Closed Favors from below (Rhydian)

[Cleon]

10th of Summer, 522 AV

Early afternoon found Cleon on the beach in cream isuas breeches, sandals, and a black broad brimmed hat that he was currently using to keep the sun of his neck. He was seated in the sand with his toes just barely in the surf so when the waves washed onto the shore they just barely caressed his toes. It was shaping up to be an altogether pleasant afternoon although he had only just gotten off of work and instead of heading back to the Protea he decided to sit for a while watching the sea from his lovely vantage point. In his hands he cradled a small clay jar that he rocked back and forth as his eyes roamed across the horizon that was broken up by the island in the water.

Taking in a deep breath through his nose, he felt himself relax somewhat as he opened up the lid of the jar and took out one of the pieces of dark colored candied fruit within. Recalling the note that had been left with it the previous season, he studied the seemingly unremarkable piece of fruit for a long moment before pulling a piece into his hand and closing the jar, setting it beside the rest of his things that were arrayed out in the sand beside him. A half empty wine bottle, a backpack, and of course Orenmir whom he always felt was watching him for some reason even though the sword clearly didn’t have eyes. He thought about reaching out mentally towards the sword, and then did, his command simple. Keep an eye on my stuff Orenmir.

Cleon felt a mental nudge back in response, and almost smiled as he got up to walk out into the water. He knew he must have struck a chord this time if the sword was giving him the silent treatment, or maybe it just didn’t deign that it was worth it to respond to his command. Whatever the case, it kept its voice out of his head which was a relief as he walked deeper into the water. It was fortunately not the most chatty of objects in his possession, but he still hadn’t gotten away from how disconcerting it felt to have its voice in his mind which was surprising seeing as he had spent a good bit of last season scouring the minds of others. He supposed it had to do a little with how much of a different state mentally he had been over the course of last season, making several decisions that he had come to swiftly regret here now in the present.

It took several more deep breaths to push such thoughts from his mind as he tried to focus instead on the little piece of candied fruit pursed between two fingers. Sort of squishy, the dark colored fruit had flecks of salt entombed within that lived well up to its name. When his mind was about as clear as he was going to get it, he popped the piece of fruit in his mouth under his tongue as he waded even deeper, the waves splashing under his chin, then over. He felt a surge of fear, almost panic as the water came over him, pushing at him down wards and his eyes burned briefly as he tried to get his bearings. He had to remind himself that this was alright. That it was what he wanted, and to just go with the pressure leading up to the sea floor, and slowly he let out the breath he had been holding so he could slowly sink to the bottom legs crossed.

Then came the moment of truth. The one he had been excited and terrified for because he had no guarantee that it would work. Cleon took in a deep breath through his nose. Salt water rushed in, burning his sinuses. Making his eyes sting even more, but surprisingly it didn’t choke him. Instead he was able to take a full breath. Then another, and finally when he was confident that the candied fruit would indeed work as intended he rolled onto his stomach and started creeping his way across the bottom of the sea floor which was vibrant with a myriad of life. It was so beautiful that he almost lost his count which would have been problematic to say the least seeing as he only had roughly fifteen chimes under the water according to that note. Of course he had been boneheaded enough to leave the rest of the fruit on the beach, so it wasn’t like he could pop another piece in an emergency. He would have to be careful to make sure that he didn’t stray too far, and kept an eye out for anything dangerous.

Still it was hard not to simply just enjoy what he was doing just then, swimming under the water as free as any bird in the sky almost. Pushing off from the sea floor he soared underneath the water, spreading his arms out and hard swiping behind him as he kicked out his legs. If anyone was watching, it was probably the least graceful thing they had ever seen but Cleon wasn’t worried about that just now. He had grown comfortable enough with his own body that he was more forgiving when it came to the awkwardness born from his lack of experience in the water.

Up until now he had been only practicing in the Community Pool and the difference between that and this was as stark as it was refreshing. He almost shuddered with joy when he eventually came up to the surface for a breath only to remember that he still had a few chimes left on his piece of candied fruit. Cleon shrugged it off. It was better to be safe, and orienting himself back towards the beach he started to swim to shore. His strokes were far from clean and by the time he finally did reach the beach he was nearly exhausted by his little venture out into the water as the waves had continually dragged him back deeper until he finally caught a break by being able to touch the sandy bottom.

A little tired Cleon sprawled on the sand beside his belongings and closed his eyes for a moment before his sword whispered. Forgot your hat.

