Ocean to Forest

by **Lacerta** on November 18th, 2013, 10:15 pm

When asked if she had a room in Mura, Lacerta shook her head wryly. "No, but I have a travelling 'room', if you could call it that. I simply sleep in my boat... I prefer it there." She shrugged, a small smile on her face. However, she didn't speak any more, instead listening to the interesting description of Mura. It was actually quite nice to hear it from a non-native... they generally had the best view on a place. Travelers were the best, as they most often had an unbiased view of things... but travelers were rare, as their 'occupation' was incredibly dangerous, even if by sea or land... moving between cities was a challenge every time, and the Eth was always careful to plan things out when she arrived or departed from a city.

The Nuit mentioned several places, including a bazaar, and a second garden... which he'd talked vaguely about before. However, this seemed to include more detail, and the place was apparently filled with poets. Marvelous. She couldn't complain, it was simply another form of art, but she preferred creating moods without words, just... sound. But to all their own opinions... though Kuvarakh certainly put on a show while explaining it.

When he suggested the winery, she nodded in agreement. "Sounds like a good idea to me" she admitted with a smile. What better way to enjoy the beauty of nature than to add some nice wine and company to the mix? It would be perfect, if you simply added a little music. And knowing Mura, as short as her stay was... that was a complete possibility. "Please, lead the way... at least this place wont take us a 'few days' to arrive at." She shrugged, before absentmindedly checking a pocket. She had enough mizas on her to buy some wine, depending on the price. Hopefully they would be able to split things, though...

by **Kuvarakh** on November 19th, 2013, 1:57 am

Kuvarakh grimaced slightly as he saw Lacerta check her funds. He hadn't actually intended to suggest buying wine. He was just mentioning the location of a good view overlook. He was sure he had mentioned that Nuits didn't eat. The same reasons applied to drinking anything but water as well. This did not mean that he wouldn't HAVE any water while she had wine. Nor did it mean that he would refuse to pay half the cost. Shyke, He'd buy the thing himself. He just hoped pride would not be an obstacle.

He hesitated as he began. "I, uh...hope you won't...object to my paying for wine that I, uh...won't actually be drinking." He didn't want to mention observing her counting her change, fearing he would embarrass her. She looked like she was about to make some mild protest, but he cut her off, trying to spare her feelings. "Don't worry about the money. The Winery WAS my idea after all. I forget that most people feel like eating when they go somewhere that serves food."

He rolled his eyes as he said it, marveling sarcastically at the number of things he could still find to stumble socially over, despite his best effort. "It's no hardship for me financially. Truly, the very fact that I don't need to buy food every day saves me quite a bundle. I will gladly pay for the wine. I wouldn't think of piquing your interest in a carafe and then dumping the bill in your lap while I have water. And I WILL have water. There is no digestive issue with it. I actually DO need a bit of water from time to time."

by **Lacerta** on November 19th, 2013, 1:37 pm

Lacerta glanced over at Kuvarakh in surprise when he mentioned the wine, then grinned. Right… Nuits didn’t need to eat or breath, so why drink wine? It would be illogical. She shrugged apologetically, scolding herself for forgetting. ”I completely forgot, to be honest… and if you’re not drinking it, why pay? I can always get something smaller… just a glass, say. That would easily be cheap enough, and I could just pay for it myself.” She shrugged, smiling slightly.

When he talked about finances, and water, she chuckled slightly s well. ”I save quite a bit of money on food and the like myself – I technically don’t need to eat or drink anything when Syna is in the sky…” She frowned a bit, musing on the water. It sounded like Nuits could drink water, but not wine. Was it the alcohol? She knew it had some antiseptic properties, but was unsure on a lot of other things. Would it technically hurt a Nuit if they drank wine? Or would it help – and Kuvarakh simply didn’t feel like a drink. She wasn’t insulted either way, just… curious.

