A Little Bit of Loniless (Epona/Open)

[Ice]

Ice sat in the library with one foot propped up on the desk as he leaned back in the chair. Quin and himself had been in there for awhile now discussing options on dealing with the Reapers and now they both sat there, ready to give up.

"I don't know what to do, Quin." Ice said, reaching for his glass and taking a long drink from it. He watched as Quin was flipping through some ancient books, dust blowing up from the table. "What are those?"

Ice got up from the desk and went to stand next to Quin, reading the inscription from the page Quin was looking at. It seemed to have thin papers with hieroglyphics written all over them. Someone had taken the time to put them in order and filed into the book.

"That is Egyptian script, is it not?" Ice asked as Quin nodded. "Ugh, I'm no good at transcribing this. Go get Redeemer, she's the linguist in our little group."

Quin looked up with an arched eyebrow and Ice slapped him playfully on the back.

"She'll eat this up, Quin. Besides, she'll come take a look at it if you ask her." Ice smirked, taking the book from Quin to study it more closely.

[Quinlin Torr]

Shaking his head and smirking as he left Ice to that book. He walked to the room the girls were in. He opened the door slowly and Both girls turned their heads to see him. He gestured to the other room and spoke.

"Redeemer, we need you to translate some heiroglyphics. Ice and I can't make heads or tails of it. Please?"

Then Redeemer caught his eyes avert really quick to look lower then he was actually looking to speak to her. He arched an eyebrow and turned away. closing the door behind him as Redeemer looked over Epona to see part of the sheet covering her had not been doing it's job. Part of Epona's thigh was showing, and Quinlin noticed it.

[Redeemer]

Redeemer couldn't keep the smirk off her face as she watched Quin's retreating back. Reaching with a hand, she covered up Epona and the hugged her gently.

"Guess I should go see what's up." Redeemer said. "I'll be back when I can."

Redeemer smiled at Epona as she got up and walked out of her bedroom. Making her way to the library, she could hear Ice and Quin's voices and her steps faltered.

'Get over it, Re.' She admonished to herself. With a laugh and a shake of her head, she walked into the library to find the two of them hunched over what looked like an ancient book.

"So what's the big deal?" She asked, watching with amusement as their heads popped up in sequence. Redeemer walked over, taking the book from them and settled into a big chair in the corner, tucking her legs underneath her.

She looked up to see the two of them watching her closely and she gave them a brilliant smile.

"I'm gonna be here for a while, Gentlemen. You might as well go do something else."

Quin nodded and left the room and Ice stayed behind for a minute to watch her. She smiled softly at him.

"Go on, Ice." She whispered. "We'll talk later. I promise."

She watched as a smile appeared on Ice's lips and he turned to strode out of the library. A moment later, Royce walked in with a carafe of wine and a glass for her.

"On the request of Master Ice, Miss Ree." Royce said, setting the tray next to her on a table, then went about pouring a glass for her. She took the glass from him with a smiled thank you and softly chuckled for a moment before taking a long cool drink of the wine. With a grin, she set the glass down, then opened the book to go about finding out what it held, wondering if a friend of her's should be called in for this.

[Ice]

Ice patted Quin on the shoulder as they walked down the hallway.

"Things are looking up!" Ice laughed. "Come on, let's go see how are fave Darkling is fairing."

Ice saw Quin's eyebrows raise a little and he grinned, turning towards Epona's room. Softly knocking on the door, they stood there waiting for Epona to answer.

[Epona Rhi]

Laying on her stomach, she lifted her head a bit as the knocking came.

"Come in, its open."

She smiled as the two "boys" walked in.

[Ice]

"Epona!" Ice grinned as he and Quin walked in. "You're looking ravishing as ever."

Ice walked over to quickly check her back and was happy to see that she was back to normal. He grabbed a chair and pulled it up next to the bed as Quin went to lean against the wall.

"Glad to see you are doing so well." Ice said. "I don't think Ree would be one to be reckoned with if we lost you."

[Epona Rhi]

She rested her head on her folded arms, and laughed at Ice's remark. Yes her sister would see heads roll if anything bad happened. She eyed Quin as he remained quiet against the wall.

"I'm just glad to be still in one piece Ice."

[Ice]

Ice smirked, catching the glimpse Epona sent Quin. He stood, putting the chair back in its place.

"Well, if you will excuse me, I am going to go check on Ree and the book. Epona, once again, glad to see you doing well. Quin, I'll talk to you later."

Ice nodded his head towards Quin, purposefully leaving the two of them alone. He carried a wicked grin on his face as he left the room, knowing the two of them, a Vampyre and a Sith would make an interesting couple.

Ice found Redeemer exactly where she was before, totally immensed in the book. He leaned against the door, watching as she nibbled on her bottom lip with her teeth as she carefully read and reread a page.

[Redeemer]

Redeemer felt Ice's presence and she looked up from what she was reading to smile at him. She closed the book carefully, setting it aside to stand and stretch.

"Hi." She smiled as he approached. He smiled back and she decided to shock him by wrapping her arms around his neck, drawing him closer. She grinned at the look of disbelief on his face and she quickly kissed him.

"Don't ever question me again."

Ice quickly nodded and she knew he understood the whole meaning of those words.

"How's it going?" She heard him ask.

"Slow." She sighed. "I'm going to have to let someone else I know with more extensive experience in hieroglyphics see it."

Redeemer saw the uncertainty flash across Ice's face and she hugged him quickly.

"It is ok, Ice. She can be totally trusted, like Epona." Redeemer said. "She knows all about who I am and what I do. I'll contact her tomorrow evening after we rest."

Redeemer glanced at the clock on the wall, realizing they only had a little bit before the sun rose. Ice escorted her to Epona's room where she said a quick 'goodnight' to her friend and then the two of them walked together down into the chamber.

Redeemer watched as Ice stretched out onto the bed, holding his hand out to her. She took it, laughing as he pulled her down next to him. He gently nibbled on her jawline as she turned into him. She felt her eyelids growing heavy and she placed a hand on his chest, giving in to the darkness.

[Quinlin Torr]

Walking into one of the other rooms, Quinlin let his body fall face first onto the huge bed and his eyes drifted closed. Later he would see what Redeemer had come up with. His "alone" time which Ice had given him with Epona although he didnt need any, was not so productive. He tried to talk to her but all she did was look at him. Which he himself found uncomfortable....odd. Shewas usually the talkative one but not then. All she wanted was to look and smirk. So he excused himself and went to the library to find it empty and decided it was time for some rest himself.

[Epona Rhi]

Getting up from the bed finally, and noticing the pain in her back was almost gone, she dressed in a white gown that madeher look like a princess. 'mmmmm dunno if you 'd make a good one Miss Rhi' She tought to herself in front of the mirror.

Then making her way to the kitchen, she found Royce making something and it smelled good!

"Ahhh you did wake up and come to see what I was making."

He smiled at her and said as he placed a plate of pancakes down in front of her and her mouth watered. She began to pour the syrup over the stack as she answered him.

"Yeah I smelled it cooking, ooooooo I havent had these for awhile!"

"If memory serves correctly miss, it's been almost a week since you really ate anything besides soup. So I figured this would be a surprise for you."

"Oh it IS! You're the best Royce."

"ahhh well I do try."

He said and they both laughed. mmmmmm this was frelling GOOD stuff! She was very much glad she decided to greet the world today. Too bad her friends couldnt enjoy it with her. Then she thought to earlier when Quin had excused himself. He was cute when unbalanced. She chuckled and continued to eat.