WC - 1,059

[Rhydian Lamoze]

10th of Summer, 522 AV

It had only been but a tenday since Rhydian had come to the island and yet he had already begun to feel as though it was home. Not only had he managed to acquire a place to stay and to secure a job but he had managed to develop what he had believed to be a few good relations along the way. Having taken on the role of a Pearl Diver for the people of Syka, Thaddeus had begun to work on developing quite a few of his skills. Thankfully this newfound profession of his was something that he had enjoyed doing very much! Swimming was by far one of the most favored things to this Eypharian. It had allowed for him to feel free and that wasn't a feeling that he had grown all that accustomed to, given that he usually had to stick it out on the shores and away from the crowds of people in the past.

While he may not openly admit to this much, Thaddeus had actually found himself getting distracted quite a bit lately. His mind had continuously been wandering back to Lyel, his adoptive mother that had dropped him off here at the island, and their experiences together. She was the one person that had taught him everything good that he had ever known in his life and yet she was gone. By now she was likely off to her homeland and resting in her decades old home. Despite the relief that this thought had brought to the Eypharian though, he couldn't help but feel lonely without her. Even with all of the people that he had met over the course of the last tenday, it had just felt as though something was missing. As though someone was missing. It is for this very reason that Rhydian had found himself at the beach today. While he could have gone swimming anywhere, it was here that his mother had dropped him off. Here where he had last seen her. In the moments that Rhydian couldn't silence his mind, it was here that he would have to come to feel as though she was still with him.

Despite the fact that he had been here for all of this time, the Eypharian had yet to go out of his way to purchase any other clothing. He had thought them to be dreadful to wear and honestly fairly distracting. They were too tight to wear normally and not feel restricted, which would impede upon Rhydian's freedom and leave him feeling somewhat trapped. Thankfully the settlement of Syka hadn't been too worried about the public displays of nudity. It is for this reason that he had chosen to just ignore the idea of acquiring other outfits and would simply remain in just the pants that he had come to the island in, albeit they are quite torn to scraps. Of course these very pants wouldn't be worn for all that long as Rhydian had found his way across the sandy shores of the beach. Once he had found a suitable location, the Eypharian would strip down into nothing and would toss his torn up shorts to the side. From there he would make his way down into the water.

Although it would only be for but a few minutes, Rhydian had found himself wading down into the waters of the ocean. He hadn't been fully capable of swimming in as capable of a manner as some but he had been doing his damnest to apply the appropriate techniques to his movements. Honestly things would probably be easier for him if he had gone out of his way to find a teacher of sorts but Rhydian was stubborn. He had been adamant on the fact that he could eventually master the most valuable skill that his mother had taught him... Eventually he would get there. After all, when it had come to his situations pertaining to work, Rhydian had been trying to think of new and inventive ways to get the job done. Two birds with one stone as they say.

It wouldn't be too long before Rhydian would find himself growing a bit winded from all of the swimming that he had been doing. He had still lacked the proper techniques that would have been required for more efficient swimming and as such was expending far more energy than was necessary. After several moments, Rhydian would begin to make his way back to the shoreline. It is here that he would begin to take note of someone's things resting on the sands. He wasn't quite sure whose stuff this had been but he had known better than to play around with it. Rather than allow for this stuff to be taken though, Rhydian would take a squat beside the things to ensure that no one would come by and steal them.

This had been the plan initially of course but after several minutes, Rhydian had found himself needing to use the restroom. Wasting no time, the Eypharian would book it back to the inn that he had been staying in and would relieve himself of the growing pressure in his bladder. Once that was said and done, he would begin to make his way back towards the beach so that he could continue to keep watch over these possibly forgotten things. What he would find when he had come back though had been an individual that was resting beside the items. Perhaps this had been the owner? With how he had been sprawled out beside them, it was entirely likely that this was the case. "Uh... Hi there. These are your things, correct?" Normally this kind of conversation would have been fine for the Eypharian to be having with a stranger. What would possibly make it awkward though was how he had completely disregarded the fact that he hadn't been wearing anything at the moment. In his rush to use the restroom, he had completely forgotten this fact.

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[Cleon]

Before he could even fully process that thought Cleon realized there was a naked stranger standing over him. Thrown briefly by the question, Cleon hastily sat up to greet the strange man with arms that reminded him a lot of Brea. “Eypharian right?” He blurted, then pinched the bridge of his nose as he shook his head. “I’m sorry, that was rude of me. I… its just I haven’t seen many of your kind before, and um… oh yeah you were asking a question. Yes these are my things and I uh, seem to have left my hat in the sea so if you don’t mind…” Cleon said in a rush, the words tumbling out of him awkwardly as he gestured towards the sea, gave a slight bow to the man and then started jogging into the surf as he looked around for his hat.

An impossible task, but one he felt compelled to do anyways as he had only just received that gift a few days ago. It was waterproof as far as he could tell however that didn’t mean it would keep afloat in the sea where the waves were constantly breaking against the shore, obscuring his vision. He hesitated, unsure of what exactly to do when he caught sight of something incongruous about the pale green water. A shadow? Or something else? Cleon decided to take a chance and started after it, looking up briefly at the horizon to get his bearings before he started in after it.

