Closed Birthday Depression (Alea)

[Ana Sol Starris]

Ana heard the hiss but had hardly registered it until finally a big, white, and UGLY spider had come down and crawled about to sit in Aleas lap. The thief froze when she saw it, the spider was HUGE compared to those silly, dangerously poisonous ones hanging about nature around the Spires. Eyes widening, she kept her gaze locked on it, fear rippling its way through her body, and terror crippling her, making her much like a paralytic. That thing was sitting on Alea's lap, all cuddled up, the heck! What in the gods names was this blasthemous act between humanity and nature! Spiders shouldn't be acting like trained dogs! And.. And.. Fizzling out, Ana stared dumbfoundedly, jaw just slightly agape at the sight. Nevermind that Alea was talking, the girl had a friggin huge spider on her for divinities sake! Of crazy people, to kelvics, from mysteries and circles- none of that mattered in an instant as she drew her shortsword and pointed it at the Spider, hand shaking terribly with fear. Spiders. How she despised their very existance, they had eight legs, and lots of beady eyes, some could jump, others skittered about, heck, some even swam- there had been a lot of crazy nature crap Ana had seen during her trapezing through the forests during the reclamation. To be honest, spiders were her least faverite insect in the whole wide world of Mizahar. Not even the mist that once plagued the Spires could compare. "Yo-you-you've go-got a sp-spider on you Alea" Ana stammered out, backing away a bit from the two, trying not to panic crazily "I-i think it's sl-sleeping.... Shhhh.. I'll stab it," Ana's voice went quiet, a tremendous difference to her former panicked tone "and I'll be careful not stabbing you in the process if you're not squeemish having... a... a.. blade near you." ooc>.> ...careful...Ana will attempt to stab it...

[Alea Davenport]

When Ana pulled a sword on Alea, she watched the girl in confused alarm. When it became clear that Ana was threatening Zed, Alea's protective instincts kicked in. Still cradling the curled up spider, she rolled to the side, ending up a foot to the left, crouched protectively over the ball of white fluff which was now chittering in confusion and alarm. She may have accidentally squished him a little--she hadn't really ever tried a roll like that before--but she made sure to quickly take her weight off him, and she hoped he would be okay.

Now that she was in a better position to move and attack if necessary, she glared back at the woman who'd drawn a sword on her pet. "What do you think you are doing?!" she shouted angrily. "I invite you into my home, and you repay me by threatening my friends?" Her entire focus was on Ana, gauging her reaction and getting ready to act if Ana should attack. As a result, she failed to notice that the golden object previously around her neck had somehow come off during her impromptu acrobatics, and was now lying on the floor behind her.

What she did notice was that Ana's hands and voice were shaking. She was...scared of the spider? Now that Alea thought about it, she supposed she could understand why someone might react badly, but she would have thought people could be observant enough to realize that if Alea didn't feel threatened, neither should they. In a slow voice, like she was talking to a wild beast, Alea said, "It's okay Ana, Zed's not going to hurt anyone. Now why don't you put that sword away?" Alea would rather not hurt Ana if she could help it, but Zed's safety came first.

OOCBefore writing this I tried that roll with a pillow, just to make sure it could be done by a novice

[Ana Sol Starris]

The thief's eyes flicked to the gold of the medallion pendant once it hit the ground and then back to Alea who was holding the spider in a protective manner, Ana tilted her head to the side with a raised eyebrow. Pointing at the both of them with her free hand, the other trembling with the hold of the shortsword. "You named that thing?" Ana asked with her voice jittery, a slight disgusted tone underneath playing with her own disbelief at Alea "why the heck would you have a spider? Is that a kelvic? Don't tell me it's a kelvic..." Were spider kelvics even possible? Ana wondered a bit, before letting the thought slide to be pondered on and discovered another time. Actually, the thief was quite surprised at the womans reaction to the spider, and then her protective nature once Ana had pulled the weapon out; as if unsuredly, Ana sheathed the shortsword once more. Eyeing the both of them suspiciously, holding herself in such a way that could only say she wasn't quite believing Alea at the moment despite the younger girls claims over 'Zed'. Moving herself farther away from the both of them, a slow gait in her step as she gripped the sides of her cloak and brought her fisted hands to cross across her chest. Wrapping the cloak around her person effectively, and in the thieves own special gestured way that she was not going to reach for the sword again. Hopefully. Remaining standing, and still, she turned her foot ever so slightly to the side and tapped it as she thought about what could possibly happen. That thing was going to bite Alea! But.. It.. Well, Alea didn't seem to be afraid of the spider, the action perplexed the small thief as she shook her head a bit "I don't see the appeal in it.. Why not a dog.. or a cat... But a spider? Why?" Ana didn't know the implications of what that question could hold, nor did she care, but she was more relaxed if not wary of her new found victems pet and herself.

