Delectable Encounters [Haya]

[Amon]

Timestamp: 16th day of Summer 510 AV Location: Communal Kitchens Purpose: Meeting Haya It was a lazy afternoon for the Endal, with simple practices of archery, some lounging around and occasionally obliging Sakima for his request for flight practice. He was just as content watching his eagle companion as he was riding him, but the prospect of food at the time was far overcoming anything else he had in mind. Tugging on his comfortable leather boots and securing his bryda, he exited his compound, heading towards the only place known to distribute delicious foods of all varieties. The communal kitchens were bustling with activity at this time, and Amon couldn’t help but wave at passing acquaintances or good friends, even his sister, who sat amongst fellow glassblowers at their own table, possibly discussing the prospect of a new project. There was no one to stop him, however, as he entered the space where the delicious morsels were made. The cooks there greeted him as he entered. “Do you mind if I try my hand at this?” Amon asked, and the chef nodded with a grin, happily relinquishing his hold on the cutting knife so as the Endal could take his position. It was a rather large fish with shimmering scales and a gaping mouth, but Amon did not hesitate to bring the blade down and gently but efficiently skin the animal of the top layer of skin to begin the slicing. Piece by piece he did as such, until each slice was left nearly transparent, but thick enough to require mastication. Such actions made Amon feel far more at ease, he could focus on the food and will himself to make it as perfectly delectable as possible. Ten chimes later and the fish was sitting near a blazing fire, fueled by the chefs that ran from one side to the other. Amon insisted he help, and the response was a platter full of an array of fish, red meat and vegetables, which he promptly held to the best of his abilities as he walked briskly to the open center of the communal kitchens. He placed the dishes on the table lining the wall, then paused. The fruit caught his eye, and he snagged one quickly before taking a generous bite out it, munching thoughtfully. “Another day of self-inflicting chores, Amon!” He murmured to himself, rolling his eyes. “Ah, the allure of cooking..”

[Haya]

Haya clenched her teeth, her expression a wry grimace at best. One man had demanded she´d return his empty bowl to the kitchens, which was not a problem of course. But on her way there, his example had been followed by others, until the pile of dishes had grown higher and more unstable with each new addition. People discovered it to be an amusing game, appearantly, wanting to see just where her limits lay. And now the pile of dirty dishes had grown so high she had to stretch her neck to be able to peek over it’s top and see where she was going. Maybe Haya would find it amusing too, if it weren’t for the fact that she’d pay heavily if she was unable to keep up with this game. And it was quickly getting dangerous, for she was only able to use one arm, her other hand clutching to her cane for it´s much needed support.

It turned out to be too much. With the next few steps she made the pile of dishes begun to lose balance, starting to lean over to the side. Haya quickly bend her torso, cramping her body in a very unusual angle, taking all effort as to not let the tableware shatter on the ground. She’d made it, the pile stabilized, and the drudge let out an relieved breath.
There was only one problem now. She could not move from this cramped position. If she’d straighten up the delicate balance would be disturbed once again and her efforts would’ve been in vain. But if she didn’t, she would not be able to walk away from this spot. In fact, both she and the pile of dishes were now so precariously balanced that if she would move just one inch, her load would topple over and send crashing to the floor. You’ve got to be kidding me...

Haya’s eyes scanned her surroundings swiftly. There weren’t many people standing close enough to hear her, or even paying attention. Her gaze fell upon a man who seemed oddly out of place here in the kitchens. She was sure she recognized him as an eagle rider, not a cook. But her tired muscles told her there was little time to waste, and if she wanted help, she had to speak up.

“Endal! Would you..” Haya swallowed, unsure of how to formulate her question in a way that would make her request sound as polite as possible. But that was practicly impossible, with a Dek asking a Rider for favours. “Would you be so kind as to help me out here... please?” The last word was barely a gasp, her expression turning desperate as she felt her fingers loosing grip.