She lightly brushed her fingers over a tree trunk while she walked, enjoying the rough feel on her skin. The Ethaefal decided to voice her question and asked ”What happens if you did drink wine? Anything different from water?” She cocked her head slightly to the side in question, not pausing in her steps. Despite the length of their walk so far, the conversation had distracted her enough that she didn’t mind the length… she’d barely noticed time passing, really. However, her fingers were beginning to ache slightly from holding the book and flute, so she passed them to the other hand. She had the slight temptation to try and tune herself while walking, but realized it would probably insult her Nuit friend… and interrupt their conversation. She’d tune later, when she was actually going to play something. Still, she fiddled with the mouthpiece, running her fingers over the engraved name and twisting it side to side… she’d have to fix that later too.

OOCFeel free to actually have them arrive at the winery in the next post, If you want. I’d write it myself, but it makes sense if you ‘lead the way’, since you’re today’s tour guide

by **Kuvarakh** on November 21st, 2013, 1:48 am

Kuvarakh was not going to embarrass his company by saying 'Well I saw you counting your change and was concerned you might not be able to afford a glass of wine.' He was surprised to hear that she didn't need to eat or drink either, during the day anyway.

They talked more as they made their way through the city, noticing that it was truly the people that gave color to the isle, or rather, the clothes and art. The Konti, like the consistent sandstone structures of pretty much every building in town, were very light colored, but, also like the buildings, were adorned in colors. The surrounding forest had a number of whitish silver trees, with colors sprinkled in from other sources. And entering the city gave the same impression - a backdrop of white to emphasize the colors of that which passed around and through.

Kuvarakh answered with a humorously resigned grin. "Well, since you ask, wine would be similar to food, it doesn't digest. It just sits in the stomach and rots. And for a Nuit, that is a very bad thing. We must be meticulous in our cleanliness. You see, we do not heal. Not wounds, not infection, not decay. I suppose that is why the welcome here is a trifle cold. They probably see me as having no reason to be here. They are so close to Sahova, I have no doubt they are aware of the attitude that prevails there. They probably think me a spy." He said this last with a laugh, a laugh carrying mostly humor, but not all.

He went on, "The water would do me no detriment. My body needs an influx of moisture from time to time, but I need to avoid overdoing it. But the other ingredients in wine would need to be...uh...'purged' somehow." He made the classic finger-down-the-throat gesture, and reminded her, with another laugh, that she HAD asked. He thought of clarifying that, without a functional digestive system, there was no other way out, but decided she would probably grasp that detail sufficiently on her own.

By now they approached the Winery, having already passed the outer perimeter of the Gardens. Again, the surrounding predominance of pale colors only added to the glory of the colors, shaped and swathed upon the green lawn below and the blue sky above. The Winery stood amidst the garden, as expected, a white building. But its brickwork was offset by dark wooden visual counterpoint that was quite eye catching.

They went inside and he guided her to an ornate stairway leading to the second floor. Eyes followed them from the ground floor tables, and met them from above. Kuvarakh was relieved to see mostly smiles. He did not want Lacerta to be stigmatized by his presence. A mischievous voice read his mind, "Ahhh...Guilt by association."

They turned to see a smiling young Konti with an apron and a notepad. "Water for both of you, or does the lady have a sense of taste?" she winked and continued, "I am Jaslin, I will be happy to let you indulge yourself in a free sample, but the water will cost you dear."

Kuvarakh's eyes sparked with playfulness and he returned the favor, feigning to speak to Lacerta, but clearly directing his rebuttal to Jaslin. "There, you see Lacerta, not ALL Konti are uptight snobs, devoid of color, save for the green of envy for races of Note! Sadly, only the ones that serve wine." His attempt to shake his head sadly was overpowered by the shared laughter.

by **Lacerta** on November 21st, 2013, 1:39 pm

Lacerta eyed the city as they entered, constantly comparing it to Lhavit. It was certainly beautiful… the whites, the colors, the architecture, but in her opinion, it was so… flat. Lhavit was a city built on mountains, over five or so mountain peaks, where everything was terraced. From the top of one of those peaks… you could see for hundreds of miles. The skyglass, coupled with the city’s day and night schedule, made it seem so much… beautiful, in her eyes. Mura still made a close second, however.

