Double Vision [Clyde]

[Flynn Maidrus]

4th of Fall 511 AV

"Hot 'n' succulent apple pies! Four coppers apiece!" Her stomach no longer rumbled at the mention of apple pies, Flynn noted grimly. No craving came to her. To her irritation, some passerbys glanced at her and quickened their place, furtively whispering. Some of the bustling crowd who had bumped or walked through her seemed to be shivering or uncomfortable. If it had been anywhere else, they would've given her wide berth. But this was Ravok's Merchant District and no one could afford to give her extra room. It was the same as it had always been, Flynn mused. Illegal businesses not too subtlely hidden, stalls pressed up against the walls and wares spilling into the cobblestone street, the merchant wagons passing through pushing and cursing people. Busy, just the way Flynn liked it. It meant only a handful noticed her. Finding yet another set of eyes on her, she spun around to meet their gaze. A man- whose jacket was bursting with the sheer layers of clothing- had been gaping. Now, as she spun around, the man's brows furrowed and cheeks reddened. He began to open his mouth and Flynn broke eye contact, flicking her eyes toward a nearby stall. The man's mouth closed to follow her gaze, but all he saw were fruits.   And then a burst of dull yellow impeded his vision. An apple. She had levitated an apple and thrown it at him! His hands shook as he reached up to his face to brush the chunks away, and she grinned! Grinned! That insolent little- "You...! You- how did you- how did you even- you didn't even touch-" and she disappeared, running through people nimbly.   He was then faced with a rather angry fruit vendor.

[Clyde Sullins]

Today was yet another day in Ravok.... Clyde walked along, seeing the different wares offered here... Usually he did not really go for anything exorbitant, just getting what he needed to get by... He preferred to save his money for other things.... Clyde walked along deep in thought, not really paying to much attention to those around him, or there reactions. Often he got carried away, and just got caught up in the flow of people, ending up somewhere else. Breaking from his train of thought, he checked around again, making sure he was still in the merchant area, and took a few moments to look at a stand nearby with its food. He was looking over at a person trying to sell some eels, and several people who were muttering and walking away quickly. He turned over to look were they were coming from, and his attention was oddly drawn to a specific spot... Were he noticed a oddly flickering form moving through the crowd... At first Clyde thought he was seeing things... How could a person flicker like that? And there edges, they looked oddly wet... Like something that was smeared... He wondered on this, when he noticed one of her arms go right through a mans head, making him shiver as if very cold... Was she an illusion? Or something else? Clyde quickly followed after her, with a curious look on his face. He had actually met a ghost before, though it had been a much higher level one, and he had not even realized what it was... And had hardly any memory of when he had been possessed by it... That whole thing was a blur... So he was interested in finding out exactly what this was... Clyde called out a few times, trying to get her attention. "Excuse me.... Excuse me miss!... Could you stop for a moment so we could talk?"

[Flynn Maidrus]

Oh, dear Rhysol... someone was following her, and she could feel their keen gaze. Or maybe she was paranoid. The curious gaze made her twitch, and when it- he, Flynn realized- spoke, she nearly jumped. Except she couldn't jump. She floated. Flynn noted that she levitated a few inches from the ground from startlement. Chuckling quietly, she thought it might've looked as though she had a sudden growth spurt to the startled onlookers. Flynn faced the direction of the voice. The speaker seemed to be a lanky human man with rumpled brown hair and rather floppy ears, she thought. Hm... he didn't seem to strong or rich. He would probably bring her no trouble, unless he was a wizard. The man seemed trustworthy enough, and his facial scars and eyes were rather interesting.  She smiled and waved at him as a barrage of people went through her. "Hello, mister. What do you have to speak to me about?"

[Clyde Sullins]

Clyde had been trying to gain her attention, and follow the odd woman, when she suddenly stopped and turned to him. Oddly enough she smiled and waved like he was an old friend, and more or less asked what he wanted. Clyde suppressed a smile at the reactions of several people, as they walked through her, shivering like they had stepped through ice water. Clyde ran through his memory, trying to think what exactly she could be... He did not recall seeing such a thing before, and indeed he seemed to be noticing her when several people did not see her at all... Perhaps he had a small bit of skill in such things as noticing whatever she was? Going on, Clyde took a few steps closer, watching as she flickered invisible for a moment, and then regained her form... Though she did not seem to good at doing so... Almost like looking at a bad drawing of a person... "Yes.... Well I was wondering what exactly you are?... Most people don't float around, and you seem rather insubstantial at times... What with people walking through you... I cannot quite recall, but I have the feeling I have met something rather like you before... But I am not really sure what... I hoped you might be able to help me out for the information..."

[Flynn Maidrus]

She seemed rather surprised at his question. Wasn't it obvious? Insubstantial, floating, shivering people even though it was autumn and they had coats on... Maybe, Flynn mused, it's because I'm all civilized and not at all depressed like those ghosts in campfire stories. The man seemed polite enough. Flynn decided to make a concious effort to appear real, for the sole reason that she loved puzzling people. She concentrated until she stopped flickering and sighed, it was uncomfortable being jostled by the crowd. Flynn nodded to the man and said, "I'll answer your question if you answer mine... How did you get your scars?"

