[PLOT] A Woodsy Stroll (Cosworth and Vanya)

[Doof]

Cosworth steadily walked amongst the long grass, his track leaving a furrow between the long, green stalks that swayed slowly in the breeze. Faun were not a tall race, but he was a shade taller than most and he could see over the top of the long grass to the treeline beyond, and stretching high into the sky beyond that, the majestic silhouette cast by Laisidhiel, oldest and greatest of all trees.

And his former home. It was a string of events that eventually led him to leave and literally forge his own life alone, away from the others, tinkering with his ores, and machines. Quite unlike many of his compatriots, and to their credit, they never took the mickey out of him for being a little... different.

Although granted, he hadn't seen many of them for... months? It had been quite some time. Living in isolation suited him just fine, and his experiments concerning combustion weren't exactly welcome in a dwelling comprised almost entirely of wood. Still, looking upon his peoples' ancestral home, he couldn't help feeling more than a little wistful as a deluge of memories clear as that evening's sky flooded through him. He'd need to head back to the Tree again at some point. See some old friends again, pick up supplies, revisit more old memories. He may have distanced himself from the spiritual connection that was supposed to keep him alive, but there that connection remained, and he couldn't deny it any more than the air he breathed.

These solitary walks were usually a way for him to clear his mind and find peace in the wind and the grass, if his experiments frustrated him. Sometimes though, they reminded him of how lonely his adopted hermit's life could be sometimes. He took a few steps towards the massive tree in the distance, imagining the scores of Faun milling around and within it, and for some reason it both filled him with wonder and made him a little sad.



 

[Teigra]

The evening sun cast a myriad of colors across the sky, but they went unappreciated by one. The Faun Seer continued on her way, unknowing, staff in one hand, and basket in the other. Despite her latest misadventure with a stranger in their territory, she'd managed to slip out on her own once more. Her mate hadn't been happy about it, that was for sure, but to be honest, he was the only one so far that really knew what had happened a few nights before. Rais had been so busy as of late, well, she hadn't had time to bother the Chief with such matters.

Besides, she was only gathering a few herbs that she needed for some common potions that Earthmother had taught her, then she planned on heading straight home. Of course, she was a bit more on-guard than she normally would have been before crossing that strange, violent female...

Pausing, she ran her hand through the tall grasses, taking note of the texture, the scent, then plucking a few handfuls near the base and adding them to her basket. One more down; only a few to go. She made to start off again, adjusting her staff under her arm, then paused at a soft sound. It wasn't much, but it seemed loud to her enhanced senses. Gripping her staff tightly, she dropped low in the tall grasses. After a moment, she called out, trying to keep her voice steady, "Who's that? Is someone there?"
 

[Doof]

Cosworth stopped in his tracks when he heard the female voice calling out from somewhere ahead of him. For a moment he was silent as his ears flicked back and forth, trying to figure which direction the sound had come from, but whoever was out there hadn't made so much as a squeak after calling out. He stood as tall as he could, even balancing on the front edge of his hooves, but he couldn't even make out the tips of antlers amongst the tall grass.

He hadn't imagined it, though. The breeze swept his hair into his face, so he had to flick it aside as he advanced through the field. Cosworth tried to sound unthreatening as he headed towards where he thought he heard the other pae. "Hello, I hear you!" He called, standing a little taller and hoping the sight of his swept-back antlers would be visible above the grass.

Yet it was he who spotted the other first. She was crouching- the first thing he saw was the top of a staff, then a pair of faun antlers adorned with fine willow leaves, then spectacular, long, flowing blue hair. "I'm right here." He said, softer now, and crouching a little himself.  

[Teigra]

"Hello, I hear you!"

Vanya's ears flicked lightly, seeking the source of the sound. Still some distance between them, but other than that, she couldn't tell much more about the stranger, other than gender. The tone was even, but unfamiliar. The swish of the tall grasses didn't tell her any more about his identity either.