The shadow as he saw it was about twenty feet out into the water situated somewhere between the far right beach, and the island that loomed in the distance. Cleon wasn’t going to go anywhere near that island if he could help it because he didn’t fancy the idea of getting tossed onto the hard, rocky ridges that marked its boundary and so he erred on the side of caution as he swam out after his hat. One hand over the other, scooping up water and pushing it behind him as his legs kicked out behind him as far as he could manage. Every once and a while he spotted his gnosis mark which had migrated to his forearm where it seemed to flow with the water, the waves dispersing against his skin every time his arm went under the water.

It took him a while to get out to the spot that he was aiming for, but when he was relatively sure he was near enough, he paused, treading water and looking about for a black mark on the water. Unfortunately he couldn’t see anything, and when he ducked his head underwater briefly, he didn’t see anything there either except what you would expect this close to the beach. Swinging his head back up out of the water, he started looking back the way he had come in from, and then looked around for possible areas the hat might have gotten off to but unfortunately the hat seemed lost.

A little disheartened, Cleon pointed himself towards the shore and started swimming back towards it which was much harder this time as he had already managed to tire himself out earlier. He had to really push his body to swim, pulling himself across the surface as the waves alternated between tugging him back and forth. This had been, he decided, a stupidly rash decision and not one he would repeat in the near future as finally fed up with the games the waves were playing he dived under water where he felt he was at least moving forward at a steady pace. It was a strangely peaceful feeling swimming underneath the waves, hearing them faintly crashing above him as he swam nearer and nearer to the shore until finally he had to come up for air.

Fortunately when he did, he was close enough to the shore that he could stand up on his tip toes and from there he was able to wade his way in the shallows till he stood about waist deep in the surf. He was looking for the man he had presumed stayed by his belongings when closer at hand something rose from the surf wearing his hat. Although it looked roughly like a woman there wasn’t anything normal about what he was seeing but thanks to his mark he knew innately what this was. An Otani. He’d never had the pleasure before, and seeing one in the flesh was… interesting. He could see right through the playful smirk she gave him, and her features had a definition to them that shouldn’t be possible from someone who appeared to be entirely made up out of water.

She was wearing his hat tilted roguishly to one side of her head, and giving him a look full of mischief. Cleon managed a slight smile.

“Hello there. My name is Cleon. Do you have a name?” He asked, his eyes straying from her for a moment to see where the man was, and what he was doing. Given that he had met almost everyone in Syka, he knew the Eypharian was new to the settlement and was more than a little curious about talking with him about that, but the presence of an otani took precedence over that. Especially one wielding his hat.

“Mhm. My name is Omae. I was having fun watching you flounder about for your hat, but now I’m bored and I want to know how you were able to stay under water as long as you did earlier.” She said, her voice mellow and melodic, carrying on the wind almost like a song.

Cleon’s smile stiffened somewhat as he glanced at the shore, and gave a slight shrug of his shoulders. “Magic I guess. I’m not sure how else to explain it. I can show you though. I’ve got more of the stuff with my things on the shore.” Cleon said, turning slightly towards where he had left all of his things, then hesitated as he looked back at her. “Will you wait for me?” At a nod from the Otani Cleon started for the beach, walking up out of the water until he was there by his stuff. He was panting from his exertion but felt invigorated by the sight of the Otani so he didn’t think a second thought about going back out into the water with a few pieces of candied fruit in his palm. Before he waded out in the waist deep surf to the Otani however, he sought out the man, still feeling faintly embarrassed about his earlier rudeness.

“Hey, I um… well forgot to properly introduce myself earlier. My name is Cleon. I know we just met and all, but would you like to go for a swim. I think Omae might join us.” He said, and then remembering what he carried in his hand he picked out one of the candied pieces of fruit and held it out towards the man. “If you pop this under your tongue it will allow you to breathe underwater for roughly fifteen chimes. Try it. Could be fun.” Cleon offered before wading out towards Omae whom was playing with the brim of his hat.

As he neared her, he held out one of the pieces of fruit towards her which she readily took, inspecting it curiously.

“The note they came with called these deep sea candies. I know you probably don’t need it, but they allow people like me to breath underwater for a little while.” Cleon said.

Omae giggled, looked at him and popped the candied fruit in her mouth where he could see it past her translucent lips as she took a moment to savor the flavor. At least, that was what he thought she was doing because of her expression.

“Mmmm, tasty too. Do you want to go for a swim? I promise not to lose your hat, and if you can catch me, I might even give it back.” She said, sticking her tongue out before falling backwards into the water where she disappeared underneath the light green waves. Cleon popped the piece of candied fruit under his tongue, and spared a look at the man before he dived in after her.

