PM to join The Bitter and the Sweet [Lacerta]

[Litani]

Timestamp: 21st day, Summer season, 513
Location: The Monstrous Menagerie

The sky stretched above her, wild in every direction, as boundless as the sea and twice as big. The day was perfect, wrapped in a warm, gentle breeze that whispered the salt of the Suvan across her senses; it felt deliriously good to be so close to the waves again, to hear the way the Bluevein coursed over the cliff faces of Riverfall, to taste the wind as it caressed the Tiers of the tiny city... For a moment, the Konti found herself reflecting - again - how happy she was to have come.

Against the heat of the day, she wore a simple linen blouse and a comfortable split skirt - feminine, but practical - and she had draped her head and shoulders with a shawl such as she had seen some of the other Riverfall denizens wear. She'd had her reservations about the garment, thinking it would trap her body heat much moreso than it did, but she'd found it quite the ally against the unforgiving sun.

A day or so ago, she had heard mention of a place that captured her attention and imagination. A... zoo?... of sorts. A menagerie. The thought had both troubled and interested her; the talk had been of fantastic and perhaps even sentient creatures, of dangerous but intriguing displays, and yet the Konti's curiosity had gotten the better of her. She stood now before the gates of the Menagerie, debating whether to go in.

[Lacerta]

Since there was still plenty of time before the expedition, Lacerta had decided to wander the city, and visit some of the various attractions. It wasn't her first time in Riverfall, she'd been here many a time before, but it was her first visit here. To their Menagerie, which was apparently filled with a large variety of exotic animals. On a bout of curiosity, she'd decided to look around for a bit. By the gates, she encountered a Konti, with apparently the same idea as her. Konti were common in Riverfall, since they and the Akalak made good pairs, but she also knew them from her time in Mura. She respected the race greatly, and had loved their island home. The woman before her seemed to be mentally debating something, probably trying to decide to enter or not. On a whim, Lacerta approached her, though felt slightly awkward when she towered over the woman by nearly a foot and a half. "Waiting for something?" she asked politely, not really sure how to frame the question. Part of her, like always, was slightly interested to see how the woman reacted to her height, and her horns. Her horns were always the more obvious part. She didn't know if the woman would have even heard of Ethaefal, since her race wasn't exactly the most... common. There might have been one or two in the city, but she hadn't met them. Common Fravata Arumenic Someone else

[Litani]

The voice caught her by surprise, unawares, and Litani turned to blink... UP... at Lacerta. She drew back a half step and reflexively chuckled at her own response; almost immediately, she inclined head and body in a gentle half-bow that spoke of a respectful upbringing, non-verbally asking for an apology for her reaction being anything less than curteous. Yet as that gesture faded and her eyes returned to Lacerta's face, those blue orbs widened in wonder and appreciation, reflecting the enthusiasm and beautiful curiosity of youth.

"Oh my...!" she laughed softly. "Of my sisters, I thought I was tall!" The pale skin of the daughter of Mura had begun to color; she blushed faintly and seemingly could not help herself: "You are amazing! Please forgive me, what... what are you?!"

Again came that movement of body, that graceful greeting or, in this case, request for forgiveness. She desperately hoped she had not offended the lovely creature before her, and her mind was afire with a thousand questions that she hoped she could find an answer to. All her travels and work had led her to the site of many strange and unique things, but never anything so breathtaking as the Ethaefal that stood before her.

[Lacerta]

Lacerta smiled slightly at the question, and replied simply "An Ethaefal" It was slightly funny to watch the Konti be surprised, but the Eth realized her previous question hadn't been answered. Might as well ask it again, right? "Anyways, what are you waiting for?" she repeated, turning towards the entrance in curiosity. She was slightly tempted to just go in now, as she'd heard of a new animal in the Zoo. A Myrian Tiger had arrived, something she'd never seen before, and was curious to do so. In all her travels, she'd never been to the jungled area that they lived in. It would have been stupid to do so. From what she knew, the Myrians were cannibalistic savages, people you'd rather avoid than meet. This gave her an opportune time to examine the wildlife that lived there, more particularly their monstrous cats. "Did you hear they have a new Myrian Tiger?' she muttered quietly, not quite sure why she was asking. The Konti probably knew it already, and this was quite probably the reason why she was here. Common Fravata Arumenic Someone else

