Open How to Befriend a Monster

[Uleru]

64th of Summer
Year 513
11th Bell

Its getting hotter every day. A heat wave stretching right through to a long drought, with not a cloud in the sky to lessen Syna's punishing rays. And though the Otani can feel these affects more than most, Uleru is not one for letting opportunities for exploration go by unmolested.

Which is how she ended up laying prone on the sandy shore just outside of Riverfall trying to befriend scrawny, hissing beasts. The moulding has managed to corner an animal that she finds most interesting. At first she mistakenly thought it was some kind of bushy cat, but closer examinations of its pointed muzzle, unique colouring and ringed tail tells her that it must be a racoon. An unusual sight for the Otani, for the animals will only wander down during low tide to dig up turtle eggs and muscles.

But despite its differences it still makes horrible screeching noises like a cat. And seems intent on voicing its displeasure in the most vocal way possible. She has cornered the creature between the cliff and herself, and the racoon (in desperation to both scare of this monstrosity and intimidate it) is both puffing itself up while still curled in on itself like its trying to invert right out of existence. Its kind of endearing, really.

“Calm down darling, I’m not going to hurt you”, the Otani coos pleasantly. But her voice can scarcely be heard over the yowling of the mortified raccoon she is trying to befriend. The animal takes a swipe at her slowly approaching hand, scoring the back with sharp little nails. But the strange, transparent monster in front of it not only fails to bleed, but doesn't seem that bothered by it on the whole. And she doesn't stop smiling in that gentle, patient way. The racoon goes back to yowling.

At a loss for what to do, Uleru attempts to bribe the animal with an offering of chunky bits of fish and crab she had been saving for when it calms down. She makes soft, reassuring noises as the treat is held cloyingly in front of the creature, and she wiggles her fingers invitingly. But the movement only sends the animal into further hysterics as it tries desperately to scale the cliff behind it.

“For the love of the gods, calm down. Look! Yummy food. Fooooood.” She pops a glistening piece of fish into her mouth, chews and swallows in a slow, satisfying way. “See? Its good! Come say hello, please?”

[Dust]

It was the noise that caught and captivated the raven's attention. Loud snarling yowls, spiteful as virtually only a raccoon could make them, which rang up the cliff and bounced off the rocks to announce trouble for all the world to hear. Or at least that part of it in the raccoon's immediate vicinity. Sometimes, that kind of ruckus could mean food the raven might take advantage of; other time, it just meant a fracas which might be entertaining to watch from the safety of the air above. Today, curiously, there seemed to be only one raccoon howling -- usually, they came in several. And it was broad daylight besides. Curious, the white bird glided down past the clifftop, banking through a wide turn to better survey the beach now revealed before her. Dust didn't see the raccoon at first, if only because something larger and far stranger immediately seized her attention. It was human-shaped and human-sized, but blue like water (as opposed to blue like an Akalak), and... glittery, like water could be in the sunlight. It was really rather nifty. And, Dust belatedly realized, it was the reason the raccoon was throwing fits; as she turned for another angle on the being, she finally spotted the fuzzy mammal trying futilely to disappear into the rocks. Words floated up from the little scene -- food, please, and the general sense of kindly pleading. Curious, and finding nothing worth nearly so much umbrage as the raccoon was displaying, the white raven dropped down to land on a clump of rocks a short distance away. There, she shifted, becoming a pale-haired human woman crouched on the sun-warmed stone. One entirely unclothed, of course. "I don't think raccoons are usually very friendly," Dust remarked to the being, her own tone light and chipper and practically the antithesis of the raccoon's attitude. She tipped her head and peered at the not-human being. "You look kinda like water. Are you made of water?"

[Uleru]

A shadow circles over the Otani and spreads on the sand as the animal circles lower and lower. Uleru glances up at the intrusion, only to dismiss it as the pale profile of a seagull. Which is a much less worthy oddity than the hellish furry creature.

But when the bird lands on an outcropping of rock off to the side, she gives it another rather dismissive look. Only for the calm blue her body had been holding to erupt into a startled yellow when the flash of light reveals a young, naked woman. The racoon sees an opportunity to ditch this madness and vaults over the frozen Otani, leaving her offered hand to dangle uselessly in front of empty space. She's Kelvic, the moulding hums with astonishment.

"Hello", the she rises to her feet slowly, afraid that this bird will fly away if startled, but her eyes are wide with obvious excitement, "aren't you lovely."

The front of her body is layered with a fine film of sand, as is always the case when she plays in the dry parts of the beach. And it casts a hazy sort of shadow across this new woman as Uleru circles the rock which she is perched on, like she is searching for where the bird has gone. Despite the Kelvic displaying wholly indecent amounts of fair white skin, Uleru has no thoughts on looking her over sexually. It is rare and very interesting for her to see a full human body, and for this body to be Kelvic adds a new layer of intrigue.

