Closed A New Beginning Amongst The Blue Men

[Sunette]

Date: 28-29 Spring 514 AV

The second night she'd been in Riverfall, Sunette had still managed to avoid being found by the group she arrived with. Which was good, because that was the point. She wanted to be away from other Symenestra, away from Kalinor, away from all of the darkness. She'd spent her first full day exploring the city, trying to get the layout of such a different kind of city. It was all so… different. Probably because everything was on the ground. She didn't have to climb anywhere. She really preferred it, actually.

Middle of the night, stars twinkling above, Sunette strolled through the near empty streets. She hadn't found a place to sleep for the night yet, simply roaming around and exploring instead of sleeping. She'd made her way to a part of the city near the waterfall… But not quite as close as she wished she could be. She wanted to put her hand in the water, wanted to feel it rush against her skin. Was that safe? That probably wasn't safe. At least, not for her, what with being a frail race.

A wall stood between her and the sight of the waterfall, and after hesitating for a moment, her curiosity drove her to keep going. She slid her pack off of her back, letting it fall to her feet as she placed a hand on the wall, making sure it stuck before she began to scale it. It only took her moments to reach the top, perching on the flat apex of the stone wall. The view was fantastic from up there, absolutely gorgeous. The rushing waterfall was in plain sight and so was the still foreign city.

Another thing she noticed, while atop her stone lookout, was that there were o many kinds of people here-- none were like her, from what she'd seen. Most of the men were blue, and others were tanned. She'd obviously seen different races in Kalinor, but so few in comparison to this city. She felt like an outcast. No… No, not an outcast. Exotic. She smirked quietly at that thought. Exotic was attractive, right? Exotic could find companionship of some sort, which was really what she wanted at this point.

One of her hands reached up to touch her pendant, her eyes gazing up at the moon.

Isn't it beautiful, mom? It's so different from home… I wish you could be here.
She looked down, chuckling lightly.
But… If you were still around, would I be here?

She sighed softly, closing her eyes.
I wish you were still around. It's been twelve years, but I'm still so alone without you. I know, it's all my fault… But I can't… I can't make myself care about anyone else, mom. I mean, I know I haven't really tried…

Eyes back up to the moon, an unshed tear pulled out by her heavy heart lingered on her eye.
But I'm going to try now, so that counts, right?

[Stefan]

It didn’t rain that day, or the day before: perfect. That mean the floor, and especially the roof weren’t wet and slippery. And that was the best opportunity for Stefan to have some amusement. Even though he was somewhat out of practice, he would still try. Why he did it? Mainly, the reason he did it most things: just because. Besides, it was thrilling.

First, he stretched a little, both arms and legs, as he looked at the wall of a house in front of him. Just a one story house; a good beginning... he remembered that when he was young, he used to climb buildings fairly often, or at least he did until he broke his leg. After that, he wasn’t used to climb anything more that a ship’s rigging... but still, this time it was different, or at least that’s what the young bard repeated to himself.

Once his arms and legs were loose, he took a deep breath, looking at the roof with his brown eyes, and with a jump towards the wall, he tried to grab an edge with his hand. At first, he failed, and landed on his feet, crouching. Well, it was just a first try, or at least he thought. Still, he wasn’t going to give up so easily: taking an even deeper breath, he jumped towards the wall, and stretching his arm, he managed to get hold of a ledge. “Petch yes!” he said as he pulled himself up, first with his second hand, and then with his feet, until he was on top of the roof, with a wide smile on his scarred mouth. Something impressive, though, was that he managed to do it with his rapier on his belt; even since he brought it some several days ago, he almost never leaved his house without it, though it was mostly to get used to the weapon on his waist. However, he didn’t carried his mandolin; he didn’t wanted it to break.

The city of Riverfall... it looked lovely. Simply lovely; where he was, he could see not only the waterfall, where the Bluevein River ended, but also the Suvan Sea far away, illuminated by the moon. Such scenery... it was just perfect. Breathing deeply the cool air of the evening, Stefan admired it for some more minutes, until he decided to continue.

