PM to join Learning Curve [Gianne]

[Rhy]

Fall 67th, 512 Its well into the nineteenth bell and Rhy is in the library. A few books, quills and a long piece of parchment decorate the long table she sits at, and Rhy herself is dutifully scribbling away with a fragile grey quill. Her head rests on her fist and a look a complete concentration knits her brows together over each carful stroke. It truly looks like some scholarly work is being accomplished with this library's vast tomb of knowledge. Which is ironic, really. Because Rhy can't read. If anyone were to get closer to the Kelvics little corner of workspace they would first notice that the books have no relation to each other or a single topic among them. To her left are stacked four, including: The Art of Beekeeping, Herbalism, Growing Edible Foods, and Waste Disposal – How To Deal With Feces Practically. While in front of her, spread open on the table like a dead thing, sits a cook book, Basic Baking. But if someone knew this Library well enough, they would quickly realize that these books do have something in common. They all have diagrams and pictures of some sort. Rhy stares hard at a certain picture at the top of the page. She has decided that the sketch is of a loaf of bread. But the large, bold writing under it, the title, she assumes, doesn't add up. 'Loaf' is four sounds, even 'loaf of bread' is not much more. But the title is impossibly long, with dozens of letters (the title really says: Carrot Cinnamon Loaf with Raisins), and makes no sense. This is how she has been teaching herself to read; finding a picture she recognizes, finding the name for that picture, and dissecting every sound to tack onto every symbol until she can string the word together like a paper chain. She has been at it for days now, a few hours every night in her room after Gianne has fallen asleep. She keeps her studies to herself, and the books are back on their shelves in the morning. Not that she is doing anything wrong, she just wishes not to advertise her massive deficit of learning among such accomplished people here at the Sanctuary. She is in the library now only because she expects this chapel of worldly knowledge and pedagogic studies will rub off on her. Or at least she hopes, for her studies are getting her nowhere. And if she can read, she reasons, then there is a vast amount of things she can learn. Where and how to find useful herbs, what those strange creatures in the grass are called and if they are edible, and most importantly, how to take care and treat dogs on a human level. And she won't be limited just by what she can learn from other people by word of mouth, she can learn from professors and people long since dead! She could master anything! But until then the learning is ridiculously hard, fraught with problems, and has enough paradoxes to make a priest lose his cool. She's not even sure if these books are in Turkant or Common. She taps her foot impatiently, studying what she has written on her parchment so far. There a a few rendered sketches from the other books, a few common herbs, a bee diagram with all of its body named carefully, and some basic garden vegetables. All with (what she assumes to be) their names written beside them as she has seen in their respective books. The Waste Disposal book ended up being a waste of time. She couldn't even begin to understand what the diagrams were of nor what the book was even about. She turns her attention to the first sketch, a tall, flowered plant she knows to be a Cuckoo. "Cuck-oo" she intones under her breath. The tip of the quill descends on the first letter of the name like a weapon of smite. "C-u-ck-oo", she draws the name out, following the quill along under the word. Only to come up short, again. Four sounds, and more letters then can fit it. Frustration pinches colour in her cheeks and she lets her head fall to the desk with a thud. Literacy is an unholy art. Of this she is sure.

[Iris Timandre]

In recent times Iris found a sudden interest in cooking. She didn't exactly know how to cook. At all. What did a person do when they wanted to learn something? Try to study information about it. The Library was bound to have multiple books with instructions on how to cook. Or a beginners guide to cooking and baking. It was bound to come in handy one day. People couldn't keep feeding Iris for the rest of her life and it was pretty sad that a hundred year old Konti couldn't even think up a single meal and cook it.

Iris Timandre made her way through the Library scanning the books and looking around. There was a second major problem. The Konti couldn't read at all in Tukant, she only knew basic words. And in Common she couldn't read any complex words. Most of the scrips Iris read in her life were written in Kontinese back in Mura at the Opal Temple. Iris noticed alot of the books in the Library were written in either Tukant or Common language.

While moving about more Iris located a familiar face. It was Rhy of the Sanctuary. Iris knew of Rhy, though the two didn't share many conversations they have crossed in the Sanctuary. At the dinner tables, in the halls, and during work. It was impossible to avoid someone you lived with.

