While visiting the illegal Red Market, that was located under the Coliseum one could access through the by a hidden hatch. A certain caged bird in one of the vendor's booths caught his eyes and had him interested in purchasing for a price. Left him to stroll up to this person and start haggling for a certain coin price until they met at certain amount. That ended with him carrying a medium sized cage all the way from underground markets without single inch of help. To back doorstep of his family's shop where his family's pet chicken would greet him with a few clucks while following him.
"Got your guys a new friend." Julius held up the cage.
Inside was a female albino crow just sitting on the swing perch just looking out at the birds that were currently watching her. She stayed quiet the whole time she was being transported to away from dark place one one lots of sun shine.
"Lets see if your want to stretch your wings?" Julius asked her.
He would up balancing the her cage with in his arms before one of his hands reached toward the small latch on the side. Once he got a good hold with his fingertips and pushed upward with what strength he co uld mange without dropping her, or the cage. She would gracefully fly out of the enclosure that had been her home since she was taken from her home. Allowing her wings to open up and be embrace by the wind that smelled of the sea as she flew high. Looking at what she deemed to be her home to the many rooftops of the buildings that were located around this one. What caught her eye was a large all-black passerine bird with a 4.9 ft. wingspan seating on a window's ledge. Where she would land just a few feet to look upon what she hoped would be her new friend as he she folds her wings.
"Malak meet Duchovny, Duchovny meet Malak." Julius would introduce them.
Awkward stare that one would give the other and any reaction afterward wouldn't be witnessed since backdoor would swing open. Standing there would be Juliana wearing a apron with a small carving tool in one hand and spindle in the other. Her expression was between that of being angry at her brother for being late and curious about about the cage. Up went one of her eyebrows at the sight of her brother just standing there with a opened cage in. Awaiting an answer from him about why he didn't come back on time and where he been while she was working with everyone.
"Well?" She asked stare at him.
"Look up and you'll understand." He nods toward where Malak's new friend sat.
Juliana just shrugged at what her brother pointed her toward before turning around and walking back into the kitchen. Shouting that Julius was back and he purchased a new pet for the shop in the form of an female albino crow that liked Malak. Before she made her way toward a occupied table where a busy Jewel could be found near a drying rank. Countless cylinder shaped candles hung from a multiply selves as their layers of wax cooled after being dipped repeatedly. Smelled of herbs and oils mixed with heated beeswax filled the shop with a rather odd scent that Julius knew. Closing the back door and putting the cage down to clear out his hands to take bag hanging resting on his shoulder off. Stating he bought everything on his mother's list and would have come back to help out if wasn't for the sight of Duchovny.
"Nothing wrong with one more." Jewel checked hang another candle. "Since she already taken a liking to our friendly neighborhood raven."
"This whole candle making process in quite fun." Kipling was in front of the stove.
The pots that Jewel used for her scented candles were filled with the heated wax that was currently being used by them. Each one held a single colored wax that was made with dye that Jewel melted and mixed with herbs and oils. Would be used to make new product to the family shop that Jewel started when her children were young enough to walk.
"You can take a seat at the table with your sister to carve the candles into their shape or help me and Kipling?" Jewel asked her son.
"...and dad?" Julius asked about his father.
Jewel would point out he was manning the front of the shop since he didn't have any rounds to make or patients coming in. He had a few house calls to check in with some that had a a minor head cold or their allergies flaring up. That morning way after the sun rose and Jewel was running around the kitchen doing one of her shop related projects.
"Hmmmm..." Julius lightly hummed looking over what lay on the table.
The candles that were dried enough would be carved into with stunningly unique swirls and spirals to form a interlocking design. Would be carefully placed to dry with many others before being placed in a crate filled with straw and fabric scraps.
"Filling a massive order are we?" Julius asked about addressed on the crate's outer surface.
"Countess wants to use our candles for this year's Masquerade." Juliana screeched.
She then came running passed her brother to drop the craving tool she was using to pick up the hand written letter from Nadia. Usually greetings from the Countess could be found at the beginning followed by her making a sizable request. Asking them to make a large number of hand carved candles for the yearly celebration that always happen.
"Isn't this amazing?" Juliana screeched waving the letter around.
"When are they coming to pick this up and how many have we had done?" Julius asked trying to believe all this.
"We're almost done." Jewel hangs another candle.
"We've been doing this since last night." Kipling was handed a spindle by Juliana.
