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Grudges
Jan 29, 2015 22:08:57 GMT -6
Post by Aalis Fairclaw on Jan 29, 2015 22:08:57 GMT -6
'Can walls hold grudges?'
While she worked, the thought stayed in Aalis' mind. Through the newly grown foliage that now made up most of the building, the charred blackness could still be seen on the stone, a silent testament. It was disconcerting, and whenever Aalis found herself idle, she took to cleansing the soot from everything she could. Yet still it lingered. Everywhere. Haunting her all throughout her shift. She had never liked fire. Though it was comforting to sit by a fire, and though it was life sustaining in the winter months, fire was a fearsome thing. She'd seen the destruction it could cause more than once before, and spending her days surrounded by reminders was suffocating.
With the bare minimum of courtesy excepted of her, she moved through the motions of her job. The tavern was gloomy today, though some customers showed some energy and interest at the new theme of living vegetation. Most seemed content to stare gloomily into the tankards she brought them. Given the fact that it wasn't a busy time of day, still relatively early, she was working alone. And as of yet, there hadn't been anything even relatively stirring. No arguments, no drinkers cut off, no sleepers, no rowdy gaggles, not even any music.
At the thought, her ocarina seemed to grow heavier on the string around her neck. Aalis sighed, and touched it lightly with her hand, before moving on with her work.
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Grudges
Jan 30, 2015 21:19:50 GMT -6
Post by Sarea Riel Dirao on Jan 30, 2015 21:19:50 GMT -6
The Hammer Tavern was so different. So empty. So dark. Void of any joy and merry, replaced only by a monotonous aleatoria of common noise and a dull gray and brown palette.
No music.
That was why the bard usually came to this place, her violin under her arm, her flute in her satchel, and her leather boots caked in frost. Without a home now, having been forced out of the Dragonsreach due to her...well, her mistake, she'd been moving around far more, much like in the time before she settled. She should have been used to the constant wandering, the meeting of new people on the road that would offer her shelter and aid, the wind nipping her pointed ears.
Perhaps it was the cold that made it more difficult in Wildgard. Or perhaps she'd remained static for too long. Settling down with Jennis in a house not two hours a walk from the village theatre might've seemed like the most blissful and lovely idea at the time--
Sarea shook the thoughts out of her head, not wanting to question having married her one and only love. Yet it was that love that had gotten her into so much trouble already. It was her love that played its part in removing her from the only place she could call home.
She sat down at a table, her fingers itching to pull at the strings of the violin that she carried with her. She remembered when she would sit at these tables and watch the patrons of the tavern squeal and roar in delight, the hearth keeping them warm and the company of friends and loved ones keeping them warmer. Mead filled their bellies, bread and butter stuffed their mouths, and when the time was right, someone would remember that Sarea was the bard who always played dancing songs and laments in the late hours, when merrymaking was most powerful.
But now...nothing.
She reached out and waved for the barmaid-a cat kintu, by the looks of her, and not too unattractive either.
"Could I get a meal, please and thank you?" she asked, her feet to sore to get up and order something herself. She couldn't take her eyes off of the woman, despite how much she wanted to. |
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Grudges
Jan 30, 2015 22:21:16 GMT -6
Post by Aalis Fairclaw on Jan 30, 2015 22:21:16 GMT -6
Aalis had her hair up, since he hadn't bathed in a few days. In the winter, heating up water was a lot of work, and leaving the bath was always so cold and miserable. Still, she kept clean and well scented with oils. However, that didn't stop her hair from becoming somewhat limp and greasy. So she braided it up, a french braid that wrapped horizontally around her head, like a multicoloured crown of hair. It was one of her favourite hairstyles, because it framed and accented her ears nicely. Her hair was one of her favourite things about herself, because of how it rippled with all the different colours of her calico genes. Whenever Aalis remembered the days her hair had caused her difficulty, when she had to hide her race, and how her strange hair colouration always made her stand out... it always only made her more proud when she could show it off.
At the moment when Sarea walked in, Aalis had just been securing a few loose strands of hair back into her braid, staring into the side of the metal tankard she was using as her mirror. With a slight blush, she immediately dropped her hands, and busied herself again. She really didn't mean to seem vain. In honesty, she wasn't. It was more of a perfectionist thing. If she was going to bother doing her hair, then it was going to continue to bother her so long as it wasn't just right.
