Closed Sitting this one out (Firenze)

[Leeta Snow]

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Timestamp 28th of Summer 515AV

It was twilight in the eventful town of Zeltiva, yet not many creatures were stirring, not even Leeta. She sat like a gargoyle attached to the side of an old warehouse building somewhat near to the World End Grotto and leaned against a crumbling wall. The building upon who's lawn she was sitting was marked by the city to be refit and re-purposed for something else, but that didn’t matter to her, it was a place that she chose to sit. So why this particular location? Because she was a people watcher, and a horrible one at that. Every person that went by she evaluated from their feet to face; what they wore and how they acted. The girl was dressed in all dark purples or blacks as she watched and would shake her head at some in judgement, and some others she would just watch with pure interest.

Her dress was fanned out about her on the grass that led up to the front gate to the warehouse behind her. The small little lawn that sloped downward of which she sat on, ran down to the street where the people walked and had various bushes to her left and right. She had somewhat of an aerial view up here, albeit a small one since she was sitting. Over the course of a bell she had sat there, just watching people. Now that it was twilight it was starting to get more interesting. Who knew what kind of Gala’s or Balls were bound to drive people like chickens dressed up in feathery gowns and lace down toward the richer areas of town; ready to be plucked by their handsome, well dressed companions. They would end up getting snockered, come wandering up the way once more, and would end up either sleeping with one another or ending up much like she was, sprawled out on the grass.

Sitting there in her black boots with lanky legs and arms, adorned with tattoos, she not only loved the close perspective she got up on the grass, but loved that people could see her there. Like a black, festering tumor that had grown on the side of the building's she just waited for someone to mock her so she could act crazy at them. Their eyes of judgement excited her and made her stream devious thoughts in her mind about them; not of hate or evil, but just strange thoughts. Upon her side was a small pouch wrapped in string about her wrist and as the girl sat there she wound one of the ties of the bag around one of her fingers, trying to cut off the circulation to it and make it purple. It looked as though it wasn’t very rotund, but more likely a daily spending amount of sorts.

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Other's Words -- My Words -- My Thoughts

[Firenze]

Approaching the vendor, the last one she hoped for the day, Firenze inquired about having seen a blonde hair golden eyed child. It wasn’t much that she could go off of but she wanted to get in one more person that she’d checked with for the day. Melody hadn’t given her a whole lot of information and it was becoming increasingly difficult to find anyone that might have any kind of information.

“Ye know how many kids are in the city lady? I’m sure I’ve spotted a blonde haired little girl at least four times today alone. Did ye lose yer kid?” His eyebrow rose in question, handing over a smoked fish to a customer next to her. It seemed like a plausible question considering the description were almost as if she were speaking of herself when she were younger. A pause for a moment, mulling over how to best approach, “Yes… my child. She’s been missing and I’m trying to find her.”

“Well, I’m sorry lady but I ain’t seen no one like that around here.” He turned and started to clean up his stand for the evening, dismissing her. Shoulders slumped feeling deflated, another dead end. Fire was sure this would have been a good spot that a kid in Zeltiva would go; fresh food, enticing smells and the excitement of day to day bustle.

Giving a half wave and muttering a thanks Fire left the man to his work. She had a client that she was supposed to meet in a few bells and she tried to use finding the child as a way to fill up some of her free time. Without success.

Fire made her way back toward her and Pulren’s cottage in the Old Quarter, passing the Inn that sat near the docks, where it felt she walked by for what seemed the hundredth time that day. All the walking, inquisitions and sun had started to sap her energy and she wondered for a moment if she should cancel the date scheduled for later that evening.

She needed the money so that was out of the question, not having that many offers lately, anything would help. Still, firmly holding on to her virginity gave her a small amount of peace. It wasn’t as though she minded giving it up but the clients as of late had been… not captivating enough to want to remember as her first. Becoming an escort was considerably interesting to her and the people that she’d met so far seemed pleasant enough, but she wanted something... exciting.

