[Crystal Hall] That's All... (Kaiielle)

[Kendall Saarinen]

83th of Autumn, 511 AV Kendall had heard many times over that the Vantha were known for their storytelling and gifts with poetry. While Kendall was wary to go visit Snowsong Hold, he did want to hear the Vantha's art with words in action. This is why he headed to the Crystal Hall. It was enclosed which was an immediate plus for the blond. While his gift from Ivak helped to keep him warm, it was always nice to be sheltered from the cold. Being marked as an Azenth was not as helpful in the cold has being marked as an Ice Reaver. Still, he was better off than Ethan and Hadrian in this weather. Walking up the steps to the hall, Kendall held out his hand, letting his Djed wrap around it in an attempt to make a shield. He was still new to the practice so the magic worked slowly, waxing and waining with his attention. He breathed out, trying to focus his thoughts on his hand and the shield. Slowly, the shield started to form, stretching out over his hand and around his wrist. He could not help but smile each time he used the magic. His teacher had done quite a good job in teaching him how to shield. When the Azenth reached the entrance to the Hall, he pushed through the doors and sighed a breath of relief at the warmth within. He did not want to complain about the cold since he was sure others had a much more difficult time with it. He could not deny the relief of warmth though. He walked forward, finding a place to sit. He really was not sure how he was going to find other Vantha storytellers. He was sure not all of them went around reciting stories. For now he just sat and wrote. He still needed to think of a poem for Hadrian's birthday. "I can only give you love that lasts forever, And a promise to be near each time you call. And the only heart I own For you and you alone That's all, That's all... I can only give you country walks in springtime And a hand to hold when leaves begin to fall; And a love whose burning light Will warm the winter's night That's all, That's all."

[Kaiielle]

It had been a long day for Kaiielle, running tedious errands for her father. He had had been sick for the past couple days and was finally recovering, but Kaii didn't want him running about. She never realized how much work he put into a day, and her small body was couldn't take much more when she was done. She rolled her neck as she slowly walked, little cracks and pops making their way out. She was headed for the Crystal Hall, somewhere she liked to visit often. It could be said it was one of the most beautiful places in Avanthal, and Kaii agreed. It was a wonderful place to relax and see the wonderful view. She noticed the absence of her fox, Ivanka, that she left at home. She realized early on that the other people there weren't too fond of animals. But today she didn't really have a problem with it. Some days it felt almost like a job to take care of her, and it was nice to have a break. She sighed as she made her way up the slick stairs, her thighs burning. She couldn't wait to just sit down and curl up with the book she had checked out just the day before. As she got to the top of the stairs, she gently pushed the doors open. Surveying the hall there was mostly only other Vantha going on their leisurely ways, but she did notice a head of blond hair sticking out like a sore thumb. She had never seen him before, and he didn't look like a Kelvic from the Icewatch. Curiousness getting the best of her, she slowly walked over to a seat close to him without looking too suspicious. She found that she was far more outgoing and curious then she used to be, but then again, she didn't really get out much. Cracking open her book, she tried to read the short stanzas but caught herself breaking her gaze to glance at the man. She could see him writing away at a piece of parchment, watching him scribble down something that looked from her book. He seemed so foreign looking and different, she doubted he was from anywhere near here. "Where are you from?" she blurted out, covering her mouth in surprise that she let the question she was thinking slip through. She quickly brought her hand down though in fear she looked stupid. She probably did, the overly sheltered anxious about talking to an outsider. He didn't know that though and she offered him a nervous smile, patiently waiting for his reply.

