Solo Skin and Bone

[Taurina]

Mid-day on the 39th of Fall 516

The humidity was miserable, but so was the rain of the days before. The rain had brought the winged beasts once more and the Ethaefal had once more played the part of the coward and somehow escaped the assault for the most part. Perhaps it was luck or maybe Leth was watching out for her. Or maybe the Zith just did not have a taste for Eth. Taurina was not sure, but was nevertheless happy that the attack had not taken her life from her or had dragged her down with the poor souls who had been taken. It was selfish, but she did not believe she could have survived such a kidnapping and so a small part of her that served to console told her the Drykas who had been taken were better suited for surviving such a thing.

The Ethaefal was not strong or knowledgable. She had never undergone physical torture to her current knowledge and her only source of mental torture was having her mind locked away from her in the form of her lost memories and being so far from Leth that some nights she could not feel him at all. No, it was unlikely that she would have survived the Zith taking her. However, guilt weighed down on her as well. While she hoped somehow the taken would be rescued, she could barely look at those effected by the attack in the meantime. Both those injured and those who had had family members taken. It was not fair that their numbers had decreased and she had been untouched. It was not fair that the untrained, not true Drykas had escaped while many had not gotten so lucky.

Taurina tried to shake the thoughts away and ignore her guilt. It was not her fault that she was untrained or that she was physically and likely mentally weak. At least, that is what she kept telling herself. Within herself though she knew very well how strong those lies were. The fault lied with her and no one else.

Taurina cringed away from her own thoughts, burying them within herself. She tried to focus her attention instead on the tools within her hands. The majority of the day has been spent thus far at the Lilacwind Pavillion. Luckily they were still here, working away and not bringing up the attacks really at all. It should have been a welcomed break from all the guilt she experienced on the outside of the tent. It really was not though. Her feelings and thoughts were too engrained within her mind. She was doomed from the moment the winged terrors left without having found her.

“Looking better,” Jarorra praised, Taurina could sense the artist looking over her shoulder at the art she was trying to create. There had not been much time for practice lately. Every once and awhile Taurina had spent time sketching, but little time had been spent working on working out her tattooing skills. She blamed it on a lack of time and on the increase of the emotion guilt, but really it had been laziness and the weather had been horrible for her state of mind. Any focus she might of had was chased away by storms, heat, and just that overall miserable feeling the humid air gave.

“Yeah, the paint helps,” Taurina murmured, signing her thanks as she gestured over to the paint jar that Jarorra had showed her before and allowed her to use again since she had not yet gotten any paint of her own. Another thing to add of that every growing list of things to do. The mental list was another thing that was rarely acknowledged, but always seemed to be -in one way or another- pressing on the Eth’s mind. There were so many things she wanted to get or needed to get along with so many things she wanted to learn and knowledge she needed to gain in order to survive here. The idea of winter scared her terribly and her way of dealing with the fear was to largely ignore it and only occasionally acknowledge it. A horrible way of dealing with it (Taurina was the first to admit that), but that is where she was at this point.

“What are you creating today?” Jarorra questioned, likely signing as well, but Taurina was not turned to look and pay attention to the other artist’s hands. Instead, the Eth was fixed on her creation. It was being created on fresher skin this time that was much easier to work with and not as annoying as the pig skin had been. Jarorra had said this would work for now in her practice. The skin was not as close to human skin as pig skin was, but it did help with getting lines straight and working on making them thin or bold and slightly with learning how deep or shallow to press her needle into the skin.

“Just some simple shapes and curves, nothing too complicated yet,” Taurina explained, glancing up at Jarorra to make sure she got it. With her pavi being as broken and hard to hear as it is, Taurina always worried people not understanding her when it came to more complex answers. Jarorra was nodding though, seemingly pleased with the work Taurina was doing.

“Keep it up. Simple stuff is the hardest,” there was a glint in the Drykas woman’s eyes now that Taurina only caught because she was still looking in the woman’s direction. The Ethaefal returned the look with a small, close lipped smile of her own and gave a sign that was something close to meaning yes, very hard before Jarorra gave her a nod and walked away. Taurina sighed and looked at the red spiral she had painted on with the paint. The goal was to trace the outline with the ink and needle in her hands, then go back to the top and fill it all in. It’d be time consuming since she did not have a chisel, but she would work with what she had. She did not have a choice.

