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 Posted: Tue Jul 19, 2011 3:17 pm
  This is a private roleplay between Cais [Never Crazy] and Li [Chrystali].
Setting: The shallow waters just beyond the port.
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Posted: Tue Jul 19, 2011 3:30 pm
In hindsight, Li knew she shouldn't have gotten in the boat to begin with, but it was too late to worry about as the port came back into view.
She was exhausted. The Legionnaire had spent the last two nights on patrol through a rather impressive thunderstorm, her days rife with practice, chores at the sparring grounds and chores still at home thanks to the storm's tantrum tearing down the tree boughs and making a mess of things. Having little time to pause and catch her breath, even sleep was not so easy to come by if she wanted to be diligent in her duties. Of course, she wasn't careless enough to not sleep at all, but the handful of minutes here and the catnap there did little to keep her as sharp and focused as she prided herself to be. Even fishing had proven to be more challenging to her attention span than she cared to admit, for if she couldn't sit back and enjoy the water and the thrill of the catch, what in the blazes was she doing manning a boat by herself? Thankfully, she had enough sense to realize she was staring off into space at inconvenient times, turning around her modest craft and letting the prow cut the clear water as she headed back home.
The fair-haired femme was generally a cautious one, trying to consider multiple outcomes to small scenarios; logistics, tactics, what to do should the worst occur. It was to her disservice that she was thinking very little once the weathered wood of the docks came into view, leaning against the hull of the boat and looking off over the land in an almost dreamy fashion. It was easy for her to let her amethyst gaze grow unfocused by the flash of wares on the land, the blurry line of the horizon becoming sharper and more contrasted to the sky as she made her approach. With the sky beautifully clear and bright after the pass of the storm, Li thought she just might catch another nap beneath the sun before she had to return to her lessons in the evening.
Her plans, however, did not include the young man her vessel was speeding towards, her attention alarmingly not where it should have been.
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Posted: Thu Jul 21, 2011 4:22 am
The cool water over his body felt like heaven as Cais plunged further down into the water just offshore of some popular docks. He'd been meaning to go diving for weeks now, but had only just found the time - which was lucky in the fact it was a warm day. Unlike most days, Cais found himself pleased to merely float under the water, swimming and kicking around rather than gathering sand for work. Today is just for relaxing. He thought, having to constantly remind himself to take days off.
With a flip in the water he kicked back to the surface, lying on his back and staring up at the brightened sky with a grin. Gently the water pushed against him as he remained floating, rocking with the shallow waves. With a happy sigh he closed his eyes again, listening to the distant sound of the waves crashing on the beaches. It was a change of pace for the young fighter, one who was general spun tight and impatient suddenly at ease, allowing himself to (quite literally) go with the flow.
In such a state there was no warning for the boat steadily heading his direction, his thoughts lost on the sound of the tide. Flicking some water with a hand he opened his eyes again at the sound of a caw far off, blathering on with it's calls. He frowned. "Not a mood killer or anything." He muttered, shifting his body forward in the water, kicking his feet to keep his head afloat.
That's when he saw it heading straight for him. Alarmed, he did the only thing he could at the time. "WATCH IT!" he yelled, making a quick motion to swim out of the way. He only wondered if it was already too late.
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Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2011 3:46 pm
One moment, her bright eyes were hazy in their unfocused stare over the shoreline, and the next, she was hit with an enormous surge of adrenaline. Li heard the call but barely saw the male with his sea-water hair, acting immediately with the training she had been neglecting, seizing the ropes that connected to the boom vang and yanking them hard. The small vessel made a sharp turn, tipping precariously on its side and making the young woman's weight shift against the hold, very nearly tossing her out to sea. With a short cry, she threw her weight to the opposite side -- and nearly over the opposite side of the boat, at that -- before the ship righted itself, narrowly skirting the male in the water.
It all happened so fast that her wits hardly had time to catch up, tanned fingers laced in the thickly threaded ropes and the sail still lashing against her hold, the rudder facing the wrong direction to give her any momentum as her boat slowed into a lazy half-circle to round her near-hit. The ship and the woman were still for several heart beats before she realized she wasn't going to drown for her mishap. Li exhaled from what felt like her toes, her whole body folding in half as she tried to swallow down the acidic taste of fear in the back of her throat, her sun-kissed skin taking on an unnaturally pale pallor beneath her scales. Turning, she gripped the edge of the vessel and peered over it with wide, somewhat horrified eyes.
