Closed The Kyper Conundrum (Azira)

[Khara]

Khara really hadn't expected Azira to react at all, maybe the uncomfortable silence would persist and at most she would say something - though Khara hadn't the slightest idea what. The explosive outburst that actually came stunned her more than a slap in the face would have. She should stop acting like she was worthless? She didn't deserve it? Did she understand?

No, Khara had to admit she didn't understand; not at all. It was hard enough coming to terms with her own feelings on the matter; of balancing the thought that she only did as she was supposed to and the fact that it still made her feel terrible. When Zhol had told her the blacksmith was the one in the wrong she hadn't really known what to think; the horse boy was her friend after all, and an outsider. Of course he couldn't really understand and would say anything to try and make her feel better. But to hear practically the same assessment come from Azira? With the same sort of leveled anger? Khara didn't know if it was a good or a bad thing, just that it was confusing and conflicting. Not for the first time since the incident Khara found herself considering the mixed responsibilities of the castes; while it was expected for the lower to always obey, maybe it was equally as expected by some in the upper caste that their peers had better taste than to take full advantage of that fact.

As the grip on her shoulders released, Khara managed a brief glance upwards at the huntress, a mumbled "It's okay," following Azira's apology. The angry shouts from the kyper were appreciated, though. Maybe they shouldn't have been - Khara felt bad for the poor thing being rattled around so unexpectedly on account of her being unable to keep quiet, after all - but it served enough of a distraction and a reminder of what they had set out to actually do.

It wasn't even nearly a laugh that left her when the animal retaliated against the huntress, more a shortened breath that ever so slightly tugged at the corners of her lips. Her expression fell back towards neutral at Azira looked back to her. The stumbled offer of… something caused a new mix of emotions to be stirred within her. Azira was her mentor in a way, but Khara hadn't really wanted to assign the term friends to them - it seemed too casual in a way. Confidant? That could work, though. That seemed like it was more of a professional sort of thing that was more appropriate between a hunter and a game scout. Maybe. Why did everything have to be so complicated?

She quickly fell into step next to the huntress and the disgruntled kyper. They walked in silence - the expected uncomfortable sort - for a few chimes before Khara glanced over at Azira and let a slow breath leave her.

"Th-thank you," Khara spoke up softly. "For listening, I guess. For..." She didn't want to say understanding, not when Khara herself couldn't make sense of it all most days. "Just... yeah, thanks."

A slight laugh left her and the scout's gaze returned to the landscape. "But hey, at least we aren't rabbits about to be chased out of their burrows and killed, right?"

It was a poor attempt at lightening the mood and Khara knew it, still, the small smile that formed was somehow genuine.

"Nari" | "Common" | "Pavi"

[Azira]

The huntress watched the scout out of the corner of her eye, fighting the temptation to scrutinise the girl in light of the new information. Looking at her companion, it seemed unbelievable. She believed Khara of course but it wasn't something that she could accept as being true. She didn't want it to be true.

The Chiet's stuttered show of gratitude made the situation worse. It was as if she considered Azira to have done her a favour by listening. She hadn't had to listen of course but then Khara was her scout... or something like that at least. Not her friend but more to her than most other people were. A girl who she respected, a girl she could rely on and put trust in.

A girl you're attracted to and almost brought to bed like that Avora did. Guilt rippled through her as she was reminded of the decision she'd very nearly made while under the influence of alcohol and lust. It had been a close thing but she had almost been the person that she herself had just angrily condemned. She hadn't done it but she'd thought about it. Did it make her any better than that man who had actually gone through with it? If she hadn't received this horrible knowledge then might not she have been tempted in the future and given in? She wasn't much better than this man and she knew it. Just because she hadn't acted on her urges, didn't make her the superior person in this situation. Khara didn't know what way she'd thought and that made her feel worse about being someone the teen trusted.

