|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Mon Oct 22, 2012 8:41 pm
Biroki shrunk with embarassment. It wasn't the first time someone had bust out laughing because of something he had said... But he couldn't see what was so funny.
Was it his blabbering? He did get chatty when he got nervous. Which he was now. Though now he was a little annoyed and slightly confused.
He waited, very still, for her to stop laughing. It was odd how she talked... a little to the side of him. He wondered why?
"W-well... They...They're wh-white like the t-teeth of a Radaku... or no, wh-white like a pearl..." Reshel had a beautiful white stone on an amulet. He had been told it was a 'pearl' a stone taken from a creature that lived in the seas. Biroki had never seen the sea, but it was a pretty, milky-white stone.
"It... Its a s-stone from the sea..." He moved a bit to the side and realized that her head... didn't turn to follow him.
What did that mean? He dared to approach a bit closer, quiet now. Still, her head didn't turn.
"H-have you..." He inched a bit closer, "Ever b-been to the sea?"
Her head didn't turn until he spoke and then it snapped to him.
He stopped for a moment.
"A-are..." He hesitated, "Are y-you okay, D-Dyakida?"
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Oct 23, 2012 8:54 pm
"Is that so? No I've never been to the sea... Not really anyway."
Her face took on an expression of consternation. Was he getting closer?
"I did used to live on an Island..." she trailed off into silence, trying to track him.
"Biroki?"
She sat, stock still.
"Yes... I'm okay... What... What do you mean by that?"
She was actually beginning to get nervous. He was closer than before and the curiousity and concern in his voice made her nervous.
"Do you... What are you asking Biroki?"
She frowned darkly.
He probably would find out.
"I am blind, Biroki. That is what is wrong with me." Her voice was more bitter than she had intended and she squashed the rising frustration and bile.
She would be at a disadvantage now, because he would know that she couldn't see.
"Does that..." Her voice was calmer now, falsely calm. "Answer your question?"
She felt a bit braver.
"If you don't mind, would you tell me if you see anything... interesting? I would like to take it home."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Oct 24, 2012 9:11 am
"b-Blind?!"
He felt terrible now. He moved quickly back. That explained a lot of things...
"I-I'm S-s-sorry...!" he stammered, cowering slightly even though he was fairly certain Dyakida wouldn't hurt him and probably wouldn't be able to catch him.
"Imsorryimsorryimsorryididntknow!" he said rapidly, eyes wide and paniced.
She seemed... only momentarily upset.
"Y-yes it answers it... I'm sorry..." he repeated himself again, "I... Yes. Sure. O-of course..." he looked around too quickly, still jumpy.
Something shiny caught his eye, buried in the ashes. soemthing that glinted silver.
"Oh! I... I Ah f-found something..." he said, hesitantly, looking back at her, then back at the shiny object, unsure of what to do. Should he... Take her to it? Or take it to her? Or... Or what?
He had never met anyone who was blind, but so young... Or an Alkidike who was blind for that matter. But he had only met one other Alkidike.
He couldn't help staring at her milky pale eyes. He felt... Sad. and a bit afraid. What if something happened to his own eyes?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Oct 25, 2012 9:59 pm
She had been a bit angry and frustrated, though she had hidden it as she was wont to do.
But that anger slowly subsided as he apologized, replaced with amusement and concern.
"Biroki?" She asked, sitting, "Are you... allright?"
She listened for a moment. Ah. Just flustered. His shaking and panic were sending lots of vibrations through her antennae and hands. It was a bit uncomfortable.
It was both endearing and somewhat annoying. In an endearing way.
"It is all right. Now you know." She hadn't wanted him to know, but could she avoid it? Now she wanted him to calm down a bit so he wouldn't make her dizzy with all of his nervousness.
"oh?"
He had found something? Spotted it, with his working eyes? (she would lie if she didn't admit that the feelings of bitterness that had surfaced had subsided completely)
"Well, where is it?" She paused, "Bring me to it..." she said, trying to sound a bit authoritative.
He was prompt in leading her over. She kneeled down and felt the ground.
"Where...? What is it? Please describe it..."
