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 Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2015 5:36 pm
This rp is between Sinnamin Kamomiru & Autymn F'Alls  
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Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2015 5:47 pm
Autymn bounded her way through the forest, happily humming to herself. She vaguely recalled being in this particular forest once before, though that had been a long time ago. Ah how time passed. She must have come full circle at some point. She giggled to herself and wondered if she should mention this to Silver. He might get a kick out of it. Then again, maybe he wouldn’t. Her smile faded to be replaced by a frown as she pondered that. The stallion was a lot of fun, and a fantastic runner, but his moods seemed to be rather mercurial. At least, that was the impression she had gotten of him. Not, of course, that she was a great judge of such things. She was forever upsetting people without understanding why. Probably because of her energetic attitude. Not many seemed to appreciate her love of speeding through things. That was one of the reasons she adored Silver so much. He shared her love of speed. At least… she thought he did. She huffed softly to herself, once again doubting her own judgment of such things.
Sinnamin placed the herbs she had just picked carefully into her full basket. She couldn’t possibly fit any more in it, but that was fine. She was more than satisfied with what she had gathered so far. It was time to take her bounty back home and begin preparing it for future teas. She’d have to dry some of the leaves out, and leave others as they were. Some plants made a better tea when they were dried while others had to be fresh. She had at least three new plants to test out in her basket, as well as half a dozen tried and true combinations. With a pleased little smile, she picked up the basket and started on her way home. Her mind was so wrapped up with what she would need to do with the plants that she didn’t notice the golden mare until she had plowed right into her. Just barely, Sinnamin managed not to yelp. As it was, several leaves were jostled from her basket and flew around her. Carefully setting her basket down, she peered at the other mare in concern. “I’m so sorry! I didn’t see you… Are you alright?”
Unlike Sinnamin, Autymn DID yelp as she stumbled aside. She didn’t, however, loose her footing. A good racer never lost her footing, after all. Shaking her head quickly in an effort to understand what had just happened, she blinked at the mare who had walked into her. “What? Oh, yeah, I’m fine… er… are these all yours?” she asked, noticing the flying leaves. She could see the basket resting at the other mare’s hooves, filled with similar plants. Why someone would be carrying around dead plants, she couldn’t begin to guess. Well, no, maybe she could. After all, she had several pretty autumn leaves pinned to her saddle. They complimented her coloring well enough that she kept them in place as best she could. She glanced back at them, fluttering her wings slightly, to make sure none had fallen off to join the other mare’s bounty on the ground.
“Oh… oh dear!” Sinnamin groaned softly. She began to gather up the leaves as quickly as she could before the wind had a chance to sweep them away. All her hard work for the day… well, perhaps not all. She sighed as she placed another herb in her basket. “Yes, yes, these are mine. I was hoping to make some tea but… oh… Would you mind terribly helping?”
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Posted: Fri Nov 13, 2015 8:10 pm
“Sure,” Autymn agreed, easily. She started picking up leaves that looked like they didn’t belong. In her eagerness to help, however, she accidently placed a couple plants into the basket that didn’t quite belong. “You’re going to make tea? Out of all these weeds? Why?” Oops… was that rude? Perhaps she shouldn’t have sounded so incredulous when she asked that. She shot a quick glance at the other mare to see if she was offended.
Sinnamin chuckled at the disbelief in the other mare’s voice. She didn’t mind the questions, really. She had been asked such things often, the few times she had guests. Out of politeness, she refrained from correcting her assistant when the golden mare placed grass into her basket. Sinnamin could always pick them out later. “I like tea,” she explained. “I like drinking it and I like experimenting with it. Perhaps I could interest you in a cup, to thank you for helping me and apologizing for running into you like that in the first place?” It would be nice to make a cup of tea for someone. She always enjoyed trying to find the right flavors for her few visitors, and a complete stranger presented an exciting challenge.
Autymn placed the last leaf in Sinnamin’s basket and considered the invitation. She had left Silver back… somewhere… but she was certain he’d catch up to her eventually. Perhaps he’d like a cup of tea also. That could be fun, finding out if he liked tea or not. She nodded quickly. “Yeah… okay, that sounds good. Though, I don’t really like tea,” she frowned as she recalled that bit. That would make having tea difficult, wouldn’t it?
“O…oh,” SInnamin deflated a bit at that admission. How could anyone not like tea? Well, maybe the stranger simply hadn’t found the right blend. Sinnamin was a connoisseur of all blends and flavors, but she knew from experience that this was not normal. Many had certain flavors they liked and ones that they hated. She had never met anyone who simply hated all blends of tea. It was just a matter of finding the right combination of leaves and flavors. “Have you tried many flavors?” she asked, curiously and tentatively. She didn’t want to push where she wasn’t welcomed. Perhaps the dislike of tea was more emotional than flavor related. If the other mare associated tea with a traumatic event, Sinnamin didn’t want to bring up harsh memories. But she also didn’t want to come right out and ask if that was the reason.