Kuvarakh’s answer to her wine question was a little disturbing, but made sense. They inhabited already dead bodies, right? She wasn’t entirely sure how it worked, but was sort of able to guess the side effects. For example… none of their inner systems worked. That had already been proved with the ‘drowning’ story she’d been told earlier. It was still quite the odd effect, however, and one that almost made her grin. So his body simply wouldn’t be able to deal with it? And the comment about wounds… that actually made quite a bit of sense. They were probably missing the part of their body that repaired stuff like that… so any physical damage was to last. Until they found another body, of course.

They moved their way around and through the gardens, heading off to the winery. From what she could see of the place… it looked quite marvelous, though she hadn’t gotten a good look at everything. Lhavit had its own gardens, though they were usually more wilderness themed than man (or woman) grown. Vaguely, she wondered if they were still there today… what the city was like today. It had been fifty or so years since she’d left, and still remembered the city fondly. It was the home of the Ethaefal… where else would she love?

Once inside the remarkable building that was the winery, the pair of Nuit and Ethaefal were quickly greeted by a youthful Konti. But… knowing Konti… the woman could have been over a hundred, for all they knew. The woman’s comments were tasteful, mostly artfully insulting her companion. Lacerta couldn’t help but grin, glancing over to see how Kuvarakh was reacting. ”I’d love to try some of your wine, actually…” she admitted with a shrug. Again, she wanted to see how it compared to Lhavit’s. Though… the mountain city wasn’t exactly known for its drinks, and she’d noticed that Konti put quite the effort into perfecting their arts… so she had high hopes for this place.

When the Nuit commented on the Konti’s personality, she almost burst into laughter. Luckily, she had enough control to simply snort and cover her mouth, bending over slightly in the effort. She quickly shook off the feeling, commenting in an equally sarcastic tone ”Well, that may just be the Konti in Mura. I know those in Riverfall can be quite the beaters… though it might be that city full of blue men adding in the color.” She shrugged once more, shooting a grin at their Konti waitress. ”Anyways, I’ll have whatever you suggest to accompany a conversation with a mouldy Nuit.” She wondered off hand how the woman would react to such a statement… and what wine that would bring around. She wasn’t entirely the best wine taster in the world, but had some slight preferences. However, this Konti probably knew a thousand times better than she what paired well with what… even if it was Kuvarakh.

by **Kuvarakh** on November 24th, 2013, 7:37 pm

"Well, it shall certainly need to be something strong, to dull your sense of smell. This last word was emphasized by the nasal tone of squeezed nostrils, as Jaslin stepped back a pace in good nature. Despite the hand covering much of her face, you could see the signs of the grin in her eyes. "I have just the thing" She said and headed off to the counter.

"So...'mouldy' am I?" Kuvarakh groused in jest, "I'll have you know I doused myself with vinegar just yesterday morning." He grew semi-serious for a moment, "I wonder if that would work..." He raised his voice so Jaslin could hear, "They were serving it as WINE just the day before, but it served well enough as vinegar for me yesterday." There was a murmured hiss in response as Jaslin returned with a long-stemmed cordial sampling of a light colored wine for Lacerta and a bowl of water, which she laid on the floor at Kuvarakh's feet with a "here boy" whistle.

Kuvarakh made as if there was a good reason for the gesture. "Aaahh...Finally going to clean this filthy floor, eh? You'll be needing that mop then." he said, pointing to a corner closet, "Or perhaps a hammer and chisel would be better..."

Jaslin laughed outright and shook her head. "I never quite win a round against you, do I?" Kuvarakh shrugged innocently and Jaslin punched his shoulder lightly, turning to retrieve a genuine tumbler of iced water, "Okay, all kidding aside, here is your water, Mr. Lashman. Do enjoy your stay." She started to turn, but Kuvarakh stopped her.

"Umm...Jaslin? If all kidding is aside, may I ask you a serious question?" Jaslin raised her eyebrows as if any serious discussion was quite the rarity between them. Kuvarakh went on slowly, "I have been searching for something here...on the island...a certain location...I have had no success getting a truly helpful answer. I was wondering, if you cannot tell me where it is...perhaps you could explain why there is such reluctance." Jaslin stood in slightly uncomfortable patience, waiting for the shoe to drop. "I am speaking of the 'Vision Springs' or 'Springs of Visions' or something like that."

