Another Vegas Love Story

Heya Everyone,

So last year when I was studying I started this as a film, and as my learning grew I noticed glaring errors in what I had already done, however, I couldn’t figure out how to fix the problems I had. So today I’m rewriting the start in novel form, what I’m comfortable with, to try and find some solutions that staring at a script can’t provide.

Also, I paused in writing to watch the America’s Cup, and huge congratulations to Emirates team New Zealand, it’s been an awesome race to watch, and you all made it look so easy. To Oracle team USA, you all did your best, you made it an amazing series to watch, and you really made it a hard one to win. It was a huge, nerve-racking ordeal that left all us sailors, fans and hopeful human beings yelling at our t.v. panicking at every other moment. You all did so amazingly, putting your heart and soul into it, and leaving them out there on the water.

He couldn’t keep his eyes off of her, the beautiful woman sitting alone at the bar, waving off any guy who dared stray too close to her.  A tight tank top wrapped around her slender frame, giving way to pants that seemed to hug her frame before tall heels hooked into the bar stool. She was nursing a drink that he hadn’t seen her drink since he’d noticed her, playing with the amber liquid in the small glass rather than lift it to her lips.

His own friends couldn’t keep his attention, nor could any of the girls that fell all over him, snuggling into his side and pleading for a moment of his attention. It would be easier, much easier, to simply turn his attention to them and take one of them home, keep up his image as a playboy taking advantage of all Vegas, and his father's vast wealth could offer.

But they couldn’t hold his attention, their short dresses that rose too high as they sat down and plunged low at the front, barely held in place as they danced, taking advantage of the VIP area they’d been hand picked to join. Normally he’d be out there dancing, his friends pressing more drinks into his hand as the night progressed, but not tonight. Not when the brunette at the bar was sitting there.

He shook off the two blonde’s leaning against him, ignoring their complaints to move over to the bar. He didn’t pay the surprised brunette any attention, taking advantage of the space next to her to lean over the counter and order drinks, forced to yell to be heard over the loud bass heavy music to be heard.

He felt her eyes on him, scanning down the white button up shirt he hadn’t bothered to tuck into the black jeans he wore. She was judging him, firstly for daring to step into her space, and then for who he appeared to be.

“Like what you see.” He knew how to spin this, raising an eyebrow as he half turned to face her, his arm still on the bar. She didn’t bite, rolling her eyes and turning away, but not before he caught the hint of a smile pulling at her lips.

“If you ever decide to drink that drink and need another, come find me.” He winked at her, taking the drink he’d just brought and moving away. It wasn’t the usual way he picked up women, but he knew she was different, and if he wanted her to come home with him at the end of the night, he’d need to do something no one else that approached her had.

“I have been drinking.” Her soft voice was barely loud enough to hear over the music, but he caught it, turning back to face her.

“You haven’t taken a sip from that glass since I arrived.” He motioned with his own glass to hers, watching her gaze flip down to the glass she was still absent mindedly twirling. “Something on your mind?” He watched as she lifted the glass to her lips and downed it all in one go.

“Nothing worth wasting time on.” She stood, taking a step closer to him. “And something you could distract me from. You dance?” She didn’t hesitate, taking his glass from his hand and emptying that too.

“I’d let you tempt me.” He took the glass from her hand, leaning around her to put it back on the bar before resting his hand against the small of her back. She glanced at him, shifting slightly, almost uncomfortably, before letting him lead her to the dancefloor.

They didn’t leave each other's sight for the rest of the night. No other female came close to stealing a moment of his attention when the brunette haired woman was dancing with him, letting him buy her any drink he desired. He was powerless to resist her when she whispered in his ear about going for food, waving off his friends, not needing to make excuses. His hand on the small of her back, leading her out of the packed club and into the cool night air. One of his bodyguards handing him a jacket as soon as they stepped outside, he quickly rested it over her shoulders before she could feel the full impact of the cool wind.

If either of them knew what was good for them, they would have parted ways then and there, but she was looking for a distraction, and he was trapped under her spell.