Her skills still lacking had her gathering few clients and prospects were low. She needed to get out there and work to gain experience but her lack of experience kept her from work. It was a never ending frustrating cycle. So working the best that she could with what she had Fire had been trying to entice local students into taking her out. They were young, almost as inexperienced as she was, which helped when faltering so it wasn’t as noticeable. Students had more energy and excitement and that tended to make fora more enjoyable evening. That and they were satisfied with just a good kissing session and maybe a grope or two. Fire was okay with that at the moment, especially with everything else that had been going on.

Her feelings were confusing, frightening and utterly wonderful when it came to Pulren. Aiding Melody was becoming difficult and frustrating and she feared that the woman would dismiss her help. To top it off Misha was not trusting of Fire and that added insult to injury. All she’d wanted to do was help the two women. She felt their pain, knew what it was like to be separated from family at such a young age, it pulled hard on her heartstrings. Thus the reason, despite the hesitation from the two, she continued to look for the girl.

As thoughts muddled around in her brain, a foot tripped up on a loose stone and arms flung forward in a mock motion to catch herself. The other foot stumbled forward quickly trying to correct the off balance. A squeal escaped between parted lips.

That was it. It pushed her to the edge. A obscenity that she’d heard a sailor use on the docks spewed from her mouth. Her hands splayed across the walkway, knees skinned and pants ripped. Smacking the ground she hung her head and tried to inhale a breath to bring back the calm that was normally carried. After a few ticks, head popping up, eyes scanned the area checking to see if anyone had seen her dump herself, for no reason, in the middle of the street. A few eyes watched from down the road, but mostly ignored her.

Others | Firenze | Thoughts

[Leeta Snow]

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Lurking there on the grass of the nearby corner, Leeta could see all who went by. The corner even had a view so far as down as to see the stand in the distance selling food to people. As displayed by Firenze’s utter failure to walk, this location had another benefit. The unseemly solid stone that was in fact loose caused much in the way for excitement for Leeta. Where else in town could you watch someone trip about every twenty minutes? It got to be though that most people caught themselves and somewhat paid attention to their surroundings. It wasn’t that Leeta was malicious or devious, she just thought it funny to see people stumble. Since her coming here to watch this wondrous event take place many months ago though she had not once seen someone fall.

As Firenze wandered up the street, Leeta locked her eyes upon her and could see that she didn’t even bother to buy food from the vendor, which was strange. She just wanted to talk to the guy. What she wouldn’t give to know what they said, as now she looked almost a step sadder, maybe frustrated than she did before. She wasn’t sure what that was all about, but as Firenze came up the walkway, she could see the woman was studying her thoughts more than her surroundings. In anticipation Leeta watched as the woman’s footfalls seemed to line up with the stone. Her excitement grew and grew until the moment of truth when the lovely Firenze stepped on the loose stone and made the best stumble Leeta had seen.

“Ohh!” she sounded out in wincing pain of empathy. Initially she wanted to smile and laugh, but the utter demise of the woman and the rip of her clothing, the swearing, all made her think otherwise and she covered her mouth to hide the initial giggles. Instead, like a giraffe, Leeta stood up in a slow wide-legged manner. After a quick brush of her butt of any sand that had been put there, she charged down the grass hill to help up the thin woman. Leeta’s blackened dress made her very hard to see in the twilight but now that she was here, her long fingers wrapped about Firenze’s arms and pulled with what little strength she had. To the woman’s cursing she kicked the loose stone, “Darn semi-dormant loose stones, lying in wait to trip people... Are you okay lady?”

She would reach out to brush the woman’s obviously frazzled hair after the event and hopefully cheer her up with a smile, although she didn’t know if it would work. Leeta was a strange one to look at. Her upperlip curved upwards with her large front teeth and overbite making her seem like a very smiley person. She had tattoos all over her body, even down her bosom could be seen the edges of them as her dress’s V-neck dipped down. She had very large beautiful eyes but there was dirt smudges on her face here and there, and her hair was floppy like it had sat in the sun all day and had died many hours ago. Overall though, she seemed courteous at least, helping up the woman.