Her hands twisted around the smooth staff, her grip tightening reflexively. Why had she insisted on coming out here alone again? Well, she knew why. Because she needed to remain independent. She needed to keep control of some aspect of her life. She wouldn't give in to fear, letting it paralyze her.

The sudden voice behind her startled her, eliciting a short squeak from the Seer as she whirled quickly, staff outstretched. Only too late did she note the familiar green tinge at the edge of his aura.
 

[Doof]

Cosworth never was quick on his feet, and today was no exception. Vanya's staff shook as it connected with something, and there was a wet-sounding smack. To Cosworth, it was almost as though the entire world flashed a bright white, and the next thing he knew he was down on one knee, with both hands on the ground. He hadn't even realized he was going down, and the world spun in his vision even though he didn't feel like he was moving.

The pain wasn't very far behind. "Ffffffor the love of... Bollocks!" Cosworth rumbled through gritted teeth. "What in Laisidhiel's green name was that for?" He rolled into a sitting position, hesitantly working his jaw open and being relieved there wasn't any additional pain. At least that wasn't broken. Unsurprisingly though that was followed by the metallic taste of blood, coming from the side of his mouth. The green-eyed faun gingerly touched his right cheek, wincing at a sudden pain. It must have been smashed tender. He spat, ejecting not nearly as much of the red fluid as he had expected, but it was still fairly messy.

Cosworth came to his senses quickly, though. As he struggled to his feet, he got his first good look at his... Assailant. She was a stunning female faun that he was sure he'd seen before. And he could see that she was blind. And scared. And probably in need of a little patience, despite the burning insistence from his cheek that he chew her out just a little.
Not quite able to think of anything else to say, he simply worked his jaw a little and asked, "Are you all right?"  

[Teigra]

Likely equally as startled, but without the pain, Vanya stumbled out of the attack, inertia nearly sending her spinning into a dizzy whirl. She dropped down instead, onto her hands and knees, dropping her things to scatter in the grass. She took in the aura quickly, the voice, the words, and her stomach clenched sickeningly.

What had she done?

Wrestling to steady her panicked breathing, she still sounded a bit breathless as she answered. "Oh my goodness, I'm sorry! I'm so, so very sorry! I just...I was startled, but...that's no excuse... Please...I-I, I'm sorry...I..." With a bit more focus now, she crawled towards the other Faun, feeling horribly guilty for lashing out at him. She felt worse as she neared.

She'd not realized, but in adjusting to the loss of her sight, as well as some of the other duties she'd picked up, she'd lost a bit of her old concern for others' personal space. As such, she reached out for the other Faun without a second thought, one hand landing on his shoulder, the other stretching towards his face. She didn't touch him though, her hand hovering over his injured cheek as her non-existent sight seemed fixated on something beyond. A look of anguish passed over her face, and she pulled back looking almost as if she were about to cry.

"I...I'm so sorry. Please, let me help," she pleaded, immediately sitting back and reaching towards her waist. She'd begun carrying a small pouch on her hip with some emergency supplies, and she reached in, pawing around for a moment before emerging with a small corked vial. Her fingers deftly traced the symbol carved in the cork before she seemed satisfied and opened it. "This will help," she explained, finally realizing she might need to pause before proceeding further without permission. "Ease the pain and close the wound," she added, 'looking' down and away from the other Faun in remorse...and old habit. "I'm very sorry for hurting you. Please, just...let me help fix it."
 

[Doof]

The fur on the back of Cosworth's neck and shoulders bristled as her hand came close to his face, and he reflexively jerked backwards out of the other faun's reach. "N-no, miss. It's quite all right." His voice was startled, but the momentary anger had washed out of it. Once properly on his feet, Cosworth dusted himself off, blinked the stars out of his vision and carefully smoothed the fur over his now-slightly-swollen cheek. The poor lass was beside herself, apologizing so profusely Cosworth was starting to feel embarrassed, even though he was sure they were the only two faun out here.

