Tyra Dragonheart - Daughter of Swords

[ShiffDrgnhrt]

Augra 2, 1418

Wrapped in a woolen blanket, and held securely againt her fathers chest, a small child sleeps soundlessly, largely unaware of the goings on around her as her father takes her along on his daily errands. Within her small minds, the simple thoughts of a child swirl in a steadying cycle: Sleep; eat; cry; poop; the only things she knows so far, yet one other thought clicks into her mind as she lays peacefully in her fathers arms:

Mommy and Daddy are here... You are safe...

Barely six weeks old, her small mind finds the understanding to recognize the security of her parents arms. A long life lies before her, along with all the choices, uncertainties, and concerns that come along with it, yet in her mind she knows, as long as Mommy and Daddy are near, she will be fine.

[ShiffDrgnhrt]

Finger; grab; mouth; chew. New concepts to the four month old mind of Tyra, but ones she uses in earnest. Anything she can grab, be it food, wood, paper, metal, she will try to put in her mouth.

Why does my mouth hurt.... Oh... *chew chew* That feels better...

So she looks for more things to chew on, more things to stick in her mouth.

Daddy; Mommy; Home; Safe. Her understanding grows the more she is with them. Her mother and father are never far from her, or if one leaves the other always remains. Daddy especially. Many times a day she finds herself nestled in his arms as he goes about his business in the cities. And at night she returns to the arms of her mother, as she goes about her own business around their home and the country side., until her father comes home, to rock her to sleep while he tells her a short story, drifting into dream land to the sound of his voice.

[ShiffDrgnhrt]

"Maaaah-mee....."
"Honey! Honey, She said it! Come back!"
"Maaaah-me.... Mah-me"
"By Beryl..."
"Mah-me.... Mommy..."

Tyra's first word came on her first birthday as she played with the brand new teddy bear Valmara made for her out of rags from one of Shiff's old shirts.

The first year had held a great deal of love within it for the small child. Whether it was her mother, or her father, or dear "aunts and uncles", Tyra was always in the arms, or within reach, of someone who cared for her.

Regardless of what Tyra was doing, one peron who could always be found close behind the mobile one year old was her Mother, Valmara. Regardless of whether Tyra was crawling about at home and getting into trouble, or outside getting all dirty, Valmara was always there to pick her up, kiss boo-boos and dust her off. Tyra loved her mother dearly. With her father often away from home, Tyra bonded with her mother very closely, and despite cause her mother constant headaches, Tyra adored Valmara.

After her mother though, her life seemed to revolve around her Father. Always happy to see her, Shiff would often be found just fooling around with his daughter, rolling on the floor or pretending to be Tyra's pony. Shiff adroed Tyra, and Tyra adored her father, almost as much as she adored her mother, and she loved the time she got to spend with him.

After her Parents, came the seemingly endless number of "Aunt and Uncles", but of them all, three stood out the most: Krysthalien; Elohanna; and Rose. Regardless of time spent or anything else, Tyra loved spending time with these people. Her Uncle Krys, always adoring everything she did, was the only other male she loved, enjoying ever one of the few moments she got to spend with him. Her Aunt Elohanna, being Uncle Krys's wife, was another favorite. Always one to be delighted by magic, Tyra loved spending time with Elohanna, enjoying the playful magic shows Elohanna would put on for her (with the help of her handsome assistant Krys, of course). Then came Rose. Only by being Tyra's true mother Could Rose have earned any more of Tyra's affection. Tyra did not know why, nor did anyone else, but if Shiff and Valmara could not calm Tyra for some reason, Rose could. There was no magic, no silly tricks, just the acceptance and love Rose seemed to pour into the time she spent with little Tyra, earning Rose the title of "Frower" from Tyra. Though nothing could match the feelings Tyra had for her adoring parents, Rose was a close second.

[ShiffDrgnhrt]

Febra 1, 1420

Mephits, Magic, and Mysteries

That was the theme of the day. For reason's unknown, Tyra became the subject of an Ice Mephit's curiousity, as well as some other things left unsaid. Delivering cryptic messages to her Father and Rose as they sat together by the pond in Port Hempstead, the creature came and went, much to Tyra's amusement. Having no comprehension of the anxiety her father expressed at the Mephit's unusual interest in her, she was happy to have the funny looking creature flying around. It was new, and different, and Tyra enjoyed having it around.

