So We Meet Again

[Mayra]

Chaktawe. Mayra. Kaia. Something, something. Mayra was getting the feeling that everyone in Dravite's family spoke very little. But the half-breed wouldn't say anything. She had returned a faint smile to Roan upon his greeting, although she was secretly very pleased that he knew her ancestry.

But after that interaction, she was the foreigner again. She had no part of this cheery family life before her. It was a nice show, but it only made Mayra more uncomfortable. She was not meant to be here. So she stood there, looking like an idiot as Dravite spoke to the woman, probably his wife. Black eyes skipped through the details of the small camp, taking it in. It wasn't the best camp. If anything it was worse than her own. But something about the two tents and campfire made her jealous of it ten times over. She'd trade her foreign tent and stock of food for this pile any day. Why she would do that, she didn't know. Maybe it was the family. The love that Dravite had in his son and his wife and whoever the man who recognized her was.

Gritting her teeth, she crossed her arms self-consciously, wanting to shrink away from the scene. A hot meal was not so much on her mind as her dagger. She could get her dagger back and excuse herself. Perhaps she should be the one feeding these people, with her measly supply of jerky strips and fruit.

"She speaks the common tongue." Mayra finally understood a sentence being spoke, and her attention returned to Dravite and his wife, watching them warily.

"Welcome to our home, Mayra." And there was that greeting again. Mayra only gave a small wave, nodding at the woman. "I am Belkaia Blackwater, this is my son, Kyanite, and our family friend, Roan Winterstorm." Of course, she's got to be so much nicer than him. Mayra thought. looking at the woman for a second before replying

"Mayra from the Midra bloodline of the Suli tribe." She passed a glance at Roan, more inclined to give her proper title, or at least most of it, to Belkaia and him. Perhaps they would have more understanding for her than Dravite. No, no. Stop this. Mayra pushed the thoughts away. She was to get her dagger and leave.

Before the conversation continued for very long, Dravite reappeared. Everything else flew out of focus when her dagger came into view. It was a release, something familiar in this foreign camp. An almost smile lit her lips and she reached forward for the cold dagger, ready to feel the familiar weight in her hands again. Dravite place it in her waiting palm, but he paused which made her look up. Immediately the grateful smile vanished. He was threatening her. Following his threat, she narrowed her own eyes, but thought of nothing to do to the man. She could leave now and never return, and wouldn't that be more of a gift to him than a hindrance? Wrapping her fingers around the hilt, she snatched the knife back much more harshly than necessary, and turned slightly away from Dravite.

The first thing she noticed was that the dagger had been cleaned. No snake-juice residue lay on the blade, and the leather straps that criss-crossed the hilt was no longer caked in mud. For having loved the dagger so much, Dravite's cleaning of it made her realize how poorly she took care of the thing. The blade was still nicked and dull, but she could sharpen that easily enough. Dragging her attention away from her precious dagger, Mayra looked up when Belkaia spoke again.

"Will you be joining us for a meal?"

"Please do! I want to hear all about the mountains of Kalea!"

"Perhaps..." I shouldn't. Mayra wanted to say. Looking down at the measly amount of food, she hardly thought it could feed the four of them without her. But to be in this strange atmosphere longer was tempting. It was Dravite's family, and he hated her as far as she could tell. But even as a stranger, there was unmistakable love between them. It wasn't something she could be apart of, but the temptation of staying near the comfortable feeling longer was too much to deny. Mayra was a woman of impulse after all. She nodded to the woman.

"Would you like me to bring something? The market is not too far away, I can run and get something?" The half-Zith hooked her thumb directing behind her. It was not yet dark enough for Mayra to be scared to traverse the city by herself. She was not going to sugarcoat the fact that the family had little, but she had enough coins to spare. A fresh leg of lamb or rib would do well with them, and she wouldn't feel so guilty for taking if she could supplement the meal.

