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 Posted: Thu Dec 19, 2013 5:05 pm
She smiled as she watched him dress his tea and make sense of the practice. Caroline had always enjoyed drinking tea; not so much for the taste, but for the warmth, and the comfort. There was something so peaceful about sipping from a cup, especially if a fireplace or a book was involved. She'd heard once that, somewhere in Asia, there was an entire ceremony devoted to tea. She wasn't sure if it was true or not, but nevertheless, it was intriguing. She'd have to remember to look that up later...
Blinking, she refocused on Rob, hoping she hadn't missed anything he might have said. But thankfully, it seemed she had resurfaced from her thoughts just in time. She kept her eyes on him as he spoke, occasionally sipping her tea. She had no idea what a "Thrithing" was, but it didn't matter; she understood well enough.
The last bit particularly interested her. Setting her cup down gently, she leaned forward slightly, eyes bright. "All sorts?" She echoed, brow furrowed slightly. "What do you mean?" She assumed he was referring to the town's residents - but how could they be any more different from the people of Palisade?
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Posted: Mon Dec 30, 2013 9:14 am
He caught her eye, and her eagerness to know about Northport brought the same smile to his face as had been on hers when she watched him figure out the tea. That she so wanted to learn had yet to stop filling him with a sense of amazement, though he supposed her world was much the same to him. For every moment that he wondered what Northport could have that she didn't, he imagined the opposite could be true. They were such different worlds.
"Well, miss, Palisade's a little more... homo... homoga--" he searched for the word. It was a good one he had learned from the Amaranta's first mate several days ago, who in turn had picked it up from a pretty barmaid who had once been a maid in a baron's home. But he had never had a way with words or a particularly good memory for them, so he simply shrugged and continued, unperturbed by the slippery nature of the one he was looking for. "Well, you've mos'ly got us Sunderlanders 'ere in Palisade," he continued. "But Northport's where all th'ships from all over come in. Y'get men from Gallia, from Airelund, from the New World... Met a man from the Colony once, my brother n' me, an' spirits know how 'e made it all the way back from there, but 'e did. Stowed away on a supply ship, I think. An' all kinds o' characters, you'll find."
He stopped himself before he could continue and let slip that Northport was also, in some ways, a hub of depravity and that gambling, drinking and cheating were all rather everyday activities to the sailors who had come in after long months as sea. "Ah, they're... not perfect, but they make my job more int'resting."
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Posted: Thu Jan 02, 2014 2:23 pm
Caroline breathed a soft hmm, leaning back as she processed the information. She stared at a spot just over his shoulder, her fingers curled loosely around her cup, the warmth of the tea seeping through the delicate glass and into her hands. She could only imagine what he meant when he said they weren't perfect, and she wasn't sure if she wanted to ask or not. She knew the world outside of her bubble was dangerous and unpredictable, but it wasn't something she wanted to know. She wanted to pretend that a world she'd never experience could live up to her dreams, rather than disappoint and frighten. After all, as trapped as she was, her dreams were often the only things she had to hold onto.
So she left it at that. Her fingers tightened around the cup, and she refocused on his face, smiling softly. She saw something there, in his eyes, something she'd noticed a few times during their visit. He looked upon her with a sort of...she couldn't quit place it, but...wonder? Her brow arched delicately. "Mr. Tiller, are you all right?" She asked, but the question seemed out of place. He didn't look unwell, and she didn't mean it that way; she meant..."I mean...You seem..." She grasped for the right word, lifting a hand to gesture vaguely. "Amazed? By something..."
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Posted: Thu Jan 02, 2014 9:48 pm
That she called him "Mr. Tiller" threw him off, but in a wonderfully refreshing way, as if he was more than just a sailor on one of thousands of merchant ships that came in and out of the city. He looked a little sheepish, which was an emotion that did not often show itself upon his face, and shrugged. "Jus' Rob is more'n enough, miss," he said, smiling. Being addressed as "mister" anything was something he didn't imagine would ever become familiar.
"Well, all this, I s'pose," he said in answer to her question, gesturing around him. Was it amazement or simply that he had stepped foot into something far beyond the usual scope of his life? Perhaps both. "It's all so proper an' ordered an'... well you as well." He shrugged again, clearly at a loss as to how to continue. He hadn't properly answered her question yet, but phrasing a response wasn't simple when he himself wasn't quite sure what the answer was.
"S'just, you're very different from other rich folk," he said finally.
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Posted: Sun Jan 05, 2014 8:58 pm
MoonRazor Holy geez time passes quickly. I SWEAR you just tagged me yesterday.