"Calm down, calm down lass." Cosworth said, keeping a half a yard's distance from the distressed female, at least until she could settle down a bit. The reclusive inventor was relieved to see that his staff-wielding compatriot was starting to regain herself all on her own, which was sort of a good thing because beyond placating words he had no idea how to help.

As she pulled out her vial, Cosworth stopped trying to back away. Indeed, this one did seem to know what she was doing, and his usual hesitation at close contact was starting to let up. "All right, apology accepted. "I probably should have identified myself." And with that, he gave a small chuckle. "And I'll give that to you, you have one hell of a terrific swing." Cosworth turned his head so his swollen cheek faced the other faun. "There's something about you that seems familiar. Were you at the great gathering, before the storm?"  

[Teigra]

Vanya hesitated as the other Faun pulled away and stood, pausing now to consider her actions. She probably looked like some sort of nutcase. She took a deep, calming breath, gathering her scattered thoughts and emotions. "I'm sorry, I'm calm now. Well, calm enough. Now, let me take care of that for you. Please." She felt remorseful enough for what she had done; at least she could try to make amends.

Climbing to her hooves, she uncorked the vial and moved towards the other Faun. After a moment of focusing her senses, she felt she had a good idea of where the other stood. His voice was easy to focus on; he had an unfamiliar way of speaking, but not unpleasant. She was taken by surprise with the odd compliment, and she felt her cheeks flush. Instead, she chose to focus her attention on the potion in the vial, pouring a bit onto her fingertips and clearing her throat awkwardly. "Here, this will numb the pain and speed the healing. I really am sorry, but this should help." For the most part, it was a simple blend of healing herbs, natural remedies...but this particular vial was enhanced by the dew from the sapling deep within Laisidhiel. A potent blend, almost...magic...and therefore, usually carried in case of emergencies. Well, minor ones anyway. But Vanya could always make more when she returned, unlike most Faun.

Vanya neared, reaching out and lightly brushing her fingertips over his cheek. She was as careful as she dared, not wishing to cause more pain than she'd already inflicted. The salve did its work quickly, numbing the pain and soaking into the skin. Only after she'd nearly finished applying first aid, did Vanya focus on the question asked. Familiar? Her? The male Faun, at least his voice didn't sound familiar. He had a pretty distinctive way of speaking, afterall, and she thought she would have remembered him.

"I'm sorry, have we met before?" she asked, finishing up and brushing her hands over her skirt. "I was there, yes. But, I'm afraid I don't remember meeting you. I'm sorry." She held out one of her hands, in common greeting. "Vanya. Seer, Healer, all that fanfare. Though, apparently still better at causing chaos than mending it," she quipped with a subtle note of bitterness trying to sneak through. Recovering quickly, she continued, "Might I have your name, kind sir?"
 

[Doof]

Cosworth flinched as her fingers ran over his raw cheek, but was surprised at the gentle touch and the potency of her salve. Whatever it was, its effects were soothing, with a sensation of cooling, followed by a rapid numbing. The throbbing subsided, and although the numb sensation was quite alien, it was not unwelcome. He needed to get his hands on some sometime.

"Miss Vanya, is it? The name sounds familiar too. But I don't think we've ever met. At least not face to face." He shrugs. "My name is Cosworth. Eccentric. Recluse. All of that fanfare." He resisted the urge to massage his cheek where there had been burning pain just a few moments ago. "You know, now that I think about it, you mentioned you were the seer..." Cosworth circled round and couldn't help but look into her unfocused eyes. "I remember now. They announced YOU as the seer. In which case..." The taller male faun managed a respectful bow. "I should have more appropriately identified myself, Lady Vanya. You are far more beautiful up close."

Though he offered flattery, Cosworth's tone was entirely formal."I must say, I've never seen anyone else wandering this particular field." He cocked an eyebrow, even though his body language was probably lost on her. "Too many rocks, probably. Most choose the south field for foraging or ingredients. Unless perhaps you know something they don't?"  