Jaslin nodded subtly, as if this was not an unlikely subject, given his description. She paused for a moment to to gather her response. "I like you, Mr. Lashman...'Kuvarakh'...I really do. I admit, probably more than most here. The Vision Springs are not exactly sacred, but very significant and highly personal. You would not be prevented, from finding them, or forcibly removed if found there, but I would share my people's belief that a non-Konti must be left to find them on their own, unassisted. Only in this way can we be sure that the Goddess is truly allowing you to visit them. I hope you can understand this. I will go so far as to wish you luck though."

She smiled with a hint of regret and turned to Lacerta, clearly to change the subject, "How do you like this wine? Would you like a glass?"

by **Lacerta** on November 26th, 2013, 1:34 pm

Lacerta nearly giggled at the smell jest. However, she had enough dignity to resist the urge, and instead simply smiled at the comment. She didn’t really understand the whole vinegar thing… there was probably some backstory she was unfamiliar with. It seemed, more or less, like this pair was having a verbal sparring competition, though simply for the fun of it. It was interesting to listen to the creative insults, however, and the giggle nearly returned when the Konti came back with a bowl of water.

Finally, however, their conversation turned more serious, and Kuvarakh asked about the vision springs. Apparently they were incredibly important… and they had to find the place themselves, probably with the help of Avalis. The Eth was unsure if she had any connection to the goddess, so reasoned that it would probably be nearly impossible to find, for her, at least.

When given the wine, she sniffed it experimentally, as she’d seen some wine testers do. It had a nice, strong, smell… yes, enough to douse out the decay of a Nuit (which she hadn’t noticed anyways). She raised the glass to her lips and took a small sip as well, letting the taste roll over her tongue. It had quite the flavor as well, to be honest, and her eyebrows raised at the contents.

”Excellent” she pronounced, smiling at their Konti host. ”Yes, I would love a glass…” She returned the one she’d been given earlier, since it had only been for testing the taste.

OOCI dunno… do you feel like we should leave this at an open end? For several personal reasons (including I’m finished NaNo ) as well as story reasons? I think it might just go on… and on… if they spent a lot of time sitting, drinking wine, and discussing things…

Thoughts?

by **Kuvarakh** on November 27th, 2013, 1:40 am

Kuvarakh looked at Jaslin and Lacerta. Both friendly and courteous, both comfortable and content, both probably hoping he would let the matter of the springs drop for the day. 'Oh well, I can always look again tomorrow.' he thought, feeling as if it was the right thing to do.

Lacerta had been practicing and he had interrupted her. Even though he felt he had provided enjoyable and informative company, he did not think it would last if he dragged her now on a blind excursion for what could be days, scouring the perimeter of the lake. He was certain the springs were near the shore.

It was strange, that even though he had been given a rebuff of sorts, he felt uplifted. Though he could not count on aid from the Konti, and no longer wished to ask it of Lacerta, he felt strangely certain that the island's goddess would grant it, in her own good time. He may need to acquire a new body before then. But he could always come back to the island. He only needed faith in the goddess and in himself. And he had both.

He took a drink of his water and broke into a smile as he held it aloft, attracting the women's attention. "Outstanding! A very good year!"

by **Traverse** on March 12th, 2014, 3:21 pm

Kuvarakh

Skill	XP Earned
Meditation	1 XP
Observation	3 XP
Philosophy	3 XP
Rhetoric	5 XP
Socialization	5 XP
Teaching	2 XP

•	Lores Earned
•	Lacerta, Daughter of Syna
•	Discussing One's Immortality with an Immortal
•	Meditation with Music
•	Becoming a Tour Guide of Mura

Lacerta

Skill	XP Earned
Drinking	1 XP
Flute	3 XP
Investigation	1 XP
Land Navigation	1 XP
Observation	4 XP
Philosophy	1 XP
Socialization	5 XP

•	Lores Earned
•	Kuvarakh: A Nuit
•	Sahova: An Island of Nuits
•	Kuv: Markedly Different from Other Nuits
•	Water Quickens Nuit Decay
•	Music: A Technique Used to Aid Meditation