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Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2023 11:44 am
“Far too pink.” The young hybrid woman’s fingers lingered on a piece of silk, the buttery feeling of the material pleasant on her skin but its obnoxious color a distraction to her eyes. Anahita had been browsing about the little market in Tale for a while now, the ranger taking a break from her duties to enjoy an afternoon shopping around before returning home. She had enjoyed a successful escort mission and the merchants had thanked her with some extra coin that she was eager to spend. The market itself was fairly busy today because of roaming traders who had opted to take a stop in the little town to sell their wares, their brightly colored traveling stalls set up along the town square so that whoever wanted could easily browse. She had thought to maybe get a couple of presents for her family members but so far Ana hadn’t found anything for them that caught her attention. The only thing that she truly had enjoyed was looking at the smithy to see what type of weapons the man offered today. A new dagger was already secured at her hip, the silver metal around the hilt curled almost like vines clutching gemstones that she could not wait to show off to her mother who surely would love such a piece. Of course though she wouldn’t show it to many outside of her family for fear of being judged that she had opted for something lovely rather than simply practical, a rare choice for the usually more work oriented girl. She refused to give the other young generation of rangers yet another reason to judge her and so Anahita figured she would give the dagger to her sister if anything. Zota was good at pulling off the ladylike look with her dresses and flare for fashion while Anahita was known to just chop off her hair with a hunting knife if it ever got in the way. Now if only she could find more things for the others…sometimes having a large family truly was a hassle. Anahita let out a soft sigh as she continued browsing through the stall before picking up a scarf with glittering stars sewn along the darker material, a perfect fit for one of her youngest sisters who liked magical items. “I’ll take this.” She held up the scarf towards the merchant and tossed over a coin before tucking the scarf into her satchel and adjusting the quiver and bow hanging on her back, the ranger turning to head back down the street to check out another merchant's stall now that she had acquired at least one more gift to bring home. This time though she wanted to check out the stores around the corner which were a bit more hidden from the public gaze, the busy street wearing her down when all she simply wanted was some time to herself after a busy week.
[Anahita 1]
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Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2023 9:40 pm
Despite Barihn's general lack of funds, he enjoyed wandering the markets. They were noisy and generally full of strange people he would never have met in normal circumstances. Overall, incredibly fascinating to him. He didn’t really have a purpose for being there other than people watching, and he was enjoying every moment of it. The merchants had let him wander without questioning why he was there, and he’d even gotten a couple of free samples out of the deal. Some warm meat and then after he’d found a lady handing out sweet fruits. He’d been allowed a slice, enough to make him want seconds. He really needed to look into getting a job instead of just wandering with his skills. It wasn’t so much that he minded the general lack of place to stay, he had been on his own for a few years, though not without issues. Sleeping in trees or on the ground had its problems, mainly wind and rain. Yeah, finding a better place to stay was perhaps moving up on his list. Barihn was so distracted in his thoughts that he didn’t notice the group of men standing around, and promptly collided with a particularly broad leaf man. He bounced a bit as he ricocheted off of him, soft woosh of air escaping him. The man as well as the rest of the group turned towards him, and Barihn suddenly became acutely aware of the weapons resting at their sides. They did not exactly look happy for his presence, and almost looked as if they were about to cause trouble. “Uh….heeeeey there friends. How’s it going?” Barihn chuckled, glancing every which way in hopes for some sort of escape out of the situation.
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Posted: Tue Feb 28, 2023 5:17 pm
OpticPeach Yep! :3 Hope it's okay that Ana already swung some punches! She's not patient enough for talking, haha. You don’t need to get involved, you’re technically off duty. Anahita repeated the words almost like a mantra as she turned the corner from another store, her recently acquired goods bouncing around inside of the leather satchel hanging by her side. If anything it was just going to be some stupid strength contest that certain groups, especially those full of men enjoyed, simply a flex to show power against the poor sap who had wandered into the wrong place at the wrong time. If the broad man allowed the tinier leafling to leave the area without making him piss his pants then surely the others would judge him and mock him later for letting a weakling get away with shoving him around. It was stupid and frustrating. So why was she still continuing down this way?
“Hey, if you don’t mind I would like to get through. The market is too busy for this today.” Anahita called out, placing her hands against her hips in defiance of the brutes gathered around in the narrow space. “So just let the guy go and we’ll be on our way.” She nodded towards the leaf earthling before pushing forward, a scowl crossing her features as one of the brutes with dark cropped hair and several swirling tattoos over old scars pushed back against her. “What?” The word came out almost like a hiss, her annoyance growing as she glared down at the man with a crooked nose already imagining how she would like to pop that one in the opposite direction.
