Closed [Sacred Arch Hotsprings] Moonlight Waltz

[Eluri]

63rd of Spring, 515 A.V.

It was a wonderful night when Eluri decided to attempt to go to the Sacred Arch Springs again. Despite the first attempt ending in a complete failure and with one of her dresses getting a complete makeover, Eluri still wanted to go to the highly acclaimed hotsprings. It hadn't been on her mind of recent, in all honesty, but Eluri had the sudden urge to bathe after her hard day of working, sewing and learning to sketch at her job in the Elegant Weave. It had been a grueling day, especially when a rather pompous lady who shoved her status in Eluri's face asked for a chiffon dress of the highest grade satin and velvet, and the etheafal wanted to just soak herself in something warm and soothing.

And thus, she ended up at the hotsprings. It was an awfully good idea now that she was sitting at the edge of the springs, the water steaming around her as her silver-blue hair fanned out in a roiling cascade, and she couldn't help but feel relaxed. The heat was soothing, incredibly so, and anyone who had had a stressful day would have felt incredibly satisfied sitting or swimming in it. The minerals, from what she had glimpsed from the chatter of the ladies who worked with her, were doing their job if one's body was losing its tension with every passing splash and lapping of the water. But there was something about the entire loss of tension, the feeling of too much relaxation, that disturbed Eluri.

After standing up from the pool, alone and shimmering like a water opal in Leth's attention, Eluri discovered that there was an alarming side effect to the Spring. She could hear, yes, but everything was distorted and muffled. The water that trickled from her hair, the dew that formed and dropped from her swirling horns, all made an audible sound, yes, but it lacked the clarity it would have on still and calm waters. It wasn't an instant and crystalline sound, a drip or tinkle, but more akin to a noise that one would hear from further away. The heat and the steam was augmenting the noise around her, and she wasn't feeling very relaxed anymore. Not to mention the combined effect of the two was the perfect remedy for insomnia.

And so there she was, standing in her soaked undergarments and a white dress that now hugged her figure and flowed around her submerged thighs. Eluri didn't stand in one place for long, though. In an almost elegant gait she moved towards the central section of the hotspring and, in an awfully captivating manner, pushed her hair from her face, tucking it behind her ears as she gazed at something hidden beneath the surface of the mist enshrouded waters. It was all an act, a ploy, on her part though. Ever since she had stood up from the spring the ethaefal had noticed an intense gaze directed at her, sending a wave of prickles across her skin. Despite all of this, Eluri didn't actually care much for the gazing. Gazing didn't endanger her in any manner, but what it lead to was what she was prepared for. Who'd know, in that moonlit night and in that solitary hotspring, that Eluri had left her sword where she was standing now, ready to retrieve it if need be.

There was still something else on her mind, though, when she plunged underwater. It was a fleeting thought, a passing whisper of the psych, but it had left her with more questions than she had cared for in that moment of relaxation. Unlike her first encounter with water's embrace, the Lethaefal wasn't panicked or worried for her life, nor was she shivering from the cold. This time it was a more friendly greeting, the trembling ripples that echoed and reverberated from the banks caressing and whispering kisses over her skin, and it left her warm an tingly. It whipped her hair back out of its place, sending it adrift in the small tide, and returned it back to its wishful form of weightless clouds and feathery mist. The waters clouded her vision, the liquid blurring the monochrome world of night around her as she held her breath, and made her recall - or was it wonder? - that this was what the world looked like through tears. She was sinking, not far enough for her to be incapable of stopping herself from drowning by standing, and she looked glorious. Her skirt followed her hair, reaching up to the sky in a prayer to Leth, and her heart felt filled with peace for that moment, her ploy still in her mind but Rak'keli and Makutsi's joint realm snatching away the notions and small worries. It by no means meant that Eluri wasn't ready, her sword was in her hands as she laid there staring at the sky beyond the water, just that she wasn't going to attack unless something happened that she deemed dangerous.