[Litani]

Idiot, she thought to herself, inwardly sighing. She feared she'd made lackluster first impression upon the other woman, but Lacerta had surprised her and her response had been entirely genuine. Innocent, naive, overly wide-eyed and fascinated, but genuine. That didn't make it a graceful or welcome one, however. Well, nothing for it now.

Taking a deep breath, she recollected the questions Lacerta had asked and shook her head lightly, answering the second one first. "No, actually! I had no idea... a -Myrian- tiger, it must be huge!" She paused to smile slightly; a linger of an embarassed blush clung to her features, but it was starting to go away now. "As for me, ahh... well... I'm not waiting, so much as trying to decide." She glanced at the Menagerie grounds. "Riverfall has shown me nothing but beauty and kindness. I..." You what, fool? Her inner monologue was not a very forgiving voice. You don't want to see how they treat their animals? You don't want to see sentients in slavery? You don't want the illusion to be broken? She's here to see them, what's the problem?

Clearing her throat delicately, she finished by saying, her tone light and airy, "My curiosity got the better of me, I must admit! I am interested to see what's within, just... I was cautioned that it could be a treacherous place. That's all. Do you suppose that it's safe, for two such as we?"

[Lacerta]

Lacerta gave the Konti a slightly confused look, when she mentioned Riverfall's beauty and kindness.... what did that mean? Was it that she expected beautiful things here too, but didn't want to ruin her image if it wasn't so amazing? It was a strange thought. Deciding it would be easier to forget about it, the Eth mentally shrugged, and payed more attention to the answer to her question. "So then... shall we go in and see what's in store?" she asked plainly, looking down at the Konti, and taking a step forward. "I daresay it's safe enough... we are surrounded by Akalak and the like..." she added, as a half attempt to quell the woman's fears. Without waiting too long, she strode towards the entrance, personally interested to see what was in store. OOCI'm SOO sorry for the short post! I couldn't think what else to add... Common Fravata Arumenic Someone else

[Litani]

Litani chuckled softly, nodding, falling into step beside the Ethaefal. "Of course you're right," she said in a quiet voice, working to keep up with her unusually tall conversation partner. She was silent for a short time, her attention too distracted by the Menagerie to fill the silence with meaningless chatter - almost as soon as the pair approached the gate, the chittering of bird-like creatures could easily be heard and the calls were so exotic, so unusual to her ears that she caught herself smiling with eager curiosity, all fear forgotten.

"Have you ever been to a place like this...?" she asked Lacerta, trailing off in such a way that seemed to inquire after a name. "I am Litani, by the way." She smiled up at Lacerta disarmingly, her eyes both friendly and searching. "I've only just come to Riverfall recently, from Syliras. Where are you from?"

As the small talk progressed, so too did the two women and soon they found themselves beneath the great glass dome of the central gardens. Trees towered above them, offering shade from the day's heat and shelter to untold numbers of birds; it was easy to spot them above, flitting from branch to branch, unaware that there might be anything unusual at all about their bright colors and foreign voices. The Konti was clearly distracted by their beauty and uniqueness but she also returned her eyes to Lacerta at regular intervals, showing that she was still politely paying attention.

From where they stood, paths went off in 3 different directions, each one lined with benches for resting and observation. To the left and right, one could progress further into the structure of the Menagerie, while the center path extended into the domed gardens.