The Wedding

Heya everyone, super sorry this was late, I really struggled yesterday (and today) to actually get any writing done, but I finally finished it, and I’m actually really happy with the outcome.

Enjoy :)

It was their wedding day, the one magical day in their lives that all the crappy stuff they faced each and every day was forgotten. A day when friends and family gathered to celebrate the fact that they’d both survived, both gotten through all that the world had thrown at them. That they’d found each other, and fell in love more and more each day, that nothing had managed to force them apart.

They’d both worked so hard to make sure today was perfect, every single one of their friends roped in to help in one way or another, and the agency that hired them had assigned spare operatives to keep an eye on those that would wish them harm and attempt to ruin their wedding day.

Today would be the perfect day just for them.

But as morning dawned they were both nervous, waking up in two different beds, in two different places. There were so many things that could go wrong, there were so many things that could go right.

They’d both planned and organised a thousand successful missions that had been conducted without a hitch. No stakes were ever as high as today, and it had never been this stressful.

He wanted this to be the perfect day for her. So much of their relationship had been a secret, denied and hidden from everyone but themselves. This was his chance to publicly announce just how much he loved her, a day dedicated to just how much they cared for each other.

She wanted this day to be perfect for him. He hadn’t had the easiest life, he deserved the wedding of their dreams. This was her chance to finally give him everything he never thought he would ever get. A loving wife, an adoring family, awesome supportive friends, and parents that actually cared about him.

They were keeping with the tradition of keeping the bride from the groom - even if they, and their relationship, were unconventional. Neither were willing to risk anything going wrong, following every cliche superstition, but it didn’t stop him from calling her. It didn’t stop her from answering.

Words of love and reassurance fell from their lips, they knew the others fears and worries. Easily ignoring their friends in the background, playfully teasing them for being unable to spend a morning without each other. The promises they made then were nothing compared to what would come later that day.

She didn’t wear white, after what they’d both seen and done, she didn’t feel she deserved the innocence white proclaimed. Instead, folds of fabric in soft lavender covered her frame. The strapless dress tight around her torso, before flowing out around her. She knew the colour would match the dark purple suits her love and his groomsmen wore. His favourite.

He couldn’t keep the smile off his lips as he watched his friends interact with his son, the young boy matching them in a suit made just for him, clutching a gold etched lilac pillow with golden rings embroidered in it. He was just as excited for his role as ring bearer as his sister was for hers as a flower girl, proudly telling everyone just how beautiful his mom and sister looked.

She was well aware of the photographer taking her photo as she crouched down to fix the golden flower crown that rested on top of her daughter's head. Lips pressed to her forehead and arms wrapping her up in a tight hug as the young girl got ready to leave for the hall where the wedding would be held. Ready to help those already there greet the guests, and a chance for one last practice run. The young girl was scared that she would somehow fail her task as flower girl, no matter how many times she was assured otherwise.

He hid his nerves as he pulled up to the hall with his groomsmen, greeting the wedding planner and glancing around the beautifully decorated hall. It was exactly how he and his bride had imagined it, purple and gold streamers were entwined, covering the rooftops and hanging down towards the ground. Various purple flowers had been carefully arranged and attached to the start of each row of chairs, wrapped tightly in a golden ribbon that trailed down towards the floor.

She accepted her bridesmaids help as they assisted her into one of the many muscle and sports cars they’d been loaned for the day, arranging her skirts as her man of honour slid into the seat beside her. Their bouquets kept safe in the passenger's seat, unable to be crumpled or ripped before the ceremony could start. It was nearly time, and she was beyond ready for it.

He couldn’t hide the tears in his eyes as he started greeting the arriving guests, he’d never expected so many people to show up, never realised just how many friends he really had until now. He’d never imagined that someone could love him, and when she did, he never thought she’d be willing to marry him, take his last name, nor give him the family he had now. This was more than he’d ever dreamed of, nothing that even his wildest fantasies thought for a moment would be true.

She smiled, watching her dad with her soon-to-be husband through the glass doors at the front of the venue. Guests slowly trickling into the next room and taking their seats. They were early, and a wave of her man of honour’s hand had them going around the block, keeping her from his view until it was time.

