Completed [The Sanctuary] A Relaxing Day In Spring

[Reven Heath]

6th Day of Spring 514 A.V.

It was a warm yet cloudy day when Reven arose from her slumber this morning and ventured out onto the small beach resting in front of the cliff face. Her toes dived into course sand as she made her way up to the shore line, the wind whipping her hair and clothing all about her body. It was nice, a bit chilly but the Kelvic could see most of the snow beginning to melt from the rocks. Even the sea appeared to roar with life while the cold grasp of winter slowly slipped away from the land.

Reven stood in front of the Sanctuary, a healing center for animals and a safe haven for people like her. Last season, the young Kelvic had chanced upon the owner and healer of this facility, Kavala Denusk, and before she knew it, had found a place to call home and people to call family. It was nice and over the course of the season, Reven worked hard to sell the condo she had purchased. Luck came through and soon, the woman was packing up her things to move to her new room. It was a decent size with a comfortable bed that Reven littered with the pelts of the animals she had caught and skinned. She was unsure how Kavala would take it if she ever saw the pelts and made sure to keep them tucked away. It was a childish thing to do but Reven didn't want to risk jeopardizing her stay.

Aside from the pelts on her bed, the floor of her room was covered in books, papers, and patterns for outfits with a simple table off to the side for light. The Kelvic took advantage of the Library they had and found herself on a number of nights reading herself to sleep. It was nice to not be alone, to not have to worry about her safety or how to make ends meet. It was comfortable and not only was she able to secure a source of living and education, Reven was able to see the Drykas man that made her heart race. It was quite obvious she had a fascination for him ever since they bumped into each other out in the Fringe Forest last season, however, the Kelvic would never admit to it. During the weeks she had taken to settle in, Reven noticed that Vanator was a man to behold and it appeared others knew that as well. It didn't change how she felt about him and still continued to help him with things around the Sanctuary when she could, enjoying his presence.

In the weeks that followed her arrival, Reven knew there had been some kind of connection made with Vanator and when the opportunity presented itself, the Kelvic quickly dived into as many books as she could find detailing Kelvic bonds. Surprisingly, there was hardly any information to be found on them and most of the stories she read were based off of events like Kelvics being rescued from slave traders. Deep down, Reven knew a bond had been formed and she was almost entirely overjoyed by it. The fear and uncertainty of the bond, however, kept her at bay from wanting to reveal any feelings and she wondered who she could talk to about it. From past experience, Reven knew Kavala was knowledgeable on the topic but was this also something she should talk to Vanator about? The Kelvic didn't know if that would go over too well...

So there she was, standing in the sand, looking out onto the ocean with calm, hazel eyes. Reven had changed so much over the course of the season. She had met many friends along the way, some enemies, but mostly kind people just like her trying to survive in this crazy world. She had created some kind of reputation and was starting to grow into her craft, moving from pouches and backpacks, to gloves and belts, and now to vests and jackets. Leather was hard to work with and challenging when trying to thread together two pieces of hide but Reven enjoyed the challenge. She liked the patience it required, the time it took and the delicacy needed to handle the material even as difficult as it was to work with. It was a skill she prided herself in and because of that, pushed even further and further to develop it. Hopefully that would lead her to a job of some sort.

Stretching slowly, Reven yawned, enjoying the cool air as it slid up underneath the loose tunic she wore and caressed her bare skin. It was going to be a great day, she could tell. From the way the sun shined down on the beach, glinting off of the waves as they fell onto the shore, it was most certainly the perfect day for relaxation. With a smile on her lips, the Kelvic turned back to the cave entrance and made her way toward her quarters for a book to read. It was still earlier in the morning and she hoped the children would be asleep long enough for her to enjoy quiet time. Slipping into her room, Reven search around till she found three rather decent sized books before returning back to the beach.

Plopping down into the sand, she reached for a novel but paused when she glanced upon a black, leather bound book she had mistakenly picked up. Reven noticed it was one of the books Mutaldi, her caretaker, had given her for her birthday. The woman figured it was just another book for her to study though this looked nothing like a book but a journal. Cracking open the pages, hazel eyes read over the handwriting neatly pressed into the parchment that blood had soaked through and stained.

"To my beloved." It read. "I hope someday this journal will fall into your hands and with it, express the things I've longed to tell you over the years. Please, keep this close so that I may always be near to you."