Common | Tawna | Thoughts | PC/NPC Talking

[Dravite]

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Midra Bloodline, Suli Tribe. So these godless mountain people lived in groups like the Drykas, Dravite gathered from Mayra's introduction to Roan. Was Blackwater his bloodline and the Diamond Clan his Tribe? He had tried to draw comparisons silently, ways in which he could better relate to the foreign woman. It wasn't often they got to sit with newcomers and learn about different, far off cultures Dravite had no idea existed until he had met Mayra. She made his blood boil, the hairs on the nape of his neck stand at attention, and those eyes made him feel uneasy whenever he looked into them too long. There was something so unnatural about the woman and yet, she intrigued him in ways he couldn't quite comprehend.

He turned away from the three of them to pick up a few pelts he then rolled out like mats for them to sit on around the fire pit, nothing special, just deer pelts he had managed to save, if one could excuse the nicks and odd holes his poor skinning ability afford him. Belkaia had asked if Mayra would be joining them for a meal and after a hesitant pause, Mayra suggested leaving to pick something up from the marketplace. She is leaving, Dravite convinced himself, she is looking for a way out; in that case he would not stop her. The man knelt down with a grunt, the movement aggravating his tender ribs as he bent to stoke the fire, adding a few more cuts of wood to build it up.

"Don't be silly," Belkaia smiled, "sit, there is plenty to go round."

Roan and Dravite shared a look, the two men hiding their amusement at Belkaia's words. "Stay, Mayra, Roan will hear of Kalea's mountains," Dravite spoke up finally, not wanting to make the woman feel too uncomfortable; she was a stranger in a strange land after all, it couldn't be easy for her, he thought, coming to this place not knowing anyone and looking like she did.

"Husband," Belkaia scolded.
"Wife?"
"Go and get the honey and the goat’s milk," she ordered in their native tongue.

Dravite looked at her as if she had slapped him. Belkaia stared long and hard at the man. "But I was going to sell the milk," he argued.
"Next time," Belkaia cooed.

He struggled to his feet and retreated to the tent to collect the jars. When he returned he poured Mayra and mug of goat's milk and passed the mug to Belkaia to offer to Mayra so that he could make a start on the cooking.

Dravite used his dagger to dice up the carrots into odd sized medallions and tossed them into the pan with some water to start cooking them. It wasn't long before the water was boiling and clear steam rolled away from the pan, causing the loose strands of hair about his face to curl up on themselves. The horse lord tasted a carrot to see whether or not they were softening. Satisfied that they were starting to cook through, he added the lean strips of beef, and to that, a healthy serving of honey to flavour what might have otherwise been a very bland meal.

Roan helped himself to some goat's milk and sat down on one of the deer pelts before patting the pelt beside him for Mayra to join him next to the fire pit. "I want to hear about the Ehktar Pass," Roam smiled, all teeth and a mop of messy, dark hair; he had a few stray whiskers smattered across his jaw, just a boy who was almost a man.

Dravite cut them each a piece of Nabato Root to chew; he had been saving in for a special occasion. The root was naturally sweet and full of sap; even Kyanite gleefully accepted a piece before trying to park himself next to Mayra, having already warmed to the playful stranger. The sap was the colour of raw honey, and the bark was an odd yellow colour that Dravite hadn't found in any other plants on the plain. Suddenly recalling that Mayra was a fan of salt, he took a pinch from the pouch on his black, leather belt and sprinkled it over the food in the pan; a salty sweet concoction that hopefully wouldn't taste too bad.

When the meal was ready, Dravite took it off the heat and offered it to the women, himself and Roan seeming more than happy to miss out this time so that Belkaia and Mayra could share the food with Kyanite, who was a bit of a picky eater, pointing to the honey-glazed carrots he wanted to try. Dravite sucked the sap from the Nabato Root and then chewed the bark as he listened to the rest of them talk amongst themselves. .
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[Mayra]

Mayra's mouth was watering watching Dravite cook. Today was to be a harsh exercise in her self-control. A small detail that Mayra never bothered or really wished to tame, but in situations like this she begun to realize the necessity. Dravite and his family were stretching the thread to let her join them. It wasn't fair, but she had a feeling it wouldn't be very fair to leave them either. The situations you get yourself in. Mayra tsked at herself in her head, adjusting her position on the hide so she was cross-legged and more comfortable.

