Welcome to Gaia! ::

Noelani was enjoying the vacation with her family far too much. They had returned from another expedition in Oba and had decided to take the full winter season back home in Matori. Not that it was truly winter in the ocean country compared to others, but still there was a slight chill that wasn’t normally there in the summer months in the evening breeze that hinted at the cooler season. Noelani was also covered in blankets, her body feeling slightly more sensitive than usual which made her more inclined to wonder about certain things. Was it worth going to the evening festival tonight? Should she just convince Nanami and their children to curl up with her for some stories instead? She did enjoy hearing Nanami talk about the deeper oceans of Kahi and she loved sharing her own stories of pirates and ancient ruins with the family. But her parents had already come back, a rare visit from them, and she had promised to leave the children with them for the night so that she could enjoy the star festival with her beloved.

[Noelani 1]

“It means so much to you.” Noelani protested, shaking her head as she shifted beneath the blankets. “We’re going.” She finally stood and allowed the blanket to tumble into a heap in the chair behind her, the porch swing swaying slightly as the weight shifted with the loss of the hybrid. She reached over to tuck a stray strand of hair back behind Ami’s ear. “Plus, the weather is perfect for this. Not a cloud in the sky.” Noelani would regret not going tonight, especially when she knew how much Ami adored the stars. She was always showing her constellations and telling stories about them, so tonight’s festivities were perfect for her.

[Noelani 2]

Noelani simply followed along, her gaze drifting over every familiar thing until they came to the part of the house that was built inside the cliffs with natural rock walls taking over from the wooden supports of the front of their home. A faint dripping in the distance reminded her of the bathing chamber they had made based around a natural underground waterfall that fed into the pool, but she had already taken a long soak since she knew that they were going out tonight so she didn’t go that way and instead simply followed Ami into their bedroom. “Would this split dress over tights be acceptable?” She found herself asking, walking past the canopy bed and towards the wardrobe full of different styles of clothing based upon the various countries that they had visited. The Oban silks were cool to the touch, but she knew that layering the materials could keep her warm if the chill of the evening was too much. The deep red transitioning into indigo seemed perfect, almost like an evening sunset which could allude to the nightsky if she wore a more sheer layer with embroidery with shimmering stars on top.

[Noelani 3]

“Sure.” Noelani smiled, already having swapped into her own outfit while Nanami was finishing up her decorations. It had been a while since she had dressed up like this. Usually she was in more casual and comfortable fighting attire, just in case an adventure went wrong, and the last time they had done anything fancy was during a meal with Omari and potential investors in a future dig. Not that it had been the most pleasant experience considering how some Obans were about hybrids and pride but overall she had found it an interesting one. Settling down into a chair, Noelani leaned her head back so that Ami could play with her hair. Admittedly it felt nice, though almost too relaxing, and she nearly fell asleep before it was time for them to actually leave for the festival. “Ready if you are.”

[Noelani 4]

“Never too elegant for anything.” Replied Noelani with a small smile, her hands gently cradling Ami’s face as she planted a light kiss on her lips. “I think you look lovely and everyone else needs to see that.” The hybrid kissed the tip of Ami’s nose as well before pulling away. “Come on. We have a festival to attend.” They had already wasted time by preparing for the evening, if they kept lingering then the stars would be gone and it would be dawn already! A bit of an exaggeration, but Noelani still pressed forward so that they could leave their cliffside home and walk down the familiar path leaving the cove and twisting towards the oceanside village that was only about an hour away.

[Noelani 5]

“Oh?” Noelani smiled as she tightened her hold on Ami’s hand. “That means we are indeed going the correct way since the trident points west.” She teased lightly as they continued walking along, the hybrid nodding at the comment about the weather. Despite the slight chill of the evening breeze that swept in from the ocean it was nice out. Noelani was just thankful she had remembered a shawl to place around her shoulders, her body still feeling more sensitive than usual which had her wary. Was she truly coming down with something? Maybe trying out that mysterious curry from the other day with the rest of the explorer’s guild who had stopped by was not the best idea after all. Still, her thoughts stumbled to a halt as the pair finally spotted the village. “Oh wow.” She breathed as she looked over the docks which were decorated with floating lights, some magically created while others came from the various glass jars that decorated the streets with lightning bugs fluttering around inside. Banners of shimmering materials, mostly silver and some gold with darker blues to represent the night sky, were hanging between stalls and there were metallic artwork pieces from local artisans standing along the path to represent certain figures from the constellations. “Where do we even begin?”

[Noelani 6]

“Star candies it is.” Noelani smiled as she tugged Nanami along the path after her. “If they have any spun sugar then I would also love to try some of that.” She was curious to see what type of heroes the local candy shop would have created for this event. Surely there was even an Itzli with the snaptrotter, right? There was also one of the ocean goddess since she was represented in the stars as well tonight, one of the main reasons that this season was perfect for such a festival in Matori. “Two bags of star candies please and one sugar figure.” Noelani handed over coins to the merchant before handing the bags to Ami and holding up the sugar figure to show to her companion. “It looks like a snaptrotter, right?” The amber strands had been hammered into the shape, the pieces so fine that she could see through them like looking through some sort of golden haze.

[Noelani 7]

“Why not?” Noelani grinned and encouraged Nanami forward into the mysterious tent. “A fortune teller?” She blinked in surprise, her bright green gaze darting around the surprisingly cozy and spacious interior that had a table with cards scattered around it. She did suppose it made sense as fortunes could often be read in the stars as well. Not that she believed in fate and such, Noelani was far too rebellious for that. She was an explorer, someone who was willing to push her limits ever since finally leaving home to explore the world. Why would she let someone else decide her destiny or anything like that?

“Yes, a fortune teller.” A voice called out to the pair from the back of the tent, a Matori hybrid with white hair emerging with a soft laugh. “Not expecting something like this here?” She asked almost playfully, studying the pair with interest. “Since you are here, however, why not take a seat and see what the stars have in store for you?”

Noelani hesitated, the hybrid ready to decline the offer, but looking over at Nanami and recognizing the interest in her gaze made her linger instead of leaving. “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt.” And so she was led to the table, sitting down in a seat with Nanami next to her as the fortune teller started to shuffle some cards.

[Noelani 8]