Flashback [Fallon] To Study Learning

[Ruby Majalenka]

[35th Fall 507]

Moving clumsily through the water of a canal in Mura, she was slightly irritated that her mother never taught her how to swim properly. Or it could be because she never asked, the answer seemed viable enough, knowing her mother's strange personality. Yet she still continued to faze Ruby, the most recent case being their landing on Konti Isle a few days back.

'It's nice to be back.'

or so Ruby pictured her mother would say upon their arrival, but the memory of her mother's dejected face kept floating in her mind. She had often remarked to her daughter that she was a free spirit, but Ruby never expected it to be this extreme. Still, highly aware of her similarity to her mother's, Ruby tried to associate her mother's mental case to herself and to her surprises found that she could understand the case easily.

Population centers asserted a stricter adherence to norms, even in the absence of a rule managing the behaviour in question. However the case did not rest more heavily on the restrictions imposed by being in a city, but rather the possibilities denied from one by not being outside a city. But it wasn't just nature's beauty that she missed, no, it wasn't simply that.

Ruby brushed her hand on the tip of an Anthozoa forest, and brightly colored small fishes scattered to her face as if in feeble retaliation, similar to a Gorgonian Whip that she buried her face in later on. Then she put Elodea flowers in her nostrils, one in each, before finalizing her opinion (though not before rubbing the nape of her neck to the soft pouf on top of a Plumose Anemone to confirm a written knowledge that its stings were relatively harmless to Kontis and Chorodas).

She missed the humbling might of nature itself.

How feeble this feels, she mused. Elodea and Gorgonian Whips could cause chest pain and bowel irritation respectively if ingested, that much she remembered very well from her mother's notes. Even so, look how easily she belittled both even on a first encounter.

Feeling calm and relaxed from a Chali she was starting to nibble from under the water surface, she began expanding the parameter to cover other things that might be of influence to her in the past and the future.

'What is it to look at the world properly ?"

Upon emerging from the water with the Chali pad on top of her head like a hat, she found herself in direct eye contact with a delicate-looking woman standing on the footbridge nearby, perhaps too close to such a pair of dazzling green-blue eyes. Switching from gill-breathing, she blew out the Elodea flowers in her nostrils and gave an awkward smile.

"Uh... Do you like books ?"

Dang it brain, what did you just make me say ?!

[Fallon]

It was with both elbows placed upon the rail of the footbridge and her entire leaning against it, that the teenager Fallon had positioned herself. Book in hand and her lips twitching to the written word upon the page, the girl absorbed herself into the world of knowledge and education. A pale finger was licked, and she turned the page over once more. Long gone was the days where she believed Konti to just be scaled human women, along with the distinct idea that Akalak were men who dieted only on grapes. For now existed a mature and sound of mind Fallon – not some overly curious and energetic child that was set upon finding trouble and mischief wherever she dared to tread. This was an educated Fallon. A mature young woman who would not bend to childish whims-

A snicker escaped, lips curling and parting to flash her teeth. There was a mumble of amusement, ”It says… pen-“ Turning her head away from the page, she looked down into the waters. Eyes gave a narrow, both hands gently closing the book as she stared. For a while there was nothing, only the gentle ripples of the surface and the colours of aquatic life passing underneath. Her brow pinched, and her eyes withdrawing from it as a local past by. With a quick nod and greeting she returned her attention once more to her reading.

Eyes returned, finding the line she had left and so continued to indulge herself. Least, as best as she could whilst maintaining a straight face. Her cheeks gave a tint, the finger turning the page once more whilst her education continued. If there was any guarantee about Mura, it was its vast understanding and knowledge of medical past times – and so in the future she promised herself a visit and a gracing of such a place.

There was a voice. Young and questioning. It made her flinch and turn her head, eyes looking downwards to the girl who peered up at her. Back straightening she continued to look down, brow raising and her lips pursing into that of a thin line. There was a moment of hesitation, her voice failing her when it should not have. After all, what was at all odd about a young Konti child pulling herself out the water, covered in the aqua fauna that was within its depths?

Okay, perhaps it was odd. But the momentary surreal nature of the situation had yet to truly dawn upon her. The human straightened, further, rocking onto her heels and the book snapping firmly shut. ”What… the petch?” she gave a sigh and applied her free palm to her face. Shaking her head she discarded the previous thought for a new one, ”I mean, yes. I like books. And reading. What of it… little water… konti?”

[Ruby Majalenka]

Ruby was thankful the woman responded. However another emotion quickly overtook the relief, it was irritation. Normally she wouldn't mind being called 'little', but the phrase was spoken in such a light manner that suggested no insulting intent, therefore justifying no retorts, thousands of which were already on the tip of her tongue.

"Please don't call me lit-"

Her words were cut short upon glancing at the book in the woman's hand. Eyes widened in slight horror, she blinked rapidly and froze. Still fixated on the book, she very slowly extended an arm from the water to lightly push the woman's foot back.

"Do step back, slowly. And er, never let a book hover above water. If you like books, you'll do at least that." she said with a frown.