[Kendall Saarinen]

Kendall's eyes darted up from his notebook as the girl sat down next to him. He watched her for a moment before looking back down, not wanting to stare. Vantha were a very beautiful race, or better yet, group of humans. Kay'lan had always emphasized that. Vantha were not their own separate race. The were humans, just more gifted. At least that is what the Snowsong had said. The man had always been a bit bigheaded though. As Kendall's mismatched eyes locked onto the paper again, he started to scribble away. It had to be perfect. "There are those I am sure who have told you They would give you the world for a toy All I have are these arms to enfold you And a love even time can't destroy If you're wondering what I'm asking in return, dear You'll be glad to know that my demands are small Say it's me that you'll adore For now and evermore That's all That's all." He was not sure if this was exactly what he wanted to give his lover once winter rolled around. Hadrian had given him a emerald for his birthday. He could not give him just any poem. It needed to blow the mage away. Kendall spoke the words quietly to himself out loud. Slowly he started to give them a rhythm and pitch. He was singing quietly to himself when the girl spoke up. His eyes widened slightly in surprise before he looked at her. He was embarrassed. He knew his singing voice was not as good as it had been when he was a girl. He wanted to sing again, even if he had dropped a few octaves. Kendall turned to the girl and smiled lightly. "I am from Zeltiva." The blond was far enough away from home now where he no longer needed to lie about who he was or where he was from. Taldera was going to be a new start for him. He was going to move on and finally be himself, or this new version of himself at least. "I'm guessing you are from here." He tried his hand at the Vani that he knew as he spoke. His finger came up to his eye as he spoke. "It is your eyes. I knew a Vantha from home who had eyes like yours. Very pretty." He was not trying to flirt, just be friendly. Kay'lan was far in his past but Kendall could not deny Vantha had beautiful eyes. If Morwen truly gifted them to the Vantha, she had done a wonderful job. "I am Kendall. What is your name?" The girl seemed friendly enough. Why not strike up a conversation?

[Kaiielle]

Kaiielle had never met anyone from Zeltiva, but heard it was a wonderful place for getting an education and working as a fisherman. She wondered if maybe Kendall was a fisherman, but he didn't look the part or dress like one either. Although, being in Avanthal you had to stray away from your regular clothing unless you were blessed by Morwen. Kaii pushed aside the thought and listened to him speak, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth as he spoke in her native tongue. "Yes, Avanthal is my home." she said in Vani, hoping he could still understand her. A light blush creeped upon her cheeks as he recognized her unique eyes, and she pulled her open book closer to her chest. She had never been good at taking compliments, and always seemed to grow shy when one was given. Though, she felt a lot more comfortable talking to Kendall rather than talking to other men. It was almost like she was talking to one of her girl friends from when she was younger. "Thank you... and my name is Kaiielle. Or just Kaii is what most people like to call me." Kaii quickly snuck a peek at Kendall's writing from behind her thick sheet of hair, but quickly looked back up at him again, trying not to be too obvious. She tucked her wavy curls behind her ear and spoke up again. "You know, you are not a bad singer. Very beautiful for a man." She said this in Common, trying to be friendly and making sure they could understand each other. "Much better than some I have heard."

[Kendall Saarinen]

OOCThe pink is Vani, the white is common. Kendall found that he could understand the majority of the Vani, although not all of it. He wished that he could understand the language of the Vantha better but he hoped by the time they left the city he would be fluent. "This really is a beautiful city. I heard a lot about it in Zeltiva." He had heard so much from Kay'lan but the city was more beautiful than he made it sound. When he explained it to Kendall the whole explanation seemed to revolve around Kay'lan and his hold, Snowsong. The blond smiled when he saw the girl blush. He knew it was a bit odd but he knew how it felt when a man pointed out how attractive one could be. He loved it when Hadrian pointed it out in himself even though his lover apologized after each time. "It's nice to meet you Kaiielle." He was happy to see that some of the Vantha were friendly. Zeltivans had been cold after his accident, Sylirans were kind enough, and Ravokians scared Kendall to death. Avanthalians were very welcoming it seemed. Although from what Kendall knew, Vantha were a very hospitable race. Kaiielle's comment made Kendall blush. "Oh, you heard that?" He chuckled slightly as he thought about how much he needed to work on his singing. He slipped back into his common, although he did not mind speaking in Vani. He was a visitor in Kaiielle's city. I was only fair that he spoke her language. He would not expect everyone in Zeltiva to only speak Vani to her if the situation was reversed, although he as sure they would try. The comment about his voice being beautiful for a man might have bothered him a while ago, perhaps before the whole scare with Hadrian. Now he was coming to terms with himself and his unfortunate situation. "Thank you. I used to be better but… I had a bit of an accident. I'm glad I'm getting better though." He smiled brightly at Kaiielle. "I find it hard to believe that my voice is that much better though. You live in Avanthal, the city of art and music. There have to a lot better singers than me here. In Snowsong right? They are the musical hold, correct?" He wondered which hold Kaiielle was from. If she thought his singing was so great she must not have been from Snowsong. Although how odd would it be if she was? She could have been related to Kay'lan. "If you don't mind me asking, which hold are you from? I knew someone from Avanthal and he said that there are lots of holds, each having their own specialty." He hoped that the question was not out of line. He would have hated to offend the girl after just meeting her.

