Blackfridayrule

The Tree of Astra (LadyAnnaLee and Blackfridayrule)

Ridahne followed Darin back to the little shaded room where the bird was being kept. She was normally a light footed person anyway, but without shoes (which she still hadn't bothered to put back on) she was nearly silent without much effort. That was due in part to her training but also elves had a natural inclination for it. The elderly jokingly said that was because elves were 'pulled skyward' at all times while humans were drawn to the stone. Once, Ridahne asked about Sirens and was told, "Have you ever seen them move, child? They are themselves like water; equally at home in either land or sky. They are both the oceans and the rain, child. They are the rivers and the mist."

"Arm..." she muttered, still sort of trying to grasp Darin's reasoning for the name. But she shrugged. If she liked it, then that was all that mattered really. She stepped softly inside and spoke to the hawk in Azurian.

"You've had a hard day, sharp-eyed one." Ridahne came near but still kept some distance between them and she knelt to be closer to his eye level. "Are you called Taja? Yes, I think you are. I am called Ridahne. Darin is your keeper. It is fortunate the winds brought you here, Taja. You will be well kept." Ridahne was taught that it was proper to speak to animals and to treat them with great respect, so she cooed softly to him.

Ridahne looked up and turned to Darin. "Isfa'ali? Fire-bread? That's what toast is, right?" She chuckled. "You could name him toast. Or in the Azurei fashion, fire-bread." Her tone was a bit flat, but she had a smirk on her face that showed her teasing sarcasm. "But I think Taja is better, you're right." Her smile broadened.

Ridahne rose slowly and shook her head. "Trust me," she said with a kind of bitter laugh, "I don't have any plans to go straight back home. To be honest with you I am both yearning for and dreading that day all at once. When it comes, it will be..." She inhaled a breath and let it out in a huff, "Well...it will be a lot. For both of us. All of my personal baggage aside, it's going to be different than going other places. The entire Court of Sols at the least will know my purpose and thus, who and what you are. And there's no telling what kind of word got around to the common folk about the traitorous murderer called to accompany the Seed-Bearer. One look at my ojih and I think a lot of people will put it together. You won't be able to hide so much out there. Neither of us will."

Ridahne sighed with a kind of exhausted air. "What's more, you can bet that we'll be brought to the Court. I at least will have to go in order to get a nimarih." Ridahne shaped her fingers like a circlet and mimed putting on her head. "Or else every eija and eija-alihn, every taja and every able-bodied do-gooder would pounce on me like hunting cats, and I'd be endlessly harassed, potentially assaulted, definitely arrested, and likely refused service anywhere and everywhere. I have to get a symbol to show I have leave to be there and to be alive." She made a grim expression. "Azurians do not take kindly to betrayal, and especially not regicide, and I can guarantee you most people won't even know half the story." She set her jaw and a kind of cold fierceness settled on her. "Every story needs a villain. And the best villains are the ones that are the most believable. What's more believable than a beloved leader assassinated by a depraved madwoman? Even with a nimarih it's going to be..."

Ridahne turned away. There was anger in her voice but it wasn't directed at Darin, nor was it directed at the people of Azurei. If they did not know the truth, how could she blame them for filling in the story? If she had served a Sol who was just and honorable and good, and she had been assassinated, Ridahne would be outraged too. She was angry at fate--no. No. She was angry at Khaltira-Sol. And for the first time, right there in the shadowed little room, Ridahne realized that. Not at herself. Not at fate. Her. She whom Ridahne had served and protected, defended and obeyed.

The elf's hand was coiled around her other arm like a rope, her knuckles white from the effort. And with her back to Darin she took forcibly controlled, deep breaths. One. Two. Three. Four. And then, straightening her shoulders and lifting her chin with the pride and fierceness of the ocean in storm, Ridahne released her grip on her own arm and turned back to face Darin. Her amber eyes were bright with the threat of tears that had not yet fallen. But everything else about her was the picture of control, poise, and dignity. She'd been taught over the decades to never let anyone see her waver or fall. Physically, emotionally, or otherwise. None but a select few like her family or Ajoran. And, she supposed, Darin ought to be added to that list at some point. But old habits live long and die hard. So she swallowed her rage, her fear, and the crushing weight of loss like she'd been taught. "No," she said, her voice even. "I don't intend to go back to Azurei in anything resembling a straight line. We'll end up there eventually I think, but we have all of Eluri to wander first. If fate is good to us then we won't have to go there at all, but I have a feeling we will someday. And..." She took a slow breath and, recalling that Darin mentioned a desire to learn Azurian she said, "J'tuli ali'han--If I show my heart, or as you say, to be honest...I...have a lot of healing to do before I am ready to go back. I think I understand that now." She released a breath she didn't know she was holding. That was harder to admit than she thought.

