#apprentice isabella

[sisi-halloway]

A Song in Our Home

Shuhei x Isabella fluff

@iridescella

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“I’ll be with you... I’ll be with you... Call out my name to the ocean blue. I’ll be with you... I’ll be with you... Just listen for my voice, I’ll call you too. There’s no place, there’s no time, Where I wouldn’t call you mine... For I, will always be... With you.”

Shuhei stroked Isabella’s hair softly as he let the old Orasan lullaby fall off his lips. His grandmother had sang it to him, then his mother when he returned home to Kyoh. His sister had sung it to him when his mother said he’d grown out of it. Truth be told, he’d never grown out of the song. He was happy he could sing it now, to his one darling love Isabella Zieragh.

The two of them were laying in bed together. It was early in the night, the night sounds of the Maethisse forest just beginning. The locusts and the crickets were just waking for their shifts and owls were calling to each other from across their branches. A lone wolf could be heard howling in the distance. All of those sounds were familiar, they sounded like home. Shuhei was beginning to associate these sounds with home too. 

The flickering candlelight was the only disturbance in the still room. Shuhei had cleaned up a bit while Isabella had been getting ready for bed. He’d already mediated and trained and showered before she had come home from work. She’d had a hard day, he’d noticed. She came in with a slump in her shoulders. She had that tone in her voice. It was the one he recognized as ‘as much as I love you, I don’t want to talk about it’.

So ran her a bath, put her favorite scent in the tub, he made sure there were a lot of bubbles. He gave her her space and cleaned up their room. He had just finished moving his things from their temporary places to their more permanent ones. He no longer kept his clothes folded in baskets tucked in the corner of her living room. They were in their own chest now. He no longer had all of his toiletry items in a wooden bowl that he kept underneath the bathroom sink. He had placed them into the cabinet, some in the shower, some on the counter. His portable mattress that he had been lugging around with him all this time had made its way into a storage closet to ‘never come out again’ as Isabella had put it. Shuhei’s personal things, his photos, his sketchpads, his trinkets, had found themselves on the surfaces of her home. 

“Our home. Come on Shu, say it with me. Ourrrrr-”

Isabella had been training him to say that. He still couldn’t really get over it. His days of aimlessly travelling had been over when he stepped foot into Maeth, but he hadn’t known it until now. When he met Isabella, the sister of the man Shuhei’s childhood friend had been engaged to marry... he had given her the key to his heart. And she used that key to unlock a new chapter in his life. A chapter written with lots of plurals.

“Our... home,” he had said back to her, not bothering to hide the grin on his face. That gave him butterflies every time, even after she’s drilled it into his head to be normal.

“Thanks for that, baby... I really needed it.”

Isabella had come out of the bathroom in a towel, scrunching her hair with a smaller one. Shuhei was lying down already, having already lit a myrrh candle and making sure the bed was neatly made. There were throw blankets, a few crochet, a few fuzzy folded at the foot of the bed. The furs he had brought from Kawabata were draped over the comforter. He liked sleeping with them anytime he might get homesick. Isabella liked sleeping with them because they felt so nice and smooth on her freshly washed skin. 

They were expensive Silk Bear furs. A silk bear was a more humbly sized bear native to Kyoh with the softest fur one could ever touch. The furs didn’t cost Shuhei anything because his father had killed and skinned the bears himself, with his son’s help. His family on his father’s side were known for wrestling Silk Bears during season and being one of the only families to have possession of such commodities. Shuhei had never been claimed by his father’s family, a dishonour he held in disdain. But that was a story for another day. He had a family that did claim him as their own. A wonderful mother who reminded him a bit of his own, a brother who had acted both as a mentor and friend; and his wife, who had helped Shuhei bring his walls down and trust this new place. He had been granted a younger sibling who had nourished his talent and love for art and nature... and finally a wonderful woman that he didn’t ever expect to love him as much as she did.

“You feel a little better?” Shuhei asked, letting his hair out of its ribbon and resting his head on the pillow. He watched Isabella loosely as she tiptoed to the closet for some bed clothes. She dropped her towel when she got there, standing on her tip toes to peruse for pajamas. Shuhei admired her body, the curve of her back, those two dimples at the base of her spine... her wide hips and her creamy skin. Her wet brown hair fell down her shoulders like a curtain. Shuhei watched it sway as she turned around with bright eyes to ask him a question. She had a folded piece of fabric in her hand. It came from his corner of the closet. 

