Completed [The Great Bazaar] Where are you?

[Tsukiko]

10th of Fall, 513 AV
Thirteenth Bell

The sun had begun to lift some of the chill within the city as Tsukiko entered the bazaar. She had only been there a few times during her time here in the summer, with good reason. As she was at times a whimsical creature, the wonders within the stalls never ceased to amaze her, piquing her curiosity at every turn, tempting her with their knowledge. It would be easy to let the coins slip through her fingers here and there, until there was nothing left. 'Not the greatest idea,' she thought absently, passing another stall, glancing down with a raised eyebrow. A tall, slim man leered at customers from behind his table, his bladed wares works of art, in contrast to his greasy smile. Beside him, a cheerful fellow called out friendly from the next stall over, passersby greeting him with a smile.

Walking someways in, she found what she was looking for, a bare place against a wall from which she could people watch. It had become her favorite pass-time over the last few days, as she wrestled with the idea of setting out to sea once again. The hum of the crowd created a comforting background noise, reminding her of something she would have to face once she left shore. Loneliness. Tsukiko new that it would take time to readjust herself to the solitude of open water, just as it had after parting her foster family a couple of years before. It had hit hard, leaving them behind, but it had been something she felt she had to do, something that she couldn't avoid. The Lethaefal wanted to learn more about the world she had... fallen back into, and there was only so much she could learn by staying with them.

Shaking her head slightly to clear her mind of such thoughts, the sailor brought her attention back to the task at hand. There was one thing she was certain of; the quickest way to learn about the world was to watch the people and creatures who inhabited it.

[Kreig Messer]

"Uncle Kreeeeig, when can we go to the baker's stand" Asked the little girl as she tugged at Kreig's shirt, feeling rather annoyed that they had to deal with whatever her 'uncle' Kreig had taken interest at the current stand they stood infront of. Kreig simply chuckled as he absentmindedly and gently patted the little girls head
"It won't take too long Clair, the stalls won't close till a few bells later" He turned to look at the annoyed little girl besides his feet, who huffed as she crossed her arms and clung tightly to the stuffed bear she held in her hands "If you be patient for a little longer, I'll be sure to buy you a large sweet roll and it will be our little secret from Lady Anesya" She stared at him stubbornly, but her eyes said she was delighted at the thought of having a sweet roll for herself and dramatically nodded while still maintaining the faux air of annoyance. Kreig silently chuckled to himself as he resumed staring at the various items that littered the stall, in all honesty the trinkets that littered the quaint little stall interested him little. It was simply the spar with Fallon that had clouded his mind, he couldn't help but feel a little guilt each time he recalled it 'She got fed up with it all because I took it too seriously' Not that he shouldn't have taken it seriously, in a fight you had to give it your all otherwise your the one dead on the ground 'Except I was having too much fun with it and Fallon had too little of that fun' He sighed silently.


Claire, the little girl from the orphanage and whose father Kreig had rescued her from, was watching the many passerby as she waited for Kreig to finish, unfortunately for the unsuspecting Kreig her patience had wore quite thin. An annoyed look caressing her face as her foot began tapping and her face puffed like one of those strange looking fishes one would see from time to time. It wasn't till the tasty aroma of baked food had assaulted her nostrils that she decided to leave her 'uncle' and hunt down the baker's stand, leaving her unaware care taker to be lost in his thoughts.

It was the passing of a five chimes or so Kreig began to notice how suddenly quiet Clair that he turned his head and well, let us say that nuits had competetion in the paleness department, Kreig turned to the stall to look at the person who manned it, only for them to shrug not knowing her whereabouts 'This is bad, really really bad' Kreig thought as he broke out sweating, jaw agape as to where she would have gone 'My little girl.... Where'd she go' The Bazaar was a bit more crowded than usual today as many people wished to stock up on necessities due to the increasing signs of heavy rain and storms, making looking his little girl as half as difficult as searching a needle in a haystack.

Quickly he began to move through the crowds, trying to search of any sign for Clair, troublesome as it were. He had more reason to worry as a lone little girl could be subject to kidnapping from whomever dared, and at current times it was likely the Drykas as he heard rumors of them encroaching within Syliran territory and kidnapping women and children. Though part of him really doubted some would have infiltrated the city itself, it still worried him to no end as he frantically searched through the crowd 'Clair, where'd you my little lady?!'