[ShiffDrgnhrt]

Tyra sits at the small round table at home, various vials of colored ink spread out around a pile of blank parchments. She sits drawing whatever comes to mind, often having to be interpreted by each individual that sees the end results. She then looks up, and before her stands a elf-like five-year-old, a pair of swirling blue eyes looking back into her own violet orbs, a look of mixed fear-and-wonder in the other girls face. Tyra flashes her warm, winning smile, and says, "Hello..." to the new face, earning a smile from the blue-eyed girl. She sits down next to Tyra, and introduces herself as Seras, and the two begin painting.

Tyra had never gotten the chance to meet any other children. Being not even three years yet of age, Tyra was kept close to her mother and father, but this new comer was a treat. Tyra drew her family as she knew it; her Father and mother, herself, and Shadow (the families horse), while Seras did her best to show up the cheerful two and 3/4 year old. But Tyra showed no concern that her new and older friend had more skill then her. Tyra knew what she was drawing, and so did mommy and daddy. That's all she cared about.

After finishing, she runs over to her Father, a proud smile on her face, yelling, "Lookey! Look!" and stuffing the still damp parchment in her fathers face. After earning her fathers praise, and a compliment from Seras' mommy, Tyra jumped back in her seat to draw the same picture again, this time with their home in the background. For only one thing seemed to be the focus of Tyra's life at her age, her family.

[Frances]

Mommy and Daddy had been gone for so long. Tyra enjoyed playing with her Auntie Elohanna, she liked the little baby Coreth, but she missed her parents. They had been gone before, usually her Daddy more than Mommy, but now they were both gone, and it had been a looong time.

Suddenly, Tyra heard the voices she loved more than any in the world. She jumped to her feet and ran to find them. Finding her Daddy first, she gave him a flying hug. Shiff picked her up, laughing and swinging her around. Her Mommy joined them, squeezing Tyra in between her parents, all of them smiling and laughing together.

They walked home, Tyra in her father's arms, not quite willing to let him go. When they got to her home, Tyra squirmed out of her Daddy's arms, running to her toys she left. But something was wrong; there were two strange men in her home, seated by the fireplace. One of them stood carefully, smiling at the family. Tyra ran and hid behind her mother's skirts, peeking out carefully. Val picked her up, turning to face the men. "This is your Grandpa, sweetie. Tell him hi". Tyra turned her face into her mother's shoulder, then carefully turned one eye to look at the man who had walked shakily over toward them. Tyra eventually deigned to say "Hi Gwampa", before turning her face back to her mother's shoulder.

"Give her a little time, Dad, she'll warm up to you." Her mother was right; within an hour, she was gracing her grandfather and her uncle Sammack with smiles, and by the end of the day, she was playing with them a little. They seemed tired though, and couldn't play the way Mommy and Daddy did, and Tyra could tell they hurt.

With a week, Tyra had accepted Gwampa and Unca Sam as family. Mommy loved them, and Tyra began to trust them. They were getting stronger, and Tyra loved to play with them, but Mommy and Daddy were still more fun.

Then, one day when Daddy was away, Mommy took her to see Auntie El. "I just have to go check on something. I'll be back in a little while. You'll be fine here, and Grandpa and Uncle Sam will be by to visit." To Auntie El she said, "I'd leave her with my dad and brother, but they're not quite strong enough yet to handle her. I think they'll be fine by themselves, but if you could look in on them, I'd appreciate it." Auntie El nodded to Mommy, and Tyra squirmed down so she could go play. Mommy told her, "I'll be back soon, I promise", then turned to go, giving her a smile as she was walking out the door. Tyra smiled back, saying, "Wuv you Mommy". Tyra knew her Mommy would be back soon, and Daddy. She'd play until they got back. It wouldn't be long...

[ShiffDrgnhrt]

While Tyra and Aunt Ely enjoyed some time playing with and watching baby Coreth, a knock came at the door. It was Daddy, and upon seeing him she ran to him, hugging his as soon as she could. Daddy picked her up into the air, hugging her tight as if he'd missed her for so long, but something about Daddy that day made her sad. She leaned back to look at her daddy, her warm smile and beautiful violet eyes hoping to earn her some of her daddy's affection, but Daddy only smiled back, something lingering in his eyes the young girl was not yet able to understand. "Thanks Ely... I hope she wasn't much trouble." Aunt Ely smiled and thanked Shiff for the time, and told Shiff that Val had gone off on business. Tyra could almost sense the fear the ripped through her Daddy, and Tyra frowned and hugged him, hoping to comfort her Daddy. "Whats wong Daddy..." Daddy smiled at Tyra and then Aunt Ely. "I'll see you around Elohanna... Say goodbye sweety..." Tyra waved and smiled at her Aunt and uttered a warm "Buh-Bye." Little did Tyra know it would be the last time she would see her Aunt for a long time.