Taurina moved to tip of the spiral before pressing the point of her bone needle in past the top layers of the skin. The ink was deposited down into the skin, leaving a small bubble in its wake when the Eth drew the needle up and out. A rag was taken and wiped carefully over the skin, getting rid of the ink bubble so it would not have time to dry and stain the skin. Once that was completely, Taurina moved to where the next dot would be placed which was just beside the first one.

The Eth worked slow and meticulous, working her way down the outer edge of the spiral this way. There was nothing fast or rushed about her and doing this one needle prick at a tip was time consuming and her hands often began to cramp after doing this for long periods of time. Her fingers worked though, determined to learn this. She had to learn something. Make herself useful in some way.

Pavi | Common | 'Thoughts'

[Taurina]

“A session is set to begin here any chime,” Jarorra warned Taurina who answered with a simple sign of understanding. They were each free to work on their own projects and skills in their own time, they were even allowed to help each other and gain advice from the others if both parties were free at the same time. As long as the work was done and the clients cared for, the in-between time was available to be used at the employee’s discretion. Jarorra giving the warning that a session would be starting soon, though, told Taurina it was time to put her own things away and off to the side until the work was once more done.

The Eth looked down at her work, finding it unsatisfying in how far it was from being complete. Her line of dots following the red paint in making a curved line was only about halfway down the outer rim of Taurina’s painted spiral. She frowned slightly before sighing and closing up both the paint and ink jars. The skin and tools were moved to her little box of tattooing supplies where she hoped her things would be safe till she was able to come back work on the art later. She hoped to get back to it before the skin had time to dry out too badly.

Once her work was put away, Taurina moved to gather up the tools Jarorra would need. A sterilized chisel, a couple rags damp with water, and the inks the woman would need. Likely this person had already come in for a consultation, so Taurina turned to her mentor and boss to learn which of the inks would be needed. She asked with her hands rather than words, knowing that when she knew the right signs people understood her better that way.

“Black, red, white, and gold,” Jarorra answered simply before going about her work of preparing the seating arrangement for the Drykas and the family that was likely coming with them. Taurina turned her gaze to the inks, running through her head what each color could be used for. White was good for highlighting and contrast, she had learned that through watching the others work. Mixed with black it could make grey which was good for shading and adding definition. Red could mean that this Drykas was from the Ruby clan, but it did not have to mean that. Both red and gold had a large variety of uses. They could be the main focus colors or accent colors. Black was common. It made good lines and a lot of Drykas seemed to like the bold, solid lines created by the color. Taurina’s own windmarks were solid black in color.

Taurina got to the place of where all the inks were settled comfortably in their jars. Each one was a bright, vibrant color, seemingly glittering within the tent. Taurina grabbed the colors she needed, black, red, white, and gold, before moving towards where Jarorra was. The supplies were set upon the small work table the female artist would be working off of. Taurina was careful when placing the jars, not wanting to repeat her spilling of ink that happened not many days ago. The embarrassment from that was still very real and a chill spread over the Eth’s skin every time she thought about it along with the profound feeling that she should apologize again even though Injal sent her home because of her many apologies the day it happened. Taurina shook the thoughts away, determined to prove herself now. That would not be repeated. She was determined to prove that she could be trusted by the others as well as by herself. When it came to things such as this anyway. The jars of ink were placed upon the work table with all the care in the world.

Next to the jars, Taurina placed the chisel and made sure the other things that would be needed were present. Once that was done, Taurina turned to Jarorra who was making sure everything was set and ready to go herself. Between the two of them, Taurina was confident that nothing would slip through the cracks or be forgotten. If something was, however, Taurina would always be ready to go fetch it and make things easier for the tattoo artist.

“Looks good,” Jarorra commented before assuring Taurina through sign that they had gotten everything. Jarorra then moved over and picking up the scroll that likely held her sketch. She opened the parchment up and began studying the work, as if making sure she had every detail and curve placed in her memory. That was part of Jarorra’s job as an artist. The client had to be happy and others had to be impressed with the work. The windmarks were too important to be poorly done or not to the client’s wishes. There was a lot riding on every single one. They had to represent the client and what was inside of them while still resembling somewhat the artist who created them. It was a tough job. It was a tattoo artist’s job.

