Welcome to Gaia! ::

[Sabra via Discord]

Zira was carrying a bundle of spare clothing, some more fitting attire for Jahaur that they had extra of that relatives didn't wear anymore, but despite being willing to help with this new stray her father had brought home it was still a bit for her to process. A strange boy with no relatives, no one to take care of him that thought he was already dead? Her father had given a vague explanation with Zira simply tilting her head in confusion. Surely, he was jesting? But then agan she wouldn't be carrying this bundle of clothing if so. She just hoped that the strange boy wasn't going to be dangerous and would actually help out her grandfather. She wanted to help out her grandfather Mio, but she also wanted to train as an Aishan warrior so it was a bit harder for her to balance both. Her brother was leaning towards healing as much as her father didn't want to talk about the possibility so even Zira had to wonder if this was way to try to get Noll more invested in Alkidike training instead. Either way she shook her head, trying to focus on the task at hand before seeing an explosion of fume and hearing coughing. Oh? Who had decided to mess with the explosive fungus? It was mostly harmless, just a bit nauseating if you let them overwhelm you.

"You might want to back away from it." Zira had tucked the spare clothing under her arm so that she could reach out to the foreigner and tuck him backwards away from the lingering fumes. "Those fungus don't like being poked, it's a defensive reaction." She expressed with a small frown, almost as if preparing to lecture the stranger before realizing that he was rather blue....was this....the stray? "Wren?" She questioned as she slowly let go of his arm, giving him space and brushing off any lingering spores that may have floated her way.

[Sabra via Discord]

Okay, perhaps this guy was as strange as promised. Zira closed her eyes for a moment, braced herself, and then nodded. "Yep, I'm Zira." She managed before looking him over with a sigh. "I was going to give you clean clothes so that you could have something more comfortable to wear, but now you're a mess." She shook her head at him. What did they do? He was completely covered in fungus muck and the clothes would get ruined...the very idea of what they could do made this task a bit more frustrating but Zira knew it was the only option. He was just a lost kid, someone who her father had decided to help out and so she would do her best to help out as well.

"Alright, you're coming with me so that we can wash off that gunk." She motioned for Wren to follow her, the hybrid determined to guide the way towards the river where she could dunk him into fresh water. There were also some shrubs that she was keeping an eye out for, the spindly leaves of the plants perfect for crushing and using as soap which would help even more. She just had to get him to the river first so that she could find them.

[Sabra via Discord]

"When you live in the jungle like this you need to take better care or you'll get sick...and then really fade away from this life." Replied Zira without even stopping a moment, her mind already working overtime to make certain she was picking apart every word that the boy said. He was a teen like her, right? He just seemed so scrawny and gaunt that it made him look a few years older...so honestly she wasn't certain his exact age even if she did get the feeling he was somehow within her age range. How had he lived for so many years like this? Had he been like this for a while? According to what she overheard it seemed likely considering he fully believed that he was a spirit somehow. As crazy as that idea was.

"A bit dirty isn't gonna cut it." Zira replied as she brushed past several vines, the path widening along with the increasing sound of rushing water. "We're going to have to toss them." She advised before stopping finally now that the river was in sight. "I have fresh clothing here and I won't let you waste my father's kindness by not taking them. Plus, it's not comfortable in the jungle wearing that...surely not. These are much lighter and will feel a lot cooler than anything you wore in Sauti or Tale." Or Zena? Her father hadn't picked him up in Zena though...which was why he still didn't seem to understand that he seemed mostly normal by the iceling race standards. Just not with those teeth...Zira shook her head at the thought before gesturing towards the river. "Can you swim?"

[Sabra via Discord]

Perhaps it was best if she didn't try to catch every word that Wren stated. Zira knew that her concern for him would only grow if she got a better grasp of his understanding of the world. "Ah, yeah. Well it can also fade you away too if you don't take better care of yourself." She replied. "Have you ever been to Zena before, Wren?" Maybe they should take a trip one day once his health was better. Currently he looked so gaunt that she would be surprised her grandfather wasn't trying to come up with some sort of concoction to replenish all of the nutrients he was surely in desperate need of. Perhaps that was why she had been sent on this particular errand while the others kept making plans for the other teen to help him out.