[Alea Davenport]

Alea relaxed when Ana did, relived that she would not have to attack someone she liked. As if on cue, when Ana mentioned cats, Tom appeared at the top of the stairs. His hackles were raised, and with a hiss and a yowl, he suddenly scrambled down the stairs at top speed, headed straight for Zed. All the excitement proved to be too much for the poor tormented spider, and Zed quickly skittered out of Alea's arms, past the door-fur and away from all of the claws and swords and sharp pointy objects threatening him.

Tom, satisfied with this turn of events, promptly sat and began washing his paw as if that was all he had been doing all along. Alea quickly chased after Zed, a worried expression on her face. "Oh, come back! He's not going to hurt you, I'll make sure of it..." the sound of her voice faded from the room as she passed the fur, leaving Ana alone with the cat, and the dropped compass.

The gold medallion sat unattended, unguarded, tempting the thief with its richness. The only other creature in the room was the small cat, who stared disdainfully--or was it accusingly?--at Ana. Not half a chime later, Alea's voice could be heard returning. In moments, she would push back the curtain, carrying the spider. It was a golden oppurtunity for the thief (literally), but one that would pass soon. She had mere ticks to act.

[Ana Sol Starris]

Speak of the bloody.. Ana watched with mild amusement as a cat would come flying down the stairs, all fur, paws, and claws aimed at the spider. So the feline, in a round about way, agreed with her that the spider was horrible; but at least Ana had the sense to not attack right away, it wasn't in her best interests to cause ruckus. The cat however created the perfect distraction, the spider scurried away and along with it went Alea, nothing but the cat and Ana in the same room together; albeitly he was looking quite innocent. Its feline eyes turned on her slowly, and Ana looked to it, raising an eyebrow at its voiceless expression. Before it turned away, Ana smirked and went to sit on the couch, her own attention now to taking the medallion. "Well, thanks" Ana whispered, as quietly as she could to the cat before scooping the medallion up quickly and then wrapping up in her cloak. Hastily working to look comfortable on the piece of furniture, slouched somewhat as she buried the compass into the folds underneath her cloak as Alea would come back. Turning her head to look at the now dishelved Alea, she bit back a smile, it was rather comical with the younger girl looking so annoyed "..and that is why cats make better pets than spiders, or dogs; Spiders are insects, and dogs are smelly mongrels that don't shut up," She said, sighing at the end. Straightened up in her seat, her hand now grasping the gold medallion in her hand under the folds of her cloak. To Alea, Ana could have looked like she was merely wrapping up because she was cold, hopefully. Quite confident now, she tried to remain as great as she could feel with the spider in the room, but now that she had the beautiful medallion, Ana had to be on her toes to make sure she got away with it. Perhaps she didn't have to stay too long afterwards because of this? Looking back to the cat of which was still cleaning himself, Ana pursed her lips in thought. "Whats your cats name?" Ana asked Alea, now directing the conversation as best as she could. Eyes flicked back to the younger woman cooly, letting them rest on the spider in her arms once, and then no more as they stayed on Aleas face. Really seems luck is on my side.. Ana laughed inwardly.

[Alea Davenport]

At Ana's praise for the cat, Alea could only look at her as if she'd said the sky was upside-down. It took her a few ticks to process Ana's question, but she finally blinked, shook her head and managed to get out, "Uh... I call him Tom..." Running her hand absently through Zed's soft translucent fur, she had to stop and add, "I'm sorry, but are you insane? Zed is the sweetest most lovable creature I have ever met, and that cat is, well, basically a monster!"

As Tom casually groomed himself by the fireplace, oblivious to the aspersions being cast upon his character, Alea went on in a bit of a rant, pacing back and forth with the innocent ball of fluff in her arms. "I mean, you try to get anywhere near him, and as often as not he takes a swipe at you! And when he does decide to cuddle, it's only so he can put his fish-breath in your face. And that's another thing, you'd think he'd appreciate being fed, but no, he just acts like he's entitled! He's mean, smelly, ungrateful..."

