Welcome to Gaia! ::

"Teacher Keke! Teacher Keke! Look what I found!"

Kekeovonnai loped over to where his orakoi student bounced excitedly.

"That is a bone." Kekeovonnai nudged the object it with a claw, "From some sort of animal, I think!" There was only one and, though he could identify some Malro desert animals by skeleton, he definitely couldn't do it from one bone.

"What kind of animal, teacher Keke?" asked the orakoi. The other members of the small class group came, curiously, to join them.

"Well, kit, why don't you all look around. Lets put this puzzle together, shall we?" The little ones laughed and began to play the newly dubbed 'lets find the bones for teacher Keke' game. Keke grinned. He was getting better at teaching and, better yet, at making his teaching fun, at least for now. He hoped they would be as interested when he identified and told them all about whatever it was. Not likely, since even the most strong-willed khehora could be bored by the sheer depth of the knowledge that Kekeovonnai was willing to share. Of course, Keke didn't think so. Everything was so interesting – he loved to learn, and surely they would be as interested as he, if he only explained it right.

These children were not the strongest willed, but they did like him. He never shouted and, when he managed to make his classes interesting, they were really interesting. This class of four had been very especially good (and had wanted to go), so he had taken them on a little journey to the desert, to a safe-ish territory of a nomadic kiandri khehora clan that his father's tribe knew. They were just beyond the Terra Expanse, far enough to experience the Malro desert, but close enough to find their way back homewards later.

By this point, the youngsters had built up a little pile of bones and stuff that they had found, and more were being found, announced by excited yelps and the pounding of claws in sand as the object was retrieved and put into the pile, to await teacher Keke's analysis. That was the game, after all - see if Kekeovonnai could ID this.

One of the little ones, a brown orakoi with bright green markings like his own father's, stood on their hind legs, staring out into the vast and flat Malro horizon. "Teacher Keke?" she asked, cocking her head curiously, "What's that?"

Kekeovonnai looked to where she was looking. A haze dyed the clear blue sky in the distance a muddy amber, and Keke could almost swear that it was moving. He reared on his own hind legs and squinted. For a moment, he felt his heart beat in double time.

He knew what that haze was.

It was a sandstorm.

"Teacher Keke?" asked one of the little ones, looking at him curiously. Kekeovonnai rarely looked worried, certainly not this kind of worried, and his students were each starting to notice, save the two who had started digging at a particularly interesting object.

"All right, all four of you." said Kekeovonnai, trying to not let any stress enter his voice, "Get behind me." Sandstorms were not good. He could survive them, easily, but if one of the little ones was out and unprotected, they could be injured or, worse, lost in the hurtling sand.

He caught a strange movement out of the corner of his eye, and he turned, squinting. For a moment his eyes were confused, but he began to make out a two legged form. A Magescian?! he moved warily towards his students, looking this one up and down. She (she?) was dressed in soft sandy tones, cloaked and protected against the desert sun. Kekeovonnai had seen clothes before - some of the Khehorians did wear clothes, and he had at least heard of the strange coverings that the magescans used. He'd never actually seen one up close, but he wasn't about to ask why she bothered to cover herself. That was a thing they did.

He had never thought that cloth could be used to become a part of the desert. That was so... practical! And interesting! He wanted to know more, but he could feel the wind picking up.

"Under my wings, everybody." he said, lifting his wings to allow his student's access. He was not a fighter, but he was sturdy enough to protect them, and his Gaili magic would help. He looked back at the magescian and inclined his head. If he gave this one shelter, maybe she would tell him about those interesting clothes. Were they hunting, perhaps? He lifted a wingtip a bit higher. "You too?" he had to raise his voice a little over the hissing of moving sand - it was almost upon them.

Keke kept low, but he tried to keep his wings and bulk mainly over the little ones. He moved a claw to reinforce the hold of the dagger on the canvas. What a remarkable idea, again. Cloth was so versatile, he almost couldn't believe it. It was so flimsy, and yet it was effective.

"Yes." he agreed, making a headcount. All of his students were there - very good. He listened to the sandstorm outside as it battered the canvas. It was large, but so was he, and he realized that he was actually too big - he was taking up air and space that the others would need.

"You didn't need to cover me.” he said neutrally, ”I could have held off the sandstorm with my magic and my bulk. Thank you, though...” he peered at her, intrigued, “Where did you learn such a useful trick, Orderite?"

A few of his students nuzzled up to Xenosa in the cramped tent, nervous from the roaring noise, but not close enough to Kekeovonnai to huddle to him. They found her soft and warm and oddly comforting, chirping slightly as they sought some comfort.

Kekeovonnai crooned softly to them. "It's all right. It will pass." he said, finding it adorable how they reacted to a magescian.

Many of them... he realized, had never seen one before... Keke found that odd, especially considering how many of the twolegs he had met when he was their age...

"Kekeovonnai..." he offered, his bright, green eyes glittering at the mouthful of a name, "Most call me..."

"Teacher Keke!" offered one of his students, apparently quite taken with Xenosa's hair.

Keke rumbled a laugh. "Yes. My parents and siblings often call me Keke. I agree. Better safe than sorry..." especially with children. As he thought about it, the happier he was that he hadn't had to try to protect them all with his magic. He was no magical weakling, but this sort of extended protection would have been... difficult.

"Xen-o-sa..." he murmured, experimenting with the name. It felt familiar as, oddly enough, did her scent and face. But he could not quite place it. "All right, children, share your names..." That was the polite two-legger custom, correct?