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[Tsukiko]

She watched as couples and groups of shoppers went by, noting that they were rarely on their own. 'Perhaps it is something significant,' she wondered as a gaggle of laughing youths wandered by, one or two glancing in her direction, curious, but soon melted into milling crowd. Feeling a thread of loneliness sneak into her mind before sweeping it back into her figurative chest she kept under lock and key, at least during the day. How could she feel alone, surrounded by so many people? Nonsense! She would not allow herself to wallow in such depressing feelings, and with that, the sailor gave her cheeks a light smack to clear her mind. At that moment, a warm, welcoming aroma met her nose, arousing a protesting growl from her stomach. Tsukiko frowned at it, recalling that it had been over a day since she had last eaten, that being fish. Since the end of summer, she had had to watch her coin carefully, at least until she found some sort of employment, and had been catching her meals instead. Of course, being that it relied on whether or not there were any bites on her line, it wasn't exactly a dependable source of sustenance.
Perhaps it hadn't been the most sound decision she had ever made, leaving her job as a barmaid, but it had been the length she had signed on for, and it had been time to move on, interesting though it might have been.

Unable to completely control herself, she found that her body had taken her from her place against the wall, somehow picking out the scent from the dozens, perhaps hundreds of others floating on the air throughout the bazaar. Reigning herself back in, Tsukiko found herself in front of the wonderful scent's source; a stall selling baked goods.

Her mouth began to water slightly, and heard a gulping sound beside her. Looking down, she saw a young girl, her brown hair reaching the back of her white dress, her eyes gazing longingly towards the pastries. Taking a cursory look around, the sailor did not see any apparent guardian, the child seemingly on her own. 'What fool would allow such a defenseless child wander in such a place on her own?' she thought scathingly, searching the crowd for said fool. 'Do they not know of the kidnapping incidents that had been occurring of late?' She had heard the rumors at the docks and throughout the city, and had taken to caring her crescent blade as precaution. Finding no apparent target, she considered the girl for a few moments more before sighing internally, and crouching beside the girl. "Hello there," she began with a smile, the girl's gaze turning towards her, "are you hungry?" The girl nodded, blue eyes turning back towards the tables. Following her gaze, she saw that the girl was eying a large sweet-roll. "Did you come here with someone?" Tsukiko asked, glancing around again. No one payed the two a second glance as they passed. It could have been that they were mistaken for sisters, possibly even mother and child at a stretch, considering their similar colouring. "Yes," came the child's voice, recapturing her attention. "I came her with Uncle Kreig-" she began, her voice trailing off as she realized something. Turning about, the girl looked around, her blue eyes wide and beginning to look panicked. "I was just with him," she said with a slight quaver to her voice.

"What is your name?" the woman asked in soothing tones, attempting to calm the child before she began to attract attention. "Claire," the girl answered, her eyes beginning to water slightly. "Where did you last see your Uncle?" she asked, alreading beginning to regret her question as the first tear fell. "H-he's not my real Uncle," Claire explained, "He's a-a knight... but I-I, don't re *hic* member," came the dreaded answer, as the young girl began to cry. A concerned glances from passing shoppers and stall owners alike set the Ethaefal on edge, especially when she caught a few suspicious once directed towards herself. 'Petch,' she thought with feeling, before reaching out a gentle hand, and began brushing away the fresh tears, smiling equally as gentle as her touch. "Well Claire," Tsukiko said, holding the smaller hands of her self-appointed charge between her own, "how about this? Why don't I buy you a sweet-roll, and we can go look for your Uncle Kreig together?" Inwardly, she mourned her sparse coin, hoping that she had enough for even one of the alluring pastries.

[Kreig Messer]

"Claiiiir, where are yooou?" Kreig called out in a worried tone, wandering through the markets and pushing away the crowd, who were either a bit too lost in conversation or paying more attention to stalls, haggling with the merchants over an appropriate price. So none seemed to notice the Brawler's worry. Any knight standing guard or making a patrol would have difficulty to notice perhaps, in any case Kreig simply had to continue searching 'Where could she have gone, where could she have gone?' He asked himself repeatedly, only to then stop right in the middle of the path 'I'm getting nowhere like this' Kreig thought to himself as he took a deep breath, calmly he exited the crowd to stand in an inconspicuous corner and began to think aloud to himself "Okay Kreig, you were at the trinket stall pondering... Clair was just next to you and you promised youd buy her something...at the baker's stand!!" He slapped his forehead as the realization hit him.

