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 Posted: Tue Sep 14, 2021 7:06 pm
It was hard to believe that this was happening! In a flash, Imara Mason had been given a chance to do what she loved: explore and write. Overwhelmed wasn't even the beginning of what she felt. Every emotion under the sun had been bubbling up inside of her since she had left the initial meeting and discussed the first article they hoped she'd provide. Top Ten Attractions in Mayet. Normally Imara focused on one space or adventure at a time so lumping in a general overview of ten was a bit, daunting. Of course she had hit Feather of Ma'at and The Eye Ferris Wheel. The Etoile Observatory and Fairy Gardens were on her list as well. They were the main highlights people thought of when asked. But with the weather today being as wet as it was, Imara had decided to look into an indoor activity. That was how she had ended up at the aquarium sitting on one of the provided platforms in the darkened room and gazing up at the floor to ceiling glass seperating the shark tank from everyone else. "I wonder how thick that is." She mused, smiling to herself as a hammerhead went by.
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Posted: Tue Sep 14, 2021 7:17 pm
“Almost three feet…” came a distracted reply, the sound of pencil scratching against paper following as the young man sketched out a curving shape and then smudged with the tip of his finger. “Acrylic I think… “ He added a moment later before realizing it seemed, that he’d replied to a question, not strictly directed at him. He cleared his throat, glancing around for something else to focus on, the quiet shuffle of other people moving through to explore more the tanks or to get better views of the other inhabitants of the tank. Finally, he surrendered and mumbled. “… They uh…tell you on one of the tours…” He added, before clearing his throat like the action could chase away some of the embarrassment of addressing a stranger so casually.
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Posted: Tue Sep 14, 2021 7:44 pm
Voices were muttering through the observation area in such a way that picking up on one should have been challenging unless that voice was directed at the person. That was why Imara was able to turn slightly to look at what had been the source of her 'answer'. Her first thoughts were that he seemed almost petite, accented in the way he was sketching the fish before him. What appeared to be a sun-kissed tan graced his skin making that thick, blue hair stand out even more. As she watched him attempt to deflect the idea of answering her, Imara took a guess that he might even better versed than most of the tour guides for the aquarium. It was for the sake of her new job that she picked up her own notebook and moved towards the man. A tour? She'd considered but they had been full for the next two hours. Not wanting to waste the time, she had considered doubling back but... "This seat taken?" She asked, motioning to an open area near him but far enough to not over crowd and allow him a personable bubble.
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Posted: Tue Sep 14, 2021 7:56 pm
“Not… per se…” He said awkwardly. “I’m uh… just here sketching the sharks.” He added, as though that were potentially the least interesting thing he could be doing, and as though that, in turn, were a warning that he was dull and perhaps not worthy of sitting near. “If you want to see them fed, you get a better view at the uh… the wall tank… you can see the divers without it being broken up to these smaller views.” He added. “But You’d want to grab a seat early, the seats near the front get taken quickly.” He added He shifted slightly, the sketchpad balanced like a shield, soft blue-grey paper marked by thick charcoal lines and smudges of white, much like his hand, especially near the wrist which was a smudge of black edging up towards his pinky finger.
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Posted: Tue Sep 14, 2021 8:10 pm
It was strange to see something react this terrified of her when she had done nothing more than try to be polite. Maybe she should have plastered on her work face smile and gone for the 'how can I help you' route. Still, to try and make him more comfortable, she turned her eyes not towards him but towards the tank. Talking didn't mean you had to be looking at each other and the last thing she wanted to do was make him ill. "I don't bite." She picked up her own notebook and wrote down what he had said about the glass and the viewing for the feeding. "At least not like our friends where do." Placing her notebook between them, she pushed it over slightly so he could see she wasn't lying. "I'm working on an article and the tours were booked. You seem to know a few things."
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Posted: Wed Sep 15, 2021 1:15 pm
He gave a small huff and turned away from both her and the tank for a moment, a touch like a moderately offended hedgehog.