   

[Clyde Sullins]

Clyde's face shifted for a moment to a frown, before returning to a more neutral expression. He did not really like thinking of when he had been given the scars... And to be honest he had not remembered it for that long the occasion he received them... He had only recently been freed of the curse done by a mad hypnotist, which had removed his knowledge of magic, and thinking of Syliras was never fun for him... That place he hated.... He could not help but show his discomfort for a moment... Though he was able to bring his mind back to focus as he thought of his quest to destroy the city... Clyde gave a short nod, after all if he wanted information, he often had to give some in response. A fair trade, one were they both learned something. Though he could not fathom why his facial scars would interest anyone... "Well, I do not really like talking of it, but if I must... It was in Syliras... I was attacked by a wizard for no reason, and he decided to permanently mark me for all to see... He burnt me several times, and used his magics on me... Not a very pleasant experience, and completely unprovoked..." "So I have answered your question, and given you what you asked... Could you now return the favor and help me with my questions? " Clyde continued to look, wondering why her form recalled a memory. Her form became a bit more solid, but he could still tell she was not a real normal person... Apparently she was not very good on taking on form and showing herself...

[Flynn Maidrus]

Flynn sighed at the calculation flitting from the man's face before he spoke. He's weighing his choices, she thought. "Well, I do not really like talking of it, but if I must... It was in Syliras... I was attacked by a wizard for no reason, and he decided to permanently mark me for all to see... He burnt me several times, and used his magics on me... Not a very pleasant experience, and completely unprovoked..." "So I have answered your question, and given you what you asked... Could you now return the favor and help me with my questions? " Well, it was expected, she wasn't going to get much information from a stranger on the street. But she was expecting better than 'a wizard did that while I was in Syliras.' She could've inferred the former anyway. The man didn't know much, which was useless, or it was too personal, to go by the look on his face. He had to know, or had a guess, why he got attacked. Flynn mused, life stories were high entertainment. There's nothing like tragic or bloody backstories to get my mind off final, real death. So she brushed off the fleeting disappointment- the jeweler had good deals, not that she could wear them anyway, but it was the thrill of shopping- and smiled pleasantly. Didn't matter if he was clueless, he seemed interesting enough. "Well, my name's Flynn... Maidrus," she could never get used bearing his last name. "Let's stop by some tavern, hmm? It's quite a long story."

 

[Clyde Sullins]

To be honest Clyde was getting a bit aggravated, and he barely kept it from showing on his face. He had told her something very personal, something he did not tell anyone about... ANY... ONE... Ever. And she would not even answer a simple question. Yes he had not gone in depth, but she had said nothing! But he new showing his anger would not make things go any better, and so kept his emotions in check, as he often had to, boiling white hot just under the surface... She did at least tell him her name.... Not that it did much good.... But common civilities must be followed, and taking in a deep breath as she talked he brought his insides down to a simmer. Though he did wonder which part was making him so angry, her not answering at all... Or her digging into bad memories he preferred to keep buried and forgotten... Perhaps if they went on, he would learn a bit more... But surely she would want to hear more of his past, along with what she might say. "Hello Flynn... My name is Clyde... I suppose we could go to a tavern... We could go to the silver sliver... It is not to far. I think it is that way..." Always thinking of security, the Silver Sliver was a measured choice. It was usually pretty busy, so there would be enough people talking so they would not likely be overheard. Better to have a hundred people jabbering away, making it difficult to make out your words from the next table, than a quiet place with only a few people to clearly overhear what was said. Also the bar owner was usually okay with most things, as long as you did not cause a disturbance, or damage anything, or aggravate one of the Ebonstryfe that frequented the spot.

[Flynn Maidrus]

Flynn stared at the man’s blank face. It was quite obvious he was shielding his expression. Had she pushed his patience? As Clyde took a deep breath, she could not help but reconsider if he would actually take her up on her offer. Well, what a prickly guy. Flynn smiled as he mentioned the Silver Silver Tavern located along the Docks. It brought up nice memories and the Silver was one of her favorite drinks. Maybe the guy would even let her Possess him for a sip as part of her demonstrations for her ghostly powers. Clyde reminded her of a mournful, cautious big puppy. He definitely didn’t seem to be a resident from Ravok, or he would have been shadier and more hardened. She idly wondered if Morphing would help Clyde conceal his scars, but dismissed the thought. It would be too much work to get to the proficiency to hide them all the time. Poor guy, she thought, his past will be forever displayed on his face. Flynn grimaced as she thought of her fizzing, translucent form. At least I’m not as readable. She nodded at Clyde and followed, letting go of her Materialization and passing through the crowd as she absentmindedly mused, wondering the story behind his burn scars. Circular. Did that mean anything?

[Clyde Sullins]

It seemed Flynn agreed with the idea, and so the two of them made there way to the tavern. It was a bit odd for Clyde, going along with her... She seemed to fade out once they got going, and more or less disappeared... It appeared no one else even noticed her existence once she did that, like she had gone out of existence... Though unlike the other people, Clyde thought he might see something, a bit of the shimmer of the air in the vague outline of a person... Vaguely... Though only if he kind of squinted his eyes and tilted his head just right.... He was almost certain he knew what she was... But he could not quite recall, his mind had been a bit fuzzy on certain things since his magic had returned... Before he knew it, they had arrived, walking into the tavern. As usual it was quite busy, and it took him a while to find a table, ordering a cheap mug of ale for a few copper's, while trying to keep his voice heard over the loud talking, and the musician playing a fiddle... Settling into his seat at a table, he turned to look for Flynn, so they could get talking again, assuming she would appear again. Though he wondered what her story might be.