To Nicholaus...

A lovely woman with hair of crimson, coiling and rustling as she moves along, her form swathed in white gauze fabric, steps up to the boards. With tearful eyes, she glances around, then pins up a piece of parchment with a white feather, red ink still flowing from the tip. Then, without so much as a glance around, she turns away.

Dearest Nich,

Some circumstances keep me away, though in my mind and somewhere I choose not to reveal, I do wish to see you again. I must inform you, however, that there remains the horrid possibility that I shan't ever see you again. Perhaps all that is for the best, since I have seen you but once. The reasons for my absence are complex and shan't be revealed in such a public posting as this. Again, allow me to express my deepest regret and apology for disappearing. Know this: it is not of my choosing.

Sincerely,

Maeara

It may almost be thought, as she exits the tavern, that a single sad tear traces its way down her cheek...

*any that would be standing by the boards, curious to see the days reading, would feel a slight brush, in only the slightest and before them would appear a parchment, as if from nothing, materialized with its own will to tell its tale.*

Maeara, my once known, always loved,

Need you not worry about how we shall meet again, for I know that we shall meet, if not in this present day, or the next... we shall meet... I have dispatched some of my resources, you will know of the place where my next letter will be found, know that they will be discreet. I will find you, Maeara... fear not, that I will... Only remember the circumstances of our first meeting, and what I did.

You will know it is me, by this secret between us.

Till we meet again, hold tight to that one night... and always remember the final minutes of our meeting, for I know that you still linger.

Yours,

Nicholaus Dennoncourt

No one actually comes up to the boards, but a note simply appears on a rush of a breeze. It is kept simple and written in a precise script, very different from the previous ones.

To whom it may concern,

Leave your thoughts on what is occuring behind you, and do not concern yourself, sir, with the intricacies of my plots. My daughter is kept safe, and she has her purpose at this very moment. However, I have taken great steps to keep anyone from learning her location. Rest assured that my daughter did indeed have a choice in this matter. She is to be forgotten by all, even you. See that you do go about forgetting her. I have plans for the little Firestarter, and I will have no one ruining them.

To give you some peace of mind--at my wife's request, mind you--I will maintain that she is safe, and no more harm shall befall her. Push her from your mind, for only the worthy shall possess her in any manner.

Signed,

N

*once placed upon the boards, if only curious eyes are to glance upon it, they would notice that the statement upon which this parchment is to carry the written word in a dark reddish ink, almost as if laced by iron, and the reasoning for this thought is the faint smell of rust upon your sense of smell. The parchment would be of the finest quality, the script of red would be understood by those that read Common, the words written in the most graceful of techniques, each stroke commanding the next.*


“Those with hunger always seek to satisfy it; those with thirst always seek to quench it. Knowledge is nothing more than a desire, far stronger than instinct, far greater than life. Those that seek it will find it.”


I have known only a few in my years that are worth those words, N. You may have done your best to hide her; you may have put armies to stop me. Know that the will of those that want to find the truth of knowledge is far greater than any creature, mortal or immortal, can stop.

Remember this, as I had to remember this once. That will is coming.

ND