Not too far from the trinket stall was a baker's stand, selling as you can imagine, baked goods such as sweet rolls. Which is where Clair is supposed to be, Kreig had to berate himself for allowing the panic to get to him and also for letting Clair wander off in the first place. Not long after, Kreig arrived to see the precious little girl being comforted by a young woman with similar hair color to Clair, how could he tell she was comforting the young woman? Well he could only assume that because of how gently she held Clair's hands and the equally gentle voice he heard as he arrived "how about this? Why don't I buy you a sweet-roll, and we can go look for your Uncle Kreig together?"


"Um... that won't be necessary Miss" Kreig said as he approached, suddenly Clair darted to hug her 'uncle' with a sniffling sound, Kreig lowered himself to hug the little girl and whispered calming words to her hears "I'm sorry little lady, are you alright" He then held her by her shoulders and glanced up and down, satsified that she did not seem to be hurt. Looking at the young woman, he gave a gentle and apologetic smile "I'm sorry miss.... you have my gratitude for watching over Claire, she wandered off while I was examining a stall and... " A frown crept up on his face and he looked down at his little girl, holding her hand with a gentle but firm grip " If there is a way for me to repay you, I'd be happy to do so. I've not much on me but I'm sure whatever favor you ask, I could somehow oblige"

It was then he had a good look at the woman, her skin a tone of gold and eyes a dull shade of blue, but there was a familiarity about... He'd seen such eyes before amongst the Svefra, they were not an uncommon people in Sunberth and not long ago during the Summer he befriended one, though he shouldn't assume the young woman was one since blue eyes weren't uncommon amongst regular humans. She was definitely an attractive woman...Kreig looked back into her eyes and scratched the back of his head, his other hand gently clasping Clair's shoulder "Maybe I can treat you to that sweetroll?" He said
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[Tsukiko]

She watched as the girl darted over to the man, rising as she did. It was heartwarming to see the pair as they were reunited, a part of her glad that they had avoided what might have been a long search for Claire's uncle. The Ethaefal had been planning to chew out the girl's careless caretaker once she had found them, but could not find the will to do so after such a scene, what would have been cutting words, fading in the back of her throat while the knight apologized to his charge. He seemed genuinely worried about the little one. The 'uncle' was a bit taller than herself, with blondish hair, and honey coloured eyes, not something she encountered often. It suited him.

Had he called her miss? That was something new to her, giving her a small start out of her thoughts. At his offer, the sailor's eyes widened slightly, waving her hands as she began to reply, "Ah, no, it's alright, really-" just as her stomach growled in protest. Cheeks aflame she covered it as if to silence it before giving a sheepish smile. "I'll pay for it myself," she said quickly in attempt cover her embarrassment, before kneeling bending down to meet Claire's eyes, "and I keep my promises, so I'll treat this little one to a sweetroll as well." Smiling, she looked up at him and asked, "would you like one too?"

Without waiting for a reply, she turned to the baker's stall, fishing out one of her two mizas, and presented it to the stall keeper. "Three sweetrolls please," she asked, mentally calculating how long she could go on her remaining coin. A few days at most, unless she could sell some of her catches. 'I should learn to hunt.. maybe trapping, or perhaps some other useful skill,' she thought as it dawned on her that she would not be able to keep up her fishing as her prey migrated through the Suvan waters. Ah well, she would figure something out. Gathering her purchases and change, Tsukiko turned back to the pair, handing the girl one of the tasty treats, and held out another to the man. "Here you are... Sir Kreig," she said, hesitating when she struggled for what to call him. "My name is Tsukiko, pleased to meet you," she added with a hint of a grin.

oocTo whoever grades this, I'm not sure how much sweetrolls cost, so I went by the price for a loaf of bread being under a miza, and left it purposefully vague. Please correct me if I got it wrong!