"I want to hear about the Ehktar Pass." Mayra reverted her attention to the horsepeople surrounding her when she heard the familiar name. Roan was smiling at her, as if expecting her to speak. Oh boy.

"I-- um..." Mayra let out a breathy laugh at her sudden lack of words. "That's a touchy subject. The pass is a blessing to my people but a curse to many others." She immediately shut her lips. Suddenly worrying how much Roan actually knew of the famous valley. She was to think as if she was on the side of humans if she was to explain this one. Human's feared the Ehktar Pass. Stupid, stupid. "Well, not a gift, just sort of... there. Umm. So there is a path in my part of the woods, in the west, that is known because it's... dangerous." Half way through stumbling through her explanation, Mayra set her palms on he knees. Now she faced them up and waved them around, searching for the correct words. She paused, taking a breathe before finally putting her thoughts together.

"Now, I'm not used to being put on the spot like this. Basically, the Pass is hunting grounds for the Zith of Kalea. But our Zith are not like your Zith. They are very... different. I don't know much about your Zith, but trust me. I can only imagine if they met the wouldn't be able to recognize each other as Zith let alone speak to each other. Funny." Mayra waved with her hands in an attempt to redirect her thoughts. None of what she was saying would make sense anyway. "If you are going up to Lhavit, or Kalinor, the cities in the west, you must go through this Pass. Unfortunately no one ever really does, its not such a popular place anymore because we hardly expect caravans." Mayra tried not to smile when she remembered her father giving her a hair clip that he had found on another little girl passing through the Ehktar Pass. She had left the hairclip behind when she ran, but for a small girl it was her favorite gift. It was hard for her to think of the Pass as anything other than good luck, which was exactly opposite to what the humans would think of it. She realized that her whole explanation was falling apart.

She fell silent then, trying desperately to let the conversation go back towards them. She was distracted for a tick as she watched Dravite throw a pinch of salt onto the meat, and her stomach rumbled, betraying her. "So... what are your people called again?" The question rushed out as Mayra tried to hide the speech coming from her stomach. It took her a tick to think how dumb that question was, but she didn't actually know the answer, so she shrugged the embarrassment away, more interested in the answer.

Common | Tawna | Thoughts | PC/NPC Talking

[Dravite]

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Kyanite held a small piece of carrot up to Dravite as he left Mayra's side to venture around the fire pit. The man leaned close and snapped the carrot away from Kyanite's chubby little fingers as he closed his hand about the boy’s wrist and pretended to eat the limb. Kyanite squealed at the top of his lungs and giggled until his cheeks turned red; eyes squinted gleefully. From the corner of his eye, Dravite watched his son, playfully biting his teeth together whenever Kyanite reached his hand too close to the man's lips. The carrot had tasted nice thanks to the honey but was a little underdone, no thanks to Dravite's cooking skills. Father and son played until Dravite noticed Belkaia scold him with a look, wordlessly asking that he pay attention when their guest was speaking.

Dravite pulled Kyanite into his arms and let the boy settle against him while Belkaia passed Kyanite bits of meat and carrot to eat. Roan hung off Mayra's every word and Dravite found it amusing to watch, not able to make sense of anything much she way saying, though he had caught the odd word; blessings, hunting, Zith, dangerous. "Dravite fought a Zith once didn't you?" Roan piped up.
"Zith surprised me," Dravited nodded and continued to chew the Nabato bark until it lost its flavour.
"Did you kill it?" Roan asked, using Pavi this time.
Dravite looked at Mayra, drew his hand across his throat and spat the now flavourless Nabato bark into the flames. "Dead," he used the common word, though in all honestly he wasn't sure if the creature had died or not.
Roan laughed. "I wish I could have seen it. I bet their wings are something else."

