PM to join Draw Me Like One of Your Ravokian Girls (Toan)

[Kechaiya]

Timestamp: Fall 32nd, 514 AV
Location: Aquillar Hot Springs
Time of Day: 15th Bell, Afternoon

Kechaiya slipped two silvers to Max as she entered the building of the Hot Springs. It only cost five coppers to get in, but she always tacked on some extra to cover a few drinks, and always let Max keep whatever she didn't spend. She flashed him a smile, having no shame with this particular proprietor. She had spent many relaxing bells in these waters, and had hid nothing from Max. He never stared, never blushed, just kept to his business proper. A true gentleman in a dark city.

She passed through into the springs proper, and found it completely void of anyone. That was incredibly strange considering how warm Syna felt today and that it was the afternoon. She popped her head back in, "Max, why no people here?"

"There were some earlier Miss Kechaiya, but a scuffle broke out and I had to kick the lot out. So it seems its all yours, well and the people who rent rooms."

Smiling, "Thank Max." She turned back toward the pools, now stretching her arms behind her head upward to the heavens. Setting her pack away from the water's edge, she slowly began to undress. First, she pulled off her leather boots, balancing precariously on a single foot during the process, wavering slightly. She then pushed her skirt down along with her undergarments, leaving them in a neat little pile at her feet. These were quickly joined by her blouse and the cloth straps she used to provide support for her breasts. The pile of clothing complete she picked it all up and moved over to the water's edge, slipping her feet into the heated bliss. Reaching behind her, she set the clothing a bit behind her to serve as a pillow.

She looked down her body, remembering her emotional upheaval a few nights ago. It had been the first time she'd ever been drunk, and she had become an absolute wreck in the presence of Caela Dorin, the beauty of Pig's Foot Tavern. Kechaiya still found herself comparing her body to the blonde woman's. Her skin was tan and smooth, very different from the alabaster belonging to the dancer's. Sunberthians didn't like foreigners, and her skin made her a dead giveaway in their eyes, as if her own eyes hadn't already done so. And even if the native peoples could get past those two big red flags, she still wasn't the ideal image of a woman like Caela. Her breasts were small, especially in comparison to Caela's. They were adorned by dark brown nipples and small matching ring. She didn't have the stomach muscles that Caela had from dancing, and her lowest ribs were visible all the time. She had no hips to speak of, unlike the dancer whose flared out wide from her form. Kechaiya sighed, thankful that her Eypharian heritage made for practically no body hair at all, save for the eyebrows and the brown locks that tumbled past her shoulders.

Laying back, Kech rested her head on her impromptu pillow, enjoying Syna's warmth on her nubile form. She truly did miss how warm the desert was all year round. Sunberth was muggy in the summers and frigid in the winters. Her mind was now turning to Noven. Ever since the first time they met, him bleeding all over his kitchen, her stitching him up, she'd felt this attraction to him. He was strong, loved the orphanage as much, if not more so than she, and was caring and comforting. And she had this feeling that he didn't care about her being foreign. But was he just being nice because she worked with the Orphanage too, or was he genuine?

Her mind continued to wander like this for a while, until she decided to slip into the waters and embrace the soothing they provided. Her entire body was sore in one way or another. The season thus far had been pure insanity. All the violence, the running, the hiding, and the constant work. She had fixed more gang members up this season already than she had in all her time in Sunberth. It was exhausting. She had promised herself a day off, to recharge, to get back to normal sands. Max, ever the appropriate gentleman had waited until she was in the water proper to bring out the first of her redberry juices, which she thanked him for in both word and smile. She sipped at it, wondering when all of this would start to make sense.

[Toan Onox]

Toan frantically paced around his room repeatedly as Ven couldn't help but watch in amusement as he'd been sleeping in the animal form he took, the fox definitely had a look of intrigue in his eyes but deep down he found humor. Nothing but humor in the fact his master had an issue at the moment, an issue he found himself repeatedly dealing with ever since they'd arrived here in Sunberth. Gods help if this place doesn't improve anytime soon... what am I thinking?! Its not going to look or even smell better anytime soon, its so irritating to notice or even think about! I need... I need a bath. I need another good bath much like yesterday... much like today! Divines only know how ungodly bad it is when you walk out the door. I can't even fathom how filthy this place makes one when they walk these damned streets. He continued to ruffle his hair with his fingers as he paced around without end, an obnoxious yawn as Ven decided he felt rather bored all of a sudden.