[Lacerta]

"Lacerta" she answered simple, at the obvious inquiry for a name. In answer to Litani's question, she shrugged once. She was from no where really, having traveled to many places, only really staying in... well, the Suvan. It was also where she'd fallen. So, as a verbal version of her answer, she stated "The Suvan. The Suvan Sea." What interested her more, was that the Konti was not from Riverfall. Was she from Mura then? But she hadn't mentioned that... "Where were you born?" she asked, stating her question. "Mura?" Once of the first things they saw inside, was birds. And trees. Which was incredibly strange, considering that they were inside. Exotic, and brightly colored creatures hopped from tree to tree, gliding around in the dome. Lacerta watched a beautiful orange and yellow one, with particularly long tail feathers, absorbing the sight of it flying. The tail fleshed out magnificently, almost sparkling in the sun air. Seeing the three options, Lacerta gave Litani a glance. "Which direction would you rather go?" she asked politely, not really caring. Each would probably lead to their own attraction, and they would have time to eventually visit them all. She wondered which direction the tiger would be in, but didn't mind leaving it till later. In waiting for a reply, she continued to watch the Konti, though she was sorely tempted to glance back at the birds again. Common Fravata Arumenic Someone else

[Litani]

Bending her head slightly in reflective amusement, the Konti wore a subtle smile that whispered of a thousand unvoiced replies to the simple question: 'Where were you born?' Mura. Of course. For a span of seconds, Litani was quiet as she considered how best to reply. Honesty was never the question; rather, how much honesty was a valid concern. In the end, she opted for simplicity.

"I was born in Syliras," she said softly. "My Call led me here." And there it was - polite, genuine, lacking all substance behind the reasonings of fate, but it was true. A stranger would expect nothing less, and likely not wish anything more.

Casually, her hands laced atop the satchel that she carried over her left shoulder and she resumed her wandering gaze about the dome, taking her eyes from their internal reflections and returning her thoughts to the beauty of the moment. As that transition took place, the clouds of whatever sorrow might color her expression fled, leaving her smile and blue eyes as brightly engaging as they'd been seconds before. As the Ethaefal inquired after direction, Litani pondered to herself for a moment and then said, "When in a maze, my father taught me to set my right hand to the wall and follow it... and surely I would come out again." Her words were lightly chuckled airy, and she nodded towards the right hand path.

Then, perhaps seeking to return to their previous exchange without unduly disturbing the animals, she pitched her voice in a low and calm timbre, saying softly, "The Suvan is so magnificent. I am sure that it captures the eye of all who come here but... I have rarely seen anything so beautiful. How difficult it must have been to leave it."

[Lacerta]

Lacerta shrugged slightly at the Konti's explanation. She'd heard of the call from her time on Mura, so this wasn't too strange. Though she wondered why Litani had been Called... and being born in Syliras was slightly strange. Still, it didn't matter too much, and wasn't really much of her concern. The maze comment caused a single eyebrow to raise, but the Eth said nothing. She didn't really consider the place much of a maze, since there was always people around to ask the way out... right? But maybe the Konti had a bad sense of direction, or maybe it was just something simple, to give a reason for pick right. Whatever the reason was, she nodded to show her agreement, and followed Litani down their chosen path. What did get her attention was her companion's description of the Suvan. It was quite accurate, she loved the sea, and it was beautiful. But the explanation was quite... dramatic, poetic even, and it was not the way she would describe it. All she would say would be... 'amazing', and 'beautiful'. Those were simple, descriptive, and to the point. But she entitled the Konti to her way of speaking. Hearing the end, however, caused a little more doubt. "Leave it? I haven't left it. This city sits at the edge of the Sea, no? My boat sits in the harbor. I can sail out on a whim, if I felt like it" The last part was true, though slightly inaccurate. Sure, she could try and sail out any time, but good conditions depended on the winds, and currents, and not every moment was a good one for a sail. Thinking up her own question, she paused for a moment, before asking "Have you ever been to sea?" She knew all Konti were natural swimmers, able to breath under water and all, but not all had sailed before. Especially since this one's journey, as she had described it, took her over no water at all. The fastest way from Syliras to Riverfall was by the trade routes that connected the two cities. Sailing was less convenient to those without a boat, as they'd have to pay a captain, or rent one. Common Fravata Arumenic Someone else