The black cloth that was now with her at all times weaved itself around her, too, mimicking its white sister in prayer to the god of thought and the moon. It wove itself in a haphazard manner that one couldn't quite decide whether it was artistic or dangerous to the girl, and danced with every movement of the hotspring. The overall image was known to Eluri, she could tell what it looked like as if she had seen it all before, but she tried not to think about it for too long. She still had to return to work after her break, her small respite from demanding customers, and the aesthetic qualities of her submerged form would have been perfect for a project, but it was simply not something to think about right then. She was on her break, and she was going to enjoy it whether or not someone was going to peep on her. She didn't quite understand nudity, it was perfectly natural, nor did she understand the reason behind why there were those who watched others in a highly suspicious manner. But Eluri did understand that sometimes that staring went too far and ended up causing pain for those spied on.

Knowing that things could go awfully wrong when one was alone at night in the wilderness, Eluri still went ahead with her idea. She was going to lure whoever it was out and confront them if necessary, make them answer the questions she harboured in her tangle of thoughts, and then deal with them in the manner she found appropriate. Whether or not she was going to apprehend them, and possibly even warn them off, all depended on what they were like. She'd determine and decide on it after she analysed them under the moonlight. But before that, the opalescent woman had to leave the clutches of the hotspring.

Rising once more from the spring, her clothes and hair now thoroughly soaked, Eluri drew in the breath that her body had desired as she nestled into the bed of the pool. It was refreshing and revitalising, that single moment one receives upon exiting a stiflingly warm place and into a cooler environment, and she savoured it. In truth, she was just recovering from a heat induced wave of dizziness, but Eluri wouldn't have even noticed that it was dizziness However, in that single moment, even with her sword in hand and her hyper awareness before, Eluri had failed to notice a crucial piece of information.

Her breasts.

Someone, or something, had pressed up against her breasts in that semi-darkness.

Not to mention that some shadow was streaking through the night sky and heading towards the hotspring.

For what it was worth, that night was becoming an odd one indeed.

[Asen]

The hotsprings.

Certainly a good place to relax, if you didn't mind the (approximately) fifteen-chime commute it took to get there. It wasn't enclosed like the Soothing Waters, it wasn't loud, and it wasn't dangerous thanks to the knights. It was, however, the place where she'd met Lorden.

Lorden. He was Asen's acquaintance-turned-datemate-turned-patron. Disastrous, really, but she kept her worries pushed to the back of her mind. For now she concentrated on the leaves under her feet, the smooth extension of her legs that carried her closer to the springs. The pendant, shaped like the tree of the Order, shifted with each step. She'd replaced her snake ring with the trophy, gained from her battle with a young Kriital that she and two others had won.

The half-Dhani twisted the snake ring on her right hand nervously. Was she even going the right way? It was hard to tell in the darkness. Gut instinct had told her go this way, it's where you're supposed to go to get to the springs, but she wasn't sure if her gut instinct was still working after so many years of sustaining damage in the same area.

As it turns out, she had been going in the correct direction. She could see the waters reflecting the light of the moon as if it were a mirror, and the steam curling up from the surface looked like ethereal dancers.

The one person in the springs at Asen's arrival took the squire's breath away. She -- for her form was certainly feminine -- seemed touched by Leth himself, silver-blue hair cascading down her back and hanging from the horns curling from her temples. The soaked dress that clung to the woman's figure only enhanced her celestial beauty. She moved with such grace, such allure that it made the blonde feel filthy and encrusted with dirt just watching her.

The half-Dhani released a soft sound of awe. She knew that however long she wanted to stare at the stunning woman, staring was rude and she'd better introduce herself or at least make her presence known. It was difficult to tear her gaze from the moon-touched lady, but she managed.

Her fingers worked at her clothing, pulling the waistband of her pants downwards to her ankles. She stepped out of the legs, lifting her shirt over her head simultaneously. Both pieces were folded neatly and set aside, with the snake ring atop them. Her hand clutched the symbol of the Order that hung about her neck as she stepped forwards to the edge of the hotsprings.

Asen's eyes slid back to the woman in the water. Compared to her, the squire was a child. She was thin and flat as a board where the woman was voluptuous and statuesque. She was a child, and the woman was a goddess. She was knee-deep in the water, and the woman... was submerged.

The blonde's fingers uncurled from around the silver symbol hanging about her neck, dropping to touch the outsides of her thighs. She stumbled forwards, moving to rescue her if she was held beneath the surface against her will. The warm water splashed against her legs, rising to her hips and then just below her lowest ribs. She reached for the beautiful woman, hands going to her pearly arms...

