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 Posted: Fri Mar 24, 2023 9:28 am
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Posted: Tue May 09, 2023 8:05 pm
No Tears
Matori | Youngling
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It only seemed to take a moment. One second Elias was standing besides his family, his pale eyes taking in all the sights around him. The next, he was alone and his hand was empty, with no parent or even a sister in sight. He couldn't even hear anyone who sounded like them over the drone of voices all around him. It made him feel small, like he was no higher than his father's knee once more. Everyone towered over him, looking at him, but not offering any help. Didn't they see he was close to tears and scared? Did they not care?
The family of four had left early that morning to come to town, to participate in a local festival, a celebration of something that had happened here long, long ago. Kayde had told his son the story every year, but Elias was still unable to fully understand it. All that he cared about was the fact there would be free sweets and different games. He planned to sneak as many into his mouth as he could before his mother noticed and scolded him for being a glutton. He'd managed to do just that, until his stomach had started to protest and he forced himself to slow down. He'd learned that lesson of over-eating as many free treats as he could in a previous year. He had spent the whole night sick and, as if that punishment wasn't enough, his mother had grounded him for two weeks. He had to remain in the house or the small yard, not even allowed to go down to the beach! So he had vowed never to do that, again. Not that it would mean he wouldn't try to push his limits.
His stomach was twisting in knots once more, as his pale eyes scanned the crowds around him. Most of them were too focused on the decorations or trying to pick which game to play to notice him. He was too panicked to ask anyone for help. Suddenly, a flash of a long blue skirt lifted his spirits. Was that his mother? Elias rushed forward, only to be mistaken. A Matori woman in a long skirt was rushing through the crowd, a basket slung over one arm, her long divided skirt the same blue as her skin. The little boy's bottom lip started to tremble. He would be trapped in this crowd forever, never finding his family again! Forever lost in the group. Maybe he'd even be kidnapped. Stolen away to live with some awful family.
No! No tears. Big boys didn't cry! If only his eyes would listen to him, as a single tear fell down his cheek. He rubbed at his face, getting rid of the evidence of his emotions. If he had been smart like Elenora, he could have figured a way out of this.
Sniffling, Elias began walking aimlessly, his eyes searching everything that was blue or brown or some other earth color, the brief moments when he thought he found them bringing him more and more to a sinking despair,
Finally, he couldn't contain it anymore and a little sob escaped his lips. He rubbed at his eyes, still walking, and didn't see the older man in front of him with the slightly stooped shoulders. He banged into the back of the man's legs, tripping over his own feet and falling down onto the ground. It was enough to ruin all resistance he had and the tears started to flow much more freely than they had already been, his shoulders shaking with little sobs. He didn't see the man he had bumped into turn around and gaze down at him, perplexed that there now was a crying child at his feet.
"Hello, little boy. Are you lost?" The man bent down, easing his descend with a hand to his lower back. Elias opened his eyes at the sound of a voice, the palm of one hand against his wet cheek. He nodded, not trusting his voice to make coherent words right now. "Ah. That is not a good thing to be. Lost. I was lost once. Would you like to hear the story?" Despite his fear at his own situation, the Youngling heard the kindness in the old Oban's voice and decided he was trustworthy. His mother wouldn't have agreed with that decision, but he knew his father would.
The thought of his parents sent a new wave of tears rushing down his face and Elias felt the old man helping him to his feet to steer him towards a bench along the side of the busy street, out of the way of everyone enjoying the festival.
"It's okay. Old Eingel will tell you a story and than you'll feel better. Wouldn't want to return to your mother with tears in your eyes, would you?" Elias shook his head. He tried so hard to be a brave, strong boy. He didn't think he had much else going for him except that. But before he started his tale, Eingel looked over the Youngling with a curious eye, noting the dark skin and blue hair. "You don't have the look of the locals in you."
"I was born here..." said the boy quietly, his voice still thick with emotion. He added a quick, and polite "sir" at the end, which seemed to amuse the old man.
"Just curious, little one. Nothing wrong with being from elsewhere. Nowadays, we can live wherever we wish, can't we?" He nodded, smiling kindly down at the boy sitting on the bench beside him, his hands clasped in his lap. "Looks like one of your parents must have come a long way to be here, if my guesses about you are correct. But I'm getting off track. I promised you a story, didn't I?" His eyes twinkled and Elias decided he liked this man. He seemed funny and spoke to him with respect and not in the condescending tone a lot of adults did. As if he didn't understand anything in the world at all. "There was a time when I was also lost, though I wasn't nearly as young as you are. But it was just as scary for me as it is for you now. I was a stranger in a strange place that should by all means despise me. You must have been told about the history of war between Matori and Oba." The boy nodded his head. Of course he had. His father was a Leaf who had been left at an Oban orphanage as a baby. He told Elias and Elenora all about Oba and what growing up there had been like. While his mother had told them all about Zena. Though when it came to their grandparents and other aunts and uncles, she'd always shy away and change the subject to something else. Like how cold it was up there. Elias thought he'd want to visit it one day, see the snow with his own eyes. It was so strange to think of something white and fluffy naturally falling from the sky and remaining on the ground for so long. Was it nice and soft to the touch, like a pillow?
