aren't you such a catch?
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Word Count: 840

For Sebastian. Dated 25 February, if you please.


★ ★ ★


It has been the freedom is not free, that we must earn what we get, and fight for what we believe in most. In many cases, this sentiment can inspire hope and strength in a downtrodden people; in others, it can cause dukkha – unnecessary, self-inflicted suffering – where there need be none. Many human wars, and later, even luperci wars, were wages with freedom in mind &nash; freedom of expression, freedom of speech, freedom of choice. The results of these wars were mixed, of course, because in reality, freedom ought to be free. Why ought any wish to take that basic right from another? Grace would never know, because she had never had such an urge. Even her own mount, Layla, was a companion, and the blonde luperci girl had first befriended the mare, and then sought to take her along, and the horse had responded in kind. In Grace's world, a near-utopian place of splendors and many a place and thing to explore and experience, freedom was given to all freely, and taken from none forcefully. Of course, that wasn't reality, and somewhere in her vaguely naïaut;ve mind, she knew that. That was why she was here, anyhow. To fix a wrong that need never have been so.


The trip from AniWaya to the Casa di Cavalieri had been long, but not terribly treacherous. Grace traveled in Lupus form, a satchel containing clothing clutched in her teeth. It was just faster and more convenient, even if slightly annoying to Grace, who preferred her optime form most times. Really, she just didn't want Hadley to have to be alone so long, what with all of the trauma that he had endured. She knew that those who were traumatized, such as abused horses, would often lash out or create a ruckus, and Grace needed none of that. So she bit the bullet: she knew that it would be faster getting there if she used her lupus form. At any rate, it had been a while, and she didn't mind the chance for a nice run, all told. Then, when she got there, she could shift, change into her clothing, and call for Hadley's master. They would need to exchange words, and hopefully, he was a reasonable bloke, and wouldn't make things difficult for her. She couldn't imagine that he could want to, but she never knew &nash; if he was like the blonde merchant that Grace had purchased Faris and the mares from, things could get messy.


She possibly, probably, should have brought back-up...


Taj came out of nowhere, dipped down and flew beside her as she ran. "What do?" he asked, the only real question that he had mastered. Grace usually could put it in context – right now, he was asking her where she was going. She slowed down slightly and caught her breath, trotting alongside the crow. "Going to Casa di Cavalieri. That's where Hadley's ma— former master lives," she corrected herself. "Want to go and see where our allies are? Just in case..." Taj would know.. well, she hoped that he would know.. that allies included wolves and horses alike, and that her call would signal need. Luckily, Hadley wasn't there, so he couldn't get in the way. That would be terribly unfortunate, if push came to shove. It won't, she reminded herself, and gave a soft huff at thinking too much like her paranoid, controlling mother. What happened would happen, really. She just had to handle herself well, and that was what would get her through this discussion. Charisma, and grace.


She arrived at the borders of Casa di Cavalieri a little after nightfall, though she stopped some distance away, so that she could safely sleep for the night. She rested before shifting, not wanting to over-exhaust herself. she called softly to see if Taj was around. After a couple of minutes, the crow nearly crash-landed on her head, and she yowled. "Taj, I swear to the Buddha himself, if you're coming in at that speed, use a frackin' branch!" Her avian friend cawed an apology, and she sighed a tired acceptance. She curled up on the ground underneath a tree, snuggling tightly around herself. Luckily for her, her father's heritage had done well by her, in terms of supplying a supple winter coat. Taj roosted comfortably on her and they fell asleep for the duration of the night.


The next morning, Grace rose before the sun did. Shifting was fairly uneventful, her lithe quadraped form transforming into a slender, fair biped. She dressed in the clothing from her satchel, a plain cotton blouse in light pink-hued red, and a typical pair of jeans. Sitting comfortably on her satchel, she meditated as light streaked the sky, pink and purple water-colour drenching the atmosphere. Taj flew off, presumably to find himself something to eat. Grace finished her meditation some time later, and re-situated herself against a tree with her satchel. She called, voice clear in the cold morning air, for the one who called himself Hadley's master.


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#2
Eep. Didn't see this. D:



Sebastian hadn't even noticed that Hadley had been gone. Partly this was due to his endless travel, but mostly it was due to his hope that Hadley had been spending his time being social during Sebastian's brief visits back to Casa di Cavalieri. Still, he was back for now, and was exploring the massive forest that dominated the lands Jazper and Anann ruled.