WC - 1,376

[Rhydian Lamoze]

As the man that he had been speaking with would jolt upright and begin to make his way out towards the sea once more, Rhydian would begin to squat down in a way that would allow for him to rest on his haunches. He hadn't quite been expecting for the man to simply depart back into the sea to look for a hat... It had honestly almost felt as though it was an excuse to get away from him but that surely couldn't have been it. No, he was going to have to trust the people here if he was going to get along with them. For the time being, while the man was away, it would likely be best to just wait for him beside his things.

Given that he had to wait for the man to come back from his adventure into the sea, Rhydian had decided to at least take a gander at the things that had been left behind. From what he could see, there had been a small clay jar, a half empty wine bottle, a backpack and some kind of... sword? The blade of the sword itself had seemed to have been made from some kind of strange material that the Eypharian had never seen before. Granted, it wasn't as though Rhydian was some kind of blacksmith or anything of the sort, but there was something different about this blade. It almost appeared as though it was made from some kind of... otherworldly material. Not quite sure how he should react to what he had been seeing, Rhydian had figured that it would be safest to just kind of mind his own business for the time being. These weren't even his things after all and honestly it would have been quite rude of him to go snooping through another individuals things.

That being the case, Rhydian had decided to plop his bottom back down onto the sandy ground below. He hadn't wished to leave the mans things behind even now and figured that it would have been for the best. Especially with how valuable some of these things had been. Of course the man himself had been taking his sweet time coming back and as such, it hadn't been too long before Rhydian had begun to start daydreaming. Memories of his youth had begun to resurface as his mind had begun to put on a performance of sorts. It was as though he was reliving his initial swimming lessons with Lyel and seeing how proud she had been with him when he eventually managed to keep himself afloat. In his mind, at the moment, things might have been a bit more hyped up than they had been in real life though. While his mother figure had indeed been proud of him, she hadn't reacted in the same way that she had been in this fantasy of his. In reality, all that she had done was managed to congratulate him on overcoming what had been one of his largest obstacles at the time.

These thoughts themselves wouldn't last for all that long before the sound of something breaking through the surface of the water would snap him out of them. Glancing around to see just what it had been that was coming towards the shore, assuming that it might have been some more of those playing Jungle Ixam, Rhydian would eventually come to lay his gaze upon two figures. One of the figures had been the man whose stuff he had been watching over but the other individual.. Truth be told, Rhydian had no clue what she was. A fluid creature whose form had somewhat resembled that of a humanoid but... wasn't? Not quite sure what to make of what he was seeing, Rhydian would push himself up off of the ground and would begin to prepare to walk on over towards the duo. Before he could take more than a few steps though, the man from before had begun to walk back towards him.

"I uh.. It's fine man. I'm Rhydian. Pleasure to meet'cha Cleon." Although he hadn't really known who or what this Omae was, Rhydian could easily piece together the fact that the creature that had come out of the waters beside Cleon had been the individual that he was referring to. It honestly probably would have been safer for Rhydian to not agree with following along after two strangers into the depths of the ocean but that wasn't even something that the Eypharian had decided to consider. While he wasn't quite sure as to whether or not to believe that these candies would allow for him to actually breathe under the water for fifteen chimes, Rhydian had acknowledged the fact that they were possibly able to go swimming now. Given that swimming had been one of the core things that the Eypharian had enjoyed in life, he had decidedly agreed to come along before his brain could even think about it. "Of course! I would love to come with you and Omae."

Simply having been an innocent individual that was just about to reach adulthood, Rhydian's brain hadn't been considering the dangers that would lie before him in this situation. He had figured that everything here was going to be okay and would pop the candy beneath his tongue in an instant. From there he would go on to wade in the water beside Cleon, making his way on over towards the Otani. Once they had managed to reach the Otani, Rhydian would use the lowest set of his arms to continue to wade in the waters whilst gesturing his head to the side in a form of Charodan greeting. While it was clear that this Omae hadn't been that of a Charoda, this was the closest thing to a deep sea language that Rhydian had known. "Omae, right?"

As opposed to responding to him, the Otani had decided to stick her tongue out and fall backwards into the water. Not wishing to lose this opportunity, whilst seriously hoping that this candy would work the way that it supposedly was intended to, Rhydian would offer up a thumbs up to Cleon and make a quick statement before diving in after them. "I'm not quite sure what Omae is but I'd love to talk about it more."

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[Cleon]

Cleon was glad Rhydian decided to come with them. It made him feel less guilty about abandoning the man on the beach earlier, and would give him the chance to find out more about him after this business with the otania was done. For now though, with the salty candied fruit under his tongue he plunged under the water after Omae, blinking several times until his eyes somewhat adjusted to the mild irritation he felt looking in the salt water. Fortunately the water was clear, and the otani still carried his hat because otherwise he didn’t think he would be able to pick her out from the rest of the sea unless he was staring right at her, and even then only if he knew she was there in the first place. It was almost like chasing a ghost. The otani moved effortlessly through the water, flicking this way and that, always just out of his reach as she taunted him forwards with his hat.

