lewis looked away from Simone, and out into the deep waters. “Yeah. It’s pretty here.” He had an idea, but he wasn’t sure how to go about it. Raile was helping of course, and seemed supportive. Rhenakos had merely just laughed at him, but he seemed interested in seeing how it played out. All he had to do was talk to Simone.

Gotta see the palace first. He was nervous. Or at least, what he thought was nervous.

As the ship docked, Lewis led Simone to the walkway, and the two descended. The air was warm and muggy, but he had come prepared, wearing a set of light coloured clothes to compensate. It looked so strange on him, and Raile still had a hard time reconciling the look even after the few hours they had travelled together.

With Raile leading the way, the group followed a beautifully laid out, overgrown path down to the house. “It will need a lot of work,” he said as he motioned for them to watch their step. “But it’s still in a good condition. There’s a lot of ivy growing up the side, but it shouldn’t be too difficult to cull back if you need.”

As they turned the path, the house came into view…

Author: Simone, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 7:12 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

Things were complicated at best.

At least with her and not with Lewis. With Lewis, she knew where she stood.

“Simone, I don’t know how to tell you this but… You can’t have children.”

Simone had already known the answer. “I know… I was just hoping…”

Angela gave her a frown and put her file down, “Whatever the fey lord did… caused a reaction to the new body. I couldn’t give you your womb back. That’s not to say that with time I couldn’t make it work. You just have to have a little hope that’s all.”

It wasn’t the best answer in the world. Especially with the way the fey lord wrote his contracts. It left Simone depressed and it could be easily read whenever she was around children. The constant sighing, whenever she was around babies, was a big sign. She thought she had gotten over this. She thought she was over that part of her life.

Apparently, being in a safe place finally with someone who actually loved her… made all those feelings come flooding back.

She was leaning against the railing of the boat staring out over the water. This had been Lewis’s idea and she couldn’t say she wasn’t fond of it. When Lewis told her that Raile had found them a home to look at she had perked up a bit. She hadn’t known Lewis was looking, to begin with. It wasn’t like they could grow outside his room with the way her body was. It gave her a new bit of hope, a tiny bit.

“Yeah,” she offered a smile. “The way the sun looks on the water is pretty here. The water is darker than back on Parvpora.”

Author: Dusk, Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 7:04 AM, Post Subject: Isle el Koskaan [P/R]

As the ship rocked back and forth, Lewis gripped the edge of the railing. It was one of his least favorite ways of traveling. It was something about being trapped on a boat with no escape that made him uneasy. Perhaps a life of always knowing the escape route was something that was a curse in this instance. He thumbed a ring in his pocket.

That’s the escape ticket. Raile had given him this ring before they left for work, in case Lord Raith came calling for his services. Supposedly it opened a gateway to wherever he desired, and could be used just about anywhere so long as Lewis knew the destination and the ring was charged. Still, the insurance policy was not enough to ease his mind.

“How much longer Raile?” Lewis asked as the merchant walked up beside him.

“Well, we’re going to…that island there.” Raile pointed off in the distance. There was a standard floating dock in the distance, which seemed to be where they were headed. “It has a total of two docks. There’s a smaller one near the house, but we can’t dock there.”

Lewis noted the lie that Raile told about the number of docks, but didn’t question it. It didn’t matter anyway. Lewis and Simone would probably end up exploring the whole island before they decided to do anything with it.

“How…did you come across this again?” Lewis asked. He hadn’t really had the opportunity to discuss the finer details.

“It’s…a story I’d rather not go into. The owner was ranting and raving about ghost pirates. I sent Rhen to check it out…it’s clear, I promise.” Raile waved his hand. In all likelihood, Rhenakos dealt with the problem on his own. That kind of issue was usually his specialty.

“You’re almost as shady as I am, you know…” Lewis replied drily.

“I’m a businessman. And besides…they were literally just holding on to the place to let the property value go up. Such a waste. At least this way, it’ll get some use.” He pulled out a variety of documents. “See? Look at this gorgeous house.”

Raile produced a picture of the house. It was a giant, two story Tudor style mansion with a single tower near the front. From just the front, Lewis could guess that it had over twenty rooms, give or take. It was definitely going to be weird living there. I really hope that Lord Raith will let me create a portal to my room there. I’ll need the escape. If not, he at least had the ring.

“Where’s Simone?” Raile asked as he rolled up the documents. “We’re almost there.”

“I’ll go find her.” Lewis pried himself off of the railing, and looked around. Ah. There you are. Simone was gazing off the side of the ship near the back. She seemed to be enjoying herself. Lewis walked up beside her. “Raile says we’re almost there. Are you ready?”