Welcome to Gaia! ::

Of course it was much to Wynn's dismay that when he went to go fill up his favorite hot coco mug he discovered that there was no hot coco mix left at all. He frowned at the cabinet as if it had something to do with the disappearance of his favorite drink mix, and huffed to himself when he realized that it was so late that the school cafeteria might not be open. He was planning to sit comfortably on his side of the dorm and organize some of the seeds he had brought from his homeland, which were all hastily shoved into one plastic sandwich bag. Immediately a dark cloud settled over Wynn's bowed shoulders and he slammed the cabinet shut.

Well, what was he going to do now?

Sighing helplessly, the boy glanced around and when his eyes passed over the cold dark window and to the trees beyond the campus, Wynn decided it was time to wander around. He knew, of course, that it was inadvisable to wander around at night, and perhaps it even wasn't allowed for students, but Wynn wanted trees and that's what he wanted.

So, slipping into his jacket, the Inuk dropped all his current tasks and went to the door, opening it and stepping swiftly into the hallway and swiftly into another body.

Wynn was struggling to sputter out a surprised and quick apology when he felt himself bounce back from running into a figure much taller and stronger than he. He dreaded that it would be some bully of a student that would harass him for running into him in the first place, but to his surprise, it was none other than Cane! Wynn's shock quickly melted into gratitude and a rare smile bloomed on his dark cheeks. He had met this fellow Native American at a party not too long ago and Wynn had clung to the familiarity almost instantly. It would be so much easier to remain here at this strange school now that there was someone who probably shared and harbored the same type of thoughts and feelings. It was something that bonded their people together despite their clans and differences.

So, quickly forgetting about his quest to the trees, Wynn greeted Cane with a similar grip to the forearm and a tight squeeze, "I am," he responded warmly, "And you?"

"Yes! I will," Wynn followed Cane without so much of a hesitant thought, eagerly keeping pace with the taller Native. While with others, the Inuk was edgy, defensive, shy, and difficult to open up, things were different came to his kinsmen. Wynn was curious and absorbent, like a animal trying to find warmth, when it came to things he felt comfortable with. As they passed by the posters, Wynn raised a brow.

"Posters? Posters for what?" asked the dark hued lad as he was brought to the other student's dorm room. He tried to answer all of Cane's questions, but in his excitement he stumbled and messed up his words. He was fighting the urge to switch back to his own tongue, instead of speaking the common language, "That's okay. People nice. Strange. But nice. Frightened, I was, first see no kin, but now better! I was lonely. Angry. I wanted home, not school."

"Lacrosse?" the dark-skinned boy asked as his eyes wandered over the other boy's dorm room. From this room he could tell that his friend was sharing the room with another, just like he was sharing a room with Darren. Darren didn't like him though, he was snappy and quiet and obviously wanted nothing to do with Wynn. So Wynn kept to his own space. He didn't need much room anyway. The one difference he noticed though, that there wasn't a bright line of electrical tape separating the two boy's sides from each other. For a moment, Wynn thought it strange, but then he realized that Cane's dorm mate was probably a lot more humble than his.

"I have heard it, but never played. I would like that. Like to play. May I?" Wynn asked, following Cane into the small kitchen area. He looked around the kitchen, his eyes taking stock of everything in there, quickly learning the arrangement. Then he heard the other Native ask him something and Wynn's eyes lit up hopefully. He blurted out, "Drink hot coco."" for his answer. His chest released the tense ball it was making with the knots of his stomach and he tried to cover up his eager outburst with halting conversation, "I want...protect my people from the...the winter, summer, fall. So many accidents happen that we cannot control. We pray that, each time, more of us be allowed to see next season. I ask the trees, ask why. They don't share their tongue with me yet."

"Thank you. I look to it with joy."

Back at home, Wynn hadn't been exposed to any big sports. He learned to hunt instead, how to track, how to read the earth and let Her enfold you. He learned how to say thanks and how to respect. The young Inuk also learned to play card games and dice made of bones, but that was the most of his involvement in games. However, Wynn was always eager to learn, curious and absorbent like the sea. The sea's reach took away whatever items it could reach and curiously inspected them until it got bored and spat them up again. That was kind of like Wynn.

Stepping close to the oven where Cane worked, Wynn observed the milk bubbling around the chocolate until he heard his fellow Native offer him a seat. Glancing over his shoulder to the cot, Wynn made his way over to it and sunk down. "Yes," Wynn said, agreeing somberly with the other "They forget. Dis...Discrimination? What's that?"

The smell of the hot chocolate wafted before Wynn's nose as the other teen stepped closer, taking cautious steps as he came to sit beside him. Wynn graciously took the hot coco in his hands and cradled its warmth happily. There was something about holding a warm ceramic mug of deliciousness that could always make Wynn smile.

The young Inuk simply enjoyed the feel of the hot coco as he listened to Cane's explanation. Those words rekindled memories in the back of Wynn's mind and he nodded his head, his eyes widening as the word's meaning took hold. "The post man," he said with a question in his voice, "I heard people say he was mean. I remember he never gave words to me. But there were as many whites as kin in my home. Many of white were nice. It was a few who were foul."

Wynn listened to Cane, taking in his words with a nod and a shake of his head. He had always known that there was some silent tension, some weird unwritten rules, a disturbing atmosphere that would sometimes appear around his village, more often times around newcomers or visitors. He hadn't paid attention to it before, not really, not until Cane mentioned it. Wynn let his head sink down a bit, about to agree with his statement when suddenly something happened.

His sweaty palms, still grasped lightly around the mug, were a little too loose and with a gasp, Wynn could do nothing else but fumble as the hot coco mug slipped through his hands and crashed to the floor. Hot liquid splashed up at their legs and feet and, with a startled cry, Wynn jumped up from his seat and started spewing apology after apology.

"Sorry! Sorry!" Wynn bleated, "I...Sorry!"

With his large amber brown eyes swelled with worry underneath creased brows of chocolate, Wynn watched as the taller Native moved forward to clasp his shoulders reassuringly. For a split moment, he was transfixed to his place, standing with his shoes in a hot coco mess, but as soon as Cane slid his arms down Wynn's, he stiffened and immediately bit his lip in fear. He didn't want Cane to see his hands! He didn't want anyone to see his hands, so when Cane wrapped his fingers around his wrists, Wynn struggled momentarily to keep him from pulling them forward.

...But Cane was a fellow Native, a brother from a distant land, per say. If Wynn couldn't let himself relax around him, then who?

So, after another insistent tug, Wynn let his hands get pulled into view and he furrowed his brows even more. "Ointment and lotion do not work. Not often. Makes it worse. Certain ingredients, hard to find." Which was the truth. Urea, lactic acid, or silicone were the only things proven to help, but only a little and for a short bit of time.