Of course, he wouldn’t go down this time... that would be too easy. Why not try a few jumps? And he got the perfect target: another house, with its roof slightly higher than the one Stefan was standing in. It was the perfect objective; a good challenge, even though Stefan didn’t knew how to leap... but what better way to train?

He took another breath, as he was hearing what appeared as a rhythmic drum, which was in fact the sound of his heart pounding. “Alright, here goes nothing!” and with a head start on the roof, he leaped towards the roof in front of him... and barely reaching. He managed to get a hold on the edge of the roof with his hand, but they slipped, and he ended up falling again, thankfully managing to get a hold of a window.

But in the end, it didn’t stop his fall: he fell towards the hard floor, thankfully landing on some nice looking bushes.

“By the gods...” he opened his eyes, noticing that everything has ended. He was lucky... only a slight pain on his body was the mark of his failure. However, when he opened his eyes, he could see someone... a woman and a fairly attractive at that. Silver hair, really pale, red lips, and a generous body that he couldn’t help but observe with admiration, almost like a work of art “...Guess I died and the afterlife is as pleasant as they say!” he chuckled, now ignoring the pain “I’m Stefan; Stefan Teagan. Mind helping me, lass?”

[Sunette]

“...Guess I died and the afterlife is as pleasant as they say! I’m Stefan; Stefan Teagan. Mind helping me, lass?”

Releasing her pendant, allowing it drop back to her chest, she snapped out of her one-sided conversation with her deceased mother, glancing down in the direction of this "Stefan." He was lying sloppily in some bushes-- Why was he lying sloppily in bushes? Had she been so zoned out that she had missed something? But, he asked for help… She shouldn't ignore that, should she? Especially after she'd just told her mother she was going to try to create bonds with people.

Sunette grabbed the wall, gracefully swinging around and climbing back down from her perch to the ground below. Once her feet touched down, she walked over and held out a clawed hand, her ruby lips turning up at the corners. Her fangs flashed. She took another look at him, noticing that he wasn't terrible looking. More masculine than the Symenestra men she had known in the past-- Maybe that's typical of other races, though.

Sunette. Did you fall from that roof?

[Stefan]

Stefan held his hand to the woman, when he noticed her black claws, and more importantly, her shiny fangs, coming out from behind her ruby red lips, and he could realize that she wasn’t a mere human. “Now this suddenly became interesting”, he thought to himself as he got up with her help; far again for being scared, he found certain appealing... it was exotic, to say at least.

“Sunette? Oh, a lovely name... kind of tingles on the tongue, doesn’t it?” Stefan snickered “And aye, tried to climb the building, but guess I’m out of practice... on the plus side, I didn’t broke a leg!” it was a good new, alright, at least for him. “New here, I presume? Didn’t saw you here before... but again, the city’s pretty big, so I’m just wild guessing... anyway, welcome to Riverfall!” he said cheerfully at the woman.

Even though he smiled, there was something he couldn’t quite put his finger on... it was something like a gut feeling... something that told him to run while he can, though it must have something to do with her fangs and claws. However, more often than not, Stefan always ignored that voice that told him to run while he could... especially when it had something to do with women.

That’s when it struck him... Symenestra. He just smiled at it, “You know a good way to know the city? Taking a good look... follow me!” stretching his fingers slightly, he tried to climb towards a rooftop again, trying to get his hold on an edge... and again, he failed the first time, falling on his feet. “Guess I need some practice...” he said rather cheerfully as he again climbed, this time getting his hold, and climbing as fast as he could, hoping that Sunette would follow him. After all, the view to the city was, indeed, lovely.

[Sunette]

Sunette helped hoist Stefan out of the shrubbery, backing away a step when he found his footing. Though she was attempting to make connections, she didn't want to get too close. Once he was to his feet, she noticed that he wasn't much taller than she was, maybe an inch or two. That was convenient if she ever decided to… She quickly shook that thought out of her mind. That wasn't the goal here. She wasn't planning on killing anyone here. Not for some time, anyway.

He repeated her name, and her smile grew a bit when he said it tingled on his tongue. Names of the Symenestra are supposed to sound appealing. She, personally, found many things about her race attractive. Sexy, even. Typically slender, pale, nice teeth… Those all sound like typical Symenestra characteristics; is that because that's what she was raised with? …Probably.

