Closed Open Sky Beneath The Ground

[Saphtir]

OOCI switched the tag to "Closed" after Kanri's entrance. That puts us at four PC's, and I think that's a good number to keep a nice story going 20th Day of Summer, 512 AV Darniva Commonrooms, just outside Saphtir's apartment Saphtir awoke once more in this new place, this strange place she had not yet grown used to. Perhaps she wouldn't ever. The narrow corridors leading from her apartments were too small to fly through, and while she would have preferred to go outdoors, perhaps fly down to the bay she had heard tales of, she felt herself drained of the motivation to travel so far. The weight of the stone around her pressed down upon her, and she felt trapped. Forlorn. She ran her hands along the stone, closing her eyes and feeling the contours of her temporary home, her spiritual prison of the morning. A prison without any key, beyond her own feeling that the freedom of sky and open space were too far for her to have the energy to travel this morning. She lurched across the room to her harp, desiring to express her feelings through it. Perhaps she could take it to a public venue. The marketplace, the gardens, or one of the many courtyards that dotted the city, open to the inviting sky. But the harp was heavy, and so difficult for her to carry very far, especially across land. She sighed, tracing her fingers across the strings, listening to the light and airy music, yearning to be freed from these stone walls. Freed... unable to summon the effort to find the sky for herself, she would free her mind and her soul through her arts. She laid across the stone floor, pulling her music book in front of her. Flippers tapping gently against the ground, wings fluttering gently as she searched for inspiration, she began to write. She drew on thoughts of her journey here, the long travel by wagon under open sky. She thought of the first eagle she had seen upon nearing the city, and how graceful and free it had been, circling through the air. Then she pictured that eagle, wings clipped, hopping on tiny legs through these stone halls. How sad and alone it would feel. How out of place, yearning for the skies it once ruled. Slowly she put her thoughts into words, composing a simple song, one that she hoped would express the hole she felt in her heart this morning. She sung the song softly to herself, piecing out what notes would best match the tune. She then went back over the song, marking music notes along with the words, her fingers dancing through the air as she pictured which strings she would pluck as she played the tune. Her soft singing drifted out through the open door into the hall, a gentle, ghostly preview of the performance to come. Some hours passed as she composed the first draft of the song. She would play it first, see how it sounded, then go back and revise when she wasn't satisfied with it. She knew she wouldn't be satisfied with it. She never was. Once the draft was ready, she dragged her harp out into the hall, struggling to move the weight. She looked around, studying the wall in front of her apartment. It was so plain, so drab. It needed color. Imagery. She took out her chalk and began sketching images across the stone around her doorway. She sneezed in the dust as a cloud of chalk began to form around her, trickling down as she rubbed the chalk against the stone. She colored in stone after stone, forming a simple blue sky, with white, fluffy clouds. And just above her door she tried to sketch out the eagle from memory, wings spread, soaring through the air. She did the best she could to detail the shape of the wings, and the tips of the feathers. She set her backpack open on the ground, and tossed a couple of her coins in it. Hopefully it would prompt others to share a coin or two for her efforts. She then pulled the harp against herself, leaning it into her shoulder, and laid her flippers across the pedals. Her fingers traced across the strings, and she began her song: "Gentle eagle... Beneath the white... clouds... you soared Gentle eagle... With the ground... below... your form And through the sky and through the rain you once... flew... And 'neath the sun and 'neath the stars you once... knew... Your feathers gently ruffling in the wind... Your freedom stretched before you without end... Broken eagle... For the skies... do... you yearn? Shattered eagle... To once more fly... do... you dream? Now through these halls of earth and stone you must... walk... And underneath these cold dark bricks you must... lurk... Your wings now aching for the sky you knew... Your freedom now a lost thing, what... to... do...?" OOCThis is just the beginning of the song. I'll continue it in my next post.