"Were you afraid because you were so far from your family?" he asked, starting to forget about his own situation. He rubbed a palm across his cheek, surprised to find the tears had already dried away. He empathized with this older man, since he himself was currently without his family and feeling like he'd never see them, again. Maybe that was a bit over-dramatic. Now that he felt a bit calmer about the whole thing, he felt embarrassed by how he had reacted to suddenly being on his own.
"Oh, very," Eingel responded, leaning his face a bit lower and nodding his head, sympathy thick in his dark red eyes. "I wasn't sure if I was ever going to return back home."
"Did you?" Now the youngling was hanging off the edge of his seat, both hands gripping the edge of the bench.
Eingel smiled down on the little boy, leaning against the back of the wide bench. "Eventually I did. With the help of a Matorian woman who kept me hidden from most of the dangers and smuggled me back across the border into my own homeland. It wasn't long before I returned and made Matori my new home." He paused to look around at the people all around them, most of them in the shades of blue and green that were common among the people of Matori. "I found I liked the environment here much better than Oba."
Elias also watched the people passing them by, most not giving a second glance at the pair on the bench. By the dark skin of the boy, he could have easily passed as the older man's grandson. "Papa grew up in Oba, but his family were all from Tale. I like hearing stories from there, but it sounds like a scary place. I don't think I'd like to visit." Quickly looking over at Eingel, Elias gave him a sheepish look as he added, "I-I mean no offense by that, sir."
The old man laughed, apparently more amused than anything else. "Don't you worry about it. I'm sure many others would say the same. Now, since you've calmed down, how about we go find your parents?"
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Wordcount: 1569 Words
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Posted: Wed May 10, 2023 5:06 pm
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Posted: Sat Jul 29, 2023 4:29 pm
Easing of Tensionswith Kayde & Elka
Matori | Youngling----------------------------------------
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Posted: Wed Oct 18, 2023 1:51 pm
A Calm Presencewith Minke
Matori | Prentice----------------------------------------
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Posted: Wed Oct 18, 2023 3:35 pm
Two Familieswith Ezili
Matori | Prentice----------------------------------------
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Posted: Sat Oct 21, 2023 11:51 am
Festivalwith Omari, Cahira, Kayde
Oba | Prentice----------------------------------------
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Posted: Fri Nov 10, 2023 8:23 am
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Posted: Tue Dec 12, 2023 9:59 am
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Posted: Fri Dec 22, 2023 3:57 pm
Class Solo - Sentinel
Matori | Prentice
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"Hello, Elias."
"Hello, sir."
"Returned for another training session, have you?"
"Yes, sir."
"Good, good." The older Oban man rose from the bench he was sitting on, his hands on his knees as he grunted. Elias instantly started to feel bad about showing up. It had been about ten years or so since he'd met Eingel as a lost child in the town full of people on a busy market day and he had really been showing his age lately. More than the new wrinkles around his eyes and mouth, but the way he stood slightly stooped over, his joints creaking more than usual. Though despite all this, as soon as he readied himself, all the age seemed to melt right off him. Instinct took over and he proved to still be the worthy opponent he must have been in his own youth. "You still learning all you can from that, uh...."
"Yes, sir," the teenager responded respectfully, knowing Eingel struggled a little with names of those he had not personally met. And even some he had briefly before. Like the name of his uncle. Sometimes his own parents. Never his own. It made him feel privileged to have such a special spot in the Oban's memory. "I've been studying hard ever since I was young."
Eingel cracked his back, giving a low sigh of contentment. "Good. Though it's always good to also learn from others. You get too comfortable with one person, start to learn their habits and styles, and before you know it, you've conditioned your own around them." He continued to do his stretches, which grew more elaborate as the years went on. His sword, an ever present accessory, was pulled around and out, the blade shining brightly in the sunlight of the day. It, too, showed its age, mostly in the worn leather of the hilt and a slight bend at the tip that Eingel clearly had never gotten fixed along with the other repairs to the weapon. The sword had been with him through a lot and would be buried with him when he finally left this world for another. Elias had heard all the stories of it over the many years of their friendship. He readied it now, holding it in a prepared stance with feet slightly apart. "Now, show me what you've been learning. And don't hold back. I might sound rusty, but I can still give you a challenge."
The teenager nodded, drawing his own blade, one with a dull edge that he used when he met with Eingel in case it would be put to use. Naturally, he didn't want to hurt his friend, or anyone the Oban brought to spar with the hybrid in order to help him gain more experience. Especially when he sparred with the Oban. No matter what Eingel said, he was getting on in years. One couldn't keep up that sort of energy forever. As stubborn as the old man was.