Iris had an eerie grin on her face. The Konti planned on playing nice with Rhy. Iris wanted to know more about her, the healer was curious. Without asking Iris walked over to Rhy's corner of work space and welcomed herself. Iris had a frown on her face. "Hello, Rhy. What are you doing?" It was obvious that Rhy was trying to read but Iris didn't pay close enough attention. "How are you? May I sit with my Sanctuary friend?" Iris added at the end turning her frown into a forced smile for Rhy.

OCC; Got the yes to join this<3

[Rhy]

Rhy, with her face pressed to the parchment as if to learn by osmosis, doesn't hear Iris walk in. Which is unusual for her. Not because she is overly cautious, but because the stone walls have a habit of reverberating even the smallest sound into a fuzzy and loud background noise for her sensitive ears. But no, her mind is on more important matters. Right by the tip of her nose is a bold squiggly symbol, a letter of some sort. And if she squints in just the right way, that symbol turns into a butterfly. And to Rhy's tired and frustrated mind, that symbolic butterfly is the most interesting piece of magic in the world. Like a child watching clouds, she focuses on the next symbol, which turns to a Nabato cattle standing on its nose and legs sticking out. Over the next chime there has been an upside-down turtle, a Glassbeak with no head, a Copperin, and an Asp ridding a three legged horse. Slowly, ever so slowly, she's starting to feel better. Until a Konti whispers the most frightening of hellos. "Nothing!" she snaps, her spine erecting itself to poker straight in an instant, a smudged ink rendering of 'Cuckoo' written backwards across her forehead. "Nothing at all! I'm just, I'm just..." She grabs the cook book off the table and rifles through it faster then anyone can actually read. "Im just having a light read before I finish my chores." She looks up under her lashes at the small woman, and pauses in her page flipping to stare. She can't recognize the expression on her face. It looks like a smile, but she doesn't have much practise with fake emotions. All she can tell is that something isn't quite right with her. "Ah, I'm good. Of course, have a seat." She kicks out a chair with the heel of her foot. Since when did Iris ever want to start a conversation? Not with Rhy, anyway. She's so shy. Rhy kicks herself internally for her stupidity. Why didn't she just stay in her own room to study! And now that she has told a lie she has to keep it up. She starts rifling through the pages of the cookbook again with a look of grim determination, as if she plans to memorize every muffin recipe by heart. This is ridiculous. But then again, Iris never talks. This could be an opportunity to get to know her. She gives her companion another sideways look, like a bird inspecting a shiny object. "So, what brings you to the library? Got something on your mind?"

[Iris Timandre]

The Konti watched Rhy kick the chair outward for her to take a seat. Iris waited a moment before sitting down look behind her. There were a few people reading to the side but no one would be able to hear Rhy and Iris' conversations unless they got close. Iris' light eyes return to make contact with Rhy's own. Her smile had long faded away and was replaced by a blank expression.

Iris took a seat in the chair and sat back to try and make herself more comfortable. She wore her white dress. It had no sleeves so her pale arms were visible. Iris thought this was bound to be an interesting conversation. It was in the Konti's mind that Rhy came around to read books often and study. A true student of the arts, Iris thought.

"I came to the Library to seek out books on baking. I love cookies. More than you could ever imagine." That last sentence sounded childish but it was true, Iris wanted to start off by saying something positive and possibly funny to get Rhy going. The Timandre sister was still a huge fan of sugar cookies. She had a few back at the Sanctuary, following that Iris knew she needed to know how to bake some so she could have them when she wanted.

The Konti healer leaned forward. Her bright eyes shifted down so she could attempt to take a look at the books that were spread out on the table. The first thing the Konti could say was "You seem very interested in many things. You must be very smart to study this many different books." There was no way for Iris to know that Rhy couldn't read, so she thought the Kelvic was just into alot of things.

Iris leaned back to see if Rhy was going to make a comment about why she's cramming that much information into her head. The pale Konti knew she wouldn't be able to read that much in a single day. She found a sudden respect for what she thought Rhy was capable of.