Ridahne shrugged, and with that shrug she attempted to release some of the tension she still felt within her. "Day after tomorrow is fine by me. You are the one with the mission, after all. My mission is simply to keep you safe wherever you are. And anyway, it will be good to be indoors among friendly company for a while. There's no telling how long it will be before we find that again. But we should use that time wisely."

The Tree of Astra (LadyAnnaLee and Blackfridayrule)

No worries mate!

The Tree of Astra (LadyAnnaLee and Blackfridayrule)

Ridahne offered a little smirk. "You are a better patient than most. When I was younger I hunted for my family out in the Dust Sea. I got to know it very well, and I learned how to survive. So I made a living guiding people through it, for a while. Sometimes I would go out on a hunt and find some poor soul who tried to cross it themselves without knowing what they were doing. Or some who did, but fortune was not on their side. One man was cut up badly and I had to sew him up in a couple spots. Both my cat and I had to sit on him to keep him still because he kept squirming and screaming." She laughed. "He was fine in the end. I saw to that. But he was a big strong man, and he did worse than you."

Ridahne was cleaning her supplies and putting everything neatly into its place in her kit as she listened to Darin. She wasn't sure what she expected the girl to say the bird's name was, but 'Taja' was not on the list of likely possibilities. The elf's face went studiously blank as she stopped and looked at her companion. "Arm? You want to name him 'Arm'?" She blinked rapidly but quickly added, "I mean, you can. There's nothing against it and if that's really what you want to name him, then okay. But just as long as you know what it means." She smiled, actually showing teeth this time. "Ajoran might have a few things to say about that, but he doesn't get a say." Her tone was jesting, but as she thought of the man she loved, her smile faded. She tried not to think about him too much because it hurt when she did. It bothered her that Darin thought she'd abandoned him--it just wasn't like that.

It looked like she was going to clam up as usual, but surprisingly she opened her mouth to speak again. "Did I tell you he carved this himself?" She hooked a finger around the necklace she wore and pulled the pendant up from under her shirt. The carnelian spiral glinted in the sunlight, and in the solid circle in the center was a carved design highlighted in white paint that resembled the seahorse pin that fastened the rust-red sash around Ridahne's waist. "In Auzurei, we do not exchange rings. We exchange tokih." She tugged the large bone earring that dangled from her right ear and was embellished with fine scrimshaw. "See, the tokih represents your family and where you are from. It's how Tax knew I was a Torzinei without me telling him. Bone means I come from Atakhara. When a man wants to marry a woman in Azurei, he makes her a tokih to match his to show everyone that she is part of his family now. But he must carve it himself, and as he makes it he must think of her so that she will carry a symbol of his love for her. Carnelian is of Insmarr, in the mountains, but he wanted to keep my family name, so he put the Torzinei crest on it. If we marry someday, he will put one like it in his ear, and this one in mine, and he will be Ajoran Torzinei."

Her cheeks went red, and she put the pendant back under her shirt. "I don't know why I told you any of that. Anyway...you'll meet him someday soon when we go to Azurei." She wrapped up her kit and stood. "Let's go see your bird, yes? I'd like to properly meet him."

In Dark Seas We Sail

Rohaan just sort of shook his head and gave a distracted shrug. "Dunno...but I know whenever Berlin stands like an admiral instead of a pirate, somethin's up. Somethin' bigger than just another ship 'cause we just burn those." He said this casually. What else would one do with another ship? "Maybe...I think your lin...ment is gonna have to wait." The boy didn't move yet, but he didn't relax either and stood at the ready for whatever his Captain ordered. The command came even sooner than he thought.

--

Berlin waited in suspense as Pieter looked out at the anomaly on the horizon, and though he wouldn't have guessed it himself, Pieter's answer somehow didn't surprise him. That shape would be a dragon, wouldn't it? But then...he'd never once seen a dragon in these parts that wasn't Rohaan. And especially not one on the ocean and not one that...big. He was used to cyradan, which were somewhat small as far as dragon species went, so maybe that wasn't unusual. He didn't know. Really, he didn't know much about dragons, but he knew who did.