Belkaia finished the mouthful she was chewing and nudged Dravite's arm, encouraging him to answer Mayra's question. "Drykas," the man said after some pause, scratching his windmarked chest, "people of Endrykas are Drykas."
"Didn't you know?" Roan asked Mayra. "How long have you been in the city?"
"How are you enjoying your stay so far?" Belkaia chimed in.
"Do you know any Pavi?" Roan continued firing the questions at her.
"One at a time!" Belkaia laughed.

Dravite raised a hand and they both fell silent. He knew from experience that Mayra wasn't very fond of sharing anything about herself with others. The smell of smoke hung in the air as the campsites around them started up their fires for the night. In the distance he could hear the low, discordant hum of men singing. Closer, a baby cried, and at his back the sound of dogs coming in from the hunt echoed through the city of tents. Endrykas was a busy city, one you either loved or hated. Dravite added another log to the fire as the summer warmth slowly started to abandon the plain for the evening, Syna's light painting the sky red.

"Tell Mayra," he paused trying to think of the word.
"About?" Belkaia offered.
Dravite glanced at his wife and nodded his thanks. "Tell Mayra about Endrykas summer."
Roan beamed. "Summer in Endrykas is a time of trade and training. All of the clans come together to better their fighting skills and test their strengths against one another."

Dravite watched Mayra's face and body language as Roan talked. She seemed to enjoy learning about the Drykas people, just as she had when he had first run into her. This didn't really concern Dravite, but he was forced to wonder if the woman really did intend to move on from Endrykas once she had the money, or stay. Suddenly intrigued, Dravite turned to his wife and spoke in quick, rhythmic Pavi, she would be better at wording questions in common than he felt he would ever be.
"My husband wants to know if you have family in Endrykas?"
Dravite said something else; seeming dissatisfied with the question Belkaia had formed on his behalf. "Pardon," Belkaia waved as of to scratch her last question from the record, "do you intend to start a family in Endykas?"

The man pointed his smokey-grey glance at Mayra, seeming interested for the first time in something she may or may not have to say since she had sat down, his large palm brushing the light mop of wheat coloured curls from his son's face; who looked to be slowly starting to nod off. There had to be some reason the woman had stayed against everything his people must put her through daily to be here, and he wanted to find out what that reason was.

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[Mayra]

"Drykas," Mayra turned to look at Dravite, trying to keep the horror off her face. "people of Endrykas are Drykas." Quickly, she composed herself, trying not to let the previous share of facts upset her. Yes, she knew humans hunted Zith, the Zith hunted to humans too. I was simply the way the world worked. But it dawned on her that Dravite and his family may not be so kind to her should she tell them her ancestry. Drykas, people of Endrykas. Mayra repeated to herself, trying to shake the realization from her mind. She already knew that, she already knew she was risking her life staying in the forsaken city. But it was a little more shocking to watch their discussion to her father's race, even if half of it was in a language she didn't understand.

"Didn't you know?" Roan turned to her, and Mayra clenched her teeth. Of course I didn't know! Why would I be asking. But the half-breed stayed silent and he spoke again."How long have you been in the city?"

"How are you enjoying your stay so far?" Dravite's wife shot the question quickly after. Deciding she would not answer any of these questions, even if given the chance, Mayra settled back, extending her arms behind her to prop herself on her outstretched hands.

"Do you know any Pavi?" Mayra ignored the question, taking her eyes away from the fire to look up at the sky. It was getting dark and reaching the beautiful purple of summer. That was one thing about the open plains of Cyphrus, there was never a time when she couldn't see the sky.