OCC; When Gianne posts we go into a posting order, right? xD

[Gianne Basete]

The slow, course rasp of the stiff-bristled brush accompanied Savik's blissful sighs. He'd rolled in a nasty bit of mud and it was taking quite a while to get it all out of his black coat. She scrubbed in a circular motion at his shoulder, making a little dust cloud which she fanned at, coughing as a little went up her nose. It was late and dark, and the only reason she was out here at this hour was because she couldn't sleep. When Gianne had awoken Rhy wasn't in bed, or anywhere in the room for that matter. It had puzzled her, but Rhy didn't have to ask permission to leave. She wasn't a slave. It did worry her a little though. But she had pushed it out of her mind and went to check on the horses, her cloak wrapped tightly around her against the night chill. And so she'd found Savik covered in mud; brown instead of his usual black. "You're such a spoiled thing. You get brushed every day and then you go and roll in the dirt," she told him, smoothing out his hair with a few slow strokes down his spine. It didn't take long to clean him, though. Soon enough he was shining like the dark sky blanketing the Sanctuary and left alone in his stall. Gianne wound her way the paddocks to check the others, but they were all just fine. She stood and watched the horses for a few long moments, leaning on the gate for some support. Gill detached himself from the cluster at the far corner and plodded slowly across the paddock to greet her. He blew a lungful of warm air across her face, tickling her skin and making her hair dance. She smiled and looked into one of his eyes, sending waves of affection and a few simple questioning thoughts. How are you? He butted his nose against her shoulder then rubbed his forehead against it roughly. His reply was a rush of adoration and contentment, with images of the apple he'd eaten today. She could almost taste the juices. His memory and recollection was very sharp. Gianne stroked his cheek and eventually shooed him off, to which he flicked his tail at her and trotted back to the rest of the horses. She sighed, watching him go. What simple lives they led. But it was time to go and try to find Rhy. She at least wanted to know that her bondmate was doing okay before she herself went back to bed. She felt she could fall asleep now, having seen to the horses. They always seemed to make everything better, like they had their own magic. First she stopped by the kennel. Nothing. But the dogs swarmed around her legs and licked at her hands, nosing around her pockets to see if she had any treats. She felt one snout poke around near her rear and she swatted at the culprit. "Keep your nose out of there you silly thing!" It took some wrestling but she was able to leave, having nothing to do here. They seemed to not believe that she didn't have treats. She'd tried to tell them but they wouldn't listen. Silly things. Gianne ended up checking all of the buildings above ground. Nothing. So she ended up back in the Within, hands on her hips and walking down the hall leading to the common room. As she entered the large room she ran into Cadra; figuratively. "Hello," she offered, which wasn't really necessary since the Kelvic was in feline form. Her bright eyes gazed up at Gianne with a glint of mischief and cunning and she meowed loudly, weaving her sleek calico body through her legs. "You wouldn't happen to know where Rhy has wandered off to would you?" But it wouldn't be a surprise if she did. The girl loved the pester her bondmate. Must be a cat and dog sort of rivalry. And her hunch turned out to be true. Cadra pointed her head across the room to the doors of the library. Gianne's eyebrows shot up, genuinely surprised. "What is she doing in there?" There was no answer, of course. The Kelvic merely meowed again, a little accusingly as if the say, 'Why are you trying to talk to a cat?'. It was a good point. Instead she bent down and fondled her eyes, getting a loud purr in return. Gianne smiled crookedly, scratching the little furry chin and chest. "Thank you, by the way." Cadra blinked once, slow and deliberately. As clear a thank you as could be given when you were a cat. She held open the door for the Kelvic, allowing her out of the common room, which was her obvious intention. Then, shutting the door behind the feline, she crossed the threshold to the library. When she poked her head in the doorway, it was easy to catch sight of Rhy. A smile split her face instantly like it always did. But then it faltered. Iris. Her face darkened considerably. The Konti had been rude to Gianne yesterday to say the least, and blatantly flirted with Serrif right in front of her. His lips pulled back in a more feral smile while she shot daggers at the little woman's back. She wanted to pull her perfect blonde hair and thrash her head around. Maybe up against one of the book cases. Yeah, that sounds nice. But she was going to act cool and collected. Very cool. Like ice. Taking a deep, calming breath, she pushed through the threshold into the room. The door closed behind her with an audible click and her boots tapped lightly on the stone floor. Without a word she threw her arms around her bondmate's shoulders and gave a loving squeeze. "What are you up to, precious one?" But it soon became obvious. She looked down at the open book, eyebrows raised. "Is this what you've been so sneaky about?" she mumbled, and then smiled and stood erect. "Why didn't you tell me? I could have helped you!" Gianne brushed some hair out of her face. "I've never heard of someone teaching themselves how to read, dear. No offense, it's not that you couldn't be the first! But you might need some help...," she offered tentatively. And finally, she looked at Iris. Her face was blank, but there was brimstone in her eyes, burning like the fire that had scarred her legs earlier in the season. Jealousy was an ugly thing. It was petty and turned adults to bickering, hateful children. But she didn't care. Not at the moment. She wanted to slap the scales right of Iris' face.