Taurina twisted her neck so she could get a look at the sketch Jarorra had created during the consultation. Sketches were always rough and in need of more detail here, but it looked pretty good. Jarorra had likely worked on it more after the client had left and while the ideas were still flowing with the Drykas still fresh in Jarorra’s mind. This one looked like a back piece maybe, it was somewhat wide so it could not be for an arm or leg. It looked like an abstract version of a horse with a wild mane that melded into the wind. Surrounding the horse were swirls and whorls of patterns with elements of the wild plant life to it. On one side the detailed patterns had more edges which created a sharper look to them while on the other side the swirls were softer and more rounded. It was an interesting concept for a windmark, but Taurina found herself liking it. She hoped the client would like it too. Jarorra had put a lot of work into it, as she often did, so it would be a shame if the Drykas ended up not liking it.

“Most of it will be black,” Jarorra must have caught Taurina staring for now she was explaining the work with more detail, “The flowers will be a mix of red and gold petals on one side and white and grey on the other.” Jarrora signed that it will be beautiful, a work of art. Taurina smiled and offered praise for she enjoyed the piece already. “Look at it from afar, look at the parchment. What do you see?” Jarorra instructed Taurina, looking at the assistant with curiosity while Taurina focused her attention on the work.

At first she did not notice much of anything, just gaps between the lines. Then she remembered a lesson on negative space that Jarorra had once taught her. That sometimes the negative space was just as important as the rest of the work. So Taurina unfocused a little bit, changing her focus to the big picture instead of just the individual gaps. What she saw surrounding the edges of the piece were two faces pointed in and looking at each other. One was bigger and the lines creating it were sharper while the other was softer, more curved. Taurina’s eyes grew wide with the new revelation before she was able to gather herself and relax them once more. She glanced over to Jarorra who was smiling, likely pleased by Taurina’s ability to discover the uniqueness of the work. There were many things Taurina wished to know, but before any questions could be asked, the tent flap opened. Upon looking over, Taurina’s eyes landed on a small family surrounding a Drykas female. It was time for work.

Pavi | Common | 'Thoughts'

[Taurina]

There was a flurry of greetings and praise after the Drykas walked in. Jarorra directed her attention away from Taurina and instead focused it on her customer who was more than willing to accept it. Taurina kept a smile on her face, but did not do much interacting with the group. She was just the assistant and not as important as the artist. While she hoped to one day be the artist, that day was not here yet and she was happy to stick in the background. So many people and so much commotion was not usually her desired setting. She preferred the quiet company of Leth and nature to that of many people. It was likely sad, but it was also true. The Eth just was not a social being despite her best efforts in trying to become one.

“This is Taurina, she will be assisting me today,” Taurina’s gaze shifted over and was focused in when she heard her name. Her eyes focused on Jarorra for a tick before turning to the woman Jarorra was talking to. It was the woman getting her windmarks done today. Taurina gave a smile and signed her greetings. It was easier to just sign to strangers, they did not yet know of her broken speech. It always drew in too many questions when she spoke with words so obscured by the common tongue. The other woman signed her own greetings before turning her attention back on Jarorra.

Taurina let out a breath she had not been aware she had held in. Her gaze shifted while absent fingers played with a lock of her hair. It was best for her to just stay out of the way, hand the socializing over to Jarorra. She was better at it anyway. She had a way of making her clients comfortable and getting them to open up to her. She was good at it, but Injal was better. He was the real social one of the group. Him and his constant smiles. Taurina was more like Keil in that she was more reserved and serious. At least there was hope for her. Keil still got clients without being overly friendly or flirty, perhaps when the time came Taurina would be the same. The Eth shook those thoughts away, there was no point in worrying about such things now. The dream likely would not come true in any short amount of time. Not with her struggling so much as she did currently.

“Let’s get you started,” more words that drew Taurina out of her head. Jarorra was leading her client over to the cushions she would reside on while getting worked on. The Drykas family came over as well, surrounding the female family member. This family was strangely more reserved than some of the others Taurina had witnessed around someone getting windmarks. They seemed to have an almost sad look about them despite the happy smiles and bright eyes. It was there in their body posture and every once and awhile, when one stopped smiling for even a tick, they looked unbelievably sad. Had something happened to them? Had they lost someone perhaps?

