Dakota entered the Sanctuary slowly, taking in deeeeeeeeeeeeeep breaths of the sweet scented air.
I've returned, Mother....I've come home like I said I would all those ages ago...
She looked around at her one time home and was surprised to see that the place seemed to be quite run down lately.
How could they leave the Temples like this??! Just because a war is coming is no reason to leave a Goddess!
She approached one of the statues and ran a finger along the hem of its robe..
Such a beautiful statue.....Wait...
Dakota gave herself wings and flew upwards to see what the statue's face looked like...
Why..It's Mother! It's Mother!! I'm here, Mother!! I'm here!!
..Once again, Dakota realized her mother was dead. All at once.
She lost her wings and hit the ground with a thud. She'd hurt her head and was bleeding beautiful blue blood from a wound but didn't care one whit.
She laid on the white marble floor and cried...alone...As always....

A half-demon, unnoticed by the girl watched as the girl entered. The girl was right about the mess, she did not cause it but neither did the half-demon and they both thought it was a disgrace to any temple. She watched as the girl admired the statue, but she knew it was just a statue. The world of us halflings are small and cold. the half demon thought as the bat on her shoulder streched its wings. The half demon took a deep breath and let it out quickly but the girl did not seem to notice. The half-demon turned her head as the girl created her wings, she was trying to decide if she wanted to eat yet.

WHUMP!. Umbra turned her head to find the girl had fallen and was now bleeding and crying. "Oh no." Umbra said as she ran to the girl taking off her cloak, she knelt down"Are you alright little one?" she asked, pulling the girl in her lap and looking at her wound, it was not bad but did require some attention. Umbra tore a peice of cloth from her cloak and wrapped it around the girls head like a bandana. "Are you going to be okay?" she asked knowing good and well that the girl could turn on her at any moment and hit her with an attack. But she had to help the girl somehow, even though she knew that half-angels were always helped by real angels or some other race she was the only one there,I guess this is the one time I count as "other race" she thought.

Dakota blinked her large blue eyes.
"I.I didn't realize anyone was here....I...It's a statue of Mother...."
She scraped away a layer of dust with her foot, revealing a plaque that read "Garta De Santuario"
"See? It's Mother, I know it....I don't think it's a good idea for me to be alone in this place...Will you accompany me for a time? Please?"
Dakota looked, unblinking, into Umbra's eyes...Pain was reflected in the peaceful blue...Much, Much pain...

Umbra looked in the girls eyes. She could scry and seemed to find much pain in them, not just from the fall but from...somewhere. Umbra sighed deeply, she did not like to be seen with a half-angel but it was certain that the girl needed her. I know this girl needs me but I sence that I might need this girl as much as she needs me. Maybe I was foolish to think that I was the only one rejected by the world. She then looks at the statue, the woman was beutiful and Umbra could not help feel a sadness and longing for her own mother whom she never knew.

Umbra's amethyst eyes which once many days ago harbored hate and anger now harbored compassion and hope for the girl. Umbra smiled and sat the girl up on her mothers statue then grabbed a sack from the shadows where she had been standing. Sitting cross-legged in front of the girl she took out a loaf of bread and cut it in half, giving one side to the girl. "Of course I will stay with you. You seem like you could use the company and..." Umbras voice trailed off, looking at the half angel who was so meek and young,"And so could I. But I do not think it would be wise to talk to eachother much longer without knowing eachothers names. I am Umbra; a half-demon. I came here because I felt that this would be the best place to sort out my thoughts. Who are you, young one and why have you ventured here?" she asked.

((OOC: *Sigh* Here we go again. WHO LOGGED IN AS BENI ON THIS COMPUTER?!
...CUZ THIS ACC ISN'T MINE....GAH!! Seriously, it's not. It's my sister's or something...Grrrr....))

"I am pleased to meet you, Umbra. My name is Dakota de Santuario. ..My mother was an Angel, and I promised her that one day I would come back to the Sanctuary, the place of my birth, and seek out my Grandfather's house. I have..and this is all I have to show for it...." Dakota said, gesturing to the fresh cut on her left cheek, "I found my GrandFather, alright. He slapped me across the face and I ran into a wall and hit a painting, he hit me so hard. He said that I was halfbreed scum, and that I wasn't even a half angel. That I am Atani and nothing else. As you see, I have no wings. Maybe he's right...But I fulfilled my promise to my mother..I have no idea where I shall go next."
Dakota took the bread gratefully. "Thank you for staying with me...I have no friends...heh...My kind are kind of looked down on, you know? Oh, who am I kidding of course you know. You and I are alike, are we not? Both a part of two races and having a place with neither one...Don't you think?"