“Lady, you can’t just think…this lil girl is makin’ demands of us!” The man paused, glanced at the particularly bigger brute that was next to the poor soul that had bumped into him, before letting out a wheezing laugh as the others seemed to approve of his taunting of Anahita. “Maybe we’ll move if ya give a kiss or pay some toll, hmm? This path is pretty hard ta get through without some help, yeah?”
“Seriously?” Anahita let out a huff, her fingers curling tightly into fists as the man tried to touch her. “You shouldn’t have done that.” She grabbed his wrist, the woman twisting without hesitation and snapping his arm behind his back as she flung him around and pushed him into two of the other brutes. While they were dazed, Anahita reached for a loose board so that she could block the next attack and bap the guy across the face with it before he got a chance to grab at his dagger. “You gonna stand around to try and make friends?” She asked in between swings, shooting the stranger a look before dodging another loose swing from one of the brutes. Now that she had noticed that one swirling tattoo it looked awfully familiar to a certain group she had heard about before…maybe she should clock in for some bandit fighting duty, after all.
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2023 3:03 pm
Barihn watched the girl swing at the bandits, honestly fairly amazed by what was going on. Part of him considered watching and cheering from the sidelines, she did appear to have it pretty well handled after all. Then one of the bandits got the bright idea to swing out at him after she called to him, and that was the end of it. Barihn ducked under the arm of the man, soft laugh spilling from him as he grabbed hold of a nearby shovel and spun to bonk him across the head. There was a solid crack as it collided with the larger man’s face and Barihn felt only a little bad until another man rushed at him. “Come ooooooon. That’s no way to act in a market,” Barihn drawled, sighing as he dodged another heavy swing. He appreciated the fact that these people were much larger than him, his more lithe frame quicker than the fumbling of their muscled bodies. It made it a bit easier to duck and dodge as he saw fit, and in turn he was able to move through the group. Barihn shifted his way over to the girl, an oof escaping him as he was punched in the side. He didn’t quite appreciate that, and in turn gave another bonk with his newly obtained shovel friend. “Soooooo, you pick fights with people often?” he teased, grinning wide as he thrust the shovel forward into a tattooed man of twice his size. The hit made the shovel vibrate, his hands gripping tight around it as he tried to tame the wobbling object. “Or is this a special occasion?” Either way it was pretty entertaining, though he was going to regret the bruises in the morning.
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2023 3:37 pm
Okay, well she had to admit that the shovel was a nice improv on the part of the leaf earthling. Anahita winced as the board that she had picked up for herself cracked loudly and split down the middle with another hit against a rather solid brute, worrying Ana for a moment before she saw his eyes rolling up into his head at the impact. Even though he staggered forward the movement didn’t give him enough momentum before he flopped down backwards against a stack of crates. “Seriously. It’s already frustrating enough to shop so why make it harder?” Groaned Anahita in response to the stranger’s words, some amusement showing across her expression even as she dodged another fist that had been aimed towards her face.
She did miss the timely kick that came her way right after the punch and flaring pain shot up her left leg, the ranger staggering next to the stranger who had the shovel. “Only when some foolish guy decides to piss off a bunch of bandits.” She commented with a flustered grunt as she pulled the stranger towards her so that he wouldn’t get hit by one of the bandits. She most definitely recognized those swirling tattoos that all of them sported on some part of their body. Blood thirsty witus. She didn’t know what name they truly went with, but she recognized the abstract tattoo as a witu. This group in particular loved hanging out in the area, harassing the local markets whenever they couldn’t get away with raids along the main roads. Ana cursed quietly before realizing that she was still holding onto the stranger, her fingers instantly releasing his wrist as she took a step backwards so that she wasn’t pressed up against his back anymore. “I think they’re getting tired of playing around though.” She whispered under her breath as she watched the banged up members start to regroup, minus the one guy who she may have knocked a little bit too hard on the head. “We might have to get some space between us and them. I would much prefer to have my arrows instead of a dagger against this group, but we’ll make due by either running or knocking them out here and now.” She was truly torn. If she had distance then maybe she could get some shots in, getting them in vital places to hopefully immobilize them, but to fight in a tight space like this without warning? It definitely was getting trickier and her body was already fairly battered from the few swings that the bandits had gotten in on her.
