An Unexpected Meeting (Arundhati)

[Jeram]

Timestamp: 20th of Summer, 512 AV Location: The Docks (Evening) Although the sun was starting to get lower in the sky it was still pretty active in the town of Ravok. The people in this city weren't very scared because they knew that the Ebonstryfe and town guard were there to protect them. Though as Jeram knew the Stryfe could be just as devious as any petty criminal in Ravok, if not at least ten times worse. In front of a local bar you could see Jeram and a couple Stryfe soldiers chatting a bit. The two soldiers had invited him for a drink in the bar but Jeram had declined as he wanted to be sober when he patrolled. "Fine then." one of the soldiers had said to him. "We'll just go and enjoy ourselves help, maybe fine in a fine lady or two to spend the night with." the soldier continued saying as he elbowed Jeram in the side."Have fun apprentice." Jeram watched as the two soldiers walked into the bar. It did sound like it would be fun to get a drink and enjoy himself with a woman tonight but he had to do his duty. Unlike them he hadn't become a full fledged soldier yet and he would be more on the line to losing his place if he was not careful, so he neglected his desired and stood his ground while he watched people passed by. It didn't seem like there would be that much trouble. Most of the people in Ravok were too scared to act out in broad daylight because they feared what the Ebonstryfe would do to them if they broke the law in any way. Though there was always the possibility that someone would do something stupid, maybe a person who was new to Ravok had didn't know how scary the organization could be.

[Arundhati]

She felt her tongue graze against her teeth, her sharp, sharp teeth. She pressed it against their backs, before pressing them together over her tongue. Blood. She wasn't hungry, she just ate. But she was hungry. A different hungry. She wanted the taste of copper, craved to feel hooves and tail. There was nowhere to run in this water-based city, nowhere her hooves could pound against stone and grass and dirt. The Docks were the worst. Water and ravosalas, nothing to thud against with feet and dirt and blood.

Nothing. Her gaze flitted to a group of people speaking, Ebonstryfe guards. She couldn't help but eavesdrop, hearing two of them stroll into the tavern, leaving the remaining with a statement with the intention of inflicting jealousy into the apprentice, persuading him to join them. He did not.

Ebonstryfe. That one word rang into her head like a tolling of bells or a ringing in her ears. She needed the Ebonstryfe. It was her deep-seated need to know them, be with them. But she wasn't granted the gift of Chaon. She couldn't be part of them. Not that she would stop, no. She would still be a part of them, if she tried hard enough. Achieved something no Kelvic could in this city, past the over-bearing walls of prejudice and racism.

She ran her hand through her hair, her red-honey hair just a shinier facsimile of her fur. Ebonstryfe still echoed her ears like a phantom was whispering it, but it echoed down so quietly into nothing. She had never really been so close to an Ebonstryfe member alone. Should she try to speak to him? He appeared different than most of the humans she had encountered, with dark skin and hair but startlingly blue eyes. So different. Reminded her of her vaguely rectangular pupils, forever defining her as an 'oddity' from those who dared look closely enough. She still tasted blood from her tongue. It stung. A good sting, if there ever was one. Like scratching.

She walked over to the man, with the unseemly grace of a horse. Not the quiet, silky grace of a cat, but the strong, powerful grace of a horse. A slight breeze ruffled her hair and the evening air, and she got a closer look at the Ebonstryfe apprentice. No signs pointed to Kelvic, despite his odd appearance. He didn't exactly smell like one either. But, the Black Sun wouldn't let in a Kelvic, let alone the Stryfe.

"Remarkable evening, tonight."

[Jeram]

It was soon that Jeram had regretted not going into the tavern for a drink. It had been awhile since he had been able to just go get a dirink and relax. It was soon that he noticed a certain woman walking. It was pretty easy to notice her as she walked differently than a normal person. It was a walk that wasn't soft and delicate like the average woman but stronger and more proud looking. You would think that it would make her seem wild and arrogant but it actually had a certain charm than Jeram couldn't place his finger on. He soon noticed that the woman wasn't just walking, but she was walking awfully close to his direction, probably just walking over for the tavern he thought. To his surprise the woman was in fact walking directly towards him. He couldn't help but take a second to admire her looks. Although she was still dressed in pretty common clothes her looks still made her stand out quite a bit. Her hair wasn't the longest but it had a brilliant reddish shade to it. The next major thing that Jeram noticed was her eyes. As a Benshira he himself knew what it was like to be someone with unique eyes. This woman's eye was shaped slightly different than the average human's but its shade wasn't very different unlike his own eyes. It was then that the woman spoke to him "Remarkable evening tonight." which was said by her pretty casually as though she wasn't trying to talk to him directly. He decided to respond anyway as he made eye contact with her and said "Yes it always looks so nice in this town doesn't it?" he said as he left a small facade as he was trying to figure out what her intentions were as you allways had to be careful in this city. "So tell me, what is a beautiful woman such as yourself doing out alone? Surely you have many friends to see? Or maybe urgent business?" he said also. It might appear that Jeram was a little suspicious of the woman but it was merely his years of training which had made him more cautious as to the dangers in Ravok.

[Arundhati]

"Of course." Which wasn't true. She hadn't seen the one person she had counted as a friend since Spring, not that it really mattered to her. Was there really a difference whether or not he knew she deliberately distanced herself from those that were close? One wrong move and she could be thrown into the KRI, and too many moves were wrong. Perhaps her realization of this made them think of her a bitch, if they really were sensitive to being ditched by their greatest source of income if they needed money.

She had more of an intention to work her way into the Ebonstryfe, but with the general racism against Kelvic, she knew that Rhysol wouldn't mark her very easily. It would be much simpler to work her way into becoming a mount, something that seemed much easier to achieve.

"But I'm not with my friends right now, am I?" The blood from her tongue was welling up in place, perhaps attempting to form a scab from where she bit so hard. But pain and copper brought her back to reality, something she desperately needed sometimes.

[Jeram]

It seemed like the woman was holding something back but for not Jeram didn't make too much of it. People had their privacy and although he it was his job to know as much as he could about people he would let it go for now. Jeram may be devoted to his job but he didn't want to scare away a woman who came up and talked to him after he had neglected a chance to goof around. It was funny how he was doing what he decided not to do earlier by converging with this person. "I suppose you aren't with your friends, unless they happen to be invisible." he said as he gave a slight chuckle trying to settle the mood with a corny joke. It was now that Jeram began to consider the age of the woman he was speaking with. She seemed younger than himself but not quite by much. He figured it was a better time than any to introduce himself. It would be awkward to continue talking without knowing each other's names."So may I ask what your name is?" Jeram said as he would attempt to lightly grab the woman's hand and give a light kiss to the top of it. He may be a fighter at heart and not the kindest person but he knew how to treat a lady. You may call me Jeram, apprentice of the Ebonstryfe." he noted. Jeram wasn't very afraid to announce his title. Considering most people feared the Stryfe it usually just showed them who had higher authority which fit himself just fine.