[Kaiielle]

Kaiielle's lips turned up as Kendall complimented her home. It really was the most beautiful city in her eyes. All the sparkling snow, extravagant structures made of all ice, and even the distinct smell of the cold north made it all the more worth visiting, or even living there. And the fact that Morwen in all her great power watched over the city made it even better. Having a wonderful city and an even better deity was like a dream come true for Kaii. "Thank you very much. I am lucky to live here."

Kendall seemed nice. She had never met more than one or two outsiders before, and they never stuck around for too long. And with the harsh winter in sight, she doubted anymore people would be coming or going. The cold temperatures always seemed to drive people away. "It is very nice to meet you too, Kendall." she said with a smile.

Kaii let a little laugh slip through as she saw the embarrassment on his face. She nodded when he asked if she had heard him. He really wasn't as bad as some of the people that she had to listen to, like her dad. He was a horrible singer, but he was at it almost all day, everyday. Sometimes she wished he would just keep his mouth closed and enjoy the peaceful quiet, but she would never tell him that. He was too happy when he sang.

Her eyebrows furrowed and she frowned slightly when Kendall mentioned his accident, but smiled again as he said he was getting better. "I'm sorry to hear that. It's good that you are recovering." She wondered what happened to him, but she didn't want to ask right now. It seemed like a personal question the way he spoke of it. She was relieved when he smiled at her, and she nodded again when he asked of the Snowsong hold. "Yes, they are all things musical. My mother was actually born into the Snowsong hold. She was the most beautiful singer I've ever heard." She smiled again, almost sadly as she spoke of her mother. "I am a Frostfawn though. We are the masters of animals." she said brightly. She took pride in her hold. "We are the closest to animals than anyone else in Avanthal."

Kaii looked down at his writing again when she finished talking. She was much more comfortable with Kendall than five minutes ago, so she decided to ask him about it. "What is that you're working on?" She took one of her hands away from her book and pointed to the parchment in his hands.

[Kendall Saarinen]