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Posted: Tue Mar 21, 2023 1:46 pm
Barihn huffed at her response and popped another bandit with his shovel, grunting as a fist collided against his chest. He hadn't planned on pissing off any bandits. He had only been wandering the market stalls looking for something fun. This was sort of fun, except the getting hit part, but not really what he had in mind considering everything going on. "Whaaaat? You don't like getting into fights with strangers?" he drawled out, shaking his head in mock disappointment and stumbling toward her as she grabbed hold just in time to miss the second punch sent his way. Taking her words seriously, Barihn patted her on the shoulder before moving away and gripping hold of one of the stalls. If there was one thing he was good at, it was climbing. He scrambled his way up onto the top of one of the stalls, balancing atop the tightly drawn canvas roof as he waved down at the girl. "You said we needed to get somewhere, why not up?" he grinned, holding his hand down for her to grab.
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Posted: Mon Apr 17, 2023 7:32 pm
"Not for free!" Retorted Anahita even though there was a smile on her lips as she kicked another man backwards into his companion. Taking the chance to catch her breath, Anahita blinked with confusion as she realized the leafling was moving away from her. What was he thinking? Oh, oh! A chuckle left her as she reached up for the offered hand, the hybrid jumping from the ground as she prepared to be pulled up towards the top of the stall.
"Up is good, thanks." She managed after a moment, wobbling for a bit as she fought for her balance on the canvas roof. "Don't know if it's the most stable thing for shooting from though." Anahita commented after a moment, the awkwardness making her nearly stumble into the leafling again. "I'm guessing we should probably run for it, right?" She managed after a moment, the shouts of the bandits below starting to grow in volume as they tried to catch sight of Anahita and her companion who had suddenly disappeared from the alleyway. Even though Anahita did hate leaving a fight there were a lot of bandits and honestly now that they were on the higher ground it seemed like running would be a viable option...if they did catch up then she could easily turn around with a few good arrows to the knee to stop the bandits from further pursuit.
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Posted: Tue May 16, 2023 8:10 pm
"Yeeeeah. I don't plan on sticking around to get punched more," Barihn chuckled, looking around at his options. From the higher vantage point he could make out the edge of the market as well as thicker gatherings of people bustling around deeper into the scattering of stalls. Really there were two options in his mind, but which one to pick was not so easy. He waited until one of the bandits wandered by, not wanting to highlight their whereabouts just yet before hopping over to another stall. He heard the soft complaint of a merchant below him, but decided to ignore that for now as he continued to hop over while motioning to his new friend. "I hope you don't mind jumping too much!"
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Posted: Thu Jun 01, 2023 4:55 pm
"And here I thought a black eye was considered dashing." Quipped Anahita with a faint smirk as she finally got her balance and started moving forward. The awkward wobbling of the canvas still had her wary, but Anahita refused to back down from the challenge especially since it meant avoiding the bandits and so she risked hopping after the leafling. "Don't worry about me, I just hope you can keep up!" She replied with determination, her gaze narrowing as she started to stride across the merchants stall so that she could hop ahead of her companion to another one.
It didn't settle well with her though that the bandits were just out and about in town. When Anahita did finally get to the top of a more solid building, the wooden roof a relief compared to the shifting canvas of the merchants stalls, the hybrid paused and glanced back to survey the area. Now where did they go? It wasn't as if Anahita could finish her shopping now that she had already stirred the bee's nest so to speak so she wondered if it was best to try to figure out a way to catch the group or if she should head back home quickly to alert the rangers. There was also the issue of her new companion and how he was faring...the very thought making her frown as she looked around to see where he had ended up while she was focused on dashing across the roofs.
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2023 6:08 pm
Barihn was no stranger to climbing and easily followed alongside the girl, plopping down onto the wooden roof as he kicked his legs over the side to swing back and forth. He looked back over the crowd, curious to see if he could spot any of the bandits wandering through the crowd or bothering any of the poor market people after their little spat down below. He didn't particularly like leaving them to their own devices, but wondered just how they could deal with them now that they had a better point. "I think black eye means you've done something stupid," Barihn teased, turning his head to look at the girl. "I'm Barihn by the way. You think we can lure these guys away from the shops?" He continued to ask, his thoughts jumping as he spotted rushed movement below.
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Posted: Sun Aug 06, 2023 6:58 pm
"Hmm. Matter of perspective, I suppose." Replied Anahita with a slight shrug before nodding at the introduction. "Anahita, Ana is fine." She pondered his question, the ranger twisting so that she could study their position in comparison to the shops. "Should be easy enough. Just gotta call out some insults and have them chase us." Anahita shifted her belongings and opted to put her shopping aside so that she could unlatch and prepare her bow, notching an arrow without any hesitation.
