Welcome to Gaia! ::

"Thank you for your business!" Dyakida said, bowing politely as another customer left. The sounds of the tournament were an overwhelming delight around her - rich with people and action and drama. It was like the markets of Andile, but also not - the different types of voices and sounds around her made it far more than that bustling place. A lot like Neued, really - perhaps that was why she went there so often, despite the bad memories.

She heard Peyla chitter melodically, announcing the arrival of another customer at the stall. "Good afternoon!" she said pleasantly as she replaced the item her previous customer had bought. She couldn't remember the proper Oban salutation, and decided that, at such a chaotic, multi-cultural event, she didn't need to. "How can I help you?"

The hybrid walked with her mother, not wanting to leave her behind just because she was injured. Then when her mother found something she wanted to look at she couldn't help but grin at her. Of course it would be weapons. Masika giggled and stood beside her mother, though she was much shorter than the tall woman, and found herself staring at the other woman that was doing the selling. Her ears caught the greeting that her mother gave and she looked confused. So Masika turned her head and furrowed her brow as she asked, "Why did you call her sister? Is she my aunt too?"

The blue girl knew some of the Alkidike culture, like the worship of Aisha, but mostly her up-bringing had focused on her Matorian side. Not that her mother didn't want her to learn but she and her sister, Galene, were always in the water and doing earthling things.

Turning her eyes toward the other Alk, Masika cleared her throat a little. "Good afternoon." Since she wasn't sure how else to greet the woman that was all she said. She would wait until her mother explained to her the manner in which they were connected.

V'demhe smiled when the woman said that she had practice blades. Then she heard her daughter ask the question about her greeting. She turned her head and looked at Masika with a warm smile. "No, waterbug, she isn't your aunt. Not in the way Keket is." A chuckle left her but she continued on with her explanation. "All Alkidikes are daughters of Aisha and in that respect we call each other sister. It's an acknowledgement of to our Mother as well to one another."

Then her attention was drawn back to Dyakida as she heard the practice weapons clanking together. Her eyes went over the sets. Hearing that the crystal would be more accurate in weight was promising. "The crystal ones should be more beneficial."

As the sprite that was accompanying the other Alk made for her daughter she watched it closely. Dem made sure that it didn't try anything funny since her child was a hybrid. If so then the sprite would end up with a hurt wing.

"Crystal... Very well. A good choice." she said, setting the wooden ones to the side. The child with her must be a hybrid, logically, because no fullblooded daughter of Aisha would not know to call another Alkidike 'Sister'. A hybrid, obviously, raised far from home, and not in her mother's traditions. It was such a strange concept. Did the Sister before her feel shame at her culture? Or did she want a different life for her daughter? Or had she simply forgotten to mention something so ubiquitous? Either way, Dyakida was not one to judge - not a sister, not a partblood born of Aisha, and certainly not a customer.

If the girl with her was a hybrid, that explained why Peyla sounded so excited. She hoped the sprite would not be a bother.

"Well, I also have a few rune stones if you want to peruse them." she offered. She was sure that some of her fellow weaponsmiths at the tournament had better magic weapons, but she did dabble, and she was proud of her work. "Staves and beads, too... ah, but first - are these a color your sister would like?" She'd forgotten what she'd been told the colors were, but she knew that the selection she had placed before them differed only marginally in quality and weight, and possibly distinctly in color.

Peyla loved it when the pretty object of her attention called her pretty. That meant that Peyla was extra pretty! She preened vainly, posing in midair before continuing to inspect her. She traced one of the prentice's pretty markings and ran her tiny hands through her hair... such an interesting texture! She had to feel more! Another hand - two of four now - joined the first in playing with Masika's pretty green hair, chattering all the while.

With the sprite preening then admiring her hair and markings Masika kept giggling. She was mildly distracted so when the other Alkidike asked if the blades were a color her sister would like she was taken by surprise. Looking more closely at the weapons she nodded. "Oh yes. Not too girly looking so she'll love them." Of course the hybrid was very pleased that she would have some say in the gift for her sibling.

Then her mother said something that had her going wide eyed. Not that she was ashamed of the words that were spoken, but rather surprised. Masika had never seen her mother interact with another of her tribe so this type of tone was unusual. "Muma! It's okay..." Worried that her mother would become angry or defensive if the woman said she disliked hybrids she placed a hand on her mother's arm gently. "You taught Galene and I to be proud of who we are. So nothing like this will upset either of us." She nodded her head and smiled.

Then she gave an apologetic look to the woman. Of course she couldn't see it so the girl chimed in gently, "I'm sorry. My mother worries about us since we are half Matorian." And as far as she knew she and her sister were the only two of their kind. Alk and Water.

V'demhe seemed to relax a little when her child tried to reason with her and even more so when the sister said she had no quarrel with anyone born from Aisha. It was enough for her. That meant that her children were safe.

A single brow did go up when Dyakida asked if Masika had fins. Dem wasn't sure what that mattered. Though, sadly, this sister was meeting the wrong daughter if she wanted to see a half Alk with such a Matorian feature.

Dyakida nodded at the mention of pride. That was not all there was to an Alkidike, but it was, certainly, a large part of it.

"Oh." she said. So that meant she was... blue and green? Did she have spots? Or were her markings more like those of the Alkidike? And... No, these were awfully invasive questions and what did it matter? It explained Peyla's fascination, and any more would cross the limits of polite curiousity and delve into the sort of realm that was not meant for strangers. Though the girl had said that she could 'ask whatever she wanted', Dyakida still felt strange for asking, though there was no other way for her to know what the girl looked like. Still...

"Well, I really have only one relevant question..." she admitted, "How tall are you? Do you favor the Earthlings in height, or your mother?" Dyakida didn't comment on 'Dadae'. Such a comment, she felt, would be rude.

"Feel free to ask me anything about our tribe, of course. I would not mind answering your questions at all. However, wouldn't you like to pick out your sister's new blades first?" she reached for the runestones she had crafted and set them on the counter, "Or perhaps something for yourself?"

Peyla reluctantly left the pretty hybrid's hair alone to hover vigilantly over the runestones. This was was part of her very important job, to watch small shiny things so that they didn't go missing when they weren't supposed to. But, of course, the pretty girl wasn't going to steal her Alkidike's things! She was too pretty to do something like that. Still, the sprite knew her job was important anyway. At the very least, she could point to especially shiny stones and show them off. People like it when she did that, and her alkidike gave her yummy treats when they took the shinies.

"What weapon do you weild, Sister?" she said, tilting her head more towards V'demhe, "Out of curiousity?"

Her height was all that was relevant? Masika blinked a few times as she tried to figure out why this was so but she did answer. "I take after my father in height. So I'm a little short." Did that mean that she was not up to par for an Alkidike hybrid?

The mention of the weapon for her sister made her look at the weapons again, just in time to see the rune stones laid out and the sprite hovering over them. They were pretty! And not dinged up like the ones she already had. Masika wouldn't have minded if she could have a new set but her mother had come to this booth looking for Galene's gift, not hers. So she shook her head. "Nothing for me but those crystal practice blades will be perfect for my sister." After that she watched the exchange between Dyakida and her mother.

As Dem handed over one of her blades she seemed very curious. "What is Aisha like? I've asked my mother before but I am curious to hear about her from another Alk."