His thanks were soft as he returned his soon-to-be father-in-law’s embrace, the older man giving him some comfort before gently shoving him off towards the front of the church. It was time to start the ceremony, to make the woman he loved his wife, and continue sharing the life they’d build together.

They were both more than ready as the music began, the guests stood, and the first bridesmaid and groomsman stepped through the doors.

This wasn’t the start of their lives together, it was a small chapter, taken out of the epic story of their love, and it was in no way the end.

True Love's Kiss

 Heya Everyone. This week follows on directly from last weeks, and I would highly recommend that you go read that first. Otherwise, enjoy, and see you all next week!

You were cursed young, much too young to be aware of the curse placed upon you. I know you’ve searched the land for answers to questions you cannot voice, nor comprehend. Your parents died before they could pass on the details of the curse. Garden variety white witches had no words of wisdom for you, all they could say was that there was a dark cloud hanging over you.

And yes, I can tell all that just from looking at you.

I don’t have the solution you long for, for your curse is as old as time, one that’s inspired several bards to weave tales of those it affects. I wish there was something I could offer, a counter curse, spell or herb that could increase what little time you have left.

But it would all be for nought, even the strongest coven could do nothing to help you.

The curse enacted on you is one that even I would dare not try perform, it defies fate itself and alters destiny. It messes with the path the gods intended for you. But is that no comfort to you.

The only comfort I have to offer is that the solution to the curse is embedded deep within it.

You will die on the night of your 21st birthday unless before that time you can find your true love and kiss them.

I can only offer a small little bit of good news young one. Nothing before then will take your life, although from what I have heard, I am certain you already know this.

I wish there was something I could offer to help you along the way, but no one has uncovered a spell that can reveal one’s true love. Nor have I ever felt love to give you pointers as to what you will feel when the one who is your true love is uncovered.

All I can suggest is that you live what little time you have been awarded. Do everything that you’ve ever dreamed and let nothing hold you back.

I will do whatever I can, I will promise you that much. There must be a way to find your true love, and I hope that I can find it for you before your 21st birthday. Please, I beg you to keep in touch with me on your travels.

I am sorry there is no more that I can do for you. If you ever need any assistance, you know where I am.

Goodluck,

Do not waste what little time you have.

Breaking The Curse.

Heya Everyone! 

This was not my original plan for today's blog post, but I got sidetracked and carried away with the starting point for the original post - so that's coming next week See you then :)

Every curse ever cast has the ability to be broken, it’s the law of magic, what can be done must also be able to be undone. That’s where I come in. I work for Her Majesty, Queen of Locleynia, also known as the Queen of Mages. All those that come to her with a curse are sent onwards to me, she calls me ‘the royal curse breaker’, but in reality, I owe her a debt, one I’m paying off with each curse I break.

My home is called Itaso, it’s on the far edges of Locleynia, nestled behind both a swamp and a dark thick forest. Very few leave our town, and even viewer arrive. It’s known throughout the realm as the place that cultivates and thrives with dark magic - a topic forbidden everywhere else.

Itaso see’s itself above the rules of the realm, armies cannot broach it’s forests, mercenaries and merchants get bogged down within our treacherous swamps. It is here that dark magic is not forbidden, but instead taught and loved like all other magics. From birth, we are taught that all magic is ours to hold and master, be it the magic of the light, or of the dark, of the earth or of the sky.

But as we all know, dark magic has its own challenges and drawbacks. It sucks mages into its hold, driving them crazy with the desire to do more, be more. The draw of its power is too much for most to resist, and for those that do manage to resist the call of the darkness, they overestimate how much they can manage. Spells take too much out of them and they fall prey to them, leaving themselves open for what the dark magic brings with you.

Very few of us survive, managing to balance the magic’s we call upon, heeding the warnings of those that had come before. I was one of the lucky ones. Some say it’s because I have a strong heritage, my family exclusively reproducing with only the smartest mage of the realms, others say it’s just dumb luck.

