If you've never seen a cat as it pounces its prey then you won't understand the utter viciousness as Zalean whirled on the intruder. Even though she had no jewels to fight with, thus considered unthreatening to the Blood, the way she bared her teeth could have made even the strongest of Blood wet their pants. Unfortunately for Wynona, who had just come in to say hi to a friend, she only wore the purple dusk and the sudden challenge left her not knowing what to do. So evasively her knees gave way as well as her mind, leaving Zalean with one unconscious innocent.
"Oh my." Hurriedly, their dresses blurring together in the flurry of movement, Zalean hoisted Wynona onto the bed. Grasping the girl's wrist she checked for a pulse and upon finding one sighed in relief. "Wynona, Wynona can you hear me?"
Not knowing why she asked this because her friend undoubtedly could not hear her, and thus could not answer, Zalean resorted to other means. A basin of water, which sat on a dresser completely unaware of the scene around it and careing to keep it so, found itself to be lifted and its contents flung on the poor girl unconscious in bed. Wynona awoke to icy wetness covering her thick as the morning dew to a bud.
"Oh good, you're alive. You gave me quite a start, passing out like that and all." Zalean not caring one bit if water spoiled her front hugged the girl who was still straining for breath.
"I gave you a start!" Wynona struggled free of what was supposed to be a friendly hug, but instead felt like a vice grip to the shaken girl. She eyed Zalean skeptically now not sure this new girl was fully there- in the head. "You were the one turning on me as if you'd rip my throat out, and I gave you a start!"
Zalean stopped and thought about this new gathered information, she came to the conclusion that they were just too wired to possibly find out who startled who. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to turn on you like that. It's just that no one was there and then suddenly you were. I didn't have enough time to think and I didn't know you were you. If you weren't you then I also didn't want you seeing what I was doing, and by the time I found out you were you, you were on the floor. I'm sooo sorry." Feeling thoroughly satisfied with her apology she took a really big, needed gulp of air.
"It's all right. I think I can manage." Wynona figured that the only way to stop the incessant pounding in her head was to make the ramblings of an apologetic girl stop. "There seems to be no permanent damage. Only I seem to be really wet."
The two girls looked at each other and the whole ordeal connected itself in their minds. What started with restrained giggles ended up full force laughter as the two girls fell upon each other in a mock tussle, with each girl explaining their side of the story to the other.
When silence finally stilled the room, and the two lay side by side just listening to the other breathe, Wynona rolled onto her side, propping her head up with her hand, and called for Zalean's attention. "But really what were you doing?"
Zalean stared into Wynona's eyes trying to delve beneath the surface and see the potential threat that could arise if Zalean shared her secret. She knew what the consequences might be, that Wynona would tell Dorothea and then there would be trouble, but she couldn't, wouldn't, believe Wynona would do such a thing.
"If you tell Dorothea…" Zalean left the warning open to interpretation.
"Trust me, if I told Dorothea all the things I knew about what goes on in her own court, man would there be a lot of jobs to fill."
Gathering her faith of the brown-eyed girl, she dug from beneath the mattress- where she had quickly stowed it after the interruption- the bracelet. One glaze told Wynona what it was and her mouth dropped open like a fish gasping its last breathe.
"But I thought you were-"
"Landen I know, I am, or at least as far as I can tell." Calmly Zalean explained about how the Priestess had entrusted it to her, but she didn't really know why or what for.
After hearing what happened Wynona trying to organize things said, "So this Priestess just handed over a yellow Jewel to a Landen she just met."
"That's the thing when she gave it to me it was clear. Then after it disappeared one day, so that Dorothea wouldn't see it, it became White, and last night it preformed a warming spell and turned Yellow. I think the changes occur when it accomplishes Craft, and so I was trying to experiment when you walked in."
"Wow that's amazing." Wynona's eyes widened in wonder. "I've never heard anything like it, I mean it just doesn't make sense. How- why- you don't know Craft." Stammering incoherently was not one of the things Wynona liked to do, so she decided to get one thing at a time straightened out.
"I know it's absurd, but the jewel does know Craft, and it just responds by itself to the things I want."
"Sounds like a Jewel linked with its owner to me. Except that can't be if the Jewel isn't yours." Wynona pondered the possibilities and held out her hand as one struck her favor. If the Jewel did belong to Zalean another Witch would be able to find out. "Here let me check something that might help explain some things. I won't hurt it I promise."
Reassured by Wynona's smile Zalean handed the bracelet over thankful for any assistance. Wynona studied the Jewel intently before sending a thread warily into its depths. A sudden surge of raw power surged up to meet her, it was a power strictly attached to someone; the question was who? After going a little deeper into the Yellow's abyss she was surrounded by the feelings and memories of a strong young witch. Shifting though the thoughts that filled her inner sight, she knew that they all belonged to none other than Zalean. Finding the information she needed Wynona respectfully withdrew.
"It doesn't make any sense." Wynona shook her head, frowning. Zalean, who took this response to mean something had gone wrong, bit her tongue in suspense and tried hard not to interrupt. "I had my assumptions, because no claimed jewel can be used by another of the Blood, but this jewel seemed to be waiting for you."
Waiting for me?" Zalean stared mesmerized into the golden surface of the jewel; her jewel. "Waiting for me."