“I wasn’t… I wasn’t worried about you biting.” He huffed, feeling the embarrassed warmth in his face.
He did glance back and gave a quick peer over the notebook before lifting his eyes back to her and taking her in as well. The butt of his pencil tapping against his notebook for a moment before he turned back to it and jotted down…something.
It might be handwriting? … it might also be some form of alchemical formula it was so… well.. it was bad, unlike the drawing which, while made of quick lines and smudges, captured movement and almost a sense of detail… the implications of patterns on the skin of the hammerhead that had been favoring this area.
“The tours fill up early when it’s going to be rainy, it’s … funny, you’d think people who were trying to avoid water might go to the movies or something but, people even call ahead to make plans… aquarium and dinner. “
He rambled, and he knew it.
He sketched out the form of a ray that was drifting past, momentarily lost in the project of illustrating the curve of its ‘wing’ before it seemed to occur to him that there should probably be something more to this.
“….”
He glanced at her
“…Do you need a tour?”
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Posted: Wed Sep 15, 2021 2:20 pm
It might not have been nice to smile but it just happened naturally as she watched the fish go by and scatter as the ray 'flew' through. A scene that just soothed your soul if you allowed it. In a very short amount of time, Imara had already discovered that not saying anything herself was the fastest way to get him to talk. Sitting there listening, she understood what he was talking about. Dinner. Date. Fish. How many people had sushi after this? Picking up her own notebook, she jotted down that idea as a recommendation to make an evening of it, rainy day or not. Also, a note to plan ahead if you wanted more than just to wander around. When he fell silent again, she stole a quick glance in his direction before looking back at the tank just in time for him to ask. "That depends," Imara offered softly. "Are you going to attempt to throw me into the shark tank?"
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Posted: Wed Sep 15, 2021 2:58 pm
“I don’t have access to the staff areas, and you’re taller than me among other things, I’d have to ask someone else to do the dirty work.”
He replied deadpan, it was something more about his expression than anything else that gave sign that he was joking.
“Should I take that as a yes? You can… swim with them by the way, but that’s at least a month in advance for scheduling.”
He stood and started gathering his things, pulling up a well worn messenger bag and starting to tuck art supplies into it before absently searching for a cloth to wipe his well smudged hand off on.
“…. My name is Zac.”
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Posted: Mon Sep 27, 2021 2:29 pm
To an untrained eye, such a comment might have had them running for the hills, or at least a security guard. Imara had eyes trained for the slightest movement and in that second, she watched the muscles in his face only to smile again. Something in his eyes gave away that he wasn't being serious at that moment. "I think I'll pass on attempting to swim in the tank." Imara shrugged, glancing back as a Silver Tipped Shark swam close to the glass. "Well-fed or not, they are still wild animals. If I take my chances, I'll do it out on a reef instead of where half the world could see me." She was leaning forward when the sounds of him gathering things drew her attention back between them. Rising herself, she offered a hand to him. "Imara." She didn't care about the smudge of the drawing material. It wasn't blood after all.
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Posted: Mon Sep 27, 2021 7:08 pm
He made a small hmm sound of affirmation for her choices, though remained thoughtful for a moment before glancing towards her and adding. “Everything I’ve read suggests that we do not taste very good and that most bites are more curiosity.” He decided the increased number of Great Whites jumping clear of the water in certain parts of Australia was probably not the best continuation of the conversation though, as he considered her hand a moment before taking it and giving it a firm shake. “Where would you like to start?”