"Lunaria's grace, are you all right?" she called out to the young man not that far from her now, worrying her lower lip between her teeth. "I'm so sorry--I'm so, so sorry! I didn't -- I wasn't paying attention -- are you all right?" She was rambling a bit, she knew, but the worry still warred with the sick pit of fear, overwhelming her sense of manners and etiquette.
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Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2011 8:30 pm
Cais felt useless. He was stuck, unsure of whether to dive, to move back, to yell more. He was thankful she had acted so quickly but felt his face move rigidly into a frown, glaring at the vessel as it moved around him. If he could have crossed his arms he would of, but rather kept them moving, staring up at the frazzled Lunarian girl staring back over the side of the boat. Despite her pale appearance he couldn't see past the rage growing from within.
"I still have my head, so I'm fine." He said with a stern voice, eyes meeting hers. "I'd say. Fall asleep or something?" He said indignantly, moving away from the small vessel, taking a few deep breaths to attempt to calm himself down.
The gentle rocking of the water did little to soothe his temper as he grunted in frustration. "Look, it's not everyday I'm almost killed by a wayward boat." He said, looking back at her questioningly. "Just where the heck are you going anyways? Open sea is the other way." Cais glanced back towards the dock and stared back at her.
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Posted: Sun Aug 21, 2011 10:37 pm
Drawing her hand over her face, her rough fingers rubbed against the scales by her eyes, her bottom lip drawing out from between her teeth. "I'm deeply sorry," she responded in earnest, bowing her head. "I -- I was heading back to the docks, I realized I was not fit to sail once I was out -- that is by no means askance for forgiveness." She'd had her eyes squeezed shut during her speech, her free hand still white-knuckled against the edge of the boat. "I'm--" The female's body suddenly went rigid before she pushed herself into the middle of the vessel, back against the sail's hoist. "...I'm very sorry," she concludes in a quieter voice, fingers curving against the well-worn wood.
Li couldn't swim. Just seeing the male in the water, peering over the edge of her boat to the clear depths the closer she got to land -- it unnerved her. It wasn't that she was hydrophobic, but such a dire predicament spelled out her lack of skill rather plainly in that moment. She could have injured the sea-haired male - potentially even killed him - and then gone over herself. Of all the ways she had already considered dying for Lunaria and Her cause, drowning was not one of them. "Can I offer you a...a lift in? O-or should I leave you to..." Li motions with one hand in a distant manner, expression guilt-ridden. If she could have been anymore embarrassed and ashamed, surely her cheeks would have caught fire.
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Posted: Tue Aug 23, 2011 11:02 pm
His rage settled quickly at the sound of her voice. She seemed fragile, almost fearful in her small vessel, as Cais observed. He let out a deep sigh and moved closer as she spoke. "It's fine." He muttered, setting his arms up against the boat and pulling himself up over the side, rolling into a sitting position. "I'll take a lift though, if you're offering." He blinked a few times and looked at her with a curious gaze. "I'm Cais, by the way." He said, shaking his hair free of water, shaking his body to follow suit.
"And if you don't mind my observation, you don't like the water too much, huh?" He said with a small smile along with the tease. "I'm really not mad though, I tend to nearly get killed on a daily basis." Cais yawned and stretched a bit, looking back at her with a small smile on his face. She looked like she needed a pick-me-up, and though they hadn't met on the best circumstances he figured she needed it more than he needed to express his anger.
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 11:20 am
"It's most assuredly not fine!" Putting a hand to her less-than-sunny skin, she extended a hand to help him, and then immediately pulled it back. He wouldn't need her help; that, and she still had a bit of a shake in her digits. The introduction made her stare blankly for a moment before realizing what he was saying. Her manners and civility seemed to have left her while her heart scrambled to get out of her throat. "Li," she remarked, before embellishing, "my name is Li. A ple--ah, if we could have met under less incriminating circumstance." The woman offered a small, thin smile before she seized a towel near the prow of the boat and offering it to Cais. She then busied herself with getting the vessel back on course, measuring the breeze and trajectory with automatic gestures. At least sailing was enough of a second nature to her that she couldn't botch it anymore than she had.
Glancing over to the male at the words, she shook her head, pulling on the rope that set the sail into full expanse. "I love the water," she murmurs, bracing herself as the ship began to move again, "just not being in it." The last bit actually made her smile a little more easily, leaning against the side of the boat more trustingly now that it was in motion, cutting the blue-green water smoothly. "Sounds like a fun life," she remarked in a faintly teasing manner, still not feeling wholly like herself yet. "It would have been bad if I'd joined you in the water -- I can't swim." No one liked to admit weakness, but it was best to say something -- just in case he wanted to throw her overboard as revenge or something. When it came to the ocean, she was very serious and respectful of it and its inhabitants, even swimmers she almost decapitates.