[b]“Alright, so we are going to lay you on your left side,” Jarorra instructed, “get comfortable.” The artist also signed that it was okay to relax and for the girl to be sure to breath. It was normal to be nervous for one’s windmarks or when gaining any body art for that matter. It hurt and so much time in one position often caused the body to become uncomfortable. Sometimes, after many bells, the muscles began to cramp and breaks had to be taken for both artist and client. The piece that this girl was getting was ambitious and complex. It would likely take many bells, Taurina suspected that it would not get done in one session.

“Taurina,” Jarorra grasped her assistant’s attention once more. Taurina looked over to her boss with question and willingness. The Eth would do whatever asked of her for she aimed to please when it came to her work. She wished to be good and useful here. For her bosses to be happy with her work and even attitude. “The piece is on her side. I will need you to keep her as still as possible and only stretch little portions at a time,” Taurina nodded to the instructions given to her, prepared to do her job. The wet rags from before were pulled to her side as it would be her job to wipe the excess ink from the skin so Jarorra could see what she was doing. Taurina signed ready and prepared which earned her a nod from the female Lilacwind.

The Eth watched as Jarorra began putting the design on her client. She balanced the scroll on her lap and used it as a guide as she fit the artwork onto her new canvas’ body. Somehow the artist knew how to make it all proportionate and look exactly right. The art wrapped around the woman’s side, the larger face would be more on the woman’s back than her side and the smaller face was going to be more on the woman’s stomach than her side. Jarorra outlined it all in the red paint she had let Taurina use and while Jarorra did not always do this, Taurina guessed she was this time because of the complexity of the piece. The paint job was not perfect and it did not have all the details of the sketch, but it was not suppose to. It was just meant to act like an outline. Show were the pieces were suppose to go and give rough shape to the work. The true details and talent would come in when the ink was applied to the skin.

Jarorra took about half a bell to do the outline work, making sure it was all clean and done to her liking before moving on. The client was asked if she wished to take the painkiller since this would be a long work. The client declined and so Jarorra started. Taurina held the first bit of skin taunt for Jarorra, watching as the client winced with the sudden pain. Taurina held the woman down, needing her to be still so the work came out as it was suppose to. Jarorra pulled back after her first mark was made and once again asked if the woman wanted the painkiller. She explained that this area was more sensitive as well and it might be a good idea to decrease the pain so the woman could be more still. The Drykas declined again. Jarorra gave Taurina a look that explained well enough that she was expected to make sure to keep this woman locked down as best as she could. Taurina signed yes and the tool was lifted again.

The Drykas female did not move again so much as she had that first time. It was as though the first time had been a surprise or something like that. Upon looking towards the Drykas face however, one could see the tears that were there. Taurina, wondering if it was from the pain or from something else, looked towards the rest of the family which she noticed to be oddly quiet. They all had tears glistening in their eyes as well. Brows knitting together, the Eth returned her attention back to her work of keeping the skin taunt and wiping excess ink again. The guilt was starting to make its return.

Pavi | Common | 'Thoughts'

[Taurina]

If Jarorra noticed this strange sadness overshadowing the receiving of windmarks, she did not say anything or do anything different aside from being quieter than usual. Taurina desperately tried to keep her attention anywhere but on the family. Focusing on them made her heart twist with agony and her soul cry in unison with their pain. She kept her head down, holding the skin taunt and running a clean section of the rag over the skin where ink and blood had begun to pool. Even looking at the marks though was sad.

The roses surrounding the more feminine of the faces were gold and red, vibrant and lively. It was like looking at Syna’s rays in at dawn in regards to color. It was too full of life for the sad room. One could just begin to see the face being depicted now that the lines were complete. Already it had been many bells, but Jarorra kept working away and the Drykas woman said nothing. It was eerily quiet. Even Injal and Keil were quiet. Well, Keil was always quiet, but it was strange for Injal to be. So very strange. Taurina did not like it. She did not like it one bit and it would have been out of place to fill all the empty space with her own voice. Even Jarorra was not humming, her deep concentration stealing her away from her usual bubbly self.