"Rheoaan!" It was an order. The lad knew it and sprang from Hana's side as a bird and glided from the aftdeck to where Berlin stood, crossing the space in the same amount of time it would have taken him to just reach the stairs if he'd walked. The boy shifted back and landed with a couple steps to stop his momentum and stood alert at Berlin's side. To his surprise, Berlin knelt down to his level. "Drop this and I'll kill you, lad," he said in a soft tone, holding out the spyglass. When Rohaan blinked up at him in confusion, he explained, "There's that dark shape out there, see? Take a look and tell me what you can see."
"Me?"
"Aye. You happen to be our dragon expert."

Rohaan's eyes widened in recognition and he nodded, carefully taking the device and fitting into his eye. He had about as much trouble as Pieter keeping it steady, so Berlin put a gentle hand over his to offer a bit more stability. The man knew that when the boy scowled, he'd found his mark.
"It's them! It's the gal..gal..."
"Galley, lad. Aye. But the dragon. Is that a dragon?"
"Uhm...well it looks like one. But not one I ever seen. It's real big. Like way big. And kinda weird colored but I seen 'em in lotsa colors so I dunno. Can I go? I wanna see it." And more grimly he added, "And I want to get them."
"There's more than likely live slaves on that ship. Do you want to burn them alive?"
Rohaan looked a little stunned; he hadn't thought of that. "No."
"Then go look. Don't get in over your head. We'll be on them in maybe an hour and a half or something and we'll engage them properly then. Aye?"
"Aye."

The young shifter hopped up onto the gunnel and vaulted off it; the boy's shape disappeared behind the side of the ship and what came back up was a cyradan, bioluminescent red stripes pulsing and flashing as he pumped his wings for more speed and altitude. Berlin watched him go and desperately wished he could have ridden on Rohaan's back to see for himself, but the lad was sore already from training and he would be faster and more agile alone. So he watched the sleek dark shape soar off towards the distant one, and when the vokurian was too far to see with the naked eye he watched through the spyglass.

--

Uban was perhaps the only person on the ship not at all concerned. He was too exhausted for it. Sending Rohaan out to investigate something wasn't that unusual either, so he didn't give that much thought. He sucked at his lime as he squinted out to the horizon, seeing nothing in particular of note yet. But squinting brought his eyelids even closer together, and they closed. "Mm, right," he said to Wheel through a lime wedge. He forced his eyes back open. Come to think of it, something did seem a bit off. The way Berlin and Pieter were standing made him sure of that. Curious... Unbidden, the memory of the encounter with the turtle came to his drifting mind and he softly muttered the last thing the turtle had said to them, "Watch out for a rotting eel..."

Uban fell asleep with a lime still between his teeth and his chin on his chest as his tin mug finally clattered to the deck and rolled away.

The Tree of Astra (LadyAnnaLee and Blackfridayrule)

Ridahne was unsurprised the hawk wasn't keen on going with anyone else. It was panicked clearly, but also Darin as the Seed Bearer had a connection with nature and animals that no one else did. It just seemed right to her, so when the human announced she was taking him with, Ridahne simply nodded. Besides, they were excellent companions and could be trained in a variety of tasks. Mitaja already hunted for Ridahne and sparing some for a hawk would be no big deal.

Ridahne went off to the kitchens and asked after the butcher to find some meat scraps cut into little chunks for the bird. It was rabbit, which was perfect. She wrapped the bits in a little piece of cloth and went upstairs to fetch her aid kit. Now that she thought about it, now would be the time to get anything that was running low replenished, so she took stock of what she had left and then went in search of more supplies. She'd hoped that with a group of Azurei living here, someone would have made the traditional salve already. After speaking with an Orosi man about it, he informed her that they had a large jar of salve, but it was not the Azurei variety. The Orosi also had a version that was honey based, though some of the other ingredients were different and, according to him, better. She refilled her wooden container with it and went out to find Darin.

She'd gotten even more cut up, and Ridahne made a mental note that if they were going to keep this bird, Darin needed some leathers. "Come, sit," she said in her no-nonsense kind of way as she spread her tools across a little table inside the farmhouse. Though the arm wound was by far the deeper and more severe, Ridahne simply put a cloth over it to stop the bleeding for the time being, and treated the cut on her face first. It didn't require stitches, but she made sure her face was clean before smearing the salve liberally over it. "Try to keep that on there as long as you can," she instructed, then lifted the cloth on her arm and began treating that.

