A Time Apart {Amaji}

[Azazealyn]

Azazealyn shook her head, knowing what he was saying, but there was no word in the drow world for "love". It was an entirely foreign concept, only appearing on the surface and with the surface world.

"We do not even recognize the concept, Amaji," she said softly as she watched him. "It is an alien thing to this world, we have no word for it, it is not familiar. Maybe you should look else where for it, or it will find you in your long life. Has no one struck you? No beauty that has caught your wayward eye?" she asked.

Azazealyn knew that he was not of the drow, he would never be, no matter how much he wanted to be or how much he thought he should be. Amaji had other plans coming that were out of anyone's hands and would only be directed by the mysterious happenings of the other world.

[Amaji the Black Maji]

“I know there is no such thing as love in drow society,” Amaji responded, looking to Azazealyn. “I was born a surface mixed elf, and then I was thrown into the market to just then be completely resocialized as a drow. You have no idea the conflict that I have raging inside of me. I am sure that my parents were affectionate to me during the short period of time I was with them, but there was no love or affection when I was in the marketplace. No love came to me in the drow city, but there was care and understanding from you and Talex.”

The wizard paused, chewing his lip as he thought. “I was shown a glimpse of what love could be on the surface world when I was with Rever. He cares and loves for his vampires, but he loves death even more so. He loves his art, and I learned to love the art of black magic just like him. I am capable of emotions such as love, but there has been very little love shown toward me.”

Amaji did love the black magic that he possessed. He could have even possibly loved Azazealyn and Talex, but in a sense of love that was not romantic or truly intimate. He had doubt, though, towards anyone ever growing to love him.

“And now, I have found no beauty that has caught my wayward eye,” he responded, crossing his arms over his chest.

[Azazealyn]

"Then quit acting like a little kid and go after what you want," Azazealyn responded, slipping into her natural place as high priestess, helping others with their dilemmas. "You have seen this glimpse, yes. You are a surface elf, yes. You know you are capable of them, despite what others may say about you and your power. If you continue to hide yourself among us, then no, you will never find it. If you truly want to love someone and find someone to love you, you will have to cut connections with most of the drow and live on the surface," she said watching him.

Azazealyn and Talex had often spoken of the conflicts they knew were appearing with the mixed elf, how instincts warred against each other. It was dangerous, if he held this much power and could not regulate these internal battles. She came over to kneel in front of him, placing a hand under his chin to have him look at her.

"It is not an easy thing to do, Amaji. You must make the decision for yourself and yourself alone. You will undoubtedly hurt some people, yes, and you will also be hurt in return. But that is the nature of this emotion, from what I have understood. You must find one who you think it is worth doing all of this," she said softly.

[Amaji the Black Maji]

A sigh escaped Amaji’s lips as he looked up at the drow high priestess. “I do not know what I want besides my power. I want to be able to rule, but I also want to quench these desires that I have deep within me. I could never give up my home in the Underdark. Never, Azazealyn, and you know that so do not ever suggest that again.”

A frown worked its way onto the wizard’s features. He never had a desire to leave the drow society. He cared too much for the drows to just abandon them. He had grown up with many of them. He had learned their way of life and he had no want to leave that.

[Azazealyn]

Azazealyn sighed, shaking her head and sending her hair tumbling down across her shoulders from its previous position atop her head. "I will not suggest it again, Amaji, but you know that Talex and I are right. You will have to spend less time among us and more time among the surface to quench your desires," she said as she moved back and stood.

"If you wish for one of us to accompany you, we can," she said. "We have others who can rule in our stead while we are gone and Talex, though he is male, has Lloth's favor as well and is respected."

[Amaji the Black Maji]

The wizard let out a sigh, running a hand through his hair. “I don’t want to search for such things on the surface alone. You have no idea what I had to deal with up there being alone. I was glad to find companionship with my horse and with my golem, but their words are very limited. If you would not mind accompanying me, I would greatly appreciate it, Azazealyn.”

