Ask/RP blog for Sedanas of Mabinogi (Ruairi server), run by me. This character belongs to my husband ovo
This character is still kind of a work in progress, so bear with me.
It was rather dark outside, but the fireworks offered brief moments of lighting. In between those moments of sudden bursts of light, he could spot Damian looking at him for a second, then turning back to look at the view in front of him. Sedanas wasn't quite sure what to make of his reaction, except that the unusual pause gave him reason for concern.
“You… you are a brave man. I wish I had that kind of courage…”
The way Damian said those words got him to think if he perhaps made him remember a bad memory, even to the point where he sounded on the verge of tears.
Somehow, he felt a bit guilty about that. Despite Damian's attempts to hide his emotions, he could tell something was off. Or maybe he just sounds that way because he's cold. No, he sounded far too sad to simply be cold...
Maybe he should try to comfort him? Without hurting him, preferably. He hesitated, standing there awkwardly for a good thirty seconds debating on what to do.
With his left hand that still had its glove, he gave Damian a couple of careful pats on the shoulder. He didn't like to see people upset. Because it reminded him he'd rather prefer the adrenaline of killing someone with his own hands.
He looked around at the other guests nearby, who were fortunately minding their own business.
tl;dr enjoying fireworks, vague references to past events/background stories, and homoerotic tensions
Sedanas didn't really like the loud booming noises of fireworks, but from where he stood they weren't too bad. He'd never seen anything like them, and he couldn't recall ever seeing them in his past life. Whether it was the strange magic of the castle at work behind the light-show or simply the power of technology, he didn't care.
"They do look amazing," he noted in wonder. "There was too much drama happening downstairs, so I figured I may as well enjoy the view."
For the most part, fireworks drowned out the rest of the guests' chatter. As pretty as it was, it got rather too loud for him, so he stepped away from the balcony for a bit, making sure he didn't bump into anyone as he did so. He didn't remember there being this many people. Had it really gotten that crowded in the short amount of time he'd been up here?
Nonetheless, the seemingly content mood generated from the fireworks show got him to think and reflect on himself.
He had rarely been to these kinds of gatherings. One, he didn't care. Two, people somehow wind up hurt despite his efforts to stay as far away from them as possible. He could try to go to these events more often for free food and potential loot, but it was usually too risky.
The last one he recalled didn't turn out so great - whoever that woman was who dragged him along to that prom dance disappeared just as quickly as she came. The next thing he knew afterwards had been waking up in the slums of Port Cobh, feeling really buzzed. It had only been later that he discovered she had something to do with the person he had tried so hard to find. And he had been back where he started, drunk in Port Cobh.
This castle...he didn't exactly find anything worth of value to steal, which was his initial goal in coming here. His failure to do so didn't bother him much now, to be honest. He'd had quite enough of living on the fringe of society. He needed to find something better to do with his life other than being a no-good thief...or a bloodthirsty killer.
He smiled unconsciously for a moment, realizing that Damian probably must had thought him a murderer at some point.
He observed the fireworks for a while longer before hearing Damian murmur something.
“What did you do to get that curse, anyways?”
It took him a bit to process what he had heard amidst all the noise.
Sedanas froze as he realized what he had asked.
As punishment for his sin, you will be cursed to walk all of eternity alone.
A mysterious masked man, clad in a dark robe, said this to him.
At first, he hardly understood what he had said. But Sedanas became painfully aware of the meaning behind those words the more he tried to connect to others. Most of all, when he finally found him again after all they had been through.
In exchange for his freedom, you must give up yours.
Strangely enough, he didn't feel the least bit of resentment. He was doomed to spend the rest of his days either alone or eventually hurting anyone close to him. And that was fine, knowing that one of them would be safe.
Maybe love worked in strange ways after all.
After a pause or so, he finally answered.
"My curse was a result of protecting someone I loved."
tl;dr Sedanas watches Uro and the others get into a scuffle, then goes to see the fireworks and finds Damian.
He simply watched the alchemist rant, nibbling quietly on his drumsticks as he did so. That guy didn't seem so bad after all, listening to his speech about ethics and all that.
He watched someone drag the orange-haired person away before almost getting hit in the face by a flying plate that the alchemist threw. Luckily, Sedanas managed to duck down before he got hurt.
Wow--what's his problem?
The thief rose up, straightening himself out. Surely he must have had his reasons for doing that...he tried to calm himself down.
Don't start picking a fight. Last thing I'd want happening around here.