[Kreig Messer]

"Er... No thats...."Kreig then suddenly sighed as he was promptly ignored, the woman already buying the sweetrolls for each of them. All he could do was be polite and take the one bought for him, Clair on the otherhand was quite alright with it as she smiled widely, thanking the young miss as she did so before taking a happy bite of the delicious pastry. Kreig supposed he shouldn't complain, he himself was quite strapped for coin, not having had a decent drink in a while "Thank you miss, um.... thought to clear something up, I'm not a knight. Simply a squire under there care" Kreig said before taking a small bite of his sweetroll. Didn't stop the feeling of guilt, first he let Claire wander off and now this woman payed for their sweetrolls 'Some squire I am'

"[b] You're a knight to me, uncle Kreig!"

"And I'll always be one to you, little lady" Kreig said as he smiled softly at the little one, before returning his gaze towards the miss "I must thank you again, because of my carelessness I let her wander off. If I lost her..." He dared not think what would have happened, it was enough the life of one child was on his hands, the flash of pain emerging on his features enough of an indicator of how dark things could have truly become. Not wanting to hold up the stall, he motioned for the woman to follow if she'd like, feeling the desire to strike up conversation.

"If I may inquire, your accent seems to be that of a Svefra...are you here on shore leave?" He inquired, his hand gently holding Claire's as turned her head around curiously, before looking up to stare at her 'uncle' and the Svefra lady "... forgive me for asking, I'm afraid I'm a little curious" Especially since he met a Svefra with an odd taste in men during the summer and Kreig suddenly wondered how she and Razkar are doing.

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[Tsukiko]

She grinned at the sight of the girl's obvious delight, the thoughts of money leaving her head; it was worth it. She perked up at his words. "Ah! A squire you say? Then I have probably met a few of your peers," she said, her eyes lighting up a bit. "I used to work at the Rearing Stallion... hmm... perhaps we have seen each other before? But then, I suppose I would remember if we had," she added with a playful wink, before taking a small bite of her own pastry, the sweetness flooding her mouth deliciously. Noticing his guilt, she gave him an encouraging smile, which softened as she looked to Claire. "Indeed he is," she said, agreeing with the child, crouching down beside the girl, the two sharing a carefree grin. More lightly she asked, "so... how would you like me to address you? And please, there is no need to call me 'miss'... Tsu is fine." She was not used to being addressed so formally and was not entirely sure what to make of it.

Tsukiko watched his pained expression as he thought of what could have happened, the gravity of what could have been reaching her thoughts as well. "It was no trouble," she replied easily, attempting to lighten the mood, as she fell into step with the squire. "It is my luck that I was able to meet such a lovely young lady," her gaze meeting Claire's, deciding against patting the child's head with sweetroll-ed hands. It would not do to dirty the girl's hair with her sweet-coated fingers. Her steps light, she quickly set about finishing her sweetroll, though slightly less elegantly as a lady, she ate it delicately, relishing the taste of the treat.

"No it's alright... My family is indeed Svefran," she said a bit hesitantly, wording her reply with care. 'Though I am not entirely sure if I would be considered so,' she added silently. Something she asked herself often. "I... I suppose I needed time away from the pod," she continued, attention fading out slightly as her thoughts turned inward. "Afterall, though the Oceangems maintain a vast knowledge, the world continues to change, becoming slightly different every day..." Trailing off, she narrowly missed walking a couple, her pastry held forgotten in her left hand, while her right absently brushed against the three ornaments that adorned her sword; a crescent moon, dolphin, and a whale.

[Kreig Messer]

"very well then Mi...Tsu, my name is Kreig Messer. First or last makes no difference to me" Kreig nodded before taking another bite of his sweet roll "And you more than likely have, I'm not a frequent visitor to the stallion, I'm afraid my form of entertainment is more martial than it is relaxing" Kreig said with a slight hint of embarrassment, blushing even more when she winked at him , but then switched to a soft smile as he mentioned the young lady whose hand he held gently. He looked down at her and smiled at the little girl, who raised her head and gave a toothy grin to the Svefra lady 'you've become too important to me little one, ever since that day I imagine' He thought to himself, the precious child.....


He then listened to her acknowledging his assumptions 'So, a traveler of the sea' He thought, but he noticed the confusion on her face, perhaps it was actually homesickness "Yes, the world does tend to change bit by bit of each day we live it. Sometimes the change is so drastic you fail to even keep up" A bit of homesickness crept up on his face as he recalled his own city of Sunberth, he missed it so despite its glaring flaws. He took another bite of his sweetroll, then looked at the hand that held it 'These hands drenched in blood, you are the cities gift to me....and the reminder of what I am' He thought darkly, and then finished off his sweet roll with one single bite.