Though Ruby was never particularly fond on reading, she treated books very delicately, even to the extent of opening just a few degrees when reading to not wear the book's binding. This was due to her opinion that every book reflected a piece of the author, either in knowledge or passion.

Removing the Chali flower from her head, it was only then that she realized the rudeness of her last remark and attempted to change the subject.

She pointed at the book as her eyes gleamed in curiosity. "Soo... What are you reading there ?"

[Fallon]

There was a long careful stare as the child konti unravelled herself from the water below. The hand holding the book was moved back and away. Her thumb marking the page she was reading whilst the fingers pressed against its spine, the girl held it far back over the foot bridge. Her brow only rose for a chime, lips pursing into a thin line as she Konti pressed against her toes. Feet pulled away, a gentle rising up and back from the railings.

Chin lifting she looked down upon the encroaching girl, the book firmly closing only to be held comfortably behind her back. Back straightening she cleared her throat, her eyes still looking down upon the child even as she arranged herself. Although she knew that Konti were capable of having children, she never had the opportunity to speak to one up close. There was only the tilt of the head, the look of thought as the child arranged herself and removed the dominant pad that rested upon her head.

In honesty, they looked no different than human children. Of course, this was ignoring the webbed feet and the fine scales that adorned them. And the gills that meant they could swim quite contently under water. Expression easing off, she gave a quick glance over her shoulder to the worn cover, mulling over the question asked. Her mentor, would describe it as little more than common smut and something that a girl of her should avoid reading at least until she was older. But even the young mind was occasionally drawn to such explorations and past times. It was a fact of life to say the least.

”Nothing suitable for children,” was her answer, a definite blush forming upon her face. It was definitely far from suitable for someone her age, and she was certain it wouldn’t be for the konti either. She pulled at her collar, lip curling, ”Definitely not suitable. Beyond suitable. Only for the mature only!”

[Ruby Majalenka]

Normally Ruby would've snapped to being thought of as an innocent little girl, but Fallon's blushing stopped her from bragging about her experience in past travels with her mother. Her perverse curiosity roused, she was frivolous, and eager to channel some laughs and wits.

"I've seen things, you know." she began, leaving a slight tone of irritation on purpose. Then her voice returned cool. "Once I helped my mother dissect a body - dead of course. In the process she opened the stomach and swirled her hand around in the thick light brown liquid inside. After a while, she remarked casually, 'His last dinner, potato soup.' I haven't had any potato soup since then." Ruby giggled.

She lifted herself up to the footbridge, hair and white knee-length dress soaked and dripping.

"Hi, I'm Ruby." she said, tilting her head to one side.

[Fallon]

There was only a cool gaze, her brow knitting as the little Konti girl made her advances - much to her own personal dismay. Perhaps it would have been better to hide away with her lodgings to read in peace then out here in the open. The girl pulled further away, enough so that her back pressed against the opposite rail of the foot bridge. Gaze coming down and the book tightly hugging at her coat, Fallon drew in a sharp breath. She was far from amused on the words of the Konti - Ruby as she soon introduced herself - instead she found the subject grim. Death was no alien thing to her, and to laugh so lightly about it did come across as slightly insulting.

"Fascinating... But highly disturbing," a purr barely escaped.

Lip twitching she forced some composure, and set her chin to rise and her eyes to peer down her nose at the young subject. How the petch was she supposed to respond to that? She puffed out the air, eyes only glancing back to the rail behind her. This wet child was encroaching on her and her personal space, and the small wall of air that stood between them appeared to be growing thinner. She looked the girl up and down, lip curling as she raised a hand and placed it between them, "I would prefer it if you did not come any closer in your damp state. If not for myself then for the book you respect so."

With her fingers withdrawing, the Human continued her look down upon the Konti, "Ruby, Ruby... like the stone? Red and fiery in lustre? Or more of a precious gem?" There was a gentle lean, a careful look of ponder upon her face, "I am Fallon. Just Fallon, nothing more or less. So, little red Konti, did you want something?"

[Ruby Majalenka]

"Oh, right. The book." Stupefied, she stopped and slowly walked back before jumping back into the water, sending several small splatters to the air. The nape of her neck was starting to itch, probably because of the Plumone Anemone earlier. "I'm sorry if I'm making you uncomfortable. Sometimes to laugh at fear is the only thing bearable about it..." she added shyly, mouth bubbling under the water surface. Her inherited sense of dark humour had helped placate the rowdier friends of her mother in the past, but wasn't appreciated by many other, particularly those on the respectable side of society. In a way it helped to filter her circle of close friends as she could quickly categorize people by degree of compatibility through these attempts usually done in initial interactions. After all self-restraint wasn't this child's virtue yet. "My mom told me that my name was because a ruby necklace was the first thing she saw after giving birth to me... Strange, huh ?" And it was true, despite how strange it might've sounded. "You're tall. And beautiful." Looking someone up and down might be rude, but she did it anyway. It wasn't appearance that attracted Ruby as her words suggested, it was something else. An unexplained feeling that Fallon possessed a ferociousness beneath the learned demeanor. It was the trait that Ruby had found most charm in over the years. But then again nothing was as it seemed as her mother had taught her. Without a book Ruby would've definitely picked her out as a person of action - a mercenary, fighter, or...knight ? "How do I grow up to be like you, lady ?" Once again she regretted her words but could do nothing better than smile lopsidedly.