Stefan had been trying to climb a building. Was that typical? And, next, he was welcoming her to the city because she as apparently obviously new. But, she had noticed a lack of her kind here as well, so could she blame him for assuming she was new? She stuck out. In the sunlight, she practically glowed. If someone didn't notice her, they were practically blind. The fact that he was welcoming was great, though. She mostly got stares. It made her smile grow that much more.

Stefan suddenly decided that attempting to climb a building again was a good idea. She couldn't help but laugh at him as he began to climb again. Not a chuckle, not a giggle, but a hearty laugh.
Didn't you just fall from the roof? And you want to go back up there?


Not even a second after she finished talking, he slipped. Her laughter only grew louder, watching him as he attempted once again. That time, he managed to start climbing. What was the point in not following? Besides, someone had to show this boy how you climb a building. She pressed her hands to the wall, pulling herself up and started climbing quickly on all fours straight up the wall.
You weren't made to climb, Drafan.

[Stefan]

Stefan chuckled at the loud laugh of Sunette... and then followed with the laugher. It was contagious, to say at least, and also lovely. “Because why not? The view is amazing up there! And it’s not technically a crime, so they can’t take me down!” he laughed again with the Symenestra and started to climb.

Even though he was actually proud of the way he managed to get on top of the building, it paled in comparison with the gal’s natural ability; with only some quick movements, she managed to get on top in just mere seconds. On the other hand, Stefan took several minutes to reach where she was, and couldn’t help but feel impressed. “Guess I’m not, but you know what they say, practice makes perfection...” he said cheerfully, but somewhat thinking about the way she called him... odd, indeed. “Drafan... Drastefan... Dra-Stefan... Drafan...” he tried to pronounce it, and nodded in approval “Sounds good, I like it!”

The moon made Sunette’s skin shine in a ghostly white, or at least he saw it that way... he couldn’t help but smile, but he ended up standing up on the roof “What you think about the sight, lass? Lovely, isn’t it?” breathing deeply the fresh spring air, he grinned “Riverfall is such a beautiful city, and you did well in coming here; you just made it a lot more beautiful!” Stefan snickered again, touching Sunette’s shoulder softly, watching again the city.

Lovely was an appropriate word for it. The blooming plants on the clean streets, the waterfall in the middle of the city, which gave an almost soothing sound from far away. These type of moments made him know that coming here was the right call.

The moment took some minutes, but then, he just smiled at her, looking her with his brown eyes. “Lass, what about a little challenge? Just to get the blood pumping! What about a little race on the rooftops?” signalling the way, he gave her a half smile and with a head start, he leaped recklessly towards the other rooftop.

He admitted, it was just luck that he didn’t fell this time, and in fact, he would have to be more careful while jumping again, let’s he fail and break a bone, or worse. He knew he wasn’t a rival to a Symenestra... but that was the idea. Just to make her enjoy herself and win against a novice, and meanwhile, he could have a little bit of fun himself. So when the third rooftop came in front of him, he make sure to breathe deeply and take his time before leaping, this time he could hold himself to the edge, and pull himself up.

[Sunette]

Sunette heaved herself onto the roof, reaching the top much faster than the human male, indeed. Her entire life before this involved her climbing walls to get around her city, so if she were to lose to someone that couldn't scale a wall without gripping something, she would have to consider herself a disgrace to all Symenestra. She looked down at him as he continued to climb, smirking just enough to show one fang.

“Guess I’m not, but you know what they say, practice makes perfection...”

Her gaze lifted up to the world around her. He was so positive-- What, with welcoming her and being absolutely fine with attempting to climb the building he had just fallen from. It didn't make sense to her, though she understood what would drive him to that statement in general. Anyone that gave up after the first attempt wouldn't make it very far, though she wouldn't climb a building that she had fallen from... Mostly because that fall would probably kill her. Other things, however, did require practice...