Jarorra was done with this section, that was made clear by the removing of the chisel and the flex of her hands as she stretched them out a little. The woman rolled her neck as well as her shoulders, stretching herself out in little ways as her body had likely grown tired of her position. Taurina took this chance to lift her hands away from the bare skin and flex her own fingers. Usually by this point they would have taken a break, but the sadness in the air had not left enough room for that. The Eth needed a beak now though. She would not last much longer in here without one. Her heart felt as though it would burst. Even not knowing the situation, it was not hard to guess. ’A foolish coward’ her mind felt the need to remind her of what she had been.

Taurina shrunk back from her thoughts and emotions, wishing to just curl up within herself. To cover up her actions, she leaned down to gather her rags. “I need new ones,” she murmured to Jarorra who gave her permission to go replace the rags. Taurina stood up, her legs shaky and wobbly from all the time spent down in one concentrated position. There was a familiar sense of relief as well as pain when she began to walk. Her legs cried from cramps in the muscles, but also thanked her for the stretch. The irony. Taurina walked slowly, wanting to draw her break out as long as possible.

The Eth made her way over to where water could be found in the tent. She first ran the rags now dried with ink under the water and rung out what she could of the ink mess. She then proceeded to lay them out to get a proper washing later before picking two clean ones up. These were also run under some water to dampen them. Taurina then slowly made her way back to artist and client, wishing for this job to be over. Even without the sound of voices telling her the trouble, the air was taxing on the spirit. The emotions in the room made Taurina wish for home where there was privacy and a different kind of quiet. Tonight it would likely be the kind of quiet that was filled with rage and pain. More thoughts to push away.

By the time Taurina got back, some in the family were murmuring to one another. Taurina could not quite hear what they were saying, their whispers so low. When she returned to her spot beside Jarorra, however, she could hear more. Just snippets of conversation that ended up to be some answers her earlier questions. “He would … proud..” “so good..” “looking over us…” Taurina did not catch it all or even much, but they talked about someone as if they were in the past. She did not understand who this person had been, but he must have meant a lot. The woman getting her windmarks had more tears in her eyes now that she was wiping away. Jarorra remained silent and barely observant, causing Taurina to follow her example. This was not their business. It was the family’s pain. It was an intrusion to listen in and even more so to say anything.

Still, Taurina had trouble shutting her mind off. She wanted to know who this man had been and who they thought to be looking over them. The woman who was receiving windmarks did not seem to be very old. An older teenager likely with a build made strong by many years. A little old maybe for bonding with a strider, but it happened. Taurina was not in the position to judge. The person they could have lost might have been this girl’s husband or perhaps father? The way they spoke sounded older than this female’s husband likely could have been. It seemed more likely to have been father or some other important male relative. There were men in the party accompanying the woman so Taurina could not be sure who was who. Not without asking and that was not going to happen.

“Are we ready to continue?” Jarorra’s voice finally spoke, calm and soothing rather than her usual chirpy and happy. Taurina’s gaze flickered over to her mentor and then to the woman being asked. There seemed to be hesitancy within the Drykas woman. This was proving to be a very emotional time for her and her family. Perhaps it was too much? Perhaps finishing would need to be put off to a later date? Taurina looked down to the not even half finished tattoo. Just the outlining had been done along with some of the red and gold roses. Some of the solid black lines had been filled in as well, but not many of them. There was still a lot of work to be done and it was getting late. Taurina and Jarorra waited for a reply.

“Yes,” the Drykas woman finally replied and Taurina bit back a groan. It would be nightfall soon and she would shift. She preferred not to have to to be here after night fall came. Jarorra nodded and Taurina said nothing, complying with the answer her boss gave. They would not likely stay long after nightfall. The Drykas would all need rest at some point after all. Jarorra had to be growing weary by this point, she would move it to be finished on another day. Surely she would. So Taurina kept from saying anything and moved to pull the skin smooth once more, the break now over.

Pavi | Common | 'Thoughts'

[Taurina]

It did not take long for night to fall, maybe another bell or so. The shift took place and while they tried to hide it, the family had shock in written on their faces. Not many were used to seeing the Eth around. While most likely knew at least rumors about her being within Endrykas by this point -she did not usually hide herself during the nights and people were bound to have seen her out and about- she did not interact with many while in her Ethaefal form. Having so many looking at her now made her uncomfortable and she shifted her weight hesitantly to the other side of her body.

