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 Posted: Wed Sep 27, 2023 1:55 pm
Vaani gave a little squeak of surprise when he started to shift and tutted her tongue. "Easy, easy, you'll hurt yourself. Do you need anything? I don't mind helping; that's what I'm here for." For the moment anyway. She knew her time with him was coming to a close; she'd already had a few looks from other sailors passing by. Surely it wasn't the best idea to spend all of her time with one survivors amid a ship full of them, but Vaani didn't have it in her to leave him. She was too much of a bleeding heart.
"I wonder what Belrean music sounds like," She murmured. It sounded like a year long festival, with that much dancing and singing floating about. Treats, warm drinks, charming vistas- it was a wonder he traveled from home at all. The poor dear must miss it terribly.
"Truthfully? I'm not sure." Vaani gave a little embarrassed laugh. It was a quiet, demure thing, but by the spirits did her neck feel warm. He probably thought she was a fool or some soft indoor child. "I've been...trying to branch out, like my sisters, so I thought a trip might do me good. Laksha assured me that Oba would be the perfect place so I just...went along with it. I think I'd like to visit a temple or two, to pay my respects and learn about their Gods. After that...I'm not really sure. All I know of Oba is that it's warm."
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Posted: Wed Sep 27, 2023 2:07 pm
(8/10) Vaani actually tutted at him, and the gentle scolding was such a surprise that he laughed again, breezy and a bit rough. It made his head ache more, a growing pressure in his temples that made the lights, dim though they were, stab into his eyes. Maybe, if he was pathetic enough, he could convince her to give him something to sleep with.
This wasn't meant to be a social visit; she was here to treat his wounds, to make sure he was alive, and keeping her busy was undeniably selfish. Did she think him a child? Did she see how afraid he felt, with every moment that cemented home that this wasn't just a dream, that he really had - they really had crashed?
Pleasant conversations didn't erase the fact his mother might be dead, on another ship or still out in the ocean, and he was here talking about Belrean parties--
Those were the things dancing in his brain, when they weren't speaking, so when she spoke he sagged a bit in too obvious relief, allowing his eyes to slip closed as he listened. Laksha... that must be the sister she spoke of. He wondered if Zadia was okay, back home. If she'd heard yet--
Oba. He'd never been. He traveled just a bit, around the ports, but he'd only ever taken the trip from Sauti to Tale to visit family, not... the other way around. Similarly, Belrea didn't... have gods, except for the smaller altars found in some homes, more decoration or cozy superstition than actual religion. His father's people didn't have gods either, just... spirits, possessed things or useful house items that his father playfully suggested got personalities, after the family used them long enough.
He didn't know why the thought stuck so much. Why, her mentioning praying, struck a chord in him that he'd never once thought about. "I'd say a little prayer, after all this, wouldn't go amiss." He responded honestly.
'If mother is okay... if she's alive, I might go pray to someone, anyone, myself.'
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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Posted: Wed Sep 27, 2023 2:20 pm
Even his laughing sounded harried. Vaani had never wished she'd taken up healing more than in that moment. If she could have given him some kind of relief then maybe he wouldn't have such a pinched looked when he wasn't speaking. She couldn't imagine what was happening in his mind, but at least his body needn't hurt so much.
"Oh, uhm, hold on." Vaani made sure his head was as comfortable and support as possible atop her thighs before reaching up toward her neck. From beneath her tunic she pulled out a long, leather cord with a silver medallion attached to it. The metal would have been warm, since she'd tucked it in her bosom, and she only hesitated briefly before moving down toward him. Vaani lifted Isaia's head once more, though this time to slip the cord around his neck instead and settling the medallion over his heart.
"You can burn it or throw it away once you're well, but I thought that maybe for now it might help." She would miss the peace it brought her, but Vaani would be happier knowing that her faith could help another. "It's the symbol of Lurin and Dafiel. Lurin is the light and God of the Remembered. Dafiel is the dark and Goddess of the Forgotten. They'll hear you, Isaia; they brought you here. I know they'll help."
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Posted: Wed Sep 27, 2023 3:18 pm
(9/10) Huh? Isaia opened his eyes again, watching as the girl moved closer. Thankfully, what injuries he had were constrained to his limbs, so being propped up didn't hurt in the slightest - so it was easy for her to shift him up to lay on her legs. He briefly worried, because he must be filthy and he didn't want her skirt to get dirty from where he was laying--
It was hard to watch what she was doing, from this angle; Vaani shifted with something around her neck, then moved over him to tie something. He remained still, angling his neck when needed to make it easier. When the medallion settled over his heart, there was the urge to reach up and examine it, which he quickly stepped on - he didn't need to jostle his injured arms any more than he already had.
Instead, he peered down at the metal. It looked to be silver, but darkened so that the raised designs of the medallion seemed to shine, compared to the darker pieces behind it.
Lurin. Lurin and... Dafiel. The names were so foreign to him; he'd never heard anything about either God, but it... he couldn't find fault in what she said. It had feel so... unbelievable, that he'd survived the fall. That he, or anyone, could be found after the hell of the previous night. He swallowed thickly, focusing on that pinpoint where the skin-warmed metal rested against his chest, and he might know nothing about these Gods - or what being Remembered or Forgotten meant in the context of Yaeli culture, but--
It felt like something, regardless. "Thank you. Vaani." he murmured, past the knot in his throat. He didn't think he could properly cry, even if he wanted to - his mouth and eyes were too dry still, and he was too exhausted, but the emotion felt bottled up there anyway.
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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Posted: Wed Sep 27, 2023 3:27 pm
"You're welcome."
It was possible that her Gods had nothing to do with his rescue, but a few extra prayers wouldn't hurt. Maybe it was the sea Gods who had taken in these Belrean refugees or even fate itself. There were so many who were in the final stages of their lives, actively reaching for family they could no longer see, that having one man breathing so close to her was enough to give Vaani hope.
"Go to sleep, Isaia. I'll try my best to send a healer your way to help with the pain." She hated to make a promise she couldn't keep, but with so many hurting...Maybe just the thought would be enough. The yaeli gently lowered him back onto the makeshift pallet and did her best to get him 'settled' before gathering up her supplies.
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Posted: Wed Sep 27, 2023 3:48 pm
(10/10) The very last thing Isaia wanted was for Vaani to leave. Or- for him to be on his own again. But he felt... anchored, now, at least enough to remember that he was a triplet, and he'd long since learned not to cry or whine for attention; that sometimes, others needed it more than he did. And beyond that, he was a grown man and was far above the need to... to whimper or cry, no matter how he felt. He swallowed the impulse back, a task that was much more difficult than he would have thought, and instead watched her as she adjusted him back into a facsimile of comfort, smiling at her in what he hoped was a reassuring way whenever she looked at him with what he thought were pitying eyes.
He didn't know if he'd see Vaani again; once the ships got back to a town, he was sure they'd be passed off to other volunteers, and she'd continue on her way to Oba with her ship and sister. He should try and say something grand, something - something that would leave an impression.
In the end, being a half dead, embarrassingly clingy, frightened man was more of an impression than he could ever overcome so - he gave up the frivolous notion. It felt better to leave her with his gratitude, so he closed his eyes and pretended to sleep.
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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