Umbra coughed a little, when Dakota said she was looked down upon by her family she thought of her own. Her mother and father both died trying to protect her, and their familys said that they never existed, both hating the fact that they had married someone of a different race. She was shuned by her whole family, and it seemed the world. She did have a few friends but that was after she came to Arda. And after she met the Elf she knew she was looking in a different light. I guess it is all about growing up she figured as she thought about the way she was showing difference.

Umbra smiled at Dakota. She knew if this was two months ago when she had first come to Arda she would have given Dakota something to really cry about but she also knew that she was different. She had grown up and was willing to change. "I used to feel that way but then I learned something Dakota. I met an Elf and he taught me that everyone has something to fight for, everyone has a purpose." she said taking a small bite of the bread and looked up at the statue of her mother. "We should not be upset that we are halflings but embrace it as a gift. We have the best of both worlds, I have the strength, wisdom, and abilities of a demon but the heart, endurance and dexterity of a human." she said wiping away another tear this time from her own eyes. "Always look for the good, no one has the time to look for the bad."

"Yes indeed..." the voice entered...Skye was standing at the entrance, amazed by Umbra's thoughts...was this really what she thought?

Skye thought of himself...he was infected by the evil of this world...

Skye looked at Dakota and nodded then to Umbra....Skye unerved...looked into the pure lifeless eyes of the statue...mesmerized...this place is holy...more than holy...the barriers were not strong...it couldn't even reflect a half demon such as he...but then...Skye thought...maybe..its barriers...were intended to reflect evil...so...maybe there was a bit of good in him afterall....

(OOC:Dakota, ur not allowd to have guns and u can only have one weapon when u start out, this is middle ages)

[[OOC: When I look at weapons, I think of preferred weapons. Freakin' a!! But I like the gunner idea :huh uh: :cry: Okie. fine. CROSSBOW FOR ME?! Thanks for the headsup, though...I'd rather feel stupid and not get in trouble than get in trouble and feel stupid some more :p]]

Dakota turned her head and looked toward the entrance, seeing Skye standing in the doorway.
"Who is that? Do you know him?" she asked, indicating the entrance, "...I am not so fortunate as to have a benefactor, Umbra. I am the half Atani, remember? No one wants to take the chance that I might turn into something and kill them...Sometimes I want to, but I don't want to hurt people as they have hurt me. My task is set for me already. I do not wish to dirty it with murders..."

Umbra turned and saw Skye. She tipped her head to tell him to come and have a seat with them. Using her dagger she cut her peice of bread in half and tossed one part to Skye. "Skye come over here I have someone I want you to meet. She turned to Dakota. "Dakota this is one of my few friends; Skye. Skye this is Dakota, like us she is a halfling, half-Atani half-angel. Do not be afraid of him Dakota, he will not hurt you, he is a very good person down inside.

Umbra took a bite of the bread, chewing slowly so that she could think, that was what she wanted to do when she got there. She wondered about the girl, and what she fought for. As she thought, there was a small screech. Her bat flew and landed on the statue clinging to the outstreached hand, Umbra waved her hand "Get off of there you. Have you no respect for a temple?" the bat flew and landed on Dakotas shoulder interested in the half-angel, although it did not stay long for it soon flew off looking for food. She went in front of Dakota leaning close and raising Dakotas head so she was looking in her eyes, "Look at me Dakota, am I afraid of you? Do I look scared?" she said calmly.

Dakota froze. This man was the same as the man who had killed her mother! So was Umbra, in fact! ...Yet somehow it didn't matter. Didn't matter one whit. ...How strange...
"Hello, Skye."
Dakota turned when the bat landed on her shoulder and patted it on the head before it flew off, absolutely fearless.
"tee hee. I love all animals, even bats. They seem to flock to me. Cool huh?"

(>.<i may be the same race as the person who raped u but don't accuse me of IT!!! gosh...Skye was frozen for 1200 years....and he barely was alive one month ago!! ur mom was killed when u were like what? 4?? sheesh, read my history before you put me in yourS!!!! lmao...)