He breathed in and out, and then looked at his platter of food which was pretty much gone. He must have been hungrier than he thought.
Sedanas found the nearest trash container and threw it out. Having enough of the awkward, tense atmosphere that ensued, he decided to quietly make his way upstairs while the alchemist started chatting again to his friend. There would probably be less drama upstairs.
Ascending the stairs, he could already hear the booming fireworks as it got louder. He got to the upper floor where the balcony was. Huh...it wasn't as crowded as he thought it was. Still, he made sure to be careful. Sedanas pulled his sleeve over his bare hand and with it, grabbed the fabric at the ends. That should solve that problem for now.
He approached the entrance of the balcony. It was good to breathe a bit of fresh air, especially after being inside for who knows how long. Among the people there, he spotted the familiar black and red garment of his partner.
"Damian!" He shouted just loud enough for him to hear.
“Hey. I’m, uh, gonna head up and see the fireworks after all.”
Sedanas briefly looked at Damian, who'd already been heading upstairs.
"Ok, have fun!" He shouted to him before turning his attention back to the dishes. Maybe his curse is more potent than he thought and he just needed to get away from him...again? Somehow, he felt a sharp loneliness at the thought.
There were quite a handful of people still around on the ground floor, though he wouldn't doubt it'd be packed at the balcony too. He'll just stay here until he's had his fill of food, at least. And maybe go up when there's far less people.
Well, none of the food looked alive...most of it. He'd just have to avoid fresh salads or anything like that. The last time he tried eating that, it turned to black mush in his hands. Shame I can't eat healthy, he thought to himself, a bitter grin on his face.
He started to wonder if he couldn't just go out the castle entrance and enjoy the fireworks from there instead. Or maybe the fireworks were actually shooting up from there and it'd be a horrible idea then, getting blown up to pieces.
He decided to stay put and grab whatever food he could. Very carefully, Sedanas reached out with his dominant right hand (which was now bare and very susceptible to pretty much killing anyone) for some drumsticks.
Looks like that guy and his giant partner are alright now and--wait, what's wrong with her eyes? ...nevermind. He shouldn't really press on the matter.
"… I actually don’t know where I dropped it."
Oh. That's bad. Well, he's just gonna have to take more care not to accidentally slap someone or anything. Damian was clearly quite exhausted with the whole ordeal.
Maybe it was one of those cases where after hours of searching for that one item, it suddenly shows up and hits you in the head that it was in an obvious spot?
"Ahh well...it's no big deal. Hopefully we won't have to stick around long. It might turn up somewhere unexpected."
The sound of fireworks came out from the balcony. He hoped it wasn't some more of that annoying magic voodoo thing. But so far, it seemed like nothing out of the ordinary happened to anyone.
“Well, what do you say we do next?”
"I'd prefer not to be in crowds, if that's fine with you." He stepped a few strides away from the people milling about near the balcony and remained a comfortable distance away from Damian. He'd been actually kind of hungry and all he had to eat so far were breadsticks, which he now realized he must have dropped because of the whole switching bodies thing.
"I don't know about you, but I'm hungry," he said as he turned his attention to the fried chicken which was more or less gone by now. Near the dishes and main courses was a really suspicious-looking fellow. He eyed him for a bit, but it looked like whoever it was didn't mean any harm.
As quickly as it happened, he found himself back in his own body. A rush of energy shot up from his right hand, which Damian soon let go of. Sedanas still felt kind of woozy, though he wasn't sure if it was the effect of transferring bodies or from their bizarre exchange of life force. It was nothing he couldn't walk off.
And it looked like things were returning to normal--if it was ever normal that is. The giant they'd been meaning to help was alive and well...except now the orange-haired guy looked not so alive. In any case, he didn't really have to worry about lifting any bodies. There wasn't much he could do for the giant's partner anyway.
He vaguely recognized the foreign words she spoke, though it was from a life long past. That was good, though--at least he's reassured there are other people from his world.
His right hand felt cold, and he looked at it realizing Damian had taken off the glove earlier. After hastily reaching around his coat in an attempt to find his glove, he decided he should just ask Damian what happened.
"Pardon, but um...do you know what you did to my glove?" He half whispered to him, though it wasn't necessary.
Seeing Damian, or his own face light up with life again, put Sedanas's mind at ease. He gradually felt worse on the outside, but at least his partner was getting better, being able to finally straighten up. It was weird, though--seeing his own self completely and utterly weakened...all in realization that he'd been reduced to such mortality after all.