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Other's Words -- My Words -- My Thoughts

[Firenze]

Foot steps were heard before she saw the small slender woman coming her direction. Firenze hadn’t seen her until she was almost upon her. Dark hair and a dark dress hid most of her features but she could see that she was almost as tall as she with smooth milk white skin. Tattoos covered pieces of the skin in decoration. She made a joke at the stone that Fire had tripped over, a half laugh and a corner of Fire’s mouth came up in response.

Slim delicate fingers wrapped around her arm in an attempt to help Fire up. She didn’t brush the hand off but began to push herself up, leaving the hand where it was. At her full height she was only a few inches taller than the other woman. The hand that had helped her up reached out and tried to smooth the mess of waves that was sticking out from Firenze’s head. A small smile came across the delicate face.

Golden eyes watched large brown ones, “Thank you for your help.” Bending over slightly, a hand to dust of her scratched knees, she sighed in frustration, inspecting the rips in her pants to see how much damage was actually done. It wasn’t near as bad as she had previously thought, but they would definitely need a repair. Fingers picked little pieces of rocks from the small openings.

“I suppose I’m not very coordinated today or something,” a small laugh escaped her lips, trying to play off the situation even though she was still quite frustrated under her smile. It really was the icing on the cake of the day. Bringing herself back to full height, the other woman’s own smile revealed a curve of the lip in the center and two teeth showing. It was not like any other smile that Fire had ever seen but it was somehow… cute.

A rove of the eyes over the figure in front of her showed a frame considerably smaller than hers, which made Fire want to feed her until she put some weight on. Jagged cut bags met jagged cut black hair. Over all her appearance was quite attractive. The only thing that threw her off a little was the smudges on her face and dirt on her clothing. It reminded her of how she might’ve looked when she’d arrived in Zeltiva from Sunberth.

It gave her a feeling of wanting to care for her, to take her under her wing, but there was something else too under the layer of dirt, and awkward sort of attraction to the woman. It piqued her interest and made her want to get to the know her a little better, see what kind of person she was. In order to do that, she’d need to start with introductions, “I’m Firenze by the way.” Reaching a hand out, she waited for the woman to take hers.

Others | Firenze | Thoughts

[Leeta Snow]

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Perhaps her stone trick was a bit too devious she thought, so as she helped Firenze up she considered not putting it back in it’s loose spot. It had caused this lovely nice lady to trip and fall. How did she know she was nice? Because she laughed at her joke. Laughing at jokes meant you weren’t a snob, and right off the bat, it meant that she liked her a bit more than most who tripped there. The second bit was that she thanked her for the help. The pretty golden eyes were nearly lost on Leeta as she couldn’t see in the dark like some large cats could, yet the sun’s last bit of light managed to catch them for her and Leeta marveled in the accentuated gold in them. They almost seemed like a liquid as they were shown to her, but after an awkward moment of staring passed, Leeta snapped out of it as the woman bent down to brush her knees. She whipped her own hair back behind her ears and said, “Not a problem, sorry that had to happen to you.”

She winced a bit at the pants and the rips in them. She felt guilty for that a bit as the woman picked rocks out of the openings. The worst part was that Leeta even kind of looked guilty, as if it was really her fault. Trying to hide this fact she nodded slightly to the woman’s guessing that she wasn’t coordinated.

“It’s okay. I trip constantly. This little latch here catches this latch here.” she pointed from one boot to the other and how the latches were near the front of the boots. How they managed to hook themselves on each other was a mystery, but she managed it all too often. Perhaps because when the walked she had an awkward gait and when turning her legs, they came in close proximity of each other and then the latches would catch. She added, “If it does I’m on the ground with my butt in the air. Squirming because I can't reach the latches”