Perplexed by the writing, Reven flipped the page and continued reading. The entry was dated back to 10th of Spring, 507 A.V. Oddly enough, it was the exact day the Kelvic decided to pick up the journal. Scanning over ever word, Reven noted the handwriting appeared messy, as if someone had just picked up writing. The passage read:

" Spring, Day 10th of 507 A.V,

Falling into a sort of rut was never my intention but I find myself suddenly placed into good favor with the Gods, it would seem. After countless trails, I've finally bonded with someone I'm proud to call mine. We've journey across the plains and with sheer luck, managed to avoid the worst of troubles and now, here I set by the fire, completely drawn to every bit that makes this man who he is. It wasn't easy being with him and at first, I would have killed him if not for the riot behind us, but I'm glad our fates intertwined. We've been on the road for weeks and already, it's becoming harder to stay focused on the task at hand. I wonder if he realizes what he's doing... to me, to our lives... I can only wonder why he insists on constantly moving. I know he keeps secrets hidden from me, but what could be so frightening that it makes him restless in the night?"

So this person was a Kelvic as well? Reven tore her eyes from the page and inspected the binding, cover, and front page of the journal for any kind of name indicating who this belonged to. Her heart was starting to thump inside her when she discovered there was no form of identity on the journal. Just who was this..? Was this something that belonged to her parents? Mutaldi had told her for months there was nothing she had of her parent's belongings. Did she lie? Reven continued reading...

" Spring, Day 14th of 507 A.V,

It's been three days now, Thuros, where are you? They threw me into a cage when you weren't looking, are you still coming for me? I've been trying to leave trails for you but I'm... hurt and I can't continue anymore, the pages are almost all gone. I have hope that you're still alive and that you'll come for me, I know you will. It's what we promised, remember? Their tracks are easy to follow, it shouldn't be too hard to notice. I hope you'll find this. Please hurry. I need you."

A part of her understood what was happening to the person as it appeared they had been captured by someone, most likely slavers. Her heart sank as she read over the entry again. The way it was written seemed like the person had left it as a note to Thuros, probably to guide him forward. He must have found the journal because there was more writing as the Kelvic turned over the page however, the date had changed and the hand writing looked different. There were rips and crinkles on the page, as if someone dropped water onto it.

"Fall of 508 A.V, Day 64,

Najina. I can't express how your disappearance has affected me over the year. When I find you, I know what you'll think. That I didn't try. Well when I find you, and I know I will, I hope you see this.

I love you."

"Who are these people?" She scoffed, blushing. It was as if she was reading a horribly written romance novel. And to think people actually wrote in this? Reven admitted the love they had for each other was strong enough to feel, even through simple words on the parchment. Shaking her head, her curiosity pull her deeper into the entries in the journal as she continued to read them.

"Winter, Day 1 of 5011 A.V,

I can't remember the last time I wrote anything. It's been so long. I found his message and even though it pains me in a way to not loath him, I feel very empty knowing he will not return to me... Even if I was rescued from chains and restored my sanity, I can never wash away the stain of slavery. Knowing this is the most despicable, horrifying truth that I don't know if I can live with. He was so close... With this life inside of me now, I wonder if, with it's execution... I could restore the purity I've lost..."

Analyzing the entry again, she couldn't help the sinking feeling in her stomach as she read over the date once more. That was very close to the time she had been born. "No... This can't be." Reven flicked past the pages, one after the other, skimming over the entries for the following days. It looked like the woman had written in it every day until her eyes fell upon the last few pages of the journal. All over the page there were scribbles with the name she was most familiar with etched into every single space on the parchment. Reven.

Her name was marked everywhere, from top to bottom, left to right. It was as if the words were screaming at her, pulling her into the dark horror that ended this person's life, this person's life that she only caught a glimpse into. "... No." She inhaled, noticing the blood and tears on the paper, the small drops of water stains as if someone had cried over the pages, the mangled letters of her name as they were forced upon the parchment with anger, with hatred, with horror. R.E.V.E.N...

R.E.V.E.N... R.E.V.E.N..!

The Kelvic flung the journal from her hands and watched as it landed in the sand far from her. Heart pounding in her chest, Reven swore, burying her face into her hands to prevent herself from being overwhelmed with the new information. Why did she have that? Why was it there? Did Mutaldi slip it to her by accident or was it on purpose? What did it mean? What did it mean...

It meant that was possibly her mother... It made sense to assume that it was her mother's journal she had stumbled upon but what frightened her even more was the way the woman fell apart. Was that her father? Was her mother a slave? Did she hate Reven? Did she love her? Why was her name in the journal? Her hands grasped the roots of her hair. "Ugh, be quiet..!" Reven told herself. She couldn't accept what she had just read, it couldn't be possible. Her parents were traders, they were married, and happy. They disappeared! Turning her eyes up toward the book, Reven stared at it with menace in her gaze. She would not touch it again...

The sea could devour it for all she cared.