And then, she just ran out of steam. Her eyes took on a far-away look, and a touch of bittersweet nostalgia entered her voice. "He used to be the family cat, you know. Back when I lived in Denval. I suppose he wasn't really meant to be a pet; he just caught mice and ate the fish scraps my parents fed him. I don't know why I brought him with me when I left... I hadn't planned to. On the morning I left, I just... didn't want to go alone I guess, or maybe I just wanted to take a piece of home with me after all. Heh, so at the last minute I grabbed him and stuffed him in my pack. Might be why he's still mad at me," she finished wryly.

Her eyes felt a bit misty, as they often did when thinking of her home. Almost subconsciously, her hand groped for the compass that was almost always tucked under her shirt. When she did not feel it, she frowned, and dropped Zed. She checked again, but the compass was not on her person. Trying not to panic, she ran upstairs without a word, and looked everywhere she might have left it. Maybe she hadn't put it on this morning? But it wasn't anywhere near her bed, or on a shelf with the other knick-knacks. Besides, she was pretty sure she'd had it on this morning. Maybe she'd lost it while she was out walking?

She tore down-stairs, intending to scour the town, but she caught sight of Ana, and remembered she had a guest. It would probably be rude to abandon someone in her home, without explanation. Oh gods, it felt like something was crawling up her throat. How could she lost THAT of all things? She tried for a rational explanation, but all she could force up as tears filled her eyes was, "I...think I lost something in the city. I have to go find it..."

And she could offer no more, of either time or explanation. She ran out of her house, scanning the ground for any sign of the tiny circle of gold. What if it had fallen over the edge? What if it was lying broken on the forest floor, hundreds of feet below? She'd never find it! She felt sick, trying to retrace her steps, to remember the last place she was sure she'd had it, but it had become such a habit, she just didn't remember!

[Ana Sol Starris]

Ana watched and listened to the younger girl, ear open, taking note at her exhasperation towards the feline- eyes glancing to the tom cat and then back to the girl raising an eyebrow. Comical, that was what the situation currently was, and the thief offered the girl a tired smile in hopes of keeping the conversation going as such without any of it being truely directed at herself with mal-intent. Settling in her seat as relaxing as she could, Ana would offer the occasional head nod to the rant. Eyes shutting as she listened, taking in the voice with her ears- it was different. Accented as most peoples voices were, just as Ana's slightly was with a Zeltivan undertone covered up with years of Sunberth brutality, and recent seasons worth of Spirian formality. The thief was not a dialect master, and never would she be- the most she knew of was the rough and gritty sailor speak sat beside a university students inquisitive tone of voice; lurking nearby was the rebel cry of a Sunberthian. Others, here and there, but Ana barely remembered them; the girl had gone farther on, and Ana had picked the word 'Denval' up as a city. Not any city that she would have heard of, so the place was foreign, it was new, and it made Ana curious- where was this city? Nodding her head again when Alea came up to the part of leaving home, it gave Ana reason to peek a eye open and look at the girl. So she's definitely not a native Spirian.. But I wonder how long it took to get to Spires, for her.. Eyes followed the girls hand to the chest, straightening up and leaning forwards as she yawned, half speaking as she broke her line of sight with Alea "thats all very interesting, but don't you think you give him less credit than he deserves? He's still here.. If he didn't like you, he wouldn't have stayed- right, Tom?" Ana looked at the cat again. The devilishly handsome little creature that had allowed her to seize posession of the medallion when Alea went after the Zed.. Spider.. Thing- beforehand. She still needed to thank that cat apropriately, perhaps if she went and found some fish for him, that would be adeuqite payment for his most helpful services. Following Alea with her eyes up the stairs, Ana pursed her lips in contemplation if perhaps she had finally noticed the medallion was gone. Grimacing, the thief stood up and quickly hid the medallion within her shirt whilst Alea was upstairs- the action took no more than a tick or two before her arms went to rightfully wrap themselves about her chest. Alea came back down, the frantic and worry was quite clearly written on her face; all Ana gave her was a dumbfounded expression, ludicrous in nature as the girl would say she lost something and then promptly leave her in the house alone- foolish girl... Ana hissed inwardly, as she only followed pace after a chime or two. Pausing before she would walk out the door, she gave one more look to the house around her- temptation, it was a greatly disasterous thing to behold. The girl had just left Ana in her house, alone, without any clue that she was a thief- it would serve the girl right to trust an outsider after this. She pondered on what could happen if she robbed and searched the entire house, it of course, would raise suspicion that it was her and then she wouldn't be able to keep that shiny medallion. She would be caught. Ana smiled, letting a smirk form before banishing it from her face and ducking out the door- I will not screw this up, this medallion is nice enough, whos to say I need more? Jogging after the frantic girl, Ana would spin a web of lies as best as she could, with half truth embedded within the words- or she would try to. "Alea!" Ana called out, following after the fear stricken girl, getting close enough to see her face "Need help finding something?" Ana slowed as she neared closer still, warily stepping about like a predator seeking its prey, the suspicioun and the curiousity plain as day on her face. Shaking off any response that might have come, Ana frowned "I can help you look for it... and before you say no, I just wanted to repay the favor for inviting me to your home, it was kind of you.. and it took me by surprise.."