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Posted: Wed Sep 29, 2021 6:37 pm
"I also have read that scientists suggest most attacks are either because they think we are a seal or something else by mistake or because a human did something to upset them." There was a small shrug in her shoulders as she nodded towards him, in a way trying to make sure he didn't think she was a complete idiot in the world of animals. Though she had no intention of sharing with him just why she had a basic understanding of most. Had this been a zoo, might have changed roles. "And wherever you would like to start, Zac. I'm the one interrupting your day after all because I didn't plan ahead for a rainy day and a deadline." That was going to take some getting used to. Writing for yourself was one thing. Writing for a paycheck? Here went nothing. "But so you know, what I'm writing about is more the experience here than anything. Top ten places not to miss in Mayet." She offered, lifting up her notebook with a shrug. "So don't worry about all the animal information though that is a very different discussion we could have like..." Glancing back at the shark tank, Imara smiled. "The Manta-Ray that is going by is often confused with the Devil Ray but the difference is the wings. All 7ft of them."
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Posted: Wed Sep 29, 2021 8:19 pm
He nodded, looking perhaps a little surprised but also very pleased to exchange facts. “Someday, I’d rather like to see an actual Devil Ray, I think it would be breathtaking.” He almost added that He’d like a tattoo of one, one day, but the one he had was enough for now. “Um… if the top places not to miss is something to include families, then they do a special tour that is focused on kids, so they learn more about protecting the oceans, but if they are older, sometimes they do a combined ticket offer where you can pick the Wax Museum or the Eye….” he hesitated and then added. “You, probably knew that.”
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Posted: Wed Sep 29, 2021 8:34 pm
Hey, she wasn't all muscle and bad attitude. Sometimes Imara might be able to surprise people with her knowledge if given the chance. Yet life had her on the front lines normally. Still, when he mentioned a few recommendations of places, her face shifted and she had to glance back at him. "You know, I completely forgot about the Wax Museum. Did the Eye the other day and I think I must have just glazed over anything else at that moment." For the first time in a while, Imara had to admit she might have been a little embarrassed for not realizing something so...obvious. Running a hand through her hair, she glanced back at the tank to avoid looking him in the eyes as she pulled herself back together. "Things like this make me realize I'm off my game. Normally when I write, I explore things I want, the off the wall, out of the box places no one ever thinks of. So doing something so high profile..." Motioning to the fish, she glanced back at Zac. "It feels a bit forced. I mean I love it here. It's peaceful and calm and you can just get lost in fish and people watching but going in about the tours and the activities and the children's play area..." Taking a deep breath, Imara felt her head shake. "Sorry."
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Posted: Thu Sep 30, 2021 7:05 pm
“N… no that’s fair,” he replied after a moment, glancing down at his feet and considering. “I’m not.. the best at recommending places… but if you stop in… a coffee shop and listen, you’ll probably hear where people plan to go.” He rubbed the back of his neck thoughtfully. “My favorite place is the park… because I enjoy going there to play chess, but that’s not exactly marketable, and… frankly I would rather not suddenly find that my favorite coffee shop is now a popular tourist destination, even if it would help them a lot.” He admitted, knowing even as he said it that it was horribly selfish. “What if you found places that were out of the way, and reviewed the best of them, I think there was a food critic who did that, and it not only made for new and interesting destinations but … it also helped places, people might not have looked twice at.”
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Posted: Sat Oct 02, 2021 4:16 pm
Selfish or not, Imara had to admit she found his honesty in the idea of his park or coffee shop being invaded by tourists to be rather amusing. Lightly laughing as she shook her head, she couldn't help but share the feeling. "I have no intention of ruining the small, cozy feel of some places that are hidden gems. You aren't the only one with favorite out-of-the-way places to hide from the world." "But your idea is what got me into this originally. They liked my pieces of the random hole in the walls around Mayet and asked me to do some on the bigger places. Dive bars. Cafes you would have to follow your nose to find. Hidden restaurants that no one but someone who has been there before. Those are my gems." And she was smiling thinking about it. "As are a few things that most of society may not enjoy. The shooting range has a very...select crowd it gathers." That made her look at him with a shrug. "I apologize. I'm not one to ramble this much but you are very easy to talk to."
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