Last Samhain aka "Two Horses and a Dog"

[The Sun]

For the Unseelie Court it was a truly dark day, for its King sat on his throne for only this one last time, before embarking on a journey that could just as well cut his life short. Everything was arranged for the court to go on without him, but it was grim all the same. They had had him for so long...

Samhain had come and passed, and with it the damage had been done. Though at this point in time it was still hard to tell how it truly happened, one thing was sure: The Sluagh had escaped and returned their torture and misery unto the Earth tenfold. As much as fae folk disliked meddling with the human realm, really meddling, it was obvious only they would be able to undo the damage to the planet they called home, as well.

The Pooka King was not the least bit happy about this turn of events. His tall spindly frame lay low and dejected in his throne, all plush with black silks and leathers, as he contemplated the events of the past few days and slowly came to gather the courage to say goodbye to his little royal dwelling. He really loved it so. Many thought it depressing, because the King never strayed from the traditional color of the Pookas: black. Even now the clothes he wore were the blackest they could be, only his glowing red eyes illuminated in the half-dark of his throne room. Bloodshot and ever tired, they stared on ahead until someone would come and tell him it is time to leave. Though not a bad leader, hes was infamously lazy. Even now, in the face of new dangers and all the epic journeys to come, he wanted nothing more than for the expedition, his new wife included, to simply forget him and leave without him.

 

[KyotiMoon]

Any fae worth their salt could see at least the most obvious of differences between the two Courts, Seelie and Unseelie. But those differences could still be quite jarring when one was suddenly plucked from one and thrown unceremoniously into the center of the other.

Gone were the overly garish colors covering the walls, the glittering suncatchers adorning the windows... It was not simply the visual differences that could be disconcerting, but the differences between the fae themselves. The Seelie liked to think themselves an aristocratic lot. Power struggles were fought behind the cover of coquettish smiles and dipping curtsies, lavish gift-giving and backhanded compliments. The Unseelie were far more open with their devilish plotting. If you were not liked, there would be no compunctions about letting it be openly known.

The newly appointed Unseelie Queen found herself taking note of these differences as she glided towards the throne room. She just couldn't seem to bring herself to worry about them though. She might even admit to herself that it would be a relief to be without the daily games the Seelie liked to play. She really was rather tired of having to pretend so much.

One thing she actually was worried about, was her husband. Worried she might just accidentally kill him before all was said and done. There he was, slumped in his throne, looking as though someone had just kicked his proverbial puppy. No more time to waste worrying about what was to come. It was now or never and high time to get on their way. She fisted the skirt of her emerald dress in each hand, and quickly made her way towards the pooka.

"Time to stop pouting," she intoned, stopping just in front of his throne. Cocking her head to one side, she gazed at the bridge of his nose, careful to avoid meeting his eyes.

 

[The Sun]

Deimos,though not moving from his position that by now was starting to just look plain uncomfortable, followed the kelpies walk with a small smile. Most things about her amused him greatly. Or annoyed. either of those two. She was so small, so desperately small and out of place in all these infinitely long halls.
It was true, the Unseelie were a lot different from their Seelie counterparts. Especially during the Pookas reign, many of the Unseelie court had adapted a more quiet, ancient and traditional style of living. While the Seelies adorned themselves in trinkets and pomp, theirs stayed the simple way. The Pooka,though, was used to being royalty, even before being appointed the head of the court, and as such, liked to live in his castle. But not for long.

While the kelpie averted her eyes, Deimos felt comfortable enough to look into hers, finding it rather funny that she would dare to order him, but not to actually look at him. Of course, he was not as happy to hear what she had to say, because he realized what she meant. What was obvious and left unsaid.

"I am not pouting," his voice was a hiss of malice. He was not used to orders. Next, the pooka decided to rest his head in his hand , his neck craned to the side to mimic Viridianas own pose as he continued staring at her quite confidently. "Can't it wait? I will miss my castle, I would like to give it a proper goodbye."

 

[KyotiMoon]

Viridiana took a breath and slowly unfisted her hands. Smoothing out her dress skirt, she slowly looked around the room before turning back to Deimos. "You may miss your precious castle. But the question is: will it miss you?"

Without waiting for an answer, she quietly made her way to one of the bauble-free windows. "If we waited for you to finish your goodbyes, I doubt we would ever be on our way," she remarked, looking out at the landscape below. She noticed a redcap a little distance away, harassing a small sprite. If it didn't watch itself, it might find itself missing a few fingers. Vi whirled around suddenly, and skipped over to the sulking pooka.

"Come on," she urged, grabbing hold of his hand and pulling. "The sooner we get done, the sooner you'll be able to come back. Just imagine the carousing that will take place in honor of your return. Or the feeling of sleeping in your own bed once again, after nights spent sleeping in unfamiliar places. You won't get to experience either if you never leave." She looked at him from beneath her lashes, pulling gently on his hand once more.