The artist gave him a good glare for a moment as the fox opened one eye while he laid down, a few sniffs heard as though he laughed through his nostrils and went into a snooze. Even you can't seem to comprehend how nasty you look right now! He issued silently as he focused on how the grime in his fur looked. He shook his head then, determined to go ahead and grab a spare towel found in the room as well as his sketchbook and charcoal. Why not carry that bit of comfort with him, if it'd help him find some form of sanity after he'd felt clean again. He made sure to bring with him a spare amount of 5 coppers to pay to the fellow he'd yet to rightly meet, granted the artist had been a bit of an antisocial being for the past few days. Toan couldn't honestly help the fact he wasn't ready to get out just yet, seeing as how he was in a new place he knew nothing of, and pretty much found himself despising he had to be ready to adjust before anything else. After he paid his fee and the fellow happened to scoff in amusement, as he was no doubt making a good living of Toan already, he said nothing to the artist as he went onward to the hot springs.

Once there Toan found a spot to place the sketchbook that would remain safe and untouched by the water, as he simply went ahead and stripped his clothes in an orderly fashion and proceeded to fold them in turn. When they too rested by his sketch book, he was ready to take a dip into the water. He dipped a toe first that pretty much became a whole foot and ankle, then gradually his whole body in just a moment as he felt the outstanding warmth an enticing comfort. With a sigh he eased back to relax against the corner of his own little paradise, the worries of filth finally melting away as he rolled his head back with a smirk cast towards the ceiling. Of course little did he suspect that he wasn't alone in this place, as he'd cared too little to even think that maybe others were around to join him.

[Kechaiya]

Kechaiya's opened lazily as she heard the patter of feet on stone. A man was entering the springs, dark hair, well dressed, and clean. Her first thought was, "Foreigner." This elicited a quiet giggle-snort from the doctor, if only because she in fact was a foreigner as well, but apparently was beginning to think like a true Sunberthian. Whether that was a good or bad thing would have to wait, for now her black eyes were watching him close, for it seemed he hadn't noticed her yet. Watching as he took his short off, she noted that he had a very unusual scar on his shoulder blade. Pink, not real old, but the shape was odd. A shorter line, with a much longer line stretching downward from the center. She'd seen that symbol before, and believed it to be one the letters in the Common language. But since she couldn't read, she had no idea as to which one.

She continued watching as his boots, trousers, and undergarments were removed. It seemed that was his only notable scar much to Kech's disappointment. She loved scars. She loved trying to figure out what caused them before hearing their stories. The man turned toward her, to dip in the warm waters, and again, Kechaiya wasn't impressed. It had nothing to do with his manhood, because quite frankly Kech hadn't the experience to make a judgement on that. It was the acrobatic body form of his, and he was too... clean. She liked Noven's, strong, durable, scarred from here to Hai and back. She'd only seen Noven without a shirt, and this man's nudity got her wondering what Noven would look like in a similar situation.

She was now picturing Noven arriving as this stranger had, in that bloodied shirt and confident gait of his. Taking off his shirt would show his tanned, grimy skin and the abundance of scars, the newest being the knife wound across his abdomen she'd sewn up just days before. She felt her body starting to warm up, though not sure why. She continued to imagine Noven removing his boots now, removing the new belt that he'd bought after his surgery, because the pain forced him to bite through the leather of his old one. Then came down the trousers and undergarments, and even without specialized knowledge of men and their specific bits she found herself assuming he was larger than this other pale man. Her face was hot and blushing profusely, and she now found herself squirming for no reason that was obvious to her. She pictured Noven entering the water as he stared at her, wading toward her, a devilish grin on his face. He firmly grasped her check, and moved to press his lips against hers.

She was snapped back to reality as the new guy had entered, the water and splashing interrupting her. A string of Tawna curses were hissed under her breath, the first curse roughly translated as involving a man being stung by a scorpion in his manhood, followed by another of burying said man up to his chin in the sands. Shooting a glare at him, who still hadn't seemed to notice much, she crossed her arms and slid into the water up to her neck in a huff.