Perhaps that wasn’t so bad though because unlike his first time in the water, he was focused less on the effort of swimming and was actually starting to enjoy himself a lot more chasing Omae around in the water. It felt like they were engaged in a bizarre dance rather than swimming with the Otani not straying far into the deeper waters so he could stand when he needed to. Mostly he kept horizontal, flattening his body out so he was naturally buoyed against the current while he used his hands and legs to guide him towards wherever Omae currently was. This strategy was born from necessity more than anything else as he had seen Luke and Tori do similar things in the Community Swimming pool, and he was getting worn down by the constant slap of the waves.

Unlike running, this was an exercise for his whole body, and done after a full day of work didn’t exactly make it one of his best decisions but he would never get stronger if he didn’t challenge himself. He had a mind to conquer his first wave this season, and before that could happen he needed to get a little more comfortable in the water. Luke and Tori made him realize that more than anything else with the effortless way they swam about. Cleon thought it had to be rather useful to have webbed fingers and hands while in Luke’s case, well he just had an affinity to water that would be impossible to match. He was pretty sure it had been the boy that had gifted him these candies along with some gold last season in exchange for him keeping silent about certain revelations which Cleon would have been happy enough to do for free.

Never-mind that though, this otani might actually run off with his hat if he didn’t make a solid attempt to get it back soon. They were fickle and mischievous like that. Cleon hesitated for a moment in the water, turning his head to follow Omae then adjusting his body slightly till he was pointed more or less in line with her. Then slapping at the water with his arms and legs, he made a start for her in a burst of movement. The otani stood tantalizingly still for a moment then backpedaled just out of his grasp, just slow enough that Cleon thought he might have a slim chance of catching up to her. Cleon paddled harder, clawing his hands through the water while his feet kicked out, pushing off of the sandy bottom to give him a little leverage but it wasn’t quite enough to catch up to Omae and with that maneuver he was spent.

Cleon surfaced out of the water, panting hard but with a smile on his face as he combed the wet strands of hair out of his face. His finished his piece of candied fruit, mostly dissolved under his tongue by this point, and while he was chewing he looked around hoping to spy Omae or Rhydian as he walked backwards out of the water. The waves alternated between tugging him and pushing him but he didn’t catch sight of Omae until his was standing waist deep in the water, catching the breeze full on his chest.

Surprisingly, Omae surfaced beside him, wearing his hat again although she didn’t surface out of the water much higher than her shoulders, and Cleon got the impression that she was kneeling in the water. Extending his hand, Cleon tilted a smile down towards her.

“Mind if I get my hat back now.” Cleon asked, and Omae made a good show of thinking it over for a long moment before finally she handed him back his hat which he immediately started flicking to shake the water off. “Thank you Omae. Do you like wine?”

Omae cocked her head, shook it slightly then turned to look at Rhydian. Following her gaze, Cleon looked to the man as well, and tried to decipher the man’s expression as he spoke.

“Well Rhydian. What do you think of wine? I think I have more than enough for the three of us. Oh and this is Omae. I don’t know if I mentioned that alright. I bring the bottle over.” Cleon said, just starting to wonder if Otani even got anything from drinking. He supposed he would find out soon, and after a short walk to retrieve the wine he returned to stand in the surf, passing it to the Otani first.

“Pardon me if you don’t drink Rhydian. This is just the first time I’ve ever met an Otani or a full grown Eypharian for that matter so I thought it best to commemorate the occasion with a bit of drink.” Cleon said, gesturing for it to be passed towards Rhydian next.

“I have to admit. This is not the first time I’ve met you Cleon.” Omae teased after swirling the golden wine around in her mouth and swallowing. It was fascinating watching that liquid just dissipate inside of her form, and it took a measure of self control for him to tear his eyes away and meet her eyes, at which point she just giggled.

“Oh really?” Cleon asked, more than a little curious.

“Yes. I saw you take your tumble into the sea and waited to see what would happen.” Omae said ambiguously. While Cleon was piecing that together, Omae focused her attention on something Rhydian had said, and then the wine bottle was being handed to him. There wasn’t much left in the bottle. Perhaps a swallow and a half, so Cleon finished it off with two clean gulps, a little of the wine dribbling down the corners of his mouth before he managed to wipe it off with the back of his hand. Then tapping his charm to the mouth of the bottle, he brought to mind the wine that had just filled the bottle. Slowly with almost a trickle, the bottle started to refill with the golden wine once more until it was up to the mouth of the bottle.

