It's a Wild, Wild World (Bones)

[Jamisia Abijah]

34th day of Summer, 511 AV There was a small pond not far from Alvadas. An incospicous place, Jamisia found by accident. It was actually pretty close to the main road that led to the city of Illusions. What a repcious find! As any herbalist, Jamisia was aware that next to the water you could find all kinds of plants. In Ahnatep water was precious, not as much as in rest of Eyktol but still something you were happy to be around. In Alvadas water seemed to be everywhere. On the streets, falling from the sky, in every well. No wonder she could find plants here that were non existent in Ahnatep or cost a fortune. In here you just had to find it and take. Despite the wonders of Alvadas, Jamisia still found various pet peeves. Especially suuden, unpredictable rotations of the tavern she was staying in. Like today for example, when a magic force shook the Cubacious inn, sending Jamisia flying off her bed. Not so old wound in her shoulder had began to ache anew and the girl pondered if not to demand some refund from the innkeeper. That would be a good idea...A sudden movement nearby sent a surge of fear through her body. Jamisia turned around with her dagger ready but it was only a lose branch that decided to break off with. The young doctor shook her head in disapproval. The road was near by, it was unlikely any large predator was prowling, but the last adventure and meeting with rats had made Jamisia jumpy. Her thoughts returned to that day, not so long ago and an unusual Dhani that had saved her life. It was an odd meeting with even stranger creature. After Bones had vanished from her life, as soon as he could walk, Jamisia began to treat the whole ordeal like a dream, doubting it actually could happen. The strictly rational part of her had just gather facts about it but the feelings and ambivalence were not easy to deal with. Treating it like a distant, phantasmagoric vision made things so much easier. Especially since she didn't count on meeting the Dhani again. Her fear of ending like snack was still there, lingering, although Bones appeared to be something contrary to every imagination she had about his kind. Jamisia's mind returned to the task at hand as she spotted a particularly beautiful water lily. A very precious flower, used to cure many aliments, starting from stomach illness ending on wounds. The wide grin faded, however, when the woman realized the lily was too far from the lakeside for her to reach without getting soaking wet. not that it would make Jamisia to give up, not for such nice water lily. She tried to prod it with a long branch that fall from the tree recently but to no avail. Few loud, Shiber curses later, the girl decided to knuckeld down and think creatively. There was an old tree, looming over the pond with it's lusciously green branches. Jamisia was never one for climbing but for a water lilly, anything. It would cost her few silver mizas to get one in Alvadas. Slowly, but surely, the young doctor began to pull herself up the tree and along a branch that would help her to reach the flower. After few falls, scratched chick and small torn in trousers, Jamisia was happily hanging down the branch and over the pond. With eyes glittering in excitement, Jami reached her hand to grab the precious prize.

[Ssafirsotibones]

Today was just another day. Getting up from his bedroll, in his simple housing, he decided to go for a walk. Not to any place in particular, he would just go were the city took him. He figured if he was supposed that the city would take him were he should go as it usually did. Even if he had not thought that was were he meant to go... Best to not fight it. Going along, he ended up in the forest, near a small pond. He tasted the air for a moment, and noticed something nearby that he recognized. Tracing the scent on the air, he followed it to a woman trying to get a plant from the pond. As she precariously hung from a branch, Bones neared, watching her trying to get the plant. "Don't forget to boil the rootsss of ssat, or elssse ssey are poisonous." He would then wave over at Jamisia, someone he had not seen in a while.

[Jamisia Abijah]

34th day of Summer, 511 AV Almost...Almost...Jamisia's fingers were mere inches from the flower. She could almost feel the white petals brushing her digits when a hissing voice reached her ears. The human basic instincts made her to jerk. The whole branch bounced haphazardly over the wet surface. Jami let out a yelp of fear and surprise, as she clenched the tree's appendage. Hanging upside down, the girl watched a tall figure approaching. Even from this angle she could recognize the man's or actually Dhani's features. This time the fear of meeting him was much lesser but the uneasiness was still unpleasantly nestled in her chest. "Bones...I was just thinking about you..." The woman said, baffled at this unexpected meeting. Some strange coincidence or..."Were you following me?" Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. No human would be happy to have a giant snake stalker. The woman tried to pull herself on the branch but it was dangling dangerously close to the surface of the pond. Her hair were already being dipped in the small pool. After few moments of struggle and almost falling into the pond, Jamisia looked at the Dhani again. "Uhm...That is awkward." She said with a hint of embarrassment. "You look good, uhmm...Everything healed well?" The girl tried to divert attention from her fruitless struggle to leave the branch without diving into the cold pond. "Have you had a good meal today?" She added with an smile of discomfort. For sure a very silly question but when a human like her met a Dhani, it was better to ask. Better safe than sorry....