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Posted: Fri Nov 13, 2015 8:37 pm
“Many flavors?” Autymn repeated, with a faint smile. How many different flavors could there possibility be? It was tea, after all. Water with a bunch of leaves and dirt in it. There wasn’t any way to make that taste better. Though, now that she actually thought about it, the mare realized that she couldn’t recall actually trying any specially prepared tea before. Maybe once, and she distinctly remembered it being bitter. Many implied a lot, though, didn’t it? “You mean like more than two?”
Sinnamin managed not to stumble, but only because she was paying close attention to where she was placing her hooves. As it was, she felt like banging her head against a nearby tree. Two flavors? This other mare had only ever tried two flavors? Sinnamin couldn’t imagine such an atrocity! “I see,” she managed to say, keeping her tone serene and polite. There was no sense in chiding the other mare for something that was likely out of her control. The best thing would be to learn more about her and find a tea that she would like. That started with a proper introduction. Sinnamin shook her head slightly. “Forgive my manners. Before we go much further, allow me to introduce myself. I am Sinnamin Kamomiru. And you are?”
“Autymn F’alls,” Autymn returned. “It’s nice to meet you, Cinnamon Ka… Ka… Ka-mo…. Mo…. Meri… er…” Autymn stumbled over the second name, feeling like her tongue was twisting itself into knots. Who would give their daughter such a complicated name? Really! How did she expect to get anywhere when just saying her name took a whole twenty seconds longer than necessary?
“Ka-mo-mi-ru,” Sinnamin pronounced carefully. She smiled faintly, unsurprised at the trouble Autymn was having with her name. It wasn’t exactly a common name in these parts. “It’s an old family name. Please, just call me Sinnamin. I imagine it will be easier for the both of us.” Sinnamin was usually a fairly easy going mare, but she did have a somewhat bad habit of correcting people when they got something wrong, and she knew that they would be stuck there all day if she was forever correcting Autymn’s pronunciation of her name. Better to simplify it now. Besides, Sinnamin wasn’t a particularly formal individual. “Now… for tea… what kinds of flavors do you tend to prefer? Well, not tea, I suppose, but when you eat or drink other things. Do you like sweet things or bitter?”
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Posted: Sun Nov 15, 2015 5:07 pm
“Er… oh, sweet, I guess,” Autymn answered after a second’s consideration. She thought about it a little more before she added, “Well, maybe both sweet and bitter. I like things that have a real kick at first but then ease up. Not stuff that stays strong. And nothing that leaves a nasty aftertaste. I don’t like nasty flavors. Though… I guess that isn’t particularly helpful, is it? I mean I don’t like blueberries. I think they’re nasty. But I know people who loooove blueberries and think raspberries, which are awesome, are nasty. So it’s all a matter of opinion, isn’t it?”
“It is,” Sinnamin agreed, once more amused. She was prone to like both blueberries and raspberries. However, she wasn’t particularly partial to cherries, so she could understand the analogy that Autymn was trying to make. “One soquili’s tastes can be similar to or vastly different from another’s. That is why there are so many different variations of tea, you see. Because there is a flavor for everyone. It’s simply a matter of finding the right flavor for you. I think I may have a blend that would work for you, too.” Sinnamin considered the possibilities as she led Autymn back to her home. Once there, she set aside her basket and proceeded to nudge a few sticks into the fire that she kept burning at all hours. Next went on the teapot, which was already filled with fresh water. She kept her precious teapot carefully cleaned and fresh water nearby for just such occasions. One never knew when one would have a guest, after all. Just because she often preferred to live alone didn’t mean that she abhorred company.
Autymn watched Sinnamin work, curiously. The other mare’s actions were nearly mystical to the racer. Sinnamin seemed to move with a smooth laziness that the speedy Autymn didn’t possess. Or maybe it wasn’t laziness so much as relaxation. Sinnamin wasn’t in any hurry. Autymn turned her attention away from the other mare to eye all the various plants hanging about, drying. She didn’t recognize most of them, and the few she could identify she was only guessing at. “Do you live here alone?” she asked, absently, more to fill the silence than because she was curious. She WAS curious, though, so she listened for the answer while she inspected an odd cluster of red leaves.
“I do,” Sinnamin answered with a sweet smile. “I don’t mind it, though. I enjoy making my teas, and occasionally I get to serve kind strangers like yourself. It’s nice to talk to new people occasionally, and I also find my own company relaxing. What about you? Do you live in this area? Or are you passing through?” She forced herself to stop her questions there. She didn’t want to bombard Autymn with inquiries. Especially not when she wasn’t yet certain if Autymn liked sharing information about herself.