[Amon]

If it were not for the fact that Amon’s eyes had roamed the room in that instant, he probably wouldn’t have taken notice of the dek. It was obvious she was a drudge, struggling with a cane, a cripple at that, and bombarded with insults and obscenities for the little display she was doing for the rest of the crowd in the communal kitchens. It wasn’t often he encountered a drudge, so having one speak to him outright was surprising on his part. He stared at her, not with rising hostility, but amusement. His lips turned to a smirk, and he approached the girl, leaving the half eaten fruit where he had been on the table. “I thought you were doing pretty well there, girl.” He grinned, lifting her head up by placing a hand beneath her chin. “Do you really want them to see your weakness by allowing me to help you?” He was in a good mood, however, what’s the harm in helping a dek out once in a while anyway? After all, Amon wasn’t known to be cruel or heartless. On the contrary he was praised for being exceptionally patient and light-hearted. But there were the dark sides to the light, and the Endal was not immune to outbursts of anger. For now he contained his amusement of her suffering, then decided in the long shot it wouldn’t be advantageous that she fell and further mangled her already crippled ankle. He took a good portion of plates off her hand, and placed them on the table behind them. “Take those to the kitchens, you can come back for the rest.” He nodded toward her destination, a smile creeping up on his lips. “It’ll do you good to learn to keep your balance on that leg of yours.”

[Haya]

Haya averted her gaze when the Endal forced her chin up, biting her bottom lip as if to hide the small healing wound there. Weakness? She could not help but smile a little at his naivety. He would not know, of course, the life of a Dek held no place for silly things like pride.

Much to Haya’s relief the Rider didn’t seem all that agitated by her request, rather particularly amused. The tight muscles in her arm were greatful when he took away a good portion of her load and replaced it on the table behind them. What remained felt considerably lighter, and a lot easier to handle.

“Thank you, Endal.” Haya kept to her formal ways, bowing her head slightly, and refrained from responding to his verbal teasing. She had no experience with this man, and as such could not predict his possible reactions. So it was best to play safe and keep her mouth shut, that way she was often the most polite anyway. Though that didn’t mean her thanks had not been sincere, she honestly was very greatful for his help.

Bringing the plates to their supposed destination was a lot less troublesome now, and when Haya returned for the other half of the pile, the Rider was still standing there. She shot him a quick questioning glance, wondering if there was anything else he requested.

[Amon]

Amon was taking it upon himself to finish the fruit he had left earlier. There was no rush, no lingering doubt that the dek would not return, she would. It was ingrained in their heads from the moment they were deemed such. He held far more admiration for her simply because of the fact that she was crippled, yet was still capable of holding her own. Ah yes, now he remembered her face quite clearly when she was on her way back from dropping off her load. The girl from the First Thaw Festival, the one that pompous Avora had harassed and abused. He had to give her props for standing up to him, he was definitely someone not to take lightly. And then a devious smile graced his lips. “Dek, do you mind giving me your name? It’s rather crude calling you by anything else.” He motioned for her to follow as he brought the rest of the plates for her to the kitchen. What was the harm of helping someone once in a while, after all. “If you don’t know me, I’m Amon. You were at the First Thaw Festival, weren’t you? With Kovac?” He smirked, winking. “Do you like those types of boys?” A genuine question, albeit a rather random one. But at least he was attempting to spark a conversation.

[Haya]

He could not be seriously... he was. Haya´s eyes flicked across the room nervously, hoping nobody was paying attention to the two of them. An Endal carrying the load of a Dek, that was simply unheard of! But before she could offer some form of protest, the Rider caught her off-guard with his casual questions.

“... It’s Haya,” she uttered, moving to keep up with his pace. She figured that this Amon, as he had introduced himself, was certainly in a good mood to be so casually talking with someone like her. But she raised her eyebrow when he mentioned a familiar sounding name. The suggestive nature of the question that followed was only enhanced by the Endal´s winking, and Haya felt the heat rise to her cheeks. What on earth was the man implying?

“Yes, I was present at the Thaw Festival.” She managed to bring out, before having to turn her gaze away from him. “But I’m not quite sure what you mean with ‘those types of boys’?”

Haya knew very well what the Endal meant, but she wasn’t willing to give him his answer yet. Mostly because she wasn’t sure of it herself. Perhaps she did like the archer, in a way. Or perhaps she´d just been foolish, curious, like a moth drawn to the fire that might burn it.