As Firenze studied her, the guilt of Leeta before her caused Leeta to look aside and study a bush. It was sure a green bush, even in the twilight. She squinted at it a brief moment and then looked back to Firenze when in her peripherals she seemed to be done, even if the whole transaction only took a moment. Upon looking back, Firenze introduced herself. It was another point in the woman’s book, then she wanted to shake hands. This lady was making all the right moves. Happily, Leeta reached out and shook her hand, taking in a deep breath and wobbling it gingerly. Blurting out, she said with enthusiasm, “I’m Leet...a ...I’m leeta. Leeta Snow. Nice to meet you.” She didn’t realize how quickly nervousness bubbled up into her throat and made her stutter. She felt ignorant all of a sudden and understood she was failing in common everyday communication. Her mind scanned for something, anything to say as she held the woman’s hand. Eventually upon letting it go, after holding it a bit too long, she asked“You are not hurt right? That looked really bad.” Slowly her grip loosened as she finished speaking.

Leeta returned her hand to her side and gave it a little wipe on her dress as if Firenze had sweaty hands or as if they were dirty or something. She then placed her arms behind her back and clasped them. Rocking slightly on the balls of her heels, she studied Firenze and what she was wearing. There was a hint now of disappointment on her face as generally people began at this point to realize she was a little strange and would be on their way; but she wanted to study the lady to remember her like this, friendly. Who knew what she'd be in a few moments. The look was subtle but there.


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Other's Words -- My Words -- My Thoughts

[Firenze]

Large brown eyes stared at Fire for a moment and she shifted from one foot to the other. The girl was kind of awkward but it suited her. She apologized for what happened, it was a bit weird since Fire felt like the woman didn’t really have anything to do with what had happened but it was still nice to hear, almost as though the other woman cared about her well being. It was a huge change from that of Sunberth.

She began pointing out the buckles on her boots and trying to make Fire feel better for tripping and falling, letting her know that she wasn’t alone in her clumsiness. A soft smile was given to Leeta, at ease with the woman who was trying so hard to help her brush her embarrassment off. “Thanks. It’s okay, I should’ve been paying attention. I’m not sure how you could prevent the buckles from catching…” Fire bent over slightly inspecting the boots, a finger to her lips as she puzzled how one buckle might catch the other to cause her to fall.

“Maybe it’s because the buckles are so large and your legs so little?” The words fell off her tongue before she could even think if it was rude or not, caught up in trying to figure out a possible solution to the woman’s problem. “I wonder if you could put smaller buckles on them?” Satisfied with her conclusion she righted her frame, a large smile showed pearly whites to the slight woman.

She’d stuttered through her introduction and it reminded Fire of when she was uncomfortable with something. If there was a situation that she was unfamiliar with and wasn’t sure how to act. Sympathy bloomed in her chest and she tried to think of a way to make the other woman more at ease, unsure if she was the cause of the anxiety or if she was that way in general.

“No, I’m not hurt, just a scrape on my knee. I think the pants took most of the damage,” she laughed softly, “looks like I’ve got something to try to work on if I don’t have anything else to do I suppose. Though I’m a terrible seamstress… so I’ll probably make the holes worse rather than better.” This brought forth a bubbling laughter, her terrible joke making her laugh even if the other woman didn’t. She hoped that the bad joke might help to ease the tension the other woman seemed to be feeling. Isn’t that what her job was? Try to make people feel comfortable and at ease? Why not practice on someone that appeared to need it. It would make it easier for Fire to notice if she was relaxing than someone who was more closed off with their emotions. With that thought she gathered the idea that the woman needed some fun.

Eyes flicked down as hands were wiped on the skirt, almost as though she were nervous. Dirt and grime were caked into the woven fabric. Mussed hair was about her head. Dirt smudges adorned the cheeks. Fire’s eyes roved over the woman’s figure, taking it all in. She was quite beautiful but it felt almost as though it were being hidden under her current state. The idea that had sprung to mind began to develop, taking shape. She didn’t know if it would be overstepping boundaries so she decided that maybe it would be best to feel the girl out first… and what better way to relax than with a stiff drink.