"One at a time!" Belkaia laughed. Darvite said something and the two went back and forth for a second. She should probably leave, before it got too dark. It wasn't that she feared the people of the city, but nighttime would not have been preferable to be out and about for the foreigner.

"Summer in Endrykas is a time of trade and training. All of the clans come together to better their fighting skills and test their strengths against one another." Mayra turned her head to Roan when she heard the common tongue. A single eyebrow perked in interest. With the questions gone, she found herself interested in the conversation once more. Maybe she could stay later... Mayra sat back up, resting her elbows on her knees once more. Again her stomach complained by the smell of the food, but Mayra drowned it out with a question. Dravite maybe be mean but his family was generous, and she refused to defy her own pride.

"Do they... fight each other? I thought there was this big thing about unity and family here. Why would you fight each other?" Mayra asked, focusing on Roan now, listening to his answer. He had a good grasp of common, and unlike Dravite, he was actually kind to her. It opposed the behaviors of the horsepeople, er Drykas, that she had met so far.

"My husband wants to know if you have family in Endrykas?" Belkaia interjected once Roan had explained it to her. She watched Dravite say something else unrecognizable to her and Mayra sighed. She did like his wife better, but she still didn't like the man's nosiness. Wasn't she the guest? More like the intruder. Mayra corrected herself before Belkaia spoke again. "Pardon, do you intend to start a family in Endykas?"

Mayra glanced at the three adult faces around her before focusing on the child. Frankly it was a question she hadn't thought about in a long time. Under her father's rule she never intended to have a family, it would simply be impossible. But since her freedom she hadn't thought it over. "No. I'm leaving at the end of the season, when I have money to do so." She shrugged and looked down at her lap, where her dagger rested in the circle between her crossed legs. She reached down to pick up the thing. For a tick she flipped it in the firelight before turning to remove her near-empty pack from her shoulders and slipping the precious weapon in next to her book and dirty pipe. An errant question floated through her mind. She was a complete outsider in the tentcity, in Endrykas, but if she was considering a family... who would she start the family with?

No one. She was an outsider. It was better to not think about something that was out of your reach. Mayra smiled at Belkaia and gave a breathy chuckle. "I imagine it is a handful anyhow. I've only met your child once, but he seems like a lot of work." Immediately Mayra regretted the words. Had she insulted the woman? Mayra threw a worried glance at the toddler. She should definitely try to redirect the conversation again. "Ummm, will you have another? Child, I mean. Another child?" Mayra glanced around the campfire, trying to look anywhere other than Belkaia and Dravite. Her usually low velvety voice raising an octave from nerves. She should leave now.

Common | Tawna | Thoughts | PC/NPC Talking

[Dravite]

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"Eat," Dravite encouraged, gesturing to the pan both Belkaia and Kyanite had been eating from before the boy had drifted off.

The horse lord was satisfied to hear that Mayra was fixed on leaving the city once she had the money, though part of him would be sorry to see her go; as infuriatingly confusing, aloof, and despondent as she was, he thought it possible to miss her. In a way, she was a lot like him. One had to work hard to get past his guard and expose the good in him, especially hard if they were foreign it seemed, and Mayra had been no exception. Every now and then he caught glimpses of her personality that he found sweet, endearing even, and she had been good to his son; the key to his heart.

Roan had explained that while the Drykas did fight each other it was only for training and it was rare that anyone ever got injured at such events. Roan had spent the last few years living on a farm that didn't see very many visitors, so whenever he did manage to corner someone, he tended to talk their ear off more often than not. Dravite had scolded him in the beginning for doing such, and he was slowly getting better at asking the right types of questions, without talking for talking's sake.

Belkaia’s laughter bubbled up in the form of a light-hearted giggle before bursting from her mouth, causing her to roll onto her side in a fit. Dravite looked at his wife with mild confusion, what had Mayra said that was so funny? "What?" He asked her.

