Potential Friends (Hadrian)

[L'orlei]

Potential Friends Timestamp: 45th of Spring, 512 AV Location: Near the Harbor "Yes, Mr. Franklin, that will be two gold mizas. All you have to do is rub that on your skin each morning and it should protect you from the sun." L'orlei handed the man a jar of paste, a simple concoction made from crushed up plants and some other ingredients that was designed to prevent sunburn. The man had been skeptical at first, unsure whether or not to trust her, since she didn't even have a proper shop, but somehow L'orlei had managed to convince him that the stuff was genuine. And it really wasn't all that expensive, so in the end the man had caved and bought some of the paste. L'orlei knew it would work, and hopefully he would be back for more, but it was a long journey to Zeltiva and he might not remember her by the time he found his way back to Mura. "Thank you, sir. You have a nice trip!" Syna would soon depart the sky and L'orlei knew it was time for her to go. The day had been slow, only a few travelers coming to and from the island, and even fewer had stopped to see what the girl sitting on her blanket was doing. L'orlei wasn't the best saleswoman, that was for sure. She didn't really know how to bring in the customers, though once they were there her shy attitude seemed to have a charm that usually won her a purchase or two. She wasn't really in it for the money, though. She was just trying to make enough to scrape by. Her real interest was in offering the people who came to see her something that could genuinely be helpful to them, even if they were just simple remedies for things like sunburn, seasickness, and things of that sort. L'orlei began packing up her things. She wasn't in any particular rush, there was still hope that she might catch a straggler or two before the sun set and she returned home. She packed up the things she knew she wouldn't sell, like the toolkits and the empty jars, first, but even with those she took her time. She would stay until the sun fully set, but then she would be on her way.

[Hadrian]

Mura. They had arrived on the White Isle. Hadrian had not gone far in his exploration when he came upon the young Konti packing up her things near the harbor, though he supposed she could be older than he was in terms of years if not biological maturity. He was glad for the piecemeal nature of their journey, catching ships that edged closer and closer to his goal of Zeltiva, giving the anthropologist in him time to study culture that he had mostly only read about, or visited in his more extreme youth. He was no great herbalist, and while he had shown a great talent for philtering, his interests had quickly led him elsewhere in his studies, so the wink of a bottle of this and the interesting color of that jar in the slowly waning light certainly caught his attention. His feet slowed and he called out a tentative greeting in Common, for Kontinese was not a language he commanded with any true skill other than a word or two that might keep him from dying in the right circumstances. "Hello," he said. "How is business?" It was the sort of question his father would have asked, and he supposed it had always worked well for Trajan Aelius, so it might as well for his son.

[L'orlei]

Hadrian Aelius The name rang in the back of her mind, as it did with every person she met, as soon as she turned to face the newcomer. He seemed friendly enough, and he didn't have the look of a sailor. He must have been a traveler then, which mean he probably had some mizas at his disposal, if he could afford to hire a boat for whatever journey he was on. The Konti was already packing away slowly, but when Hadrian walked up and asked about her business she stopped altogether. She was a little shy, and usually relied on her ability to know people's names to catch their interest, but this man had actually approached her himself. Maybe he would even buy something! "Oh, um.. it's going good. Things have been slow lately, because of the storm. But its picking up! Did you need anything? I have all sorts of stuff for a man on the go." L'orlei held up a small jar for Hadrian to see. It contained a slimey semi-clear goop that had little chunky bits of something in it. "This stuff will block the sun from burning you. Just smear it on and you'll be protected for a day. Um.. I've also got stuff to help sea sickness, and a few other things." Though it wasn't her first language, L'orlei was quite good at speaking in common when it regarded her shop. Most of the sailors she met spoke common, and while she didn't know all the words in the language, she certainly knew enough to sell her wares. OOCSorry for taking so long. Been busy with work and stuff, and then I had to catch up on all my mod posts. And sorry for the meh post, I'm still getting a feel for this PC.