[Alori Sai]

Aela laid motionless in her bed, the white sheets rippled, tucked and curled against her legs and hips. Her arms were spread out to either side of her body, and her hair twirled, lashed out, and spread across her pillow. Emerald green eyes stared blankly from beneath disheveled hair, and lips of soft pink parted a sigh. At long last the day had come, the first of her two days off from the hotshop. It would be a peaceful day, relaxing, though possibly exciting if she could force herself out of bed. She could still remember clearly the day, not so long ago, when she and a few others took a trip into the wild to investigate the deji-deformed animals. It had been a surprising, but memorable trip, and something that she would not soon forget. But that time has passed, and the group she once journeyed with had returned to their own lives. Aela craved adventure, but it wasn't likely that her friends would be up for another, and the fact that she was still lying in bed said as much about herself. Slowly, and without notice, she started to doze off again, but the sound of mischievous ruckus from the hallway woke her. "Oh..fine, I'm up." Aela finally sat up and moved to the end of the bed. She felt groggy, and her vision was still a bit blurred. She tried to stand, and absentmindedly wrapped her legs into the sheets as she moved, causing her to lose her balance and tumble onto the floor with a light thud. "Uhh.., well I'm definitely awake now." She rolled over and started to untangle the sheets that had wrapped themselves around her, and pulled herself free. Standing up again, though successfully this time, she moved over to the window and looked out. It was another bright summer day, only a few clouds in the sky and she could feel the warmth of the sun already. "I guess there's no getting around it."Another sigh escaped the little Avora's lips before she pulled herself away from the window and started to get dressed. Several tick later, she opened her door and stepped out into the hallway. Her long red, hair lung loose against her shoulders and back. She wasn't anticipating anything worth a skipping heartbeat, and so she dressed down. A white Vinati, black Bryda and sandals were just find for such a dull afternoon. Aela stood in the hall for a moment, she stared off into the distance, looking at nothing, but without a place in mind to travel left her standing in place. A sudden melody drifted into her ears, a strange sound, a beautiful sound, almost hauntingly so. Aela loved music and attended any event where musicians would play, but she had never heard anything like this before. The little huntress felt almost compelled to track down the source, and quickly sped on her way. It didn't take her long, as she was used to navigating the halls whenever she stopped by to visit her friends. The singing became loader and with it the strange melody. Aela knew that she was getting closer and started to move a bit faster. Once she entered the hall, she was at a lost for words. White fluffy clouds stood against a blue sky surrounding a door frame. Sitting even higher than the clouds was an eagle, as if it were soaring. Looking just a bit cross from the door, her eyes fell upon something astonishing. There was a woman, only she was half fish, and yet she had wings of a butterfly. She held an instrument in her arms, and one Aela could barely recognize. In the past she'd seen the instrument before, but never heard it played. The young Inartan stood speechless. She hadn't witnessed anything so wildly abnormal since the Zith had attacked her and Aidara the Spring before. "That was beautiful."

[Vaas]

Wind Dancer enjoys waking him up in the early hours of the morning, but today, he was exceptionally early in his wake up call. Vaas can deal with the consent squawking from his feather friend, but this morning his evil bird decided to jump on his pillow, starts flapping Vaas' face with his wings, and to add insult to injury decided to squawk just for effect. Vaas loves Windy, but this morning he was seriously contemplating having roasted hawk for dinner. However, his dinner plans were derailed because he just remembered that the birds were sacred to the Inarta. Instead in vain, Vaas reached for the bird with his free hand to get him off his pillow, but the bird must have a gnosis mark in unspeakable evil because his hand was right than bitten by the bird. Feeling the blood trickle down his hand, he jumps out of bed and yells at his nemesis, “This is why I can't have a girl friend! You... would scare them away!”

Innocently, Wind Dancer tilts his head in confusion and flies back up to the rafters, and he sulks not realizing what he did wrong. On the other hand, Vaas walks to his flute case muttering to himself, “Why didn't the mysterious woman give me a sweet little song bird like a parakeet? Noooo I had to get Ivak's fiery minion of choas and pain.” Vaas throws up his hands in despair and says to the heavens, “Yep! I am cursed!” Wind Dancer looks down at the ranting young man and chirps at him again. Vaas looks up at Windy and laughs out loud, “Oh, Windy don't play innocent with me. I know. I don't molt, and I should understand your pain, but you just bite me.” The bird tilts his head again in confusion and puts his head underneath his wing and goes to sleep.