Elias took up a similar stance, drawing in a deep breath and waiting for the signal to start. Once it did, he darted forward, his sword raised in a strike he knew would be parried easily. The clang of the metal was loud in the silence of the space, a path out of the way of people, close by the Oban's home. They met here every other week to do this, Eingel sometimes taking along his grandson to match Elias instead of himself. Josef was a nice enough boy, if a lot more competitive for Elias' taste.
"Better!" shouted Eingel between strikes of their blades, a bead of sweat running down his face that was being mirrored by Elias. "Though your form is still a bit too stiff. You'll never be able to parry every hit of your opponent." To emphasis this, the Oban easily swung Elias' sword out of his way and gave the teenager a smack on the arm with the flat of his own, causing a sharp pain to spread across his arm. Tightening his fingers, he kept a grip on his own weapon, long since used to the consequences of sparring with those far more experienced than himself. "We'll make an adventurer out of you, yet."
"But what if I don't want to..." The words slipped out of his mouth before he could stop it, distracting himself from what was going on and earning him another smack with the flat, this time on his hip. His body reacted, recoiling away from the source of the pain.
"Don't want to do what?" The questioned was full of confusion, so much so that the older man put down his weapon and sat back down on the bench, the tip scrapping against the ground at his feet.
"Uh....It was nothing..." Embarrassed at letting his words run away from him, Elias put away his sword and stood there awkwardly, looking at anything else but his friend. Even when Eingel gave a sigh, he didn't look in his direction.
"Come sit." He patted the bench next to him, a soft smile on his face. Elias blinked his pale eyes a few times before obeying meekly, arranging his sword so it could hang comfortably beside him. "What don't you want to do?"
The teenager looked at the Oban quickly, than darted his eyes away, focusing instead on the tall blades of grass across the path from them, swaying gently in the breeze. A few stray butterflies fluttered around the yellow flowers that decorated the path, their golden and brown wings flashing. "A...Adventure..." he said softly, expecting to hear the disappointment in the older man's voice when he'd finally respond to the confession. When he was a youngling, all he'd wanted to do was go on grand adventures, saving civilians from dangerous beasts or bandits, like the stories he had consumed growing up. It was the only time he would sit down and read anything. Now, as he was nearing adulthood, the time when most sought to fulfill those desires, he was realizing he no longer wanted to. He had been procrastinating going out on his own, telling himself that his parents needed him to help out and he couldn't just run off on them just yet. His mother would worry so much about him out there. He still needed to train harder, be better, before he tried to put what he'd been taught to the test. But it had all been excuses. He still liked swords just as much now as he did when he was younger. The thought of using them to hurt someone or something else or worse, kill them, was too much for him. He was happy with things as they were. He didn't want to be a hero.
"Ah. I see." Eingel shifted his body on the bench, bringing his sword up and around so he could safely tuck it away back into its scabbard. "I knew a man in Oba. Real good with a blade, could knock it out of anyone's hands with ease in five seconds. Practiced real hard at it. Every day. Now, you're probably expecting me to say we fought together or how he'd been all around the known world." Here he paused, his head tilted upwards a little bit, amusement edged along the lines of his mouth. He was enjoying the suspense. "Not so. He was a simple shopkeeper. Never even left the city he had grown up in. Never wanted to leave, never desired to see what else was out there. He just happened to have a passion for swords on the side. You don't have to adventure if you don't want to. You can stay right here if that's what makes you happy." He leaned forward a tiny bit, lowering his head and adding, "Is that what makes you happy?"
Elias nodded. feeling much better about everything. He was sure his teacher would have the same feelings. At least he couldn't imagine her being upset about it. Though he still felt a bit silly. He imagined he always would. He wasn't sure what he did want to do with his future and that was okay, too. it wasn't as if there was any rush to find out. He never felt any rush to. His parents never rushed him. In fact, he was sure his mother would be thrilled by the news, because it meant she could keep him around all that much longer.
"Good." The Oban gave another sigh, rolled his shoulders. "I could go for a cup of tea, now. I'm sorry if you wanted to keep going, this body isn't what it used to be. My children always tell me to slow down. Maybe it's time I started listening."
"I can help you back to the house." Elias quickly rose, holding out his arm for Eingel to take.
In response, the Oban chuckled before rising up by himself. "I'm old, but not that old, yet. Come, I'll brew us both some tea and I'll tell you some more stories. If you're not too old for stories, yet."
The teenager grinned, tucking his arm back against his side and walking beside the older man, his reflexes to the ready if he was needed. "I'll never be too old for stories."
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Wordcount: 1545
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Posted: Thu Jan 25, 2024 2:04 pm
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Posted: Sun Mar 03, 2024 6:50 pm
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Posted: Wed Mar 26, 2025 5:10 pm
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