Jewel would only nod her head and speak about this was their last crate to be filled with what they were currently making. How this fun activity was becoming a bonding moment for all of them that she would like to repeat with all of them. Being that each one of them had a task in the process to Kipling stating out with a single wink in dipping to build up layers. To Jewel hanging each one up to dry on a made shift rack using chairs and a few sticks with bits of strings. Juliana taking those candles off the these shelves and curving into smooth wax surface to create works of temporary art.
"I'll go empty go out this bag before I decide anything." Julius remembered what he was sent out to do.
To the front of the first floor he would he would go, finding his father playing around with Kipling's hand carved figurines. Pieces of wooden that have been whittle by knife's edge into animals of all kinds by hands belonging to their house guest. Caught Jewel's attention one day when she watched Kipling shape a long of fire wood. She would end up deciding to sell them within her shop as part of the everyday merchandise. Julian was caught playing with by his son when he laid a full bag on the counter.
"Done amusing your self you big baby?" Julius asked looked at the way his father arranged the wooden animals.
"A woo woo. A wagga wagga." Julian answered his son.
Julius shrugged off his capelet coat and gloves with mumbles under his breaths about his father completely hopeless as a adult. Had Julian smiling like a goof as he rests his chin on his hand stating how Jewel loved the child- like behavior. About to describe that last night got him to their bed as a form of punishment for such behavior and ridden like a horse. Not once were his wrists unbond or two hours while Jewel had her way with him until he was left thoroughly sore by her. Then she let him go with his hips and legs feeling they had been reduced to the consistency of gelly.
"To Much Information." Julius flipped open the bag's flap.
"...was that to much information that brought you and you dear sister into this world." Julian corrected his own son.
Julius decided to busy him self with unloading the varies things he had to buy for his mother within the illegal market. Herbs one couldn't find within the dark forest or from varies vendors within the large shopping center. Besides essential oils for her magic and ingredients for their medicinal wine that Jewel was still trying to perfect. A few were imported items one that were sold anywhere in Vesuvia like ink blocks from island country from the East.
"Seems the usual." Julian looked over what now covered the front counter.
His eyes stopped over one of the bottles of essential oil made from a sweet root vegetable that put a smirk on his face. He slowly slide a hand toward hoping to snatch away and hide for later use that night when all were turning in for the night. End up having his hand stopped by something with eight legs and covered in peach fuzz all over her body. Had him looking from the shelf behind him to down where he would find his wife's poecilotheria metallica resting. On his hand just a few inches from the essential oil with those eight eyes just staring up at him in a curious matter.
"Mom allowed me to take her furry blue friend with her." Julius spoke of Tarantula staring at his father.
"I always forget this little bugger was her familiar." Julian just stared at her.
"I always wondered why she never had a name." Julius would reveal why Jewel never gave the poecilotheria metallica one.
"That is yet another mystery that makes me more attracted to her." Julian humbly posed.
Got him a head nod from his son Julius who would end up going over the list he had crumbled in one of the pockets of his person. Smoothing out piece of paper to read what wad written on the surface to sort everything out would take place. Making putting what he got away more easier for him while his father had a staring contest with a female Tarantula. Distracting the man from his son clearing off the front counter by putting everything in there place. Stuff that had to be stored in the kitchen would be scooped up and after he got his capelet coat and gloves. All tucked into one arms as he used the other to reach out to the female Tarantula and offer her a ride. She would accept to leave Julian once more alone in the front end of the shop.
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Juliana was in the back of her family's shop tending to the garden her mother had long sense plants with foreign produce. On her knees with a straw mat under her bare legs with a basket beside her as she plucked one vegetable after another. Kipling and Julius sat near by an opened back door with one hand washing his sister had picked so far. Water heated from the stove and soft bristled brush to wash away the dirt that still lingered on the vegetables surface. He made sure to not scrub to hard since the skin break and insides would spill all over his hands holding the brush. Kipling was to busy with once more just whittling away at the left over chucks of fire wood to small to be burned. Making Everyone's pet or familiar to pass the time until the chore that Juliana was doing was done.
"You still have those strange dreams?" Julius would bring up that odd subject.
"This is a firs ti heard of this." Kipling stopped whittling.