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 6:10 pm
Graciously he took the towel, rubbing the cloth against his face and shaking his head free of any droplets left over. "Li, huh. Nice to meet you." He said with a nod, wiping the rest of the water from his body. "Thanks" he said simply, leaning back in the small vessel and staring out at the water. "Well, I'm glad you don't hate it, it's quite lovely really." Blinking a few times, he watched as she minded the boat.
"Sometimes the most dangerous lives can be the most fulfilling, wouldn't you say?" He chuckled a little and yawned, stretching out against the wood. "Can't swim?" He said, somewhat startled.cI'd have to say that makes you pretty brave then, being out her in a vessel like this." The small vessel seemed secure enough, Cais observed. Despite admitting she couldn't swim, the girl seemed well adept at sailing.
"Where did you learn to sail? You're pretty good at it, if I do say so myself." He smiled bit and leaned back into the direct sunlight.
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Posted: Sat Aug 27, 2011 11:44 pm
She actually laughed a little when he greeted her, casting him a look over her shoulder that was both disbelieving and apologetic. Having made such a grievous error that could have cost him his life was hardly nice to meet someone over! Pulling the rig, Li kept the vessel on a straight course for the dock, direct it with trained ease that made the right smooth and without a hitch against the water. They'd arrive at the dock shortly. "I can't hate something I love so much. It's just -- there's a healthy dose of respect that comes with it, something so...vast."
It had always seemed wrong to her to try and swim when she was a child, as if she were trying to conquer some great entity or spite the water itself. Of course, she'd grown out of such thinking but she hadn't had the time to afford herself learning to swim. "Danger isn't a line I like to toe," Li admitted, "but a challenge, now -- that is a language I understand." With the vessel on course, she allowed herself to turn and look at Cais, really look at him. He seemed no worse for the wear, and now that he was complimenting her, she hardly knew where they stood. From her vantage point, she'd nearly murdered the male, and yet...
He's a bigger man than most, she realized, offering a small, polite smile to the aqua-haired male. "We each take our hurdles the best we can." Being brave to sail wasn't something that occurred to her; sure, there was a danger when she couldn't swim but when she loved to do what she did, the consequences paled by comparison. "My thanks. I learned to sail from the fisherman of the wharf. As a child, I accompanied them on fishing trips to help with mending nets and cleaning the gutting area -- they later taught me how to man the ship myself." Peering up at the mast, she smiled a little more earnestly, some of the color returning to her features. "There's nothing quite like it. I rarely have the time to indulge so I do when I can, which is why...I came out, even though I shouldn't have."
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Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2011 8:24 pm
Her laugh made him smile and he listened to her as he watched her move the vessel on a straight shot towards the dock. "Well, considering what we are, there is much to respect from it. Kind of like it's part of us." Cais blinked, it was an odd sort of reflection, and even stranger to randomly say to a stranger. "Ahem, anyways..." He said, leaning his head over the side and watching as the water move past them.
"We live in dangerous times." He said with a shrug, staring back to her with a small smile. "Challenges, hm? That's something I think we can all relate to." There was a sad smile that came to his face, thinking of what he had overcome already in his short life. "Hurdles is right." He said with a chuckle.
"That explains it, and they taught you well." Looking at the mast he blinked with a nervous laugh. "I'm not too good with boats myself, I'd rather swim everywhere." He said, tapping the wood with a hand in an absent minded manner. "Why not do something you love though? Life's a bit short not too, or at least I'd think so."
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 8:36 pm
"The water is as much a part of us as the land, but I don't think many of us remember that anymore." She was not one to wear her thoughts on her sleeve, but she couldn't stop the way her ear fins drooped a little, her bright eyes slightly lackluster. It was why Li was Legion, after all -- to preserve where they all came from. To remember how they got where they had. And to honor someone no longer with them...
Nodding gravely, she cast a glance over her shoulder again. "Quite. It's getting hard to even breathe in this stale air. I'm not sure if it's best to be so stagnant or if action will resolve the seam splitting of our people." She didn't seem to mind speaking candidly of her thoughts just then, mostly because she was still a little shaken and wasn't entirely firmly planted on the ground again, metaphorically. "Every day is a challenge but sometimes, it's a welcome reprieve from the grind."