[Ssafirsotibones]

Unsurprisingly, Jamisia freaked out upon seeing Bones. She was quite a jumpy one... Though Bones was becoming rather acquainted with her... Not really fond yet, he took more time to do such a thing, but he did not think her to be as bad as other humans... Though only in the sense that she was becoming more comfortable with him. In other ways, she acted just as bad as them... He walked a bit closer to her, and grabbed a hold of the branch, which was whipping to and fro. Using his strength, he held it stable, so that she could reach down and get her plant. Since it seemed she did not want to get to wet, and once she got it he would lift her back clear of the water. He gave a small hiss at her question, always assuming the worst humans did... He responded in his normal slow sibilant speech. "Following you? No, sse city took me here... It tendsss to lead you were it ssinks you ssshould be, and I do my best to not fight it... And it sssems the city hasss deemed fit to ssrough usss togesser once more..." As she tried to make small talk, Bones listened. He thought it was funny she tried to go on with such things, since she obviously did not mean them, as if she liked how he looked, she was probably afraid he would eat her. He answered her with a more honest compliment, which was more of a neutral statement than a true compliment. "You look well, no worssse for sse eventsss of when we lassst met..." And finally it came to it, she came out and said it, asking quite bluntly if he was hungry. If he wanted her dead, he would not have announced his presence, he did have some skill in stealth. He would have crept up and attacked while she was unaware, not greeted her kindly and helped her out. Forging on past this bit of rudeness, he answered her question honestly, as if it had been meant for something beyond gauging when he last ate. "I ate a goat sse night before lassst, which I caught myself. I am ssstill finissshing digesssting it now... I am good for at leassst anosser day or two till I need sssomessing else..."

[Jamisia Abijah]

34th day of Summer, 511 AV The Dhani walked closer and grabbed the branch which came to an immediate halt .”Oh..thank you.” Jamisia responded with a nervous smile and pulled the lily out of water. A truly beautiful specimen. Before she could look over her catch the branch swayed again and the girl found herself above the ground, looking at Bones from the really strange angle. Jamisia caught a glance of his silver eyes, such beautiful and pure color giving a striking contrast to the nature of the Dhani. ”I feel dizzy...”Bones, always there to save the day. She muttered and slid on the ground, diving into a deep grass. Hanging upside down made Jamisia's head to feel light. ”The city thinks we should be together?” Jamisia repeated and looked at Bones quizzically, still lying in the grass, trying to make the world to stop going round and round her head. ”How nice of it.” The young healer pulled herself up and looked over Bones. ”They say the city takes you where you want to go....” She chuckled at the realization. ”You wanted to meet me, didn't you?” The fear, first and almost unconscious reaction toward the Dhani began to subside to her surprise. Or it was an effect of hanging down the tree for half an hour...This Dhani was always causing a curious dissonance in her – I want to, but I am scared kind of feeling. Especially in the moments like these, when he caught her a bit off guard with a genuine compliment. Jamisia blushed a bit and straightened her shirt. ”Thank you. If you think so now, you should have seen me in my best dress.” She joked teasingly, the attitude she often displayed around men. Wait...a minute...The woman froze, realizing she had just tried to flirt with a Dhani.”I mean...I...you were saying?” She didn't know what was more scary, the fact she began to treat Bones like a human being or that she thought of him as a male. Thankfully the topic went to his last meal. It was hard to read him, his face was mostly impassive and emotional reactions almost nonexistent as far as she was concerned but Jamisia could have sworn he didn’t like her inquiry...Nevertheless seemed to respond truthfully. That made her to feel a bit guilty over suspecting the worse every time they met. ”That's good, healthy meals are important, especially after the injuries.” Jamisia said, a hint of apology lingered in her tone, though she didn't really know how to phrase it. 'I am sorry for thinking you were going to eat me' didn't quite cut it.

