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 Posted: Thu Jul 25, 2013 6:35 pm
A chance meeting between two travelers in which Virali probably scares the pee out of Terrowin.
Who: Virali & co. (The Semblance of Unity) & Terrowin and Tiffan (subobo)
When: July 1413
Where: somewhere in Shyregoed idk
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Posted: Thu Jul 25, 2013 6:51 pm
The day did not seem to be much different from any other, the weather was cold, there was snow on the ground, the sunlight was thin and watery, and it was quiet.
Well, for the most part it was quiet. There was the ubiquitous birdsong and animal chatter, along with the faint howling of the wind, but if one were to listen closely they would be able to hear something a bit unusual for the area. A reedy, thin sound could be picked out from the sounds of nature. This sound did not come from any bird or beast, nor from any plant or stone.
It, in fact, came from a seemingly lone man who seemed to be wandering around with no real urgency nor destination. The music he was playing on the fife seemed to follow the same ambling route that his feet took, hopping from tune to tune, and often just seemed to be made up on the spot. And, if one were listening extra closely, they could also hear a tiny, high-pitched voice singing along.
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Posted: Thu Jul 25, 2013 7:44 pm
A faint breeze danced around Virali's face as she walked, bringing with it scents of crisp snow and musty forest. She inhaled and exhaled deeply, noisily, a grin rising to her heart-shaped face. A cold day just right for traveling without destination. Well, eventually, the old curmudgeons at Knotwood would miss her brilliant face (a lie, they would wonder where their correspondence had gotten to) or the pretty men at Anica might miss her lithe form (much closer to a truth). But she sailed onward, regardless, and in her head sprung the workings of idle thought: if there were some foolproof way to ensure safe and controlled flight for a human. Her fingers rubbed the swirled carvings on her staff.
As if on cue, a bird flew overheard, screeching into the sun. Pausing, her hand flew up to cover her brown-grey eyes as she stared after him. Thought broken and fled, she stood staring after the bird, caught in that flicker of majesty and feathers. Suddenly, a tune caught her ear. It was happy and jaunty and melodramatic and a million other tunes all played one after the other in a nonsensical fashion. It was charming. Smile widening, Virali lifted a flap on the side of her pack. A long wooden flute slid into her waiting hand and she turned towards that sound. Now that her ears were attuned, the sounds of movement, rustling through snow, the thin breathing of the pipe-player, even a small accompanying voice all surrounded Virali. Strides lengthening (as much as they could, that is. Virali was, after all, quite short), the distance between them closed and she put lips to flute and blew a trill of notes at the other player as if to say Hello, friend musician.
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Posted: Fri Jul 26, 2013 7:02 pm
The answer she got back was not quite as eloquent. Terrowin was not as adept at paying attention to what he was doing, and aside from the obvious sounds of humanity, he was often not terribly aware of someone approaching. Which, as one might guess, did not do much for his rather nervous disposition. So when he heard a second flute playing, his own music drew to a sudden halt with an unfortunate 'hronk'.
"What is it? Who is it? What's going on?"
"A person, I don't know,and I don't know? Shush." He flapped a hand at the small Plague, shooing her back into his pack. With a tiny huff she slid off of his shoulder, though her eyes could still be seen peeking over the edge of his shoulder. Terrowin, clinging to the pipe with white-knuckled hands, turned around slowly, as if he were afraid to face whoever was behind him.
And, let's be honest, he mostly was.
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Posted: Fri Jul 26, 2013 7:47 pm
Virali stifled a laugh at the ungainly noise. It was inelegant and likely suited the man in front of her more than the previous music. He was tall, which was normal to her, being after, quote short. But he also had a flaming head or unkempt hair, tendrils stuck up this way and that, giving him an even more startled appearance. All of this she saw as she hurried towards him. But his frightened mien slowed her steps and she stopped, green sash fluttering out around her.
"Hello! I-I'm sorry. Did I frighten you?" She walked the last few feet towards him gracefully, body swaying like the breeze. Her staff clicked against rocks and hard ground, the yellow silk wrapped 'round the top trailing a bit, catching the pale light of the sun and daring it top be as bright. "You just played so nice and freely..." Virali shook back her dark hair and held up her flute buy way of explanation.
"It's rare to find a good musician. I'm Virali."
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Posted: Fri Jul 26, 2013 8:10 pm
He seemed to relax marginally when he saw who was behind him, though he tensed up once again when he heard the quiet hiss of "Mage!" from behind him, followed by some rustling in his pack. He glanced back quickly with a frown, though his attention snapped back quickly to the woman in front of him when she spoke.