"Hmm? Yes, I'm made of water. But so are you." She once had a lad in Zelvita tell her that humans are mostly made of water. They must carry their own kind of oceans inside their bodies.

"I'm Otani, but you are Kelvic! Oh, its been years since I've seen one of your kind. You're beautiful. Do you have a name? I'm called Uleru."

[Dust]

The strange creature turned colors when Dust shifted before her, but seemed unthreatening enough in her demeanor -- as curious, the Kelvic thought, as she herself. The water-creature rose and moved towards her, walking around the rock and looking at Dust from every angle. The Kelvic woman craned her head to follow the being's movements, evidently more out of curiosity and interest than any concern of intended harm. She didn't seem perturbed at being studied by the water-woman, despite her own state of undress. Eventually, she moved to sit more properly on the boulder, letting her legs stretch down its side and leaning back on her arms. Though the lean didn't last long at all.. "No, I'm not! I have skin and meat and bone," Dust contested, holding up one of her own hands to study it, turning it to and fro. Then she looked past it at the funny watery woman. "Well, I guess there's some water." Blood and all was water-like, so maybe it had water in it. "But you're blue and glittery -- and change colors! How did you do that? And I can kinda see through you, too!" she concluded, ducking down slightly and peering at -- or through -- the Otani. Straightening back up, Dust reached out an inquisitive hand to try and touch the Otani's skin. If it was skin. She wanted to know if it felt as wet as it looked. "Of course I do! My name is Dust," she supplied cheerily. As with the question prompt on its heels: "What's an Otani?"

[Uleru]

She really is a bird, Uleru muses as she is assaulted with cheery exclamations. She's not flighty, oddly enough, but she has this inquisitive nature and straight way of thinking that makes her much more a free-spirited avian than a human. Even the way she moves --as she ducks her head and peers through the Otani's torso-- is very bird-like. Like an erratic wind-up toy.

A pale hand approaches inquisitively as the Kelvic straightens up. Uleru obliges her curiosity and offers her a translucent hand, her offensive yellow color already starting to fade. She is always amused with how different the warm blooded and the Otani are, and watches with a secret sort of smile as Dust plays with her hand. Her body is almost gelatine in nature and very wet. Without proper skin and bones her body is much less substantial, and her skin much more elastic. Compared to the ridged structure of humans its like putting a sponge pudding next to a tree.

"Oh! Look what I can do", her smile turns cheeky as she takes back her hand. With a short wind up she kicks her leg over her head and catches her ankle in hand. Then, slowly, she starts to lower her leg, but keep her ankle locked in parallel with her body. There is a less dramatic way to do this, but its much more fun like this. At the end her toes are hooked over her shoulder and her knee is pointing straight down. She's bent her leg a hundred and eighty degrees in the wrong direction.

"Not as cool as growing wings and flying away, but alas." She laughs merrily and lets her foot drop back to the ground.

She suddenly remembers that there was a question at the end of the inquiry. "Oh, yes, you want to know what an Otani is", she begins rather carefully as she mulls the question over. She knows what she would say to a human, 'I'm a daughter of Laviku'. If pressed further, simply 'I serve Laviku'. But for some reason she doubts that will fly with the Kelvic. They tend to take these things rather literally. Besides, Uleru is way too enamoured with the Kelvic to let her wander away with disinterest.

"We were... created by Laviku. They say it was because he was lonely, but I don't know if I believe that. We serve our god and collect his tributes from sailors. And he sees through our eyes and know what we know. So he knows you, because I know you."

Her gaze wanders with her short explanation and she finds herself staring out to sea. What must the sea look like to a bird? Is it still that expansive from that high? Does the world get smaller the higher you climb? These questions rise and pop like bubbles in a glass of champagne, and it all boils down to a question and a game.

"Dust, are there any caves, or banks or waterfalls around here? When you fly that high, is there anything interesting down here?" her eyes shine with the possibility of such a unique perspective. Maybe there is something she missed the first time she was in Riverfall.

[Sybel]

Hey!I spoke to Dust via PM and she said you might have room for one more.

Riverfall was exactly as she remembered it. The Akalak and their city seemed as fixed as the setting sun. Wandering through the streets made her feel at home, as if she'd never truly left. But Sybel was far from that girl of seventeen, careworn and uncertain. She was a woman now, encumbered with the burdens of experience and furthermore, regret. Leaden feet carried her toward the sea, that vast blue horizon. She smiled to herself, thinking of how Eleret's gills would flutter when close to the water's edge, the moist air a primal sort of indulgence.