“Umm… thanks for helping me out there. Are you okay? I think… I’m going to be fine, as long as we keep…”
Sedanas waited for him to finish his sentence and noticed he was staring at their hands. It hit him that he'd been holding hands with a stranger. Normally he would mind, but given the circumstances, this was an exception.
"Yes, I'll be fine..." The longer they held hands though, the weaker Sedanas felt and now he was starting to feel as exhausted as Damian once felt just a moment ago. He didn't notice his own self getting embarrassed, but he followed along, hand in hand, as they finally made their way to the unconscious giant. Maybe it was Damian's body or by sheer force of his own will, but he managed to make his way there with a few stumbles.
By the time they got to her, he felt yet another force tug at him again. He felt his mind being lifted out into the open. Are they finally switching back?
After shouting back to the orange-haired guy, Sedanas glanced back at Damian expecting him to follow. But obviously he didn't look well enough to even walk, let alone lift a person up. He himself, on the other hand, felt oddly refreshed, like he had just eaten or drunk something. He wasn't sure if that was good or not, considering their predicament. Looking at Damian slowly dying in his body quickly reassured him it wasn't.
And well, Damian didn't seem to be the kind of person who'd take someone's life anyway.
“M… maybe the energy you drained from me will… come back, i-if we make physical contact.”
So their choices were narrowed down. Sedanas looked at the now bare hand offered to him. There was little time to think on the situation since his partner's life was at stake. It was confusing, yes--but--
Sedanas began to feel lightheaded as they held onto each other's hands. If this was somehow happening, he hoped at least Damian was getting better. He wondered what kind of person his partner was...probably Milletian if he'd been able to hold out this long. Most mortals turned ill or even died the moment he touched them.
Looks like that orange-haired guy and the giantess are gonna have to wait. Again.
That seemed a bit uncharacteristic of a guy who had extreme social anxiety just from asking for breadsticks. Maybe the body swapping applied to everyone else now? He wouldn't doubt it. What sort of devilry was this...
Sensing the distress from Damian, Sedanas sheathed the spirit weapon to his back and approached him, now hunched over in his form.
Uh oh. He doesn't look too good.
"You. Who—or what—are you?"
He tried to be relatively calm given the situation, though from the looks of it, the curse was sapping Damian of his life even in their swapped bodies. Therefore, he had to assume it resided in his corporeal form.
Yet, he couldn't rebirth. He would jeopardize the welfare of the Soul Stream. In a sense, he felt powerless and fragile. He'd been reduced to a mere mortal.
So, what did that mean? If the curse seemed to be somehow tied to his soul despite it affecting his physical capabilities, did that mean he tainted Damian's body too? His heart dropped at the thought. He had already hurt someone he loved with it and he didn't want others following in his wake.
Damian looked sicker by the minute. He had to think of something--quick.
"Listen...you might not like what I'm about to say, but your life will depend on it." He wouldn't think his partner might appreciate it if he sapped his own body's strength away, so he turned his attention to the unconscious giant. "You need to take her energy." He pointed to the large body on the floor. "But you should take off the gloves and make direct contact with her skin...if you can." He wasn't sure if that'd be plausible, seeing that the giant was pretty much covered from head to toe.
Then without really waiting for his response, he faced the orange-haired elf with a forced smile. "Sorry for the wait! We'll gladly help." Sedanas's own body was quite built underneath all that clothing, but he wasn't sure about Damian's own strength. In any case, the two of them might be able to budge her at least.
The next thing Sedanas knew, his vision blacked out for a second and he found himself in a different place. He felt a bit different, like he wasn't himself. In fact, that's just what happened.
He then examined his clothes. These...were Damian's. He felt around his hair and it was definitely different. Had he been switched into his body? If so, that must mean--
Wait, that's me. Over there.
Except Damian, now in Sedanas's body, donned his red eyes. Sedanas in turn retained his hazel eyes despite being trapped in his partner's body. Maybe the switch was still incomplete? He still felt kind of lightheaded from that sudden occurrence.
"Hi, hello! Can any of you two pick up a giant?!"
A voice not too far away called out in his direction. When he turned his attention to it, he saw an elf with orange hair followed by a large unconscious person that he presumed was the giant. He would have really liked to help this giant up--he may be a thief, but he had desperately tried not to be the cruel and sadistic person he had once been. Only he had no clear idea of how the nature of his curse would really work. It'd be risky to try and pick them up, especially since Damian's original self didn't wear any hand coverings.