“Yes, baby. So much better... You’re a lifesaver. Can I wear this?”

He realized it was one of his shirts. Shuhei nodded readily. She didn’t need permission to wear his clothes. She could take the clothes off his back and he wouldn’t have a single objection. 

She slipped it on, getting into the bed with her love. She grabbed onto him without hesitation, placing her warm, damp cheek on his chest. Her breath was warm on Shuhei’s silver barbell. He pulled her into a sweetheart’s cradle, bringing the blankets around them. He watched her with a pleased expression as she instinctively reached for the white fur. It was her favorite, he noticed. It had a tendency to be on her side of the bed when the two woke up in the morning. He liked this about her. He liked that she enjoys the things he shares with her.

“I’m glad you’re home,” Shuhei whispers, putting his other arm on Isabella’s shoulder as she snuggled into him more closely. She hums, placing a light kiss on the place between his pectorals. Shuhei’s heart flutters at her soft touch. 

“I’m glad you’re here to come home to...” 

Her simple words were enough to unravel Shuhei once and for all. He rolled over on his side and squeezes Isabella close to him. She puts one of her legs around him, her toes sliding down his calf. She liked to touch him this way, in any way she could. He always made her feel better.

“Can you tell me a story?” Isabella asked. Her voice was quiet, sweet, so small and Shuhei recognized it as her little baby voice. It did something to him. It made him so weak.

He thought about what he should tell her. Most of the stories and folklore he knew had come from her. He liked it when she read him bedtime stories... his stories were nothing but personal anecdotes and half of them were not pleasant by any means. 

Whatsoever.

He thought about the things he did know. The things he liked. There was one thing he hadn’t shared with anyone. Nobody in Maeth had ever heard of it, except the one girl who knew it from her own childhood. Maybe this is what story he should share... He hoped that she’d like it.

“I don’t have a story... but I have a song,” Shuhei murmured lowly, pressing a kiss to Isabella’s soft temple. 

She relaxed, her body turning to molasses in his hold. She hummed, her full pink lips upturning into a sleepy smile. 

“Sing it...” 

Shuhei was happy to. He cleared his throat and let the tranquility of the room pull Isabella into sleep like she was a little paper boat in the gentle waves of the ocean. He hoped her dreams were as sweet as the love he knew she deserved. The love he was going to give her, despite the circumstances. 

Nothing was going to get in the way of loving Isabella. 

