Welcome to Gaia! ::

Eresin held Peco close in one arm, and his staff in the other. He found himself getting more and more anxious as he neared the outskirts of Oba. The buildings became more and more scarce, decreased in height and the once loud city was rather quiet. He couldn't help but be a bit paranoid. Even though his parents tied up those crooks that attacked him in the stall, he couldn't help but feel like there were more guys in his group that were ready to jump out at him. I honestly don't know if I would be able to handle round two... Not with the way I'm feeling now... With that thought, he touched the bruise on his face. It stung at the touch of his soft finger, even through the clear hardened salve, and he winced. Yep. Still hurts a ton. Peco cooed and looked up at him with sleepy eyes. "Shh, go back to sleep buddy... We're almost there." Peco rustled in his arms and made himself comfortable once more.

Almost there... Eresin thought to himself. Talisia would surely think him weak if she saw him in his current state. She might just leave him behind, but then again who knows? Either way, he started his journey, and with or without her, he needed to go see his uncle. Eresin stopped for a moment to rest his bruised legs. He looked around at the area. He was in the outskirts already, and didn't even realize it. His thoughts caused him to not even pay attention to where he was going. Peco stirred from his sleep once more and started going crazy, trying to wiggle free from Eresin's arms. "Peco? Whats wrong?!" Peco managed to free himself and ran towards some nearby brush. "Peco! No, it's dangerous!"

Eresin sighed and ran after him. Hopefully he was okay, but what caused him to freak out? I guess I have to get to him then find out... Eresin entered the brush and hoped to the Almighty that there was no danger.

Eresin panted as he came into the clearing. His gaze met Talisia's and as he examined her soft features, he saw her kiss her kinfa. He met her glance and nodded his head at her question. "Yes... I just... There was a fight yesterday..." His voice trailed off and he looked away from her. He didn't want to tell her who the men were. He didn't want to dissuade her from letting him tag along by telling her something that might set her on edge. He also didn't want to give her the idea that he was weak. After all, it was only two guys that he fought. Talisia could've probably handled those guys again easily, and from the looks of it when she came to his stall, she definitely fought more of them at the time. I guess the other guys didn't want to mess with her anymore. Smart men. Then again, it was all speculation; who knows how many there were when she fought them.

Eresin looked around, suddenly realizing that there was a Raptrix and a few other exotic beasts with them. He looked back at Talisia and smiled. "When you said I had to meet your companions, I didn't know they would all be beasts." He waved at the Raptrix and smiled at it too. "I hope they won't mind me..." He said as he shied away from the Xaaran.

Eresin started to walk with Talisia, staying a few feet next to her, not saying much. After a while of walking, Eresin couldn't help but want to tell her about the fight. She should know... They were looking for her after all... The trick was getting to that point in a conversation without offending her. "Hey, um... I wanted to ask you something.... What's it like to be a hybrid...? Is it always so dangerous? I mean... I don't want to offend you, so you really don't have to answer the question.. I was just curious since you seem to be really popular among bad people..."

He paused for a moment then continued. "The only reason I ask is because, well... The fight I had... Two guys tried to get information on your whereabouts... I refused to tell them so they attacked me. They said they saw us together apparently. I guess I got lucky because I managed to get one of them to knock out the other and I took care of the other guy." As Eresin described the fight, he found his grip on his staff getting tighter, and his knuckles turned white.

"I just... I didn't want them to find you so I had to fight. I didn't want them to hurt you..." He wiped his face from the tear he shed as he continued to walk. "Agh, I'm sorry. I don't know why I'm so emotional. I won't bother you with these trivialities anymore..." He picked up pace and started to walk a bit ahead of Talisia, with Peco running after him and cooing. Damn... What's wrong with me?

Something about the image of Talisia nonchalantly burning a building down for the sake of other hybrids seemed to be normal to him. Her sarcasm and wit were just part of who she was, and that didn't bother him one bit. Intellectually, being witty was actually really useful in a lot of situations. It made one crafty and very self reliant, so as much as Eresin would have wanted in his visions of grandeur to be the kind of guy who rescued damsels in distress with his magic, it would seem that that opportunity would not present itself to him when it came to Talisia. Well that, and she already has a bunch of animal friends to help her. I guess the only person I'll be rescuing is myself. He smiled in the inside and thought to himself that he would like to think he helped her in some way anyway in keeping those thugs away from her. She did, after all, just give him praise for it.

"Proud...? Of me?" Eresin blushed a little. "Heh, thanks..." He rubbed the back of his head in a goofy manner. He didn't realize he was smiling until he smiled so wide, his bruise started shooting pain in his cheek. Then he quickly stopped smiling and rubbed his cheek. Ouch. At that moment, he caught Talisia's glance, the look that someone gives when there's something on their mind that they want to say or ask. Eresin was always good at reading people in these kinds of situations. He turned his head to her and cocked his head slightly.