And then the majestic figure rose from the steaming pool, clear liquid falling from the crown of her head. Asen didn't have time to react, and her palms met the woman's breasts, the lustrous skin protected by the milky white cloth of her nightgown.

Oh, shyke. I petched up. I petched up real bad.

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[Alexander Ross]

Alexander Ross Alex inhaled deeply, the warm night air making his mind feel strangely at peace. All thoughts drained from his troubled mind, only to be replaced with the gentle sounds of nature. Alex loved it at night. Just the smooth and gentle winds cascading around his form and caressing his shaggy brown hair, the scent of a slight humidity in the air, and the overall majesty as the stars twinkled in the dark sky overhead was enough to make him feel calm and collected. It made him feel alive, rather than his usual feelings of overbearing weight on his shoulders that he felt during the day. He had no armor on, and felt as if he could finally move more freely, which was a major relief. He stopped for a moment to survey his surroundings, wondering if he was going the right way. Before he left, Ranqor had explained three or four times how to get to the hot springs, but the boy had never been good with directions and almost always ended up getting lost. His mind traced back to the first time he explored the whole of Syliras while on patrol, and how his patron had to go off looking for him because he had gotten lost. This, however, was but a mere trip to the hot springs, and he wondered if the outcome would be the same... Thankfully, that was not the case. Peering into the darkness, he caught a fairly obvious glimpse of the Sacred Arch Hotsprings, the surface of the water reflecting the moonlight. He sighed with relief and approached as silently as he could... which was more of a display of careless tiptoeing than real stealth. He reached the edge of the spring and began stripping himself of his usual dark clothing, showing off his lithe form and the occasional physical scar he had acquired from his childhood... save for the one in the crook of his elbow. Setting his belongings in a pile near the edge of the pool, he cautiously stepped his bare feet into the steaming water. Slowly at first, but then he carefully began to wade in as soon as his body had grown used to the heat. A sudden splash directed his attention to two females who had also decided to claim the hotsprings for the night. The boy's eyes widened in worry and he quickly moved to cover himself. He had hoped to enjoy a nice, hot soak by himself, but it seemed as if that plan had gone out the window. It was not that there were to woman there that had made him nervous... it was the fact that one of them seemed to be touching the other's breast."Um..." Was all poor Alex could manage to say. That's when he knew that he had really petched up.

[Treachery]

OOCThanks for being patient. Sorry for the hold up. The night was clear and fresh and new. The best kind of night. Treachery ran down the road as fast as he could least his patron reappear from the shadows, having changed her mind and drag him back to more of his duties. The isur had woken him up early in the day for training after which had been patrols along with a brief shopping trip. In short; the zith was exhausted. Every muscle in his body was screaming murder at him from where the armour had sat and his legs and feet felt heavier than ever. Hopefully a nice hot soak would loosen them up before he turned in for the day. Ignoring the gawking city guards, Treachery set off out into the bronze woods. Not a quarter of bell from the walls there was a series of naturally heated pools. It was amazing that he had discovered them entirely by accident really. He had been chasing after a rabbit, not paying attention of where he had been going. Back then there had been a six armed woman but by this time of night it should be clear. True, the squire dormitories came with their own wash facilities however they felt rather cramped to the zith. Out in the open he could wash and stretch out his wings to his heart's content, not having to worry about the six other squire all shooting him nervous looks. Did nobody in this colony trust him? Enjoying the feeling of lightness that came without steel plates strapped to the body, Treachery leaped forwards over a fallen tree. His wings opened up and flapped down wards four times before he landed again. The zith's wings were becoming strong and while he still couldn't do more than a wing-aided jump now; it was becoming very clear that he would soon be flying again. The very thought of it sent memories of the wind and the vast grass plains far beneath him giggling around the squire's head. Slapping his wings against the air again as he made a small hop, the fanged monster nearly shrieked out loud as he left he ground for a few ticks, his stomach lurching in a nostalgic way. Continuing to skirt around the edge of Bronze woods, Treachery soon arrived near the pool. However it was not as empty as he had hoped. Approaching through the trees slowly he noted a male voice mutter something. The voice did sound familiar but he couldn't place it. Sliding up close to a tree, wings folded in to keep them out of trouble, he peered through the foliage. In the semi-darkness, the zith could see as well if not better than he could during the day. Two women were bathing, the man he had heard before seemed to have just joined them. Deciding that this wasn't so sort of odd mating ritual, despite the apparent breast grabbing, Treachery slowly eased himself out of the trees.

