Open [The Seaside Market] You Cant Fix Everything All The Time

But sometimes you can make a difference, even if its a small one.

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[The Seaside Market] You Cant Fix Everything All The Time

Postby Anja Nightwatcher on October 31st, 2018, 10:41 pm

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A cool sea wind blew up from the coast as the quartet of humanoids and horses made their way to the Midnight Gem, chilling the now thoroughly soaked Anja. The Drykas hadn't had many occasions to have had baths since he had come to Sunberth, and the man now found grime coming clinging to the tips of his fingers as he ran his hands through his wet hair. It wasn't quite as bad as their white friend’s coat had been, but it still gave Anja occasion to wince. It was fortunately still Summer, even if they were on the tail end of it, so at least there wasn't much of a chill in the air.

Maisa suddenly picked up the pace as the group approached, and Anja had to hold back a chuckle as she rushed ahead of the group and waited impatiently at the gate for Kelski to open it, even scraping her hoof several times until the other three had caught up and Kelski opened the gate. Maisa gave a snort of approval and immediately thrust her head into the long grass. As Kelski ran inside for a blanket, Anja took some time to show the gelding the grass, and to stroke him and gently talk to him. Anja was not too terribly concerned about leaving the gelding; after all, Maisa was there and she would take care of him. After he had been given his blanket, Anja stroked Maisa and followed Kelski into the house.

Was it just Anja’s imagination, or could he feel the hairs on the back of his neck raise as he stepped into the interior of the Midnight Gem? Certainly he had thought about this building often after Kelski had spoken to him about it. A building that was alive? That attracted ghosts? It was fascinating. Anja couldn't be sure his own anticipation was affecting his perception of the place, but if he had to guess...yes. There certainly seemed to be something about the Gem.

A smile flitted across his face as he looked around. There was something comforting about the building. Anja felt a similar sense of ease around graveyards and ghosts, near opposite to that of the feeling of those who had no been marked by the Goddess of Death. The Gem was different though. There was a sense of ease about the place, a warm sort of engaging and nurturing comfort. It reminded him a bit of Kelski actually. A mother bird sheltering her chicks from a cold wind blazing off the cliffs. The shade of a tree’s canopy in a rainstorm. Outside Sunberth might want them to die, but here at least there was a little slice of solace.

Anja hadn't even realized how tense he was, how much pressure simply living in Sunberth had put on him, until now. He suddenly and unexpectedly felt safe and the contrast between now and then was staggering. Anja felt a sigh of relief leave him, and he smiled at Kelski’s introduction. “It’s very nice to meet you, Gem.” Anja said. It was a bit odd talking to a building, but Anja talked to corpses, horses and dead people so it really wasn't that much of a switch from the usual. He started as the fire roared up in response and stared in wonder, first at the fireplace and then at Kelski. “Extraordinary,” was all Anja could think to say.

The feeling of comfort only multiplied as Kelski led Anja through the house, and the Spiritist found himself noting all the locations of the house with a kind of dreamy detachment. By the time Kelski had sat Anja down and put a kettle of water on for tea, he was more or less back to normal but that sense of warmth and comfort remained. Anja removed his coat and sash and put them next to the fire and watched curiously as the flames adjusted in intensity to warm them. He set out his carried items nearby; he sword he lay beside the hearth, as well as his usual three vials of soulmist. He returned to his seat and listened as Kelski questioned him further about horses.

“The Jolly Good Stables,” Anja said. “It’s in the Sun’s Refuge, part of the Sun’s Birth territory I believe but they don't mind serving others. The woman who runs the stable is named Tierra. She is a Drykas like me. I helped her with a ghost, so if you tell her you’re my friend, she should be kind to you. She’s a good sort. Practical. Cares about her horses. I suspect she’ll be appalled by the treatment of our white friend out there. A shelter is a good idea.” Anja felt a small twang of guilt as he thought of Maisa. The mare tended to disappear when it rained, so Anja suspected she had found some form of shelter, but it had not been one that he had been able to provide for her. He always worried during storms. “I think Maisa might make use of such a shelter as well, if you built one,” Anja added. “Striders don’t do so well being locked in a stable, so she finds her own shelter when it rains. I would feel better knowing she was somewhere safe.” He smiled at bit at Kelski’s musing. “If you could afford it, I think he’d be happier to be close to you.”

Anja chuckled a bit as Kelski mentioned it being easier if he were an eagle. It reminded him again of a bird gathering her chicks under her. “I don't know much about falconry I’m afraid,” Anja told her. “But food, comfort, shelter, love… yes, I would say those are the essentials. It’s what all people need, right? Animals are no different.”

Anja took the cup of tea that Kelski handed him and blew carefully on the top of it before taking a sip. The drink warmed him from the inside and was pleasant both in scent and taste. How long had it been since he had been able to drink tea? Not since Zeltiva at least. Well over two seasons.