Belkaia wiped a tear from her eye and breathed before explaining what the man had missed. Dravite chuckled and closed his palm over Kyanite's temple to make sure that he wasn't too hot. "Children are handful."
"A," Belkaia corrected him.
"Kyanite is a handful," he smiled at Mayra, as if forgetting that he had ever been cross with her, "too bad we cannot tie him up like goat."

Belkaia laughed again before saying something to Dravite in Pavi. He nodded to her realising she meant for him to explain something to Mayra. "Ah..." He scratched his head thoughtfully, searching for the right words, "I will have many sons."
It was then Roan chimed in. "So you don't believe in the Blackwater curse?"

Dravite fell silent and looked at his wife who smiled back at him softly as she moved her hand over her lower belly. A strong urge to kiss her saw the muscles in his neck tighten momentarily, but he restrained the sudden impulse and swallowed it down before speaking. "No, Blackwater curse is myth."
"A," Belkaia nudged him.
"Blackwater curse is a myth," he repeated, making the minor correction that he kept overlooking.

Mayra had glanced up at the darkening sky and the gesture had not gone unnoticed by the man, he knew it was starting to get late and cooed to his wife to take Kyanite from his lap. She slipped her arms under the boy and Dravite pressed a kiss to his forehead before moving onto one knee so that he could get up without aggravating the dull pain in his side. "Are you leaving?" Belkaia asked, "We haven't even had a song yet." Belkaia was fond of singing, something she liked to do each night after they ate.
"No, my love, Mayra does not know any of our songs, she won't understand what they are about," he explained to her in Pavi.
Belkaia nodded, he was right, though, "perhaps one of Mayra's songs then?" She smiled.
Dravite shook his head, having read the woman's body-language. "Take Mayra home now?" He asked the black-haired, godless woman.

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[Mayra]

It had been fun for Mayra, watching the Blackwaters. Slightly stressful and plenty confusing, but enjoyable. She had immediately become fond of Belkaia, Roan and Kyanite. They were kind and nice enough that Mayra wondered if Dravite was paying them to stay with him. It made no sense for such happy people to be doing so otherwise. But then again she probably was a little biased towards the horselord. She'd done a good job at mostly ignoring him for the night, the task made easy when his family spoke better common than he did.

"I will have many sons." And daughter's? Mayra wanted to challenge, but she had grasped the art of holding her tongue around the volatile man so she stayed quiet, listening instead.

"So you don't believe in the Blackwater curse?"Mayra's attention was dragged towards Roan's common, and suddenly her curiosity was grabbed. Obviously the other horseman meant to start a conversation, otherwise he would have spoken in words the foreigner couldn't understand. But Mayra didn't say anything, turning her black orbs towards Drykas to see his reaction. She didn't know much, but he seemed prideful enough that his reaction would be worth the wait. He looked at Belkaia so strangly, Mayra wanted to look away for some reason she couldn't identify. She couldn't read the feelings the couple shared, so she glanced back up at the night sky.

The last of the purple was melting into the heavy expanse of indigo. Stars were shining through the mostly clear night, but where was the moon?

"No, Blackwater curse is myth."

"A," She picked up Belkaia's correction, turning her attention back towards the family she was watching.

"Blackwater curse is a myth." She opened her mouth to question what the curse consisted of, but closed it when the Blackwater's begun chattering in their odd language again. At last she gave in to her persisting hunger. The food smelled absolutely delishious, even if there was only a little of it. While the Drykas were talking to each other, Mayra quietly leaned in, plucking a cube of saucy meat from the pan. Immediately the juices burned her fingers and she dropped the meat into her other hand, effectively greasing up both her palms. For a second she blew on the meat, juggling it between her fingers quickly enough to keep them from burning before popping the sweet meat into her mouth.

She could feel her tongue burning by the meat, but she was already chewing. It wasn't perfect, but compared to her even worse cooking, it was something. But before Mayra could go for another piece, Dravite was standing up. Quickly, Mayra shifted to her knees and stood as well, wiping the sticky sauce from her hands onto her pants. "Take Mayra home now?"