Juliana sighed and dusted off her hands to speak about a sore conversation topic that her family though she got over. Explaining since she hit puberty, she's started have these strange dreams centered around a deck of tarot cards her mother owns. Very first dream she ended up meeting the Queen of Wands wrapped around a stick with five leaves. Reminded her of a snake she knew in real life and left her to seek out someone that her mother once lived with. Who now lived within the Palace along side his parents and still helping them in the re- building process of Vesuvia. Visiting him to look up his lavender colored python resting on his shoulders before she got much needed questions answered.
"Everything else after that was hazy at best." She sighs.
"Meaning?" Kipling looked between them.
"She hasn't been able to make out the other images from the dream afterward." Jewel joined them.
"I have been able to made out recent ones having to do with knight of swords, King of Swords, Nine of Cups, and Knight of Pentacles." She dug four lines in the soil.
She spoke about not knowing their connection to the people around her since her dream always came out distorted around their identities. Left her to give up on that puzzle when the pieces weren't coming together no matter how hard she tried.
"That can be rather strange." Kipling folds his knife's blade.
When tucking his knife back into the inner pocket of his waist coat, Juliana blinked twice when Juliana turned her head to look at him. Saw a horned dragon with his wings rested at his sides in a rick black coloring one could mistake for the sky.
"Sweetie!" Jewel called to her.
"Jul!" Julius worriedly addressed her.
"King of Swords!" She whispered.
Kipling froze in place when she said that not understanding what she meant with her Julius looking to their mother for an answer. Would be granted she asked of them to come in since the story she was about to weave was going to be long one. She would up calling to Julian to lock up and switch the sign from open to close for needing his side of the story. Up off the ground Juliana would go taking the straw mat and half filled basket within her arms hurrying to the back door. Stopping when Kipling stepped to the side for her to be the first one inside or to enter after her brother.
"Something wrong?" Kipling sensed something wrong. "This about this morning..."
He knew walking in on her in the washroom that early that morning to empty one's bowels was going to bite him later that day. He just never knew this moment was when she would unable to look him in the eye with out remembering that. What he thought when she just stood there ans stared him in a frozen state unable to properly move inside.
"What this about seeing my sister naked?" Julius asked leaning backwards in backdoor.
"Julius!" Juliana yelled at him.
Before he could give her a answer about possbily seducing Kipling that morning or him accidentally seeing her in the nude. A coughing noise that was loud enough to turn their heads towards one of their guests in the form of a casually dressed Narseh. Who stood a few feet away from the door while a few guard were taking the candle filled crates out the front.
"May I ask what this seeing Miss. Juliana is all about?" Narseh asked rather cross.
"We were getting to that." Julius looked at his sister and Kipling.
Juliana was about to open her mouth to tell everyone what Kipling did was pure accident at early hour when everyone was still asleep. Would be stopped by Kipling taking over the conversation, stating he had no knowledge of her in the washroom. At the time he walked in her in the middle of loathing her unclothed form with made shift soap made by her mother. He only had one thought on his mind and that was to use the water closet before he went number two in his pants.
"That's all?" Julius asked looking between the two.
"YES!" Kipling and Juliana yelled.
Inside the two went with Juliana pushing her aside and Kipling slamming the door closed behind so hard that Jewel and Julian heard. From their place in the front of shop taking payment for the candles and getting their invitation to the Masquerade. That had Jewel holding the envelope to her chest to cherish the memories of long ago for her and Julian. One where she and Julian first attended the Masquerade as a pair, from when they picked their costumes to table dancing.
"We thinking of something naughty?" Julian whispered into her ear.
"..." Jewel nods her head back and fourth.
" We thinking of something dirty to do once the kids go to sleep?" He asked again wiggling his eyes brows.
"..." Jewel nods her head back and fourth again.
She ended up slightly turning her head with her free hand to reach out and place her fingers inside open section Julian's shirt. Places her fingers within that thick chest hair like intimate action was the first time she combed her fingers in his dense patch. Slowly running her fingertips through those pubes with her eyes lost in memories of their dancing, and him playing the vielle.
"...Jewel..." Julian could feel his knees weakening.
"I was remembering you in those black feathers and hand crafted mask." She barely mumbled her answer. "Your smile as we danced."
She ended up backing him into the front counter to the point he ended up getting pinned by her without much of an escape. Not that he wanted to run away with her fingers caught up in his exposed hair of his chest and the expression on his face. He would give him and wrap one arm around her waist with the other reaching up to cup her face. Describing the white and gold she wore in the form of her Masquerade outfit that made her look her a new born dove.