[Toan Onox]

By the time he'd slunk back and rolled his head up with a elongated sigh he'd failed to take any form of notice that there was another here, in fact he'd practically had to pick himself up and scoop water in his hands, just to splash it onto his face and wipe what grime he collected away before he opened his eyes once more to see the springs before him. That was when he finally noticed her, a beauty that just so happened to sit on the opposite end of him. What's this? A spectator then? He mused as he leaned back into his corner with a crooned smirk, his curious eyes locked her then as he wondered when she decided to appear. He had to admit she pretty much caught him off guard, but granted he'd been rather occupied with his trivial matters he knew that it was to be expected.

Well now, she's definitely an interesting sort. He couldn't help but grin to her as he swiveled the water before him with his hands, a spark of interest flared in his eyes as he noted that within her quiet stare resided intensely dark eyes. They were eyes that matched the dark of night, and in turn he felt as though his very soul felt pierced by her gaze. Chilling to think about even in this hot bath, but still that does make me wonder... As far as he was aware of there hadn't been any women like that here, most he'd seen looked interesting in certain aspects but none of them sparked an interest in him just yet. This one however, this one sole woman with eyes of obsidian, she definitely caught that sort of attention and it'd already snatched Toan's inner desires to capture the moment, and in essence immortalize it on the very parchment he'd brought with him. This is by far most interesting... He mused even further as his fingers latched together in thought, his wide grin drawn into an overgrown smirk as he decided to court the would be enchantress before him.

"My, you're a curious woman now. First you refrain from making even a simple peep when I come along, leaving me the embarrassment of not addressing you proper. Tell me, what is your name? So that I may have the honor of remembering it in my dreams tonight." He cast his metaphorical line out to her in hopes that he might find some form of reception, as he aimed to find some equal measure of curiosity between the two of them, while a second scheme in mind already sprouted from the seed planted there in the beginning of first discovering the female there.

[Kechaiya]

Apparently her glare, nor her black eyes had any effect on this man, so she gave it up. Maybe he was blind. But she doubted that for he definitely staring at her, though not with the disgust or fear that she was used to seeing in others' eyes. He was even grinning like a thief who knew he'd gotten away with his treasure. She hiked up an eyebrow as he never broke the stare, and she was beginning to get nervous under his gaze. No one ever looked at her like this, like she was a prey and him a predator. Then, after what felt to be an agonizingly long and uncomfortable time, he spoke.

And the way he spoke had cemented her assumptions of him as a foreigner. No Sunberthian spoke in such a... fancy way, not unless they wanted robbed or accused of magic. There were words he used that she didn't quite understand, but it seemed he was mocking her, accusing her of being rude. Accurate yes, but it was the scorpion calling the spider dangerous. He asked for her name, then spoke about his dreams, the compliment therein lost on her untrained ears. He was not one to be scolding her on her manners, asking for a name without giving his own. In her thick Tawna accent, "I Kechaiya. Who you? What mean 'refrain' and 'peep' and 'addressing'?"

It was short, succinct, with a hint of hostility. Why had this foreigner come and ruined the pleasure she was having earlier? Her mood was quickly souring and his mocking of her was not improving it. She was half tempted to get out right there, but her body begged her to stay and enjoy the heat. "Why you mock? Not friendly first meet."

[Toan Onox]

Toan's right eyebrow couldn't be controlled as it rose up while the other one dropped just a bit, a sudden pique of curiosity definitely engaged as she suddenly spoke in a strange weaker form of the Common tongue. She was definitely not from around here, a foreigner to these parts just as much as he was. "Ah, my apologies." He chuckled casually as he shook his head after he realized he let his own Common go to far, he forgot that most of the few rabble he spoke with here didn't have such proper etiquette when it came to the form of socialization. Which meant he had to tone it down, lest he gave himself away so easily. "My name is Nato, I'm an aspir- I mean a young artist you see. Those few words mean several things in the Common Tongue really, refrain meaning to keep from doing something, peep meaning to make a quiet noise or sound, and then addressing being a form of a greeting you in an appropriate manner. Understand?"