Quickly finishing up whatever task it was that she was pretending to do with the tankards in front of her, she then turned and headed over to where the newcomer had decided to seat herself. As she drew closer, Aalis noticed the violin and her ears twitched forward, marking her curiosity. However, he pushed her thousands of questions out of her mind, in favour of one.
"What exactly would you like to eat?" she smiled, "There's a stew made, a few types of bread, salted meats, and some spit roasted pork."
As she did her job calmly and politely - though somewhat more politely than she had earlier - she thoughtlessly cradled and played with the alto ocarina that rested on her chest with one hand. Beneath her layers of skirts, her tail swishes back and forth, curling and uncurling around one of her ankles, and occasionally peeping out from beneath her longest layer.
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Grudges
Jan 30, 2015 23:01:36 GMT -6
Post by Sarea Riel Dirao on Jan 30, 2015 23:01:36 GMT -6
Sarea smiled at the barmaid sheepishly; of course she'd be stupid enough to just order a meal and not anything in particular. Despite the fact that she'd been eating meals of fruit, vegetables, and any wheats that she could buy with the small amount of money she'd been making doing various odd jobs, she should've still maintained a thread of decency.
"Um..." she hesitated, wondering what it was that she actually wanted. "The stew sounds wonderful...and...well, if you have red wine?...Please and thank you." She hung her head shamefully, embarrassed by her performance with this lovely girl, and partially shameful that she found this lovely girl lovely at all.
Recently, most of her performances had been embarrassing and shameful, with a few ending poorly. She spoke with such a frightened tone that people often assumed that she was up to something, and was the target of many suspicious rumours; her hand in killing Idina wasn't any help for them. Without a proper home, she had to repeat songs that she'd written and performed already, and her mind couldn't think of any new ones on the spot as she used to be able to. Only recently had she ventured to the Rusty Claymore and been offered a job at a local brothel, and with the small amount of money that she had, she actually was beginning to consider it.
"You can take as much time as you need," Sarea muttered to the barmaid. "I'm sorry, what was your name?" |
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Grudges
Jan 31, 2015 2:52:48 GMT -6
via mobile
Post by Aalis Fairclaw on Jan 31, 2015 2:52:48 GMT -6
"Oh, it's alright, I'll be right back. The stew is already made and kept hot. Fresh from this morning." she replied. Then started to turn away, and paused to look over her shoulder. "And I'm Aalis Fairclaw. Travelling name, Ally Cat."
As she wisked away, skirts whirling, she hoped that giving the girl her travelling name was a good enough hint about her being a bard as well. The brief manner of her reply, and her quick retreat, gave her time to think about who this girl might be. Aalis didn't pay much attention to the populace of Wildgard. There was too much drama to even bother. However, it was different with the musical population. Aalis knew she'd seen the elven bard before, and hoped that by the time she returned with the order, that she would remember her name. Being able to identify the stranger by name might be a boost of confidence. It was a gramble though, since it was possible it would only make her even more humble and shy.
She filled a tankard with wine first, before spooning out a bowl of soup, so that it was as hot as possible. Then she cut off a chunk of bread, though it wasn't asked for. Humming quietly through a smile, she brought the soup and bread over to the bard's table. Then mentally cursed herself, "Ahh, forgot the wine, just a second."
Blushing at her thoughtlessness, Aalis skittered back to where she left the tankard. She'd been so busy trying to remember the bard's name that she was nearly making a fool of herself. Sighing, she returned with the wine.
"Sorry, forgot I had two hands for a minute there. Here y- aughhh!"
Just as she neared the table, Aalis' heel got caught in a crack in the floorboards. She stumbled forwards, and tried to catch the tankard before it spilled all over the table. She managed to succeed in that endevor, and it spilled all over herself instead. Both her sleeves, and the entire front of her white blouse, were now clinging to her skin, almost as bright a red as her face. Her mouth gaped open, and she let the now empty tankard drop to the floor with a clatter.
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Grudges
Feb 1, 2015 21:26:52 GMT -6
Post by Sarea Riel Dirao on Feb 1, 2015 21:26:52 GMT -6
Sarea sat patiently at her table as Aalis hopped away, watching her tail as it flicked out from under her layers of skirts. What actually caught her mind, however, was the mentioning of her traveling name, Ally Cat. Now Sarea wasn't a veteran of the Western World she found herself in, but she knew a bard's stage name when she heard one. Perhaps this was what was attracting Sarea to the barmaid.
If that was the case, it was working.