Oh I don't want to leave. Mayra whined in her head but didn't say a word. Instead she rushed to swallow her stolen bite, nodding to the man. She glanced back at the people who sat around the fire, more upset to brave the city at night than leave their company. She'd never actually been in harm's way in the foreign city, but that didn't stop her from fearing what may hide in the darkness. Tonight was the first night that she wasn't tied up in her tent with all candle's blown out. She waved a short goodbye to Belkaia and Roan.

"I can just go. I know my way home." She threw her thumb over her shoulder, and took a step back. She actually didn't know her way home. But she figured the city was only so big. Mayra had been relaxing by the fire, but now she was fearing the idea of being alone with Dravite again. Perhaps her earlier threat would be re-payed out of earshot from his family. Of course she wouldn't say that to the man.

"See ya around Dravite!" She started walking away, hooking one thumb on her backpack. But this time the half-Zith had no inner snide remark to contradict her verbal words. Maybe she would see him around. Maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing.

Common | Tawna | Thoughts | PC/NPC Talking

[Dravite]

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The way Mayra got to her feet so quickly as he rose to his own made Dravite smirk; did he intimidate her still? Good. A sick, twisted little part of him liked that; keeping people on their toes was something the young horse lord wouldn’t mind getting better at. He walked around the fire pit to see Mayra off while Roan and Belkaia stood and waved before each going into their own tents. Dravite had noticed there was a little food left that he wouldn’t have too much trouble finishing off, seen as no one else wanted it.

He stepped outside the camp into the makeshift street with Mayra, pointing in the direction they had come from. “Follow road to wood stack.”

Hopefully, he thought, the woman would know her way home from there. People stepped out to light their torches and tie their animals before turning in for the night. The marketplace may have tended to stay open to all hours but most of the responsible residents of Endrykas could appreciate a good night’s sleep. Dravite was usually one of them. “Hunt?” He asked the woman quickly as she made her way forward into the night; he had to halt her while he thought of the words he needed to ask the question properly.

Dravite looked out at the plain a few tents back from the position of his campsite and snuck closer to Mayra so that Belkaia wouldn’t overhear and think he had left camp with the other woman. “Mayra like to hunt? Dravite will take Mayra,” he looked thoughtful, how in the word did he pronounce the next word again? “S-soon? Mayra come, Dravite will take,” he pointed to the plain again as if to say ‘take her over there to hunt’.

Feeling as though he had put his foot in his mouth somewhere along the line with that sentence, he waved to excuse himself and turned to creep back into camp, collecting the cooking pan on the way. The horse lord sat down and ate the rest of the meal, chewing the slightly charred meat, the burnt taste disguised by the honey and salt he had added to the food. To any onlooker it might seem as if he hadn’t eaten in days, and they would be right in assuming such.

When he lay back on the fur pelts and looked up at the stars, Dravite thought firstly of the Gods, and secondly of Mayra. Why had they brought her into his life? What caused them to see that the two of them crossed paths? Perhaps this would be the end of it, he thought; she had her dagger now, there was no reason to see her again, which was probably exactly how she felt about him. Still, he smiled; it had been entertaining if nothing else. “Zulrav, be kind to her.”

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[Mayra]

Her retreat was halted when she heard Dravite follow behind her. What more could he want? The foreigner stopped, turning slightly in his direction when he spoke. "Mayra like to hunt? Dravite will take Mayra," Although his common was still broken, and might be for a while, she generally understood what the man spoke of... most of the time. Staying silent, she mulled the question over. She hadn't gotten near the edge of the city since her last run-in with him... "S-soon? Mayra come, Dravite will take."

Mayra only nodded silently to confirm. For once the man looked mildly vulnerable, although she might be imagining it. He was going out on a limb, that much was obvious. As far as she knew the man thought very little of her. The very brief discussion ended there and Dravite turned back towards his family and she turned back to the darkening city before her, a little shocked by the sudden politeness from the horselord. Yeah, she'd definitely be seeing that man again.