" If I have to be honest, becoming a squire is the last thing that I ever thought I would become, especially at my age. Still, I've come to enjoy it and this city....though I won't deny that I've trouble embracing the knights philosophy, they're mostly good people" Kreig said with a gentle smile on his face as he looked at the young woman "Plus I've met a little lady here whom I couldn't have saved if I've never left Sunberth"

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[Tsukiko]

"Kreig then," she said slowly after a moment's hesitation, committing it to memory. The mention of his form of entertainment sparked her curiosity, however deciding against inquiring further, as noticed his embarrassment and blush. 'A sweet one, this one is,' she noted, smiling inwardly at that train of thought. He was a likeable fellow and already beginning to grow on her. The sailor thought it a good trait that he did not indulge in the spirits as some of the men she had witnessed, had done during her shifts. Those unfortunate souls could be quite irksome at times, emboldened by the liquid fire the filled their bellies.

Returning to the moment, she listened thoughtfully as he spoke, giving him a sidelong glance. 'There is a story behind that,' she thought, watching his homesick expression. It had an endearing effect, before his mood seemed to cloud slightly as he finished his pastry. 'I wonder...' her line of thought slowly trailing off while she finished her own pastry. Everyone had their own stories, stories of all kinds; good, bad, and those in-between... as well as those that they held close for many reasons, such as out of love... fear... sadness...

"At your age?" she chuckled lightly. "I've met older squires than yourself," she said raising an eyebrow as she smiled, "but I understand your meaning. I didn't plan on staying as long as I have... but Syliras has it's own.. charms?" she mumbled, searching for the right word. "I must say... that the knights can be at times... not so lenient," she said carefully, "but as you've said, they can be quite good company."
"Saved..?" she asked, confusion tinting her tone, while a flash of protectiveness for the girl put her slightly on edge.

"You are from Sunberth?" she inquired, her curiosity getting the better of her. It was one of the many places unknown to her limited knowledge.

[Kreig Messer]

'She had a good smile' Kreig thought, feeling slightly embarassed as he thought 'By Dira, if my mother were alive and here, I think she'd be having a field day with this' He silently chuckled at the memory of his mother, she'd constantly berate him on his fighting habits.... even now he believed he believed she'd berate it on him "Yes, they tend to prefer to see black and white rather than acknowledge the gray line that separates them.... I suppose I can't fault them for it, it would certainly make life much simpler if it were" He then sighed as he scratched the back of his head, stopping briefly to let some people pass by before continuing.

He then noted her confusion, and perhaps a bit of fear in her voice. turning his head he offered another smile "I'm afraid thats a tale for another time" He looked down at the little lady, who was simply content to nibble her sweetroll as she let the grownups talk " Wouldn't want to ruin the mood" He chuckled, then looked back at Tsukiko " Of course, if you want to hear it I suppose we'd have to meet up at some point, that is if time allows it"

Then came a tone of curiosity as she asked about Sunberth "yes, my home town... I'm surprised you don't know of it" Kreig said with a raised eyebrow " Hmmm.... if I had to describe it, I suppose you'd take Syliras' order and reverse it completely, a town of absolute anarchy that relishes its freedom despite the misery. A town of scum, simply put... the closest to a ruling faction are its gang but even they are second to the people there, who hate order with a passion...er....long history behind that one, something I could also explain at a later time " He said nervously " As you can imagine, I'm the odd one out... still, I was one of its sons and I loved it there. Not that I'd advise it as vacation destination anytime soon" He chuckled humorlessly.

Each time he looked at her he had to admit something to himself; he was smitten with the woman before him, not unlike how he feels for Fallon... but he felt it was easier to admit those feelings for this woman whom cared, even if it were ever so briefly, for something undeniably precious to him, he then stopped suddenly " er... if you don't mind me asking, that is...if you're ok with it..." Well, it seemed the question was still a difficult thing " ah...um.... are you free anytime today or tomorrow? I'm afraid I've not the currency to take you anywhere really.... but, uh.... if you don't mind that, I'd like to spend more time with you... that is if you're not busy"

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