[Eluri]

"...May I help you?"

It was the first thing that sprung to her mind when she spotted the person who was quite blatantly touching her breasts. Not a normal reaction, by any means, but it was Eluri that was being groped. She was simply impervious to sexual harassment, advancements, and to pretty much anything that was possibly...degrading in general. She was an impregnable fortress of morals and values, for all that she was worth, and being groped was nothing in the face of her naivete.

Although the mist that rolled of the heated waters of the hotspring shrouded nearly everything within it, the light of the moon pierced the veil long enough, and lit it up quite well too, for the ethaefal to make out just who was touching her. She wouldn't be able to identify them, either way, but being able to see them, and their body features at that, would help immensely in identifying them later on in the city. Eluri was a practical person even if she was a tad bit apathetic, and it was one of her good points. Her ability to see anything that did not have to do with kids and animals in an observatory perspective was extremely useful. Without any of her personal opinions affecting her perception, and without judging everything and everyone left and right, the ethaefal was able to be calm and calculated in even the toughest of situations.

But it was no situation that needed calm and calculation. Who needed plotting and scheming just because they were groped?

It was a first for the moon child, though. One of the many firsts that she had experienced that Spring, and it was unlikely to be the last. And so, taking the situation in with an air of nonchalance, Eluri proceeded to stare up at the relatively taller woman.

From what she could see, her "assailant" was an interesting facet of pale. Despite how her flaxen hair and stunning eyes attempted to bring life to her appearance, her skin seemed to add a sickly palor to her form. Eluri could tell that this lady was anything but sick, though, especially what with the amount of flesh she had on her. Although she was thin, as was noticeable even to Eluri in the diffused and refracted light of the moon upon the spring, the unnamed lady was anything but weak looking.

Her eyes sparked in Leth's light and told the Lethaefal one crucial piece of information that discerned her from any human: her serpentine eyes. The shadows played on her cheekbones, prominent as they were, but their ability to distract was not enough to pull Eluri from the piercing gaze of the sapphire orbs. She wasn't really sucked in by it, it was just the fact that they were so wild and yet human that made her gaze at it for longer than a moment. Most prominent of all was the look of pure panic in her eyes, as if she was doing something wrong. Eluri couldn't figure out what, though.

"Is there something wrong with my chest?"

It was an honest question on the opalescent female's part. She didn't quite know what those hands were doing on her chest, and she didn't particularly mind...it was just a tad bit uncomfortable. The pressure of the palms, the heat of the pool, and the mist all converged together and made it more stifling then it would if they were all separated. It was claustrophobic, awkward, and draining enough to make someone as impassive as Eluri to feel uncomfortable.

Naturally, Eluri simply ignored the slight flare of discomfort when she thought she heard someone other than the odd lady and herself enter the waters of the spring. It was a muffled utterance, too fuzzy to make out clearly what the words were, but it sent Eluri into a state of alertness that she had before the woman came. Her sword was still in her hand, and the rivulets of water that ran down its length glistened like streams of liquid glass, and she was ready to act if any hostiles decided to appear.

Gazing around the spring, her sword only discernible by its glimmer and reflective qualities underneath the water's surface, the Lethaefal spotted a familiar young man that she had met before. There had been enough moonlight for her to make out the faintest impression of his features, but the steam was making it impossible to clearly see who he was. It wasn't of much importance, either, in terms of the threat he imposed. Neither was the odd looking bat-man hybrid that seemed to be moving towards the spring in a friendly enough manner. He wasn't careful like a hunter tracking its prey, nor was he rushing towards them, and so Eluri simply scripted him as a civilian of the city she also inhabited.

It felt wrong, though, the way she had simply dismissed the possible threats that those figures imposed to hear when she was alone. In the city, Eluri wouldn't have payed any heed to their gradual approach at all. She'd have noticed them, yes, but that was it. She wasn't paranoid nor careful. But alone at night, Eluri became as sharper than she would let off. She would notice the facial features of individuals with conciseness and a practiced eye, and their gait, the sound and feel of the wind and air, and her sense would be alight with information. That was per the usual.