[Rhy]

"Oh, yes, thank you. I'm a quick learner", Rhy mumbles at the Iris's compliment on her apparent studiousness. She clears her throat and deflects back to the Konti to try and steer the conversation from these dangerous waters. "If you want to learn to bake why don't you just ask Cadara? She is fantastic at it." This would be Rhy's way to learn, apprentice herself to someone with the skills she wants. "She even makes some excellent dog cookies with marrow, stale bread and stock. And If all you Sanctuary people would at least try it you will find that she does an excellent job", she laughs. It still strikes her as strange how picky the rest of the Sanctuary staff can be about their food. The Library door closes with a soft click, and the buttery tapping of soft leather boots make quick pace across the floor straight towards Rhy and Iris. Rhy's back is to the new arrival, but she knows exactly who it is. And there is a moment of fluttery panic as she considers bolting for the door. So much for keeping her education to herself! Nobody was suppose to know about this. For the love of Eyris, I'm not an idiot! I can do scores of impressive, learned things! I swear! she grumbles internally. Humiliation is not a normal sensation for the Kelvic, and she finds she not very apt at handling it. She hunches her shoulders and hangs her head, wishing to disappear into the floor. A dull red burns under her coppery skin and she prickles like her dog form when Gianne throws her arms around her shoulders. "'Ello Gia", she mumbles, turning her head to nuzzle her cheek. "Im surprised you are... er, conscious." Its no secret just how dead to the world her bondmate can be when she is asleep. Despite her constant moving. The human chatters on, oblivious to Rhy's molten shade. She shoots a look at Iris and smiles weakly. What a great impression, from impressive student to illiterate liar! Then Gianne offers to help in that sweet way of hers, tentative and respectful. Not that Rhy takes it that way. "What? No! I've got this. I have-", she looks down at the book in her lap. She's back to the page with that accursed loaf of bread. It mocks her from the parchment like chorus of treed racoons. She bubbles like a drying fish as she ransacks her mind for something, anything. Finally, after a chime of strained silence, her head hangs in defeat. "I have no idea what I'm doing." If she has to do this she might as well do this properly. She hooks a foot around a nearby chair and pulls it up beside her. "Sit", she commands, pushing Gianne down into it. "'C'mere", she mutters to iris, hooking her fingers under the Konti's chair and dragging her over so all three of them are close enough to rub shoulders. "Now", she starts, hands clapped into a prayer pose under her furled brow, "what the petch does this say?" She jabs one long finger at the Carrot Cinnamon Loaf title. She is sure some great meaning will descend upon her she she know what it says. "And what in the great, vast Void do these say", she flips her scribbled parchment over to reveal a long string of symbols from the books. Almost the entire alphabet of letters she has painstakingly extracted and has been trying to tack meaning onto. All of the letters are from the Common language, for all the books in front of her are Common. "And how do I make sounds go from this", she motions to her mouth, "to this", her finger is back to jabbing at that one accursed title. She looks back and forth between the two women with a grim, set expression. As if expecting them to magically bestow her with the knowledge she needs. OOCSince the writing is not in English I'm being extremely vague on the alphabet and the sounds. I'm going to write about the process without the actual subject to avoid problems. Kind of like algebra. Ew. Anyway, go ahead and be just as vague unless you found some magic language wiki.

[Iris Timandre]

The Konti thought about it. That seemed like an easier plan. Cadara definitely wasn't far away. Iris nodded in agreement that she should indeed ask. The Konti raised an eye brow at the thought of 'dog cookies', of course the healer had no idea what they were. And she didn't plan on asking about them either. Once she heard the word marrow that was enough for her right there.