She was not a slave's daughter.

[Reven Heath]

A chime had past while the Kelvic girl sat still buried in course sand, staring at the journal as if it was a wounded animal about ready to rise up and strike her down. She couldn't bring herself to get up, bound to the very spot by words written down inside a journal. A journal that should not have been in her possession... What was so shocking was the discovery of her name seemingly written by a madman in the back of the book. Reven didn't understand these things and right now, she didn't know how to cope with the emotions running through her veins in the present moment. When it came to the inhabitants of the Sanctuary, Reven discussed freely with them all sorts of topics. When it came to her parents, however, only a selected few knew any such details.

It was a while later before the cougar felt compelled to move due to her aching limbs. Instead of getting up, she simply laid back against the sand. The journal roused many questions inside her, thoughts, and feelings. It made her wonder what her parents were like, what they could have been, what they looked like and sounded like, and how her life might have turned out differently. Reven was slowly being pulled into the daydreams of her mind, lost within the imagery her thoughts painted over her eyes like a veil. Reven could see it now, a small family nestled in a sort of shack. Her mother would have been teaching her while her father prepared dinner and then afterward, she would have read her a sweet, soft story to but the Kelvic to rest.

With her arm extended, Reven reached out to the image slowly, as if it was something real that she could grasp, hold onto, and never let go. That's all she wanted. That's all she ever wanted... Was to feel whole and complete, not as empty as the vast twilight before the stars made their appearance. It was a deep, psychologically damaging need that she couldn't shake and no matter who she sought after, where she sought after, or what she sought after, it could never fill the abyss that clung at her heart. Wanting a family was no exception and that was a driving force in her persistence to find her parents. Reven needed to know why, what had happened, she needed to find them..!

The image her mind displayed against the sky vanished as a flash of realization struck her and she quickly snatched her hand back, pressing her palms into her face. Reven was strong, she had to be strong for the sack of her caretaker and her life. The feline needed to fight and learn everything she could to survive, to prove them wrong, to prove to herself that doubting would destroy any hope in her life, to prove that having faith and hoping could lead her to what she needed most. Right now there was only one thought that came to mind... Reven just wanted a mother's love and a father's protection.

A single, stray tear fell silently down her temple, onto her ear, and into her hair.

The journal was violating her thoughts with horrid images of what could have happen... If that had been her mother, the woman she wanted so desperately to be in the arms of, then Reven was birthed to an insane woman who had lost not only her dignity, but her purpose. Turning the thin, dusty pages, one could see the depressions of anger scratched into the parchment. It wasn't had to figure out as the pages turned and the time past, that this woman has slowly lost herself...

Which brought up another question. Whatever happened to the blooming love that first graced the cover of the journal? If the woman had been Kelvic and bonded to the same man that returned the journal to her many seasons later, then had that bond broken? Did the woman shatter the same way the bond had? Could a bond destroy someone that easily? Reven didn't know, by the gods, she cursed her lack of knowledge on the subject!

Then her thoughts shifted to him... Vanator.

Reven outwardly groaned, wanting to clear away the frustration he brought her. It was for another purpose, however, that he came to mind. She was not completely ignorant on the idea of a bond and knew on some level that one had been created or one was in the works of being formed. This realization nearly stopped her heart... Could a bond destroy her? "No... No, no!" Anger erupted from the Kelvic as she pushed her body up from the sand and lunged at the journal, tearing the leather cover open and effectively shredding the pages within, ripping them from the bind and throwing them for the wind to carry and the sea to swallow.

Ticks later, the cougar stared down at the last page. Her name was everywhere, calling to her. Reven's fingers slid over the lines delicately, as if one touch would crumble the paper into dust. Her lip trembled and her body shook softly, her expression taunt with the need to hold back emotion. But like the bubbling need to release pent up anger, frustration, sorrow, the tears welled up in her eyes. Firmly digging her teeth into her lower lip, Reven collected the journal and the entries that she had torn out. Some of them, she saved but most were lost to the sea. Nestling the entries back into the journal, Reven held onto the leather bound book for dear life and fought hard to push the tears back.

How sad was it, an adult craving for some kind of family, or familiar touch, like a child.

Mutaldi had done well with the woman, had sculpted her and formed her into what she was today and Reven could not be more proud. However, her caretaker was simply that and reminded her constantly that she was not a mother. In her youth, Reven didn't understand the correction and wondered why it mattered so much. Upon finding this journal, the cougar had a few suspicions now. Mutaldi had not spoken the truth. If the journal was her mother's and therefore, the actual truth, then there was something far worse lurking within the shadows of her heritage that Mutaldi was not telling her and Reven was determined to find out what it was.