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Posted: Sun Nov 15, 2015 8:50 pm
“Passing through,” Autymn answered, cheerfully. “Though I think I’ve been in this area before. Well, not here here, but hereabouts. I’m traveling with… well.. I suppose you could call him a friend. Maybe.” Or were they something more? Autymn just wasn’t certain about that. She wasn’t even certain if he minded her tagging along with him. Or maybe he was tagging along with her. It was hard to tell, some days.
“A maybe friend?” Sinnamin repeated, curious. She glanced at the golden mare and took in the confused look on her face. “Is this a male maybe friend or a female maybe friend?” Not that it really mattered, she supposed. Love didn’t always see gender, size, or species. However, assuming that this maybe friend was a potential romantic mate may have been jumping to conclusions. After all, at the moment Sinnamin could just as easily guess that it was someone Autymn had a rocky past with, and was only jut recently coming to terms with. Though why someone would travel with an individual that they didn’t like or trust well was beyond Sinnamin. Autymn was most definitely not Sinnamin, however, and the orange mare refused to make judgments without the full facts. She wasn’t a big fan of judgments in general.
“Male,” Autymn answered with a small grin. “He’s very much male. He’s really handsome, too…” she flushed, embarrassed by that observation. Silver WAS handsome, what with his clean white coat and shiny silver markings. He very much lived up to his name. But that wasn’t what Sinnamin had asked about. Autymn had just blurted it out like some sort of infatuated filly.
“Aha!” Sinnamin smiled brightly at the blushing mare. There was no room for doubt now. Autymn very clearly fancied this stallion. “Handsome, is he? Then this is a ‘maybe more’ friend?” She carefully added a couple of sweet leaves to the simmering water as she waited for the answer. This was a surprising treat. She couldn’t remember the last time she had gossiped about boys with another mare. That was one of the unfortunate drawbacks to living mostly alone. One didn’t get to have much girl talk. Autymn seemed absolutely delightful, however, and almost instantly Sinnamin hoped that things worked out with Autymn and this mystery stallion. “What is his name?” she asked, once again out of curiosity.
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Posted: Mon Nov 16, 2015 7:25 pm
“Silver Wind,” Autymn answered, still blushing. “And… maybe… maybe more. I don’t know. He’s… He’s so much fun! I’ve never met another racer. He likes to call himself the fastest soq alive, but that’s silly. I mean, he’s faster over distances. The boy has some serious stamina! But I’m a sprinter. I can beat him every time we have a short race. Maybe that’s why we don’t have many short races… well, we don’t really race a whole lot at all… It’s usually just a lot of running and then arguing over who won and what the actual course was… Fun times,” she grinned a bit, then deflated slightly. “Only, I don’t know if he even likes me as a friend, let alone as more.”
“Oh, dear,” Sinnamin blinked at the admission. “Well, surely he likes you as a friend, at the very least. I haven’t met him, so maybe my opinion isn’t worth much. I have met you, however, and you seem like such a delightful mare! I fail to see how anyone could fail to like you. And you’re quite lovely, too. I’m sure the stallions are lining up for your affections.” It was usually the flashy, beautiful mares that caught a male’s eye. Not the relatively plain, down to earth ladies such as herself. Not that se begrudged Autymn her beauty. The golden mare was every bit as lovely as her namesake, both in personality and appearance. Sinnamin had to remind herself that she had just met the mare, despite the fact that she felt almost as if the two of them had been friends for much longer.
Autymn giggled a bit at that. “Oh, you say that because you don’t know me that well,” she told her, wryly. “I’m always irritating people, male and female alike. I’ve been told I talk too much and too fast. I have too much energy. I need to calm the heck down. But it’s so boring going at the pace others go! And I don’t believe in not asking questions. So I always end up irritating people… You’ll see, I’ll irritate you too before long. But I don’t want to irritate Silver. Only, I don’t know if I already have or not. I don’t think I have, but then he does or says something that makes me think maybe I have. And then he does something that makes me think maybe not.”
Concern shot through Sinnamin. “You don’t think he’s doing this intentionally, do you?” she asked, worriedly. “Keeping you on edge like that, making you worry about whether or not you’ve upset him?” That description had the makings of an abusive relationship all over it. Sinnamin couldn’t in good conscience allow Autymn to continue on with a stallion who would twist her up like that. Of course, Sinnamin realized, that even if Autymn denied it, she couldn’t be certain he wasn’t. How many abused mares realized they were being abused until it was too late? Sinnamin had no experience with such a relationship herself, but she had spoken to a few who had. She liked to think she’d recognize the signs.