Footsteps could be heard after the Library door opened and closed. Iris didn't turn around to see who it was simply because she couldn't care less. What difference were any of them going to make in how her day turned out today? That changed once the person stopped at the table and Iris got a good look at her face. It was Gianne. The healer tried to hold it back but a light laugh escaped her mouth, Iris looking dead at Gianne. To Iris, Gianne was pathetic. No one in the Sanctuary knew how much Iris despised the girl, but it was more than she probably should have.

Rhy and Gianne were like bread and butter. And Iris got a good look at it as the two spoke to each other. It was interesting to figure out that Rhy actually couldn't read. What was the point of pretending that you could in the first place? The eerie smile on Iris' face grew wider. Iris would say to Rhy "You're unable to read?" Iris said with a tone that sounded as if she thought Rhy was nothing now.

It was weird to Iris in reality, though she couldn't read good in any language but Kontinese she still could read her home land's language. There was a sudden loss of respect for Rhy. Iris now thought of her as one of the lowly uneducated people who'd roam the roads. Maybe even beg for a chunk of bread or two, or a few Mizas for a room. The healer has seen quite a few of those in her long life. "That's alright, not everyone can read. It's nothing horrible." Iris lied. To her Rhy was worthless, only because Iris didn't understand anything but reading, education, and books. She was a healer. A Herbalist. The Konti would fail horribly in hard labor like construction. Or outside hunting.

The Timandre noticed Gianne staring directly at her with a facial expression that was all too familiar. A blank face. All that did was put yet another smile on Iris' face. "Well hi, Gianne. No hello for me, child? I am old enough to be your great great grandmother. Four to five times your age. If we're going to study together shouldn't we greet each other with respect?" Iris said with a cocky tone. Wanting to make Gianne angry. Iris was then dragged closer to Rhy, still staring at Gianne.

Her attention was shifted to the words Rhy was trying to read. The Konti tried to make eye contact with Rhy. Iris began to answer Rhy. Carrot wasn't that hard of a Common word. "Carrot...." Iris stopped suddenly.

[Gianne Basete]

For a split second she was crushed by Rhy's apparent denial for help. If Gianne couldn't lend a hand to her own bondmate then why was Iris here, apparently doing just that? Suddenly, Gianne hated the Konti even more. Even since being marked by Caiyha, she had slowly been noticing and feeling some changes within her. Am I becoming... feral? No. Wilder? More like an animal? She would ask herself that question on occasion, when her reaction to certain situations would surprise her. Once, she'd bared her teeth at a dog and growled when it jumped up, begging for food and ended up nipping her chin in its little frenzy. At the moment, she was having those new feelings. She wanted to leap over Rhy and throw Iris to the ground and bite her. Anywhere, just so she sunk her teeth in her. Maybe claw off some scales. Her teeth clenched as her mind clamped down on those thoughts, smothering them with more human thinking. Later. She shot the word at Iris like an arrow, wishing that the Konti could read her mind. Rhy though, caught her attention once more. Thankfully she was going to accept Gianne's help. She smiled at her bondmate with obvious love, giving a single chuckle as she was pushed into a chair. She was just about to offer some words of support when Iris spoke. She just had to open that blasted mouth of hers. The Konti's voice was so infuriatingly snarky. Gianne could feel her self control dent even more. If it were a physical thing, it would look like a pole sticking out of the ground that had been bent into a jagged V shape. One more little dent and it would snap. She would snap. Gianne didn't think she had ever hated another living creature so thoroughly and completely. As Iris' attention averted to Rhy, slowly, so did hers. She took a deep, calming breath before speaking after the Konti. "Rhy, you don't need to be so stressed out about this. I'm here to help you, so don't worry. You won't learn to read overnight, this is time consuming. I watched my mom teach her friend's little boy and it took quite a few sessions." Ignoring Iris, she pointed to the title written next to the illustration. "This first word here? That's 'carrot'. You know what a carrot looks like, of course." Her finger slid to the next word in the title. "That's cinnamon. A big one. You always said I smell like cinnamon." She smiled fondly at Rhy, hoping to cheer her up a little. "The next one is loaf, which is why there's a picture of a loaf of bread." Gianne didn't know that Rhy already knew some words, so she was describing them all. "That word is 'with'. Not a thing; just says that there's something else in the bread. And what's in it is raisins." She pointed to the last word. "I don't like raisins," she added absently, a frown puckering her features. They tasted weird. Gianne looked at Rhy expectantly, hoping she would understand. She definitely wasn't the best Common teacher out there. Then she looked at Iris, glaring darkly without shame and seeming to dare her to make any sort of comment. She still hadn't said a word to the Konti. Her hazel eyes were like storm clouds over the Suvan.