"What's on your mind...?"

Talisia's reaction caused him to raise an eyebrow. As she ran ahead of him he couldn't help but wonder what was on her mind. Eresin looked at the Raptrix and put his hands up and shrugged at him. I do intend to find out though. He picked up pace to catch up with her, and when he was walking next to her, he didn't look at her, as to not dissuade her from telling him. I know sometimes when I wanted to say something difficult to say to my parents, I wouldn't make eye contact...

After a moment of silence, Eresin started to speak, being careful not to look her in the eye still."You know, if something is bothering you, you have to tell me as well. It's a part of looking out for each other." He looked at her in the corner of his eye and showed the faintest of smiles. "You can tell me anything, but I won't force you. Just know that I'm here." He continued to walk, looking around nonchalantly at the trees around them. Surely she'll come around eventually. Eresin couldn't help but wonder who it was that she was looking for in Jauhar. Perhaps after finding his uncle, he could help her find whoever it was she was looking for too.

Eresin found himself standing next to a river with some containers to fill them with. For some reason, he had zoned out for what seemed like a few seconds to him. When he came to, he had a sudden realization that he was no longer with his parents, safely travelling in a cart with goods to trade into some large city where they would stay a while. It only seemed like a few hours ago that he left his tent for the last time, and started his journey to become a mage. Speaking of which, I wonder how my mom and dad are doing without me... Mom must be heartbroken... A tear came into his eye. He couldn't help wanting to leave, but at the same time, he never wanted to hurt them. He just wanted to do his own thing. Surely, that wasn't so bad, right? He figured everyone had to leave their parents eventually. Why shouldn't he be able to now?

Eresin wiped his eyes, and sat down in the grass right next to the river. It was a calm river, softly rolling by with trickling noises, the kind that soothed a troubled mind. He curled up and put his head on his knees. I didn't think I would miss them so soon. He stared at the running waters for a while, thinking of a way to let them know he's okay. He could send them a letter or something, but he was a little stingy about paying someone money to deliver a letter for him. I do have a limited amount of money to go with, and I would rather not use it unless it was an emergency... He decided that the letter would have to wait. His journey had only barely started anyway, so there probably was no point in writing back so soon, even if it might put his mother's conscience at ease.

Peco cooed at him from his side and nudged his leg. Ah, yeah... I should be getting back soon. He collected water in the containers, and sealed them up tightly, then put them in his pouch. "You're getting much bigger Peco," Eresin pointed out as Peco sat on his head. "Soon you'll be carrying me, right?" He teased, and Peco squawked and rustled his hair as he chuckled.

Eresin found his way back to camp safely. He crossed through some brush and looked at the fresh campsite. "Sorry I took so long." He didn't provide any information on why he did, but he accidentally stopped short, as if he had something else to say as a follow up. He hoped Talisia didn't notice. He handed her one of the water containers and sat down on a log.

"We're getting close to Jauhar now, right?" Eresin was eager to meet his uncle Nerio after so long. He wondered what training as a mage would actually be like. He knew there were dangers in being a mage, but the past few days had made him feel capable to handle the situation. He only hoped he would live up to Nerio's expectations.

Eresin smiled back at Talisia. "Letting go of what I left behind, huh?" Letting go was what he was trying his best to do. He did worry about his parents, but they would surely be fine without him. All he had left to do was convince himself of that fact and focus on what was going to happen in his near future. He was a mage, and he was going to hone his skills so he could learn the wonders of the world and protect those he cared for. But I won't be able to protect anyhting if I don't learn magic first. "Alright!" He stood up all dramatically and struck a heroic pose with his staff, pointing it in the air. "From this moment forward, I'll focus on what we set out to do. We can do this." Peco puffed out his chest and jumped on Eresin's head, causing him to lose balance and fall over. The two of them went down in a mix of "Squawk"s and "Whoa!"s. When the dust settled, Eresin laughed for a good few moments.

He sat up and looked at the fire. "You know, I don't think I could have made this journey, or even have started it for that matter, if it weren't for your help. I never thanked you." He looked into her eyes and smiled warmly. "So... Thanks." He let the words linger in the air for a bit, not really minding the fact that he had just been truly open to Talisia for the first time, as if they were really close friends. It didn't feel awkward, nor uncomfortable. It actually felt pretty good. He only hoped that maybe someday, she would be that open with him. He certainly wouldn't mind being close friends with her. She was reliable, strong, and good hearted, despite her prickly exterior sometimes. Well, that's certainly something to look forward to.

Eresin laid down and put his arms behind his head, ready to rest for a while, until they were ready to head out once again to complete their journey to Jauhar. He didn't sleep just yet, but he would soon drift asleep had nothing else arose from their conversation.