“I’ll be with you... I’ll be with you... Call out my name to the ocean blue. I’ll be with you... I’ll be with you... Just listen for my voice, I’ll call you too. There’s no place, there’s no time, Where I wouldn’t call you mine... For I, will always be... With you.”

~~~

“I love you, Isabella.”

[sisi-halloway]

You talk so much about honor, then you turn your back on those willing to love you. She's willing to accept us, when nobody else would. If you don't accept her... then you dishonor me. I'm all the honor this family has.

Shuhei to father Genkei, concerning Isabella Zieragh

[sisi-halloway]

Charcoal Drawing

@scribblingella

Shuhei was already awake. He wakes up so early every morning for no reason in particular, other than his own habit. The sun was barely up, letting soft gray light through the shutters of Isabella’s house. This night, Isabella had slept next to him on his tatami mattress on the floor. She did this sometimes, so that he wouldn’t have to sleep alone. He savored these mornings, the mornings she would hog all the blankets and drool on his pillow. She made his bed smell like flowers.

He stirred slightly, rolling over onto his back. He had been up for hours, but hadn’t gotten up to meditate or stretch outside. He never did on these mornings, so he wouldn’t wake Isa. He could do other things while he waited for her to wake up. 

Shuhei pushed back his hair from his face, and looked to the side of his mat. He had given Isa his hair ribbon for her to use so his wavy, black hair was down around his shoulders now. He felt around, silently, until his fingers enclosed around his small leather bound journal. His charcoal was not too far away. 

Shuhei sat up, slowly. He sat cross legged as he opened the little journal. He had a ton of them just like it. It was about the size of his hand, thin. Sugarcane paper, maybe thirty sheets between two worn pieces of leather. They were his drawing journals. He’s drawn ever since he was a student at Ishikawa. It was a wonderful way to pass the time, and he had gotten quite good (although Shuhei never thought he was exceptional at it). He flipped to the last few clean pages. He primed his charcoal in the corner, making the tip of it sharp.

He looked over at Isabella. Her arms were cast lazily over the empty space where he was just laying, her copper bracelets adorning her wrists. Her top was falling off her shoulders, her body threatening to escape it. It was a beautiful flirt of an expression, and Shuhei started with this. 

He drew the curve and the slight indention of her shoulder, making the line curve until he reached her neck. Her long, beautiful neck. Shuhei always thought about tailing kisses on her here, and the day he’d get the courage to do so would be close enough. He drew the hollow of her throat, her strong yet delicate chin. He was languidly dragging his charcoal on the page, mimicking the mood of the morning. 

Isa’s lips were next. They had always been plump, but they became swollen at the slightest touch. Right now they were resting in an innocent pout, so Shuhei drew them as they were. He scribbled the little string of spit that spilled from the corner of those pretty lips. 

Up he went, kissing the page with the light and masterful strokes. Her nose, her high cheekbones, the little indention of her temple. Her face was all there, except for her eyes. Shuhei was careful with these. He wisped and flicked his wrists, here long lashes coming to fruition. They fluttered as he sketched them, almost as if he was creating a poppet for her. He smiled at this, drawing the crease of lids so daintily. She was a dainty girl, only in theory, only like this. 

Her sleeping form didn’t capture her energy, her liveliness, the vibrancy the Shuhei adored so so much. This was such a soft side of her, a rare side of her that he wanted to admire and appreciate. 

A piece of Isabella’s hair dropped into her face, just a few strands. Shuhei jotted this down, thinking it made a wonderful addition to the art that was Isabella Zieragh. He drew the rest, the way it cascaded down her cheek like a waterfall, pooling around her back and on the bed. Isa had such long, beautiful hair.

It went like this for maybe an hour. Shuhei kept adding details, more and more, everything that he noticed new, he added to the page. the way her necklace slipped between the valley of her chest, the way her earring had caught itself in a dance with a lock of her honey brown hair. The furrow of her brows now, like she was having an interesting dream. The dip of her cupid’s bow, the few crystals of morning sand in her eyes. Shuhei added it all, appreciated it all, loved it all. 

The only indication of time was the rising sun. When it first kissed her skin, Isabella stirred. Her eyes barely opened, meeting with Shu’s when she smiled. She sensed her drool and wiped it self-consciously.

“Mh.... what are you doing?”

Her voice was gravelly but in a way that was so sexy, so raw, so beautifully made.

“Waiting for you to wake up. You sleep a long, long time.”

Shuhei closed his journal and took a centering deep breath. The drawing was finished, its subject forever trapped in the time that had passed only a moment ago. Isabella was immortalized on that page, and he couldn’t add another thing to it. It would ruin it’s authenticity. He was happy with the drawing, very very happy with it, although he could never do her justice.

“Well, good morning...” She says this, suspiciously eyeing the things in his hands.

“Good morning.”

She hums, thinking her Shu was always too formal with her. She laughs it off, his ramrod straight posture always one of the first things she noticed. 

“So... what’s in there?” 

