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 Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2024 7:04 pm
Odina, why? Briallen bit the inside of her cheek as she looked around the table, her shoulders slightly relaxing as Sasi seemed to go with the idea even as Anoud seemed too focused on her food. At least the Shifter seemed intrigued and honestly hearing that her brother could have some connections in Oba did gain Briallen’s interest. “Is that so? I’ve only been to Oba once when I was younger and took a small tour with some Sisters. I mostly ventured around Belrea on my own since it was close to Chiume, our main home.” She admitted after a moment, her expression thoughtful. “I’m sure your brother has some good stories.” Briallen had never thought about a treasure hunting group, she only explored the wilderness on her own in hopes of finding some sort of treasure.
“He does! But if you are interested I could always direct you. There’s apparently an academy in Sulburi, you see. My brother is a dancer and he mentored there for a while while the new head of the school has been interested in recovering relics from the desert for a museum of sorts.” Sasi gushed, leaning over the table towards Briallen as she explained the situation and told her more about the school while the others listened. “My brother’s name is Betza and I could write you a letter of recommendation, if you’d like. He recently returned to work in Sulburi again so I’m certain he’ll be there to help you out.” After all, Briallen had been praised by Anoud’s aunt so how could Sasi think any differently about the Alkidike who had already given her a good first impression? Surely it would be alright to send her towards her brother, if wanted!
“Wow.” Briallen breathed, her mind racing with the possibilities of doing such a thing. “To think that a sponsored group is in Sulburi, looking for traces of the past.” She had heard rumors about the academies in Belrea, known that the earthlings there worked hard to discover new things and had their own museums but she had never thought about something like that in Oba. Either way she had never dared to impose on such a group, feeling that as an Alkidike she would simply be too out of place. Could she dare to take such an offer? The very thought had her looking towards Odina, worry crossing her expression. She didn’t want her sister to think she was abandoning her here like this. Not after they had finally started to get along better again.
[Briallen 8]
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Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2024 7:04 pm
“Go for it.” Odina mused quietly, after listening to the spill and seeing her sister’s excited expression. At first she had been flustered that her plan to shame her sister had backfired, but seeing that look on Briallen’s face had made her think. She had never truly seen such excitement there before, not even with some of the more outrageous stories her sister told. Was treasure hunting truly that important to her? If so then it would only be petty to prevent her sister from chasing that happiness, especially when Briallen had helped her to come here so that she could grow stronger. The Vandrea stifled a sigh and nodded, trying to look positive despite the twisting feeling in her gut. “We can talk about it, but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with you exploring around while I train here. You would be too distracting.” She explained not caring if she seemed rude, focusing on her food and finishing it quickly before standing. “I can look for a place to camp. Thank you for the meal.”
“Oh wait!” Sasi looked towards Anoud with a small smile, a knowing expression crossing her features. It wasn’t as if the Shifter had never experienced prejudice before especially considering their location, and she refused to be bothered by it. If anything it made her more determined to know the Vandrea better, hoping to see if she could somehow get past that prejudice and form some sort of connection. “If you’re training under Anoud then stay with us. We have a guest room, if you don’t mind sharing with your sister for a night while discussing your next steps together.”
Odina blinked, confusion crossing her own features. How could this Shifter be so welcoming? Had she not noticed the way that Odina looked at her? Her mixed feelings, almost akin to disgust and the like, should have been obvious at first sight. “It’s al-'' She started to protest before getting cut off, the audacity of the Shifter startling her into behaving once more.
“No, I definitely think you should stay with us. Right?” Sasi looked towards her partner who nodded after a moment. “I’ll show you to the room!” She beamed, finishing up her own meal before gesturing for the pair to follow her from the dining hall and upstairs. The stairs curved throughout the tree, stopping at various levels to show doors leading into separate bedrooms. At the very top was the room she stopped in, the Shifter showing them a wide enough space to hold two bed rolls, but only had a couple of chests pressed against the wall. A circular window had been carved into the wall as well, sunlight flickering through the leaves to shine a pattern along the wooden floor. “We don’t have a formal bedroom here, but the space is better than sleeping outside. If you don’t have bedrolls then I can bring out our own, we have them in storage for when anyone travels.”