Omae giggled and clapped, then accepted the bottle that he gingerly handed over, taking a healthy swig from it before handing it to Rhydian. “Oh, do that again please. Can you fill any container like that?”

Cleon chuckled and shook his head. “I’m afraid not, its a once per day sort of thing, but I can bring you a larger container tomorrow if you like.” Cleon said with a smile, and focused in on Rhydian. “You swim rather well. Where are you from Rhydian?”

WC - 1,267

[Rhydian Lamoze]

Although he wasn't quite as good as swimming as Cleon, Rhydian had done his best to try and keep up with both his newfound companion and the Otani. It wasn't the easiest thing in the world but he was making the best of it in whatever ways that he could. At some point during the chase of the Otani, Rhydian would even attempt to mimic the movements that Cleon had been taking to smoothen his swimming; keeping himself horizontal whilst flattening his body. Obviously he hadn't quite understood the reason behind such a technique but at the same time, he was trusting that Cleon was guiding him down the right path. He had also been trusting that this candy would allow for him to actually survive down beneath the waves for the next fifteen chimes. There wasn't any physical proof that this would work so... all he could really do was hope for the best.

Thankfully Cleon had been telling the truth! As the duo had been getting flung around by the undercurrent, Rhydian would eventually begin to feel that his breathing was beginning to cut itself short. He had held his breath for as long as he could, which wasn't as long as the Eypharian would have preferred, but it just hadn't been long enough. Eventually he was forced to inhale and the truth behind the candies would be revealed. Just as Cleon had suggested, they had indeed been helping him breathe beneath the sea. For whatever reason, at this current moment, Rhydian was capable of surviving beneath the waters. In this moment he had felt more free than he ever had before. Laviku.. I know that you might not be able to hear my thoughts but.. This is all that I have longed for since I was young. Thank you for allowing me to meet someone that could grant me such a gift.. I wish that things were like this everyday.

For as long as it would last, Rhydian would allow for himself to remain deep beneath the waves, swimming alongside the undercurrent and keeping an eye out over the beautiful sights around and below. For a brief moment he had even caught himself getting lost in the sights and losing sight of the two individuals that he had come down here with. It was thanks to a single passing fish that he would even note that he had begun to grow in distance away from the duo that he had followed down here. Not wanting to be left behind, Rhydian would begin to utilize his six arms to the fullest extent and would plow through the waters as he had maneuvered his way back towards Cleon and Omae.

It wouldn't be too long before the three of them had made their way back towards the surface, with Cleon having done so first and Rhydian having burst forth from the waters last. By the time that he had arrived, the other two had been discussing some kind of wine? Alcohol honestly wasn't the kind of thing that he had ever tried before in the past but he didn't really want to let that fact be known. Figuring that he might as well play along with everything that was happening here, so that he could try and make some friends, Rhydian would eventually reach out and take the open bottle of wine that had been handed to him. "Pffft. W-wine? I drink that kind of stuff all the time!" It had been extremely obvious that Rhydian had been lying, given that this was genuinely his first ever lie, but that wasn't known to the Eypharian himself. Hoping not to be left out of this entire situation, Rhydian would use one of his six hands to hold the bottle up and would drink about a quarter of it.

Completely unsurprisingly, this act would end with Rhydian drinking too much too quickly and him ultimately coughing up some of the wine into the inner side of one of his arms. Not wanting to embarrass himself any further, Rhydian would hand the bottle back over. His cheeks had immediately been tinged red as the alcohol would find its way flowing through his system for the first time ever. He was still level headed but could definitely feel a buzz coming on. Even with his massive height and weight, this was the first time that he had ever done this kind of thing... It was a lot for him to take in. "I uh.. Whoo... I'm kind of from all around. My ma and I bounced all over Mizahar since I was young. I guess that you could say I was raised mostly in Riverfall. My ma is a Charoda though so I guess that's how realllyyyy managed to learn how to shwim..." Trying to shake off the slurred words that were coming on, Rhydian would awkwardly laugh and than attempt to rest a hand on the shoulders of both the Otani and the human. "I know that I don't really know you guyshh but thish ish great. I love shwimming."

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Total Word Count: 2,904

[Cleon]

The wine was like curling up beside a warm fire. Nice and toasty. Rich notes of lemon and a hint of toffee wrapped up the package that Cleon allowed to linger on his tongue for a tick before swallowing. It was his favorite wine. The only wine he had tasted, but his favorite none the less. It had been a great source of comfort for him last season and so it seemed only right that he should carry it into this one. He didn’t want to waste his gift after all.