Wiping her tears away, Reven gathered her books and made her way back into the Within, to her quarters. She would change quickly, then start her journey to Mutaldi in Riverfall. And she would not leave the woman alone until she had the truth.

[Reven Heath]

Her hands shook as wild eyes fell on the leather bound journal the Kelvic chanced upon earlier. She had just wandered past the glorious gates of Riverfall and was now making her way to her caretaker's apartment up in the Windswept Condos. Reven examined the book, as if there was some hidden meaning in the dye black lines of the leather, as if some untold trick was lying in silence, in the marked, ripped pages of the book. There was none but she felt it there. Her mind was calling out, telling her that it had to be there, some sort of sorcery or misinterpretation was held within the journal. Reven would have sacrificed her calm composure to glance within the book once more but a sudden meeting of bodies threw her from her feet. There was an Akalak standing before her, looking irritated then pleasantly surprised. He offered apologetic words and a hand to help her up but Reven denied both, scrambling to her feet and walking away without a second glance.

The Kelvic couldn't focus on anything else at the moment. Reven needed answers to the existence of this journal, why it had her name in it, and why such madness was pressed into the parchment. Rounding a corner, the feline halted as hazel eyes landed upon the figure of a human woman off in the distance. She was elderly yet sparkled with a beauty that even the soft wrinkles on her face could not hinder.

Mutaldi, Reven's caretaker and mother figure, stood before a small garden a plants, simply watering them as she saw fit. The cougar didn't understand why for the woman never liked such things, but she supposed living upon vegetation as they had been for the past seasons stirred up the gardener in the old woman. Approaching her quietly, Reven didn't realize she had snuck up on the woman until Mutaldi had turned to face her, fright quickly changing her expression.

“By the Gods!” She gasped, stepping back as the Kelvic seemed to tower over her. “Reven?! What did I tell you about sneaking up on people?!” Mutaldi hassled, waving her hand as if to push away the incident.

Reven's eyes widened but slowly settled into a small smile. Since living at the Sanctuary, the young woman hardly saw her caretaker. Looking upon her now brought forth emotions Reven hadn't realized she suppressed. The Kelvic missed Mutaldi. She had been like a mother to her, strong, caring, wise. The woman had let her fall and pick herself back up, cleaning her wounds when she came home from frights or hunts, scolding her but also teaching her how to live, how to survive, how to make something of herself. And with education, Mutaldi had given her a free mind, thinking constantly, wondering about the word around her, wanting to dig deeper into the unknown with unlimited curiosity.

For this, Reven had never thanked her...

“What brings you here today, M'dear?” Came Mutaldi's cheery voice, going back to her task of watering the plants. “I don't see you as often as I'd like to, you must be busy, yes?”

“I am.” Her voice trembled as she replied, causing the woman to look at her.

“Is something wrong?”

Reven stared at her with reluctance. Her heart was bouncing around inside her chest, it felt like, and her stomach was in knots. In her mind, Reven didn't want to go through with it. The Kelvic didn't want to venture down this path with the woman who took it upon her shoulders to raise her. She didn't want to find out the reason the journal existed or why her name was in it. All she wanted to do was pretend... Pretend to have a nice, relaxing day in Spring with Mutaldi.

But her heart would not let her...

Reven looked down at the ground before her, journal clutched in her shaky hands and at the point, she realized she wasn't ready for this.

“Reven?” Mutaldi called to her, coming to stand by the Kelvic. “Reven, what's wrong, dear? You're paler than a ghost..! Come inside, tell me what happened.”

Moving to the door, the old woman pushed it open, venturing inside. Familiar scents wafted from the apartment but they did not help to relax the cougar. Her entire body felt numb, as if she'd been tossed into the arctic waters of the sea and left there to drown. Reven stared at the door, stuck in her spot. If she took a step now, it would seal her fate. If she went forward with this, it could quite possibly destroy the relationship she had with the only family she'd ever known to call hers.

Reven picked her foot up and stepped forward, slowly... very slowly.

“Reven? Are you still out there?” Her caretaker called once more.

“Yes... I'm coming.”

[Reven Heath]

Entering the elderly woman's domain, Reven shut the door quietly, her fingers latched tightly onto the journal with a wish for it to disappear. In her mind, the Kelvic was processing how to ask, how to get to the subject, how she would give the journal to the woman and simply ask her what it was. It worked away while successfully working her up, adrenaline pumping through her while the need to fight or fly was suddenly pushing into her mind. Instincts were starting to kick into overdrive and it was becoming very tempting to start stripping her clothes off right then and there.

“Reven?”