"See the path over there by some trees? If we could get them to run that way then I could probably easily shoot some vulnerable spots to give us time to tie them up." Was it a bit ruthless to shoot weak spots like that without giving them a chance first? Perhaps, but it was also the best way to deal with bandits since they didn't give you many chances either. Anahita had sniped quite a few exposed tendons to stop potential retribution whenever entering a fight on her own against a group, the ranger more reckless and often fighting on her own than she probably should.
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Posted: Fri Aug 18, 2023 4:33 am
"Ana," Barihn nodded as he repeated her name, chewing on his lip as he brushed a hand through his hair. It was a good plan, and he couldn't say he could come up with any better anyway. He wasn't much for plans, more of an act first and figure out the consequences of said action later. A yawn escaped him as he pulled out his own bow, lazily sighting it onto the closest bandit he could spot. "Easy enough to do. I think between the lot of them there must be some form of thought enough to follow." He stood and stretched, watching the bandits scurry below them. Drawing them out to a more secluded area was easy, but he wanted it to be fun. It wasn't worth doing if he didn't find it entertaining. "Whoever distracts more to the trees wins then, yes?" If there was a chance to make a game out of their plan he would gladly do so.
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Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2023 8:33 pm
Another archer? Anahita's gaze lit up with interest at the sight of the bow. Not that they had much time to discuss hobbies and likes, but it was nice to see someone else that could shoot an arrow or two. It definitely made taking out some bandits from a distance easier, that much was for certain. Barihn also seemed to have a bit of confidence with his aim, something which brought out Ana's own competitive spirit.
"Hmm...distracts or takes down the most." Agreed Anahita after a moment, giving him a smirk as she accepted the challenge. "My arrows have blue and green feathers, good luck counting them whenever we take out these useless thugs." That stated she started forward, an arrow flying straight and true into a bandit's shoulder. She couldn't just knock them down just yet...not until they got closer to the trees first! Whistling loudly, mocking the very angry bandits down below, Anahita started to take off towards the trees. She had a bit of time to get ahead of them considering the stalls that the bandits would have to push over or dart around as they chased her. Once Anahita found the perfect tree she scurried to the side, climbing up the branches with ease and preparing another arrow to shoot towards her next target.
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Posted: Mon Oct 09, 2023 2:18 pm
Barihn was pleased by the accepted challenge and quickly made his way along the roof up and over to the trees. From his new vantage point he could spot a couple gathered and another idea began to form. He reached into his pouch for one of his small bottles and tied it off to one arrow. The bottle itself had a vibrantly colored powder he'd gathered from some flowers nearby, and if his plan went correctly he was sure it would lure them to the outer edge. "Arrow fly true," he muttered to himself, shifting his aim above what he normally would to accommodate for the weight of the bottle. Taking the shot it did just what he wanted, flying between the three gathered and smashing the bottle on the ground around them. The bright blue powder puffed out from the bottle in a cloud, coating their armor and smelling pretty atrocious on top of it all. "Heeeey come over here!" he waved at them, wandering further away from the crowds and nodding to Ana with a grin.
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Posted: Wed Nov 15, 2023 9:42 am
Okay, so perhaps it was a bit impressive to watch a trick like that. Even if she did deny it Anahita could have even been amused by the display, the curses of the bandits as they suddenly smelled like someone's bad trash bringing a hint of a grin to her lips. Neat trick. It was frustrating though since she was competitive and hadn't thought to carry anything like what Barihn had thrown into the mix. Was that part of the reason he had seemed so confident with the challenge? Perhaps. Either way Ana wasn't about to go down without something of a fight!
Even the few that had been after her seemingly swerved to instead chase the most annoying target, the leaf man who had just made most of their party blue and rank smelling. Not that Anahita minded since there was another aspect to their competition....which she wasted no time with as she started firing arrows into the group of bandits, her numbers increasing with each scream as one fell while clutching their legs. If boots were in the way of their calves and ankles then then an arm or even a lower back to slow them down would work. Eventually she decided to pause and so Anahita crouched from her perch in the tree, waiting to see if there were any left to chase her after already knocking down at least five or six of them. In the chaos she had lost sight of Barihn so all Anahita could do now was patiently wait a few more moments before whistling out a bird cry used by the rangers, hoping that the strangeness of it could gain his attention.
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