Laughing a little, she refrained from speaking while she maneuvered the vessel to the dock, familiar enough with the motion to pull the sail at just the right time to have the boat come to a slow halt. Tossing the rope binding loosely around the post on the dock itself, she hopped off the vessel and extended her hand to Cais, mostly because he was still damp and she didn't want him to slip. "My thanks. I suppose I would swim if I were able, but I'm inclined to disagree - I think life is the longest thing any of us will ever do. To say it's too short is to undermine Lunaria's gift." Li smiled to take any insult out of her words, finding the open banter unusual but not yet uncomfortable.
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Posted: Fri Oct 07, 2011 1:20 am
Cais blinked as she spoke, taking in her words carefully and thinking them over. "I guess you do have a point there. But one can't really survive without the other, can it?" He said thoughtfully. Though deep inside his own words caught him off guard. Blinking again he shook his head to escape the feeling. Just idle words. He thought to himself before taking another look up at the clear sky.
"Well, isn't it said that actions speak louder than words?" He asked, looking back to her with a thoughtful stare. "I admit there's a time to think things through, but without the actions to back up all of that thinking and talk what good are they to anyone? I can't say too much of one or the other is best but, well..." Cais trailed off, leaving the thought to fester outside of his head where it could roam free. "No such thing as a free lunch." He put in after her challenge comment with a shrug, shaking the last of the water from his hair and gazing towards the dock.
The gentleness of the boat as it swayed towards port surprised the young Lunarian as he watched Li expertly move the boat into place without a bead of sweat falling from her brow. He admired that and was quick to take her hand and exit the small vessel. Idly flicking some water from his shoulders he looked back at her with a wide grin. "I suppose then you'd agree that it is what we make it, and to serve whatever purpose we have."
Calm for one of the few times in his life, he turned away from her again, thinking over their conversation with a curious gaze far off into space. At any other time would he be so open with a complete stranger? Tilting his head back to her he met her eyes again and blinked with wonder. Something about her made him feel at ease. With another flick of his hand he turned his gaze back towards town. "Speaking of purpose, I should get back to mine." He put flatly. She had sparked him with such few words, but he could already feel an energy coming back to himself.
Clenching his fists for but a moment he turned back to her with a kind gaze. "What about you?"
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Posted: Thu Nov 03, 2011 11:22 am
"Touche."
Once Cais was pulled off of the ship, she tightened the rope that docked it and looked back to the sea-haired male, bemused at how a near-fatal accident had turned into idle banter of the how-of-things. "Perhaps, but action without hearing words is just as lethal. There's a nice balance to be had, I think -- a belief, and the will to fight for it." Li stood again and brushed her hands off, freeing the residual salt from them before crossing her arms, turning to face the other in earnest. "I would agree," she replied gravely, "now if only everyone else would."
And then something strange happened. The upset, if not wary Cais became resolved before her eyes. She could tell by the tilt of his frame and the hold of his fist, earning an upward lift of her brow but otherwise not commenting on the change. Something had stirred him, and if that something was her, Li would do best not to incite his sudden brimming energy onto herself. "I think those like you and I, never really cease trying to strive for our purpose." With a thoughtful tilt of her head, the Legionnaire simply smiled, a small but not unkind expression. "But for now, my purpose is best kept on dry land. And out of the flow of traffic. Don't let me get in your way, Cais."
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Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2011 3:28 pm
He chuckled slightly, his bright eyes turning back to the other with a subtle hint of purpose restored into what had been a dull gaze at the start of the day. "I guess we'd both have to agree that anything worth fighting for can easily turn lethal." He said, a smile on his face as he nodded back to her. The words were simple, but something he had believed for a long while now - something bright and unyielding within him, the need to risk everything for that one purpose. "I suppose everyone learns that in time."
The smile remained on his face as he watched her, standing for a moment in silence. "Now if only everyone were like us then things could actually get done around here." He mused lightly, before casting a thoughtful glance past her and back out to sea. "But I suppose in the end, all of our own purposes and devices remain on us. Just have to be ready for it." With a deep inhale of breath he turned his attention back to her.
"As does mine." He said, shifting slightly in his stance. "And I shall not get in yours." A grin developed on him as he finally turned away from her, staring towards the city. "Until we meet again then, and hopefully not by nearly colliding." He said with one final glance back, his eyes glinting. "Best be off now, nightfall isn't that far away." And with that the Noble fighter went on his way, now fully ignited to the cause and also contended to have met someone to share ideas with. Perhaps one day they would meet again.
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