She pointed to his journal. Shuhei looked down and smiled. She could see if she wanted, but he was always nervous about showing her. He tried not to if he could help it. However, Isabella’s glittering eyes and her mischievous smile always compelled him to open up to her. Whether it be his journal, or his dark past, or his haori so she can bandage him after a tough day training, he always ended up opening up to her. It was a beautiful thing that she did for him. He appreciated Isabella more than he could put into words... so he put it in-

“A charcoal drawing.”

[sisi-halloway]

So This is Maeth? Salice x Thomas

This is when Ella introduces Thomas to Salice!! I hope I got their characters right

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“So, this is Maeth?” Salice says.

She and Ella walk hand in hand from the entrance of town, to where her family lived. It was early in the morning, sleepy fog still hanging over the whole of the place. It was quiet there, nothing but the birds chattering quietly and a bell tolling every now and again. It was like the whole town, along with everyone in it, was holding its breath. Everything was green and lush and beautiful.

“Yeah. This is where I’m from!”

Salice took a deep breath of the air. It was saturated with magic, with energies. Her body manifested calmness and serenity as her skin soaked up these energies. “It’s really beautiful.”

The two of them approach the center of the town. No business and no school was quite open yet, since it was Sundas and all. Salice is busy looking from place to place, appreciating the gentle nature of it all.

Coming upon the centerpiece of the circle, a fountain in the middle of all the buildings, she is enraptured by its wonder. She stares wide-eyed at it, her jaw loose on its hinges. Its flowing water seemed to whisper, careful not to disturb the tranquility of the town. Salice was in awe.

“What’s this?”

Ella looked up at the fountain and smiled. She was happy that Salice was so interested in her home.

“That’s the Vivarium Fountain. It’s to honour everyone who’s ever given their lives in battle.”

Salice could feel the energy coming from it and nodded. She knew there was a great power in this fountain, in the monument. It obvious that it was very important to the town. Everything here was centered around it. She closed her eyes and quietly gave thanks to it.

“Oh, Salice. Over here!”

Ella showed Salice the tavern that belonged to her best friend’s family. It wasn’t open yet of course, but the two went and peered through the glass anyway.

“You know, I used to dance in taverns when I was bit younger,” Salice murmured wistfully, her breath fogging up the window. She vaguely remembers all the times she’d bound into Tern’s barefoot and twirl and step until she was glowing with sweat. She’d take all her tips and buy her father some liquor, then go home and put the rest in her savings box. She was so happy, so carefree then. Now all her time was occupied by work and grief.

Salice drug her hands down the glass, long nails ticking on it as she remembered. She remembered all the good times she had there, all the drinks she had, all friends she made… All the dances she used to dance.

She remembered her father. How she missed him.

Ella looked over at her friend with a sympathetic gaze. She didn’t quite know what Salice was so sad about, but hopefully she would forget about it during her time in Maeth. There was so many things Ella wanted to share with her. Ella grabbed her hand again.

“We can come dancing tonight if you’d like. We have a lot of fun here.”

“Really?” Salice turned quickly toward her friend. She couldn’t hide the edge of excitement in her usually calm and even voice. Ella admired the way Salice’s bright green eyes glittered at the idea. Her smile was more endearing than anything she’d seen, like a pet who couldn’t wait to go outside. Ella couldn’t wait to take her.

Isabella gave her a small and brief tour of the town circle before they moved onward, toward the edge of the habitable part of town. Large trees created a canopy over the walkway, like lovers interlocking fingers with one another. Said canopy kept whatever early morning sun that peeked through the fog away from the lightness of their skin.

“We’re coming up on my family’s home,” Ella announced. “Are you okay to meet them? Are you ready to?”

Salice chuckled a little. “Sure. I’d love you meet your family.”

With this, Ella led Salice to the front door of a small log house with a wooden roof. There was a splendid garden in the front of it, a swinging bench nestled between the flower beds. There were butterflies around the whole place, dancing happily as the two approached.

“My mother might not be awake yet, but we’ll see who’s home.”

Ella pulled a small key from her pocket and jangled it in the door. When it opened, Salice was overcome by an excitement. She was really looking forward to meeting Ella’s mother. What was a mother like? She could hardly remember.

As the two pushed inside the house, the smell of herbs and warm candle wax filled Salice’s nose. She treasured its kiss, a more comforting version of the smell of her own home.

They realized the quiet of the place was disrupted by more than just them. Someone was rattling their way through some cupboards or something. Ella gruffed.

“Who is making all this fucking racket. It’s so early.” She turned to her friend and held out her hand. “Hold on.”

Salice did as she was told.

Ella stomped in and turned the corner to the kitchen, a beautifully affectionate smile blessing her face suddenly. She disappeared from view and Salice was left quite confused, standing in the living room on a beautiful rug, chewing on her brown top lip.

“Ella! Oh, a surprise. Hey! I’m so glad to see you.”