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Posted: Mon Nov 16, 2015 9:08 pm
“Oh, no!” Autymn rushed to assure her, startled by the possibility. “Not at all. I’m always second guessing things like that. I’m not very good at reading people. Like right now, I’m wondering if you’re upset with me for talking so much about someone you’ve never even met. Oh! That’s an idea! You should probably meet him. Then you’d see for yourself!”
Sinnamin blinked a bit. “Ah… I wouldn’t mind meeting him,” she agreed. Autymn was probably right. The best way for her to decide if he was abusive would be to meet him first. She didn’t want to just assume, especially if Autymn was being honest about being socially awkward. The golden mare seemed rather self assured to Sinnamin, but again, Sinnamin wasn’t really one for social interactions. It was distinctly possible that Sinnamin was misreading the situation even more than Autymn. She nodded a bit. “Yes… I think that would be best. I could make him a cup of tea. We could all talk. That would be… fun.” Oddly enough, she found herself meaning what she was saying. Her teapot started whistling and she carefully moved it off the fire and poured a cup of tea for Autymn. Once the cup was half full, she set the pot aside and nudged the cup toward Autymn. “Here, try this. I think you’ll like it.”
Satisfied that she wasn’t going to get Silver into trouble, Autymn sipped the tea without question. She winced a bit when the hot water burned her tongue. “Gyah! Hot!” she muttered. She tried blowing on the tea before testing it again. This time she was startled by the burst of berry flavor on her tastebuds, though it quickly faded away to nothing at all. She peered at Sinnamin suspiciously. “This is actually good…”
Sinnamin smiled, pleased with herself. “You don’t have to sound so surprised,” she teased with a small chuckle. Usually it took her a couple tries to find a good flavor. She was thrilled to have managed to pin down one for Autymn in just one go. “It’s a special berry blend that I concocted some time ago. I mix together a few wild berries for the kick, and the leaves of some tasteless plants keep it from lingering too long. It’s a good tea to have if you’re hoping to enjoy a flavorful meal.”
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Posted: Tue Nov 17, 2015 5:36 pm
“You’ve put a lot of thought into this, huh?” Autymn asked, feeling rather impressed. She took another sip of the tea and this time tried to savor the burst of flavor before it vanished. She tried vainly to identify the berries, and she almost could. But she couldn’t quite put her hoof on a name. The taste brought up memories of her youth, a time when she was frolicking in the bushes… It was a pleasant memory, if a bit vague.
“Oh, yes,” Sinnamin smiled. She carefully poured a cup for herself so that she could enjoy it as well. Once she had set the pot aside, she added, “Please let me know if you’d like more. I’d be happy to make some. Or, if you’re ever feeling particularly courageous, I would love to brew up some other blends for you. Perhaps when you bring your maybe friend by to visit?”
Autymn nodded eagerly. “I don’t know if he likes tea, though. If he doesn’t, do you have anything else he could try? I mean, do you just make tea, or other types of drink?” Oops… was that a rude thing to say? Suddenly she had to wonder if that sounded ungracious. “Er… I mean… I’m sure it won’t be an issue. This stuff is fantastic. I’m sure he’ll love it.” Maybe.
“I don’t make anything else, usually,” Sinnamin admitted, reluctantly. “Tea has always been my passion. But I’m sure if I can talk to him for a bit, I could find a blend he’d enjoy. After all, before you tried this, you didn’t like tea either, remember?” She smiled at Autymn to show the other mare that she wasn’t offended by the question. It was another one that she was commonly asked.
“That is a very good point,” Autymn nodded. She finished off the tea in her cup. “I suppose I should go get him. It might take awhile to convince him to come this way. Or maybe not… He could really like tea. I don’t know.” She was somewhat excited to find out, though. So much so that she was practically vibrating with the need to go looking for him.
“Of course,” Sinnamin smiled at her. She was a bit sad that their visit was being called short, but she didn’t want to hold Autymn here longer when it was clear the mare wished to be on her way. It did sound as though Autymn would be coming back shortly, though. “I’ll put on another pot and have it waiting for you when you come back.”
“Good idea!” Autymn bounced down the path that they had come down originally. “I’ll be quick, I promise!” She was always quick. It would take longer to find Silver and then convince him to come back with her than it would to come back, most likely. With one last farewell grin, Autymn dashed off. The sooner she left, the sooner she could return, and get another cup of tea.
Sinnamin watched her guest leave before she carefully poured out the tea remaining in the pot into a spare container she kept nearby. Once that was done, she washed out he pot and filled it up with fresh water. Once that was done, she set it on the fire to boil once again. She debated starting a new pot of tea, but ultimately decided it would be best to wait until she was able to judge what this Silver Wind would like best. Satisfied with her preparations, she settled down to enjoy her cup of tea.
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