Blushing, Sarea hid her head under her hood as she waited, not wanting to be noticed by anyone else. She was the liveliest bard once, and if anyone were to ask her for a tune or a dance, they would more than likely be disappointed.
Ally Cat finally returned to the table carrying Sarea's meal-and an extra piece of bread, which made Sarea both happy and perplexed as she hadn't ordered a piece of bread. However, before the bard could mention anything, like a thanks, inquiry about the bread, or a comment about her traveling name, the barmaid seemed to stumble before the seemingly hot liquid splashed all over her, making her clothes sag against her skin and bringing a look of worry to Sarea's face.
"Oh no!" she cried out, placing her instruments on the ground beside her chair and racing to Aalis' aid. She brought up her left index finger and began to mutter the beginnings of an incantation into her slightly green ring. Her hand hovered above Aalis' shirt as the liquids began to pull from it, mildly remedying the situation. However, her shirt was still plastered to her chest, causing Sarea to blush again. She caught herself quickly and, realising how she was holding the barmaid by the waist.
"I'm sorry," she whined as she withdrew. "I wish there was more I could do about this." |
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Grudges
Feb 8, 2015 23:39:46 GMT -6
Post by Aalis Fairclaw on Feb 8, 2015 23:39:46 GMT -6
Wide eyed and drenched with red wine, Aalis was frozen like a statue for a long minute. She stared blankly at the table, almost not noticing Sarea's actions.
Almost.
When the other girl came close to her, hovering a hand over her chest, and placing the other hand on her waist, Aalis felt every hair on her body stand on end. Her flesh prickled as if she was cold, while her face grew even warmer. Tail puffed up, and hands fumbling to draw up her over skirt to cover her chest, she meekly stepped away. "N-no. Don't, ah, sorry, no. Don't be. This.. aaaaugh, my fault, I-I-I'm sorry." she stuttered. She felt her heartbeat pulse through her body, and looked around the room for an escape, instead realizing that she had made herself a bigger spectacle than she thought.
There were heads turned in her direction, and all of what little conversation had been present earlier had ceased. Eyes were turned on her from every direction. And while some seemed concerned or sorry for her, most were filled with mirth. Aalis clapped a hand over he mouth, unsure if she was stifling a gasp, a sob, or hysterical giggling. It was all she could do to try and gather her skirts (and the remains of her dignity) and storm out of the room. It was only when she'd made it into the back store room that she realized she'd snatched Sarea's wrist in her escape, and had pulled her along.
When they were well away, she paused and turned back to the girl, not even sure what to say. 'Why did I drag her back here? I'm so stupid. What am I doing. Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid.'
"I. Uh. I'm sorry." she blurted, "I don't know... What do I do? I'm the only one working right now. I can't leave the tavern with no one to watch it for long. And I don't have anything else to wear here. It went up in the fire. All my things are with Guile." At this point, she was more babbling to herself. "I have to find something else to wear to finish my shift, but what...?" Burying her face in her hands, she pressed her palms in her eye sockets, seeing blotches of colour in her vision. Then he pushed them up, and over her hair, feeling the dozens of stands that has come loose form her braid, creating a frizzy halo around her head.
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Grudges
Feb 9, 2015 21:14:44 GMT -6
Post by Sarea Riel Dirao on Feb 9, 2015 21:14:44 GMT -6
The Wod Elf bard nearly yipped in surprise when Aalis grabbed her wrist and pulled her away from her spot, but knew to keep her mouth shut; after all, with all the people looking at the two girls already, she'd best not draw any more attention.
Alley Cat's hand on her wrist, however, was soft. The situation was desperate for the kintu, in relation to how the night could have gone, but the one thing that kept Sarea from fighting away from her grip was the softness of her hand. The only thing keeping her from running back and grabbing her instruments before heading away from the embarrassing situation was her soft hand.
Soon, Sarea found herself panting right beside Aalis, in the darkness of a store room, with her companion shuddering beside her, whimpering about having no clothes to wear.
Quickly, Sarea removed her cloak and suede red vest that she wore overtop her camisole and placed it around the shoulders of the kintu. "Here," the elf told her kindly. "Wear these. They're not quite perfect, but I hope you can manage."
She smirked lightly as she looked around the store room. "Good little hiding place you have here," she joked, blushing slightly as she swayed her hips from side to side, her skirt flowing and bouncing slightly. "Is this where all bards are supposed to hide?" |
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