From their expressions, he could tell they were enjoying the wine which made him glad. He liked it when he could do something to make people happy as opposed to what he used to do. He had never been a very good thief, just a competent one. Never enjoyed the thrill of it quite like he was supposed to. Perhaps thats why he got out of the city when the opportunity came. He’d never belonged to such a place. Not truly. Neither did Faye. But Farren…

Cleon grimaced, then quirked into an odd smile. “Sorry a bit of wine went down the wrong way. You were saying you are from all over Rhydian? That is interesting. I passed through Riverfall on my way here, but I’m afraid I did not spend much time there. I am from Sunberth which is far, far away from here. Practically on the other side of the world…” He added softly, feeling a little bit of the warmth suffusing him from the wine. Cleon thought about passing it around again, but decided to hold off for now. If they wanted more, all they had to do was ask but for now he wouldn’t force it upon them.

Cleon took in a deep breath and then looked at Omae whom was seemingly distracted by something in the water. His hat was loose in her grasp, and feeling a little mischievous he reached across to grab it quickly. Omae shot him a look of surprise then frowned then tried to grab it from him and when that didn’t work she backed away and stuck her tongue out.

“You didn’t take it from me. I let you grab it back.” Omae pouted crossing her arms, and fixing him with an expression that he couldn’t help but chuckle at. “Its not my style anyways.”

“Well what is your style? I’ll bring you a gift in return for helping find my hat.” Cleon proffered, turning the over in his hands and shaking off the water. That seemed to brighten Omae’s expression instantly as she hummed and did a little dive into the water before coming up laughing.

“Okay Cleon! I’ll take you up on your offer. Surprise me. Give me something I have never seen before and I will do the same for you in return.” Omae said, giving him a little splash before looking from him to Rhydian in turn. “For now though, I must go. There are things to do, people to see, and places to be.” An with that said just as abruptly as she appeared she was gone, darting off under the water faster than his eyes could follow. Cleon gave Rhydian a slightly amused look and then shrugged.

“Well, that was different. What do you think of Omae? I have to admit that is the first time I have ever met an otani. You must be lucky.” Cleon said with a smile, taking a swig and then gesturing the bottle towards him if the man wanted to take a drink. If not, Cleon would slowly gesture them towards the sandy beach to get out of the water for a moment where he then sat down on the warm sand, letting the breeze wash over his wet skin on that hot afternoon. Setting the wine bottle down, Cleon stretched out his arms and legs before he looked over at Rhydian.

“So what brings you to Syka Rhydian? Did you come here to trade, or are you staying for a while?” He asked, looking briefly thoughtful.

WC - 680

[Rhydian Lamoze]

Already having found himself a bit out of sorts thanks to him drinking for the first time ever, Rhydian couldn't help but wonder why it was that he didn't drink this kind of stuff more often. He had initially thought that it was due to the fact that these substances might be bad for his body but now? Now he wasn't quite sure why he hadn't been drinking since he was younger! Not that Lyel would have allowed for him to do so. Honestly, most places might not even allow for him to be drinking liquor at his current age. "Y-yeshhh. Thish wush my first time meeting one too..! An OOOtaniiii."

Even now, Rhydian couldn't confidently say that he had understood what it was that an Otani had been. He had just spent the last who knows how long around one and yet the closest thing that he could personally chalk them up to might be some kind of Charoda. "What ishhh an Otani?" The Eypharian's eyes had than decidedly begun to slip down towards the bottle that had been within Cleon's grasp. An intense urge had begun to wash over the Eypharian as he had decided just what he should do in this moment. After a bit of a moment, Rhydian had decided to relent in the moment and would reach out to take another swig of the drink. It honestly wasn't the best for him to be taking down drink after drink like this, seeing as how he had been a major lightweight at the moment, but it was too late to go back on his own decision!

"Aaaahhh! That shhhhure is good~" Rhydian would than slowly but surely begin to drudge back to the shore beside Cleon. "Omae was real fun! She was crazy pretty and moved so fast under the waterssss. It was amazing." A small bout of laughter would manage to escape from the Eypharian's lips as the cool air had begun to wash over his nude form. He had been enjoying himself quite a bit at the moment. Or at least he had been.

Upon Cleon asking the Eypharian why it is that he had come out to Syka, Rhydian's bout of laughter would cease and a more serious, sobering expression would overtake the lad. "Why I am here..? My ma hashh better things to do with her life than look after me. She had to go home... So I'm here to shtart a new life and build a family.." Rhydian's gaze would slowly begin to move off towards the general direction of the Children's Pavilion, despite the fact that he might not be able to see it from where they were currently. "...I've gotsss a job as a pearl diver here but I need to get bettersss at swimming before I can do my best for Syka. Shhtraying at the Protea Inn with Tazzz. She's so pretty."

All in all, it was quite clear that Rhydian had been telling the truth up to this point. If there were any underlying emotions to be found within his tone, they would simply have been that ever creeping feeling of loneliness that had accompanied the Eypharian. He had already managed to essentially lose one family member.. Finding others to build up this family of sorts wasn't going to be easy. "I'm also freindsh wiff Brea. Considering adopting her... How about you??"