“Would you like to get a drink with me? I’ve got a few hours left before I have to be somewhere.” Extending her hand for the girl to take so that she could lead her to the nearest watering hole. If the woman took it then she would lead her through the streets of Zeltiva, back from where she had come from toward the Kelp Bar. If she didn’t want a drink then she would suggest possibly going somewhere else to spend a few moments getting to know one another. A glance over at the docks told her that the man selling the smoked fish hadn’t closed up yet , so they could get something to eat and sit somewhere quiet.

Others | Firenze | Thoughts

[Leeta Snow]

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As Firenze examined her buckles she twisted a leg almost to hide behind another in shame at her embarrassment. Even more tense feelings came when she called her legs little. Leeta wondered if perhaps this lady was being nice to her so that in this instance she could not be ultimately rude to her. There was a hint of sadness behind Leeta’s face as she debated.

The woman’s smile was too genuine, too innocent to be like others who were mean to her. She decided that she’d give her another chance to make up, to which she did as she continued to speak to her and laugh about being a terrible seamstress. Leeta pushed aside her worries, put her best foot forward, and tried some conversation, hoping that she wouldn’t turn this topic into another insult against her. It certainly helped that she had a bubbly laugh.

“Oh thats a shame- such pretty pants.” she cautiously with a smile, “I am a terrible seamstress myself. My garments are all frayed because I don’t know how really how to take care of them.” With that she would lift the edge of her dress upward to show Firenze an edge. It would be hard to see however in the dimming light.

Instead of rejection there was acceptance, and where there was often a rudeness of repulsion, there instead was a hand gesturing her to follow. IT was so unexpected that Leeta stood there a moment, almost fighting with herself to take the hand, which mostly looked as though she was just wriggling her arm back and forth. Inside she really wanted to take it, but she also hated Kelp beer. Perhaps she could get some spirits though? She hesitantly flopped an arm up into Firenzes hand and grasped it.

“I suppose it would be alright”, She beamed her a smile and then awkwardly moved to the girl’s side. She always would hold her sister’s hand when she walked so unless Firenze had other plans, she would hold onto it. As they moved toward the Kelp bar she sneered. “Uhh..I hate kelp beer. It’s sooo gross. I’d rather drink some spirits than that stuff. What about you? Do you like it? I know some people really do” It was so commonplace for people to be drunk around here that Leeta started to look around for drunks to make sure they didn’t go near them. She didn’t like it when people went through various stages of drunkenness. But her friend wanted a drink, so there she was. As they would make their way inside, Leeta would be slightly reserved, and very nervous of wild actions in the bar.


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Other's Words -- My Words -- My Thoughts

[Firenze]

The woman twisted her leg and hid her shoes, her embarrassment was a curious thing to Firenze. Her awkwardness was increasing from what she could tell and it made Fire wonder if she was making things better or worse, she wasn’t sure.

She commented on Fire’s pants and how her own clothing was worn. Her heart went out to the woman briefly and she wanted to help her, but didn’t know if it would increase the awkwardness. She also could barely afford the expensive clothes that she had, let alone pay for some for someone else. The way that Leeta had commented on her pants it sent an odd flash through Fire. She wasn’t sure what it was or why, it reminded her almost when a man would compliment her and he would feel flattered.

Was she flattered that the woman across from her liked her pants? Why? She liked that the comment had given her the flash of emotion, even though it was brief and wondered if she spent more time with her if it would happen again. Why this woman though? That’s what puzzled her. Was it something about the feeling of protectiveness that she felt toward her or was it the odd way that she moved as though unintentionally flirting. Even though it might not be what she was actually doing in her movements it had almost come across in that way.

When she said that she would go to the bar and took Fire’s hand a small zing went up her fingertips through her hand and along her arm, warming her. It was odd that it was actually a woman that was causing such a reaction and it baffled and intrigued Fire all at once. What was the point in being attracted to women? Was she? Or was it something else?

Dismissing the feeling, the other woman’s small hand entwined with hers, she listened as she commented on the taste of the beer. Giving a smile and a nod Fire commented, “I can understand that,” a chuckle, “I don’t mind the taste of it, but I’ve heard that it’s more of an acquired taste.” Her eyes turned up at the corners and a smile spread across her face, her head turned down toward her.