[Teigra]

Even if his tone was formal, the young Seer wasn't used to receiving such compliments. At least from anyone other than her mate. A flush in her cheeks, she didn't even pretend to meet his eyes, head turned down in embarrassment. "I...err, I..." she coughed as if to clear her throat, focusing instead on what he'd said following. "It depends on what you're looking for, really. Some plants actually fare better in harsher conditions, because there's less competition with others. That's where you'll find them, where the earth isn't crowded with their brethren." Speaking of herbs...

"Oh dear," she mumbled, realizing that her afternoon's work was now scattered about on the ground. With a sigh, she sank to the ground, feeling about until she found her basket and whatever still remained within. It was going to take forever to find everything again, let alone separate and identify. "Well, this is shaping up to be a busy afternoon," she muttered to herself.
 

[Doof]

Vanya's knowledge of the local plant life impressed him, since matters of the natural were always far more complicated than matters of the mechanical, which he found much easier to understand. He gave a passing thought to how much less hungry he'd be if he knew at least a little more about what plants were safe to eat around his stone cottage. "That makes quite a bit of sense, actually. I suppose that never occurred to me. I suppose you'd have to know something about this sort of thing, being in such a place of responsibility as you are." Cosworth knelt beside the Seer, down on one knee as he watched her feel for her basket.

"That being said, we are still a good distance from the Great Tree. I find it odd someone as important as yourself would be this far away without any sort of protection, your fine staff-swing notwithstanding." The tall faun scooped up some of whatever herbs he'd assumed Vanya had been carrying, and left them by her side in a partially sorted pile, hoping that might make it easier for her to find. Poor thing, he'd figured she was blind but he'd just started to think about how difficult that must be. He hoped he'd arranged them in a fashion she could make sense of- most of the grasses and roots looked more or less the same to his untrained eye. Not that her eyes would be of much use either, he thought ruefully.

Cosworth looked up to see the sun starting to disappear against some high ground to the west. "Oh, I don't know. It seems like such a delightful evening. The breeze is rather relaxing, don't you think?" With a smile he shuffled aside just to make sure he wasn't kneeling on any of her herbs. "Though I suppose you'd need to be getting back before sundown. You must have your duties to attend to, and more than a few faun worrying after you."  

[Teigra]

"I can take care of mys--" she started to snap back, a bit of the day's stress and irritation showing through before she caught it and herself with a shake of her head. "I...I'm sorry. I'm a right fool. Maybe this was a mistake afterall," she murmured, her hand passing over a section of earth she'd already checked by her knee, now finding a pile of gathered roots and stems waiting there. First, she injured this stranger, and now she was being rude...while he was trying to help her. Some benevolent counselor she was turning out to be.

Suddenly seeming quite sheepish, she tucked the last of her supplies in her basket, keeping her face down. "I'm sorry. Forgive my defensiveness. It's just...I'm realizing now that maybe I shouldn't have come out here alone after all. My mate certainly wasn't happy about it, but he had other duties and I didn't want to be a bother to anyone," she trailed off. "Of course, now I've gone and made myself more than a bother to you instead."

She seemed to gloss over his statement, if not completely ignore it. However, she knew Takis would worry about her, but would anyone else? Shoving the thoughts aside, she stood, brushed the dirt from her fur, then lifted the basket. "I suppose you're right, I really should go." He's likely pleased to get rid of me. Crazy, spastic, violent seer... Still, she didn't feel right just leaving like this.

"Um, I'm really sorry about what happened. I mean, not about meeting you, but the whole...staff-to-the-face thing," she kept her face down. "If it's okay, I could bring you some more salve later, just in case it's still sore. It's the least I could do." She lifted her head, an inquiring look. "I...suppose you live around here?" she asked, inferring from statements he'd made about the area before.
 

[Doof]

Cosworth hadn't spoken to another faun for so long he wasn't sure if he was making a good account of himself or not, but as was his nature, he didn't care either way. He let her talk, head canted to the side slightly, nodding as she spoke, a habit to let others know he was listening (even if he wasn't- and even if she couldn't see him). It occurred to him that the seer might be as socially awkward as he was, possibly more so, and the thought amused him somewhat. Two odd little faun meeting far from the Tree in and odd little place to be have an odd little conversation and being generally odd and little and so on and so forth.