“I’d love to stay and talk, Kelski. I enjoy our talks. They come about very naturally, don't they?”

Anja could feel the creaks and aches in his body start to ease from the warmth of the fire and the comfort of the chair he was sitting in. Kelski’s talk of an egg pie drew an intrigued eyebrow raise from the Drykas. “We don't eat eggs very much in Endrykas, not unless we’re traded them. Cheese and milk yes, but not eggs. I wouldn't know what to think of a pie baked from eggs but I’d be happy to try it.” In truth Anja didn't eat desserts very often either. Sugar and flour were not easy to aquire in Endrykas, nor were the utensils for baking. Anja found the idea of such a thing very odd, but he would never refuse food, certainly not food that was being kindly offered by a friend. “I’d be happy to help you,” Anja added. “I know next to nothing about cooking, but I take direction very well.” He added the last part with a gentle smile.

As he settled into his seat and the house settled around him in turn, Anja found himself unable to keep from glancing around his surroundings. “It really is strange Kelski,” Anja told his friend. “I’m not sure what it is about your Gem, but I really do feel at ease here. There’s something about this house that comforts. That’s not just me is it? We Eiyons feel at ease around ghosts and death and this feels a bit like that, but also different. It’s difficult to put my finger on the why, but I can feel it all around here.” The Eiyon smiled faintly. “Perhaps it’s just my imagination. It’s hard not to expect something spectacular after what you told me.”
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Anja Nightwatcher
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[The Seaside Market] You Cant Fix Everything All The Time

Postby Kelski on November 28th, 2018, 1:20 am

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Kelski appreciated that Anja took her word that The Gem was alive at face value. She was also happy that The Gem itself reacted favorably to the guest. It felt curious, observant, and pensive all at the same time. It also felt pleasure that Anja introduced itself. It wanted to introduce itself right back, but its frustration was that it could find nothing to do in order to show its appreciation. It had no magical abilities to light candles or hearths. Someone would have had to induct it into reimancy and introduce Res into its system for that to be a reality. It could encourage air down its hearth to heat the fire hotter and increase its internal temperature, but other than that, there was no true way for The Gem to actually communicate to others.

That fact gave Kelski pause and she decided she’d have to figure out a way to give The Gem a voice of some kind in case it wanted to greet someone or get someone’s attention other than her own. Kelski reassured the structure, sending out mental comfort and communicating that she’d work on the problem that it could not discuss things in the way creatures different than it did. There had to be a solution, something that could be worked out so The Gem had a voice. She just had to figure out what.

“In fact, maybe you can help me out with a problem I’m thinking The Gem has been having. It wants to communicate, to have a voice, but for the life of me I cannot think of a way to give it a way to do so. There are magical things I can do that will eventually let it play with the elements but there’s no way currently that I can think of to let it have a voice. You work with horses, or your people have, but they can make expressions and vocalize their displeasure or show affection…. How does one give a building a voice? How does one let a building show these sort of things?” Kelski mused, half to herself and half to Anja, wondering if he had any ideas.

At the hearth, Kelski nodded to the fire. “If its already burning, The Gem can direct more wind down its chimney to stoke the fire or if I have left coals banked and fresh wood in the hearth it can light the fire back up with careful direction of the airflow in the chimney. It’s been practicing. But someday I’ll see to it that it can start and stifle fire at will, but that means teaching it magic… and I want it to be a bit older first. Right now, instead of setting things on fire I would prefer it would make music or work on sound.” Kelski said softly, laughing lightly at herself since she was referring to a building as if it were a child.

Then she froze. “Sound. I wonder if there’s a series of chimes I could hang or something… construct something for it to ring and teach it a meaning to each noise so it has some sort of voice. Like maybe a set of chimes for yes, one for no, one for pleasure, one for concern…. I dunno? What do you think?” Kelski said, loosing herself in thought for a moment, then meeting Anja’s gaze curiously.

Then she smiled brighter. “I can talk to you. You are probably the easiest person I’ve ever met to talk too. I seriously mean that. It’s no wonder you take care of ghosts and help them…” She added, tilting her head and looking very serious in what she was saying.

“I think its partially because of The Gem, but in all honesty I think its because this place is a home too. Home has a powerful meaning to me. I’ve lived a relatively short time on this world, but for all of it I’ve never had a true home. My last place of residence was a spare room surrounded by tools where I slept in the bottom of a wardrobe all curled up. There was no room to stretch out, but I felt safe there with the doors closed. When I first moved here and the workers moved the bed in the main master suite, I had a hard time sleeping in it. It was too soft, too big, too overwhelming. I would more often sleep here in front of the fire or on the roof in my eagle form. I didn’t feel safe and I was so so alone. Ebon being here helped, but his pain was so tangible…. and not something I could understand… having never been bonded and having lost that bondmate.” It seems everyone here, for the most part, is here because they needed a safe place to stay. Kelski didn’t know how to word it though.