Amaji had relaxed a bit more. He tensed quite often with his anger at harsh thoughts of leaving the drow city. He loved the placed dearly and it had been quite hard to leave when he had to go and advance his knowledge of magic.

He let out a sigh. “You know how much the city means to me.”

[Azazealyn]

Azazealyn nodded as she moved to run her hands through his hair and calm him down. It was a separation anxiety that everyone who left the city for extended periods of time felt, and she had even felt it herself, but not to the same extent at which the mixed elf sitting with her was.

She let her fingers move in a soothing pattern, calming him down before things became too out of control and his powers began lashing out at everything around him, including her. He may not kill her on purpose, but it could very well happen on accident.

"Hush now, Amaji," she said, soothing him much like one would a child. "I will come with you for a period of time, but I must also return to my duties down here as well."

[Amaji the Black Maji]

“I will be fine, Azazealyn, I assure you,” Amaji told her with a slight smile. “I would enjoy your company, though, when I do venture back up to the surface. I am sure you will make the trip easier for me to make. You are something familiar. When I had first gone up there, everything was strange to me, you know. My memories of my childhood before the Black Market are so very blurred. But, let’s find something else to talk about. No more of this.”

He took a hold of the drow’s hand gently with a smile. “I appreciate you being here for me.”

[Azazealyn]

Azazealyn was uncomfortable with affection and the like, it was known, but she made an exception for it with Amaji. She sighed gently before sitting down next to him, content to watch the fire he had created. She smiled to herself before moving a hand and sending a bit of her own magic and making the flames change colors.

Their magic often worked in harmony with each other and often complimented each other spectacularly, had they ever had a need to battle together, it is without a doubt that they would have won against most any opponent. "Then tell me about your skills you have furthered," she said, more out of her undying curiosity than anything else.

[Amaji the Black Maji]

"Oh, I would rather show you my skills than tell you about them," Amaji said with a smile. "My elemental magic has increased dramatically. This fire is but a small portion of what I can do with the fire magicks. I will wait to impress you once the time comes."

The Black Maji gave a laugh, his eyes lighting up. "I never really thought I would reach the level I have, you know. He let out a sigh, allowing his mind to wander off to the earlier days of when he was first starting to train.

"Do you remember our younger days, Azazealyn?"

[Azazealyn]

"I have the marks to prove it," she said as she reached over and flicked his nose. She had been well advanced into her training when Talex had brought the boy back. In her curiosity she had come over and crouched down to his level, getting rather close to him, sticking her face in his.

Talex had watched in amusement, knowing that the young drowess had not been to the surface yet, so seeing the mixed elf was different for her. Amaji had not been very thrilled with her getting so close to him, so when she reached out to gently touch his skin, he bit her. And Azazealyn had promptly bit him back.

She had the faint marks on her hand from where he had bit her and the memory always made her laugh.

[Amaji the Black Maji]

Amaji gave a laugh. “Well, maybe if you didn’t frighten me so often, you would not have all the scars I gave you,” he said, sticking his tongue out slightly.

It was true, though. Most of the people who had frightened Amaji had received wounds and the like. Of course, frightening the mixed elf back than was almost unavoidable. He had been afraid of everything and everyone at first. Talex had been the first one that the wizard ended up trusting and not becoming frightened of. Talex had been the one to make sure Amaji was healthy so it was understandable.

“I think you ended up teaching more just as much if not more than Talex did.”

[Azazealyn]

"I don't think that you would have responded well to him teaching you about sex. Actually, I don't think Talex would have even been able to do it," she said with a faint smile on her lips.

"Of course, you were such a little coward then, it was rather unavoidable with frightening you," she pointed out as she reached over and let her fingertips run over his arm. Of course, she was always slightly curious about the elf's skin, wanting to know why hers was so dark and his was so light when they were both elves.