Oh no. He had to warn Damian too. What if he accidentally hurt, or even killed someone while in his form? That'd be bad for both of them, but especially for Sedanas since it would just look like he himself did the work.
Was the curse even still on his own body? He had never really felt physical detriments from it. It was only when he came into direct contact with other life that it hurt whatever he was touching.
Nevertheless, he ignored the elf's plea if just for a moment and walked up to Damian--who he presumed was in his body now. He kept a comfortable distance between him and the stranger who had tugged at his shoulder.
"May I speak to this gentleman for a moment? Privately if you will." He smiled at the robed person, pointing at Damian who resided in his body.
He felt a tug on his sleeve, which immediately sent him into stranger danger alert. He shot a surprised glare at whoever laid a hand on him and was about to reach for his hidden knife under his coat.
“U-um…h-hi-! I…I was w-wondering where on the t-table you f-found those breadsticks b-because they l-look really g-good and I wanted to h-have some and…”
He paused for a moment and straightened himself out, his dark expression lightening up to a relieved sigh. He almost mistook him for Damian, but the scar and outfit indicated it wasn't. He waited for the other to finish his sentence, but it looked like he was at a loss for words. Shy, maybe?
Great, another person who looks like him.
"Oh...well, I got them from the floor above. There was a table of appetizers there." Since they had a huge buffet of main courses, he might as well help himself to some better food.
"Want them?" With a smile, Sedanas offered the breadsticks to the awkward stranger, keeping the one he had partially bitten off. It'd be unsanitary, and plus he didn't know how infectious his curse was. It was even a stroke of good luck that this person didn't faint being so near to him.
But suddenly he started to feel weird. Like he was almost being moved out of his body.
Sedanas followed behind, curious as to where the others were heading. He couldn't help but smirk at his comments and felt a bit relieved that his first reaction wasn't to immediately report him to the authorities.
My Wanted sign might still be up in the other continent, he realized. But it certainly didn't look like Damian recognized him or anything.
When they went down a floor, there was a huge buffet set up with all kinds of food. He needed a bit to process it, not having seen so much food brought together since the prom thing he more or less was dragged along to.
"Wow! There's so much food...!" He looked excited with glee. Well, this would definitely make up for his lack of bounty. With the breadsticks he still had in hand, Sedanas didn't really wait and quickly moved to where all the delicious fried chicken was.
He took a couple of breadsticks and chewed off large bites, observing his surroundings and totally unaware of Damian's presence while he was still an elf. Then it seemed all the weird stuff that happened was gone just like that, and a giant glowing orb now appeared on the balcony, which was rather suspicious. He felt something different change within him and wondered if that stupid rhyming bit ended for him along with the rest of these other ailments the other guests had.
And all of a sudden, Damian appeared next to him again, with none of the elvish traits he had supposedly been inflicted with before. He jumped back a little, instinctively tugging beneath his coat for his self-defense knife before realizing it was just him.
“Hey. Sorry for leaving back there.”
Sedanas hesitated a little, still trying to take in what just happened. "Oh...it's fine! I was just helping myself to some food." He had made sure to swallow any of the bread he had chewed off before speaking, though it was hard bread and went down his throat with quite a strain. The light on the chandelier above began to dim and guests began moving somewhere, to another floor even.
“So um, what brought you here anyways? You don’t… seem the type to really enjoy parties. No offence.”
Well, no use giving him the exact same reason he told him before. He sighed.
"If you must know..." he dropped his voice to a whisper, "I came here only for the sake of looting anything of value this castle has."
He loosened up a little. "Now that I'm actually here, it doesn't look like there's anything worthwhile to steal." He was being unusually honest, which unnerved Sedanas at first. But for some reason, he got the feeling Damian wouldn't be so judgmental, despite the fact that he was basically a no-good thief. What would he do anyway if he knew about his plans? In all honesty, he wasn't too worried.
Sedanas turned his attention back towards Damian, hearing a thud nearby. He saw him fall flat on his face for a brief moment (and giggled about it) before he disappeared in a flash of red and green smoke.
Whoa. Where'd he go?!
Were his thoughts affected too by the present? Because it actually rhymed.
He was definitely not aware of the newly turned elf breathing next to him. But in turn, Damian was probably not aware of the curse...the other curse that Sedanas had. Especially if he was standing so close to him.
He distinctly heard the screaming and ranting of a little girl who threw something and stormed out of the room. Her apparel looked very nun-like...except for the fact that she was flashing random colors and that she wielded a huge scythe on her back. Then he figured if she looked like she was from the church...
