Strange Beginnings [Coltyn]

[Genesis]

He wanted her to meet his mother? The glimpses she had seen of her weren't pleasant but was she truly capable of that? There was only one way to find out. Genesis accepted his outstretched him, letting him pull her up. She was excited, this may help him really find his brother.

As they began to move out the door, she realized that this adventure also contained a disaster and sacrifice that was still tugging at the strings in her brain. She honestly had no specific at the moment besides bad. But honestly, Genesis knew everything was bitter-sweet.

The obvious desire and craving that brought Coltyn to drag her out of her own shop was inspiring, if not a little terrifying. He wanted his brother back more than anything Genesis had ever wanted. If she had something like that to pull her through life, maybe things would be easier, more clear-cut.

[Coltyn]

Bringing Genesis to meet his mother seemed like an excellent idea back in the shelter of her shop. It really did. However, as they now approached his childhood home, just beyond the walls of Ravok in the Lakeshore sub-section of the city, Coltyn began to feel a hint of regret in the spontaneous decision. "Maybe we should...consider our other options," he nearly whispered to the young girl as they now stood at the imposing gate that would take them inside the modest estate of his parents. "I mean, perhaps we, uh, I mean, I'm acting in haste by bringing you here. It's just, well...I..." Coltyn's words drifted away on the wind now as his gaze went from the gate before them to the nearby hillside. "Nevermind," he abruptly noted, with a roll of his eyes, as he reluctantly began to move toward the gently sloping patch of land. "She's already seen us," he informed his companion as he motioned toward a figure that stood upon the top of the rise... Painting? Yes. It appeared that the woman was working on a landscape in oils upon a rather large canvas, which was secured to an equally large easel. "Allow me to offer my apologies in advance for whatever Anjomar says or does during this visit," Coltyn muttered as they closed the gap between them. "She can be rather...eccentric...at times." "Coltyn, darling, blood of my blood, be a dear and move your pretty little arse about a yard to the right. You're blocking my view," a woman, who appeared far too young to have a child as old as Coltyn, ordered as they now stood but a few feet away. "Oh, and, please, take your friend with you," she added in a dismissive tone. "She has no business being in my landscape either," she muttered more to herself, but just loud enough for all to hear.

[Genesis]

Genesis immediatly stepped back, even further than Coltyn had. She was suddenly self-conscious of her simple dress in front of the wealthy woman. Coltyn's mother, Anjomar, was dressed in black fabric that seemed to hang onto her as only expensive things could. She was older and a little more facaded, but she was definitely the mother she had seen in Coltyn's past. Genesis was unsure what to do, they had obviously intruded on the woman's painting.

"Coltyn, what are we going to tell her to explain why I'm here?" She whispered, obviously not wanting the truth admitted. It would end badly whether their suspicions proved to be false or not. Besides, the woman had a regal and elegant sort of beauty about her that put Genesis's comparatively more exotic one to shame. She was all dark hair and pale creamy skin, small waist and curvy hips. There was nothing conventional about her beauty. It made her want the woman to like her. It would make touching her a whole lot easier.

As Genesis pressed down the folds of her dress with slender fingers, she looked behind her to where the woman was painting. Outside the walls of Ravok, everything was beautiful. It was really the only green you could see on the island. The hills were covered in grass and little flowers, even the occasional tree sprung up here and there. Inside the walls, everything was gray and blue, not always the most cheery colors. It was understandable why everyone behind the walls seemed so dreary; there was nothing to draw happiness from around you. But there was nothing spectacular about the woman's chosen landscape, not compared to the rest of the view anyway. You could see over the water where the mainland of Mizahar was. Now that was breathtaking.

As they finished closing the gap between them and his mother, she took a peek at the woman's painting. It was beautiful. Not the way the woman painted, certainly not, you could tell she had little experience. It was probably just a whim of hers. But the paints she used were brighter than any she had seen before. The colors just seemed to tell their own story, despite what Anjomar was trying to make them do. If she could learn to paint, she would never be able to afford such extravagant things.

Genesis wondered what it would be like to spend countless amount of mizas on things you may very likely never use again. It was a dreamlike idea she couldn't quite manage to wrap her head around. She had never had much money and could never afford to spend it on things as unnecessary as paints.

"Coltyn never told be his mother was such a fabulious artist!" Genesis doted, her voice sweet and charming. The woman would never guess it was anything but a sincere gesture.

[Coltyn]

As Coltyn motioned to a spot about a yard from where they were currently standing, in a near whisper, he informed the teller of fortunes, "We'll only tell her what she needs to know. Nothing more." Once they were out of the painter's way, she seemed to regain her focus as she wildly splashed pigments across the canvas. It wasn't until Genesis' comment that she took a moment's pause. Stepping away from the easel, she then turned toward the duo and approached with her brush still in hand. "Fabulous? Really? Are you an expert in such things?" Anjomar questioned with a slight edge in her voice. "I mean, honestly, do you have an eye for such things or are you simply being kind? If it is the former, please, enlighten me a bit more. If it is the latter, well, you should probably save your sweet words for someone...someone like him," she offered with a sneer as she waved her brush at Coltyn. "He prefers that sort of treatment, although, not from the likes of you. No. Not at all," she informed the girl as she took a step closer now. "You're not...well...you're not tall, dark, or handsome. Granted, from what I've recently heard, tall, blond, and blood-related is all the rage now. Isn't that right, darling?" Silence. Stone cold silence was all Coltyn could offer in return as he looked...no...leered at the creature who gave him life. "Aww, I'm sorry, honey. Did I just touch upon a sore subject? How...unkind...of me. No. Wait. How...rude? No. That's not it. Oh, wait, I have it now! How queer of me. Yes! How very queer of me to say such things. That's the word I was looking for. A perfect fit. Don't you think, darling? Simply perfect," she concluded, with a pointed look of her own, before returning to her canvas.