Open Taking in the Sights

[Samir Skye]

Samir was more or less enjoying herself. A fact that should concern her, she was normally aware of her surroundings, after all it was never a good thing to be caught off guard. Not that she was paranoid, life had simply taught her to be aware of where she was and what she was doing, it also gave her, her fair share of trust issues but that was another story.

In this case she was exploring, more or less. She had yet to take in the sights and sounds of her immediate locality, and it had occurred to her that it was past time that she did so. To that end she was making her way down a street watching the people without out making it look like she was staring at her, or that was the goal in any case, she was not sure how she was faring with her goal. For the most part people had been happy to push their way past her, which did not bother her at all, she as a general rule didn't stand out in a crowd and thus wasn't offended.

This fact gave her time to take in the wares of a few street vendors who were still hoping for a sale, even if it was clear she either did not possess the coin they were asking for or she was simply unwilling to pay for it. Leaving most of the merchants to pay attention to those customers who were actually will to pay for their wares. But, Samir was happy enough to browse without taking anything home with her, at least not yet.

She had to admit even if just to herself, most of it was attractive. She also knew should she point that out they would have her and she would never hear the end of it until she had agreed to take something off their hands. Rather than to face that ordeal she had simply nodded politely when they addressed her or made some polite, light hearted comment about how indeed it was the finest thing she had ever seen. Rather or not that was the actual truth was anyones guess.

All of this had the added bonus of allowing to wander about aimlessly for a little while something she had come to value. It wasn't that she was unhappy..it was simply that she had envisioned other things for her life and when they seemed to not work out the way she had wished she had found those recent events to be frustrating if not a little bit discouraging, not that she would ever admit that to anyone, herself included.

Keeping that fact in mind she was happy enough to wander a bit mindlessly taking whichever road appealed to her at the moment, or if something happened to strike her fancy and send her off in a totally different direction than the one she had started off from.

[Vaerin]

The day had been rather uneventful thus far. He had gone to work, and put in a few solid bells. He still was not very sure why exactly the woman he worked for had hired him. He'd rather not push his luck by asking her for her motivations though. Until it became possible for him to find a way to become a performer, like he had desired to be, it was his only source of income. It wasn't that she was an unpleasant woman to work for, if anything she was quite a generous person. Albeit very stern when her mood turned (usually because of overtly entitled customers). Dra-Vaerin preferred the idea of not earning her ire or making her question his aptitude for the work he was doing.

He decided to take a leisurely jaunt throughout the city: his aim being to stretch his legs, and better acquaint himself with some of the back routes that ran like veins through the body of Syliras. It was a rather boring form of exercise in comparison to what he was used to. However, he had yet to locate somewhere that was appropriate to hang his dancer's silks from. The young man was starting to worry that his lack of practice was going to be detrimental to his abilities. One constantly needed to hone their craft, or it would suffer. So he thought it important to keep his body in the most ideal state possible until he could find such a location suitable to properly dance.

During his walk, he noticed the same woman meandering through a number of the same areas he was walking through. Usually he might not have thought about it at all. However, since the woman didn't seem to be interested in purchasing anything - given the lack of her carrying anything despite the curators of these stalls trying their best to sell to her. In addition to this, they had crossed paths frequently enough for it to be slightly more than a strange coincidence; yet not enough to impart on him the feeling of concern that perhaps he was being followed. He started to perhaps think that this woman may have been lost and was perhaps too shy to ask for directions or the likes. Dra-Vaerin could relate to that. He was still fairly unfamiliar with a lot of the city; but he was familiar enough with enough of the main points of interest he was sure he could help her find a land mark that would help her on her way.

With that he decided to approach her and see if perhaps he could help.
"Please excuse me Miss, it seemed to me that you looked a little lost. Is there anything I could do to assist you?" He queried in a sympathetic tone. He hoped that his sincerity in helping shone through this interaction. He would have hated to have his intentions questioned as anything other than genuine.

[Samir Skye]

Samir has been focused on the various sights on the street that had grabbed her attention and thus hadn't been spending too much attention to what might be happening closer to her. This is what would have allowed Vaerin to slip in close to her without her noticing. Although upon giving him a once over he did not look like an immediate threat, of course she was also aware that could be an image created for a purpose. If someone looked like they were going to drag you into an alleyway and slit their throat then they would have very few chances to do so, and if that was the case this one would have to rely on something other than brute strength to do so. But, in any case he hadn't tried to do anything to her just yet.

Of course, she was careful to not look as though she was measuring him up mentally. People tended to find that rude, and if there was something she was used to it was pretending to feel something other than what she was actually thinking. As a result she put on her best "polite company" face. The one that would make a person looking far more interested and at ease with someone else in the room, or in this case the marketplace than one really was. Or that was the plan in anycase and she hoped that she was able to pull it off to the degree that she wished to do so.

"Me? Lost? No, I was just...taking in the sights. Sort of." She was aware of how that made her sound, and sat about to amend her statement. "It seemed to be a waste to spend it indoors. A person should never waste a nice day if they can help it." She hopped by adding more information she would appear to be more purposeful and less like a random lost woman in need of rescuing.

[Vaerin]

Dra-Vaerin began to question whether or not what he was doing was the correct or polite thing to do. Usually he was not the type to willingly strike up a conversation with a stranger. People approaching him was also something that often easily made him feel on edge. However it was too late to turn back and not say anything. He also knew that there had been multiple times when he had gotten lost, and was very grateful for those that had helped him. Especially since he usually preferred not to bother others with trivial concerns. So he was sure that if this woman was lost and too shy to ask for help, it would be an appreciated gesture.

The woman did seem to be momentarily surprised by his appearance. However rather quickly a change in her facial expression was noted. It changed to one of geniality. There was a dexterity, and well practiced manner to it. He only made this observation as this was a tactic he often employed, and had received a lot when people didn't want to be outwardly rude to him. However, the reasons that the young woman in front of him had eluded him. Usually when he saw others wear such an expression on their face: it symbolized their own discomfort with his presence.

The young man bit down softly on his tongue to stilt the rise of the monster of his self-hatred. In return he put on his own "polite company face". He listened to what was said to him. It did seem that she was engaging herself in a similar activity to him. Or it was possible that she was saying that because she did not want help from someone like him. Dra-Vaerin decided it was better to take her words at face value rather than try to read into them. That would lead him down a destructive path.

"Ah, please forgive me then for my mistake. I am quite new to the city myself, so I find myself looking lost too often." He replied, adding an intentional airy element of self-depreciation in order to appear more humorous than he usually was.

He glanced upwards to look at the shining sky. It was a vivid and beautiful shade of blue today that was offset by the golden light of the mid-afternoon. Such light was such a world away from the dim glow that lit Kalinor. This sent a sharp needle through his sternum, to his heart, and then his stomach. Such was the intensity of his longing for his home. He returned his violet eyed gaze to the taller woman.

"Yes, I agree enda. It is quite a magnificent day. To spend it indoors would be unfortunate. I am doing the same thing, actually. Although where I am from, we do not experience this kind of weather..."
He did not mean to become as candid and wistful as he did. In fact, he was shocked that he had let such a personal aspect of himself out like that. It was hardly like him at all. He had even referred to this young woman by a Symenos honorific, which while polite and befitting of their relationship still marked him out as different. However, he could not take back what was said. He let out a soft chuckle, hoping that it softened some of the emotional undertones.