She must have been feeling in the wrong places, perhaps.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Oct 27, 2012 6:47 pm
"Oh, uh..."
He reached out for her hand to guide it, then drew back. Would it be rude to touch her hand? But he had already brought her here, and it would be ruder to not help her find it...
He gently nudged her hand towards it, feeling very nervous the whole time.
"Its..." he looked closer, glancing at her warily at repeated intervals. Alkidikes scared him, even when they promised not to hurt him.
"I-its a... small silver... thing..." Her fingers touched it and brushed away some of the mud.
"It.. it looks like s-something..." he picked it up and looked at it.
"Oh, uh... Its.. Its a fish. M-made of sh-shiny metal. Its, uh, r-really small..." he placed it in her hand.
"S-see?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 29, 2012 4:26 pm
The metal was cool in the blistering heat as Dyakida felt the object in her hands. It was flat, and its edges were worn, as if by a great deal of weathering. It was grooved with many small inscriptions.
"Scales... you say..."
Ah, there, she could feel the eye of the fish.
"Is it beautiful, Biroki? This fish?"
She felt the tail, the fins... it was indeed small and... ah! there was a place for a clasp.
Clearly, this had once been owned. Perhaps by one of the Alkidikes that used to live in this ruined tree.
The elder had told her that when making a weapon, she must always keep in mind that she was crafting the soul of a warrior. Part of that soul, and part of the reason why weapons were often handed down from teacher to student, was the invokation of the souls of those that had come before.
That is why, Kishku had said, she must make every weapon with love and respect for its purpose and future.
Objects were a piece of that person, and this fish pendant, incorporated into a weapon, would invoke the spirit of its former owner and let them live on.
It was a nice sentiment, anyway.
She almost asked if she could keep it, then remembered that clearly this Biroki was a pushover.
"I'll take it with me." she said, not allowing much room for him to say otherwise.
"Anything else of interest here?" she asked, pocketing the fish pendant.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Nov 01, 2012 5:42 pm
"Oh, uh... Yes... It's a p-pretty little m-metal fish..." he stammered.
When she decided to take it he was part dissappointed... and, for some reason, part relieved.
"Oh. Okay..."
Biroki looked around For anything of interest. Not much today.
"No... oh, uh I m-mean..." He looked around again, a bit more frantically this time.
"N-no..."
He frowned a little. "B-but the edge of Jahuar is o-over a ways th-that way..." He pointed, then remembered she couldn't see him point.
"I... I mean..."
He wasn't sure what to say.
"I bet theres interesting th-things there... I... I'll take you there, okay?"
He watched her, growing more nervous with every second, with every drop of rain from the mild storm brewing above the rainforest.
She nodded her assent, and he gently took her hand and led her along.
He had gotten close to the edge before while foraging, and he remembered finding some interestingly colored stones and shells. It was a bit of a walk.
"S...so..." He felt less comfortable talking to this alkidike even then when he was talking to Briella, "Ha-have..." have you killed before? Have you ever met a man before? Have you always been blind?
All of those were questions he had, and then squashed.
"H-have you ever been to the T-tale before?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Nov 04, 2012 4:41 pm
"No, I haven't..." she said, frowning as she sensed the thinning of the canopy near the edge of Jahuar. Clearings were one thing, but this odd feeling... Of there being LESS of something above her... that was a whole other story entirely. She wasn't sure she liked it, actually.
"I've been in Jahuar and the Chibale Isles my whole life." and she had only ever seen blue trees.
"Have you?" she asked. She doubted the shifter had been anywhere. He seemed too cowardly. She bet he barely left his house.
Ah, rain. It was so pleasant to just tilt one's head up and let it splash on her face. So what if it interfered with her antennae? She could hear it, and if she listened close, she fancied that she could... in some strange way... see.
Not really, but listening to the sounds of the rain as they pattered about her made her feel like she knew what was around her. Each splash was different, a ping here, a chime there...
She was quiet for a moment.
"Do you like rain, Biroki?" she asked, quietly. She didn't really care about getting an answer.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Nov 04, 2012 5:33 pm
"No... B-but I've been to... l-lots of places. In Jahuar. It... its beautiful here." he glanced at her with a panicked expression, "I... I mean..." he wilted slightly, "It... it is."