Upon exiting Aunt Ely's house, Tyra saw Grampa and Uncle Sam sitting on Two horses, Daddy's Shadow tied up along side. "Tyra... We are going on a trip, okay? Daddy is bringing you and Grampa and Uncle Sam to see where Mommy and Daddy got Married..." He sits Tyra on Shadow's neck. "Hold on, sweety..." Daddy steps up onto Shadow behind Tyra, slipping his arm around her to keep her close, and Tyra snuggled back against her father, hoping nothing was wrong.

They rode for day's, stopping in Port Hempstead to rest a few hours at the Scamp's Mug, then taking the long voyage by see to Mariner's Hold to rest at the Weary Traveller. There, while Tyra was supposed to be sleeping, she crawled off her futon, stood shakily onto her little feet, and stumbled through the dark to the door of the room she was in, partially open to let in some light from the main hall. Creaking the door open slowly, she cried out softly for her father. "Daddy... I'm firsty... Can I hab some juice, pwea-" She stopped mid sentence when she saw her father in his armor, something she had never done before. It scared her, the bloody red of the Adamantium, and the fierce visage of a mighty dragon across his chest, its talons gripping a bleeding Golden heart, and she stood rooted in fear. Had she not known the kind face that sat upon the face of the fierce figure of her father, she would have screamed. But she did not. She just stood their, watching. "Quill, I need to get my family to safety tomorrow... I've already waited to long, and I saw someone clad in black robes stalking my home in Fort Llast. I can't wait any longer..." The man Daddy was talking to was funny looking, about a foot shorter then her father, wearing a dark outfit. He had pointy ears like Aunt Ely, but something seemed wild about him. He noded at Daddy and turned to smile at Tyra, drawing her fathers attention to her. Daddy frowned only slightly before walking over to pick up Tyra and hold her as Tyra asked, "Where Mommy..." Daddy simply responded, "I'm gonna go get here right now... you go with Mister Quill here along with Grampa and Uncle Sam and Daddy and Mommy will he back soon..."

The next day Tyra, Grampa and Uncle Sam arrived in Stone early the next morning, but still Mommy and Daddy had not come back. Mister Quill brought them into a large underground cave, filled with shiney gems and light that made Tyra almost forget that she missed her mommy and Daddy very much.

Hour's went by as Tyra sat in an out-of-the-way room in the cave with a funny looking small person that constantly made sure Tyra didn't touch any of the fun looking glowy things all around. Then she heard someone call for the funny-man, and Tyra was led back into the big cave. There was mommy and Daddy. She ran over to Daddy, she had been so scared and she wanted him to hold her, but Daddy was not to stay with Tyra. Giving Tyra a large purple cloak, and the promise to see her whenever she hid beneath it, Daddy left Tyra and Mommy in the cave to be led down below the ground.

[ShiffDrgnhrt]

Tyra wakes up in the middle of the night from a scary dream, safely wrapped up in the cloak her Daddy gave her. She saw Daddy, standing in a field she did not recognize, surrounded by big, mean, and horrid looking meanies all around. She tried to warn Daddy, but he couldn't hear her. She tried to pull him to safety with her little arms, but he didn't not move. She tried to scare the meanies away with her own little roar, but they only laughed at her and pushed her aside. Then suddenly she was far away watching them all close in around Shiff, while he did nothing but stand there.

She shivered some in the stone room she shared with Mommy, clutching the gold locket with the Red Rose ontop her Aunt Flower gave her and pulling the cloak around her tighter. After a few moments, she stood up on her little legs, waddling over to Mommy's bed and, after a bit of pulling and clawing on the sheets, climbed up beside her.

"What's wrong, dear..." said Mommy softly, pulling the covers over them both and snuggling Tyra close to her.

"I want my Daddy..." she utters softly as she begins to cry.

[Frances]

Tyra loves walking with Grampa. He dotes on her, giving her sweets every chance he can. Tyra knows that Mommy knows he does it, but she doesn't say anything about it. Now she pulls Grampa along as they make their way down a slightly used tunnel.

After walking a few minutes, Grampa takes her off on another side tunnel, and suddenly Tyra is looking out over an underground lake, lit softly with lights she can't see. Excited, Tyra runs down to the edge of the water and begins playing in the water. The water is cold, but Tyra splashes happily, throwing small rocks in the water and getting her toes wet.