Word Count: 565
Total Word Count: 3.469

[Cleon]

“A daughter of the ocean.” Cleon remarked as he took the bottle back, and put the cork back in. He got the feeling that maybe that drank a little more than he had been meaning for them too, and from the sound of it, Rhydian might not be used to holding his alcohol which was fine. It was difficult to know how young Rhydian was just by looking at him because frankly Cleon had not met many Eypharians before. Him and Brea made all of two which wasn’t a great sample size for understanding where he came from. That, and despite his best efforts, Cleon could feel the alcohol washing over himself as well, coloring his thoughts and senses. He was extremely self conscious of slurring after last season so he took longer than might be typical to form his sentences and when he spoke it was slowly, over pronouncing every part of the word which made him feel more foolish in retrospect. Still he couldn’t help but to chuckle along with Rhydian as they walked back to the beach, his hat back on his head and giving him a little respite from the afternoon sun. “Omae certainly was a lot of fun. I’m glad we got to enjoy that.”

His smile dissipated as Rhydian’s expression sobered and Cleon listened carefully to what the man had to say. There was a lot to unpack from the mention of a mother who left him here to start a family. Did that mean he came here with a wife? Before he could ask just that though his remark about Tazrae caught Cleon a little off guard, and an embarrassed smile twitched across his features. “I won’t argue with you there…” A slight pause, “A pearl diver you say? That sounds interesting. Maybe you could show me a thing or two sometime when we get more aquainted. I work over at the Ride the waves surf shop so if your interested in taking a board out on the water just come find me. I stay at the Protea Inn as well though I’m looking at getting a house of my own as soon as I can afford to.” Cleon said with a ready smile as he followed Rhydian’s gaze for a moment before looking back at the man.

“Brea is a nice girl. She’s smart, and has been more than kind to my sister Faye. I wish you all the luck in your endeavor.” He said with an easy smile, and had to admit he was tempted to see what the man was thinking in that moment but decided against using his charm. He hadn’t used it once since last season and he wasn’t about to start now. That charm, well it was more than a little problematic morally and he hadn’t quite decided where he fell on the line against or for its use. It had come in handy last season sure when his need was clear and present but this season, to use it so casually almost seemed dirty. He just couldn’t reconcile himself using it now even if to indulge an idle sort of curiosity so he refrained from doing so.

Instead he let his eyes gradually drift towards the nearby Swing beach where he decided to take a seat for a moment, and just enjoy the warm fuzziness that suffused him thanks to the alcohol in his system. Rocking back and forth on the wooden swing, he enjoyed the feeling of the breeze on his wet skin as he briefly recalled a great many moments shared on this beach before he came back to the present.

“You know Rhydian. I think we’ll get along very well. I’ve been looking for someone to swim with in the mornings, and maybe do a little surfing in the afternoons if you are interested.”

WC - 641

[Rhydian Lamoze]

TAlthough it had been brief, Rhydian had spottily began to pick up on the awkwardness of the smile that had twitched upon Cleon's features. The Eypharian didn't have enough insight into other people to determine just what had been on the mans mind, especially not now with how buzzed her was, but he had a guess at what it might have been. "Shhh... It's okay Cleonnnn~ You are very pretty ashhwell~" A small laugh had begun to escape from the Eypharian's lips before a hiccup would overtake him and his smile would begin to grow.

Not really having the opportunity to do these kinds of things in the past, Rhydian had been quite new to all of this. Even just having someone that he could talk to on the beach, that wasn't Lyel, had been something that was out of the ordinary for him. Hopefully this would become a new constant in the Eypharian's life. He could do with developing a few relationships.

A single set of the Eypharian's arms would begin to rise up into the sky for a moment before ultimately draping over the mans eyes. He had loved to be out in the sun at times like these but at the moment, the liquor was beginning to get to him in a way that made the sun feel like an enemy. As long as he could avert his gaze from its light, he was sure that he could be fine. "We should totallyyyy do that shhometime!! I would love to come swimmming with you in the morning~ We can even bring Brea and your sister!"

Rolling over so that he could maintain his gaze on Cleon, Rhydian would continue to smile brightly. "Maybe you, me, Taz, and the kids can all come out here together someday." The fact that his words hadn't been slurring as he had spoken this last bit would go to show just how important such a thing would have been for him. As unfortunate as it was, Rhydian had been constantly struggling with an all encompassing loneliness. If he was able to secure a few good friendships here and could find a way to feel at home.. Well things would likely work out for him. Or so he had hoped. "Maybe I'll even teach you guyshh about pearl diving~"

Word Count: 386
Total Word Count: 3,855