“This place seems to attract the lost. I like it though. Ebon and Ember live here… Ebon mans the shop for me and Ember is my niece who’s visiting… she’s a kelvic mouse so she is growing up fast. Duncan and his bondmate, another Kelvic named Lia live here. He’s part of the security. Kynier lives here too. I think he just moved here because of me. Sometimes the others annoy him though I think they are growing on him. And despite that, we still have plenty of room for more. There’s empty rooms and a large guestroom. When The Gem gets older, it will rearrange itself from what I know… from what I’ve read and what Ember has told me. She lived in a castle that was like The Gem. So… I look forward to that… coming home and having the place remodeled overnight without having to pay contractors.” Kelski said with a smile, shifting in her seat to fold her legs under her.

“What do you like to eat? I told you what I was making for dinner… I’ll probably make two of them or more since the men eat a lot here. But do the Drykas have favorite foods too? I eat a lot of fish and clams… I love clams… and bread. But I’m not sure what else others like. I’m trying to explore more food choices.” She said, knowing feeding everyone here was a challenge, especially since they all couldn’t and wouldn’t eat mystery stew nightly. Kelski didn’t mind a pot full of mice for meat, but with Ember living here she couldn’t feed mice to a mouse and it felt disrespectful. Maybe Anja would have some food ideas.

And so Kelski spent the rest of the day cooking and speaking with Anja. The two of them occasionally checked on the horses, but all and all the afternoon lazed away and gave them both a chance to relax, eat, and work out some kinks such as where a barn would be positioned well. And after talking with Anja, Kelski decided each stall would have doors that could be opened and closed with the ease of a soft horses' nose so that the animals could come and go as they wanted too. Though she'd decided she'd like the option to lock a barn door in case something like a cow came to live there that didn't have Maisa's intelligence. After a few quick sketches, and some more planning, both called it a day.

Count: 1100
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They laugh at me because I am different.
I laugh at them because they are all the same.


Painted Sky Jewelry (The Wildlands) | Crossroads Jewelry (The Outpost)
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Kelski
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[The Seaside Market] You Cant Fix Everything All The Time

Postby Kelski on December 24th, 2018, 11:37 pm

G R A D E S
Kelski

Tactics +2, Acrobatics +2, Dagger +3, Logic +4, Unarmed Combat +1, Planning +2, Philosophy + 1, Interrogation +4, Leadership +2, Animal Husbandry +2, Hostessing +2, Architectrix +2

Acrobatics: Dodging A Whipping, Acrobatics: Taking A Whipping Safely, Moth: Young, Moth: Part Strider, Moth: Overgrown Hooves, Anja: Can Evaluate Horses For Injury, Maisa: A Four-Footed Person, Philosophy: Justifying Killing An Animal Abuser, Striders: Drykas’ Ancestors, AH: Bathing Horses, AH: Cleaning Hooves, Jolly Good Stables: Location/Layout/Who Runs It, Architectrix: Chimes To Give The Gem A Voice

Anja

Animal Husbandry +3, Riding +1, Observation +3, Socialization +5, Investigation +1, Interrogation +1, Medicine +1, Teaching +5, Planning +5, Logic +3, Leadership +4,

Animal Husbandry: Morning Care Of a Horse, Riding: Navigating Sunberths Streets On Horseback, Medicine: Examining A Horse For Injury, Socialization: Conveying Vocally What You See, , Moth: Young, Moth: Part Strider, Moth: Overgrown Hooves, AH: Bathing Horses, AH: Evaluating Horses (Temperament, Age, Uses), Ebon: Kelski’s Healer Friend, AH: Cleaning Hooves, Teaching: Advice On Horses, Teaching: Teaching A Person With No Horse Knowledge Almost Everything A Beginner Needs To Know To Keep A Horse, The Midnight Gem: Introduction/Location/Atmosphere/Layout, The Midnight Gem: Comforting Mother-hen Feeling Place.




PM me with questions or concerns.
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They laugh at me because I am different.
I laugh at them because they are all the same.


Painted Sky Jewelry (The Wildlands) | Crossroads Jewelry (The Outpost)
User avatar
Kelski
Freedom is earned. Fight for it.
 
Posts: 1598
Words: 2015452
Joined roleplay: July 3rd, 2014, 11:08 pm
Location: The Wildlands of Sylira & The Empyreal Demesne
Race: Kelvic
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Plotnotes
Medals: 11
Featured Character (1) Featured Thread (2)
Mizahar Grader (1) Trailblazer (1)
Overlored (1) Donor (1)
One Thousand Posts! (1) One Million Words! (1)
Sunberth Seasonal Challenge (1) Power Fork (1)

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