Skye lifted his head higher then suddenly kneeled...he needed the help...he needed to free his worries...then as he rose, he greeted Umbra and the half-angel...he ate the bread slowly...he sat by the benches...and looked straight up...the glass ceiling...the white clouds...blue sky....

[[Um...I didn't. I mean the same race....y'know, the whole half Daemon thing? yeah...I was talking about that.]]

Dakota sat and ate her bread gratefully. She'd not had such a thing in a long time, and it felt good to eat something heathful for once in her life.
"Thank you for giving me this bread...I don't get bread or much else very often..."

Umbra simply smiled. She looked off into the distance. She knew she was neither afraid of nor worried that Dakota might try to kill her. Umbra leaned her head back on the pillar, she closed her eyes and continued to try and sort things out. When I first met this girl I felt a sence of duity. Like I had to protect her, I had to protect those who were like me and have no one. Why do I feel like that, and yet my demon side is cringing at the fact that I am not only sitting by a person with angel blood but I am also sharing a meal with someone with angel blood. It does not make any sence to me.

She turned and looked at Dakota. While her mind was warring with itself she was sharing a meal... but it was ironic that three people would end up sharing a meal together in a place for people who needed safety and security... and those three people did not really belong anywhere. Yet here I am with Skye the possesed half-demon and Dakota the half-angel who is also a half-atani, and me a half-demon whose mind is wandering from this topic to that and is so full of chaos she does not know right from left. Truely interesting, she was Chaotic, Skye was fighting all the time with a demon that could rear its head at any time and Dakota, a girl with no place to go and no one to call family. She knew that they all did not really belong in this world. Dakota fought to live, Skye was allowed to live but only by Lord Ao, and she was alive because of her father who she still knows nothing about only that he saved her then disappeared. Maybe this little group here was something to be awed on, she looked at the statue of Dakota's mother, I wonder if Dakota's mother would think this was a bad idea or if she would love the fact that her little girl was with someone at least for a little while.

"We are indeed a group of...out casts...thrown by the winds into nothingness, we try to strive...to live...to overcome these horrible things in our lives...yet what comes of it...is more pain..."

Skye said aloud to particularly no one...he looked over to the girls...he...smiled...first time in ages...

"Well, aren't we a lot of troublesome beings..."

Dakota looked at Skye. Although he and Umbra were the
same race as her attacker, she knew he wasn't the
same man....Although she'd not seen her attacker's face,
she somehow knew this wasn't the man. Strange....

I've found two fellow non belongers, haven't I" What a strange
sensation to know that I am like someone in this world...
I've never felt that I belonged anywhere but these two
make me feel as though I belong with them...Three peas
in a pod, mother would say...Mother...I...I think it's time I...
stop missing you...I can't function like this, always
falling and...I...I can't miss you without hurting myself these
days....

Kneeling again, Skye raised himself up and stood straight...He looked at the others and waved good bye...he had to hurry to someplace or he will be late...Skye slowly walked to the door and looked back at the two...they...are so similar to me...with a final glance and the exterior garden and shrine, Skye walked off into the distance...

Umbra looked at the young girls face, she saw something that she had never seen before, she saw hope, acceptance, and the strength to finally let go of the past and move on. She nodded to Skye as he left and watched him walk out of the sanctuary untill he was a speck in the distance. Umbra finished her bread and got up and looked at the statue of Dakota's mother. She is a beautifull angel, and her daughter looks like her except for the eyes and the shape of the hands, those can be identified to be her fathers. Lady Garta how proud you should be of your daughter.

Umbra sat down again by Dakota. "It is strange that a group of people who are not wanted by the world would find their way to a place where people who are in need of help come and seek it. She looked at Dakota and pulled a peice of her hair behind her ears, "Perhapse we did need help, and we found it in eachother. Umbra smiled as she said this, she felt warring inside of her but she found that sometimes warring is good, it makes you think of things you normaly would not think of, and accept things that normaly would be ridiculed. "A strange world for us halflings" she said.

Dakota smiled.
"Yes, it is a strange world for us. It is also strange that I come to a place where people are said to be known for their goodwill and I end up getting slapped across the face for my trouble. Funny old world isn't it? You're right we did find the help we needed in each other. And the company.."