Ridahne prepared the needle and thread, made sure the wound was good and clean, and then she took her flask of whiskey and set it on the table. "If you want it, do it now. I'll make Mitaja hold you down if you squirm..." Ridahne teased, smiling a little, then with steady hands she began to sew Darin back together. Evidently she'd done this many, many times and could do it quickly without her hands shaking. She tied off the knot, trimmed the thread, globbed on the salve, and wrapped the wound up in clean linen.

"There we go. Good as new. While we're at it, let's see your shoulder..." Ridahne hooked a finger around the collar of Darin's shirt and pulled it aside. It looked good for only being a few days old. And the stitches hadn't come out yet, which was impressive considering they'd been on the road. Ridahne nodded, satisfied, and put salve on that too. "By the Tree, I think you might just live." The delivery was dry but it was very clearly meant to be lighthearted. There was even a little smile on her face. "So, do you know much about hawks? I only know a little--only rich people back home kept them as partners. But I know they like rabbit. Here," She proffered the little cloth bundle of meat scraps. "Thought about what you'll name him?"

The Tree of Astra (LadyAnnaLee and Blackfridayrule)

Despite what Ridahne had said, she wasn't much of a sleeping in person. For years she had trained her body to wake early and typically that's what she did. This morning was different, however, and for once the elf actually slept in a little. Not terribly late, but later than usual. It felt good, especially after so long on the road and the events of the night before. Not to mention she really didn't get much sleep the night the two idiot horse thieves found them. It felt wonderful just to sleep without any worry. Eventually she did rise, and, still wearing her more traditional clothes she came down for a bit of breakfast. After eating, Ridahne went to go check on her animals. She had no doubt that they were well taken care of if not outright spoiled, but she learned long ago that animal partnership was not just about meeting basic needs. That was the first step, but it was important to connect to them on a personal level. She found Tsura chewing on some hay in the shade of a little open barn.

"Getting nice and fat, are we?" She teased in Azurian. The horse simply snorted and kept eating, so she combed through his black mane with her slim fingers. It was already very smooth and brushed, but she enjoyed the feel of his coat on her fingertips anyway. She took the opportunity to check his iron shoes and the health of his hooves too, as they had been on the road a long time and crossed all kinds of terrain. There would be more to come. Mitaja she found rolling in some cool grass not far from the farmhouse, pleased to be basking in the sun and also sleeping in late.

After that she wasn't sure what to do. She didn't see either Darin or Talbot but had no worry for them, not here, so she didn't pay that much mind. It felt strange to just stand there while all these people, who had shown her such excellent hospitality, were hard at work. But she looked over at the group of people pulling certain plants out of the ground and tossing them in wheel barrows, but they left others alone. The practice had a name, she knew...but what was it? In the region of Atakhara where she was from, the land was completely arid and sandy and outright terrible for growing anything but extremely hardy palm trees. And water was a commodity so no one in her village ever farmed, or at least not in the sense of working the soil. There was lots of livestock that was fed on hay or grain purchased from the northwest or brought in trade from the sea.

She walked up to a human man and asked, "What is it called, this thing you are doing?"
If he thought her question odd or naive, he made no sign of it. "Weeding," he said simply.
"Oh. Wee-ding. What is its purpose..?"
"There are some plants that spring up and grow very thick very fast. They can steal nutrients, water, and sunlight from the crops, so it's best to pull them out."
Ridahne nodded. "I see." And, meaning to help she said, "Like this?" But she reached down and curled her fingers around the base of a plant and pulled, and out popped a kind of squiggly, stringy little orange root that was not yet finished growing. Ridahne cringed. "Not those plants, I see...sorry..." and then a little awkwardly tried to plant it back into the soil. "I'll um...just leave you to it..." She offered, and backed away. They must know a lot about what plants look like what to know which to pull out and which to leave alone, she thought. She knew which ones would be useful in the wild and could identify those, but outside of that her knowledge of flora this far north was poor.

But then she heard a familiar sound, a rhythmic whack-thud sound that she knew at once. She found an Orosi woman with skin even darker than Ridahne's and short wooly hair cut neat and close to her scalp swinging an axe and making her way through a pile of logs to split. Ridahne approached her. "Do you have another axe?"
The woman smiled. "Yes, in the shed there. But don't feel like you have to join in the work. You have a long road ahead of you, Guardian."
Ridahne bowed slightly. "Nevertheless I will show thanks to my host with my hands." She went to fetch an axe and began splitting wood with the woman, stacking the firewood on a small cart. This was what she was doing when Darin returned with the hawk.