Jarorra let Taurina have a very short break to stretch her limbs as she often needed to do after a shift. It did not take long to get readjusted to her celestial form and a small smile played on her lips once she did. This form was superior in most all ways. She would not be shamed into cowering by these strangers. Sure, she did not wish to make them uncomfortable and knew well of their sadness, but the female Drykas getting the windmarks had decided to continue on with this session. Taurina was not to blame for her night form making itself known. She ran fingers through her crimson hair before returning them to their position on the Drykas woman. The Eth felt better now, more alive, and when she went outside it would be even better. Leth was out tonight because there was no rain, she was looking forward to seeing him. Too many nights of rain had stolen him from her.

“We continuing?” Taurina asked when she noticed nothing was happening and the woman below her hands was shifting more than usual. An eyebrow lifted and Taurina drew her hands away. Had she truly made this Drykas that uncomfortable? Usually people did not mind too much. A little surprise maybe, but that was normal. By day she looked perfectly Drykas and then she shifted to this other being. It was not normal to see in Endrykas, but it was not usually cause for discomfort. She was not a monster and did not look gruesome in appearance, the opposite actually was true. Others did not seem to mind and some -especially the few men she had run into while in this form- found her quite easy on the eyes. As long as she worked and contributed no one seemed to care. Had that changed?

Taurina was concerned and bit the inside of her bottom lip. Well she more gnawed on it due to anxiety. If these Drykas did not accept her and left because of her… Taurina feared the state of her job. Surely Injal and Jarorra could not risk loosing business for having an Ethaefal working for them. Could they? Or a better question was, would they? Taurina looked at the woman who was getting the windmarks, a sort of pleading and scared look in her eyes. She could not loose this job, it was just about all she had. She had no family, no pavilion, not even a clan, and the Lilacwind pavilion had become the closest thing to a home she had besides her sad little tent. This.. this she could not loose.

“Yes,” the female Drykas finally said after some contemplation, her gaze softening some and the shock dissipating. Taurina released a breath and looked over to Jarorra. The woman just looked a little confused, like she was not sure what had just happened. Taurina took that to mean her mentor and boss was on her side. She hoped Jarorra was anyway. “One more bell,” Jarorra chimed in, “Any longer would not be good for you. We all need time to rest.” The other Drykas female just signed her agreement.

Taurina placed her longer, Ethaefal fingers against the woman’s skin and pulled the area taunt. Jarorra went back to working. The chisel moved in and out of the skin, creating marks of color beneath the layers. Pools of ink and blood were left over that Taurina wiped away with one of her damp rags. Both artist and assistant worked to get as much done of the windmarks as a bell would allow. By the time it had past, most of the red and gold roses were done. They were beautiful and vibrant, even with the skin around them being red and irritated. Jarorra had given them white centers and added some white around the edges of all the petals to make them stand out that much more. With shading under them and the bold abstract lines of black being filled in, they will look gorgeous. The complete product is a long way off, even with as fast as Jarorra works. There was just so much to be done.

When the female Drykas stood up from her place on the cushions, there was a trembling in her legs. One of the family members moved to help her, but the determined Drykas pushed that woman away. For some reason the older teen was stubborn and wished to do things on her own. Handle the pain on her own and refuse the painkiller. A mirror was given to her to see and her expression told enough. She loved what had already been created. There were new tears in her eyes, ones that Taurina did not suspect were from sadness. The family had drier eyes now, their sadness seemingly gone for the moment. They were smiling brighter now and their eyes held more sparkles of happiness. It was strange. The whole encounter with this pavilion had been strange.

Jarorra dealt with making the next session appointment while Taurina moved to clean up all that had been used during this session. A whole bottle of black ink had been use between the outlining and the few solid lines that had been done. It had not been quite full in the beginning, but it was definitely gone now. Injal would have to make some more. The chisel with the needles that had been used for the more detailed areas were taken over to where they could be cleaned and sterilized and then Taurina took her rags over to where the other ones were. All four were taken in her hands, filled with ink and blood and in need of a good wash.

“You okay?” Jarorra asked after the family had left, making her way over to where the Eth was sitting and working on the rags. Taurina looked up to see her mentor signing that she was concerned and that she cared about what Taurina was feeling. Taurina smiled a small smile before shrugging.