[Ssafirsotibones]

Bones watched as she dizzily got to the ground. She did not seem to like being up a tree branch... Though it seemed she had misunderstood him a bit, since there was a distinction in what he said. The city took you were it thought you out to be, not were he wanted to go. It could care less of that. It seemed to work with a greater intelligence, to do what it thought best. If it took him were he wanted, he would not have been dropped into three illusion-ed holes recently. All in the same day... On the same street... That was a really rude street... Regardless, he would let her think what she wanted, it did not matter to him. Though it was a bit funny how she was always misunderstanding what he said into thinking it was a great compliment. It even seemed a bit comical to Bones, as blood rushed to her cheeks in embarrassment. As she went on and flirted a bit with Bones, he let off a small smile. Well a smile for him... Perhaps her view was becoming a bit better, as she did not just think of him as a dhani. And she was not so bad... He supposed she was pleasing to the eyes... Though he was not sure if he thought of her as a possible mate... If it did happen, his disposition towards her would probably change, as dhani could be quite tender with the ones that they chose as mates. Though it was hard to tell. And so he tried a bit of flirting in response. "Yesss... I will have to sssee it sssometime... Perhapsss you can ssshow me..." With a small smile on his face. Sort of... "Yesss, I try to eat well, though ssere isss not much fresh meat around here... I tend to have to sssettle on the lessss fresssh bitsss... Sssitting dead for a while..."

[Jamisia Abijah]

34th day of Summer, 511 AV AThe situation was generally awkward as the woman had never suspected to find herself in a situation she would flirt with a Dhani, let alone in a situation the said Dhani would reciprocate. In her mental image the snake kind were evil, hungry, ugly monsters, however this representation was now faced with a rather pleasant looking, at least in his human form, Bones. Who had saved her life nonetheless what was most likely the most powerful factor here. Even these few weeks ago Jamisia had detached the Dhani before her from the rest and this effect didn't seem to fade, even more - it was growing stronger. At the same time there was underlying anger with him. Why he was so helpful or nice? What did he want? All this was wrapped in a large dose of confusion and ambivalence. The girl smiled and chuckled nervously."Mmmaybe later?" She really just said it was a good idea to show a Dhani her dresses? "I mean, it's getting late...I am gathering some herbs. You know how it is...Every miza counts." Jamisia had a vague idea she was rumbling, but the woman couldn't shake off a really strange feeling of uncomfortable, opposite emotions. Bones might have looked humans but even his smile betrayed he wasn't. There was something cold and alien about him, yet she could recall the feeling of worry when he was on the verge of dying. She couldn't even think anything proper to say about his diet. "Maybe sitting bits are not that bad...Especially in winter." Even her body betrayed the odd ambivalence Jamisia felt. She stayed close to him, close enough to almost their shoulders to touch yet with crossed arms signaling to stay away. "So..uhmm..why do you think city brought here?" The young healer asked, pulling lily's petals and looking over a single root. "Want to look some herbs?" As soon as Jamisia said that she regretted lacking abilty to fisrt think than talk. Why would you like a Dhani with her? it was Bones but still...Her entire life the girl had spent with humans, learning how evil other species were and now she was cheerfully offering the Dhani some company. Maybe it was twisted influence of Alvadas? Gods sometimes worked in a strange, if not wicked way. Her eyes trailed off to the majestic city towering over them. "You don't have to go, if you have something else to do..It's not like I can't manage. I mean rats can be nasty but uhmmm" She scratched her wet head."You know." Jamisia finished with shrug of her shoulders.

[Ssafirsotibones]

Nodding, he listened as she spoke. In this world, miza's were important. Without them you would not last long, as it was required for everything. Though that was just how the world was. "Yesss, herbsss. I actually have sssome ssskill in herbalisssm. Not a ton, but enough for sssome basssic usssage. Ssough often enough plantsss in ssese and osser lands fight back asss much asss a wild animal. Often why it isss good to have sssome ssskill with fighting..." He tried to ignore her ramblings, as she nervously spouted words from her mouth. She was nervous, as usual, and was stumbling on speaking. That is why he took his time before speaking. He always thought through his words before saying them, choosing them carefully, and then speaking. "Who knowsss... The city hasss its own purposssesss in mind... One cannot fathom its reasssoning... Bessst to jussst let it be..." "Sssure... I will go with you... I know a bit of plantsss, and it isss not a good idea to travel alone here..."

[Fallacy]

XP Award! Name:Jamisia XP Award: Climbing- 1 Herbalism- 1 Interrogation- 2 Lore: Reaching For a Prize Trying to Flirt With a Dhani Notes: Name:Bones XP Award: Rhetoric- 2 Lore: Offering a Warning Notes: Notes: I think you may have wanted stealth bones, but it was not awarded since you weren't very descriptive. Any questions or concerns about the rewards gained please send a PM