A smile, almost forced smile poked at the side of Kendall's lips. "Thank you." He was glad to see the girl did not push the topic further and even more glad that she allowed the subject to change. He looked at her, taking in her aura. It was colored with hues of concern for him which was touching. Kendall had trusted others with his secret before. The girl was a stranger though. He did not feel like letting his secret out just yet. It was nice to know a complete stanger cared though. She reminded him a bit of Jaelyn. Kind, friendly, and willing to give a bit of compassion to someone even a stranger. Jaelyn had been a wonderful and close friend. Kendall was not sure if he'd even see her again. He hoped he would but she was probably nearing her knighting quest now. Who knew what would happen once she was set out on her quest? Kendall smiled again, watching the girl's aura as she talked about her mother. The colors seemed to shine bright and happy but soon they began to darken. Kendall didn't need his auristics to know the girl was hurting. The flames on his wrist could feel the pain buried deep within the Vantha. He did not know why that talk of her mother pained her, only that the emotion was strong. Kendall never took Ivak's gift for granted but it often left him with a lot of questions. It was like someone telling you a story, but not giving a single detail. All he could feel was the emotion. As of the story behind it, that was Kaiielle's to tell if she wanted. The blond knew the pain of feeling estranged from his mother, although his experience was much different than Kaiielle's. He felt empathy for the girl though. He hated to see others in pain and his mark often gave him the want to help them, although this was not a trait of all Azenth. "I imagine it was wonderful to hear." He remembered the times he would sing with his mother or sing while she played the piano. The memories were nice, but bittersweet. "Frostfawn, that is interesting." Kendall slipped back into Vani, trying to accommodate his Vantha companion. Besides, the extra practice couldn't hurt. "What kinds of animals do you work with?" Kendall wished he knew more about animals. He truly found them to be interesting and for the most part, beautiful. Really though, all he knew about were horses and even that knowledge was limited to his Colorsplash, Dyakana. Looking down at the notebook on his lap, Kendall blushed. Could he be truthful about it? Could he explain it was for Hadrian? It was clearly a poem of love and he was not sure how the Vantha viewed same sex couples. "This is a poem for someone I love." He worried Hadrian his lover casually in conversation to a younger woman would be slightly crude, even if it was true. "It is their birthday next season and I really wanted to make sure I write a good poem for their birthday." He debated letting the girl read the unfinished poem. He did not liked to show his unfinished works to others. Perhaps Hadrian's perfectionist streak was rubbing off on him. Against his better judgement, he offered the notebook to Kaiielle. "You can read it if you like. It's not done but I suppose another set of eyes can tell me if something seems wrong." He really wanted the poem to be perfect for Hadrian. It would be the first time he shared his poetry with his lover. "It's written in common so if you need me to translate, let me know."

[Kaiielle]

OOCBolded black is Common, regular bolded is Vani

Kaiielle could not help the strong oncoming feelings that erupted in herself. It had gotten easier to talk about her mother, but the pain still ran deep inside. It has and probably always will be a touchy subject for the Vantha. Memories of her mother, flowing in a white dress and singing at the top of lungs flashed through her mind. Her father would always tell her to stop the all that ruckus, but truthfully he probably liked it more than Kaiielle did. Sighing quietly at the memories that bombarded her thoughts, she quickly tried to put them away before she got too emotional. Like what happens with all Vantha, her eyes flickered to a deep, boring blue to reflect her feelings. She snapped out of her little trance and looked up Kendall again, giving him a smile to mask the pain. "Yes. Very, very wonderful."

Nodding off her thoughts, she paid more attention to Kendall. She smiled again when she heard him speak in Vani once more. "We work with many types of animals. Really, I don't think there is one we do not work with in some ways. We love all of Mizahar's creatures." she said, speaking with soft passion. "I myself have a arctic fox called Ivanka. She is almost like a little sister to me. Or an older sister in fox years." she added, chuckling at the her little joke. Her eyes returned to back her content purple hue as her mind was focused on their conversation.

A small smile was stuck on her lips as Kendall talked about someone he loved. She could tell it was for someone that meant a lot to him by the way a blush creeped upon his cheeks and just by the way he spoke of it. It really was endearing to Kaiielle when people spoke of their loved ones. Kaiielle didn't need Auristics or any type of magic to assume it was for someone he was in a relationship with, but again, she didn't like to pry. "Oh, that's wonderful." she said, sincere. "My birthday is also next season, but very late into it."

Her face lit up when she was offered his notebook. Like any other Vantha, she was a sucker for a good poem or story, and behind most poems were hidden stories. Maybe that's why she enjoyed them so much. Taking up his offer, she took the notebook from him, but frowned slightly when looking at the foreign words. "Yes... I'm afraid I cannot read Common." she said, handing back the notebook to him. "But I'd still love to listen to it. Would you like to read it to me?" she asked, a friendly smile on her face. She hoped he would agree.