He realized that she very well might've considered him to be conceded, and therefore took the initiative to repeal such an impression, as he thought now would be the appropriate time to overwhelm her with a sort of indecision. "Again I must say sorry, I'm unused to this place and therefore don't know the proper course of manner to act. Where I come from the city is filled with ungrateful snobs, bastards that think themselves better than the rest and attitudes so great not even Priskil has hope for them." He mused as he decided to rise and stir a bit, he decided he would go ahead and approach the interesting beauty that sat before him. "See I'm afraid I still might have their nasty habits about me, as I've worked so hard just to pretend I belonged with them. Maybe you could enlighten me about Sunberth, tell me what's the best manners to have when in the company of others here." He continued as he crept onward until he'd reached a pretty fair distance to where he was several feet away.

"Divines those are beautiful. Have you always had eyes like that? They're so dark, so keen to pierce the soul as they look into you." He complimented as he crooked his head a little with intensely curious eyes, his casual smirk still present as he continued to speak with her. "Such a rare and precious thing to come across, t'would be a shame if people didn't know how to appreciate such beauty properly." He added as he wondered what her mind must be concluding now, deep down he had an impish smile he managed to contain, as he was certain she'd probably felt at a lost at what to say yet alone think now.

[Kechaiya]

She was continuing the glare even as he apologized and chuckled. She found his name rather boring and plain, even for one outside of the deserts. Nato. What sort of silly name was that? It sounded like someone had started a longer name, then just said 'Petch it' part way through. She snorted when he said he was an artist, for she very much doubted his claim. Kechaiya was raised of the Tatsuwaat tribe, the premiere artists of the region, and as far as she was concerned, everywhere. She'd never had a mind for creating art herself, but she'd seen enough of it back home to have formed some sort of opinion on art.

She allotted the words to memory, saying each of them two or three times to make it stick. And before she knew it, he was apologizing again. Then he did something that made Kechaiya dislike him even further. He spoke ill of his homeland, which he'd also failed to mention. Kechaiya would never say such things of Eyktol or her tribesmen. It was a thing one simply did not do, an unforgivable slight against those that raised you. And then he started speaking poorly about himself. Back home the artists were prideful men and women, treating themselves and their crafts for what they were, gifts from the gods. And again, several more words she didn't know, but she gathered that he was asking for advice of how to act.

She remembered a phrase that Calyn had taught her years before, "No lie, lest die." The woman had taught that unless it would save her life, either now, or possibly in the future, she should always speak the truth. It had served her well all these years. She didn't know if it was particularly helpful to the man's question, nor did she care. It was the phrase she knew that had to do with how to speak to Sunberthians.

She only now noticed that he was moving closer, and was starting to get uncomfortable under the way he stared. It was similar to how Noven stared at her, but it didn't make her feel good when this man did it. She heard the compliments he spoke, but the intensity with which he spoke, the way he smiled, and was moving closer, were causing her to slowly slip into panic. She moved as close as she could to the back of the spring. She knew that if she yelled for Max, he would come and take care of this man, but she didn't want to resort to that without good reason. Max was known for keeping the peace with bloodied fists. The way his words twisted themselves into her ears made it seem as if he wanted to cut her eyes out and use them as jewelry.

Nervously, "Y-y-yes, shame."

[Toan Onox]

Toan raised an eyebrow at the dismally, yet unusual, short phrase she had just told him, "no lie, lest die" being something that definitely brought a intimidated frown on his face for about a few ticks. He then regained the casual grin he held from before, and with a shook of his head he chuckled well enough, and shrugged off any factors of worry that might've grown present in that span of time. "Well then its a good thing I've nothing to hide then." He mused as he still approached her, once she seemed nervous about his complimentary of her eyes, he froze in place with a bit of a perplexed expression then. She appeared... intimidated? Was he coming on too strong? How was he going to ease out of this? He needed something, something to allow him to have her for a little while longer, he wanted her to stick around but he also wanted several other things as well, an avoidance of a proper ass whooping being one of those things also.

Think Toan think. He looked over his shoulder back to his clothes and his sketchbook, a curiosity found seeded in his mind as it took root at the alluring thought begged for him to make it so. "Well then, how about this. I would love to add you to my sketchbook my dear, drawing is one of the things I find most wonderful and I assure you it could be worth your while." He mused as he hoped it might've caught her attention near the end, as he already retreated peacefully back over to his private corner to return to his towel and clothes. Of course once he rose out of the warm water and endured the chill found in the air, he merely dried off his arms and shoulders before he wrapped the towel around his waist. He then grabbed the book of papers near his clothes, and then proceeded to walk around to where the dark-eyed woman perched in her own little paradise.