The scout's attempt at levity drew a quick glance from the huntress and then a lingering look when she discovered that her companion's attention was elsewhere. Scrutinising her, she wondered if she should press the issue any further or just pretend that their conversation hadn't happened. It probably wasn't wise to press her for more details - things were going to be awkward enough between them all ready - although she would need to know more at some stage. If she wanted to deal with this rapist then she'd need to know everything about him so that she could find a way to punish him. How to go about punishing him would be a tricky decision to come to but it was something she'd have to consider carefully. That could wait until the future but for now, they had to focus on the hunt and finding rabbit warrens.

"Well have you any more suggestions on how we can find these burrows? Near to the heat of the city but is there anything else you can think of? Any signs I should look out for? I've found rabbits before obviously but you're the scout so I assume you're better at it. You've trained for this kind of thing after all." She looked Khara's way, trying to keep her features as close to their habitual expression as possible. Azira was all business right now, not someone who was simultaneously angry and guilty about what had happened to the Chiet.

"So what kind of signs does a rabbit leave? Both unique ones and those that other animals might make. Educate me, I want to learn."

Nari | Common

Template courtesy of Khara

[Khara]

Khara felt a breath of relief fully leave her lungs as Azira followed suit with fully moving away from the earlier subject. She hadn't realized it until just then how much just talking about it had seemingly managed to tighten and knot almost every muscle in her shoulders and back. It was like her body had tensed in anticipation of… Well, she wasn't quite certain of what exactly but Khara was certainly thankful it was fading away now.

As if sensing her need for further focus on what they were supposed to be doing, Azira's question caught the girl a bit off guard but was appreciated never the less. The huntress knew enough about rabbits herself, experience and her own admission made that clear, yet she asked anyway. A thoughtful and small hum left the Chiet girl as she tried to think of what information she could relay that Azira might find to be of some use.

"Well, there's prints.... Though I've found that rabbit prints are much easier seen in snow than dirt. I guess that's true for a lot of animals. I don't think I've come across rabbits anywhere that was truly open, either, so I guess I try and look for places that offer them hiding spots. Up near the rocks there should be plenty."

As they continued to walk, Khara felt a small tug of a frown form on her features. "Though, rocks don't offer a lot in the way of other things I look for, like plant damage. Rabbits are destructive little beasts, they'll strip bark off of trees around where they live, usually."

The path they continued to follow offered little in the way of such vegetation, however. The tree line was quite a way below them and only small shrubs and grasses clung to cliffs around Wind Reach, spotting any potential nibbling by any animal would be difficult and Khara felt fairly certain it wouldn't produce any real results.

She continued to speak, trying to not sound like she was rambling and pulling things from her mind at random. The scout wanted to sound confident in what she was saying, she was certain of most of it, after all… Well, mostly certain.

"There's always scat too," Khara said with a slight shrug. "Rabbits aren't exactly the most covert about where or how much they leave behind. It's usually pretty easy to tell fresh from old and there's always plenty of it, especially if there's more than one in the area."

A glance was cast towards Azira, not for any reason of making sure the huntress was following along, but more for any sign that anything Khara had spoken of even remotely came as new to the Avora. She doubted it heavily and returned her eyes to the path in front of them, letting her gaze sweep across and towards the more obscured rocky sections.

"I guess in a situation like this the best I can look for would be to start inspecting sections that seem to have enough rocks for coverage, but not too much that would make an underground burrow network impossible. They still would need somewhat soft dirt for that, it's not like they can just make tunnels in solid rock. Entrances shouldn't be too hard to spot, they'd be probably positioned close to where rocks come together or where a larger one offers some sort of overhang they could dart under. Our best clue will probably be their droppings, though if we're quiet and keep our eyes open we might spot one before it scurries off to hide."

It sounded anything but like a sure answer, but Khara figured that was the way of it with rabbits. They were either in a place or they weren't; they didn't roam a lot like the goats in the area. There were other things that lived up in the rocky areas of Kalea too, other small rodents and larger things like marmots. Khara wasn't certain how territorial those sorts of animals were, but generally if they came across some sort of life it would be a good sign that the smaller creatures at least felt somewhat safe from predators in that area.

Or maybe they try to stay away from each other to try and avoid drawing notice, her mind chimed in and Khara found herself rather uncomfortable at the accusatory tone it seemed to have.