[Amon]

Yes, he wanted to help Haya, but he was partly also becoming slightly impatient with her slow gait. Either way it was a win/win situation for the dek, one that Amon didn’t particularly mind. Yes, most likely, people were staring, would they question them? Perhaps not. Rarely has a Rider acknowledged the presence of a dek, but this particular Endal wasn’t like the rest. No, he was stupidly benevolent for his own good. When the girl responded with her name, he smiled, then chuckled at her sudden reddened face. “Haya, a pleasure.” Was it a lie? Maybe, maybe not, but his tone implied he was being genuine. “Ah, so I hit a soft spot. You don’t have to hide anything, your face can tell me all I need to know.” He gestured to her back towards a vacant table, then he rolled his eyes at her response. “Don’t play dumb, now, Haya.” Once he sat down, he glanced about them. No one within earshot, and they were all content on minding their own business at least. “I know I’m probably being a bother, but I never did understand what drew women to the contemptuous, cold-hearted and haughty types.” He paused, tapping the table absently. “I guess you could consider it curiosity, I like to pry into people’s minds.” He grinned, “Please, excuse my tangent.” Then he considered for a moment, inspecting Haya from a closer vantage point. Yes, she was crippled, this could be the sole reason why she had become a dek. She was a hard worker, but life had clearly done her wrong. “You would have been something much greater..” He murmured without a second thought. So quiet, but clearly audible.

[Haya]

Haya knew very well what the Endal must be thinking, and she couldn´t blame him for it, with the reaction she´d given him. Though she´d been more embarressed by his possible insinuations than that she really had something to hide. The drudge wasn’t one to make illusions of love so easily. But any sort of denial would sound unbelievable to his ears now, so she gave up on it.

Amon’s gesture towards the empty table made clear he was intent on continuing this conversation, and Haya followed him with a small amount of wonder. She had no idea if the man had a specific purpose for talking to her, or if he really was just generally interested.
If anything, it became evident the Rider certainly wasn’t stupid, having easily recognised her little decoy question for what it was. Haya seated herself in front of the man, a small smirk lifting the corner of her mouth at his statements.

“If that is the case, Rider, perhaps you and ‘us women’ aren’t so very different. We also are curious, like to pry people’s minds. And what mind can be more fascinating than the ‘contemptuous, cold-hearted and haughty’. One that so obviously strays from the average?”

She could see Amon’s eyes inspecting her, measuring her. But she hadn’t expected his conclusion to be spoken out loud. She was surprised, to say the least. The drudge quickly gathered back her wit though, giving the Endal a dry smile. “Talking in past tense... you sound like I’ve been given up already. Don’t write me off so easily, Rider.”

[Amon]

oocI lol'd. It was usually hard to tell one someone didn’t have a tragic past or an event so scarring it rendered them a complete oddball in the bunch. Amon had lived a life without any qualms, and I suppose it showed, but meeting someone face to face and actually speaking to Haya was different. He’d, to be honest never thought twice about how a dek became what they were, but perhaps he had an inkling now. At her remark, he looked somewhat surprised. And then he laughed, like the dumb ass he was. Laughed because he simply felt insulted. “Are you implying I’m average? That hurts, really it does. I won’t hold you to it if you like Kovac, that’s good. It could help you exponentially in the long run caste wise.” Yes, and maybe it would calm the unruly whelp. He smiled, despite her smirk. It was taken lightly; in strides. He shook his head when she responded to his absently made observation. “No, you haven’t given up, and I see that now. To have such a disability is disheartening, because without it I’m sure you could have elevated far before anyone else. The usual deks I see around are lazy and not at all enthusiastic about hard work, but you try from what I can tell.” He thought for a moment, “I wonder what would happen if I decided to switch places with a dek for a day. Outrage? Riots? Protests?” He gave her a wry grin.

[Haya]

The Rider laughed as if he couldn’t believe what she’d just said to him. It looked like she’d hurt his pride, and Haya couldn’t help but grin at his expression, taunt him just a little more. “You draw the wrong conclusions, Endal. If anything, I might have implied you were like a woman, which would make you anything but average.” Haya chuckled, her reply more daring than she had expected of herself.

“And believe me, I’m not stupid enough to fall for a man capable of this.” She pointed at the small healing cut in her lower lip, a left-over from her confrontation with Kovac two days prior. Maybe that was a clear enough hint for the Rider to stop making wrong assumptions.

Haya let her chin rest on her palm, drawing invisible lines on the table with her other hand. She refrained from responding to Amon’s words regarding her injury. Why couldn’t people see it? Telling her it was such a pity, that she had potential if it weren’t for her bad ankle... But nothing had changed! Even with this injury she was still the same person, with the same potential. And it made her angry, frustrated that no one seemed to realise that. Though for now she kept her calm, only the slightest hint of discontent showing on her features.

At the Rider’s last remark, her dissatisfaction quickly dissapeared, and the taunting smirk returned. “With a face like yours, that is a very bad idea, Rider. Every woman in Wind Reach would try to take advantage of you.”