"Ah, then we'll just let the river clean them away." Zira was determined to let the water carry them out of sight and out of mind, forever. Maybe if they didn't reappear Wren would start realizing things weren't exactly the way he thought. She placed the clothing on the ground, plucked a few strands of the plants that had the foamy sap that worked like soap....and then splash! "WREN!" His words finally registered in her head, Zira kicking off her sandals and diving into the water after him the foaming plants scattering across the water in her haste. Oh for Aisha's sake! This was why her father had warned her to be more cautious about the reckless boy. He truly was a mess!

"Wren?" She swam around, glancing for the blue body that would stand out from the deeper green of the jungle waters. Once she spotted him the hybrid instantly latched onto his arm. "You can't just jump in regardless of saying you can breathe or not! That's too reckless!"

[Sabra via Discord]

So he thought Zena was the great beyond or something? What a guy! So even taking him to Zena probably wouldn't smack some sense into him. What would then? Zira truly had a puzzle to figure out when it came to Wren that went beyond having to piece together his words with his strange accent.

"Now you are." Replied Zira with a frown, her frustration rising from the fact that she simply couldn't seem to get the point across to this guy. Jahaur was dangerous! If he had barely survived in Tale or Sauti before then how was he supposed to survive out here? She truly hoped that somehow something could get across to him one day. "Just don't go under again, it would be a hassle to chase you down spirit or no." At least they weren't in the deeper waters and Zira wanted to make certain Wren never got close enough. "Just stay right here." She instructed before wading back through the waist deep water to gather some of the remaining plants. Splashing back over towards Wren, Zira held the plants out to him. "Do. Not. Eat. These." She stated each word clearly. "Just rub them up and down your arms and add water." They would foam up enough and start really scrubbing away all the gunk and sweat that was lingering on his skin.

[Sabra via Discord]

Well, at least he hadn't gotten swept away by the deeper current. Zira let out a sigh, simply letting him go as he scrubbed at his skin. At least he was getting clean even if it made her wince slightly. "You can be a bit gentler, sometimes just repeating the pattern and making certain the foam gets your skin clear is all you need." She murmured, reaching down to scoop up water so that she could help by letting it wash down Wren's arms. Now that the initial panic of nearly losing someone on her very first watch was gone, Zira found herself trying to sort through her tangled emotions. She was still frustrated, but more so at herself for not being able to get her point across to him. How did she convince him that he was actually alive? It was one thing to joke around about being a spirit but another thing entirely to be reckless in Jahaur because you didn't think you needed to care.

Guilt crossed her features when Wren broke her thoughts with his statement. What? She opened her mouth then closed it, pondering her options. Did she just leave him and hope for the best? It would be a lot less stressful than thinking he would walk into menzuri or something next. Zira found herself studying Wren as she considered the meaning behind his words. "Are you...used to people just abandoning you, Wren?" She managed finally before forcing a small smile. "Don't worry. I may be frustrated because you're reckless and we still have a lot to understand about each other so it's admittedly tougher, but I'm not leaving. I may not know you well, but my papa brought you home so you're now family in a sense." She gave a slight shrug as she scooped up more water to rinse off his skin. "So maybe just consider that your actions will affect others now whether you like it or not. No more jumping into dangerous situations because you think that it doesn't matter. Even a spirit can choose to not be reckless, right?"

[Sabra via Discord]

"Oh, really? What happens if the living takes in a spirit?" Asked Zira with curiousity, gesturing for Wren to get closer. "I can help with your hair if you stay still." She advised, preparing to grab any remaining herbs from her soaked satchel to make a cleansing foam to get out any dirt and grime from the oily locks. He was a mess, but she did feel bad. What would it be like to live a life where you thought that you didn't belong with others to the point that you assumed you weren't even living? What type of heathens even gave him the idea? She could already imagine what she would do if she ever found out, if her papa hadn't already taught them a lesson!

At least he could consider things. Zira opened her mouth before simply closing it again, accepting his attempt as a good enough effort for now. No one changed over a day, after all, and she shouldn't push him too hard. Just taunting him earlier had nearly given her a panic attack since he jumped into the water like that. It was enough to make her rethink things, motivation for her sudden patience. "What do you mean? They're both trees, just with different colors." Explained Zira with a frown. "Like uh hair or skin on earthlings. I have white hair but I still share my Papa's blood even though his is golden." She expressed. "My brother also has golden hair, but he's my brother of the same parents. I know siblings who even have different types of skin colors, but they're still the same blood. It's the same for the trees, they're slightly different but still bleed sap not water or blood."