“We don’t have to go there. There are other places we could go and hang out, I would love the company.” Her eyes turned back toward the man at the stand with the fish. “Are you hungry then perhaps?” Slowly she walked toward the docks and the scent of the smoking fish. Wondering if maybe a walk on the docks, enjoying the sunset would be more of the woman’s taste. It felt almost as though she were trying to entertain a client for a moment and it caused the corner of her mouth to turn up at the thought.

Hand in hand the setting sun with it’s reds, pinks and purples painting across the sky, the dark creeping in at their backs, reflected off the water of the bay. The ships and smaller boats bobbed against the gentle current. The scent of the fish and seaweed wafted past their noses. It was an appealing scent to Fire and she wondered if the other woman enjoyed it as much as she.

“I like the kelp beer, it reminds me of taking a bite out of a freshly caught fish. That’s why I like it anyway, I don’t know why others like it. Although it is certainly potent and my tolerance isn’t that high so I can usually only drink a few before I need to go home, so I try not to drink too much if I do, otherwise I don’t have much of a night after that,” she laughed at her own expense knowing that she had become somewhat of a drinker even though she still couldn’t quite drink that much.

“I suppose it’s a good thing that I’m a light drinker, it makes me a cheap date,” that comment had her chuckling a little harder because of the purpose of her job. Even though Leeta didn’t know exactly what she was it made her laugh because she wasn’t actually that cheap of a date.

Her stomach growled as her nose picked up the scent of the fish as they drew closer, “Mmm, that smells wonderful, don’t you think?” A smile for the woman as she glance down at her. She watched the soft chocolatey brown eyes, bangs ruffled in the breeze and her heart picked up a half tick. Diverting her eyes away from the woman, they shifted back toward the sun as she leaned against the rail. The questions tried to rise again and she pushed them back.

“I think there is a fountain that is nearby if you’d like we could go and get some food and sit there? Or we could go down to the beach and watch the tide come in? That’s one thing I love about being here… there’s actually quite a lot to do. You can never really get everything done that you’d like in one day.” A glance back toward the woman, a smile on her face, she waited. She wanted the woman to decide, it had almost started to become important to Fire. If the other woman chose then maybe she could feel more comfortable with her and feel more in control of the situation.

Others | Firenze | Thoughts

[Leeta Snow]

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There was little to no sensation coursing up Leeta’s hand, much unlike her wild-eyed companion. Leeta was very girly when it came to friendship, often touchy-feely. The only thing that ever made her reserved was the abuse she had taken as a girl and teenager. Even now people reviled her presence in their town if they had any inclination as understanding who she was.

“I've heard that it is an acquired taste too. But I don’t think I’ve acquired it yet” she said jokingly.

As they paused and food was suggested, Leeta nodded with a much more pleasing look on her face. The upturned upper lip of hers curled down as her lips stretched out and made a beautiful smile.

“I don’t think I’ve ever said I’m not hungry. And I’d much rather have food than Kelp beer on my empty stomach.”

As Firenze would agree, it would have seemed that she made a tactical decision for the better, as Leeta’s personality changed from hesitation, to joy. A laugh came out of Leeta’s nasal passage coupled with a snort at Firenze’s joke about being a light drinker and being a cheap date, though it was for a different reason she was laughing from what Firenze was. In an animated way, she spoke with enthusiasm, switching from what almost seemed like a dark and gloomy girl, to a normal kind human being.

“I actually love fish, especially freshly caught...oh my gosh!” she rolled her eyes in excitement. “It is so much better fresh. When it is old and stingy, I don’t like it at all, but when it is fresh, it’s one of my favorite foods. It's easily three times better than fish from stalls and market. But as for kelp beer, I just can’t drink fish. I mean...I personally like hard alcohol a bit more than beer anyways, so that part of it I guess agrees with me if anything, but I'd rather not to be perfectly honest."