Way to go, Biroki. Way to remind her that she cannot see.
"S-sorry..." He looked about him.
"w-well, we've reached the edge. There's m-muted sunlight coming through the canopy as it thins out, and it d-drips from the leaves with the rain like water..." Describing was his strong point.
"The soil is still s-soft and glowing, but there are thin sp-spears of dark brown plants interspersed with the m-moss... b-but, uh, I guess you can... feel that..."
He was quiet for a moment, regaining his courage.
"Theres... a red fluttering insect darting between the droplets. It's landed on a small flower on one of the brown p-plants... I've never seen anything like it before, uh... It's petals... Its petals are yellow, like the sun on a h-hot clear day, and are shaped like d-diamonds..."
He looked further out.
"Oh! I... I think I can see the Tale! Its... Its a piece of golden brown beyond the blue of the trees..."
He looked at Dyakida and his nerve faded.
"Uh..." he said, verbally stumbling, "I mean, if you c-care..."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2012 9:35 pm
She could indeed feel the texture of the ground beneath her change. He did describe well. It was good that he had some sort of talent...
"That does sound like an interesting flower..." perhaps Maya or Briella would like to see it? "I do care. I am always willing to investigate such things. Let us get a bit closer, and see what more you can describe to me" she felt the bark of a nearby tree.
"You said the canopy was thinning out?" She could feel as much, in the way the sun was warming her head.
"Are the trees also getting... smaller?"
They certainly felt that way to Dyakida. "Thinner?
The bark also felt different, a completely different consistency than she was used to.
"Are they... different? she frowned, one of concentration and frsutration.
His descriptions were wonderful and helpful, but they evoked images. Memories of sight. Things that hurt when she realized she was forgetting them bit by bit...
She was quiet as she was gingerly led forward.
"Ah! Theres... More grass now!" she exclaimed as something prickly stuck her foot, "are we nearing the tale itself?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2012 5:41 pm
"Oh... o-okay." stammered Biroki, leading her forward, "y-yes, I think... They are getting smaller. The trees, I mean... a bit..."
He frowned, looking around.
"N-No... Not that different, I don't think. They're... uh... St-Still blue...." he squinted, "But... there are a few that are green and grey... A light green, l-like a bug's eyes. S-some of them, anyway... Er..." he took a deep, calming breath, "There are plants that are like the feathers of birds, a-and are a golden green-brown. And there are a few s-small trees that are... uh... greenish grey with light green leaves... uh... I... actually, I don't think I've ever seen anything th-this color of green. It's not as intense as a Kipepwa b-but not as dull as a nondwa... so maybe the green of a washed-out Kipewa wing...?" he thought about it for a little bit.
"B-but those are a bit f... further ahead..." he said shyly, looking down.
"M-more grass?" yes he supposed there was. It was certainly interesting. He kneeled down to pluck a stiff stem, turning it over in his hand before pressing it into her hand, "Its... one of the blades of grass. Its small and sandy brown..." he watched her inspect it, anxiously. The long shadows of the trees around him made him realize the time.
"Oh, uh. Its... Its getting sort of... W-well not really late..." he felt his palms warm. "Will... do you have sisters?" he frowned at the sky. No, no stupid Biroki! They all had the same mother, they all came from the same tree, so all alkidikes were sisters...
"W-Will your sisters be worried?"
Briella hadn't wanted to upset her sisters by being out late. Maybe... Dyakida was the same?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Nov 15, 2012 10:03 pm
Dyakida accepted the piece of grass, turning it over in her hand thoughtfully. It was like a piece of supple crystal, spiny and soft in her hand. Though sharp and tough, she doubted it would make much of a weapon... There were people in Tale, right? Earthlings? She wondered what they made weapons with.
What if... what if there were huge stands of this sharp grass? stalks as long as a sword?
What if that was what they used? It would be interesting if it was!
She frowned thoughtfully.
Biroki's descriptions were... sort of helpful. She could tell he was trying very hard but... it seemed like his mastery of description bordered between awful and astute. Essentially, better than Briella, whose descriptions were somewhat lacking but at least clear. usually.