Azazealyn was always curious about things, that had been established early in their relationship, she was often trying to get Amaji to stop cowering, so she'd bring over little, harmless things for him to look at, almost like a peace offering. However, when they first slept together, that had been a different story.

"Do you even remember the first time we slept together, old man?" she teased.

[Amaji the Black Maji]

The wizard nodded his head slightly. Oh, yes, he did remember the first time they slept together. He remembered quite well, actually. Amaji could also remember all of the feelings he had gone through as well.

The Black Maji had been awfully fearful of sex in his earlier days. He had witnessed rape beforehand in the Black Market. He had known what sex was when he had gone to the drow city, that was for sure, but he had never understood what it really was about or what the purpose of it was.

“I had been so afraid before we started,” Amaji said with a slight laugh. He had been so nervous, but when Azazealyn had first kissed him, Amaji had instantly knew what he wanted.

[Azazealyn]

"I would have been worried if you hadn't," she said with a light laugh. Actually, when she kissed him, it had been an accident, one of the few times she'd ever lost her balance. Talex had also had a hand in it, giving the priestess a light nudge to knock her off and into Amaji.

It had been a classic and he still teased the both of them to this day. "What would be your favorite memory then, Amaji?" she asked with curiosity lacing her tone and making her sound far younger than she really was. "Since you brought this up and all."

[Amaji the Black Maji]

“That is quite a hard question to answer,” Amaji said, rubbing his head slightly. He had many good times living in the drow city which made this a difficult question to answer. He had had so many good days here and good memories. There were only a handful of bad memories that he had to deal with living with the drows, but most of those had only helped to build the wizard up to be even stronger.

“I don’t think I can pinpoint just one memory that I favor over the others.” The mixed elf chewed his lips a bit. “But I do remember one of the better ones. I remember the first day that I started to get the hang of actually using a sword. Do you remember, Azazealyn? You had been training with me, and it was one of the first days Talex had allowed me to use an actual blade.”

[Azazealyn]

"Yeah, I remember that," she grumbled, rubbing at her shoulder. The blade had been dulled but that still hadn't stopped him from cutting off her hair in a ponytail. Of course Azazealyn was not mad about it, she found it rather funny until he had hit her shoulder on accident.

The hair had been sacrificed when she had ducked under his over eager swing with the real blade, very different from the wooden ones used to practice. After he had hit her, she had responded with a quick punch that soon had the pair of them rolling on the ground wrestling.

The high priestess at the time had been rather amused, which was where Azazealyn probably got her personality quirks and her curiosity about life.

[Amaji the Black Maji]

Amaji gave a laugh that echoed off of the water and the walls as he thought about all that had happened that day. He remembered the excitement he had when he had been trying to spar with the drow. He could not help but also be very amused at the aspect of how weak he had been at the time.

“We had a lot of fun back then, did we not?” the Black Maji said to Azazealyn. “It feels like we have always been like siblings, you know? You being the easily annoyed sister and being the stud of a brother.” He gave another laugh and another smile as he observed the drow.

[Azazealyn]

"It always felt more like babysitting," she said as she shoved him off to the side from where they were sitting, causing him to fall over. She had a playful smile on her lips now, enhancing the beauty that she possessed but always seemed to be in denial of. She stuck out her tongue, for once acting her younger age.

"I mean really, did you actually think you were going to beat me?" she said as she raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms over her chest as she shook her head. "Talex should have told you but I doubt you listened," she said, remembering the so called 'prank wars' that had erupted between them.

[Amaji the Black Maji]

The mixed elf laughed, shaking his head slightly as he righted himself. “Well, I bet you anything that I could win if we sparred now,” he said, returning Azazealyn’s gesture and sticking his tongue out as well. “I was just starting with my abilities with weapons, you know. So, I was at a disadvantage.”

Amaji smiled, shaking his head again as another laugh spilled over his lips. He laid back against the ground, arms slipping back behind his head to serve as a pillow. “What was your favorite memory, Azazealyn?” the wizard asked, looking to the drow.