It would have been nice, had she come along.

Sybel was loathe to admit it, but her attachments were forged rather than formed. They were tempered like steel - they endured. There was just so much uncertainty beyond the safety of those stone walls. They'd kept one another safe, until then. She'd always worry, wonder in vain. The separation made her uneasy and worse, she had her demons with Vanator to contend with. So she fled the comfort of the Sanctuary for more neutral ground, to clear her mind and just stand upon the water's edge.

As she drew closer, she heard the yowling of a wild animal.

Immediately, her instincts kicked in. Animals didn't wail unless threatened. Sybel approached with caution, attempting to put a small rock formation between her and the source of the racket. But what she saw next was far stranger than she could have possibly anticipated. Was the girl... Blue? She rubbed both her eyes in disbelief.

Before her brain could even attempt a rational explanation, things moved right along. Not only did a white raven decide to roost nearby, seemingly attracted by the noise, but then that raven was... Dust? And naked, at that. The word kelvic, sprang to mind, but the transformation had never been tied to any concrete example. Sybel just blinked, totally unable to process the passing events.

So she just stayed in place, eavesdropping. Which was rather rude. They were strangers... Well, one of them was. The 'otani' (or servant of Laviku) seemed carefree enough, from what she caught of the conversation. The two of them just marveled at one another, which was just about the most sane thing that had happened thus far.

It just got to be too much. Hiding had not been on her agenda earlier that day, and Dust was still as naked as a newborn. Propriety was an ugly thing. Sybel very slowly stepped into sight, as to not startle the two otherworldly creatures. "Hey there," she called out to her neighbor. "Would you like to borrow my cloak?" With one hand up as if to surrender, she used the other to unfasten the tie and hold the garment outstretched.

"I just happened to be passing by," she said by way of explanation. "I have a friend who loves the sea, so watching it makes me feel better." That was as simple as it got. She then turned to Uleru. "You'll have better luck with raccoons if you offer the food first, set it down and then back away. They're wild, so they can't help but be afraid when someone's got them in a corner."

And how true that was.

[Dust]

The Otani's hand proved to be squishy and wet -- very much like a bag full of water. "That's neat!" Dust declares... though then Uleru promptly went on to demonstrate just how malleable her watery body was. The raven Kelvic applauded her contortions cheerfully. Uleru then went quiet as she considered Dust's question. Created by Laviku, she said, and he knows you. The blonde tipped her head at that, looking curious and intrigued. "That has to be weird," she mused, not thinking that for the Otani, it would of course be perfectly usual. "So what does he know about me?" she prompted, not apparently daunted in the least by the thought of being recognized by a god. Then another person arrived on the scene, one vaguely familiar from dinners at Sanctuary and other such run-ins around that place. "Hi, Sybel!" Dust called in return, as the Benshiran stepped forward and unclasped her cloak. The Kelvic pretended at a long-suffering roll of her eyes as the length of fabric was held out to her, but her demeanor was entirely too cheery to make it stick. Being handed clothes didn't actually bother her; it was pretty much routine. "If we're going to go find caves, I don't think I need it," she commented, starting to reach for the cloak and then hesitating. "Do you know of any caves around here?" Dust asked of Sybel, while she herself mused over the question. She normally flew down over the beach or the plunge pool or -- quite often -- the forests above the cliffs. Caves... weren't so much her usual interest... but wasn't there a hole or two out between Riverfall and Sanctuary? "I think there's some in the cliffs out towards Sanctuary..." she offered.

[Sybel]

”Caves,” she echoed, slowly withdrawing the proffered garment. ”I know of a few, though I try not to explore alone. If you like, I can show you.” She smiled at the nearby Otani, realizing her mistake. ”My name is Sybel. I live with Dust at the Sanctuary.” Her eyes were free to roam, taking in the woman’s supple, liquid form. She’d never even heard of an Otani before. ”It’s not everyday I see a servant of Laviku. Well met.” She gave a swift bow. The three of them would make odd, but easy company. Dust never felt the urge to complicate things and if Uleru felt the same, they were in for a fun afternoon.

”I could use a swim too.” She suddenly bore a wicked grin. ”You seem to be enjoying yourself, unclad in the heat. I’d do a bit of sunbathing on the rocks, but I think the Akalak might have something to say on the matter. Ah, and Vanator.” She blushed, having forgotten that particular responsibility. Sybel was unused to being committed. ”Still, what they don’t know can’t hurt them.” She bit her lip. ”Right?”

”Do you meld with the water?” Sybel asked Uleru as she began to lead the way. ”Or do you retain a measure of who you are when you swim?” It was fascinating, to meet such a rare creature. ”And Dust, how do you feel when you’re in your other form? I have no experience with being anything but myself,” she chuckled ”mundane as I am.” The questions were polite enough, she thought. People loved to talk about themselves. All it required was a bit of gentle prodding.