When Vaas opens his case, he walks over to his back pack and takes out his water skin. After he has everything he needs for mending his hand and his pride, he opens the flute case and pulls out a clean rag. He uses both hands to tear the rag apart. He opens the water skin and puts some water on the rag. He takes the wet rag and wipes the bite with the wet rag. After he finishes cleaning the wound. He feels around his hurt hand with his other hand to feel if it is sticky with blood. When he notices it is not bleeding, he wraps the dry piece of cloth around his hand. Until the bandage is tight. Once this is finished he tosses the bloody rag in the dirty cloths pile by his end of his bed. In defeat, he puts his head on the table. Wishing this morning would end, he quickly falls back to sleep.

Waking up in a puddle of drool, Vaas is woken to the sounds of a harp in the hallway. He lifts his head and wipes the drool from side of his mouth. He runs a hand through his hair and listens a little longer to the gentle sound of the harp. He smiles to himself noticing it isn't to far from his apartment. He springs to his feet and walks over to the bed and puts on his black bryda. Once he grabs his pants, he walks back to the table and grabs his flute case. Thinking maybe this mysterious musician can teach him this unique sounding music on his flute. Once at the door, Vaas grabs his staff, opens the door, and walks outside in the Darniva Common rooms. Just outside his door, he listens for the sound of harp again, and he makes his way towards the sound. Making slow and steady swipes of his staff, Vaas eventually makes it to the other side of the commons.

The sound of the harp is definitely louder on this side of the large room. He makes his way to wall closes enough to hear the music perfectly. He sits down cross legged by the wall and puts his staff in his lap. Listening to the music, he starts air playing his flute trying to figure out the notes the musician is using. The music scheme was very different to the Inartan tradition, so Vaas starting to realizes this person must be foreigner. Suddenly, she starts to sing, and Vaas is captivated by her voice. To him, her voice was sad, gentle, and haunting. A few times he caught himself catching a chill down his spine at the sound of her voice. He stops his air playing and just closes his eyes listening to the song and her voice. Vaas with his eyes closed just listens to her play music with a wide grin on his face.
oocI just wanted to warn you Saphtir that Vaas has a special relationship with his hawk.

[Saphtir]

Saphtir was at first unaware of her audience. A few other strangers stopped to listen, but she was focused on her song. She kept her eyes on the strings as her fingers glided across them, plucking them to send the gentle sounds throughout the halls. Her flippers moved slowly on the pedals, changing the tension on the strings when she needed to adjust the tone of the notes. Her song continued: "Gentle eagle... To the sky... you'll... return Gentle eagle... You'll one day... soar... again While this day you feel only this... weight... And within your wings and your heart you... ache... You shall not be bound ever unto the ground... For your heart and soul they soar, your freedom's found... Yet dear eagle... Please don't... look... up My friend eagle... You can't... hold... hope For while one day you may regain the lost... skies... You cannot now gaze on them with broken... eyes... Hope for tomorrow is such a fleeting thing... And so it is for your pain I sing... Think not tomorrow of the skies you seek... For until then you must remain so weak... Broken eagle... My song... cries... for you... Shattered eagle... You must... pull... though... Broken eagle... Shattered eagle... Gentle... Eagle..." When the song ended, her fingers trailed across the strings for a trailing, wordless end to the tune, slowly fading to silence. Saphtir's eyes brimmed with tears that fell down her cheek. She looked up at her small audience, forcing a weak smile at the woman's compliment. "You are too kind..." she whispered.

[Kanri]

Kanri woke up a little earlier than usual that day with the feeling that something exciting might happen for a change. However, the morning was painfully normal. After dressing in her usual attire, Kanri jogged to the Communal Kitchen to get herself a small breakfast. She wasn't in the mood for working today. Since she didn't really have a master, mostly teaching herself with some tips from others, she could work at whatever schedual she wanted. Sadly, this ed to her lack of motivation at times, like today. All morning, she wandered through the halls, not really minding where she went and saying hello to neighbors as she passed. That "something exciting" that was going to happen, had not happened yet. Perhaps she was letting her imagination open too much.

Early afternoon, Kanri wandered into a hall where she could hear music. It was really warm feeling but chilling. Kanri had never heard that instrument before. And the voice accompanying the song was hauntingly beautiful. Kanri focused her ears better and followed the sound back to the source to find a small audience already standing at a doorwar covered with chalk clouds and sky. It was the very sky Kanri wanted to fly away into someday. She dug her fingernails into her palms, reminding herself to appreciate the moment.