[Hadrian]

"The storm has caused a great deal of problems," he agreed, glancing over her things. The sun balm, some bottles that might have been for the curing of seasickness. The former was more likely to tempt him than the latter, as he had his sea legs but generally didn't spend too much time on deck; his skin would burn. "Hm, perhaps." There was little he actually needed, but such might be useful all the same. He was more interested in Mura's secrets, but then those were generally difficult to ferret out, and if they had seen the storm coming, surely someone had seen him coming if he had any chance of learning those secrets. "What do you put in the sun blocker? I have been known to philter a thing or two myself. Professional curiosity, call it, though I haven't the means to make my own at this point and I promise not to set up shop in town to detract from your customers." Even the Konti seers had business, it seemed.

[L'orlei]

Unfortunately Hadrian didn't seem overly interested in buying anything, probably because most of what she had was crap. I really need to go practice making new things, she thought to herself as Hadrian glanced over her wares. Her shop was rather bare, on top of the fact that she didn't even have a real shop. Part of her didn't want to get a building because she didn't want to be tied down, but the other part of her just didn't have the mizas to do it. And she wouldn't have the mizas unless she made some sells, and she wouldn't sell anything if she didn't learn to make better products. So really, it all came down to the fact that she needed to stop dreaming about becoming a real Opal healer and just focus on what she knew she could actually achieve. L'orlei laughed shyly when Hadrian asked about her sun balm. She didn't usually give away her secrets, though she supposed it wouldn't harm to tell him a little of what went into it. And she didn't have to tell him what to do with it once he had the ingredients either. Besides, if she entertained him he might buy some. "Well.. um.. I don't know the names the plants in your language," she stated as she listed off a couple plants in Kontinese, "But one of the ingredients is bees wax. There are some oils that go into it, and there is a plant that is useful for treating burns that gets mixed in. There are actually lots of plants that can be used, but I don't know them all. They don't all grow on Mura, but one day I'd like to travel to other places and see them for myself." It was a dream of hers, yes, to travel the world, but she doubted she would ever see it come to fruition. L'orlei was tied to Mura because she couldn't let go of it. She wanted to be a member of the Opal Order, to travel the world seeking out the lost medical arts and helping people along the way. But she couldn't leave, she was waiting for her mother to return, even though she knew she probably never would. L'orlei just wasn't ready, she couldn't, let go and because of it she had pretty much put her life on hold. The storm had been a wakeup call, a kick in the butt telling her she needed to move on, but it was difficult to do so. But those were thoughts for another day. L'orlei had a sale to make!

[Hadrian]

"Ah," he said, nodding. "I need to learn Kontinese." But what she could tell him did align with what he remembered from classes on herbology and philtering. "I also need to practice my philtering, but I don't suppose I will have much opportunity here. How much are you selling your miracle sun cure. But is it a blocker or a balm? You've said both." By his observation, she was not lying, but perhaps flustered by his presence. He had spent a great deal of time as a boy watching his father negotiate deals, and almost always came out on top. He had no great desire to dicker with her here on the docks, but a block would come in handy when their ship left Mura, and she was the first person to speak to him since he jumped from ship to quay.

[L'orlei]

"Oh, I'm so sorry, it's a um.. block. Sometimes I get my words mixed up. It will block the sun from getting to your skin.. basically." L'orlei fumbled with the vial of sunblock for a moment, still a bit embarrassed by Hadrian's words. This was why her little shop was so unsuccessful, probably. She always got flustered when people tried to have a conversation with her. It was much simpler when her customers came up and were just business. She could talk pure sales and numbers, but Hadrian was asking her about how she did things and trying to have an actual conversation. But he was interested in the block! And finally she asked him something she could answer easily. "For two gold mizas you get a three ounce jar. All you have to do is apply a thin layer over the areas you want to block the sun from, and you'll be good to go, Mister Aelius." It dawned on L'orlei that she had used Hadrian's name without him ever having told it to her, but she just shrugged it off. Most of her customers were fascinated by her ability to know who they were, and since it was Mura, they really couldn't be all that surprised. Her people had a reputation for being psychic, though that wasn't quite the truth. Many people came to Mura just to see the Konti seers in action, not that L'orlei was a seer herself. She just knew people's names. OOCHardest part about writing this character is I know nothing about her profession, lol. I didn't even realize their was a difference between sunblock and balm and all that. I'm learning though. ^^