Umbra thought back to when she was with the Elf. He had asked her what she fought for, she simply replied that she fought to kill those she hated. But she now felt she had a different answer. She looked up at the statue of Dakota's mother, the other statues, and finally at Dakota. Umbra felt that she did not deserve any type of kindness yet she knew that Dakota should have it because unlike herself; half-angels were usually accepted, yet like Umbra she had no family to go to. Umbra closed her eyes and thought back to the very moment she heard Dakota fall and replayed the events in order; from her bandaging Dakota to now; all of it seemed to make sence and in this world of rejection and chaos she had found what she fought for in this girl.

Umbra turned to Dakota, watching her as she finished her bread. Umbra was suprised at how old she looked compared to the teary big blue-eyed girl that she had bandaged. She began to start to laugh. "Dakota" she began looking at the ceiling, "I found it. I know what I fight for. she said smiling. "Do you want to know what it is? she asked wondering when the next time she would see the elf again so she could tell him that she knew, she knew what she fought for.

Dakota looked at Umbra, puzzled.
"To fight for...?What is it, then, Umbra?"
What do I fight for? What do I live for?
My faith, of course, but...Is my faith really enough to keep me going? Why is it that I can't find anything else to fight for? Because I have nothing that is really dear to me...?

Umbra looked at Dakota and smiled, "Ever since the begining of time people have hated halflings, especially half-demons. And because of that many halflings fell; either to the people who hated them or their own saddness and hatred because they do not belong. Few are like you and me, who try and keep going no matter what happens to us. Umbra stood up and looked at the statues, many of which are angels, few were elves and humans. "I used to hate people who did not want halflings to be around them, and I would fight them. But when I came here I found that everyone wants to live, and so I found that I really fought to survive. I fight Dakota, She said turning to the half-atani half-angel."I fight for the long shots like you and me, those people the world hates and those it forgets about.

"...I fight for my faith. I fight so that someday
everyone would know the love I've come to know
from my God. And that everyone would reflect
his love, so they wouldn't reject people like me.
You know what I said when my Grandfather slapped me?
I said, God be with you. And I left.
I hope that Grandfather will someday regret sending me away, but
I don't think he ever shall. I fight for my God." Dakota replied.
But is that really enough to fight for? Can you really derive an existence
out of fighting for a God you've never seen?

Umbra looked confused. Was this girl not a palidan and good? "Forgive me Dakota but I thought you were good and a Palidan. Why then would you serve Raku? she asked puzzled, the only male God she knew of was the God called Raku and he was supposedly evil. She did not understand what this girl was saying. But perhaps she was wiser than she was, maybe she believed something that Umbra was not accustomed to, all her life she wandered the land but always heard of the same Gods and Goddesses, this would be a new thing to her.

((OOC: I just realized there is only one male god, the rest are females.))

"I"m surprised no one has ever asked that question.
My adopted father, Arthus, believed in a different faith. That there was one more God but his name was lost in history. No one truly knows who he is. Except his followers and his warriors, the Paladins of the Faith. I am such a Paladin. I do not serve Raku, I serve a nameless God."

A nameless God? This was something new. "Strange I have never heard of a nameless God." said Umbra. I guess I will never know of this unknown God, I am Chaotic and could never be welcomed among anyone but Ita and Raku...Especially after what I have done in my past. Umbra felt glad that Dakota had a father of some sort. She grew up with nothing but herself. "It is a shame that I could never hope to be that close with the God of a Paladin." she said looking up at the celing, the sun roofs showed the sky to be turning bright pink and orange, a sign the sun was setting.


((OOC: sorry that post was short I drew a blank))

Dakota smiled.
"Of course you could. My God accepts everyone, no matter who they are or what they've done. It doesn't matter if you believe...It doesn't matter what your element is, or anything else either. You could be Raku himself and my God would love you. In fact, he does love Raku. and all of the Evil gods and goddesses as well as the good."

Umbra sighed, "I doubt it little one. I am cursed. I cannot be accepted by any holy God. she said. She could not tell Dakota about her past, what she had done. This was one of the few times someone had looked beyond the race and saw the person inside. She had always been alone and labled an outcast because she was a half demon. Umbra noticed it was getting dark, she took out her lantern and snapped her fingers and created a spark and lit the wick. "Thats better" she said as she began to feel slightly tired. She yawned. The sun was beginning to set.