Leeta’s free hand rubbed on her belly, which also let out an audible growl, quite possibly loud enough for Firenze to hear it. “Well, I’m all for the beach. I love watching the waves and having the feel of sand on my feet. It makes me feel like I’m part of nature I suppose. And I grew up surrounded in nature a bit, so it's a welcome feeling.”

With both in agreement of the plan, Leeta would gladly move hand in hand with Firenze toward the cart. When they got there she would let go and pull the dress at her waist to reach for the pocket in it. Out came a little pouch and she paid for a fish on a stick, then would even go so far as to pay for Firenze’s meal.

“Here, this is for hers. You can keep what is left over.” She smiled brightly to her new friend and then took her fish on a stick off to the side to wait for Firenze’s order. As she was busy doing that, Leeta moved to an elevated bit of turf near someone’s yard and sat on the risen stonework there.

A little ‘mew’ was heard coming from behind her and an alley cat had come out of the bushes to beg for some food. Taking a little bit of the fish off the stick, she held it out for the cat to smell it and it did a sort of penguin stance. Leeta then tossed the fish in her fingers a couple feet away, letting the cat chase after it a little, like it was a game, and then if Firenze was ready, she would push off the half wall and head with her toward the fountain. "Hopefully that let the poor cat live another day without starving fully."

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Other's Words -- My Words -- My Thoughts

[Firenze]

It was decided then as the other woman spoke of not liking Kelp beer, probably more for the better as Fire had been drinking quite a bit the last few months. Maybe it was the liberating feeling of leaving Sunberth or running into people that she had been acquaintances with and developing on those friendships. Maybe it was the meeting of new people and having the feeling of starting her life over again.

Leeta had decided to get the fish on the docks and Firenze was perfectly okay with that. Her stomach always agreed with eating. The decision did turn around the ambience. Fire watched as Leeta’s features lit up and she began to speak. A smile crept across her face as she watched the woman. Her eyes flicked to her stomach as Leeta rubbed it and announced that she preferred the meats over the beer. Fire refrained from chuckling at the woman, not wanting to offend her.

They made their way over to the vendor, almost everything had been put away but for a few last skewers of fish. The sun was setting in the background and it appeared that although he was grateful for a few last customers he was ready to be done for the day and head home.

Fire had spoken to him around a half bell prior and she could tell that his mood had shifted. Leeta had handed over her coin as Fire was digging into her purse to get the needed coin for the fish. Looking up she noticed that he was handing over two skewers with the fish and that the other woman had paid for their meal. “Thank you,” she smiled to the woman, “it sure smells tasty doesn’t it?”

Leeta spoke of going to the beach to enjoy the sunset and watch the waves and Fire was in agreeance. It sounded like a relaxing way to end the night, even better as it appeared she was going to have some company to enjoy it with before she had to go back to work for the evening. Turning she noticed that Leeta had moved back and was standing near a bush, bent over as a cat was running away with a piece of her fish in it’s mouth.

Grease dripped down onto her hand from the fish as she took a bite into the soft flesh. The taste was quite enjoyable and a sigh came from her lips as she enjoyed the flavor. Speaking around the food in her mouth, making their way slowly toward an area near the water where they could sit, “This is really good, probably a better choice than getting drunk,” giving a soft laugh she sank her teeth into the fish for another bite.

“That was nice of you to share your food with the cat. Almost makes you wonder if it belongs to someone.” She watched the cat as it moved away from them while they walked and rounded a corner, prize in mouth. It reminded her of when she would get a fresh kill, the satisfaction of having a meal. Fire could sympathize with the small feline and wondered how difficult it would be to get food in the city as opposed to going into the wildlands nearby and trying to catch it. It would be difficult just the same but in different aspects.

Reaching the edge of the sand she began pulling of the high heels that she wore to carry them, “You said that you grew up in nature? How so? Have you lived here your whole life then?” Waves lapped at the ground nearby, an outcropping of rocks appeared to be a suitable place to sit and enjoy the rest of their meal.

Others | Firenze | Thoughts