Ridahne saw her approach and set down the axe to go and meet her. At first she was looking at the hawk, but then she looked up to Darin's cut face and her eyes lingered there for a moment. She did not cluck over her like a worried mother, but there was an odd expression on her own face, and for a moment she actually shivered a little before forcing her eyes away from the cut and back to the hawk.

"Oh, what've we got here?" She cooed softly to the bird. She could see the way it held one wing and knew it was hurt; for a lot of birds, that spelled death unless someone intervened. But she had no doubts it would be taken care of. She spoke softly to it in Azurian, telling it that it was in good hands and was a handsome bird, and other such compliments. She looked up at Darin, though she pointedly looked into her eyes and not at her bleeding cheek. "Are you going to leave him in their care or bring him with you? Hawks are good partners if you befriend one. I assume this one tried to fight you a bit...? When you get him settled, there's a wooden container of salve in my saddlebags. You should put some on that cut."

The Tree of Astra (LadyAnnaLee and Blackfridayrule)

That she was supposed to be executed for the death of all three, not just the one.

The Tree of Astra (LadyAnnaLee and Blackfridayrule)

Oh trust me, I wouldn't do it if I thought it might make things worse. Acupuncture seriously produces shockingly good results and my last session was Tuesday and since then I've been doing markedly better than I have in months. And I'm basically out of braces and into supportive tape full time now which is amazing. So I'm alright to be typing. It's probably good for me to start doing low key tasks like typing again because I have lost strength especially in my left hand and need to build it back up. Might not get to post every day like I usually do but don't worry, I'm taking care of myself :D

The Tree of Astra (LadyAnnaLee and Blackfridayrule)

Ridahne's expression softened and she gave a very sad, very wry smile like it pained her to say it, but she answered with an obvious note of regret and sadness, "All three." The whole 'mission' to clear the court of Sols had been a doomed one and she'd always known it. There had been no legitimate option of escape for her and she'd accepted that...until she had that vision. "They were not unkind to me. They could have slain me the moment my ojih was marked but they let me live the night and it wasn't by accident that the guard posted to my cell was Ajoran." They'd both known it too.

And though she didn't say anything, there was a visible change in her posture when Darin implied that Ridahne 'belonged' to her. She looked proud. And like she'd never wanted to hear anything else. To her, having a place and a purpose was important. Ridahne did not mention that in elf culture, 19 was a child. Though Ridahne was nothing like Darin at that age, so she supposed humans aged a bit differently. And anyway, Darin was not a child. She resolved to find the balance between being a mentor when it came to certain areas and a guardian without demeaning her. They'd figure this out together, Ridahne had hope.

In the end, she merely offered the littlest quirk of a lopsided smile and gave a single gentle nod. They did not yet understand eachother completely, but they'd made some steps that night. "Personally? I'm exhausted," she said with a note of gentle dry humor. She was though. Mentally, emotionally, physically. She was ready for a little quiet time and then for an actual bed with an actual pillow instead of just her saddle. "I don't see any reason to rise especially early tomorrow. The road ahead will be easier if we are well rested and well fed, if you ask me." She then turned to Ravi and bowed low. "Thank you. You have been a most gracious host." With a silent nod of goodnight to Darin, Ridahne slipped away to first steal back onto the roof for a little bit, as she liked the solitude it bought her and she enjoyed the cool touch of the night air. And after a little silent contemplation, she slipped back inside and went to her bed where she fell asleep almost immediately.

The Tree of Astra (LadyAnnaLee and Blackfridayrule)

Heh, uh, mostly. Long story short I got tendinitis in my left hand about 4 months ago and have been fighting it since. On and off, my right hand started to go down that route since it got totally overworked but never quite 'there' yet. But last week it went right over the edge and into 'officially injured' territory. So I've been wearing a brace on my left hand on and off for the last 4 months and now one on my right hand, and its specifically the thumbs that are the problem. So my hands have been USELESS recently. Can't cook, can't clean, can't do anything. I'm a welder for a living so resting them has been extremely hard. But last week they started me on modified duty at work so I'm at a computer instead of hauling steel around so that's helped, and acupuncture has done wonders. I'm recovering slowly and am now to a point where if I'm really careful I can get away with just kinesthesiolopgy tape instead of braces. But the muscles in my hands have definitely atrophied a bit so I'm not as strong as I used to be. It will be a very long time until I'm totally normal again but I'm getting there.

Thankfully I can type again as long as I've been good and careful throughout the day, so I'm about to get you a post finally!! Yay!!