[Fallon]

There was a sharp twist when the splash came, a moment of recoil where the few water drops came her way. She gave a wince and a quick check of the book's cover, before she released a sigh - it was safe, that was good. Fallon could not help but give the sharp look as the little Konti made her retreat to the water, her words barely audible above the bubbling in the water. Her nonchalant shrug came as a response, "Not really. It is only strange if you deem it so. I see it as logical really."

And then she froze, the question causing her to raise a single brow and take a careful study. Her hairs gave a prickle, her shoulders raising then rolling back. She decided for a moment how to choose her words, on her next choice in this conversation. Part of her wanted to speak honestly - but that would risk exploiting herself for what she was. And that was something best avoided. She could lie, weave some false tale to plague upon this child's imagination or bore it stupid - either or was appealing. The other was to be simply convenient with her truths, to not dwell upon them too long and hurry them along. Or there was point blank refusal.

Fallon gave a frown, her expression of questioning falling almost in disapproval. She knew her mentor would have just released some nonsense, and had she not been caught off guard she would have done the same. But now she was put on the spot, and had to bring an answer forward.

"I can assure you," she began, looking straight down towards the Konti, "You do not want to grow up to be like me." Fallon turned her head away, eyes looking somewhere beyond the horizon with a glazed sheen, "You do not want to exist with only blind wits to guide you. To have the world look upon you with distain as a child, to have the majority to shun you for whatever reason they see fit. You do not want to be facing the world with the few things you can hold onto, with no true home and forced into a life of drifting. No, you do not want to grow up like me."

Sharp eyes focused on Ruby, predatory almost in their glint. Her chin gave a lift, defiant almost in its form, "Do you understand?"

[Ruby Majalenka]

"Oh, but I have gone through those, lady." She replied timidly. "My mother and I are wandering scholars, and as like others who have come before us, we live with a more advanced understanding of the world so that others need only to will to progress forward. The knowledge we pursue and think in is volatile, a mind-boggling theory about reality, time, and space could be put into records only to be disproved later. We learn to sleep well even in the knowledge that every littlest bit of djed that changes or stays could create - yes, create - its own reality. Society and civilization; politics and power; life, death, and everything that comes in between as a fine line, is the only truism we can hold on to lest we lose our mind, while constantly banishing the thought that even that is only one of the many variants." She smiled bitterly before realizing she had been babbling again, and needed to explain what she really meant in coherent words. "I don't know if this could help you, but when you dabble in concepts higher than ephemeral inter-entity relationships, you learn to shrug those off easily." Grim silence. Then Ruby giggled, and suddenly she felt like a proper child again. "At least that's what my mother taught me. I'm glad I can't fully understand them yet, these things seem scary." Then came the second realization that what she said had heavy implications of involvement in magic. Ruby inched back slightly, ready for escape if this attempt to revert to a lighter topic failed. "You haven't told me what that book's about, lady."

[Fallon]

"Pardon?" Words, that was what Fallon heard. Word after word of something that made very little sense to her. Or needless talking. Either way, if there was any logic to be put towards it, then even Fallon knew that some things were not possible. Djed to make another reality? Impossible, such things could not be manipulated from it. Chewing upon her lip, she attempted to gain some understanding of what was being said. Until she simply put it down to gibberish. That was all it was, she told and convinced herself. Rocking upon her heels, she tucked her reading book under her arm and simply shook her head.

Magic, mystery, the heavy suggestions; she would not bite to them - nor would she really both herself the time of chasing them. Fallon gave a rock upon the bridge, the brow creasing into a line as she considered her next move. She looked for definitions between the words, the hidden meanings between the phrases. Was it an attempt to sound more intelligent that she actually was? A mimicry to make one superior? Part of her remembered the children of Syliras, on how they would weigh down and believe themselves above their peers - and part of her rebelled at such a notion. There was a pause, a listening to the rippling water below as Ruby inched back and posed her question.

"Nor do I plan to tell you what it is about," she spoke coolly, a slow blink before she gave a pivot upon her heel. Perhaps it was best to cut the conversation short and find somewhere else to read in peace and quiet. Away from everyone, more so those who were younger than her. There was the creasing of the brow, a step away as she considered where to take herself to - probably lock herself away in her room. A shame in some sense, the autumn air had a way of being crisp and cool. Her voice dipped into a mumble, a check down of her person that everything was where it should be. She rubbed her brow, smoothing out the creases that may have formed there, "I think... I am going to go and find somewhere quiet now. Yes... quiet... read in peace."

What an odd child, was the lingering thought as she pushed herself away and off the foot bridge. Better yet, what an odd conversation. There was a glance back to see if those young eyes were still upon her, or if she was being followed, before she stepped firm step onto more solid ground with the low mumblings under her breath, "Read... read... quiet."