Welcome to Gaia! ::

Things may be peaceful in Tendaji these days, but that doesn't mean that trouble doesn't suddenly appear out of nowhere. In fact, you just happen to stumble upon trouble and must figure out the best way to step in and help (or not, if you're more of the troublemaker type).

[ This is a roll and react event. So roll the dice and react to the prompt below depending on your number. If you're RPing with more than one person, have one person roll and all players react. ]

As soon as the sun was risen, Maia was gone and out exploring around the town. She was ignorant to any rumor of any kind, merely following whatever direction she picked on a whim. The river was loud in her ears already, which made her curiosity spike sharply and she steered towards it. Not that she could avoid it, it was all around the village. She really needed to see how high it was, if it would give her journey a pause until it calmed down.

Slowly she approached, ever observant of any softened ground the nearer she got to it. The last thing she wanted was to get swept away by it. She wasn't the best swimmer, having never lived near enough to any bodies of water deep enough to try. And now as an adult, she wasn't interested in learning.

The closer she got, the more aware she was that something was in the water. Expecting it to be a branch or something left on the side of the river that the waters claimed for its own, the young Shifter wasn't too concerned about it, even looking away for a few moments before finding her eyes drifting back to it. Something odd about it....

Was that a person?

"Hey!" Maia started yelling, waving her arms in the air in a slight panic. Hoping someone else was nearby to hear her. She started rushing towards the river, only catching herself at the last second before she, too, went into the water. "I need some help over here!"

Oh, thank the Goddess she didn't have to wait long for someone to notice her shouting. If she had to go in after the poor man, there would be two bodies being fished out of the water later.

"Yes! But ther--" the Shifter answered, the words pausing as soon as the man who answered her call started tucking at his clothes. Pale eyes widening, Maia started panicking once more, waving her hands in front of her body. "Wait!" Pulling off her bag, she dug around in it for a little bit, pulling out a long piece of rope she always carried with her in case a situation called for it. Usually that was hanging clothes up or getting food off the ground and suspended between trees where most animals could hopefully not reach it. This would be a first.

"The current looks strong and I'm not a great swimmer if you get caught, too. I can tie this around a small tree just in case." She said this in a bit of a rush, knowing time was against them, but she hoped at least the action of her holding one end out to him would be understood if her words weren't.

Looking up, Maia couldn't help a faint blush on her cheeks from the compliment. Spending most of her time by herself, only going into the city to socialize for about a few hours to sell what she found, she wasn't very used to any kind of flattery. Especially one that hit a bit harder because yes, she was resourceful. She prided herself on packing as many useful tools as she could while she roamed the woods for weeks on end. It felt nice to be appreciated for it.

"Yes! I always leave home prepared for anything." Once his end was taken, the Shifter turned away, scanning for any trees small enough to tie around. She doubled the knot, pulling on it to make sure it was secure, than turned back around to watch the rescue, holding onto the rope with two hands just in case her knot should unravel. Though she had faith in her ability to tie a secure rope, sometimes things did just go wrong.

Holding fast to her end, Maia watched helplessly as the tall hybrid waded into the fast moving water, praying to the Goddess above, something she didn't do nearly enough in normal circumstances, that the river wouldn't claim two people this day. Even with the rope tied firmly around his waist, the younger man still might drown by the time she was able to pull him back to shore. It wasn't like she was super strong. Nothing she dealt with on a daily basis required a lot of her strength to do.

So it was with a heavy sigh of relief when he reached the other man and started back towards the shore. Forgetting what she had been doing, the Shifter rushed forward, eyes heavy with worry for the river's victim, who seemed to not be moving very much. She flailed on the dry land, fidgeting anxiously, not wanting to get anywhere near those fast currents. She could barely swim, they would surely just pull her under straight away.

"Is he...He's not....." Unable to take it anymore, she shrugged off her bag, dropping it heavily onto the ground and rummaging through it for...She didn't know what. The best thing she'd probably find was a cloth. But neither of them would need a wet cloth.

Still rummaging through her bag, pulling things out and tossing them to the ground after throughout examinations of their uselessness, Maia nodded her head at the declaration without raising her head from her task. "Yes!" She didn't think she had anything for that. Her pack was full of everything she could have ever thought to bring along on her trips, but it wasn't packed with any thoughts of what would happen if she ever ran into someone, let alone someone who needed help. She didn't even have two of anything in here. Which was poor packing even just for herself. What if she lost something important? She didn't have a back-up for anything. All this was making her see just how unprepared she really was for all this.

Two bags. Yes. From now on, two bags.

A spoon went skittering across the dirt before she finally looked up, her face more aghast than before. "Wait...How do we do that?" Glancing at the unconscious man laying on the ground, the Shifter scooted closer, peering down into his face, trying to make out any movements of the chest or throat. "He seems like he is." She was in such a panic, it was hard to tell if it was his movement or her slightly shaky vision that was tricking her.

The hand suddenly on the young Shifter's shoulder made her jump, startled by it seeming to come out of nowhere as she was staring at the helpless man on the ground before her. A flush covered her cheeks in embarrassment, and also the close proximity of someone else. She was not used to being touched by anyone. Clearly she really needed to start getting out more, making more of an effort to get out of her comfort zone of total solitude.

Taking a deep breath in, Maia slowly released it, repeating this a few times until she was able to confidently say, "Sorry," without much shaking. This wasn't about her. This was about the poor man who had almost drowned in the river. She needed to focus on him.

Picking up the cloth that had been laid across her knees, she patted it gently over the man's face, trying to dry the water from around his eyes, mouth, and nose so maybe he'd feel more comfortable. "I've never dealt with....Emergencies before. It's always just me to look out for."

Maia nodded, not sure what to say to that. Now that everything had calmed down and she could no longer feel her heartbeat pounding in her ears, she was left feeling a bit guilty. Not that she could have perceived this would happen, but still. It didn't make the guilt lessen any. What if Liio hadn't shown up? This man would have surely died under her watch.

Folding the cloth and tucking it away, she rose on slightly unsteady feet, bracing herself with her arms out. She moved forward, following close on the man's other side, trying to brace his weight with a hand on his shoulder. "Thank you for being here. I don't get much opportunities to practice what to do. Food sounds like a good idea."