Exploring scratched an itch long overdue. Even if there was no hope of uncovering a lost relic, she would feel at home just within the yawning mouth of a cave. The thrill of the unknown was second to nothing for her.

”Do you often explore?”

[Uleru]

The Otani merely smiles benignly when the human makes her appearance, despite her entrance being wholly unexpected. It seems Dust and this new woman know each other from "Sanctuary". The woman bows politely to her and the Otani bends at the waist to mirror the gesture.

When she straightens up, her hands go to her hips and she stares boldly at the human woman with her eyes narrowed in a classic sign of puzzlement. Sybel's eyes are blue. Very blue. And with her dark skin and free hair she looks positively Svefran. But there is something rather off about that conclusion. First of all, she doesn't carry Laviku's mark. She said she hasn't often seen her kind, though they are common to the sea people. And she just seems... well, off.

"You look like a Svefra, Sybel. Are you? I don't think I've seen your breed of human before." If she is human at all. Oh gods, what if she is Kelvic too?

That thought is shaken away and she turns back to the discussion at hand.

"No, don't stay here and sunbathe! Come into the water with me. I can teach you two how to swim." Well, she can make sure they don't drown, at least. "Then I can show you to the deeper water and what lives at the bottom. I can take you there too, I'll show you how", her eyes sparkle mischievously. How could an Otani possibly take a land-strider into deep water?

"Then take me to the caves. Oh, I haven't been here in years. Everything has changed. There is a new island below the northern cliffs. And a perfectly round cave-like thing that just appeared out of nowhere." She shakes her head in bewilderment and the light fractures across Dust's pale legs.

With that she backs towards the sea, beckoning them in after her with both hands. The last time she did this she played a horrible trick on a boy near the banks of the Antar river. But this purpose is much less crafty, she is truly excited to play with these strange land-striders.

The motioning of her hands quickly loses her interest and she instead tries to encourage them after her with a new song, a novelty she heard from the dockworkers. It bubbles out of her chest excitedly, and you would think she has had nothing more enjoyable than a swim with a Kelvic and a Human.

"As I went out one evening upon the plains so clear

I spied a lofty horse and his young lass and to me they did steer


 
She had a dark and a roving eye and her hair fell down in ringlets 

She was a nice girl, a sweet girl, but one of the roaming kind



I took her to my fire and treated her so fine 

And hardly did I realize she was the roaming kind 

I kissed her lips I missed her lips and found to my surprise 

She was nothing but a drykas dressed up in disguise!

She had a dark and a roving eye and her hair fell down in ringlets 

She was a nice girl, a sweet girl, but one of the roaming kind
                                            
Now come all ye good merchant men who sail the grassy sea 
And come all ye adventurous lads fair warning take from me 

Beware of lofty horses and their maids so fine, they'll be the ruin of you

For 'twas then she made me walk the 'Vein and pushed me under too!"

OOC :

The song is "The Roaming Kind", butchered and cannibalized for my purposes.

[Dust]

Caves! Exploring! Dust grinned at Sybel, though as she digressed into musings on clothing or the lack thereof, the Kelvic just looked mildly perplexed. Whatever you say... She only looked more baffled as the woman went on to ask what it felt like to be... to be a raven? A bird? Other than human? Dust gave the question some thought... mostly trying to figure out what the woman was getting at in the first place. "I... feel like myself? What else would I feel like?" Uleru spoke up then, protesting Sybel's mention of sunbathing. Dust didn't want to sunbathe, either; it was too nice a day to just sit on the sand! "I don't know how to swim much," she remarked to the Otani -- not with trepidation, but rather with a measure of piqued interest. It wasn't generally necessary for the Kelvic to swim, as she either walked or flew as a matter of course... but something about how the Otani said it suggested it'd be fun to do. She'd never seen the bottom of the water, either. "An island?" Dust echoed, hopping off her boulder and padding down the sand towards the waves, it not even occurring to the Kelvic to do otherwise than trust Uleru's good intentions. She thought about the shoreline, and the view from above... "There's the one up by Sanctuary, is that what you mean?" The lyrics the Otani sang were pretty to Dust's ear, but she gave her attention more to the water as her feet finally met the incoming waves. She had been wading in the sea before, and knocked over by the force of the water for not keeping an eye on it, too. The water was quite cool on her sun-warmed skin, the contrast enough to make it seem downright cold, though that didn't dissuade Dust -- it just made her shudder briefly in reflexive protest, shaking her head. "Cold water," she remarks to her companions. "Almost makes me want my feathers!" Except that wet feathers really aren't much fun...