Common | Tawna | Thoughts | PC/NPC Talking

[Khida]

Mayra

Skill	Points
Acrobatics	+1
Diplomacy	+3
Hypnotism	+1
Intelligence	+1
Observation	+3
Persuasion	+1
Rhetoric	+1
Socialization	+3
Storytelling	+1

• Animal Husbandry: risks of stressing the young
• Acrobatics: a rolling landing
• Belkaia Blackwater: wife of Dravite
• Blackwater Pavilion: under a curse?
• Diplomacy: holding back unwelcome words
• Diplomacy: softening a threat with a joke
• Dravite's fawn
• Drykas: red is the color of craftsmen
• Drykas: trade and train in summer
• Endrykas location: the Blackwater Pavilion
• Glassbeak: a predator of Cyphrus
• Hypnotism: trial and error to find the right suggestion
• Intelligence: passive observation to determine a purpose
• Ixam: relative sizes of the species
• Kyanite Blackwater: son of Dravite
• Observation: the similarities of related people
• Persuasion: pointing out negative consequences
• Roan Winterstorm: friend of the Blackwaters
• Security under the eyes of a crowd
• Socialization: camaraderie in a shared meal
• Storytelling: providing background exposition

Dravite

Skill	Points
Animal Husbandry	+2
Bodybuilding	+1
Butchery	+1
Childcare	+2
Cooking	+2
Deduction	+1
Diplomacy	+2
Endurance	+2
Foraging	+1
Horsemanship	+1
Hostessing	+1
Intelligence	+1
Interrogation	+1
Intimidation	+3
Investigation	+1
Land Navigation	+1
Leadership	+1
Logic	+5
Medicine	+1
Negotiation	+1
Observation	+4
Persuasion	+1
Philosophy	+2
Riding	+3
Rhetoric	+1
Seduction	+1
Singing	+1
Socialization	+4
Stealth	+1
Teaching	+1
Tracking	+1
Weapon: Dagger	+1
Weapon: Spear	+1
Webbing	+2
Wilderness Survival	+1
Zoology	+1

• Anatomy: the location of a deer's heart
• Animal Husbandry: stress can sicken the young
• Butchery: dispatching by slit throat
• Cooking: chopping vegetables
• Cooking: seasoning with salt and honey
• Cooking: vegetables are done when soft
• Diplomacy: making a stranger feel included
• The fawn: a message from Caiyha?
• Intimidation: an intent and intense regard
• Investigation: loudly seeking a missing person
• Land Navigation: reckoning by landmarks
• Mayra: of Midra Bloodline and Suli Tribe
• Mayra's plans to leave
• Medicine: assessing for major injuries
• Spear: a forceful thrust
• Tracking: following a blood trail
• Zoology: age and competition among bucks

Items: 1 x tanned deer hide, 1 x live fawn, 80 gm for the doe's meat, after deduction of 6 gm for the hide.

Injury: Head wound and severe concussion. Dravite will experience bouts of dizziness, ringing in his ears, impaired reflexes, and difficulty concentrating for 48 hours. The headache will last through the first day. Mild episodes may recur in the event of significant stress or exertion over the next two weeks. The surface wound will scar if not treated well, but with proper cleaning and care will mend fine. The immediate area will be swollen and sensitive for a week, and turn distinctive shades of purple and yellow-green as the contusion heals over a period of two weeks.

Notes

This was quite a lot of fun to read. I particularly liked how mixed Dravite's behavior was -- 'you're really leaving, right?' on the one hand and 'hey, let's go hunting' on the other. Also Mayra's trials and tribulations with navigating society -- even just the 'society' of a casual dinner. I'll definitely have an eye out for more from you two!

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns regarding your grade. Also, Mayra, please edit your request to show this thread has been graded.