She just let him talk, listening.
"Those strange trees. Take me to them?" Mainly to keep them moving so that he could take a breath between his halting words. He complied and she felt the strange feathery plants... it was a new texture, a new feel. She felt down to the base of one of the large leaves and bent it experimentally with her hand. It was flexible, but stiff, curved and frilled. It was fun to run her hands along.
She wanted to bring it back home. It was... inspiring. She could feel ridges that she could work into something... maybe a sword? or a dagger? She felt his palms heat up at his nerves. What a strange earthling he was.
She excused her hand from his and, taking up her dagger, carefully cut the leaf away, placing it in her pack.
Her knife back at her side, she turned to where her antennae picked up Biroki's vibrations, a mix of nervousness and heat. She wished he would calm down, if only to keep her growing headache at bay.
"I do indeed have sisters, and I'm sure they will be worried, but I don't think it's time yet to go back...?" she was unsure about the last part. "How long until evening, would you say?"
the time wasn't an issue. It was getting back. She decided to worry about that later.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Nov 15, 2012 10:09 pm
"oh, uh..."
Biroki looked up again and around. It was hard to tell.
"I think... Maybe a bit longer? Not f...fora while... at least..."
He shrunk back and watched, fascinated, as Dyakida cut off a piece of the tree. The dagger was frightening... but pretty.
"A-are..." he hesitated. He felt none of that relaxation he had with Zuri, or even the somewhat easy feeling he had had around Briella. He just felt afraid - both of the alkidike and of doing wrong to someone who was disabled. "Are you b-bringing that home? To your sisters?"
He swallowed, shifting from side to side slightly. The shadows lengthened around him, and the musty smell of the jungle changed subtly as the day approached an end. He felt like the silence was getting too long.
"that... that's a... n-nice dagger. you have. There." he commented, smiling nervously.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Nov 20, 2012 9:34 pm
"Yes... I am." she said, thinking for a moment. Perhaps she should stop putting off the HOW of how she was going to get back. Jahuar was not the place to be out at night.
"Hmmm... Oh? Yes.... It is a nice dagger..." She didn't know about beautiful, but it was sharp and cut clean. "I made it... myself..."
Well, going back herself was... doable, but it would take a while... Considering she neither could see nor knew the area.
"How well do you know this area? Could you find your way home from here?" she asked, sheathing the dagger and reaching out a questing hand to find his shoulder. Unconciously, she ran a hand over the crystal before settling her hand gently on his shoulder, just so she could know where he was.
"I may..." The words felt like they had to be dragged away from her very core, her pride, "Need some assistance..."
She frowned, her face somewhat sullen before springing back to serene calmness.
"Only a small amount of assistance. Of course..."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Nov 20, 2012 9:53 pm
"R-really?!" Biroki was impressed! "You made it? Yourself?" He had once tried to make a staff for himself. It hadn't turned out well.
"Oh, uh... uhhh... I mean, I've... never been here before but... I p-probably could f-find my way home. From here." He tensed a bit under her touch.
"Do... d-do..." He really couldn't find any other alternative to asking, "D-do you need s-somewhere to stay? For the n-night?" He blushed, "I... I mean... I didn't mean it like... that..." He calmed himself with a deep breath, "I j-just mean that it's d-dangerous to be o-out on the forest floor at night..."
He really hoped she would say no. She still frightened him, though he was sure Reshel would not mind. Or at least not say no. He just had... had to ask.
"I... I mean..." he frowned, shaking his head. He had forgotten his thread of thought. He might have put his foot in his mouth again!
"L-lets... can we... Go closer? To the Tale?" he asked, wanting very much to just guide her forward.
Now that they were there, he had to at least step out onto the open Tale... maybe see the sunset... He wondered what it looked like out there, where there were so few trees?
"I... I want to see it..." he tensed again, realizing that he had used the word 'see'!
"Oh no! Oh, uh.... s-s-sorry!" He apologized, his voice slightly hoarse from all the anxieties of the day, "I... I shouldn't have..."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