[Hadrian]

He nodded, understanding the difficulties of comparative linguistics only too well. "I apologize for coming to Mura without a grasp of your native tongue." But he took the jar to examine it; there was little really that he could tell from without, but he examined it all the same. How else could he learn? The Lormar symbol on the back of his left hand warmed as contact with that thing sent impressions of the Konti woman into his mind: her youth, her hesitation; her work ethic. Little details he learned, but nothing to write a home about. He began to smile when she said his name. Had they been in Syliras or Zeltiva, he might not have batted an eyelash at it, but in his travels, he had begun to develop aliases, the best to comply with MaeClair's instruction in intelligencing, and he had not yet decided whether to be Hadrian Aelius or to be Andry Ellis, to practice at that persona once more. He blinked at her, his eyes too bright. For a moment he wanted to make sure he had remembered to put his smallclothes on before his pants this morning, as a nanny from his youth had sewn his name into his underclothes, the better to keep them separated from those of his siblings when the time came to do laundry. But no... "How did you know my name?" he asked mildly. She was Konti, so it could probably be assumed, but he didn't like making assumptions. That made him miss things.

[L'orlei]

Of course he was curious, they were all curious, but hopefully he wasn't one of the ones who would be offended by her ability. Some people had a problem with her knowing their name, though L'orlei didn't really know why it mattered. Most people introduced themselves freely anyway, and L'orlei had yet to encounter someone who actually went by an alternate alias. Hadrian seemed like a friendly enough type, however. He certainly had a curious mind, so hopefully he wouldn't mind how she knew his name. "Oh, um, well.. it's my gift from the goddess. I sometimes forget I can do it, but I know everyone's name as soon as I see them. You're name is Hadrian Aelius. But don't worry, that's all I know. I can't see all your darkest secrets or anything like that." L'orlei smiled. Her joke wasn't very good.. or much of a joke, really, but a lot of people who came to Mura expected the Kontis to be able to see all sorts of things. Not all of them wanted it, either.. though she wasn't sure why someone would visit the island if they had secrets to hide. Thing's didn't really stay secret for long in Mura. The Konti were just a gossipy as any other race, if not more so. L'orlei eyed the jar Hadrian was holding, wondering if he was actually going to buy it, and realizing that he hadn't yet paid for it. She wasn't really worried that he might try to run off and forget to pay, but she'd heard of it happening before and the thought did cross her mind for the briefest instant. "So um.. was there anything else you were interested in? I was just packing up so I could go and get some food, but I can show you more if you want."

[Hadrian]

Behind his smile, an energy coiled up within his aura. No, Sondra was the one who read sin and spat it back in one's face, though he thought they had come to a sort of peace between them, however tenuous and unexpected. But names held power, even if they weren't a True Name, manifest in glyph or given the weight of the Celestial Language. The power uncoiled as he spoke, reverberating within his vocal folds, twining through his words and the space between them to work into her own aura and change her just the slightest bit, the sudden thought in her own mind and in her own voice. 'I'll keep his name to myself,' was the thought, subtle and relatively non-intrusive. He wouldn't attempt to overwhelm her mind. Perhaps Lady Avalis gave her his name for a purpose, but he would not want her identifying him to an enemy. Sometimes he did travel under an alias. He laughed. "My sins aren't so very black." A hand dug into his pouch to produce to gold-rimmed mizas to hold out to her. "I promise I won't try to figure out the recipe until I'm off of Mura and not a possible threat to your business. By all means, pack up. I'm sure you're ready to quit the harbor."