"Oh. Um...." And once again he glanced around, though it was rather aimless this time, as if he would be able to spot the correct answer somewhere in their surroundings. "No? No." It was pretty obvious that the answer was 'yes', though. "Ah. Hah. Yes, um, thank you? I'm Terrowin..." This seemed to exhaust his small pool of conversational ability for the moment, leaving him just standing there holding his pipe and listening to the sounds of Tiffan trying to work her way through the contents of his pack. Goodness.
Tiffan was thinking too much to pay much attention to what Terrowin was saying, however. Did she come to get her? Had she followed her from Anica? What were the odds of running into a mage in the middle of nowhere? After a few moments of searching, she managed to find one of the tiny holes in the seam of the pack and peered through it, though she found that she was looking in the wrong direction. Curses.
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Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2013 9:17 am
Virali's smile faltered a bit, dimming against Terrowin's overwhelming uncertainty. The man was stranger than strange; maybe she shouldn't have talked to him. But Virali was, at heart, a desperately social creature, and not many traveled along this road, much less those with an ear for wind instruments. Despite his height, looking into his face was easy; he was slumped and looked as though he might bolt at any loud noise. She firmly fixed her smile back on, curved lips, the tiniest flash of teeth. Stop pestering, child, the cracked and rusty voice of her stodgey mentor ran through her head. You never know when to quit, girl.
Her smile grew brighter in an attempt to seem even more harmless. Although, with her diminutive height, it was a wonder how anyone could be threatened by her. "Terrowin." What an odd name. It fit him, as long and gangly on the tongue as the man himself. "It's rare for me to meet a musician along the road. I travel quite often, and I'm afraid I've become quite rusty in playing." She stumbled a little over her words, vaguely alarmed at how they rushed from betwixt her teeth to fill the silence. Even the birds tittered at their exchange. "Ah, I was wondering if you might enjoy playing together a bit... That is, it -" Virali trailed off, round eyes staring at the bit of his pack that she could see. Her mouth parted a bit in surprise, smile momentarily forgotten.
"Why is your pack moving?"
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Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2013 4:41 pm
It certainly did seem as if he would just turn around and book it at any second, he hadn't let g of his death grip on the pipe and he continued to glance around, as if expecting someone or something to jump out from behind a tree. And while he did seem to exists in a perpetual state of surprise, he did seem to be honestly shocked by her request. Goodness, it wasn't very often that anyone ever asked him to play anything in any situation, let alone offering to join him
"Oh! Ah, yes, I..." And then that nice happy moment ended. A rather strained smile forced its way onto his face at the mention of his pack, and he glance back at it nervously. "Hahaha, is it moving? It shouldn't be moving, why would it be moving?"
And, right on cue, the rustling in in stopped, though a tiny pair of red eyes had appeared underneath the top flap of the pack and stared intently over Terrowin's shoulder at Virali.
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Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2013 5:47 pm
It was almost cute how he continued to deny what was happened right before their collective eyes. Her mouth quirked a bit as he spoke and she absently twirled the fabric on the end of her staff. The silk was cool and light around her fingers. Then, the odd noises and movement suddenly stopped. Two eyes peeked at Virali over his shoulder and she let out a squeak of surprise.
"Is that... I mean... I haven't seen many. Unless that's a very smart rat... Won't you come out?" she cooed at whatever was hiding under the worn flap. Virali didn't know much about Plagues, but really, what else could it be? If it was a Plague, she wanted to meet it. (Honestly, they were sometimes so cute! Just like miniature humans.) And if it wasn't a plague.... her curiosity was irrevocably piqued and she wanted to see that too! Virali waggled her fingers childishly at the Plague, a feat made difficult by the thin flute still clutched between thumb and forefinger.
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Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2013 6:56 pm
Sometimes denial is all that keeps a person going. The expression on his face slowly changed to one of resignation that spoke of having long ago given up hope of getting out of awkward situations unscathed.
"She, well...I..." He tapped the end of the pipe against his palm a few times before sighing. Tiffan, on the other hand, was having no such reservations about where she wanted this conversation to go. Once Virali spotted her she tried to weasel her way back down into the pack, though she did not get very far as a hand had reached into the pack and gently lifted her out.
"Nononooo, Terrowin, she's a mage!"
"Oh, come on now, she already knows you're here..."
Their conversation went on for a few more moments, their voices dropping in volume to be an unintelligible murmur. But, as a result Tiffan stood (reluctantly) on Terrowin's palm as he held her out towards Virali, though she was giving her a rather skeptical look from the depths of her hood. Terrowin only sighed again and shrugged.
"Sorry, she's a bit...um..shy."