[Kendall Saarinen]

Slowly, Kaiielle's emotions were forced down and because of that, Kendall only felt them more intensely. Kendall knew it might upset Kaiielle but he spoke anyways. The emotion was painful because she kept it down. He could feel he was losing the girl. She was closing off. He knew the question would hurt her but he needed to ask for her own good. "You talk about your mother as if something happened to her…" He looked at the girl, his eyes sympathetic. Fire was harsh, somewhat as he was being now but it was also nurturing. This process was hard for her being cold and demanding would only shut her off. Kendall wished he knew more about animals. He knew a bit about horses, although not much. Not as much as a Frostfawn would. He could not help but want to learn a bit from them. "An arctic fox? Wow, was she hard to train?" He could see a girl her age maybe owning a dog, cat, or even a hare but a fox? They were wild animals. "Frostfawns must be really good at taming animals then. You are lucky though. My parents never let me have a pet. They thought they were dirty. At least to dirty for the house." Kendall could understand feeling a familial connection to an animal, at least in a way. Cathan had been like a brother to him before he had left out of the blue. Although he had been a wolf Kelvic, not just a wolf. Ethan had somewhat filled that spot after he left but still, he was a Lammergier Kelvic, not just an animal. "Oh, when is your birthday?" Kendall was sure the Vantha would not have the same birthday as Hadrian, although that would have been an interesting coincidence. "Oh… I'm sorry." He shouldn't have assumed that the girl could read the language just because she could speak it. "I'll read it." Taking the notebook back, he began to read. "I can only give you love that lasts forever, And a promise to be near each time you call. And the only heart I own For you and you alone That's all, That's all... I can only give you country walks in springtime And a hand to hold when leaves begin to fall; And a love whose burning light Will warm the winter's night That's all, That's all. There are those I am sure who have told you They would give you the world for a toy All I have are these arms to enfold you And a love even time can't destroy If you're wondering what I'm asking in return, dear You'll be glad to know that my demands are small Say it's me that you'll adore For now and evermore That's all That's all." "It's still rough and I do not know if this will even be the poem but it's good to get my thoughts out on paper." Kendall was not sure what he could write that could really show how he felt. He had never showed his poetry to Hadrian before and even more so, he had never written a poem for him before. Somewhere in his mind he knew Hadrian would love whatever he wrote but he was self conscious. What if it was not good enough or if Hadrian thought it was cheesy? "Maybe I'll work with some Snowsongs, although I would rather write the whole thing myself." It was a personal work of art and this was the first time Kendall would celebrate Hadrian's birthday with him.

[Kaiielle]

Kaiielle's mouth turned into a small frown as she swallowed the growing lump in her throat. She looked down, clutching the book more tightly to her chest. "She, um, actually passed away when I was ten." she said, looking back up at Kendall with weary eyes. She did not say how she died. Morwen knows she didn't need to be chasing off any of the few people she has talked with. "It was... hard for me, but I am getting better. Just like you." A little smile came to her lips at her last words. She did not expect a simple trip to the Crystal Hall to become so emotional for herself. She hoped it was not making Kendall feel uncomfortable. She swallowed again, one side of her mouth pulling up in a half-way smile.

Kaiielle's mood was slightly lifted when they talked about animals. "Ivanka was not extremely hard to train, she is just very rambunctious even though she is trained. She came from a tame family line also, which helps." she answered. She laughed when Kendall spoke of not being able to have a pet. It intrigued her to hear how different his life is from one of the Frostfawns. It was considered out of the ordinary for one of them to not have an animal companion.

"My birthday is on the 90th day of Winter." she said. "When is your friend's?" Kaii had always loved the date of her birth. It was so close to when Morwen returned to the Vantha from her trip around Mizahar.

She listened to his poem, closing her eyes to enjoy it more. Another smile came to her lips as he read. When he finished, she opened her eyes, looking very happy. "That was so beautiful." Kaiielle might have grown up listening to pretty stories and epic tales, but Kendall's poem hit a heartstring. She had never felt anything like that for anyone before. Of course she loved her family, but what she was interpreting was different. "I think it is perfect as it is. You are very talented, Kendall."