“I’m alright,” she assured, even though it was not the full truth. She was alright with what had happened after her shift which is what she suspected Jarorra was talking about. She however was still feeling guilty and ashamed. They had lost someone important to them and she had escaped. Escaped. Taurina hated that word, it made her feel so dirty. The Eth forced a smile and signed that Jarorra did not need to worry about her and that things were okay. Jarorra did not seem very convinced, but also did not push the matter which Taurina was thankful for.

“Just finish those and head home. We’ll get the rest tomorrow,” Jarorra said with a smile before giving Taurina a small grip on the shoulder before walking off to attend something else. Taurina smiled slightly, feeling needed here and that was a good feeling for her to have. They were not family and likely never would be, but for now they were the closest thing she had to a family and she was forever grateful that she had not lost them.

Pavi | Common | 'Thoughts'

[Taurina]

Getting the ink out of the rags always proved to be more of a challenge than getting the blood out. While neither thing ever did fully come out, and when black ink was in the mix one could not see the blood stains, the ink always lingered longer and put up more of a fight. Keil had already retired to his own pavilion and the Lilacwinds had finished up all their work for the night by the time Taurina was done fussing with the rags. They were not perfect, but they never would be again as that was just the way things were in this world. The Eth hung the rags out to dry before standing and walking over to gather her few belongings. She had her pack which consisted of her journal, waterskin, dagger, and her box of tattooing supplies once she slid that in. The pack was fastened over a shoulder once it was confirmed it held all the correct belongings, the Eth now ready to take her leave.

“Goodnight Taurina,” Jarorra gave her parting wishes when she noticed Taurina was on her way out, Injal signed his farewell when the Eth’s eyes landed on him. Taurina smiled, her gaze fixed on the pair as she signed her own farewell. The Eth left the tent, the darkness of the night consuming her. The only light was Leth and the stars that shone so bright that it made one hardly miss Syna. Taurina smiled and threw her head back, gazing upon Leth as his light washed over her.

”I have missed you,” The Ethaefal murmured, brushing fingertips through her hair. She did not care if others saw her and judged her, his light sustained her in this form and the long nights of rain had mostly stolen him away from her. So many nights in a row away from him made her moody and irritable, more so than what was usual, and without him her thoughts were more likely to wander to unsavory things. Everything was better when he just shone in the sky for all to see. The world did not seem so dark and miserable and the heat was even quelled during the god’s reign. Maybe not completely, but there was more wind during the night hours and the sun’s touch did not have such a strong effect on the Sea of Grass. There was only a reminder of the heat and misery that had taken hold over the last several rainy days. The air was full of humidity that was unrelenting and miserable in its own way, but Leth could be seen and the air was not as bad as what the rain had brought.

Taurina trailed her knuckles down the side of her face, lost in thought as she gazed upon what she could still of her god. She felt fuller out here, happier. The guilt was not nearly as strong when under the watch of Leth. Taurina walked home to her little tent with a sort of skip in her step, not seeming to mind much of anything for the time being. She could go home and work on some more tattooing since she had not gotten much done on her work today. The afternoon had been consumed by the windmark session and while that had not been a bad thing, as it was her job after all, it had been taxing on her soul and she had gotten none of her own work done. She looked forward on finishing what she could of that spiral and hoped that the skin she was working with had not dried out yet.

”Hello my darling Melody,” Taurina chirped in greeting to her mare. Melody, the ever faithful mare, lifted up her head and moved towards her owner. Taurina smiled, laying her palm out flat for the horse to sniff if she so desired. Melody did just that, likely looking for a treat that did not exist, which made Taurina smile. She ran her thumb over the top of Melody’s muzzle before pressing her forehead to the mare’s own. ”It is a beautiful night, don’t you think?” she murmured, in a state of pure bliss herself. Melody let out a long sigh which caused Taurina’s smile to widen. She took the sound of breath as agreement. She did not speak horse and knew little of what all their sounds meant, so she just made it up as she went. Most times Melody was content to agree with her, as far as Taurina could tell anyway.

”Yeah, it is,” Taurina agreed softly, letting out her own sigh. The day had been practically awful with that family of Drykas acting like they did shadowing over all of it. First there had been the tears that created guilt and then those shocked expressions.. Taurina was trying to shake them from her memory. She never wanted to see those faces again. Not in her memory and definitely not in person. It was hard enough being different and feeling like she did not belong, no one was needed to make those feelings worse. She was trying and she had been trying for almost half a season now. While she could not blame them for not knowing that -it was not like she had told them her life’s story- their actions felt like a step back rather than one forward. Perhaps she really could not be a Drykas. Perhaps this all was not meant to be.