As she is playing, Grampa picks up a rock and throws it in. Instead of making a splash and sinking, though, the rock skips across the surface of the water several times, before eventually disappearing. Tyra shouts, "Do it agin, Grampa!" He does it several more times, before Tyra begins trying it herself, throwing rocks in where Grampa did, but they just sink.

After a while, Grampa takes her hand and begins leading them back to the rooms they call home. As they walk, Grampa says to her, "You know your mother loves you very much." Tyra nods sagely. Grampa continues, "She hasn't told you or me yet, but changes are coming for her, and for you. I remember your Grandmother, who you never met... Anyway, Tyra, sweetheart, no matter what happens, your mother won't love you any less. You can never run out of love."

Grampa sometimes said funny things like that. Tyra nods, and skips on ahead. She recognizes where they are, and she knows the way back to their rooms. She looks back, keeping Grampa in sight. Tyra knows that soon she will see Mommy. Maybe Daddy will be there too, and they can go back to their real home. Tyra runs to the door, just in case he is there. She wants to see him real soon.

[ShiffDrgnhrt]

Ever since Daddy came back to her and Mommy, Tyra has been very happy. And knowing she is going to be a big sister, she has been helping her Mommy in every way she can. She helps her wash clothes, helps her make dinner, helps her clean after supper, but most of all, Tyra helps by constantly comfoting her Mommy when she is feeling sick.

When Daddy is home, she asks him to tell her stories about when she was a baby while laying in her fathers arms, and when Mommy is home, she cuddles with her when she's tired, rubbing her Mommy's belly like she sees Daddy do, and getting all excited when the baby kicks. She even tells little kiddy stories (that only a four year old could tell) while laying her head on her Mommy's tummy, as if talking to her little sibling inside.

[Frances]

Tyra loves going on walks with Mommy. It's just the two of them today; Drakie is home with Grampa and Grampa's friend. Tyra likes Grampa's friend, so does Drakie. Tyra thinks Mommy likes her too, even if Mommy seemed a little hesitant at first. But today, Tyra has Mommy all to herself as they walk along the path north of town.

As they walk along, Mommy pulls something out from under her cloak and hands it to Tyra. It's long and heavy, with a handle at one end, and a set of leather straps and a belt. Tyra recognizes it as a sword of some sort, having grown up with Mommy and Daddy. But it's smaller than she's seen before, Tyra sized!

Mommy says, "This is for you, Tyra. I was going to wait for your birthday, but I couldn't wait." Mommy smiles. "I had it made up special for you. It may be a bit big for you right now, but you'll grow into it. Your Grampa made it, in fact, just for you!"

Mommy kneels down and buckles the sword belt in place, adjusting the straps until the sword hangs in the right spot. She pulls the sword part way out of the scabbard and shows Tyra. "See, this sword is dull, it won't cut you. The point's dull too, but it's still heavy, and this most definitely is not a toy. Always treat your sword with respect, or you could get hurt. Or someone you don't want to hurt, or you won't hurt someone you need to. This one is about the size of a bastard sword in relation to you right now, but it'll be more like a longsword as you get bigger."

Mommy steps back, and moves her own cloak to uncover the sword she has at her waist. "Try and draw it like this." She demonstrates. Tyra tries to do as Mommy did it, but she can't do it anywhere near as smooth as Mommy made it look. Mommy sheathes her sword and begins showing Tyra how to hold it, various to move it to block or to strike, body stance, foot positioning, and other things. Tyra is soon whacking bushes and saplings, with Mommy always guiding her to move this way or that, or to shift her grip like this, or position her arms or her feet. After a while, Tyra gets tired, and Mommy and her head back to town.

Tyra is so excited to have her own sword, just like Mommy and Daddy have! Now, she can really be a big sister and take care of her little brother. Mommy lets her wear it home, so she can get used to the feel. But something occurs to Tyra. "But Mommy, Daddy keeps asking me what I want to do when I get big. What if I don't want to use a sword?"

Mommy smiles at her. "Honey, you don't have to use a sword. But I wanted you to at least know how, in case you ever have to." They walk on quietly for a while, before Mommy says one more thing, "Oh, and don't tell Daddy. I'm not sure he's ready for this just yet."