She seemed surprised by his insistence that she refer to him by his first name, but she merely nodded, noting mentally to try and remember. She certainly didn't want to make him uncomfortable, in case that was why he had suggested the change.
Well, anymore uncomfortable than he already was, anyway. She didn't mean to force him into such an environment, but a lady of her status shouldn't have even been on the streets alone. She was far more vulnerable out there than he was in here, and she hoped silently that he understood that. That he didn't hold being here against her.
But he surprised her again with his closing statement. He thought she was...different? In what way? How so? Was that a good or a bad thing? He barely knew her; how could he knew how different she was, if she was different at all? "D-Different?" She stammered, eyes wide. She was afraid to ask, but..."How...do you mean?" Elowen perked, sensing her chosen's uneasy, and glared up at Rob. Glared, but didn't move. Absently, Caroline dropped a hand to rest it against Elowen's head, soothing her guardian. No need for animosity.
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Posted: Mon Jan 06, 2014 12:02 am
"Well, s'not a bad thing," he said, both to Caroline and to her Guardian. It occurred to him then that it was entirely possible for "different" to be a bad thing in and of itself, regardless of whether it was a positive change. He knew there were certain conventions that the rich folk followed, though he didn't claim to be an expert. Perhaps this was one of those things. Caroline's reaction was certainly not what he had been aiming for.
"I guess... y'don't see ladies like y'self in the markets ev'ry day," he began. That alone made her stand apart from most of the other well-born women he had seen, who were likely unaware of what a market even looked, sounded and smelled like. "An' I guess there was no real reason for you to even talk to me, but... well, now we're at this place. I'm more used to rich folk pretending we don't exist in th'same space, I s'pose. Not that I mind, or any of us mind, really," he added hastily. "S'just different lives, is all. But what I mean is, I guess that makes you kinder than a lot o' other folk."
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Posted: Fri Jan 10, 2014 2:37 pm
"Oh."
She breathed the word, her voice void of inflection and emotion. She was still registering his words, pondering his meaning. She was instantly comforted, hearing it wasn't a bad thing, but then worried again, as she did frequently.
"Oh!" She echoed, perking in her seat, as if she had been snapped conscious from a trance. Her light eyes were wide, her cheeks flushed. Elowen cocked her brow, glancing from Rob to Caroline, her chosen's ever shifting emotions confusing the guardian. "Oh, no, Mr. Til...I mean, Rob...I am not..." She began, but then paused, lips parted in hesitation, as she tried to find the words to say, the correct way to proceed.
She knew he was merely offering a compliment, and while some part of her knew he was right, she felt terrible for admitting it. For agreeing. The rich weren't known for their charity and compassion, especially when it came to the poor - she knew that she was in the minority, when it came to "her kind".
After a moment of silence. "I...understand what you mean. But I do not try...I do not think I am better or kinder than the others. I just think...I never understood the need for cruelty and divide. How are we to coexist if we do not take the time for one another? One should not be treated as less than simply because of money." She explained, flustered, her calm demeanor unraveling. She'd been caught off guard by his answer, and it was something she felt strongly in.
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Posted: Sat Jan 11, 2014 3:25 am
He smiled at that, her second "Oh!" that sounded as if some old knowledge had suddenly come to light, and his was a smile that suggested a sort of no-holds-barred enjoyment, bright and wide and that crinkled the edges of his eyes and brought laughter dancing into them. Her denial was a sign of the very kindness to which he referred, and there was something very charming about someone who was so humble about it that she didn't realize that was the very thing that made her kind.
"Tha's the sort o' thinkin', miss, tha' makes you diff'rent," he told her. For someone to have the world at her feet and not think that privilege gave her any sort of a leg up on the less wealthy parts of society was a wonder to behold. But for the way she dressed, she could almost have been anyone else and that made her seem so much more real, so much more than the haughty, inaccessible ladies who refused to so much as look at the ground beneath their feet.
"Well, I s'ppose we coexist a'righ' now, miss, just... not in th'same world, innit?" He said thoughtfully. The noblemen had their sprawling estates, their fancy wines, their pureblooded foxhounds. Rob had his Amaranta and that was usually enough for him. That, and a bottle of rum. His was a more unfettered sort of life, free from the confines of societal expectations and while there times when he would have welcomed a little more money, if only so his mother could live more comfortably, no part of him desired the lavish indulgence that colored the rich man's life. "But I don't think there's anything t'be done about that. Can't change how people've thought for hunnerds o' years."
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Posted: Thu Jan 16, 2014 12:21 pm
She smiled shyly, ducking her head to stare down at the still surface of her tea. "You are to kind." She said quietly, and then, to hide the blossoming blush, lifted her cup to sip slowly, taking a moment to compose herself.