A few were too afraid to share their names, quieted by the sandstorm, but most happily did so, delighted by the novelty of it all. Teacher Keke's trips were always the best! One shy one whispered her name in Xenosa's ear before hiding back around the Orderite's legs.

"Does your name..." he asked, unable to help himself - he was as insatiably curious as any of his students - "Mean anything? In the Orderite language?"

The shy Orakoir seemed pleased at Xenosa's answer and purred softly as her classmates stopped wiggling and found comfortable spots around - and on top of - each other.

That was interesting. She felt she knew him, and he felt he knew her. Was it fate, then, that had coaxed them together? The thought was strange, but not absurd. He had heard of a seer around Ayr who could see the future, so he could believe that such things could happen. But, perhaps he had met her before? Long ago? Hmm...

Keke watched as the student stopped playing with Xenosa's hair to nose at her clothes. Hair was interesting. His own father had it, as did many khehorians. Hers was a lovely, bright shade of red, and so long. He wanted to nose at it, just to see what it felt like.

"Stranger..." he hmmmed thoughtfully, "That's certainly an interesting name, then. I wonder... mmm..." he stopped himself before he wondered out loud why a parent would name their child that - why any parent should think their child a stranger to them. It boded ill for the Orderite's family situation. He wanted to ask - he was always full of questions - but he wasn't sure how to yet.

"As for mine... My father named me out of complete whimsy!" he said, smiling, "It means something along the lines of Wild-winds-playing-over-ice-borne-waters. But I am a Gaili, not a Peisio, and I cannot heal like the lake that is my namesake – Vonafiel. Not even a little." he chuckled, a rumble echoing the sandstorm outside, "My father had strange tastes."

Oblivion had strange tastes in... everything, actually.

He could resist no longer. "Do you feel you were well-named, Xenosa?" he asked, curiously.

Keke knew when to drop a subject - after years of dealing with the complexities of his father's mate situation, he knew topics that shouldn't be broached.

"I teach whatever needs to be taught to the young ones of today, so they can grow up to be wise and intelligent khehora of tomorrow." he said proudly, obviously pleased with himself and proud of what he did. "I teach them about our history, magic, and how to think with more than just their claws and stomachs." he winked at one of the younglings, who chirped, giggling. "And how to survive in the desert." he bowed his head to Xenosa, "When it comes to that." she had helped with his lesson quite... nicely. And safely.

"We're from the Terra Expanse, and this group has been particularly well behaved...” he cooed at them with achknowledging pleasure, ”so, we are exploring the desert for a few days." he beamed, a khehora smile with teeth revealed, but not fully, "We just started our trip today!" and already look at the exciting things they found! A pile of bones and a magescian who was willing to talk to them.

"Really? I thought Magescians valued education..." It was clear that, despite the vague insult in the words, Keke meant nothing of the sort. His eyes reflected curious regard on her in the dim, sickly light that seeped through the cloth of the cape. "But perhaps you couldn't afford it. I hear that there is a thing called 'money' and that it is used for all sorts of things..." Which was about all he really understood on the subject. Money was a thing that made other things happen, some sort of extension of bartering. He could understand, somewhat. "Though why education should require bartering, I'm not sure I understand..."

It was a strange concept, that any child should be unable to learn all that they needed to. "Actually, it's great timing. If they are to travel in the desert, they will need to learn about sandstorms and their dangers. Best that they do so in a group with a larger Gaili and an experienced traveller then on their own in the wilderness..." he nudged one of the more overenthusiastic youngsters back towards the center, "Actually, along those lines, I wonder if you wouldn't mind us travelling with you, at least as far as the Taliuma outlands..." Taliuma was not a place he had actually been to, but it was someplace he longed to explore. A port town, full of magescans and bonded, and things to bring home and investigate. It was curious, though, the way she spoke of it. As if she didn't want to go home... It reminded him of Vazarri, long ago on their adventure into Soldul. "I assume you will be taking a... boat... to Serenia?"

"Whats a boat?" piped up a student, wiggling until they could look between Keke and Xenosa at will, "Is it a tail?"

"No. That is a 'butt.' A boat is how magescans travel on the water. It floats, and the wind blows it..."

"That's confusing. Why can't they just swim? Or fly?"

"It's a little far to swim, my dear." murmured Keke, "And if they flew that long, they would tire." Which made sense, from what his father had told him anyway.

"You don't have a tail?!" squeaked the Orakoir, batting his nose where she had bopped it, "Why don't you fall down, then?"

"Because they have other ways of keeping their balance." explained Keke, "One of the great mysteries of the universe." It was, he thought, a good joke.

"Boring. I don't like mysteries. I want answers!" The little one sniffed Xenosa, but she was no longer as interesting as she had been when she had first made her tent. It made a funny face at being bopped and curled up slightly closer to Keke, rolling boredly around in the sand.

"Some answers haven't been found yet" commented Keke, "But eventually they will be!" And maybe he would be the one to find them. The gleam of his eyes fell on Xenosa again. "So. A noble. What is that?" he asked, "Does it have to do with this money? Or does it have to do with power or rank, like a Khehorian?"

His papa had no money, but magescans were different, and Keke wanted to learn more while he had one here and the sandstorm still raged outside. After the sandstorm, though... ”Oh, excellent!” he said joyfully, ”An impromptu extra field trip!” he crooned to his class, ”You four will have such a great oppurtunity to see what a magescian city looks like!” from a distance, of course, ”And... a boat!”