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Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2013 8:05 pm
Suddenly. the embroidery on her sash was very interesting. Transferring her flute to her left hand with her staff, her right hand stroked down the bumps and curves of the threads as they conferred. She couldn't help but steal glances at the tiny red-cloaked figure, though. She was probably no more than four inches high, wrapped in red and vaguely translucent. She was so pretty yet alien it nearly stole Virali's breath. Although she had met a few excitos and stunteds before, they never ceased to amaze her. All strange, yes, but not in an uncomfortable way. Rather, it was like finding a flower one didn't know existed before.
Virali coughed delicately. "It's alright." She looked at the tiny Plague, staring distrustfully at her from the depths of a voluminous hood. "Ah, hello. It's true I am a mage, I'm afraid. But mages can be quite nice, if that's what you're fearing. What's your name? Do you like music, too?" She held out a finger to the plague in a weird gesture of friendship and glanced at Terrowin. "If she doesn't wish to talk to me, it's of course alright." she chuckled a little, more of a puff of air than a laugh. As soon as she locked eyes with the tall man, her stomach growled. Loudly. Virali's dark skin flushed a little in embarrassment.
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Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2013 8:43 pm
Tiffan stared at the proffered finger for a few moments before reaching out and gently patting the tip of it a few times. And then she stood there, mouth pinched into a thin line as she stared up at the woman. They stood in silence for a few moments, Tiffan not wanting to offer up anything, and Terrowin not knowing what so say, but thankfully Virali's stomach cut the silence before it became (more) unbearably awkward.
After another moment of contemplation, Tiffan nudged one of Terrowin's fingers. "There's some rolls in the bag," she said quietly. At his confused look, she frowned and gave him a firmer nudge, jerking her head towards the mage. "They got stuck in the corner underneath the blanket." She didn't feel the need to mention she found them when trying to hide in said bag just minutes earlier.
"Ah! Right, um..." A moment of fumbling around later found Tiffan deposited onto his shoulder, still regarding Virali seriously as he dug through the bag. "My name is Tiffan."
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Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2013 9:34 pm
Deciding to ignore her embarrassment, Virali smiled and dipped a bow towards the minuscule girl. "Well met, Tiffan." She shuffled a few things around and stowed her flute away from now. Pulling her long braid over her shoulder, she toyed with then end, the nervous motion a testament to her discomfit over such loud growls. In a way, it was astonishing, really, that such noises could come from the stomach of such a small woman.
"Ah, actually, I believe I have some cheese and dried fruit in my pack, if you would like to share a full repast?" She bashfully ducked her head as she spoke, eyes lingering over Tiffan. Virali inhaled noisily and decided to just run with the subject. Terrowin didn't seem the type to be the first to suggest anything at all. Careful, girl. Stop being so pushy. "Follow me; I passed the most beautiful clearing just a minute ago. It would be a perfect lunching spot!" And with that, she smiled playfully and turned, braid flicking out behind her. Mayhap they would play together after lunch.
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Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2013 10:18 pm
Tiffan seemed at bit flummoxed at the rather formal greeting she received, though she managed a quick curtsey back. Though she had just met him, Virali did seem to have quite a good grasp on Terrowin. Her offer caught him in the middle of pulling said rolls out of his pack, his expression suggesting that this offer had taken him just as by surprise as her previous one of playing together had.
Thankfully, Tiffan was becoming well-versed in the ways of her Grimm, and was quick to speak up. "That would be nice, right?" she said, nudging him yet again.
"Oh, right, um yes!" And with another nudge from the Plague on his shoulder he took a few hesitant steps in Virali's direction. And perhaps it was for the best that Tiffan seemed to be stepping up, because Terrowin seemed completely lost.
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Posted: Sun Jul 28, 2013 8:24 am
The clearing was small but easily accessible. A large flat rock nest dominated the center and Virali hopped up, briefly balancing with an easy grace. Propping her staff against the rock, she sat, the rock cool and hard against her and shivered as Terrowin approached. His bumbling reactions had gone from vaguely frustrating to interesting, and Tiffan... maybe the small Plague was afraid of magic? Scuffing her boot against the ground, she smiled up and up at Terrowin's lanky self. Virali was unguarded around people. Open as a summer breeze, she had never found a good enough reason to change herself.
Shrugging off her pack, she rummaged around and pulled out the cheese and dried fruit. To be fair, the fruit was more like leather now; it was actually quite old, but had not developed any mold or odd spots, so Virali assumed it was fine. If it wasn't, it wasn't, and she would deal with that later. "Sit," she called out to him, tapping the space next to her. She wrapped the cheese, the scent of cranberries and nutmeg piercing her nostrils. This was her favorite cheese, and she happily shared it. "Is there anywhere in particular you're going, fellow traveler?"
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