To make things a little more interesting, he was also camouflaged. His skill as a painter had come in particularly useful in that regard. For the moment, he was trying to blend in with the trees. His entire body was painted in shades of light, dapplied brown and the lines of black that striped the trees' bark. He thought he looked pretty convincing, if not slightly monstrous. Art had a price, after all, and so did snooping around undetected.

An ear twitched at the howl. Hadley's master? Him, then? Was Hadley still going on about that, calling him master? To complete strangers? Sebastian chuffed a sigh and set off through the trees.

As he approached the source, he scaled up a broad oak tree and jumped to a neighbouring tree to peer down at the woman who had called him. Pretty, he supposed. Pale. Optime form. Eh. Sebastian quietly jumped on top of the tree she leaned against and shimmied downwards until he could comfortably sit upon a broad branch that rested above her. He fell backwards, catching himself before he fell off the tree entirely. The athletic Italian hung on upside-down, keeping his knees wrapped around the branch.

Shirtless, painted, and upside-down, Sebastian regarded the woman for a few moments before he spoke.

"You called, Madame?" he asked breezily, folding his arms over his chest.
#3
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I was alone, I took a ride

I didn't know what I would find there


WC: 705. Sorry this took so long. I've tried to write it three times now.


Another road where maybe I

Could find another kind of mind there


Being judgemental wasn't Grace's strong suit. She was open-minded and idealistic, perhaps to a fault, but it had yet to get her into trouble. Usually, she really tried to believe the best of everyone, and to understand their motives. After all, people didn't typically do things without reason; even if they were only doing something because they felt like it, that was still a reason. Understanding the reasons that others did things was very helpful to being tolerant and kind, and Grace valued these things highly. Her mother had been too harshly judgemental, to the point of being hurtful at times, even when she meant well. But then, Grace had understood that her mother did mean well, and that she was only doing what she thought was right, and so she tried to take it with a grain of salt. Similarly, her father had been very good and kind to her, but sometimes he lacked the capacity to discipline her, because he cared so much. That was okay; Grace could just as well be her own discipline, in her own way. She knew that her parents loved her very much, and they did the best that they could. Her brother, too, for all his jealousy and competitive nature. He was just trying to be the best that he could, for himself, for their parents, and for their tribe. If his emotions sometimes got in the way, it wasn't a big deal to her. She understood his plight, even if it was not her own.


So in the same way, she had considered the type of creature who might have kept Hadley as a slave. Surely, someone like Amy would have, but she was a wretched girl - even Grace couldn't deny that much. But was that the only kind who would do so? Or might someone like her have tried to rescue him before, to save him, but not thought to break the unhealthy mentality that bound the boy? Perhaps they had felt it was hopeless, that Hadley would not know how to handle himself independently; that much was true, though she was trying to help him fix that. A good, caring master was better than being abandoned and alone, at the mercy of anyone. But then, why had Hadley been so eager to get away? Perhaps he had wanted his freedom as much as his current master wanted to give it to him, but they had not communicated well. Poor communication explained many things in life, and Hadley hardly seemed the type to be able to express himself clearly or articulately, especially to someone that he felt bound to, in the way that a slave feels bound to their master. Grace, of course, had no experience with such things; she was free, and she always had been free. She couldn't even fathom what it was like to be a slave, but she tried to understand the broken mental state that it had left Hadley in. If his master was good, then perhaps they could work together to help the poor boy heal from whatever had traumatised him so. If not.. well, then, Hadley could stay with her until he was on his feet.


A laugh rose from her throat before she even realized that she had been startled. "Oh!" she exclaimed, looking at the male who had greeted her. Their eyes met, although his face was upside down. She grinned; was this really the male that called himself Hadley's master? She couldn't see anything terrible about him just yet. Of course, people could hide their true natures, but she hardly thought that they could hide them this well, and this male was simply... well, flamboyant, and quite cheerful. She would have to try to discern why Hadley had been so keen to escape; if anything, right now, she quite wanted to have lunch with the guy. "Yessir, I did," she replied genially. "I'm Grace. And you are called...?" A name would be a good start, and they could go for there. He should already know why she was there, and he didn't seem worried or defensive, let alone angry. Wouldn't a cruel master be angry that his slave had gone missing? Curiouser and curiouser...


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