Sunette's mind began to take her back in time, whisking her away into her memories. Her first climb, living through days helping her mother readjust to losing her father, her first attempt at blowing glass with her mother and absolutely botching the attempt, learning how to live through the days without her mother, perfecting the art of capturing her favorite treat. In the background, she recognized that he was repeating the name she'd called him in different forms, dissecting exactly what was said. He also said something about the city, if he heard him correctly She paid no attention to any of it, though. His words went through one ear and out the other as her attention lingered elsewhere, her eyes unfocused and lackluster for that moment.

And then, his hand touched her shoulder brought her back to reality. If she had been able to jump out of her skin, she would have been ten feet up with no skin on her bones the second after contact. She quickly regained composure, her jump knocking his hand from her shoulder. She nonchalantly stepped away from him, opening the space between them ever so slightly, in the case that he decided that touching her again was a good idea. She didn't know him well enough for that kind of contact.

For the next several minutes, they both simply took in the view. It really was beautiful. It wasn't much different from her previous perch, so she basically continued her admiration from where she left off, interrupted by Stefan.

The world outside Kalinor was amazing, from the soft grass on the trip to Riverfall, to the vast sky above her at all times, to the bodies of water that surrounded this city. But, no matter how long she gazed at it, the water continued to be the most gorgeous thing she'd yet to experience. The bay was always in gentle movement, contrasting the rushing rapids of the waterfall through the center of town. Each drop captured the light of the moon with a twinkle, each spark of light like a firework in its spectacle to her. She wanted nothing more than to be as close to it as possible, but that would have to wait for another day.

“Lass, what about a little challenge? Just to get the blood pumping! What about a little race on the rooftops?"

With that statement, Sunette was barely able to turn her head to see him before Stefan started. Her heart sank as she watched him just go, knowing well that he would probably fall again. And, if she followed, she could possibly fall. This "game" suddenly felt like a gamble with death, a Russian roulette she wasn't sure she wanted to play. But he was now two houses down, and hadn't looked back yet. Nothing to do but go. She backed as far as she could, feeling the house beneath her feet, and sprinted across the rooftop. She cleared the distance without much issue, her foot sticking to the next roof on impact. She continued forward, only going at a quick pace until she met up with him, jumping to the house ahead and turning to make sure he would make it.

So, where does this race end? A game has to have goals, you know. Or is the goal to continue until you miss again?

[Stefan]

It was not hard for the woman to beat Stefan in this little freerunning game, as she was quite more agile than the young thief, and could jump from roof to roof without much difficult. Even though he had a head start, she soon managed to outrun him. “Amazing job, lass!” he said cheerfully, as he continued to jump. To be fair, he was doing it quite slowly, as he needed some time to get impulse and jump well enough.

Still, she seemed somewhat reserved, as she nearly jumped out of her skin when Stefan touched her shoulder. Sometimes he forgot that people didn’t liked strangers to touch them... especially because he often trusted strangers, especially women, and that got him in trouble often. Still, he still had to see what this Sunette was capable of... and she seemed a well enough acrobat.

Stefan barely knew a thing about Symenestra, and just because he travelled enough to know about them: they could climb and jump quite well, had sharps fangs and claws, and they could use a powerful poison. That last one he learnt it the hard way, when he took a Symenetra to his bed. After the deed was done, he was almost dead, and could barely move. But for him, it was worth it, ever so slightly. There was a reason why a bittersweet experience was called “Symenestra kiss”, after all.

Shrugging off these thoughts, he could see the pale woman getting ahead of him, “So, where does this race end? A game has to have goals, you know. Or is the goal to continue until you miss again?” she said. It was almost like a prophecy, because just when he was going to jump toward the next building, he did a misstep, and almost fell towards the floor below, but was lucky to grab the edge of the roof with his hands. The fall bellow was enough to give him some serious bruises at best, or break something at worst.

“...Sunette, my dear, mind helping me again?” he tried to get up on top of the roof, and with help of the Symenestra, he succeeded. He sat on the roof, somewhat startled, and taking deep breaths, but excited and happy nonetheless “Alright, if we got by the last condition, I guess you won!” he said, making a small cheer, and then laughing. Surprisingly, the rapier was still on his belt. “Sadly, I don’t have any reward... the game itself is enough reward, I guess? No, that’s pure rubbish...” chuckling, he raises his head to look at the Symenestra; the pale moon illuminating her almost as pale skin.