"You don't have to apologize for introducing me your walking stick, Lady Vanya." Cosworth began, hoping to calm her first before concluding their encounter. "It's a chaotic world and you were only defending yourself. As for where I live," He paused, thinking about what level of tact would be appropriate. In truth, he didn't want visitors. If he wanted to speak with someone, he much preferred going to them, rather than them coming to his refuge.

Then again, that was some good salve.

"Well, even seasoned travelers miss it. Off the road between the Tree and the bridge, to the north, there's a trail which I could direct you to if you could spot the first trail marker. If there was an easier way to give you a non-visual cue..." At that, the taller faun trailed off. Maybe there was a way to produce the guidance she needed, and put some of those tiny little micro-experiments he had to some sort of use.

Cosworth clicked the fingers on his right hand, drawing inspiration from the sound. "Actually, Lady Vanya, so long as your hearing is fine, I think I'll be able to give you some sort of guidance to my cottage." He looked up, his eyes unfocusing as he tried to recall some details. "Just head down the main road from the tree to the bridge and about two thirds of the way, In that fairly rocky section, listen for the clicks."

The engineer, his mind now full of gears and distractions, failed to elaborate further.  

[Teigra]

Vanya wilted slightly at his initial hesitancy. Of course he didn't want to tell the crazy lady where he lived! Who could blame him? He probably lived out here by himself for a reason; one of which was now probably staying away from violent seers.

But, when he continued, she perked up a bit, realizing that he was actually taking her handicap into account. She had to admit, it did make following directions more than a little challenging. Her gifts allowed her some luck when dealing with other Fauns; not so much with inanimate objects or visual landmarks.

Her ear twitched at the sharp clicking noise he produced, and she tilted her head curiously. Listen for the clicks...? Like that one? It was an odd instruction, that was for sure. Though, she had to admit, it was a clever solution to giving her directions without visual cues. "Yes, my hearing is fine," she confirmed. Quite acute in fact, since the loss of her physical sight. She still wasn't quite sure what he was planning though, and the confusion was evident in her voice.

Well, it would have been, if he was paying her any attention anymore.

Sensing that this might be time to take her leave, and feeling a bit better now about doing so, Vanya picked up her staff from the ground, balancing her basket on her arm. "I shall leave you to your peaceful evening, kind sir. What is left of it, at least. I do hope our next meeting shall be a bit less...'eventful'," she finished with a slight smile. Reaching out, she placed her hand gently on his arm and nodded in farewell. Physical contact had become a part of normal communication for her, contrasting to the reluctance she'd had as a child to be too close to others. Still, she understood the feeling well for those who were not comfortable with such, and kept the gestures minimal and brief.

She would get started on a new batch of healing poultices as soon as she got back to the Tree. And she'd be sure to set some aside for Cosworth. "I shall see you again," she nodded, then caught herself and actually chuckled a bit, "Err, in a manner of speaking. Give me a day or two to restock, then I'll be sure to drop by with that medicine." Perhaps even a peace offering or two as well. "Fair evening to you, Cosworth," she bowed her head, taking her leave.
 

[Doof]

The hair on the back of Cosworth's neck stood on end at her touch, breaking him out of his 'machine state', having not experienced contact in a while, but he refrained from further reaction. "Be safe, Lady Vanya." He replied quietly. He'd accompany her back, but they were not so far away from the great tree that he actually thought there would be danger, and besides, he wasn't quite in the mood for that much... socialization.

As he watched her small form disappear into the long grass, back towards Laisidhiel, Cosworth once more found himself alone with the setting sun and the gentle breeze, which was becoming cooler by the minute. The rustling of leaves and the air flowing past his ears suddenly seemed much louder. With a sigh, he began a leisurely walk back towards his stone cottage, the oncoming treeline starting to block out the magnificently coloured dusk sky.

Cosworth cast back one last look. It certainly was peaceful out.