Seeking what was lost (Timshel)

[Isedan Autumnrun]

Holding the cloak fast, the woman paused to drop her hand to Nyon so that he could lick and woof and nose at her offered palm. He was from a place so very far from all she'd ever known: marshes and cities and forests and farms that held a bounty of bird and rodent and badger. But here was a man from that hot place so very far away. Eyktol. Lukyc had never known the place, never been there, and had little interest in going. It was a place of searing mystery and sands across a deadly sea of Grass that Issy would never visit.

"Eyktol, hm?" She replied softly, pulling her hand out of reach of the pup once more and shifting on numb feet. "It is not a place I am particularly interested in, so I would cry pardon. Though it would seem you are not either, if you are here." The kelvic's face clouded in sudden anger and she said in a low growl reminiscent of her animal side, "Be careful of the women about this place, Timshel. They would most assuredly snatch a handsome young man up without batting an eye to petch until caught with child. Then what good will you be to them? A play thing for continued abuse to mete their primal needs upon. Disgusting."

The kelvic took a long slow breath and closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again, she was calmer and some of the flush had faded. "I'm sorry, I'm not particularly at peace with this-" she gestured vaguely at the collection of tents before them. "-nonsense. And no, I do not know what I am going to do now. I do not even know where we are. I know that were I to run, I could escape these fiends only to be caught by something far worse. Strange and frightening sounds call in the night and I know that I might make it a day or two before something worse caught up with me." It was a concept she had struggled with for over ninety days now, though the worst of the struggle was finally passed.

"So you came here for what purpose, Timshel? I would offer assistance, but I barely know any of it myself."

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[Timshel]

Timshel watched the pup lick her hand, wondering how deeply kelvic and other animals could relate. When she spoke, he looked up. When she paused, he blinked. When she finished, he slowly spun in a circle. “Well, we're still in Cyphrus, we know that. We've been heading south, back the way I came, towards Ahnatep. But I can't tell how far we've gone, or if we've turned passed it or not. I wonder how the Drykas know where we are during this constant, chaotic moving...” He turned to face her. “Do you know most Benshira don't really know how to fight? Oh, most know how to use a slingshot quite well, but few are real warriors the way some of these leather-bound 'brutes' seem to be.” He waved a hand at the same tents she had motioned towards, “I came to learn. To hunt. To survive,” he said, pausing, then shrugging, “but eventually, it'll all be so I can go back.” Timshel's forearms pricked up into goosebumps, but his speech stayed warm, as if his voice had stoked a fire in his lungs. He looked up at the sky, clouded with long wisps of gray. The gradient broken only by small slivers of blue. He peered at her from the sides of his eye as he spoke. “I am actually quite interested in Ahnatep. It's an amazing city. I recommend that you go. But I'd hide the fact that you're kelvic if you do. Lest you find yourself in a similar situation, but more southerly." He straightened up. “But for now I'm simply here to hunt,” he said, slapping Jas's saddle. “Wanna come?” he asked.

[Isedan Autumnrun]

Issy marveled at the relaxed attitude of the young man, her hands holding his cloak about her and her bright eyes fixed upon him whilst he spoke. This Ahnatep seemed like such a grand adventure for the simple northerner. She focused on his interests, instead.

"Lukyc and I were hunters." She iterated. "We brought in wild game to Syliras and Zeltiva, though only once a year there. Zeltiva's very cut off by the mountains it is settled in. Syliras was our biggest employer, though, and our best haul was always taken to them. He did the shooting, I did the flushing." Just talking about it brought up fond memories, ghosts of which danced in the shifters eyes. "I remember once this flock of geese we came to; big, fall-fattened things with long necks and an ugly honk. We managed to bring down ten of the flock of fifty or so and found a whole shore of nests with eggs."

She shifted on her feet a little and purred in delight, the sound strange but not unattractive in the shifters throat. "It would have been quite a feast! But Lukyc said we should only take a few so that the flock would stay strong for next year. He called it 'preservation' or something..." She shrugged. "He taught me a lot and not all of it was intentional. He taught me how to not be so...forward, I suppose? I can't fight all of the urges, of course, but I learned through him how to speak properly and such-"

The woman re-focused on him then grinned sheepishly. "I'm sorry, I'm rambling. I would love to go hunting with you. Nyon will be no help, though; let me get my clothing and return him to the pavilion. Meet me on the outskirts of the Emeralds and we'll go."

Once she had his assent, the woman would hurry off, returning to where she'd stashed her belongings with the painted dog hot on her heels. At the stash, she pulled them out and quickly dressed, t hen headed back to the Autumnrun tents, leading Nyon along beside her with gentle scritches and guides on the leash. "Good boy. You'll go back with the rest of the pack for now, boy." His head was tickled again before Issy arrived at the pavilion. He was put up and the kelvic left to meet Timshel at their destination.

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[Mythic]

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XP Award!

Name: Timshel

XP Award:

• Planning +1
• Observation +4
• Socialization +5

Lore:

• Planning: Making a list, Checking it twice
• Isedan: a Kelvic
• Isedan: clearly not happy with being in Endrykas
• Isedan: Hunted with Lukyc

Name: Isedan Autumnrun

XP Award: Withheld
Lore: Withheld
Notes: Isedan, if you ever return to Mizahar please PM me and I'll be happy to post your grades here.


Final Notes: A nice, friendly encounter . I'm sorry this didn't get to finish - I gave what I could. As always, if you have any questions or concerns regarding your grade please feel free to PM me.
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