Pavi | Common | 'Thoughts'

[Taurina]

The Ethaefal’s hands stroked her mare’s cheeks and ran through her mane, down her neck and over her withers. There was affection in her actions as Taurina did really love this mare, even if she did not often show it. Even if Melody bored her sometimes and the memories of that black horse caused her to want something more than the trustworthy little mare that moved when you told her to go and stopped when you instructed. Melody was a good horse, she was dependable and able even without being a strider. While she was still getting used to the yvas and did not like using it much, they were even making progress there. Taurina kissed the side of the mare’s head, thankful for her and what she had already given along with what she was bound to give before the end came.

”You be good, I’m gonna work on a tattoo,” Taurina told her horse, giving the mare another pat before she went off to find a place in the grass to work. Not far from horse or tent, Taurina sat herself down and pulled out her supplies. Her fingers tangled with her hair as she moved the silky mop to one shoulder. It tended to get caught up in her horns, but tonight it did not do that because she was more careful with moving it. She did not want to deal with hair cobwebs tonight. She was more focused on getting some work done. Her supplies were set out before her, the only thing missing being the paint because she left it back in its place at the Lilacwind pavilion. Taurina looked over them all, satisfied that she had successfully remembered to grab all that was hers.

The Eth stretched out her fingers and back before picking up the skin holding her latest creation. She set the work down on her knee and focused in on it. It was harder to see at night without the bright golden light of Syna or without a torch to light the way. Leth and the stars surrounding him, however, did provide enough light to see the rough shape and edges. She knew where she had left off and when she looked closely enough, she could tell where her line was suppose to go and how close to the last dots she needed to be. It was straining on the eyes since the work had to be done with such focus and everything was so small, but Taurina did not wish to go drawing attention to herself by lighting a torch. So she made due without one.

The ink was picked up and opened so the needle would be able to enter the black pool at the bottom of the jar. Taurina got some of the ink up into the crevice of the needle before she took a breath and focused once more on where the needle needed to go. She found where she wanted the ink to be placed and she pressed down, into the skin, going in about halfway through the skin before pulling the bone needle back out. A bubble was left, but that was to be expected. Taurina wiped the excess ink away before she went in next to the last mark and pressed in again. Halfway down the needle went before being drawn up again, the ink bubble smaller this time. Taurina made sure to restock the needle’s ink supply before repeating the process.

The Ethaefal repeated this process over and over -replenishing the ink when needed in the needle and wiping away the ink bubbles shortly after their creation so no stains would be left upon completion- through the night. The sky was becoming grey by the time she finally stopped working. Her body was stiff from her positioning and her fingers hurt from gripping her single needle chisel so hard. The skin piece had grown tougher through the night and it was turning to more of a leather consistency than what she needed to work with. Progress had been made though as now the spiral was completely outlined, just the space in the middle remained red. It was not perfect and during some parts of the night her lines had become shaky so there was some unevenness in certain places, but the work was better than anything she had done so far. Taurina was pleased.

Pleased with herself, Taurina laid back into the grass for a rest. She stared up at Leth’s fading presence, knowing Syna would be arriving soon. A small sigh escaped her before she pressed her fingers to her mouth and blew the kiss towards the moon. ”Till tomorrow,” she murmured softly, sadly She wished he did not have to leave, but that would destroy the balance of things, so he must. He will be back though, the Eth knows it. He always comes back.

Pavi | Common | 'Thoughts'

[Khida]

Taurina

Skill	Points
Cleaning	+1
Intelligence	+1
Observation	+3
Organization	+1
Planning	+1
Socialization	+1
Tattooing	+3

• Cleaning: ink and blood are difficult to scrub from cloth
• Color categories: focus, accent, highlight, shade
• Intelligence: overhearing snippets of muted conversation
• Observation: unfocusing to view broader patterns
• Organization: stowing supplies in a designated place
• Planning: selecting tools for a task
• Socialization (Drykas): windmarks in sorrow as well as joy
• Tattooing: the importance of keeping the client still
• Tattooing: wipe away ink before it stains

Notes

Now I'm really curious what was going on there and what inspired the windmark design. Nice embellishment on an otherwise ordinary event.

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