[Sunette]

“Amazing job, lass!”

Amazing? Sunette scoffed at those words as she ran-- This man asked her to jump across rooftops, an act that could literally kill her at one wrong step, and he calls her amazing for not failing at it. She called it necessary. Though… She appreciated his compliments.

“...Sunette, my dear, mind helping me again?”

He finally caught up to her, and before either of them could say another word, he slipped. I expected nothing less. She couldn't help but chuckle as she leaned down, grabbing his wrists and assisting him up. She wasn't extremely strong, but she could help enough to get him up. Though, she couldn't let go of the fact that he called her "my dear." She had known this man for mere moments-- that was a term of endearment that she was uncomfortable with. She decided to ignore it for now.

“Alright, if we got by the last condition, I guess you won! Sadly, I don’t have any reward... the game itself is enough reward, I guess? No, that’s pure rubbish...”

That was pure rubbish. Who decides that running on rooftops was a fantastic way to get to know someone? Sure, seeing the city was better from a higher altitude, but it wasn't safe for her. It gave her ridiculous amounts of anxiety. Was he aware of what she was?

I personally consider the end of that game the reward. It wasn't a very safe excursion for someone like me.

She sat down next to him on the rooftop, the microscopic barbs on her skin out to keep her held down securely. Her amethyst eyes looked up at the moon, her lungs pulling in a deep inhale of the cool night air. Perhaps her frustration was because she didn't understand. She could accept that people here were probably different than she was accustomed to. And, perhaps she was simply tired. With that thought, she yawned heavily, shaking the tired feeling off with a physical movement of her head. She glanced over at him, a soft smile on her face. Her eyes and pale flesh both seemed to glow in the dazzling moon light.

Sorry, I didn't mean for that to sound harsh. I understand where you were coming from with that. I appreciate that you're kind to me.

[Stefan]

“Thank you” he said with a nod when Sunette helped him to get out. Stefan couldn’t honestly be mad at her for chuckling at his fall... he honestly thought it as a stupid beginner’s mistake, so she had reason to. Still, it was good to know that she was willing to help him.

“I personally consider the end of that game the reward. It wasn't a very safe excursion for someone like me.”, she said... he didn’t knew what she meant, mostly because even though he knew the basics about Symenestras, he didn’t knew the fact that their bones were fragile. He sat again on the roof alongside her, remaining silent. He knew that he became a little exited again, but it was not something proper, especially with a complete stranger.

After a while, she began to speak again “Sorry, I didn't mean for that to sound harsh. I understand where you were coming from with that. I appreciate that you're kind to me.”

“No, I’m sorry about it... guess that I got a little exited. I just seemed like something amusing to do, and it was... maybe a little too amusing. Don’t worry about it, though, not everybody in Riverfall is as insane as me... well, maybe some of them are, and perhaps there are a couple that are as twice as insane as I am, but for the rest... well, they’re a pretty good bunch.” He chuckled slightly, thinking about certain Svefra when he mentioned the twice as insane part. Touching her shoulder again, he smiled at her “Perhaps is that there is something in you that I like? Could be just me, is just a gut feeling, because after all, you did follow me, didn’t you? Even though you didn’t have to... you really seem like a good gal.” He nodded and smiled warmly at her. For him, she was incredibly attractive, but he still had some fun with her, and honestly, he couldn’t ask for more.

“We should go down. I’m full of energy myself, but you seem tired...” he winked at her and laughed “don’t worry, I’ll try to keep my madness at bay; no more rooftop jumping for today!” with a hearty laugh, he stood up on the roof and held himself from the edge with his hand; this time taking air, concentrating, and letting himself fall carefully, whilst using the wall and edges as a support, but even after that, when he landed on his feet, he did a misstep and tripped, thankfully not that hardly. He still needed some practice at falling down, but he remained cheerful, even on the outside, and instead choosing to flirt to dissipate any concern “Guess I fell hard for your sweet lips...”