"I've drawn several interesting people and collected enough pieces to share, perhaps in showing you these pieces you might allow me to ask for you to be added as well." He suggested with a bit of light enthusiasm in his voice, a tinge of excitement kept hidden within as he didn't wish to overbear the prize before him. "You see I've never met anybody quite like you, in fact nobody has had those type of eyes you carry. Which makes me all the more interested in drawing you really, I find that to be one of the most alluring qualities you carry really." Another compliment. By now he wondered if she thought of him more as a kiss ass type because of it, which in a sense he could've been labelled as such if he wanted to, but right now none of that mattered to him because he wanted something better. He wanted to draw her, and he wanted to do so now. Often when he found such interest in things he immediately felt the innate need to draw, such was the case with this woman as she proved to have something most fascinating he wanted to keep.

When he finally arrived next to her he took a seat at the edge to allow the lower half of his legs to dip into the water, the warmth a tantalizing temptation that called for him to rejoin the water below. He opened the sketchbook with a humbled smirk as he placed it down between him and the girl, the first page contained that of the curious girl in Nyka that he met. Vanari. She was a sweet one. He remembered the piece very well, the drawing resembled that of a serene girl locked into a state of focus, as the small piece of wood in her possession looked to take on a molded form. Indeed she'd been a crafty one that day, for while Toan captured the essence of her focus and beauty, she in turn crafted a totem of his slick personality in resemblance to what his bondmate actually was. The fox. How amused he felt even after looking back upon this memory, yet even so there was still more to show the woman before him. Often she would find pictures of random people, some incomplete as only particular spots seemed finished. These were points where time worked against him, disallowing him to capture the full moment as only fragments managed to print themselves onto the page.

Then there were the drawings of his bondmate Ven, the boy who laid on the bed but ass naked as he played with a candle, the fire danced before his fingers as shadows took root from the places less lit. Indeed there was a number of drawings he had and there were only to be more in due time, his only regret was that he didn't keep his sketchbook of old from when he first lived in Ravok. "See now? Surely my intention isn't so bad now is it?" He encouraged as he hoped she might've somehow been convinced to allow him to draw her, it was the first step after all to try and win her over with charm.

[Kechaiya]

When Kechaiya saw him stopping his advance, she let herself relax a bit. When he looked away, she wondered if he was looking to see if anyone else was watching before he attacked her. She startled a bit as he faced her again, listening as he spoke. She wasn't sure what a 'sketchbook' was but she knew the word 'drawing' and the word 'sketch' so she assumed the two were connected. And when he said it was worth her while, she wondered if he wanted to pay her for something. She couldn't draw, never finding any interest in it, so what was it? But the allure of possible gold was tantalizing. Especially as he backed off and away, no longer seeming an immediate threat. She watched his pale form exit the water and grabbed a book of some sort. Kechaiya hoped he didn't want her to read.

When he said he drew people, it made a little more sense to her. Maybe he wanted to draw her. Even the proud artists of the Chaktawe were strange beings compared to the rest of the society. Perhaps it was just an arts thing. He said he'd never seen anyone like her, and she assumed he meant Chaktawe. That wasn't a surprise, as her people didn't often leave the deserts of Eyktol without really good reason. And his words made it seem as if he actually liked her eyes.

When he sat next to her, she felt less uncomfortable now that she knew, or thought she knew, his true intentions. He lowered what she suspected was the sketchbook, making sure to remember the word and image, and showed her drawings he'd done of others. They were quite nice, and he seemed to definitely know what he was doing, certainly more so than she. And it seemed as if most of his subjects were humans. When she saw that many were unfinished, she felt as if they were like a ruined relationship, where one party had abandoned the other. And it was sad.

So he wanted to draw her, and add her to his sketchbook. That wasn't so bad. And it was flattering. "You draw me for one gold. And you finish draw, no like other." When he procured the payment, and agreed to her term, only then would she listen further as to what he wanted concerning his drawing of her.