PM to join [Blade Plaza] Thieves and Those with Webbed Hands (Nickolai)

[M'Wanii]

23rd of Summer, 514AV

The Blade Plaza was as colourful as she had heard it would be. Brightly painted stalls and ornate bridges wide enough to let many a loaded cart traverse over the canals of the city. Kenash was a beautiful if odd city, definitely a pleasant change from the monotonous stone wall of Syliras. It reminded her more of the Charbosian city's mismatch of unique coral, so much culture, so much colour. Now strolling through the stalls as the afternoon sun beat down on her, M'wanii took a healthy swig from her waterskin.

The days spent travelling with a crew of Svefra whose entire vegetable supply consisted solely of picked cucumbers had been interesting to say the least. Interesting enough that if she ever saw another green plant floating in a jar of vinegar, the amphibian had no doubt she was going to be seriously sick. Shuddering at the very thought of it, she was thankful to be free of them now. Finding a captain willing to take her to the next city down stream, Riverfall hadn't been to hard. Her next destination had a decent trade route going, the farmer's daughter in her knew that was a good sign for what the city would be like. From there on hopefully the amphibian could work towards reaching the distant Windreach and not quite as distant Una.

Una. Hopefully her penpal was having fun there, the letters had made it sound like she had been. Shaking the thoughts free M'wanii continued on her journey, trying to ignore the distinct feeling of homesickness that had grown on her. She missed a lot of things; the tug of the current, the feel of salt water flowing past her fins, her family, the coral. Most of all she missed the people. Common wasn't an easy language to speak and she tended to butcher it horribly. Maybe that was why she was here to start with. Charodae were many things; explorers, artists, farmers but for most they were merchants. If there was a pearl in the ocean, it could be sold on the land was the phrase commonly used. If you needed to find them, the first port of call was the market place.

However so far there hadn't been any, not a single one. No tentacled haired green men trying to flog the cargo of the ship that sunk last month, not even some old finned woman offering out shell necklaces. Nothing. However what there was a lot of was odd looks, mainly directed at herself. In sight of the raging heat, M'Wanii's normal cloth coverings had been forfeit for a cooler walk. Down to her linen chemise and trousers, her leather boots made soft contact with the ground as she turned the corner. One of these days she would find a land-dwelling city whose resident didn't need to so blatantly stare at her as she walked by. Yes, she had fins and grey skin and a lot of scars and was missing an ear, but that was still no excuse to stare!

Giving up on finding another of her kind, the charoda casually moved to inspect a simple stall that was selling some earth grown plants. She was yet to find a plant not from the sea that she truly liked the taste of. Broccoli had been suggested to her but on buying some, she had found it too bitter. Lettuce, she could put up with but still it didn't taste right. Leaning forward sightly to better inspect the produce, a hand causally placed it self on the small bag of mizas attached to the strap of her water skin. 'I wonder which one of these would be appetising?,' she thought hungrily.

[Nickolai Marin]

Having only been within Kenash for little over two weeks, there were still many areas that the young larcenist had yet to explore. Now, Nickolai was not exactly the "adventerous" sort who went on spontaneous treks through town...but he was a thief. As such, getting a feel for one's surroundings was absolutely vital to success and survival in this field. With this thought in mind, the young larcenist elected this day in order to venture throughout the streets of Kenash. There was not a clear direction that he headed, but instead roamed aimlessly about Kenash proper. He walked along the beaches, strode along the Banks, and ultimately wound up in a rather lively place. 'Twas characterized by bright, vibrant colors and teemed with activity.

And in the eyes of a larcenist, activity was a good thing.

Hustle and bustle was the sort of phenomena that served to cover one's tracks. It was difficult to get away with picking a pocket or swiping a coin purse when there is only a handful of patrons about. However, when there is a modest crowd of people gathered together in a single area, a decent larcenist could pull of such a thing with minimal difficulty. Such was the case with Nickolai this afternoon, who had taken to prowling much like usual. The key to this particular "art" was to remain as anonymous as possible. He was simply a face in a crowd of people; easily encountered and even more easily forgotten. What's more, he did nothing to draw unnecessary attention to himself, and remained totally focused on the task at hand...

...Which, at present, was choosing a target...

With careful, calculated steps, Nickolai began to weave his way through the plaza. Every move was intentional, even the occasional bumping into a passerby. Of course, Nickolai responded with a light "pardon me" before carrying on. However, before he could so much as select his "lucky victim", Nickolai noticed something which stuck out like a sort thumb. Now twenty-four years of age, he had seen a wide variety of things and people...but never before had he seen a Charodae. Yet, here one was, inspecting vegetables with not a care in the world. From behind, the...woman...did not seem to grotesque, but that opinion changed the second Nickolai strode up for a close look. Coming to a halt beside her, the young larcenist also peered down into the vegetables and relied upon his peripheral vision to see her face.

What he saw almost caused him to gape, but he caught himself. Instead, a small sum of pity sank into his gullet. Not only did she draw attention because of her race, but because of the misfortune of her face. It was sad to think of how she might have been treated; and as Nickolai knew all-too well, the world was oftentimes cruel. As such, despite practicing one of the most sordid occupations, the young larcenist turned to the woman and offered a warm greeting. "Good morrow!" he began, offering a cheerful grin, "How are you this fine day?"
.

[M'Wanii]

OOCSorry it's so short.

The stall contents were fascinating; bundles of odd shaped roots with their leaves hanging loose; large green spherically things that had been cut open to reveal tender pink insides; tiny red fruit on stalks and juicy berries in jars. Where to start? The woman running the stall seemed to have taken an interest in her presence, no surprise there, a good merchant always paid attention to her customers. Rough hands clasped expectantly beneath her bosom, patiently waiting for the water-born to make her selection.

Too focused on deciphering the mysterious properties of the earth grown produce before her, the sudden smooth voice that came startled the amphibian. When the bubbles had the other air breather gotten so close? Turning to the man as she mentally digested his words out of Common into Char, his appearance calmed her racing heart. Longish hair and beard of some type with vibrant eyes the colour of her tropical homewaters, he was by far one of the more pleasant land dwellers that M'Wanii had cast gaze upon in her travels. Pursing her lips and moving them slowly from side to side, a single word in his speech was twiddled mentally over and over in the amphibian's mind before she finally gave him a calm response, facial features displaying cautioned intrigue.

“I be well, although sun be very annoying in latest time. However I be at confusion for I know not what 'Morrow' be. Be it object and if so how be it good? Or be it singular of two morrows meaning the dawn beyond next dusk? Please do explain.”

A mild mannered chuckle was heard from the stall owner, as the red cheeks face attempted to hide the fact begin the palm of her hand. What was so funny? Had she misunderstood something? Looking lost between the two land dwellers, the Charoda's bewilderment only grew worse. Was it obvious? Was it really obvious? Oh come on, what had she missed? Head oscillating between the snickering woman and the inquiring cheerful man, she voiced her confusion timidly.

“Be I misunderstanding something?”