[The Stone Garden] A Quiet Place (Hadrian)

[Airil]

The way he squinted at her made her aware of just how forward and hostile her questions might have sounded. Years of training kicked in and the shame filled her cheeks. She immediately wanted to apologize. If he had been her master, or one of her master's guests, she would have expected consequences but Hadrian wasn't either one, he was a magician. Perhaps she shouldn't have asked her questions at all, maybe she wasn't supposed to have noticed. Physically, he was not very intimidating but she had no idea what a magician might be capable of. The possibilities were frightening. She took a small step away, wishing her master was here to tell her what to do. His death, and her subsequent freedom, didn't keep her from continuing to think like a slave. "What is it you think I have done?" he asked. Did he really not know or was it a trick question? Her hand disappeared under her hair to scratch at her temple in what could be mistaken as a gesture of confusion. The truth was her gnosis mark was still itching, something that had never happened before, though it barely registered amid her other spiraling thoughts. “You... the frog... I don't understand how you,” she made a gesture at her head, unsure how she should describe it, “did I just imagine it?” Maybe she was starting to hallucinate. The thought was distressing but the stress of recent events could finally be catching up to her. That was probably it, she just needed to go back to her room, avoid the inn's keeper, and hide under her blankets until she stopped feeling so overwhelmed by her fear and loneliness. "Perhaps I should go..."

[Hadrian]

"You pulled the frog out of my head and, in the same breath, tell me that not all Konti can See. Be that as it may, you aren't making a great case for the inabilities of your sisters." He considered her for a few moments before continuing. "Hopstop was an experiment. In the end, he was more use as a toy for orphans than as a study for me. And so I gave him to orphans. One wants to keep his possessions few so as to be lighter for travel." Peering at her, he shrugged. "Go if you must, but you needn't if you don't want to. I could leave as well, but we're both here, so what's the point in leaving?"

[Airil]

Airil was very confused now. She hadn't pulled anything out of his head and she was tempted to say just that but she wasn't really sure she wanted to argue the point. That would mean admitting that she had a mark, yet no gift. So she remained silent on that issue. When he explained about Hopstop, she was a little curious about why he tried to make it sound like he didn't care for the creature. It was obvious that he had some feeling for it if he had made sure it found an appropriate home rather than just getting rid of it. But she remained silent on that issue as well. And so she came to the final issue of staying or leaving. She looked at the stones surrounding them. She had come here because she needed to get out of her room and this particular place had attracted her with its quiet nature. He almost sounded like he wanted her to stay the way he rationalized it, even if it did try to sound indifferent. She made a strange face as if unsure of what to do. She scratched at her gnosis mark again, it was starting to settle down at least. She turned away and contemplated the garden again before suddenly returning to her previous position, resting on her heels with her arms wrapped around her knees. She closed her eyes and allowed her emotions to drain away. For some reason it was easy to do here. Her eyes didn't remain closed for long and if he was still there when they opened again, she'd ask, “why do some of the rocks have names?”

[Hadrian]

He was beginning to suspect that she was more tightly wound even than he was, so he blinked his auristic vision back into being, the better to observe her state of mind as reflected in her aura. One never knew with crazy people if they might snap and go retard-strong on a person. Hadrian had a bit of a thing for Konti women, but he didn't want to die with one's hands crushing his windpipe. "The stones? They have the names of fallen heroes inscribed upon them in memoriam. Sylirans generally burn their dead to prevent disease and so as not to attract monsters and scavengers. And probably to conserve space." His father had told him that there was an Aelius stone or two, but Hadrian had never had the patience to find them if they even existed. Sometimes his parents had been forced to set an unsolvable puzzle before him to keep him quiet and occupied as a child.

[Airil]

So they were the names of honored dead. She stared at them silently, sadly. She remained crouched down but one hand moved forward to touch one of the names again. The boy was still standing there and she had to admit to herself that she probably should have just left. She didn't know what to say to him now. Her emotions had drained away all her energy, leaving her with a feeling of hollow calmness. Whatever the frog had been, however the image had entered her mind, she didn't feel as though she had the energy to care anymore. Right now, all Airil wanted was to wake up and find herself back home in Ravok, where life was familiar to her. The life she was living now seemed more like some strange dream, and she didn't know what to do about it. Finally, she stood, this time being a little more careful as she did so. Her right hand moved to rub at the back of her left in an unconscious gesture of sorts. It was funny, she was standing next to a magician and yet she didn't know what to talk about. She would have thought she'd have been burning with questions, but he didn't exactly seem like the type who would care to answer them.