Her more realistic wish now was to meet this musician. Hopefully, these people would take her seriously, even though she was young. She gathered up her courage to say "good job!"

"You are too kind..." the woman said. A foreigner! Kanri should have known. Now she was scared she would offend her some way and scare her from Wind Reach... However, she was in the little audience so maybe if the woman spoke to her first, she would be able to tell her "You're really good".

[Alori Sai]

Aela listened closely to the words in the song that the woman sang. It was a bit intimidating in a sense. For a stranger who seemed to understand the eagle even more than she did. Aela glanced to the fresh painting on the wall again. Her eyes focused on the eagle, and as she listened it was as if she could see it flying, soaring free across the stone-made canvas. The music brought her to a state of peace and somewhat sadness as well. It was something that she could not express in words, and could only stand and listen. She noticed the woman's backpack sitting open on the ground, and the few coins resting inside. Aela reached into her own pocket and took out a few pinions and slowly stepped forward and dropped them inside. Stepping back to where she stood before, Aela brought her arms up and wrapped them over her shoulders. The woman seemed harmless enough, however she didn't want to chance it. She was of another land, much like the Zith that had attacked her, and Aela just wanted to be careful. She had almost lost her life that night at the Edge of the world, and wasn't looking to repeat that horrific event. Instead, she stood there, a few paces away and just listened as the woman ended the song. The ending was just as emotional as the the beginning, and Aela felt tears against her own cheeks. If anyone had come up, she hadn't noticed until now, and glanced around a bit after wiping her eyes. "That was pretty amazing." She said, a faint blush growing in her cheeks. She wasn't sure what else to say, or how to approach the woman. She wasn't ugly like the Zith had been, but she wasn't human either. "What is that instrument called? I know I've seen it before."

[Vaas]

When the song was finished, Vaas opens his eyes and says softly to himself, “beautiful..” Was all he said before he decides to stand up and walk to the foreign musician. The only foreigner Vaas ever meet, so far was Avon, but he left Wind Reach as quickly as he came to the city in volcano. He picks himself up from the ground and walks over where she is sitting. Along the way, he is thinking to himself should he complement her in common or Nari. Obviously, he can come up with a much more elegant sounding complement in Nari, but she might not know Nari since she not from Wind Reach. Waving his staff, he notices the staff hits something, and he walks around it. 'What should I say?' Vaas thinks to himself, but the words coming to mind would sound much better in his native tongue. Vaas' inner thoughts are interrupted when he hears Aela and another young woman's voice. He never heard the other girls voice before. She definitely sounds younger than him. Maybe by a couple of years making her around fifteen or sixteen, but for being younger than him, she sounded like she had a spark to her. Both seem to be complimenting the foreigner, and also Aela asked the type of instrument she played. He walks up besides Aela and reaches out with his hand. Hoping it found its target, he gives his friend a gentle and friendly squeeze on her shoulder. He brings down his hand and smiles down at the woman with the hauntingly beautiful voice.

When Vaas makes it to the musician, he says to her in common, “You play...your... harp very well.” Vaas grimaces at how stupid that sounded. He blushes slightly and tries again in common, “Your.. voice very lovely. I... am musician too. I play flute, and I sing.” He makes a disgusted face and turns in the direction of Aela and says in fluent Nari to her, “I must sound like a complete idiot don't I, Aela?” He turns back to the foreign musician and asks again in common, “My..a name is Vaas. I am a...musician. Could you teach me the song you just played. The music and the words was quite beautiful.” Making a face, Vaas blows his red hair away from is face in irritation with himself. He should have work on his common tongue with the foreign merchant when he had the chance this late spring. Now this foreigner must think of him as a complete idiot. Before he stops talking altogether, he asks her again in common, “What is..umm..your name?” Making a face again, he thinks to himself again, 'Yep that settles it. I am definitely a Inartan bumpkin.'

oocVaas' common is quite bad.

[Kanri]

Kanri was not spoken to intially but as the female Inarta asked what the instrument was, Kanri found the courage to speak.