[Alea Davenport]

Alea had lightly jogged almost back to where she'd met Ana, vainly scanning the ground for a dropped disk of gold, when Ana caught up with her. She was almost too panicked to register the older girl's offer of help. She ran anxious hands through her hair, still looking every where she could think of, including up, and down into the nets. She was beginning to despair of finding it, which was unacceptable, so she would just have to despair of finding it immediately without help. So, yes, she would accept Ana's aid.

"It's a compass, it's engraved gold and it's on a chain; it sort of looks like it's just a necklace with the cover closed. But it was a gift... I very important gift! From a friend who... who went far away, and I've known him for a long time, and it represents something we both lost... and if I've lost it..." here her face fell into a bleak look of despair. Not the kind of despair that suggests all hope is lost; the kind that suggests hope never existed in the first place. "He'll be so disappointed..." she mumbled, trailing off. She slumped down, sitting on the floor of the petal, staring into nothing. The compass was clearly gone. Why bother searching when she'd never find it? What could she do now?

OOCSorry, short. Let me know if you want me to come up with more.

[Ana Sol Starris]

Ana almost felt a twinge of pity at the other girls reactions, the desperation in her eyes, movements, how frantically she looked everywheres. Was the medallion really all that important to her? Slinking behind the girl, Ana couldn't help but wonder how valuable the medallion really was, and if it was worth a fortune, this was exactly why she shouldn't 'befriend' people she planned to steal from. Would Ana have wanted somebody to randomly take something of hers that she treasured dearly? No, not really, but all she did was heave a sigh and follow after. Scanning loosely about the surroundings for the girls medallion, putting up a front, to make it seem like she was actually looking, instead of knowing full well where it had gone. The metal object made itself known against her skin, through her clothes, tingling ever so lightly, and sending tendrils of doubt to lace her thoughts with guilt. "It's a compass" Alea began to describe the trinket Ana had mistaken for a medallion. Ana's ears perked at the words, looking over to the girl with a curious expression- it was exactly like the medallion she had picked up, but it wasn't what Ana had thought it to be. "Whats a compass?" Ana questioned as she would kneel somewheres nearby Alea and begin brushing through dead leaves caught onto the petal, grimacing at the odor and backing away from it. Patting her hands together and wandering back to Alea, speaking up, and then trailing her eyes towards the edge of the petal "If its gold, we should be able to see it fairly easily on the ground... Unless..." there was a pause, for dramatic effect "of course, maybe it fell to the ground floor?" Ehhh, probably not a good idea to go false compass hunting that far... Even if it is a very important gift, would her friend want her risking her life for it? "If thats the case.." she looked pointedly at Alea, pulling a corner of her lip back in dissatsification "you'll need someone that can protect you going down there." But who? Certainly not Ana.. Dear gods no, hopefully Alea didn't catch any hairbrained ideas just from mere words. Hopefully.

[Alea Davenport]

Alea barely knew more than Ana about the nature of compasses, but she feigned knowledge anyway, with what little she knew. "A compass is supposed to keep you from getting lost. The little needle inside always points in the same direction, so you can't get turned around."

Alea had already thought that the compass might have fallen all the way to the ground, but she'd given up hope of finding it if that were the case. She was trying and struggling to accept the reality that her friend's precious gift was just... gone. Luckily, Ana echoed her mind's suggestion to search the forest floor, and having someone suggest it gave Alea new hope. She hopped up and all but ran toward the nearest staircase down. (She would have run all-out, but she was trying to let Ana keep up.)

"I can handle myself," she said in a rush, waving away Ana's concerns about the danger. "Hurry, I want to find it before some magpie carries it off forever." Without waiting for argument, Alea descended the Spires as quickly as she could without breaking a limb.