[ShiffDrgnhrt]

Tyra smiles as she waves goodbye to Trouble as his mother take him home. she enjoyed the playdates with him, even if he would always get them into trouble with "something." Today it was Daddy, who despite having thrown it out, was none to pleased that Tyra and Trouble decided to shoot their old couch full of arrows, and set it on fire. Tyra thought it was funny, of course, more because it was all Trouble's idea, but regardless, she was in trouble too.

She spent the night in her bed, and despite having told her should wouldn't be having dinner, Daddy brought her some bread and an apple before he went to bed. She could always count on Daddy being like that, but she knew he was mad, and figured that next time, she'd at least try to convince Trouble its a bad idea, before helping him.

The next morning Daddy gave her a little black book, filled with blank pieces of parchment, along with a quill and a bottle of ink.

"What's this for, Daddy?"
"Well since you are learning how to read and write, I thought I'd give you something to practice in. It's a journal. You can keep your thoughts in it, write about things you find interesting or odd, or whatever. Daddy writes in one too, about things that you and Drakie and Mommy and Daddy do."
"Neat! Thank you, Daddy."
"Now run along, Aunt Flower is coming over soon to pick you up for your lessons."

Later that day, after Tyra got done with her lessons with Aunt Rose, she got her new journal out and opened it to the first page. After a bit of thinking, she began to write:

Journal of Tyra Dragonheart

She turned the page and began to write in earnest.

My name is Tyra Dragonheart. My Daddy is Shiff Dragonheart and my Mommy is Valmara Dragonheart. Aunt Rose is my teacher and she taught me to write pretty letters. Daddy calls her Aunt Flower but I know her name is Rose. My best friend is Trouble Tempest and he's really fun.

Mommy and Daddy both teach me to use swords and bows and stuff. It's fun. When I grow up I want to be big like Mommy and Daddy and Aunt Rose and use swords and stuff to protect people and help them.

I have a little brother. His name is Drakie. Mommy says he's named after Grampa and Daddy's dad. He's lots of fun to play with but sometimes he gets into my stuff when he's not supposed to.

Grampa lives with us. He's really nice and he loves us lots. He has a friend named Nana. She's really nice too.

I don't know what else to say. I guess I will write more when I do.

[ShiffDrgnhrt]

Tyra comes home one night, all dirty from playing in the woods with Trouble. She giggles a bit when Daddy sees her, yelling at her a bit for being dirty, but Mommy calms him down and gets her ready for a bath.

A while later, Tyra climbs up into her bunk and pulls her journal out from under her pillow, before prancing into the living room to sit at her fathers desk while Daddy played with Drakie, wrestling on the couch. She lays it down and opens it, opening a bottle of ink and dipping in her quill, before going to write,

Decilar 20

I had fun today! Me and Trouble went for a walk in the woods when we found this neat hole! It was all dirty inside but it was okay. Trouble mad his nose glow and I followed him. But he found this huge cave! IT'S SO BIG! Like, if Daddy came, and Mommy and Grampa and Nanna they wouldn't even make a dent it was SO BIG! But then we saw these mean thingys, Trouble called then Gnolls. That was funny, Gnolls in a hole, but I remember Daddy telling me about them and I made Trouble leave with me. I don't wanna tell Daddy because he wouldn't let me play there anymore, but since me and Trouble covered the whole with rocks and sticks and leaves and he promised me not to go down again I hope he listens. That hole was scary. But Fun! We found another somewhere else that just had a bunch of water at the bottom but its hard to get down. Trouble said he's gonna try to get some rope from home so we could go down, but I gotta make sure Drakie doesn't see us... He could fall in and it would be my fault. Drakie is wrestling with Daddy now though so he's safe. I love my little brother, even if he is a pain some time. Oh well. Goodnight Journal! Mommy says its bed time and I don't wanna miss Daddy's story! He was telling us about this Great Pumpkin that did funny things last night! =) Goodnight Journal!

She hurries to put the ink away, disregarding the splashes her writing sent all over her fathers desk as she clutched her journal to her chest, running to her bed yelling, "Wait for me Daddy!"

[Frances]

Tyra and Trouble were playing in the forest near Tyra's home. Trouble had taught Screech to hide behind trees and throw out stuffed targets for Tyra to shoot. Though Trouble had first started as the better archer when they started shooting years ago, Tyra was now the more skilled archer. Trouble was thoroughly entertained enjoying the nature around him, but Tyra was growing bored. Despite Trouble's name, Tyra also often came up with mischief for the pair to get into.

Trouble was listening intently. Tyra, seeing this, thought it would be good time to talk to him. "Trouble, have you ever thought about us? I mean... what we'll do when we grow up?" Getting no response, she con