[Rhy]

Rhy has seen tension before. There is much posturing and parading in tense and challenging animals, and oddly enough, its the exact same in humans. She looks back and forth between Iris and Gianne, noting the set jaws and vivid stares that jab like lances. And all she can think of this new development is: Huh, this is interesting. She wasn't even aware they have shared more then a passing greeting. But Iris's loaded comment directed at Gianne seems to touch a nerve in her bondmate. She believes the correct term is that Iris is 'being bitchy', which in itself is endlessly amusing and bloody ironic. But she likely doesn't know that Gianne has been nursing a spark of the feral. That makes being on the other side of her anger a bit more dangerous. Rhy considers stepping in and diffusing the situation, maybe fetching some cold water to throw on them, but decides against it. An impish smile catches the corner of her lips. Iris'll find out eventually. Gianne's reassurance does much for her esteem and she smiles brightly at the human. It does seem rather ridiculous to hide something like this from her. She's seen worse from the Kelvic dog. But Iris's attempt to read the headline quickly catches her attention. "You can't read either, can you?" Its a statement posed as a question. Suddenly Iris's condemnation of her own reading skills means just that much less. "Good, practise with me, eh? Im sure this young human could teach an old woman and a young dog new tricks." She pats the Konti's leg in a conspiratorial way and grins wolfishly. Gianne reads the title for her, with pauses to make sure she understands, and Rhy stares with with rapt attention. No divine smite of literary understanding hits the Kelvic, but it seems simple enough. And it turns out she was trying to acquire knowledge from a cookbook, fantastic. She repeats the words slowly, and turns to her handwritten alphabet. Looking to Gianne for direction, while sitting back so Iris can see what she is doing, she points out all of the symbols in that phrase with the sound for each. Messing up a few of them, but correct for the most part. As she mulls this over she reaches for Gianne's hand, then moving her own hair out of the way she pushes that hand into the back of her neck. She does this often, almost absentmindedly, when she is looking for affection. She smiles crookedly at the human with her best puppy-eyed 'please' impression. Then a sudden spark of inspiration sets in her mind and she starts scribbling again. Pulling down a few of the letters she just learned, she spells 'IRIS' and then 'RHI' in a shaky childs hand. Then she stops, turning her head this way and that, muttering 'Gianne' under her breath, until she finally decides thats all she's going to get out of this. She leans back in her chair to show the two women her work, smiling proudly. "Aha! Who says Kelvics are not intellectual!"

[Iris Timandre]

The Konti nodded her head twice slightly to Rhy upon being asked if she had trouble reading the common language words. Deep down Iris felt dumb, she felt like she was the dog. An unintelligent beast that was only useful for hunting and smelling things. "I suppose this young disrespectful human could teach me a thing or two."

Iris put some depth on the word disrespectful. She thought Gianne was disrespectful for even thinking about hanging out with Serrif. To Iris this young baby girl who wouldn't even be considered an adult in Mura needed to step aside so she could claim Serrif as her own. When ever the Konti thought about it, it just made her angrier and angrier. To the point where you could tell by the expressions she gave Gianne.

"The young human wouldn't be able to teach me how to dress however. Can't teach me something you don't know." Iris took a shot at Gianne's clothes. As a healer Iris had quite a bit of money under her belt. Healers were requested all over to the point where Iris would be able to settle down anywhere and make a great living too. The Konti turned her attention back to Rhy.

Rhy read some words. Rhy asked who says Kelvics weren't intellectual. Iris has said that alot in her life. But that was something she'd rather keep to herself. The healer only needed one enemy at a time. "In this case the Kelvic at the table seems a tad bit smarter than the human. Quite sad to say the least." Iris took yet another shot at Gianne. Attempting to make her feel bad.

Iris vowed to make Gianne's life hard at the Sanctuary. And to the pale Konti, no one there would be able to tell her stop. Or make her stop for that matter.