But that night wasn't per the usual, either. Visiting the hotspring, a hotspring, was a luxury. Nobody has time to be hyper alert when they're swallowed up by warm waters.

[Asen]

What had Asen been thinking!? 'Ah, yes. This lady who is clearly not drowning must be dying! I think I'll go and save her! Yes, there is absolutely no way this could go wrong!'

No. Instead of saying anything aside from an apology, she took her hands away from the woman's breasts, cringing. "Miss, I am so sorry. I- I didn't mean to, I swear. I- I thought you were drownin' or somethin'," she said, blushing. Her reasoning sounded silly, pointless. It was. She was a complete idiot.

Not only was she an idiot, she was also terrible at noticing things. In the pearlescent woman's hand was a sword, glittering in the faint light. The half-Dhani took a couple wary steps back. Oddly enough, however, the woman seemed unfazed by the hands that were placed upon her chest.

"No, miss. There en't anythin' wrong with your chest. I just- I mean- It en't exactly proper, miss. To grab someone's boobs without knowin' 'em," she explained. The squire looked around to see what the pale lady saw, peering at the dark figure. He seemed to be a teenager or young adult, judging from the silhouette's stature. Aside from that, she couldn't see anything out of the ordinary.

She squinted at the boy, frowning. "Oi, come out 'ere. You don't look too dangerous, an' I'm not gonna 'urt you unless you try to 'urt me." Or the lady, of course. She couldn't forget the pretty moon-touched lady. If anyone tried to hurt the moon-touched lady... Well, gods have mercy on them.

Asen's head whipped around at another rustle, squinting again to try and see who or what it was. The shape... It was familiar. It took less than five ticks for her to both realize what it was and for fear to slide down her spine and set her on edge. It was a Zith.

She pivoted so her back was to the moon-touched lady, as if she were a shield between her and the danger. The blonde stood with her legs akimbo and arms stretched out to the side. "Miss," she said in a low voice, "If you'd stay behind me that'd be mighty fine. I probably en't as good a swordswoman as you, but I can fight it with nothin' but my bare hands. An' you," she called to the young man, "You stay away from that thing as well."

The half-Dhani almost bared her teeth at the beast, her eyes glittering dangerously. "If you try an' hurt any of us, I'm gonna tear your throat out you filthy petchin' Zith," she snapped. Zith had a terrible reputation back in Riverfall. She'd learned to hate them.

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[Alexander Ross]

Alexander Ross For a moment, all was silent around him, save for the soft crunching of leaves beneath the squire's feet. Out of all the scenarios he had been in throughout his life, this one was by far the most awkward and humiliating. Thankfully, the two women had not noticed him just yet, and he took this time to search for his undergarments. Unfortunately, much to the boy's horror, one of the females spotted him, asking him to step out. Alexander yelped and shielded himself once again, his face blushing brightly. "I... I think I'll stay where I am, thank you." He said, his voice a bit stern despite the embarrassed stuttering. He backed up a bit more, hoping that the darkness would cover his naked form. It was bad enough he could barely talk to women, now he was completely exposed in front of two of them. He would have allowed himself to faint, if he wasn't so close to the water. There was a sudden rustling nearby as a dark figure eased from the trees, suddenly capturing his attention. Due to the darkness, it took him a moment to figure out just what the creature was. A Zith in the hotsprings? Instinctively, he scrambled toward his pile of clothing, searching for his sword. It was not hard to find the gleaming silver blade within the bundle, along with his undergarments. Struggling to put them on, he staggered out into the open, his sword in hand. "If you try an' hurt any of us, I'm gonna tear your throat out you filthy petchin' Zith." He heard the taller woman say, and he waded into the water, nearly tripping. "What are you doing?! Don't provoke it!" He said hastily, before glancing at the woman on the ground. "Wait... don't I know you?" of course, he knew full and well who she was, considering she had saved his life multiple times on that one night he would never forget... He turned back to the Zith, clutching his sword tightly within his grasp. After a moment, he realized that something about the Zith looked... familiar. He searched his mind for any memories that could recall. Suddenly remembering Sayana's New Year's party, the boy almost immediately lowered his guard. "Hang on... Don't I also know you, too? Trent... no... Treachery, is it?" He asked, his sword now hanging at his side.