I wonder if she knows anything about Judas.
He was however hesitant to go speak with the girl, especially in her state of mind right now. Sedanas remained in one spot, not even aware of Damian's new form. When he looked back at where the nun threw something, he saw they were fishsticks. So that had to mean there was food!
He grinned, eyeing the table full of different kinds of dishes.
"Thank the gods!" he muttered to himself. "...actually no, I hate gods. They're a load of *$#^%$& sods." The word he really meant to say was magically replaced with a less explicit term, but more importantly it rhymed. He began to make his way to the buffet for a better look at the food.
--in response to (x) with mention of (x) & (x) (basically the music selections)
(tl;dr Sedanas just happens to have a music scroll lying around and asks the conductor to play it. Also he meets Damian again and has to speak in rhymes.)
While passing the time in his little loner corner, he got to hear a couple of other new songs. Someone played the lyre and even made the whole floor under them glow, which was quite impressive. When they were done, the girl who had been by the piano earlier gave a sheet of paper to the conductor. The orchestra then played a much more joyful tune fitting for the holidays.
It suddenly occurred to him that he would have something for the orchestra to play too. Just before leaving for Iria, he had thought to stop by the church in Emain Macha, where a certain someone now supposedly worked. But he didn't find him. Instead, he just found a sheet written with all these complex music notes he didn't quite understand. Why he felt compelled to take it, he didn't know. Maybe it was just his natural thief instincts.
When the orchestra was finally done playing the girl's request, he straightened himself out and made his way to the conductor, who was probably getting tired of requests by now but he didn't care. He wanted to hear what this really hard-to-read-looking sheet of paper sounded like. Of course, he had absolutely no idea what it even was about since there were no words to indicate what the song was called. He hoped it wouldn't sound weird. It ended up sounding a bit like this.
..oh. That definitely sounded like something Judas would fancy. Who knows, he probably even composed it himself. Sedanas wouldn't doubt his musical ingenuity.
Damian appeared in his line of sight again, holding a present in his hands and looking in Sedanas's direction. The sky outside at the balcony was lit up with red and green lights, kind of like fireworks. It seemed all the other guests were receiving gifts, too, including himself as a white owl flew in to drop off a gift box eerily decorated in the colors of his current outfit.
Oh my goodness, finally something to take home! Sedanas was slightly ecstatic now, momentarily forgetting about Damian who had just re-entered the room. He was about to open the box when he noticed the tag on it:
“You can only speak in rhymes! Speak in rhymes all the times!”
The box then proceeded to explode in his face in a puff of red and green.
So many people here already. It unnerved him, and he unconsciously shrank back from the crowd. There was a grand and splendid chandelier hung up, as well as a fancy orchestra. And the room was just pretty much all crystal. The lights started giving him a headache and he tilted it down slightly, his broad-brimmed hat keeping much of the radiance away.
It appeared one of the guests took over the piano, followed by a rather quaint but melancholic tune ringing from the keys. Then he noticed Damian heading out for the balcony. Sedanas started to follow him too until he noticed that the balcony was also somewhat occupied with guests. He also just now noticed the red, ornate greatsword Damian carried on his back. While it'd sell for a good penny, it definitely seemed like something he'd notice if it was gone.
"Oh! Heading for the balcony? I'll just wait here."
He had a chance to be by himself now. Sedanas subtly made his way to a lone corner (haha wow loser /shot) and enjoyed the piano music from afar, hardly minding the chatter amongst guests.
It appeared Damian looked suspicious of his motives, much to his chagrin. It wouldn't stop Sedanas though - he was determined to get something out of this party. Literally something. Like a shiny jewel or...something! It didn't look like this fellow had anything of worth to steal, except maybe for the boutonniere he wore on his vest. In any case, he wouldn't try anything. At least until he was a safe distance away from prying eyes.
“Alright then. Why don’t you lead the way? If you recall, I was turned into a toy and I don’t really know my way around the castle—nevertheless where we even are right now.”
"From the looks of it, we're in the castle basement. And the exit should be..." He turned around and retraced his steps back to where he had found the way in, assuming that Damian would follow him.
"Here!" If they just took the couple flights of stairs or so upwards, they might find this soiree.
"The stairs are quite long. I hope you're ready to exercise."
Unlike certain people, he would take the more reasonable way through this castle. Not like he had any kind of special exploding magic power to help him anyway.
