Holding On and Letting Go

Going

The child, now a teenager, and also named Ivy, was looking out of the balconies of the cathedral as she watched the preparation of the Festival of Fools taking place at the village square. As she grew older, she saw the festival growing more by the year and still yearned to go. She tried to confront her master about him going and wanting to go as well, but after seeing his scolding look, she bit her tongue as they continued their weekly lessons. During the lessons she noticed that her master seemed a bit off during his visits and he would give her very few glances. She tried to remember what she had done to make him upset but nothing came into mind. Sighing, she walked down further in the balconies but never averted her eyes from the square.

"This time..." she muttered. “This time I will ask him..."

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"No!"

Ivy looked up at Finitevus with a confused look and followed him out of her room as the two walked down the few stairs in the bell tower.

"But, Master! You go every year and-"

"I am a public official, Ivy! I must go! But I don't enjoy a moment!"

Ivy sighed heavily as she followed behind him.

"Master...you told me that it is evil out there...but it doesn't seem like it-" she said before being cut off by being back handed by his hand. She looked up at him shocked, never had been stricken by her Master in her life. Finitevus had a look that could cause fear on anyone but it soon softened as he touched between her shoulder blades, leading her outside to the balconies, ignoring how stiff she turned when he touched her.

"My dear child. You don't know what it is like out there. But I do. The world is cruel and the world is wicked. They will look at you with scorn and jeer."

Ivy shook her head in disbelief as she looked down into the square again. She then looked up at her master, who only looked straight ahead with a blank expression.

But, Master..."

He only shook his head and walked back inside, with her trailing behind him.

"Ivy, how am I supposed to protect you unless you always stay in here?"

She sighed with her head hung low and nodded lightly.

"Yes, Master...I will remain faithful and stay here.

Finitevus smirked in satisfaction as she didn't look up at him and walked off towards the exit of the bell tower.

"Go to your room, child. And remember, this is your sanctuary."

"Yes, Master..." she muttered before going to her room. As soon as she closed the door, she rested her back to the door and slid to the ground. He had instantly denied her request and only gave her the same lecture of how the world was evil. By the way she saw the villagers interacted with each other, she only saw happiness and welcome. She longed to be a part of them instead of above them. Getting up, with determination in her eyes, she grabbed a hooded cloak from behind the divider and puts it on and quickly went out to the bell towers and sat at the top of the stairs, waiting until the right time for her to walk out without being spotted by her master or anyone in the church.

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A tan slender figured female with golden hair going down the waist and baby blue eyes. She was wearing a baby blue dress that goes a little above the ankles with four tan brown stripes going around at the bottom of the dress and the same color trimming around the top part of her dress, and a pale light brown sash tied around her waist. She was walking around the town as her two friends were somewhere else. She knew one of them might be hanging out in the pub, talking to women that are willing to warm his bed, while the other was getting ready to announce the festival. She then realized that she had to meet one of them at the pub and started walking towards the direction. She kept in the shadows whenever she saw soldiers around her. She then stopped on her tracks as she saw a dark man with black hair that stuck all over the place with red streaks in certain parts of his hair and was also wearing a cloak as he was pulling a horse by the reigns.

Her heart slightly leaped by the sight of him but only continued her way towards the pub. Looking around, she finally caught sight of a dark tanned man in his twenties with long black hair that goes past his shoulders and pulled back in a low ponytail and she caught his sickly green eyes when he turned around. He was wearing a grey jacket over a colorful shirt that matched along with his scarf and orange colored flower printed pants. He motioned the girl over and threw back his head as he finished the last drop of his drink. The girl rolled her eyes as she sat down and rested her arm on the table.

"How much did you drink, Drew?" she asked the man. He only rolled his eyes as his eyes raked over a woman passing by the table but snapped back to the girl as she slapped his hand.

"Good god, Star! What are you, my mother?"

"Apparently, so. Seeing how you behave." Star muttered. Drew rolled his eyes before leaning back on his chair and rested his feet on the table as she looked around the pub, looking for a desperate woman that was willing to head home with him.

"So, what are the reports?" she asked bluntly. Star tossed him a pouch filled with gold she had taken from a man nearby the square. Drew then grabbed it and looked into it, seeing the pouch was filled with gold coins and a few silver coins. Grinning with satisfaction, he stood up from his seat and shoved the pouch inside the pocket of his jacket.

"Good work, Star. Go find Aj and we will head into the Feast of Fools before we head back home."

Star nodded silently and got up, walking back out on the streets but went through a different way as Drew went the other way.

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A dark tanned man at the age of nineteen with the same sickly green eyes as Drew's with short spikey black hair with purple streaks was sitting on a large wooden crate by the square, watching the preparation. He was wearing a white long sleeved shirt with a slight V-neck under a purple vest with black and gold trimming, black pants being held up by a double black belt with double gold belt buckles and black boots. As he was watching the preparation, he felt a tap on his shoulder and looked up to see Star looking down at him.

"Hey." he muttered at her. She nodded before sitting by him since the crate was big and also watched with him.

"When do you have to go announce it?" she asked.

"In about two hours or so." he replied. He then saw a couple walking passed them and held back a sigh as he saw a few tents being pulled up. He then got up and walked into the tent he had set up and laid on the ground where he set a mat on the ground with a pillow and stared off into space.

Ever since him and his brother had ran away from home, he had felt this weird feeling inside him that he could not explain. But after years of being in the streets, the feeling had shrunk and it somehow grew on this very day every year.

"AJ! THEY SAID THE FESTIVAL IS ALMOST READY!" Star had yelled from outside his tent, making him sigh and get up from his spot.

OK!" he called out before going to the corner of the tent where he set his bag with the outfit for the festival and started getting dressed.

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Ivy slowly descended down the stairs, as silent as a mouse, and hid in the shadows of the cathedral as she walked towards the back doors. Nobody was near so she quickly walked out the door and into the dark alley. Her head started to spin as she felt the air hit her, the air from the ground making her not used to the ground air than the high climaxed air. Pulling the hood up, she walked out of the alley and blinked at the bright light of the sun when she stepped into the square as it rapidly started filling in with many villagers as they either sat on the few wooden tables or stand around the stage that was set up. As she walked through the crowd, she looked at the stage as a male's voice could be heard.

"Come one, come all! And celebrate the Fest of Fools! Where we mock the prig and shock the priest! Where every man's a king and every king's a clown!"

As he continued to give the festive speech, she hid herself by a tent as she looked at the world around her in awe and jumped as the crowd roared.

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Cliff hanger! XD Drew, Aj, and Star belong to G0ldenW0lf!