I can tell you the tales of the others who succeeded our training. The powerful evil mages they grew up to be, those that went to Roset to take on Her Majesty, to take her place as rulers of the mages. They became the mages you never want to cross on a path. Those that will spite you for the slightest action you never realise you did. The ones that, for a fee, will curse an entire family, or village. Those that have skewered moral compass and prefer to serve their own interests rather than anyone else's.

We were the mages that people turned to when they wanted to do bad, and we enjoyed it. Each request was a chance to one up our fellow mages, to show off and prove we were more powerful than the others.

That was when I made the mistake of accepting a job I never should have, but I was weak. One of the others sent a small child my way, knowing that I had a fondness for our kinds offspring, and I was powerless to resist when she begged for me to help her get revenge on those who had killed her family and left her an orphan.

I didn't bother to check the facts, a few tears and an inconsolable child recounting the story of how her parents were snatched away in the middle of the night and murdered while she was held back and forced to watch.

The curse I cast was horrid, full of all the hate I felt for daring to mess with a child like that, damaging their fragile growing minds. It made my blood boil as hot as the curse I brewed, calling on all aspects of my training and all the types of magic I had at my disposal.

It was the curse to end all curses, stronger than anything we could ever dream. The child left with their thanks and plans to go to her grandmother. I gave her gold and silver, a horse from my stables, and directions to the town she named. Her gratitude the only payment I needed.

The Queen fell ill within hours.

Naturally, word spread like wildfire, the Queen stuck ill with an illness no magic could fix. The strongest ‘good’ mages summoned to the palace - or racing their of their own free will in hopes that they could save her. The Queen had no heir if she died the country would be thrown into turmoil, civil war breaking out as mages fought mages for the right to wear the crown.

All they could manage to do was trace the source of the curse, and follow it straight to my doorstep.

An act against the royal house was the highest act of treason, one that promised certain and instantaneous death, and I expected that when an army of royal guards showed up at my front door. I didn’t bother to fight back, it was useless when they had a platoon of mages who had spent years studying the art of suppressing other mages powers. Nothing I could have done would have worked.

I wasn’t killed, no one even raised a weapon towards me when I went outside to meet with them and surrender. Instead, Her Majesty herself stumbled out of a carriage towards me, assisted by her young lover.

She begged for me to help her, not for her own sake, but for that of her country. She couldn’t bare the thought of her people falling into chaos. She didn’t even want a cure, all she wanted was time, a chance to marry and have a child with her lover, provide a heir for the country and hope for a future ruler.

Queen Marya didn’t even request a chance to see her child, just to birth it before the curse took her life. An extension for a mere year to do what needed to be done to secure Locleynia’s future.

Her army didn’t move as I helped her lover escort her into my home. A wave of his hand stopping her personal guards where they stood.

I found out the child had lied, it was well known amongst those I trained with that no one would be able to curse the queen directly, she was too well protected for that. They also knew that if anyone was going to be able to do it, it would be me. I was constantly ahead of them while we were young, but it wasn’t me who found the loophole.

I recounted my tale, of how the child came to me begging for revenge against those who had dared to kill her parents, and in turn the Queen’s lover told me of how she had just signed a new order to get spies out of Locleynia, thanks to magic they were easy enough to find, and we all know how a cornered animal reacts.

The girl's parents were some of the mages helping to route out spies, and those that murdered them the spies hoping to escape. The curse was designed to take revenge on those that had caused the parents death, and the magic took that far too logically, going straight to the person who had signed the order that started the spiral in motion. The Queen.

That’s the first time I broke a curse, dedicating my time and energy to trying to figure out how to undo what I had done in anger. To save the life my curse had slowly started to take, and the mercy I showed to Her Majesty was the same mercy she showed me, giving me the chance to fix the damage I’d caused. To stop using dark magic for bad and start using it for good,  cursing those the queen’s court deemed worthy, working with the queen's mages to teach them how to counter the work my kind could do.

I could never refuse a challenge, and to undo what my fellow trainees had started, reverse curses and find loopholes to help those that were innocent... I could think of no greater redemption tale.

It started the chain of dominoes that lead you to me.