Welcome to Gaia! ::

'Almost as soon as you left Matori winter came. I want to accuse you of taking the sun with you, but I've been told quite sternly that you're probably stuck in this unusual cold too!'

Isaia stared down at the letter and grimaced, viciously scratching it out with a put upon sigh. There'd been an assumption that writing letters would allow him to police himself for more soppy, overwrought obsession but that had been... quite the opposite. Apparently he could wax pretty lyrical, if he had the proper inspiration, and thanks to Vaani that was in no short supply.

He scrunched up the paper, ignoring the voice in his head that said his father would murder him for using up so much of the precious resource, but he ignored it and instead set to writing once more, from the top.

'Dear Vaani,

I know it's only been a short time since you headed home, but I promised to write to you. I hope your trip home was MUCH less eventful than the one here - that you have reunited with your family peacefully and that you have had a chance to rest after all your hard work.'

There. That sounded diplomatic. He sighed and tapped the tip of his charcoal against the page, pouting as it left a bit of a smudge behind when he began to write once more.

'I'm glad to say I've graduated to tending to my own recovery, which is probably for the best. Now that I have my cane, it's far too tempting to pay my sister back when her bedside manner becomes a bit lacking, and I'm certain she's thankful for it as well.' There. A bit of... levity to break the tension.

'Now with proper safety and space between us, I hope you will feel confident in letting me know once and for all if my contact is untoward or unsolicited. I've been told that writing allows one to bring out a bit of honesty that manners tend to hide, and I hope you take that to heart if you decide to respond. I sincerely promise my suggestion to visit you was an offer, not a threat. My youngest sister made the point that it should be important to make that distinction very clear!'

'Hopefully yours, Isaia'

There. Hopefully less pathetic, more to the point, and less... creepy, as Marcella had delicately called him.

(2/10)

If there was one benefit to still being in Matori, it was that letters to Yael were fast, at least compared to the ones Isaia was used to exchanging with his sisters in Tale and Jauhar (or wherever else Ujana got up to). As it was, he had no way of knowing Vaani had waited to respond, and instead imagined she had ripped open his letter as eagerly as he had hers. He was smart enough to, at least, do so in private; Marcella was supportive but careful, but Uquin and Zadia were rightfully concerned about his fondness for the girl, and still seemed hopeful he'd come to his senses and stop bothering the poor thing.

Poor chance of that, as he read over her letter!

Vaani was... difficult to read, in person. She was kind-hearted, that was obvious; a girl who had left home and yet threw herself wholeheartedly into helping strangers in a crisis. She was willing to part with a sentimental necklace of her gods with a stranger just because he was scared, and she patiently sat with him and his family when it was in no way required of her. He couldn't pretend they'd had the chance to sit and talk for any great length of time, she'd had far too many people to help for that.

But that was part of why he wanted, so much, to get to meet her properly. To meet who Vaani was when she was herself, not beholden to saving lives or helping people through the roughest part of their lives.

"Vaani;

Damn straight he did! Though you're not wrong, I was a bit too excited to get on my feet again at first. If my brother and little sister hadn't shown up to tie me down I think I really would've pushed poor Zadia to jump into the sea herself out of frustration alone.

As for you, I'm very happy I haven't been scaring you."

Isaia underlined 'very' with at least three long, ink-blotted flourishes.

'But there's nothing to be sorry for. Some charming rogue keeps fawning over you, and his whole family is super worried about it, what else are you supposed to think but that he's gone nuts? I know how it looks, so if distance is what you need, and letters wooing you, then my lady that is what you shall have!'

Isaia drew a few hearts and a sketch that, allegedly, was meant to be Vaani with hearts in her eyes. It was recognizable as her ONLY by the braids and the downward slope of the crude sketch's ears.

'Then let me make it plain. I want to write so we can learn more about each other, and maybe come see you in Yael. Then, one day, I want to escort you to Oba if you want so you can finally finish that trip I so rudely interrupted. And your sister can come too, since I don't want to steal from her the pleasure of taking you there herself.

And if that's not something you want, I do still very much want to be letter friends with the lass who gave me hope when I was at my lowest.'

There was, however, a tiny little broken heart drawn next to these words.

On the return of Vaani's letter, Isaia sat over it, puzzled. Of course, having a rather impressively large family himself, Isaia didn't blink an eye at the prospect of five of them. But five at a time? Certainly, that was startling - that poor woman! But what confused him was how Vaani referred to her birth. It brought a nasty taste to his mouth, and he scowled at the page as he read and reread it, unhappy thinking of the gentle, sweet girl he'd met referring to her birth in such a way. It wasn't even said with a trace of self-pity, at least in this case - but a matter of fact explanation led by concern.

Hurt him!

It took him a few days, both fiddling with the lenses she'd given him and questioning his siblings on the strange beliefs of those who worshiped gods, before he felt equipped to respond with any sort of respect and not immediate railing against her Gods. He had a feeling, based not only on the fact he wore their token now but also Vaani's belief in them, that it would only serve to push her away if he wrote those mutinous thoughts to page.

'Vaani,

I only remember you mentioning Laksha as the reason you were on that ship, and stuck playing nursemaid in the first place. I will be a gentleman and keep my promise.

I'm a little confused so hopefully you'll be patient with me - why do you think you're cursed? Is five a bad number in Yael? My father has told me that some shifters believe moonless births are a bad omen because they worship the moon, but I didn't realize that was a Yaeli belief too. If it's the fact there's multiples of you, then we can be cursed together since Lioe, and Zadia, came tumbling out of our mother all at once too!

I would point out that any mother of multiple babes feels cursed when they're born, because I've heard how we did a number on my mom and she took ages to recover, and having so many squalling infants at once would drive any parent into the sea willingly. Please don't take it too much to heart, if you're here then that must mean the Yaeli Gods wanted you to be, right?

I got a few looks wearing those lenses you sent, but I've never felt more distinguished! They arrived safely, and work like a charm for sure. I think they're amazing, I don't know how you could improve these. Did you MAKE these?!

I'm slowly collecting more and more trinkets from you, and wearing all of them proudly. I still have our shell, and your charm - thought I will probably have to replace the leather for it before we head home.

Actually. We ARE heading home soon! So the next letter would go to Belrea's capitol, instead of Matori.

I wish I had a token to send back for you, but I'll have to give it some thought and find something worthy of you in Belrea.

Isaia signed his name with a flourish, and once again drew a flurry of hearts around the letter, as if peppering it with all the kisses he wanted to send to her.

Because NOTABLY she hadn't rejected his advances, yet again - had even assured him she WASN'T trying to intimidate him away! If anything, her sending the lenses felt like she was courting HIM - though it was just as likely her being kind just because she naturally WAS.