Hazel eyes turn toward Mutaldi, the woman's expression concerned. “What has gotten into you? Did something happen?”

Her caretaker was expecting an answer, as if she knew the reason why the feline stood before her, coaxing her to reveal the troubling truths she stumbled upon. But Reven was at a loss of words, she didn't know what to say. What would one say in situations like this?

“I... I...” Her heart was beating faster, she felt sick, her face was starting to sting and her lips trembled.

Was she about to cry?

“Tali...” Reven whispered, tears in her eyes.

She didn't want to make this choice. Why did it feel like the Gods were forcing this on her? Reven felt like a child then, her frame shaking as realization met her lonely heart that this journal had the potential to destroy her family. Her only family.

“Oh, Reven. Shh...” Mutaldi came to her, enveloping the tall female within her arms, stroking her hair and whispering to her words of comfort. The feline latched onto her for dear line, silently crying into her shoulder as sorrow welled up and spilled forth. Reven was strong, she was not one to cry so easily. So as the Kelvic sobbed, Mutaldi tried her best to coax her.

Slowly, Reven pulled away. Her cheeks were red and tear stained, eyes glassy and bloodshot, her lips appeared swollen as well. She let out a breath, holding the journal out to the woman.

Mutaldi took it cautiously, “What is this?”

Reven gestured to it, tears streaking down her face while the caretaker opened the pages of the journal, a hand slowly coming to her mouth. Eyes still on the pages, she turned and ventured away from the Kelvic, as if analyzing the writing. Several ticks went by as silence fell over the two. The Kelvic watched her, eyes full of hope that Mutaldi would wonder what the journal was. That she would have no knowledge of such a thing. However, ignorance did not twinkle in her eyes when the woman turned to face her. “Where did you find this?”

Reven caved, “You— So you knew about this..?”

Mutaldi sighed, closing the book and let it rest on the lone, wooden table in the center of the room. “Reven, where did you get this?”

The feline was baffled. How... How could she simply ignore the question?

Pushing a hand into her hair, Reven's mouth had fallen open in shock, feeling dread wash through her like icy water. Leaning against the door for support, the cougar looked away from the woman. “I... found it with the rest of my books...” Came her whisper.

Mutaldi nodded softly. “Did you read it?”

Anger erupted within her that moment. “Yes I read it! Don't you think a book like that, in my possession, deserves reading?!” Reven flashed her fangs, clenching her teeth. “You knew about this! You knew and you didn't say a petching thing!”

“Reven calm d—“

“Don't tell me to calm down!” She hissed, moving toward the woman but instead, snatched at the journal. “What is this?! Why did you have this?! Why is my name in this?!”

“Young lady...” Mutaldi's voice was low, full of menace if the Kelvic continued to push her in such a way, there was promise of pain to come. “If you do not correct your actions, you will regret them.”

Reven halted, feeling like she had been reduced to a child and, in her tantrum, threw the journal. The pages she had shredded from the book flew out and drifted to the ground. The Kelvic turned away, another wave of tears flowing from her as she tried to compose herself. It wasn't working...

Facing her caretaker, Reven wiped her cheeks. “Answer me..!”

Mutaldi hesitated, ticks of silence swimming within the tense atmosphere. “That journal was suppose to stay within my care until such a time came that you were bonded and settled down, with family. Content... so that when I gave this information to you, you wouldn't react like... like this!” She gestured to the mess Reven made. “I did it so that you could find yourself, Reven. Not hang onto the past of your parents. Honestly, I don't know why you feel such a need to know—“

“That was my mother's journal...”

“—about them. I've cared for you, I've raised you. We may not be blood related but I've provided—“

“That was my mother's journal and you kept it from me for selfish reasons! Did you not think I wanted to know about them?! Did you not think it was fair to let me handle it my own way, not yours?! I had every right to know, Mutaldi! Every right! You took that from me! Did you think I wanted to find out my mother was a slave through a petching book?!”

“Reven!” Mutaldi shouted but the feline ignored her. She was too wound with sorrow to care anymore.

Shaking her, head, her lip trembled uncontrollably. “I— I think I deserved to know... She never loved me..! I wasn't born from love... I was born from hatred..! And to think you wanted to tell me I was a disgrace after... after finding...” Reven couldn't speak anymore. Her words were too slurred from the sobs racking her body. Hazel eyes could never look upon the woman the same...

Reven shook her head, pulled the door open, and left. Standing there alone, Mutaldi brought her own hand up to wipe away her tears.

Things would never be the same again...

[Kel Tempest]

Hello Reven,

Let me know if you bring your PC out of retirement and I will award you your xp.

Your Bothersome Svefra,

Kel

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