A smooth voice sounded, light and jovial. There was a dip in it, leading Salice to picture an embrace between Ella and the new sound. It was a man’s voice. Her dad? Salice wasn’t sure. Ella hadn’t really talked about her family before. She continued listening to the two talk from the other room.

“It’s good to see you too! Why do you keep getting taller every time I see you, Gods. What are you eating,”

The voice snickers a little. “Never anything substantial.”

A slap on the arm or chest and a wince occurred. Ella was obviously comfortable enough with the person to hit him like that. Her brother maybe?

“Meals are important. When will you ever understand that?”

“Ow, Ella. Sure, I understand but-”

“Oh, fuck. I almost forgot. There’s someone I want you to meet.”

Salice realized this was her cue to straighten up, look presentable and impress. She waited for the stranger to come from out of the kitchen… but she wasn’t expecting what she saw.

The stranger towered over Ella, and that was the first thing Salice noticed. He had sandy blond hair; a bit messy but so charming. It fell in loose waves over a sun kissed forehead. He had a strong chin that she could tell had been slender once, and a blessed jawline that was sharp enough to cut through her composure. It gave way to a linear neck, so long and threaded with a prominent apple. His loose shirt was cut low in the front, revealing the beginnings of a pale and chiseled chest. He wasn’t a strongman, though. His sleeves were cuffed, revealing wiry forearms and slender wrists and hands, which wrung themselves together nervously. Salice could tell he worked with those hands and worked with them very well. There were ripples in his skin where scars could be seen. She let her eyes sink for only a moment, down below the brown leather belt that held up his dress pants… She blinked hard, recentering back to his face, where a pair of thick glasses made his eyes stand out to Salice. They were golden, hazel, brown? They were all the beautiful shades at once, since she couldn’t tell which ones to decide on seeing. They were so… encapsulating. Just like the rest of him.

On the other hand, this stranger had quite literally thought a goddess was standing in the living room of his mother’s home. The first thing he noticed about her was her striking green eyes. They were like a poem, two rocks of unrefined peridot holding his face in their warm, inviting hands. He noticed the way her nose curved up, so daintily. Her plump lips were parted in the most enchanting beginnings of a pleasured smile. And then further down… Her sharp collar bone gave way to beautifully poetic shoulders. Hair, brown like her gorgeous skin, cascaded down them, falling behind her back in elegance. Her chest was proud, sitting primly over the top of her corset. A golden coral pendant hung behind the ruffled neckline of her shirt, wedged between the blessed valley of her supple bre-

“Salice! This is my brother. Tommy, Salice. Salice, Tommy.”

They both blinked a little, snapping out of their trances. Salice was awestruck by his charm, his handsome features, but she was the first to recover. She smiled softly, coming forth to shake his hand with both of hers.

“Hello. Salice Halloway. It’s a pleasure.”

Thomas was in love with the way she graced his hand with all ten of her delicate fingers. Her voice was like a honeyed whisper, in an accent Thomas had never heard before. Oh, she sounded so pretty, prettier than he’d ever heard someone sound. He brought his other hand to even the gesture. He could barely speak.

“T-Thomas. My name is Thomas. But Tommy to family. Zieragh. U- ahem.”

He flustered but promptly took a deep breath to steady his flurrying mind. “My name is Thomas Zieragh. And the pleasure is surely mine… Salice.”

“Thomas,” Salice repeated on sweet lips. “Zieragh…”

Thomas could not handle the beauty in which is name was bestowed coming from her. His name sounded something like a magic spell coming from her gracious lips. He was quite nearly on the verge of fainting. Their hands were still together now, familiarizing themselves with their contrasting textures. Thomas was timid about his rough hands desecrating her soft ones. He was floundering about it, but Salice didn’t even notice.

The gorgeous young woman took a step closer, pulling his hands to her heart in a traditional Orasan greeting. Thomas sighed when his cold knuckles met the skin of her chest.

“Thomas Zieragh. That’s a wonderful name.”

[sisi-halloway]

The Camera (Salice x Thomas)

Salice with @scribblingella's OC, Thomas!

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Salice: *comes around the corner of his workshop* Ella said you'd be in here. What are you working on, handsome?

Thomas: *nervously* Oh, haha. Salice! It's just a camera.

Salice: *curiously* A camera, hm? Show me what it does?

Thomas: Well, it takes portraits. So you just point it like this... *points camera at Salice*

Salice: Should I smile?

Thomas: Y-you can, if you want. You'll look gorgeous either way.

Salice: Oh you flatterer *smiles naturally*

*Thomas takes the picture and the photograph prints out the bottom of the camera*

Thomas: So you just wait a little *shakes photo*

Salice: *coming up behind Thomas' shoulder* This is quite neat, I must admit. I hate to say it, but I don't know if I'll show up, since... you know.

Thomas: Well, I was hoping you'd say something like that because...

*Salice shows up in the photo, despite being a vampire*

Thomas: Ta da!

Salice: Oh goodness! Thomas! This is me? This is me! You made this? *hugs Thomas and kisses him* You're so amazing! You're brilliant! Oh, I love this... *takes photo into her hands and looks at it* Oh I love you, Thomas. Thank you!

Thomas: Oh... Salice, I'm glad I can make you smile