 

[The Sun]

" Time means nothing to me," replied the Pooka almost instantly and rather confidently , seemingly having had the answer all along. Or rather, it was one he liked to repeat at every occasion possible. Though begrudging and painfully slow, the slim frame of the pooka finally decided to sit up straight in his throne. All the while keeping his eye on the queen. He looked surprised, startled even, when she grabbed onto his hand and started pulling. There was a dull thud as the back of his head hit the chair and he half attempted to jerk his hand back, before realizing how silly this reaction was. More hissing followed as her pulling continued and before long the Pooka was already giving in.
"I would prefer the feel of my bed now most of all, no absence necessary," His voice was a deep rumble this time around. And yet his statement ended with an exasperated sigh and another stirring in his royal seat as he pushed himself off it. Whether an act or not, even this action seemed almost painful to the Pooka. Many did say he moved much like an old man. By stature he regained some of his nobility, he stood tall and proud most of the time, though it was not that often The Unseelie King decided to raise from his throne in the first place.

As he rose he enveloped the hand that had been tugging on him all along,his long fingers reaching to her wrist and giving it a light squeeze, though keeping a firm grip on it after. " I fear you may make a great queen yet." He teased her,a bit of ghastly white teeth flashing in something akin to a smile as he looked down to her. After all, not that many still bothered with motivating the passive royal, especially not with such a hands-on approach.
It was still only a battle half-won, as the King never did give a clear answer that he would be leaving just yet.

 

[KyotiMoon]

The idea of travelling to the human world to dole out death to an unknown number of beings sounded quite promising to Kehilan. Though the thought of who he would be sharing the journey with was enough to dampen his spirits. He had seen the kelpie flitting about the Seelie Court often enough, being of great entertainment to the Queen. Though he could not understand why. Nor why she had been chosen as Unseelie Queen and a participant of this journey. His own Queen must have her reasons though, else she never would have parted with one of her favorite pets.

The Unseelie King, he very much feared, would live up to his reputation of laziness and inaction. As it stood, he already had. While everyone else had done all that needed done in order to depart, it seemed the only thing the pooka had done was sulk in his throne. The kelpie had gone off to collect him, but he was beginning to doubt they would ever appear.

* * * *​

Viridiana looked down at the hand enveloping hers, wondering just what the King's comment had meant. She turned her gaze back up to his, still carefully avoiding his eyes. "I'm sure I don't know what you mean," she spoke softly, giving the slightest of tugs to the arm currently captured by him. "We really do need to be on our way," she continued, turning her gaze back up to his face, though still carefully avoiding looking him in the eyes.​

 

[The Sun]

Contrary to popular belief, the Pooka had, in fact, already gathered his belongings and really had tried for once to not give in to apathy. At least not completely. Saying goodbye to his castle really was just that- saying goodbye to it. The very last thing on his royal list of duties, and then the Court would no longer be any of his concern. Still, he had spent hours passing every hall, touching every brick, feeling every fabric, imprinting the memory of it in his ancient brain. Today, the Unseelie King was genuinely heartbroken to leave his beloved home. Although not a man hated, he had never been loved for anything more than the free regime the Unseelie took under his name. So he had learned to love his things and his memories instead. The Pooka had spent most his life contemplating and so it was doubly hard for him to finally start doing instead of just thinking.
He heaved another sigh as Viridiana decided to play dumb an brush off the little bit of conversation Deimos was attempting with his wife. He thought of his words as more a compliment than an insult, but oh well. He released her arm, straightening out to his full height now that he did not need to stoop so low. He spent a few moment gazing upwards, towards the dark ceiling. The Pookas already rather sheepish looking face turned a little sadder.

"I suppose you are right..." He finally said in a quiet voice, pinching the bridge of his nose as if hoping to rub the last of his apathy off. " We should meet the Haunt and leave for the portal. We must be outside our realm by sunset." He announced in a voice almost startlingly louder than his usual, some note of a King's speech resonating in it. And then he did something odd. The Pooka, in the blink of an eye had turned to his demonic stallion form, black mane flowing and his eyes blazing like two suns. He dashed off almost immediately. With no warning or previous knowledge of the Unseelie Kings habits, Vi was probably still new to the Pookas favorite mode of transportation in his lonely old castle. His enchanted halls that stretched on for miles were made especially to cater to this whim of his, and to cut expenses in building, of course.

The Pooka at this given moment was galloping, almost gliding, as a lightning fast shadow, toward the belongings he had gathered for himself, his next stop being that of the Haunts. He seemed to have completely forgotten his wife or even had the decency to offer her a ride. He assumed the Kelpie would be clever enough to know where he would appear next.