"What is that instrument called? I know I've seen it before." the woman said.

"Indeed, I believe I have seen that instrument before too. I love the warm, mellow but ethereal sound it creates. It sounds like a thunder storm has ended and a few stray bits of light of peeking through the clouds. And you lay very well," Kanri added quietly. She was not sure if anyone had even heard her.

The male Inarta came over, gently proding the ground in front of him. Kanri did not comment but she guessed he could not see well. In somewhat broken common, he managed to ask the spectacular but foreign musician what her name was. Before the woman could answer, I introduced myself too.

"And I'm Kanri. It's nice to meet you," I blurted out. Then I realized that I was being impolite. I scolded myself for being so rash. I wasn't the {i} only{/}one in that conversation. I wished I could take my words back but if I did, that would make me sound even more like a child. I could still imagine my busy mother or father scolding me over their shoulder while they worked. It was too late now.

[Saphtir]

Saphtir's cheeks reddened, and her wings fluttered nervously with embarrassment. She kept her face down as she absorbed the praise, replying, "Thank you... thank you all. It is but a simple harp, and I am a mere amateur musician. But your praise, it brings a fleeting moment of warmth to my heart..." Still keeping her face lowered, she raised her eyes to gaze upon her audience. "My name... is Saphtir," she said. "I am most pleased to meet you all." Then she turned to the man who had been switching languages, and replied in his native tongue, "I speak some Nari, if you... like. But very little..." She had been studying the language for some months, in anticipation of journeying here. "I am... glad for teach, if people don't dislike..." She cleared her throat in embarrassment, then continued in common, "That is, I mean to say, if the others would not protest hearing the same song repeated again, I would gladly teach it to you..." She raised the book that had her composition on it, preparing to show it to the man. But she belatedly began to realize he didn't seem to be able to see... She frowned, uncertain how to proceed. She herself hadn't yet committed the new music to memory, and needed the song laid open before her to remember each note. "Can you pick out the notes as I play?" she asked him, plucking her fingers across the strings in the first few notes of the tune. She wasn't sure how skilled the man was with music, if he could memorize the notes just by hearing them. She herself wasn't yet skilled enough for such things. Even having just played the song moments ago, she wasn't confident she could repeat it, had she not the composition sitting open right there. Though practicing the song again would certainly help. She repeated the first series of notes for the man again, trying to trace them into her own memory. Gentle music drifted down the hall, and she hummed along with the tune, not wanting to distract from the melody with the words just yet.

[Alori Sai]

"Hey Vaas." Aela said when he suddenly appeared beside her. She hadn't notice him arrive, or if he was already there before her, she hadn't seen him then either. She smiled and lifted her hand to cover his and give it a gentle pat. With her eyes clear of tears, she looked around again, and notice a younger girl standing up front from the small crowd that had stopped to listen. She too had recognized the instrument and enjoyed the melody. Aela nodded towards the girl, agreeing with her impression of the musical sound. Turning back to Vaas and the woman, Aela smiled as he spoke to her in his best common. It didn't sound as horrible as he may have thought, although it did cause the little Avora to bite back a giggle. When he turned to her, an embarrassed look on his face, she smiled and gently tapped his shoulder. "No, it wasn't all that bad." She stared at him and wanted to say something more. Before them was a woman, of another world. Her beauty was unique and unlike anything she had ever seen. However Vaas could not see this, to him she was just another traveler. Each which flutter of her wings and movement in her flippers, caused the little huntress's eyebrow to twitch. She wanted to say something, but wasn't sure how to explain it to him. Aela stood quietly as the musicians conversed about their hobby, and one she knew little about. It dawned on her at the moment that she really had no idea of how much Vaas knew about music. She had heard him play many times since they met, but he never discussed his knowledge of music. He had mentioned a few things to her before, but nothing in detail, not that she would have understood it. Once the mysterious visitor started to play for them again, she reached out, gently touching his shoulders and pulled him back a pace. Leaning up she moved her lips close to his ear and whispered to him. "Don't get to close, there's..something about her." It wasn't fear that gripped her, merely caution. She was a bit surprised that, the others didn't seem nearly as astonished as she was. Was it possible that they knew something that she didn't?