"Do we?" She finally said, setting her cup down to glance up. How could one coexist with another in a different world? She furrowed her brow thoughtfully, pondering his claim. Why couldn't things change? But then, what did she know about change? She was a woman, and despite her standing in society, no one listened to women. Not that she could speak out, even if people would listen - she was far to shy. Things could be better, but she supposed, for now, he might be right. She might not be able to change the world, but she hoped to help in her own small way.
She glanced out the window briefly, watching the snow fall, and a change of subject came to mind. Quickly, she asked, "Strange winter. And I hear there have been...disappearances." She looked back to him, expression somber. "What do you think might be causing it? You have seen the world; surely you might have more of an idea than others in town."
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Posted: Fri Jan 17, 2014 12:31 pm
"Jus' honest, miss," he answered truthfully, taking the opportunity to have some of his tea as well. The taste of it always seemed a little funny to him, at once rich and bitter and sugary, but like everything else surrounding him at the moment, it was a good sort of funny. The kind that he might not necessarily get used to, but that he didn't mind anyway.
"S'long as we aren't killin' each other, miss, I'd say it's a'right," he said thoughtfully. It wasn't a matter that crossed his mind often, but Rob suspected that if the classes ever came to blows, the ones who lost would be the nobles. They had their power and their money but should that legitimacy ever fade, they were outnumbered. And there were desperate people in the streets, in the hovels, and in the slums.
He took a moment to ponder her next question. The recent news of disappearances had certainly graced his crew, especially in Northport where rumors were bound to sneak from tavern to ship and back in a matter of hours. There were bloody stories too, and mysterious ones, and the mention of Wolves. "People cry Wolf, but I don't b'lieve it," he said finally. "I think s'just animals, up in th'north, gettin' hungry an' cold. Famine does things to beasts. When they get desp'rate, they'll hunt anything. I've seen whales try t'take down entire ships, miss. I've seen what hunger does to an animal. But it doesn't make 'em any bigger or stronger'n they already are."
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Posted: Sun Feb 02, 2014 8:08 pm
She only half agreed with the assertion, but didn't comment further. She figured he was right enough anyway; at least they weren't killing one another in the streets. At least, not on a larger scale; isolated cases were sure to occur.
Besides, the entirety of her attention was focused on the discussion of the wolves. His answer surprised her - she had heard the sea folk were often a superstitious lot, but Rob seemed...completely logical. It made sense, and brought a little comfort, but she didn't believe the stories were nothing more than fables. Guardians existed, did they not? And they were slowly increasing in number. That meant something, right? But, "I hope you are right." She expressed softly.
Absently, she glanced out the window, and noticed the position of the sun. It was dropping quickly behind the clouds, darkening the already dim day, and she knew she couldn't stay much longer. A shame; she had enjoyed meeting Rob, getting to know someone outside of her circle. Would she ever see him again? She certainly hoped she might. She glanced back to him with a smile, and slipped a few coins onto the table to pay for their tea. "I must be going; my parents will be expecting me soon. Thank you...for the company."
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Posted: Tue Feb 04, 2014 9:53 am
Rob nodded, looking out the window as well. Ollie and the lads would be done unloading by now and most likely wondering where he had got to. And eventually, he would have to get home to see his mother. How quickly the time had passed in this little cafe so far outside the world he knew. It was like something out of a story, almost, and certainly nothing he would have imagined experiencing when he'd woken up that morning.
"No, thank you," he said in return, rising from his seat. "Listen, miss, if y'ever... well, if things start t'get suffocatin' again at home, you come by an' visit us down at the market, a'right? We got things t'sell from Belastrana an' Gallia. An'... well, you showed me your cafe, so nex' time I can show you somethin' o' mine."
Maybe it wasn't likely. Maybe he wouldn't ever see her again, and that was fine. Rob didn't expect to. But it seemed important that he extend this invitation, if only so that she would have someplace to go next time she needed to get away from it all. Feel a little bit more free, even if being on land didn't allow much of that in Rob's opinion.
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Posted: Sun Feb 09, 2014 5:57 pm
The offer was touching, and once more, she found herself blushing in his presence. She smiled shyly, and nodded, "Of course. I...I would like that." More than she'd like to admit. She rose from her seat, and Elowen, already sensing Caroline's intentions, stood with her chosen, lazily making her way toward the door, ahead of Caroline. The young woman followed after her guardian, but at the door, turned slightly at the waist to glance over her shoulder at Rob. "Farewell, and again...Thank you. I hope we might see one another again soon." She doubted they might, but as she left the building and headed home, she clung to the hope fiercely, the smile never leaving her face.
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