[Hadrian]

Her aura seemed to take on a crystalline aspect, as if the colors were reflective now, bouncing unwanted energy away from her. He wondered if he was part of that unwelcome element, frowned, and took a shuffling step back from her. There was something off about her, but he couldn't quite put it together with the information he had, so he cautiously dug for more. Sometimes to get a little, one had to give a little. "I animated a frog, and then a butterfly... they were just experiments, really, but I didn't want them to go to waste, so I took them to the orphanage for the children to play with. They're harmless, and at least they'll serve a purpose that way. The woman who taught me Animation said that one should always create to a purpose, so I had to find these things a legitimate purpose. "I'm really not much of an animator, but I like to know everything... so I will try most things at least once. Unless there are inescapable side effects that are unacceptable. Like Leeching."

[Airil]

She was genuinely surprised when he began to speak and couldn't help but wonder why he hadn't just walked away when she had fallen silent. Yet here he was, actually offering information as if trying to prove her thoughts about him to be wrong. The only problem was that she didn't know much about magic in the first place. “I'm sorry but I don't know what Leeching is.” Her curiosity had sparked now that he'd offered a little information without being asked. She guessed that animation had something to do with the frog. No one had ever taken the time to explain anything about magic to her. She'd met a few magicians, guests of her master, but no one who was interested in talking to her about it unless it was to ask about her own gift, something that she had been both unwilling and unable to discuss due to her master's orders. It dawned on her a little belatedly that the laughter she'd heard must have been the children of the orphanage. It hadn't seemed like a memory, more like the children had been there, just out of sight. She couldn't have explained it; she didn't even understand it, and though she thought the magician standing beside her may be able to shed some light on it, she wasn't sure about bringing it up again.

[Hadrian]

"Leeching is a discipline whereby a wizard sucks djed out of the world around him or her. But the problem is that there's no filter, so they draw a lot of... hm, impurities? into themselves as well, which ends up ruining their health. I've considered ways around that, or ways to counteract that, but... anyway, that's Leeching." Catching her curious glance, he elaborated on other things he had said that she might not have understood. "Animation is the art of animating inanimate objects, endowing them with a sort of soul and teaching them how to move and think... apparently Kihala is not a fan of wizards moving in on Her gifts, but..." He shrugged. "Do you want me to leave?"

[Airil]

“No,” the word came out a little more forcefully than she had intended but she'd been fascinated by his explanation and the question of him leaving had been so sudden after her interest had been peaked. The blush returned to her cheeks again. “I'm sorry, I didn't mean to sound,” she couldn't think of a word to finish that sentence so moved on to her next one, “I'm just new to the city and I'm a little overwhelmed. I hadn't really met anyone yet. If you need to go though... please don't let me keep you.” It seemed the idea of them parting ways would remain a prominent point even though each of them had continued to find reasons to stay. It was an odd way to start any kind of relations, even casual ones. She considered asking him a question about himself but decided that wouldn't be proper, she didn't like others asking her questions so why would she ask others? That made this encounter a little awkward. She supposed that she could offer information, as he had, but she had to take a moment to consider what would be appropriately interesting to him. She knew nothing of magic, and she wasn't about to share the details of her past. Indeed, she wondered if it was even appropriate to try to continue the conversation. There was really only one thing she could think to say. “I'm sorry. I don't know what to speak of. I don't know anything about magic.”

[Hadrian]

He shrugged. This Konti was an odd duck, but then, they all sort of were. If she didn't want to have a conversation, he would at least do her the favor of enlightening her a bit about the city she had chosen. "Aenysa is a greeter who works at the gates. She can direct you just about anywhere you need to go," he began, then told her about Traveler's Row for housing of a temporary or ongoing nature, the employment office within the castle proper, and other places she should know as a new resident of Syliras. There was a hint of patriotism in him, after all. He had been born and raised in Syliras even if Zeltiva felt more like home. "You might find me in the Inner Sanctum if you... I don't know... if you need to find me. I'm working on some projects there for the Knights."