"Nari" | "Common" | "Pavi"

[Azira]

Azira knew things about rabbits. She'd hunted them for long enough that she hoped she had a fair idea how to find, kill and skin them. The scout would know more though presumably, maybe one little fact that might be useful to them that the huntress wouldn't have considered. It was something to distract herself from her own thoughts by filling the silence between them with the chatter Khara so readily produced. If Azira kept her mouth shut, the game scout would be inclined to chatter all the more because of nerves. She just needed to encourage and reassure the Chiet every now and then should she fall silent. Hopefully that would do the trick.

Khara hummed to herself, a glance toward her revealing an expression of thoughtfulness. She seemed to think aloud, explaining her own experience with the creatures and trying to come up with a conclusion of where they would find them. Azira wasn't too sure about finding rabbits up near rocks but there might be ground they could tunnel in beneath them.

"I wouldn't associate rocks with rabbits. Rats certainly, they like dank little holes they can hide in. They'd use the rocks themselves to hide amongst. Maybe the ground beneath them might be suitable for rabbits though. They might be able to have an entrance in between the rocks that they could hop out of that would also be well concealed," the huntress mused aloud, hoping to spur the Chiet to continue her line of thought.

Khara didn't require much prompting. She seemed to be following her own line of thought, speaking it aloud. The huntress let her speak, allowing her to speak whatever came to her mind. No matter how long the silence might stretch on, the scout would fill it. Cover, prints, destruction, scat. They were all things that Azira was already aware. She wasn't offering anything new in the way of information, which was disappointing. She'd hoped that the teen might have been of more use. It almost seemed like it had been a waste of time to bring the scout along.

If her skills were all that interested you about her then it'd be a waste of time, she thought, sweeping her gaze over the Chiet's face. The look instantly made her feel guilty when she remembered what Khara had told her in confidence mere chimes before. Yes, she is attractive but she's also good company... for a Chiet.

The huntress bit her lip, considering how best to turn this situation into a more advantageous one for both of them. Maybe the scout knew more but just needed her memory jogged a little. However, Azira didn't know what to say to her that could prompt such a remembrance. As far as she was concerned she'd already exhausted all avenues in that regard. The teen could only hope that the other would come up with something without the Avora's useless input.

Khara outlined their best option at present and it turned out that they had been thinking along similar lines. "Yeah, we'll go with that. There have to be some of them around. I'm sure we'll find them," she reassured her. They spent a few more chimes in silence, drawing nearer to the rocks that Khara had chosen for their destination. All the while, Azira's mind was on things other than hunting. She desperately wanted to talk more about what had happened to the Chiet. She wanted to know what she could do. She wanted to know details so that she could make the Avora bastard suffer for what he'd done to the poor innocent girl. Even though what had happened clearly hadn't been consensual, the huntress wondered if her companion had had a consensual experience before the incident. If not, then that was something that would taint future relations. The possibility that she would be one of those future relations only flashed briefly into her mind.

"Khara..." she began cautiously as she considered what to say. Of course, she ended up saying the first thing that sprung to mind, which was not a good option. "Are you interested in men? I mean, obviously the Avora thing isn't an example to go off. Uh... what I mean is, did you like men before that? If you did then it might put you off now but... That wasn't what I meant to say. I..." she trailed off as her brain reeled her tongue in. What had she been saying? She'd definitely put her foot in it! The girl was likely to be very upset now and it was Azira's fault. Her tongue leapt to correct the error and only succeeded in digging her further into the hole she'd just created.

"Some people are interested in women, some are interested in men, some are interested in both. I just wanted to know if you'd been interested in men before because if you hadn't been then what happened would have been worse. Not that I'm saying it wasn't bad anyway! That's not what I'm saying! He's a petching bastard who deserves to be fed his- fed certain offending parts of his anatomy." Heat had risen in her face to a point that she was sure it must now blend in with her hair colour.

Why didn't you just stick with rabbits? she groaned mentally, carefully looking anywhere but at Khara. The urge to smack her head repeatedly off something was highly tempting. She just had to hope the Chiet wouldn't get too upset.

Nari | Common

Template courtesy of Khara