“I see.” Odina nodded. “We’ll be fine, thanks.” She shifted so that she could unload her belongings, having picked up their traveling bags from the main room along the way, and dropped her own bedroll near the window. Briallen could be closer to the stairs since Odina doubted she would be here for more than a few nights.
“Alright, we’ll see you in the morning. Take your time to rest up. There’s a bathhouse near us, you can wash there.” Sasi smiled warmly and gave a little wave as she left the room, her steps growing quiet as she went back downstairs to join her partner where they would greet their daughters and explain that they had guests later.
[Odina 9]
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Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2024 7:04 pm
Briallen had simply stared at Odina for the rest of dinner, frowning at her words even though she had the feeling the Vandrea was just trying to push her away so that she wouldn’t feel guilty about leaving. Still, everything else seemingly happened in a blur and the next thing she knew she was alone with Odina in the guest room. “Are you sure?” Briallen finally blurted out the question even as she spread out her own bedroll and started to prepare for the night. Was she truly going to do this while Odina trained? Oh, Aisha! She would have to make her trip to Chibale later or before she left for Oba if so. Briallen sat down on her bedroll, trying to make sense of everything as she processed the last hour. “I didn’t come here to abandon you, Odina. I should stay, right?”
[Briallen 9]
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Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2024 7:04 pm
Odina looked over at her sister and let out a sigh, her frustration growing now that they were alone again. “If you don’t go then that’ll make me angrier.” She admitted as she thought about it, continuing to unpack her belongings that she had brought to make herself feel more at home in the strange space. Even if Briallen was leaving soon it didn’t matter since Odina was here to train and knew that she would be here for a few weeks if not longer. “Seriously.” She huffed after another moment. “You can’t come all this way to get me to train while wasting time. I don’t understand your fascination with earthlings and useless trinkets, but I hate someone just fiddling around even more. Do something that benefits you while I’m busy.” How could she admit that she had seen that look on Briallen’s face and felt….what? Guilty or something? Either way the sight had stirred something in Odina and she didn’t want her sister to be miserable even with their differences. If going to find some silly treasures in Oba made Briallen happy then so be it. Odina would just have to keep working hard as a warrior to keep their isles safe, that was all.
“I’m tired so don’t even argue with me tonight and just get that damn letter. I’m going to freshen up in the bathhouse and then sleep.” Odina huffed, grabbing a change of clothing as she looked back to Briallen. “You should join me, you stink.” And with that she started down the stairs, not even bothering to look back even as she figured Briallen would scramble to join her. They had their own paths to take, she was just thankful they had gotten to spend a bit of time together before separating once more. For now she had to focus on herself and her own training so that she could become stronger than Briallen and prove that she was fully capable of defending her home, hoping that in the meantime nothing bad happened to Chiume while she was gone. It was a fear she would have to get over, Odina realizing finally how unhealthy it had been for her to continue beating herself up for that disaster and was now taking the chance to try and find peace once more. If something else happened? Then it truly was a sign and she would fight to redeem herself by never leaving the isle again if so. But for now she had some work to do, feeling useless until she grew even stronger with or without her sisters by her side.
[Odina 10]
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Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2024 7:04 pm
“You….are so confusing at times, stubborn fool.” Briallen whispered, shaking her head in disbelief at her sister’s change of heart before scrambling to grab her own clothing and leaving her gift of a hunting knife on her sister's bedroll in thanks. “I don’t stink that badly!” She added in another whisper, hoping to keep their hosts from overhearing her protests. Still, there was a smile on her face despite everything. Briallen understood the selfish act her sister had just done and appreciated the opportunity to freely go and be herself even if it took her all the way towards Oba. Thank you, Odina. Even if her Vandrea sister still didn’t fully understand her, Briallen appreciated that she was making an effort and was actually allowing her the chance to pursue her dream. Briallen just hoped that Odina would find a new path here and perhaps one day embrace the rest of the world that she had scorned for so long.
[Briallen 10]
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